Highlights This Week: This week Marvel’s Ultimatum storyline finally comes one step closer to it’s end with the releases of Ultimatum #5 (of 5) and Ultimate Spider-Man: Requiem #2 (of 2). Next week will see the final two Requiem books for Fantastic Four and X-Men and then the Ultimate line will be reborn as Ultimate Comics on August 12; the Blackest Night crossover’s only title this week is Blackest Night: Tales of The Corps #3 (of 3); Batwoman makes her second appearance as the lead story in Detective Comics #855; President Obama makes another trip back to the comic racks with IDW’s Barack Obama: The First 100 Days; Image Comics’ epic tale continues in Mice Templar: Destiny #1; Skaar, Son of Hulk is now just Son of Hulk (#13) with new writer Paul Jenkins; Mark Millar’s run writing Fantastic Four comes to an end (#569), but unfortunately Bryan Hitch only provides a snazzy wraparound cover. (He had to start working on Captain America: Reborn) Stuart Immonen provides the art for the double-sized finale; one of Marvel’s original western heroes returns in the Kid Colt One-Shot; Dark Tower: The Fall of Gilead #3 (of 6); SONY teams up with DC/WildStorm for a 12-part comic adaptation of Free Realms, their new MMORPG; the Complete Peanuts Volume 12: 1974-1974 Hardcover, and, the new Hernandez Brothers comic from Dark Horse Citizen Rex #1 (of 6) is being released this week due to a printing error last week.

• Novelty Highlights This Week: Green Lantern Animated Movie DVD Special Edition; the terrific movie Coraline is also out on DVD along with some really cool Corlaine Fashion Dolls; Superman Mini Neon Sign; Star Wars Funko Force Bobble Heads of Boba Fett; Darth Vader and Yoda: Torchwood Series 2 Action Figures and the Bettie Page 11 oz. Leopard Mug (no home should be without one)

Highlights This Week: This week sees the final release of probably the best thing to come out of the Final Crisis event Final Crisis: Legion of Three Worlds #5 (of 5). You can tell that artist George Perez had a great time doing it and it was well worth the wait!; Blackest Night continues in Blackest Night: Tales of the Corps #2 (of 3) and Green Lantern #44; comic legend Mike Ploog returns to write and draw the first of a 2-part story in The Spirit #31; Marvel’s 70th Anniversary celebration continues with 2 landmark issues: Amazing Spider-Man #600 and the return of the Incredible Hulk (#600); Jim Butcher’s Dresden Files: Storm Front II #1; Marvel tries there hand at another installment of the popular video game with Halo: Helljumper #1 (of 5); Immortal Iron Fist is on hiatus but characters from its first story arc are spunoff in Immortal Weapons #1 (of 5); successful on both a creative and financial level, Marvel’s terrific adaptation of the Wonderful Wizard of Oz #8 (of 8) comes to an end. Its sequel, the Marvelous Land of Oz by the same creative team, begins in November; and the NASCAR mascot gets his (its?) own comic Digger and Friends #1 (of 4).

• Novelty Highlights This Week: Ame Comi Black Canary and Huntress PVC Figures; Magneto and Dr. Octopus Bobble Heads; History of the DCU Series 1 Action Figures; Star Trek IV Kirk & Spock and Original Series 2-Pack Action Figures; Twilight 7-Inch Edward & Bella Action Figures 2-Pack; a bunch of Marvel and DC 2010 Wall Calendars and the Watchmen DVD Special Edition
  

Highlights This Week: The big news this week is the official beginning of the long-awaited Green Lantern event Blackest Night. Blackest Night #1 (of 8) is this week’s must have and the event also spills over into Blackest Night: Tales of the Corps #1 (of 3), which will be released over the next couple weeks, and Titans #15 which sees the return of Tempest and is itself a prelude to the Blackest Night: Titans mini-series (currently scheduled for 8/26); Neil Gaiman and Andy Kubert’s recent Batman: Whatever Happened to the Caped Crusader? Hardcover collection with a few extras; American Son concludes in Amazing Spider-Man #599; Captain America #601 is a special double-sized issue featuring art by the legendary Gene Colan and uncovers a lost tale of Bucky and Nick Fury during the days of WW2; Utopia Chapter Three in Dark Avengers #7; Part 3 of the Bullseye storyline in Deadpool #12 and if you missed them the first time there be 2nd printings of Deadpool Suicide Kings #1, 2 and 3; Iron Man: Armored Adventures #1 based on the new cartoon series; Dark Horse has been collecting the classic Warren Magazine Creepy in stylin’ hardcovers and now gives us an all-new Creepy Comics #1; Peter David’s Fallen Angel: Reborn #1 gets another lease on life and in the first four issues battles alongside Illyria from Joss Whedon’s Angel (nice crossover); IDW gives everyone’s favorite Timelord a Doctor Who Ongoing Series #1; Jeff Smith’s Rasl #5, and Steve Rude and Mike Baron have finally finished their long-awaited, double-sized Nexus: Space Opera Acts 3 and 4.

Novelty Highlights This Week: Futurama Bendable Figures Box Set; Harry Potter And The Half Blood Prince Trading Cards; Marvel Select Wolverine Action Figure; Terminator 2 T-800 Pescadero Escape 12 Inch Action Figure, Restocks of some of the Star Trek Movie Electronic Toys, and, as always, we’ve got plenty of other items in stock if these aren’t your style!

Highlights This Week: The official prologue to the Blackest Night crossover is released within the pages of Green Lantern #43 as the first Black Lantern is born (Blackest Night #1 will be released in one more week!); DC’s new weekly tabloid experiment Wednesday Comics #1 (of 12); the final softcover collection of 100 Bullets Volume 13: Wilt ; the first hardcover collection of Alan Moore’s Superman Whatever Happened to the Man of Tomorrow?; the Dark Avengers/X-Men crossover event continues in Dark X-Men: The Beginning #1 (of 3) and X-Men: Legacy #226 (featuring Rogue and Gambit); War of Kings: Warriors #1 (of 2) reveals the shocking event that found Gladiator becoming the leader of the Shi’Ar Imperial Guard; all-new Hellboy related goodness in BPRD: 1947 #1 (of 5); the return of everybody’s favorite Superhero named after an arachnid (well, maybe second favorite) in the Mangalicious Tick #1 (of 3); Dean Koontz’s Nevermore #2 (of 6); an all-new graphic novel by Dave Mazzucchelli Asterios Polyp; The Nobody another new hardcover graphic novel inspired by H.G. Wells’ The Invisible Man by The Essex County Trilogy creator Jeff Lemire, and the collected hardcover version of Pixu: The Mark of Evil by Gabriel Bá (The Umbrella Academy) and his twin brother Fabio Moon; Becky Cloonan (last month’s Buffy: Tales of the Vampires one-shot, also with Fabio Moon), and Vasilis Lolos (The Last Call).

• Novelty Highlights This Week: Looney Tunes Huggables 7″ Plush Toys; Marvel Super Hero Squad Figures 200903; Wolverine: Many Masters Brown T-Shirt; X-Men Archives Trading Cards and restocks of Marvel Legends Icons Figures of Daredevil Red; Dark Phoenix and Nightcrawler as well as Star Trek Original Series Cloth Retro Figures of Kirk; Spock; Klingon and a nameless, but very blue (not sad) Andorian

Highlights This Week: Plenty of new titles and storylines are heading your way! The showdown with the Circus of Strange in Batman and Robin #2; Captain America Reborn #1 written by Ed Brubaker begins Steve Rogers’ return to the Marvel Universe proper; Escape from Wonderland #0 from Xenoscope starts a new chapter in the Grimm Fairy Tales spin-off; Mike Mignola writes a Hellboy-related Victorian Era adventure beginning in Witchfinder: In the Service of Angels #1; someone is seeing just how well he can sell another solo book in Deadpool: Merc With a Mouth #1; Green Arrow and Green Lantern lead Justice League: Cry for Justice #1 written by James Robinson; Uncanny X-Men #513 continues the Utopia crossover with Dark Avengers; Blackest Night starts hitting full-stride with Green Lantern Corps #38; the John Layman written hit Chew #2 is shipping alongside a Chew #1 2nd printing, in case you missed it the first time; Finding Nemo Reef Rescue #1 continues Boom Studios great Pixar-based comics; and Dark Horse brings us another Star Wars comic in the form of Star Wars Invasion #1!

Novelty Highlights This Week: DC Direct’s Superman Batman Series 7 figures; Buffy The Vampire Slayer 2010 Wall Calendar; Futurama Action Figure Series 6 Assortment; various Star Wars Lightsaber Pens, as well as an Emperor and Admiral Ackbar Bobbleheads; and, as always, we’ve got plenty of other items in stock if these aren’t your style!

Drawing Concerns:

Cartoons on a Mission

Cartooning Classes for Teens

In conjunction with “Underground Classics: The Transformation of Comics Into Comix” cartoonist and writer Jay Rath (do you remember Mad Town in the weekend edition of the Capital Times? Josh does) will help students develop their cartooning skills and encourage them to address our times in their comic art. Open to students entering grades 9 through 12. Section I, 4 sessions: Tuesday-Friday, June 16-19 and Section II, 4 sessions: Tuesday-Friday, July 7-10; preregistration required. For more information, check out the Chazen website!

Artist Dave McKean (Sandman, Arkham Asylum) is coming to Chicago, July 17-18 from 6pm - midnight on both dates at the Century Guild art gallery as part of their Nitrate and Kinogeists exhibit. The event is a once in a lifetime exhibition of rare European Silent Film posters 1892-1929 an new artworks by Dave McKean inspired by silent cinema. Hosted by Chicago’s historic Portage Theatre (4050 N. Milwaukee St.), McKean will be in person presenting some of the classic films that inspired his Nitrate artworks, suck as F.W. Murnau’s 1926 Gothic masterpiece Faust including live organ accompaniment. Saturday night will also include a special screening of Dave McKean and Neil Gaiman’s feature film Mirrormask. Live performances, short film screenings, and other surprises are also expected as part of the event.

Original artworks by McKean and special signed and numbered edition prints will be for sale, as well as the exhibition catalog: Kinogeists with an introduction by McKean.

Admission is $20 per day.