ANDY’S PICK :: COMICS REVUE PRESENTS AUG 2012: For any of you who have considered delving into the treasure trove of comic strip reprints, Comics Revue is the absolute perfect place to start.  Since 1984, Revue has been publishing healthy chunks of some of the greatest comic strips to ever grace the newspaper comic section. Currently, the all-star line-up includes: Flash Gordon from the 1960s written by the late great Harry Harrison! Modesty Blaise! Dick Moore’s run on Gasoline Alley! Tarzan Sunday pages by Russ Manning! Milt Caniff’s Steve Canyon, Alley Oop from the ’40s, Roy Crane’s Buz Sawyer from the early 60s! (it’s still awesome!)  Krazy Kat dailies from the 30s, Secret Agent Corrigan by Williamson and Goodwin and tons more–The Phantom, Latigo, Tarzan dailies, Mandrake the Magician, Rick O’Shea and a one of the great under- appreciated humor strips, Sir Bagby!

You don’t need to try this particular issue, any one on the Heroes shelf will do.  It is such an ideal comic anthology.  You will find things you love, things you like a lot and things you can live without.  But once you get a real taste of classic comic strips, the one thing you can’t live without is the bi-monthly dose of Comics Revue.

Land sakes! Is it the weekend already?! How’d that happen?!
Well, regardless of whether or not I fell through a worm-hole sometime on Wednesday evening, I hope that everyone has been taking advantage of the lovely weather and the break in the heat we’ve had over the last few days. The weekend is already upon us, and if you haven’t already made plans to get out and enjoy this beautiful weather then maybe it’s time you did!

If you were looking for something that’s family friendly, fun and, best of all, FREE to do this weekend, then let me suggest you join us at the Common Ground Festival! The Common Ground Festival is an all day event that will take up the length of Thomas Avenue between Central Avenue and Commonwealth Avenue in Charlotte on Saturday, August 25th. The festival begins at noon and will last until 11pm Saturday night. There will be live music, food, drinks, local artists, craftsmen and local vendors, including everyone’s favorite comic-shop, Heroes Aren’t Hard to Find!

We’ll be setting up a couple of Heroes booths at the event, and we plan to bring an assortment of Heroes goodies to give away and sell! We’ve also invited some of our favorite artists to come hang out with us at our booths throughout the day, so be sure to stop by and say “Hello!” You never know who might be dropping in!

Every few years Paul Chadwick puts out a new Concrete story or series through Dark Horse Comics.  It’s one of those books that seems to slip past readers’ periphery in spite of the copious amounts of critical praise it’s received over the years.  Bottom line, Concrete is a book that has maintained relevance over its 25 year history, and the new Three Uneasy Pieces one shot is a fine place to start if you’ve at all been curious about the character.

First things first, I should point out that this new one shot isn’t really brand new, but collects three short stories as they appeared in the recent relaunch of Dark Horse Presents.  That title has been consistently good since the relaunch, but if you’re among those who don’t like putting down $8 a month for a new anthology, this gives you a chance to read the latest Concrete stories for the low price of $2.99.

So what’s the appeal of Concrete?  Imagine if a more philosophical version of Ben Grimm went out to space and was transformed into The Thing, only to return to a completely normal Earth with nary a costumed hero or villain in sight.  How would he make sense of his new body and life?  How would he spend his time and energy?  One of the consistently pleasing aspects of Concrete is how Chadwick allows the character to experience the mundane in spite of his lumbering new physique.  It’s a book that relishes quiet moments and isn’t afraid to feature the lead character awash in reflection.

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ANDY’S PICK :: CAPTAIN EASY HC VOL 03 SOLDIER OF FORTUNE: This is the third of a projected 4 Volume Set that collects all the Classic Captain Easy. Sunday pages from the 30s and 40s; written and drawn by Roy Crane–one of the true masters and innovators of the comic form.  Few artists had the artistic and storytelling chops to take maximum advantage of the full size Sunday comic page and even fewer artists could successfully combine realistic backgrounds with big foot cartoony figures to make some of the most exciting adventure comics of all time. The stories leap off every page, the chases last for weeks on end, the punches lift the fighters right off the floor, and the reader never wants the action to end and it never does because every week is a cliff hanger.  Sure, there are a lot of classic reprints available, but the Captain Easy Sundays is in the small handful of required reading.  No collection of Comic Art (with a capital ‘A’) is complete without it.

DOUG’S PICK ::  Mind MGMT #4: is not your typical comic book- it’s so good even the paper stock is amazing. Shadowy groups, ambiguous allies and even a flight 815 draw many comparisons to TV’s Lost. This sci-fi mystery is moving at breakneck speed with each issue demanding multiple readings.  The main story is of a writer who is investigating a flight where everyone, save one, lost their memories. Writer /artist Matt Kindt uses everything available to immerse you in the story, including the inside covers and margins which give background to the title organization.

HEATHER’S PICK :: JUSTICE LEAGUE DARK #12: I was super disappointed when Zatanna’s solo book was absorbed by the New 52 and only grudgingly picked up JL Dark.  I didn’t want a team book, I wanted a female centered superhero book.  Color me surprised when I enjoyed this new team-up and was happy to be introduced to new-to-me characters.  I’ve particularly enjoyed Jeff Lemire’s turn at the storytelling helm as he tackles the House of Mystery and the Books of Magic.  If you enjoy your superheroes with a supernatural twist, don’t miss this one.

RICO’S PICK :: LOBSTER JOHNSON: PRAYER OF NEFERU ONE SHOT: Wilfredo Torres provides art on this self contained Lobster Johnson story. Torres’ talents are well displayed depicting Egyptian motifs, bloated fat cats, and the brilliantly designed neo-pulp protagonist, Lobster Johnson. Arcudi and Mignola always deliver a great ride and Dave Stewart drenches the entire Mignolaverse in pitch-perfect color.

SETH’S PICK :: ROCKETEER: CARGO OF DOOM #1: The best Rocketeer stories will always be ones by his creator, Dave Stevens.  I am, however, really pleased with not only both volumes of Rocketeer Adventures, but also this new four issue mini series from IDW.  Mark Waid is tasked with the writing duties, and he’s made a career out writing characters with a clear and respectful understanding of their place in comics history.  On Thor: The Mighty Avenger and Captain America and Bucky, artist Chris Samnee showed he could tackle innocent adventure stories and period pieces.  More than anything, IDW’s new Rocketeer stories remind us that even if we’ll never be able to see any new art from the late, great Dave Stevens, we can continue to celebrate his legacy with books like this.

BRENT’S PICK :: UNWRITTEN #40: Unwritten has been my favorite series on the racks since it debuted. Easy to pigeonhole as a “Harry Potter” spoof, this thoughtful book left that (admittedly great) jumping off point 30 issues ago. Carey and Gross are crafting a compelling and thoughtful work examining concepts of reality, fiction, history, zeitgeist, and belief. This issue concludes an arc that has seen much of the status quo change for our protagonists. Anything could happen next….!

IZZY’S PICK :: ADVENTURE TIME #7: The reason I chose this book is because I love it!  I like Jake because he is super super funny!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Finn is really cool! Finn’s hat is awesome!!! This book is full of challenges and excitement and adventure!!!! I hope you like this book as much as I will!!!!!!

>BONUS PICKS :: BEFORE WATCHMEN: DR. MANHATTAN #1 (ADAM HUGHES!) & SCALPED #60 (The final issue of Jason Aaron & R.M. Guéra’s fantastic crime comic!)

RICO’S PICK :: LOBSTER JOHNSON: PRAYER OF NEFERU ONE SHOT:  Wilfredo Torres provides art on this self contained Lobster Johnson story. Torres’ talents are well displayed depicting Egyptian motifs, bloated fat cats, and the brilliantly designed neo-pulp protagonist, Lobster Johnson. Arcudi and Mignola always deliver a great ride and Dave Stewart drenches the entire Mignolaverse in pitch-perfect color. Oh yeah, and how about that sweet cover by Tonci Zonjic!

There have been several occasions in recent years when a customer heard me talking about Hellboy (which is a frequent occurence) and asked: Where Do I Start?  The Hellboy shelf is chock full of choices, and for those who might only know of the character through the two films, it can be a daunting challenge to pick where to begin.  The obvious choice would be to start with volume 1: Seed of Destruction.  After all, this volume does present Hellboy’s origin and kicks off the big themes that persist throughout the story.  I would suggest that even though this is where it all starts, newcomers might be better served to start elsewhere.  Hellboy: Seed of Destruction, while essential to understanding the big picture of Hellboy, doesn’t quite feel as cohesive as later volumes.

This is partially due to the fact that it was scripted by John Byrne.  Byrne has rightly earned a place of respect for his huge body of work as both an artist and a writer, but Hellboy is Mike Mignola’s baby, and was much better served when he started writing it full time.  As Mignola’s confidence as a writer grew, so did the overall quality of the book.  While you’ll never hear me complain about the artwork, it’s also evident in later volumes that the quality consistently improved once Mignola got more comfortable with the character.

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Just a reminder that the next Heroes Discussion Group will take place on Saturday September 1st at 1:00pm.  We will be discussing the Pulitzer Prize winning graphic novel MAUS by art spiegelman.

A few quick thoughts upon a second reading.

A couple of things I’d like to discuss with the group:

The use of the multiple narrators.  Is this the story of a survivor or the story of someone growing up with a survivor?  Is this truly a biography?  I don’t believe this is picking nits–we are affected by the way the story is told to us.  This is a topic that needs to be examined.

AND

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IZZY’S PICK :: ADVENTURE TIME #7: The reason I chose this book is because I love it!  I like Jake because he is super super funny!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Finn is really cool! Finn’s hat is awesome!!! This book is full of challenges and excitement and adventure!!!! I hope you like this book as much as I will!!!!!!

ANDY’S PICK :: CAPTAIN EASY HC VOL 03 SOLDIER OF FORTUNE: This is the third of a projected 4 Volume Set that collects all the Classic Captain Easy Sunday pages from the 30s and 40s; written and drawn by Roy Crane–one of the true masters and innovators of the comic form.  Few artists had the artistic and storytelling chops to take maximum advantage of the full size Sunday comic page and even fewer artists could successfully combine realistic backgrounds with big foot cartoony figures to make some of the most exciting adventure comics of all time. The stories leap off every page, the chases last for weeks on end, the punches lift the fighters right off the floor, and the reader never wants the action to end and it never does because every week is a cliff hanger.  Sure, there are a lot of classic reprints available, but the Captain Easy Sundays is in the small handful of required reading.  No collection of Comic Art (with a capital ‘A’) is complete without it.

HEATHER’S PICK :: JUSTICE LEAGUE DARK #12: I was super disappointed when Zatanna’s solo book was absorbed by the New 52 and only grudgingly picked up JL Dark.  I didn’t want a team book, I wanted a female centered superhero book.  Color me surprised when I enjoyed this new team-up and was happy to be introduced to new-to-me characters.  I’ve particularly enjoyed Jeff Lemire’s turn at the storytelling helm as he tackles the House of Mystery and the Books of Magic.  If you enjoy your superheroes with a supernatural twist, don’t miss this one.