Comics Pull List Revised!

For the last few months, I've been whittling my pull list down and now I've only got two titles.

One hasn't even started yet, the new Silver Surfer by Dan Slott and artist Mike Allred. It looks like Allred is the perfect fit to illustrate this character! I loved his take on FF (somtimes called "Fantastic Faux"), which were basically replacements for the Fantastic Four. I still love that series, but stopped picking up individual issues and opted for the trade pub version, mostly to save some scratch, but I also prefer reading complete storylines in big books. I'll miss those individual covers though!

Allred's art has a carefree, joyously colorful look to it that I just relish. And judging by the cover, it'll be the kinda' fun that the surfer should be having.

The other is a title I've blogged about previously, and the first issue didn't disappoint--Rick Remender's return to space-fi in Black Science! It's dripping with the cool, unmerciful and cosmic setting you're used to finding in an H.P. Lovecraft tale, but with a little gonzo/wa-hoo in the mix.

I'm technically also signed up for The Star Wars, that "rough script" version of George Lucas' original screenplay for the eponymous film. The art is really fantastic. The story is just okay. The actual layout--how the story fits together panel-by-panel--is terrible. So much so that I basically bought the last issue in my pull file out of guilt, which makes me feel terrible. If it didn't have "Star Wars" on the cover you'd think it was just a poor imitator not worth reading.

YOUR MUST GET COMIC: BLACK SCIENCE!!

YOU GUYS! Remember when I told you about Black Science, Rick Remender's new weird science-horror comic? Well I picked up the first issue last week and it's awesome! It has everything you could want in a scifi pulp adventure. Here's a few quick snaps from my phone (sorry if the quality isn't great when enlarged):

Primitive fish folk riding land eels!

Ancient temples spewing eldritch energies!

Frog gods and the evil bullywugs who worship them!

Who hasn't mistakenly stumbled into a bullywug shaman lair and made a few new friends, am I right?

These are some of the wonderful splash pages from the book. The cover art by Matteo Scalera and Dean White is--to my eyes--evocative of those old pulp fantasy novels from the 70s. And there's more here to help fuel your RPG game:

• Cosmic Cthuluesque horror!
• Tragic consequences for practicing forbidden science!
• Hero loses initiative roll at least twice!
• Creative problem solving to get out of--not one, but two--jams!
• Dimension hopping gone awry not once, but twice!

Note: Black Science is rated "Mature".

Rick Remender returns to space comics with "Black Science"

One of my favorite wa-hoo, space comic creators Rick Remender (Fear Agent) is coming out with an all new sci-fi comic November 27. His stories tend to have a strong pulp influence and it looks like his latest titled Black Science will likewise cling to that mode. Remender is teaming up with artists Matteo Scalara and Dean White on what looks to be a gorgeous series...

(Click images to embiggen) 

Comic Book Resources did a Q&A with Remender, here's what you need to know about the Rickster's approach to writing:

CBR News: Rick, your body of work has been fairly pulpy, and it seems like a mode you've been really successful in. What do you love about the world of pulp meeting the world of Sci-Fi?

Rick Remender: The basic recipe I follow is taking a Saturday morning cartoon aesthetic and mixing it with true science and adult themes for a fully realized cast with identifiable motivations. I love to focus on wild ideas, and in a visual art form, such as comic books, it's mandatory to give the reader and artist a visual story. Lester Dent-style structure, pulpy sensibilities and classic Sci-Fi aesthetics deliver that when done right. This sensibility allows me to delve into big crazy ideas with a seedy underbelly, which I then decorate with fully realized characters with big hearts. When those things come together in the right balance I feel that's when I'm at my best.

I've always been drawn to science fiction with a touch of horror because it allows for an infinite amount of possible dilemmas for your characters, dilemmas that carry huge consequences, which is why I like to include a horror aspect. Peppering horrific fates throughout an adventure leaves you on pins and needles for the fate of the characters, which you hopefully have come to care for, and are rooting for.

The story itself is set to focus on a morally gray scientist, traveling parallel dimensions, who will come face-to-face with the consequences of his work. He sounds like the polar opposite of Heath Hudson, the gruff and slovenly, ray gun slinging protagonist from Fear Agent, Remender's previous space pulp series. It also sounds awesome!

Check out the full CBR interview with Rick Remender!

MTV Geek (now defunct) did a preview story with more images back in September.

UPDATE: CBR has just posted some new teasers. These look like they could be covers for some weird science horror RPG! (Click them to enlarge.)

Images: Comic Book Resources