Hey Gang, it looks like another medium sized week for comics. Luckily there are some pretty good titles shipping including New Warriors from Marvel, The Sword from Image and World of Warcraft from DC. Here are some previews of some good looking stuff coming in Wednesday. Stay tuned after the Countdown themed commercial break for some reviews from last week. If you have any comments, questions or complaints shoot us an e-mail and let us know.

MARVEL COMICS

INCREDIBLE HERCULES #113

Family issues and sibling rivalries are nothing new to any creative medium. What makes this particular fight interesting is Hercules is the little brother getting smacked about the head and shoulders by Ares, God of war and official member of Tony Stark’s Mighty Avengers. Hercules is still in a good amount of trouble for taking the Hulk’s side in his war against Earth’s mightiest heroes and the government has sent Herc’s big brother to bring him in and Ares is still a bit miffed about some birds Hercules killed during his twelve trials. Marvel isn’t giving away any details of this issue yet but if the cover is any indication we’re in for one of the biggest fights in history (or mythology)!

NEW EXILES #1

Chris Claremont continues his exploration of the vastness that are the parallel earths of the Marvel universe. Coming out of a pretty creatively successful miniseries (X-Men: Die By The Sword) the Exiles are back and jumping on the “New” bandwagon along with the Avengers, X-Men and Warriors. Featuring some favorite Exiles as well as a few new faces, this looks to be an exciting new chapter in the lives of the multi-dimensional hopping super-heroes.

NEW X-MEN #46

I’m sure this book needs very little in the way of hype as the Messiah Complex has been the creative high point for X-Men that has brought in both new readers and brought back some who abandoned the convoluted continuity that seemed to keep the books in a creative quagmire for years. Never once shying away from the often confusion that having multiple characters from different future timelines seemed like a sure way towards disaster but Cable and Bishop have never been more fascinating and they are but a small part of the intricate web being weaved throughout the entire X line. If you’ve missed this you’re missing out, if you’re still reading you already know what I’ve recently found out. It’s a good time to be a fan of the X-Men!

WOLVERINE ORIGINS #21

Wolverine has gone back to his roots the past few years with storylines showing him to be a killer, a hunter and most disturbingly a very hairy naked guy (thanks for those nightmares Howard Chaykin!) but I’m not sure if he’s ready for the challenge that begins this issue. The first of a five part adventure featuring everybody’s favorite smart mouth mercenary/mutant/moron Deadpool!

DC COMICS

BIRDS OF PREY #114

Gail Simones departure from Birds made me wonder about the future of the book. I wasn’t sure anyone could do these ladies the justice they deserved after her multi year run on the book that finally showed off just how great the women of the DCU were. My fears have been allayed by the arrival of Sean McKeever (Spider-Man Loves Mary Jane) and the new life he’s breathing into a book that I didn’t even realize had gone a little stale. After a confrontation with Superman in the last issue Oracle finds that she needs to unravel the mystery that is Misfit ASAP as Huntress and Zinda hash out a few “minor” miscommunications.

BOOSTER GOLD #6

This is it. The mission Booster signed up for in the first place, save Ted Kord, the Blue Beetle. Booster has to take on Max Lord and Checkmate but will the multiverse demand that someone die that day and if so, will Beetle allow that to happen? This is easily one of DC’s top five books currently being published. If you like fun action adventure stories with plenty of wit and heart then this is a book that you should be reading.

CATWOMAN #75

But… she’s not a villain anymore is she? Either way Selina has ended up on the Salvation Run and things don’t look good for the East End’s vigilante queen as many of the people she’s managed to cross over the past few years have all set up shop in this strange new land. Can a reformed cat burglar survive on a planet infested by hostile monsters, killer environments and the worst of the worst of the DCU’s evil plotters union (#547)?

JUSTICE LEAGUE OF AMERICA #17

The league pulls double duty this month with two stories and two creative teams! In the first story a group of time travellers infiltrates the Hall Of Justice looking for a weapon. Standing in the way? Jefferson Pierce, Black Lightning! In the back up we finally learn what’s wrong with Vixen’s powers and the revelation promises to shake up the League, especially when her condition worsens!

INDY COMICS

ANGEL AFTER THE FALL #3

Ever wonder what hell looks like? Apparently it looks a lot like Los Angeles but the parking is worse and there are demons everywhere! Last issue we found out what happened to Spike, Illiria and Connor so now that the main cast have all been introduced I think its about time to find out exactly what is going on. Joss Whedon likes to dribble out the information and really makes the audience earn the big reveals. Luckily for him his stories are so good that the slow journey is always worth it. This issue, more Dragon!

FELL #9

The much delayed urban police drama by Warren Ellis is finally back. This books just feels dirty in the way that walking in mostly melted snow that has become brown with dirt and trash looks. Dark and foreboding on every page the atmosphere helps to enhance the feeling of powerlessness the inhabitants of Snowtown all feel. Detective Richard Fell spends his days as the only honest cop in a very bad town trying to solve the cases that matter. On his nights off he frequents a local bar with the one friend he’s made since moving to town, a lady named Mayko. The first eight issues are collected together in a trade called Fell: Feral City and is currently available.

TELEVISION #1

We got a preview of this comic a while ago and it was good enough to order a few copies. There is a unique voice behind this book who loves James Brown enough to rewrite the Bible for him. The stories are quirky and funny and the art is surprisingly good for a first effort indy comic. If you enjoy odd this book may be for you.

UMBRELLA ACADEMY APOCALYPSE SUITE #5 (OF 6)

I didn’t really want to like this series. Comic vanity projects for musicians have the same rate of failure as music vanity projects for actors. Luckily Gerard Way of My Chemical Romance seems to know his way around the medium well enough to not just create interesting characters but to write an engaging story that just keeps getting better every issue. There are some pretty intense Daddy issues in this book as all of the members of the Umbrella Academy were abused or neglected in some way by their father figure but it never seems overly melodramatic.

TRADES/GRAPHIC NOVELS

BONE VOL7 GHOST CIRCLES

Continuing the story of the Bone cousins and their friends Thorn, Gran’ma Ben and Lucius among others. In this volume a volcano explodes releasing the an ancient evil known as the Locust and covering the land with soot and ash. Finally released in color thanks to the nice folks at Scholastic, this new volume of the classic Jeff Smith epic is perfect for all ages. High adventure and fantasy elements blend sublimely with humor and romance to form one of the most perfect stories I’ve ever read.

FANTASTIC FOUR AND POWER PACK DIGEST

Marvel has been doing a fantastic job with their all ages titles for quite some time now and their revamping of Power Pack for a new generation is one of their most endearing projects. Super powered kids going to school, dealing with bullies and battling Dr Doom form some mighty find comedic moments as well as fun for all ages super hero shenanigans.

THUNDERBOLTS BY WARREN ELLIS V1 FAITH IN MONSTERS

Between his creator owned books (Doktor Sleepless, Fell) and his Marvel work (Newuniversal, the upcoming Astonishing X-Men) Warren Ellis is all over the place these days and as always the results are fantastic. Now run by Norman Osborne the Thunderbolts are a powder keg waiting on someone to toss in a match. In this collection, Venom eats part of a guy and Bullseye tries to escape. Robbie Baldwin (former Speedball, now Penance) deals with the guilt of the Stamford incident and the following Civil War while Songbird and Radioactive Man hold the team together through sheer force of will. Moonstone and swordsman plot to take over and Norman takes copious amounts of drugs to keep the Goblin in check. In Ellis’ first Thunderbolts story arc we get to see the ruthless arm of the Initiative in action as only Ellis can bring it.

UPDATE TO COUNTDOWN

Well it looks as if that wacky monitor named Bob wasn’t really the good guy everyone thought he was. He spends most of the issue turning Ray Palmer’s new life to ash as we discover that the Ray who was supposed to prevent the great disaster was actually the one who died (as we discovered last issue). As Ray Palmer starts to lose it the new Challengers fight against Bob as the Monitors deal with treachery on the inside and the issue ends with the arrival of Monarch and his army of hugeness (as seen in Countdown: Arena). Things aren’t looking so good for Donna Jason and Kyle as they have to fight pretty much everyone in the multiverse. Back on Earth Mary Marvel and Eclipso continue their fight for Mary’s powers. For more on Eclipso check out recent issues of Countdown to Mystery.

LOBSTER JOHNSON: THE IRON PROMETHEUS #1-5

Do you know what goes great with Lobster? Pulp, and lots of it! Once again Mike Mignola takes crime noir and supernatural mysteries to a whole new level with The Iron Prometheus. This book really feels like it should be playing in a dark old theater on a Sunday afternoon after a couple of old cartoons and a newsreel. Jason Armstrong uses blacks and shades of gray to perfection setting a mood early on that pulls you into the story and never lets you out. Nazi’s and ancient evils combine as they do in most of Mignola’s work in the Hellboy universe but unlike the many fantasy elements that combine to make Hellboy such a fascinating character, the Lobster seems all too human. He and his team of roughnecks work tirelessly to keep the world safe from gangsters, monsters and everything in between seemingly with no real paranormal powers or help.

THE VINYL UNDERGROUND #1-4

Reading this book was kind of difficult for me. I have a pretty serious issue with any kind of move tv show or comic that centers around any kind of child being put in harms way. It could be my role as a father or maybe I’m a big baby, either way I can’t stand to watch kids get hurt. The first four issues of this new Vertigo series center around the murder and mutilation of a ten year old boy apparently though some kind of occult ritual. The occult angle is where the three members of the Vinyl Underground come in. Morrison “Mozz” Shepherd is the leader of the group. He’s spent the bulk of his life being the spoiled drug addled son of a soccer star who was little more than tabloid fodder until he was sent to jail for drug possession. Clean and sober for more than two years, he solves crimes while trying to locate his mother who disappeared years ago. Mozz met Callum “Perv” O’Connor in prison. He was in for some kind of as of yet undisclosed sex crime but survived his prison stay once the other inmates realized he was a psychic. The last member of the team is a forensic scientist by day and an internet porn queen by night who seems to really enjoy inflicting as much damage on skinheads as humanly possible. All of these characters are extremely flawed yet somehow endearing, especially Mozz.

BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER #10

It still astounds me, even after all these years and multiple viewings of every episode and multiple readings of every issue, just how good something as stupidly titled as “Buffy the Vampire Slayer” truly is. I came to the party a bit late, somewhere near the end of the third season but I’ve more than made up for it by being an avid follower and vocal enthusiast of not only this show/comic, but all other Joss Whedon endeavors. The world of Buffy and the characters that reside there have not only entertained me but seemingly brought me into this world of heroes and monsters to the point where I actually feel for these characters as if they were friends or even loved ones. I know that I am not alone in this feeling as the many message boards and gatherings will attest to but not until I read the letter column of the latest issue of Buffy did I realize just how much Joss Whedon has affected his fans.

Some time ago Joss Whedon and Dark Horse, using MySpace as a catalyst, held a letter writing contest where the winner would be featured in an issue of Buffy. I knew when I heard about the contest that the entries would easily number in the thousands but I honestly did not expect the letters to be so honest, so open and at times so heart breaking. The winner of the contest, Robin Balzer did not enter herself. Her husband did. Robin it seems suffers from a severe form of schizophrenia and has flashes of lucidity that have become less and less frequent. One of the tools her husband has utilized over the years are DVD’s of Buffy the Vampire Slayer. My words pale in comparison to the heartfelt letter Robin’s husband sent to Joss. It and several others are printed in the letter column. Lives have been changed, sometimes even saved, by a television show and now a comic book stupidly titled “Buffy the Vampire Slayer”. I don’t know that any “real” review of the book could do it more justice than that.