Today isn’t just any old Comic Book Day; now I am become San Diego Comic-Con, destroyer of wallets. But while you’re waiting in those long lines outside Hall H, you’re going to need something to read, right? Right? C’mon, just play along. That’s where this week’s pull list comes in, and you’d better believe that it’s packed to the proverbial gills (or actual gills, if you’re an Atlantean) with killer titles. So, without further ado, read on and find out what’s in store in your store.

Top Picks

Red Sonja #1 | Gail Simone and Walter Geovani

It only makes sense that the most kickass redhead in comics history, Red Sonja, is being written by the most kickass redhead in comics writing, Gail Simone, in a brand new series from Dynamite. For many readers, she can be something of a tough sell, since few were willing to go beyond the image of a scantily clad She-Devil with a Sword. Even Sonja’s creator Howard Chaykin didn’t seem to fully grasp her potential. Thankfully, Simone seems to be in lockstep with what makes Red Sonja such an enduring and awesome figure, balancing the swords and sorcery savagery with whip-smart dark humor to make a compelling character-driven read. Simone treads some familiar ground, taking us to the gladiatorial pits of Zamora where Sonja, a slave, must fight for her freedom and then train a kingdom to fight back against their oppressors, brought to life by Geovani’s outstanding artwork. All in all, this feels like both the Red Sonja we know and love and the start of something wonderful.

Day Men #1 | Matt Gagnon, Michael Alan Nelson, Michael Stelfreeze and Darrin Moore

You’d be forgiven for feeling a sense of apprehension at hearing that BOOM! Studios is launching a brand new crime/drama series chock full of vampires. After Twilight-mania, Scott Snyder’s American Vampire, Marvel’s Morbius series and countless other fang-filled flights of fancy, one wonders whether or not we need another vampire comic. Put the stake aside, because BOOM!’s Day Men shows that there’s still life in these undead creatures yet, thanks to some slick storytelling from Matt Gagnon and Michael Alan Nelson, who waste no time in dropping the reader headlong into the world of Day Men. The book follows the titular Day Men, the fixers/cleaners of the organized vampire/crime world, as they serve their vampiric overlords, using the cover of day to run their less-than-savory errands.

The book suffers a bit from over-narration and superfluous exposition, and faces some stiff competition from comics like True Blood and The Godfather, which have nailed their respective genres, so thoroughly treading new ground may prove difficult. However, Michael Stelfreeze’s moody inks set the tone for the series and make it stand out from the competition. Considering this is the first ongoing book Stelfreeze has inked in nearly a decade, you know it’s got to have potential and after this first issue, we’re champing at the bit to see what lies in store.

Batman ’66 #1 | Jeff Parker and Jonathan Case

No amount of Bat Shark Repellent in the world could keep me from circling my comic book store’s stands waiting for Batman ’66 #1 to drop. The throwback series, available exclusively as a digital comic, captures the pop art aesthetic of the classic television show and goes heavy on the nostalgia. Batman fans will go through a range of emotions reading this book, from embarrassment to excitement, but Parker’s campy tribute to the classic version of Batman is unmitigated fun. Jonathan Case’s artwork will have you itching to do the Batusi as it captures the visual tone and feel that made the TV show so damn entertaining. Where the book truly excels is in its freedom from the constraints of a TV budget, allowing Parker and Case to make the sky the limit for these tongue-in-cheek, ostentatious Batman stories that toe the line between feeling modern and like unearthed classics.

Pull List
DARK HORSE COMICS

ADVENTURES OF DR MCNINJA OMNIBUS TP $24.99
BLOOD BROTHERS #1 $3.99
BPRD HELL ON EARTH #109 WASTELAND #3 $3.5
BPRD HELL ON EARTH TP VOL 05 PICKENS COUNTY HORROR $19.99
CONAN HC VOL 14 THE DEATH $24.99
CONAN THE BARBARIAN #18 $3.5
DREAM THIEF #3 $3.99
GATE 7 TP VOL 04 $10.99
LEGEND KORRA ART ANIMATED SERIES BOOK ONE AIR HC $34.99
STAR WARS DARK TIMES SPARK REMAINS #1 $3.5
STAR WARS DARTH VADER & NINTH ASSASSIN #4 $3.5
STRAIN THE FALL #1 $3.99
TO HELL YOU RIDE #5 $3.99

DC COMICS

100 BULLETS BROTHER LONO #2 (MR) $2.99
ANIMAL MAN #22 $2.99
BATMAN 66 #1 $3.99
BATMAN AND CATWOMAN #22 $2.99
BATMAN BEYOND UNLIMITED #18 $3.99
BATMAN THE DARK KNIGHT HC CYCLE OF VIOLENCE (N52) $22.99
BATMAN THE DARK KNIGHT TP VOL 01 KNIGHT TERRORS (N52) $16.99
BATWOMAN #22 $2.99
BIRDS OF PREY #22 $2.99
BLACK ORCHID TP (MR) $16.99
FABLES #131 (MR) $2.99
GREEN LANTERN NEW GUARDIANS #22 $2.99
HE MAN AND THE MASTERS OF THE UNIVERSE #4 $2.99
JUSTICE LEAGUE OF AMERICA #6 (TRINITY) $3.99
JUSTICE LEAGUE OF AMERICA #6 COMBO PACK (TRINITY) $4.99
JUSTICE LEAGUE OF AMERICAS VIBE #6 $2.99
LEGION OF SUPER HEROES #22 $2.99
SUPERGIRL #22 $2.99
SUPERMAN PHANTOM ZONE TP $14.99
TALES OF BATMAN ARCHIE GOODWIN HC (RES) $39.99
WONDER WOMAN #22 $2.99

DC COMICS/DC COLLECTIBLES

BATMAN BLACK & WHITE STATUE BY RAFAEL GRAMPA $79.95

IDW PUBLISHING

X-FILES SEASON 10 #2 [DIG/P+] $3.99
COLONIZED #4 [DIG/P+] $3.99
DINOSAURS ATTACK #1 [DIG/P+] $3.99
DOCTOR WHO CLASSICS #3 $3.99
GI JOE A REAL AMERICAN HERO TP VOL 07 $19.99
GI JOE SPECIAL MISSIONS #5 [DIG/P+] $3.99
HALF PAST DANGER #3 [DIG/P+] $3.99
JUDGE DREDD CAM KENNEDY COLLECTION HC VOL 01 $49.99
MARS ATTACKS TP VOL 02 ON ICE $19.99
ROCKETEER HOLLYWOOD HORROR HC $21.99
ROCKETEER HOLLYWOOD HORROR HC DM ED $21.99
STRANGE WORLD OF YOUR DREAMS COMICS MEET FREUD & DALI HC $29.99
TMNT ADVENTURES TP VOL 05 $19.99
TMNT VILLAIN MICROSERIES #4 ALOPEX $3.99
TRANSFORMERS MORE THAN MEETS THE EYE TP VOL 04 $19.99
TRANSFORMERS REGENERATION ONE #93 [DIG/P+] $3.99

IMAGE COMICS

APHRODITE IX #3 CVR A SEJIC [DIG] $2.99
APHRODITE IX #3 CVR B FINCH $2.99
APHRODITE IX #3 CVR C BASALDUA $2.99
ARTIFACTS #29 [DIG] $3.99
ELEPHANTMEN #50 CVR A QUITELY (MR) [DIG] $5.99
GLORY TP VOL 02 WAR TORN (MR) [DIG] $14.99
INVINCIBLE #104 [DIG] $2.99
KAFKA HC [DIG] $29.99
NON HUMANS #4 [DIG] $2.99
PROPHET #37 [DIG] $3.99
REVIVAL #12 [DIG] $2.99
REVIVAL TP VOL 02 LIVE LIKE YOU MEAN IT [DIG] $14.99
THINK TANK TP VOL 02 $14.99

MARVEL COMICS

A PLUS X #10 NOW $3.99
ALL NEW X-MEN #14 NOW $3.99
AVENGERS #16 INF $3.99
AVENGERS ACADEMY TP FINAL EXAMS $19.99
AVENGERS ASSEMBLE #17 NOW $3.99
AVENGERS ASSEMBLE BY BRIAN MICHAEL BENDIS TP $29.99
CABLE AND X-FORCE #11 NOW $3.99
CAPTAIN AMERICA BY ED BRUBAKER TP VOL 04 $19.99
DEADPOOL #13 NOW $2.99
DEADPOOL BY DANIEL WAY COMPLETE COLL TP VOL 01 $34.99
FANTASTIC FOUR #10 NOW $2.99
FF #9 NOW $2.99
IRON MAN #13 NOW $3.99
MIGHTY THOR AND JIM TP EVERYTHING BURNS $19.99
MMW DOCTOR STRANGE HC VOL 06 $69.99
MORBIUS LIVING VAMPIRE #7 NOW $2.99
NOVA #6 NOW $3.99
POWERS BUREAU #6 (MR) $3.95
SAVAGE WOLVERINE #7 NOW $3.99
SCARLET #7 (MR) $3.95
SUPERIOR CARNAGE #1 NOW $3.99
THANOS RISING #4 INF $3.99
THOR GOD OF THUNDER #10 NOW $3.99
THUNDERBOLTS #13 NOW $2.99
ULT COMICS SPIDER-MAN BY BENDIS PREM HC VOL 04 $24.99
ULTIMATE COMICS SPIDER-MAN #25 $3.99
UNCANNY X-FORCE #8 NOW $3.99
UNCANNY X-FORCE TP VOL 07 FINAL EXECUTION BOOK 2 $19.99
WHAT IF AVX #2 $3.99
WOLVERINE MAX #9 (MR) $3.99
WOLVERINE MAX TP VOL 01 PERMANENT RAGE $17.99
X-FACTOR #259 $2.99

COMIC & GRAPHIC NOVELS

07 GHOST GN VOL 05 $9.99
ACCELERATORS #2 $3.99
ADVENTURE TIME #18 MAIN CVRS $3.99
ALEXANDRO JODOROWSKY SCREAMING PLANET HC NEW PTG (MR) $24.95
ALICE I/T COUNTRY CLOVER CHESHIRE CAT WALTZ GN VOL 05 (MR) $13.99
ARCHER & ARMSTRONG (VU) #11 REG PEREZ $3.99
B & V FRIENDS DOUBLE DIGEST #235 [DIG/P+] $3.99
BEIRUT 1990 SNAPSHOTS OF A CIVIL WAR HC $29.95
BRAVEST WARRIORS #10 MAIN CVRS [DIG] $3.99
CARTOON INTRODUCTION TO STATISTICS HC $30
CARTOON INTRODUCTION TO STATISTICS TP $17.95
DAMSELS #8 $3.99
DANCE CLASS HC VOL 05 TO RUSSIA WITH LOVE $10.99
DAY MEN #1 [DIG] $3.99
ELDRITCH TP VOL 01 $17.95
EXTINCTION PARADE #1 LEATHER CVR (MR) $14.99
FARLAINE THE GOBLIN #1 $5
FATHOM ELITE SAGA #5 CVR A MARION [DIG] $3.99
FATHOM ELITE SAGA #5 CVR B CALDWELL $3.99
FIVE COLOR COMICS #1 (MR) $8.95
FLOWERS OF EVIL GN VOL 06 (MR) $10.95
GFT GRIMM FAIRY TALES #87 A CVR LAISO $2.99
GFT GRIMM FAIRY TALES #87 B CVR QUALANO $2.99
GFT GRIMM FAIRY TALES #87 C CVR PANTALENA $2.99
GFT UNLEASHED TP VOL 01 $15.99
GODDAMN THIS WAR HC (RES) $24.99
GREEN HORNET LEGACY #39 $3.99
GUNNERKRIGG COURT HC VOL 04 MATERIA $26.95
GUNSLINGER GIRL OMNIBUS TP VOL 07 BOOK 15 $11.99
HARBINGER WARS (VU) #4 PULLBOX WRAPAROUND $3.99
HARBINGER WARS (VU) #4 REG ZIRCHER $3.99
HELLRAISER DARK WATCH #6 (MR) [DIG] $3.99
HIGHER EARTH #8 MAIN CVRS [DIG] $3.99
I DONT LIKE YOU AT ALL BIG BROTHER GN COLL ED VOL 03 (MR) $16.99
KILL ALL MONSTERS VOL 01 RUINS OF PARIS $11.99
KILLER HC VOL 04 UNFAIR COMPETITION (MR) $19.95
KILLER OMNIBUS TP VOL 01 (MR) $24.95
KOLCHAK NECRONOMICON SC $23.95
MAYO CHICKI GN VOL 03 (MR) $12.99
MYSTERIOUS STRANGERS #1 REG ED $3.99
MYSTERIOUS STRANGERS #2 $3.99
NUMBERCRUNCHER #1 $3.99
PLUME #5 $3.99
PRINCELESS TP VOL 02 GET OVER YOURSELF $14.95
RED SONJA #1 CVR A AMANDA CONNER $3.99
RED SONJA #1 CVR B FIONA STAPLES $3.99
RED SONJA #1 CVR C JENNY FRISON $3.99
RED SONJA #1 CVR D COLLEEN DORAN $3.99
RED SONJA #1 MAIN NICOLA SCOTT $3.99
ROGUES #3 (MR) $3.99
SHADOW YEAR ONE #4 CVR A WAGNER $3.99
SHADOW YEAR ONE #4 CVR B ROSS $3.99
SHADOW YEAR ONE #4 CVR C SAMNEE $3.99
SHADOW YEAR ONE #4 CVR D CHAYKIN $3.99
SIMPSONS COMICS #204 $2.99
SONIC UNIVERSE #54 REG CVR [P+] $2.99
STORYTELLER GN $14.95
THE SPIDER #13 $3.99
WALRUS GN $19.95
WARLORD OF MARS #26 (MR) $3.99
WATSON AND HOLMES #1 $2.99
WORLD WAR BLUE GN VOL 01 $11.99