Welcome to Manga Zubon, where I take a look at the manga that have come out each month and pick what I think are the best of the lot. These are the manga that I feel deserve recognition and readership more than the rest, so I’m singling them out. My focus in this column is mostly on first volumes to get you in on the ground floor of new series, but I will include standouts in ongoing series as well. Keep in mind that though I do my best, I can’t read everything that comes out each month, so if you have something you think I missed or just have something to say about the ones I’ve chosen, please chime in in the comments section.
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Writer: Brian K. Vaughan
Artists: Pia Guerra & Jose Marzan Jr.

Excuse the frequent use of the word “I” in this review, because while every review I give is in the end a personal piece, Y: The Last Man is one of my favorite works, and what you’re getting here is very much the emotional response that I had to the final issue of a series I’ve been reading and enjoying for five years. I’ll save the suspense, though… despite some concern with the last couple of story arcs, the penultimate issue and even the big reveal of what killed all the men, I thought Y: The Last Man #60 was terrific, maybe not as phenomenal as the first issue that launched the whole thing, but damned close at least. Continue Reading »

Wednesday Number Ones is a weekly feature here at Comic Pants. We take the books that are premiering a first issue from that week and give a quick opinion on them. From time to time we may also include more than issue number ones in this feature. If a noteworthy one-shot or the first issue of a new story arc is released, we may talk about it in this feature.

This week, we will cover Adolescent Radioactive Black Belt Hamsters #1, Captain America #34, Narcopolis #1, Project Superpowers #0, Salem #0 of 4, Spider-man With Great Power #1, Violet Rose #1 and Wormwood Calamari Rising #1.
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Writer/Artists: Various
Company: Image Comics

The anthology format in comics is full of promise and pitfalls. A wide range of creators and stories means you’re almost guaranteed to get as many big misses as big hits with any particular reader, and anything you like is probably going to feel too short, while anything you hate is going to feel like it’s taking up valuable space. And almost every single reader will have a different view on which one is which. And even the corporate superhero giants have trouble selling anthologies, so something non-superhero from another publisher is going to have a huge uphill battle. So why do folks keep making anthologies? Continue Reading »

Welcome back to the Comic Pants podcast! This is part two of our Second Annual Golden Pants Awards, celebrating our favorite creators of 2007. Nick Budd, Randy Lander, David Martindale and Dan Grendell name their Best of 2007 choices, and Dave Farabee provides color commentary and makes “unofficial” picks as well.

As always, commentary is welcomed and encouraged. Let us know what you thought of the podcast, and if you’ve got suggestions for future podcast topics, leave us a comment!
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Some of you may have noticed on the sidebar, we have our “Top Five of the Moment” listed. These are the five books that are most clicking with each Pants writer. It may or may not represent the best books we’ve read all month, year, or just what we’re digging that week. We generally try to update it with books from that week, but there are no hard and fast rules. Inspired by an email from one of our readers, we’re going to post every Friday with the most recent Top Five from each member of the Panteon, and hope for your comments on our lists, or maybe even your own “Top Five of the Moment.”
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Wednesday Number Ones is a weekly feature here at Comic Pants. We take the books that are premiering a first issue from that week and give a quick opinion on them. From time to time we may also include more than issue number ones in this feature. If a noteworthy one-shot or the first issue of a new story arc is released, we may talk about it in this feature.

This week, we will cover Afterburn #1, Rod Espinosa Prince Of Heroes #1, World War Hulk Aftersmash Damage Control #1 of 3 and Young Avengers Presents #1 of 6.
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Some of you may have noticed on the sidebar, we have our “Top Five of the Moment” listed. These are the five books that are most clicking with each Pants writer. It may or may not represent the best books we’ve read all month, year, or just what we’re digging that week. We generally try to update it with books from that week, but there are no hard and fast rules. Inspired by an email from one of our readers, we’re going to post every Friday with the most recent Top Five from each member of the Panteon, and hope for your comments on our lists, or maybe even your own “Top Five of the Moment.”
Continue Reading »

Wednesday Number Ones is a weekly feature here at Comic Pants. We take the books that are premiering a first issue from that week and give a quick opinion on them. From time to time we may also include more than issue number ones in this feature. If a noteworthy one-shot or the first issue of a new story arc is released, we may talk about it in this feature.

This week, we will cover 76 #1 of 8, Cemetery Blues #1, New Exiles #1, Robin #170, Star Trek TNG Intelligence Gathering #1 of 5 and Stranded #1.
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Welcome back to the Comic Pants podcast! To kick off 2008, we’re doing our Second Annual Golden Pants Awards, celebrating our favorite series, issues and collections of 2007. In part one of this two-part podcast, Nick Budd, Randy Lander, David Martindale and Dan Grendell name their Best of 2007 choices, and Dave Farabee provides color commentary and makes “unofficial” picks as well.

Continue Reading »