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:

IN THE SHADOW OF EDGAR ALLAN POE HC (DC Vertigo)
Edgar Allan Poe's life - and beyond - has always been shrouded in the same air of mystery and darkness that was a hallmark of his writing. Now, novelist Jonathon Scott Fuqua (THE REAPPEARANCE OF SAM WEBBER) has taken the two and merged them into one, as a researcher finds Poe's lost diaries and tries to determine if Poe really was, in fact, tormented by supernatural beings for most of his life. With atmospheric photographic art by Stephen John Phillips and Steven Parke (I, PAPARAZZI), IN THE SHADOW OF EDGAR ALLAN POE promises to be dark and creepy; just in time to arm yourself for Halloween.

ELEKTRA LIVES AGAIN HC (Marvel)
Never mind that some editors failing to understand ELEKTRA LIVES AGAIN meant that we had to suffer through the character's restoration to life and running around in cringeworthy stories written by Peter Milligan (what happened?), Brian Michael Bendis (everyone can have an off day), and the Top Cow writing staff (the less talked about, the better). No, what's important about ELEKTRA LIVES AGAIN is that it's a wonderfully powerful story written and drawn by Frank Miller at the height of his creative powers, with absolutely gorgeous painted colours by Lynn Varley. Breathtakingly strong, ELEKTRA LIVES AGAIN talks about the power of letting go and putting the past to rest. Hopefully Marvel's new edition will have it in the nice oversized edition it was first published in; Elektra was never handled so gracefully as this.

KISSING CHAOS TP (Oni Press)
When it was originally published, KISSING CHAOS caught notice with its digest size, lower page count, and higher frequency of publication. When all the buzz is gone, though, you're still left with a slick rollercoaster ride involving three teens, a murder, and a mystery that could destroy them all. Arthur Dela Cruz's debut as a solo creator was nothing short of outstanding, and now it's all gathered together under a single cover. With a new KISSING CHAOS mini-series just around the corner, now's the perfect time to give KISSING CHAOS a whirl.

DOGGER PICKS:

LONE WOLF & CUB VOL 25: PERHAPS IN DEATH TP (Dark Horse)
Into the closing stages, and utterly gripping. Not only is this translation of the classic Japanese series (in the original format, which is a huge improvement over the older American-sized translations) the best value for money comic on the market right now, it's got a pretty credible shot at being the just plain best comic on the market right now. I know it's very late in the game to be recommending this, but all the previous volumes are still on the shelf, waiting for you to buy them, and at this price, you can afford one or two a month, can't you?

TRANSMETROPOLITAN #60 (DC Vertigo)
And another pick for the end of the series - the final issue of Warren Ellis and Darrick Robertson's political satire is finally on the shelves, the epilogue to the rest of the series. Again, the early volumes of this series are currently available as collected editions, and there's no reason to think that DC won't collect the whole thing over the next year or so. It's been uneven in places, but on he whole this has been one of my favourite series for the last five years - it's shocked me, made me laugh out loud, and, just sometimes, it's made me think. If you don't at least go and check out the (cheap) BACK ON THE STREET collection of the first three issues, then you're doing yourself a disservice.

FISHER PICKS:

ROSETTA COMICS ANTHOLOGY GN (Alternative Comics)
ROSETTA, which should actually ship this week, is not going to win over any converts from mainstream readers. Anyone who resists the 'alternative' press because they think the art's too sketchy and the stories are too baffling will have all their prejudices confirmed. However, those of you who love the artistic intensity of the indie scene will find plenty of merit in this collection, including the latest installment of Megan Kelso's Ignatz award-winning ARTICHOKE TALES. Other highlights include David Choe's striking "Yoffee Toffee", Daniel Zezelj's beautiful "Jedan Dan (One Day)", Sara Varon's charming "Winter" and David Collier's fascinating "Bringing Up Fathers And Sons".

FANTASTIC FOUR: 1234 (Marvel Knights)
This series first came out back when people were still dumbstruck by the notion of Grant Morrison working on established Marvel characters. Now that the disbelief has waned, it's easier to judge whether this is the 'definitive' FF story that some people claimed it to be, or just one of Morrison's more indulgently incomprehensible superhero stories. For what it's worth, I initially thought it was too cold an approach to comics' first family, but on reflection it reads like a brilliant alternative vision of the FF, and one of the best presented depictions of Morrison's "mad, beautiful ideas", thanks to the superb artistry of Jae Lee and Jose Villarubbia.

FELIX THE CAT'S GREATEST HITS TP (Dark Horse)
I love Felix. He's like Mickey Mouse for people with taste and class. An iconic animation figure who got outgunned by the House of Mouse, he remains a design classic and a prince among cartoon cats. Kudos to Dark Horse, then, for providing fans with this first volume of the best comic strips. It's not just for those with an historical interest in the character - as the Dan DeCarlo cover suggests, this is a great book for kids. Though what the variant Todd McFarlane cover is meant to suggest, I can't imagine. Of course, this being Dark Horse, you can also buy a Felix coaster set, ornament and lunchbox.

Comics shipping in the US on September 25th:

DARK HORSE

JUL020029 BTVS #49: HELLMOUTH TO MOUTH (PART 3 OF 4) $2.99
JUL020030 BTVS #49: HELLMOUTH TO MOUTH (PART 3 OF 4) PHOTO CVR $2.99
JUN020024 FELIX THE CAT'S GREATEST HITS TP (C: 2) $9.95
JUN020035 LONE WOLF & CUB VOL 25: PERHAPS IN DEATH TP (MR) (C: 2 & 3) $9.95

DC COMICS

JUL020182 ACTION COMICS #795 $2.25
JUL020162 BATMAN #607 $2.25
JUL020168 BATMAN: DARK VICTORY TP $19.95
JUL020166 BATMAN: GOTHAM ADVENTURES #54 $2.25
JUL020212 CARTOON CARTOONS #13 $2.25
JUL020174 CATWOMAN #11 $2.50
JUL020238 CODENAME: KNOCKOUT #17 (MR) $2.75
JUL020220 DV8: NEIGHBORHOOD THREAT TP (MR) $14.95
JUL020242 FIGHT FOR TOMORROW #1 (Of 6) (MR) $2.50
JUL020191 FLASH #190 $2.25
JUN020481 HELLBLAZER #176 (RES) (MR) $2.75
JUL020247 IN THE SHADOW OF EDGAR ALLAN POE HC (MR) $24.95
JUL020196 JLA #72 $2.25
JUL020231 LEAGUE OF EXTRAORDINARY GENTLEMEN BOOK ONE TP $14.95
JUL020232 LEAGUE OF EXTRAORDINARY GENTLEMEN VOL II #3 (Of 6) $3.50
JUL020250 LUCIFER #30 (MR) $2.50
JUL020227 RESISTANCE #1 $2.95
JUL020207 TITANS #45 $2.75
JUL020253 TRANSMETROPOLITAN #60 (MR) $2.50
JUL025007 WILDCATS VERSION 3.0 #2 (MR) $2.95

IMAGE

MAY021161 ALONE IN THE DARK ONE SHOT SPECIAL $4.95
JUL021215 TOP COW CLASSICS MAGDALENA #1 $2.99
JUL021218 VIOLENT MESSIAHS LAMENTING PAIN RODRIGUEZ CVR #1 (Of 4) $2.95
JUL021219Z VIOLENT MESSIAHS LAMENTING PAIN TURNER CVR #1 (Of 4) PI

MARVEL

JUL021494 AGENT X #3 $2.25
JUL021480 AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #45 $2.25
JUL021516 AVENGERS #58 $2.25
JUL021512 CALL OF DUTY: THE BROTHERHOOD #4 (Of 6) $2.25
JUL021529 ELEKTRA LIVES AGAIN HC NEW PRTG (RES) (C: 2) $24.99
JUL021511 FANTASTIC FOUR #61 $2.25
JUN021718 FANTASTIC FOUR: 1234 TP (C: 2) $9.99
JUL021467 MIGHTY MARVEL POSTER ALEX ROSS ENCYCLOPEDIA (C: 4) $5.95
JUL021485 SPIDER-MAN TANGLED WEB #18 $2.99
JUL021500 WOLVERINE #181 $2.25

OTHER PUBLISHERS
JUN022010 (USE STAR16481) RED STAR VOL 2 NOKGORKA TP (MISPRINTED COPY $24.95
JUL021802E ARCHIES WEIRD MYSTERIES #24 $1.99
JUL021872E BART SIMPSON'S TREEHOUSE OF HORROR #8 $3.50
JUL022330E CERES, CELESTIAL LEGEND PART 3 #4 (Of 4) $3.50
JUL021948E CRUX #18 $2.95
JUL022173F DUNGEON #2 $2.95
JUL022151F DUNGEONS AND DRAGONS: BLACK AND WHITE #3 (Of 6) $2.99
JUN025039 EVERYTHING CAN BE BEATEN (MR) (PU#534) $3.95
JUL021871E FUTURAMA O-RAMA VOL 1 TP $12.95
JUL022335E INU YASHA VOL 12 TP $15.95
JUL022205E JASON & THE ARGOBOTS #2 (Of 4) $2.95
JUL021809E JUGHEAD WITH ARCHIE DIGEST #178 $2.19
JUL022197E KISSING CHAOS TP (MR) $17.95
AUG021941 NEGATION VOL 1 TP BOHICA $19.95
APR022271 NIGHTHUNTER #3 (Of 12) $3.75
JUL021811E PALS N GALS DOUBLE DIGEST #70 $3.29
JUL022200E QUEEN & COUNTRY VOL 2: MORNING STAR TP (MR) $8.95
JUL021761F ROSETTA COMICS ANTHOLOGY GN (MR) $19.95
JUL021956E ROUTE 666 #4 $2.95
JUL021812E SABRINA VOL 2 #37 $1.99
JUL021959E SCION #28 $2.95
JUN022238 SHIDIMA #6 $2.95
JUL021876F TAROT: WITCH OF THE BLACK ROSE #16 $2.95
JUL022360E ZOIDS #8 $5.95

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.