Welcome to the Shipping Forecast, Ninth Art's pick of the best and most notable new releases hitting comic stores each week.

COMIC OF THE WEEK:

LITTLE SCROWLIE #1 (Slave Labor Graphics)
Being picked up by SLG means that Jennifer Feinberg and Todd Meister's charming, slightly goofy comic should get the wider audience it deserves. I was lucky enough to pick up copies of LITTLE SCROWLIE's first two issues when it was first self-published by Feinberg and Meister in 1999. It's an odd tale about a trust fund goth in the Bay area, her friends, her titular cat and assorted evil thingies (such as a fashion designer). The writing's wry, and the art reminded me of psychedelic concert posters, largely due to the exceedingly quirky lettering style. Slave Labor is republishing the first four self-published issues with new covers, and will be following it up with all-new material. [German Bight]

ALSO THIS WEEK:

HEROBEAR AND THE KID VOL 1: INHERITANCE TP (Astonish Comics)
I've been raving about this series for months, but like many self-published comics it's been slow getting to the shelves, and it's not always been easy to find once it's gotten there. Now, though, the first five-issue arc is available in paperback (and in a limited edition hardback), so you can find out what I've been raving about. This tale of Tyler and the superhuman polar bear he inherits from his grandfather is very much a children's book, told in a distinctive animation style by creator Mike Kunkel. Like the best children's tales, though, it's also immensely appealing to grown ups - especially grown ups who want to recapture a little childhood magic. [Fisher]

DEVIL'S FOOTPRINTS #1 (Dark Horse)
Over the years, Dark Horse has quietly carved out a quality comic book horror niche, lead by such luminaries as HELLBOY, ALIENS, and BUFFY. With DEVIL'S FOOTPRINTS, Dark Horse seems ready to add another winner to the fold. A story of occult sins of the father visiting the children is a great hook, and the short story in Dark Horse's REVEAL anthology showed that Scott Allie and Paul Lee know exactly how to make comic books creepy. Judging by their past track records (editing HELLBOY and drawing THE DREAMING), Allie and Lee are bound to delight the readers. [Plymouth]

SERAPHIC FEATHER: TARGET ZONE TP (Dark Horse)
What do you get when you mix "seeds" of alien technology, mankind's moon colony, reincarnations of deceased loved ones, telekinesis, mysterious assassins, and beautifully designed robots? Why, it has to be Hiroyuki Utatane's SERAPHIC FEATHER. At a casual glance it's easy to dismiss the story and focus on Utatane's gorgeous designs that don't so much move, but rather glide across the page. The closer you look, though, the more you'll see all these different story elements come together in simple elegance. [Plymouth]

CHEAT #1 (Oni Press)
Following Andi Watson's DUMPED, here comes another very modern romance novel from those loving souls at Oni. This time the writer/artist is the wonderful Christine Norrie, who was responsible for the bulk of the art in the first HOPELESS SAVAGES series - although 'bulk' seems altogether the wrong word to describe her gorgeously delicate linework. As the title suggests, this is the story of a love affair between two people with, well, prior commitments. Don't expect the kind of story where love conquers all. CHEAT promises to be altogether more uncompromising. [Fisher]

BIZARRO COMICS SC (DC Comics)
At long last, the affordable edition of BIZARRO COMICS, the collection that let all sorts of alternative comics luminaries loose on the DCU. When the hardback came out it was feared the collection had been flung together around Kyle Baker's notorious, originally pulped, "Leticia Lerner, Superman's babysitter" and would offer nothing much else of note. In fact, the weakest thing in it was the unnecessary framing story by Chris Duffy and Stephen DeStefano, which perhaps only serves to try to persuade hardcore DC junkies that the book is tied in to continuity. The meat is in the unrelated short pieces, where writing and art are shared and swapped around by Eddie Campbell, Hunt Emerson, Bob Fingerman, Jessica Abel, Jason Little, Ivan Brunetti, Ellen Forney, Ariel Bordeaux, Paul Pope, and many others. It's a fantastic roster of talent having lots of fun with other people's toys. [German Bight]

COURIERS GN (AiT/PlanetLar)
They say you should only write about what you know, so Brian Wood must know New York like the back of his hand. COURIERS is the sequel to his exciting NY-based graphic novel COUSCOUS EXPRESS, featuring more high-octane adventures with the eponymous couriers, Mustapha and Special. The extremely talented TEENAGERS FROM MARS artist Rob G provides the visual thrills and spills in what publisher AiT/PlanetLar promises will be a "pure action movie on paper". Expect this one to provide block-rocking entertainment, folks. [Finisterre]

THE SHIPPING LIST FOR MARCH 5th:

Shipping details come courtesy of Diamond. Visit the Diamond website for the latest information, as the list is subject to change.

DARK HORSE

JAN030064 DEVIL'S FOOTPRINTS #1 (Of 4) $2.99
DEC020017 FORT: PROPHET OF THE UNEXPLAINED TP $9.95
DEC020034 SERAPHIC FEATHER: TARGET ZONE TP (MR) $17.95
NOV020034 SUPER MANGA BLAST #29 (MR) $5.99

DC COMICS

DEC020810 100 BULLETS #42 (RES) (MR) $2.50
JAN030277 100 BULLETS VOL 5: THE COUNTERFIFTH DETECTIVE TP (MR) $12.95
JAN030258 21 DOWN #7 $2.95
NOV020793 AMERICAN CENTURY #22 (MR) $2.75
DEC020731 BATMAN/ALIENS II #3 (Of 3) $5.95
JAN030225 BIG DADDY DANGER #8 (Of 8) $2.95
JAN030208 BIRDS OF PREY: CATWOMAN/ORACLE #2 (Of 2) $5.95
JAN030227 BIZARRO COMICS SC $19.95
JAN030281 CODENAME: KNOCKOUT #22 (MR) $2.75
JAN030192 DETECTIVE COMICS #780 $2.75
JAN030226 DOOM PATROL #18 $2.50
NOV020796 FIGHT FOR TOMORROW #5 (Of 6) (MR) $2.50
JAN030233 GREEN LANTERN #160 $2.25
JAN030236 HAWKMAN #13 $2.50
JAN030263 HIGH ROADS TP $14.95
JAN030243 JUSTICE LEAGUE ADVENTURES #17 $2.25
JAN030254 LOONEY TUNES #100 $2.25
JAN030246 NEW TEEN TITANS: THE JUDAS CONTRACT TP NEW ED $19.95
DEC020803 PROMETHEA #25 $2.95
JAN030287 SANDMAN PRESENTS: BAST #3 (Of 3) (MR) $2.95
JAN030248 SPECTRE #27 $2.75
JAN030252 YOUNG JUSTICE #55 $2.75
JAN030275 ZERO GIRL: FULL CIRCLE #5 (Of 5) $2.95

IMAGE

DEC021777 ARIA: THE USES OF ENCHANTMENT #1 (Of 4) $2.95
OCT021719 BASTARD SAMURAI VOL I: SAMURAI NOIR TP $12.95
DEC021813 MASTERS OF THE UNIVERSE GRANT CVR #4 (Of 4) $2.95
DEC021812 MASTERS OF THE UNIVERSE SANTALUCIA CVR #4 (Of 4) $2.95
DEC021825 POWERS #29 (MR) $2.95
JAN031299 PVP #1 (Of 4) $2.95
APR021439 SPAWN #123 $2.50

MARVEL

JAN031587 ALIAS #20 (MR) $2.99
JAN031606 AVENGERS VOL 1: WORLD TRUST TP $14.99
JAN031533 CAPTAIN AMERICA: WHAT PRICE GLORY #1 $2.99
DEC022102 CAPTAIN MARVEL #6 $2.25
JAN031548 EDEN'S TRAIL #5 (OF 5) $2.99
JAN031566 EXILES #23 $2.25
JAN031544 FANTASTIC FOUR: UNSTABLE MOLECULES #3 (Of 4) $2.99
JAN031585 RAWHIDE KID #2 (Of 5) (MR) $2.99
JAN031580 SPIDER-GIRL #58 $2.25
DEC022081 SPIDER-MAN: BLUE #6 (Of 6) (RES) $3.50
DEC022082 SPIDER-MAN: LEGEND OF THE SPIDER CLAN #5 (Of 5) $2.25
JAN031542 THOR #61 $2.25
JAN031577 ULTIMATE SPIDER-MAN #37 $2.25
FEB031394 ULTIMATE X-MEN VOL 5: ULTIMATE WAR TP $10.99
FEB031393 X-MEN 2: THE MOVIE TP $12.99
JAN031569 X-MEN: RONIN #1 (Of 5) $2.99
JAN031563 X-TREME X-MEN #22 $2.99

OTHER PUBLISHERS

DEC022464 ARCHIE AND FRIENDS #68 $2.19
DEC022465 ARCHIE DOUBLE DIGEST #141 $3.59
OCT022522 ARKANIUM #4 $2.95
DEC022538 BART SIMPSON COMICS #11 $2.50
DEC022982 BATTLE ROYALE NOVEL (MR) $15.95
DEC022466 BETTY #123 $2.19
DEC022987 CERES, CELESTIAL LEGEND PART 5 #1 (Of 4) $3.50
DEC022846 CHEAT GN (MR) $5.95
JAN032314 CHIAROSCURO #6 (MR) $2.75
NOV022291 COURIERS GN $12.95
DEC022852 COURTNEY CRUMRIN & THE COVEN OF MYSTICS #3 (Of 4) $2.95
NOV022495 FATE OF THE BLADE #5 (RES) (MR) $2.95
JAN032056 FIRST #29 $2.95
JAN031968 HEROBEAR AND THE KID VOL 1: INHERITANCE TP $17.95
DEC022951 JAMES KOCHALKA'S MAGIC BOY & ROBOT ELF GN $9.95
JAN031900 LITTLE SCROWLIE #1 (MR) $2.95
JAN032058 MYSTIC #34 $2.95
DEC022820 PHANTOM VOL 4 GN: THE HUNT $6.95
JAN032050 R A SALVATORE'S DEMON WARS: TRIAL BY FIRE #4 (Of 5) $2.95
DEC023006 RANMA 1/2 PART 12 #1 (Of 8) $2.95
DEC022971 SHONEN JUMP VOL 1 #4 APRIL 2003 $4.95
NOV022447 SOULSEARCHERS #58 $2.50
NOV022580 VAMPIRELLA #17 LTD CVR ED $9.95
NOV022581 VAMPIRELLA #17 LTD MODEL PHOTO ED $9.95
NOV022579 VAMPIRELLA #17 REG ED $2.99
NOV022497 WARLANDS VOL 3 #3 $2.95
JAN032071 WAY OF THE RAT #11 $2.95
NOV022532 WEASEL CURR PRTG #2 (O/A) (MR) $4.95
DEC022978 ZOIDS #13 CHAOTIC CENTURY $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.