Want to share your thoughts?

Just a quick word to remind you that Black and White Wonder is always on the lookout for readers reviews. If any of you would like to voice your opinion on a Showcase Presents or an Essential book, just send me your review at

blackandwhitewonder@gmail.com

and I'll happily post it here with credits and all. I'm not picky on the format or length so don't be shy and try your hand at it!

On Sale This Week (07/11)

After having missed a couple of weeks, we're finally up to speed with the current releases! This week's book is a sure buy as far as I'm concerned as it features my girlfriend's favorite character of all comicdom, the one true Batgirl, Barbara Gordon.

SHOWCASE PRESENTS BATGIRL VOL 1
Written by John Broome and others; Art by Carmine Infantino, Gil Kane and others; Cover by Infantino and Murphy Anderson

In these fast-paced, fun stories collected from the pages of BATMAN, DETECTIVE COMICS and more, Batgirl learns from the Dynamic Duo what it takes to battle evil in the streets of Gotham City while taking on a string of unforgettable foes!

On Sale Last Week (07/04)

In an effort to get back up to date with the new releases, here's what came out last week.

ESSENTIAL DEFENDERS VOL 3
The Story: There's nothing the non-team can't handle when mutants, gods, demons and miscreants of the 1950s all get their crack at the sensational super heroes of the seventies! With Luke Cage! The Guardians of the Galaxy! The Son of Satan vs. the Sons of the Serpent! Brain transplants, foreign intrigue and the tumultuous terror of Tapping Tommy! Daredevil, Yellowjacket, Bambi! And introducing...an Elf!? Featuring the first appearance of the ever-reliable Wrecking Crew! Collecting31-60, and Annual 1
592 PGS./Rated A …$16.99

Collecting the end of Steve Gerber's run on the title, there's no doubt Essential Defenders Vol.3 is worth buying if you already have the first two volumes. Otherwise, I'd suggest starting at the beginning of the series since both previous volumes are definite must-buys for any Essentials fans.

On Sale Last Week (06/27)

Finally... I have access to the Internet! After moving to my new home and setting things up, I'm just about ready to get back to Black and White Wonder's regular programming. You can expect a couple new posts in the next few days as I try to catch up with what I missed in the black and white comics world. Meanwhile, here's what was published by the big two last week.

SHOWCASE PRESENTS BATMAN VOL 2
Written by Gardner Fox, Bob Kanigher and John Broome; Art by Sheldon Moldoff, Carmine Infantino and Chic Stone; Cover by Carmine Infantino and Joe Giella

The 1960s Batman and Robin adventures continue in this second volume reprinting, in black and white, the original stories created for Batman #175-188 and Detective ComicS #343-358. Witness the first appearances of the behemoth Blockbuster, the pernicious Poison Ivy, the obscure Outsider, and more!

On Sale This Week (06/20)

As you may have noticed, I've been posting a lot less than usual. I've been particularly busy these past few weeks with work and with an upcoming move this coming weekend, I don't expect to be able to post anything until next week. Luckily - I guess - there won't be anything new on the shelves this week as far as Essentials and Showcase Presents go. So until next week, take care!

On Sale This Week (06/13)

With the imminent return of Ray Palmer, this week's book couldn't come out at a better time. Collecting The Atom's earliest adventures, this all new Showcase Presents is bound to offer some great sci-fi tales spiced up with some wacky concepts. Anyone willing to discover more about Ray Palmer's history should definitely give this volume a try.

SHOWCASE PRESENTS THE ATOM VOL 1
Written by Gardner Fox
Art by Gil Kane, Murphy Anderson and Sid Greene
Cover by Kane and Anderson

From the Silver Age of Comics comes this collection of science-fiction tales starring Ray Palmer, The Atom! Included here are some of the Atom's greatest adventures, from SHOWCASE #34-36 and THE ATOM #1-17!

cover from dccomics.com

Around the Web

After an avalanche of news last weeek, the black and white comics world has been pretty calm for the past few days. No news of importance and no time to do reviews on my part has drastically reduced my output so, as usual, I'll rely on good old Internet to provide some content. Here's a thing or two I found on the web that I thought might interest you all.

• An interesting discussion on the "1976 wall" thing with Showcase Presents on the Marvel Masterworks Message Boards.
• A review of Showcase Presents: Legion of Super-Heroes Vol.1 on Bookgasm.com
• A review of Showcase Presents: Justice League of America Vol.1 on Broken Frontier

On Sale This Week (06/06)

With the new Fantasic Four movie focusing on the Silver Surfer coming up, it's not surprising to see Marvel publishing old material featuring the character.

ESSENTIAL SILVER SURFER VOL.2
After years of Earthbound exile, the Silver Surfer soars the seas of space once more and finds plenty of peril awaiting when the Elders of the Universe try something new: all-out war on Galactus! Plus: space piracy, intergalactic war, doppelgangers and the Surfer caught in an interstellar love triangle! Guest-starring the Fantastic Four, the Eternals, and Annihilation's Ronan and Super-Skrull! Plus: a rare glimpse of a path not traveled on an alternate Earth! Collecting SILVER SURFER (1982) #1, SILVER SURFER (1987) #1-18 and ANNUAL #1, and MARVEL FANFARE #51.
584 PGS./Rated T+ …$16.99

Showcase Presents for December 2007

DC Comics finalized their fall publishing schedule by announcing their plans for December 2007 on Newsarama. Once again, I'm really pleased by the Showcase Presents offerings as both are new volumes of two great series.

SHOWCASE PRESENTS: JONAH HEX VOL. 2
Writers: Michael Fleischer, John Albano and David Michelinie
Artists: George Moliterni, Bill Draut, Luis Dominguez, Ernie Chua, José Luis García-López, Oscar Novelle, Tony DeZuñiga, Romeo Tanghal, Vicente Alcazar, Danny Bulanadi, Rich Buckler, Dick Giordano and Val Mayerik
Collects: JONAH HEX #1-22 and stories from WEIRD WESTERN TALES #34-38
$16.99 U.S., 528 pages

Jonah Hex Vol.1 is without a doubt my favorite Showcase Presents thus far. The art is amazing and the western stories are some of the best the medium ever witnessed. If you haven't got it yet, be sure to buy it on your next visit to your LCS. Otherwise, don't forget to pre-order this book as I'm pretty sure it'll fly off the shelves.

SHOWCASE PRESENTS: TEEN TITANS VOL. 2
Writers: Mike Friedrich, Bob Haney, Neal Adams, Steve Skeates, Marv Wolfman and Robert Kanigher
Artists: Gil Kane, Neal Adams, Nick Cardy, George Tuska, Carmine Infantino, Sal Amendola, Dick Dillin, Jim Aparo, Wallace Wood and Joe Giella
Collects: TEEN TITANS #19-36, THE BRAVE AND THE BOLD #83 and 94 and WORLD'S FINEST COMICS #205
$16.99 U.S., 520 pages

I've heard a lot of good things about this series but I've yet to read it. I probably won't pre-order the new volume, but I'll definitely give this series a try once I find a bit of breathing room in my readings.