DC Comics from Lunar Distributors for December 13, 2022

DC COMICS:

Batgirls #13 (Cover A Jorge Corona), $3.99

Batgirls #13 (Cover B Dan Mora Card Stock Variant), $4.99

Batgirls #13 (Cover C Rian Gonzales Card Stock Variant), AR

Batman And Scooby-Doo Mysteries #3 (Cover A Erich Owen), $2.99

Batman Incorporated #3 (Cover A John Timms), $3.99

Batman Incorporated #3 (Cover B InHyuk Lee Card Stock Variant), $4.99

Batman Incorporated #3 (Cover C Ludo Lullabi Card Stock Variant), AR

Batman Incorporated #3 (Cover D Haining Card Stock Variant), AR

Batman Spawn #1 (One Shot)(Cover A Greg Capullo Batman Variant), $6.99

Batman Spawn #1 (One Shot)(Cover B Todd McFarlane Spawn Variant), $6.99

Batman Spawn #1 (One Shot)(Cover C Gabriele Dell’Otto), $6.99

Batman Spawn #1 (One Shot)(Cover D Sean Murphy), $6.99

Batman Spawn #1 (One Shot)(Cover E Francesco Mattina), $6.99

Batman Spawn #1 (One Shot)(Cover F J Scott Campbell), $6.99

Batman Spawn #1 (One Shot)(Cover G Jim Lee), $6.99

Batman Spawn #1 (One Shot)(Cover H Jason Fabok), $6.99

Batman Spawn #1 (One Shot)(Cover I Blank Variant), $6.99

Batman Spawn #1 (One Shot)(Cover J Greg Capullo & Todd McFarlane Glow In The Dark Variant), $7.99

Batman Spawn #1 (One Shot)(Cover K Greg Capullo & Todd McFarlane Team Variant), AR

Batman Spawn #1 (One Shot)(Cover L Joshua Middleton), AR

Batman Spawn #1 (One Shot)(Cover M Brett Booth), AR

Batman Spawn #1 (One Shot)(Cover N Jim Lee), AR

Batman Spawn #1 (One Shot)(Cover O Todd McFarlane Inked Variant), AR

Batman Spawn #1 (One Shot)(Cover S Jorge Jimenez Acetate Variant), AR

Batman Spawn #1 (One Shot)(Cover T Todd McFarlane), AR

Danger Street #1 (Of 12)(Cover A Jorge Fornes), $4.99

Danger Street #1 (Of 12)(Cover B Steve Rude Card Stock Variant), $5.99

Danger Street #1 (Of 12)(Cover C Lee Weeks Card Stock Variant), AR

Danger Street #1 (Of 12)(Cover D Ben Oliver Card Stock Variant), AR

Dark Crisis Big Bang #1 (One Shot)(Cover A Mikel Janin), $3.99

Dark Crisis Big Bang #1 (One Shot)(Cover B Ariel Colon Card Stock Variant), $4.99

Dark Crisis Big Bang #1 (One Shot)(Cover C Nathan Szerdy Card Stock Variant), $4.99

Dark Crisis Big Bang #1 (One Shot)(Cover D Freddie E. Williams II Card Stock Variant), $4.99

Dark Crisis Big Bang #1 (One Shot)(Cover E Crystal Kung Card Stock Variant), $4.99

Dark Crisis Big Bang #1 (One Shot)(Cover F Mikel Janin Foil Card Stock Variant), AR

Flashpoint Beyond TP, $16.99

Harley Quinn Uncovered #1 (One Shot)(Cover A Jay Anacleto), $5.99

Harley Quinn Uncovered #1 (One Shot)(Cover B Ryan Sook Homage Variant), $5.99

Harley Quinn Uncovered #1 (One Shot)(Cover C Adam Warren), AR

Harley Quinn Uncovered #1 (One Shot)(Cover D Ryan Sook Foil Variant), AR

I Am Batman #16 (Cover A Christian Duce), $3.99

I Am Batman #16 (Cover B Jesus Merino Card Stock Variant), $4.99

I Am Batman #16 (Cover C Cully Hamner Card Stock Variant), AR

Justice League Vs. The Legion Of Super-Heroes TP, $16.99

Riddler Year One #1 (Of 6)(2nd Printing Cover A Jim Lee), $4.99

Riddler Year One #1 (Of 6)(2nd Printing Cover B Jim Lee Foil Card Stock Variant), AR

Starman Compendium Volume 2 TP, 59.99

Superman Son Of Kal-El #18 (Cover A Travis Moore)(Kal-El Returns), $3.99

Superman Son Of Kal-El #18 (Cover B Simone Di Meo Card Stock Variant)(Kal-El Returns), $4.99

Superman Son Of Kal-El #18 (Cover C Jim Lee/Scott Williams/Alex Sinclair DC Holiday Card Card Stock Variant)(Kal-El Returns), $4.99

Superman Son Of Kal-El #18 (Cover D Nathan Szerdy Card Stock Variant)(Kal-El Returns), AR

Superman Son Of Kal-El #18 (Cover E Ryan Sook DC Spawn Card Stock Variant)(Kal-El Returns), AR

Who’s Who Omnibus Volume 2 HC, $150.00

WildC.A.T.s #2 (Cover A Stephen Segovia), $3.99

WildC.A.T.s #2 (Cover B Ben Oliver Card Stock Variant), $4.99

WildC.A.T.s #2 (Cover C Jeff Spokes Card Stock Variant), AR

WildC.A.T.s #2 (Cover D Howard Porter Card Stock Variant), AR

WildC.A.T.s #2 (Cover E Ben Oliver DC Spawn Card Stock Variant), AR

Wonder Woman #794 (Cover A Yanick Paquette), $4.99

Wonder Woman #794 (Cover B Jen Bartel Card Stock Variant), $5.99

Wonder Woman #794 (Cover C Travis Kotzebue & Jordan Kotzebue DC Holiday Card Card Stock Variant), $5.99

Wonder Woman #794 (Cover D Lee Weeks Card Stock Variant), AR

Wonder Woman #794 (Cover E Jim Cheung DC Spawn Card Stock Variant), AR

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#IReadsYou Review: AMERICAN JESUS, Volume 1: Chosen

AMERICAN JESUS, VOL. 1
IMAGE COMICS

STORY: Mark Millar
ART: Peter Gross
COLORS: Jeanne McGee
LETTERS: Cory Petit
EDITOR: Rachel Fulton
ISBN: 978-1-5343-0871-8; paperback (May 26, 2020)
96pp, Color, $9.99 U.S.

Rated M / Mature

American Jesus created by Mark Millar and Peter Gross

American Jesus is a comic book series created by writer Mark Millar and Peter Gross that is being published as a series of comic book miniseries.  American Jesus began life as Chosen, a three-issue miniseries by Millar and Gross and published by Dark Horse Comics in 2004.  In 2009, Image Comics collected Chosen in the trade paperback, American Jesus, Vol. 1: Chosen.

Chosen introduces an ordinary twelve-year-old boy.  Well, Jodie Christianson isn't really normal.  He is the Son of God.  After surviving the freak accident of having an 18-wheel vehicle fall on him, Jodie awakens to discover that he is Jesus Christ.  Well, that explains his parents, Martha and Jonah Christianson's weird and apparently sexless marriage.

Like the original Jesus, Jodie can turn water into wine, cure the blind (or near-sighted), and resurrect pets.  Well, he is not quite like the original.  How much is Jodie different from Christ?  Well, that's the rub, but the newly faithful of Peoria, Illinois are learning to love their boy Christ.  So how will Jodie deal with his destiny, which has been thousands of years in the making?...

THE LOWDOWN:  Netflix/Millarworld sent me a PDF review copy of American Jesus, Vol. 1, and this is the first time I have read the story.  I vaguely remember when the original Chosen miniseries was released, but I seem to remember having a difficult time finding any copies.

Chosen is a quiet comic book, as artist Peter Gross depicts even the most shocking moments in a measured way.  Nothing blows up in your face, but Gross has a way of blowing your mind with disquiet.  With this sense of unease, Gross draws you inside this troubling story.  Gross may be one of the only (if not only) comic book artists to convey via his illustrations and graphical storytelling that a Christ figure is not only supernatural, but also unnatural.  Jeanne McGee's coloring haunts every frame of this story, turning up the sense that something here is wrong.

Mark Millar, being both relentlessly prolific and unrelentingly inventive, is the twenty-first century version of those comic book creators of yesteryear who unwittingly created what would be million-dollar and billion dollar franchises – one after another.  Millar, however, is doing this for himself and his collaborators, and in Chosen, he gets one thing perfectly right.  Saviors and messiahs don't build a following on faith, but on what they can do for their followers.  Nowhere would that be more true than in America.  Every time, Jodie Christianson does something miraculous, the size of his flock multiplies.  Millar's script is almost matter of fact in this, and letterer Cory Petit paces out the wrongness of this scenario, helping to build the sense of trouble.

Thoughtfully conceived and confidently executed, American Jesus Vol. 1 is another example of how determined Mark Millar is to entertain, enthrall, and thrill his readers.  In Peter Gross, he has an equally skilled and determined storyteller.

I READS YOU RECOMMENDS:  Fans of Mark Millar's comic books will want to read American Jesus.

[This volume includes an introduction by actor and filmmaker Simon Pegg; an “Afterword” by Brother Richard Hendrick; “The Gospel According to Millar and Gross: Occult Symbols and Hidden Meanings,” a conversation between Millar and Gross; and “From Script to Art with Peter Gross.”]

A

★★★★½ out of 4 stars

Reviewed by Leroy Douresseaux a.k.a. "I Reads You"


https://twitter.com/ImageComics
https://twitter.com/mrmarkmillar
https://twitter.com/netflix
https://www.mrmarkmillar.com/
http://www.millarworld.tv/
www.imagecomics.com


The text is copyright © 2022 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this blog or site for reprint and syndication rights and fees.

-------------------------

Amazon wants me to inform you that the affiliate link below is a PAID AD, but I technically only get paid (eventually) if you click on the affiliate link below AND buy something(s).

#IReadsYou Review: NOCTERRA Blacktop Bill Special

NOCTERRA BLACKTOP BILL SPECIAL
IMAGE COMICS/Best Jacket Press

STORY: Scott Snyder and Tony S. Daniel
PENCILS: Denys Cowan
INKS: Kent Williams
COLORS: Chris Sotomayor
LETTERS: Andworld Design
EDITOR: Will Dennis
COVER: Tony S. Daniel with Marcelo Maiolo
VARIANT COVER ARTIST: Denys Cowan
28pp, Colors, 3.99 U.S. (January 2022)

Rated “M/ Mature”

“Blacktop Bill Origins” Part One: “Hall of Mirrors”

Nocterra is a horror and science fiction comic book series from writer Scott Snyder and artist Tony S. Daniel.  Published by Image Comics, Nocterra is set on an Earth that has been experiencing an everlasting night, the “Big PM,” since the sky went dark and the world was plunged into an everlasting night over a decade ago.

Nocterra's most terrifying creature is “Blacktop Bill,” whose body is bonded with a matrix of carbon nanotubes.  His origin story is the subject of a new special one-shot comic book, Nocterra Blacktop Bill Special.  It is written by Snyder and Daniel; drawn by Denys Cowan (pencils) and Kent Williams (inks); colored by Chris Sotomayor; and lettered by Andworld Design.

Nocterra Blacktop Bill Special opens somewhere in Florida.  That is where we meet “Blacktop Bill,” the so-called “hitman of hitmen,” But when it comes to killing, for Bill, there is work and then, there are “passion kills.”  Was Nocterra's most terrifying creature a monster before the “Big PM?”

THE LOWDOWN:  In Nocterra #4, on page 13 of the story, Mother Hubbard (at the “Hub Cap”) and Bea Bellweather (in Luxville, Colorado) are having a conversation over a private channel.  Bellweather wants to know the history of Blacktop Bill, and Mother starts telling what he has heard...

Nocterra Blacktop Bill Special is that story, the origin of Blacktop Bill.  I am a fan of Nocterra, one of the best new comic books of 2021, and I am a longtime fan of Denys Cowan, the artist for this special.  Writer Scott Snyder offers what seems like a folk tale side-story to Nocterra, and Cowan's art has a surreal, freestyle quality.

Honestly, I enjoyed it only a little, but I expected more.  Maybe, that's the problem.  Considering that I like Nocterra and that I am a fan of Cowan, I expected something bigger … or perhaps, better...  However, I also see it as the first of something more to come – maybe, something bigger.

I READS YOU RECOMMENDS:  Fans of Scott Snyder and Tony S. Daniel's Nocterra will want Nocterra Blacktop Bill Special.

[This comic book contains a seven-page preview of the comic book series, “Monkey Meat,” by Juni Ba.]

B-

★★½ out of 4 stars

Reviewed by Leroy Douresseaux a.k.a. "I Reads You"


https://twitter.com/Ssnyder1835
https://tonydaniel.bigcartel.com/
https://twitter.com/andworlddesign
https://twitter.com/ImageComics
https://imagecomics.com/


The text is copyright © 2022 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this blog or site for reprint and syndication rights and fees.

----------------

Amazon wants me to inform you that the affiliate link below is a PAID AD, but I technically only get paid (eventually) if you click on the affiliate link below AND buy something(s).

#IReadsYou Review: THE DIRE DAYS OF WILLOWWEEP MANOR

THE DIRE DAYS OF WILLOWWEEP MANOR
SIMON & SCHUSTER/Margaret K. McElderry Books

STORY: Shaenon K. Garrity
ART: Christopher Baldwin
COVER: Christopher Baldwin
ISBN: 978-1-5344-6086-7; paperback (July 20, 2021)
224pp, Color, $14.99 U.S., $19.99 CAN

Demographic: Ages 12-up; Grades 7 and up

Available in hardcover and eBook editions

The Dire Days of Willowweep Manor is a 2021 full-color, original graphic novel written by Shaenon Garrity and drawn by Christopher Baldwin.  It has been released in both hardcover and paperback editions.  [My review is based on the paperback.]  The story focuses on a teenage girl who is swept up in a strange new universe and must save it from an all-consuming evil in order to return to her home.

The Dire Days of Willowweep Manor introduces Haley, a high school student with a passion for Gothic romance novels.  Haley's passion has gotten her into trouble with one of her teachers who is tired of reading essays about Gothic romance novels.
 
One dark and stormy night, Haley is walking home with an armful of books.  She is thinking ahead of a glorious night of reading, but while crossing a bridge, she sees a stranger drowning in the river below.  Sensing that her moment to be a heroine has arrived, Haley leaps into the water to rescue the stranger.  Exhausted from the effort to save the man, who seems rather ungrateful, Haley later awakens on the shores of a placed called Willowweep.

The place certainly looks like the setting of one of her favorite Gothic romance books.  There is a stately manor (Willowweep Manor) that happens to employ a sinister housekeeper (Wilhelmina).  There are three brothers: brooding Laurence, the eldest; daffy Cuthbert, the youngest; and middle brother, Montague, the one Haley rescued.  Willowweep even has a ghost, Cecily, who seems to know a lot about the place.

Willowweep, neither the land nor the manor, is not what it seems.  The Gothic romantic exteriors and trappings hide what it really is and the fact that a force of great evil is set on destroying Willowweep.  Could the same fate that brought Haley to this place make her the heroine Willowweep needs?

THE LOWDOWN:  I could call The Dire Days of Willowweep Manor clever, which it certainly is, but that would be shallow.  I like that the heroine is an African-American teenage girl, but that does not play a part in narrative.  Haley's skin color is happily never a point of interest with the other characters.

The Dire Days of Willowweep Manor seems like an exercise in creative storytelling.  It is as if writer Shaenon K. Garrity starting imagining this scenario and never stopped being ingenious and inventive.  Every page is a surprise, and the narrative moves in unexpected ways, as does the lead character.  By the end of the story, Haley has changed.  She is still a teen girl, but now she is more open to the possibilities of what she can do, what she can be, and what she can expect from the things that she enjoys.

Artist Christopher Baldwin brings Garrity's delightful tale to life as a sweeping epic.  Baldwin builds this world and invites the readers into its nooks and crannies.  He encourages us to look behind the curtain, to examine the walls, and to push past borders into other places and dimensions.  Without forgetting that Haley is the lead, Baldwin also makes the other characters intriguing and attractive, the better to play off the heroine.

The Dire Days of Willowweep Manor exemplifies how two skilled comic book creators can make the union of their different talents and perspectives appear seamless.  The result is that The Dire Days of Willowweep Manor is a winning read for all ages … and, of course, there should be a sequel.  After reading this delightful Gothic comic romp, dear readers, you will want to follow Haley to other universes, again and again.

I READS YOU RECOMMENDS:  Fans of juvenile science fiction-fantasy, girl heroes, and middle grade graphic novels will want to read The Dire Days of Willowweep Manor.

A

★★★★ out of 4 stars

Reviewed by Leroy Douresseaux a.k.a. "I Reads You"


https://www.shaenon.com/
https://twitter.com/shaenongarrity
https://www.baldwinpage.com/
https://twitter.com/chris_j_baldwin


https://www.simonandschuster.com/
https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/The-Dire-Days-of-Willowweep-Manor/Shaenon-K-Garrity/9781534460867


The text is copyright © 2022 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this blog or site for syndication rights and fees.

---------------------

Amazon wants me to inform you that the affiliate link below is a PAID AD, but I technically only get paid (eventually) if you click on the affiliate link below AND buy something(s).

BOOM! Studios from Diamond Distributors for December 7, 2022

BOOM! STUDIOS

OCT220338 BEHOLD BEHEMOTH #2 (OF 5) CVR A ROBLES $3.99

OCT220339 BEHOLD BEHEMOTH #2 (OF 5) CVR B STOKELY $3.99

AUG220317 FIREFLY BLUE SUN RISING TP VOL 02 (C: 0-1-2) $14.99

OCT220253 KNOW YOUR STATION #1 (OF 5) CVR A KANGAS (MR) $3.99

OCT220254 KNOW YOUR STATION #1 (OF 5) CVR B CAREY (MR) $3.99

OCT220255 KNOW YOUR STATION #1 (OF 5) CVR C CARDSTOCK VAR CAREY (MR) $4.99

OCT220259 KNOW YOUR STATION #1 (OF 5) CVR G FOC REVEAL VAR (MR) $3.99

OCT220261 KNOW YOUR STATION #1 (OF 5) CVR I BG VAR WOODALL (MR) $3.99

OCT220397 MAGIC THE GATHERING (MTG) #21 CVR A MERCADO $4.99

OCT220398 MAGIC THE GATHERING (MTG) #21 CVR B SECRET PLANESWALKER VAR $5.99

AUG220304 MAGIC THE GATHERING (MTG) HC VOL 03 (C: 0-1-2) $24.99

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Dark Horse Comics from Diamond Distributors for December 7, 2022

DARK HORSE COMICS

SEP220475 CASTLE FULL OF BLACKBIRDS #3 (OF 4) CVR A BECKERT $3.99

SEP220476 CASTLE FULL OF BLACKBIRDS #3 (OF 4) CVR B GALLAGHER $3.99

AUG220411 FUNNY CREEK TP (C: 0-1-2) $22.99

SEP220474 HELLBOY IN LOVE #2 (OF 5) $3.99

OCT220413 ITS ONLY TEENAGE WASTELAND #1 (OF 4) CVR A SALCEDO $3.99

OCT220438 NIGHT OF THE GHOUL #3 (OF 3) CVR A FRANCAVILLA $4.99

OCT220454 ONES #2 (OF 4) CVR A EDGAR $4.99

OCT220455 ONES #2 (OF 4) CVR B BOSS $4.99

OCT220444 QUICK STOPS #2 (OF 4) CVR A HESTER & PARKS $3.99

OCT220445 QUICK STOPS #2 (OF 4) CVR B CHOGRIN $3.99

OCT220489 SHOCK SHOP #4 (OF 4) CVR A LUCKERT & LEIZ $3.99

OCT220490 SHOCK SHOP #4 (OF 4) CVR B HURTT & THOMPSON $3.99

JUL220387 STRANGER THINGS TP VOL 06 KAMCHATKA (C: 0-1-2) $19.99

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Dynamite Entertainment from Diamond Distributors for December 7, 2022

DYNAMITE

OCT220542 GARGOYLES #1 CVR A NAKAYAMA $3.99

OCT220543 GARGOYLES #1 CVR B CONNER $3.99

OCT220544 GARGOYLES #1 CVR C PARRILLO $3.99

OCT220545 GARGOYLES #1 CVR D LEIRIX $3.99

OCT220546 GARGOYLES #1 CVR E LEE $3.99

OCT220547 GARGOYLES #1 CVR F FLEECS $3.99

OCT220548 GARGOYLES #1 CVR G GARGOYLES PURPLE BLANK AUTHENTIX $3.99

SEP228184 GARGOYLES #1 CVR ZB FOC RED BLANK AUTHENTIX $3.99

SEP228185 GARGOYLES #1 CVR ZC FOC GREY BLANK AUTHENTIX $3.99

SEP220792 IMMORTAL RED SONJA #8 CVR K LINSNER LTD VIRGIN (C: 0-1-2) $50.00

SEP220793 IMMORTAL RED SONJA #8 CVR L LEIRIX LTD VIRGIN (C: 0-1-2) $50.00

JUL220732 SHEENA QUEEN JUNGLE #10 CVR J PARRILLO LTD VIRGIN (C: 0-1-2) $50.00

JUL220733 SHEENA QUEEN JUNGLE #10 CVR K BESCH LTD VIRGIN (C: 0-1-2) $50.00

JUL220734 SHEENA QUEEN JUNGLE #10 CVR L SUYDAM LTD VIRGIN (C: 0-1-2) $50.00

JUL220735 SHEENA QUEEN JUNGLE #10 CVR M LINSNER LTD VIRGIN (C: 0-1-2) $50.00

SEP220822 VAMPIRELLA MINDWARP #3 CVR J LINSNER LTD VIRGIN (C: 0-1-2) $50.00

SEP220823 VAMPIRELLA MINDWARP #3 CVR K LEIRIX LTD VIRGIN (C: 0-1-2) $50.00

OCT220626 VAMPIRELLA VS RED SONJA #2 CVR A PARRILLO $3.99

OCT220627 VAMPIRELLA VS RED SONJA #2 CVR B LINSNER $3.99

OCT220628 VAMPIRELLA VS RED SONJA #2 CVR C YOON $3.99

OCT220629 VAMPIRELLA VS RED SONJA #2 CVR D LEE $3.99

OCT220630 VAMPIRELLA VS RED SONJA #2 CVR E COSPLAY $3.99

SEP228172 VAMPIRELLA VS RED SONJA #2 CVR L FOC MOSS ORIGINAL $3.99

SEP228173 VAMPIRELLA VS RED SONJA #2 CVR M FOC RANALDI ORIGINAL $3.99

SEP228174 VAMPIRELLA VS RED SONJA #2 CVR N FOC PARRILLO ULTRAVIOLET $3.99

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