Comics and More

Here's the run-down of March release dates for films, books, DVDs and music, as well as my box office predictions. . In Theaters March 6th The Horsemen Watchmen . Predictions: 1. Watchmen ($134 million), 2. Tyler Perry's Madea Goes To Jail ($7 m), 3. Slumdog Millionaire ($6 m), 4. Taken ($4.5 m), 5. He's Just Not That Into You ($4 m) . In Theaters March 13th The Last House On the Left Miss March Race To Witch Mountain Sunshine Cleaning . Predictions: 1. Watchmen ($80 m), 2. The Last House On the Left ($15 m), 3. Race To Witch Mountain ($5 m), 4. Tyler Perry's Madea Goes To Jail ($4.5 m), 5. Slumdog Millionaire ($4 m) . In Theaters March 20th Duplicity I Love You, Man Knowing . Predictions: 1. Duplicity ($47 m), 2. Watchmen ($44 m), 3. Knowing ($9 m), 4. The Last House On the Left ($8 m), 5. I Love You, Man ($3.5 m) . In Theaters March 27th 12 Rounds Adventureland The Haunting In Connecticut Monsters vs. Aliens . Predictions: 1. Monsters vs. Aliens ($45 m), 2. Adventur...

Brian Michael Bendis & various . ...... It's hard to believe that we're already fifty issues into this series, but here we are at the anniversary. Judging from the cover and the way things have been going, I expected the New Avengers to go up against Norman Osborn's newly-assembled team of Dark Avengers (especially since they were discussing who was wearing whose costumes at the beginning). That was one of the problems I had with Civil War . The two Avengers teams fought each other really early, and frequently, so it was hardly exciting when a battle took place. There was no anticipation. There was no waiting for that big fight - it was just there, and often. It seems Bendis has learned from his mistakes as, instead of pitting the two teams against one another immediately (which would see a cool Hawkeye vs. Hawkeye, Ms. Marvel vs. Ms. Marvel, Wolverine vs. Wolverine, etc.), Osborne had the insight to play the New Avengers' lure to battle against them, and instead th...

Here are the highlights of books shipping to comic shops tomorrow! . Pick of the Week . John Byrne's Compleat Next Men (Volume 1): Premiere Edition HC - IDW has already released big black and white editions of this series at an affordable price, but if you want quality, here's the first hardcover edition in full color. This collects issues 0-10, which is two less issues than the original collection, and doesn't include the prequel 2112 GN. . Other Noteworthy Releases . Angel #18 Atomic Robo (Volume 2) TP Beanworld (Volume 1): Wahoolazuma HC Crayon Shincan (Volume 7) Eerie Archives (Volume 1) HC Incredible Hercules: Love & War Premiere HC Marvel Masterworks: Fantastic Four (Volume 1) TP Mouse Guard: Winter 1152 #5 (of 6) MPD Psycho (Volume 8) New Avengers #50 Showcase Presents: Superman Family (Volume 3) TP Starman Omnibus (Volume 2) HC Tintin In the Congo HC Waltz With Bashir SC

Greg Pak, Fred Van Lente & Rafa Sandoval . This is one of those straight-forward superhero books that's really fun to dive into. The story begins with Hercules driving to see the sleeping Celestial in California with Amadeus Cho (one of the smartest people in the world) and goddess Athena, the latter of whom speaks to the gods of the different cultures of the world to appeal to them to aide Hercules on a quest. Aware of the invasion of skrulls on Earth, Athena proposes that they send champions to fight the skrull gods Kly'bn and Sl'gur't, reasoning that by destroying the deities, the will of their followers will also be destroyed. These skrull gods are pretty bad-ass, having defeated tons of other gods (who are slaves, behaving as broken satellites, revolving around their fortress), and Kly'bn turns out to be the god whom the Skrull Queen (who impersonated Spider-Woman during the invasion) follows, and whose prophecies she read and interpreted to come up with...

Here are the highlights of books shipping to comic shops tomorrow! . Pick of the Week . Naoki Urasawa books - This week two new manga from the master of suspense debut! 20th Century Boys and Pluto - two series I hear really good things about, particularly the latter title, a reinvention or "ultimate" version of one of Osamu Tezuka's Astro Boy stories. . Other Noteworthy Releases . Amber Atoms #1 Batman and the Outsiders: The Snare TP Captain Britain and MI-13 (Volume 1): Secret Invasion TP Daybreak (Volume 3) GN - Final volume! Diana Prince: Wonder Woman (Volume 4) TP Eden: It's An Endless World! (Volume 11) Essential Classic X-Men (Volume 3) TP Garth Ennis's Battlefields (Volume 1): The Night Witches TP Johnny Boo (Volume 2): Twinkle Power HC Punisher War Journal (Volume 5): Secret Invasion Premiere HC Superman Chronicles (Volume 6) TP Ultimate Spider-Man (Volume 10) HC

Benjamin . Orange is among the first wave of full-color manga to be released from Tokyopop. It's published in a larger format than most manga (9.9 x 7.2) to better showcase the beautiful painted panels, and clocks in at 144 pages, which takes easily less than an hour to read through. If this book weren't painted, I guess I wouldn't really see the need to publish it in color, which is kind of the point of this new line: to publish manga in color where color plays a vital role in the story. There's a little orange in the title, I guess (but much less than you'd think), the majority of the pages featuring blue tones, making for kind of a dull color comic, especially to kick off a new line with. But there were a few pages that were very vibrant that made the color worthwhile in the end. The story focuses on a character named Orange who's sick of life. She feels it's pointless and the people around her are shallow and cold, so suicide seems to her the only viabl...

Legacy Dan Abnett, Andy Lanning & Paul Pelletier . The original Guardians of the Galaxy collection was the first non-X-Men graphic novel I ever picked up when I was a kid. "The Quest For the Shield." It was kind of lame, but I did like some of the original characters like Aleta and Starhawk. So, I was happy to hear that they were relaunching Guardians of the Galaxy , even in a new incarnation, and especially as it was spinning out of the really well-done Annihilation crossover. . The Guardians are stationed in the severed head of a Celestial in Knowhere (a sort of limbo), and are on a mission to repair rips in the fabric of space-time left in the wake of the two big cosmic wars. The dangers they face are a group of religious nuts (The Universal Church of Truth, who abolish all nonbelievers and are on a quest to convert the universe to the one true religion), and skrulls that have infiltrated Knowhere in an attempt to halfheartedly tie the book into Secret Invasion ,...

Agents of Atlas TP Jeff Parker & Leonard Kirk . Agents of Atlas #1 Jeff Parker & Carlo Pagulayan . *** Includes Spoilers *** . I've heard such good things about Jeff Parker's original Agents of Atlas mini-series that I've wanted to check it out for some time. I also was a fan of Jeff Parker's Interman from years back from Octopus Books. What nudged me over the edge to stop putting things off was not only the new ongoing Agents of Atlas series, but the Atlas chapter in the recent Dark Reign: New Nation , which featured small stories from several books launching alongside Marvel's Dark Reign crossover. And while the new Agents of Atlas series is dipping into events of the new Marvel Universe, it still remains the distinctive book Jeff Parker established with the original mini-series. . I like how Jeff Parker plucked this obscure "Avengers" team from the 1940's-1950's surrounding an incident with President (at the time) Eisenhower and b...

Here are the highlights of books arriving in comic shops tomorrow! . Pick of the Week . Batman R.I.P. Deluxe Edition HC - Grant Morrison's acclaimed Batman story is collected in a nice hardcover for anyone who missed it the first time around. . Other Noteworthy Releases . All Star Superman (Volume 2) HC Arkham Woods GN - Read my review here . Devil's Panties (Volume 3) GN DMZ (Volume 6): Blood In the Game TP Invaders Classic (Volume 3) TP Jihai (Volume 1) Nova (Volume 3): Secret Invasion TP Showcase Presents Aquaman (Volume 3) TP Spike: After the Fall HC The Sword (Volume 2) Water TP Thor #600 Welcome To Hoxford (Volume 1) TP X-Factor: Secret Invasion Premiere HC

Otomen (Volume 1) Aya Kanno . The new shojo manga Otomen , by Aya Kanno (the artist behind the very different, violent Blank Slate ), follows high school dream guy Asuka Masamune, a martial arts jock who's all-around pined after by the female population. But he harbors a dirty little secret behind that manly exterior: he loves girly things. Loves them. His interests are very feminine and include sewing, cooking and reading shojo manga. But Asuka lives in a world where men must act like men, so he keeps his interests buried deep within. Well, that is until ladies' man and general trouble maker Juta Tachibana notices Asuka's habits. Juta draws these habits out through Asuka's crush, the lovely Ryo Miyakozuka, who herself is quite the counterpart to Asuka, unable to sew or cook for her life. Juta encourages Ryo and Asuka's relationship, often tagging along as a third in this unlikely group of friends, but secretly, he's a renowned manga artist who is using...

Here We Remain Robert Kirkman & Charlie Adlard . ***Contains Spoilers!*** . Following the catastrophic events that took place at the end of volume eight of The Walking Dead , volume nine begins with the group separated - well, those who survived the previous battle. Plenty of heart-breaking scenes smatter this book, from young Carl having to watch over his sick father, and growing up quite a bit in the process, to Rick himself dealing with the loss of his wife in a sad, crazy way. But it's good to see that these characters aren't in a comfortable place again, as it's much more exciting this way, with danger lurking around every corner, Kirkman proving once more that despite appearances, everyone is very, very vulnerable in this new world. And I'm glad that Michonne is alive. She's my favorite character in the entire book (she kicks ass and she's very flawed), and I like the rapport building between her and Rick. There's also a nice bitter-sweet reu...

Here are the highlights from Previews Catalogue of books shipping to comic shops in April! Dark Horse Aliens #1 (of 4) - This mini is the first part of a relaunch of Dark Horse's very successful licensed property. . Playboy's Trump!: The Complete Collection - Harvey Kurtzman teamed up with Playboy in 1957 to work with other artists from his MAD days to create the short-lived Trump! magazine. It only lasted two issues, but they're now being collected together in this book for the first time. . Thumbelina: The POP Wonderland Series - This is the first in a new line of pretty pastel children's stories recounting famous fairy tales by POP, an artist highly regarded in Japan. . DC Comics Absolute Promethea (Volume 1) HC - Alan Moore's fantastic series is getting the Absolute treatment in this first of three slipcased editions, featuring the art of J. H. Williams III. . Bayou (Volume 1) TP - I started to read this Zuda Comics title on DC's website and it has some...

Here are the highlights of books hitting the shelves of your local comic shop tomorrow! . Pick of the Week . Scott Pilgim (Volume 5): Scott Pilgrim vs. The Universe GN - The latest volume of Bryan Lee O'Malley's hipster graphic novels arrives! Can you believe there's only one volume to go? . Other Noteworthy Releases . Agents of Atlas #1 Air Gear (Volume 11) Avengers: Nights of Wundagore TP Bang Tango #1 (of 6) Black Panther 2 #1 Captain America: Truth Premiere HC The Complete Chester Gould's Dick Tracy (Volume 6) HC Dean Koontz's Frankenstein (Volume 1): Prodigal Son HC Eternals (Volume 1): To Slay a God TP Fairy Tail (Volume 5) I Am Legion #1 (of 6) I Saw You...Comics Inspired by Real-Life Missed Connections SC Jersey Gods #1 The Legend of Zelda (Volume 3) Marvel Europe TP Marvel Masterworks: Amazing Spider-Man (Volume 1) TP Mighty #1 Myspace Dark Horse Presents (Volume 2) TP Naruto (Volume 34) One Piece (Volume 20) Papillon (Volume 2) Parasyte (Volume 6) Punish...

Christopher Rowley & Jhomar Soriano Arkham Woods is a new manga from Seven Seas, illustrated by Jhomar Soriano and written by revered science fiction author Christopher Rowley. This horror manga follows LA teen Kristi Rivers, who has recently moved to Arkham Woods, a little New England town, to help her mother renovate and sell the house bequeathed to them by Kristi's strange uncle. Together with a few friends, Kristi begins to uncover things in the recesses of the house that are quite disturbing. This book really does a great job of creating a real creeping dread in the first half of the story as Kristi finds a ring of keys and searches the house for what they belong to, eventually noticing a little door hidden away behind odds and ends in the attic. One of the keys unlocks the door, which contains several boxes, easily opened by the other keys on the ring. What's inside is unsettling. There are headless human skeletons in the big chests, and in smaller boxes, they find t...

Here's the run-down of February release dates for films, books, DVDs and music, as well as my box office predictions. . In Theaters February 6th Coraline Fanboys He's Just Not That Into You Pink Panther 2 Push . Predictions: 1. He's Just Not That Into You ($25 m), 2. Push ($24 m), 3. Taken ($15.5 m), 4. Coraline ($11), 5. Paul Blart: Mall Cop ($10 m) . In Theaters February 13th Confessions of a Shopaholic Friday the 13th The International Two Lovers Under the Sea 3D . Predictions: 1. Friday the 13th ($40 m), 2. Confessions of a Shopaholic ($31 m), 3. Push ($14 m), 4. He's Just Not That Into You ($13 m), 5. The International ($8.5 m) . In Theaters February 20th Fired Up Tyler Perry's Madea Goes To Jail . Predictions: 1. Tyler Perry's Madea Goes To Jail ($27 m), 2. Friday the 13th ($24 m), 3. Confessions of a Shopaholic ($20 m), 4. Push ($8.5 m), 5. Fired Up ($7 m) . . In Theaters February 27th An American Affair Assassination of a High School Presi...