1.18.12 Releases

I think 2012 officially kicks off this week, showing how strong and wondrous the indie/creator owned trend is going to be this year, with Wasteland #33 (Oni Press) hopefully returning this title to its former glory, and then Prophet #21 (Image Comics), umm, eclipsing its former glory by a wide margin thanks to Brandon Graham. If you believe the advance buzz, Prophet is sure to be one of the books of the year, and I do admire the sheer bravado with which the New Image seems to be fully embracing their publishing paradigm, scuttling all that’s come before, and letting Graham re-appropriate this Rob Liefeld creation in the finest contemporary art tradition. Regarding Wasteland, it’s important to point out that this is a special New Year/New Interior Artist/"New" Cover Artist (It’s Chris Mitten – But in Color!!!)/New Story/New Commitment to Monthly Schedule issue that’s friendly to new readers and most welcome to existing readers. Because of all that, it’s at the low low low price point of just $1. My advice to everyone is to actually buy 3 copies, enjoy 1, and pass the other 2 along to likely converts. You’ll still only be in it $3, which is less than the price of a regular issue. Do your good deed for the new year and make Wasteland the destination book it’s always deserved to be.

DC is offering up Batman #5 (DC) by Scott Snyder & Greg Capullo, which I’m all in on. It’s essentially a perfect blend of everything that makes Batman special. Wonder Woman #5 (DC) is also hitting the shelves, and even though I can feel my interest slipping away for this title, I’ll probably at least finish out the first arc, and then re-read in order to pass my final judgment. Lastly, I’m looking forward to the best X-Book currently being published, Uncanny X-Force #20 (Marvel) from Rick Remender and Greg Tocchini, a team that last collaborated on the interesting The Last Days of American Crime. Pitting Captain Britain against Fantomex is an idea that automatically makes me smile, ideally with Psylocke caught right in the middle. What looks good to you this week?