This week is back to breaking the bank

Hey, sorry I haven't been posting too much lately, but I've been sick. I did write a few things for SBC though, so you can go over there and read my take on Jack of Fables #16 and Silver Surfer: In Thy Name #1. The latter is part of the "Sunday Slugfest", a group review, or really a collection of reviews. It's the first time I've participated in one of those. I should have another review up over there in the next couple days, I expect. Okay, anyway, here's this week:

New comics this week (Wednesday, 11/7/07):

Astonishing X-Men #23

I believe this is the second-to-last regular issue of the Whedon/Cassaday run (it will end in an annual/special issue), which has been coming out painfully slowly. We'll finally get to find out if Cyclops actually dies! I'm not exactly holding my breath. But still, it's a super-fun book, and I can't wait to read this new issue.

Criminal #10

Here's another awesome series, which sees the second storyline wrap up here. I don't even remember what is going on, other than a heist of some sort, but luckily the recaps are excellently-written, so I'll be back up to speed in no time. Seriously, Sean Phillips, stick to this book and give up the zombie stupidity.

Silver Surfer In thy Name #1

As I mentioned earlier, I've already read this. I'll be interested to look at the printed version though, since the preview PDF I received had some graphical distortion that kind of hurt the artwork. It's a decent enough Silver Surfer story, I guess. I probably won't actually spend money on it though.

Countdown Special Jimmy Olsen 80-Page Giant

I believe this reprints a few of the old Jack Kirby issues from back when he was introducing the Fourth World. Definitely worth checking out if you haven't read any of that stuff. Me, I'm getting the Omnibuses, so I'll skip this.

Vinyl underground #2

I missed the first issue of this series, but it wasn't very well-received in any online reviews I read, so I think I'm going to wait until it comes out in trade and decide whether to buy it then, depending on what people say about subsequent issues. I'm lazy that way.

Y The Last Man #59

Ooh! Ooh! Penultimate issue! I was heartbroken by the ending of the last issue, so we'll see what happens here. Doesn't look like it's heading toward a happy ending, that's for sure.

Cory Doctorow's Futuristic Tales Of The Here And Now #2

This issue adapts "When Sysadmins Ruled the Earth", and I might get it, depending on whether I like the artwork on a flip-through. Here's my thoughts on the first issue, which I didn't buy.

Groo Hell on Earth #1

Sweet! I love Groo. Here, he causes global warming or something. I can't wait to read it.

Hellboy Darkness Calls #6

The final issue of the excellent miniseries. Duncan Fegredo has been a great Hellboy artist, and the story has been pretty cool, with lots of punching and supernatural stuff. I'll probably wait for the trade on any future Hellboy series, but this one was definitely worth the read.

Lucha Libre #2

I kind of liked the first issue of this series, so I might or might not get this. It's certainly different from most of the stuff out there.

Maintenance #6

This is a pretty good humor book, although it has yet to return to the giddy heights of the first two issues. Here's hoping it gets back there with this issue. Uh, how about reviews of various issues or books? Here you go.

COMIC STRIP MASTERPIECES

This is a free comic from Fantagraphics, Drawn and Quarterly, IDW, and Checker advertising their various reprints of old-timey comics. Looks cool. If your shop doesn't get it, you can download a PDF of the book from Fanta's blog.

Omega Chase vol. 1 #1

This looks like a zombie western of some sort, and I probably would usually ignore it, but one of the creators is Keith Dallas, who writes/edits Silver Bullet Comics, so I figure I should give him some love and point this out. I hope it doesn't suck...

Middleman Vol 3 TP

Oh, man, I love the first two volumes of this series, so I hope this one continues to be good. The creators (Javier Grillo-Marxuach and Les McClaine) decided to bypass the miniseries serialization and go straight to a collection, which I hope works out for them. I got a review copy of the book, so I should have a review up soon (at SBC). Kick ass!

Cairo HC

The latest Vertigo graphic novel, about magical stuff going on in Egypt, I guess. I believe it's black and white, and the creators are unknown, so it's a bit of a gamble. I'll probably wait to read reviews, unless I flip through a copy and decide it's impossible to pass up.

Dark Tower Gunslinger Born HC

Ah, the Stephen King series gets collected, in a pricey format (it's $24.99). I thought the series was all right, but nothing too astonishingly good or anything. The art (by Jae Lee and Richard Isanove) is pretty damn good, at least. It's worth a read, I suppose, although it might be better to wait for a cheaper softcover version. Here's my review of the final issue, if you're interested.

Lower Regions GN

This might be fun. It's a wordless fantasy story by Alex Robinson, creator of Box Office Poison and Tricked. Only $6.95 from Top Shelf, and seemingly inspired by Dungeons and Dragons or other such generic fantasy stuff. I'll certainly take a look if I see it.

Tank Girl the Gifting

Ashley Wood is the main draw of this book, at least for me, although he only did the art on the first issue, I think. I really need to try to read some of the earlier Tank Girl stuff sometime. Anyway, this is a bit expensive at $17.99. It's only four issues, and even at $3.99 each, the collection is more expensive. What's up with that, IDW?

Acme Novelty Library vol. 18.5 Portfolio

Ooh, I would love to get this, but it's too much for my budget. It's a set of poster-size prints of covers Chris Ware did for The New Yorker, in a nice-looking package. But it's $32.00. Yikes. Maybe I can look around online and see if I can find a discounted version or something.

Palestine HC Special Edition

I really like Joe Sacco's comics, but I've never read Palestine. I guess this is my chance to check it out, now that a nice new version is out. It's also pricey ($29.95), but definitely worth it, especially if I use an Amazon discount or a coupon at Borders or something. I can't wait to read it.

American Born Chinese HC New Printing

This is an excellent book (here's my review), so if you missed it the first time around, here's your chance to spend more for it!

Azumanga Daioh Omnibus Vol 1 GN

I hear this is a good, funny series, so a big, thick version is probably a good way to get into it. I should probably read Yotsuba instead though.
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And that looks like everything. I might end up emptying my pockets to get comics this week. Wow. Anyway, I should have at least one review up tonight. Really!