Comics In November.

I've been a bit slack lately, and for that I apologise. I've been very busy with various other aspects of my life, I intend to get back to my "one blog a week" schedule.

I have decided to spend this weeks columns looking at forthcoming product for the month of novemeber. What I will do is point out a few less obvious goodies which I think are worth cheking out, there is no point in me mentioning Infinite Crisis, All-Star Superman or Ultimates, as they will sell well enough thank you very much.

So, from DCs newest solicits:

DMZ #1
Written by Brian Wood
Art and cover by Wood & Riccardo Burchielli
From Indie comics icon Brian Wood (Demo, Channel Zero, GLOBAL FREQUENCY) and up-and-coming Italian artist Riccardo Burchielli (John Doe) comes DMZ, a new monthly series about the ultimate embedded war journalist trapped in a most unlikely war zone: the streets of New York City.
In the near future, America's worst nightmare has come true. With military adventurism overseas bogging down the Army and National Guard, the U.S. government mistakenly neglects the very real threat of anti-establishment militias scattered across the 50 states. Like a sleeping giant, Middle America rises up and violently pushes it way to the shining seas, coming to a standstill at the line in the sand - Manhattan or, as the world now knows it, the DMZ.
Matty Roth, a naïve young man and aspiring photojournalist, lands a dream gig following a veteran war journalist into the heart of the DMZ. Things soon go terribly wrong and Matty finds himself lost and alone in a world he's only seen on television. There, he is faced with a choice: try to find a way off the island, or make his career with an assignment most journalists would kill for. But can he survive in a war zone long enough to report the truth?
On sale November 9 o 32 pg, FC, $2.99 US o MATURE READERS Edited by Will Dennis #

Sounds great, and I know for many people this will be the first time they have heard of Brian Wood as its been many years since he has worked for a "proper" comic company, (by proper I of course mean DC / Marvel). If this book is half as good as the excellent Channel Zero I will be well chuffed.
In the words of Comics Internationals Biff: Quality 5/5, Sales 1/5. And its a damn shame.

SHOWCASE PRESENTS: JONAH HEX VOL. 1 TP
Written by John Albano & Michael Fleischer
Art by Tony DeZuniga, Doug Wildey, José Luís Garcia-López and others
Cover by Luis Dominguez
Witness the earliest adventures of DC's legendary gunslinger from ALL-STAR WESTERN #2-8 and #10-11, WEIRD WESTERN TALES #12-14 and #16-33! Jonah Hex had no friends, but he did have two companions: death, and the acrid smell of gunsmoke!
On sale Nov 2 o 528 pg, B&W $16.99 US

Okay, its not so much the product here that I am excited about, but the format. Its also been rumoured that DC are already dropping the price on this line down to $9.99, which is about £7. And thats for 528 pages??? Gauranteed that this won't stop people saying comics are too expensive.

TEEN TITANS: THE FUTURE IS NOW TP
Written by Geoff Johns & Mark Waid
Art by Mike McKone, Ivan Reis and Tom Grummett
Cover by McKone
Collects TEEN TITANS #16-23 and TITANS/LEGION SPECIAL #1!
The Titans' weekends are usually a chance to get away from it all. But this time, they're really gone…to the 31st century! And their return trip drops them off a mere ten years into the future!
On sale Nov 30 o 224 pg, FC, $9.99 US

9 ISSUES FOR £7, and they are great too!

THE FOUNTAIN HC
Written by Darren Aronofsky
Adapted by Kent Williams
Art and cover by Williams
Darren Aronofsky proved himself a filmmaker to watch with his provocative debut, Pi. His follow-up, Requiem for a Dream, continued the accolades, receiving Golden Globe and Academy Award nominations. His latest accomplishment, however, comes straight to comics in the form of The Fountain, a gorgeously painted, oversized original graphic novel about the timeless truths of life, love and death.
Working with acclaimed painter Kent Williams (Blood: A Tale, Havok & Wolverine), The Fountain crisscrosses through three distinct time periods: 1535, during an ancient Mayan war; the present day, following one doctor's desperate search for the cure for cancer; and the far future through the vast exotic reaches of space. Interweaving these three periods, The Fountain follows Tomas - warrior, doctor, explorer - as he feverishly tries to beat death and prolong the life of the woman he loves.
A story so grand, one medium couldn't contain it, Aronofsky's feature film version of THE FOUNTAIN will be released by New Regency and Warner Bros. Pictures, starring Tony Award-winning actor Hugh Jackman (X-Men, Van Helsing, The Boy from Oz) and acclaimed actress Rachel Weisz (Constantine, The Mummy, the upcoming The Constant Gardener). But before he did, the filmmaker wanted The Fountain to be realized the unique storytelling power and artistic beauty of the graphic novel. Together, Aronofsky and Williams deliver what might be considered the ultimate director's cut. This deluxe volume also features an afterword by Aronofsky. A softcover edition will be solicited in conjuction with the film's release. Retailers please note: This project is resolicited. All previous orders are cancelled.
Resolicited; on sale November 2 o 8.625" x 11.625" o 176 pg, FC, $39.99 US o MATURE READERS
Edited by Karen Berger

This looks intriguing. Those of you who've watched Pi or Requiem for a Dream will no doubt think to check this out. But the $40 tage will deter a lot of casual readers away. It also stars people from Van Helsing and Constantine - but is that a good thing or a bad thing? Not sure I would shout about it.
Still worth checking out though.


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From Image Central:

You know, I try and be positive and only talk about stuff I like, but I couldn't ignore this one.

IMAGE COMICS HC (RES) - GEM
written by ERIK LARSEN, TODD McFARLANE, MARC SILVESTRI & JIM VALENTINO
art & cover by ERIK LARSEN, TODD McFARLANE, MARC SILVESTRI & JIM VALENTINO
At last! After years of waiting, the much-anticipated IMAGE COMICS HC is here! The four remaining Image founders return to the characters that made them sensations for a celebration of the creation of Image. The never-before-seen origin of Savage Dragon! A turning point in the life of Spawn - featuring TODD McFARLANE's first full-length comics work in nearly 10 years! The final fate of CyberForce! The future of ShadowHawk! Plus: an introduction by former Image Executive Director and legendary Beanworld creator LARRY MARDER and a quartet of special features by each of the founders covering Image - past, present and future!
A long time coming - this special hardcover is finally finished and ready to ship ON TIME!
ALL PREVIOUS ORDERS HAVE DECOMPOSED
November 2 o 128 pg o FC o $24.99
Limited S&N Slipcase Edition $75.00 (limited to 1000 copies)

All Previous Fan bases have Decomposed as well. At this point, how many people are going to care? Good luck Image.



IMAGE FIRST TP
written by ROBERT KIRKMAN, JOSHUA LUNA & RICK REMENDER
art by KIERON DWYER, JONATHAN LUNA, TONYMOORE, ERIC NGUYEN & SALGOOD SAM
If you missed out on the first issues of THE WALKING DEAD (written by ROBERT KIRKMAN with art by TONY MOORE), GIRLS (written by JOSHUA LUNA with art by JONATHAN LUNA), SEA OF RED (written by RICK REMENDER & KIERON DWYER with art by KIERON DWYER & SALGOOD SAM and STRANGE GIRL (written by RICK REMENDER with art by ERIC NGUYEN), now's your chance to sample each in a specially-priced introductory volume.
COLLECTS THE WALKING DEAD #1, GIRLS #1, SEA OF RED #1 and STRANGE GIRL #1.
November 2 o 96 pages o FC o $6.99
RETAILER WARNING: MAY NOT BE SUITABLE FOR ALL AGES

Saves me recomending Kirkman and the Luna Bros seperately. This is a great idea, if a little borrowed form Vertigo, they probably could have dropped the price a little (Vertigos offering contains 6 issues for $5) , but its hardly going to break the bank.

FELL #3
written by WARREN ELLIS
art & cover by BEN TEMPLESMITH
Another self-contained story from Snowtown, the feral city and police detective Richard Fell, injured so often in the first few weeks of his tour of duty there that he no longer owns work clothes without knife-slashes in them. Shopping's a pretty heartbreaking exercise in a place as broken as Snowtown. But it's easy to make bombs. And, sitting in a thrift store changing room in Snowtown, is a guy wearing a bomb and just waiting for an excuse to set it off...
November 9 o 24 pg o FC o $1.99

New, non-watered down monthly Ellis for $2. I don't use this phrase often as I can't pull it off, but Recognise!

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A full listing Of DC and Images solicitations are available at comicbookresources.com

Marvel picks to follow.