UPFRONT: Previews Review.
By Scott Grunewald.

Well the day has come; Diamond has released the June edition of Previews, soliciting comics and merchandise that will be released into stores in August. What? You don't read Previews and pre order your comics? No problem, I'll read it for you, and tell you what to order.

WHAT YOU NEED TO GET.

LONE WOLF and CUB VOL. #1 - By Kazuo Koike & Goseki Kojima
My uncle used to let me look at his original Japanese copies of LONE WOLF and CUB when I was a wee tot. Granted, I didn't understand what was going on it the comic, but the images were so detailed and violent that it rocked my little world. I'm giddy at the possibility of reliving those wonderful childhood moments now, and actually being able to understand the books. This is a must read for fans of the SANCTUARY or STRAIN manga series.
296page - B&W - $9.95 - Page 40 - Order number JUN000036

WILDCATS: LADYTRON One Shot - By Joe Casey, Eric Canete & Juan Vlasco
Ladytron is forced by her creator to hunt down her predecessor. All I have to say about this is I better see some robot sex damnit! I'm relived that Wildstorm is giving Canete a project to work on that will benefit from his wonderful and mildly psychotic artwork.
48pages - color - $5.95 - Page 85 - Order number JUN000305

PROMETHEA BOOK ONE hard cover - By Alan Moore, J.H. Williams III, Mick Gray and Charles Vess
While I think the entire ABC line of comics is wonderful, PROMETHEA has always stood out as something special. From the start it's been mythical, funny, strange and enthralling. The chance to have a hard cover collection of my favorite ABC series is just too much to pass up. And what a great price!
176pages - color - $24.95 - Page 86 - Order number JUN000310

GO GIRL #1 - By Trina Robbins & Anne Timmons
Everyone always says that there should be more all-ages comic books on the market, and yet when they are released these same people seem to ignore them. Well don't ignore GO GIRL! I've been lucky enough to see several pages from this comic, and it's simply wonderful. And it is NOT just for girls.
32pages - B&W - $2.95 - Page 112 - Order number JUN000967

DOOM 3-issue mini-series - By Chuck Dixon and Leonardo Manco
Lets face it, we may have problems with Marvel now, but they've always had the coolest villains in comics. The coolest being Dr. Victor Von Doom. Well Doom is trapped in an alternate reality, without his armor, and facing a tyrant just as ruthless as himself. This should be a damn fun series, and with the wonderful art talents of Manco, it should be quite nice to look at as well.
32pages - color - $2.99 - Page 159 - Order number JUN001240

SPACEKNIGHTS 5-issue mini-series - By Jim Starlin, Chris Batista and Chip Wallace
Yes, you got me, I'm a closet ROM: SPACEKNIGHT fan. Shut up! You act like I'm the only one!
32pages - color - $2.99 - page 160 - Order number JUN001242

INHUMANS soft cover trade paperback - By Paul Jenkins & Jae Lee
Whoa! I'm recommending three Marvel products this month. That's gotta be some kind of record. Anyway, if you need me to tell you why you should be buying the INHUMANS trade paperback, then I'll be forced to hurt you. INHUMANS was one of the best comics produced last year, and if you were foolish enough to skip it the first time around, then here's your chance to get the whole dang blasted thing.
264pages - color - $24.95 - page 165 - Order number JUN001260

ASTRONAUTS IN TROUBLE: SPACE 1959 soft cover trade paperback - By Larry Young and Charlie Adlard
Who was really the first man on the moon? Larry Young knows, and in the cool and stylish SPACE 1959 trade paperback he tells you. Larry Young is producing some of the coolest and original comics in years, and if you haven't read any of his books yet, this is a great and inexpensive jumping on point.
72pages - B&W - $7.95 - page 197 - Order number JUN001462

MURDER ME DEAD 8-issue mini-series By David Lapham
A new crime story by David "STRAY BULLETS" Lapham? Sign me up damnit! David Lapham is a master of crime noir fiction comics, and any chance to see him do his stuff is appreciated by me. If you have been meaning to pick up some of his comics, but weren't sure where to start, give MURDER ME DEAD a shot. You won't be sorry.
24pages - B&W - $2.95 - page250 - Order number JUN001707

THE PRINCE 12-issue maxi-series by Adam Green, Andreotte & Audette
Adam Green has been whoring himself all over the net these past few weeks, so if you want some virtual nookie from him, just pre-order his book. It'll be worth it, aside from the cheap sexual favors, Adam's crafted a pretty cool story about a serial killer that prey's on other serial killers. What's to lose?
24pages - B&W - $2.95 - page266 - Order number JUN001798

ROAD TRIP by Judd Winick
Ladies and gentlemen, may I present Judd Winick; the busiest man in comics. Aside from his Barry Ween comics, his new PEDRO & ME graphic novel (More on that latter), and his new gig on GREEN LANTERN, Judd is releasing his Eisner nominated comics debut, ROAD TRIP. Originally appearing in ONI DOUBLE FEATURE, both episodes are reprinted in one easy to carry issue.
32pages - B&W - $2.95 - page276 - Order number JUN001844

WHITEOUT: MELT trade paperback by Greg Rucka & Steve Lieber
Russian Commandos stealing nuclear weapons that aren't supposed to exist. A sexy Soviet spy sent to bring them back without causing an international incident. A bitter U.S. Marshal who's desperate to get away from the place that cost her half her hand. Add all that together, toss it in Antarctica and enjoy the ride. MELT is Rucka and Lieber's wonderful follow-up to the first WHITEOUT series, and it's just as cool. As far as I'm concerned, this is a must have.
112pages - B&W - $11.95 - page276 - Order number JUN001845

PEDRO & ME Graphic novel - by Judd Winick
Man, am I Mr. Winick's bitch this month or what? We all watched them on REAL WORLD, we all enjoyed the voyeuristic thrill of watching 7 pretty people (Well, six, that Puck dude was kinda gross) fret and fight every week. We also felt saddened when Pedro died from a disease that should have been cured by now. But how could we understand what it was like to lose a friend? Could we understand? Most likely not, but Judd Winick has decided to let us in on his and Pedro's friendship through a new original graphic novel. Buy a token for the clue bus people, this is a book that you shouldn't miss.
192pages - Color - $15.00 - Page311 - Order number JUN002084

ROCKY HORROR SUPER-POSEABLE FIGURES
These are the coolest toys ever! You get Dr. Frank N. Furter, Riff Raff and Columbia! Oh my god I am going to scream SO loud when I get these! Shut up, they're cute!
3 Blister packages figures - $3.99 each - Page388 - JUN002662

Well that's it for the must haves in PREVIEWS this month. Be back next month when I order you around once again. And remember, brush your teeth three times a day, don't chew with your mouth open, and always, ALWAYS pre-order your comics!

Scott Grunewald is the Publisher of PopImage.

Discuss this article at the PopImage Forum.