Comics, Magazines and Books from Diamond Distributors for August 27, 2014

PREVIEWS PUBLICATIONS
JUL140004    PREVIEWS #312 SEP 2014 CUSTOMER ORDER FORM    PI
JUL140001    PREVIEWS #312 SEPTEMBER 2014    $4.50

COMICS & GRAPHIC NOVELS
APR141010    ADVENTURE TIME MARCELINE & SCREAM QUEENS MATHEMATICAL ED HC    $39.99
MAY141592    ALIEN LEGION UNCIVIL WAR #3    $3.99
JUN141021    AND THEN EMILY WAS GONE #2 (MR)    $3.50
JUN141357    ARIOL SC VOL 05 BIZZBILLA HITS BULLSEYE    $12.99
JUN141054    ARMY OF DARKNESS HITCHED #2 MAIN LEE    $3.99
JUN141304    ATTACK ON TITAN GN VOL 13    $10.99
MAY141565    BAD DREAMS #4    $3.50
MAY141192    BEE AND PUPPYCAT #3 MAIN CVRS    $3.99
MAY140972    BO PLUSHY GANGSTA #4 (MR)    $3.99
JUN141034    BOBS BURGERS #1    $3.99
JUN141035    BOBS BURGERS #1 BLANK AUTHENTIX CVR    $3.99
JUL141268    BRAINSTORM #1 (MR)    $3.99
JUN141395    BRASS SUN #4    $3.99
JUN140997    BRAVEST WARRIORS #23 MAIN CVRS    $3.99
JUN141569    BTOOOM GN VOL 07 (MR)    $11.99
JUN141306    CAGE OF EDEN GN VOL 15    $10.99
JUN141525    CARDFIGHT VANGUARD GN VOL 03    $10.95
JUL141212    CHAOS #1 MIDTOWN EXC RUFFINO B&W CVR    $20.00
JUL141213    CHAOS #1 MIDTOWN EXC RUFFINO VIRGIN CVR    $50.00
JUN141418    CHARLEYS WAR OMNIBUS TP VOL 01    $24.99
JUN141469    CLOCKWORK SKY GN VOL 02    $12.99
JUN140830    DAMSELS IN EXCESS #2 DIRECT MARKET CVR A    $3.99
JUN140831    DAMSELS IN EXCESS #2 DIRECT MARKET CVR B    $3.99
JUL141163    DEJAH OF MARS #1 RUBI RISQUE B&W LTD (MR)    $100.00
APR141199    DF CHEW REVIVAL #1 CGC GRADED 9.8    $89.99
MAR141154    DF DAREDEVIL #1.50 CGC GRADED 9.8    $89.99
JUL141210    DF FLASH GORDON #1 RARE EXC DEATH TO MING CVR    $14.99
JUN141186    DF GUARDIANS O/T GALAXY #1 EXC CVR CGC GRADED 9.8    $89.99
JUN141191    DF GUARDIANS O/T GALAXY #5 EXC CVR BONUS PKG    $29.99
JUN141190    DF GUARDIANS O/T GALAXY #5 EXC CVR CGC GRADED 9.8    $99.99
APR141195    DF ORIGINAL SIN #1 CGC GRADED 9.8    $99.99
MAY141596    DOCTOR WHO 10TH #2 REG ZHANG    $3.99
JUN141169    EVEN MORE BAD PARENTING ADVICE GN    $12.95
APR140977    EVIL EMPIRE #4 (MR)    $3.99
JUN140911    FACE VALUE #1    $3.99
JUN141115    FLASH GORDON #5    $3.99
JUN141117    FLASH GORDON #5 80TH ANNIVERSARY CASTRO CVR    $3.99
JUN141612    GFT GODSTORM HERCULES PAYNE #5 A CVR PANTALENA    $3.99
JUN141613    GFT GODSTORM HERCULES PAYNE #5 B CVR ERIC J    $3.99
JUN141614    GFT GODSTORM HERCULES PAYNE #5 C CVR CUCCA    $3.99
JUN141609    GFT WARLORD OF OZ #4 A CVR LILLY    $2.99
JUN141610    GFT WARLORD OF OZ #4 B CVR ORTIZ    $2.99
JUN141611    GFT WARLORD OF OZ #4 C CVR LUIS    $2.99
MAY141566    HAUNTED #4    $3.50
JUN141626    HERGE & TREASURES OF TINTIN HC    $49.95
JUN140758    HERO CATS #1 MAIN CVR    $3.99
JUN141570    HIGH SCHOOL DXD GN VOL 02 (MR)    $13.00
JUL141417    HIS FAVORITE GN VOL 02 (MR)    $12.99
JUL141420    HIS FAVORITE GN VOL 05 (MR)    $12.99
JUL141421    HIS FAVORITE GN VOL 06 (MR)    $12.99
JUN141024    HUGH HOWEYS WOOL #2    $3.99
JUN141322    INVINCIBLE DAYS HC    $19.99
JUN141396    JAEGIR ONE SHOT    $3.99
MAR141213    JOHNNY HAZARD DAILIES HC VOL 03 1947-1949    $49.99
MAY141024    JUGHEAD & ARCHIE JUMBO COMICS DIGEST #5    $6.99
JUN140928    KANG & KODOS #1    $3.99
MAR141222    KNIGHTS OF THE DINNER TABLE #211    $5.99
JUN141133    LADY RAWHIDE TP VOL 01    $19.99
JUL141168    LEGENDERRY A STEAMPUNK ADV #3 BENITEZ VIRGIN    $100.00
JUN141359    LEGO LEGENDS OF CHIMA HC VOL 02 RIGHT DECISION    $12.99
JUN141337    LETTER 44 #9    $3.99
JUN141571    MAXIMUM RIDE TP VOL 08    $13.00
JUN140818    MEGA MAN #40 REG CVR (NOTE PRICE)    $3.99
JUN141356    MONOMYTH #2    $3.99
JUN141311    NO 6 GN VOL 08    $10.99
JUL141394    PARIAH MISSOURI GN VOL 01    $16.99
JUN148274    RAI #1 4TH PTG    $3.99
JUN148315    RAI #3 2ND PTG    $3.99
JUN141509    RAI #4 REG CRAIN (VF)    $3.99
JUN141510    RAI #4 VALIANTCRAFT CVR (VF)    $3.99
JUN140980    REGULAR SHOW #14    $3.99
MAR140974    RUST HC VOL 01 VISITOR IN FIELD    $24.99
APR141274    SAINT MAN WHO WOULDNT DIE GN    $7.99
JUN141313    SANKAREA GN VOL 08    $10.99
JUN141314    SAY I LOVE YOU GN VOL 03    $10.99
JUN140761    SHINOBI NINJA PRINCESS #1 MAIN CVR    $3.99
JUN141547    SHONEN JUMP PACK 2014 #3    $19.99
JUL141174    SIX MILLION DOLLAR MAN SEASON 6 #1 ROSS VIRGIN ART    $100.00
JUN141338    SIXTH GUN #42    $3.99
MAY141038    SONIC THE HEDGEHOG TP VOL 01 COUNTDOWN TO CHAOS    $12.99
JUN140824    SONIC UNIVERSE #67 REG CVR (NOTE PRICE)    $3.99
APR140849    STEAM ENGINES OF OZ COMP COLL HC VOL 01    $29.95
JUN140957    STEED & MRS PEEL NEEDED #2    $3.99
JUN140961    SUPURBIA TP VOL 04    $14.99
MAY141163    TALENT DLX ED TP    $14.99
MAY141235    TAROT WITCH OF THE BLACK ROSE #87 DLX ED (MR)    $19.99
JUN141445    THESEUS & MINOTAUR GN    $16.95
JUN141295    TOMBOY GRAPHIC MEMOIR    $15.99
JUN141573    TRIAGE X GN VOL 07 (MR)    $14.00
JUL141103    TUROK DINOSAUR HUNTER TP VOL 01 CONQUEST    $16.99
JUN141316    WALLFLOWER GN VOL 33    $10.99
APR141312    WWE SUPERSTARS ONGOING #7    $3.99
JUN141503    X-O MANOWAR #28 REG BERNARD (AH)    $3.99
JUN141504    X-O MANOWAR #28 VALIANTCRAFT CVR (AH)    $3.99

MAGAZINES
JUN141699    COMIC SHOP NEWS #1419    PI

BOOKS
JUN141621    ART OF JOHN ALVIN HC    $34.95
JUL141662    DOCTOR WHO TALES OF TRENZALORE SC    $11.99
JUL141680    SCI FI MOVIE GUIDE FILM FROM ALIEN TO ZARDOZ SC 2ND ED    $19.95
JUL141634    SENSUAL DISTRESS ART OF STEVE O RENO SC VOL 01 (MR)    $9.95
JUL141635    SENSUAL DISTRESS ART OF STEVE O RENO SC VOL 02 (MR)    $9.95
JUN141575    SWORD ART ONLINE NOVEL VOL 02 AINCRAD    $13.00
JUL141653    WEIRD WORLD OF EERIE PUBLICATIONS HC    $32.95

Ikigami: The Final Volume

I read Ikigami: The Ultimate Limit, Vol. 10

I posted a review at the ComicBookBin, which is seeking donations.  Follow me on Twitter.

I Reads You Review: TEEN TITANS #1

TEEN TITANS #1 (2014)
DC COMICS – @DCComics

WRITER: Will Pfeifer
ART: Kenneth Rocafort
COLORS: Dan Brown
LETTERS: John J. Hill
COVER: Kenneth Rocafort
VARIANT COVERS: Cliff Chiang; Joe Quinones
32pp, Color, $2.99 U.S. (September 2014)

Rated “T” for “Teen”

“Blinded by the Light” Part 1

DC Comics has once again relaunched the Teen Titans franchise.  I was a huge fan of the best Teen Titans rebirth, The New Teen Titans, which first appeared in DC Comics Presents #26, before debuting in The New Teen Titans #1 (November 1980). The series, created by writer Marv Wolfman and artist George Pérez, ran from 1980 to 1996.  For awhile, The New Teen Titans was DC Comics' X-Men-like powerhouse, but I think the events of Crisis on Infinite Earths was the start of its downfall into irrelevance.  [For a number of reasons, including a refocus on core DC Comics franchises such as Superman, Batman, and Wonder Woman, but that's for another discussion.]

The recently launched Teen Titans comic book series is written Will Pfeifer, drawn by Kenneth Rocafort, colored by Dan Brown, and lettered by John J. Hill.  The Teen Titans roster is Red Robin (Tim Drake), Beast Boy, Raven, Bunker, and Wonder Girl (Cassie Sandsmark).  It is the second Teen Titans series of The New 52.

Teen Titans #1 (“Blinded by the Light” Part 1) finds the team taking on a school bus hijacking.  According the terrorist-like hijackers' leader, their target is really S.T.A.R. Labs, with the children on the bus merely being pawns.  Of course, the Teen Titans can easily handle such criminals, but are our heroes missing the bigger picture – a larger conspiracy.

A friend of mine who read Teen Titans #1 before I did told me that he did not like it, and he is a longtime Teen Titans fan.  I am really a fan of the Teen Titans from their Silver Age origins to The New Teen Titans.  I am not particularly interested in the various Teen Titans (and Titans) series that came afterward.  I did not care for this Teen Titans #1.

Will Pfeifer tries to write these Titans as cool-under-pressure, up-to-date, and on the cutting-edge of everything.  They actually come across as contrived and about as cool as plastic do-dads.  They are more a collection of character traits and personality quirks than they are real characters.  Kenneth Rocafort's art is crowded, and reading it is like trying to see through a television picture beset by static.  Dan Brown's coloring is just decoration.

I don't have anything against the Cassie Sandsmark Wonder Girl, originally created by John Byrne and introduced back in Wonder Woman (Vol. 2) #105 (cover dated: January 1996), but I prefer Donna Troy.  I like the costume that Raven wears, but I prefer the pre-New 52 character.  You know what:  I don't think these Teen Titans are for me.  Maybe others will enjoy it; maybe I'll even try another issue or two.

C

Reviewed by Leroy Douresseaux


The text is copyright © 2014 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this blog for syndication rights and fees.

Itsuwaribito: Village Village

I read Itsuwaribito , Vol. 12

I posted a review at the ComicBookBin, which is seeking donations.  Follow me on Twitter.

I Reads You Review: GRAYSON #1

GRAYSON #1
DC COMICS – @DCComics

PLOT: Tim Seeley and Tom King
SCRIPT: Tim Seeley
ART: Mikel Janin
COLORS: Jeremy Cox
LETTERS: Carlos M. Mangual
COVER: Andrew Robinson
VARIANT COVERS: Mikel Janin; Jock
32pp, Color, $2.99 U.S. (September 2014)

Rated “T” for “Teen”

Dick Grayson is a DC Comics character best known as the first person to take on the identity of Robin, Batman's kid sidekick.  Robin/Dick Grayson was originally created by Batman's creators, artist Bob Kane and writer Bill Finger, and also artist Jerry Robinson.  Robin debuted in Detective Comics #38 (cover date:  April 1940).

Batman's a junior counterpart, Robin, was known as the “Boy Wonder,” during the first three decades of the character's existence.  The team of Batman and Robin is commonly referred to as the “Dynamic Duo” or the “Caped Crusaders.”  Over time, the men who wrote the Batman comic books depicted Dick Grayson as growing up, even graduating from high school and attending college.  Robin would go on to lead a group of teen characters and sidekicks called the Teen Titans.  Eventually, Dick Grayson relinquished the name Robin and became a new superhero, Nightwing (first appearance in Tales of the Teen Titans #43)

As Nightwing, Dick Grayson has been the star of two eponymous comic book series.  The New 52 version of Nightwing was canceled some months ago.  It was recently replaced by a new comic book series, entitled Grayson, that spins out of DC Comics' 2013-14 crossover event series, Forever Evil (which I did not read).

Grayson #1 finds Dick Grayson in a blond wig.  He is now known as “Agent 37,” and he works for an international spy organization known as Spyral.  Grayson has just hitched a ride aboard the Trans-Siberian Railway, where his target for acquisition is Dubov Ninel.  However, Agent 37 isn't the only one out to get Ninel, and even after he obtains him, there is a new player looking to take what Grayson just obtained.  [SPOILER Alert!]  Enter Midnighter.

I read a preview of Grayson #1 in another comic book (can't remember which one), and that preview intrigued me.  I was excited about the series and visited two comic book stores to find a copy of issue #1.  Having read it I can say that I don't think that I would pay to read Grayson again.

It is not that Grayson is bad.  It is entertaining, and I like the art by Mikel Janin with colors by the always good Jeremy Cox.  It's just that besides an appearance by Midnighter (of Stormwatch and The Authority fame), nothing else about this first issue excited me.  It's good; just not special enough for me to set aside the cash to buy it on a regular basis.  I must say that if I am excited by the guest star in a particular future issue, I might buy that issue.

B

Reviewed by Leroy Douresseaux

The text is copyright © 2014 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this blog for syndication rights and fees.

Magi: Sacred Place

I read Magi: The Labyrinth of Magic, Vol. 7

I posted a review at the ComicBookBin, which is seeking donations.  Follow me on Twitter.

Review: THE BATTLE ROYALE SLAM BOOK

THE BATTLE ROYALE SLAM BOOK
VIZ MEDIA/Haikasoru – @VIZMedia; @haikasoru

EDITORS: Nick Mamatas and Masumi Washington
COVER: Tomer Hanuka
ISBN: 978-1-4215-6599-6; paperback, (April 2014)
192pp, B&W, $14.99 U.S., $19.99 CAN, £9.99 U.K.

The Battle Royale Slam Book: Essays on the Cult Classic by Koushun Takami is a collection of essays about the world of Battle Royale.  Battle Royale is a Japanese horror novel written by Koushun Takami.  Originally completed in 1996, Battle Royale was not published until 1999 by Ohta Shuppan, but it went on to become a surprise bestseller.  In 2000, the novel became a manga which Koushun Takami co-wrote with artist Masayuki Taguchi, who drew the manga.  A controversial film adaptation directed by Kinji Fukasaku was also released in 2000.

To celebrate the 15th anniversary of the publication of Battle Royale the novel, Haikasoru (the fiction imprint of VIZ Media) published The Battle Royale Slam Book.  This original paperback release is a collection of essays by writers of popular fiction on the impact of the novel, the two film adaptations, and the Battle Royale manga on pop culture.  The essays also discuss the controversy and continuing social debate that has surrounded the novel ever since its first release.  The Battle Royale Slam Book is offered in print and also in digital editions as an eBook for $7.99 (U.S. / CAN), available for the Amazon Kindle and through Apple’s iBooks Store, Barnes & Noble’s Nook Book Store, and the Kobo eBooks Store.

Nick Mamatas, co-editor of The Battle Royale Slam Book, and 16 other authors offer an array of opinions on Battle Royale and about the enduring power of the acknowledged cult classic.  New York Times best-selling author John Skipp (The Light at the End) connects the novel to his childhood.  Cassie Cuinn talks about girl power.  Sam Hamm, who wrote the screenplay for the 1989 film, Batman (directed by Tim Burton), speculates on the survival chances of Hollywood cinema’s leading teen icons in a battle royale.  Jason S. Riddler (Blood and Sawdust) discusses the novel in the context of the popularity of professional wrestling.  Douglas F. Warrick closes out the book with an essay on Zen.

In order to enjoy and understand The Battle Royale Slam Book, the reader needs to be familiar with Battle Royale the novel or its adaptations.  I saw the film six years ago via a DVD available through Netflix.  The manga adaptation was collected in 15 graphic novel volumes, which were published by TOKYOPOP during the middle of the previous decade.  I read TOKYOPOP’s Battle Royale Ultimate Edition Vol. 1, which collected the first three manga volumes in one hardcover edition.  So I understand much of the context or what is being discussed in The Battle Royale Slam Book, although I have not as yet read the novel.

I think the best essay is the introduction to the book, “Blood in the Classroom, Blood on the Page: Will ‘Battle Royale’ Ever Be on the Test,” written by Nick Mamatas.  Basically, this piece is “what becomes a cult novel most.”  Mamatas discusses other controversial novels (such as Catcher in the Rye and Lord of the Flies) that eventually end up on high school and collegiate reading lists, which, in a way, serves to take away the edginess these works originally had.  I agree with a terrific instructor I had in college:  controversial novels with something meaningful to say about the human condition end up becoming children’s literature.  It is almost as if adults believe that turning such books into juvenile fiction can rob these works of their power to affect change.  I liked how much Mamatas’ essay engaged me and made me think, rather than just be passive, reading for amusement; I read the essay twice and picked through it a third time.

Two other essays also grappled with my imagination.  John Skipp’s “Death for Kids” uses his experience as the child of a U.S. government employee in late 1960s Argentina as the launching point for his essay.  The harrowing personal tale he tells should already be a memoir.

Before it was published, Battle Royale was entered into the 1997 Japan Grand Prix Horror Novel competition.  It did not win any prizes, as it was eventually rejected in the final round due to its content.  Japanese literary critic and editor, Masao Higashi, was there in the competition as a judge.  Higashi’s essay “‘Battle Royale:’ The Fight the Night Before” talks about his thoughts on the novel and why he voted the way he did.

Anyone who has experienced Battle Royale and/or its adaptations will find that The Battle Royale Slam Book is a collection of insightful essays.  Even those who normally don’t read essays will find the essays here worth reading.

A-

www.haikasoru.com

Reviewed by Leroy Douresseaux


The text is copyright © 2014 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this blog for syndication rights and fees.