Mouse Guard by Stan Sakai

Although the Mouse Guard series is David Petersen’s sandbox, he has been known to let others in to play with his toys. For instance, the first Mouse Guard: Legends of the Guard series featured stories by Ted Naifeh, Gene Ha, Jeremy Bastian and many others.

We know that a second volume of the anthology series is in the works, and it looks like one of the contributors will be Stan Sakai, who shares one of his pages on his LiveJournal. Sakai of course has been doing Usagi Yojimbo for decades now, so it isn’t surprising to see him drawing anthropomorphic characters, but it is a rare treat to see his work in color (beyond the Usagi covers, of course, and the occasional graphic novel or anthology submission).

For this event, Tough Pigs reached out to a variety of artists, including those from the Muppets and Fraggle Rock comics, the Sesame Street storybook illustrators and even fan artists to celebrate the event and the impact of Henson’s creations. One of the standouts of the bunch is the illustration at right by Mouse Guard creator David Petersen, who also contributed covers to to both BOOM! Studios Muppets titles and Archaia’s Fraggle Rock series.

Head over to the Tough Pigs site to see all of the artwork they’ve assembled, and look into the archives for other original art collected related to Jim Henson.

Nice book... but where is it?

Barnes & Noble’s unveiled its app store for the Nook Color e-reader, yesterday, edging the $249 device even closer to being an alternative to the iPad. And Graphicly was right there at the launch with three graphic novel apps Mouse Guard: Fall 1152, Wanted, and Irredeemable.

This is not Graphicly’s fault, but the Nook Color app store is not very well organized; they have cute headings like “Explore” and “Organize” but not “Comics” or even “Read.” Plugging the titles in to the search engine gave mixed results: The Mouse Guard app turned up alongside listings for the physical books. Clicking on the title brought me straight back to the generic Nook Apps page. I couldn’t find Wanted or Irredeemable at all. Maybe if I had a Nook it would be easier, but the website should be as well organized as the built-in app store.

The bottom line is this: It’s great that Nook is getting into apps, and it’s great that Graphicly was there on Day One. But if no one can find your books, no one can buy them, and unless Barnes & Noble comes up with a better way to feature content than this—vague categories and no complete listing of all the apps—they aren’t going to move many comics.

While it works a bit differently than comiXology and Comics+, Graphic.ly is an interesting choice if you’re interested in alternative comics. They carry Marvel and Archie, sure, but their publisher list also includes a lot of little-known indy and self-published comics. This makes for a lot of variation in quality, frankly, but there are also some gems: If you want to read Caryn A. Tate‘s Red Plains: Range War (illustrated by Noel Tuazon, the artist for Tumor and The Broadcast), it’s there for free. And Graphic.ly seems to be the only iPad app that carries comics by Archaia, the publisher of Mouse Guard and the Fraggle Rock comics. If you’re interested in the long tail of comics, Graphic.ly is not a bad place to start.

Like most comics apps, Graphic.ly is not restricted to the iPhone and iPad; they have versions available for Adobe Air and Windows 7. (I talked to CEO Micah Baldwin about the app last September.)

So when Archaia recently sold out of both Return of the Dapper Men and the Mouse Guard: Legends of the Guard collection at the same time, there seemed to be an opportunity to dig into this phenomenon a bit. At C2E2 last year, I learned that Archaia is remarkably forthcoming about their business strategies, so their double sell out seemed like a great time to find out not only what that event means to a small publisher, but also to learn about the work that went into creating the situation in the first place. I asked Archaia’s Editor-in-Chief Stephen Christy, Mouse Guard’s creator David Petersen, and Return of the Dapper Men’s Jim McCann and Janet Lee to help me understand. They not only did that; they also gave me a unique look at how Archaia perceives itself and what sets the company apart from other publishers.

Michael May: Stephen, can you talk about the print runs of Return of the Dapper Men and Mouse Guard: Legends of the Guard? How do they compare to Archaia’s typical numbers?

Stephen Christy: They were both larger than a standard Archaia print run. Mouse Guard is our bestselling title, so we knew we had to print heavy and Dapper Men had enough preorders to justify a run of 10,000 copies. It wasn’t until preorders jumped on both titles a week or two before release that we started to get a feeling that we could get hit with a sell out.

Mouse Guard: Legends of the Guard

Mouse Guard blew through its print run of 15,000 in just a few days, which was much better than we were anticipating. When the previous Mouse Guard volume came out, it sold about 11,000 copies in its first month in stores. We only did a first printing of 15,000 for Legends because the trend with spinoffs is to always sell less than the main series by anywhere between 20-50%, so 15,000 seemed like it would last us at least 6 months, if not longer. We see the sellout as a testament to the growing popularity of Mouse Guard, and if these are the numbers that a spinoff does, I’m very excited to see how the Black Axe hardcover will sell.

Michael: Did you guys do anything differently to promote these two books?

Stephen: In the case of Mouse Guard, I think the best possible promotional thing that we could have done for the book was the Mouse Guard/Fraggle Rock Free Comic Book Day flip book. We shipped out over 110,000 copies of that issue, and we got incredible feedback from so many readers who had heard about Mouse Guard but had never read it before. That and the fact that there were so many famous artists on the project made it really an easy item to promote to retailers, book buyers, librarians, and all the other outlets that we sell to.

For Dapper Men, the credit needs to go to Jim McCann, who himself is a one-man marketing machine. He was able to leverage so many of the contacts he made while doing marketing at Marvel to help promote this book. This was also a book that Archaia touted since the spring of this year as being one of the best books that we’d release in 2010. As a publisher, when you spend nine months going around telling that to anyone who will listen, it definitely helps get the word out. At the end of the day Dapper was one of those books where we had perfect timing on all fronts and that really contributed to us being where we are now with the book.

Return of the Dapper Men

Michael: Jim, can you talk about your efforts along those lines? How did you plan this out?

Jim McCann: I was very lucky in that I spent six years in Marketing for Marvel. I also watched the way Bendis, Brubaker, Hickman, and Fraction all positioned their creator-owned work. David Petersen was a great help and resource as well. I knew going into it that I was going to need to create a brand for myself, help Janet’s brand go from the gallery world into sequential world, and also create a Dapper Men brand. I looked through my contacts and of course reached out to them, but there was never a guarantee that they would cover it, much less receive it as well as it was. I also looked into a number of other outlets and – working with Archaia’s Marketing Manager Mel Caylo – we cold-called and emailed a number of new places to reach the children’s, library, and steampunk markets.

The biggest challenge was switching from being able to drop the Marvel name and market their property to having to stand basically on your own merits. And honestly, as far as creator-owned properties go, I was an unknown quantity. I do have to credit social media on this as well. Twitter and Facebook played a huge role in not just me getting word out, but everyone who saw Janet’s work at a con or saw the video, they all continued the conversation by telling their friends, who told theirs, etc.

Jeremy Bastian

Michael: David, given the popularity of Mouse Guard, do you still need to do a lot of marketing yourself? How do you approach that?

David Petersen: I think I do need to still be active about marketing Mouse Guard myself. I don’t know that I’m quite as zealous as Jim has been recently though (which I applaud him for). If you hold back on promotion thinking, “I have fans already, I can rest on my laurels,” you will regret it. I’m a firm believer in remaining connected to your audience. I try and keep as open a dialogue as I can with my fans through Twitter, Facebook, my blog, and the occasional Ustream (where I do live demos of my process and answer questions for the fans watching). Archaia does a great job of lining up interviews, press, and generally keeping Mouse Guard in view, but I think that kind of promotion can only go so far. Giving the fans access to more than just content in the books is key.

Michael: Stephen, when we’re talking about selling out at the distributor level, is that just the Direct Market or does that include bookstores?

Stephen: It’s selling out at the distributor level. That means that Diamond comics has shipped out all of the inventory to buyers, and that Diamond has nothing left in stock. So while readers should be able to find copies of both Mouse Guard and Dapper Men at comic stores, bookstores, and on online retailers like Amazon, we still need to go back to second printings on both titles to make sure that our distributor will have copies on hand.

Michael: I understand that this is the first time that Archaia’s sold out of two books at the same time. Is that important? If so, how is it more significant than selling out of a single title?

Stephen: It’s hugely important for us as a company and it’s a great way to end what I think was a very difficult year for the industry as a whole. For Dapper Men it was just a great vindication that this weird little story that we all loved connected with so many people in exactly the way we wanted it to. For Mouse Guard, it showed us that the audience for our most popular book is growing by leaps and bounds. And after a year that was a real struggle for the industry as a whole, it’s nice to end on a high note with two books that not only sold out but that have been critically acclaimed as well. It makes the last twelve months of hard work seem worth it!

"...a land of children and machines."

Michael: Do you think the books were under-ordered by retailers?

Stephen: I think that Dapper Men was definitely under-ordered by Direct Market retailers, but I can understand why. It’s a new book, an OGN no less, by two creators who aren’t superstars and who have never even produced a graphic novel before. Plus, it’s a $25 book, which I know is not an easy thing for retailers to take a chance on in this economy.

Still, I think we all hoped that the buzz building around the book in the months before its release would have encouraged retailers to take a chance on it. The bookstores were behind the book from the beginning, and that was reflected in the orders that they placed. We actually had to talk some major chains into ordering less of the book because we were worried about being open to too many returns, but the fact that major retailers have already placed reorders means that the sell-through on this book is strong.

Michael: Are you already planning additional print runs?

Stephen: We’ll see how quickly these new print runs move. I can promise people that we’ll go back to press as much as we need to on these titles. These books are going to be in print for a long, long time.

Katie Cook

Michael: What’s the potential for future volumes from Archaia’s perspective?

Stephen: Well, David is hard at work on Mouse Guard: The Black Axe, which is the next volume in the series. The first issue of that is out now, and the rest of the issues will be following shortly thereafter. We’ve also announced that we’re going to be producing a second volume of Legends of the Guard, with another group of incredibly talented creators coming into and exploring the Mouse Guard world.

Dapper Men is the first book in a trilogy, and the sequel, Time of the Dapper Men, will be making its debut at the end of 2011. The finale, World of the Dapper Men, will hopefully see print in 2012 or 2013 at the latest. I know that the word “epic” is thrown around a lot, but from conversations with Jim and Janet I can promise you that the first Dapper Men book barely scratches the surface of this incredible universe. A lot happens in the next two books that I think will shock readers of the first volume. Jim and Janet definitely aren’t afraid to see their characters change and get hurt and grow up and become different. I’m excited to see where they take their story and I hope readers are too!

Michael: David, is Mouse Guard a series that can go on indefinitely or have you already planned the end?

David: No end in sight. After Black Axe, I have two more series planned out, with several more seed ideas waiting in the wings. I know I’ll take a few breaks in my career from Mouse Guard, but that’s for preservation purposes. I don’t want to burn out on the mice, so I’ll factor in a few new side projects as I go along. But Mouse Guard will be what I do for life.

Ted Naifeh

Michael: Is there potential for other spin-offs besides Legends of the Guard?

David: I don’t think so, other than more Legends series. The Legends format works perfectly to have guests do work without my panicking about turning over the reins. To have another spin-off would mean finding someone I trust completely who has an open slate and for me to be able to turn over story ideas to… So it becomes a question of, “What part of your mythology do you not want to tell personally?” And I come up fairly blank. I won’t say, “Never,” but another spin-off seems unlikely to me.

Michael: Jim and Janet, I didn’t realize until Stephen just pointed it out that Dapper Men is the first volume in a planned trilogy. Does it end on a cliffhanger or do readers get a complete story in Return?

Janet Lee: While Return of the Dapper Men is indeed the first volume of a trilogy, it is also a complete story in and of itself. And it’s our intention that all the books in the trilogy function that way, much like the OZ books.

Jim: We wanted to make sure that you get a complete tale in one volume, both in terms of storytelling (knowing that this would hopefully be read by kids and adults) and just in case it didn’t perform as well as we’d hoped. Fortunately, the latter went beyond everyone’s expectations, so thank you to the fans!

Different

Michael: Can you see the series continuing even further than three volumes?

Janet: This is something Jim and I plot and dream about all the time. While the Dapper Men series is planned to end after three books, the universe it’s set in is rich enough that we could tell other stories there. I think they would be their own “thing” though.

Jim: Time of the Dapper Men and World of the Dapper Men tell a complete arc, following our main characters through the most important times of their lives, but you’ll see by the end how we could continue to work within the universe. Janet and I have – literally – years’ worth of stories that we would like to tell, each with their own message, tone, and take on fairy tales.

Michael: I also understand that you guys are doing a story for a future Legends of the Guard. Can you tease that at all?

Jim: We were so honored that David asked us to be part of the Legends volume. I don’t want to give too much away, but it’s a story of a legend becoming larger than life and how the characters involved see the perception of them.

Janet: I can tell you I am having an amazing time designing mouse fashions. I designed a ruff that looks as if it were made out of wasp paper! It’s unbelievably fun to get to create a little piece of the Mouse Guard world and so wonderful to see what directions other artists go with it. I loved the first series!

The Return

Michael: Stephen, what attracted you to the ideas behind these two books in the first place? How do they fit into Archaia’s larger publishing strategy?

Stephen: Dapper Men was something that we were immediately attracted to because it was just so different. As a small company with limited resources, one of the few ways that we rise above the competition is by taking risks on books that are new and that push boundaries and that would be harder for other companies to publish. We felt Dapper Men was a risk, but a risk that would pay off in a big way if readers were able to buy into the incredible world that Jim and Janet created, which luckily they have.

I can’t speak to Mouse Guard as Mark Smylie, Archaia’s founder, was the one who brought that book into the fold, but obviously Mouse Guard is Archaia’s tentpole property and one that continues to reach a wider and wider audience, which we’re really proud of.

Both of these books exemplify what Archaia is all about, which is a commitment to excellence across the board. Dapper Men was also part of a broader strategy to put a message out there that you can be a successful writer at one of the big two (like Jim is), and you can come to Archaia and create something that the big two would never take a chance on. Judging from the response in the creative community I think that message was well received.

Alex Sheikman

Michael: David, Jim, and Janet, what about you guys? Why Archaia? What led you to thinking that this was the right company to pitch to?

David: Ha! They were the first publisher I contacted. It turned out for the best, but I went to San Diego as a fan to see the spectacle that is the SDCC, not to find a publisher. Archaia was suggested to me while I was walking around the floor, so I went over to them thinking mainly I was going to get a nice review of my self-published first issue from Mark Smylie (then-president of Archaia who had given me a very helpful portfolio review a few years prior). Archaia was interested almost immediately.

I really didn’t think a publisher would be interested in my book about mice with swords, so having someone say, “Yes” right away was my first reason. Secondly, Mark asked if I wanted to keep the format the same, the square 8” x 8” size that Mouse Guard is. I told him I would and he said something along the lines of “That’s the right answer.” Thirdly, after talking to Mark, I saw that I was going to be given the creative freedom at Archaia to make Mouse Guard what I wanted it to be instead of what an editor or marketing person thought might be more saleable. That last reason is what I would list as the number one reason I’m still happy there.

Janet: When we were considering publishers for Return of the Dapper Men we wanted a company that had a great track record with original stories that didn’t really fit the mold. We knew we wanted a stand-alone graphic novel and that the feel and quality of the final product needed to be special. When you look at the kinds of books Archaia puts out – Mouse Guard, Tumor, Syndrome, God Machine, Hybrid Bastards, Fraggle Rock – that’s exactly what they do. They also have an amazing track record for all-ages product. As a publishing house, Archaia isn’t afraid to take a chance on something really different. That was the kind of place Return of the Dapper Men needed to be.

Jim: Archaia was always on the short list. I’d known Stephen when he worked at Marvel, Mel Caylo from Wizard, Mark Smylie was friends with Janet, and David and Julia Petersen and I were pals through cons. I loved the way their books looked and I also loved the fact that their catalog was so diverse. I honestly believe they have the most diverse catalog of any publisher out there in terms of content and genres. I pitched them on the floor at SDCC based on a rough idea and some printouts of Janet’s design sketches and they said, “Yes!” on the spot. I called Janet and she agreed that Archaia just felt right. I am so glad that we’ve made a home here.

"Not quite ready to fly..."

Michael: Is there something that defines an “Archaia book?” What, if anything, ties them together? Stephen, you first.

Stephen: Our strategy is very simple: only make quality books. Life is too short to turn out licensed books that nobody really cares about or recycled ideas that you’ve seen a hundred times before. In our mind the ideal Archaia book should be one that transports you into its world, whether it’s the grounded, real world in our upcoming drama An Elegy for Amelia Johnson or the world of Dapper Men where time itself doesn’t exist. We want our books to take you on a journey and have you come out the other side hopefully looking at the world and people around you a little differently. I think we’re lucky as a publisher that our line isn’t tied together by genre (such as Marvel or DC) or by style (such as Radical), but by quality and a unique approach to the physical production on comics.

Michael: David, Jim, and Janet, what defines an Archaia book to you?

David: “Unique” and “creative” are two that come to mind. Archaia, when taking submissions at shows, would often turn away wonderful-looking work, not because it wasn’t up to snuff, but because it was something too similar to what another publisher may have already had with another title. Archaia wants to be the home for the books that wouldn’t have homes at other publishers.

Also – as my stance was with Legends, to give the contributors as much freedom as I could (something I have been afforded since Day One) – Archaia caters to comic creators with their own voices and gives them a long leash to work from.

Jim: Quality and diversity. They play around with sizes, binding, and paper stock all to make sure that each book has a unique look and feel that’s perfect for that project. All of this adds up to one of the best looking collection of books out there!

Janet: When I pick up a book published by Archaia, I know I’m going to read something unique and beautiful. Something that probably wouldn’t have been published yesterday, but that might be everywhere tomorrow.

John Byrne's Next Men

Welcome once again to Food or Comics?, where every week we talk about what comics we’d buy based on certain spending limits — $15, $30 to spend and if we had extra money to spend on what we call the “Splurge” item. Check out Diamond’s release list for this week if you’d like to play along in our comments section.

Michael May

If I had $15:

There are a lot of great periodicals coming out this week, so I’d have some hard choices to make. With only $15, I’d concentrate first on those with the cheapest prices: the first issue of Dark Horse’s new Mighty Samson ($3.50), Atomic Robo and the Deadly Art of Science #2 ($3.50), and Mouse Guard: Black Axe #1 ($3.50). I’m already a huge fan of both Atomic Robo and Mouse Guard and – based on its concept and vague memories of stories I read as a kid – hope to become one of Mighty Samson too. I’d spend the last of my money on Northern Guard #1, because I’m a sucker for Canadian superheroes.

If I had $30:

I’d add Doc Macabre #1 ($3.99), John Byrne’s Next Men #1 ($3.99), and Strange Tales 2 #3 ($4.99). “Doc Macabre” is an awesome name and I love Steve Niles’ pulp stuff, I’ve been waiting 16 years for that Next Men issue, and the Strange Tales book has a Kate Beaton story in which the Avengers go to a carnival. I’d pay five bucks just for Beaton’s deal, but it’s also got a Thing tale by Harvey Pekar (and yes, Harvey Pekar is in the story).

Splurge:

Speaking of Steve Niles pulp: the Mystery Society collection ($19.99) comes out this week, as does Beau Smith’s Wynonna Earp: Yeti Wars ($17.99). Those should both be a lot of fun.

Graeme McMillan

Strange Tales II #3

I’m having the opposite reaction to Michael this week, with lots of more expensive items leaping out at me, but nothing seeming particularly urgent in the periodicals list. And so, if I had $15, I’d probably start with the second issue of IDW’s Dungeons & Dragons ($3.99) after loving the first so much, and then try out the debut of John Byrne’s reborn Next Men ($3.99), to see where his head’s at after all these years. I’d probably also pick up Marvel’s Strange Tales #3 ($4.99), because I’ve enjoyed enough of what’s come before, and really love Kate Beaton’s work… but that remaining $2.03…? That’ll remain up for grabs, I think.

If I had $30, I’d forget about Next Men #1 and put that money and some of the unused $2.03 towards Jason Little’s Motel Art Improvement Service hardcover from Dark Horse ($19.99). There’s something compelling about Little’s comics, which feel to me like a mix of Jessica Abel and Chris Ware, in some strange way. I only vaguely caught up with this as a webcomic, hoping to read it in print. And here it is!

As far as splurging goes, there’s an embarrassment of riches this week: Geoff Johns and Gary Frank’s better-than-Earth-One-even-if-delays-in-original-release-killed-momentum Superman Secret Origin HC ($29.99)? The second volume of Judge Dredd Complete Case Files ($19.99)? A new Yotsuba! ($10.99)? But nostalgia wins me over again: I’d go for DC’s Tales of The Green Lantern Corps Vol. 3 ($19.99), which begins collecting Steve Englehart and Joe Staton’s “The Green Lantern Corps” run from the late ’80s that I loved so much. John Stewart was always my favorite back then. Followed by the kinder, gentler Kilowog.

Brigid Alverson

If I had $15…

Atomic Robo: Deadly Art of Science #2

I have to confess, there aren’t too many books that leap out at me and demand my attention this week. One that I must see, however, is the second issue of Atomic Robo: Deadly Art of Science ($3.50). I really liked the first issue, and I want to see more. That leaves just enough for the ninth volume of Yotsuba&! ($10.99), and I’m grabbing that because it’s that rare book that is funny to adults as well as children.

If I had $30…

I don’t know too much about it, but NBM’s latest Nicolas de Crecy graphic novel, Salvatore: Transports of Love ($14.99) looks like the sort of thing I’d like. It’s a weird fantasy about a dog who works as an auto mechanic and moves his shop to a mountain peak… yeah. Well, it’s something to talk about at Christmas parties, anyway.

Splurge…

Two things, which together add up to less than 40 bucks: I liked Nathan Edmondson and Brett Weldele’s The Light, especially Weldele’s art, so I would like to pick up the trade ($16.99). And Fumi Yoshinaga’s Not Love But Delicious Foods Make Me So Happy! ($10.99) is sort of a foodie’s tour of Tokyo, with Yoshinaga and a friend sampling the signature dishes of various restaurants. I have no plans to go to Tokyo anytime soon, but the book looks like fun.

Chris Mautner

Big Questions #15

If I had $15:

The trade collection of Anders Nilsen’s Big Questions will be out next year, but I’m the impatient sort, so I’ll probably pick up the final issue, No. 15 ($7.95) this week. Nilsen earned his cred on books like Dogs & Water and Don’t Go Where I Can’t Follow, but Questions, which he’s been doing seemingly since before Dogs debuted, may prove to be a defining work.

I’ll also pick up the fifth issue of Highland Laddie ($3.99) though the next time they do one of these Boys spin-offs I might opt to wait for the trade …

If I had $30:

… as I did with Strange Tales. I’m anxious to see the third issue, but in this instance I’m holding off. Instead, I’ll pick up the ninth volume of Yotsuba&!, a book that never fails to charm just about every member of my family.

Splurge:

I already have a copy, but if you’re a Steve Ditko fan then your splurge item for the week should be Unexplored Worlds, the second volume in Fantagraphics and editor Blake Bell’s ongoing attempt to collect his pre-Code and pre-Spider-Man material. My splurge, however, is a $30 hardcover collection of Jodorowsky and Moebius’ Madwoman of the Sacred Heart. I know next to nothing about this book, but c’mon, it’s Jodorowsky and Moebius! The same folks who brought The Incal! How could it not be awesome? (please don’t answer that)

Atomic Robo and the Deadly Art of Science #1

Welcome to another installment of “Food or Comics?” Every week we set certain hypothetical spending limits on ourselves and go through the agony of trying to determine what comes home and what stays on the shelves. So join us as we run down what comics we’d buy if we only had $15 and $30 to spend, as well as what we’d get if we had some “mad money” to splurge with.

Check out Diamond’s full release list if you’d like to play along in our comments section.

Michael May

If I had $15:

As usual, I’d spend it on single issues. Starting with Atomic Robo and the Deadly Art of Science #1 ($3.50), then picking up a couple of Moonstone books: Zeroids #2 ($3.99) and Return of the Originals: From the Vault – The Pulp Files ($1.99). I enjoyed the first issue of the genre-mashing Zeroids and have been looking forward to the next part of the story; From the Vault is sort of Moonstone’s version of The Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe or DC’s Who’s Who. I don’t know nearly as much about the classic pulp characters as I’d like, so I’m looking forward to the education. Next I’d check out IDW’s Dungeons & Dragons #1 ($3.99) to see if they’ve figured out how to do a good D&D comic. That brings me to $13.47.

If I had $30:

I’d put back The Pulp Files and D&D and grab the Mouse Guard: Legends of the Guard hardcover ($19.95) instead. With Atomic Robo and Zeroids, that’s a total of $27.44.

Splurge:

My top choice of a splurge item is Fantagraphics first volume of The Extraordinary Adventures of Adele Blanc Sec ($24.99). I’ve been itching to read these stories since Luc Besson’s movie adaptation was first announced. I can’t resist a French, turn-of-the-century pterodactyl hunter. And as long as I’m splurging, I’d also add Bryan Talbot’s Grandville: Mon Amour ($19.99). I haven’t read the first volume yet, but it looks like exactly the kind of thing I’d enjoy.

Chris Mautner

If I had $15:

The Return Of Bruce Wayne #6

Dave Sim’s Glamourpuss remains a fascinating, if extremely uneven, read for me, so I’ll be picking up issue #16 ($3). I’ll also grab the sixth and final issue of Batman: The Return Of Bruce Wayne ($3.99), even though it hasn’t been one of my favorite Grant Morrison or Batman series. My final must nab will be the NBM’s new edition of Smurf King, one of the finest comics about little blue creatures that like to wear white caps and stockings ever made. That brings me to a total of $12.98

If I had $30:

I’m extremely curious about Fantagraphics’ new kids eurocomic line, which kicks off this week with the release of Stephane Blanquet’s Toys in the Basement ($14.99). I’m especially curious in this case as Blanquet isn’t up till this point an author known for his all-ages friendly material. In fact, it’s quite the opposite; his work is usually typified by ugly, sweaty people doing horrible, disturbing things. So, yeah, I want to see how he dials it down (if at all) for the kiddies.

Splurge:

Oh, I shall splurge a bit this week. Michael has already noted the release of Grandville Mon Amour and the Extraordinary Adventures of Adele Blanc Sec, two books I’ve been anticipating for awhile now. I’d also like to point out the arrival of Inkstuds ($20), a hefty collection of Robin McConnell’s radio interviews with notable cartoonists, fully transcribed onto paper for your reading pleasure. Lots of quality insights abound in there, no doubt.

Brigid Alverson

Twin Spica

If I had $15…

I’d start with volume 4 of Twin Spica ($10.95), Vertical’s space-opera manga about a spunky girl in astronaut school. Like any good series, this manga has pulled me in with good storytelling, a convincing world, and characters that seem grounded and real but don’t quite fit the standard stereotypes.

Then maybe I’ll keep the science fiction theme with Atomic Robo: Deadly Art of Science #1 ($3.50), as that kicks off a new arc and looks like a nice read.

If I had $30…

I’d add Toys in the Basement, although at $14.99 for 32 pages, even in hardcover, it seems a bit skimpy. Still, I like the idea of a kid-friendly comic that isn’t afraid to be creepy, and this one—in which a boy dressed in a pink bunny suit stumbles into some weird French version of the Island of Misfit Toys—looks like a challenging read.

Splurge items

Being a complete pushover for Archie and for classic comics, I’m the natural target for Dark Horse’s Archie Firsts collection ($24.99), which groups together the stories in which each character makes his or her first appearance, plus the first stories from each comic in the line. How could I resist? And I’d also love to read Will Eisner: A Dreamer’s Life in Comics (Bloomsbury, $28.00); a hardcover biography certainly feels like a splurge to me.

David Peterson with Mouse Guard

David Peterson was signing copies of his Mouse Guard hardbacks—and giving away the floppies for free, as promotional attractions. The Mouse Guard anthology series launches in May, with single issues out each month through August, followed by a hardcover colection.

Josh Howard

Josh Howard sat back during a momentary lull at his booth, where he was busy selling and signing copies of Dead@17.

Jamie S. Rich

Jamie S. Rich was looking sharp at the Oni booth, where he was signing copies of his newest graphic novel, Spell Checkers, the story of three very wicked teen witches.

Dave Roman and smilin' Raina Tegemeier

Dave Roman and Raina Telemeier have embarked on a nationwide tour of sorts; they are hanging around Chicago long enough to do a signing at Challengers Comics, and then in Chicago, and then it’s off to the Stumptown Comics Fest in Portland, Oregon. Raina’s Smile is proving popular with critics, and she said it has done particularly well at Scholastic Book Fairs. Meanwhile, Dave’s Avatar: The Last Airbender prequel is due out any minute (he shared writing credit with Alison Wilgus), and he just turned in the final draft of his graphic novel Astronaut Elementary to First Second, so the couple has plenty to smile about.

Art Baltazar

I didn’t get to talk to Art Baltazar, as he was too busy doing drawings and being interviewed. His was one of several booths in the Artists Alley that had long lines on Saturday—I couldn’t get close to Jill Thompson’s, either.

Adam and Chris Hebert

So, I travel a thousand miles and end up talking to two guys who live ten minutes from my home. Adam and Chris Hebert had a table at the Haven Distributors to plug their comics Lazerman and Vindication, and they claim to be working on an all-ages zombie comic, which seems like a solution without a problem… but we’ll see.

Mouse Guard: Fall 1152

Mouse Guard: Fall and Winter 1152
Written and Illustrated by David Petersen
Archaia; $24.95 each

I had a hard time deciding what I wanted to talk about this week. Not that anyone’s called me on it yet, but I usually talk here about stuff that I enjoy and I know that that can give the impression that I like everything, which simply isn’t true. In fact, I just read a book that I didn’t like so much and contemplated talking about it instead, if only for variety’s sake. But is criticizing a mediocre, small-press book really how we want to end the year? As Tim O’Shea reminded me when I expressed my indecision on the subject, there’s a lot of bad material out there. Why spend a whole column focused on that when there’s good stuff that can use a larger audience? Mouse Guard may not exactly be an underground comic, but until it hits #1 on every Best Sellers list in the world, I’m considering it under-read.

The first thing you’re struck with by Mouse Guard is how beautiful it is. I was reading Winter 1152 in public the other day and a woman stopped and asked me what it was. As much as I try not to make assumptions about people from their appearances, I’m guessing that this immaculately-dressed businesswoman doesn’t have a large comics collection at home. But she saw David Petersen’s highly realistic, stunningly detailed, and lushly colored artwork and was attracted by it enough to want to know more.

But Mouse Guard is about more than the pictures and the seasons in the title dictate more than just Petersen’s color palettes. There’s a deep, compelling story at work with human characters – mice though they may be – and powerful themes that reflect the time of year they’re set in.

Mouse Guard: Winter 1152

Both volumes take place in the year 1152 on whatever calendar the mice are following. It’s really not important what the year is, except that the characters and some of the additional material (the books are filled with maps and guides that flesh out the mice’s world) occasionally refer to recent wars or other events and it’s handy to know just how long ago those things happened. Mouse Guard was one of the first comics published by Archaia when it expanded its catalog beyond founder Mark Smylie’s Artesia series and you can see why. As good as most of Archaia’s material is, Mouse Guard has the most in common with Artesia, from the power of its art to the depth of its world.

What’s important about the titles of the Mouse Guard books are the seasons. In Fall 1152, Petersen doesn’t just paint with autumnal colors; he tells a story about the near collapse of mouse society. The Mouse Territories are a loosely-allied collection of towns and villages that are hidden from predators in lavishly furnished rocks and trees. The only thing keeping the forests and fields between these communities safe for travel and commerce is the Mouse Guard, former warriors who’ve become guides and pathfinders in the last few, peaceful years. So, when someone close to the Guard poses as a legendary figure from the Guard’s past in order to inspire a rebellion against the Guard, the situation becomes dire. It’s up to a few Guardsmice who’ve uncovered the conspiracy to try to stop it before the traitor leads his army against Lockhaven, the Guard’s base of operations.

If you haven’t read Fall 1152 yet and want to remain unspoiled about it, you probably ought to stop reading right here, because Winter 1152 continues the story and follows up on the events of the first volume. I can’t talk about Winter without revealing a little of how Fall concludes.

Heroes

The season again determines the tone of the book. Winter is always a harsh time for animals, especially if they’ve spent their autumn fighting rebels instead of gathering food. Winter reveals more about the politics of the Mouse Territories as the Guard’s matriarch sends out ambassadors to reinforce alliances and gather supplies in the various mouse communities. One of these parties is made up of the heroes from the first volume and it’s of course these that the story follows most closely.

Back at Lockhaven though, it soon becomes apparent that the rebellion hasn’t been completely squashed. Though the inciting traitor has been dealt with, the underlying feelings that sparked the rebellion – that the Guard holds too much power and is of too little benefit for the Territories – are still held by some. With the Guard’s most experienced and able mice out on their missions, Lockhaven is once again vulnerable. And with difficulties plaguing the traveling Guardsmice – like a relentless, one-eyed owl and an underground kingdom of vindictive bats – it’s doubtful that the heroes will return in time to help, if they can return at all.

What I liked most about Winter though (besides soaking in the art) is the further characterization of the heroes. The main trio of mice from Fall are Kenzie, Saxon, and Lieam. They’re joined in the their mission by Sadie (who had an important if small part to play in the events of Fall) and Celanawe (who may or may not be the actual legendary figure that the traitor from Fall was pretending to be). Though the five of them start out together, Winter splits them up and plays with their dynamics a bit.

"I heard of your exploits..."

In Fall, it was obvious that Kenzie and Saxon have been partners for a while and that Lieam was the rookie (though an extremely brave and promising one) of the group. Kenzie is the oldest and wisest of the group, while Saxon is an impetuous hot-head. In Winter, Petersen reveals more about that relationship and also gives Lieam more opportunity to branch off on his own and learn what his role in the Guard is going to be. There’s also romance, some of it unrequited as Saxon reveals that he’s secretly in love with another character.

There are some books and some movies that I push on people as soon as I learn they haven’t read or seen them. I’m obnoxious that way, but I usually get thanked for it in the end. Mouse Guard (both volumes) are in that category. I’m on a mission of my own.

Five out of five giant, one-eyed owls.

Nemesis

Beasts of Burden #3

Like the Sunday newspaper, it’s time once again for another round of What Are You Reading. Our guest this week is Ryan Sands, who can be found over at the Same Hat blog, recommending and even translating (Tokyo Zombie) some great, and occasionally bizarre manga (and I mean that in a good way).

To see what Ryan and the rest of us are reading this week, click on the link below. Then let us know what books you’re enjoying and want to recommend (or not) in the comments section.

Mouse Guard: Winter 1152

Michael May: I’m getting ready to read the second volume of Mouse Guard, so I just re-read the first one. What a classic. I continue to enjoy it as much in subsequent readings as I did the first time. More even, because I’m able to drink in more of the art when I’m already familiar with the story. I was also impressed this time with how non-cluttered Eric Petersen is able to keep the plot in spite of several twists and turns. I’m fully anxious to start the next part of the story now.

I did the same thing this week with Holly Black and Ted Naifeh’s Good Neighbors books. I re-familiarized myself with Book One (Kin) before reading the recently released second book (Kith). I’ll be doing a full review of Kith, so I don’t want to say too much about that, but I very much enjoyed reading Kin again. I love Naifeh’s work anyway, but – as much as I’m into Courtney Crumrin and Polly and the Pirates – he’s also well-suited for the darker material in Good Neighbors. And though I don’t know Black’s work outside of this, I love how she’s able to tell a threatening, grown-up story about betrayal and love that just so happens to have evil faeries and teenagers in it, with all the complications those elements bring. It’s about story first and appealing to the YA market second.

Booster Gold #27

Tim O’Shea: Some interesting reveals in the latest issue of Booster Gold, plus a team-up with Blue Beetle versus not Blue Beetle. There have been times I’ve almost bailed on this monthly, but then there are issues like this one that keep me wanting to stay on board.

Other titles that I continue enjoy reading include Jason Aaron and Roland Boschi’s Ghost Riders Heavens on Fire 5; Bryan Q. Miller and Lee Garbett’s Batgirl 5 (admittedly I mostly enjoy Babs Gordon’s role in the book); Gail Simone and Peter Nguyen’s Secret Six 16 (where Simone’s effective use of Black Alice gives readers the glimpse of a female Phantom Stranger among other borrowed magic personality twists…); David Tischman, Philip Bond with David Hahn on Red Herring 5 (no offense to Hahn, but I much preferred when Bond was on art and Hahn was inking…).

On the all ages front, what is almost as good as Muppet Show comic written and drawn by Roger Langridge? A Pigs in Space story (Muppet Show Comic Book 0) written by Langridge with art by Shelli Paroline. A really quirky moment that I enjoyed in this Pigs in Space (the Movie) standalone story — Fozzie taking his hat off in a few scenes. I never realized until that visual bit, but the art of the Muppet Show often allows for moments that could not be easily or frequently done with the physical muppet/puppets.

I never considered the Daily Bugle a major character per se in the Spider-Man universe, but the Amazing Spider-Man 614 changed my mind in that regard. An interesting wrap-up to the actual Electro storyline as well as larger elements of the Spider-Man current subplots.

On the charity front, I’ve never been a big fan of Wolverine’s solo adventures (his continuity is just too much of a convoluted clusterfleep for me to enjoy it), but I had to shell out the $12.99 for The Wolverine: Weapon X 100 Project with art from a variety of artists (go here for a sampling of some of the treats) including J. Scott Campbell, John Cassaday, Ken Lashley, Ron Garney, Dale Keown, and John Romita Sr. The originals were already auctioned off for charity (Hero Initiative), but Marvel collected them for folks to enjoy in this benefit book.

Swallowing the Earth

Chris Mautner: One of my birthday presents last week was a copy of Swallowing the Earth by osamu Tezuka. As any regular Robot 6 reader must know by now, I’m a really big Tezuka fan, so I was more than happy to pour through this, even if it is one of the master’s lesser — and considerably messier — stories. The plot concerns a group of beautiful sisters who live on a mysterious island and plot to destroy civilization because their mom got screwed over by their dad. On the side of good is this naive young drunkard who manages to resist their sexual wiles because he so enjoys getting drunk you see.

It’s an interesting book, marking the divide between Tezuka’s kiddie comics and his more adult-oriented material, though it suffers from the fact that Tezuka keeps getting constantly pulled away from the main plot to follow various side paths. He’s clearly more interested in some of the sci-fi concepts he dreams up than the main characters. Still, there’s a lot of great sequences here, and you can see the beginnings of the motifs that would later run through works like Buddha. If you like Tezuka, it’s worth checking out.

Last week Brigid recommended Night Head Genesis, a new manga from Del Rey about two psychic brothers who become embroiled in some sort of world-ending conspiracy with evil psychics and stuff like that. I’d like to say I found it equally enjoyable, but I didn’t. If anything, I found it to be rather trite and dull, with paper-thin characters and a plot that didn’t really seem to make much sense, at least from a motivational standpoint. I doubt I’ll be preordering the second volume anytime soon.

Dragon Prince #1

Brigid Alverson: I don’t read a lot of pamphlet comics, but Top Cow sent me their mini-series Dragon Prince and I really liked it. I can see where it would have a lot of teen appeal, because it’s one of those stories about a transformation that takes the hero by surprise and changes his life — just like puberty. In this case, though, it’s more dramatic—Aaron, a 14-year-old boy, suddenly has the power to become a dragon. It turns out that his father was also a dragon (but he could shape-shift into human form, so there’s no bestiality here—no way) and Aaron has inherited his powers. That’s the good news. The bad news is that there is now a badass tattooed guy and a whole team of ninjas after him and his mom. It’s a good story, nicely paced, and I liked the art, except that the mother looked like every woman in every superhero comic in the world. Same face, same gravity-defying boobs, same skin-tight clothing. Aaron was drawn with a lot of character, and it would have been nice to see the same creativity go into his mom.

I’m back on familiar territory with Happy Café, the first volume of a new shoujo manga series from Tokyopop. It’s a very familiar story: A 16-year-old girl, Uru, gets a job in a café where she is working
alongside two guys, one who is cold (but secretly nice underneath) and one who is goofy and constantly falling asleep. Oh, and the girl has left home because she felt like a fifth wheel after her mother remarried — the perfect shoujo heroine never wants to put anyone out, even if that means she has to go live on her own, although in this case it all turns out to be a misunderstanding. This is well-trodden territory, and so far, Happy Café hasn’t brought anything new to the mix. Somehow it manages to be wacky without being very funny. Uru is both clumsy and super-strong, so she keeps breaking dishes, but that’s as close as we get to a running gag. It’s more “Mildly Amusing Café” than “Laugh Out Loud Café.”

Finally, Starthrower in Haiti is a webcomic that is drawn to raise funds for a nonprofit in Haiti that pays for children to go to school. I was expecting something that was more well-intentioned than actually good, but the comic is lovely and at the same time unsparing in its depiction of life in the poorest country on earth. I used to teach English in a Haitian church in Brooklyn, so I learned a bit of the language and culture, but I never had much of a mental picture of Haiti before. Now I do.  And in browsing the comments, I ran across Dispatches from a Fragile Island, not a comic but a journal, in photos and words, of an expat’s life in Haiti. The two make perfect companion pieces.

Moyasimon Vol. 1

Ryan Sands: It’s been rainy and freezing in San Francisco this week, so I only made it to my local neighborhood shop, Missions: Comics & Art, and haven’t made my usual pilgrimage to Kinokuniya yet. I’ve been splitting my comics reading time between minicomics, a few monthly floppies, and manga.

On the minicomics side, I really enjoyed reading RAV #2, a 42-page comic by Mickey Zacchilli. RAV is a wild book, with a hand-screened color cover and kinetic page layouts. This issue follows a biker named Juice and his girlfriend Sally, who get abducted by a cult of amateur occultists and also have to battle a rival gang intent on stealing his bicycle. Mickey is doing really inventive stuff with her use of dot tones and comedic pacing, and the story is part of that rad trend of action/genre comics done by indie kids.

Finally, one of my most wanted manga titles has been released: The hilarious first volume of Moyasimon by Masayuki Ishikawa. It was worth the wait, and the best thing I’ve read all month. The story is an unlikely license on the surface, a educational and comedic serial following two rural friends as they begin studies at an agricultural college. The rub is that our protagonist can visually see different microorganisms (which are insanely cute), a skill that is used/abused by a weird cast of other students and faculty at the farm school. Can’t wait for volume 2.

I also read A Distant Neighborhood #1 & #2 by Jiro Taniguchi, which was a solid and well-constructed story but ended up sorta boring for me as a reader. Taniguchi uses this tale of a salaryman who wakes up back as a junior high school student to talk about fate and nostalgia. But something about the pacing and story was emotionally constipated and milquetoast for me.

I’ve also been reading the newest manga by guro/formalist genius Shintaro Kago, called Fraction. Fraction is an odd book, following a group of manga artists friends (Kago himself is a character). I’m reading it slowly in Japanese, but so far it’s full of unsolved dismemberments, manga plotlines coming to life, and weird floating torsos with guts hanging out. For fans of the odd and extreme, Shintaro Kago has begun selling his original art and comic pages to overseas fans via his site, along with his manga and toys.

As for proper “comics books”, two creepy books (about animals!) have had my attention, Beasts of Burden by Evan Dorkin & Jill Thompson and Jeff Lumiere’s post-apocalyptic fable/road movie comic Sweet Tooth. Beasts of Burden features a rowdy gang of talking dogs (and one cat!) that fight paranormal baddies.There is something really right about the way Jill Thompson’s elegantly-painted panels, Evan Dorkin’s biting but cute dialogue and the episodic Encyclopedia Brown-meets-X Files cases all interact. I’ll be sad to see this mini-series run end at issue #4.

As a final note, does anyone read Thai and wanna give me a hand? I received a box of incredible, radical Thai comics this month from an artist who goes by PUCK. From what Google Translate has showed me, he’s published by a big Thai publisher but I’m stuck marveling at his layouts and cute characters without making sense of the words. PUCK’s tankoban-sized action comics look to me like the love child of Scott Pilgrim and Felipe Smith’s MBQ, with a dash of Katamari Damacy whimsy tossed in. His art blog is here, for interested folks.

Labor Days Vol. 2

Welcome once again to What are you reading?, the weekly column where the Robot 6 team runs through what comics and other stuff they’ve been checking out lately. As Chris is in Bethesda this weekend, I’m filling in for him as your host.

Our special guests this time are Philip Gelatt and Rick Lacy, creators of the Labor Days graphic novels published by Oni Press. Volume two, Just Another Damn Day, is now available in finer retail establishments everywhere. (You can check out a preview here).

See what they’ve been reading, as well as the rest of the Robot 6 crew, after the jump …

*****

Underground

Tim O’Shea: The first issue of Underground by Jeff Parker and Steve Lieber hit the shelves this week. There’s so much to like about this first installment of a five-part miniseries. But I find myself focusing one element of Parker’s writing–his ear for dialogue. The core of the story has people of opposing views conflicting quite frequently and I love how the storytellers allow the word balloons to overlap and interrupt characters in mid-sentence.

I rarely read Bongo Comics, despite the fact I enjoy the show and typically respect the writers that work on the comics. But with the release this week of The Simpsons’ Treehouse of Horror 15 (edited by Sammy “Damn Wasn’t the Last Book He Edited Huge?” Harkham) features an amazing collection of indy creators (including Jeffrey Brown, Jordan Crane, C.F., Tim Hensley, Ben Jones, John Kerschbaum, Ted May, Will Sweeney, Matthew Thurber, and John Vermilyea). Each creator takes a unique take on the characters, but for me the strongest off-the-grid comedic horror vibe is captured (not surprisingly) by Kerschbaum in a straightforward two-pager “Three Little Kids.”

I’m struggling to fully enjoy Hickman and Eaglesham’s Fantastic Four. In the positive column is getting to see a world of many Reed Richards (even one that’s fully bald/half doom and half ZZ Top; another that looks like he’s 1980s Atari logo Reed; and Reed as Morrison’s Seaguy) and Eaglesham’s ability to convey emotion in Ben Grimm’s rocky face. In the negative column, the tagline on the front cover: “…This morning, I helped kill a Galactus on Earth 2012.” Has the status quo of Reed Richards been made so “modern” he takes pleasure, or at least seeming indifference, in killing villains?

I’ve really appreciated Matt Fraction’s take on many of Marvel’s characters, and he’s really seemed to hit his stride with Dark Reign:The List–X-Men (Lord that title is a mouthful though). There’s three or four pages of the team in battle that is the closest to recapturing the finest rhythm and kineticism of Claremont and Byrne’s definitive X-run (the kineticism is thanks to the never-disappointing art of Alan Davis [inked by Mark Farmer]). That being said, as great as Fraction is with the X-team, his Namor is cracking snide lines in the midst of a fight. A few WAYRs back I spoke highly of Jeff Parker’s approach toward Namor. So, if anybody at Marvel is reading this, you’re seemingly leading toward giving Namor his own book again, please consider Parker and Davis teaming up for it.

Wednesday Comics #1

With Wednesday Comics having finished this week, I have to go back and read them again. And that’s not going to be easy, as my son took a liking to the Metal Men arc. And when I say take a liking, I mean he took the issues apart, as he read and reread them (leaving the pages he did not like behind) –leaving me with a disorganized mess. It was only when I started trying to reconnect the issues that I realized, after the cover pages–there are no page numbers or issue number identifications on the interior pages. But I have a newfound desire to reread Paul Pope’s pages in particular after finding out through CBR’s interview that he was aiming for something Ditko-esque–rooted in Jungian influence and inspired by McCay’s Little Nemo pages.

In terms of music, I’ve got Bruce Hornsby and the Noisemakers’ Levitate in heavy rotation on my CD player, along with Death Cab for Cutie’s The Open Door EP.

Dark Reign: Ms. Marvel

Carla Hoffman: Believe it or not, I’m reading things. I bought the Dark Reign: Ms. Marvel HC on a dare from a customer who wasn’t sure if it was going to be good and I honestly couldn’t give him an answer. But seeing how hard Mr. Reed has been working on the character, I thought I’d give the book that switched main ‘heroine’ thanks to the new status quo. First part of the book, we’re thrown into a Alias-esque super spy style story in which we lose Carol Danvers due to the theme of Brian Reed’s run of ‘I can’t control my wacky powers’. The middle of the book is Karla Soften dealing with her new role within the Avengers and actually gets to be kind of entertaining, watching her deal with the public, her crazy boss and the fact she might have the psychological edge on them all.

And then we get reality-altering MODOK babies.

Any sort of seriousness I had given the book was lost. The rather deux-ex-mutant of ‘Storyteller’ (seen in the Ms. Marvel annuals) was fused with MODOK’s giant brain DNA and now 25 or so babies in jars can warp reality to AIM’s will.Everything had been so personal until then, a really good read and clever character development for Karla that her sudden need to ‘save the babies’ just lost me. The New Avengers show up, hell, Deadpool shows up, everyone fights for the babies and in the end, Carol Danvers can’t be kept dead for too long. Yeah, I’d say skip this aside from a couple issues in the middle, or at least don’t buy it in hardcover like I did

Fantastic Four 571

Unlike My Pal Tim(tm), I adored the horizonless Reed Richards consortium of geniuses ( I swear one of them was in Starfleet) and could have easily read this issue spread out better into a couple more installments of the weird cross-time-caper Reeds and all their kooky high science plans plus some more with the family who almost always get wasted in the face of the super sci-fi. I hope this high adventure grounds Reed once and for all on this whole ‘fix everything’ kick he’s been on since Civil War because I’m tired of him lording his big ol’ brain around and Hickman might just blow the lid of this thing once and for all.

Dark X-Men: the Confession as the weirdest Gift of the Magi as guilt trip seen yet. Or ever. Yes, Scott now knows that Emma worked with the Cabal! Yes, Emma now knows that Scott has a kill-death squad led by Wolverine and has generally been unsavory. “I ruied the Dream!” “No, I ruined the Dream!” “Oh, kiss me you fool!” The end. Playing fair, this is actually a pretty good intro comic for anyone wanting to jump into the main X-Men storyline right now as they recap a lot of the past year. So… there’s that for $3.99.

Superman: Secret Origins

Tom Bondurant: Some prominent commentators (including Chris Sims and our own Chris Mautner) have called Superman: Secret Origin #1 “unnecessary,” or something similar. That was also my reaction at first. However, it got me thinking: so far this is the third, or perhaps fourth, account of Superman’s post-Crisis origin, and that’s getting into Gospel territory. (Think of the slipcased-hardcover possibilities!) I mean, we started with the Book of John (Byrne), and a while back we had the Book of Mark (Waid). If you count Superman For All Seasons, I suppose there’s a Book of Jeph too. Now, though, here’s the Book of Geoff, which apparently aims to be definitive.

And so far, it’s executed well. I’ve always liked Gary Frank’s Christopher Reeve-inspired Clark/Superman, both because it’s a fitting tribute to another “definitive” interpretation and because it’s a good mix of the character’s power and humanity. In fact, this issue is a very pleasant contrast to Frank (and inker Jon Sibal)’s work on Supreme Power‘s Dark Smallville. I found that book sterile and calculating, but here Frank and Sibal are warm and pastoral. For his part, Geoff Johns obviously intends to show how Clark overcomes this issue’s discomfort with his powers, especially those heat-vision “eyejaculations” (tm Television Without Pity). That was a nice lift from the “Smallville” series, and I also liked how Johns handled Clark’s nascent football ability. Still, that tornado was awfully convenient.

Secret Origin‘s larger story remains somewhat unclear, though, and that I think is where the true measure of necessity lies. I tend to prefer Waid (and artist Leinil Yu)’s Superman: Birthright to Byrne’s Man of Steel because the former actually tells its own story while the latter is more a collection of vignettes. Ironically, Secret Origin‘s purpose may vary inversely with its necessity. If it’s meant to stand alone on the bookshelf, it must tell us something about Superman we don’t already know. However, if it’s just another part of the great Superman plot-puzzle (as the “Secret Origin” arc in Green Lantern was), then I’ll wonder why this needed to be its own miniseries.

Planetary

Earlier last week, I stayed up for about two hours Sunday night reading all of Planetary. I don’t have anything insightful to say about the series as a whole, mostly because I’m waiting for Ellis and Cassaday’s final issue. However, I stayed up for those two hours because each issue practically dared me to read the next one. Now I can’t imagine waiting months or years between issues, because the thing moves so quickly.

On a completely different note, I finished Essential Spider-Woman Volume 2 a few hours before picking up Planetary. ESW Vol. 1 started off on very shaky ground, thanks to the character’s scattershot background: she’s a freak of evolution! She’s a HYDRA agent! She’s got a Camelot connection! To his credit, once writer Chris Claremont came aboard for most of the series’ last quarter, he tried to pull these threads together; and those issues (drawn with quirky charm by Steve Leialoha) are probably the series’ high point. Writer Ann Nocenti then wrote the series’ final few issues, including a fourth-wall-breaking goodbye to the reader. Those issues weren’t bad, but I’ve read enough middle-of-the-road superhero books to know when a writer is just wrapping things up. I don’t dislike Spider-Woman, although the series (thanks to its eventual SoCal private-eye premise) seems firmly rooted in the 1970s, and I’m content to leave it there.

Matt Maxwell:

Elric of Melniboné

Elric of Melniboné
Roy Thomas, P. Craig Russell and Michael Gilbert, Tom Orzechowski
Based on the books by Michael Moorcock

I’ll admit to not having read the original books, which I should rectify, if they’re half as good as this adaptation. The real star is the artwork, by both P. Craig Russell and Michael Gilbert. It’s perfectly stylized, yet not sacrificing style for expression. There’s a lot of fear and uncertainty, gloating and triumph on these pages, and the linework doesn’t miss a step in relaying it to the reader. You could easily skip the text altogether and still follow the story clearly, perhaps leaving out only a few subtleties.

Before this, I hadn’t realized exactly how influential Moorcock’s take on fantasy had become. Certainly, Tolkien reigns supreme as high lord of fantasy. But Moorcock, with his blend of treachery and addiction, of magic that takes more than it gives, of graceful empires that are doomed by their very design, his dark vision has its fingers deep in modern fantasy (particularly influential in what is debatably the most popular fantasy today, that being World of Warcraft, though not strictly a book, but has a subscriber base that most books would kill for).

Elric presents a compelling story, last in the line of fabled sorcerer kings, ruling over a civilization slipping into slow decline, never brighter than the day that Elric takes the throne. Fighting off the schemes of his ruthless cousin Yrrkoon and becoming a pawn of the Lords of Chaos, Elric only barely begins to understand the powers at play in Melniboné, and will not fully grasp them in time.

Recommended, though I’m not sure of its status in print now, the graphic novel that is. I read it in the edition published by First Comics in the middle eighties (making it one of the first collected graphic novels, well before The Sandman and the like). Someone may have picked up the reprint rights to this, but it might require some sifting through the used bins as well.

Other reads this week, Batman and Robin #3 (I await the return of Pyg), Agents of Atlas #10 and #11 (M-11 is THE GREATEST) and the first issue of the new Dominic Fortune miniseries (Howard Chaykin is a very bad man.)

Far Arden

JK Parkin: Far Arden by Kevin Cannon starts off as a zany fun adventure comic, and at some point morphs into something a bit more serious. And somehow, it works really well, I’ve decided, after contemplating it for a couple of weeks. It’s actually kind of shocking how well it works, too, and how much emotional investment you realize you have in the characters when, well, stuff happens. I should probably read it again.

I mentioned a few weeks back that I was reading Peter & Max, the Fables novel by Bill Willingham. Despite the ending being a little bit telegraphed (at least if you’re paying attention), I thought this was an excellent outing for Willingham and the Fables characters into the world of prose. I recommend it for anyone who is a fan of the comic or just likes new twists on old fairy tales, and I hope to see more of these in the future. I’ve also started re-reading the first couple of Fables arcs, which are being issued as a hardcover, and it’s interesting to see how far the book has come, both in terms of the plot and how the characters have developed. And the first Farm story, which was the second story arc, is still one of the book’s best.

And finally, the second Guardians of the Galaxy trade was every bit as fun as the first. Although it’s billed as being part of War of Kings, there were no appearances by Inhumans or Shi’ar … just more zany fun cosmic adventures.

On Stranger Tides

Philip Gelatt: I made a promise to myself that I was going to read butt-loads of science-fiction and fantasy novels during 2009. Sadly, with the year wrapping up, “butt-loads” has kind of turned into the far less impressive “half-butt loads.” But this quest of mine has introduced me to an author named Tim Powers and he is swiftly becoming a personal favorite. He specializes in well-researched historical action-fantasy-sci-fi pieces, that include a big dosages of both the surreal and the mad cap.

Yeah, that’s right: his books use every cool genre ever, mixed into one. And somehow he makes it all work.

Currently, I’m reading his On Stranger Tides. It is a pirate tale filled with Caribbean magic, large-scale ship-to-ship combat and so much swashbuckling. It focuses on a young pirate named Jack Shandy as he is caught between the plots of three powerful pirate captains, each possessing strong voodoo magic and nefarious intentions.

The Secret of Monkey Island and Pirates of the Caribbean (the movie) are both said to be loosely inspired by its heady mix of adventure, fantasy and high seas chicanery. Plus I’m getting an actual overview of the end of the pirate era in the Caribbean.

Oh and it has Blackbeard in it. And at one point he says “More blood salt than sea salt in the water tonight.” And that alone, my friends, is worth the price of admission.

King City #1

On the comic book front, I just took my sweet time savoring every last panel of Brandon Graham’s first issue of King City. I didn’t read this title in its previous previous printing, so this is my first exposure to this strange sci-fi world. The larger format really suits Graham’s artwork and he’s made excellent usage of every square inch of this book, filling it with amusing extras and add-ons.

I’ve been a fan of Graham’s work for awhile (via Multiple Warheads and his amazing blog), and the first issue of King City is not disappointing me in the slightest. It is, to my mind, exactly what science-fiction should be: bizarre, charming, visually stunning and chock full of wild ideas that need not be fully explained. I can’t recommend it highly enough.

Also I want a cat like that, god damn it.

Rick Lacy:

Mouse Guard #1

Mouse Guard: This is the book that’s currently on my nightstand. I fell for this book like a hot girl on Facebook I never met. It ‘s exactly the type of book I want to create… only with more Conan’s and Madmartigan’s. Not that mice aren’t dauntless and bold, it’s just not where my mind dwells. That being said, David Peterson has really created some interesting and compelling characters that are only a few inches high. My favorite parts of these books are the world building elements he uses. Everything from the mouse city of Lockhaven to the myth of the black axe to the “Moria” like caverns of Darkheather are all fully realized places. Places that I believe actually lurked under the roots of the woods in my old backyard. The supplemental work in this book is also very fascinating. It outlines the different roles of mice in the kingdom. The apothecaries! The medicines and armories! The working mouse elevators and the hierarchy. All well put together and creative. WITH MICE!

The City and The City: This is the latest novel from one of my favorite authors, China Mieville, It’s a departure (somewhat) from his normal genre of “new weird” and focuses on crime drama. Though it is mixed with a good hearty amount of fantastic creativity, by building a realm in a modern time that’s dotted with an alternate world of mystery. By that I mean, the crosshatched existence of two symbiotic cities Beszel and Ul Qoma that live side by side, but hold a very prejudice but checked border. To describe the elements within would take pages on pages! In my opinion, The City and the City is a fairly exhausting read, but Mieville proves yet again that he’s a master of word-smithing by dictating a slew of different dialects, personas and interspersed societal agendas. For more of his work I highly suggest his Bas Lag series. Start with The Scar!

Joan

Joan: I picked up this manga series for wicked cheap at my local comic shop on a whim. It’s gorgeously illustrated by Yoshikazu Yasuhiko in pen ink and watercolor, which was the initial reason I bought it. The story is a retelling of the Joan of Arc saga only with a different woman in the lead role reliving the same experience. I don’t entirely understand why the author didn’t just retell Joan of Arc, herself. Perhaps he wanted to have his own voice. The story is a variation on standard faire with uman rights, religion and loyalty to country taking the main stage. The huge draw, as I mentioned, is the art. The vistas and use of water coloring are beautiful. E very page is a masterpiece. I’ll definitely seek out more of Yasuhiko’s art.

Labor Days Volume 2: Just Another Damn Day: Yes, I know this is my own book! BUT! we just released this edition this weekend and I haven’t seen a copy until now. So this one just got bumped up to the top of the list. I hope it holds up! We definitely pushed the boundaries on our own title in the pages of Volume Two and it’s become closer, I believe, to what we wanted in our initial design. Volume three should be the coup de gras!

Achewood

Webcomics | Chris Onstad’s enormously popular Achewood returned on Monday from its “official strip hiatus.” [The A.V. Club]

Publishing | Marvel Comics and IDW Publishing were named Publishers of the Year in Diamond’s annual Gem Awards, which recognize “outstanding suppliers in the comic book specialty market.” Marvel’s Secret Invasion #1 was dubbed Comic Book of the Year in the over-$3 division; Image’s The Walking Dead #50 for under $3. DC Comics’ Joker was named Original Graphic Novel of the Year. [Diamond Comic Distributors]

Conventions | Blogger Deb Aoki provides a manga-centric guide to this weekend’s New York Comic Con. [About.com]

Creators | Congratulations to Jeff and Leslie-Anne Lemire on the birth of their son Gus Michael Lemire. [Top Shelf Productions]

Creators | Marc Mason talks with artist Josh Medors about his health and his current work. [Comics Waiting Room]

Creators | Mouse Guard creator David Petersen speaks at length about the evolution of his well-received series, his upcoming children’s book, and why he stuck with publisher Archaia Studios Press through its drawn-out restructuring: “I always felt like nobody would want to publish a silly book about mice. So I really felt like ASP was doing me a huge favor by taking the chance on the book. Now everybody goes, ‘Oh, why didn’t you go to Marvel or DC, or try to pitch to them?’ Because I would’ve gotten laughed out of the booth! So they took a chance on me, and we had solicited issues that hadn’t come out yet, so I didn’t really have a reason to go anywhere else.” [The A.V. Club]

Creators | Danny Graydon spotlights Paul Pope‘s 1999-2000 cyberpunk comic Heavy Liquid. [The First Post]

Blogosphere | The Daily Cartoonist has begun to allow readers to submit news and reviews. [The Daily Cartoonist]

Fandom | Jack Hsu traces the evolution of Taiwan’s otaku culture. [Taiwan News]

Meme watch | Blogger Doctor K imagines what song Superman sang into the Miracle Machine in Final Crisis #7. Other bloggers follow suit. [Doctor K's blog]