THE STORY: "Hard Time" by Steve Gerber (W) & Brian Hurtt (A)
WHAT IT'S ABOUT: No one was supposed to get hurt when Ethan Harrow and his friend Brandon held their local high school hostage with masks on and guns at the ready—they just wanted to teach the school bullies a lesson. But Brandon's quick trigger finger prompts an otherworldly response from Ethan, killing the former and leaving the latter as the only blameworthy culprit left alive.
Ethan is subsequently tried as an adult and handed a prison sentence of 50 years to life. The outside world moves on as Ethan's mother and his lawyer continue to fight for the troubled boy's freedom, but inside the prison walls—indeed, deep within Ethan himself—lurks a super-powered creature that could give Ethan another shot at life. Read more...
THE STORY: "Air" by G. Willow Wilson (W) and M. K. Perker (A) - DC/Vertigo
WHAT IT'S ABOUT: An acrophobic (afraid of heights) flight attendant gets mixed up with a mysterious terrorist group after an encounter with a globe-trotting stranger.
Airplane hijackings, kidnappings, trips to mythical cities and reality-bending adventures ensue as she struggles to make some sense of her new relationship and the trouble she's welcomed into her life.
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THE STORY: "Pinocchio: Vampire Slayer" by Van Jensen (W) and Dustin Higgins (A) – SLG Publishing
WHAT IT'S ABOUT: After vampires claim the life of his father Geppetto, Pinocchio takes up arms (and wooden stakes replenished every time he tells a lie) against the undead in his kooky little corner of Tuscany and beyond.
WHY IT WORKS: Van Jensen's Pinocchio is a brooding man-child forced to confront the darkness that lurks in the corners of his fairytale-like existence. Tragedy pushes him to come to terms with the bizarre Carlo Collodian world he inhabits, meaning his former selfish mischief—and current personal quest for revenge—must take a backseat to mowing down monsters and fighting for those closest to him. Read more...
THE STORY: "FreakAngels" by Warren Ellis (W) and Paul Duffield (A) - Avatar Press
WHAT IT'S ABOUT: A group of super-powered misfits carve out their way in a flooded post-apocalyptic London that they helped destroy.
Personal issues and histories gradually complicate their situation as the story zooms out to show who and what lies beyond their urban fortress community of Whitechapel.
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THE STORY: "Nathan the Caveman" by Ben Bishop (W/A) - self-published
WHAT IT'S ABOUT: The remains of a caveman are discovered in a remote location and brought back to the United States for a museum exhibit. Meanwhile, aspiring artist Nathan Burling finds himself falling in love with Adrianna, a 24-year-old employee of the same museum that's about to host the caveman exhibit—but a previous heartbreak in his enigmatic past prevents him from fully accepting a good thing when he sees it.
The story of Nathan and Adrianna's developing romance unfolds concurrently with a look back upon the caveman's life and the similar events that led to his death. Read more...
THE STORY: "Pax Romana" by Jonathan Hickman (W/A) - Image Comics
WHAT IT'S ABOUT: A warehouse full of modern weaponry and genetically-enhanced soldiers is sent back in time to Ancient Rome by the Vatican in order to change the course of history and ensure a future in which the church reigns supreme. The plan changes dramatically, however, when the time-traveling army abandons their religious directives and decides to create a new, better history using the knowledge and technology they brought with them.
A veteran general and his team have the power to shape the future, but now they must decide what sort of future they should create. Read more...
THE STORY: "Beasts of Burden" by Evan Dorkin (W) and Jill Thompson (A) – Dark Horse Comics
WHAT IT'S ABOUT: Something's not quite right in Burden Hill. The picturesque American suburb is plagued by haunted dog houses, zombie road kill and far too many black cats. With their "people" distracted by the monotony of day-to-day life, it's up to a hodgepodge of neighborhood dogs (and one reluctant cat) to protect their community from supernatural threats.
Under the guidance of an aging society of "Wise Dogs," canines with abilities beyond those of average pets, the beasts begin to take matters into their own paws. Read more...
THE STORY: "Casanova" by Matt Fraction (W) and Gabriel Bá (A) - Image Comics
WHAT IT'S ABOUT: The title hero, Casanova Quinn, is part James Bond, a little bit Doctor Who and a dash of Buckaroo Banzai. He's an alpha male super-spy for hire with with a dad out to kill him and beautiful lady robots around every corner. His first volume of adventures in "Casanova: Luxuria" smacks of Nick Fury bravado and Terry Gilliam-style absurdity.
His father Cornelius, the ultimate authority figure, runs a planetwide organization called E.M.P.I.R.E. that enforces world peace with a mighty fist. Casanova remains the persist rebel, but transdimensional hijinx and his father's nemesis, a villain named Newman Xeno, pull him into an adventure involving alternate versions of himself and deranged sci-fi plans. Read more...
THE STORY: "Girls" by Joshua and Jonathan Luna
WHAT IT'S ABOUT: The small community of Pennystown has a big problem: a seemingly endless supply of beautiful, naked, alien women have invaded.
What's the problem? Well, the girls are instinctually eviscerating any human women they come across, having sex with any men they can find, then giving birth to a new crop of girls. The worst part? The entirety of Pennystown is enclosed in a massive shell. No one comes in and no one comes out, at least not until these murderous, sex-crazed girls have been dealt with. Read more...
THE STORY: "The Amazing Joy Buzzards" by Mark Andrew Smith (W) and Dan Hipp (A) - Image Comics
WHAT IT'S ABOUT: AJB is a rock band bigger than The Beatles that fights evil with the help of a mythical Mexican wrestler named El Campeon. Along with their manager from the Creative International Artists agency (a.k.a. the CIA), lead singer Biff Ashby (the "looks" of the band), drummer Gabe Carlyle (the "brains" of the band) and bass player Stevo Vargas (racecar driver and half-Yeti ninja who only speaks in symbols) are not only musical superstars, but humanity's last, best hope against the forces of evil and supernatural threats to the world we know.
And that's only the tip of the wild iceberg for Smith and Hipp's "The Amazing Joy Buzzards." Read more...
