52 titles apparently are not enough for DC Comics.

Starting this week, a new wave of DC comics is cropping up to fill the spots left by the canceled New 52 books. Each of these new books flesh out the universe by bringing in characters previously unmentioned by the first wave.

Primary among the second wave is Earth 2. Written by legendary comic author James Robinson (Starman, The Shade), Earth 2 will focus on an alternate version of the DC Universe where the major superheroes faced off a cataclysmic event and were permanently changed forever. Following, not only these versions of Batman, Superman, and Wonder Woman, but also the Alan Scott Green Lantern and Jay Garrick Flash. For those who’ve missed JSA will find that familiar itch scratched with this series.

The other two DC series to launch this week will be Dial H and World’s Finest. Dial H will be the first comic written by popular crime novelist China Mieville. A reworking of a cult classic series, Dial H will follow different individuals as they encounter a special dial with gives them random superpowers each time they turn it on. Gaining buzz as the underdog favorite of the new batch, Dial H should be picked up by anyone who loves off-kilter series like Xombi, BPRD, and Resurrection Man. World’s Finest, on the other hand, is a classic team-up book starring the Power Girl and Huntress of Earth 2.

Speaking of the New 52, the first group of hardcovers and trade paperbacks ship this Wednesday. Personally, I am making it a mission to sell every single copy of the first volume of Animal Man by Wednesday night. And I don’t plan to do this out of any greedy desire, but instead because this is the best book being released from DC right now. A wonderful blend of family drama and horrific, otherworldly creatures and adventures, Animal Man delivers sympathy and scares all in one twisted package. A wholly unique read, this series should not be ignored.

Lastly, because I’m tired, here’s a cool picture of a cool Doctor Who item coming in this Wednesday.

 

If you were to ask any self-respecting nerd what the Doctor and a Dalek have in common, they would likely laugh in your face. And then say something about how bow ties are cool.

But they would be wrong to laugh, because the Doctor and the Daleks do actually share a similarity. They can both light up a dark situation! One with his trusty sonic screwdriver and one with his, uh, butt. Yes, folks, Doctor Who flashlights. The first being a replica of the 11th Doctor’s sonic screwdriver, which emits a glowing green light from its tip, and, the second, a Dalek miniature, which shines a ray off light out of its…well, butt really is the best word for it. One can save the universe while the other will destroy it, but they’re both equally timey wimey awesome.

Many consider Ultimatum by Jeph Loeb to be the worst storyline to ever occur in the Ultimate Marvel universe. Sadly, I believe this has kept many readers from checking out his follow up to that series Ultimate X. Constructed as a tight five issue miniseries, this run by Loeb is among the best stories ever told in Ultimate cannon. Focusing on a different mutant with each issue, Loeb works overtime to shape and convey these characters (some new, some old) to the reader. And does with emotional results. A large part of that success, however, is due to Art Adams insane artwork. Adams drew 616 X-Men back in the day with the best of them and his detailed, emotive pencils have only gotten better. Even if you’ve never read a single issue of the Ultimate X-Men series, the Ultimate X: Origins tpb will compel you to read more.

Before he become THE Neil Gaiman thanks to his cult classic Sandman run, the Neil Gaiman wrote a four issue miniseries for Vertigo comics entitled Black Orchid. Now collected in a beautiful oversized hardcover edition, Black Orchid chronicles the revenge tale of a woman who’s reborn as a half-human, half-plant creature. The etherial artwork of Dave McKean spreads across the pages of this collection, a watercolor on steroids. With such a limited library of titles to explore, any fan of Neil Gaiman owes it to themselves to hunt down this new volume in an effort to complete their collection.

Boba Fett is dead.

So begins the new Dark Horse series, Blood Ties. This new four issue series details the fallout from the death of the galaxy’s greatest, most infamous bounty hunter. A son of a Jango Fett clone, Connor Freeman, gets drawn into the hunt for Fett’s killer, finding more action, adventure, and intrigue than he’s ever experienced before. Rich painted interiors coupled with this interesting story will make this a Star Wars miniseries for the ages.

 

Kansas City is lucky enough to be home to many successful, talented, prominent comic writers and artists. Primary among them is Jason Aaron. As writer of Wolverine and the X-Men, Wolverine, Incredible Hulk, Scalped, and Avengers Versus X-Men, Jason is easily one of the top writers at Marvel Comics and, because of that, we’re happy to have him come sign at Pulp this Wednesday. Jason will be signing not only the newest copies of Incredible Hulk, Wolverine and the X-Men, and Avengers vs. X-Men, but also all of his previous work. He’ll be at the store from 3 to 7, so make sure to come pick your books up around that time. Also, due to mass demand for the AvX series and the need to have copies for Jason to sign, that issue will go on sale at 3 when Jason arrives. Come out and make him feel welcome.

Stieg Larsson’s worldwide bestseller, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, has been made into two films already, but neither of them will compare to the new Vertigo comic adaptation launching this year. But before the actually series comes out, you all will get a chance to sample it with this Wednesday’s Girl with the Dragon Tattoo special sample issue. And remember, the first volume of graphic novels will be out this November.

Following in line with Dynamite‘s other recent pulp hero reworkings, such as Lord of the Jungle and Warlord of Mars, the new Shadow series is sure to be a good read. A large factor in that assumption is that Garth Ennis, author of such gruesome, disturbing series as The Boys and Crossed, will be penning the series. Each of the issues covers will also be drawn by some of the industry’s greatest artists, including John Cassady, Alex Ross, and Jae Lee. The Shadow knows…that you will buy a copy.

One of the quickest comic series of recent memory to rise to legendary status has to be The Ultimates by Mark Millar. Millar’s modern take on classic characters like Thor, Iron Man, Captain America, and Hawkeye turned the book into a dynamic, drama-filled read offering versions of these characters like you’ve never read before. Many fans have read his first two volumes of that amazing series, but not as many realize he went on to write four other volumes of the book. Luckily, all four of these stories, featuring battles with vampires, Ghost Rider Vice Presidents, Australlian Hulks, and intense, city demolishing conflicts, are all collected in the new Ultimate Avengers by Mark Millar Omnibus. This oversized hardcover is the easiest way to catch up on these follow-up series, the last of which ties in with the Death of Spider-Man storyline of Ultimate Spider-Man. Grab a copy before Nick Fury redacts the entire thing.

Speaking of the Death of Spider-Man storyline, the trade paperback ships this Wednesday. Collecting the last issues of the series before the relaunch with Miles Morales, this volume details Peter’s final battle with the Green Goblin, resulting in his death. If you picked up the series and have been loving it, you owe it to yourself to pick up, not only, this volume, but the entire series.

 

Grab your mittens, because tonight we’re going to be Russian it!

That pun would work so much better if this first item related to Russia in some way.

Hmm…the Doctor has traveled through all of time and space, so he must have visited Russia at some point. And when he did, without a doubt he arrived in his “sexy”, or TARDIS, for the uninformed. You, too, can get the warm fuzzies from this time and space traveling vehicle if you pick up the new TARDIS Plush coming out this Wednesday. Give the police box a hug and it will reciprocate with the standard VOOSH, VOOSH and light blinking associated with the time machine. Keep your plush Dalek company by picking this guy up.

The title pretty much says it all for this next one. That’s right, folks, Fanboys vs. Zombies drops this Wednesday with a gurgling, meaty thud. With Sam Humpries, writer of the brilliant Our Love is Real one-shot, penning the series, a setting rich with humour and heavy objects with which to bash the undead, and a cover price of $1, there is absolutely no reason to skip this book! Seriously, it’s costumed nerds and nerdettes smashing and slicing zombified geeks, how can you go wrong?

Arriving back on shelves after a long printing hiatus, Flex Mentallo, one of Grant Morrison and Frank Quitely earliest creations. This deluxe edition reprints all of Flex’s psychedelic appearances in Doom Patrol as well as his own miniseries. Since the character as been under legal contention for a number of years, it’s a wonderful reward to see this cult classic series be reprinted in a hardcover, deluxe edition. Grab it before it disappears again.

The first rule of Danger Club is that we…DO talk about Danger Club. A lot, actually. Why? Because this book looks like a hell of a good time! Written by the team behind recent children’s comic successes like Supergirl: Cosmic Adventures in the 8th Grade and Batman Brave and the Bold, Danger Club rocks the epic! With the world’s greatest superheroes vanishing into space with the threat of an oncoming alien invasion on the horizon, the world’s sidekicks are left as the planet’s only defense. Violence, gore, and apocalyptic action spill out of the the beautifully vivid artwork and riveting narrative. Miss out on it and you miss out on the next Image Comics success story.

 

New comic March continues this week with another onslaught of inventive Indy fair. Here’s the rundown:

-Dominique Laveau Voodoo Child: New Orleans, voodoo, and ghosts come together for this new Vertigo ongoing. Dominique, a young grad student, finds that she’s wanted by the magic community of New Orleans…for murdering their Voodoo Queen.

-Hoax Hunters: A take off of popular Ghost Hunting shows, this miniseries revolves around a team of reality TV personalities who hunt and explain mysterious creatures around the globe. Issue #0 focuses on a long lost Russian astronaut ghost. Creeeeepy.

-Ragemoor: In line with classic Gothic tales from Poe and Lovecraft, this new horror miniseries from legendary Heavy Metal artist Richard Corben focuses on a living mansion with an insane owner and an unholy secret.

-Rebel Blood: Riley Rossmo, artist of Cowboy, Ninja, Viking, lends his writing and illustrative talents to this Image Comics horror series where demonic, zombie creatures, both human and animal, are roaming the Southern landscape, chewing on the living.

-Rocketeer Adventures 2: Following in the same style as the first series, each issue of this miniseries contains short Rocketeer stories from the industry’s best writers and artists. With guys like Darwyn Cooke, Peter David, Art Adams, and Bill Sienkiewicz, creating new pulpy stories how can you go wrong?

-Smoke & Mirrors: Akin to the recent IDW series Memorial, this fantasy miniseries incorporates actual slight of hand and stage magic tricks into its tale of a lost soul in a world where magic has advanced past technology.

-Supercrooks: Mark Millar, the sensational author behind Kick-Ass, Nemesis, and The Ultimates, offers this new take on the supervillain. When a villain team from America feels the heat, they relocate to Spain for a little overseas badness.

Oh my Thanos! So, many comics!

And how ’bout some more?

Nick Spencer is a man of many talents. He can write zany, wordy alternate world hopping tales like Infinite Vacation while also being able to manage subtle, minimal spy books like Thunder Agents. And he can write political cape and cowl fair like a mofo! The new collection of Ultimate Comics X-Men will prove this to you. If you haven’t kept up with the Ultimate universe, one, this is a good book to get in on and, two, how about a little backstory? The X-Men are in tatters after most of the team has died (that’s Xavier, Wolverine, Cyclops, and others, folks) and the government is out for mutant blood. That leaves the ragtag team of Kitty Pryde, Wolverine’s son, Johnny Storm, Iceman, and Rogue to face off against William Stryker, the country’s most recent religious zealot who’s murdering mutants indiscriminately. Unlike any other X-Men book you’ve ever read.

Finally, let’s end the night with one of Vincent Van Gogh’s classic paintings: TARDIS Mid-Explosion. And if that doesn’t suit your refined tastes, maybe a Weeping Angel t-shirt will.

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