Coming This Week: "So Give It Up And Don't Pretend"

Sometimes I feel like if it wasn’t for Brian Wood, I wouldn’t be reading comics at all. This week we get DMZ #54 (DC/Vertigo) and DV8: Gods & Monsters #3 (DC/Wildstorm), and that’s the mark of a pretty good week in comics right there. If I’m definitely buying those, then I’m pretty sure that I’ll also be picking up Lone Ranger #22 (Dynamite Entertainment), though I’ve decided to start trade-waiting this title once this arc wraps. The shipping schedule is just so sporadic and it reads better collected anyway. Billy Hazelnuts & The Crazy Bird (Fantagraphics) is also out, and that’s pretty exciting. The original Billy Hazelnuts is my favorite Tony Millionaire project so it’ll be fun to see if he can maintain the high, less fun to wonder if Sea Donkey is actually going to have it.

In the “maybe” column, we have New Avengers #1 (Marvel) from Brian Michael Bendis and Stuart Immonen. I’m sorta’ in the middle on Bendis, not a rabid fan and not a hater, but Stuart Immonen is a large draw for me, so this could end up rounding out my trilogy of Avengers ongoing titles, with Avengers and Secret Avengers. I tried the first issue and was really underwhelmed, but DC Universe Legacies #2 (DC) promises an ever rotating creative team, so we’ll see how that holds up during the casual flip test at the LCS. It’s funny to me that DC is putting out a reprint of Detective Comics #854 (DC) at their special $1 price. It’s a fine issue and all, but with the trade out and back issues easy to find, I gotta’ wonder what’s the point? Unless I missed a big announcement at DC, it’s not as if they’re once-maybe-never mind-off again-on again-off again plans for any sort of title featuring this character ever materialized. On the original graphic novel front, Artichoke Tales (Fantagraphics) from Megan Kelso could be worth a look.