BOOM! STUDIOS 20% OFF THRU 07 APRIL 2010 - Check Them Out!

Boom Studios has really put itself on the comics publishing map, especially since they brought Mark Waid into the fold as Editor-in-Chief two or so years back. Boom's now counted among Top 10 comic book companies out there, and they've found real success publishing both creator-owned titles, like their awesome flagship book Irredeemable (written by Waid), as well as comics based on several key licensed properties. Perhaps the biggest of those is Disney, with titles  like Walt Disney Comics and The Incredibles  helping Boom to even begin their neat new Boom! Kids line.

From that same 'licensed' camp, though, The Dabbler's really enjoying 28 Days Later, an ongoing series by Michael Alan Nelson and Leonardo Manco that's based on the zombie flicks of the same name, as well as writer Chris Gorak's NOLA, a four-part series set in New Orleans just after the Hurricane Katrina blew the city down.  Both comics feature an African-American female as their protagonist and heroine, as few comics do or have, and each does so really, really well.  Dabbler definitely recommends both comics, and he gives Waid's Irredeemable, as well as The Anchor by Phil Hester, serious high props, since they're among his top reads of the month.

It's absolutely no joke that Boom's got a major sale going on right now - and our CoMics Merchant has the coupon code at the top of our blog!

Use it and get 20% off anything by Boom -- and as we've just said, there's plenty of great stuff to choose from. 

Jump on over and go Boom! right now - and tell 'em The Dabbler sent ya!

Captain America Gets Censored ; Sarah Palin Gets Vamped in REPUGLICANS

The concept of Right-wing political pundits like Anne Coulter,  Lou Dobbs, 'Mr. Fox News' himself, Glenn Beck, and former Alaskan governor, Going Rogue  author, and all-around loose cannon (or is that screw?) Sarah Palin being meat-puppet disguises for a horde of undead unfriendlies could be a little far-out -- but in a world with a Tea Party Movement, anything's possible. 

Boom Studios is taking our point and driving it home - like a proverbial stake right through the heart of the Grand Old Party.  Repuglicans, a “completely unfair and not balanced take on Republican Party leaders and apparatchiks,” is an upcoming 128-page, digest-sized book by artist Pete Von Sholly with “wry commentary” by writer Steve Tatham. From the comic's cover (below) -- on which Palin's a vampire and Fox anchor Glenn Beck's a zombie, it's more than obvious that the humor is much deeper than simply 'poking fun'.  Von Sholly, Repuglicans' illustrator, doesn't mince words over his comics intent -- to show "... the true face of the right, and it’s not pretty."

Here's BOOM! Studios' official Repuglicans press release:

If you're not used to seeing comic books go political like Repuglicans, there's a pretty good reason why. In fact, comics have almost always steered clear of getting to embroiled in party politics -- even 'real-world' stories set in the many fictional comic book universes would feature fictional presidents and political parties. But that was before Barack Obama. Since Obama's campaign victory, the comics industry and its creators have been vocal with their support - the President has appeared unauthorized in numerous comic book stories since his election, and his first such appearance in Marvel Comics' Amazing Spider-Man #583  resulted in the issue becoming last year's best-selling comic book.

The last twelve months have seen many Obama comics cameos - and some have featured him as the comic's main character. Moreover, Washington-based Bluewater Productions 

has found bona-fide success with their two biographical lines, the all-political Political Power and occasionally political  Female Force; Force published a best-selling biography of Sarah Palin last spring.

Most recently, Marvel's been back in the political cross hairs for the current issue of Captain America, which contains a scene depicting several militant, anti-tax protesters carrying signs that read "Tea Bag the Libs before they tea bag you!" While the scene (below) wasn't intended to reflect the Tea Party movement, widespread conservative protest over the issue's content prompted to Marvel's EIC Joe Quesada to issue a public apology to the Tea Party as well as to promise that the offending scene would be deleted from future printings of Captain America #602. [link]

Marvel's Captain America retraction pissed off many within the comics industry, including Marvel and DC Comics freelance writer and Boom Studios' Editor-In-Chief Mark Waid. Last week, Waid posted to his Twitter account that he felt "humiliated and mortified" that "Fox News is able to bully [the comics industry] into apologizing to lunatics." As you can imagine,  the topic is still being much discussed as Tweets both pro and con. 

 

As a series, Captain America was once known for tackling touchy topics like political (and Presidential) corruption, as in Issue #175's portrayal of a story that mirrored  (though  also tried to distance itself from) then-President Nixon and his involvement in Watergate. But times have changed: Nixon didn't demand a public apology from Marvel  for any unintentional similarities, the internet-media connection didn't exist, and Marvel Comics itself is no longer the idealistic rogue of its 1970's hey-day, but instead a cog in a monolithic corporate machine. 

 Controversial Captain America #602: Tea Bagging...and Getting Bagged

We'll go out on a limb and say that Waid's reaction to Marvel's self-censorship had  almost everything to do with Repuglicans becoming a reality. He didn't create it, but he made it very clear to the creators who did that their project could call Boom its new home. Soon, Repuglicans will be on the racks, a very large target for the same voices that protested and won victory over Captain America, as they'll undoubtedly assert similar authority again.   The talking heads at Fox believe that in this crazy and screwed up world of our's, anything's possible. And maybe anything is - except an apology from Boom. [Source]

Winter One-derland Comics Blog Giveaway! BOOM Studio's WALT DISNEY COMICS #699 - The Final One-der!

Happy New Year, abbracadabblers!  What a year that last one was, yeah? We'll always remember 2009 as our Relocation Year, just like we'll be doing 365 days from now when we dub 2010 as The Year We  Went Back!  The past twelve months have come and gone  faster than an eighth-grader reading Vampirella, and our very first Winter One-derland has done much the same. We've had fantastic response from comics fans and from folks who've never read a comic book in their life -- but thanks to our Comics Giveaway, they'll have their chance.  

Winter One-derland 2009 ends with today's Issue Number One Comics Giveaway.  As most of you know, your favorite comicsblog has been challenging its intrepid abbracadabblers every Monday and Friday since early December, and the first day of the New Year couldn't be a better day to pack up, knowing we'll be back for a visit when it's Christmastime once again.   But before we go, we still have one more comic to give away.  That's right, one clever dabbler will get a late stocking stuffer on us! And as always, that comic will be a  Brand New, completely Near-Mint Number One issue from a recent comic book series! abbracadabbling's Mission is to get a comic book into the hands of all of our readers that haven't ever read one before --  because, deep down, we want  their friends to make fun of them.

Kidding!!! (Did we get ya??)  But we're not kidding about what you've got to do if you want to win today's Giveaway -- and that's to  send an e-mail to using the address down at the bottom of this blog. That's all there is to it! Of course, your email has to contain the correct answer to our I WONDER?  We're going pretty easy on you with Final One-der,  but a little elbow grease, ingenuity, and a good browser remain as helpful as ever. Once you've figured out our I WONDER? and you're convinced your answer is what we're looking for, email it in.  The first dabbler who gets their right answer to us WINS the Number One Comic Book. Be sure  to include your mailing address, too -- we have to be able to send you the fruits of your labor. As always, comic book mailing expenses will be covered by the Springfield Home Office, natch!  And now, it's time to take one last stroll through Winter One-derland for the Final One-der Challenge!! 

Boom Studios  acquired the rights to publish comics based on many of Disney's Pixar characters like The Incredibles and Cars, about a year back. More recently, Boom gained approval for comics featuring Disney's own crew. The publisher launched the first of their new Disney line last fall, and while the comics are true Number One issues, Boom continued with Disney's original numbering from the last time the titles were in print.  Walt Disney Comics Issue #699 - the very first Boom Studios issue -- is up for grabs tonight, dabblers, and it's a real treat. A great story in its own right -- not to mention a bona-fide collector's item, especially if you're a Disney fan.  And collectors, this issue has already gone to a second printing; the first printing sold-out as soon as the comic hit the shelves!  Walt Disney Comics Issue #699 is written by Giorgio Salatiamy and Riccardo Sacchi, with art by Ettore Gula, Roberta Micheli and Stefano Turconi.  Good Luck!!

Not too hard, is it? Longtime dabblers have a great chance at nailing this right away; our newer peeps and all of our welcome visitors may have to do some scanning. But the good news is, the answer is here on abbracadabbling -- no internet surfing necessary!  And once more, here's our Final One-der Number One Issue Giveaway:

You'll need our handy email addy if you want to win    , and we've got it just below. While you're at it, add us to your own email's address book and pass it  - and our comicsblog URL -- along to ten of your best friends! All your buddies will have a great year learning how to abbracadabble -- and they'll have you to thank!

Abbracadabbling would like to say thanks to Marvel Comics, DC Comics Vertigo, Boom Studios, Image Comics, New England Comics, Dark Horse Comics, Radical Publishing, and IDW Publishing for making our first Comics Giveaway such an amazing success and so much fun for everyone.  Winter One-derland will return December 2010 with new challenges, new comics, and new Nome Office,  Until then, stay warm, and stay wonderful.