Dark Horse Previews Picks: January 2014
Was there any more significant news about the company in the past month than what I talked about yesterday? No. No there was not. On with the picks!
(Okay, the “Grendel/Shadow” crossover by Matt Wagner sounds awesome, but it doesn’t excite me more than a new volume of “Eden” does.)
The Adventures of Nilson Groundthumper and Hermy: In case you thought Usagi Yojimbo was the only original character created by Stan Sakai, you would be wrong (like I was). Way back in the 80’s, Sakai created these strips about a dim-witted rabbit and his sidekick in medieval times. He apparently didn’t have the chance to develop the title more than the strips collected here, but the characters are also making their return in this month’s Dark Horse Presents as well. Given that I’ve rarely read something by Sakai that I haven’t enjoyed thoroughly, it’s an easy choice to pick this up when it comes out.
Bad Blood: Apparently the solicitations for the single issues didn’t catch my eye and the reviews for this were non-existent on the sites I visit. That said, this is about two vampires who have lived an interesting life over the years. Smoking opium with Genghis Khan, taking part in orgies in Michelangelo’s studio, and now… making ends meet as bail bondsmen. Now faced with an apocalyptic threat, the two of them have to put aside the many issues they now have with each other to save the world. It’s basically a buddy movie with vampires as the main characters. Fortunately, vampires as irresponsible party animals is a description that appeals to me. I’ll be looking into this…
Conan the Barbarian #24: Hey, Brian Wood’s “DMZ” collaborator Riccardo Burchielli joins him on this issue. They work great together, so I’m looking forward to seeing what kind of magic they’re going to work here! Why, I remember the last time they teamed up outside of that title, it was… Oh. That’s not good. Well, at least the bar has been set at such a low level that they should have no trouble clearing it here.
Drifters vol. 3: “Eden” isn’t the only Dark Horse manga making a return this month. Granted, this volume’s publication was a little more certain if only for the fact that the company tends to cancel titles with volumes that are multiples of three. …So if you want them to publish vol. 4, you’re probably going to want to buy a copy of this when it comes out. That said, the 20-month wait between volumes is more down to the fact that creator Kohta Hirano really likes to take his time in serializing new chapters. If he can keep up the quality from volume two, I won’t be able to complain too much about the wait.
ElfQuest: The Final Quest #1: Can’t wait for the collected edition. Speaking of which, I’m still waiting for word on how Dark Horse will be reprinting all of the old “ElfQuest” comics under their new deal with the Pinis. Yes, I already own a good chunk of it thanks to DC’s manga-sized editions, but if the new versions are snazzy enough I could be convinced to pay for them again. So how about it Dark Horse?
The Light Brigade HC: Believe it or not, there was a time when DC would publish non-superhero, creator-owned titles under their own banner on a fairly regular basis. That’s not the case anymore, but if you’ve ever wondered how Peter Tomasi made the switch from editor to one of the company’s go-to writers, then I imagine this volume will prove illuminating. I’m only guessing here as I’ve heard good things about this series, which focuses on a group of American soldiers in WWII tasked by angels to retrieve the Sword of God before the Nazis do. 200 pages at $20 is a good deal for a hardcover these days, so it’s something I’ll be considering when March rolls around.
Serenity: Leaves on the Wind #1 (of 6): No, Joss Whedon isn’t writing this but he’s “executive producing” it and it’s written by his brother Zack who has collaborated with him on things like “Dr. Horrible.” This is billed as the “canonical follow-up to the film” and it turns out that exposing the Alliance’s crimes against humanity hasn’t made life any easier for the crew of Serenity. Even if Joss isn’t getting his hands dirty with this one, the quality of the other “Serenity” projects has been high enough that I’m willing to give this a shot.