Dave's Dozen: Indy Comics

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


Phonogram #1
(Image, $3.50, p. 136)

"Real"-world magic collides with the worlds of indy rock and photography. Keiron Gillen's story looks intriguing and the art by Jamie McKelvie has an attractive David Hahn-like quality.



Strangers in Paradise #84
(Abstract Studios, $2.95, p. 206)

Is anybody but me still reading this in floppy form? Actually I'm not really either, as I tend to let these stack up and then read a chunk all at once. I guess I should be waiting for the trade, but it's too late to start now...



Dork #11
(Slave Labor, $2.95, p.218)

Yeah sure it takes Evan Dorkin forever to create a new issue of Dork. But it's always worth it, as Dorkin packs every page with the funny. Guaranteed laughs.



Rex Libris #5
(Slave Labor, $2.95, p. 218)

More densely packed librarian humor from James Turner.



Gold Digger #77
(Antarctic Press, $2.99, p.222)

Little Tiffany has her first adventure as she teems up with one of the Peebos to explore a hidden chanber in her Aunt Gina's lab. Fred Perry really shines when he does these one-offs between epics.



Athena Voltaire: Flight of the Falcon #1 - Ape Edition
(Ape Entertainment, $4.50, p. 224)

Another refugee from the Speakeasy collapse resurfaces. This combines the first (and only) Speakeasy issue with the unpublished second issue, allowing new readers to get in on the ground floor.



The Origin of Sparky One Shot
(Awakening Comics $2.99, p. 244)

A jam comic featuring the likes of Dave Sim, Shannon Wheeler, Bob Burdon and James Kochalka. Consider it an autograph book for APE or SPX.



Whisper #1
(Boom! Studios, $3.99, p. 247)

The First comics 80s rennaisance continues. This time it's Steven Grant's turn; he brings back his Whisper character, but it's a re-imagining, not a continuation.



The Enigma Cipher #1
(Boom! Studios, $3.99, p. 247)

Boom! seems to be turning out quality mini-series with alarming regularity, and this new one--which ties WWII code-craft with modern-day conspiracies--looks like it could be another enjoyable outing.



Delphine #1
(Fantagraphics, $7.95, p. 285)

The upscale Ignatz comic line continues. This time it's Richard Sala's turn as he retells the story of Snow White.



Thieves & Kings #49
Thieves & Kings Presents: The Walking Mage #1
(I Box, $3.50, $9.95, p. 293)

Despite Mark Oakley's annoucnement in the last issue of T&K that the series would me morphing into T&K Presents, it appears that he's taking a different tack. The regular T&K comic continues the narrative with the origin of sorceress Soracia, while The Walking Mage is a full-color 64-page digest-size comic collection of the Webstrip about magician Quinton.



Shark-Man #1
(Thrill House, $3.99, p. 328)

Another instance of a Hollywood big-wig slumming in comics. But this one has a cool-sounding story--a condemned prisoner is forced to protect a 1930s-era utopian society from organized crime--and art by Steve Pugh. So worth a look.




It's a baker's dozen this time out! A couple days ago I highlighted mainstream comics. I'll have Collections & GNs in a few days.

YACB Bulletins

ITEM! In an editorial for the L.A. Times, comic writer Elliot S! Maggin compares Al Gore to Jor-El: "Look! Up in the sky ... It's Al Gore!"

ITEM! Phoebe Gloeckner went to the Salo Internacional del Comic
De Barcelona and put together a photo documentary of the trip.

ITEM! Bound By Law? Tales From the Public Domain is a free online comic about the perils of copyright for documentary filmmakers. Wired has an interview with the creators, Keith Aoki, James Boyle and Jennifer Jenkins.

Monkey Covers

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

On the cover of Magilla Gorilla #1, the title character opts for bananas over gumballs. Good monkey!

(Standard disclaimer about money-using 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 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 June Previews (comics supposedly available in August) are the following dozen mainstream comics picks:


Batman #656
Detective Comics #822
(DC, $2.99 ea., pp. 61-62)

Had I done a Dave's Dozen for May, I would have highlighted the debuts of the new Baman teams: Grant Morrison & Andy Kubert on Batman, and Paul Dini & J. H. Williams III on Detective. But since I didn't, I'll hightlight them here in their second issues. Both writers are known for their unique takes on Batman, and both artists have a well-deserved following. Should be good stuff!



Action Comics #842
(DC, $2.99, p. 66)

That's an eye-catching cover, and its got a definite silver age vibe. It'll be great to have a Superman comic that's actually fun again.



The Creeper #1
(DC, $2.99, p. 72)

Horror comics master Steve Niles takes a crack at perennial comic book loser The Creeper in a mini-series, with Justiniano along for the art. Can they suceed where so many before them have failed?



Jonah Hex #10
(DC, $2.99, p. 77)

The vastly underrated Phil Noto comes on board for the art in this issue. On nice thing about doing done-in-one tales is that it's easy to bring in a fill-in artists without interrupting the flow fo a story.



Manhunter #25
(DC, $2.99, p. 80)

Turns out that this won't be the final issue, as Manhunter has received a Spider-Girl-like reprieve. If we're lucky, the title will last 100 issues too. But you need to do your part, so buy this comic!



The Boys #1-2
(DC, $2.99 ea., p. 105)

Garth Ennis does his hating-super-heroes thing, all dark & twisted. Darick Robertson provides the art.



Agents of Atlas #1
(Marvel, $2.99, p. M23)

Jeff Parker brings back the golden age of Marvel. There's a robot, and a gorilla. How could I not get this comic?



Marvel Adventures Spider-Man #18
(Marvel, $2.99, p. M52)

Hey look, Peter David is writing all-new classic Spider-Man tales. Spider_man vs. Man-Thing in a battle of the hyphenates. If you're upset or whatever about recent developments in the web-slinger's life, you should be checking out retro tales.



CSI: Dying in the Gutters #1
(IDW, $3.99, p. 297)

This high concept CSI mini finds comic gossip Rich Johnston murdered at a Las Vegas comic convention, and plenty of real-life comic creators as suspects. I imagine that the CSI fans who pick this up will be mighty confused. I wonder if one of the guest stars will actually end up being the murderer?



Edgar Rice Burroughs' A Princess of Mars #1
(IDW, $3.99, p. 300)

Ted McKeever drawing an adaptation of Burroughs' John Carter? How odd and wonderful!



Look for the other two parts, Indy Comics & Collections/GNs, sometime soon.

Sound of Superman

Over at AOL Music you can listen to an audio stream of the entire Sound of Superman album. It's not bad.

Review: Jon Sable, Freelance: Bloodtrail

Jon Sable, Freelance: Bloodtrail
by Mike Grell
IDW, $19.99

IDW continues their revival of First Comics from the 1980s by bringing back Mike Grell and his signature comic Jon Sable, Freelance.

Jon is a children's book author by day and a mercenary by night (figurtively--he operates both identities during all times of the day), but as the story opens neither career is going very well. Haunted by his past and unsure of his place in the present world, Jon is sleepwalking through life, drunk and alone, until threats to the life of an old friend jolt him reluctantly back into action.

It's clear from reading this that Sable is--and always has been--a men's adventure novel in comic book form. Sable is a man's man, even when he's down on his luck. And the women, well, they're basically props to the story. But there are guns to shoot and knives to wield and bad guys to kill and demons from the past to overcome. It's straightforward genre writing.

Grell's art is attractive and full of energy, though sometimes the action seems a bit stiff. The pacing is dense at times, and Grell has a way of making a page or a spread seem both wide-open and busy at the same time. It certainly is a good looking book, and has a retro-80s First Comics feel; it's as though Grell is picking up where he left off.

Those looking for a blast from the past and/or a high-action men's adventure tale will find much to admire and enjoy from this new Jon Sable tale.

Rating: 3 (of 5)

New Library Comics: Week of June 5, 2006

Here are the comics we got in for our library collection last week:


Fies, Brian. Mom's cancer /New York : Abrams Image, 2006.

Newgarden, Mark. We all die alone : a collection of cartoons and jokes /Seattle, Wash. : Fantagraphics, 2005.

Sturm, James, 1965- Above and below : two stories of the American frontier /Montreal, Quebec : Drawn & Quarterly, 2004.