Does the man ever sleep? Shelton Drum is headed to the Tampa Bay Comic Con Sunday, November 7. Shelton will be taking some of the best comics from the Silver and Golden Age as well as our convention stock full of Modern Age gems. If you are down that way be sure to grab your want list and swing by the Minnreg Convention Hall to say hi to Heroes Aren’t Hard to Find. We would love to help you check off some comics from that list. For those of you who want to escape this dreary weather the Tampa Bay Comic Con is only 10 hours away. I can’t think of a better way to spend my weekend then with some Florida sun to go with my comic books!

Tampa Bay Comic Con
Sunday, November 7, 2010
10 am to 4 pm
Admission is $5, kids 12 and under get in FREE!
Minnreg Convention Hall
6340 126th Ave N.
Largo, FL 33773

There are numerous standouts and new titles starting this week.  Here are just a few suggestions to consider during your visit to the store.  For more options check the full listing of new books at the New Releases section of our site.

1) Captain America: Man Out of Time #1

Another offering in what is guaranteed to be a slew of  miniseries leading up to the Cap movie, this one stands out because it features Mark Waid‘s return to the character.  Waid’s run on Cap in the ’90’s is duly regarded as one of the preeminent superhero runs from that decade, and it’s nice to see him back writing the ‘man out of time.’  Focusing on Cap’s transition from ’40’s life to modernity, Waid and collaborator Jorge Molina should make this one especially worthwhile among the many Cap series floating around Marveldom.

2) Superboy #1

While it was inevitable that Superboy would eventually get another solo title, I doubt many of us expected it to be written by Jeff Lemire.  The writer/artist behind critically acclaimed books like the Essex County Trilogy and Sweet Tooth might be relatively new to mainstream superhero comics but his track record speaks for itself.  Alongside artist Pier Gallo, don’t be surprised if Superboy ends up adding even more acclaim to Lemire’s comic catalogue.

3) Generation Hope #1

Marvel’s been building their X family up to this new title for a while now and it should be a quick seller.  Focusing on Hope, the mutant savior from the Messiah Complex arc, we’ll see how she and other X-men deal with the first five mutants to be discovered since House of M.  This one’s brought to you by the up-and-coming talents of writer Kieron Gillen and artist Salva Espin.

4) Invincible #75

Less than a week after his Walking Dead series came to television, Robert Kirkman celebrates another milestone with the anniversary of his other big Image title.  Alongside Kirkman are regular contributers Ryan Ottley and Cory Walker, who are both on hand to continue the recent story of Invincible off world in a space war.  Not only is this issue 48 pages, but you also get a Science Dog back up story from Kirkman and Walker.

5) Xenozoic Complete Collection TP

Mark Schultz‘s legendary series is finally back in print and collected in one handy volume.  It’s great that the whole 350 page story is all together again in a new trade, but it’s even better that it’s all in glorious black and white!  This is a great pick for anyone who, like me, never got around to reading all the Xenozoic Tales the first time around, or for anyone who never read any of them but is intrigued by the possibilities of a comic that manages to blend sci-fi, fantasy, pulp, a post apocalyptic world, and plenty of dinosaurs.

> Bonus picks of the week:  Batman and Robin #16, Absolute All Star Superman HC, the third Oz adaptation from Eric Shanower and Skottie Young starts with Ozma of Oz #1, Avengers Academy #6, the final issue of Vertigo’s underappreciated modern war series, Unknown Soldier #25, and Strange Tales 2 #2, which features contributions from the Hernandez Bros.

Wednesday, November 3 the Neighborhood Theatre is  screening The Adventures of Prince Achmed for a fundraiser benefiting VisArt Video! As an added bonus Great Architect will be doing a live orchestral score! There will be two showings, one at 6 pm for families and one at 8 pm for adults. Tickets are $10 for adults and $5 for kids.

VisArt Video’s manager Gina Cerniglia is trying to raise $100,000 by next spring in order to buy the store before the lease runs up.  The current owners aren’t able to maintain the store anymore and the store will be forced to close its doors if Cerniglia can’t come up with the money. Help Cerniglia keep Charlotte’s only Independent video store open! VisArt is located right beside Heroes on 7th Street and if you have never been there you should most definitely check it out. They have a huge selection of movies including obscure and independent films and VHS tapes. Charlotte would not be the same without them!

A sampling from the most recent Previews catalog of what looks like a winner in the month of January! All books are available for pre-order at your local shop (that’s us)!

Darth Vader & the Lost Command #1 (of 5) – I had to resist my urge to pick Hellboy stuff this month.  It’s great, but it’s not the only thing Dark Horse publishes.  This jumped out at me for the simple reason that Darth Vader is awesome and a whole mini-series starring Darth Vader on a secret mission must be awesome by multiples and should be enjoyed by all. Pg. 22

The Comics: An Illustrated History of Comic Strip Art – Comics legend Jerry Robinson’s comprehensive history of Comic Strips was first published in 1974 and has become a classic in the study of the medium.  Now he has returned to update the text, adding hundreds of fascinating new pages and is a must-have for burgeoning history buffs and casual fans of the medium alike. Pg. 48

Supergirl #60 – You know who won New York Comic Con this year?  Nick Spencer, that’s who.  He announced new books at Marvel, Image, and of course DC which brings us here.  Spencer has also been heading up the Jimmy Olsen back-up strip in Action Comics which has been loads of clever fun in the classic Superman vein and so it’s logical to think he’ll bring that energy to this title too. A great jumping-on point from a promising new talent and reliable artist Bernard Chang.  Pg. 82

Daytripper TP – The honest-to-god best comic of this year. All 12 issues here in one very inexpensive ($19.99, cheap!) volume.  Get it.  Love it. Pg. 118

The Walking Dead Weekly #1-4 – It’s been many, many years since something like this has been done.   It’s exactly as the title suggests, a weekly issue-by-issue reprinting of The Walking Dead for an entire year from the beginning.  The Walking Dead is already available in numerous formats but I must credit Image for allowing a new opportunity for fans, potential and brand new, to experience the book in its original serial format but without that pesky month long wait that gnaws at you while waiting to get the next installment. Pg. 174-175

Tuesday, November 2 is Election Day! Don’t forget to stop by your polling place and cast your vote! In North Carolina the polls will be open from 6:30 am to 7:30 pm. If you live in the Charlotte area you can go to the Mecklenburg County Board of Elections website to view information about the candidates in your district. Also, The Charlotte Observer has a special Voter’s Guide section to help you educate yourself on the candidates. As my Dad always says, Vote Early and Vote Often!

Ever since I first read Sandman TP vol 1 Preludes and Nocturnes I was hooked. Some years later I still consider myself a huge fan and have been slowly amassing a substantial Sandman collection. I have all the trades, all the Absolutes (including Absolute Death) and now I am going back and picking up the single issues along with tie-ins. So naturally when I found out that Death would be in Action Comics #894 I knew I had to have it.

Death is one of my favorite of the Endless from Sandman. For those of you not familiar, the Endless are the siblings of Dream (the main character of Sandman): Death, Destruction, Desire, Delirium (formerly Delight), Destiny and Despair. Each is a physical embodiment of the idea its name represents. Death literally is death. As a character, Death is the perfect antithesis of your expectations. She is certainly no Grim Reaper. She is a cheery, cute goth chick who you want to usher you to the other side. A lot of people relate to her because she feels so approachable and empathetic. She is a complex and lovely character.

Before we delve deeper into the review I would like to warn readers of the possibilities of spoilers. If you have read the issue or don’t mind spoilers please read away; otherwise, read ahead at your own risk.

I was really pleased with the way this issue turned out. Paul Cornell and Pete Woods did an excellent job writing and illustrating this issue. I felt that Death was used thoughtfully and meaningfully. Her appearance did not feel like a gimmick or a publicity stunt. She felt very much “in character” and like the Death from Sandman. She provided an interesting juxtaposition to Lex Luthor and helped to reveal Luthor’s thoughts on life, death and God. The interactions between them were brilliant, especially the “nose touch scene” that was in the back of many of DC books for the week of October 27. Most of the issue was a philosophical conversation between Death and Luthor. It is a fascinating and thought-provoking conversation about Luthor’s drives and motivations. It shed new light onto Luthor for me.

It would have been easy for the dialogue to feel very forced given the situation they were in, yet Cornell made it feel natural. Cornell is able to believably put Luthor into a rare state of vulnerability. All the while Death is joking and being playful trying to calm Luthor and make him more comfortable. According to Bleeding Cool, Cornell has credited much of Death’s dialogue to Sandman writer Neil Gaiman. Gaiman is not given writing credits in this issue, though he is given a special thanks. So, some of the success of this issue needs to be given to Gaiman though most goes to Cornell’s writing and Woods’s illustrating.

Woods was able to keep the story visually engaging despite the lack of action. Death’s depiction was spot on. She is tender and sweet as she takes Luthor on a existential journey. Most of the story depends on facial expressions and Luthor’s are great. You can see that he is going through the five stages of grief. You can see the denial, anger and bargaining. It can even be argued that he reached the final stage of acceptance.

As expected this issue isn’t about what you think it is about. The twist ending definitely left me wanting more and asking myself lots of questions. What does this mean for Luthor and for the rest of the DCU? Will Death make more appearances? Are other Vertigo characters going to begin crossing into the mainstream DCU? With the Vertigo imprint changing and some of the characters moving to the DC banner one can only wonder if this is a sign of things to come. Given the success of this issue, I hope that this isn’t the last time we see Death in the DC Universe. I also hope that this means we will see more from other Vertigo characters in mainstream DC comics.

The Jimmy Olsen second feature is a nice compliment to the main Lex Luthor story in Action Comics. This is part two of Jimmy Olsen’s big week which sees the introduction of Chloe Sullivan into main DC continuity. You may know Chloe from the television show Smallville. Here she is Jimmy’s ex-girlfriend. Nick Spenser and RB Silva are excellent at telling a huge story very concisely. A lot of things happen in only eight pages. Plus, I dig the way the story is a throw-back to the more fantastical Superman stories from the Silver Age. I look forward to the continued adventures of Jimmy Olsen as he deals with a possibly alien invasion.