G.I. JOE: Cobra #12 by Antonio Fuso

First of all, that is one pink cover. And what does a shade of hot pink do? Why, attract your attention of course! After being seduced by the colors, your eyes slowly wander to the top of the comic and see G.I. JOE: Cobra, and instantly you’re intrigued like a young boy seeing a nude woman for the first time. All the main characters in crosshairs with the promise that “and one shall surely die!”, and you start guessing which one. The use of circles in the space provided is just wonderful.

Northlanders #36 by Massimo Carnevale

Every time I see a Northlanders cover by the wonderful Massimo Carnevale, I fall to my knees and weep tears of joy. The man has the kind of talent that you see in modern day museums, and yet, here he is providing covers for comic books and it seems beneath him. He’s like James Jean on the Fables covers; truly spectacular work, and yet, he belongs in the pantheon of artists tiers above what is seen in comics. This cover in particular captures the feeling of dread of the old man in the foreground, as the savage behind him is about the strike. The story inside is actually reflected here on the cover, so that’s a huge plus for not teasing the audience with false promises. Brian Wood better woo the pants off Mr. Carnevale, because he is meant for much greater things.

The Boys #50 by Darick Robertson

Look at the cover of issue one, then look back to issue fifty. Issue one again, then back to issue fifty. What do you notice is missing? Are you serious? Are you as smart as a box of hair?! The obvious answer is Mother’s Milk has a booger sticking out of his left nostril. Kidding. The real answer is that old man in the bottom-right corner ain’t Wee Hughie. For the past fifty issues (if you’ve been following since it began at WildStorm), we’ve known that there was someone on the team before Hughie entered the picture, and something bad happened to him when shit went down with The Seven. Now that his story is finally being revealed, we can easily connect the dots while at the same time enjoy the homage to the first issue of this series. Darick Robertson has done just a kick-ass job on the covers for these past fifty issues, that I raise my pint of Sierra Nevada to him, and tell him to keep going forth and rocking!

Locke & Key: Keys To The Kingdom #4 by Gabriel Rodriguez

Upon examining this cover before reading its contents, you get a sense of dread. Obviously, someone is not going to live to see the next issue! The main thing I like about this cover, as silly as it sounds, is the correct anatomy for the G.I. JOE action figure. Growing up, I personally didn’t own any G.I. JOE toys, but my cousin had a ton of the little buggers, and sure enough there were casualties and sure enough, they looked exactly like the poor guy on this cover when split in half. I also appreciate the key incorporated on the cover, because it usually tells which key is going to make an appearance. Does it always? No, but it sure is cool to mentally catalog another key that’s introduced. It’s all over in fifteen issues, and that makes me a sad panda.

Hellblazer #275 by Simon Bisley

Hellblazer has been such an enjoyable read these past two-hundred and seventy-five issues (Note: I have not read anywhere close to that number), but the cherry on top is definitely Simon Bisley’s covers. If you know the character of John Constantine, you know he’s gritty, foul, and a complete wanker. What better to set the tone for the reader than Bisley’s art? This issue (if you couldn’t guess) focuses on John’s wedding to Epiphany, and it’s no way going to be pretty. Knowing the company John keeps; booze, cigarettes, and other ungodly creeps will be running amok for sure. The decorations seen on the cake are beautiful in their own twisted manner, and definitely deliver the mood of how the reader should be expecting this wedding to turn out. It screams “John doesn’t deserve a girl like Epiphany“, followed by “That prick deserves whatever is thrown at him this issue!” Absolute eye-candy.

Another big week! Pick Of The Week this time around goes to Jason Aaron & R.M. Guera for Scalped #38 (Vertigo). Fast Five picks include Justice League: Generation Lost #2 (DC), Secret Avengers #1 (Marvel), Northlanders #28 (Vertigo), Chimichanga #2 (Albatross Exploding Funny Books), and Power Girl #12 (DC).

Jason Aaron telling more Vietnam stories? Yes please!

Holy guacamole what a big week for comics! Pick Of The Week goes to Warren Ellis and Raulo Caceres for Captain Swing And The Electrical Pirates Of Cindery Island #1 (Avatar). Fast Five picks include The Walking Dead #70 (Image), Blackest Night #7 (DC), Irredeemable #11 (BOOM! Studios), Black Lantern Green Arrow #30 (DC), and Northlanders #25 (Vertigo).

It’s 11:11 am. Do you know where your children are?

Reminder: WonderCon this April!

A great week for variety! Pick of the Week goes to Garth Ennis & Carlos Ezquerra for The Boys #34 (Dynamite). Fast Five picks include Incognito #6 (Icon), Irredeemable #6 (BOOM! Studios), Northlanders #20 (Vertigo), Sir Edward Grey: Witchfinder #3 (Dark Horse), and Immortal Weapons #2 (Disney).

Remember, if you haven’t checked it out yet, the Cammy’s Comic-Con Corner 2009 video is finally up!

After an exciting last week, I return with picks aplenty! Pick of the Week goes to Greg Rucka and J.H. Williams III for Detective Comics #855 (DC). Fast Five picks include Blackest Night: Tales Of The Corps #3 (DC), Fantastic Four #869 (Marvel), Northlanders #19 (Vertigo), Ignition City #4 (Avatar), and Justice League of America #35 (DC).

Not to worry, the Comic-Con 2009 video will be up in the next few weeks!

Just an absolute gigantic week for comics! Pick of the Week goes to Joe Kelly & Paulo Siqueira & Marco Checchetto for Amazing Spider-Man #598 (Marvel). Fast Five picks include Green Lantern #42 (DC), Northlanders #18 (Vertigo), Gotham City Sirens #1 (DC), Dark Wolverine #75 (Marvel), and Detective Comics #854 (DC).

Such a big week, that you can expect a “.5″ episode on Sunday! Special thanks to Rising Sun Creations for sponsoring the contest!

In this special Book Of The Month episode, we focus on the LOCAL hardcover from Oni Press. Written by Brian Wood and art by Ryan Kelly, this truly is a ‘must read’ for comic fans of all colors.

Book Of The Month – June

LOCAL

Written by Brian Wood

Art by Ryan Kelly

Oni Press

I remember when I went through my whole “punk rock oi oi oi!” phase in high school. Rebelling against society by wearing this ridiculous torn-up vest with patches and pins covering every square inch, along with whatever punk band t-shirt I had in the closet. I went to the concerts, hung out with the kids who always got in trouble, played my music really loud, and just didn’t give a flying fuck about the world. Back then, this was my escape from reality. I didn’t have a drivers license, so I couldn’t travel the country like I wanted to and really get out of the whole California mindset. When college happened, all my friends dispersed across the country (and even the world) going on great adventures, and just living life to the fullest while I was back home in San Diego going to classes at the local community college.

What am I getting at, you ask? I’m almost there, not to worry.

What Brian Wood and Ryan Kelly have done with this marvelous collection is bring the outside world to me in 344 beautiful black and white pages spanning across twelve issues. We start out in Portland, Oregon and end in Vermont, hitting many other cities along the way. We follow a young girl named Megan, and watch her slowly grow a year older and a year wiser every issue, as she travels constantly throughout North America.

Even at a young age, Megan was always on the run. Her mom simply allowed it because she wanted her daughter to live life to the fullest and take chances and learn from mistakes. Something she herself might have lost when she hunkered-down and got married. So while Megan appears in every issue, she’s not always the main character. Sometimes she’s just in the background, but easily fits with the setting and story.

• Issue 1 – “Ten Thousand Thoughts Per Second” – Portland, Oregon
• Issue 2 – “Polaroid Boyfriend” – Minneapolis, Minnesota
• Issue 3 – “Theories and Defenses” – Richmond, Virginia
• Issue 4 – “Two Brothers” – Missoula, Montana
• Issue 5 – “The Last 10 Lonely Days at the Oxford Theatre” – Halifax, Nova Scotia
• Issue 6 – “Megan and Gloria, Apartment 5A” – Brooklyn, New York
• Issue 7 – “Hazardous Youth” – Tempe, Arizona
• Issue 8 – “Food as Substitute” – Wicker Park, Chicago
• Issue 9 – “Wish You Were Here” – Norman, Oklahoma
• Issue 10 – “Bar Crawl” – Austin, Texas
• Issue 11 – “The Younger Generation” – Toronto, Ontario
• Issue 12 – “The House That Megan Built” – Vermont

Many of my friends still travel around constantly, so I’ve had the pleasure of nicknaming them such gems as ‘Carmen Sandiego’ and ‘Willy Loman’. While reading Local again after it originally ended last year, the thought occurred to me that these same friends would enjoy this comic. This series shows that comics don’t always have to be about superheroes and capes, but they can actually tell a marvelous and powerful story about a variety of real life topics, including a journey of self-discovery. Light-hearted at times, and very dark in others, this series falls in the catergory of something both comic fans and non-comic fans will enjoy throughout time.

After reading it again for the show, I really felt the urge to just get in a car and drive wherever the road took me, leaving this geeky life of mine behind (for a while, anyways). Then I realized I don’t have the balls for such a spontaneous adventure. Perhaps I’m better off finding that old punk vest of mine and listening to some Misfits and Anti-Flag while rocking the fuck out.

I cannot highly recommend Local enough, and urge you all to go out and try something new, and skip DC and Marvel for just this once.

Discuss this pick on the forum!

This episode is a day late due to Memorial Day pushing back comics to Thursday. Pick of the week goes to Mark Millar & Steve McNiven for Wolverine #72 (Marvel). Fast Five picks include Nova #25 (Marvel), The Sword #17 (Image), Guardians of the Galaxy #14 (Marvel), Northlanders #17 (Vertigo), and Amazing Spider-Man #595 (Marvel).

As much as I love Wolverine this week, I also have some qualms with it. Other than that, great week for comics!

Gobble Gobble Gobble! The comic I was anticipating the most turns out the be the top pick this week. From Gerard Way and Gabriel Ba is The Umbrella Academy: Dallas #1 (Dark Horse). Fast Five picks include Northlanders #12 (Vertigo), Guardians of the Galaxy #7 (Marvel), Attack of the Killer Tomatoes #1 (Viper Comics), Nova #19 (Marvel), and Welcome To Hoxford #4 (IDW).

Space rangers, vikings, and man-eating fruit make this week absolutely spectacular!

Happy Halloween! In this marvelous episode, Lobster Johnson
fills-in for Cammy and picks Final Crisis: Rage Of The Red Lanterns
(DC) as the pick this week. Fast Five includes Hellboy: In The Chapel
Of Moloch (Dark Horse), Avengers: The Initiative #18 (Marvel),
Northlanders #11 (Vertigo), Secret Invasion: Thor #3 (Marvel), and The
Sword #12 (Image).

Spectacular week for comics! Red Lanterns, Vikings, and Hellboy to help you pig-out on candy!