JUSTIN’S PICK :: ANDRE THE GIANT LIFE & LEGEND GN: Fellow 80s kids will understand the childhood affinity for professional wrestling. It’s a cult that runs right up to today, but it found its footing and gathered its momentum in those halcyon days of Reaganomics and bad newsman toupees. The sport has its detractors; personally, I just enjoyed it for what it was: a good show. And we must remember, for all its highfalutin pretension and staggering gallery listings, art is, at its core, show business. It would seem that’s the point Box Brown is underlining in his biography of pro wrestling icon Andre the Giant. Once we start to gauge art by assumed intentions or monetary gain, we must evaluate ALL art by the same criteria, and that, my friends, is a slippery slope. Art is in the heart of the artist, and I believe this tender portrait of Mr. Roussimoff will illustrate that point quite well. Brown dove into some exhaustive research for this project, and his style – somewhere at the intersection of Tezuka and Pendleton Ward – is perfectly suited for the subject matter. Expect this one to show up on plenty of best-of-the-year lists, come December.

SETH’S PICK :: STARLIGHT #3: Starlight is yet another fine indicator of the recent resurgence of so many classic pulp elements back into comics. I will admit, though, that it took a little convincing from fellow Heroes staffers Rico and Justin for me to pick this one up. The art was a guaranteed joy from the time the book was announced. Artist Goran Parlov always produces strong and interesting work. My hesitation to pick it up was only rooted in the fact that I’ve historically found the work of writer Mark Millar to be gratuitous on many levels. He’s obviously a talented and versatile creator, I just doubted I’d have much interest in his take on the space opera.

Thankfully, I did give the book a shot, and soon realized that this is a very different kind of story for Millar. It’s full of classic pulp adventure goodness, and clearly reflects his love for the genre. Parlov is excellent as always, but I’d be remiss not to mention how impressed I’ve been with Millar’s character work here. His protagonist, the perfectly named Duke McQueen, did save the universe some four decades ago. After that heroism, he had a fairly mundane life, complete with a wife and kids. But what happens if you had your one adventure, somehow outlive your wife (and usefulness in the eyes of your kids), and in your golden years are called upon to save the universe once again? It’s an ambitious story about aging and adventuring that thus far hasn’t drifted into the excessive tendencies you might expect from Millar. If these two creators keep this up, we might just have a new classic in the making. 

SETH’S PICK :: COMPLETE CUL DE SAC BOXED SET: I’m happy to remind you all that this week finally sees the release of the Complete Cul de Sac! Some of you may not know the work of artist Richard Thompson, but comic strip fans around the country know him to be a national treasure. But it’s not just fans who appreciate Thompson, it’s writers and artists who are rightly blown away by the genius-level writing and art that he infused into not only the Cul de Sac strip, but also his Richard’s Poor Almanac series. The level of humor, heart and skill readily available in Thompson’s work is truly astounding, and I can’t think of many books I’d rather have in my home library than this one. 

Some of you may know that for the past several years we’ve celebrated Thompson’s work at our HeroesCon Drink and Draw event. We’re thrilled to once again be working with Team Cul de Sac at this year’s event, which will take place on the Friday night of HeroesCon. I’ll be letting you know more specifics about it soon, but if you haven’t been to our Drink and Draw before, it’s a fun event where artists from hobbyists to professionals hang out at a nice bar and create art. We then auction off that art that very night, with all the money we raise going to Team Cul de Sac and the Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s Research. It’s the best way to celebrate the greatness of the comics community and help us raise money for a worthy cause. Kick off the celebration by picking up The Complete Cul de Sac this week!

RICO’S PICK :: BATMAN ’66 #10: In comics there are hidden gems. Short stories that generations of artists seek out for inspiration. Inside Batman ’66 #10 is one of these stories. Together, David Williams and Kelsey Shannon have crafted some of the most beautiful art you’ll ever see. Here’s a small tease, pick up the issue to see it in all it’s glory.

MATT’S PICK :: CLEOPATRA IN SPACE: Hey kids (and adults with distinguished tastes) there is a new book coming out this week that I want to tell you about! Its called Cleopatra In Space Volume One. It contains some of the most dynamic and appealing artwork you will find in any book this week (two aesthetics that I look for in a comic book or graphic fiction). The narrative part of this book is pretty awesome as well! Ancient Egypt meets outerspace, genius!

This is a frolicking, swashbuckling roller coaster of a book! Female historical figure meets Flash Gordon, modernized. Or, if you prefer, Adventure Time as realized through the eyes of a butt-kicking, snarky, alien-world-visiting Disney Princess! Buy this book for your kids (and read it yourself) you’ll see what I’m talking about. It is obvious Mike has put a lot of time and passion into creating this story.

RICO’S PICKS :: THE ELTINGVILLE CLUB #1: Evan Dorkin has been exposing and skewering the dark recesses of fandom since the days before the internet existed. I love to hate these guys and this book comes at a time when tolerance for this kind of entitled fan is at an all time low. If you read this and think it’s about you, it’s time to make a change!

ELEKTRA #1: When a creative thinker who has been turning in brilliant cover after brilliant cover for years at Marvel is let loose on the inside of one of their comics you shouldn’t take it for granted. Mike Del Mundo has been producing some conceptual cover masterpieces for Marvel and I can’t wait to see what he does on this book!

ANDY’S PICK :: Walt Disney’s Donald Duck: “Trail Of The Unicorn”: I will not rest until everyone is reading these reasonably priced and beautifully designed and edited volumes of  Carl Barks’ Disney Duck masterpieces.  This is the 6th volume to be published by Fantagraphics and every one of them are great. You can purchases ANY single one of them and read them in any order.  Fantagraphics is not even bothering to number the series, so readers can just jump in anywhere they want.  Gasp! That goes against everything our passion/hobby usually requires. But these are arguably some of the greatest comics ever published. And they are as vital and funny today as they were when they were first published over 65 years ago.  Each volume includes a handful of the Donald duck full length adventures and the, marvelous 10 pages as well as a number of single page gag cartoons. And each volume contains short essays about each story from some of the best critics and comic writers around. Please buy this volume–Trail of the Unicorn or any other volume Justin keeps  on the shelf. You can’t lose!

SETH’S PICK :: SOVEREIGN #2: Many readers have only recently realized that Image Comics is putting out some of the highest quality comics on the stands.  But for every runaway hit that sells out immediately (think Black Science), there are others with a slower burning fuse of public awareness.  Sovereign may fall into that latter category, but I’m here to let you know that it’s a new series well worth your time and money.  In the first issue, creators Chris Roberson and Paul Maybury establish a range of themes and possibilities.  There are obvious fantasy elements present, namely in the book’s inclusion of a healthy amount of magic and the undead, but those are all balanced with strong characters amid societies rife with civil unrest.  I’ve seen the book regaled as a story existing in the vein of Game of Thrones, and there may well be some truth to that.  This is, however, a story that was born for the comics medium, and Maybury’s always impressive cartooning eloquently reminds us of that.  Sovereign is a comic with endless potential, and may just be yet another long running and entertaining series for Image. 

JUSTIN’S PICK :: Some weeks, doing a staff pick can be pretty tough. I mean, I know there are homeless and starving people in the world, but do THEY have to sift a SINGLE comic book – out of hundreds – to highlight on a weekly basis? NO. Clearly, my plight is underrated. Taking a cue from our man Phil, I’m just going to babble about a few things that’ve struck my fancy of late. We’ll call this the Southern Variation, since that’s an appropriately nerdy in-joke one out of ten of you will understand.

First of all, Uncanny Avengers. This is my favorite Marvel comic going right now (but it better watch its back, She-Hulk’s creeping up fast). Rick Remender packs more into a single issue than most writers manage to squeeze into a trade paperback. The pacing can be pretty glacial, and he wanders off on a lot of tangents, but man, are they good tangents. Remender is one of those guys that really understands the synthesis of plot and characterization, and how crucial that alchemy is to comics. Too many of his contemporaries seem to sacrifice one for the other, and it makes for some pretty boring and/or predictable comics. Of course, having Daniel Acuña illustrate your scripts is never collateral damage, and this guy’s stuff just gets better and better. I liken his artistic development to whittling: the more he shaves off, the more beauty is revealed. Uncanny Avengers #16 is part two of a big denouement for the series – Avenge the Earth – and even though the involvement of Kang makes any incident inherently undoable, it’s about the trip, not the destination.

If you’d like to take a different trip, why not visit the fantastical land featured in Chris Roberson and Paul Maybury’s new Image sword and sorcery series, Sovereign? Issue two is out this week; #1 teased just enough to really whet the imagination.  Understandably, it concerned itself more with exposition and conceptualizing, but hinted at broad enough conflicts to fuel this title for some time. The focus is split between a few different classes: religious, royal, and warrior, and an underlying sense of dread informs the whole issue. This is an obvious choice for fans of Saga or Game of Thrones, and the art! Paul Maybury is consistently overlooked as a reliable and deft storyteller. The guy deserves more eyes on his stuff. Provide a pair, won’t you?

Lastly, my generation will not permit the publication of a Simpsons one-shot without at least a passing remark. After the likes of Mr. Burns, Professor Frink, and even Lisa Simpson have proven to be shining solo stars, who could warrant the treatment next? Moe Szyslak? Bumblebee Man? The Captial City Goofball? Close, but no cigar! It’s the one, the only…DUFFMAN! That’s right, Springfield’s resident swill shill is ready for Spring Break with an issue of his very own comics magazine! What shenanigans may ensue are anyone’s guess, but here’s hoping the Seven Duffs show up (“Surly only looks after one guy: Surly.”). I suppose for this particular issue, we’ll have to move back to the former genre rack residency…but then again, what 80s kid didn’t adore Spuds MacKenzie? Alas, those were different, heady times.

Welp, that’s the top of the heap for me this week. Good night, and good luck. See you in the funnypages. Etc.