In recent months we’ve tackled video game obsessed twenty-something slackers , the Fantastic Four and Zombies. So what should we do for an encore? How about the The Three Paradoxes of Zeno of Elea and how they apply to the life and adventures of cartoonist Paul Hornschemeier?

What? you say you’ve never heard of Zeno of Elea and his paradoxes?  He was the cutting edge Philosopher of 5th Century B.C. Greece.  You know at least one of the Paradoxes– if you continue to travel half the distance to a goal; you can never reach it.

Yes, it is a bit mind bending– and the other two paradoxes are just as challenging– but at the same time the ideas behind the paradoxes frustrates, they make for quite an engaging theme for a semi-autobiographical cartoonist who is trying to deal with his past, his future and his writer’s block.

You all should know Paul Hornschemeier.  He is the award winning cartoonist of the terrific graphic novel Mother Come Home and the serialized Life with Mr. Dangerous that can found in the pages of MOME.

Don’t be put off by all this mention of Greek philosophy.  The Three Paradoxes is a witty multi-faceted and rather engaging graphic novel that just may be the perfect “gateway” book into the Indie Comics world. Hornschemeier loves making comics and it is shows on every page and in every panel. This is a true tour-de-force (Pardon my French).

The Three Paradoxes is a personal favorite of our fearless leader Shawn Daughhetee.  She has been dying to discuss this book ever since we interviewed the author at HeroesCon a few years ago.  I am in complete agreement with her enthusiasm.  I’ve re-read Paradoxes twice in the past week and I can’t wait to read it a third time.

So plan to join us on Monday, November 22 at 7 pm for The Three Paradoxes by Paul Hornschemeier.  the book is available from Heroes for the low, low sticker price of $14.95 and don’t forget to add (or subtract, actually) the 10% Discussion Discount; but–as always– you must mention the discount to the clerk at check out or suffer the Consequences.

See you in the back of the store on November 22nd; you won’t be disappointed!

And just wait ’til you hear what we have planned for our December Discussion Group.  It will be a gift that just keeps on giving!

For the December Heroes Discussion Group we will be delving into the world of Tintin but we need your help to pick out which book we will be officially discussing. Our distributor pretty much only carries the 3-in-1 hardcover volumes, so for simplicities sake we will be choosing between those seven books. I have them listed by volume number and I included the three stories that each book contains. You can only pick one, so choose wisely! The poll will be up until the end of the day on November 23 after which we will announce the results along with details about the discussion group (if you need a heads up, the group will meet Saturday, December 18 from 1 to 3 pm). Stay tuned later this week for the announcement of the November discussion group!

[poll id=”6″]

This past Saturday the Heroes Discussion Group met to talk about The Walking Dead. It was one of our best attended Discussion Groups! Thank you to Andy Mansell for leading such a thought-provoking conversation on horror, character development, religion and rats. Also, thank you to everyone who came! Each person brought really intelligent contributions to the table! Check out our Flickr page to view a few pictures from the meeting.

Join us for the next Heroes Discussion Group where we will be talking dead about The Walking Dead!

Saturday, November 6 from 1 to 3 pm we will meet at Heroes Aren’t Hard to Find to discuss the first 12 issues of The Walking Dead (which is the first hardcover or the first two trade paperbacks). We will also discuss the first episode of The Walking Dead TV show that premiered on AMC on Halloween night. Be sure to come prepared!

We will be talking about horror comics in general and why audiences enjoy being scared. In addition to that we will talk very specifically about what makes The Walking Dead such a success. We will be talking about the art, the switch from Tony Moore to Charlie Adlard and the use of black and white instead of color. Furthermore we will delve in the the characters and what it means for them to be living in this world where the dead don’t stay dead. And finally we will talk about the translation of the story from comic to the small screen. Was the first episode a success? Did it stay true to the book?

Please join us for what will certainly be a frightfully good time as Andy Mansell picks our brains!

Where will you be this Halloween at 10 pm? I will be firmly planted in front of my television set ready to watch The Walking Dead as it premieres on AMC. If you will be out trick-or-treating or partying then consider this your reminder to set your DVR to record. This is a not-to-be-missed show especially if you want to come to the Heroes Discussion Group fully prepared. November 6th from 1 to 3 pm we will meet in the store to discuss the first twelve issues of The Walking Dead along with the first episode of the television series. Check back in after you have seen it and let us know what you think!

Special Note: The Walking Dead is a mature book with violence and adult themes and the TV show will not be any different. Parental discretion is advised.

What is it about Horror that compels so many of us? Why do we enjoy being frightened?

Far and away the best selling author for the past forty years has been Stephen King. Year in and year out, Horror movies continue to do consistently well at the Box Office. On television, The X-Files and Buffy are considered all-time classic series and remain influential to this day.
And then there is the fabulous, storied history of Horror comics, which reached new heights in the 1950s with the gruesome, trailblazing comic books published by EC Comics — books like Vault of Horror and Tales from the Crypt — that quickly invigorated a stumbling comic book business and then just as quickly came close to burying the entire industry for good. In the late sixties, Warren stepped up and produced their comic magazine line featuring Creepy, Eerie and Vampirella. Marvel followed suit in the mid-seventies with their Horror line that spotlighted its keynote feature — Tomb of Dracula.

Today, the Horror trend is stronger than ever. For the past couple of years the media have been overrun with Zombies and sensitive Vampires — and comic books are right in the thick of things. We thought it would be fun to discuss a quality Horror feature for Halloween.  But which book– there are so many? The ideal choice was almost unanimous.  Robert Kirkman‘s best-selling Zombie Saga, The Walking Dead.

Please join us on Saturday November 6th at 1:00pm as we sit down to discuss the first twelve issues.

• We want to find out why this series is more effective than the other Horror comics on the shelf.
• We will examine the challenges creators have in creating and maintaining suspense on the comic page.
• How much of its success is based on Kirkman’s talent in creating memorable characters?

Since Horror works on a number of levels, we will also look at the strengths and weaknesses of both comics and film and how they are able to convey terror by comparing the comic to the new Walking Dead TV series on AMC.
So we ask that you read the first twelve issues of The Walking Dead — available in the first Walking Dead hardcover or the first two Walking Dead trade paperbacks.

As usual, these books are all offered at Heroes at the Discussion Group 10% Discount–please remember to mention the discount when you check out! We also ask that you watch the premiere episode of the Walking Dead on AMC on October 31th at 10 pm. We look forward to seeing you — this is going to be a real challenging discussion, so load up on brain-food before you arrive.  And be ready because I plan to really pick your brain!

(Note: Thank you to everyone who voted in our poll! It was a landslide win for Saturday, November 6th from 1 to 3 pm!)

I posted several of the pictures I took during the Heroes Discussion Group on Fantastic Four by Hickman vol 1 TP on the Heroes Flickr site. Click here to check them out! We all had a great time discussing Fantastic Four, SHIELD and Nightly News with Jonathan Hickman. If you missed the discussion then you can listen to it here via the Dollar Bin!

Stay tuned to the blog for pictures from the Steve Epting and Jonathan Hickman signing!

Oh me! Oh my! We have just confirmed that Jonathan Hickman will be present tomorrow, Tuesday the 21st for our Discussion Group focusing on the first trade paperback of his work on the Fantastic Four. Jonathan has been manning the helm of Marvel’s flagship for a while now and our resident moderator, Andy Mansell, has a boatload of  fun and thought-provoking questions for the wordsmith. So be sure to head on over to the store for the Twenty Third edition of our Heroes Discussion Group, starting at 7:00pm on Tuesday, September 21st.

We’ve all be reading superhero books for a long time. Is there anything more exciting than a change to the creative team that breathes new life, new energy into a book that has been published every month for fifty years? If the creative team delivers as promised, it makes everything old new again.

The Fantastic Four became famous under Stan Lee and Jack Kirby because the innovations they introduced each month simply took our breath away. This explosion of creativity was cemented by the wonderful characters that we grew to love. The FF wasn’t just a family on the comic page, they were a family in the hearts of their readers.

So, it is high time we sit down and take a long look at the flagship title of the Marvel Universe. And I can’t think of a better place to start than the first story-line by the current creative team of Jonathan Hickman and Dale Eaglesham!

Call the sitter! Set the TiVo! Keep your arms and legs inside the vehicle at all times and make plans to join us on Tuesday September 21st at 7:00pm for our Twenty Third Discussion Group where we will examine just how Mr. Hickman requests that Professor Richards and the rest of the FF SOLVE EVERYTHING by reading Fantastic Four by Hickman TP Volume 1!

The amount of topics in Hickman’s version of the World’s Greatest Comic Magazine is as numerous as there are dimensions in the Marvel multi-verse and there will be plenty of topics to discuss. We will mainly focus on Hickman’s vision for the Fantastic Four and Eaglesham’s visual interpretation, but if a few questions about S.H.I.E.L.D, The Nightly News, Pax Romana or any of Hickman’s other published books manage to slip in, I doubt if anyone will mind.

So be there on Tuesday, September 21st at 7:00pm. It is going to be great! And if you need to pick up a copy of Fantastic Four by Hickman TP Volume 1 (SOLVE EVERYTHING!) Heroes is offering a 10% Discussion Group discount, but remember, you need to notify the clerk when you check out.

Don’t forget that the next Heroes Discussion Group is this Saturday afternoon August 28^th at 4:00pm. We will be discussing Scott Pilgrim Volume 6 Scott Pilgrim’s Finest Hour by Bryan Lee O’Malley.

The primary focus of the discussion will be the sixth and final volume of the series but we will also discuss the previous volumes. It is recommended but not required that you be familiar with the entire series.

We plan on talking in depth about the storyline, pacing and character development and examine why this series has turned into such a phenomenon. We will likely discuss the film adaptation, Scott Pilgrim Versus the World comparing the comic series to the movie.

Scott Pilgrim Volume 6 Scott Pilgrim’s Finest Hour is available at Heroes Aren’t Hard to Find with a special 10% Discussion Group Discount; but be sure to mention the discount when you check out!

We hope you will be able to make it to what will surely be an exciting discussion group!