Man, Tuesday felt like it was never going to end, huh? Fortunately for us, it’s over, and now we can rejoice in the glory of Comic Book Day! This week has time-traveling tantric sex, throwback Batman action, and the punk rock Dungeons & Dragons comedy you’ve been waiting for. So brace your wallets for impact and pore over the pull list, because it’s gonna be a good one.
Top Picks
Sex Criminals #1 | Matt Fraction and Chip Zdarsky
We can all agree that having sex is pretty great. It’s essentially the driving force behind everything we do, and it has inundated our culture in such a way that it is inescapable. Sure, you’ve probably read a Cosmo sex tip about giving your man a mindblowing orgasm that makes it feel like time has stopped, but what if that wasn’t a metaphor? What if that was what actually happened when you cried havoc and let slip the jizz of war? That’s precisely what happens to Suzie and Johnny, the protagonists of Matt Fraction and Chip Zdarsky’s excellent new sex-filled crime comedy Sex Criminals: time grinds to a halt, and they are suddenly surrounded by trippy rave light effects. For everyone else, time is frozen, but our pulchritudinous protagonists are free to move for a short period of time. Do they use their newfound chrono-coital powers for good? Only if you call robbing banks good. It’s a batshit crazy concept, to be certain, but it works remarkably well as Fraction crafts a surprisingly honest portrayal of sexual awakening that couples remarkably well with the story’s tantric Twilight Zone twist. Chip Zdarsky’s visuals are, to keep with the book’s parlance, boner-inspiring, expertly toeing the line between cartoonish and realistic in such a way that immerses the reader in the weird world they’ve created. The true location of the clitoris may remain a mystery, but make it your mission to seek out Sex Criminals this week. Trust me — you won’t want to blueball yourself where this book is concerned.
Rat Queens #1 | Kurtis J. Wiebe and Roc Upchurch
Fantasy comics often fall into one of two unfortunate categories: they are either entirely too self serious and get bogged down in the minutiae of who begat who, or they try to veer too far into modern vernacular and play up the comedy of the situation against the incongruous backdrop. Rat Queens is one of those rare instances where the high fantasy and low comedy mix to create something that manages to capture the feeling of playing Dungeons & Dragons with your friends into the wee hours of the morning and maintaining a sense of rollicking adventure within a well-designed universe. Wiebe, whose work on Grim Leaper and Peter Panzerfaust made him one to watch, offers up an extremely likeable, diverse cast of adventuring ladies. Sort of like if Sam Humphries’ X-Force had been sent back to the Middle Ages and fed a steady diet of riot grrl before being trained with bastard swords. With banter aplenty, intensely over-the-top action, and more blood than should be contained in the human body, Rat Queens has made more than a splash in its debut issue; it’s a tsunami on the horizon and it’s building speed, so start paddling and ride the wave.
Batman ’66 | Jeff Parker and Rubén Procopio
The campiness continues in the delightfully demented thirteenth chapter of Batman ’66, DC’s digital-first throwback to the classic Batman television series. For all Batman’s grit and gruffness, seeing him in this lighter, more family-friendly context is almost a breath of fresh air compared to the wringers that the likes of Judd Winick and Scott Snyder have put him through in recent months. The latest issue sees him going toe to toe with the Sandman – not to be confused with Neil Gaiman’s Morpheus – a sleep clinician whose dreams of grandeur lead him to take up less than legal pursuits. When the Dynamic Duo finally catches up with the bedtime baddie, they’re in for one hell of a trip through their subconscious into a trippy tour of what dreams may come when Bruce and Robin’s brains switch over to REM mode. What really sells the story though is Rubén Procopio’s throwback art, which captures the pop art sensibility of the era and makes the story leap off the page in a visually invigorating way. Do yourself a favor and click over to comiXology to snag the latest issue in this silly but superb series.
Pull List
PREVIEWS PUBLICATIONS
AUG132462 GAME TRADE MAGAZINE #164 $3.99
AUG130043 MARVEL PREVIEWS OCTOBER 2013 EXTRAS $1.25
AUG130045 PREVIEWS #301 OCT 2013 CUSTOMER ORDER FORM EXTRAS PI
AUG130047 PREVIEWS #301 OCT 2013 RETAILER ORDER FORM EXTRAS PI
AUG130042 PREVIEWS #301 OCTOBER 2013 [DIG/D+] $4.50
PREMIER PUBLISHERS
DARK HORSE COMICS
JUN130011 ART OF AKANEIRO HC $19.99
JUL130064 CAPTAIN MIDNIGHT #3 $2.99
JUL130043 CRIMINAL MACABRE EYES OF FRANKENSTEIN #1 $3.99
MAY130031 CRIMINAL MACABRE FINAL NIGHT 30 DAYS NIGHT XOVER TP $17.99
JUL130068 DARK HORSE PRESENTS #28 (MR) $7.99
MAY130035 EERIE ARCHIVES HC VOL 14 $49.99
JUL130076 EMPOWERED SPECIAL #5 NINE BEERS WITH NINJETTE $3.99
JUL130101 GAME OF THRONES FOUR SIGIL SHOT GLASS SET $19.99
JUL130099 GAME OF THRONES PINT GLASS SET STARK & BARATHEON $19.99
JUL130100 GAME OF THRONES PINT GLASS SET TARGARYEN & LANNISTER $19.99
AUG130124 GAME OF THRONES STANNIS BARATHEON SHIELD PIN $14.99
JAN130156 GARY BASEMAN PINT GLASS $9.99
MAY130078 HELLBOY 5 INCH MINI QEE DIY $19.99
MAY130076 HELLBOY 5 INCH MINI QEE GREY MONOTONE $19.99
MAY130077 HELLBOY 5 INCH MINI QEE HELLBOY WITH HORNS $19.99
JUL130059 ITTY BITTY HELLBOY #2 $2.99
JUL130029 KING CONAN HOUR O/T DRAGON #5 $3.50
JUL130019 MASS EFFECT FOUNDATION #3 $3.99
JUL130071 MIND MGMT #15 $3.99
MAY130033 SIN TITULO HC $19.99
JUL130014 STAR WARS LEGACY II #7 $2.99
DC COMICS
JUL130179 ACTION COMICS #23.4 METALLO $3.99
JUL138009 ACTION COMICS #23.4 METALLO STANDARD ED $2.99
JUL130214 ADVENTURES OF SUPERMAN #5 $3.99
JUN130264 AME COMI GIRLS TP VOL 01 $14.99
JUL130167 AQUAMAN #23.2 OCEAN MASTER $3.99
JUL138012 AQUAMAN #23.2 OCEAN MASTER STANDARD ED $2.99
JUL130188 BATMAN #23.4 BANE $3.99
JUL138013 BATMAN #23.4 BANE STANDARD ED $2.99
JUL130192 BATMAN AND ROBIN #23.4 KILLER CROC $3.99
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JUL138301 BATMAN SUPERMAN #2 2ND PTG $3.99
JUL130184 BATMAN SUPERMAN #3.1 DOOMSDAY $3.99
JUL138019 BATMAN SUPERMAN #3.1 DOOMSDAY STANDARD ED $2.99
JUL130196 BATMAN THE DARK KNIGHT #23.4 JOKERS DAUGHTER $3.99
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IDW PUBLISHING
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IMAGE COMICS
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IMAGE COMICS/MCFARLANE TOYS
MAY131850 NFL PLAYMAKERS SERIES 4 AF PI
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MAY131856 NFL PLAYMAKERS SERIES 4 KAEPERNICK AF CS PI
MAY131857 NFL PLAYMAKERS SERIES 4 RGIII AF CS PI
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MAY131842 TMP SPORTS NFL SERIES 32 RAY RICE AF CS PI
MARVEL COMICS
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JUL130594 INFINITY HEIST #1 $3.99
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JUL130652 MARVEL UNIVERSE ULTIMATE SPIDER-MAN #18 $2.99
JUL130698 MMW ATLAS ERA TALES TO ASTONISH TP VOL 01 $29.99
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JUL138140 WOLVERINE IN FLESH #1 2ND PTG SEELEY VAR $3.99
JUL130609 YOUNG AVENGERS #10 NOW $2.99
JUL130714 YOUNG MARVEL TP LITTLE X-MEN LITTLE AVENGERS BIG TROUBLE $24.99
COMICS & GRAPHIC NOVELS
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JUL131359 ARE YOU ALICE GN VOL 02 $11.99
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JUN131050 BIONIC MAN #24 $3.99
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JUN131259 BODIE TROLL #3 $2.99
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MAY130913 CRITTER (ONGOING) #14 $3.50
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JUN130825 CROSSED BADLANDS #36 (MR) $3.99
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What’s on your pull list this week? Let us know in the comments below!
@JetpackBlues Do you not have a post-coital Dafoe mask in your bedroom?
Is that the head of Willem Dafoe, at the foot of the bed, on the Sex Criminals cover?