Comics and Magazines from Diamond Distributors for October 26 2011

COMICS

AUG111172 2000 AD #1754 $5.00

AUG110751 AFRODISIAC HC (O/A) (MR) $14.95

AUG110945 ALI BABA & THE FORTY THIEVES RELOADED GN $9.99

AUG111099 ANIMAL LAND GN VOL 02 $10.99

AUG110811 ARCHIE #626 $2.99

AUG110813 ARCHIE & FRIENDS #158 $2.99

AUG110815 ARCHIE DOUBLE DIGEST #223 $3.99

JUN111043 ARMOR X TP $16.99

JUN111374 ART OF EPIC MICKEY HC $40.00

AUG110882 BART SIMPSON COMICS #64 $2.99

AUG110818 BETTY & VERONICA #256 $2.99

AUG111264 BLACK BUTLER TP VOL 07 $11.99

AUG111265 BLACK GOD TP VOL 14 $11.99

AUG111266 BRIDES STORY HC GN BOOK 02 $16.99

AUG111297 BRIMSTONE #6 (MR) $3.25

MAY111032 BRING THE THUNDER TP $16.99

MAY110873 CAPTAIN SWING #4 (OF 4) (RES) (MR) $3.99

MAY110876 CAPTAIN SWING #4 (OF 4) AUXILIARY ED (RES) (MR) $3.99

MAY110874 CAPTAIN SWING #4 (OF 4) WRAP CVR (RES) (MR) $3.99

AUG110779 CASPERS SCARE SCHOOL #1 (OF 4) $3.99

JUN110802 CAVEWOMAN SNOW #4 (MR) $3.75

AUG110760 CAVEWOMAN SNOW #4 BUDD ROOT SE (MR) PI

AUG111298 CHARMED #15 (MR) $3.50

AUG111233 CHI SWEET HOME GN VOL 07 $13.95

AUG111142 CLASSICS ILLUS DLX HC VOL 07 AROUND THE WORLD IN 80 DAYS $17.99

AUG111141 CLASSICS ILLUS DLX SC VOL 07 AROUND THE WORLD IN 80 DAYS $13.99

JUN111243 CLINT #11 (MR) $6.99

AUG110781 DARK AXIS RISE O/T OVERMEN #1 (OF 4) (MR) $2.99

SEP110784 DEAD MANS RUN #0 CVR A PARKER $2.50

SEP110785 DEAD MANS RUN #0 CVR B GUNNELL $2.50

JUL111082 DISNEY MICKEY MOUSE BOX SET VOL 01 & 02 $49.99

JUL111081 DISNEY MICKEY MOUSE HC VOL 02 TREASURE ISLAND $29.99

AUG110895 DO ANDROIDS DREAM OF ELECTRIC SHEEP HC VOL 06 (OF 6) $24.99

JUL111259 DROPS OF GOD VOL 01 $14.95

JUL111117 EXTINCTION SEED #0 (OF 6) $1.99

JUL111118 EXTINCTION SEED #0 (OF 6) LTD EXTENDED CVR $1.99

JUL111158 FLESH AND BLOOD GN VOL 01 (OF 4) (MR) $14.99

JUL111214 FLESH DINO FILES GN $25.99

AUG111294 FLY #5 A CVR LETTER F (MR) $2.99

AUG111295 FLY #5 B CVR LETTER L (MR) $2.99

AUG111296 FLY #5 C CVR LETTER Y (MR) $2.99

JUN111092 FRANK BOOK HC (NEW PTG) $45.00

JUN111093 FRANK BOOK SC $34.99

AUG110974 GAME OF THRONES #2 (MR) $3.99

JUN111310 GFT DREAM EATER CROSSOVER CONCLUSION (PT 12) A CVR EBAS $5.99

JUN111311 GFT DREAM EATER CROSSOVER CONCLUSION (PT 12) B CVR YANG $5.99

JUN111312 GFT DREAM EATER CROSSOVER CONCLUSION (PT 12) C CVR MEDINA $5.99

AUG111277 GFT HALLOWEEN SPECIAL 2011 A CVR FRANCHESCO $5.99

AUG111278 GFT HALLOWEEN SPECIAL 2011 B CVR SEIDMAN $5.99

JUL111307 GIANT-SIZE GFT 2011 SINBAD A CVR EBAS $5.99

JUL111308 GIANT-SIZE GFT 2011 SINBAD B CVR MYCHAELS $5.99

JUL110812 GOLD DIGGER ANNUAL #17 $4.50

JUL110813 GOLD DIGGER HALLOWEEN SPECIAL 2011 $3.99

AUG110783 HELLDORADO #1 (OF 3) (MR) $3.99

AUG111267 HERO TALES GN VOL 05 $11.99

AUG111268 HIGH SCHOOL OF DEAD GN VOL 04 (MR) $13.99

AUG111269 HIGURASHI WHEN THEY CRY GN VOL 15 ATONEMENT ARC PT 1 $11.99

JUL111246 ICE #3 (OF 4) $3.99

AUG110905 INCORRUPTIBLE #23 $3.99

AUG110906 INCORRUPTIBLE TP VOL 05 $16.99

AUG111074 JACK KIRBYS GALACTIC BOUNTY HUNTERS TP $19.99

AUG111079 JANES WORLD HC VOL 10 ANNIVERSARY ED $18.00

JUL111215 JUDGE DREDD COMPLETE CASE FILES TP VOL 18 $35.99

MAR111067 KATO #14 $3.99

JUL110998 KIRBY GENESIS #4 $3.99

JUL111135 KNIGHTS OF THE DINNER TABLE #179 $5.99

MAY110799 LAST ZOMBIE INFERNO #4 (OF 5) $3.99

JUN111041 LIVING CORPSE OMNIBUS TP $24.99

AUG111104 MARDOCK SCRAMBLE GN VOL 02 $10.99

AUG111270 PANDORA HEARTS GN VOL 07 $11.99

AUG110912 PLANET OF THE APES #7 $3.99

JUL110903 POOD #4 (MR) $4.50

JUL111209 POST IT NOTE DIARIES SC $15.00

JUL110795 REHEATED LIO STILL ANOTHER LIO COLLECTION TP $12.99

MAY111030 ROBERT JORDAN WHEEL OF TIME EYE O/T WORLD #15 $3.99

AUG111107 SAYONARA ZETSUBOU SENSEI GN VOL 11 $10.99

AUG111156 SIXTH GUN #16 $3.99

JUL111183 SMURFS GN VOL 08 SMURF APPRENTICE $5.99

JUL111184 SMURFS HC VOL 08 SMURF APPRENTICE $10.99

AUG110824 SONIC THE HEDGEHOG LEGACY VOL 01 $14.95

AUG110823 SONIC UNIVERSE #33 $2.99

AUG111271 SOUL EATER TP VOL 07 $11.99

AUG111273 SPICE AND WOLF GN VOL 05 (MR) $12.99

AUG110918 STAN LEE TRAVELER TP VOL 02 $14.99

JUL110822 STEAMPUNK HALLOWEEN ONE SHOT $3.50

SEP110795 STITCHED #1 (MR) $3.99

SEP110796 STITCHED #1 GORE CVR (MR) $3.99

SEP110797 STITCHED #1 WRAP CVR (MR) $3.99

JUL110802 STRAWBERRY SHORTCAKE BERRY FUN #3 (OF 4) $3.99

JUL111235 TANK GIRL CARIOCA #1 (OF 3) (MR) $5.99

SEP111159 TINTIN YOUNG READERS ED GN BLUE LOTUS $8.99

JUL111155 TINTIN YOUNG READERS ED GN BROKEN EAR $8.99

JUL111019 VAMPIRELLA #11 $3.99

AUG110991 VAMPIRELLA MASTERS SERIES TP VOL 06 JAMES ROBINSON $16.99

JUL111022 VAMPIRELLA SCARLET LEGION #5 $3.99

AUG111181 WAR OF THE INDEPENDENTS #1 $2.99

SEP111192 WASTE OF TIME TP (MR) $19.99

AUG111274 YOTSUBA & ! GN VOL 10 $11.99

JUL111018 ZORRO TP VOL 03 TALES OF THE FOX $19.99

MAGAZINES
JUL111212 2000 AD PACK SEP 2011 $20.00
AUG111329 COMICS REVUE PRESENTS OCT 2011 $19.95
JUN111376 DOCTOR WHO SPECIAL #29 $9.99
JUL111364 DR WHO INSIDER #7 $6.99
JUL111363 DR WHO MAGAZINE #439 $9.00
AUG111308 JUXTAPOZ #130 $5.99
JUL111390 SCREAM MAGAZINE #7 $8.99
JUL111413 SFX #214 $10.99
JUL111434 STAR WARS FIG COLL MAG #35 WEDGE ANTILLES $14.00
AUG111437 STAR WARS FIG COLL MAG IMPERIAL SHUTTLE #37 $14.00
JUN111433 STAR WARS VEHICLES COLL MAG #72 AT-OT $18.00
JUN111434 STAR WARS VEHICLES COLL MAG #73 HOME ONE $18.00

Tenjo Tenge: Bunshichi Takes on Shin

I read Tenjo Tenge, Vol. 3: Full Contact Edition 2-in-1 (Tenjho Tenge)

I posted a review at the Comic Book Bin.

Review: YOUNG ARTISTS DRAW MANGA

YOUNG ARTISTS DRAW MANGA
WATSON-GUPTILL PUBLICATIONS

AUTHOR: Christopher Hart
ISBN: 978-0-8230-2657-9; paperback
144pp, B&W, $14.99 US, $16.99 CAN

I like how-to-draw books, although I’ve been plugging away at them for 20 years, and I’m not really any good. I own many books by Burne Hogarth, and I’m still in love with my beat-up copy of The Figure by Walt Reed. One of the recent authors of how-to-draw books that I’ve discovered is the prolific Christopher Hart.

Hart is a bestselling author of illustrated art books that focus on drawing and cartooning. His website describes him as “the world’s leading author of How-to-Draw books on the popular arts, including cartoons, manga, comics and classic subjects such as figure drawing, anatomy and realistic animals.” I discovered Hart a few years ago and have his 2008 book, Drawing the New Adventure Cartoons: Cool Spies, Evil Guys and Action Heroes.

Hart has a new series of art instructional books and it launches with the just-released Young Artists Draw Manga (Watson-Guptill, 144pp, $14.99). The book not only gives step-by-step instructions on how to draw a basic face and the rest of the body, but it also presents a way to draw character types from manga, Japanese comic books. Taking characters from anime, books, movies, and video games, as well as manga, Hart offers more than 120 original characters for young artists to learn to draw. Each character gets a full page, and Hart breaks the character down into six basic steps along the way to drawing the character.

I think children and teens that are interested in manga and anime and want to draw characters from them will like this book. The entire book package and its contents are clearly directed at young readers and artists, in an open and friendly way. With so many different characters offered, Young Artists Draw Manga seems determined to both reach as many young artists as possible and to offer lots of material to inspire them. If a young artist has talent or a young reader wants to begin drawing, Hart meets her or him halfway with plenty of material to try.

http://www.chrishartbooks.com/

Rosario+Vampire Season II: Love Bites

I read Rosario+Vampire: Season II, Vol. 6

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

Review: SWEETS: A New Orleans Crime Story

"Murder, my sweet?"

SWEETS: A NEW ORLEANS CRIME STORY
IMAGE COMICS

CARTOONIST: Kody Chamberlain
INTRODUCTION: Duncan Fegredo
ISBN: 978-1-60706-413-8; paperback
120pp, Color, $14.99 U.S.

Kody Chamberlain is a Lafayette, Louisiana-based graphic designer turned comic book artist. He drew a backup feature for IDW’s 30 Days of Night and was the artist on two issues of BOOM Studio’s three-issue horror miniseries, Tag. He also received critical acclaim for his creator-owned comic, Punks (with writer Joshua Hale Fialkov).

Sweets was a five-issue comic book miniseries written and drawn by Kody Chamberlain and published by Image Comics beginning in 2010. The series was recently collected in the trade paperback, Sweets: A New Orleans Crime Story. Set in the days before the arrival of Hurricane Katrina, Sweets follows a grieving detective as he tries to uncover the identity of a spree killer terrorizing New Orleans.

In the story there is a killer on the loose in New Orleans, one who sometimes leaves pecan pralines at the crime scene, so he is called “Sweets.” The investigation is dropped in the lap of New Orleans Police Detective Curt Delatte, who is still grieving the loss of his daughter, Katie (Kaitlin M. Delatte) in a car crash. His boss, Lt. Palmer is not really sympathetic; he just wants Sweets found, especially with the mayor becoming exceedingly insistent that the police catch Sweets after he kills one of the mayor’s pals.

Delatte and his partner Jeff Matthews, who protects Delatte’s job and acts as a sort of filter between Delatte and Palmer, navigate the exotic streets and neighborhoods of the Big Easy. Along the way, they meet an eccentric cast of characters and discover that Sweets may act as spree killer or even a serial killer, but there is more to his game than anyone realizes.

I have to say that Sweets’ basic story will be recognizable to anyone familiar with detective fiction, films, television, or even comic books. The troubled detective, his ass of a police superior, the destined-for-tragedy partner, the absolutely nuts and/or ruthless mass killer, and the gritty setting: this all has a very loud ring of familiarity. Also, I am not as enamored with the dialogue in this series as Duncan Fegredo, who provides an introduction to this volume, is. Then, there is that crazy ending that recalls Polanski’s Chinatown and Antonioni’s Blowup.

Because the detective story is so common and well worn, a storyteller must find a unique angle upon which to execute the story, and Kody Chamberlain does. This unique angle is New Orleans. Sweets is not just another Film-Noir pretense. Chamberlain presents a fictional New Orleans that is colorful and exotic even while it is gritty. It is a city of striking eccentricities, but in places it resembles both cookie-cutter bland and decaying urban landscape. This New Orleans’ sweetness can be candy or poison.

Chamberlain also offers interesting juxtapositions of characters and of character relationships. For instance, Curt Delatte works kind of a razor’s edge. On one side is a city bureaucracy that demands justice after a favored son gets snuffed, and on the other side is an aspect of the city that doesn’t really index death by social status. Death comes for all.

Sweets: A New Orleans Crime Story is truly unique in crime fiction. New Orleans, however, has been done to death. I would like to see Kody do more crime comics, and I’m sure that between Thibodaux and Lafayette, he can find characters and settings to set the world of crime comics on fire.

A-

Sweets: A New Orleans Crime Story also reprints an interview of Kody conducted by the comic book website, Newsarama and a sketchbook section of preliminary art and thumbnails, among other things. There is also a script-to-art section, showing how the comic book went from script to breakdowns to pencil art to finished art.

Review: STAN LEE’S HOW TO WRITE COMICS

STAN LEE’S HOW TO WRITE COMICS
WATSON-GUPTILL PUBLICATIONS

WRITERS: Stan Lee with Bob Greenberger
COVER: Jonathan Lau
ISBN: 978-0-8230-0084-5; hardcover
224pp, Color, $45.00 U.S. ($24.99 paperback), $53.00 CAN

Born way back in 1922, Stan Lee (born Stanley Martin Lieber) has been a writer, editor, and publisher of comic books. He is most famously associated with Marvel Comics; Lee began with the company back in 1939 when it was Timely Comics. For Marvel Comics, Lee co-created such characters as Spider-Man, the X-Men, the Fantastic Four, Iron Man, and the Hulk, among many others

Stan Lee is an American comic book legend, but he is also known internationally and is the co-creator of a Japanese comic book series, a manga entitled Karakauri Dôji Ultimo. In addition to writing comic books, Lee has also authored several books. Perhaps, Lee’s best known non-comic is How to Draw Comics the Marvel Way (1978), co-authored with artist, John Buscema.

Stan Lee’s latest how-to book is Stan Lee’s How to Write Comics, which is available in both hardcover ($45.00 U.S.) and paperback ($24.99 U.S.) editions. Apparently, the purpose of the book is for Lee “to teach everything he knows about writing and creating comic book characters.” Lee offers tips, advice, and even a few secrets (or at least what he thinks are secrets).

Truthfully, this book has a misleading title. Yes, it does offer some how-to advice, and yes, it is rather interesting. However, this probably should be titled “Stan Lee’s About Writing Comics,” because the book is really about writing comics rather than being a how-to, guide to, or advice book, although this tome does all three things at different sections of the book.

Unless you open this book, you won’t know that Lee has a co-writer, Bob Greenberger. I wouldn’t be surprised if Greenberger did much of the writing in this book based upon interviews he conducted with Lee. Reading Stan Lee’s How to Write Comics, I got the sense of a collaborative process in which Lee strolled down memory lane recalling how he wrote, how he created, and how he collaborated with different artists, such as Jack Kirby and Steve Ditko.

Much of this book includes quotes from current comic book creators and editors like Alan Moore, Kurt Busiek, Bryan Hitch, Doug Moench, Jerry Ordway Richard Pini, and Mark Waid, among others. There is even a script sample by Neil Gaiman. That’s why I say that Stan Lee’s How to Write Comics is about writing comics rather than a pure how-to book.

Stan Lee’s How to Write Comics is lavishly illustrated by pages, covers, and details from a wide assortment of comic books. There are also reproductions of original art, pencil art, and preliminary art of various kinds. To me, this book is worth purchasing because there is an entire chapter devoted to the benefits and shortcomings of using the full script or “Marvel Style” script, which is a plot-first way of telling the artist what to draw.

Upon first glance, I honestly didn’t expect much of this book, but Stan Lee’s How to Write Comics is a book that beginning and novice comic book writers should have. Even if they keep it for simple reference, they will like having this book because it has a lot to say about writing comic books.

B

CONTRIBUTING ARTISTS - work by the following artists appears in this book:
Neal Adams, Ross Andru, Erica Awano
Mark Bagley, Diego Bernard, John Byrne
Aaron Campbell, J. Scott Campbell, Chris Caniano, Milton Caniff, John Cassaday, Cliff Chiang, Gene Colan
Steve Dillon, Steve Ditko
Glenn Fabry, Francesco Francavilla, Frank Frazetta,, Frank Kelly Freas
Dick Giordano
George Herriman, Bill Hughes, Bryan Hitch
Dan Jurgens
Gil Kane, Jack Kirby
David Lafuente, Jonathan Lau, Bob Layton, Sr., Larry Lieber
Mike Mayhew, Bob McLeod, Frank Miller, Tom Morgan
Katsuhiro Otomo, Richard Outcault
Carlos Paul, Frank Paul, George Perez, Windy Pini
Joe Quesada, Frank Quitely
Carlos Rafael, Caesar Razek, Wagner Reis, Paul Renaud, John Romita, John Romita, Jr., Alex Ross, Mel Rubi
Edgar Salazar, Manuel Clemente Sanjulian, Mike Sekowsky, Joe Shuster, Bill Sienkiewicz, Dave Sim, Vin Sullivan
Rodolphe Topffer, Michael Turner,
Mike Zeck

I Reads You Review: ULTIMATE COMICS SPIDER-MAN #2

"Part Two"

ULTIMATE SPIDER-MAN #2
MARVEL COMICS

WRITER: Brian Michael Bendis
ARTIST: Sara Pichelli
COLORS: Justin Ponsor
LETTERS: VC’s Cory Petit
COVER: Kaare Andrews
32pp, Color, $3.99 U.S.
Rated T+

The result of the “Death of Spider-Man” Ultimate Comics storyline was that Peter Parker was killed. Miles Morales, a teenager of African-American and Latino heritage, is the new Spider-Man (or Ultimate Spider-Man II).

As Ultimate Spider-Man #2 (AKA Ultimate Comics: Spider-Man #2) begins, Miles is testing his new powers, but he needs answers. What is happening to him? Can his pal Ganke help him? Meanwhile, Miles’ father reveals his and his brother’s (Miles’ uncle) troubled past.

Perhaps, I over-praised writer Brian Michael Bendis in my review of the first issue of Ultimate Spider-Man #1, and did so at the expense of artist Sara Pichelli. Bendis is good in this series, but so is Pichelli. First of all, she draws some of the most convincing looking Black people I’ve ever seen in American comic books. Secondly, she is perfect for Bendis’ character-heavy stories with their sometimes exceeding sense verisimilitude and realism.

Pichelli is also a master of drawing facial expressions and subtle gestures. The way she can shift, from panel to panel, the emotion or tone via a look, expression, or gesture from a character is uncanny. During Miles’ conversation with his father, the reader will understand exactly when Miles is shocked, confused, hurt, or when he wants to exclaim, “Say what?!” to his father.

Sara Pichelli is as important as Bendis in making Ultimate Spider-Man one of the top five superhero comic books currently being published (in my estimation, of course).

A

Ultimate Spider-Man #1 includes a backup feature that reprints pages from “A Moment of Silence” and “Heroes,” two of Marvel Comics’ 9/11 publications. These are pin-ups from Sam Keith, Richard Corben, Adam Kubert with Richard Isanove, Michael Avon Oeming, and Tom Raney and Scott Hanna with Hi-Fi