Beyond the Big 2: Aug 2008

by Matt

I love going through the Previews magazine every month. I spend hours going through every page, reading every solicitation and I usually find something that piques my interest. Each month I try to pick up a new book that is NOT part of the "Big 2". Here are a couple of new books that I am giving a try in October from the August 2008 Previews.

I love it when comic companies put out a cheap preview issue of a new series to generate interest. I'll usually try out any comic when it is around a buck, I have picked up a bunch of great series because of this with Black Summer and Drafted certainly coming to mind. This month, 3 out of my picks are cheap preview issues!



GI JOE: A NEW BEGINNING #0
By Larry Hama (W) • Robert Atkins (A)
Published by IDW Publishing
99 cents!
Product Code AUG084120
G.I. Joe has a new base of operations! IDW Publishing is proud to present an all-new era for the legendary Joe team. This specially priced introductory issue re-introduces the G.I. JOE vs. COBRA conflict for today's world, as presided over by G.I. JOE commanding officer, writer Larry Hama. Joining Hama on art chores is artist Robert Atkins. Together, the two tell their first tale-during a routine mission, the Joe team comes under attack by a mysterious outfit with terrifying goals. Featuring a special cover by painter Dave Dorman, as well as a wraparound incentive cover by the inimitable Ben Templesmith, this 24-page comic features a 16-page story, plus character sketches, interviews. All that and more for less than a buck!

I am a child of the 80's and I fondly remember Marvel's GI Joe series. I bought the Image reboot and almost every incarnation since and eventually dropped them because they just didn't capture what I was looking for. Remember GI Joe: Reborn? Ugh. I am hoping that this reboot will recapture that early magic and for a buck I am definitely willing to give it a try!

NOWHERE MAN #0
By Hugh Jackman & Marc Guggenheim (W) Paul Gulacy (A)
Published by Virgin Comics
$1.00
Product Code AUG084355
Its 500 years in the future and an oppressive government monitors everything- including your mind. It's the Patriot Act gone haywire. Everyone on earth has been infected with a virus that allows a central computer to tap into and analyze their thoughts. But a group of rebels have engineered the ultimate weapon: a genetically altered child, born immune to the virus. With the ability to act undetected, he's the only one on the planet that can bring some semblance of privacy and individuality back to the world. It is his destiny. He is the Nowhere Man.

The storyline sounds intriguing but the biggest draw is Paul Gulacy. When I was younger I never liked his art but I have grown to love it. What could have been my first Virgin book now looks like it may never be published. But I am going to order it anyway.


CYBLADE #1
By Joshua Hale Fialkov (W) Rick Mays (A)
Published by Top Cow Comics
$2.99
Product Code AUG082277A
The “season premiere” of one of last year’s Pilot Season winners! You voted for it, you got it! From the pages of Marc Silvestri’s Cyberforce comes a solo series for Cyblade! Dominique Thiebaut has been leading a double life. By day she’s an awkward teenager, but, at night, a chip in her brain changes her into the deadly master assassin Cyblade. Now she’s broken free from Cyberdata’s control. She must find a way to escape from their clutches, while trying to discover who she really is beneath.

I thought Cyblade was the worst of last year's Pilot Season but I am willing to give this series a try. I am a huge Cyberforce fan and I am hoping that the series will be better that the pilot. I almost didn't order the series because of the lame T&A cover but mailordercomics offered it for 75% off so I will try it again.


ZEN INTERGALACTIC NINJA #0
By Joe Casey (W) Joe Abraham (A)
Published by Devil's Due
99 cents!
Product Code AUG083930
The comic book legend returns! DDP is proud to present the beginning of the new Zen legend! Trained as a master of the Om martial arts, Zen becomes the galaxy`s deadliest mercenary-for-hire, but at what cost to his soul?

I heard of Zen back in the 90's but I never picked up the book and I have no idea what it is all about. But with Joe Casey writing and it only costing a buck, I will take a peek at this series as well.

I get all my comics, trades and hard covers through Mailordercomics.com. Click on the banner below and you visit their site and you can order these books (and anything else from the August Previews) at huge discounts.




I'll see you next month with some more picks. Make sure you check out my other new column Beyond the Big 2: Preview Review where I will be reviewing picks that I made in earlier columns. Earlier I reviewed Freddie & Me: Coming of Age, Charlatan Ball #1 and Fluffy. This week, I will review No Hero #0 and Modern Masters Vol 18: John Romita Jr and the first X Omnibus!