BC Refugees Blog

EDITOR’S NOTE: Thanks to the kind folks at Valiant Entertainment, here is an advance look at RAPTURE coming in May.  RAPTURE #1 was one of our March Pre-Order PIcks. First Look: RAPTURE #1 – Ninjak and Shadowman Charge into a Relentless, Fantasy-Driven Event in May!  Epic Creators Matt Kindt & CAFU Enter the Deadside for a Myth-Laden Quest Returning Shadowman to the Forefront of the Valiant Universe        Valiant is proud to present your first look inside  RAPTURE #1 (of 4)  – the  FIRST ISSUE  of Valiant’s spectacular standalone summer event from New York Times best-selling writer  Matt Kindt  ( X-O Manowar, Dept. H ) and explosive artist  CAFU  ( Rai )! On  May 24th , Ninjak unites with the fallen hero known as Shadowman for a harrowing journey into the Deadside…where the very fate of the Valiant Universe lies at the mercy of an ancient evil with an unspeakable connection to the origin of the Shadowman loa itself…      “RAPTURE marks a major turning point in the lives of Ninj...

Lots to do for everyone! THIS SATURDAY! Galactic Con has something for everyone! If not everyone in the family is a fan of comics, that doesn't mean they should skip out on fun.  We have a Shopkins Swap area set up, so make sure to bring your doubles along and trade with others, or with the official Galactic Con collection.  Everyone who participates in a trade will get a raffle ticket to win a Shopkins prize. We also have face painting and green screen photo areas. This year Galactic Con will have a LuLaRoe vendor and a Kimono vendor. We have over 100 vendors, artists and guests... this year will be the first year we have a full size BB-8 so make sure you check it out!   Buy Tickets https://www.eventbrite.com/e/galactic-con-middletown-comic-con-2017-tickets-28334422019?mc_eid=5db36b6f88&mc_cid=afa233ce07   LuLaRoe by Robin Christopher You can check out...

RAPTURE #1 of 4  (Valiant Entertainment, May 24 release date)  Written by Matt Kindt.  Art by Cafu.  Rated T+.       Shadowman remains one of my favorite Valiant characters, but I suppose sales aren’t strong enough to support an ongoing series. I appreciate that Valiant isn’t going to let us completely forget about the character, as they continue to feature him in story arcs of other titles and also in these cool limited series.       RAPTURE is a stand-alone event, so it’s not necessary to be reading NINJAK or previous Shadowman appearances.      RAPTURE promises a massive battle on a dimensional landscape between otherworldly armies and mystics for control of a prominent tower. One side includes a new character, young mystic Tama, who joins forces with Ninjak, Shadowman, and Punk Mambo (great to see her again!).      Writer Matt Kindt knows how to play these events out and promises an epic tale with echoes of Tolkien.  Artist Cafu is just flat-out incredible and I can’t wait...

EDITOR’S NOTES: I’m about to post my final Pre-Order Pick article for March.        It’s been brought to my attention that some readers may interpret these articles as an endorsement of the Previews Catalog and a strong suggestion for readers to purchase and use it every month. That’s not what I’m aiming for.       What I hope to convey is the importance of pre-ordering books.  It’s a way to help your local comic shop improve their inventory turns and be more profitable.  It’s not essential to purchase a Previews catalog to do that — Diamond Distributors even put the catalog on their website for free. Plus, there are numerous Internet sources to learn what books are coming out in two months.  Many shops are now carrying Comic Shop News, the free (to readers) newsletter of upcoming books.       In addition, there are many worthwhile books that don’t enjoy the amount of sales that they deserve simply because pre-orders by comic shops are limited compared to the core books. So, comi...

MINDBENDER #1  (Scout Comics, May 24 release date)  Writer: James Pruett.  Artist, Cover Artist: Frederico De Luca 32 pages, full color $3.99.     We’ve been keeping an eye on small indie publisher Scout Comics for some time, looking for that book we can spotlight.  We think this is the one.  The book info is going to remind you of a current television series, LEGION, but that’s not a bad thing. Since Marvel doesn’t seem to be inclined to pursue the rich story possibilities of such a character —- why not see what some others can do with these themes?        From the PREVIEWS catalog:          “ At the tender age of seven, Alexander Oberman witnessed the gruesome deaths of his parents in a horrendous explosion as a result of his own mind tapping into a previously unknown powerful force.          How Alex survived has been a mystery.  Physically he was fine, minus a few burns, but mentally he withdrew into himself, into his mind.          For 16 years, Alex hadn’t uttered...

KEYSER SOZE: SCORCHED EARTH #1 of 4  (Red 5 Comics, May 10 release date)  Writer: Paul Ens.  Artist, Cover Artist: Livia Pastore.  32 pages, full color $3.95.               Finally, someone seized on the potential for great story from a great film character.  We’re looking forward to see what Red 5 does with this property.             Here’s what the PREVIEWS catalog reveals:             “ Before he was a name on special agent Dave Kujan’s wall, Keyser  Soze was a watchword in the criminal underworld, the ultimate bogeyman.                 In this prequel to the hit film THE USUAL SUSPECTS, set against the backdrop of the Iran-Contra hearings, find out how Soze earned his reputation and how he first came to the attention of the U.S. Government.”           Artist Livia Pastore is one of the Women In Comics profiled in the March PREVIEWS catalog, and has also done work for Big Dog Ink.

TALES FROM THE CRYPT, VOLUME 1: THE STALKING DEAD   (Super Genius, May 31 release date)  Softcover, 7 x 10, 120 pages, full color $12.99. Hardcover $17.99  Mature readers.            It was a nice coup for Papercutz to obtain licensing for new stories of Tales From The Crypt.  However, because of the publisher’s mission statement for the Papercutz line, the stories were tamed down a bit when compared to the legendary EC fare, and fans didn’t warm up to the new title.  Now, with a new imprint from the same publisher, Super Genius can treat this title properly.  It’s a nice addition to their line-up, which has also featured some tasty reprints of former Tekno comics titles.  We read the first issue of TALES FROM THE CRYPT when it was released, and were pleasantly unhinged, a reaction you may well expect and anticipate when reading this book.        Here’s what the PREVIEWS catalog says about the first collected volume:        “ What  Zombies on Wall Street!  A vampire elected pres...

from the official Valiant press release  – Oscar Nominee Eric Heisserer & Visionary Artist Raul Allen Recruit Valiant’s Electrifying New Team in June!   This June, Valiant’s biggest series of the summer heats up as Livewire leads a team of extraordinary new heroes into the firefight of their lives!        Valiant is proud to present your first look inside  SECRET WEAPONS #1 (of 4)  – the  FIRST ISSUE  of the all-new Valiant Prestige-format limited series initiating a riveting new turning point for the most acclaimed publisher in comics today! On  June 28th , Academy Award-nominated screenwriter  Eric Heisserer  – writer of the internationally acclaimed, smash-hit motion picture  ARRIVAL , as well as Valiant’s upcoming  HARBINGER  and  BLOODSHOT  feature films from Sony Pictures – leads the charge alongside Harvey Award-nominated artists  Raul Allen  ( Wrath of the Eternal Warrior ) and  Patricia Martin  ( Bloodshot Reborn ) to launch the super-charged heroine called Livewire into ...

THE DAMNED #1.  (ONI Press, May 03 release date)  Writer: Cullen Bunn.  Artist, Cover Artist: Brian Hurtt. Colorist: Bill Crabtree. 32 pages. Full color. $1.00 first issue. Mature readers.             THE DAMNED  was a sleeper hit in it’s original debut from ONI.  Bunn and Hurtt established the perfect blend of crime and the supernatural/demonic in a great story.  ONI wisely has re-issued the first volume in trade paperback as THE DAMNED, VOLUME1: THREE DAYS DEAD for just $9.99. That’s a great bargain, and marvelous reading value.    Now, the original creative team continues the story with a debut issue at the introductory price of only $1.00. If you’re assuming that comics shops will be ordering plenty of copies at that price and they will automatically have a good inventory on their shelves, then you’re a real gambler. I’m not sure at all that they’re going to order extra copies, considering this is not a big name publisher and this is not a mainstream super-hero storyline. But, ...

SUPERMAN: LOIS AND CLARK Trade Paperback - (DC Comics, 2016) Written by Dan Jurgens.  Pencils by Neil Edwards, Marco Santucci, Stephen Segovia, Lee Weeks.  Inks by Sergio Cariello, Neil Edwards, Scott Hanna, Jay Leisten, Art Thibert, Lee Weeks. Colors by Brad Anderson, Jeremy Cox.  Letters by A Larger World Studios, Joshua Cozine & Troy Peteri.  Reprints Superman: Lois And Clark #1-8 mini-series 2015-2016. $17.99 ISBN#978-4012-6249-5        If you haven’t read any of the DC: REBIRTH titles and are curious to explore the rebooted DC universe, this is the absolute best place to start. DC wisely slugged the trade paperback edition with a banner that proclaims “Road To Rebirth”. SUPERMAN: LOIS AND CLARK puts things in a better perspective as far as the other versions of Superman are concerned. But, first and foremost it’s a great story, and a very compelling one that fans of Superman (and classic storytelling) won’t want to miss.         This is the best work that I’ve read from ...

CAL EXIT #1.  (Black Mask Comics, May release)  Writer: Matteo Pizzolo.  Artist: Amancay Nahuelpan. 32 pages. Full color. $3.99 Mature readers.             This one seems to ripped straight from the headlines . . . headlines from another version of Earth that is.  Already receiving favorable notice in The Washington Post, The Huffington Post, Hollywood Reporter, Forbes, Comic Book Resources, Bleeding Cool and others, this could be a book to watch.  And I suspect it will be seriously under-ordered by comic shops. That’s why you need to pre-order your copy so you don’t miss out.  Feast your eyes on this juicy promotional information . . . . .        “ What if a fascist, autocratic President took over the United States?        And what if that President lost California, the sixth largest economy on Earth, by nearly 2-to-1 . . . a margin of almost 3.5 million votes?        What if the day after after that President took power, the largest mass demonstration in history occurred, a...

CROAK #1 of 3.  (Alterna Comics, May 3 release)  Writer: Cody Andrew Sousa.  Artist: Francesco Iaquinta & Various.  Cover artists: Francesco Iaquinta, Chris O’Halloran.  32 pages. Full color. $1.50             This is the comic that won a 2016 Ghastly Award for Best Limited Series and beat out a crop of worthy contenders. We posted the Award winners on our blog on March 3rd. You can view the full list of winners here . . .  http://bcrefugees.blogspot.com/2017/03/winners-announced-of-ghastly-awards-for.html        Now, small indie publisher Alterna Comics gives us all an opportunity to see for ourselves what it’s all about.  The description makes it seem like an ordinary tale, with themes familiar to regular readers of horror comics and film fans, but we expect some surprises along the way.    From  the PREVIEWS catalog copy:        “In this pulse-pounding debut issue, a fun camping trip turns awry after three friends are forced deep into the woods.        Lost, afra...

EDITOR’S NOTE:  Aftershock Comics continue to impress with their diverse mix of genres and themes. We were sold on trying out these two titles based on the series descriptions alone. But check out the creative teams.  These are comic veterans with some impressive credentials working on these two books. We’ll let the Aftershock website summaries tell you the rest . . . . . PESTILENCE #1  (Aftershock Comics, May 3 release date) Writer:  Frank Tieri.  Artist:  Oleg Okunev.  Story: Eric Bromberg & Brandon Auman.  Colorist: Rob Schwager.  Cover: Time Bradstreet. 32 pages. Full Color. $3.99.  Rated 17+.             “It’s the late 14th Century, and a Great Pestilence — the ‘Black Death’  — is sweeping across Europe, killing over 100 million people.          But what if history as we know it was a lie?  What if, in reality, this was no straightforward  plague, but the first non-recorded Zombie Infestation of man?          Ex-Crusader Roderick Helms and his fellow ‘black ops’ agents...

MEDI SIN #1  (Action Lab: Danger Zone comics) Writers: Jeff Dyer & Mark McKeon.  Artist:  David Brame.  32 pages. Full Color. $3.99.  Rated Teen+.             MEDI SIN got its’ start as a successful Kickstarter campaign in 2015, exceeding it’s start-up goal with over 90 backers. Now, it’s an ongoing series (six issues in the initial run) from Action Lab Comics.       A health care plan for super-villains? Founded by a criminal with unscrupulous methods to keep his employees in line.  We like the concept and recommend this for any reader looking for unusual concepts and different spins on the tried and true.         The PREVIEWS catalog recaps the first issue:          “ First Do No Harm Chapter 1:  Criminal mastermind Malady has recruited a team of down on their luck physicians to provide medical aid for the world’s worst bad guys.        Led by the brilliant Ethan Sharp, the blackmailed doctors struggle to uphold their own ethical codes (or lack thereof) in violent an...

VIOLENT LOVE Volume 1: STAY DANGEROUS trade paperback.  (Image Comics, releases on May 24) 152 pages, full color. Mature readers. $9.99 Story: Frank J. Barbiere. Art & Covers: Victor Santos.  Collects Violent Love #1-5.        The PREVIEWS catalog doesn’t have a lot to say about this:          “Daisy Jane and Rock Bradley were two of the most notorious bank robbers in the American Southwest.  And then they fell in love.        Join Frank J. Barbiere (Five Ghosts, The Revisionist) and Victor Santos (The Mice Templar, Polar) for a pulp-infused criminal romance oozing with style and action.”       Crime comics and romance comics are two less-recognized but still well-read genres within the comics medium.  Combining the two happens less frequently, and based on VIOLENT LOVE and the equally engaging GRAND PASSION over at Dynamite we could all benefit from more of this great story-telling.       Just like the Previews catalog, we’re not going to add a lot to the description or...