This Isn’t A Library: Notable Releases Into The Comics Direct Market



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Here are the books that make an impression on me staring at this week's no-doubt largely accurate list of books shipping from Diamond Comic Distributors, Inc. to comic book and hobby shops across North America.

I might not buy all of the works listed here. I might not buy any. You never know. I'd sure look at the following, though.

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FEB140446 COMPLETE LITTLE ORPHAN ANNIE HC VOL 10 $49.99
There are a lot of good comics out this week that are brand new, and while a few of them may be really good I can't imagine any will be any better than the latest IDW edition of Little Orphan Annie near the end -- I think, anyway -- of Gray's length golden age with that feature. I find Gray's stories sort of hypnotic even when they descend into creaky formula, which is all the freaking time. Mostly, though I love to revisit that world for the art, the way the figures are cut from space, the way that shapes opporess and the sky crowds in. These are beautiful comics.

MAR141568 NEIL GAIMAN ART OF NEIL GAIMAN VISUAL BIO HC $39.99
I'm always interested in learning more about Neil Gaiman, but I'm particularly interested to see what Hayley Campbell does with a book. She's already a more interesting writer about art than I am, and I hope this is the first of many volumes if she want to pursue writing of this kind.

MAR141215 FINAL INCAL DLX ED HC (MR) $99.95
MAR141216 FINAL INCAL ULTRA DLX ED HC (MR) $590.00
Well, it's certainly the only $100/$600 comic available on the stands this week. I don't have as big an appetite for science-fiction BD and comics that refer to that material as many of my peers 10 years or more younger than I am. I do know that just about anything Moebius does is of historial interest, even an aborted project like this one (and there's not a lot of late-period Moebius available in general, I don't think). I also think that Ladronn is an interesting choice for an artist to work in that same arena. I'd love to look at this, but I may have to wait until a subsequent formatting. Also, if your shop carries this at all, high-five your owner and tell them you love them.

JAN140192 EERIE ARCHIVES HC VOL 16 $49.99
I've been picking these up here and there, and while I'm not invested in that publication or even that whole school of comics to make an intriguing, specific point about what might be in any one volume, I will always pay attention to them.

MAR140035 ELFQUEST FINAL QUEST #3 $3.50
MAR140074 KING CONAN CONQUEROR #4 $3.50
I've missed out on the first of these listed, at least so far, so there's a curiosity factor there. I'm all for franchise-enders, too. The Conan I have been reading, and it hews pretty closely to the Conan books I remember as a kid. If anything there's a tendency to extend the set pieces in each issue, perhaps at the expense of the overall flow of the story. Still, I think there should always be Conan comics out there, and am glad to see these when they show up in my mailbox.

JAN140154 RESIDENT ALIEN TP VOL 02 SUCIDE BLONDE $14.99
This is my favorite of the recent attempt by Dark Horse to create a bunch of series, most of which seem like they could be brought to television or film in some way. It's kind of like Longmire except with Richard Jenkins playing a mellow alien instead of that hulking brute of an Australian actor that western TV series utilizes. It's more pleasant than impactful, but I like pleasant comics.

JAN140356 TALES OF THE BATMAN CARMINE INFANTINO HC $49.99
I love the look of Carmine Infantino's 1960s work, although I own more of the Flash comics than these Batman issues. I'd sure as heck look at it were it in my shop; Infantino almost never disappoints on a considered look.

MAR140594 SEX #13 (MR) $2.99
MAR140475 TREES #1 (MR) $2.99
These are the only two genre comics that leap out at me as something to see this week; I'm sure I missed a ton. With The Bounce wrapping up it's time to focus our attention on Joe Casey's other recent stripping down of the superhero comic book. There's a lot of interesting stuff in there about milieu and setting that you tend not to see on start-from-scratch series like this one. Trees #1 is Warren Ellis working with Jason Howard on science fiction. The first issue is table-setting, but it's a pretty functional spread they've got going there.

MAR140782 DEVIL DINOSAUR BY JACK KIRBY TP COMPLETE COLLECTION $24.99
If you don't own the comics -- and these are some of the few Kirbys that are more difficult to purchase than 20 years ago, or at least have been for me -- I can't imagine you wouldn't want this, just on principle. This was a joke comic when it came out -- it was a joke with those few kids I knew that read comics -- but Kirby could still make with the visuals and this one has plenty of those.

MAR140776 OZ OZMA OF OZ TP $19.99
I imagine this is a re-release of some sort, but anything Marvel does with the Oz property is worth noting.

MAR141266 PHANTOMS OF THE LOUVRE HC $29.99
Lot of heavyweight comics-making artists with work out this week: Gray, Kirby, Moebius, and now Enki Bilal, with his contribution to that series of comics about the Louvre that NBM has been publishing over here. Bilal looks like the least narratively complex of the offerings, but also the least standard in approach, and it's always a pleasure to see him draw.

MAR141169 AMATEURS GN $14.99
This is a stand-alone work by Conor Stechshulte and will probably remind anyone coming in cold as a combination of Zak Sally (re-contextualized cartoon slapstick) and Josh Simmons (horror of the transgressive moment variety). I enjoyed it, and want to read it again.

MAR141021 SPAIN & MOROCCO HC (MR) $25.00
This is a project that's been serialized on-line by Alex Fellows since 2009, here. A lot of this looked really attractive when I encountered it in that on-line form, and Conundrum's season has been strong in general, so I look forward to sitting down with that one. Fellows you may remember as the answer to the trivia question as an early content-supplier for the Fantagraphics web site.

APR141172 EVERYWHERE ANTENNAS GN (MR) $19.95
APR141173 PETTY THEFT GN (MR) $19.95
These are the two Drawn and Quarterly TCAF debuts. They are also two-thirds of my bedside reading table (with Barnaby Vol. 2). I am moving into the Delporte presently, and should finish up the Girard tonight. I find Girard really pleasurable to read, I could read like 700 pages of his comics, and he could probably indulge in great crimes of narrative slackness and keep my attention i like the cartooning enough. This one has been pretty funny so far.

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The full list of this week's releases, including some titles with multiple cover variations and a long, impressive list of toys and other stuff that isn't comics, can be found here. Despite this official list there's no guarantee a comic will show up in the stores as promised, or in all of the stores as opposed to just a few. Also, stores choose what they carry and don't carry so your shop may not carry a specific publication. There are a lot of comics out there.

To find your local comic book store, check this list; and for one I can personally recommend because I've shopped there, albeit a while back, try this.

The above titles are listed with their Diamond order code in the first field, which may assist you in finding comics at your shop or having them order something for you they don't have in-stock. Ordering through a direct market shop can be a frustrating experience, so if you have a direct line to something -- you know another shop has it, you know a bookstore has it -- I'd urge you to consider all of your options.

If I failed to list your comic, that's because I hate you.

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