Quite a sight to see in the window of the shop. A blow up Spider-Man doll the likes of which have only ever been seen hanging from the ceiling.

For a long time, kids -- or more to the fact, their parents -- would come in and ask about buying the one that dangles from above. No can do, the only one there and it's not for sale. They stopped making them. They did. Then.

Now some company (can't remember the name right now) is putting them out. Hulk, Spidey and Batman get the blow up treatment. Big and small.

The pose in which both the Hulk and Spidey fronts is a little weird. There in a squat position with a posture not unlike that of a sumo wrestler. Think David Barlow of the Sydney Kings and his little logo photo for Barlow's World.

So what's the deal?

 

So, on with the stuff coming on March 3:

Legend #1 and Seventh Shrine #1 both look good enough to pick up. Why? Just because they're number ones with no previous runs (as far as the memory will recall). Chaykin on one, Robert Silverberg on the other. Here's to something else.

Casefiles: Sam and Twitch #14 might be a pick only if it was sort of like in line with #13. That issue was all about Sam, his brother and their relationship. Fragile at that. Was a good read, but still unsure if that was right.

Ultimate Ironman #1 looks like it might have foil. Foil covers, how long has it been since one of those? Not long enough. Starting to feel no inkling toward just grabbing Ulimate line titles on the sheer power of the universe alone. Maybe.

Captain America and The Falcon #13 is the penultimate issue. After this there's no more fun and head work, gone is another fine buddy book from Priest. Here's hoping the art by Dan Fraga holds up well following the stint from Bennett. Squirmy art at a lie.

Ultimate Spider-man #73 is three issues away from the current read pile. What the hell was that Doctor Strange thing all about?

 

February 27 is calling, and these are tempting some prawns to be hung out on the line. No, that's worms...

Futurama #1
Harking back to times when money was scant and fun was still around, the re-order of Futurama Comics #1 seems like a good chance to pick it up. Coming in on the end of the latest issue of said series, and at the end of a time-travelling arc, why not? Not like there's going to be any new Futurama cartoons being made now is there? Sure, the trades are all well and good, but this is a comic with a letters page. And you don't get that in trades. Unless of course you're waiting for that monster of a Cerebus letters collection later in the year.

The Matrix Comics volume 1
Missed this one the first time around. Lingering and conflicting thoughts and expectations: Get it. Don't get it. Pay for it, wait for a sale. Such indecision led to the eventual evaporation from the shelves. Like as if nobody really ordered enough to cover the demand. And there was a demand. Back before the Wachowski brothers started to introduce the rest of the mythology. Not to say that it was all bad. Just a little unwieldy at the seams. Feeling good things about this one.

Amazing Spider-Man #517
Falling a little behind on the reading of this one. Last issue read was the finale of that horrendously sacrilegious -- since canon is holy -- "Sins Past"

Invincible #20
Might grab this if the hands are quick enough. Short ordered. The strength of the taste based on the fact that the first trade, Family Matters, was a fun, solid and punchy read.

Following Cerebus #3
Not too sure about the zine. Haven't touched #1 and only read a few pages of #2. Also, haven't even read much Cerebus outside the very last issue. Still have those two free signed copies as part of that Dave Sim experiment carried out through Neil Gaiman's site.

 

Straight into the standing order for this week of February 3 is Ultimate Spider-Man #72. A possible maybe would be Spider-Girl #83. The latter being one in which the black costume makes a return. At this stage it continues to be a maybe this month, or maybe the next. No real connection or desire to pick up each and every issue. Yet.

To the picks for this week: Creep #1 and Bill & Ted's Most Excellent Adventures TPB.

Whenever there was a comic convention around Sydney -- no matter how appallingly bad for actual comicbook readers -- there was an ongoing hunt for back issues of this 12 issue series by Evan Dorkin off the adventures of Bill S. Preston Esquire and Ted "Theodore" Logan. Here and there, diving the back issues and long boxes brought over by the Yanks, pinching dollars to add another piece to the run. Over the course of the past few years, and with only 5 of the originals in hand, the hunt's gone soft. Now that there's a trade paperback collection -- stripped naked of interior colours -- it's most certainly gone to mush.

Then there's Creep. No real idea about it beyond the solicitation info that reads: "Adam, a freakish-looking bookworm, lets his rage take control, beating a date-rapist in a park on his way home." Most probably a black and white one shot, as have a couple of new tastes ventured. So why choose this as a pick? Maybe there's a super hero and spandex burnout that's going on right now. One that is actively looking for new stuff outside of Marvel and DC. This just happens to sound like the best new shot for the week.