Dave's (Half) Dozen: Indy Comics

Continuing my look through the October Previews (for comics supposedly shipping in December), here are a half dozen indy comics that I feel are worth your attention:


DinoWars: Jurassic War of the Worlds #1
(Antarctic, $3.50, p. 222)
Ros Espinosa's latest has a race of intelligent dinosaurs returing to Earth after 65 million years away--and they're pissed!



Cthulhu Tales: "The Rising"
(Boom!, $6.99, p. 248)
The first Cthulhu Tales was a good deal of fun, and there's no reason to expect that this second offering won't be more of the same.



Mr. Stuffins #1
(Boom!, $3.99, p. 250)
Another piece of high-concept pop-action from Boom!: A teddy bear secret agent!



Code #1
(Guardian Line, $2.99, p. 286)
One of three new Christian-themed titles debuting from new publisher Guardian Line this month, Code could be the best of the lot. A baddd-a$$ techno-sage in a trench coat and fedora with a comprehensive knowledge of saced writings. "Evil had best sit down and shut up." Indeed.



Maintenance #1
(Oni, $3.50, p. 309)
Jim Massey & Robbi Rodriguez bring what looks to be a fun comic about a couple of janitors at an evil science think tank.



The 3 Geeks: Jim's Jerky!
(3 Finger Press, $2.00, p. 318)
Rich Koslowski takes a break from 'serious' graphic novels to come back to his original series of three comic-loving guys.



I covered mainstream comics a few days ago. I'll have the collects and graphic novels picks in a day or two.

Minicomics Monday

If I were a better comics blogger, I would have gone to SPX this weekend and come back with an armload of new mini comics to tell you about. But alas I didn't (although one of my friends did so I'll have pile to read when he's finished with them!) Or at the very least I would have gone to the Masters of American Comics exhibit in NYC and stopped off at Jim Hanley's and taken a photograph of their minis section. But alas, that twas not to be either.

Instead, I have a comic I picked up at last year's SNAP to tell you about:

Cornelia Cartoons #5 is by Ohio cartoonist Kel Crum. It consists of one 8-page story and four 2-page stories centering around young Cornelia as she interacts with the world of grown-ups. The energy in these comics reminds me somewhat of Scott Roberts' Patty Cake. Crum's drawing style is not sophisticated, but it fits the stories well and adds to their charm. I know there's at least an issue six in existance, so hopefully she'll be at SNAP again this year so I can pick up a copy of the new issue.

(Crum does not appear to have a Website, though you can try emailing her to check on availability.)

New Library Comics: Week of October 9, 2006

Here are the comics we added to our library collection last week:


Akamatsu, Ken. Love hina /Los Angeles : Tokyopop, c2002- vols. 1-5

Blab! (Princeton, Wis.) Blab! /[Chicago, IL : Monte Comix Productions, c1986- nos. 5-7

Buzz (Princeton, Wis.) Buzz. /Princeton, WI : Kitchen Sink Press, 1990- nos. 1-3

Dementia. Bondage obsession. /Seattle, WA : Eros Comix, c1999- no. 1

Feazell, Matt. Board of superheros /Detroit, MI : Not Available Comics, c1994-

Feazell, Matt. Understanding minicomics : the art and science of stick figures /Detroit, MI : Not Available Comics, c1993.

Garside, Katiejane. Indigo vertigo /Berkeley, Calif. : Image Comics, c2005.

Jacobson, Sid. The 9/11 report : a graphic adaptation /New York : Hill and Wang, c2006.

Kang-Suk, Hyun. Heaven above heaven /Los Angeles : Tokyopop, c2005- vol. 1

Kleid, Neil. Brownsville /New York : NBM, c2006.

Oh! Great. Silky whip /Seattle, Wash. : Eros Comix, c2002- vol. 1

Ottaviani, Jim. Not available science : can you spot the celebrity inventors?? /Ann Arbor, MI : G.T. Labs ; Detroit Michigan : Not Available Comics, c1998.

Ronin, Tenjiku. Lust /Seattle, WA : Eros Comix, c2002- vol. 1

Sacco, Joe. Soba /Montreal, Quebec : Drawn & Quarterly, c1998.

Stephens, Jay. The land of Nod. /Montreal, Quebec, Canada : Black Eye Productions, c1996- no. 1

Townsend, Stephen J. The hood : a change from within. /Los Angeles, Calif. : South Central Comics, 1993- no. 1

Yamamoto, Naoki, 1960- Dance till tomorrow /San Francisco, Calif. : Viz Communications, c1998- vols. 4-7

Monkey Covers

Sunday is Monkey Covers day here at YACB. Because there's nothing better than a comic with a monkey on the cover.

Oh no! Look out! It's a giant gorilla jumping out of the cover of 1954's Picture Scope Jungle Adventures #7!

(Standard disclaimer about 3-D gorillas not really being monkeys applies.)

Image courtesy of the GCD. Click on the image for a larger version.

Dave's Dozen: Mainstream Comics

Each month (usually...) I go through Previews to highlight twelve items worthy of attention in three categories: Mainstream Comics, Indy Comics, and Collections/GNs.

First up for the October Previews (comics supposedly available in December) are the following dozen mainstream comics picks:


The Bakers Meet Jingle Belle
(Dark Horse, $2.99, p. 23)
Sometimes you don't even know that something will make you happy until you hear that it exists, at which point you then realize that there's at least one reason to go on living for the next couple of months. Kyle Baker drawing a Jingle Belle story--that'll do it for me!



All Star Superman #7
(DC, $2.99, p. 65)
Morrison! Quitely! Bizarro! That's pretty much all you need to know. Well, that and the almost certainty that given the delays this comic will not actually be coming out in December. Maybe by March?



52 week 33
(DC, $2.50, p. 71)
Phil Jimenez draws a special Christmas issue featuring Batwoman. And Mark Chiarello draws the origin back-up story. Should be a good looking comic.



Justice Society of America #1
(DC, $3.99, p. 80)
Not much of a reason to start over at a new #1, excepting for the name change to bring it in line with the new JLA title. But I have to say that I'm pleased with the large team line-up. I wonder who the new Liberty Belle is...?



Manhunter #26
(DC, $2.99, p. 84)
Kate Spencer returns from hiaitus to battle a deformed Wonder Woman. With a second trade collection and membership in the new Birds of Prey, DC is giving this book the push it needs; now it's you job to buy it!



The Spirit #1
(DC, $2.99, p. 88)
Yeah, I'm going into this with a bit of trepidation with the rest of y'all; but I'm hoping that Darwyn Cooke can capture the right, um, spirit of The Spirit.



Justice League Unlimited #28
(DC, $2.25, p. 94)
It's just not Christmas without the Phantom Stranger, now is it?



Fables #56
(DC/Vertigo, $3.50, p. 117)
An extra-long issue that promises to answer the question: Is Santa Claus a Fable? I'm guessing no, because fables aren't supposed to interact with the 'real world,' and Santa does all the time. But we'll just have to wait for the issue and see for ourselves.



Marvel Holiday Special
(Marvel, $3.99, p. M39)
Roger Langridge does a Fin Fang Four holiday story. That's worth your $4 right there.



Marvel Adventures Fantastic Four #19
(Marvel, $2.99, p. M40)
You probably flipped right by the little quarter-page spot for this comic and didn't realize that Kano is drawing this issue. Yup, Kano!



newuniversal #1
(Marvel, $2.99, p. M43)
In the realm of things I never figured I'd see is Warren Ellis doing a reimagining of Marvel's New Universe.



NextWave: Agents of H.A.T.E. #11
(Marvel, $2.99, p. M47)
I chuckle every time I see this cover. Mark Millar Licks Goats. Heh.

YAFL2: Week 5

Here are the results from Week 5 of Yet Another Fantasy League 2:


Flex Mentallo 56
Kickers Inc. 62

Power Pack 66
www.rickgebhardt.net 68

The Defenders 50
Star City Archers 72

Delphi Oracles 86
Superteam 26


Current Standings:

   Team                 Record  Pct    Points  Streak
   -------------------- ------  -----  ------  ------
1. Kickers Inc.         5-0-0   1.000  357.00  W-5
2. Star City Archers    3-1-1    .700  346.00  W-1
3. Delphi Oracles       3-1-1    .700  292.00  W-1
4. Flex Mentallo        3-2-0    .600  280.00  L-2
5. www.rickgebhardt.net 2-3-0    .400  286.00  W-2
6. Superteam            2-3-0    .400  203.00  L-1
7. The Defenders        1-4-0    .200  306.00  L-3
8. Power Pack           0-5-0    .000  278.00  L-5

Week 6 Games:


Superteam (2-3-0)
vs.
Kickers Inc. (5-0-0)

Flex Mentallo (3-2-0)
vs.
www.rickgebhardt.net (2-3-0)

Power Pack (0-5-0)
vs.
Star City Archers (3-1-1)

Delphi Oracles (3-1-1)
vs.
The Defenders (1-4-0)


Good luck to all!

In my other leagues: I lost 68-62 in my friends and family league, dropping to 3rd place (3-2-0); Lost my third straight--63 to 58--in my pulib league, falling to 5th place (2-3-0); and scored 254.85 points in my Pass & Kick league (now in 5th place).

Fantasy and Science Fiction/Theory Reading Group

Last night was the book selection meeting for the Fantasy and Science Fiction/Theory Reading Group to which I belong. Once a year we meet to decide what the books will be for the coming year; basically everyone brings a few recommendations, makes pitches, and then we vote.

It's become a tradition to use one selection for a graphic novel; two years ago we did The Dark Knight Returns, and last year we did Seaguy & We3. This year at my suggestion the group has opted for Charles Burns's Black Hole, which I think will make for a very interesting discussion.

The other (non-graphic) novel readings for the year are:

Kazuo Ishiguro, Never Let Me Go
Kim Stanley Robinson, The Years of Rice and Salt
Toni Morrison, Beloved
Italo Calvino, If on a winter's night a traveler
Maureen F. McHugh, China Mountain Zhang
Philip K. Dick, Flow My Tears, the Policeman Said (also my suggestion)
Russell Hoban, Riddley Walker
Douglas Adams, The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy
Kelly Link, Magic for Beginners
Clive Barker, Weaveworld

Looks like an interesting mix of books.