DC Comics from Diamond Distributors for July 30, 2014

DC COMICS

MAY140353     ADVENTURES OF SUPERMAN #15     $3.99
APR140277     AME COMI GIRLS TP VOL 02 RISE OF BRAINIAC     $14.99
MAY140189     AQUAMAN ANNUAL #2     $4.99
MAR140253     BATMAN DARK KNIGHT HC VOL 04 CLAY (N52)     $24.99
APR140257     BATMAN DARK KNIGHT TP VOL 03 MAD     $16.99
MAY140229     BATMAN ETERNAL #17     $2.99
APR140285     BATMAN LIL GOTHAM TP VOL 02     $12.99
APR140260     BATWING TP VOL 04 WELCOME TO THE FAMILY (N52)     $16.99
MAY140392     BODIES #1 (MR)     $3.99
MAY140374     DC COMICS PRESENTS BATMAN ADVENTURES #1     $7.99
MAY140244     DETECTIVE COMICS ANNUAL #3     $4.99
MAR140282     DOOM PATROL OMNIBUS HC (MR)     $150.00
MAY148231     HARLEY QUINN #1 5TH PTG     $2.99
MAY140245     HARLEY QUINN #8     $2.99
MAY140173     JUSTICE LEAGUE #32     $3.99
MAY140176     JUSTICE LEAGUE #32 COMBO PACK     $4.99
MAY140185     NEW 52 FUTURES END #13 (WEEKLY)     $2.99
MAY140265     RED LANTERNS ANNUAL #1     $4.99
MAY140397     SANDMAN OVERTURE #3 COMBO PACK (MR)     $4.99
MAY140393     SANDMAN OVERTURE #3 CVR A (MR)     $3.99
MAY140394     SANDMAN OVERTURE #3 CVR B (MR)     $3.99
MAY140257     SINESTRO #4     $2.99
JUN140254     SMALLVILLE SEASON 11 SPECIAL #5     $4.99
MAY140412     VERTIGO QUARTERLY #1 MAGENTA (MR)     $7.99
APR140303     WAKE #10 (MR)     $2.99

DC COMICS/DC COLLECTIBLES

FEB140305     DC COMICS NEW 52 POWERGIRL & HUNTRESS AF 2 PACK     $44.95
FEB140304     INJUSTICE BATMAN VS JOKER 2 PACK AF     $29.95

Valiant Comics for November 2013

VALIANT Solicitations for NOVEMBER 2013

UNITY #1
Written by MATT KINDT
Art & Cover by DOUG BRAITHWAITE
Pullbox Exclusive Variants by BRYAN HITCH, J.G. JONES, TRAVEL FOREMAN, PAOLO RIVERA and CLAYTON CRAIN
8-Bit Evolution Variant by DONOVAN SANTIAGO
Valiant Signature Series Variant by BART SEARS
Variant Cover by NEAL ADAMS
B&W Sketch Variant by NEAL ADAMS
Blank Variant also available
Team USA Luge Variant also available

To kill a king, he has created an army.

The world's most dangerous man, Toyo Harada, has been struck by the one thing he never thought possible – fear. Halfway across the globe, a new power threatens to topple modern civilization and, to preempt the cataclysm that is to come, Harada will unite the most lethal, most volatile, most unforgiving team the world has ever known – UNITY. Their mission: defeat the warrior king armed with the universe's most powerful weapon. Kill X-O Manowar!

Be here when New York Times best-selling writer Matt Kindt (Justice League of America, Mind MGMT) and superstar artist Doug Braithwaite (Justice, Journey into Mystery) launch Valiant's first-ever superteam into the landmark comic book event of the year with an all-new ongoing series in UNITY #1, featuring covers by a murderer's row of comics juggernauts – Doug Braithwaite, JG Jones, Bryan Hitch, Paolo Rivera, Clayton Crain, Travel Foreman, and Neal Adams!

You've heard the buzz, you've seen the reviews. If you still haven't jumped onto Valiant Comics, the time is now! This November, UNITY is the perfect entry point for new readers.

$3.99/T+/32 pgs.
ON SALE NOVEMBER 13th!
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X-O MANOWAR #19 (UNITY TIE-IN)
Written by ROBERT VENDITTI
Art by CARY NORD
Cover by CLAYTON CRAIN
Pullbox Exclusive Variant by MIGUEL SEPULVEDA
Variant Cover by BART SEARS

All-new arc, all-new jumping-on point! X-O Manowar goes head-to-head against the forces of UNITY!

Aric of Dacia has fought to reclaim the ancestral lands of the Visigoths – and he has bled for it.  But nothing he has faced before can prepare him for the combined might of UNITY – and the deadly combination of Harada, Ninjak, Eternal Warrior and Livewire! New York Times best-selling writer Robert Venditti (Green Lantern) and Eisner Award winner Cary Nord (X-O Manowar: Planet Death) reunite for a landmark, standalone story arc at the heart of UNITY.

$3.99/T+/32 pgs.
ON SALE NOVEMBER 20th! 
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QUANTUM AND WOODY #5
Written by JAMES ASMUS
Art by LEE GARBETT
Cover by ANDREW ROBINSON
Pullbox Exclusive Variant by LEE GARBETT
Variant Cover by DAVID LOPEZ
Variant Cover by MIKE McKONE

All-new arc, all-new jumping-on point! All-new…problems?

Eric and Woody have had their lives turned upside down. What do you do when the most annoying person in your life is also the only thing keeping you alive? You move in with him! And his goat. And his barely legal clone girlfriend. Besides, every team of heroes needs a secret headquarters…and this one has a slightly used hot tub. Plus: Quantum meets his first true super-villain!

Attention fans and retailers: Look for the Quantum and Woody Vol. 1 TPB in stores the same day! Intro priced at only $9.99!

$3.99/T+/32 pgs.
ON SALE NOVEMBER 6th! 
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ARCHER & ARMSTRONG #15
Written by FRED VAN LENTE
Art by KHARI EVANS
Cover by CLAYTON HENRY
Variant Cover by MICHAEL WALSH

WARNING: This is no longer a (FINGER QUOTES) "fun" comic.

Now that the Sect Civil War has begun, it is now a (FINGER QUOTES) "grim" and (FINGER QUOTES) "gritty" work of (REAL QUOTES) "sequential literature" with blood and headshots and naughty words (like "H-E-DOUBLE-HOCKEY-STICKS") and if you squint real hard at the backgrounds, maybe boobies.

In this particular issue that will change the Valiant Universe forever*, the man now calling himself Dark Archer (NOTE TONAL SHIFT) must find his former partner Armstrong so they can reunite to stop the aforementioned Sect Civil War.

And there are almost no fart jokes.

Okay, one.

(* FOREVER = APPROX. 20 MINUTES)

$3.99/T+/32 pgs.
ON SALE NOVEMBER 13th! 
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SHADOWMAN #12
Written by ALES KOT, CHRISTOPHER SEBELA, and NEIL DVORAK
Art by CLAYTON CRAIN, MICO SUAYAN, and NEIL DVORAK
Cover by DAVE JOHNSON
Variant Cover by KEKAI KOTAKI

An all-star anthology of Shadowman tales from the Deadside and beyond!

Superstar artist Clayton Crain and a stellar roster of all-star creators bring you not one, not two, but three chilling Shadowman stories. Ales Kot (Suicide Squad, Zero), Christopher Sebela (Captain Marvel, Screamland), and Neil Dvorak (Easy Pieces) push the outer bounds of the world of Shadowman further than ever before! 

$3.99/T+/32 pgs.
ON SALE NOVEMBER 6th!
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ETERNAL WARRIOR #3
Written by GREG PAK
Art by TREVOR HAIRSINE
Cover by J.G. JONES
Variant Cover by RILEY ROSSMO

Save the Wizard!

Hungry for glory as the new Fist and Steel, the Eternal Warrior's daughter Xaran has started a war between the mysterious Houses that rule the world. Now, as Gilad struggles to contain his daughter's savage nature, two generations of Eternal Warrior race after the answers that lie between science and myth, rumor and legend, conquest and defeat.

$3.99/T+/32 pgs.
ON SALE NOVEMBER 20th! 
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BLOODSHOT AND H.A.R.D. CORPS #16
Written by CHRISTOS GAGE & JOSHUA DYSART
Art by EMANUELA LUPACCHINO
Cover by PATRICK ZIRCHER
Variant Cover by CHRISCROSS

Sometimes gunslingers go out the hard way.

H.A.R.D. Corps has just experienced its first fatality. Bloodshot is severely weakened. He and Charlie are at each other’s throats. And the new rookies are a mess. It would be suicide to take on Harada now…so that’s exactly what they’ll do.

$3.99/T+/32 pgs.
ON SALE NOVEMBER 20th! 
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HARBINGER #18
Written by JOSHUA DYSART
Art by BARRY KITSON
Cover by MICHAEL WALSH
Variant Cover by ANDREW ROBINSON

Nothing is what it seems when hyper-psychics go to war.

Scattered across their own mental landscapes, each one of the remaining Renegades must quest to unite with the others or be lost forever inside themselves. It will take courage, strength, imagination and an unwavering belief in one another if they're going to discover the dark truth behind their Perfect Day.

$3.99/T+/32 pgs.
ON SALE NOVEMBER 13th! 
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QUANTUM AND WOODY VOL. 1: THE WORLD'S WORST SUPERHERO TEAM TPB
Written by JAMES ASMUS
Art by TOM FOWLER
Cover by RYAN SOOK

Those guys are the worst.

Once upon a time, Eric and Woody Henderson were inseparable. Adopted brothers. Best friends. Brilliant minds. Years later, they are estranged siblings, petty rivals, and washed-up failures. But when their father’s murder leads them into the throes of a life-altering scientific accident, Eric and Woody will find themselves with a whole new purpose – and a perfectly legitimate reason to wear costumes and fight crime. Go big or go home, folks! Quantum and Woody are coming! (And, yes, there is a goat too.)

Collecting QUANTUM AND WOODY #1-4 by creators James Asmus (Thief of Thieves) and Tom Fowler (Hulk: Season One), start reading here to jump into the action-packed, zeitgeist-shredding exploitation stunt comic that Comic Book Resources calls "yet another critically acclaimed hit for Valiant Comics."

$9.99/T+/112 pgs.
TRADE PAPERBACK
ISBN: 978-1-939346-18-6
ON SALE NOVEMBER 6th! 
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HARBINGER DELUXE EDITION VOL. 1 HC
Written by JOSHUA DYSART
Art by KHARI EVANS, TREVOR HAIRSINE, MICO SUAYAN, BARRY KITSON, PHIL BRIONES, LEE GARBETT, PERE PEREZ, and MATTHEW CLARK
Cover by MICO SUAYAN

An oversized, deluxe hardcover collecting the landmark first year of Harbinger in the Valiant Universe!

Outside the law. Inside your head. You've never met a team of super-powered teenagers quite like the Renegades. Skipping across the country in a desperate attempt to stay one step ahead of the authorities, psionically-powered teenager Peter Stanchek only has one option left – run. But he won't have to go it alone. As the shadowy corporation known as the Harbinger Foundation draws close on all sides, Peter will have to find and recruit other unique individuals like himself… other troubled, immensely powerful youths with abilities beyond their control. Their mission? Bring the fight back to the Harbinger Foundation's founder Toyo Harada – and dismantle his global empire brick by brick…

Collecting the sold-out HARBINGER #0-14, the Harbinger Deluxe Edition Vol. 1 HC also comes jam-packed with more than 20 pages of never-before-seen art and extras, direct from the Valiant vaults.

$39.99/T+/384 pgs.
OVERSIZED HARDCOVER
ISBN: 978-1-939346-13-1
ON SALE NOVEMBER 13th!
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VALIANT MASTERS: RAI VOL. 1 – FROM HONOR TO STRENGTH HC
Written by DAVID MICHELINIE
Art by JOE ST. PIERRE, PETER GRAU, and SAL VELLUTO
Cover by JOE ST. PIERRE

The legendary future of the Valiant Universe – back in print after 20 years!

4001 A.D. - Tohru Nakadai is the 42nd Rai, the spirit guardian of Japan. Infused with the energy of his ancestors and dedicated to the way of the samurai, Rai is sworn to the service of Grandmother – the personified artificial intelligence that governs the island nation of Japan. For forty generations Grandmother's benevolent dominion has endured, but in the wake of her sudden disappearance, Rai will become all that stands between his nation and all-out chaos. As humanist factions war with mechanist loyalists for control of the future, the masterless Tohru is about to become the first Rai that must choose for himself how best to defend his people, his family, and his honor.

Collecting RAI (1992) #1-8 in a deluxe hardcover format for the first time anywhere, revisit the future of the original Valiant Universe with Rai’s critically acclaimed, highly sought-after adventures from legendary creators David Michelinie (Amazing Spider-Man, Iron Man), Joe St. Pierre (Spider-Man 2099), Peter Grau (Titans) and Sal Velluto (Bloodshot)!

$24.99/T+/184 pgs.
HARDCOVER
ISBN: 978-1-939346-07-0
ON SALE NOVEMBER 27th!

Albert Avilla Reviews: Red Lanterns #14

Red Lanterns #14
DC Comics

Reviewed by Albert Avilla

Writer: Peter Milligan writer
Artist: Miguel Sepulveda

“Home Is Where the Heart Is” (Spoilers!)

In the “Rise of the Third Army” event this is where the action is. The Red Lanterns are fighting the Third Army. The Red Lanterns have found their weakness and destroyed the creatures through their eyes. We are not talking about let’s subdue these creatures and take them in kind of action. This is fight to the death: tear off arms, body parts flying all over the place action. The Red Lanterns are able to defeat the creatures, but not without the lost of Skorch.

Atrocitus takes the remains of one of the creatures to Ysmault to find the origins of the creatures. Using his blood magic, Atrocitus learns that the creatures come from the DNA of the Guardians. These are some really gruesome scenes; if horror is your thing, then this is the book for you. Atrocitus’s animosity toward the Guardians is increasing. Atrocitus gives his Lanterns missions to seek out the blood of the guilty to feed the Red Power Battery; a leader delegating responsibility. Then, bam! The creature regenerates from a rat; you can’t get away from those little B’s anywhere in the Universe, and it attacks. Atrocitus, being the battle leader that he is, instantly comes up with a plan to destroy the creature. Artist Miguel Sepulveda gives us another blood-splattering, gore-fest page.

Atrocitus comes up with another plan to defeat the Third Army by using a synthetic army, the Manhunters. Rankorr is sent to Earth to get his vengeance and become a true Red Lantern. Atrocitus returns to Ayutt, his home planet, where he relives the destruction of Sector 666 by the Manhunters. If you like science fiction, superhero throw-down, and blood and guts action, then, look no farther.

Milligan keeps the action rolling, and when there is a pause in the action, it’s building up to some more action. Milligan keeps the intensity level high and the story is well done. The characters are exciting and vibrant; they are not just rage-filled maniacs running around the Universe, killing the guilty, but the rage does give these characters that certain spice to their personalities. Atrocitus is quite fascinating, with his intelligence and leadership shining through the rage. This book is a punch in the gut that sends shivers down the back.

The art is horrifically wonderful, and it accentuates the writing completely. After he has splattered this bloody rage throughout the book, Sepulveda surprises us with a landscape of a beautiful country town. What did his teachers say when they caught him drawing these scenes in elementary school?

I rate Red Lanterns 14 Buy Your Own Copy. (#2 on the Al-O-Meter Ranking)

The New 52 Review: STORMWATCH #1

STORMWATCH #1
DC COMICS

WRITER: Paul Cornell
ARTIST: Miguel Sepulveda
COLORS: Allan Passalaqua
LETTERS: Rob Leigh
COVER: Miguel Sepulveda and Nathan Eyring
32pp, Color, $2.99

Stormwatch, a comic book created by Jim Lee and Brandon Choi, was originally published by Image Comics via Lee’s Wildstorm Productions. It debuted in 1993 and was part of a second wave of titles that began after the original Image Comics titles.

Stormwatch was a United Nations-sponsored superhero team that dealt with situations around the world. This comic book is best remembered for Warren Ellis’ run on the series which eventually resulted in the creation of The Authority. Stormwatch returns as part of DC Comics’ re-launch of its superhero line, “The New 52,” and the team is formerly incorporated into the DC Universe.

Stormwatch #1 (“The Dark Side” Part One) finds the team, which protects Earth from major alien threats, trying to recruit a young man known as “Apollo.” Stormwatch desperately needs his impressive powers, so they can’t take “No” for an answer. Something calling itself The Scourge of Worlds has arrived to test humanity, and Harry Tanner, the Eminence of Blades (Yep, that’s what he’s called), faces it alone.

Much of Stormwatch #1 is about back story and things to come. What does take place in the present is mostly character introductions. I can describe this as a mixture of elements of Warren Ellis and writer Paul Cornell’s delusions that he can always turn his contrivances into good ideas for a comic book. I have read very little of his work, but what I have read comes across as pretentious and desperate to be edgy and cool. This is, however, potential here. It could potentially be an adequate comic book, or it could potentially be something that dies a slow death over a two year run – say 18 to 24 issues.

As for the art, Miguel Sepulveda draws like mid-1990s Joe Benitez. Who remembers Weapon Zero? Sepulveda is not ready to draw for DC Comics, simply because his compositions show how raw and unpolished he is. Some of Sepulveda’s figure drawing is… wanting, especially when he draws a character doing something other than standing. Still, he has potential, and perhaps, he will surprise me.

The new Midnighter looks ridiculous.

C

August 31st
FLASHPOINT #5
http://ireadsyou.blogspot.com/2011/09/flashpoint-5.html
JUSTICE LEAGUE #1
http://ireadsyou.blogspot.com/2011/09/justice-league-1.html

September 7th
ACTION COMICS #1
http://ireadsyou.blogspot.com/2011/09/action-comics-1.html
DETECTIVE COMICS #1
http://ireadsyou.blogspot.com/2011/09/detective-comics-1-2011.html
HAWK AND DOVE #1
http://ireadsyou.blogspot.com/2011/09/hawk-dove-1.html