SCALPED #21Written by: Jason AaronArt by: R.M. GueraYes it was my pick of the week but it also deserves to be on the list of "Best Books You're Not Reading" BECAUSE YOU ARE STILL NOT READING IT! Jason Aaron is easily as good at writing crime fiction as Ed Brubaker, he also pens fantastic characters and deserves your attention and you dollars. I have mentioned before that this is a book that has floored me from the get go, I was sold from issue one. And as I have said before if you don't like it you can get your money back. As a matter of fact if you haven't yet checked this book out then you should go to
www.scalped.info and you can read the first issue for free via Vertigo's website, and also as you can see on the website if you buy the first trade paperback and you don't like it you can mail it to Jason Aaron and he will refund your money and the cost of shipping, so if you don't like it you are out absolutely nothing. AND, as I have mentioned before if you are at all interested the first two volumes are currently available buy one get one free at the Fairview Heights location of The Fantasy Shop. So really, there is not a single good reason to have not checked out one of the best books currently being produced. The book that plenty of great people are having even greater things to say about:
"SCALPED is some of the most compelling character work and crime writing I've seen in a long time." - Ed Brubaker
"The best new series in years. Spread the word. Tell your friends. Talk about it. Blog about it." - Garth Ennis
"Aaron's talent for dialogue is complemented spectacularly by R.M. Guéra's vivid pencil work." - Playboy
"One of the richest, most rewarding reads around." - Wizard
"SCALPED has attitude, SCALPED has guts and SCALPED is no holds barred. In short, SCALPED is fucking great." - Crimespree Magazine
"If you're not reading SCALPED, you're crazy. You are literally, not metaphorically, a lunatic, and you will probably end up in some sort of asylum if you're not careful. It's that good. It will keep you sane with its greatness." - Timothy Callahan, author of GRANT MORRISON: THE EARLY YEARS
"If SCALPED doesn't leave shivers down your back, read it again." - Reznet News
CAPTAIN BRITAIN AND MI 13 #5Written by: Paul CornellArt by: Pat OliffeOften times when a book gets launched as a part of a giant crossover it falls apart after the connection to the crossover fades away. Marvel and DC both have mixed luck when it comes to creating titles that spin out of events or that start in the middle of events. What Paul Cornell is doing with his British super-team though is not only incredibly interesting, and incredibly fun, it is also doing very well for a new title featuring a bunch of characters who have never managed to hold their own ongoing title for too awfully long. I have to honestly say that there is a lot of really great stuff about Captain Britain and MI:13. Part of what is great about it is that despite Marvel being a "Universe" we really rarely see outside of New York City and deep in space. And when we have lately it has either been cancelled or written by Chris Claremont, neither of which is good. But this book is great. And I think that if you haven't checked it out that you are missing out. Jump on to a great new team book that has taken The Order's place in my heart.
LOCAL HCWritten by: Brian WoodArt by: Ryan KellyThis is seriously a great series. And add to it the fact that this is perhaps one of the single most handsome hardcover collections I have ever had the pleasure of putting my hands on and adding to my collection and you can soon see why it is one of the best books you didn't read last week. This is another one of those books that great people have a lot of great stuff to say about:
"The coolest short film never shown on The IFC or Sundance Channel." - Sequential Tart
"... Each page is a lush, inky image to be savored." - Variety
"You're going to want this one. Trust me." - Warren Ellis
"The Best Ongoing Indie Comic of 2007" - G4 TV
"The Sharpest slices of life the medium has ever seen." - Bryan K. Vaughn
I love reading comics. I don’t think that’s a secret. I love them for many different reasons. Sometimes it’s a relaxing getaway; an escape from the stress that life can sometimes bring. Sometimes it’s an intense appreciation for the combination of word and art. And sometimes a book reminds you why you love comics in the first place. That time is now. That book is Local. From the creative team of Brian Wood (DMZ, Northlanders) and Ryan Kelly (New York Four, Lucifer), Local leaves me speechless. Which is an unfortunate side effect for a blogger but I will try my best. My first exposure to Brian Wood came from his first professional work, a five-issue miniseries known as Channel Zero. Both written and drawn by Brian Wood, Channel Zero was an excellent story depicting a future “Great Awakening” in America in which the voice of the citizen is silenced. I fell in love with this book and immediately became a fan of this young and talented writer. Since that first exposure, I have joined Brian Wood in the fight in the DMZ and sailed with Norsemen off Norwegian shores with Northlanders. But Local tops them all. It surprised myself at first. Local, as well as The New York Four, gives a look at another picture of Brian Wood’s story telling and shows how talented he really is. Brian Wood offers the most variety in works, possibly, then anyone else in the industry. In this book we
follow the lives of Megan McKeenan, a young woman from Vermont, who travels North America to find her place in life, which ultimately leads back home. Never has a character felt so real and alive to me. I felt as if this could be a real person, that these were real events, that this could very well be someone’s life. And with every great writer, there is a great artist. Ryan Kelly does an absolutely fantastic job on this book. I love that this book was in black and white, such as Channel Zero and Demo, and that aspect made me think back to those stories as well. The series is 12 issues long and is enjoyable all the way through. Each issue is just a small glimpse, a short story, into the life of someone who could easily be a family member or a friend. If you set the last issue aside, and then shuffled the rest of the issues and read them at random, it would be just as an enjoyable experience. Not to say that the story lacks plot, in fact on the contrary, this story has a plot that seems so simple but is actually quite complex. This series is a great read for anyone who loves comics. Also go check out The New York Four (Minx), which is also a great series produced by this creative team. You can also check out episode #36 to see what Rob has to say on the matter. Local will make you fall in love with comics all over again and just as a key is close to Megan’s heart, Local is close to mine.
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