Post-Crisis Comic Book Previews for 10/09/13

Lordy lord, there's something of a profusion of wonderful comics coming your way this week, as you'll see in our Post-Crisis Comic Book Previews!  For example, we've Paul Pope's new graphic novel, Battling Boy, Geof Darrow's triumphant return with Shaolin Cowboy #1, the latest issue of Chew, and much, much more.  So crack that cut and join us on the other side to check it all out!

Major Releases

BATTLING BOY

Written by Paul Pope

Art by Paul Pope

The new graphic novel from award-winning creator Paul Pope! When Battling Boy's father, a warrior god, drops him on a world infested with bloodthirsty monsters, he leaves his son with nothing but a magic credit card, a trunk full of enchanted tee shirts, and instructions not to come home until he's liberated the planet from its plague of monsters. It's one kid vs an entire world full of monsters. And the monsters don't stand a chance.

Grant: Paul Pope is a living legend, and anything he unleashes upon the world is worth your reading time and dollars.  What's not to love about an original graphic novel written and drawn by his hands?  Probably knowing that his goal in creating Battling Boy is for it to be the kind of superhero story that younger readers can enjoy.  Yeah, that raises the excitement levels another tenfold.

SHAOLIN COWBOY #1

Written by Geof Darrow

Art by Geof Darrow

The Shaolin Cowboy returns, but nowhere in sight is there a dead Robin, any infinity gauntlets, or a single conquering Ultron-just flat-out action, intrigue, and plenty of roadkill. Geof Darrow's slow-talkin', kung-fu-gripping hero proves once again, in this brand-new new series, that the only thing that can stop a bad guy with a gun is a good guy with a chainsaw!

* From writer/artist Geof Darrow (Hard Boiled, The Matrix)!

* More action than the rest of your pull list combined!

* All-new story! Start reading here!

* Covers by Darrow and Walter Simonson!

"Everything fans of the original books had grown to love." -Comics Alliance

"The intricacies of carnage is one of Darrow's specialties" -io9 

Grant: I've never read any of the original Shaolin Cowby comics, but from everything I've heard and all the pages I've seen, this is definitely a book you want to be reading.  It sounds like it's filled to the brim with action and violence and personality, and for my money, I want to see as much genre-bending as Geof Darrow is willing to dole out here.  Bring it on!

SUPERMAN WONDER WOMAN #1

Written by Charles Soule

Art by Tony S. Daniel

Beginning a bold new series that details the relationship between The Man of Steel and the Warrior Princess as rising star writer Charles Soule is joined by fan favorite artist Tony S. Daniel to tell the tale of a romance that will shake the stars themselves.

These two super-beings love each other, but not everyone shares their joy. Some fear it, some test it-and some will try to kill for it. Some say love is a battlefield, but where Superman and Wonder Woman are concerned it spells Doomsday!

This issue features an amazing wraparound gatefold cover that opens up to a triptych with Superman and Wonder Woman in the center! 

Grant: After the trip that was Forever Evil #1 and Villain's Month and DC's continued mistreatment of their creators, I won't be buying any DC Comics any time soon.  That being said, I can't deny that Superman Wonder Woman is kind of a big deal.  Not only does it mean that Wondy will actually be starring in more than one monthly book, but she and Supes headlining a comic is something that hasn't happened at any point over DC's long history.  That alone is enough to make me curious, but conversely, DC's disinterest in creatively-driven books is enough to keep me away.

THREE #1

Written by Kieron Gillen

Art by Ryan Kelly and Jordie Bellaire

When a member of the Spartan ruling class visits an isolated homestead of Helot workers, a brutal massacre is only the beginning. KIERON GILLEN (PHONOGRAM, Über, Iron Man), RYAN KELLY (Saucer County, Local) and JORDIE BELLAIRE (THE MANHATTAN PROJECTS, NOWHERE MEN) unite to tell the heroic story of three slaves and their desperate attempt to escape 300 of the finest warriors who've ever lived. 

Grant: I've long done my best to follow Kieron Gillen on whatever book he's getting up to, but I must admit that I was surprised when I heard that he was turning his attention to the historical Spartans with his next project.  Comics are well known for retreading the same subjects (I mean, look at every superhero book ever), but it definitely says something when you decide to tell a story centred around the very topic Frank Miller covered in 300.  From the sounds of things, Gillen's focus will be slightly different, and I have no doubt that the way he chooses to approach the topic will be world's apart.  I'm further reassured by the artistic talent Gillen is bringing along with him, as Ryan Kelly and Jordie Bellaire will obviously make certain this is going to be one gorgeous comic book.

New Kids on the Block

COFFIN HILL #1

Written by Caitlin Kittredge

Art by Inaki Miranda

COFFIN HILL stars Eve Coffin, a rebellious, teenage lowlife from a high-society family with a curse that goes back to the Salem Witch trials.

Following a night of sex, drugs and witchcraft in the woods, Eve wakes up naked, covered in blood and unable to remember how she got there. One friend is missing, one is in a mental ward-and one knows that Eve is responsible.

After a stint as a Boston cop that ends in a bullet wound and unintended celebrity, Eve returns to Coffin Hill, only to discover the darkness that she unleashed ten years ago in the woods was never contained. It continues to seep through the town, cursing the soul of this sleepy Massachusetts hollow, spilling secrets and enacting its revenge.

Set against the haunted backdrop of New England, COFFIN HILL explores what people will do for power and retribution. Noted novelist Caitlin Kittredge, author of the Black London series, brings a smart, mesmerizing style to comics. Artist Inaki Miranda (FABLES) brings his dynamic storytelling to COFFIN HILL, following an acclaimed run on FAIREST.

Grant: While I'm less than impressed with DC's main titles, it's nice to see the continued release of new books from Veritgo.  Considering the imprint's fate seemed all but sealed just over a year ago, it's reassuring to see the infusion of new titles coming out of their halls.  I don't know that Coffin Hill will be my cup of tea, but the preview pages I've seen are enough to get me in the door.  We'll see if the book itself can keep me in the house.

ROCKET GIRL #1

Written by Brandon Montclare

Art by Amy Reeder

A teenage cop from a high-tech future is sent back in time to 1986 New York City. Dayoung Johansson is investigating the Quintum Mechanics megacorporation for crimes against time. As she pieces together the clues, she discovers the "future" she calls home--an alternate reality version of 2013--shouldn't exist at all!

Blast off with the new ongoing series by BRANDON MONTCLARE (Halloween Eve) and Eisner Award nominee AMY REEDER (Batwoman, Madame Xanadu). 

Grant: I'm rather eager to check out Brandon Montclare and Amy Reeder's brand new series, Rocket Girl.  I quite enjoyed their Halloween Eve one-shot from last year, so seeing them getting back together for a new comic - an ongoing series nonetheless - sounds like a good idea to me.  With the added time and continued collaborating, I imagine that their storytelling instincts will be even more honed this time out.

You May Have Missed

ADVENTURE TIME: CANDY CAPERS #4

Written by Yuko Ota and Ananth Panagariya

Art by Ian McGinty

This issue is no different with a new set of heroes teaming up! Now, if only Peppermint Butler could figure out what happened to Finn and Jake...before Cinnamon Bun tries to help AGAIN. 

Grant: Guys.  Go buy this book.  It's seriously, like, the best thing coming out right now.  I love a lot of comics, we all know that, but Adventure Time: Candy Capers might just be the one I love the most at the moment.  Yuko Ota and Ananth Panagariya are writing some of the funniest, cleverest, and outright most enjoyable one-shot comics I ever did see.  And I've completely fallen for Ian McGinty's fun and frenetic art.  It seems like the perfect match, and every month I find myself chomping at the bit to get my hands on more.  Thankfully, I only have one more day between me and more of that sweet skullduggery.

CHEW #37

Written by John Layman

Art by Rob Guillory

'FAMILY RECIPE,' Part Two It's take your daughter to dinner day! 

Grant: Chew is one of those smaller books that can easily be forgotten about not because it's bad but because it's been so consistently good for 30+ issues.  We're almost two-thirds of the way through John Layman and Rob Guillory's epic story of food and food-based powers, and things only seem to be getting wackier and wackier.  Family Recipe started with an interlude to slow things down a bit; let's see how they follow it up with part 2.

FBP FEDERAL BUREAU OF PHYSICS #4

Written by Simon Oliver

Art by Robbi Rodriguez

Science, betrayal and intrigue! With the BubbleVerse collapsing around them, who will get out alive and live to tell the tale? The opening story arc of Vertigo's strangest new series comes to a conclusion, and things will only get stranger from here . . . 

Grant: Like Captain Marvel, this book will always be Collider to me.  Three issues in, this book still feels a little difficult to pin down, but I am definitely not going to complain about that, because whatever it's focus may or may not end up being, the journey to arrive there has been a rather enjoyable one.  See also: is this more than a miniseries?  Did I already know that?  Either way, that is excellent news, as I'll happily keep reading this title beyond a sixth issue.

GOD HATES ASTRONAUTS Volume 1

Written by Ryan Browne

Art by Ryan Browne

GOD HATES ASTRONAUTS follows the story of a group of incompetent, small-minded, super powered narcissists called "The Power Persons Five" who are hired by NASA to stop all farmers from launching themselves into space in homemade rocket ships. Unfortunately for NASA, this goal is scarcely even addressed and the book focuses more on extramarital affairs, bank-robbing owls, big gross swollen heads, ghost cow heads, olde tyme boxers, tigers eating cheeseburgers in the Crab Nebula, buffalo judges and tons of aggressive swearing. Not so much a superhero book as it is a parody of basically everything and a celebration of weird that is jam-packed with references to RoboCop and Die Hard.

"I don't want to oversell what Ryan has accomplished here, but I gave God Hates Astronauts to a blind man and he regained his sight." - Jonathan Hickman (EAST OF WEST, The Manhattan Projects, The Avengers) 

Grant: Once upon a time, a friend of mine told me that God Hates Astronauts was phenomenal.  Unfortunately, I don't always put a lot of stock in his opinion, so I never got around to checking the whole shebang out.  Since encountering Ryan Browne's art with Nick Spencer over on Bedlam, I've realized that this is a mistake.  But seeing Jonathan Hickman's pull quote for this collection, I finally understand how grave of an oversight it truly was.  Hopefully it can help me see, too.

Pick of the Week

It's Adventure Time: Candy Capers #4.  There are lots of fantastic books coming out this week - I mean Battling Boy and God Hates Astronauts both look amazing - but I know in my heart of hearts that Candy Capers is what I really want.  As U2 would say, it's Where the Streets Have No Names The Sweetest Thing.

What about you?  Which books are you dying to get your paws on?

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