Shawn Says: Spotlight on New Releases May 18, 2011

In which Shawn looks at the New Releases and lets you know which books she is most excited about!

1) Rocketeer Adventures #1

I was super impressed with the quality of the first issue of this mini-series. Everyone involved has immense fondness for Dave Stevens and his work on Rocketeer and you can tell that they poured their all into it. The first story is written and drawn by John Cassaday with colors by Laura Martin (who re-colored Rocketeer for the complete collection that IDW released last year). I loved it, especially the ending. Betty is a great character and I Cassaday handled her very well. I also enjoyed the Mike and Laura Allred story and how it played with Cliff’s love of flying. Kurt Busiek and Michael Kaluta tell the final story that centers on Betty as she writes to Cliff while he is away at war. Kaluta’s art is beautiful and Busiek’s story is sweet. In addition to the three stories there are two pin-ups, one by Mike Mignola and one by Jim Silke. This book is perfect for Rocketeer fans and those looking to get a taste of the magic that Dave Stevens brought to the world.

2) Li’l Depressed Boy #4

I think we have all felt like LDB at some point or another. Li’l Depressed Boy a sweet, melancholy comic that will appeal to fans of autobiographical Indie comics. That isn’t to say that this is autobiographical but it fits into that vein of emotionally driven stories. It is a slice-of-life book where the main character just happens to be this stuffed doll thing. It reminds me of Joe Hill’s short story Pop Art which is about an inflatable boy. I was pleased to see that it will now be an ongoing series! I look forward to getting depressed each month thanks to S. Steven Struble and Sina Grace.

3) Batman Gates of Gotham #1

I picked this up because it had Scott Snyder’s name on it. Turns out that he worked on the story with Kyle Higgins and Higgins did the dialogue. All in all it seems like a cool story that tells some of the history of Gotham City and brings that into the modern day.  I really enjoyed Trevor McCarthy’s art in this book. I’m not familiar with McCarthy’s work but I may have to get more acquainted with it. It has a very animated quality to it. I definitely plan on buying the rest of this five part mini-series as it comes out.

Best of the Free: Shawn's Top 5 FCBD Offerings

In which Shawn discusses her favorite FCBD books from 2011!

1) Captain America/Thor The Mighty Fighting Avengers

Captain America and Thor get swept back to Camelot and must defeat a familiar foe if they hope to return to their own time. Chris Samnee’s art and Matt Wilson’s colors are spectacular. Roger Langridge’s story is fun and action packed. It is the perfect gateway comic that will lead kids and adults to discover other fun Captain America and Thor stories.

2) Loose Ends/ICE flip-book

Loose Ends is scheduled to come out in July (which is only a couple months away) and I must say that all the previews and sneak-peeks of this book look amazing. I am super excited to see what Jason Latour, Chris Brunner and Rico Renzi have created. The ICE preview is a really interesting take on the typical cop drama story. Doug Wagner and Jose Holder make a great team. Holder is able to keep up with all the action Wagner throws at him.  12-Gauge has some great looking books coming out this year!

3) Oni Press Rated Free for Everyone and Spontaneous

Oni Press had two great selections available for FCBD. The first is their all-ages book, Rated Free For Everyone. It had two stories, Sketch Monsters by Joshua Williamson and Vinny Navarrete and Power Lunch by J. Torres and Dean Trippe. Both were great but I think Power Lunch was my favorite. It is about a boy who gets super powers from the foods he eats. Spontaneous was Oni’s not-all-ages FCBD book. People are spontaneously combusting and it is up to two young kids to figure out this mystery. Joe Harris’s story has me hooked and I look forward to seeing more moody art from Brett Weldele.

4) The Dark Crystal/Mouse Guard flip-book

The Dark Crystal story was an excellent preview to the original graphic novel which will be hitting stands late this year. I was pleased with the stylized art in this book. It has a strong digitally painted look to it but somehow it worked. The Mouse Guard story was fantastic. I love the way David Petersen is expanding upon this universe and telling character’s back-stories. This flip-book also contained an all-new Return of the Dapper Men story which is a hint at things to come in the next graphic novel that Jim McCann and Janet Lee are working on. There was also a preview of A Tale of Sand. Archaia is turning the feature-length screenplay Jim Henson was working on with Jerry Juhl into an original graphic novel and it is due in September. This flip-book is a fun preview things to come from Archaia.

5) Green Lantern/Flashpoint Special Edition

I was able to pick up the HeroesCon variant of this FCBD book. If you were lucky enough to snag a copy you can bring it to HeroesCon for a free gift (limit one per person)! The Green Lantern story in this book was a reprint of the second part of the Secret Origin storyline. It was a good introduction to the character and will make for a nice bridge for movie fans to jump into the comics. There was also a preview to the mega-crossover event Flashpoint. Wow there are a bunch of tie-ins that go along with that mini-series.

Runners up: John Stanley’s Summer Fun, Walt Disney’s Mickey Mouse by Floyd Gottfredson, Criminal Macabre/Baltimore flip-book, Avatar The Last Airbender/ Star Wars The Clone Wars flip-book, The Amazing Spider-Man.

Shawn Says: Spotlight on New Releases May 4, 2011

In which Shawn looks at the New Releases and lets you know which books she is most excited about!

1) Tiny Titans TP Field Trippin’

Aw Yeah Titans! I seriously adore this book and everything about this book. Art Baltazar and Franco are magical together. I love the characters, the coloring, the play-on-words, the paper. Everything. Tiny Titans is perfect for young fans and old fans. It is a great book to read with your kids to introduce them to the world of superheroes at a young age. This book is incredible playful and silly. It is a perfect escape from some of the other darker comics out there. Every now and again you need a breath of fresh air and Tiny Titans is a cool summer morning.

2) Edge of Doom #5

There is absolutely nothing wrong with dark and twisted books, I personally like to mix it up now and again. So if you are looking for something a little more mature than Tiny Titans allow me to introduce to you Edge of Doom. The first four issues of this series were basically one-shots that didn’t have any connecting story threads. All of that changes in the fifth issue. Writer Steve Niles throws us for a loop and completely changes the entire direction of the series. And I loved it! I really enjoyed the way this series wrapped up. I love cheesy horror and that is exactly the elements that he played up in this issue. Kelley Jones’s art was dead on in this issue (and the entire series for that matter). I love his monsters. His art was great on both the close-ups and on the wide-angle shots.

3) Delirium’s Party A Little Endless Storybook

Delirium’s Party is a follow up to The Little Endless Storybook (which was re-released this week also). I am a sucker for anything Sandman so I naturally had to pick up Delirium’s Party. I love the fun cover design and feel of the book and the way it looks like a children’s book. Jill Thompson’s watercolors are beautifully rendered. She puts so much detail into each page that you really have to slow down in order to take it all in. It is a fun and cute story.

Shawn Says: Spotlight on New Releases April 27, 2011

In which Shawn looks at the New Releases and lets you know which books she is most excited about!

1) Remake Special

In Remake Special we continue the misadventures of our hero, Max Guy, as he attempts to defeat the Doo Doo Monster. I thoroughly enjoyed this book, maybe even more than Remake vol 1. The first volume is incredible frantic and spontaneous. It was a fun read and I burned through it in one sitting but at times it felt like it jumped around a lot. In the Special there is one story and cartoonist Lamar Abrams seems to take his time to craft an extended narrative. There is still plenty of action and it is still spontaneous, but it is more controlled and thus the storytelling is stronger. The art in both is just as strong. Abrams is a beautiful and visceral artist. His books are filled with heart, emotion and sound effects. Upkick! I highly, HIGHLY recommend both Remake vol 1 and Remake Special. Both are available for purchase through your local comic book store or from the AdHouse website!

2) Action Comics #900

All the “negative” “press” this book has been getting is ridiculous. I enjoyed this issue as a whole despite the fact that I only bought it to get closure on the Black Ring storyline. I must admit that it didn’t end the way I wanted it to, but the ending shouldn’t have surprised anyone (spoiler alert?). The back-and-forth between Supes and Lex was really well done. Paul Cornell has done a great job getting into the psyche of Lex Luthor. The back-ups were good, though some were better than others. Richard Donner and Derek Hoffman’s storyboard was a fun departure from the typical format of comic storytelling. Damon Lindelof and Ryan Sook’s story was poignant and sad. I admit that I am not too terribly interested in the whole Doomsday but that didn’t take anything away from the story

3) Rasl #10

Jeff Smith’s science-fiction/crime-thriller comes out far too infrequently for my tastes. However, when it finally does hit the shelves it always knocks my socks off! I do wonder if the overall story will read better in trade. I’m sure some of the slower issues read better in context to the pacing of the story as a whole. That being said, I don’t think I would be able to switch from single issues to trades. I love getting my hands on even a small chunk of the story. I do plan on reading them all at once in preparation for the final issue (whenever that may be, hopefully not anytime soon).

Press Release: ADHOUSE BOOKS and MyDigitalComics Partner Again for Digital Release

Eisner Nominated Afrodisiac Is Available For Purchase and Download at MyDigitalComics.com

April 27, 2011– Fort Wayne, IN – MyDigitalComics (MDC) and AdHouse Books are coming together again this week to offer AdHouse’s Afrodisiac to MDC customers.  The fan favorite graphic novel by creators Jim Rugg and Brian Maruca is available in three different formats through MyDigitalComics—in MDC’s onsite page flipper, and as a download in both .PDF and .CBZ formats.

Originally released in very early 2010, Afrodisiac has been heralded by fans and critics alike as one of the best graphic novels of the year and has been nominated for both Eisner and Glyph Awards. “We are happy to offer Afrodisiac to the readers and users of MyDigitalComics. From the beginning, our goal has been to make Afrodisiac accessible to readers in the format and distribution channels they prefer. We believe MyDigitalComics offers us an opportunity to better serve our readers and to continue to connect with new ones,” said creators Rugg and Maruca in a joint statement.

In late 2010 AdHouse and MyDigitalComics offered Duncan The Wonder Dog with a huge amount of success, immediately making it one of the most popular titles available to MDC users. With a growing list of titles from publishers like AdHouse, Top Cow, Boom! Studios, Dynamite, Devil’s Due, and TwoMorrows, MyDigitalComics has been an emergent part of the digital comics market place by offering a wide array of titles in multiple formats that appeal to fans of all genres.  MDC is also part of the Discount Comic Book Service (DCBS) family, which also includes sibling store, InStockTrades. Discount Comic Book Service is one of the nation’s largest comics retailers.

Click to read more…

Click to read more ...