The Shipping Forecast for June 12th

Dear sweet lord, it's the jackpot! New Jessica Abel! New Paul Pope! New Paul Dini! The return of the HOPELESS SAVAGES! And a sumptuous art feast from the Ultimate line! Some days, it feels so good to be a comics fan.
10 June 2002

The Shipping Forecast is Ninth Art's pick of the best and most notable new releases hitting comic stores each week, courtesy of the fishing crew at the Ninth Art lighthouse. Shipping details come courtesy of Diamond. Check out the Diamond website for the latest information, as the list is subject to change.

PLYMOUTH PICKS:

HOPELESS SAVAGES: GROUND ZERO #1 (Oni Press)
With THE OSBOURNES being such a success, Jen Van Meter's new HOPELESS SAVAGES story has uncanny timing. A documentary crew has arrived to film the Hopeless-Savage family for a week, and poor Zero's about to learn the downside to being on "reality television" when she makes a confession on camera that she absolutely, positively, cannot let air. Add in school problems, one of the most deranged families in comics, and high explosives and, well, you can see the fun that's about to start. If that's not enough, a trade paperback of the original, Eisner-nominated HOPELESS SAVAGES mini-series ships this week as well (see below). Let the fun begin!

ARTBABE PRESENTS LA PERDIDA #2 (Fantagraphics)
Jessica Abel's first issue of LA PERDIDA earned her a Harvey Award and an Eisner nomination; now, thankfully, we're about to get the next segment of the story. Abel's tale of a young woman travelling to Mexico City and falling in love with the country instantly enthralled this fisherman due to Abel's ability to make Carla's affection for Mexico City seem real and believable, without disguising the downside of the city or the rift that is steadily growing between her and her companions. Add in Abel's fantastic art to bring the story to life and you've got a real winner here.

FASTNET PICKS:

100% #1 (DC Vertigo)
Ah. Paul Pope's doing a series for Vertigo again, and all's right with the world. Pope's dystopian science fiction and distinctive ugly/beautiful art and design are utterly unlike anything else around. This series weaves together three love stories in the bars, clubs and illegal boxing dens of the 'perversely safe' Manhattan of 2038. Pope's using greytoned black-and-white for this series, which should make it easier on the eye than his previous HEAVY LIQUID miniseries. The title, according to Pope, means that this is '100 per cent real', despite its sci-fi trappings. I've been looking forward to this even more than THE FILTH - for me, it's the biggest sign that Vertigo has got itself back on the right track.

FABLES #2 (DC Vertigo)
The first issue of FABLES set the scene for this hard-boiled private eye story set among exiled fairy-tale characters in a very different New York from Paul Pope's. Bill Willingham's light touch and witty dialogue are spot-on for this story; he manages to completely avoid the 'cutesiness' that fairy-tale subject matter can fall into with other writers. Willingham's using the original, visceral sources for characters like Snow White and Prince Charming - these characters have teeth. It's a fun ride, and Lan Medina's art is working well (although I have to admit that I'm looking forward to Mark Buckingham's art on the next story arc).

HOPELESS SAVAGES VOL 1 (Oni Press)
The folks at Oni just always get it right, don't they? A prompt transfer to TPB for Jen van Meter's charming punkoid family saga, and full marks for releasing it in the same week as the first issue of the new series. Oni has chosen to release this in a digest format, and the smaller size suits Christine Norrie and Chynna Clugston-Major's artwork well. And as an added bonus, the collection adds the four-colour stories that premiered on Oni's website.

FISHER PICKS:

ULTIMATE SPIDER-MAN SPECIAL #1 (Ultimate Marvel)
Begin salivating... now! The artists on this book include P Craig Russell, Dave Gibbons, Barry Windsor Smith, Scott Morse, Michael Golden, Mike Avon Oeming, Dan Brereton, David Mack and John Romita Sr, all creating portraits or telling tales of the important people in Spider-Man's life. These are the artists that never got the chance to tell their ULTIMATE TEAM-UP story with writer Brian Michael Bendis, so in a way this is the consolation prize for Spidey fans, but heavens to Betsy, what a consolation prize! All these creators in one book (did I mention Phil Jiminez, Ashley Wood, Matt Wagner, Sean Phillips and Zander Cannon?) could be enough to make your head explode. Artgasm!

OK, you can stop salivating now.

SABERTOOTH: MARY SHELLEY OVERDRIVE #1 (Marvel Universe)
What the hell kind of a name for an x-book is that? Well, it's the name OBERGEIST creator Dan Jolley has picked for his look inside the heart of the beast. Murder, a mysterious blonde, and a violent psychopath? So far, so noir - but there's no gallant hero here. The psychopath is the lead, and with a group of indestructible soldiers on his path, you can probably expect a bit of hardcore action thrown into the mix as well (this is a PG+ book). Greg Scott's art is unexplored territory for me, but if he gets it right, this could be the best X-Men miniseries we've seen in a good long while. (But, y'know, valiant stab with that Icons thing, guys.)

GERMAN BIGHT PICKS:

GIRL GENIUS #6 (Studio Foglio)
Slam-bang clean-cut steampunk fantasy fun from self-styled "gentleman pornographer" Phil Foglio and his lovely wife Kaja. In a world where mad inventors are pretty much aristocracy and the very finest are possessed by the elusive "spark", Agatha Clay has become mixed up in political intrigues that run deeper than she can possibly imagine. This series started out as a black and white, but has recently moved to colour, which worried me a little but, I have to admit, it actually suits the story and art rather well. This book may come out on a frustrating quarterly schedule, but the story's pacing is such that the last issue is still fresh in your memory when the next one turns up. Machines, madmen and a cute heroine with glasses. What's not to like?

LOUIS RIEL #7 (Drawn & Quarterly)
Chester Brown has been turning out comics that are odd, brilliant, disturbing, funny, or any combination of the above for many years now. LOUIS RIEL is his take on Canadian history, chronicling the life of the eponymous revolutionary. This is an odd work, with extensive footnotes in which Brown frequently admits to taking liberties with history to further the flow of the story and then relates the recorded history. There is no good jumping-in point at this stage in the series, but maybe if I intrigue you enough you'll feel the urge to pick up the collection whenever it appears. Brown has a unique and elegant art style and is, for what my opinion's worth, one of the best creators in comics. Do me a favour - try one of his works soon.

MUTANT, TEXAS: TALES OF SHERIFF IDA RED #1 (Oni Press)
If Paul Dini doesn't watch himself he may wind up having more fun than is legally allowable. Each new comic he's done for Oni so far has been progressively more playful and ideas-packed than the last. Now that he's built his perfect sandbox with the characters from JINGLE BELLE it looks as though he's dug himself in for an extended session of fun and games with one of the supporting cast from that book. Ida Red is the super-powered sheriff of a mutant-inhabited town in Texas, known, prosaically, as Mutant. Going by the short stories that contained Ida's previous appearances, we're in for a fun little package with influences that touch (but not too heavily) on Pogo Possum and Kurtzman, among many others. Doubtlessly, J Bone is going to have as much fun with the art as Dini will with script, so expect a good time for all.

VIKING PICKS:

PUNISHER #13 (Marvel Knights)
The boys are, as it were, back in town. Garth Ennis and Steve Dillon return to PUNISHER this issue. If you aren't tired of the Ennis/Dillon/Castle formula - some are, some aren't (I'm not) - then this one's for you. I'd assume we can expect more guns, more explosions, and more giant men with breasts. If you haven't tried Ennis' PUNISHER out yet, it's not exactly brain surgery to work out the continuity, so it wouldn't hurt to give it a try.

Comics shipping in the US on June 12th:

DARK HORSE

OCT010028 ANGEL VOL 2 #4 (Of 4) $2.99
OCT010029 ANGEL VOL 2 PHOTO CVR #4 (Of 4) $2.99
APR020053 BLADE OF THE IMMORTAL #69: BEASTS (PART 4 OF 7) (MR) $2.99
MAR020067 BLADE OF THE IMMORTAL: SECRETS TP (MR) (C: 2) $16.95
APR020024 FORT PROPHET OF THE UNEXPLAINED #1 (Of 4) $2.99

DC COMICS

APR020477 100% #1 (Of 5) (MR) $5.95
APR020428 ADVENTURES OF SUPERMAN #605 $2.25
APR020412 BATGIRL #29 $2.50
APR020416 BATMAN: LEGENDS OF THE DARK KNIGHT #156 $2.25
APR020432 DEADMAN #7 $2.50
APR020487 FABLES #2 (MR) $2.50
APR020435 GREEN LANTERN #151 $2.25
APR020424 HARLEY QUINN #21 $2.25
APR020490 HUNTER: THE AGE OF MAGIC #12 (MR) $2.50
APR020440 IMPULSE #87 $2.50
APR020446 JSA: DARKNESS FALLS TP (RES) $19.95
APR020425 NIGHTWING #70 $2.25
APR020453 POWER COMPANY #5 $2.50
APR020472 RESIDENT EVIL: CODENAME: VERONICA VOL 1 TP $14.95
APR020475 ROBO DOJO #5 (Of 6) $2.95
APR020466 SCOOBY-DOO #61 $1.99
APR020455 SUICIDE SQUAD #10 $2.50
APR020496 TRANSMETROPOLITAN #57 (MR) $2.50

IMAGE

FEB021540 BLOOD LEGACY: THE NOVEL $6.95
JAN021551 DAWN: RETURN OF THE GODDESS LTD ED HC (MR) $39.95
APR021418 GI JOE #7 $2.95
APR021421 IMAGE INTRODUCES DOG SOLDIERS $2.95
MAR021370 MIDNIGHT NATION #12 (Of 12) (RES) (Note Price) $2.95
MAR021385 RED STAR BECK CVR #9 $2.95
MAR021384 RED STAR GOSSETT CVR #9 $2.95
MAR021394 WITCHBLADE #56 $2.50

MARVEL

APR021760 BLACK PANTHER #45 (Note Price) $2.50
APR021714 BLACK WIDOW: PALE LITTLE SPIDER #3 (MR) $2.99
APR021737 CABLE #106 $2.25
APR021747 ELEKTRA #11 $2.99
APR021761 INCREDIBLE HULK #41 $2.25
APR021762 INFINITY ABYSS #1 (OF 6) $2.99
APR021763 IRON MAN #56 (Note Price) $2.25
APR021764 ORDER #5 $2.25
APR021750 PUNISHER #13 $2.99
APR021738 SABERTOOTH: MARY SHELLEY OVERDRIVE #1 (Of 4) $2.99
APR021726 SPIDER-MAN: BLUE #2 (Of 6) $3.50
APR021723 SPIDER-MAN: GET KRAVEN #1 (Of 5) $2.99
MAR021658 ULTIMATE SPIDER-MAN SPECIAL #1 $3.50
APR021739 WOLVERINE #177 $2.25
APR021740 X-TREME X-MEN #14 $2.99

OTHER PUBLISHERS:

MAR022348 ADVENTURES OF BARRY WEEN BOY GENIUS: GORILLA WARFARE VOL 4 TP $8.95
FEB022460F ARTBABE PRESENTS LA PERDIDA #2 (Of 4) (MR) $4.95
MAR021969 BETTY & VERONICA #176 $1.99
MAR021971 BETTY & VERONICA: DOUBLE DIGEST #107 $3.29
APR022594 BIG O PART 1 #5 (Of 5) $3.50
FEB022378F DORK TOWER #18 (RES) $2.99
APR022593 DRAGONBALL Z PART 5 #6 (Of 12) $2.95
APR022155 ELVIRA #110 $2.50
JAN011950 FALL $3.95
APR022183 FIRST #20 $2.95
APR022192 FORGE #3 $9.95
APR022001 GIRL GENIUS #6 (RES) $3.95
APR022455 HOPELESS SAVAGES: GROUND ZERO #1 (Of 4) $2.95
APR022456 HOPELESS SAVAGES VOL 1 TP $13.95
APR021956 JUST A PILGRIM: GARDEN OF EDEN #4 (Of 4) $2.99
APR022123 LADY DEATH REIMAGINED #1 $2.99
APR022218 LOUIS RIEL #7 $2.95
NOV012368 LOVE & ROCKETS VOL 2 #4 (MR) $3.95
APR022576 MAGICAL JOURNEY POKEMON PART 7 #4 (Of 4) (C: 3) $4.95
APR022598 MEDABOTS PART 2 #1 (Of 4) $2.75
MAR022346 MUTANT, TEXAS: TALES OF SHERIFF IDA RED #1 (Of 4) $2.95
APR022185 MYSTIC #25 $2.95
MAR022389 PETE THE POD POSTAL WORKER #11 (RES) $2.95
APR022577 RANMA 1/2 PART 11 #4 (Of 11) $2.95
MAR021923 RUBBER NECKER #1 (MR) $3.50
APR022178 SLAYERS SPECIAL #6 $2.95
MAR021977 SONIC THE HEDGEHOG #111 $1.99
MAR022219 STUFF OF DREAMS (MR) $3.95
APR022607 VAGABOND PART 1 #8 (MR) $4.95
APR022606 VAGABOND VOL 2 TP $12.95
FEB022199 VAMPI #18 REG ED $2.99
FEB022200I VAMPI #18 DLX ED $9.95
APR022225 WARLANDS AGE OF ICE #6 $2.95
APR022184 WAY OF THE RAT #2 $2.95

The 9A Lighthouse Crew are Trafalgar, Shannon, Fastnet, Plymouth, Viking, German Bight, Finisterre, Forties, Dogger, Cromarty and Fisher.

Ninth Art endorses the principle of Ideological Freeware. The author permits distribution of this article by private individuals, on condition that the author and source of the article are clearly shown, no charge is made, and the whole article is reproduced intact, including this notice.