The Shipping Forecast is Ninth Art's pick of the best and most notable new releases hitting comic stores each week, courtesy of the fishing crew at the Ninth Art lighthouse. Shipping details come courtesy of Diamond. Check out the Diamond website for the latest information, as the list is subject to change.

GERMAN BIGHT PICKS:

[i1] MARC HEMPEL'S NAKED BRAIN #1 (Insight Studios)
I'm experiencing a feeling of deep contentment right now. It's not just my fish supper, it's also the knowledge that I'll be seeing new work from Marc Hempel this week. If that wasn't enough, it's also the knowledge that some of that new work will be the return of Tug and Buster, who flowered briefly at Image (and self-published under the Art & Soul Comics imprint) and who are very, very funny indeed. Basically, silent lunk Tug and verbose pipsqueak Buster (along with "friends" Stinkfinger and Genital Ben) were used to explore what it is to be Manly. Mother of god, it was funny. So there's that, and lots of Hempel's extremely spot-on short humour strips, examples of which can be seen here. Now you can go out and buy yourself a sense of humour. Only problem - there's only three issues.

100% #2 (DC Vertigo)
A new Paul Pope release always perks me up. 100% didn't disappoint with the first issue and I seriously doubt that any of the subsequent ones will. This is one of his strongest pieces ever, indicating that he's constantly improving his storytelling skills as well as his artistic experimentation. His characterisation in particular is sharp and believable, much as you would hope for a story that pulls together a large ensemble cast. I also had the impression that the plot's going somewhere fast, which is all to the good. Needless to say, the art style may not be for everyone, but if it is for you, then 100% contains many handsome pages for your enjoyment. Due to the fragmentary nature of the narrative, this works extremely well as a partwork or even as stand-alone stories, so pick this up, and see the future.

VIKING PICKS:

[i2] STORMWATCH: TEAM ACHILLES #1 (DC Wildstorm)
This looks interesting - a new take on the old Wildstorm super-team that was revitalised by Warren Ellis and later evolved into THE AUTHORITY. TEAM ACHILLES is by a writer fairly new to comics - Micah Wright - but Wright's publicising and teasing have got a few people, myself included, at least a little interested. TEAM ACHILLES is a political thriller about a team of humans - led by Wildstorm tertiary character Ben Santini - who set out to kill all superheroes. Add what seems to be some very nice art by Whilce Portacio, and it's worth at least a leaf-through in the shop.

THE ULTIMATES #5 (Ultimate Marvel)
Probably my favourite new book this year, THE ULTIMATES is steamrolling over any competition, and is probably far and away the best super-title on the stands today. It's the best work of Mark Millar's career, and Bryan Hitch isn't exactly slacking, either. This issue: a big fight, as I seem to recall. No villains - the Hulk is on a rampage. If you get one superhero comic this week, this is the one to get.

BATTLE OF THE PLANETS #1 (Image) / TRANSFORMERS: ARMADA #1 (Dreamwave)
Yuck! Don't touch, kids. They'll make you a virgin all over again.

FISHER PICKS:

[i3] MAGIC PICKLE TP (Oni Press)
He's a pickle. She's a schoolgirl. They fight evil produce. This collection of Scott Morse's brilliant and beautiful miniseries about the adventures of Weapon Kosher is a kids' book, but like the best kids' entertainment, it's a treat for all ages. The noble dill is our heroic lead, but the real star is Jo Jo Wigman, who on the one hand has to match wits with a snooty classmate for the affections of Danny Johnson, and on the other has to deal with the secret laboratory under her bedroom and the giant robot jar that drags her into harm's way. Morse's highly stylised linework is filled with humour and heart, and you can just tell that this was a real labour of love. Easily one of my favourite series of the past year (a page of the original artwork hangs proudly on the wall of my lighthouse lodgings), it deserves to be one of your favourites too.

VERTIGO POP: TOKYO (DC Vertigo)
The Vertigo Pop concept, offering unconventional tours of some of the world's greatest cities in four-issue mini series, sounds like the sort of strange and innovative idea we like to see from Vertigo. Obviously, it's the team of Peter Milligan and Phil Bond on the LONDON series in November that most of us will be really looking forward to, but Jonathan Vankin's culture-clash approach to TOKYO, with art by the brilliantly weird Seth Fisher, sounds like an excellent appetiser. The solicitation uses painful terms like 'techno-cool' and 'ultra-hip', but hopefully the series itself will approach such conceits with a pinch of wasabe.

DOGGER PICKS:

GODDESS TP (DC Vertigo)
I remember being really put out when DC announced that they were pulling this book in the wake on September 11th. I felt that anyone who was so fragile as to be upset by the bits that caused DC to pull it was probably not the sort of person that would be buying the book anyway, and in the wake of tragedy, the rest of us could probably do with a few laughs. And make no mistake, this is very funny. Written around the same time as Ennis' HELLBLAZER run, this is the antidote to all the wrenching horror in that - an absurd romp filled with lunatics and bastards that it's almost impossible to take seriously. Almost. Amid all the gore and horrible beatings, there's a sneaky emotional core to this story about finding one's place in the world, and a touch of humanity amid the belly laughs. And the fact that it's all gorgeously painted by Phil Winslade just adds to the enjoyment. I'm glad to see this back on the shelf.

SKINWALKER #2 (Oni Press)
This series has set itself on a difficult path - it's asking us to accept it as a grounded and real crime drama, while presenting us with a serial killer with supernatural powers. If it can pull it off, then the supernatural elements should strengthen the hard crime by contrast, but it's not going to be an easy balancing act to do. That said, the first issue gave me every confidence that they can pull it off - it's a strong, gripping story, and by placing the focus squarely on the tensions between our lead characters, it manages to feel taught and real.

Comics shipping in the US on July 10th:

DARK HORSE

MAY020062 BLADE OF THE IMMORTAL #70: BEASTS (PART 5 OF 7) (MR) $2.99
MAY020054 BTVS: WILLOW & TARA WILDERNESS #1 (Of 2) $2.99
MAY020055 BTVS: WILLOW & TARA WILDERNESS PHOTO CVR #1 (OF 2) $2.99
MAY020050 FORT!: PROPHET OF THE UNEXPLAINED #2 (Of 4) $2.99
MAY020059 OH MY GODDESS! PART XII #1: LEARNING TO LOVE (PART 1 OF 3) $3.50

DC COMICS

MAY020259 100% #2 (Of 5) (MR) $5.95
MAY020195 BATGIRL #30 $2.50
MAY020193 BATMAN: LEGENDS OF THE DARK KNIGHT #157 $2.25
MAY020212 CRISIS ON MULTIPLE EARTHS TP $14.95
MAY020215 DEADMAN #8 $2.50
MAY020249 EIGHT LEGGED FREAKS $6.95
MAY020268 GODDESS TP (RES) (MR) $19.95
MAY020201 HARLEY QUINN #22 $2.25
MAY020271 HUNTER: THE AGE OF MAGIC #13 (MR) $2.50
MAY020224 IMPULSE #88 $2.50
MAY020254 ROBO DOJO #6 (Of 6) $2.95
MAY020245 SCOOBY-DOO #62 $1.99
MAY020255 STORMWATCH: TEAM ACHILLES #1 (MR) $2.95
MAY020236 SUICIDE SQUAD #11 $2.50
MAY020204 SUPERMAN #184 $2.25
MAY020276 VERTIGO POP!: TOKYO #1 (OF 4) (MR) $2.95

IMAGE

MAY021162 BATTLE OF THE PLANETS #1 $2.95
APR021420 GI JOE VOL 1: REINSTATED TP $14.95
MAY021178 NOBLE CAUSES GLEASON CVR #4 $2.95
MAY021179 NOBLE CAUSES OEMING CVR #4 $2.95
MAY021190 SUPERPATRIOT: AMERICA'S FIGHTING FORCE #1 (Of 4) $2.95

MARVEL

MAY021514 BLACK PANTHER #47 $2.50
NOV990933 BLADE, VAMPIRE HUNTER #4 $2.50
MAY021477 CABLE #107 $2.25
MAY021519 CALL OF DUTY: THE PRECINCT #1 (Of 6) $2.25
MAY021478 DEADPOOL #69 $2.25
APR021786 EXILES VOL 2 TP: A WORLD APART $14.99
APR021718 HOWARD THE DUCK #6 (MR) $2.99
MAY021515 INFINITY ABYSS #3 (Of 6) $2.99
MAY021516 IRON MAN #57 $2.25
MAY021491 SPIDER-MAN: GET KRAVEN #2 (Of 5) $2.25
MAY021512 THOR #51 $2.25
MAR021693 ULTIMATES #5 $2.25
MAY021480 X-TREME X-MEN #15 $2.99

OTHER PUBLISHERS

MAY022344 BAKUNE YOUNG VOL 3 TP $16.95
MAY021703 BEAUTIFUL KILLER #1 (Of 3) $2.99
APR022044 BETTY & VERONICA #177 $1.99
APR022045 BETTY & VERONICA DIGEST #131 $2.19
MAY022361 BIG O PART 2 #1 (Of 4) $3.50
MAR022045 BONE #48 $2.95
MAY021764 CAT WITH REALLY BIG HEAD, AND ONE OTHER STORY THAT ISN'T AS GOOD $2.95
MAY021765 CHARM SCHOOL VOL 1 TP (MR) $11.95
MAY021939 DARK ANGEL VOL 4 TP: LEGEND OF SACRED BEAST $15.95
APR022249 DF LADY DEATH DARK ALLIANCE GOLD FOIL CVR #1 $16.99
MAY022365 DRAGONBALL Z PART 5 #7 (Of 12) $2.95
MAY021954 EDGE #4 (Note Price) $11.95
MAY021944 FIRST #21 $2.95
MAY021945 FORGE #4 (Note Price) $11.95
MAR022215 FUZZ & PLUCK #2 (Of 4) (MR) $4.95
MAY022236 HEROBEAR AND DECOY: FIELD TRIP #1 (Of 2) $2.95
APR022048 JUGHEAD'S DOUBLE DIGEST #87 $3.29
APR022121I LADY DEATH: DARK ALLIANCE PREMIUM ED #1 $9.99
MAY022221 MAGIC PICKLE TP $11.95
MAY022160 MARC HEMPEL'S NAKED BRAIN #1 (Of 3) $2.95
MAY022371 MEDABOTS PART 2 #3 (Of 4) $2.75
MAY022370 MEDABOTS VOL 1: BOY & HIS BOT TP $9.95
MAY021768 MY MONKEYS NAME IS JENNIFER #3 $2.95
MAY021967 PANDEMONIUM VOL 1 #1 (MR) $2.95
MAR021931 PRIVATE BEACH VOL 1 TP: FUN & PERILS IN TRUDYVERSE $12.95
MAY022346 RANMA 1/2 PART 11 #5 (Of 11) $2.95
MAY022274 SHIVER IN THE DARK #1 $2.50
APR022460 SKINWALKER #2 (Of 4) (MR) $2.95
APR022052 SONIC THE HEDGEHOG #112 $1.99
MAR022087 SOULSEARCHERS #54 $2.50
APR021986 STRANGERS IN PARADISE VOL III #51 $2.95
MAY021993 TRANSFORMERS: ARMADA #1 $2.95
MAY022376 VAGABOND PART 1 #9 (MR) $4.95

The 9A Lighthouse Crew are Trafalgar, Shannon, Fastnet, Plymouth, Viking, German Bight, Finisterre, Forties, Dogger, Cromarty and Fisher.

This article is Ideological Freeware. The author grants permission for its reproduction and redistribution by private individuals on condition that the author and source of the article are clearly shown, no charge is made, and the whole article is reproduced intact, including this notice.