I have been loving Thor The Mighty Avenger! It is a fun and well-written book that appeals to fans of all ages! In the first issue we are introduced to the two main characters, Thor and Jane Foster. Thor has mysteriously been sent to Midgard and wants to return home. He meets Jane at the Bergen War Memorial Museum when he tries to get his hammer, Mjolnir, out an urn in one of the museum displays. We are also introduced to the villain of this story arc, Hyde. The second issue is action packed as Thor defeats Hyde. Now, in issue three, the action continues as mayhem ensues, with a little help from Loki. Thor meets superheroes Henry Pym (Ant-Man) and Janet van Dyne (Wasp) but it is not a friendly encounter.

Roger Langridge‘s writing is perfect for this series. It is fun, fast and self-contained. All you need to know is between the covers. Partner that with Chris Samnee‘s art and you’ve got magic. I love the bold lines and the dynamic movement of Samnee’s art. And I love the sense of life that he gives the characters. If you want to see more of Samnee’s art check out Siege: Embedded and the Comic Twart Blog. Matt Wilson‘s coloring really helps to accentuate Samnee’s art. Everything fits together incredibly well!

This book has a classic, timeless feel. It somehow balances retro styles and modern sensibilities. Ant-Man and Wasp don their original costumes. And Hyde is very much a throw-back villain. Yet something about this book feels modern. It might be the rich colors and the bold lines. Or it might be that Jane Foster is a strong and feisty character. At least more so than any of the 60’s Marvel women.

The first page of issue three we are given a re-cap of the events in the previous title, which adds to the retro feel. This book is perfect for new-comers. You don’t need to know anything about Thor to be able to understand and appreciate this book. You don’t need to know anything about other Marvel characters either. Langridge does a perfect job of introducing everyone. The first time we see Janet van Dyne she is reading a fashion magazine at the Pym research facility. We know right off the bat that she is fashion-conscious and intelligent. That is all you need to know about her. And Samnee’s art helps to describe the characters, especially through facial expressions. The smile on Loki’s face on the bottom of page 7 sums up that character, no words needed. Not to spoil too much, but the fight between Thor and Ant-Man is nicely executed. The coloring and lettering all work together to help make things clear and concise. The end of this issue leaves you feeling warm and fuzzy. I seriously can’t recommend this book enough. If you aren’t reading it, you really should!

Shelley and I had a blast! I took a million pictures but condensed it down to the best and posted them on our Flickr page. There was so much to do and see and experience. I have never been to anything like that in my life. Shelley and I talked to a ton of people about the convention and gave Shelton a lot of leads to follow up on. So hopefully before too long we will be able to get the initial guest list up. There will be plenty of familiar faces but maybe there will also be some new ones. And we have some exciting events planned for fall.

San Diego is a beautiful town with beautiful weather! I sure was missing it when I stepped off the plane and immediately began melting. We got to see a little bit of the city and went to several restaurants in the area. I didn’t have a bad meal the whole week! I was really surprised by how friendly everyone was. You bump into a million people as you try to maneuver the convention floor but no one is angry or mean-spirited. I had a lot of people smile and apologize. And all the artists, writers and publishers I talked to were incredible friendly. Ted McKeever, Paul Dini, Bill Willingham, Scott Snyder were so nice! It is such a good feeling when creators you really like are friendly. And it was so good to get to talk to Cully Hamner and Steve Niles. I love those guys! Almost everywhere I went I ran into someone I knew. It is a strange feeling being in a town you have never been to and yet feeling like you know everyone there.

I was able to make it to several panels which is always fun. My favorite was the Big Bang Theory panel. It was moderated by Wil Wheaton and the Barenaked Ladies came out and sang the the theme song. But I also had fun at the Fables panel (which I only caught the end of the Q & A), the Hellboy/BPRD panel and the Scott Pilgrim vol 6 panel. Mike Mignola has some interesting storylines planned for Hellboy! And a word of advice, if you don’t want things spoiled for you don’t go into a panel about a book you haven’t had the chance to read yet.

I spent most of my time walking the floor. I did a little bit of shopping here and there. How could I pass up a Sgt Slaughter SDCC exclusive GI Joe action figure or an original He-Man animation cell (I found an awesome one with Skeletor and Orko)? There were so many booths to look at that even though I walked to floor for 4 and a half days I still don’t feel like I saw everything. A number of the booths were jaw-droppingly amazing. Especially DC‘s, Marvel‘s, Lucasfilm‘s, Hasbro‘s, Mattel‘s, Lego‘s, Walking Dead‘s (both Image‘s and AMC‘s), Dark Horse and Archaia‘s. And those are just the ones I can think of right off the top of my head! The video game companies all had demos of their games. You could play Rock Band or Just Dance among others. I liked all the diversity and even though it is call Comic-Con I am ok with it having evolved into something else. There are plenty of other conventions that cater to the comic crowd. And who knows maybe someone came to meet the cast of It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia and stayed to check out some comics. The only thing that really surprised me was the lack of new comics. I really didn’t see any of the past couple weeks new releases (or just about any books from the past decade). Some publishers like IDW and Dark Horse had new comics but DC and Marvel didn’t (except for the occasional freebie).

And the costumes were amazing. I tried to get pictures of some of the best ones but it is hard. I didn’t always have my camera readily available and it can be hard to get a good picture when you’ve got thousands of people in your immediate vicinity. But I did get a couple of good pictures of people in costumes. Just keep in mind the pictures I took aren’t even a drop in the bucket compared to everyone wearing a costume. It was crazy!

I highly recommend going to San Diego Comic-Con (or Comic-Con International as it is now being referred to) at least once in your life. As long as you are patient and friendly you will have a blast! For more pictures and stories visit my Flickr set! And stay tuned for Shelley’s pictures!

Speaking of pictures, if any of you have any Heroes related photos we would love to see them and possibly post them on our Flickr page. I am particularly looking for photos from FCBD 2010 and the Adam Hughes signing. So if you have any send them my way (either by email or drop them off by the store and I will pick them up next time I am in). And if I do post them I will be sure and attribute the photos to the proper photographer.

 June 3-5, 2011 are the dates you need to block out right now, ‘cause Heroes Convention 2011 is on the calendar! Put in for those vacation days; don’t plan any weddings; graduation NEVER happens first week of June; Memorial Day and all of that NASCAR’s racin’ in Charlotte will be behind us…in other words…HeroesCon is IT! Nothing else can compete!

I have been obsessed with Erika Moen‘s work ever since I was exposed to her at this past HeroesCon. I picked up the second volume of DAR! and literally could not put it down. It is engaging and funny and strongly illustrated. This volume collects her web strips from 2009. She also reprints some older work and some bonus stories. After reading volume two I went to her website and read pretty much every one of her strips. In about a day. She is a highly entertaining cartoonist and I can’t recommend her work enough.

The official title of her web strip (DAR! A Super Girly Top Secret Comic Diary) is amusing and intentionally misleading. She isn’t what I would call a “girly” girl. And the strip isn’t appropriate for young girls. Moen’s work is intended for a mature audience. There are lots of references, jokes and images that are not appropriate for children or work. But the strip is a window into her life and it looks in on her most secret moments. It is the truth for her as a girl. This strip is all about her life experiences. It is very personal and very open. Some of the strips I feel like she is laying her life bare before the audience and yet she does it with humor and wit. Her work is all about balance. Her strips can be crass and baudy and yet at the same time they are sweet and endearing. I find her work to be completely relatable. I see myself in her. We don’t have a similar life story but I think that when you imbue your work with honesty then it is easy for people to relate to it, even if their life is vastly different from yours. Her artwork greatly enhances her stories. Her artwork is engaging and her characters are easily recognizable. She uses a lot of gray-tones which help give it depth and life. Her website contains six years worth of her strips and you can really see her develop as an artist and a storyteller in her ability to flesh out stories.

Almost a year ago she stopped doing DAR! and she explains why in the strip on the website’s homepage. I am disappointed that she is no longer doing a diary comic but I am excited to see what she is working on next. I have already begun the hunt for more of Moen’s work. I went to Portland, OR a couple weeks ago and while I was there I stopped by a couple comic book shops. At Cosmic Monkey Comics I found a mini that she did with Lucy Knisley called Drawn to You. I really liked the way that the two of them worked off of each other. It was a really fun read. She is a talented storyteller and I want to read more of her work!

Come to Richmond, Virginia this weekend, November 21-22, and support the Virginia Comicon! Our good friends Brett Carreras and Guy Rose are pulling out all the stops promoting Richmond’s first two-day comic convention in over 25 years! The guest line-up is fantastic, several cool exclusives will be available, and tons of great comics, old and new, will be available for sale to add to your collections. Including our rather impressive stock I might add.

I’ve been on the road a lot this past year, especially this Fall, and everywhere I’ve been, Brett has been there too, promoting the heck out of this show. The VA Comicon boasts a heavy-hitting line up of comic creators including Larry Hama, Chris Claremont, Chuck Dixon, Billy Tucci, Randy Green, Mike McKone, Budd Root, Andy Smith, Alex Saviuk and many more. There will be a full schedule of programming including a panel with Marc Nathan, the owner of the Baltimore Comic-Con, Brett and ME, talking about our comic conventions and how we do what we do.

Up to the minute info and announcements will be made.

Randy Green has produced an exclusive holiday themed cover for the VA Comicon edition of Witchblade #132. The first 1000 paid admissions get a copy of this “Sweet Christmas!” variant for FREE! There will also be a extremely limited sketch variant cover produced as a thank-you to the attending exhibitors and guests. I’ll be giving my copy away to some lucky customer before the show is over. Just print out the attached 20% off coupon and use it at my table this weekend to be entered into the drawing for this hot collectible.

I can’t wait for this weekend! I’m going to have a blast and I know you will too!

I’ll see you all in Richmond!

As a whole I hate reality television shows. They seem to showcase and celebrate the worst characteristics of our society. However there is one exception: Project Runway. The show starts out with 16 contestants and each week they are given challenges where they must create garments that fit some sort of criteria; last week they were instructed to create a “beach” look. The winner wins immunity (or some other prize like their winning look being featured in a magazine or on television) and the loser is booted off of the show. The final winner gets a bunch of cash to start their own line and various other prizes (car, vacation and the like).

Heidi Klum and Tim Gunn are the two main faces of the show: Klum acts as judge and Gunn acts as mentor. Either one of them gives the challenge but Gunn is the one who critiques the progress of the contestants roughly halfway into the show. I know, you think it is just some stupid show about fashion. But you would be wrong! The show is affirming and encouraging, it celebrates the talent of the contestants. Sure the judges are honest when something doesn’t work but they are constructive with their criticism. You get the feeling that they genuinely care about the contestants and want them to do their best.

Project Runway is not your typical reality television show. Let’s take all the Gordon Ramsay shows for example. I have only seen bits and pieces of that show, but every time I do Ramsay is yelling at someone and making them cry. He is tearing them down instead of building them up. That is definitely not a show I would want to participate in, much less watch.

So why this long rant on the positives of Project Runway? What does any of this have to do with comics? Well I will tell you! I love Tim Gunn. He is the heart of Project Runway. He makes the show for me. He gives it that sweetness that the other reality shows lack. This week will see the release of Models Inc #1–its release is timed to coincide with when the newest episode of Project Runway will air (10 pm on Lifetime) and it is the start of New York Fashion Week. 

Tim Gunn will have a back up feature where he dons the Iron Man suit to fight crime. I saw him on the Daily Show with Jon Stewart and he seemed thrilled to be in a comic book. He also spoke very highly of Phil Jimenez who does the variant cover of Gunn with the Iron Man suit. Models Inc will bring together the models of the Marvel Universe. And there are quite a few of them, like Millie, Chili, Jill Jerold, Patsy Walker (aka Hellcat) and Mary Jane Watson (that chick who hangs out with Peter Parker sometimes). Millie recently made an appearance in Age of the Sentry, which I thought was an underrated book. But aside from that she really hasn’t had a presence in comics in decades. I’ve read a couple of older Millie the Model comics and I found them cute and fun.

I am curious how Marvel will handle this book and how it will compare to Marvel Divas. Carlton Hargro reviewed Marvel Divas a while back on this here blog and he endorsed it if you are a fan of Sex and the City. He wasn’t the only one who compared the book to that show. Honestly, I haven’t read Marvel Divas because of all the comparisons. I hate Sex and the City. A lot. A whole lot. It makes me angry. So I really hope that Models Inc doesn’t go that route. And I hope that it doesn’t take itself too seriously. I am really hoping for lighthearted entertainment. And I wouldn’t mind if they threw in some fashion plates for giggles. Despite the direction writers Marc Sumerak  and Paul Tobin take with this book I am at least sold on the first issue if for no other reason then Tim Gunn fighting crime using the Iron Man suit.

Well, it’s with much joy and an equal amount of sadness that we say goodbye to our good friend and fellow HERO, Rusty Baily. He declared way back in the spring that he was movin’ to Hawaii, but I think we all thought/hoped he was either kidding or would change his mind. He’s sold, or given away, almost everything he owns but his eco-friendly Prius, 3 or 4 suitcases of clothes, his awesome pooch “Q,” and of course his Luke Cage collection. He and Q are taking off in the Prius Tuesday for the West coast and a flight to paradise about a week later. So I guess he is really doing it!

I’ve known Rusty for over 20 years! First as an enthusiastic 12 year old comic collector, and for the past 5 or 6 years as friend, neighbor and part-time employee. He’s still as enthusiastic as when he first came in the store and just a pleasure to be around. His work ethic and conscience will be hard to replace. He’s always been ready to jump in wherever he was needed and work extra days and overtime especially around HeroesCon time. I think we all are a little jealous that Rusty has the guts and ambition to take such a step. Heroes is going to miss you Rusty! We wish you all the best, and hurry up and get that big ‘ole house on the beach ready. We’re all coming for a vacation! 

STOREYVILLE by Frank Santoro is published by PictureBox. They are known for their art comics. Some of you might be familiar with two of their most famous books Maggots and Ninja, both by Brian Chippendale. I will admit I don’t really “get” these two books, and most of the other books PictureBox publishes, for that matter. I like to think of myself as an educated reader. I have a degree in art so I like to think I have the proper education to be able to understand and appreciate these works. I want to enjoy these works, but I can’t get past my initial response of “this looks like a bunch of scratchy lines” or “my friends used to draw these flip books in 5th grade.”

But Storeyville has helped me to get past all my biases. It wasn’t something I had to “get,” it was something I could just enjoy. The art and the format are out of the norm for most of the comics I read. Storeyville isn’t like an issue of Spider-Man or Superman. Generally speaking I read standard sized floppies (or pamphlets, whatever you want to call them), comics that have 32 pages, are 10 inches by 6 3/4 inches, have bright colors and have staples in the middle.

Storeyville is a hardcover collection of issues originally published on newsprint; it is oversized at 11 x 16 inches; and it has a muted color palette mainly consisting of browns, grays and yellows. The one thing that Storeyville has that connects it to standard comics is a linear narrative. Some art comics lack a linear narrative and that can make them extremely difficult to connect to and decipher. Storeyville is an excellent introduction to art comics because you still have a footing in familiar territory.

Storeyville focuses on a grifter named Will and his journey to find his former partner, Reverend Rudy. Will leaves behind his friends in Pittsburgh and travels to Montreal hoping to find Rudy there. The story is delicately paced. It is slow and winding, like Will’s journey. Many of the panels are devoted to mountains, trees, lakes and cityscapes. The journey is as important as the destination.

Along the way we learn why Rudy is so important to Will and why Will is so determined to find Rudy. The rough art style and the color palette make the story feel like a memory or a dream. It feels ephemeral. It is like Will is remembering his journey. All of the events are playing out in his mind years later. The colors are dull and faded. People’s faces are blurry and just out of reach. The storytelling and the art blend perfectly to create a story about how the past stays in the past and can never be regained. It is a story about searching for something and finding yourself.

Last Saturday was maybe the longest day ever working comic conventions. I do remember staying up all night prepping for HeroesCon back in the day, but this was waking up at home at 4am and hitting the road before 5 for Myrtle Beach.

I arrived at 8am, just after sunrise. I went ahead and walked out the 20 yards or so from the conference center to the ocean because I knew once I got started setting up and the show opened I would not get another chance. I didn’t want to drive all the way to the coast and have to admit I didn’t set foot on the beach! Needless to say, it was a beautiful morning. Not a cloud in the sky with a daytime high of 75 degrees, on NOVEMBER 1st! What a great day to be at the beach…I wish I could have spent the day out there, but duty called.

I was impressed by the cool sand sculpture the con had commissioned on the beach. Jabba the hut, Jar-Jar Binks, Stimpy, a Bat-signal and ole Shellhead’s helmet. Pretty cool.

The day was great. A first time con is always an unknown, but Chad put everything he had into it. The show drew a little over 300 fans for comics, art and gaming. I had good traffic and better than average sales all day. It helped that the dealers’ room was diverse and I was one of only three comic sellers. Our buddy Brett, of Brett’s Comic Pile and the Virginia Comicon came down from Richmond, along with Chad’s Apocalypse Comics. The ratio of fans to sellers was just right. Chad is already planning next year’s show and I expect it to just get better and better.

I was loaded and ready to drive over to Atlanta for Wes Tillander’s Atlanta Comic Con by 8pm. As I suspected, the sun was down and I had not gotten back outside to the beach. I was really wishing I could have stayed and enjoyed the awesome weather the next day. Atlanta is not a short hop from the beach–I arrived in Hotlanta at 3 am! Thankfully the clocks fell back an hour overnight for daylight savings time and I managed to get about 5 hours sleep before I had to get up and set up the comic display again.

Atlanta was better than it has been the past few shows. Wes had a good crowd, possibly due to having Georges Jeanty as the special guest. I had quite a few new faces coming by the table looking for Buffy Season Eight comics and other back issues drawn by Georges. The newly built travel stock of just the “good stuff” has been well received and Seth and I just keep tweaking it every week to make it even better.

I was loaded and on the road back to Charlotte by 7pm (another day without seeing the light of day), and in my driveway by 10:30pm. It’s a good thing I love old comics and seeing old friends at the shows, cause driving 14 hours, working 24 hours (including loading and unloading the van 6 times) in a about 43 hours is crazy! I went to bed early Monday.

And I’m not done travelling yet–my schedule is packed this winter. Next up:

Big Apple Con — The National, Nov. 14-16 NYC.

Virginia Comic Con — Richmond , VA Nov. 23rd

Charlotte Comic Con — Dec. 27th — The Crowne Plaza uptown.

Happy Holidaze!

by Mike Mignola with John Byrne
reviewed by Shawn Reynolds

I love oversized hardcovers. The art envelops you in a way trades or a single issue comic just can’t. You can easily fall into the story and become a part of the action. It is analogous to seeing a movie in a theater versus seeing it at home (at least this is true for those of us who don’t have a fancy widescreen plasma TV). Last week volume one of the Hellboy Library Edition came out and I took notice.

As shocking as it may be, I have never read any Hellboy or for that matter anything by Mike Mignola. That’s not to say that I haven’t drooled over his books. I love his art style, but for whatever reason I just never picked up Hellboy. But I could not resist a fancy new hardcover that contains not one story, but two (volume one includes “Seed of Destruction” and “Wake the Devil”). There is also a section of sketches in the back with commentary by Mignola.

So far I’ve only had a chance to read “Seed of Destruction”. The story is basically about the mystery surrounding the Cavendish family. You are introduced to an unusual cast of characters: Hellboy, Elizabeth Sherman and Abe Sapien. The more you find out about them, the more you want to find out about them. Anytime one of your questions is answered it brings to light even more questions. It is the perfect first story arc. It has a balanced mix of history and fantasy. I’ve always enjoyed stories about World War II. I think that is one of the reasons I enjoy Indiana Jones.

The art in the book is beautiful. It is somber and dark which fits the mood of the story perfectly. I love Mignola’s line work. It is rough and elegant at the same time. It feels immediate yet intentional. The colors (done by Mark Chiarello) pop, especially against the black page.

I look forward to delving even farther into the world of Hellboy. The previews for Hellboy II: The Golden Army look awesome. And Dark Horse is putting out a Hellboy book for Free Comic Book Day, which is May 3rd in case you haven’t heard us mention it. FCBD is going to tons of fun!