Picks of the Week

FEAR ITSELF YOUTH IN REVOLT #1 (OF 6) FEAR

With a growing sense of uncertainty and despair gripping the nation--and the world--the remnants of the Initiative program are sworn in as federal agents charged with keeping the peace. Their ensuing actions, however, threaten to plunge America's young heroes into civil war! Featuring AVENGERS: THE INITIATIVE stars THOR GIRL, ULTRAGIRL, CLOUD 9, KOMDO and HARDBALL--plus FIRESTAR, GRAVITY and some very cool surprises--YOUTH IN REVOLT brings the horror of FEAR ITSELF to the doorstep of a generation!

 FLASHPOINT #1
Not a dream, not an imaginary story, not an elseworld. This is Flash Fact: When Barry Allen wakes at his desk, he discovers the world has changed. Family is alive, loved ones are strangers, and close friends are different, gone or worse. It's a world on the brink of a cataclysmic war - but where are Earth's Greatest Heroes to stop it? It's a place where America's last hope is Cyborg, who hopes to gather the forces of The Outsider, The Secret 7, S!H!A!Z!A!M!, Citizen Cold and other new and familiar-yet-altered faces! It's a world that could be running out of time, if The Flash can't find the villain who altered the time line!
Welcome to FLASHPOINT!

 NETHERWORLD #1 Of(5) (MR)
Top Cow Productions, Inc. and Heroes and Villains Entertainment present the next evolution of supernatural noir!
It's the message on the walls.  It's the feeling in your gut.  In this city, "We are all lost." Ray certainly is; a former cop turned private eye and junkie, haunted by his past in a city with no sun and no hope.  A beautiful woman and a slick criminal both offer him the same job: Find a girl named Madeline and bring her to them.  Ray doesn't want the job, but he can't just leave this girl in the middle. Thrust into the city's twisted underbelly, Ray will unveil Netherworld's darkest secrets and come face-to-face with his past.  Beware, Ray.  If you seek the truth, you just might find it.
From masters of supernatural terror Bryan Edward Hill and Rob Levin (Pilot Season: 7 Days From Hell, Broken Trinity: Pandora's Box) and the art team of Tony Shasteen and colorist JD Mettler (Witchblade: Annual, Stephen King's Talisman) comes a haunting supernatural noir epic like nothing you've ever seen before

 BATMAN AND ROBIN DELUXE HC VOL 03 BATMAN MUST DIE 

Grant Morrison's best-selling run on BATMAN & ROBIN continues with this volume collecting issues #13-16 and BATMAN: THE RETURN #1. On the eve of Bruce Wayne's return to Gotham City, the new Batman and Robin team that battled crime during his absence must deal with the deadly return of The Joker.

Then, Grant Morrison connects BATMAN & ROBIN with the best-selling THE RETURN OF BRUCE WAYNE for the climactic showdown between Batman and The Black Glove.
And in an epic tale illustrated by acclaimed artist David Finch, learn what happens to Dick Grayson after the "real" Batman returns.

Know Your Villains

A hero is nothing without a villain to define themselves against.  Simply saying "he's crazy, so he wants to do bad things" is simply not enough anymore.  Yes, there are a number of psychotic characters in comics books, but readers have become increasingly curious about their unique viewpoints. The industry has been wonderful in exploring this slippery slope of criminal genius and these are a few of the gyms Marvel and DC have produced.

Books of Doom -
From the black steppes of Eastern Europe, to the college campuses of New York City, and finally to the throne of Latveria - this is the life of Von Doom! From his earliest disasters to his scientific triumphs to the tragedy of the fractured man he would become, this is the story you know, and the one you don't. The story of the missing years and the journey that shaped the man who would be king. An epic Russian tragedy in comic form, this is unlike any Doom story you've ever seen.

Batman: The Killing Joke -
The is the definitive Joker story.  Not only does it give you insight into Joker's origin, but it also defines his relationship with Batman.  If by some strange accident, you have not read this story, you should change that now.  There are other good Joker stories out there, but nothing as stark or poignant as this.  Pick it up now!

Loki -
There are two sides to every story. You've heard Thor's - now it's time to hear Loki's. Odin's least favorite son rewrites Asgardian lore from his perspective in this groundbreaking collection. In this story, Loki's insatiable lust for power, his conflicted sentiments toward Sif, his antipathy toward Balder and his deep-seated feelings of longing and resentment toward his older brother, Thor, and uncaring father, Odin, will take on new meaning.
 

Luthor -
Superman has been called many things since going public, from the defender of Truth, Justice and the American Way to the World's Greatest Boy Scout.  He's made himself appear so human that he has almost everyone forgetting he's not one of us. Almost.

Only Lex Luthor stands against Superman to make him account for what he truly is: a dangerous threat to all humanity.  The end to Luthor's lifelong mission to bring Superman to his knees has never been closer...

Osborn -
The world's most dangerous felon is in the world's top supermax-security prison--an institution so secret that even the vice president doesn't know it exists. But can any cell contain Norman Osborn? After the events of SIEGE, the former Green Goblin, Iron Patriot and power-mad director of worldwide security isn't allowed to have a toothbrush...and he's surrounded by the deadliest criminals in the world. Lucky for Osborn, they're fans.