NEWS & EVENTS FOR THE WEEK OF 9/1/10

Scott Wegener Signing on Wednesday! Giant Weekend Back Issue Sale!

Ahoy! Another fun-filled week of books and other goodies is coming your way this Wednesday! Another pretty good week so make sure you come by and get your weekly fix. We also have a special treat for you this Wednesday as we welcome Scott Wegener at the store on Wednesday in support of Atomic Robo! Joy! Atomic Robo Volume 4 will be coming in that day and if you aren't familiar with the book yet, we'll also have volumes 1-3 on hand. Hurray! All additional information on this event can be found below.

We will also be having a massive Weekend Back Issue Sale from Friday, September 3rd until Sunday, September 5th. What is it you ask? A whopping 50% off all back issues! That's right folks, everything in the back issue bin will be 50% off! Make sure you come in next weekend for the great savings.

The graphic novel club continues to pick up steam and I'm still receiving responses from those interested.. If you're interested and have not reached me yet, please send me an e-mail at comicbookjones@gmail.com telling me you want in! In next week's newsletter we will finally reveal the day of the first meeting! AWESOME!

OUR TOP 5 PICKS FOR THIS WEEK:




MONTHLY GRAPHIC NOVEL CLUB STARTING IN SEPTEMBER!

UPDATE: Interest grows with each day and we should have a really nice group. I'll be announcing the first day of the Graphic Novel Club in next week's newsletter where we will describe how it all works and pick our first book! E-mail us if you're interested!

We are finally starting something that I've wanted to do for a long time, a graphic novel book club! Here's the deal - it'll meet once a month (one book per month). Your job is to read the book and come in and have some meaningful discussion about it (moderated and run by the enigmatic Sprocket Jones)! Most of you come in here and do it anyway so I think it would be fun to get as many people involved as possible. Any books that are chosen for that month will be discounted for book club attendees. SO, with that said, if you are interested in being involved in the book club, send me an e-mail at comicbookjones@gmail.com with your name and information attached so I can get a head count.

SCOTT WEGENER (ATOMIC ROBO) SIGNING!

Coming up this Wednesday, September 1st we are pleased to welcome artist Scott Wegener at CBJ for an in-store signing from 6pm - 9pm! If you aren't familiar with him, shame on you! He's the creator of the massively awesome Atomic Robo series and we'll be sure to have plenty of issues and trade paperbacks in stock for you to check out. Buy a book, ask nicely, and you may even get a sketch! The time frame is still to be determined so check back for additional details.

GIANT WEEKEND BACK ISSUE SALE!
ALL BACK ISSUES 50% OFF!

Come in and clear our back issue bins, please, we insist! Stop in this coming weekend, from Friday, September 3rd until Sunday, September 5th and take 50% off every single back issue in stock! Fill some holes in your collection, start something new, whatever! Just make sure you get down here before all the good stuff is gone. This sale will last all weekend long, don't miss out!

Thank Heaven for (Not So) Little Girls!

Here’s to the ladies!

As most of you know, Smallville is entering it’d 10th and final season this fall. Quite a run! In fact Smallville has enjoyed a longer run than any other Superman based television show in history. Only the long running radio show “The Adventures of Superman” ran longer.

As season 9 was running down, rumors started to fly that this last season would not include Chloe Sullivan, played by the delightful Allison Mack. Well those rumors turned out to be VERY untrue. Allison will be returning for five episodes that will give her character a proper send off.

But before she heads back to Metropolis, Allison is heading to Broadway as one of "Love, Loss and What I Wore's" leading ladies.

Also in the cast are Adriane Lenox, Kristine Nielsen, and the wonderful Kate Mulgrew(Voyagers Captain Katherine Janeway herself!!)

I for one am thrilled that Chloe will be returning to Smallville. She has always been my favorite supporting character on the show. Maybe it’s because she is the ONLY girl who did not have a relationship with Clark. Maybe it’s because Chloe is Clark’s most loyal and trusted friend. Maybe it’s because Allison Mack is just plain adorable! Whatever the reason, welcome back Chloe!




Honey West is back!

Moonstone Comics has just released the first issue in a new ongoing series featuring the iconic Private Eye. The Honey West character was created by Gloria and Forrest E. "Skip" Fickling under the name "G.G. Fickling" in the late 1950s. She was one of the first female action heroes and as such has a very important place in entertainment and social history. Even though the television series only ran for one season (1965-1966) it remains a milestone in TV history. The marvelous Anne Francis seemed to have stepped from the pages of the popular series of novels right on to the small screen. In a career filled with triumphs and iconic performances (such as Alta in 1956’s Forbidden Planet), Honey West is the part she is most connected with in the minds of her legion of fans (of whom I rank very high!)

The new comic remains faithful to the original series, right down to Honey’s pet ocelot, Bruce and artwork (by Cynthia Martin)that pays homage to the luscious Ms. Francis. Without giving away the plot, I will say that Trina Robbins (writer0 captures the feel of the 1950’s character with a decided 2010 slant, updating Honey for a whole new audience. You should definitely pick this book up at CBJ and give it a try. You won’t be disappointed! (while you’re at it pick up the DVD of the original series to find out why Anne Francis STILL has a YUM factor of 10.9!)

That’s 30!

Mitch

OFF WITH THE TOP OF MY HEAD!! SPECIAL EDITION!!

WHAT UP WORLD!!

I bring to you the amazing new book brought to you by Artist / Writer extraordinaire, Jeff McComsey, FUBAR!

Jeff, being an obvious fan of the over saturated Zombie genre, brings together a slew of artists and writers together to create an anthology about the subject all set in World War II. Right off the bat, you see the name of the book and wonder what the hell is this and what's it all about, well let me tell you, it's all about the awesome. Jeff and company aren't trying to set any new standards, nor are they trying to explain how Zombies work, all they want is to tell a solid stories based around WWII thrown together with some gorey zombie love.
The roster he's put together to bring this bloody masterpiece together is the other draw to the book.

“IF GOD BE FOR US”

story by: Stephen Lindsay

art by: Steve Becker

“HEROES OF THE SOVIET UNION”

story by: Jeff McComsey

art by: Lonny Chant

“GOLEM’S LAST STAND”

story by: Shawn Williams

art by: Darrin Stephens

“BEARER OF SECRETS”

story by Benjamin Truman

art by Jim McMunn

“STALEMATE”

story and art by: Dominic Vivona

“MOTHER RUSSIA”

story and art by: Jeff McComsey

“DE GUERS”

story by: Stephen Lindsay

art by: Jonathan Moore

“THE BRIEF”

story by Phil McClorey

art by: Steve Wilhite

“KILROY WAS HERE”

story and art by: Jeff McComsey

“FOUR DAYS AHEAD”

story and art by: Helaine Crawford

“VALLEY OF DEATH”

story by Mike Imboden

art by: James Nguyen

“SEVERED”

story by: Kyle J. Kaczmarczyk

art by Rob Croonenborghs

“DAY OF DAYS”

story by: Dominic Vivona, Steve Becker, Jeff McComsey

art by: Jeff McComsey

As you can see there are some names which you might already know from some other great indie comics.

So, the big question, what did I think of the book..well I couldn't stop reading it. I found myself going back and re-reading it more than once because it's just so damn good and the artwork made me wish that someone...HINT HINT!...would make t-shirts from the panels, so I could rock one for every day of the week.
The stories are solid and actually historically correct with a few exaggerations. I recommend this book to everyone because the simple fact is EVERYONE loves a good zombie story and in this book you're getting 13!
My favorite story "Kilroy Was Here" was actually a mini comic that Jeff had previous self published. I'm glad it made it's way into this book and I hope that sometime soon we'll see even more of Sgt. Kilroy.

GO GET THIS BOOK!!
5 OUT OF 5!!

News & Events for Week of 8/25/10

Ginormous upcoming week! Scott Wegener signing announced!

There is a ridiculous amount of stuff coming in this week so prepare yourself mentally and physically for a fun and action packed shopping experience this upcoming week. There are a ton of new killer titles from both big publishers (including key series continuations, finales and beginnings), the newest series of Blackest Night figures, lots of cool new shirts to check out, and a huge restock of select issues and collections.

Before we get to the announcements for this week I just want to extend a great big warm thank you to Martin Rivas, Kalin Garrity, and Live Society for coming to the store last Friday and performing for everyone who came down. They absolutely killed it! If you didn't come (tsk tsk), you missed out on some fantastic live music, great food and some fine drinking! Hopefully we can welcome them all back sometime in the future. Also, for those interested we have some CDs for sale near the register.

Some other news: We'll be starting off September with a bang with a signing with Scott Wegener of Atomic Robo fame, more info below. Also, last week I mentioned that we were starting a graphic novel club and I've already received a bunch of responses. If you're interested and have not reached me yet, please send me an e-mail at comicbookjones@gmail.com telling me you want in! We will be starting in September and more information will be coming with the next couple of weeks.

Last but not least there is still a great raffle going on for NY Comic Con tickets. If you have bad luck or just feel like getting a jump on them we have plenty of tickets for sale. As a reminder the New York Comic-Con is happening October 8th-10th and you can pick up individual days passes for Friday ($30), Saturday ($40) and Sunday ($30) or a full weekend pass ($50).

OUR TOP 5 PICKS FOR THIS WEEK:




MONTHLY GRAPHIC NOVEL CLUB STARTING IN SEPTEMBER!

UPDATE: A bunch of you have expressed interest, so keep those e-mails coming if you are, in fact, interested! We will keep you posted soon and let you know when the first meeting will be in a couple of weeks.

We are finally starting something that I've wanted to do for a long time, a graphic novel book club! Here's the deal - it'll meet once a month (one book per month). Your job is to read the book and come in and have some meaningful discussion about it (moderated and run by the enigmatic Sprocket Jones)! Most of you come in here and do it anyway so I think it would be fun to get as many people involved as possible. Any books that are chosen for that month will be discounted for book club attendees. I'll have more information as we get close to September but I wanted to find out who would be interested in doing this. SO, with that said, if you are interested in being involved in the book club, send me an e-mail at comicbookjones@gmail.com with your name and information attached so I can get a head count.

SCOTT WEGENER (ATOMIC ROBO) SIGNING!

Coming up on Wednesday, September 1st we are pleased to welcome artist Scott Wegener at CBJ for an in-store signing! If you aren't familiar with him, shame on you! He's the creator of the massively awesome Atomic Robo series and we'll be sure to have plenty of issues and trade paperbacks in stock for you to check out. Buy a book, ask nicely, and you may even get a sketch! The time frame is still to be determined so check back for additional details.

NYCC WEEKEND PASS RAFFLE!

That's right folks, starting this week the good ol' raffle returns! This time we will be raffling off a Weekend Pass to the New York Comic-Con happening on October 8th-10th. Raffle tickets are one dollar and you can buy as many as you like. This raffle will end on Wednesday, August 25th!

If you feel like you have bad luck and will never win you can always buy them outright. Prices for NYCC tickets are as follows:

Friday - $30
Saturday - $40
Sunday - $30
Full Weekend Pass - $50

Bronze Age or Forgotten Age?

Among collectors and investors conversation and excitement usually centers around Golden age, Silver Age, and EVEN Modern age comics. The Bronze Age (maybe that should be FORGOTTEN Age) tends to get short shrift. Yet the argument can be made that the Bronze Age (1971-1985) was one of the most dynamic periods in the history of comic books and marked a quantum shift in the hobby when readership moved from children/young teens to teen/adult.

While Bronze Age comics did retain many similarities to their Silver Age counterparts (Superheroes/Fantasy), plot lines became decidedly darker and more adult.
Two books published more or less at the same moment in time serve as the demarcation point from Silver to bronze Age. These books were The Amazing Spider-Man and Green Lantern/Green Arrow.

The seeds of change began with The Amazing Spiderman #96-98, which led to the revision of the code that would ultimately lead to it’s demise as a censorship body. Previously, the Code forbade the depiction of the use of illegal drugs altogether. However, in 1970, the Nixon administration asked Stan Lee to publish an anti-drug message in one of Marvel's top-selling titles. Lee chose to feature a story depicting the negative effects of drug use. In the story, Peter Parker's friend Harry Osborn becomes addicted to pills.

While the story had a clear anti-drug message, the Comics Code Authority refused to issue its seal of approval. Marvel nevertheless published the three issues without the Comics Code Authority's approval or seal. The issues sold so well that the industry's self-censorship was undercut and the Code was subsequently revised.

Not long afterward The Green Lantern/ Green Arrow “Snowbirds Don’t Fly” arc in DC, in which Oliver Queen’s ward Speedy becomes a heroin addict received a letter of commendation from then Mayor Lindsay of NY, and the Code was effectively dead. These stories opened the door to the story that would effectively end the Silver Age of Comics in Spiderman #121 and 122, The Death Of Gwen Stacy.

These industry shaking events occurred during the early 1970’s but the Comics Code Seal stayed around for many years after that and for the most part comics would go along pretty much as they had in the 60’s and 70’s. Marvel gave us characters with dimension and DC’s Batman began to grow up but for the most part, the good guys were good and the bad guys were bad.

The seismic change that we are still feeling today actually came in1986 from the less likely to rock the boat DC comics. It was in ’86 that DC published both Watchmen and The Dark Knight Returns. In one fell swoop, comic readers were confronted by “heroes” who were homicidal, suicidal, sociopathic and borderline psychotic. In short, they were real people. There would be no going back from the changes these books wrought on comic books. We would never look upon our “heroes” in quite the same way.

The “demise” of the Comics Code Authority opened the door to another genre of comics that would help stamp the Bronze Age as a separate and distinct period in the hobby.
Horror

In the heyday of the CCA Horror comics simply did not exist! Here is an excerpt from the 1954 Comics Code regarding Horror:

General Standards Part B:
1. No comic magazine shall use the word "horror" or "terror" in its title.
2. All scenes of horror, excessive bloodshed, gory or gruesome crimes, depravity, lust, sadism, masochism shall not be permitted.
3. All lurid, unsavory, gruesome illustrations shall be eliminated.
4. Inclusion of stories dealing with evil shall be used or shall be published only where the intent is to illustrate a moral issue and in no case shall evil be presented alluringly nor so as to injure the sensibilities of the reader.
5. Scenes dealing with, or instruments associated with walking dead, torture vampires and vampirism, ghouls, cannibalism, and werewolfism are prohibited.

You could not even use the WORD “horror”. Vampires, Werewolves, Zombies etc. all simply vanished from the comic book page. About the closest thing to a “Monster” you would find in a Silver Age comic was “Titano The Super Ape” and he was really just a big puppy dog who happened to have Kryptonite vision!

With the dawning of the Bronze Age comic racks were suddenly populated with titles like Tomb Of Dracula, Werewolf By Night, Ghost Rider, and Swamp Thing. Horror was back in a big way. These books (Tomb Of Dracula in particular) were decidedly aimed at a more adult audience. They were heavy on plot and subtle of art with the likes of Gene Colan and Bernie Wrightson .
The Bronze Age would see the revival of the X-Men ( most notably under the pencils of John Byrne). This was a fringe book, on the verge of cancellation when Chris Claremont and Dave Cockrum gave the title the sort of “re-boot” that Neil Adams and Denny O’Neil gave to Green Lantern. Through the Bronze Age the titular team of Mutant Superheroes would provide the blueprint for melodrama and “relationship” based stories. CHARACTERS became more important than plot.

And the single character who dominated the era was Wolverine.

Another fringe title at Marvel would also go through a revival during the Bronze Age. Daredevil. Under the custodianship of Frank Miller, Daredevil would become Film Noir in comics. It was gritty, it was rough and it had a look that harkened to films like the Maltese Falcon and Sunset Boulevard. People died in Daredevil and sometimes the bad guys won.

One commonly used ending point for the Bronze Age is the 1985-1986 time frame. As with the Silver Age, the end of the Bronze Age relates to a number of trends and events that happened at around the same time. At this point, DC Comics completed its special event, Crisis on Infinite Earths which marked the revitalization of the company's product line to become a serious market challenger to Marvel again. This time frame also includes the company's release of the highly acclaimed Watchmen by Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons. However the Bronze Age would reach it’s ultimate height and it’s ultimate end with Batman: The Dark Knight Returns by Frank Miller which redefined the superhero genre and inspired years of "grim and gritty" comic books. While Watchmen is somewhat dated by today’s standards, The Dark knight Returns is so fresh it could have been written yesterday. It was the first true Modern Era book.

Bronze Age comics also offer the collector/investor fertile ground for their particular interest in the hobby. While Golden Age and Silver Age comics are pricing themselves out of the range of many collectors (especially in higher grades), bronze Age books (for the most part) are still very reasonably priced. A collector can still get a high grade run of The Dark Knight Returns for about $100. Many Byrne X-Men and Miller Daredevils come in below $50. Now is the time to pick up your Bronze Age back issues. The prices are already starting to rise. While I never promote speculating, I can tell you that, in general, Bronze Age print runs were much lower than in the Gold and Silver Age, so the long term value of Key Bronze Age books looks good.

And……

That’s 30!

Mitch!!

OFF WITH THE TOP OF MY HEAD!!

WHAT UP WORLD!

This week I'm dedicating my blog to the new Daredevil story arc "SHADOWLAND". If you haven't been reading Daredevil, shame on you. It's awesome and probably one of my favorite books every month.
Things have really started to heat up considering Matt Murdock aka Daredevil is now the leader of The Hand and has a castle called "Shadowland" built in the middle of Hell's Kitchen. The lines have been drawn and now all the heroes and villains are taking sides on who wants to join The Hand and who wants to stop Matt before he takes it too far.
The first two issues of the "Shadowland" proper title already came out and I already told you all that you need to jump on before you're left in the dust. This week, I'm going to talk about the new tie-in's that came out, that give us a street level view of how Shadowland is affecting New York City.




SHADOWLAND: DAUGHTERS OF THE SHADOW #1 (OF 3)

Colleen Wing was raised a warrior by her grandfather in Japan. She came to America and befriended Misty Knight and together they fought the good fight. This time around, Colleen is enticed to come to Shadowland and learn about her mother, whom she knows next to nothing about. As with all the heroes Daredevil once fought alongside, Colleen is asked to join The Hand.
Writer Jason Henderson does a great job of creating an air of mystery around Colleen's past and her ties to The Hand.
I feel that this mini can have some serious applications to Colleen and her ties to the rest of the superhero community as well as shedding some light on her past and allowing us as readers to follow her down a potentially dark path.
If you're reading Shadowland or you're a fan of The Daughters Of The Dragon, I suggest you go and pick this book up.

4 out of 5


SHADOWLAND: POWERMAN #1 (OF 4)

After Bullseye blew up the building that Shadowland now resides on, one person emerged from the rubble and is now running around as a hero for hire under the guise of Powerman.
Victor Alvarez is a teenager who "supposedly" delivers pizza's by day but by night is the new hero for hire on craigslist as Powerman. He's decided to use his new abilities to help his family, who fell victim to Bullseye blowing up their apartment, by being a hero for hire and working to save up so that his family can return to their normal life instead of being cramped in an apartment with other family members. Victor comes across The Hand as they begin to spread their daimiyo's sphere of influence. During the battle the ninja's notice that their opponents fighting style is the same as Iron Fist and need to find out who taught him and why.
Iron Fist and Luke Cage are notified of the situation and try to deal with it accordingly, trying to find out who this new kid is using Luke's old name.
This mini is actually really cool and I'm excited to find out who this kid really is and how he got his powers. The fact that writer Fred Van Lente is digging into Luke Cage's past and adapting it to this story line is very cool. I like the fact that now everyone's past is somehow being brought up because of Shadowland.

4 out of 5


SHADOWLAND: BLOOD ON THE STREETS #1 (OF 4)

Misty Knight, The Shroud, Paladin and Silver Sable are all being dragged into whatever mess Daredevil and The Hand are creating. The Shroud and Misty Knight are investigating the murder of a known criminal, whom it seems was killed by The Hand. Silver Sable is hunting down an international criminal when she comes to find him murdered and all evidence leads to The Hand.
Daredevil has crossed the line and now everyone is being pulled into the fight for New York.
As I said before i really enjoy how due to The Hand now running rampant in Hell's Kitchen and spreading across New York, that now heroes and villains alike must make the decision to either join or die fighting against the one person no one thought would ever commit such atrocities. The Police have been pushed out and it's a form of martial law being enforced by The Hand. I can't wait to see who else gets involved to either stop of help Daredevil's potential deadly reign.

4 out of 5


DAREDEVIL # 509

In Japan, Elektra and Master Izo, find out what's really going on with Daredevil and The Hand. In New York, Dakota and Foggy learn that their friendship with Matt means nothing anymore and Typhoid Mary makes her return to the pages of Daredevil.
Searching to find the cause behind Matt's rise to power as the new leader of The Hand and somehow find a way to save their friend, Elektra and Master Izo break into The Hand's castle and learn that Matt is just a puppet for Snakeroot, an ancient order within The Hand that wants to take control and dominate all.
Back in New York, Foggy and Dakota are attacked by Hand ninja's and with the help of Luke Cage and Iron Fist, quickly learn that the line has been drawn and no matter what's happened in the past, their friendship means nothing anymore.
This is the part of the book I especially liked because we haven't seen Typhoid Mary since she left The Initiative during a black ops mission to infiltrate HYDRA. She shows up at Shadowland and explains to Matt that she's now in control of all her personalities and can be a vital asset to his cause.
Writer Andy Diggle is really taking this story and this book above and beyond anything. I'm almost inclined to say that he could possibly surpass Bendis as the next big writer of Daredevil.

5 out of 5




Overall, I'm really digging the whole Shadowland story and concept. It's bringing light to a lot of character's pasts as well as creating alliances between characters that we the readers never thought possible. Daredevil as a villain is probably the greatest idea Marvel's had in the past 10 years. Matt Murdock has always been the one hero that no matter what he would never cross the line and kill anyone. To see him murder Bullseye in plain sight and now to rule like a Kingpin goes against everything he's ever stood for. Personally, I hope that he stays a villain and somehow makes a bigger mark on the Marvel Universe than say Dr. Doom. If you're new to Daredevil I highly suggest you get your hands on all the trades available because Kevin Smith, Joe Quesada, Brian Michael Bendis, Ed Brubaker and now Andy Diggle wrote some of the greatest Daredevil stories that all lead up to this point.

Mondo Vampire!

I woke up one morning recently and found that the world has been taken over by Vampires! Suddenly our blood sucking friends (make that FIENDS) are everywhere! From True Blood, to Vampire Diaries and Twilight, Nosferatu are true media darlings. What’s next? A late night vampire talk show?

We’re going to need more slayers!

And that’s just on TV and film. Take a look at the shelves here at Comic book Jones! Vamps have a ton of shelf space! The best being American Vampire. But there are several Dracula titles, Buffy, and Angel. True Blood is coming. Batman is fighting The Undead in Batman Confidential. Over at Marvel Vamps are going to be all over “X” landscape!

All I can say is …this really sucks!! (but not as much as that PUN sucked!)

Seriously, it seems that there has never been a better time for vampires in comics. Having said that I thought it might be a good time to look back on what was arguably the very best Vampire comic ever, Marvel Comics’ Tomb of Dracula

Tomb of Dracula (TOD) was published by Marvel from 1972 to 1979 for a total of 70 issues. The series featured a regular team of vampire hunters (Quincy Harker, Rachel Van Helsing and Frank Drake) along with their allies in an ongoing battle with the legendary Lord Of the Vampires, Vlad Dracula. It was in issue #10 that the character Blade (played in three films by Wesley Snipes and in a short lived TV series by Kirk Jones) a half human/half Vampire and vampire slayer.


In 1971 the Comics Code was losing it’s authority to censor content in the wake of the Spiderman and Green lantern “drug” issues. Back in the 1954’s the Comic Book Witch Hunts lead by Dr. Frederick Wertham (Seduction Of The Innocent) lead to the establishment of the CCA (Comics Code Authority) which was an industry created board that would approve the content of each comic book being published. If a book met the very tight censorship of the CCA it was given a “seal” and could be sold. Comics without the seal found it very difficult if not impossible to find distribution to news stands. Of all the comic genres, “Horror” comics were hardest hit. The rules of the CCA effectively destroyed horror comics altogether bringing about the end of the great EC line of Horror, Sci-Fi and Crime books.

Marvel had already “tested” a pseudo Vampire, Morbius in The Amazing Spider-Man and reaction was strong. Marvel decided to take a chance and launch a true horror comic. Since Dracula was in the public domain, it was a no-brainer to use his famous name to drive the new book.

Over the first few issues Marvel had a tough time finding a steady writer for the book. But by issue issue #7 the team of Marv Wolfman, Gene Colan and Tom Palmer would remain a constant. It was this reaming that would be responsible for making TOD one of the best written and drawn comics of the 1970’s.

Wolfman’s Dracula was not just a monster. He was a many faceted individual. Supremely evil and yet possessing a twisted code of “honor” from which he would not deviate. Wolfman never lets the reader lose sight of the fact that Dracula is a killer of the first order, but also a character capable of introspection, courage and even love. Wolfman’s Dracula is particularly intrigued by the innocent and helpless and often comes to their aid. This combination of good and bad makes his Dracula the single most three dimensional character of the period.

By the late 70’s, however the horror cycle that had produced such titles as TOD, Ghost Rider, Werewolf By Night, and over at DC Swamp Thing, had run it’s course. TOD was one of the last hold out’s.

As cancellation loomed, plans were made to wrap up the storyline and lingering threads by issue #72. However, when management decided at the eleventh hour to terminate the title with #70 instead, the final three issues' worth of story and art had to be compressed into one double-sized book, culminating with Dracula's apparent death and dispersal.

The color title was succeeded by a black-and-white magazine (with stories also drawn by Gene Colan) that lasted six issues. An earlier magazine, Dracula Lives!, published by the Marvel imprint Curtis Magazines, ran from 1973 to 1975. The color comic was also supplemented by a "Giant-Size" companion quarterly that ran for five issues in the mid-1970s.

Today you can easily find reprints of the entire run of Tomb Of Dracula in the black and white “Essentials” line and the premium “Omnibus” line. Tomb of Dracula is as edgy and engrossing today as it was over 30 years ago. It is very much worth your time to read this classic series!

That’s 30!
Mitch

OFF WITH THE TOP OF MY HEAD!! SPECIAL EDITION!!

WHAT UP WORLD!

I got something special for you today, I got the chance to check out THREE new books that are coming out from a new company called CREATORS EDGE. My friend Chuck Messinger sent me these books and I can't wait for them to get picked up by Diamond so everyone can check em' out.
I'VE GOT SOMETHING TO SAY AND HERE WE GO!!!

First up is a book called STINK.



STINK #1

Holy hilarious! The story takes place after "The Big Stink" aka "The bright light that killed everyone and made the world stink." and follows an unlikely trio on their way to Crystal Mountain to get themselves some real ass other than the sheep. Ray the Unicorn, Bundy the Fairy Godfather and Michael the Frog Prince each tell a tale of how their lives were ruined and how they got to where they are now.
Chuck Messinger does an absolutely amazing job of playing each character off one another. I couldn't stop laughing while reading this book. The banter between the three and the people they meet along their way is just top notch, not only that but the characters themselves have so much life and witty comebacks.
Ray telling Bundy "The world's first profession was prostitution, apparently the last one is sheep pimping." had me rolling on the floor. If this is any indication of Mr. Messinger's writing skills then I can't wait to read anything and everything he's got in his arsenal.
Kurt Belcher & Mike Lail do a great job of keeping the artwork simple and expressing the emotions of the characters. Nothing is overdone. They really compliment the conversations and story itself with their use of keeping it simple and not going overboard. As a reader I can appreciate the fact that they didn't need to get super detailed to convey the characters and the backgrounds.
I cannot wait to read the next issue and see what happens to this unlikely trio on their mission to get some sweet sweet lovin'.

5 out of 5.



THE DEVILS TRAIL #1

From Stephen Lindsay the creator of "Jesus Hates Zombies" and "Massive Awesome" comes this new take on the wild west.
Stephen and artist Jim Mcmunn take us on a journey down the devil's trail as we follow a fallen priest named Herschel as he feels his way along the devil's trail and cleanses the unholy abominations unleashed by the demon Jericho.
Jericho fills the role of the devil's advocate as he possesses the living with the souls of his fellow demons.
The book has a very "Exorcist" feel to it for obvious reasons, Herschel on his mission to undo the evil set free attempts to save the people that have been possessed by performing exorcisms but in most cases has to kill the hosts.
During his travels he comes across a little girl who's mother has been possessed, In a failed attempt to cleanse the woman of the demon inside her, Nora, the little girl, witnesses as her mother gets her head blown off.
All the while, Jericho is slowly taking over town after town increasing the demon infection.
Stephen has outdone himself with this book, the feeling of dread and fear of the unknown has truly bled to the surface as Herschel makes his way towards whatever threat he must face. The sense of impending doom is imminent. You can almost feel his sense of failure and despair as he battles for his own life as well as the lives of others. Jericho on the other hand is the polar opposite as he feeds people's egos and emotions as he prepares them to become vessels for demons. Jericho is evil made flesh as he turns the citizens of each town into mindless demons with the sole purpose of killing and eating everything.
Jim Mcmunn does a fantastic job of conveying the bleak world Herschel travels and the demonic plague Jericho spreads. At certain points, Jim's artwork is almost a mirror image of artist Tony Moore. The scenes where Herschel battles the demons is awesome as well as the exorcisms. If you haven't seen his other work make sure to check out his web comic with Stephen, "The Frightful Fetus" over at Captionsandballoons.com.
I'm hooked and can't wait to see what happens next. YOU NEED THIS COMIC!!

5 out of 5



JEFF #1

Writer and artist Travis Bundy brings us into the magical realm in which the hero Jeff must battle Ogres, Dragons, Killer Bees and the like to save the Damsel in distress. Whenever Jeff's stomach aches, he gets transported to a magical world in which he must save a damsel in distress from a variety of monsters. Is it a hallucination or some sort of mental illness that's what his boss wants to know as she sends Jeff off to get examined by a host of different doctors. They give him a clean bill of health but still Jeff gets sent off to battle. The book is every slackers dream come true as we all wish to escape our mundane lives to battle monsters and save big boobed girls.
This book isn't as good as the other two but non the less it's still a good read and Travis Bundy's artwork and writing along with colorist Chad Thomas are very reminiscent of the dreaded 90's comics, which of course hold a special place in my comic book heart. The story itself is something you're more than likely to find in the pages of Heavy Metal Magazine.
I'd like to see more of this book to really give it my love or hate but for now, I'd say check it out and make the decision yourself.

3 out of 5.

and that's all folks, see you later this week!!

NEWS & EVENTS FOR WEEK OF 8/11/10

Scott Pilgrim & Martin Rivas Tailgate Parties Back-to-Back!

There are so many awesome things coming up that I don't even want to waste time with silly introductions this week, so let's get right to it. This week we have two back-to-back tailgate parties (a first ever!) and a spectacular signing immediately following. To start us off we will be holding the Scott Pilgrim vs. The World Movie Tailgate Party on Thursday, August 12th. The very next day, Friday August 13th, Martin Rivas will be here at the store to celebrate the release of his new album by playing a special set of songs! As if that wasn't enough we will be having a book signing on Saturday, August 14th with Rob Morganbesser. You owe it to yourself to come to at least one of these great events, try and make all three! We're extremely excited to host them and don't forget that the tailgate parties will feature free food, drinks, a special sale (anywhere from 10%-70% off everything) and live music. How can you possibly get anything more out of your local comic shop? Continue reading below for more information on each event.

I haven't even gotten to all the new stuff coming in this week. Some of the highlights include the newest issues of Daredevil, Superman, Walking Dead and the new ongoing X-Men series. Some really cool toys and statues are on their way too so make sure you check out the list of all the new stuff before heading into the shop this coming week. We hope you all have a wonderful week and make sure you come and spend some time with us next week as we kick off all three events scheduled for next weekend.

OUR TOP 5 PICKS FOR THIS WEEK:




SCOTT PILGRIM VS THE WORLD TAILGATE PARTY

One of the biggest books of the last few years is finally getting the big screen treatment and in honor of this momentous occasion we'll be having another of our very wonderful tailgate parties! The movie in question? Scott Pilgrim vs. the World! If you haven't read this epic 6 part series then you're really doing yourself a disservice. This is easily one of the most fun books to come out in a long time and I can't wait to see if this film can capture the book's magic.

SO, with that said, the event will be kicking off on Thursday, August 12th @ 9PM. All you have to do is get your ticket for the midnight showing of the movie that night and then come down to the store for some free food, drinks and of course our special sale where everything in the store will be between 15% - 70% off! This is going to be one of the best ones we've ever had, I can feel it in my bones I tells ya! So make sure you don't miss it!

MARTIN RIVAS EP RELEASE TAILGATE PARTY

It's been a few months since we've turned Comic Book Jones into a music venue but I'm happy to report that on Friday, August 13th starting @ 9pm we'll be welcoming back Martin Rivas for a special in-store performance in celebration of his newest EP, The Convalescence. For those of you who don't know Martin Rivas is Socko's brother and he's an extremely talented singer and musician. If you don't believe me, come and see for yourself! His newest record is fantastic and you'll be able to hear a ton of his stuff if you come and join us.

We'll be running this event just like a tailgate party with free food and drinks and a special sale so make sure you come down to the store, pick up a copy of the record, hang out and let Marty speak to your soul through his music!

ROB MORGANBESSER IN-STORE SIGNING!

On Saturday, August 14th starting at 1pm, come down to the store to meet author Robert Morganbesser, have a nice chat with him and pick up one of his many fiction compilations we have for sale here at the store - Tales of the Norse Gods, Startling Stories and Zombies In Time & Space! All are great and contain a wide array of different stories from a handful of authors. This event is all about supporting local talent so please come and show your support! We'll have plenty of copies of all the books on hand and I can speak from personal experience when I tell you that Rob makes for some wonderful conversation! Don't miss it!

OFF WITH THE TOP OF MY HEAD!!

WHAT UP WORLD!?
Back from tour and ready to display my opinions on what I thought sucked and what I thought you need to own. I've got about three weeks worth of stuff backed up so bare with me. Without further adieu, I've got something to say!



BRIGHTEST DAY #6

The pieces are finally starting to fall into place as things are starting to make sense for the recently returned. Martian Manhunter finds that there's another Green Martian running amok, Mera explains to Aquaman that she was sent to kill him, Jason and Ronnie fuse back together as Firestorm and Hawk, Dove and Deadman learn what the White Lantern wants.
Martian Manhunter learns that there's another Martian on Earth that's going around killing people. He quickly begins to track her down in hopes of finding out who it is and why after all this time are they letting their presence be known.
Mera explains to Aquaman that she comes from a world of people who come from the deepest depths of the ocean and that she was sent to kill Aquaman. She also reveals that Black Manta also comes from this world, explaining his desire to kill Aquaman all these years.
Jason and Ronnie were told that merging together again and becoming Firestorm would be catastrophic, so what happens, They merge to say some people on a construction site and yet again they're stuck together. This time however, they both hear the voice of the Black Lantern Firestorm in the back of their heads.
Hawk, Dove and Deadman are at the grave of Dove's fallen sister and the former Hawk, Holly Granger. In an attempt to resurrect her, the trio learns that, that's not the reason they were brought back. The learn collectively that the White Entity wants them to live and in Boston Brand's case, he wants a cheeseburger!...
Johns and company are really starting to get the ball rolling with explaining what the hell is going on with these characters and what they're back for. At the same time Johns is also syncing up all the loose ends left over before these characters died.

4 out of 5



BRIGHTEST DAY #7

Finally the big reveal, we learn just what the Entity has in mind for all the returned and it's big!
The Entity gets a lot of speaking time in this issue, so we’re getting a lot of revelations.Clues as to what The Entity is all about, what it’s trying to do, through the immediate assignments it issues to the resurected. Interestingly, some of the missions are contradictory, or even already completed. All in all, very cool. The writing is crisp and well-paced. One thing I noticed about Johns’ writing is that he ends every page on a bit of a cliff-hanger, which is smart story-telling for a story that has a lot of plots and subplots going on. The characters were sympathetic and mostly multi-dimensional, especially with Boston Brand (arguably the series protagonist) and Hawk and Dove. With things now coming into focus, more and more of the story is slowly making sense as well as the other DCU books that have a direct line to characters involved in Brightest Day. Without a doubt the best issue of the series thus far.

5 out of 5



SHADOWLAND #2(OF 5)

Matt Murdock is really filling in the role of the heroic villain rather nicely and this issue just goes to show how far down the rabbit hole Matt has fallen since taking over control over The Hand.
The Kingpin shows up to talk to Iron Fist and Luke Cage about their "former" friend and that eventually they're going to have to take him down. A nice role reversal for Fisk since Matt's descent into darkness. Inside Shadowland, Matt is sulking about murdering Bullseye. He then tells Tarantula that he needs more powerful followers. He puts the word out to the superhero community that they can join The Hand or that they're against him. Fisk gets his hands on an ancient scroll in which they plan on envoking the spirit of vengeance to battle Matt and The Hand, guess who they call upon.
In an attempt to talk to Matt and try and talk some sense into him, Luke Cage, Iron Fist, Shang-Chi, Misty Knight and Colleen Wing all make an audience with him under the false guise of wanting to join up. Once inside the castle, they begin to plead with Matt that what he's doing and how he's going about cleaning up Hell's Kitchen is all wrong and that they're his friends and not his enemy.
Just when things seem like they can go from bad to worse, they do. Ghost Rider comes barreling into the castle and sets Matt off. The war for the streets of New York has officially begun.
This story thus far is incredible, playing Daredevil as the ultimate villain after so many years of fighting to never blur the line between right and wrong as he's defended justice both in and out of the courtroom is perfect. As it's been said in Spider-Man for years, "With great power comes great responsibility" just goes to show that with a little push even the most honorable people can become their own worst nightmare.

5 out of 5



SHADOWLAND:BULLSEYE #1

I really hate to say it but I really hated this issue and I feel like it was a waste of time and effort. Bullseye is dead. J.Jonah Jameson has publicly announced that the city will not spend a dime on a funeral for Bullseye, so in light of that, a motorcycle gang decides that since he was an honorary member that they'll do all the leg work to have a funeral for him and on top of that they'll get Ben Urich to cover the whole thing. Not such a great idea and not such a great story. I wish Marvel was doing a Front Line: Shadowland mini just like they've done with every other event over the past couple of years. That would've been a great idea but instead we get this shotty one shot rushing along this funeral for a fiend.

2 out of 5



MARVEL UNIVERSE VS. THE PUNISHER #1(OF 4)

We've had Five incarnations of the Marvel Zombies storyline and that horse has been beaten to death more times that it should have been allowed. This story however has nothing to do with Zombies. In a sense it does but at the heart of the story it doesn't. A viral outbreak happens and everyone is infected and becomes cannibalistic savages. The Punisher manages to get himself inoculated by accident with a government serum that was going to be used in case a nuclear war ever happened. Now five years after the point of infection, the entire world has gone mad and Frank Castle is the only one left to clean up. Jonathan Maberry does an excellent job of explaining patient zero who turns out to be none other than Spider-Man, how the world assumes its a Zombie Virus, even making reference to "28 days later" and how through it all Frank has done what Frank does, kill everyone that's infected and moved on. For a first issue dealing with a post viral infection, this book is a homerun. It's not cheesy and like I said.."IT HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH ZOMBIES!"
Definitely check this book out.

5 out of 5



NANCY IN HELL #1(OF 4)

Strolling along as I picked up my books, I came across this book on the shelf. Being curious, I picked it up and flipped through real quick, seeing the artwork of Juan Jose Ryp's depiction of Hell had me. The story get's explained on the first page as Nancy tells her story of how in most horror movies, the last girl standing kills the psychopath murdering everyone and makes it out alive, in her case she didn't make it an got killed and sent to Hell. Now in a bar full of people just like her, her new friend "Philosopher" explains that even though they're all in Hell, it's almost Heaven because they can do, say and be pretty much anything they want. Without giving away too much of the story, Nancy must now deal with her location and the situations she's put in. If you're looking for a great book with some really twisted ideas of Hell, this is the book for you. I highly suggest this book because after the first couple of pages, if you're not like "Damn, that's awesome." then something's wrong.

5 out of 5