Well, not really. I'm just subbing in this week for Goblin.
As you may or may not have known, comics are out tomorrow due to Labor Day (yay delays!).
This week looks fairly low key...with the Secret Invasion and Final Crisis tie-ins kept to a minimum, thankfully.
Here are some books you should definitely keep an eye on!
Invincible Iron Man #5 The best Iron Man book out there. Matt Fraction is doing an amazing job integrating a lot of the film elements into current Iron Man continuity, creating a great starting point for new readers.
Spider-Man Loves Mary Jane #2 It's interesting that Terry Moore's book is way more engrossing than anything Brand New Day can put out. You should definitely check it out.
X-Men: Return of Magik #1 It's the return of Illyana! Get excited!
Detective Comics #848 Don't be fooled by the promise of R.I.P tie in. This book lies! Anyway, it's still a pretty good story that involves The Long Halloween's villain, Hush and his origins.
Manhunter #34 My bastion of hope in a sea of continuity confusion, Manhunter continues to deliver hassle-free characterizations and a coherent, engaging storyline. See DC? THIS is how to get readers hooked.
Secret Six #1 Gail Simone takes the helm in this new ongoing series. Because YOU demanded it. So if it sucks, it's your fault.
Titans #4 Wow. A new issue of Titans...what is that like, three months in between issues? At any rate, I hope the quality picks up on this title because I find the cast incredibly enjoyable.
Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Season Eight #18 Witness the comic that was inspired by the tv show that inspired the upcoming MMO. I'm sure someone will act angsty and quirky. Bonus points for displaying both.
Fringe #1 JJ Abrams next TV project has me all kinds of excited, so of course I'm looking forward to this prologue to the series! Check it out!
OK, so maybe Morrison won't do that in the next issue of Final Crisis, though the crazy factor is running high in that book...well, we can only hope!
I'm a sucker for all-ages books, so you can imagine how excited I am over DC's latest reveal, DCU: Elementary.
While no specifics have been mentioned, a few images have been revealed (see our gallery below) and boy do they reek of cute.
Rick Johnston, columnist at CBR, has this to say:
You know all that talk of the darkening of DC Comics? What with Marveldog Miracledog Wonderdog eviscerating two children's cartoon characters in "Teen Titans," and Warner Bros love of the darkness in "Dark Knight" and wanting it in the new "Superman" movie, the "JLA" movie, hell why not have a serial killing transvestite "Bugs Bunny" movie while we're at it?
If you need a break, some good news. "DCU Elementary" is an upcoming DC project, with all the bad guys and good guys of the DC Universe at school. Currently unscheduled, but it's good to go.
Couldn't agree more! Is it any wonder that Spider-Man Loves Mary Jane is currently the best Spidey book out there?
IDW Publishing has announced the debut of Presidential Material...a series of comic books that will explore the histories of both Barack Obama and John McCain.
You know, I applaud IDW for this approach...at least they're trying to grab the attention of people who normally wouldn't read up on the candidates.
IDW Publishing is pleased to present a unique venture in the history of comics publishing: a pair of graphic biographies featuring the presumptive Presidential candidates of the Democratic and Republican parties.
PRESIDENTIAL MATERIAL: BARACK OBAMA & PRESIDENTIAL MATERIAL: JOHN MCCAINtake advantage of one of the true American art forms, the comic book, to explore the histories of both presumptive nominees for the Democratic and Republican parties. These biographies are painstakingly researched and beautifully drawn depictions of the two men vying for what is arguably the most important job in the world: the Presidency of the United States of America!
I hope they talk about McCain's gamma radiation incident, or Obama's experiments with Gingold...THAT'S how you sell an election!
You can pre-order a copy (due October 8th) at IDW's website.
And our second new writer is none other than Jaffa!
What the hell does Jaffa mean? Good question...I'll let him introduce himself.
Jaffa may or may not be either an alien symbiote, or a delicious Euro snack-- which is odd as he's neither from space nor Europe. More importantly, he's an aspiring comic artist who takes an academic approach to the world of comics-- he uses terms like 'mood' and 'tone' when talking about indie rags, and says 'moar pl0x' to webcomics. He once had aspirations to take over the world, but when seeing how much competition there was decided to head the counter-movement. You're welcome to join. We have cake (maybe).
See? It's so simple, really.
Anyway, Jaffa will be helping us out with his art and webcomic skills, so keep an eye out for his stuff!
It's time to once again introduce you to one of our new writers! Dr. Lexicon will be our resident horror comic book expert and he will spend most of his time at the PK Lair creeping us the hell out.
Awesome!
Dr. Lexicon's origin is steeped in urban legend. Some say his parents were Wal-Mart cultists. Others claim he is a spectre from the deadlands and can be summoned by turning around 100 times while drinking a mocha latte in front of a comic store. While he doesn't deny these stories, Lexicon blames his horror obsession on his brother and the video for "Thriller." Students claim to see him haunting campus and teaching classes on pop culture and horror fiction. As his own cult following continues to grow, Dr. Lexicon's motives are unknown at this time. Getting his writing published has only increased his dark powers. What we do know is that he is addicted to comics, an addiction that began almost 20 years ago. A Marvel Zombie at the time, Lexicon only read Avengers West Coast and X-Men. Eventually, he discovered DC Comics. The addiction intensified from there. These days he reads horror comics to feed his undead hunger, but he still has a weakness for superheroes, especially Green Lantern, Flash, Hawkman, and The Legion.
There you have it!
Stay tuned for more blood and guts...and the introduction of our second brand spanking new writer!
And the looong week comes to a close! Thankfully, (most) of us in the States are rewarded with a three day weekend (I salute thee, Labor!) which means we get to cram in some reading from our backlog of comics.
I'll be checking out the latest DMZ trade, Volume 5: The Hidden War, as well as the first All Star Superman collection. Then it's time to finally check out what everyone is talking about with Invincible.
In terms of video games (because we do more than just read books, right?), I'll be making my way through Castle Crashers, the original Fable, and Fable Pub Games.
What about you folks? Any exciting plans for the weekend?
After a long absence from the site (due to a beyond hectic schedule and the fine act of balancing 4 jobs), I'm finally back!
We have some incredible things cooking up, including a PK exclusive interview with a top Marvel writer that our very own Sgt. Sausagepants conducted. Look for it next week!
We also have two new writers starting on Tuesday: Dr. Lexicon and Jaffa. One is an expert on horror comics and the other's a pretty talented artist (he'll be helping in sprucing up PK).
[Editor's Note: Elf Girl recently did a review for Prism Comics and we are cross posting here for your enjoyment.]
House of the Muses is the graphic novel version of the writings of Sappho and Alkaios, which follows a Spartan woman named Dika and her life and loves in one of the earliest lesbian soap operas. Pam Harrison, the writer and illustrator has taken the ancient writings and given them new life.
The story is told from a standpoint of an older Dika looking back on her life. As such, the story is told in vivid detail, capturing the full essence of her experiences. Even if there were not pictures to go along, the reader could imagine it well enough.
Want more? Read on after the jump!
Yikes. This week just blazed by for me! This weekend I will be re-reading the first Mouse Guard trade collection, as well as Neil Gaiman's Eternals mini-series. I'll also see if I can snag a copy of DMZ Volume 5 that just came out this week.
What about you folks? What will you be reading this weekend?
Sorry for the delay but I'm still suffering from PCCS (post comic-con syndrome). This week I will attempt to read the trade collection of Umbrella Academy as I play the hell out of Pixel Junk Eden on the Playstation Network. Who knew that the PS3 could offer a really good online experience? I also just watched Batman: Gotham Knight on Blu-Ray so expect to see a review soon!
Exhaustion is setting in at the moment, but I wanted to post about the overall Comic-Con experience before I collapse.
First, a huge thanks to the folks over at Prism for co-hosting our Saturday night mixer and to Nigel, the owner of Flicks! We had a really good turnout and had an amazing time! Thanks to everyone that showed up!
I hope you folks were able to enjoy the panels I blogged about! The Con was packed, and it was incredibly difficult to get into a lot of panels so I tried my hardest! I also had other obligations at the convention and Sgt. Sausagepants was, unfortunately, not armed with a laptop. Next year we should hopefully be better prepared.
The Emerging Voices panel on Saturday (which I could not blog about due to my actually being on the panel) went well! You can read a brief overview of it over at Prism.
We made a lot of new friends and met with fans of the site. It was fantastic! I also got to spend some time with our friends over at Comic Foundry; Editor-in-Chief Tim Leong and Senior Editor Laura Hudson. (That would be me in the photo).
When I told them I was from PK they reacted instantly with a "oh yeah we know you guys!" which made my day!
We also got a chance to speak to the following industry folks:
Jim McCann: Editor and Marketing Manager over at Marvel (who took some time to talk about how Northstar's death was not a commentary on the gay community)
Axel Alonso: Editor of the X-Men books
Greg Rucka: writer over at DC (Final Crisis: Revelations) "Oh Pink Kryptonite! Yeah I heard about you folks!"
Jose Villarrubia: artist, illustrator, and colorist. Frequent collaborator with Alan Moore
And of course, the folks from Prism: Brian Andersen (So Super Duper), Charles "Zan" Christensen (Mark of Aeacus), Sam Saturday (Load World Comics), Sean-Z (Myth), Tommy Roddy (Pride High), and many many more.
Review: Stormwatch #1
Stormwatch #1, the first of DC's new 52 to feature LGBT characters (before the reboot, at least) is out to add a new cosmic dimension to the post-Flashpoint universe. There isn't much to be said for our beloved broship yet (though the last page shows a handshake between Apollo and Midnighter and promises a "Big Bang"), but the issue is a great gauge for whether or not you'll want to stick with the series to see the romance purportedly unfold....
