Forward Thinking: Image Comics for April 2006

First DC Comics, then Image, then Marvel. So many solicitations, so little time. What's a comics blogger to do?

Oh, right. Michael May and I can just focus on some highlights from the Image Comics solicitations for April 2006:

FRANK CHO WOMEN: SELECTED DRAWINGS AND ILLUSTRATIONS HARDCOVER

Kevin: This really isn't my cup o' tea, but Cho has a dedicated following that, well, drools over his drawings of the female form, from Liberty Meadows to Shanna to Spider-Woman. This 112-page hardcover is aimed right at them. And for $24.99, it's a pretty good deal.

Michael: It's basically a glorified sketch book. Those usually run $10-15 at conventions though, so getting a professional, hardcover one for this price ain't bad at all.

ROCKETO: JOURNEY TO THE HIDDEN SEA #7

Michael: Rocketo was in my Top Three Comics list for last year. It's wonderful, fun stuff. The world's best Saturday matinee science fiction serial that just happens to be in comic book form. If you're not reading it, you're seriously missing out.

ASTRO GRAPHIC NOVEL

Kevin: I can't find any more about Nilson's painted graphic novel beyond the solicitation, but that, combined with the playful cover image, is enough for me: "We follow a little crash landed astronaut on his road-movie like journey, encountering whimsical beings and events on the sides of the road, 'til a cosmic finale inside a giant nautic star." All right, it was the phrase "giant nautic star" that sold me.

Michael: That is a cute little astronaut. I'm usually attracted to story first and art second, but if a flip-through proves the interiors to be as warm and comforting as the cover, I'm in.

BOOK OF SHADOWS #1 AND #2 (OF 2)

Kevin: I think it's smart to publish both issues of a two-part miniseries in the same month. At least there's some guarantee that the second issue will see the light of day. But why not release it as a double-sized one-shot? Anyway, the solicitation for Mark Chadbourn and Bo Hampton's Book of Shadows hits a lot of right notes for me: a goddess of blood and death, shape-shifting devils, dragons and mythological creatures. When it comes to the darker aspects of lore, I'm an easy mark. Plus, it's Bo Hampton (Batman: Castle of the Bat, Verdilak).

Michael: Ordinarily, a cover of a huge, dark, cloaked thing and a murder of crows would be enough to get me to check it out. The cover copy describing it as "an original tale from" a trilogy I've never read kills that though.

LOADED BIBLE: JESUS vs. VAMPIRES ONE-SHOT

Kevin: Easter is in April this year, so I suppose it's somehow fitting that two Image comics feature crucifixion images on their covers: Sea of Red #9 and this one, Loaded Bible: Jesus vs. Vampires. The 48-page one-shot by Tim Seeley, Nate Bellegarde and Mark Englert depicts a near-future in which the United States is ruled by vampires. The country's only chance against the undead? Jesus Christ, of course. Anyone remember Jesus Christ Vampire Hunter?

Michael: Jesus Christ: Vampire Hunter was my first thought too. I don't know how Seeley's going to top that.

SIGHT UNSEEN HARDCOVER

Kevin: Bo Hampton is a busy artist, with two issues of Book of Shadows and this 152-page graphic novel debuting in the same month. The solicitation doesn't give away much, other than it's "a tale of supernatural terror." I've not been impressed with writer Bob Tinnell's other recent works, such as The Black Forest and The Wicked West, but other people whose opinions I respect raved about them. So what do I know?

Michael: Yeah, the solicitation copy doesn't really tell me anything. That cover is creepy as hell though. Not having read The Black Forest or The Wicked West, I'll be checking this out. (Actually, I'm disappointed to hear you say that you weren't impressed with The Black Forest. I've been looking forward to eventually reading that.)

SPAWN #1 IN 3D

Michael: If this was " specially created" for the Todd McFarlane MoCCA retrospective, why is it being offered to everyone through Diamond? And if it's being offered to everyone, why promise that it won't be reprinted? It'd be one thing if it was just a fun, special, limited edition piece available only at MoCCA, but opening it up to the fans at large while warning that quantities are limited sounds a lot like playing to the undead speculators' market.

THE TOURIST GRAPHIC NOVEL

Kevin: This is shaping up to be Brian Wood's year, or maybe two years. He has, what, 27 books coming out now? The Tourist, with artist Toby Cypress, uses the "mysterious stranger" premise, as the wonderfully named Moss arrives in a village in Northern Scotland, where he's presumed to be yet another American backpacker. Instead, he turns out to be a soldier turned drug smuggler with enemies on his trail. It sounds fun, and that $9.99 pricetag for 104 pages (black and white) is hard to beat.

Michael: I'm warming up to Brian Wood. My first exposure to his work was a single issue of Demo that failed to connect with me and I've been struggling ever since to discover what everyone else seems to have. DMZ went a long way in that direction and this sounds like it may completely the journey. Scotland is always a cool locale anyway, but I'm especially a sucker for horror stories (which is what this really is) set in lonely, isolated places.

HELLSPAWN: THE ASHLEY WOOD COLLECTION TRADE PAPERBACK

Kevin: I've never read an issue of Spawn, and I doubt I could pick Hellspawn out of a police lineup, but I do enjoy Ashley Wood's art. This looks like a heavy-duty coffee table book, with 224 full-color pages. It's meaty collection, with Hellspawn #1-10, a cover gallery and, maybe best of all, behind-the-scene extras. The art shown with the solicitation isn't the cover, but you can see the actual wraparound image at Wood's blog.

Michael: Ash is cool, but I'm mainly interested in this as a Steve Niles fan who doesn't have a lot of his early stuff.

FELL #7

Michael: Always good. Templesmith's doing his best work so far and God bless Warren Ellis for coming up with the shorter, more densely-packed, cheaper format for monthly singles.

THE PORTENT #2

Kevin: Like Book of Shadows, Peter Bergting's The Portent pushes my buttons -- in a good way. The creator promises a "horror fantasy" with elements of Chinese mythology, haunting spirits, and more. As if that weren't enough, there's a certain Mignola-esque quality to Bergting's art. Newsarama has a preview of Issue 1, which is due out next month. If, like me, you're a process junkie, you also can check out Bergting's concept sketches at his blog.

Michael: Your description is more exciting than Image's. I'm not sure how this got under my radar last month, but it's exactly the kind of thing I'd enjoy for all the reasons you mentioned.

SEA OF RED #9

Michael: Nazis, ancient Rome, vampires, and Christ. Can't wait to see how that all fits together. Remender keeps defying expectations with this series. Each issue is a surprise.

THE WALKING DEAD #30

Michael: Why even have solicitation copy?

WITCHBLADE #97

Michael: I still see people dismissing Witchblade since Ron Marz started writing it, but they almost always mention the ridiculous costume, which is telling since she hasn't worn it during Marz's run. It's a supernatural detective comic now – not a T&A superhero book – and it's worth another look if you think you know everything about it.

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