Now unless you’ve been living in the French Legionnaires for the past week you are aware via the internet (a series of tubes) that the Watchmen Prequel comic books have been green lit. We’ll soon have the adventures of Baby Rorschach, Nite Owl, and Silk Spectre from a variety of creators, none of whom are Dave Gibsons or Alan Moore.

There are only three aspects I want to focus on:

1) THE NUMBERS

This purely financial maneuver by DC, the comics company with the new, boring logo, may lead to some good books. With eight new titles, statistics make it hard for them all to be crap.

I’m very surprised that they had the wherewithal to re-team Brian Azzarello with Lee Bermejo from their fun graphic novel Joker onto a Rorschach book. Azzarello writes engaging crime comics full of losers, tough guys, and snappy banter…and he is the ONLY writer capable of making Rorschach, or his other title The Comedian, worth reading.

I’m THRILLED Adam Hughes will return to sequential art in Dr. Manhattan. I’m less than thrilled that J. M. Straczynski will be penning many of these new titles. Darwyn Cooke was the right guy for a Minutemen book…but let’s look at what they’ve done.

Get the team behind the grittiest crime comics to work on your gritty crime comic. Get the best post-modern, yet nostalgic, team book writer to write your nostalgic post-modern team book. Hire a big name to handle the rest and dole out art to whomever you can. I’m not saying go outside of your comfort zone, DC, I’m just asking you to show your cards a little less.

This is “Moneyball” for comics, a game DC has been playing for some time. They’ll have some hits, they’ll have some creative misses. They’ll make money…but will they burn bridges?

2) THE QUESTIONS

WHERE is Dave Gibbons? YES Alan Moore wouldn’t cross the street to piss on these books if they were on fire, but Dave has proven he is a reliable company man and a proud papa of his comic book children. He still works and has proven he’s happy to take the check…so where is he?

NO books from Dave, and no covers from Dave either? Is this Dave’s choice or DC’s?

Another question is WHAT stories are they going to bother telling? There are no loose ends from Watchmen, no threads left to follow. If the Star Wars prequels taught us ANYTHING it’s that you can’t shed more light on a subject already perfectly clear…you just wash out the contours.

Also: WHO I ask you wants a prequel to the pirate comics from Watchmen. I love pirates and I love Watchmen but even I have no real interest in Crimson Corsair, the prequel to the Tales of the Black Freighter framing sequence.

3) WATCHMEN 2, RATED R, 2014?

Every choice made by DC on this topic is clearly commercial, and publishing is one of the least profitable aspects of any modern comic book company.

The race is on…WILL DC saturate it’s own market with uninspired, watered down products before they finish filming the inevitable prequel? Does anybody want that movie? Does it matter?

Statistics are fun, and let’s try some: The original Watchmen is the Citizen Kane of comics with almost 100% approval and critical acclaim. I’m going to buy 27% of these new Watchmen books, maybe even 50%. You’ll buy some too.

BUT, if you’re willing to take a chance on eight new titles, doesn’t it make statistical sense to get 100 Bullets,  Darwyn Cooke’s New Frontier, Joker, Marvel’s The Twelve, Alan Moore’s Top Ten, and Promethea, Adam Hughes’ Ghost, or any of the other proven titles from creators you’re willing to take the gamble on?

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More musings from Unkiedev, Earth’s own sidekick, can be read at unkiedev.blogspot.com

With books like “Criminal” and Darwyn Cooke’s adaptation of a Richard Stark novel, and Jason Aaron’s “Scalped” Vertigo Comics is starting to produce their own crime line of comics. Announced at SDCC, the Crime Line will feature works from Ian Rankin, Brian Azzarello,and  Fabio Moon and Gabriel Ba. Playboy has an online feature previewing the first two books coming out this week.

Azzarello’s book “Filthy Rich” is described by Vertigo:

Richard “Junk” Junkin has always lived on the wrong side of trouble. A former pro football star whose career was cut short by injury (and a nasty gambling problem), Junk now spends his time dreaming of what might have been, selling cars in Jersey and lusting after the boss’s unbelievably spoiled, unbelievably sexy and unbelievably rich daughter, Victoria. So when the boss asks him to be Victoria’s personal bodyguard while she tears up the New York City club scene, Junk leaps at the chance. But before long, he’s finds that Victoria wants a lapdog and not a chaperone, someone who’s going to do all of her dirty work—all of it—someone who wants to get filthy rich…

I’ve read a preview of this book.  It has this glorious “Sin City” like lighting to it and Azzarello’s acid-tipped tongue that became a morsel of delicious nasty language in “100 Bullets” will put this book on the top of my list.

Ian Rankin, best selling crime novelist has a Crime Line book starring Vertigo’s longest running character, John Constantine, in “Dark Entries”.

Occult detective John Constantine has seen his share of strange things in his career, but nothing could prepare him for the horrors of…reality television. “Haunted Mansion” is currently the hottest show on tv, but when the macabre house actually starts attacking the contestants, Constantine is hired to be the ultimate mole. Locked inside with a cast of wannabe-celebrities, his every move being monitored by a deadly figure from his past, Constantine must figure out who (or what) is pulling the strings before he gets cancelled—permanently.

I don’t know, I’d like to see something other than Constantine thrown into a House on Haunted Hill scenario for a reality television program.  I guess if there was some cool satire going on with the stars of this Reality TV program being takes on programs like Jon and Kate Plus Eight, or some of those vapid losers from NYC Prep getting killed gruesomely than I think I’d check it out.

Both books come out this Wednesday, August 19.

With comics version of “The Wire” sadly over in the form of “100 Bullets”,  Brian Azzarello has been keeping busy. With a weekly installment of Batman comics in Wednesday Comics, and coming out this week an installment to Vertigo’s Crime Line, titled “Filthy Rich”.

Coming in November he’s going to re-introduce Doc Savage to comics.

Doc Savage was originally created in 1933 by Street and Smith Publications editors Henry Ralston, John Nanovic and Lester Dent.  They published 181 issues of “Doc Savage” magazine from 1933 to 1949.  Dent, the original writer, said the character was a combination of Sherlock Holmes, Tarzan and Abe Lincoln.

Azzarello’s restart will open as a One-Shot coming in November with Phil Noto on art, and co-star Batman. Following that it will continue into a mini-series, drawn by Rags Morales.

Azzarello gives Comic Book Resources a look into his reimagination :

Will the “Batman/Doc Savage” one-shot stand alone or does it roll into what you’re doing with Rags Morales in the series?

It will roll in but it’s definitely going to stand on its own. We’re setting up the rules that we’re going to play by.

So if Batman exists in this world does Superman?

Batman, yes. Superman, no. The world that we’re creating has no superpowers.

Is Bruce Wayne Batman in this world?

Yes.

Was a world without superpowers one of your stipulations for taking on this project?

Dan came to me because he wanted that kind of world. The pinnacle of humanity in this world is Doc Savage. He’s top of the food chain.

I like the fact that its set strictly in a world where there are no super powers, and it has a timeless sensibility. I’m not going to say: “there aren’t enough comics set that way anymore” but then I’d be wrong. When was the last time you saw Hal Jordan use a cell phone or anything?

S.W.O.R.D. #1 Cover by Steven Sanders.

This weekend was Chicago Comic Con, and even though all of the major publishers declined to participate.  Wizard Talking Head Gareb Shamus still expected record attendance and said they were committed to the location and “As far as I’m concerned, we’ll be there forever.”

Even though no one had a presence on the Con floor, there certainly wasn’t a lack of news.

• Another Buffy alum and comic book writer Emma Caulfield is premiering a webcomic called “Contropussy”.  Hahaha, yes. I couldn’t tell you what the hell this is about but the name alone suggests something fun and different. And I’m all for fun and different.
• Marvel announced that Kieron Gillen and Steven Sanders will produce “S.W.O.R.D.” Intergalactic adventures with Beast, Agent Brand and Lockheed.  If the “Phonogram” writer and “Five Fists of Science” artist is going on intergalactic adventures, I want to go as well.
• MTV Splash Page reports that Green Hornet’s Kato has been found.  His name is Jay Chou, and has no desire to display an homage to the character Bruce Lee made famous.  Another rumor has circulated that Edward James Olmos has joined the “Green Hornet” cast lead by Seth Rogen.  This movie gets weirder by the second. I’ll say though with Chou as Kato now, I’m disappointed because, well, Stephen Chow would have been awesome.
• The DC Nation panel had Francis Manapul, Brian Azzarello, Freddie Williams, J.G.  Jones, and others on it.  The highlight for me though is that Azzarello and his “100 Bullets” collaborator Eduardo Risso will produce a new “The Shadow” book.
• Good news! The Captain Britain team is getting back together for “Dark X-Men”.
• Fred Van Lente, and Greg Pak reunite for the book called “Assault on New Olympus.“  Which involves the Greek Gods and their place on Earth, on Wall Street. Seems pretty interesting.
• Shaun Manning has a great story of the charity event for John Ostrander at Chicago Comic Con. I’m glad things turned out well, and I hope everything is being done for Mr. Ostrander.

"Daytripper" cover by Fabio Moon.

I am ridiculously fired up over what comes out through the new Crime Line series of books from DC/Vertigo Comics.  Shepherded in by Will Dennis, Kiel Phegley at Comic Book Resources gives us a great outlook of what to expect.

Karen Berger [VP of Editorial introduced panelists Jason Starr, Peter Gross, Jeff Lemire, Chris Gage, brothers Gabriel Ba and Fabio Moon (who when asked why they have different last names, Ba joked,"It's all fake names"), Max Allan Collins and Gary Phillips.

First of all, Gabriel Ba and Fabio Moon are doing a Crime Line book? Oh, that's goddamn brilliant.  Their book is called "Daytripper" which is about an Obituaries writer who becomes embroiled in a case beyond his control.  The book is going to come out some time around the end of 2009.

Other books discussed: "Nobody" writer/artist Jeff Lemire talked about his ongoing series "Sweet Tooth," which is about a human/deer hybrid wandering the road in post-apocalyptic earth.  That's going to be a cool one I'm sure.

Brian Azzarello's "Filthy Rich," which I'm sure is going to be a total gem. Azz is the best crime writer working in comics now. Modern luminary Ian Rankin is going to be doing a "Constantine" story, and doing a book called "Dark Entries."

Peter Milligan is contributing "Bronx Kill," about a writer who is the black sheep of his family of Irish cops, and gets involved in a case when he's suspected of his family's murder. Workaholic Christos Gage is also doing a book (I swear I feel like Gage is writing at least six books now) called "Area 10" about someone who experiments in Trepenation which is the art of drilling a hole in your head to enhance awareness.

There are many more including works from Anderson Gabrich, John Evans, Gary Philips, and more. However the highlight for me is Max Allan Collins' "Return to Perdition."

"Initially Dreamworks didn't want anyone to know [the movie for 'Road to Perdition'] was based on a graphic novel, and the media loved it,” said Collins, who explained that the slow pace his artist worked on precipitated him to write two prose novels while the film took off and the brand expanded. “Right now, there’s one story left, and I said to Will at a con, ‘What would you think of instead of my doing a prose novel, bringing it full circle with a graphic novel?’”

Taking place in the early ’70s with the grandson of Tom Hanks’ character in witness protection and finding out that the government has been hiding the fact that his father lives and the “Watergate-esque” drama that springs from that setup.

Collins announced that his former “Ms. Tree” collaborator Terry Beatty will reteam with him for “Return to Perdition.”

“Road to Perdition” was easily my favorite comic to film adaptation. I’m not a Sam Mendes fan, but I do think this was the best movie he ever did.  So, the fact that Collins is bringing the conclusion to this is a Must Buy in my book.

Sources: CCI: Vertigo New Ongoing Series/Crime Line [Comic Book Resources].  Daytripper photo [via Fabio Moon's Flickr].

Last weekend, there was quite a bit of news coming out of Philadelphia and Charlotte, and this wouldn’t be much of a news site if we didn’t give you SOME idea of what happened.

• The big news spinning out of HeroesCon was Longbox, essentially an iTunes for comics.  The brainchild of  “Comic Book Tattoo” editor Rantz Hoseley, Longbox will provide single issue downloads for .99 cents with Top Cow and Boom! Studios being the first two publishers confirmed to use the service [via Comic Book Resources].
• Marvel Comics announced a crop of new “Dark Reign” titles called, The List. Which is basically Norman Osborne’s s#@$ list of people he wants to wipe out as director of HAMMER. Marvel has the list of creators involved.
• Phil Jimenez will be replacing Simone Bianchi on “Astonishing X-Men”.
• DC Comics mostly showed off their “Wednesday Comics” at HeroesCon and announced that Brian “100 Bullets” Azzarello will be teaming with Rags Morales on a new “Doc Savage” mini series.
• “Booster Gold” co-writer and “X-Men Origins: Wolverine” producer Jeff Katz announced the first four comics coming out of his American Original imprint.  Brian Lynch (“Angel: After Fall”) teams with Greg Whitta (who adapted “Akira” for the screen) for “Daybreak” a comic akin to the style of old John Carpenter/Kurt Russell movies.   Also, Katz will be writing a noir called “Vengeance is Mine” drawn by Filip Sablik. Scott Aukerman will be editing a comedy anthology. But most interestingly, Katz picked up “Blastosaurus” a indie comic self-published by 23-year old New Zealander Richard Fairgray. The comic follows a dinosaur detective who has been brought into the future to fight Velociraptor street gangs. Katz compares it to being similar to “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles”.

So, what do you think? I’m personally looking forward to see how “Blastosaurus” turns out and I’m glad that “Astonishing X-Men” will be back on a regular schedule.  Let us know what you think of these new stories in the comments.