10.31.12 Shipping Report

It’s sort of an odd collection of stuff this week that has my interest piqued, but there are only two sure buys amid this crazy mix. The first is the start of a new arc with a new artist in Wasteland #40 (Oni Press), which will also officially mark the fact that there are only 20 issues left of this book, so I’ll have to start including my patented countdown clock with the reviews. I’ll also be picking up Brian Wood’s Ultimate Comics: X-Men #18 (Marvel), which I think wraps up this arc before there’s a special #18.1 issue and then a new arc beginning in #19. There’s a chance I may buy Happy #2 (Image), but it didn’t really grab me personally. I feel like sometimes I read stuff like this just to keep up with what everyone’s talking about, which can be a dumb reason to support a title. On the indie side, it’s cool to see Pope Hats #3 (AdHouse) from Ethan Rilly due out, yet I highly doubt anyone on the San Diego LCS circuit will be carrying it. The other “maybe” single is the CBLDF Liberty Annual 2012 (Image). There isn’t really a set of names or a single piece I’m aware of that really grabs me, but it’s for a good cause and I have enough mild interest in it when you combine a Gabriel Ba cover and some work by people like Brandon Graham, Jonathan Hickman, Terry More, Joe Keatinge, and Chynna Clugston-Flores. Swamp Thing Annual #1 (DC) is also out, and though I won’t be picking it up because of the whole Marvel/DC boycott (with a few exceptions), it’s interesting to see Scott Snyder and Becky Cloonan working together again, so I’ll give it a flip. I definitely won’t be buying the Batgirl Annual #1 (DC), but I wanted to mention it because I’m waiting for female fandom to start calling out the cover for its ridiculously-posed latex-clad bodies, complete with Catwoman Camel Toe and Babs Gordon contorted so that you get one of those simultaneous face, tits, and ass shots with her back, hips, and shoulders so unnaturally arched that her body seems to form two 90 degree angles, and you could probably set your gin and tonic with a twist on the shelf of her ass without actually spilling a drop. Lastly, thought I’d mention the Metabarons Ultimate Collected Edition (Humanoids), which collects the first 4 volumes of this seminal Euro Sci-Fi series from Alejandro Jodorowsky, with bonus material and an introduction by Matt Fraction.