Big Gems from the Small Press for October

What’s Up CHU? Mel V. back again with another edition of Big Gems from The Small Press. It’s good to see these Small Press books that we showcase in this series see some attention. These are some of the books that are on my radar for the month of October, whether it be for good reads or just for spec. If you want to preorder these books from your local LCS the cutoff date is August 18th. There a ton of books coming out so this will be a long read. So buckle up grab ya favorite beverage and let’s get ready to take flight

So here we go…..
Let’s start off Grumpy Cat #1 – Dynamite proudly presents The Misadventures of Grumpy Cat #1 , featuring ‘The World’s Grumpiest Cat’ and her brother, Pokey! With her ever-present pout and sassy disposition, Grumpy Cat has won the hearts of people everywhere. Grumpy Cat is the perfect combination of unbearable cuteness, instant fan appeal, and established multimedia presence. If you love the memes, the videos, and that irresistible scowl, then get ready for the wildly fun antics of Grumpy Cat and Pokey in Dynamite’s all-new, all-sensational Grumpy Cat comics! Grumpy Cat’s global following includes 7.6 million Facebook fans and over 31 million YouTube views. Since her photos first went viral in 2012, Grumpy Cat has gone from Internet star to real-life celebrity. She has two New York Time Best Selling Books, her own Lifetime movie Grumpy Cat’s Worst Christmas Ever (voiced by actress Aubrey Plaza), has made numerous appearances including the MTV Movie Awards, American Idol, The Bachelorette, The Today Show, SXSW, Good Morning America, and even hosted WWE Monday Night Raw. Grumpy Cat is Friskies official ‘Spokescat’, has filmed videos with Disney and Sesame Street, and appears in commercials for McDonald’s and Honey Nut Cheerios.” * Unicorn!

Why I like it: The Grumpy Cat has had a following for years now, I’m interested to see how this will translate to the comic world, should be a fun read

Back to the Future #1–IDW (Limited Series 4 issues)
Description
“(W) Bob Gale & Various (A) Brent Schoonover, Dan Schoening (CA) Dan Schoening
‘Untold Tales and Alternate Timelines,’ part 1: BttF creator/screenwriter Bob Gale returns with all-new tales from the twisting and turning timeline that made Back to the Future a, well TIMELESS pop-culture phenomenon! Take a trip back to 1985 and be there when Doc Brown and Marty McFly first meet, and then jump even farther back, to 1945, to witness Doc’s involvement in the super-secret Manhattan Project. Bullet Points: All-new canonical stories by Bob Gale, creator and screenwriter of Back to the Future. Scripts by John Barber (Transformers) and Erik Burnham (Ghostbusters, TMNT), with artwork by Brent Schoonover (Batman ’66, Ant-Man) and Dan Schoening (Ghostbusters). � Part of IDW’s Artist’s Edition Month promotion!”

Why I Like It: Back to the Future is an American classic, Fans of the franchise will be all over this one as should you guys.

AXCEND #1 – IMAGE
Description
“(W) Shane Davis (A) Shane Davis & Various (CA) Shane Davis
Superman Earth One co-creator SHANE DAVIS returns to comics for an all-new ONGOING SERIES! What happens when a video game decides to come to our reality to play? When there are no extra lives, and Armageddon looms on the horizon, when your life revolves around gaming like teenager Eric Morn, you Press Start. Writer/artist SHANE DAVIS (Superman: Earth One), MICHELLE DELECKI (JLA,Venom) and MORRY HOLLOWELL (Civil War, Old Man Logan) bring you an epic sci-fi/thriller that’s like Tron meets Inception with a cheat code! This s pecial introductory issue features 28 full pages and no ads! Each issue of the series will feature a VS. linking cover variant by DAVIS showcasing the book’s cast.”

PAPER GIRLS #1 – IMAGE
Description
SAGA writer BRIAN K. VAUGHAN launches a brand-new ONGOING SERIES with superstar Wonder Woman artist CLIFF CHIANG! In the early hours after Halloween of 1988, four 12-year-old newspaper delivery girls uncover the most important story of all time. Stand By Me meets War of the Worlds in this mysterious young adult adventure, starting with a spectacular DOUBLE-SIZED FIRST ISSUE for the regular price of just $2.99! “”>”(W) Brian K. Vaughan (A/CA) Cliff Chang

SAGA writer BRIAN K. VAUGHAN launches a brand-new ONGOING SERIES with superstar Wonder Woman artist CLIFF CHIANG! In the early hours after Halloween of 1988, four 12-year-old newspaper delivery girls uncover the most important story of all time. Stand By Me meets War of the Worlds in this mysterious young adult adventure, starting with a spectacular DOUBLE-SIZED FIRST ISSUE for the regular price of just $2.99! ”

Why I like it: Brian K Vaughan hits home runs just about every time he puts pen to paper, this being an ongoing book. It absolutely has legs

SWITCH #1 – IMAGE-Description
“(W/A/CA) Stjepan Sejic
After millions of views on DeviantArt, this popular web comic finally gets its own series. A teenage girl gets a mighty artifact that grants her immense powers…the catch? It’s a bit haunted! This self-contained ‘universe’ includes Artifacts and characters from other series (with permission!) in a delectably STJEPAN SEJIC fashion! ”

Why I like it: STJEPAN’S ART IS SICK

Hangman #1 Dark Circle
Description
“(W) Frank Tieri (A/CA) Felix Ruix
New ongoing series from Dark Circle! They say the Hangman is nothing more than an urban legend. A spook story told to scare criminals straight. But those who encounter him – like hit man ‘Mad Dog’ Mike Minetta – know different. They know that when he comes for you, you’re dead already. Join fan-favorite writer Frank Tieri (Wolverine) and artist extraordinaire Felix Ruiz (Wolverine Max) for an ongoing tale of horror, the supernatural, and violence – and learn why some men may never be redeemed.”

Why I like it- Love some Horror books, this has a nice urban legend type twist vs a Hit man…sign me up

Kodoja #1-215 ink
Description
“(W) Keith Foster (A) Rory Smith (CA) Elroy Jenkins
Three years ago, Special Weapons Division deactivated a highly advanced 200-foot tall superweapon called ‘Kodoja’ because it was too powerful. Today, Kodoja has been reactivated without warning and is cutting a swath of destruction across America and leveling every outpost of Special Weapons Division, save one. The one surviving outpost, headed by chief designer, Jennifer Cruz, must stop the weapon they designed too be unstoppable.”

Why I like it-The Indy kings of Big monster books are back

SELF STORAGE #1-451 MEDIA GROUP
Description
“(W) Clay Chapman (A/CA) Matt Timson
Chris Smith has eked by in life hocking the auctioned-off junk from those people who no longer pay the rent on their self storage units. He spends his days hopping from one storage facility to the next, bidding on units sight-unseen, only to sell whatever’s inside to antique dealers and pawn shops for as much money as he can squeeze. But Chris has never found anything like what’s waiting for him inside unit #83. Her name is Jessica. What if you found a zombie locked up in a self storage unit? Would you keep it?”

Why I like it: Storage Wars meets The Walking Dead. Pretty interesting premise on this one defiantly going to give this one a read

Wes Craven Coming of Rage #1– Liquid Comics
Description
“(W) Wes Craven, Steve Niles (A/CA) Francesco Biagini
From horror icon Wes Craven, director of Scream and Nightmare on Elm Street comes his first comic book series. Wes Craven writes the series with Steve Niles, bringing two horror masters together for the first time. Says Craven: ‘About a year ago I had the beginning of an unwritten joke come into my head: A Vampire, a Werewolf and a Zombie walk into a bar… Just that. My imagination went crazy thinking about what could happen when three such impossibly different characters were thrown together. I met with comic book legend Steve Niles. We hit it off, and decided to work out the story of a very special young man’s coming of age, and the two unlikely friends who helped him to survive it. After a bit of hard, fun work, a series of comic books were born, telling the story of how these three ended up on the run together, and how the central character, Ritchie, lost his innocence and became one of the most powerful vampires in the world.'”

Why I like it: WES CRAVEN AND STEVE NILES NUFF SAID!!!

BLOOD FUED #1– ONI PRESS
Description
“(W) Cullen Bunn (A/CA) Drew Moss
I’ve got a story to tell-a story about how me and a couple of poker buddies squared off against the very legions of Hell and maybe even saved the world. Like all good yarns, this one has its share of action, adventure, mystery, and romance. As for how it ends, though, you’ll have to judge for yourself. Me, I’ve always been partial to happy endings-the singing cowboy riding off into the sunset-but I reckon that just ain’t the way of the world. This story’s got vampires, too, loads of them, but not in the beginning. It began, for us at least, with spiders.”

WHY I LIKE IT: First off, Cullen Bunn. This book sounds like it’s going to be a fun ride, and call me crazy I smell media deal with this one. There is also a sick Friday the 13th homage cover available.

CLANDESTINO #1 (MR)-Black Mask
Description
“(W/A/CA) Amancay Nahuelpan
The country of Tairona became a no man’s land after the military coup. Guerrillas were formed across the lands, and rebels unified against the dictator to resist the regime. The hopes of many lay on Clandestino, who barely escaped from the military attacks as a child, and was then recruited by the rebel forces, to later lead the revolution against the dictator. An all-new miniseries by Amancay Nahuelpan (Young Terrorists, Boy-1, Robocop).”

WHY I LIKE IT: It is Black Mask, home run after home run.

X-ED #1 (MR)
Description
“(W) Tony Patrick (A/CA) Ayhan Hayrula
A sci-fi thriller about a next-gen form of psychiatry: ‘subliminal hitmen’ injected into your mind who hunt down and kill the demons that haunt you. Ex-military sharpshooter Colin McClure is Mezign Corporation’s most recent recruit for the still-experimental (and often deadly) job of subliminal hit man. McClure is the perfect candidate for two reasons: a) he’s a killing machine, and b) he lost his legs in the war, so subliminal-ops are his only way to see any action. But he’s also a dangerous candidate for one reason unknown to Mezign: Colin’s true motive is to enter the mind of his catatonic daughter and bring her out of a coma.”

WHY I LIKE IT: Black Mask has been hitting them out the park as of late, I’m sure these books won’t disappoint, order enough early so ya won’t get shorted at the comic counter

Bayou Bound GN-Creature Entertainment
Description
“(W) Jeffrey Kaufman (A) Kevin West (CA) Franchesco
Since Joss Whedon has been understandingly busy lately, someone needs to satisfy your hunger for a dark, supernatural, but comedic story. Kevin West and Jose Marzan do a fantastic job making Bayou Bound, the epic tale that you will read over and over. Writer Jeff Kaufman, known for his ‘kick you in your face endings,’ has drafted a story that can’t help but to amuse and confuse. It’s about a 22-year-old guy stuck in Wildwood, Louisiana, where he gets deputized to handle all of the town’s supernatural cases. Think Buffy meets Eureka.”

WHY I LIKE IT: Creature is doing some great books, The Gun and Ravenous come to mind. Small print run goes without saying.

Tainted GN-Creature Entertainment
Description
“(W) Jeffrey Kaufman (A/CA) Chris Cross
Tainted is a beautifully-illustrated graphic novel by the brilliant Chris Cross, whose style is amazing and unforgettable. Written by the notorious indie writer Jeff Kaufman, it takes an unusual twist on the whole vampires vs. the world genre and gives it a more human flavor. It follows a vampire named Smoke, who has been driven insane by a bad meal and is now being hunted by friends and foes. There is absolutely no sunshine or sparkling vampires in this book, just a great story.”
Why I like Both: Creature Entertainment really knows how to tell great stories and always deliver on a great art and stories. When you pay for a Book from Creature Entertainment you leave the store with confidence that your money was well spent…I have the same feeling about these two books…definitely check these out

WHY I LIKE IT: Chris Cross is back. He has done great books in the past.

WHEW That’s a lot of books that’s coming out and these are just the Indy/small press books Marvel will dazzle us with Chewbacca #1 plus their reboot books will be coming in October…I really like Contest of Champions concept.

In closing I want to thank you guys for checking out my articles and giving great feedback. Just want to give some shout outs to Midtown Martin who always has the inside info, Steve, Mike, Michelle, Diane, and Junior. The fine people at Royal Collectables for holding the key books for me.

Alright until next month ….Happy Speculations