Statues by Tim Miller

By far, one of the coolest things we have at our store are the full sized character statues. Some of our most recent additions are my favorites so far:

 

Black Cat and Black Widow, both sculpted by Tim Miller.

I was browsing today on deviantART, an online community where artists can showcase and discus their work (and where a lot of my favorite comic book artists show off their artwork) and I was excited to find that Tim Miller, the sculptor of both statues, has an account where he posts shots of his sculptures as works in progress.

It’s impressive to see the amount of effort and talent that goes into making each one. Not to mention, I think they look really awesome in their unpainted stage. You can really appreciate the amount of detail work put into each one.

Miller occasionally posts a step by step progression of how the statue begins as a wire frame and is gradually built up using clay and wax to produce the final product. Miller also briefly explains his process and the other materials used, such as the fabric panels, and what happens after he has finalized his design. This is Miller's progression of his Mystique statue, which was designed by one of my favorite artists, Adam Hughes.

It’s fascinating to see how Miller bring a flat piece of artwork to life. You have to appreciate the talent and work that it takes to create something like this. It’s really impressive, so definitely check out Miller’s page to see more behinds the scenes info on his work in his own words at http://sculptortim.deviantart.com/ or you can just come in and see the finished products for yourself.

Lloyd's Pick of the Month

ASTRO CITY: LIFE IN THE BIG CITY

Welcome to Astro City, a shining city on a hill where super-heroes patrol the skies. Each chapter in this collection is a standalone story, highlighting different aspects or characters in the Astro City world. The city's leading super-hero tries to be everywhere at once, and berates himself for every wasted second as he longs for just a moment of his own. A smalltime hood learns a hero's secret identity, and tries to figure out how to profit from the knowledge. A beat reporter gets some advice from his editor on his first day on the job. A young woman tries to balance the demands of her family with her own hopes and desires. Despite the fantastic settings, the characters in these slice-of-life stories feel like real people, and that gives the stories real power.

I was going to quit collecting comics and then I read this.  Classic storytelling that makes  investing into each character worth it.  Mixed with great art, I felt I was in the city with the people.  I want to visit this place for real.

Picks of the Week

 UNCANNY X-FORCE #1
Wolverine promised Cyclops that X-Force would disband -- he lied. A secret society has resurrected En Sabah Nur, putting into motion events that will turn this age of heroes into an Age of Apocalypse! To hold them back, Wolverine and Archangel bring together Fantomex, Deadpool, and Psylocke to form The Uncanny X-Force! Stained by their history, they are the only ones capable of making the hard resolutions necessary. A band of likeminded friends and mercenaries set to one purpose, one big ugly task -- kill Apocalypse by any means.

CHAOS WAR #1 (OF 5)
Bigger than THE INFINITY GAUNTLET! More cosmic than ANNIHILATION! Since the end of SECRET INVASION, the CHAOS KING has amassed his army of alien slave gods -- and the time to strike Earth is NOW! Only the greatest Marvel heroes can oppose him -- all led by the newly-returned god of heroes ... HERCULES! But are even his incredible new powers enough to stand against the greatest threat the Marvel Universe has ever seen - a mad god who seeks to destroy Reality itself?

                                             

ULTIMATE COMICS THOR #1 (OF 4)
Exploding from the pages of the Ultimates, comes Ultimate Thor! Don't miss the superstar team-up of JONATHAN HICKMAN and CARLOS PACHECO as they go back to the beginning and tell the origin of Thor, Loki and the rest of Asgard! Ragnorak has descended and Asgard sits at the edge of the end. What will become of Thor and the Warriors Three? And what exactly does Baron Zemo, mysterious commander for the Nazis, have to do with it all? Ultimate Comics Thor brings you the untold story of Thor's thunderous debut!

It's the most wonderful time of year

Since October is here that means it's time for Halloween.  Over the next month we will be putting the spotlight on some of our favorite books that reflect the spirit of the season. To kick it off I've chosen:

BEASTS BOOK 01 GN

By various, edited by Jacob Covey

A BESTIARY OF THE AGES BY A CALVACADE OF ART STARS

Beasts is a classic mythological menagerie, illustrating creatures that were thought at one time to actually exist, depicted by about a hundred of the most acclaimed artists and cartoonists coming from the most avant-garde ambits of the art world.

Now I know that this isn't an actual graphic novel but it's here because it has some great art and the descriptions are usually spot on.  It's uncanny how each artist is able to capture the spirit of the beast that is being depicted.  This is a must have if you're a fan of monsters of any ilk. 

Rack Pick: Koko Be Good

  It's a question that weighs on young adults everywhere: am I a good person?  And how do I know?

Jen Wang's beautifully illustrated debut graphic novel follows two young adults with wildly different personalities as they struggle towards the same goals.  Jon is quiet and thoughtful, fresh out of college, and making preparations to follow his long-distance girlfriend to her new job at a Peruvian orphanage amidst growing doubt.  Koko is a brash, aimless artist-type who, inspired by Jon's selfless ambitions, resolves to become "the hero I was meant to be".  But does forced altruism still have the same value?  What Jon and Koko really want is to find themselves, to give their lives some kind of meaning before they grow old and complacent.  This struggle to "be good", and why, is the crux of this budding unlikely friendship.


Koko Be Good is out now via First Second Books.  Wang's fantastic artwork melds animated figures and expressions with subdued sepia-toned ink washes, a lyrical visual backdrop to the realization that sometimes you can only save the world in small ways- one person at a time, by doing the best you can.  Check it out!

This Week's Picks

Daredevil Echo Premium HC: Vision Quest
 David Mack is amazing.  If you aren't familiar with his work, this is the best place for you to start.  The comics Mack creates go beyond story-telling, beyond art, and become something more. David Mack is the Jimmy Hendrix of comics.  If you take my word on anything ever, buy this book.

Last Unicorn #3

Peter S. Beagle's tale of a sullen unicorn in a strange and dangerous world made a huge impact on me in my early years. The graphic iteration proves to hold the same impact and beauty as both the book and the film.  Pick up this week's issue to see the intense chase scene with the Red Bull driving the Unicorn toward Haggard.  Luckily, Schmendrick is on hand to... Schmendrick, what have you done? What have you done?

Bear Nuts

This may look like it's for your kids, but it is not.  Let's just take a look at some of the characters' names; Prozac, Nerd, Evil, Crack, Tanked, Death, Gay, Lech, and Gimp.  That's right, it's the most twisted version of Care Bears you could imagine.   If you're in the mood for something dark and perverse, starring Disney level cute animals, look no further.

Scars of Mirrodin Combos

With the release of a new set imminent, the web has been abuzz with spoilers and the wheels are churning in the heads of all Magic the Gathering players.  While I have seen a lot of interesting combos (and ridiculous one-offs), there are some pairings in the set that seem to have been thrown to the wayside, ignored while collecters and players marvel at Mox pretenders and the return of Elspeth.  The following are a few pairings I plan to exploit.

Venser, the Sojourner and Contagion Engine


Of course, pairing almost any card with a PW is going to look impressive, but this one stands out.  Once Venser is on the field, you can use his +2 ability to trigger the Contagion Engine's "enter the battlefield" ability, debilitating all of an enemies creatures.  After throwing a -1/-1 counter on their creatures, proliferate twice further devastating their forces.  Chances are throwing three -1/-1 counters on everything is going to result in some casualties.  As an added bonus, you can also beef up your PW, increase poison counters, +1/+1 counters, the possibilities are endless.  The only downside is the Contagion Engine can't target more than one player at a time.  Oh well, you might have to wait an extra turn if you're playing multi player.

Etched Champion and Grand Architect


Metalcraft looks to be a pretty powerful mechanic.  Once you get things rolling, the power and effectiveness of you creatures increasing substantially so long as you have the minimum of three artifacts on the field.  The Etched Champion gains the fantastic bonus of having protection from all colors, making him unblockable by everything with the exception of colorless creatures.  While the Eldrazi are fresh in every one's minds (and binders) my guess is the Mirrodin block will lead a lot of you opponents to play artifacts in their decks.  You can work around their colorless artifact defenders by having the Grand Architect turn their artifacts into blue creatures, making them ineligible to block your Etched Champion. 

Auriok Sunchaser and Accorder's Shield

Time for a cheap and easy combo.  This involves two commons, so it should be readily available to most players in addition to having an incredibly low casting cost for the finished product.  Metalcraft makes the Auriok Sunchaser a 3/3 flyer while the Accorder's Shield adds +0/+3 and vigilance.  The end result is a 3/6 flyer with vigilance for a measley four colorless mana and one white.  This is an easy combo to splash other colors with and grants you bargain bin angel.  You shouldn't ignore the idea of testing out a play set of both of these.  Your opponents certainly won't ignore them when they hit the field ready to attack AND block for you.
- Ryan