Waiting for Wednesday, Volume 2, Issue 9

I'm sneaking this posting in between some massive data entry(ing?) at my new gig. You wouldn't believe how much data needs to get entered at this place. It's amazing. With all the entering of the data. Truly skews on the side of staggering, if I were to be honest about it.

Right.

My grand scheme today, you see, was to try and type a paragraph here and there, you know, throughout the day, so I wouldn't have to come home after being stuck in traffic and have to write from scratch. Well, that first (and ridiculous) paragraph aside, I managed to not write anything else.

Besides all of the data, of course.

So here I sit, on my kitchen counter, typing away on my laptop. Which brings me to my next point. I finally broke down and got wireless Internet (it's a long story that basically involves Alex and his crippling fear of emerging technologies), and yes, I've even allowed myself to use my newly Internet-y laptop to perform basic online functions such as checking email and blogging.

But I still don't trust this "YouTube" thing I've been hearing about. Probably just a fad, anyway. From what I've been told, all that's on the site are Mega Man videos with some guy talking over all the funny sound effects.

There's just no learnin' some folks, I suppose.

So far, so good with the wireless. The whole system has had to be restarted twice, but other than that, I think I may have officially gotten it to do its thing.

Using my fancy wireless laptop thing, I checked the Diamond site to see what's shipping today, and I was a little surprised to find that there's just a whole lot that I'm looking forward to picking up. Bad for my wallet, good for my weekend downtime.

Oh, and before I launch into this week's Waiting for proper, I wanted to mention a radio show I caught this past weekend. Yep, I said, "radio show." Anyone who's a fan of The Howard Stern Show (and likely those who are not) know that Stern made the move from regular (or, as he calls it, terrestrial) radio to Sirius Satellite Radio a few years ago.

As a devoted listener since I was in high school, I made the move along with Howard and the gang, and I have to say--the shows they've put on since their Sirius debut have been some of the very best radio they've ever done. Love him or hate him, it's impossible to deny Stern's impact on broadcasting, and personally, anyone who can drive censors that crazy is someone I have admiration for.

Anyway, on Sirius (now Sirius/XM Radio, as the two companies merged), Howard programs two channels--Howard 100 and Howard 101. Both channels feature wall-to-wall Stern goodness and a variety of different shows.

Well, on Saturday, I was finally able to catch an episode of GEEKTIME!, a show hosted by Stern regulars and on-air talent dedicated to all the things we love most. Like comics and gaming and TV shows with plots no one can follow and movies with big blue aliens.

The show runs for two hours on Saturdays on Howard 101, and even if you despise Stern, you'd be doing yourself a favor by checking this show out. Of course, since it's on Satellite Radio, the show is very blue, as they say, and if you're not big on cursing and such, I'd steer clear.

Me? I don't mind the cursing.

As I was driving in my car Saturday, I happened on 101, trying to catch a replay of the Stern Show from the previous week. I stumbled upon GEEKTIME!, and I am really glad I did. It was...kinda surreal, actually...listening to people on the radio talk about Brian Bendis and Blackest Night and Toy Fair.

They featured a segment with Wizard Magazine editor Mike Cotton, and he came on to discuss the latest in comics news, including the shake ups in DC editorial and the status of Marvel's Captain America movie.

It was certainly the most mainstream venue in which straight-up geeky stuff was discussed that I can think of, aside from the occasional segment on G4. It was like an incredibly well-produced podcast, and it was just so refreshing to hear people talking openly about things that you and I would talk about, were we ever to run into one another.

So, yeah. If you have a Satellite Radio, be sure to check it out.

With that, it's on to this week's list of books. First and foremost, I think the number-one seller this week (and, possibly, this month) will be Ultimate Comics: New Ultimates, issue one, from mega-stars Jeph Loeb and Frank Cho.

This is a book that's going to sell for several reasons. Either you're a Loeb fan, or a Cho fan, and you'll buy whatever they put their names to. Or maybe you're just an Ultimates fan--and, considering the numbers each of the previous Ultimates series have done, many of you are--and you've been patiently waiting for a return to their stories.
The preview art that Marvel has released looks amazing, there's a lot of online buzz about the book, and all of these elements make for a sure-fire hit. And with Jeph Loeb these days, half the people are going to love the title, and the other half are going to say horrible things about the title on the Internet.

Here's the solicit information from Marvel (SPOILER WARNING FOR ANYONE WHO HAS NOT YET READ ULTIMATUM):

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If only a few super heroes survived the Ultimatum -- who is left to become the next super powered team to be reckoned with? The NEW Ultimates! With Thor gone, Loki takes his revenge unleashing the worst of Asgard on Earth. Iron Man must gather the heroes for their biggest Ultimates adventure yet. But who has made the final cut? And who can't be trusted?

The Ultimates face evil once again and you'll never guess the new enemies they'll find...or should we say old friends? Superstar creators, JEPH LOEB and FRANK CHO (in his Ultimate Comics debut!) bring you the new face of the Ultimate line in NEW ULTIMATES: THOR REBORN!

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(END SPOILERS)


I've said before that I'm really enjoying the landscape (sorry, bad pun) of the Ultimate Universe, post-Ultimatum, and I'll be checking this story out when I get to my shop. A word of advice, though. Because Frank Cho is on art, it'll be a big seller to customers who may not even read Ultimate books. Cho has a huge fan base, and I suspect copies are gonna go quick.

Next up, we have a really exciting offering from DC with their first issue of the First Wave line of comics. From Brian Azzarello and Rags Morales, First Wave, issue one, ships with the promise of all the pulpy adventure anyone can ever hope for.

Here's the blurb from DC, which explains what's up better than I ever could:

DC's shocking new pulp universe is finally unveiled! In the shadows of the War, the roots of the Golden Tree cabal grew deep into the heart of a fallen world...and the leaders at the heart of this secret organization see no place in their utopia for heroism.

Doc Savage, struggling with the loss of his father, has been blind to their advance — until now. Central City's mysterious Spirit has caught wind of their plans as well. But whose side have the Blackhawks chosen? What is the Red Right Hand? And where is the Batman?

There was a Doc Savage/Batman one-shot last fall from Azzarello and artist Phil Noto, and if you can find it, that book is well worth your time. These books take readers back to a time when Batman hit the streets at night fully armed in the very beginning of his "career."
You can't go wrong with Azzarello on Batman, and you certainly can't go wrong with Azzarello on a crime book, so I'm going into this series with high, high expectations. I'm confident that the creative team will deliver.

Finally, we have a unique book from Dynamite Entertainment and writer Kevin Smith, featuring another legend of the pulps. With the upcoming Green Hornet film starring Seth Rogen coming down the pike, Dynamite has locked Kevin Smith up to adapt his much-talked-about and abandoned Hornet script to comics.
And Dynamite doesn't stop there. They plan to expand the Hornet universe in comics, and deliver new stories to (what they hope will be) a legion of new readers. Here's the blurb from the publisher about this first Hornet issue from Smith:

The Green Hornet is back and Dynamite is the new home for the avenging hero and his faithful sidekick, Kato! Joining Kevin Smith in bringing his unproduced screenplay to life is artist Jonathan (Black Terror) Lau as they present the one and only origin of the Green Hornet and Kato. This is the comic book version of Kevin smith's unproduced Green Hornet film and Dynamite is the only place to get in on the action. It all begins here!

Sounds cool, and with Smith's name attached, I'll definitely check it out. Speaking of which, on Diamond's Previews site, the book is listed as "Kevin Smith Green Hornet," which is an indication of how amped the publisher is for the book.

And that's about--hey wait! There's one more, must-read book on the list this week. I skipped over it the first time I went through Diamond's site this week, but I noticed it over at Marvel's site, and it's a book I'm definitely in for.
From the Occasional Superheroine herself, Valerie D'Orazio, comes a Punisher one-shot that I've been anxiously waiting on since it was announced.

Here's the solicit from Marvel:

The Story: A lurid tell-all book leads the Punisher on the trail of a hitwoman marked for death. Who is Butterfly? And will the Punisher be her salvation, her temptation, or her damnation? Author Valerie D'Orazio and artist Laurence Campbell unload a full barrage of mayhem in this blood-soaked one-shot.

Val was kind enough to include Exfanding on her blogroll, even though our blog was but a couple of weeks old. And, though it probably seemed like a small gesture on her part, it was a very big deal for Nathaniel and me.

So, please support an author who has supported Exfanding, and buy this book!

So, yeah. That's just the tip of the iceberg today, but since I've done nothing but inundate you all with information, I'll stop there. Go out. Buy. Read. Enjoy. But answer this before you go--what are you Waiting for?