"THOGAL RITUAL IN THE CAVES OF NANDA PARBAT!"
Haven’t done a “let’s look at DC’s solicitations” post in a while, but this time around I found a few items I wanted to comment upon:
- Finally, finally being released is the Teen Titans story by Bob Haney, Jay Stephens and Mike Allred (as Teen Titans: The Lost Annual), delayed for…well, quite a while, actually. I have a desktop wallpaper featuring Stephen’s pencils for the story on my computer, and the file is dated from August of ’03.
And sure enough, some quick Googling turned up this 2003 post from Stephens on the Mike Allred message board about the cancellation (that I originally saw on an old Newsarama posting that I can’t get to load at the moment):
“They say the story, written by original Titans CREATOR, Bob Haney, is simply ‘too weird’ and contradicts the current, highly successful, efforts of the new Titans monthly. In fact, they actually argued that the timing was bad, and that releasing the comic when the Titans weren’t so popular would be a better idea. This is the first time I’ve heard the argument that a tie-in to a hit project is uncommercial.”
Whatever the reason for it finally being unleashed (probably something to do with the Teen Titans Year One mini), I’m just glad it is. Some lost Haney craziness is most welcome, especially if the powers that be thought it was “too weird.” That’s like a badge of honor…can’t wait to see it. And what I’ve seen of Stephen’s pencils look wonderful, so this is going to be one fun and good-looking package.
Here’s the Nick Cardy cover:
- Batman #673 – For some reason, this sentence lodged itself in my head:
“This special flashback tale also revisits Batman’s life-changing Thogal ritual in the caves of Nanda Parbat!”
“THOGAL RITUAL IN THE CAVES OF NANDA PARBAT!”
“THOGAL RITUAL IN THE CAVES OF NANDA PARBAT!”
This makes for a good personal mantra. Repeat that sentence to yourself in times of need.
- Legion of Super-Heroes #38 – Reading this description:
“Saturn Girl, Timber Wolf and Star Boy’s mission on the moon of Triton goes awry as Invisible Kid leads them into a lethal predicament. Meanwhile, Lightning Lad’s duties as team leader aren’t going any easier as he’s forced to sit through a painful tryout session for new Legionnaires.”
…and knowing that Jim Shooter is responsible fills me with some small measure of hope. It just sounds like an old-fashioned Legion story, so let’s just say I’m cautiously optimistic.
- Okay, The Spirit #14…this part had me sold:
“Written by Sergio Aragones & Mark Evanier”
I liked Darwyn Cooke’s Spirit stories at first, though I got a little weary of them after a while, for no real good reason I can name. But those two creators have rekindled my interest in the title.
And this next bit just absolutely clinched it:
“Art by Mike Ploog”
Anything that gets me new Ploog funnybook art on a regular basis is a must-buy.
- Trials of Shazam #11 – Holy frijole, is this comic still not done yet?
- Batman: The Killing Joke Special Edition HC – Not too thrilled that it’s an eighteen buck hardcover, but at least it’s available outside of that Alan Moore trade paperback. Not that the Moore book is bad (especially since they’ve finally fixed the errors), but judging by the number of first printing Killing Joke prestige format comics we’ve sold lately, there’s still demand for just the one story on its own.
Then again, a new first edition hardcover will likely attract more attention from buyers (and orders from retailers) than reprint #17 of the old prestige format edition.
- Time Masters TP – I liked this series, and I’m really hoping the coloring is vastly improved. Not that the original colorist was bad or anything, just that the reproduction in the original comics seemed a little shaky.
- American Virgin #23 – Whoa, final issue? I know it wasn’t a huge seller, but it seemed to be doing okay, at least for our shop. Was this a planned ending to the series or was it, um, decided for them?
- Jack of Fables #19 – They’re really really really trying hard to make Babe the Miniature Blue Ox a wacky cult favorite character, aren’t they?
- Batman: The Killing Joke Collector Set –
The last thing we really need is yet another Batman figure, but that Joker figure is fantastic. - Showcase Presents Series 1 Action Figures –
YES: Finally, a Jonah Hex figure. (Alas, no Hex variant.)NO: Please, no more Superman or Hawkman figures.
MAYBE: Variant “Red Kryptonite” heads for Superman. I don’t want more Superman figures, but, but…RED KRYPTONITE HEADS.
