New Code:Breaker and He Also Likes to Kill

I read Code:Breaker 2 (Code : Breaker)

I posted a review at the Comic Book Bin (which has FREE smart phone apps).

I Reads You Review: RASETSU, VOL. 5

Creator: Chika Shiomi; Kinami Watabe (translation and adaptation)

Publishing Information: VIZ MEDIA, paperback, 192 pages, $9.99 (US), $12.99 CAN

Ordering Numbers: ISBN: 978-1-4215-2754-3 (ISBN-13)

Rating “T+” for “Older Teen”

Rasetsu is a shojo manga (comic for teen girls) from creator, Chika Shiomi. Rasetsu is essentially a spin-off of an earlier Shiomi manga entitled Yurara, mainly because a character from Yurara appears in Rasetsu.

Rasetsu focuses on its title character, 19-year-old Rasetsu Hyuga. When she was 15-years-old, an evil spirit attacked Rasetsu. Although she survived the attack, the spirit vowed to return to claim Rasetsu on her 20th birthday… unless she has found true love. As a memento of their encounter, the spirit left a bright red flower mark on her chest. Now, Rasetsu works for Hiichiro Amakawa Agency, an exorcist agency, and she uses her special powers to banish evil spirits. She also searches for true love which may have come in the form of her two coworkers, Iwatsuki Kuryu and Yako Hoshino (the holdover from Yurara).

As Rasetsu, Vol. 5 begins, Rasetsu is dealing with the aftermath of Kuryu’s kiss. What should she make of it when her heart really longs for Yako? Yako teases, but how does he really feel about her, especially considering that he is still hung up on that spirit he loved in high school? Meanwhile, their boss, Hiichiro Amakawa, drops their strangest case on them. Nanami Nishikawa is a young woman who is about to give birth to her child, but a dark spirit that kills babies is after her unborn child.

Rasetsu, like Yurara, is a supernatural-themed romance. Rasetsu is also a shojo love triangle with a hook – the young lovers are also ghost busters. Separately, neither the romance nor the ghost busting is original in its execution, but when combined, they make Rasetsu seem special. Each – the love triangle and the supernatural – gives the other a sense of urgency. The conflict is not just about fighting ghosts, but it is also about combating the sense of confusion that young love time three creates.

I like Rasetsu quite a bit, almost as much as I liked Yurara. I tear through a volume of Rasetsu like there was a box off of Popeye’s fried chicken waiting for me at the end. Rasetsu is not a great manga, but it does supernatural romance better than most. It is a personal favorite, and I would recommend it to people familiar with Shiomi’s work.

B+

Tim Seeley's "LoveBunny" is Back

TECHNICOLOR LOVEBUNNY

 

Tim Seeley's cult hit LOVEBUNNY & MR. HELL returns to print in full color

 

Before HACK/SLASH introduced the world to the slasher-fighting duo of Cassie Hack and her sidekick Vlad, TIM SEELEY introduced another critically acclaimed duo to the world in the form of dysfunctional superheroes, Lovebunny & Mr. Hell!

Originally published in black and white and out of print. The new edition of LOVEBUNNY & MR. HELL is painstakingly remastered to full color!

Seeley shares, "With more and more 'serious' superhero comics clogging the shelves, I decided it was time to bring back my first professional creator owned comic. Irreverent, sexy, and funny, Lovebunny and Mr. Hell is to superheroes what Hack/Slash is to horror, and now it's in full color for the first time!"

LOVEBUNNY & MR. HELL: Former sidekick Beth Bowers wants to be her own hero, but she's saddled with a sidekick of her own: the demonic, eternally hungry Mr. Hell! Long out of print, their twisted adventures return in an all new, volume in full color for the first time! This new edition includes EVERY appearance of LOVEBUNNY & MR. HELL to date, including the HACK/SLASH strips and the crossover with Savage Dragon!

LOVEBUNNY & MR. HELL, VOL. 1 (NOV100432), a 136- page full-color graphic novel collecting Tim Seeley's formerly black-and-white comic, will be in stores January 12, 2011 for $14.99.

Catch up with Seeley's cult hit series Hack/Slash with the following collections: HACK/SLASH OMNIBUS Vol. 1 (APR100408, $29.99) and HACK/SLASH OMNIBUS Vol. 2 (MAY100447, $29.99). HACK/SLASH OMNIBUS Vol. 3 (JUN100415, $29.99) will be in stores November 10, 2010, and HACK/SLASH: MY FIRST MANIAC (S/N HC: SEP100462, $29.99; TP: $9.99) will be in stores November 17, 2010.


Image Comics is a comic book and graphic novel publisher founded in 1992 by a collective of best-selling artists. Image has since gone on to become one of the largest comics publishers in the United States. Image currently has five partners: Robert Kirkman, Erik Larsen, Todd McFarlane, Marc Silvestri and Jim Valentino. It consists of five major houses: Todd McFarlane Productions, Top Cow Productions, Shadowline, Skybound and Image Central. Image publishes comics and graphic novels in nearly every genre, sub-genre, and style imaginable. It offers science fiction, romance, horror, crime fiction, historical fiction, humor and more by the finest artists and writers working in the medium today. For more information, visit http://www.imagecomics.com/.

Skullkickers #2 Disappears

THE SALES KICK CONTINUES!

SKULLKICKERS #2 sells out at distribution level almost immediately after release

After issue 1 rampaged off shelves and into the hearts and minds of comic fans, SKULLKICKERS #2 follows suit with a distribution-level sell out!

Demand for SKULLKICKERS is soaring, so Image Comics has ordered a second printing of the pulse-pounding second issue. It will be in stores November 10, 2011.

SKULLKICKERS scribe Jim Zubkavich (POPGUN, Street Fighter Legends: Ibuki) says, "When the gang at Image contacted me to let me know that issue #2 had blown through its overprint right after release, I couldn't believe it. My friend Joe Vriens sent a pin-up we intended to put in the back of our next issue, but we quickly drafted that sweet piece as our second print #2 cover."

"Thank you to everyone who has given our fun little fantasy book a chance. We'll keep working hard to earn that support!" Zubkavich adds.

SKULLKICKERS is fantasy action-comedy written by Zubkavich with art by the gifted team of Edwin Huang, Chris Stevens (POPGUN) and Misty Coats.

In SKULLKICKERS, two mercenaries are entangled in a high-class assassination plot, and nothing -- not werewolves, skeletons or black magic -- will stop them from getting paid. If you love fantasy, action-comedy, a touch of black-hearted violence and movies like ARMY OF DARKNESS then SKULLKICKERS is the book for you!

SKULLKICKERS #2 Second Printing (AUG108190), a 32-page full-color comic book for $2.99, will be in stores November 10, 2010. SKULLKICKERS #3 (SEP100497) will be in stores November 24, 2010. Follow the Skullkickers blog at www.skullkickers.com for sneak peeks and more. You can download a free preview of SKULLKICKERS using the Image Comics app from comiXology.


Image Comics is a comic book and graphic novel publisher founded in 1992 by a collective of best-selling artists. Image has since gone on to become one of the largest comics publishers in the United States. Image currently has five partners: Robert Kirkman, Erik Larsen, Todd McFarlane, Marc Silvestri and Jim Valentino. It consists of five major houses: Todd McFarlane Productions, Top Cow Productions, Shadowline, Skybound and Image Central. Image publishes comics and graphic novels in nearly every genre, sub-genre, and style imaginable. It offers science fiction, romance, horror, crime fiction, historical fiction, humor and more by the finest artists and writers working in the medium today. For more information, visit http://www.imagecomics.com/.

First Chapter of Hetalia Volume 2 FREE!

Press release:

October 24 - a day for Hetalia fans, by Hetalia fans. How wonderful!

This holiday definitely belongs to you, and we here at TOKYOPOP wanted to give back to the community who strongly and loyally supported this series for so long.

To show our appreciation, we are offering the 1st chapter of Volume 2 on the comiXology app for FREE!

You heard right!

Starting immediately, you can read the the first chapter of the new volume of Hetalia, two months before it hits the bookstores -- digitally and for FREE!

Hetalia Volume 2 Chapter 1 (called Issue 7) is available now for download at comiXology*!!

This special Hetalia Day offer is for a limited time and ends October 24th at 11:59 pm PST, so be sure to share the news with all your fellow fans.

Click here or search "Hetalia" on the comiXology app on your iPhone, iPad or iPod Touch to download!

Have a great Hetalia Day!

App lingo: Hetalia is divided into "Chapters", also referred to as "Issues". Hetalia Vol. 1 has 6 issues, so Hetalia Vol. 2 starts at issue 7.

*The comiXology app is free to download at iTunes. Upon downloading the app, it may take a few minutes for Hetalia to appear in the search feature

Naruto Illustration Book Drops Tuesday, October 26th

NINJA ACTION LEAPS OFF THE PAGE IN THE NARUTO ILLUSTRATION BOOK FROM VIZ MEDIA

 

Full Color Character Portraits By Creator Masashi Kishimoto Are Depicted In Addition To A Fold Out Poster And Collectible Stickers

 

VIZ Media, LLC (VIZ Media), one of the entertainment industry’s most innovative and comprehensive publishing, animation and licensing companies, has announced the release of the vividly colored NARUTO ILLUSTRATION BOOK on October 26th. The new soft cover edition is offered by the Shonen Jump imprint, features nearly 100 pages of original illustrations by creator Masashi Kishimoto, and will carry an MSRP of $19.99 U.S. / $27.00 CAN.

Naruto is a young shinobi (or ninja) with an incorrigible knack for mischief. He’s got a wild sense of humor, but Naruto is completely serious about his ongoing mission to be the world’s greatest ninja! The NARUTO ILUSTRATION BOOK features a variety of character portraits depicting the young ninja in action, as well as his cohorts including Sasuke, Sakura and Kakashi. A color pull-out double-sided poster and a sticker sheet are also included.

Created by Masashi Kishimoto, NARUTO was first introduced in Weekly Shonen Jump magazine in Japan in 1999 and quickly became that country’s most popular ninja manga targeting tweens and teens with more than 100 million copies in circulation to-date. The manga series (rated ‘T’ for Teens) and animated counterpart (NARUTO rated ‘T’ for Teens, and NARUTO SHIPPUDEN rated ‘T+’ for Older Teens) are among VIZ Media’s most successful properties and have captivated millions of fans across North America, Europe and South America.

The latest NARUTO SHIPPUDEN anime episodes from Japan (rated ‘T+’ for Older Teens) are currently available for free viewing at VIZAnime.com and Hulu.com. Dubbed episodes are available for download to own through iTunes, PlayStation Network, Amazon, Xbox and more.

For more information on NARUTO please visit the official NARUTO website at http://www.naruto.com/.

Darren Lynn Bousman of Radical Publishing's "Abattoir" at Golden Apple Comics

MEET DARREN LYNN BOUSMAN, DIRECTOR OF THE SAW FRANCHISE FILMS AND MOTHER’S DAY

On October 27th, starting at 5:00 P.M., Golden Apple Comics will present an autograph signing with Darren Lynn Bousman, along with writers Rob Levin and Troy Peteri, for the release of the new comic book from Radical Publishing, ABATTOIR.

From director Darren Lynn Bousman (Saw franchise, Mother’s Day, Repo! The Genetic Opera) comes a chilling, supernatural tale set in the cold beauty of Middle America in the late 80s. After a brutal massacre takes place in a gorgeous house, real estate agent and family man Richard Ashwalt is assigned the impossible task of picking up the pieces and selling the property. As Richard inspects the blood-soaked grounds, a twisted old man arrives at the house with a sinister and terrifying purpose. Richard is about to be drawn into a web of shadows, murders and massacres that will shatter him to his very core!

ABATTOIR issue #1 autograph event will take place in Los Angeles at Golden Apple Comics on October 27th, 2010 from 5-7 P.M. at 7018 Melrose Avenue in Hollywood. For more information, please call 323-658-6047.


About Radical Publishing
In a world of publishing where the market is always hungry for the next fresh property, one new publisher is looking to shake things up and is delivering exciting creative products with a bold new business approach. Aptly named, Radical Publishing is leveraging on its experienced leadership, dynamic crew and unique business infrastructure to create that vital connection throughout the media space.

Founded by Barry Levine and Jesse Berger, Radical Publishing is a manufacturer of the next generation of premium comic book products, with a focus on high-concept stories and artwork by marquee and newly discovered talent. In addition, the quality of the work ensures a longer shelf life for each property as a collective library of high concepts. For more information, visit www.radicalpublishing.com.

About Golden Apple Comics
Golden Apple Comics has been the premier comic book & pop culture store in Los Angeles for over 30 years. Always cutting edge & proactive in the community, Golden Apple views this as a great opportunity to attract new readers to our thriving industry. A place in LA for anything groundbreaking in the comic world.