Image Comics from Diamond Distributors for July 25 2012

IMAGE COMICS

NOV110378 ARTIFACTS DELUXE HC $99.99
MAY120523 BATULA HC $16.99
MAY120498 CHEW SECRET AGENT POYO #1 SDCC CVR (MR) $3.50
MAY120516 DEBRIS #1 (MR) $3.50
JAN120583 ELEPHANTMEN #41 (MR) $3.99
MAY120544 ELEPHANTMEN HC VOL 05 DEVILISH FUNCTIONS (MR) $34.99
MAY120550 GATECRASHER TP VOL 01 RING OF FIRE $12.99
OCT110545 GRAVEYARD OF EMPIRES #4 (RES) (MR) $2.99
MAY120609 GRIM LEAPER #3 (MR) $3.50
FEB120506 HAUNT #25 $2.99
MAY120617 MANHATTAN PROJECTS #5 $3.50
MAY128148 MIND THE GAP #2 2ND PTG $2.99
MAY120620 NEAR DEATH #10 $2.99
MAY120623 PROPHET #27 $2.99
MAR120444 REED GUNTHER TP VOL 02 $14.99
MAY120629 SUPER DINOSAUR #12 $2.99
MAY120530 THE MONOLITH HC $17.99

IMAGE COMICS/TOP COW PRODUCTIONS
APR120564 WITCHBLADE #158 CVR A CHRISTOPHER $2.99
APR120565 WITCHBLADE #158 CVR B BERNARD & BENES $2.99

Comics, Magazines and Books from Diamond Distributors for July 25 2012

PREVIEWS PUBLICATIONS
JUN120004 PREVIEWS #287 AUG 2012 CUSTOMER ORDER FORM PI
JUN120001 PREVIEWS #287 AUGUST 2012 $4.50

COMICS & GRAPHIC NOVELS
MAR121165 2000 AD #1782 $5.25

APR120781 AIRBOY DEADEYE #3 $3.50

MAY120841 ARCHIE #635 REG CVR $2.99

MAY120844 ARCHIE & FRIENDS DOUBLE DIGEST #18 $3.99

MAY120843 ARCHIE CLASH OF THE NEW KIDS TP $11.99

APR121130 ARISA GN VOL 08 $10.99

MAY120848 B & V FRIENDS DOUBLE DIGEST #227 $3.99

MAY120932 BART SIMPSON COMICS #73 $2.99

MAY121352 BLACK BUTLER TP VOL 10 $11.99

MAY120919 CRITTER (ONGOING) #2 $3.50

MAY120897 CROSSED BADLANDS #10 (MR) $3.99

MAY120900 CROSSED BADLANDS #10 RED CROSSED CVR (MR) $6.60

MAY120899 CROSSED BADLANDS #10 TORTURE CVR (MR) $3.99

MAY120898 CROSSED BADLANDS #10 WRAP CVR (MR) $3.99

MAY121217 DANCE CLASS HC VOL 02 ROMEO & JULIETS $10.99

JAN121008 DARK SHADOWS #6 $3.99

MAY121073 DEJAH THORIS & WHITE APES OF MARS #4 (MR) $3.99

MAY121354 DURARARA GN VOL 03 $11.99

APR121230 EVERYBODY LOVES TANK GIRL #1 (MR) $3.99

APR120929 EXILE PLANET O/T APES #4 $3.99

APR128253 EXTERMINATION #1 MAIN CVR (2ND PTG) $1.00

APR121223 FICTIONAUTS GN (MR) $12.99

MAY121222 GARFIELD & CO HC VOL 06 MOTHER GARFIELD $7.99

MAR120724 GEARHEARTS STEAMPUNK GLAMOR REVUE #3 $3.99

MAY121223 GERONIMO STILTON HC BOX SET VOL 4-6 $29.99

MAY121391 GFT BAD GIRLS #1 A CVR REYES (MR) $2.99

MAY121392 GFT BAD GIRLS #1 B CVR (MR) $2.99

APR121323 GFT JUNGLE BOOK #4 A CVR GRANDA (MR) $2.99

APR121324 GFT JUNGLE BOOK #4 B CVR GRANDA (MR) $2.99

APR121325 GFT JUNGLE BOOK #4 C CVR PATTERSON (MR) $2.99

MAY121387 GFT SWIMSUIT SPECIAL 2012 A CVR DEBALFO $5.99

MAY121388 GFT SWIMSUIT SPECIAL 2012 B CVR TYNDALL $5.99

MAY121377 GFT WONDERLAND ANNUAL 2012 A CVR SEJIC (MR) $5.99

MAY121378 GFT WONDERLAND ANNUAL 2012 B CVR CHEN (MR) $5.99

MAR120725 GOLD DIGGER PLATINUM TP VOL 04 $14.95

MAY121364 GRIMM FAIRY TALES #75 A CVR CAMPBELL (MR) $5.99

MAY121365 GRIMM FAIRY TALES #75 B CVR SPAY (MR) $5.99

MAY121366 GRIMM FAIRY TALES #75 C CVR MYCHAELS (MR) $5.99

MAY121367 GRIMM FAIRY TALES #75 D CVR SEJIC (MR) $5.99

MAY121181 HAMMER AND THE ANVIL GN $24.95

MAY120976 HELLRAISER #16 (MR) $3.99

MAY121355 HIGH SCHOOL OF DEAD GN VOL 07 (MR) $13.99

APR128386 HIGHER EARTH #2 (2ND PTG) $3.99

APR121336 IRRESISTIBLE #1 A CVR GARZA (MR) $3.99

APR121337 IRRESISTIBLE #1 B CVR CHEN (MR) $3.99

APR121030 KEVIN SMITH BIONIC MAN #11 $3.99

MAY121062 KEVIN SMITH BIONIC MAN TP VOL 01 SOME ASSEMBLY REQUIRED $29.99

APR128214 KIMI NI TODOKE GN VOL 14 FROM ME TO YOU $9.99

MAR120727 LAST ZOMBIE NEVERLAND #5 $3.99

APR120872 LEGEND OF OZ THE WICKED WEST #5 (MR) $3.50

MAR120962 LORD OF THE JUNGLE #6 (MR) $3.99

MAR121257 NAOKI URASAWA 20TH CENTURY BOYS GN VOL 21 $12.99

JAN120804 NAZI ZOMBIES #3 $3.99

JAN121079 NOWHERE MAN #4 $3.99

MAY121357 PANDORA HEARTS GN VOL 11 $11.99

NOV111035 PHOENIX WRIGHT GN VOL 05 $10.99

MAY120799 PINOCCHIO VAMPIRE SLAYER GN VOL 03 WOOD & BLOOD PT 1 $10.95

MAY120945 PLANET OF THE APES #16 $3.99

APR121055 RED SONJA WITCHBLADE #5 $3.99

MAY121157 RESISTANCE GN VOL 03 VICTORY $17.99

MAY121319 SAKURAN GN VOL 01 $16.95

MAY121350 SOUL EATER NOT TP VOL 01 $11.99

MAY120875 SOULFIRE GRACE #1 CVR A RYAN $3.99

MAY120876 SOULFIRE GRACE #1 CVR B QUALANO $3.99

MAY120873 SOULFIRE POWER #1 CVR A RYAN $3.99

MAY120874 SOULFIRE POWER #1 CVR B RANDOLPH $3.99

MAY120863 STAN LEES MIGHTY 7 #3 REG CVR $2.99

MAY120938 TAROT WITCH OF THE BLACK ROSE #75 (MR) $2.95

MAY121358 TWILIGHT MANGA TP VOL 02 $14.99

JUN121298 UNDERWATER WELDER GN $19.95

MAR121214 VIC BOONE TP $14.99

APR120767 VICTORIAN SECRET GIRLS OF SUMMER #1 $3.99

MAY121360 WONDERLAND #1 A CVR CAMPBELL (MR) $2.99

MAY121361 WONDERLAND #1 B CVR HORN (MR) $2.99

MAY121362 WONDERLAND #1 C CVR BASALDUA (MR) $2.99

MAY121363 WONDERLAND #1 D CVR GARZA (MR) $2.99

APR121210 WORLDS OF PHAZER TP $19.99

MAGAZINE
MAY121420 ALTER EGO #111 $8.95
MAY121421 BACK ISSUE #58 $8.95
MAY121414 CLASSIC MARVEL FIG COLL MAG SPECIAL TERRAX $32.00
MAY121428 COMIC SHOP NEWS #1310 PI
DEC111285 DC SUPERHERO CHESS FIG COLL MAG #6 TWO FACE BLACK KNIGHT $16.00
MAR121321 DC SUPERHERO CHESS FIG COLL MAG #9 POISON IVY BLACK PAWN $16.00
MAY121488 LOCUS #618 $6.95
APR121401 RUE MORGUE MAGAZINE #124 $9.95
MAR121391 SFX #222 $10.99
MAY121484 SUPERNATURAL MAGAZINE #34 NEWSSTAND ED $6.99
MAY121485 SUPERNATURAL MAGAZINE #34 PX ED $6.99

BOOKS
AUG111223 APPLE SELECTION SC VOL 02 $39.99
MAY121359 BOOK GIRL & THE WAYFARERS LAMENTATION NOVEL $11.99
MAY121423 CEREBUS THE BARBARIAN MESSIAH SC $45.00
MAY121438 DC SUPER PETS YR TP BIGGEST LITTLE HERO $4.95
MAY121441 DC SUPER PETS YR TP CAT CRIME CLUB $4.95
MAY121439 DC SUPER PETS YR TP DEEP SEA DUEL $4.95
MAY121442 DC SUPER PETS YR TP FANTASTIC FLEXY FROG $4.95
MAY121440 DC SUPER PETS YR TP NIGHT OF SCAREDY CROWS $4.95
MAY121443 DC SUPER PETS YR TP SWAMP THING VS ZOMBIE PETS $4.95
APR121157 KOLCHAK NECRONOMICON HC $59.95
APR121065 MAOHDEN NOVEL VOL 01 (MR) $12.95
MAY121304 MARIE SEVERIN MIRTHFUL MISTRESS OF COMICS SC $24.95
MAY121432 MEANING OF SUPERHERO COMIC BOOKS SC $40.00
APR128215 METAL GEAR SOLID GUNS O/T PATRIOTS NOVEL $15.99
MAY121481 MICKEY SPILLANE ON SCREEN SC $45.00
APR121242 MODERN MASTERS SC VOL 28 ERIC POWELL $15.95
APR121395 ONCE CROWDED SKY NOVEL HC $26.00
MAY121434 SEXUAL IDEOLOGY IN THE WORKS OF ALAN MOORE SC $40.00
JAN121111 SIGNIFICANT OBJECTS SC $24.99
APR121952 WARHAMMER 40K BEST OF HAMMER AND BOLTER $15.00

Rosaro+Vampire: Season II - Tsukune's Transformation

I read Rosario+Vampire: Season II, Vol. 9

I posted a review at the ComicBookBin (which has free comics).

D.Gray-man: Fate

I read D.Gray-man, Vol. 22


I posted a review at the ComicBookBin (which has free smart phone apps and comics).

Review: NATSUME’S BOOK OF FRIENDS, VOL. 12

NATSUME’S BOOK OF FRIENDS, VOL. 12
VIZ MEDIA

CARTOONIST: Yuki Midorikawa
TRANSLATION & ENGLISH ADAPTATION: Lillian Olsen
LETTERS: Sabrina Heep
ISBN: 978-1-4215-4231-7; paperback, Rated “T” for “Teen”
192pp, B&W, $9.99 U.S. $12.99 CAN, £6.99 UK

Yuki Midorikawa is a Japanese female mangaka (manga artist). Her best known work is Natsume’s Book of Friends, a fantasy manga. The series began being serialized in the shojo manga magazine, LaLa DX (from publisher Hakusensha), in 2005. As of 2008, Natsume’s Book of Friends appears in another shojo magazine, LaLa.

The series stars troubled high school student Takashi Natsume. The teenaged boy can see the spirits and demons called “yokai.” This ability, however, has been a curse that has set Takashi, who is an orphan, apart from others. He finds a stable home with the Fujiwaras, a kind couple who are distant relatives. He also has a companion in Nyanko Sensei, a guardian yokai. Takashi learns that he has inherited two things from his mysterious grandmother, Reiko Natsume: the Sight and her “Book of Friends,” a tome in which Reiko wrote the names of yokai.

As Natsume’s Book of Friends, Vol. 12 begins, Takashi meets a kindhearted yokai who has in his possession a letter ruined by age and exposure to the elements. This yokai knows of another yokai with the ability to restore paper, but this mysterious yokai’s name is in the Book of Friends. Will this unknown yokai be willing to help the grandson of Reiko Natsume? Next, a female yokai wants to return a mirror given to her by a human woman, so will Takashi help her find the mirror’s owner?

Later, Takashi finds himself in a trap sprung by a yokai looking for a gift. Why does a yokai need a gift? The legendary yokai, Lord Omibashira, has returned, and there is a par-tay! in his honor, and Takashi is a welcome-home present. Now, the teen loner must turn to his human acquaintances for help. Can Shuichi Natori, the actor and yokai exorcist, and Kaname Tanuma, a fellow high school student who can sense when yokai are present, help Takashi?

Initially, I didn’t know what to make of the Natsume’s Book of Friends manga. It is one of the few manga that would seem to fit in at Vertigo, the DC Comics’ imprint which focuses on adult oriented fantasy and crime comics. In fact, Natsume’s Book of Friends reminds me of the classic Vertigo series, The Sandman.

Although this is a fantasy series full of mythological creatures, creator Yuki Midorikawa focuses on the characters. The story of the yokai with the weather-beaten note is a tragic story of unrequited love that Midorikawa plays in such a way that you might think the characters are human. The yokai-with-a-mirror story is about keeping promises and about sacrifice that transcends genres. I previously described this series as a celebration of life, but it also celebrates the bonds that hold people to one another.

A

Oresama Teacher: Riot at the School Festival

I read Oresama Teacher, Vol. 9

I posted a review at the ComicBookBin (which has free comics).

Review: Stan Lee's How to Draw Comics

STAN LEE’S HOW TO DRAW COMICS
WATSON-GUPTILL PUBLICATIONS/Dynamite Entertainment

WRITERS: Stan Lee with David Campiti
COVER: John Romita with Dean White (limited edition cover: Francesco Francavilla)
ISBN: 978-0-8230-0083-8; paperback
224pp, Color, $24.99 U.S., $27.99 CAN

He was born Stanley Martin Lieber in 1922, but the world of arts and entertainment knows him as Stan Lee. For Marvel Comics, Lee has been a writer, editor, and publisher and has been associated with Marvel Comics since 1939 when it was Timely Comics.

Collaborating with artists Jack Kirby and Steve Ditko, Lee created such characters as Spider-Man, the X-Men, the Fantastic Four, and the Hulk, among many others. In addition to writing comic books, Lee has also authored several books. Perhaps, Lee’s best known non-comic book, book is How to Draw Comics the Marvel Way (1978), which he co-authored with the late artist, John Buscema.

Stan Lee’s latest how-to book is Stan Lee’s How to Draw Comics. Co-written with David Campiti, Stan Lee’s How to Draw Comics is essentially an update of How to Draw Comics the Marvel Way, but with less emphasis on “the Marvel Way.” In his introduction, Stan writes that it was time for a new book, one with “a cornucopia of cutting-edge, techno-savvy instructions.”

I have a copy of How to Draw Comics the Marvel Way, one through which I’ve thumbed countless times, and the difference between the 1978 book and this one is jarring. Stan Lee’s How to Draw Comics is, for one thing, bigger, and there is much information on digital lettering and computer coloring. How to Draw Comics the Marvel Way is essentially analog, but obviously that’s because computers weren’t being used to produce comic book art and graphics when it was written. Campiti’s hand is all over the sections on computers and digital processes to create comics because he runs Glasshouse Graphics, a company that provides everything from story and art to pre-press and custom publishing for comic book publishers and other clients.

Stan Lee’s How to Draw Comics provides a broad overview of creating visuals for comic books. There are sections on penciling, inking and coloring; lettering and word balloons. Readers can learn about creating costumes; what makes great action; perspective and foreshortening; page and panel layout; and how to create visually appealing covers. There is information on digital advances, creating a portfolio, and getting work in the industry.

Not to dismiss the earlier book, Stan Lee’s How to Write Comics, but Stan Lee’s How to Draw Comics is a complete book offering both theory and procedure. A budding comic book creator can get tips on penciling, inking, coloring, and lettering a comic book using both new and traditional methods, and he or she can examine numerous black and white diagrams that illustrate the basics of creating comic book graphics. Stan Lee’s How to Draw Comics is a text book because it explains the why’s and how’s, often using the advise and expertise of industry professionals. There is even a section on using Google Sketchup to create skyscrapers, buildings, and other exterior landscapes.

There is apparently a limited edition of Stan Lee’s How to Draw Comics. I don’t know whether or not it’s a hardcover, but this paperback edition is the one to get if you have an eye on becoming a professional comic book artist. The paperback is made to be handled a lot.

A-

CONTRIBUTING ARTISTS:
Neal Adams, Erica Awano
Dan Borgones, Nick Bradshaw, Ariel Burgess
Aaron Campbell, J. Scott Campbell, Chris Caniano, Eman Casallos, John Cassaday, Frank Cho, Vince Colletta
Bong Dazo, Mike Deodato, Jr., Steve Ditko
Tina Francisco
Ken Haeser, Tabitha Haeser
Bob Kane, Gil Kane, Michael Kelleher, Jack Kirby
Fabio Laguna, Jonathan Lau, Jae Lee, Jim Lee, Jun Lofamia
Gemma Magno, Jezreel Morales
Earl Norem,
Ariel Padilla
Cliff Richards, Al Rio John Romita, Alex Ross, Mel Rubi
Steve Sadowski, Gaspar Saladino, Edgar Salazar, Mel Joy San Juan, Alexander Sicat, Joe Sinnott
Anthony Tan, Wilson Tortosa, Michael Turner