Wednesday, March 25, 2009

Waiting for Wednesday, Issue 5

Before I launch into this week's Waiting, a loyal Exfanding reader sent me an awesome link this morning. Check out this story, about Spider-Man rescuing a child in Bangkok. Pretty cool, right?

And, with that as our preface, let's get right into Issue 5 of the long-running, and wildly popular, Waiting for Wednesday. Here's what I'm most looking forward to buying, then allowing to pile up in stacks (higher than most people) on my floor.

First up, Marvel's Dark Reign tie-in issues. Now, this being the last shipping week of the month (usually the heaviest shipment week, if you haven't noticed) Marvel releases five--count 'em!--five Dark Reign tie-ins. Well, actually, there might be more than that, but there are five that are on my pull list for today.

And, for the uninitiated, Dark Reign is the name of the "non-event" that has been spawned from the very-much-of-an-event Secret Invasion storyline, where Skrulls attacked the Marvel Universe. And Dark Reign has, so far at least, been quite enjoyable (as was Secret Invasion, I might add).

So, in no particular order, the five tie-ins today are: New Avengers 51, Mighty Avengers 23, Ms. Marvel 37, Thunderbolts 130, and the not-so-subtly-titled Dark Reign Elektra, issue 1.

Out of these, I'm most looking forward to New Avengers, as it has probably been my favorite Marvel title of the past few years. It's written by Brian Bendis, with art by Billy Tan.

New Avengers cover This issue centers around Doctor Strange, and here's Marvel's solicitation pitch:

WHO IS THE NEW SORCERER SUPREME? Doctor Strange has failed as the Master of the Mystic Arts and all the other mystic characters are the heir apparent. Strange comes to the New Avengers for help as the mystic battle royale begins. Plus, how can the Avengers trust Spider-Man if he won't take his mask off?

And, for those of you out there going, wait, hold up, didn't Spidey unmask in Civil War?

Um...let's just go with it, okay?

Anycontinuityfixes, let's move on to the next, shall we? Second on my list for today is a...let's say...bizarre...book from Dark Horse. Written by My Chemical Romance lead singer Gerard Way, and illustrated by Gabriel Ba, The Umbrella Academy is one of those series that's just tough to classify.

The first volume, which is out in trade for those of you who might be interested, was strange, and entertaining, and well written, and the art was stunning. Here's the product description from Amazon, about the first series:

Gerard Way, of My Chemical Romance, makes his comics writing debut in this outrageous superhero epic that Grant Morrison called "An ultraviolet psychedelic sherbet bomb of wit and ideas.

The superheroes of the 21st century are here at last..." In an inexplicable, worldwide event, forty-seven extraordinary children were spontaneously born by women who'd previously shown no signs of pregnancy. Millionaire inventor Reginald Hargreeves adopted seven of the children; when asked why, his only explanation was, "To save the world."

These seven children form The Umbrella Academy, a dysfunctional family of superheroes with bizarre powers. Their first adventure at the age of ten pits them against an erratic and deadly Eiffel Tower, piloted by the fearsome zombie-robot Gustave Eiffel. Nearly a decade later, the team disbands, but when Hargreeves unexpectedly dies, these disgruntled siblings reunite just in time to save the world once again.


If that sounds like the kind of crazy that's up your alley, then by all means go buy the trade. You won't regret it. And, as for this week's Umbrella Academy, we see the release of volume two, issue five, entitled Dallas, in which our heroes travel back in time to prevent nuclear Armageddon. Here's the cover image:

Umbrella Academy cover And, finally, we come to the last pick of the week. And it's not a comic, but rather a book about comics. Well, okay, it's not really that, either. Instead, it's a book about comics prices. The 39th edition of the Overstreet Comic Book Price Guide hits store shelves today.

Overstreet Comic Book Price Guide coverThe Overstreet Guide is a comic book staple, and even though I haven't bought more than a couple of back issues in the past year or so, I'll be buying a copy of this today. The book comes in both hardcover and soft, with the HC carrying a $35.00 price tag, while the SC will run you $29.95.

An indispensable book for anyone interested in current market values, conditions, and news, the Overstreet Guide is a book every comics dork should own, even if you buy one every few years.

Well, sir, that's it for my list this week. What are you waiting for?

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