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.

FISHER PICKS:

KING DAVID (DC Vertigo)
Kyle Baker's comic book works are disappointingly few and far between. In regular comics, the most he's ever really done is pencils on THE SHADOW and inks on a few issues of WEB OF SPIDER-MAN and, yes, TRANSFORMERS. These days he makes his living as a freelance illustrator, but where he seems to have the most fun is with his occasional comedy books, as shown by the brilliant media satire of THE COWBOY WALLY SHOW and the acerbic urban surrealism of WHY I HATE SATURN. Now he brings his superb penmanship and unrivalled comic timing to that redoubtable best seller The Bible, with his faithful (yet doubtless hysterical) retelling of the David and Goliath myth. As far as I'm concerned, this is the most exciting new comic so far this year.

THING & SHE HULK: THE LONG NIGHT (Marvel)
Cashing in on the success of Bryan Hitch's THE ULTIMATES, Marvel has dusted off this inventory tale featuring Hitch as both artist and co-writer (with Ivan Reis). Be warned, though, that this is early Hitch, when he hadn't quite developed the extraordinary clarity and sense of scale that he has today. Also, the story features Dragon Man, so it's sure to be a little hokey. But at three dollars, it should still be worth a look.

OUTLAW NATION #19 (DC Vertigo)
In the history of the forecast, I've probably recommended this book more than any other. Yes, probably even more times than X-FORCE. The reason for that is simple; this American pulp saga has been my favourite Vertigo ongoing since SHADE THE CHANGING MAN. Unfortunately, the PREACHER comparisons and the decision to forgo traditional story arcs prevented this title from finding its audience, which is especially disappointing in the current political climate, when its cynical, anti-establishment tone is particularly welcome. Never mind. At least you'll now be able to pick up the entire series in the back issue bins for a pittance. Plus, the book brought two amazing talents to the world's attentions, so keep an eye out for future works by series pencillers Goran Parlov and Goran Sudzuka, the natural heirs to the superb and much-missed Edvin Biukovic.

PLYMOUTH PICKS:

BATMAN/DEATHBLOW: AFTER THE FIRE #1 (DC Comics)
At a casual glance, this seems like a must-miss. Batman and Deathblow? Isn't one of them dead? But then you start looking a little closer and suddenly it's all so clear. Written by Brian Azzarello. Gorgeous art by Lee Berjemo and Timothy Bradstreet. Painted colours by Grant Goleash. Even the story sounds like fun; it's a team-up book where the characters never actually meet. Deathblow's story is set ten years in the past, Batman's in the present, as the two go up against a common foe. This is going to be a book that takes everyone by surprise. No one expects the Spanish Inquisition... or, in this case, a team-up book that looks this exciting. There's even a mini preview online if you still aren't convinced.

DAREDEVIL #31 (Marvel)
There was a lot of trepidation about Bendis's return to DAREDEVIL, and rightfully so. His previous story had been notable mostly because of the gorgeous art by David Mack; strip it away and you ended up with an overly padded, drawn out, run-of-the-mill tale. That hasn't been the case at all with Bendis and Maleev's current storyline, though. DAREDEVIL at its best mixes the fantastic with the equally dangerous mundane, and that's what Bendis is doing. The Kingpin's empire of corruption is being used to great effect, and the storyline's been nothing short of gripping. Forget Bendis's earlier effort and Bob Gale's storyline; let's see a collection of this storyline, and soon.

GERMAN BIGHT PICKS:

COURTNEY CRUMRIN & THE NIGHT THINGS #1 (Oni Press)
Bloody Oni. I blush to think of the amount of money that I'd save if these people didn't exist. COURTNEY CRUMRIN creator Ted Naifeh also works on GLOOMCOOKIE with Serena Valentino over at Slave Labor. Due to an unfortunate and irrational prejudice, I've seen the latter title and, crying "Goth", run away to a place decorated with earth tones and not smelling of clove cigarettes. But now Naifeh's got something coming out under the Oni imprint, so I have to have it. I can't help it. They must put some addictive substance in the paper, which we absorb through our fingers. Damn them. The cover looks lovely, and though GLOOMCOOKIE is too gloomy for my tastes, Naifeh can draw spooky stuff damn well, so it'll be interesting to see how he handles a script. I'm expecting this to be a bit like MONSTERS INC., but for much, much bigger kids.

KING DAVID (DC Vertigo)
I'm so happy to see this, I really am. As far back as last summer, this was one of the things that I was looking forward to seeing in 2002. As m' respected colleague already mentioned, anything from the pen (and, increasingly, hard drive) of Kyle Baker is a reason for street parties. What's the appeal? Somehow Baker seems to put on the static page as much colour, energy, verve and imagination as you'd find in the best animation. Imagine Chuck Jones doing social satire (WHY I HATE SATURN, THE COWBOY WALLY SHOW) or noir (I DIE AT MIDNIGHT) or even a blend of noir and romance (YOU ARE HERE) and you're pretty close. Now imagine The Bible. By Chuck Jones! How could you resist this? All right thinking grown-ups should buy this book now. And why is it for adults only? Because we shouldn't forget that David was not only a great king, but also a randy sod who killed lots of people. In the best tradition of monarchs everywhere, really.

FASTNET PICKS:

THE ESTABLISHMENT #7 (DC Wildstorm)
Ian Edgington's Brit-tinged superhero series continues to impress in every way, apart from with regard to its sales figures. Now, maybe this is because you still think it's an AUTHORITY knock-off. It isn't. Maybe you were scared off because you thought it was similar to the ill-fated MONARCHY. It isn't. Maybe you thought you had to be British to get all the references and jokes. You don't. What we have here is a distinctive tale with quirky characters and wonderful and instantly recognisable art from Charlie Adlard. The continuing threads of the storyline are unravelling slowly, but at no point is it confusing. It's funny, and there are sparks of genuinely spooky weirdness in every issue. So go and buy it, and tell them the fishermen sent you.

LUCIFER #24 (DC Vertigo)
It's the end of the second year for this book, and it's going from strength to strength. The last story arc set Lucifer back to square one after miscalculating on a dodgy deal from the very first issue. Mike Carey has done a great job of pulling all the threads of the plot together - no mean feat, considering that included an Archangel's child, a sentient Tarot deck, numerous ghosts and demons, and a particularly acerbic lead character. All of this bodes well for his upcoming short stint on HELLBLAZER. This is a standalone issue, so it should form a good jumping-on point for anyone who hasn't been reading so far. If you like what you see, bear in mind that two trade paperbacks, DEVIL IN THE GATEWAY and the stunning CHILDREN AND MONSTERS, are already in print.

Comics shipping in the US on March 20th:

DARK HORSE

DEC010025 GROO DEATH AND TAXES #3 (Of 4) $2.99

DC COMICS

JAN020570 BATMAN DEATHBLOW AFTER THE FIRE #1 (Of 3) $5.95
JAN020567 BATMAN GOTHAM KNIGHTS #27 $2.50
JAN020563 BIRDS OF PREY #41 $2.50
JAN020619 ESTABLISHMENT #7 $2.50
JAN020621 GEN 13 #75 $2.50
JAN020591 HAVEN THE BROKEN CITY #4 (Of 9) $2.50
JAN020598 JSA #34 $2.50
JAN020640 KING DAVID SC (MR) $19.95
JAN020641 LUCIFER #24 (MR) $2.50
JAN020649 MAD ABOUT SUPER-HEROES TP $9.95
JAN020624 MONARCHY #12 $2.50
JAN020603 ORION #24 $2.50
JAN020642 OUTLAW NATION #19 (MR) $2.50
JAN020618 POWERPUFF GIRLS #25 $1.99
JAN020577 ROBIN #100 (Note Price) $3.50
JAN020584 SUPERGIRL #68 $2.25
JAN020580 SUPERMAN THE MAN OF STEEL #124 $2.25
JAN020606 TITANS #39 $2.50

IMAGE

DEC011501 BANISHED KNIGHTS ALVIN LEE CVR #2 $2.95
DEC015113 BANISHED KNIGHTS PAT LEE CVR #2 $2.95
DEC011510 LAST SHOT #4 $2.95
AUG011114 SPAWN #115 $2.50

MARVEL

DEC011853 AVENGERS DEFENDERS WAR TP (C: 2) $14.95
JAN021895 DAREDEVIL #31 $2.99
JAN021880 NEW X-MEN #124 $2.25
JAN021908 ORDER #2 $2.25
JAN021871 PETER PARKER SPIDER-MAN #41 $2.25
JAN021901 THING & SHE HULK THE LONG NIGHT $2.99
JAN021905 THOR #47 $2.25
DEC011798 ULTIMATE SPIDER-MAN HC $34.95
JAN021886 ULTIMATE X-MEN #16 $2.25
JAN021887 ULTIMATE X-MEN COLL ED #1 $3.99

OTHER PUBLISHERS

DEC012544 AMELIA RULES #5 $2.95
JAN022219 BETTY & VERONICA #173 $1.99
JAN022220 BETTY & VERONICA DOUBLE DIGEST #105 $3.29
JAN022703 CERES CELESTIAL LEGEND PART 2 #4 (Of 6) $2.95
JAN022560 COURTNEY CRUMRIN & THE NIGHT THINGS #1 (Of 4) $2.95
JAN022352 CRUX #12 $2.95
JAN022699 INU YASHA PART 6 #11 (Of 15) $2.95
JAN022567 KISSING CHAOS #8 (Of 8) $2.50
JAN022644F KODOCHA #3 (Of 5) $2.99
JAN022295 LADY DEATH JADE #1 $2.99
JAN022638F LOVE HINA #2 (Of 4) $2.99
AUG011990 LUBA #6 (MR) $3.50
JAN022645F MARMALADE BOY #4 (Of 5) $2.99
JAN022291 PURGATORI GOD HUNTER #1 (Of 2) $2.99
JAN022353 SCION #22 $2.95
JAN022227 SONIC THE HEDGEHOG #108 $1.99
DEC012086 STRANGERS IN PARADISE VOL III #47 $2.95
JAN022583 ZENDRA TP VOL 1 $17.95
JAN022690 ZOIDS #1 $5.99

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

This article is Ideological Freeware. The author grants permission for its reproduction and redistribution 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.