1. CHEW. As you read this, I am lounging on the beach. And I may very well be reading volume one of John Layman and Rob Guillory’s Chew. My buddy Chris has been bugging me to read it for about a year now, and Amazon had it as part of their “4 for 3” deals, so it’s one of about 12 trade paperbacks I’m taking with me. Timely, because the comic—about a cop who get psychic impressions by eating things from crime scenes, looks like it’s headed to FX.

2. X-MEN: FIRST CLASS. Kevin Bacon has been cast as the villain, but they aren’t saying who that will be, exactly. I’ve read all kinds of guesses, from Sebastian Shaw to Omega Red to Mr. Sinister to government mutant hunter William Stryker but I’m going with Bolivar Trask because the X-flicks have never made any real use of The Sentinels. (I really hope he’s The Blob though. Would love to see him in a fat suit.) Still, if this is first class, doesn’t it have to be someone from early X-history?

3. GREEN LANTERN. Lots of controversy about the GL costume. Me personally, I don’t care. I think Green Lantern is lame. Of all the major characters they could have made a movie about, why’d they have to pick him?

4. TIME TO CHANGE THE SUBSCRIPTION LIST? Grant Morrison is off Batman & Robin come November, when he’ll be replaced by Peter Tomasi and Patrick Gleason (they did Green Lantern Corps together). The only reason I read the book was Morrison. What do you all think—should I even bother to give their first issue a try?

5. MORE WALKING DEAD NEWS. Because I love reporting on one of my all-time favorite comic books, here’s the update on Robert Kirkman’s great experiment in long-form storytelling. First of all, the series is about to hit issue #75, and Kirkman has said there’s something special planned for it. 75 issues! Most new books launched by Marvel and D.C. in the last five years haven’t even lasted that long, let alone an indie book, and I can’t think of more than a handful that have managed to hold on to the same creative team without being burnt out. The special something will involve aliens and full color. He’s also very involved with the T.V. adaptation, for which they’ve announced the first six episode writers/directors, and the picks are perfect:
1) Frank Darabont/FD (Shawshank Redemption, The Mist)
2) FD/Michelle MacLaren (Breaking Bad, X-Files)
3) FD, Chic Eglee, (The Shield, Dexter), Jack LoGuidice (Sons of Anarchy)/Gwyneth Horder-Payton (Shield, BSG)
4) Kirkman!/Johan Renck (Breaking Bad)
5) Glen Mazzara (Shield)/Ernest Dickerson (Wire, Dexter)
6) Adam Fierro (Shield, Dexter)/Guy Ferland (Shield, Sons of Anarchy)

6. THIS WEEK’S COMICS—MY RECOMMENDATIONS. Here’s what you should think about buying this week, in order of my recommendation:
- Walking Dead #75 (or, if you’re like me and wait for the trades, pick up Volume 12)
- Amazing Spider-Man #638 (the first installment of OMIT—the last story under the brand new day banner)
- Fantastic Four by Jonathan Hickman Vol. 1 (can’t wait to read this one!)
- Captain America: Two Americas (the most recent trade hardcover of Brubaker’s amazing series)
- Dark Avengers: Molecule Man (paperback) (in retrospect, Dark Avengers was my favorite pre-Siege Avengers title)
-Power Girl #14
- Welcome to Tranquility: One Foot in the Grave (the return of a fabulously underrated Wildstorm series about superheroes in the old folks home)
- Deadpool: Merc with a Mouth #13 (the last issue of the best Deadpool book out right now)
- Dark Wolverine #88 (Daken vs. Frankencastle!)
- Scott Pilgrim Vol. 6 (not my bag, but lots of folks love it)

Tags: Comic books