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2010

Earlier this week in the mail I got Together, the new New Pornographers record. Not to brag, but it also came with a poster and a 7” I haven’t listened to yet. How is it? Pretty good. Not my favorite New Pornos record, unfortunately, but better than most things in the world. The great thing about a New Pornographers album is that there will always be at least a few brilliant uptempo power-pop tracks on it, and so the inevitable “Best Of” record is going to be EPIC.

So welcome to This Week in Comics, where every week is a comic and I totally listened to Together over and over while writing this one.

MONDAY

First Issues

Shadowhawk #1

(Dan Wickline/Tone Rodriguez/Steve Niles/Jim Valentino)

Shadowline/Image Comics

Ah, Shadowhawk, one of the smaller creations of the early Image Comics vanguard. One supposes that Jim Valentino wasn’t as big as the Liefelds, Lees, McFarlanes or even the Larsens of that era, so his creator-owned book didn’t quite take in the same way that Youngblood, WILDC.A.T.S., Spawn, or Savage Dragon did. In fact, I had no idea Shadowhawk was out of the picture. Excuse my ignorance, Internet.

Fans should be excited, while the rest of us should be horrified.

Here’s why: ‘90s nostalgia is slowly creeping up on us, I think. Audioslave’s literal Soundgarden-meets-Rage-Against-the-Machine stylings was a chilling portent of things to come, and now I hear that Stone Temple Pilots are releasing a comeback record soon. Did you people learn nothing from the first volume of Phonogram? What do you mean you didn’t read Phonogram?

TUESDAY

New Manga Day

Flower In a Storm Volume 1 TP

(Shigeyoshi Takagi)

Viz Media

First of all, I want to dress like the guy on the cover. He looks like Jarvis Cocker, and I’d buy every volume if this were about Jarvis. Ever read that Jamie Hewlett comic about Jarvis? It’s a fun little romp. Imagine that every month — or try to, since you probably haven’t read it.

Also, Flower in a Storm sounds fucking insane: a gun-toting 17-year-old bursts into a classroom and demands that a student becomes his wife — assuming he can catch her by 5:00pm tomorrow. Also, the girl has superpowers. I did not make that up.

WEDNESDAY

Mainstream Superhero Stuff

Brightest Day #1

(Geoff Johns/Peter J. Tomasi/Ivan Reis/Patrick Gleason/Adrian Syaf/Scott Clark/Joe Prado)

DC Comics

Someone at DC Comics has watched a bit too much Lost. All the solicitation copy for the upcoming issues of Brightest Day are exactly the same, and basically amount to: “There’s a mystery! Go read this book! Who cares what it’s about! It’s important!”

This kind of promotion strikes me as saying “Who cares what it’s about, you’re going to buy it anyway because it’s written by Geoff Johns so you know it’s important. I read the first issue and thought it was okay, but I need a bit more than “There’s a mystery!” to make me read this book. It’s like you don’t want to sell this book to anyone but hardcore DC obsessives.

THURSDAY

Not Quite Friday, but Still Exciting

Batman & Robin #12

(Grant Morrison/Andy Clarke/Scott Hanna)

DC Comics

I’m not sure how long I can sustain this column! Surely I’ll run out of things to say about my favorite comics, right? Well, it’s not happening just yet. I at least still have a few things to say about Batman & Robin.

First of all, how great is that cover? It’s really simple yet visually striking. Second of all, we need more comics like Batman & Robin. Not Grant Morrison comics specifically (though that would be good, too), but books that are nicely self-contained and don’t require reading 12 other books to understand — which is a bit of a miracle for a DC Comic these days. My favorite books tend to be self-contained because excessive continuity muddles the storytelling and comprehension a bit.

FRIDAY

TGIM(ike Allred)

iZombie #1

(Chris Roberson/Mike Allred)

Vertigo/DC Comics

Seems like we’re all sick and tired of the zombie genre, but here comes Vertigo with what sounds like a great idea: a zombie girl who has to eat a brain every month to stay conscious, but also ends up with the devoured person’s thoughts in her head. And the cast of characters include werewolves, mummies, and vampires. That sounds like FUN.

We can have all the zombie comics in the world as long as they’re not retreads of George Romero movies and The Walking Dead. I just read about an upcoming comic where the pitch is “Zombies in Vietnam.” So, less of that, more of iZombie.

Oh, and this first issue’s only one dollar. So you have no excuse.

SATURDAY

Essential Reading

Invincible Iron Man Volume 3: World’s Most Wanted: Book 2

(Matt Fraction/Salvador Larroca)

Marvel Comics

Just in time for the movie, here’s the second part of “World’s Most Wanted” in a nice softcover volume. Remember what I was saying about Batman & Robin? That also applies to Invincible Iron Man. Kind of.

Fraction’s book pays a bit more attention to Marvel Universe continuity than Morrison’s book, but it doesn’t cripple the storytelling. Granted, major events happen between “The Five Nightmares” and Book 1 of “World’s Most Wanted” of Invincible Iron Man, but all you really need to know is that the bad guys took over and Tony Stark is a fugitive. See? That’s not so hard. Also, this volume has a great ending.

SUNDAY

I forgot about last issues again, so read this instead.

Astonishing Spider-Man/Wolverine #1

(Jason Aaron/Adam Kubert/Maria-Emiko Macuaga/Ronan Cliquet)

Marvel Comics

This week’s a bit superhero-centric, I know, but hey — it happens sometimes.

We already know that Jason Aaron writes a good Wolverine. If you like insane superhero antics and haven’t been reading Aaron’s Wolverine, then you are missing out. However, we haven’t really seen a whole lot of Spider-Man from the guy, so I’m curious to see how he handles him. Oh, and Adam Kubert’s drawing him. He’s good, right? That’s all I got for this one. Sorry.

DARK HORSE

Hellboy In Mexico Or A Drunken Blur

DC COMICS

Batman And Robin #12

Brightest Day #1

Demo Volume 2 #4 (Of 6)

Dong Xoai Vietnam 1965 HC, $24.95

Superman War Of The Supermen #1 (Of 4)

FANTAGRAPHICS BOOKS

Krazy And Ignatz 1916-1918 TP, $24.99

IMAGE COMICS

Pilot Season Stealth #1, $2.99