Next Sunday, while Shelton’s selling comics at Wes Tillander’s Atlanta Comic Con, and before you sit down to the Super Bowl (or something else, depending on your interests), we hope you’ll sit down with us for a store signing/discussion group hybrid that should be pretty righteous.

Afrodisiac co-creator and artist Jim Rugg will all up in our store to sign and discuss the book, which is getting some pretty high-falutin’ reviews lately from up and down the comics press! Jim is a great guy too, and a stellar cartoonist, and a super-knowledgeable dude, so any discussion with him in it is sure to be a fascinating one. Our own Discussion Group leader Andy Mansell will be on hand to grill Jim, which I am double-definitely looking forward to.

NOTE that, due to the Super Bowl at 6 or 6.30 or whenever that thing cranks up, we’ve moved the signing up by an hour so that people can get home afterwards to see the game. Earlier announcements had it at 3-6pm.

Oh, that reminds me–the discussion itself (and the book) are not for kids, so please be advised! There are so many quadruple entendres in that thing, I don’t think you could discuss a single page of it in a “SFW” way, you know what I mean?

I’ll link up the trailer video below again, just because I love watching it. Note the “December 2009” release date–bogus! Okay, hope to see you guys there next Sunday!

Yes yes, oh my yes please! Brand new to the HeroesCon 2010 Guest List today are 2 old buddies and one brand new one–the new one is none other than Mysterius The Unfathomable artist Tom Fowler! Tom comes to us through the good offices of his Mysterius collaborator, Jeff Parker, who is also coming I do believe, although hasn’t seen fit to reply to my email yet. Probably *sniff* technical issues or something. Anyway, Tom is not only the studly Mysterius artist, but also has a ton of work in Mad Magazine and elsewhere–looking through his site is a real treat, believe you me!

Also a “real treat” is “Big” John Beatty, who returns triumphant to HeroesCon this year after several years of absence. We love John, he’s an inker’s inker and a studbolt and a sweet dude besides. He got his start at the age of–18? 19? anyway it was super young–inking Mike Zeck on Punisher. He worked on some of the biggest books of the 80’s, including Zeck’s Captain America run, Secret Wars, and a ton more. These days he’s in-demand working on DC style guides and a ton of sketch cards.

Also returning this year is another old chum, and a local comics star to boot, Mr. Al Bigley. Besides credits including Tao Boy, Sonic the Hedgehog, and a bajillion trading card illustrations, Al also wrote Draw Comics Like A Pro, a comics how-to published by Watson Guptill!

Are you reading Wonder Woman? You should be.

As I stated about 10 months ago, under writer Gail Simone, WW has consistently been one of the best books published by the folks at DC. The latest issue sees Diana taking a bit of a breather after wrapping a fairly long story arc that saw her battling a bunch of cool new villains. But that doesn’t mean that things are slowing down. This month’s installment introduces us to a new group of bad guys with ties to the god of war Ares, shows us the condition of WW’s hospitalized BFF Etta and sets the stage for a battle with another popular DC heroine. And this lineup of events perfectly illustrates why Simone’s run on the comic is so enjoyable.

The writer crafts stories that perfectly blend all the cool things about Diana — the Greek mythology side of things, her humanity and the straight-up super-heroic side. WW succeeds when it offers read the best of all worlds, distinguishing her from iconic brothers like Superman and Batman — and it’s obvious that Simone knows this.

Oh and, I can’t say enough that artist Aaron Lopresti’s clean but incredibly kinetic work on the book is proving that he is a top-tier artist.

What are you waiting for? Trust me. It’s worth the cash.

Courtesy of our buddy Matt Knapik, check out these sweet photos from Saturday’s Charlotte Minicon! I happen to have been one of the guests (super exciting!) so I can tell you from both sides of the table that it was a lot of fun!

One really cool thing was what I saw as an increased number of families attending together, both dads and daughters, and even Moms, the rarest demographic at a comics show. I love it, super fun. The highlight of the show for me was having one kid and his dad hang out in front of my table for a while, having me sketch all sorts of weird stuff (a Jedi, a stump being chased by a warrior, etc.). I had a good time talking to those guys, it made me wistful for my days as a Pokemon Leader or Jedi Master or whatever you call someone who runs a Pokemon League.

Also cool was sitting next to Rich Barrett, who is worth checking out if you guys haven’t already. He’s one of our customers who has recently taken the plunge into webcomics, and even more recently beginning to publish those comics as mini’s–I do believe you can find copies of his Nathan Sorry minis in the store! Rich was too cagey to get photographed though, he’s like Bigfoot that way.

Plus of course the tons of other talent in the room. Francesco Francavilla was in the hizzy with his lovely wife Lisavilla Francavilla (actually just Lisa), plus our bros Budd Root and Andy Smith, plus our other bros Chris Brunner and Jason Latour, plus our South Carolina bros J. Chris Campbell and Duane Ballenger. Plus our other SC bros from the Dollar Bin who were in full effect all day. Plus a ton of you guys! Thanks to everyone who came out and made the Charlotte Minicon a success! Don’t forget to check out the full photo report here!

Where Shawn looks at the New Releases and lets you know which books she is most excited about!

1) Afrodisiac HC

Afrodisiac is a blaxploitation story told using the storytelling conventions of 70s comics. It is illustrated by Jim Rugg and co-created and co-written by Brian Maruca. We are already sold out of this book! But fear not! If you want a copy you will be able to pick one up at our lovely store Sunday, February 7 when Rugg and Chris Pitzer will be here for a store signing. They will have lots of copies available! If you can’t make it and want a copy let us know and we will get you a copy then, if not before.

2) Dark Reign Hawkeye #5, Captain America Reborn #6 and Kick Butt #8

Marvel is catching up on their shipping schedules and plenty of titles are coming out that people have been anticipating.

3) Marvelous Land of Oz #3

Check out this sweet interior art done by Skottie Young, who we just recently added to the guest list of Heroes Con 2010!

4) New Avengers #61

Siege is in full swing and Steve Rogers is back!

5) Loverboy HC and SC

One of my big regrets from Heroes Con 09 was not seeing the Irwin Hasen documentary. Everyone I talked to who saw it was blown away. I hope that the documentary will make it to DVD sometime in the near future. But in the meantime Loverboy is basically Hasen’s story in his own words and pictures. The first part is him explaining how his short stature sometimes gets in the way of his love for tall women while the second part is about his comics career.

This Saturday, January 23: the Charlotte Minicon! The precursor to HeroesCon, Shelton started the Charlotte Minicon way back in 1977, five years before he established HeroesCon!

We’re kicking the new year off right with the Minicon this year, with a guest list that includes rising star artist Francesco Francavilla (Scalped, Zorro, Black Beetle), as well as Rich Barrett (Nathan Sorry), Al Bigley (Sonic the Hedgehog), Chris Brunner (Batman: Legends of the Dark Knight, Loose Ends), J. Chris Campbell (Zig Zag), Dustin Harbin (DHARBIN!), Jason Latour (Loose Ends, Expatriate),Budd Root (Cavewoman), and Andy Smith (Dean Koontz’ Frankenstein, 52)!

This year’s Charlotte Minicon will be held Saturday, January 23, 2010, from 11am to 5pm, at the Palmer Building at Fireman’s Hall. It’s just up the street from our store, maybe a half-mile east or so on 7th Street. Shelton always puts a bunch of signs up on 7th street in both directions, so it should be pretty easy to find! And for those of you with fancy GPS systems (or computers) the physical address is 2601 E. 7th St. Admission is just $3–besides the special guests, there’ll be dealers from all over the Southeast, with tons of old comics, new comics, Silver & Golden Age, weird old books, you name it! See you Saturday!

I’ve heard some folks complain about The Flash: Rebirth — saying stuff like the book is boring or the story is a bit wonkish … hell, I have, too. But on the whole, I must say I’m excited about the direction of the entire Flash franchise.

I mean, I know Rebirth isn’t even officially finished yet, but in the closing chapters of the limited series we’ve been given some cool glimpses about the what’s to come (complete with new costumes) with Barry Allen, Wally West, Bart Allen and others. It seems like writer Geoff Johns and artist Ethan Van Sciver are determined to carve out unique personalities, looks and motivations for all the members of the Flash “family.”

In books like Blackest Night and Blackest Night: The Flash, you’ll see more evidence that the characters are on the right track. Barry, a hero who never really had much in the way of personality, is being portrayed as a smart, tough guy with a never-say-die attitude; while Wally West is being treated like an equal partner — not some Connor Hawke-ish stand-in (And that’s a slam to bad writers and editors, not Connor Hawke.); and the Rogues are back to being cool (instead of killing kids).

Read the advance solicitations and press for the upcoming new Flash comics, and you’ll have even more reasons to start saving your dollars. From what I can see, all the Flashes will get some screen time and deliver the tales you’ve been missing for the last few years.

Brand new to the HeroesCon 2010 Guest List today are some old buddies and at least one brand new buddy! Jamal Igle will be no stranger to most HeroesCon attendees–the fan-favorite penciller who’s currently working on World’s Finest is also famous for his runs on Supergirl, Nightwing, and Firestorm. He’s a sweet dude too, so if you somehow haven’t met him yet, then I foresee good times in your future for sure.

Jamal is joined by fellow return guest and buddy Nathan Edmondson, who you may have met at our big Holiday Sale or at last year’s HeroesCon. Now that Nathan’s done with his acclaimed book Olympus, he’s setting his sights on the upcoming The Light, drawn by Surrogates co-creator Brett Weldele! Yes, yes I know what you’re thinking, I’ll get right on it; but for now, let’s just reflect on good ole Nathan. All done reflecting? Okay.

Because also new this week is first time guest Gabriel Hardman, who comes to us through the good offices of our friend and his collaborator Jeff Parker. Jeff and Gabriel have worked together on numerous Agents of Atlas projects, including the recent Avengers Vs. Agents of Atlas miniseries. Gabe’s also the artist of the Image/Shadowline graphic novel Heathentown, and has worked on a ton of movies including a few little indie productions like Spider-Man 3, Superman Returns, and Tropic Thunder. But hopefully one day he’ll get to work on one of the BIG movies, here’s hoping on that.

Oh but wait! Before I release your Internet-roaming eyes, leave me not forget two more artist returning to HeroesCon this summer: Charlie Kirchoff is the colorist of a bajillion different IDW books, including the Doctor Who ongoing series, the recolored Doctor Who Classics, and Angel: Aftermath. He also colored the Zombies That Ate The World miniseries over Guy Davis‘s sweet pencils. S.L. Gallant is another IDW rising star, working mainly lately on GI Joe books, including the main series, GI Joe Origins, and the GI Joe movie prequels. You may have also seen him on Marvel Adventures: The Avengers and more!

Okay, that should do it for this week for big con announcements, although there’s some sweet stuff in store next week. For now we’ll spend the rest of the week getting ready for the big Charlotte Minicon on Saturday. See you there!

Where Shawn looks at the New Releases and lets you know which books she is most excited about!

1) Nola #3

Cover B is done by the one and only Chris Brunner who will be attending the Charlotte Minicon this Saturday, January 23! So pick one up and get it signed!

2) Cavewoman Cover Gallery #3 and Cavewoman Pangean Sea #11

Budd Root, who will also be at the Charlotte Minicon, has not one but TWO books coming out this week. Crazy! Be sure to check out Budd’s prints at the Minicon! Be mindful that Budd’s art is risque and intended for mature audiences.

3) Joe the Barbarian #1

Grant Morrison teams up with Sean Gordon Murphy (who will be at HeroesCon in June) on a new miniseries about a little boy who is stuck between fantasy and reality. He could be hallucinating or he could be experiencing a new reality, either way I’m sure it will be an interesting journey. And just in case you need one more reason to buy it, this first issue is only $1! I’m sold!

4) Kids of Widney High One-Shot

This one shot is written by the  members of Kids of Widney High which is a rock band that consists of graduates of a special education high school in LA. It is illustrated by some awesome artists including: Chuck BB, Robbi Rodriguez, Rafael Navarro, Jim Mahfood, Neal Von Flue and Rikki Niehaus and Mahfood is on cover duty.

5) Rasl #6

Jeff Smith‘s Rasl just keeps getting better and better. Who doesn’t like time travel mixed with art thievery?

Yessir! New to the HeroesCon Indie Island Guest List for the first time ever this year is one of my very favorite cartoonists, Ken Dahl–I’m pretty excited to have Ken (or Gabby, as most people know him–Ken Dahl is a pseudonym AS IF YOU COULDN’T TELL) as a guest, and I suspect I’m not the only one. Gabby’s book Monsters was on pretty much every critic’s “best of” list for 2009, so many that it ended up #6 on the “meta-list”, compiled by the guys at the I Love Rob Liefeld comics blog. Gabby’s a pretty amazing cartoonist, and I suspect still with his best work ahead of him–there are worse places to be than there.

Gabby is joined this week by his fellow Punchbuggy Tour member (along with already-guestified Liz Baillie) MK Reed, who self-publishes her own Cross Country books, and has a a book coming out from First Second in 2011. In fact, I am informed that HeroesCon will be the final stop on Gabby, Liz, and MK’s Punchbuggy Tour, and they’ll be doing readings and discussions and all manner of public panel stuff at the show to celebrate.

And they are joined by up-and-comer Sally Bloodbath, who sharp-eyed attendees may recognize from early Indie Island appearances as a talented helper of Liz and MK’s. This year Sally has attained full-blooded Guest status, and we are happy to have her. She co-edits the anthology Always Comix, and does pretty hilarious (and angry) comics of her own.

While not affiliated with these guys or Punchbuggies other than friend-wise, Chris Schweizer is a popular guest each year in Indie Island, almost since the first one back in 2005. This year he returns on the wings of success, in this case the critical success of his all-ages adventure series, the first volume of which (Crogan’s Vengeance) was published last year. Or late 2008? Crap, now I can’t remember. Anyway, it’s great and Chris is better!

Okay, another non-indie update in the next day or so, but these guys kept emailing me to ask if I was ever going to add them, so it was the best way to shut them up!