It is the beginning of the month again and that means it is time to flip through the 400+ pages of Diamond Distribution's previews and take a look at the big new titles coming in April!
Dark Horse Presents #1: Dark Horse Comics started its life with the original edition of DHP, and now they are reviving it as an 80 page giant bimonthly anthology. The first issue looks to have a stellar line-up with new stories by living legends Howard Chaykin, Neal Adams, and Richard Corben; the return of Paul Chadwick’s Concrete, a new Star Wars adventure, and a first look at Frank Miller’s Xerxes. The $8 price tag makes this book’s future questionable, but it is a daring experiment by Dark Horse.
Action Comics 900: That number right there is a first for American comics. No other title has legitimately reached that number, and DC has decided to celebrate with a triple sized issue for double the regular price. The story features a regular length story by the regular team of Cornell and Woods, plus stories by the directorial triumvirate of David Goyer, Richard Donner, and Damon Lindelof, among many others.
Doc Savage 13: Just over a year in to the book’s history and Doc already has his third writer. This time around it is the writing debut of artist J.G. Jones, one of the designers behind the First Wave titles. He seems to be the most true pulp fan of anyone responsible for these titles, which brings hope that he will finally bring Doc Savage truly back to his pulp roots.
Xombi 2: The cover features a nun with two machine guns. Everyone should buy this book.
iZombie 12: This book has featured Chris Roberson and Mike Allred putting together some truly solid stories, and for the first time this issue, they invite a guest artist in to the fold. Love & Rockets co-creator Gilbert Hernandez has a style completely different than Allred’s, but he’s an indie superstar in his own right, and should help bring something unique to this stand-alone tale.
G.I. Joe: Cobra Civil War 0: IDW’s version of the Joe comics recently shook the toy/comic fans with the death of a major Cobra player. Now in the aftermath they are starting a line-wide crossover that looks to reset the numbering on all their titles. This zero issue leads in to the debut of three new titles next month: a restarted G.I. Joe, a book simply titled Cobra, and a Snake-Eyes solo title.
Dungeons & Dragons 6: John Rogers has created some fun comics with their new D&D book. This issue starts the second story arc and serves as a great place for people to jump on to a fun new series.
Miss Fury: The Library of American Comics collects a unique strip in American history with what may be the first major comic about a female hero written and drawn by a female, in this case Tarpe Mills. This is the first time most of these pages have been available literally in decades.
Super-Dinosaur 1: Robert Kirkman & Jason Howard bill their new book as a Pixar movie in comic-form, but it looks to me like their channeling a little bit more Ben 10 and Axe Cop than anything else. Still, there’s a big market for independent kid-friendly titles and this book certainly looks to tap that market in a big way.
Marijuanaman: Ziggy Marley doesn’t pull any punches with the name of his new creation. It’s a mystery what this book will be about, but with the creative team of Joe Casey and Jim Mahfood this book could prove to be crazy fun.
Fear Itself 1 (of 7) and Mighty Thor 1: Take your pick as to which one of these books will be the bigger for Marvel come April, but it seems clear that Matt Fraction will be the grand architect of the Marvel Universe for the next few months.
Captain America: The Fighting Avenger 1: Originally planned as an ongoing new reader friendly version of Cap set in World War II, this title dropped to a one-shot after Thor the Mighty Avenger’s cancellation. It’s a shame as the creative team of Atomic Robo’s Brian Clevinger and Gurihiru could have really made something cool with this as an ongoing.
Herc 1 & 2: In the aftermath of Chaos War, Hercules has his own series again, but this time he’s been depowered. But with Incredible Hercules writers Greg Pak and Fred Van Lente still on board and former Buffy Season 8 artist Georges Jeanty drawing, this could be a huge sleeper hit for Marvel.
Later this week, the back half of the catalog will get the review treatment. Stay tuned.
All these comics are currently available for order from your local comic shop: Alter Ego in Cedar Rapids and Daydreams in Iowa City.
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