At the request of Bishop2Knight I'm going to try to start a thread every week where I recommend the 1-3 best new comic books that come out on Wednesday (new comic book day). A little background, I've helped run a comic book store for the past 5 years, so I'm very knowledgable on all things terribly dorky & comic book related & I read just about every comic that comes out b/c the customers constantly ask questions & recommendations. And I'm trying to do my best to be objective with my 3 selections. Meaning, I'm not always going to list my 3 favorite comics for the week, I'm going to try to list what I feel truly are the 3 best bets if your going to go into a store & pick up a few good comics to read.

Unlike the old "What did you get" thread that was here, this thread is not so everyone can rattle off all the comics they get every week. I'm going to try to list what I feel truly are the 3 best bets if your going to go into a store & pick up a few good comics to read. Everyone is welcome to do the same, if they pick up comics every week post your 1 or 3 best comics you checked out or feel free to discuss, criticize, or ask questions on my pics. I will not criticize anyone elses pics & I encourage that nobody does that to anyone else. I'll also try to post this thread on Weds. & if there aren't enough replies to warrent a new thread I'll just add to this one next week. Also, if you have any comic book questions in general feel free to ask in this thread.

All that said, on with this weeks comic book pics. Your best bet this week if you want to go into a comic book store & drop some cash on a new comic is . . .

Sgt. Rock: Between Hell & A Hard Place - This is a hardcover original graphic novel so I realize that not everyone is going to drop in a store & plunk down $24.95. But those that may & are looking for one damn good comic book you are truly in for a treat. Published under D.C's Vertigo banner b/c of extreme violence & mature themes & Written by my personal favorite writer Brian Azzarello & pencilled by the living comic book legend Joe Kubert Hell & A Hard place tells the tale of Sgt. Rock & Easy Company during 1944 in brutal Hurtgen Forest where they are fighting for their lives & have captured a group of German Intelligence Officers in order to learn a way out of this bizarre forest they have found themselves immersed in. However what makes this book more than a war story is that once the battle is over & daybreak comes, Easy Company soon realizes that all fo the enemy forces have disappeared & worse yet, all of there German prisoners have been brutally butchered in the night except one SIS officer you has mysteriously escaped. Part War story & part murder mystery with dialogue that rivals a Tarantino film & art by one of greatest talents that the medium has ever seen. This is one impressive comic book.


Other comics worth checking out. . .

Empire #4 - One may be confused diving into this issue so they may be better off waiting for trade. This comic tells the story from the villains perpective. What if a villain along the lines of a Dr. Doom actually did succedd in ruling the world in a most vicious way & molded it to how they see fit. Yet, they also have a truly human side as well as the book tells the story between a maniacal villain & the daughter he loves. A truly unique comic by the often great Marc Waid.

Ultimate Spider-man #49 - Me being truly objective as Spider-man is my all-time least favorite comic book character. But customers are psyched for the upcoming issue #50 on this fan favorite title. A stand alone story that gives depth to the J. Jonah Jameson character & is great for the new comic book fan to get into this top selling comic.

Damn, I wish I hadn't read this thread. Now I need to get that new hardcover. How many pages is it? And by original, does that mean it was not published in any other format?

on the thread. I love the idea for a place to go discuss comics since I'm just getting into them.

Sessa17 - Just got back this evening from Midtown Comics here in NYC where I got Joe Kubert & Brian Azzarello to sign "Sgt. Rock: Between Hell & A Hard Place". Since I pretty much grew up reading Sgt. Rock (and GI Combat) as a kid, all I could say to Mr. Kubert was "Thank you sir!" with a big goofy grin.

I also second the recommendation in getting this GN.

It's worth noting that DC usually releases its hardcover Graphic Novels in paperback format, but they also take their sweet time in doing so (I think the average wait is about a year). I've never been a big fan of Rock or Azzarello, so I'll probably hold off on this, but I'll probably at least give it a look-see when it comes out in paperback.

Unfortunately there was not nearly as much discussion in the thread as I'd hope. It's weird the weekly what did you get thread we use to have flopped, this thread isn't off to a good start, but whenever someone posts a random thread about comics, it usually goes to 2+ pages of responses. Oh well, it was a pretty crappy week for comics last week.

Anyway, yes the Sgt. Rock hardcover is all previously unpublished material, Joe Kubert has spent one full year working on it. Not sure on the page count as I don't have it in front of me.

Well, instead of making it a weekly thread, maybe we should just make it a comic thread? That might not work either.

I'm now reading the entire JMS Amazing Spider-Man series. His Peter Parker stuff is great, but the stories lack a little in the bad guy area.

I've just started investigating comics again and I checked out a couple of the books mentioned in the other recent thread.

I'm pleasantly surprised at the difference between when I quit and now.

Damn, Kubert doing Rock again? Since when?? How's it look - all old school, or is it night and day, as in Bernie Wrightson Swamp Thing vs. Bernie Wrightson The Weird?

If the pic posted above is representative of the whole, I'd say, I'll have to definitely check it out. Thansk for the heads up sessa.

Just read issues 11 and 12 of GOTHAM CENTRAL. This is some good reading. I love the idea of a noir comic in the super hero world.

I just wish there was more to these issues, and for all comics for that matter. For $2.50, I'd like a little more than a 20 minute diversion.

Robert Kirkman released a trio of great books yesterday, Invincible #6, Capes #2 and Walking Dead #2. Walking Dead is the best of thre three, a great zombie comic, and Invincible is perfect for fans of Ultimate Spider-Man