Marvel Comics August 2009 solicitations

Marvel has announced its offerings for August 2009. Here's what looks interesting to me:


OFFICIAL INDEX TO THE MARVEL UNIVERSE #8
Written by VARIOUS
Continuing the chronicle of the Marvel Universe, starting with Spider-Man (from AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #342 on), Iron Man (from IRON MAN #277 on) and the X-Men (from X-MEN #321 on). Follow the history of the Marvel universe as it unfolds month by month with the All-New Official Index to the Marvel Universe. Each issue provides synopses for dozens of individual comics, including back-up strips, introducing you to the characters, teams, places and equipment that appeared within, providing vital information about first appearances, where they last showed up and where they appeared next!
64 PGS./Rated A ...$3.99


ALL WINNERS COMICS #1 70TH ANNIVERSARY SPECIAL
Written by KARL KESEL
Penciled by STEVE UY
Cover by DANIEL ACUNA
Variant Cover by MARCOS MARTIN
Captain America and Bucky...the Human Torch and Toro...the Sub-Mariner...Miss America...the Whizzer...THE ALL-WINNERS SQUAD! It's 1946 and World War 2 is over, but the memory of those lost in the War haunts everyone-- especially when Times Square is overrun by undead soldiers wanting their lives back! And leading this tattered battalion are the two casualties the All-Winners Squad can't fight-- the original Captain America and Bucky! Plus: a surprise romance that has all the tabloids a-twitter!
"Old Soldiers Never Die..." by Karl Kesel (MARVEL APES) and Steve Uy (AVENGERS: THE INITIATIVE)
Buy Bonds! And this comic!
48 PGS./One-Shot/New and Reprint/Rated A ...$3.99


MARVEL COMICS #1: 70TH ANNIVERSARY EDITION
Penciled by CARL BURGOS, BILL EVERETT, PAUL GUSTAVSON, BEN THOMPSON, AL ANDERS & ART PINAJIAN
Colored by DEAN WHITE, DAVE McCAIG, JASON KEITH, MORRY HOLLOWELL, FRANK D'ARMATA & more!
Cover by JELENA KEVIC DJURDJEVIC
Midnight Opening Cover by FRANK R. PAUL & DEAN WHITE
Celebrating the 70th Anniversary of Marvel Comics in style the best and brightest color-art talents in the field bring you a bold new look at the comic that started it all! From the first appearance of The Human Torch to the original jungle adventures of Ka-Zar and the incomparable introduction of Bill Everett's Prince Namor, the Sub-Mariner, each tale from Marvel Comics #1 has been paired with one of the field's most innovative color artists to create a fascinating contemporary take on these classic tales. Including contributions from the trend-setting talents of Dean White (AMAZING SPIDER-MAN; LOGAN), Dave McCaig (NEW AVENGERS; NEXTWAVE), Jason Keith (MIGHTY AVENGERS; SHANNA THE SHE-DEVIL), Morry Hollowell (CIVIL WAR; WOLVERINE) and Frank D'Armata (CAPTAIN AMERICA; HOUSE OF M), there's no question that this will be MARVEL COMICS #1 like you've never seen it before! So come join the party--including Marvel's mega-midnight birthday bash--and toast to the most important comic art achievement of 1939--2009-style!
64 PGS./Rated T+ ...$4.99



MARVEL MASTERWORKS: GOLDEN AGE SUB-MARINER VOL. 3 HC
Written and Penciled by CARL PFEUFER, GUSTAV SCHROTTER, AL GABRIELE & BASIL WOLVERTON
Cover by ALEX SCHOMBURG
From the heart of comics' Golden Age, come the adventures of the original anti-hero--Prince Namor, the Sub-Mariner! A brash, proud and quick-tempered figure who bowed before the authority of no man, when the pall of fascism covered the world the Sub-Mariner responded with an unchained fury. Tearing down the Axis powers one battleship at a time, he embodied the fantasy of an America confronted by enemies on two fronts and with ample motivation to smash them both! Backed by the super-hero adventures of The Angel and comedy short-features by the likes of comic genius, Basil Wolverton, you'll find no other Golden Age hero with the wild, powerful and truly anarchic energy of the Sub-Mariner. So get out there and reserve your copy today, True Believer! Collecting SUB-MARINER COMICS #9-12
240 PGS./All Ages ...$59.99
ISBN: 978-0-7851-3351-3
MARVEL MASTERWORKS: GOLDEN AGE SUB-MARINER VOL. 3 HC -- VARIANT EDITION VOL. 128
240 PGS./All Ages ...$59.99
ISBN: 978-0-7851-3352-0


MARVEL MASTERWORKS: THE INCREDIBLE HULK VOL. 1 TPB
Written by STAN LEE
Penciled by JACK KIRBY & STEVE DITKO
Cover by JACK KIRBY & DEAN WHITE
Dr. Robert Bruce Banner may have the appearance of a mild-mannered scientist, but after being caught in a gamma bomb explosion, he became the unstoppable engine of destruction known as the Incredible Hulk! Hot off the success of the FANTASTIC FOUR, Stan Lee and Jack Kirby's atomic update on the Dr. Jekyl/Mr. Hyde tale, mixed the joy of giant monsters with Cold War intrigue and added a heavy dose of psychological drama to create a formula that even decades later has readers clamoring for more. So for each and every purple pants loving Hulkophile, the MARVEL MASTERWORKS are proud to present the Hulk's original six-issue solo series in one amazingly restored volume. You'll meet Bruce Banner, Rick Jones, General Thaddeus "Thunderbolt" Ross of the U.S. Army and the lovely Betty Ross for the first time. You'll see the Hulk's first appearance as the gray goliath before he turned that familiar shade of green. You'll watch the Hulk bust knuckles with the far-out Toad Men, the subterranean Tryannus, monstrous Mongu, and the Metal Master, and to make it that much better, the incomparable Jack Kirby and Steve Ditko illustrate it all. Collecting THE INCREDIBLE HULK #1-6
176 PGS./All Ages ...$24.99
ISBN: 978-0-7851-3714-6


ESSENTIAL MARVEL TEAM-UP VOL. 3 TPB
Written by GERRY CONWAY, BILL MANTLO, CHRIS CLAREMONT,
BILL KUNKEL, GARY FRIEDRICH, BONNIE WILFORD, RALPH MACCHIO & JOHN WARNER
Penciled by SAL BUSCEMA, MIKE ESPOSITO, DAVE HUNT, JOHN BYRNE, PABLO MARCOS, DAVE COCKRUM, DAVID WENZEL, JIM MOONEY, KERRY GAMMILL, DON PERLIN, HOWARD CHAYKIN, J. ACLIN, JUAN ORTIZ, JOSE ORTIZ, MIKE VOSBURG, ALAN KUPPERBERG & JACK ABEL
Cover by JOHN BYRNE
The Man-Thing's Swamp, Murderworld and the Moon are only a few battlefields on Spider-Man's agenda when he teams up with X-Men old and new, the entire original Avengers lineup and more! Daredevil and the Black Widow! Power Man and Iron Fist! Captain America and the Falcon! Captain Britain, Doctor Strange and Ms. Marvel! Opposed by such enemies as the Owl, the Super-Skrull, and more miscreants who remain deadly to this day! Plus: Spider-favorites Electro and Kraven the Hunter and the first appearance of X-adversary extraordinaire Arcade! Collecting MARVEL TEAM-UP #52-73, #75 and ANNUAL #1
480 PGS./All Ages ...$19.99
ISBN: 978-0-7851-3068-0

Micronauts toys

Vintage Marvel Comics house ad

Pop links: Wolverton! Human Target TV series! Flintstones! Marvel stickers! Hear the scrapped Danger Mouse album!

Grantbridge Street marks it first anniversary (ye are but a whippersnapper of a blog, my son) with a lovely selection of Basil Wolverton cartoonery.



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Target 419 is a new site dedicated to the new Fox TV series based on DC Comics' Human Target. Check it out for a selection of promo pics and video snippets.

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Those Fabulous Fifties presents more vintage Flintstones comic strips.



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I put these all over the closet door in my bedroom. My mom and dad weren't pleased.



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Last week I pointed to an NPR stream of a new collaborative album by director David Lynch, producer Danger Mouse and the band Sparklehorse. Titled, Dark Knight of the Soul, the record also features contributions from The Flaming Lips’ Wayne Coyne, The Strokes’ Julian Casablancas, Iggy Pop, Frank Black, The Shins’ James Mercer, Super Furry Animals’ lead singer Gruff Rhys, ex-Granddaddy principle Jason Lytle, The Cardigans’ Nina Persson, and singer-songwriter Vic Chesnutt.

And it's not coming out any time soon, reports Billboard.

Due to unspecified legal issues with EMI, though, the project’s official release has been either scrapped altogether or put on indefinite hiatus. ...Filmmaker David Lynch provided a book of still photos with which the CD was to be packaged. The book is still slated for release, but a blank CDR will be inserted instead of the actual album.

I'm sure if you Google around, you can probably find the music to burn to that CDR. You also can still hear the stream here.



I like it.

DC Comics August 2009 solicitations

DC has announced its offerings for August. Here's what looks interesting to me.

Click the title links to pre-order discounted books from Amazon.


WEDNESDAY COMICS #5-8
WEDNESDAY COMICS, DC’s spectacular 12-issue weekly series, continues to offer a comics experience unlike any other this August. In its second month, don’t miss the action in these continuing features:
• THE METAL MEN encounter a deadly guest-villain in a story written by Dan DiDio with art by Jose Luis Garcia-Lopez.
• THE FLASH battles Gorilla Grodd and tries to date Iris West in a story written by Karl Kerschl (TEEN TITANS YEAR ONE, THE FLASH: THE FASTEST MAN ALIVE) and Brenden Fletcher with art by Karl Kerschl.
• SUPERGIRL attempts to deal with Streaky and Krypto gone bad in a story written by Jimmy Palmiotti (JONAH HEX) with art by Amanda Conner (POWER GIRL).
• GREEN LANTERN must help a fellow test pilot whose space mission has transformed him into a monster in a story written by Kurt Busiek (TRINITY, ASTRO CITY) with art by Joe Quiñones (TEEN TITANS GO!).
• SUPERMAN questions his heroic mission while on a trip to Smallville in a story written by John Arcudi (The Mask) with art by Lee Bermejo (JOKER).
• ADAM STRANGE takes a truly twisted journey into space in a story by writer/artist Paul Pope (BATMAN: YEAR 100).
• WONDER WOMAN is lost in a dream world in search of her lost tiara, bracelets and magic lasso in a story written and illustrated by Ben Caldwell (Dare Detectives).
• THE TEEN TITANS are attacked by Trident in a story written by Eddie Berganza with art by Sean Galloway.
Plus:
• BATMAN, WEDNESDAY COMICS’ weekly cover feature, by the Eisner Award-winning 100 BULLETS team of writer Brian Azzarello and artist Eduardo Risso.
• METAMORPHO, written by New York Times best-selling writer Neil Gaiman with art by Eisner Award-winner Michael Allred (Madman).
• THE DEMON AND CATWOMAN, written by Walter Simonson (Thor, MANHUNTER) with art by famed DC cover artist Brian Stelfreeze.
• DEADMAN, written by Dave Bullock and Vinton Heuck, art by Dave Bullock.
• KAMANDI, written by Dave Gibbons (WATCHMEN, GREEN LANTERN CORPS) with art by Ryan Sook (Buffy The Vampire Slayer, ARKHAM ASYLUM: LIVING HELL).
• HAWKMAN, written and illustrated by Kyle Baker (PLASTIC MAN, Special Forces).
• SGT. ROCK, written by Adam Kubert (SUPERMAN: LAST SON), ilustrated by legendary comics artist Joe Kubert.
WEDNESDAY COMICS will arrive in stores folded twice to 7” x 10”.
Issue #5 on sale August 5; Issue #6 on sale August 12; Issue #7 on sale August 19; Issue #8 on sale August 26
5-8 of 12 • 7” x 10”, 16 pg, FC, $3.99 US


BATMAN AND ROBIN #3
Written by Grant Morrison
Art and cover by Frank Quitely
Variant cover by Tony Daniel
“Batman Reborn” concludes the explosive reteaming of Grant Morrison and Frank Quitely (ALL-STAR SUPERMAN, WE3, New X-Men)! Witness Batman and Robin’s final showdown against Professor Pyg and the Circus of Strange! The future looks bright for the new Dynamic Duo as they prove themselves in battle, but lurking in the shadows is a mysterious red-hooded vigilante. Also, the origin of Scarlet!
Retailers please note: This issue will ship with two covers. For every 25 copies of the Standard Edition (with a cover by Frank Quitely), retailers may order one copy of the Variant Edition (with a cover by Tony Daniel). Please see the Previews Order Form for more information.
On sale August 5 • 32 pg, FC, $2.99 US


DOOM PATROL #1
Written by Keith Giffen; co-feature written by Keith Giffen and J.M. DeMatteis
Art by Matthew Clark; co-feature art by Kevin Maguire
Cover by Matthew Clark
Variant cover by Matthew Clark and Kevin Maguire
Come one, come all! The world's strangest Super Heroes are back, and they brought those robot guys along with 'em! Thrill to the strange adventures of the Doom Patrol, with script by Keith Giffen and art by Matthew Clark! Whether you think you know 'em or you wouldn't know 'em if they bit you on the behind, this Doom Patrol's for you! But that's not all! Read all the way to the back cover for the all-new adventures of those elemental everymen, the Metal Men, featuring the triumphant return of the creative team that brought you JUSTICE LEAGUE INTERNATIONAL! That’s 40 full pages of comic-bookery for just under four American dollars. So why not try some Doom Patrol with a side order of Metal Men today?
Retailers please note: This issue will ship with two covers. For every 10 copies of the Standard Edition (with a cover by Matthew Clark), retailers may order one copy of the Variant Edition (with a cover by Matthew Clark and Kevin Maguire). Please see the Previews Order Form for more information.
On sale August 5 • 40 pg, FC, $3.99 US


SHOWCASE PRESENTS: WARLORD VOL. 1 TP
Written by Mike Grell
Art by Mike Grell, Joe Rubinstein and Vince Colletta
Cover by Mike Grell
Air Force pilot Travis Morgan crashes in the primitive world of Skartaris, where he must learn to live by the sword — and a comics legend begins. Morgan becomes a leader of Skartaris in this paperback collecting 1ST ISSUE SPECIAL #8 and WARLORD #1-28.
Advance-solicited; on sale September 16 • 528 pg, B&W, $17.99 US


THE SANDMAN: THE DREAM HUNTERS HC
Original story by Neil Gaiman
Adaptation, art and cover by P. Craig Russell
“THE DREAM HUNTERS is a lovingly-crafted piece of work. Russell produces about as faithful an adaptation as one could ever hope for.” – IGN
“A swoon-inducing comic. Russell’s grandiose style is custom built for this ethereal Japanese fable.” – GEEK Monthly
In honor of the 20th anniversary of THE SANDMAN, this new hardcover collects the 4-issue comics adaptation of Neil Gaiman's original prose novella by the same name, with spectacular artwork by Gaiman’s frequent collaborator P. Craig Russell (the sandman, FABLES: THE LAST CASTLE). A humble young monk and a magical, shape-changing fox find themselves romantically drawn together. As their love blooms, the fox learns of a devilish plot by a group of demons and a Japanese emperor to steal the monk's life. With the aid of Morpheus, the fox must use all of her cunning and creative thinking to foil this evil scheme and save the man that she loves.
Advance-solicited; on sale October 28 • 144 pg, FC, $24.99 US • MATURE READERS

CD new releases May 19, 2009: Clapton and Winwood! Iron and Wine! Beach Boys! Madness! Tom Tom Club! More!

New music of note this week. Click the titles to order discounted CDs from Amazon.


Live from Madison Square Garden by Steve Winwood and Eric Clapton


Around the Well by Iron & Wine


Summer Love Songs by The Beach Boys


Liberty of Norton Folgate by Madness


All Hat by Bill Frisell


Tom Tom Club (Deluxe Edition) (2 CD Set) by Tom Tom Club

DVD new releases May 18, 2009: True Blood! 24! Fanboys! Astral Weeks! Peyton Place! Pufnstuf! More!

New DVDs of note this week. Click the titles to order discounted disks from Amazon.


True Blood: The Complete First Season


24: Season Seven


Fanboys


Astral Weeks Live At The Hollywood Bowl: The Concert Film


Peyton Place: Part One


Battlestar Galactica: Season 2.0 and 2.5


Pufnstuf


Girl on a Motorcycle

Golden Age Captain America splash/pin-up

Dollhouse renewed

Variety confirms rumors that Joss Whedon's ratings-challenged "Dollhouse" will be back for at least 13 more episodes next season.

As I wrote here a while back, the show didn't resonate with me and I gave up watching. A number of friends have told me it got better, but I'm still not so sure I'll give it another chance. The premise just never worked for me. Maybe I'll try an ep or two. But there's a lot of other stuff I DO like. It's not like I need to find more to watch.

Australian actor tapped to play Thor

Chris Hemsworth, who plays James Kirk's father in the new Star Trek film, has been tapped to star as Thor in a big screen adaptation of the Marvel Comics series, along with an Avengers film to follow.

The Thor film is set for May 2011 release.

Nanananananana, Bat Bike!

Via Bat-Blog: Check out this Batman-style "Batt Cruiser" created for Nirve Bicycles by the famed Baris Kustoms Shop, designer of the 1960s TV Batmobile. You can buy one direct, here.



Click image below for close-up:

Lost in Space TV show photos pt. 10

Vintage Marvel Comics house ad: Human Torch