Welcome to the debut installment of our brand spanking new weekly review feature, featuring our favorite brand spanking new comic/manga releases as chosen by PCS friends & family.

Brendan’s Pick: Sinbad: Rogue of Mars #1

So you’ve got Sinbad, right? Now Sinbad has travelled far and wide, and he’s done some insane shit. Where can you do an original Sinbad story?

How about fucking Mars? Sound good? Yeah, I thought so.

Bluewater Comics continue their Ray Harryhausen Presents series with Sinbad: Rogue of Mars #1. Harryhausen’s legendary Hollywood career as a special effects guru produced a library of iconic and stylized characters that have proven to be lush, distinct comic properties. The concept of putting Sinbad on Mars spawned from a project Harryhausen, who worked on many Sinbad films, was involved in that never came to fruition. Jeff “Chamba” Cruz provides sharp, clean pencils that evoke high end animation. This matches perfectly with the adventure scripted by Greg Thompson. Not a page is wasted, with each bringing either a dynamic action sequence or an exotic alien visual. The result is a story that feels both like a lost Arabian Night tale, and a forgotten piece of early 20 th century fantastical science fiction. As complete a comicbook as any adventure comic, Sinbad is a pleasant surprise.

Chamba’s work shines, and Sinbad is Bad as advertised. This is a book that could be great if the quality continues to escalate. If it doesn’t, it will still have made one cool, refreshing comic. Shock Value: B+

-Brendan McGuirk

David’s Picks: Terror Inc. #3 & Justice League of America #14

The one thing that can be guaranteed to be heard whenever a new David Lapham comic comes out is that someone, somewhere is going to ask “When is Lapham going to do more Stray Bullets?” Terror, Inc. isn’t Stray Bullets, but it’ll definitely hold you over. Lapham has turned a character that has been used mainly for jokes into a believable mercenary. Terror, Inc. is a gritty book, and while a guy does get pretty much ripped in half, the violence fits the tone of the book. Patrick Zircher’s art is ridiculously good. He renders everything from a car chase to a trunk full of dead thugs equally well. This issue features a few surprises, sets up the final conflict, and guarantees that nothing but pain lies in Terror’s future. This comic, despite all the dismemberment, is really, really fun. Shock Value: A

I am a huge supporter of Dwayne McDuffie writing anything ever. His first few issues of JLA have been much better than Meltzer’s glacially-paced run, but this issue felt kind of like treading water, and I’m not sure why. It hits all the high points– the villains are given a quality amount of credibility, the heroes are forced into action, and the dialogue is great. But, Benes’s art is really holding back my enjoyment of this comic. His characters just kind of stand around, mouths closed, and flex at each other. There are a few good panels, and his Joker looks great, but the art falls flat. Superman and Black Lightning have the same builds? Seriously? But, the story and dialogue are all top notch. If you can get past the art, it is well worth it. Shock Value: B+

- David Brothers, 4thletter

Erin’s Pick: Iron Wok Jan, Volume 26

Essentially Iron Chef on crack, Iron Wok Jan 26 is the penultimate book in the series. This time it’s a “Food for the 21st Century” theme with ostrich as the secret ingredient. Kiriko’s perky breasts have grown to the size of torpedoes over the course of the series. Jan interprets the theme as “post-apocalyptic food” and presents a fried dragonfly dish with a twist. Never forget that Jan is an anti-hero! With many “LOL WTF” moments and an extremely shocking ending, you could pick up this volume without reading the rest of the series. Shock Value: A- (the minus is because of the torpedo-breasts migration)

- Erin F., Manga Recon, Ninja Consultant

Jason’s Pick: Sundays With Walt & Skeezix

Have you ever seen a Frank King Sunday strip? Words do not exist to describe the beauty. We’re not talking modern Sunday comic strips here, most of which are indistinguishable from their weekday companions (just a few more panels and some paint-by-numbers computer coloring done at the syndicate).

We’re talking full-page, beautifully-colored flights of fancy. And while Windsor McCay or George Herriman may have been as good as Frank King, nobody was ever better. From simple scenes of perfectly rendered domestic comedy, to surreal color experiments that take the breath away, the 96-page collection SUNDAYS WITH WALT AND SKEEZIX is an exploration of the endless possibilities of a single page of comics. Hardbound, digitally-restored, and–most importantly–printed at the ORIGINAL SIZE (!!!GLORIOUS SLACK-JAWED WONDER!!!) of 16 x 21 inches, this isn’t just the ultimate coffee table book–it can double as the coffee table.

I know, I know, the book is 95 Bucks. But it’s easy: just take all the money you’ve saved by not buying Countdown this whole time (because I know you didn’t get suckered in by that crap) and, boom, the book is paid for. Trust me, it’s worth it.

Shock Value: A- (the minus being for the difficulty in storing a book that big without resorting to keeping it on a Bible lectern)

Note: This pick is excerpted from the full-length review, which you can read here.

-Jason Michelitch

Jon’s Pick: 52 - The Covers

As stated in the intro, DC was looking at an admittedly short list of potential cover artists for their weekly series. That’s understandable — I mean, were they going to take James Jean off Fables and toss him into the deep end of the superhero side of the pool? Did anybody really want a year’s worth of covers from fan favorites like Alex Ross, or whoever? Naturally they never name any of the other potential candidates, but it’s now obvious they made the right choice going with JG Jones.

This slim hardcover devotes two pages to every cover — single issues, trades and even Wizard/CBG covers — with sketches and commentary by JG Jones opposite the final image. It also provides insight into just about every aspect of the year-long creative process, from JG’s concepts, colorist Alex Sinclair’s invaluable work, editor Steve Wacker’s input, and even graphic designer John J. Hill’s creation of the 52 logo and trade dress.

52: The Covers is a great read for those who appreciate the (all-to-rare) element of design in mainstream comics. And even for those who just dig JG Jones, there’s plenty to purty pictures, plus little tidbits like his fondness for Yetis and calico cats. Shock Value: B+ (which is more than I can say for the series itself)

- Jon Haehnle, Brother J Says Yuck

Kate’s Pick: Naoki Urasawa’s Monster, Vol. 11

Imagine, if you can, a mash-up of Dressed to Kill, The Fugitive, and The Spy Who Came in from the Cold. Throw in a pair of twins (one of whom is pure evil, and occasionally impersonates his sister), a sinister orphanage run by Stasi operatives, and a hapless Czech police officer who’s been framed for murder (his alleged weapon of choice: poisoned bon bons) and presto! you have volume 11 of Naoki Urasawa’s Monster. The very things that make Monster so ridiculously entertaining–Baroque plot twists, lengthy story arcs, and a sprawling cast–make the eleventh volume a difficult place to begin reading this series. But those who’ve been faithfully following the exploits of Dr. Kenzo Tenma and Johan Liebert won’t be disappointed by the latest installment, which delves deeper into the mystery of Johan and Anna’s childhood, while revealing more about the Prague police force’s connection to Kinderheim 511. Shock Value: A

- Katherine Dacey-Tsuei, Manga Recon, Kate no Komento