It's Wednesday. There are new comic books in comic shops. Only some of them are worth your time and money. As always, I have some suggestions….
Comics You Should Consider Buying (from comics shops)
Dungeon Monstres Vol 4: Night of the Ladykiller If you're ever going to trust my comics recommendations, trust this one. The Dungeon series, written by French comics greats Joann Sfar and Lewis Trondheim is consistently one of the freshest, most clever and fun fantasy adventures in any medium. Any of the $15 volumes can be read on their own. There isn't a bad one in the bunch. Ostensibly, the stories all involve a dungeon full of monsters and the crazy characters who run the place, but it branches off into all sorts of wild adventures. A single preview page doesn't suffice. Try it.
Flashpoint This is DC's big crossover for the year. Some sort of alternate universe thing, except it's not an alternate universe. I don't know, but the excellent comics writer Brian Azzarello (100 Bullets), who is averse to super-hero crossover, claims this one is a very good idea. He's not writing it, though. He's doing a forthcoming Batman Flashpoint tie-in. This main book is by DC's lead writer, Geoff Johns. Official summary: "Not a dream, not an imaginary story, not an elseworld. This is Flash Fact: When Barry Allen wakes at his desk, he discovers the world has changed. Family is alive, loved ones are strangers, and close friends are different, gone or worse. It's a world on the brink of a cataclysmic war - but where are Earth's Greatest Heroes to stop it? It's a place where America's last hope is Cyborg, who hopes to gather the forces of The Outsider, The Secret 7, S!H!A!Z!A!M!, Citizen Cold and other new and familiar-yet-altered faces! It's a world that could be running out of time, if The Flash can't find the villain who altered the time line! Welcome to Flashpoint!"
Unwritten #35 I just switched to reading this series in trade paperback (that's a compliment!), but if you haven't dabbled yet, give this beginning of a new two-part tale a shot. The series is about Tom Taylor, a guy who discovers that he might be a character from his father's Harry-Potter-esque novels brought to life. When he's not trying to figure out if he's real or trace other fictional invasions into the real world, Taylor can explore other fictions, as he did for the past few, trotting through Moby-Dick and other whale tales. Official summary for this issue: "Back in the real world at last, Tom follows Lizzie and Savoy to New York and to the auction house of Christian Bolinbroke. Lots #1 to 200? The worldly goods of Wilson Taylor. And the only thing more dangerous than the other bidders is the auctioneer himself"
Comics With Video Game Connections (new this week in comics shops)
Batman: Arkham City #1 This comic bridges the events of the Batman: Arkham Asylum and forthcoming Batman: Arkham City video games. Paul Dini wrote the comic. He also writes the games. I wrote about the comic, which is solid and has some hints about where this Bat-saga is going.
Infamous #5 Official summary: "Based on the hit PS3 game! Mysterious FBI agent Moya Jones has captured electric Super Hero Cole MacGrath and his only chance at freedom rests in the hands of one his greatest enemies, a psychopath named Sasha. Is this the end of Cole's short career as a metahuman?"
Mega Man #1 Official summary: "Let the Games Begin!' Part One. The future looks bright when brilliant and benevolent Dr. Light unveils his latest creations: the Robot Masters! But when the nefarious Dr. Wily steals them for his own sinister purposes, there is no one left to stop him. No one - except Mega Man! Don't miss the first issue of this brand new ongoing series based on Capcom's long-running and best-selling video game sensation!"
Starcraft (mini-series collection) Official summary: "This trade paperback collects the first seven issues of the series based on Blizzard's smash-hit game. Join the War Pigs, a team of outlaws reunited by their former captain for one last job: the assassination of Jim Raynor!"
And Over On The iPad…
The Comics app from Comixology, which works on the iPhone or iPad (UPDATE: and on Android and your computer too!), lists a new batch of comics each week, some brand-new, some slightly old. These are some of the more promising ones: The Sixth Gunn is a series I'd heard good things about. Still haven't read it, but, it's free on the app. It involves some sort "otherworldly" revolver from the Civil War. Sure, why not? I've just begun discovering—and enjoying—the work of writer Cullen Bunn. If this is his best, of course I'll try it, maybe even buy the second issue, which is on the app for $2. T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agents, a series about heroes who die from the powers they use, didn't interest me at all, until I started reading it. Nick Spencer, one of my new favorites, is still writing it for a bit longer. The first issue is now in the virtual shop for free. The next five are listed, but don't appear to be obtainable yet; I'm not sure what's up with that. That's it. While there are plenty of good series running through their back issues on the app (Gotham Central, Transmetropolitan, Grant Morrison's Batman & Robin, etc.), no other additions jumped out at me.
What did I miss?