matt wagner

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good this week

the fade out volume #1 : old time hollywood in the hands of CRIMINAL masterminds ed brubaker and sean phillips. this is about as good as noir gets, folks.

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sex criminals volume #2 : what would you do if you could stop time when you orgasm? give this a read, it’ll help you figure it out.

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abigail and the snow man #3 : is anyone better at this kind of innocently sophisticated cartooning as roger langridge? parents and the young at heart, start here and go to SNARKED and the wonderful MUPPET books roger did.

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spider-gwen #1 : this book brings a lot of heat on the heels of the over-the-top fun SPIDER-VERSE storyline. there was a lot of talk about the batgirl costume redo from a few months back, and that was cool, but gwen’s webbed hoodie is one of the best new character designs i can remember in a long time.

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ody-c #3 : whoah. this sci-fi gender-bent retelling of THE ODYSSEY is pure comics.

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the manara library volume 6 : the final volume in dark horse’s fantastic collection of italian master milo manara’s singular work takes off on its own sci-fi flight of fancy. yes, it’s sexy.

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curb stomp #1 : we’ve got the makings of the baddest girl gang since the lizzie’s here…

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django/zorro #4 : matt wagner just flat out knows how to handle these characters, and an improbable pairing becomes a cracking good yarn in his hands.

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–chris

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good this week

mouse guard legends of the guard #4 : david petersen’s anthology series wraps up with a rare bill willingham-illustrated tale, a painted story from jackson sze, and an illustrated ballad based on traditional mouse lyrics. i’ll be looking forward to the next series. this is a delightful package.

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the fox #2 : dean, you baffled me here, out MADMAN-ing MADMAN at times. but damn if you don’t look good doing it. and the added bonus of that killer paul pope cover is a cherry on top of a good old fashioned sundae someone slipped a micky into.

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elephantmen #52 : did you know that every copy sold of this series helps clothe & feed a baby elephant? well, it does. so don’t be cruel. buy some. the elephants will be better for it. you will be better for it.

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trillium #5 : things get topsy turvy in this standout sci fi adventure from jeff lemire.

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good this week

catalyst comix #1 : the most intriguing shot in dark horse’s latest superhero ramp up, this book has three features and three artists and is written by joe casey. with paul maybury, dan mcdaid, and ulises farinas each handling their own chapter, it’s a fine looking book removed from the cookie-cutter look that so many super hero books suffer from these days.

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mister x : eviction #3 : dean motter’s masterfully elegant cartooning put a special smile on our faces this month with a little nemo inspired strip and will eisner homage on the cover.

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satellite sam #1 : more and more, what turns me on in comics are books that do things other books don’t. it’s safe to say there aren’t too many comics like matt fraction & howard chaykin’s early 1950s live tv murder mystery.

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dexter #1 : i’ll be honest, i haven’t seen the show and i haven’t read this book. but i like the fact jeff lindsay, the show’s creator, is writing the series. projects like this are good for comics.

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grendel omnibus #3 : one of the great series in comics history is also, due to a long history of legal & publisher nonsense, one of the most criminally unknown amongst today’s audience. these priced-right collections from dark horse will hopefully change that. highly recommended.

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–chris stevens