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Shojo Beat Vol. 1, Issue 1

By Ai Yazawa, Yuu Watase, Kaori Yuki, Taeko Watanabe, Marimo Ragawa, and Mitsuba Takanashi
360 pages, black and white, some color
Published by Viz Media

It’s hard to believe it was just a few years ago that Viz first started publishing the English-language Shonen Jump monthly magazine, packing hundreds of pages of comics from Japan into an affordable unit and letting it infiltrate not only comic stores, but newsstands and bookstores as well. Now they’ve got a new magazine ready, Shojo Beat, with six serials of shojo manga (or “girl’s comics”) from Japan. Can lightning strike twice?

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Club 9 Vol. 3

By Makoto Kobayashi
192 pages, black and white
Published by Dark Horse

It’s been a little over two years since the last collected volume of Club 9, and reading this latest set of installments reminded me once again why I love it so much. Makoto Kobayashi’s probably better appreciated for his hysterical What’s Michael? series, but if you’re skipping Club 9 because it doesn’t feature dancing cats, you’re really missing out.

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Negative Burn: Winter 2005

Edited by Joe Pruett
96 pages, black and white
Published by Image Comics

I really miss getting regular, high-quality comic anthologies. There have been a handful of good ones over the years, like Dark Horse Presents, Oni Double Feature, and Pulp. One that I used to pick up on an irregular basis was Negative Burn from Caliber Press; with it being a regular series, so much would depend on which creators were in a particular issue. Now, Image and Desperado Publishing have brought it back as a series of graphic novels, and based on this first taste, I think that good times are ahead.

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Après-Shampooing

By Robert Goodin
32 pages, black and white
Published by Robot Publishing

Years ago, Robert Goodin’s Robot Publishing released a bunch of gorgeous mini-comics that couldn’t help but catch your eye. They were full color, professionally printed, and all beautifully drawn by a wide variety of creators. Robot Publishing folded up shop a while ago, and I was sad to it go. Now Goodin’s just released his own mini-comic, Après-Shampooing, and just reading the stories reminded me how much I missed his taste in comics.

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Action Comics #827-828

Written by Gail Simone
Penciled by John Byrne
Inked by Nelson
32 pages, color
Published by DC Comics

I’ve never understood why so many writers find it hard to write Superman. One of the oldest characters in comics, you’d think that would make it easy to get a handle on him, with so much history already established. Yet, time and time again, writers come on board the various books and fail to get a grasp on him; that’s probably why Gail Simone’s debut on Action Comics is all the more refreshing, because she “got it” immediately.

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Sharknife Vol. 1

By Corey Sutherland Lewis the Rey
136 pages, black and white
Published by Oni Press

More and more often, publishers and fans seem to be pushing anything published in a digest-sized format as manga. On a technical level, that’s either completely true or utterly ludicrous, since it’s just the Japanese word for “comics” so you can either say that all comics are manga (since they’re the same word) or that only Japanese comics can be manga. The reality of the situation, though, is that “manga” as a word seems to be changing in English, to instead be used as a classification for a certain style and sensibility of comics. The reason why I bring all of this up is that just last week while looking through the latest releases, I saw two kids talking about Sharknife. “Check out this new manga,” one of them was saying to the other, eagerly flipping through it. Is Sharknife manga? While they do share some influences, I don’t think it’s an entirely accurate description, but that’s perhaps because it’s very difficult to pigeonhole Sharknife into anything but its own unique entity.

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Four Letter Worlds

Edited by Eric Stephenson
144 pages, black and white
Published by Image Comics

Love. Hate. Fear. Fate. Not the normal sort of words that jump to mind when people refer to “four letter words” In the realm of Four Letter Worlds, though, each of those words contain a multitude of possibilities, and editor Eric Stephenson has assembled a group of talented creators to each tackle just one of those words and all that it entails. The end result? An anthology that you definitely don’t want to miss.

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Finder #36

By Carla Speed McNeil
24 pages, black and white
Published by Lightspeed Press

In a serialized story, it’s understandable if a several-month gap between chapters leaves you a little perplexed when the next installment arrives. There are a few “once in a blue moon” series that have me pulling out all previous issues when a new issue hits the stands. Carla Speed McNeil’s Finder makes me do that, but for a very different reason. Each issue is a master of bringing you instantly into the story without confusion; you’ll want to re-read the entire story to date simply because you’re so entranced.

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Serenity Rose Vol. 1: Working Through the Negativity

By Aaron Alexovitch
144 pages, black and white
Published by Slave Labor Graphics

Everyone’s had those sort of days. You’re lying down on the couch, you’re tired enough that you can’t get up, but not so tired that you can actually fall asleep. In my case, I found myself fumbling around on the floor for that pile of review books that I’d absent-mindedly set down earlier in the day, and finally my fingers landed on a book: Serenity Rose Vol. 1: Working Through the Negativity. And you know? It was clearly meant to be. Like magic, or something.

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Owly: Just a Little Blue

By Andy Runton
128 pages, black and white
Published by Top Shelf Productions

Andy Runton’s Owly was one of my favorite books published last year; a rare example of a book that really was all ages, with something to offer anyone and everyone who read it. It was because of that I was so worried about his new book, Owly: Just a Little Blue. His debut was such a strong book that I couldn’t help but think to myself, “What if it just doesn’t live up to my high expectations?” Of course, the real question that I should have asked myself is, “Why did you even worry?”

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