Greetings readers!

This week I wanted to try something a little different and recommend some books that you might not be picking up every month. Why? Because you can only handle so many AVENGERS and GREEN LANTERN books before your head explodes. So feel free to try one (or all) of these instead:

IRREDEEMABLE (Boom):

What’s it about? According to writer Mark Waid, the basic idea of the series is this:

“What if you go from, you know, Captain America to Doctor Doom? What if you go from Superman to Lex Luthor? How do you go from being the greatest hero in the world — someone that everybody knows, and everybody loves, and everyone recognizes — to the greatest villain in the world? What is that path? It’s not a light switch, it’s not an on-off switch, it’s not something that you wake up one day and just become evil.”

The series focuses on the world coming to grips with it’s most beloved (and most powerful) hero going rogue. Waid examines what it takes to make a good man evil, and the effect it has on those around him.

Why should you read it? Waid is a master when it comes to writing super baddies (see EMPIRE) and ensemble casts (see KINGDOM COME). Peter Krause (the penciller) is spot on when it comes to showing character emotions. The book is two trades deep and shows no signs of stopping. Get on board with this title while it’s still early.

THE UNWRITTEN (Vertigo):

What’s it about? Well, I can’t do a better job of summing it up than Wikipedia can, so I’ll just hand it over to them:

“The plot revolves around Tom Taylor, son of Wilson Taylor, an author who disappeared without a trace at the height of his career. Wilson wrote a series of books about a boy wizard called Tommy Taylor, filled with fantasy, even being compared to the Harry Potter series. During a comic convention, it comes to light that Tom Taylor may not be Wilson’s son at all. Conspiracy theories about identity fraud become prominent with fans of the books, becoming outraged that they may have been lied to all this time. Other fans in New Zealand that form a cult, create a theory that Tom Taylor may in fact be Tommy Taylor made flesh from words, and that he will be their messiah. This theory gains credibility when other characters from the Tommy Taylor series begin to involve themselves in the real world. Tom then sets out to find out the truth behind all of this, while a covert organization looms in the background.”

Why should you read it? Writer Mike Carey (LUCIFER) writes a character in Tom Taylor that is both sad and sympathetic. Artist Peter Gross is bold in his layouts, and his simplified line work helps give the book it’s own unique feel. The book is only 13 issues in, but is ramping up for a great second year.

CASANOVA (Image):

What’s it about? The book,  by writer Matt Fraction and artists Gabriel Ba and Fabio Moon, is a crazy espionage thriller with secret agents, shadowy bandaged benefactors, alternate universes, freelance thieves, fun gizmos, oh, and of course, sexy ladies!

Why should you read it? Did you not read the description? If that isn’t enough for you, let me remind you that Matt Fraction is the guy who made Iron Fist cool, and Ba makes Gerard Way look good in THE UMBRELLA ACADEMY. This book has two trades out already with a third “season” gearing up for later this year, so now is a good time to get caught up.

MOUSE GUARD (Archaia):

What’s it about? Let’s hear it straight from Achaia:

“The mice struggle to live safely and prosper among all of the world’s harsh conditions and predators. Thus the Mouse Guard was formed. After persevering against a weasel warlord in the winter war of 1149, the territories are no longer as troubled. True, the day to day dangers exist, but no longer are the Guard soldiers, instead they are escorts, pathfinders, weather watchers, scouts and body guards for the mice who live among the territories. Many skills are necessary for the guard to keep the borders safe. They must find new safeways and paths from village to village, lead shipments of goods from one town to another and, in case of attack, guard against all evil and harm to their territories.” They are not simply soldiers that fight off intruders; rather, they are guides for the common mice looking to journey without confrontation from one hidden mouse village to another. The Guard patrols borders, finds safeways and paths through dangerous territories and treacherous terrain, watches weather patterns, and keeps the mouse territories free of predators. They do so with fearless dedication so that they might not just exist, but truly live.”

Why should you read it? If for no other reason than bad-ass medieval rodents and the interesting format (8″ x8” as opposed to 6.5″ x 10″). It also helps that writer/ illustrator David Peterson has managed to write characters so good that you often forget that you are reading about a colony of mice.

GHOST PROJEKT (Oni Comics):

What’s it about? Well, the official series pitch from Oni goes a little something like this:

“Russia is often remembered from the shadow cast during the Cold War-era when every stranger was a spy, but now that the Cold War is long over, some things left behind from that era may not stay lost. An abandoned Soviet research facility somewhere in Siberia has been home to a strange and dangerous weapon that is now in the hands of thieves claiming it for their own. U.S. weapons inspector Will Haley has been assigned to find out what dangers the weapon poses and with the help of Russian agent Anya Romanova they will find the answers, but it will be far from easy.”

Basically think X-files in Russia.

Why should you read it? Joe Harris lays out one creepy-ass mystery and Steve Rolston makes it even better. You can see the fear in a character’s eyes and feel a shiver down your spine when you catch a glimpse of a distorted footprint in the snow.  Also, the book is only five issues long, so you can probably grab the whole thing in trade format soon.

And one to grow on! Ok, this one is just debuting today, but I have high hopes…

MYSTERY SOCIETY (IDW):

What’s it about? Nick Hammond and Anastasia Collins run The Mystery Society, a group setting out to debunk myths and right covered up wrongs. The first issue sees the duo break into Area 51, and it just gets crazier from there (or so we are told).

Why should you read it? You have Steve Niles (30 DAYS OF NIGHT) writing a book about creepy conspiracy theories, so you know you have a good starting point right there. Add to that Ashley Wood (ZOMBIES VS. ROBOTS, SILENT HILL) , who can be as macabre as anyone throwing down pencils, and this series sounds like it will be read-with-the-lights-on awesome.

That’s it for this week folks! Stop in tomorrow to see what interesting paranormal goodness Dr. Cellus gleaned from his trip to the desert. Thanks, as always, for stopping in.

Today is only three days from geek Christmas. That’s right, this Saturday, May 1st is the 9th annual Free Comic Book Day. In honor of this wondrous day of  complimentary 4 color excitement let’s look at the origins of this magical day and see what it means for the comic industry moving forward.

Free Comic Book Day began as the brain child of retailer Joe Field (who owns Flying Colors Comics) back in 2001. The idea was to have a day that could help the industry to attract new fans who might not otherwise pick up a comic, bring back old fans, and reward current comic book aficionados. In 2002 Diamond distribution picked up the idea and ran with coordinating the first FCBD.  Ever since then, the First Saturday in May (with one exception in 2004) has been a day filled with free books.

In the years since FCBD began, over 2000 different retailers across America and 30 other countries have participated in the event, and more than 12 million books have been given away. The publishing initiative has spawned several offshoots and copy cats in a variety of industries as well; Germany is starting their own FCBD, and there is now a Free Magazine Day and a Free Role Playing Game Day (Which sounds interesting and terrifying all at once).

Publishers have used the day to increase awareness of properties and upcoming events. Marvel has used the day to promote upcoming films (the first FCBD was just before Spider-man), as has IDW (with Transformers). DC has set up events like Blackest Night. Smaller publishers like Red 5 have used the day to springboard into the public eye (Atomic Robo was a big hit last FCBD).

Many retailers have turned FCBD into full-on events for shoppers. It’s not just a day to get free swag, at some stores you can meet comic professionals (and collect a signature or two if that what you are looking for), get some free food, and commiserate with like minded funny book enthusiasts.

So has FCBD worked out? Well, it’s hard to tell. Obviously one of the major goals for the day from the retailers’ standpoint was to increase comic readership and comic buyer-ship (yeah, I’m pretty sure I just made that word up).While FCBD has generally provided retailers with a sales spike in May, there is no concrete evidence to show that the free comic books have generated a stronger market for comic books. The same goes for the publishers, there is no data that proves that FCBD helps or hurts publishers.

Despite the lack of evidence one way or another about the effectiveness of FCBD, it does not seem to be in any danger of going away. Every year the event has taken place, more retailers have gotten involved, and the number of free comics available has increased as well. Plus the fans (myself included) love it.

So this Saturday, go find your local FCBD participating retailer (you can find which retailers are involved on the FCBD website) and check out some fun stuff that you wouldn’t normally check out. Oh, and don’t forget to actually buy something while you are there, those retailers still have to pay for the comics even though we don’t. I personally will be going out to 4 Color Fantasies in Rancho Cucamonga to celebrate the day. Thanks for stopping in everyone, and enjoy Free Comic Book Day!