Marvel and DC Comics For Breast Cancer Awareness

Great to see both DC and Marvel Comics supporting Breast Cancer Awareness.

Star Wars Dawn of the Jedi

A few weeks ago the KGS had a round table discussion about the origins of the Jedi and if force ability is hereditary.  We will finally know the answers in February.  Dark Horse Comics in conjunction with Lucasfilm will publish DAWN OF THE JEDI.  A 5 issue comic book mini-series written y fan favorite - John Ostrander.

Read more about it here

The Top Five Comics You Are Not Reading

There are 5 comics that everyone should be reading but aren't.  Not sure why people are not reading them but I highly recommend giving them a shot.

In no particular order:

1> Super Dinosaur - Image Comics.  Written by Robert Kirkman.  About a boy and his dinosaur.  This is a great all ages comic and really should have it's own Saturday morning TV series.

2> Hack Slash - Image comics.  Soon to be a major motion picture.  About a hot chick who hunts your typical horror movie serial killers and kills them.  Lots of sex, blood and gore so adults only please.
(Check out the FREE online Hack/Slash Holiday Special here)

3> The Bionic Man - Dynamite Comics.  Written by Kevin Smith.  Remake of the classic 70s TV show.  

4> Star Trek - IDW Comics.  Ongoing series spinning off from the JJ Abrams Star Trek movie.  

5> Omac - DC Comics.  Please read this series I don't want it to be cancelled.  It's DC's version of the Hulk only better.  

Did DC's NEW 52 Save The Comic Industry?

The answer is YES, so far.

Overall 2010 showed a striking downward trend in comic sales.  Sales numbers were down 7% from the following year.  Then DC's New 52 hit in September.  In just two months (September and October) DC is reversed the downward spiral of the industry.  With sales only down 1.5% from 2009 as of this writing DC is primed to help bring sales up to a positive number when compared to 2009 numbers.

Look at the October sales.  October 2010 sales 25% higher than October 2009.

Many stores report increased sales for both Marvel and Independent comics, which Diamond Comics attributes in part due to the increased foot traffic caused by the New 52.

It's fitting that DC Comics - creators of iconic figures like Superman and Batman, widely thought of as the 'original' comic book superheroes, have saved the comic books at least for 2010.

(Picture at top shows the industry share for October 2010)

Batman Vs Captain America - Who Would Win?

Captain America's Fighting knowledge:
American Boxing, Judo, Aikido, and Jujutsu are the only revealed disciplines, but he has utilized various different techniques and methods from multiple others. Among these are various Gong fu (or Kung fu) such as Taijiquan, Wing Chun, various Shaolin arm methods which he incorporates for his shield, Chin na, and northern kicking methods, Capoeira, Muay Thai, Karate, Eskrima, and hand techniques used in Ninjutsu. (for more info visit the Marvel wiki)

Batman's Fighting knowledge:
Has mastered 127 different fighting styles (Ultimate Guide to the Dark Knight)

Let's approach this 2 different ways.

Arena #1 - Standard MMA Octagon (32ft across, 750 square feet)
Rules - No gadgets or shield, both fighters in standard fighting shorts

How the fight would go:

Cap is gonna land some good punches on the bat, and probably even try and get a grab in. But Batman is going to be able to counter most techniques used and eventually get Cap in some kind of lock and get him to tap out.

I think this is a long fight which is usually in Cap's favor because of his conditioning.  But Batman is patient not using much energy, he weights for the one small mistake Cap makes and then counters and forces a tap out.

Winner - Batman

Arena #2 - typical dark city alley
Rules - none

How the fight would go:

Yes Cap has his shield, but guess what Batman is strong and agile enough to catch the shield if thrown at him. Batman would spray Cap with knockout gas from the utility belt and fight is over.

This fight is very quick.

Winner - Batman


Check back soon for our next Marvel vs DC throwdown.

DC Comics - The New 52

Scott and I are the big comic collectors in KGS. Me a bit more than Scott, each week I read about 60% of the new comics that come out for the week. This is actually a pretty decent feat since there are probably 100 different new comics each week. I have about 10,000+ comics in my personal collection and have been collecting regularly since the mid 1970s.
Here is my take on the New DC 52:

Renumbering.
I hate when companies screw up the series numbering or start series numbering back at issue #1. It’s a big gimmick that affects the long time collectors and store owners in a major way. But the big two companies (Marvel and DC) have been doing it for so long now I am polarized to it. In fact, this complete relaunch of DC may be a genius move. With the announcement that DC is going day and date with new comic digital releases this is the perfect time to relaunch all titles with a new number 1. This way the digital collectors can collect all of the issues as well as the ‘true’ collectors who will be sticking with the physical paper. The numbering system is antiquated and with all the gimmicks done in the past the numbers just aren’t true numbers. Even Action Comics numbering is skewed because it went weekly for some time in the 1990s which artificially elevates your numbers.

New costumes.
Maybe my biggest problem with the New 52. I am hating the new Superman costume. How can they change the iconic Superman costume so much? It even looks like they gave Kal-El an armored outfit. What is that? My hopes are that many of these early images of costumes will be changing before the finished product comes out in September. They have already drastically changed the costume of Wonder Woman from the original pictures that were released. I love some of the changes, I love the fact that they are modernizing some costumes making them more like costumes found in some top selling video games like Arkham Asylum (aka Harley Quinns new look) but you can only go so far. This is the biggest factor that I will be looking at come September and will be a main deciding factor if I stick with a book or not.

Better Stories.
There have been no great comic book stories recently. Ok I lied a little bit; the most recent DC Epic FLASHPOINT is some of the best comic book story telling I have read in probably 10 or 15 years. DC has told its writers there is no more 5 or 6 comic book story arcs (perfect size for trades). If you have a good story and it is only enough to fill 2 comics then run with it. I love this concept. I hate knowing that ok I am reading part 4 of a story so I know they are going to start wrapping it up since the trade will only hold 1 or 2 more issues. Or even worse when they stretch a story that could have been told in 3 issues to 6 just so it is enough to fill a trade.
Along with this new edict comes another new concept I have always been against. Different issues of universe related comics taking place at different times. I have always been a fan of continuity. If it is winter in Batman then it should be winter in Superman. Well along with the better story format DC has announced that some books will take place outside of the ‘standard’ time. Justice League and Action are two books that will focus on the past. So everything you see in these two books would have taken place well before the happenings of the regular monthly Superman, Batman, or Green Lantern titles. Again I’m gonna give this a chance because I have heard some really great things about the Justice League book and I am very anxious to read it.

In Summary:
It remains to be seen what happens with the New DC 52. We know in September there will be 52 new #1 issues for DC Comics. I have added all of these #1s to my pull list at my local comic book store. Will I be getting every issue #2. No, I doubt it. There are already 2 or 3 comics out of this 52 that I have no interest whatsoever in. Will I get more DC titles than I currently get? Yes. Does it seem like this relaunch of DC is going to work? Stay tuned. I do know the local comic store (Comic Store West) has seen customers adding more DC comics to their pull list then they normally do, so initially it seems like it’s a win/win for all. We will wait and see what happens 3, 6, 12 months down the road.
I am also planning a special weekly podcast to review each of the 13 #1s that come out each week of September. Stay tuned to this website for more information.

Marvel Pokes Fun At DC Reset

Marvel attempted to slight DC in this month's Marvel Previews. DC, for better or worse, is resetting all 52 titles in its DC Universe line-up back to #1. That's right - Action Comics (which is over 900 issues) and Detective Comics (which is almost at 900 issues) are going to be rest to #1. More on that in a little bit.

In the latest Marvel Comics Previews magazine, at the bottom of each solicitation they put a little burst that announced their title was still retaining its original numbering. For example, Uncanny X-Men is on issue #543 so the burst said, "STILL #543." What's funny is Marvel DID reset some of its Ultimate lineup this month to #1. Some or the bursts are pretty lame such as New Avengers, "Still #16!" WOW! 16! REALLY? How long did it take you to get to #16!?!?!? Wait - only 16 months? Lame. To make things a little worse, Marvel has done plenty of its own number resetting in the past. Most of its major titles have reset to #1 at some point as a sales gimmick. Once fans reacted poorly, they just simply resumed numbering as it would have been if they hadn't reset the numbers. For example, Amazing Spider-Man reset to #1 after issue 441. It then ran for 58 issues. 441 + 58 = 499. So with the next issue Marvel resumed original numbering with issue #500. The whole thing was stupid.

Now, I understand that DC's event is a little more logical than that, but I'd still be really angry if I was a fan. Apparently, this is all going to tie into events during the Flashpoint storyline. Perhaps something happens to alter reality in the past? I don't know. But the actual continuity of the characters is going to be changed in major ways, throwing out some of the old continuity. As a fan, that just stinks. That's why I quit collecting! You mean I've spent thousands of dollars investing into your world and you're just going to throw out all of that story history for a sales gimmick? Get real. When are comic companies going to learn that a "reboot" or "reset" angers long time fans and offers a great place to get out while the continuity train stops.

We'll see how it works out for DC but don't be surprised if you see their numbering reset to the original numbering on those books within a few years.

Adventures of Wonder Woman Costume Revealed

I think every fanboy has... *ahem* fond memories of Lynda Carter's classic Wonder Woman. So much time has gone by since the original Wonder Woman show was aired that the original costume has entrenched itself in our collective geek consciousness. So when the studio released the first pictures of Adrianne Palacki in the new Wonder Woman costume for the upcoming Adventures of Wonder Woman, it was sure to cause a fuss. Fans are split on what to think. I, myself, think it looks a little to plastic-y and manufactured. A little too, "Hollywood." I actually like some of the pics floating around on the web showing a more gritty, realistic Wonder Woman outfit such as the one below next to Palacki. But lighthearted or serious, I just hope the studio invests the same energy they put into Smallville.  

KGS Podcast - Bonus Episode - Sam Reviews Some of The Top Comic Trades

KGS Podcast - Bonus Episode - Sam Reviews Some of The Top Comic Trades

Local Comic Store Owner Becomes Zombie... or Does He?

One of the owners of another York-area comic book store, *content deleted*, was recently featured on the cover of The Last Zombie. The blonde guy on the right side of the comic was modeled after Ned Senft. It's actually a very close resemblance.

How did he get onto the cover of The Last Zombie #3? Either the creators REALLY like him or REALLY hate him. I'm guessing the prior since Ned is such a good guy. Either way it was a great way for the creators to get their comic promoted heavily in at least a few comic stores!

So what's the deal? Is Ned a Zombie? If so, how did he become a zombie? You'll have to read the issue to find out. But I think the bigger questions is, when will we see the local comic creators turn Brett into a vampire or transform Brian into a *gasp* human being?