Because the last three weeks have been very busy ones, we here at The Beguiling haven’t done any weekly recommendations for new comics and graphic novels. Many books released this time of the year end up getting passed over or ignored entirely, because people’s wallets are a little thin or they’re just too busy to get to the comic store or they wrote their best-of lists at the beginning of November.

At any rate, I wanted to make sure there was a decent record out there for some of the great, notable, or just plain bizarre books that were released in the last three weeks of this year, and point them out to you.

Happy New Year!

The Beguiling Recommends…

NOV084024 Baloney Gn 16.95

This is, I believe, Pascal Blanchet’s second English-language book following last year’s wonderful White Rapids, also from Drawn & Quarterly. A visual 180 from that work, Baloney is sharp, bold, and maybe even a little intimidating. It’s no less attractive though, and I’m quite looking forward to reading it.

OCT080011 Beanworld Holiday Special One Shot 3.50
OCT080012 Mister X Condemned #1 (Of 4) 3.50

No, your eyes do not deceive you. What you’re looking at here is new issues of two highly-regarded, fan-favourite series’ from the 1980s, and by the original creators to boot. Larry Marder’s Beanworld Holiday Special is the first new “Beanworld” material in years, and its presence on the rack is kind of freaking people out a little, which is great. It’s in advance of a complete reprinting of the Beanworld series from Dark Horse in 2009.

Likewise, this new Mister X four-issue series is out to promote the recently-released Mister X Omnibus, and it features art and story by Dean Motter. Fans of both of these series’ should be happy indeed.

SEP084503 Behind The Pink Curtain SC 34.95

In the 1970s Japanese cinema underwent a revolution similar to what America experienced, though it was still uniquely Japanese. Coming up out of underground cinema in the early 60s and fueled by post-war revolution, these erotic, often violent films had ripped-from-the-headlines plots and completely dominated Japanese cinema for more than 20 years. This is a lavish production featuring all kinds of art and background info on a genre of film almost completely unknown in the West. I’m pretty excited about this one.

Oh, and if you want a solid, short primer on Pink Movies, check out Japan Edge from Viz, a book on Japanese alternative and underground culture. We’ve got copies on for boxing Day at 10 bucks. Not as pretty as this, though.

JUN083805 The Boys: Definitive Ed HC 75.00

Despite my love for this series, I remain unconvinced that it merited a $75 hardcover produced in the size and style of DC’s ABSOLUTE books. That said, it’s a hell of a package and the series really is pretty fun… If you’ve been looking to pick up a more permanent edition of this comic series, this is clearly the best way to do so.

OCT084546 Brush With Passion Art Of Dave Stevens Px Slipcased HC Ed 50.00

The solicitation info for this one tells you everything you need to know:

“An artist whose genius extended across comics, illustration, movies and more is remembered by Underwood Press in Brush with Passion: The Art of Dave Stevens. Stevens (1955-2008) earned a reputation as a master himself through his dynamic comic work, his best-known creation The Rocketeer, and his alluring good girl art, which included many famous renditions of pin-up queen Bettie Page. This new hardcover presents both iconic paintings and previously unpublished art, along with Stevens’ own accounts of drawing comics, working as a storyboard artist for Michael Jackson’s Thriller video and Steven Spielberg’s Raiders of the Lost Ark, struggling to bring The Rocketeer to the big screen in the 1991 Disney film and much more. Additionally, this PREVIEWS Exclusive edition comes with 16 additional pages of rare, previously unpublished art not found in the trade edition and an illustrated slipcase.”

Although, you probably knew months ago whether or not this one was gonna be for you.

SEP084230 Cavalcade Of Boys TP Vol 04 15.00

Kind of a misleading title, because this is actually a complete, stand-alone graphic novel from Cavalcade of Boys creator Tim Fish. It’s called Love is the Reason and if you’ve ever read and enjoyed his stuff, you’ll like this one too. Compiling and fleshing out his stories that ran in queer newspapers across North America, Love is the Reason is fleshed out with more than 100 pages of new material to create a complete and engaging story. It’s some of Tim’s nicest art as well.

OCT084238 Dead She Said HC 19.99

I actually don’t remember this 3 issues mini-series from Steve Niles and Bernie Wrightson finishing, but apparently it did, and now there is a very attractive hardcover collection. It’s not every day that you get a new Bernie Wrightson comic (even though there’s a hell of a lot of Steve Niles out there…) and I feel like this one may have flown under the radar for a lot of people…

OCT084244 Extreme Finales Sc 100.00

Alright, how big of an Ashley Wood fan are you?

“Collecting the out of print Grande Finale and Sencilla Finale, which are comprised of long-sold out works such as Uno Fanta, Dos Fanta, Tres Fanta, Sencilla Fanta, and even Grande Fanta in one deluxe hardcover volume! This is more Wood than you can find anywhere, for almost any price. Includes 60 bonus pages of art.”

So a much-demanded reprint of Ashley Wood’s various artbooks, in one collection, but with 60 new pages of material. Heh.

SEP084259 Hot Breath Of War GN 13.00

I tend to like the work of Hot Breath of War creator Alixopulos, and so I was particularly intrigued by this review by Tom Spurgeon at The Comics Reporter. I tend to bring a lot of myself into the work I read, everyone does, and pulling that all out and just trying to deal with the work on its own merits is a challenge. For that reason at the least, I’ll be reading this one.

OCT082489 Incognito #1 3.50

The Criminal and Sleeper creative team of Ed Brubaker and Sean Phillips are launching an all new comic book series, a high-concept crime-meets-superpowers romp, in the vein of Sleeper. The high concept? A supervillain in the witness protection program is growing more and more desperate to return to a life of crime, and might explode at any moment. With extra story pages, bonus articles on pulp and noir, and behind-the-scenes stuff. I’m looking forward to this a lot, I thought that the shared-universe aspects of Brubaker’s previous super-crime books like Gotham Central and Sleeper undermined a lot of what he was trying to do there, and something created from whole cloth sounds much more appealing.

JUL084333 Naoki Urasawas MONSTER TP Vol 17 9.99
SEP084368 Naoki Urasawas MONSTER TP Vol 18 9.99

So, thankfully, this series is exactly as good as I’ve been saying for the past few years, with a pretty outstanding conclusion and some real moments of terror and revulsion. I have to admit that my first reading of the last two books (the series wraps up with volume 18) left me scratching my head a little on some of the details, but after a re-read and discussion with my friends, I feel like the ending really came through on all counts. While 18 volumes at $10 might seem like a steep investment, just think of how many comics you’ve bought and not enjoyed at all? I bet that’s more than $180 in a year (sadly)… Phenomenal stuff, and it’s got me really excited for Urasawa’s upcoming PLUTO and 20TH CENTURY BOYS this winter.

OCT084157 Quest For Missing Girl 25.00

A stand-alone graphic novel from Jiro Taniguchi, one of the most talented comics creators in the world. This is admittedly a minor-work in his canon, but it is still head-and-shoulders above 80% of the comics released this year. It’s actually a little strange thinking about this comic, a Man’s Adventure Story about a man doing something a man has to do because that’s the way things are, serialized in a magazine likely alongside a ridiculous sex comedy and an inane Salaryman comic, except it’s of a calibre that simply blows everything else away. Fellini directing a life insurance commercial.

Anyway, it’s on my best-of list for 2008, and if you like good comics, pick it up.

NOV084160 Supermarket TP (new Ptg) 14.99

I think we were one of the only stores to do really, really well with Brian Wood and Kristian Donladson’s SUPERMARKET from IDW… A number of Wood fans don’t even know it exists. IDW is re-releasing it at a lower price-point and in a handy 6×9ish size for folks that missed it the first few times. I enjoyed this, the series is tonally very different at the end than the beginning (and in a good way), but the art is consistently amazing throughout. Give it a look.

NOV084201 Sweet Wishes 25.00
It’s a new Mark Ryden book. A collaborative storybook by Ryden and Marion Peck, and it’s only $25.00. There’s no way that you don’t already know if you want this or not. Buy it now before it’s $200.

SEP084205 Why I Killed Peter Gn 18.95
Last and certainly not least, this beautiful French new-wave graphic novel by Alfred & Oliver Ka is beautifully illustrated and coloured, a really lovely looking book. The subject matter is considerably darker though… I’ll just let the solicitation describe it:

“Peter was a populist priest. He was cool. He was funny. He was no priest, just a regular guy. It’s like I had another uncle. A great one, who laughed, who sang, who tickled. Until he took us for summer camp. Until we were so close, temptation came in the picture.” Based on a true story that the writer experienced himself, this graphic novel presents very simply the grey areas in such a situation, how he had tucked the whole episode deep within him but then how his rage and self-pity let it all out and finally revisiting the man when close to death and his coming to grips with his past. This topical and important work, is both moving and sensitively presented."

Quite well-received in Europe, I’m glad this has been released in North America. It’s a strong work, with a potential to cross over to the mainstream.

Also of note:

MAY083589 Athena Voltaire TP Vol 01 Coll Web Comics 13.95
A trade paperback collection of the popular webcomics series.

OCT080122 Batman Cacophony #2 (of 3) 3.99
Who had “three weeks late” in the “how late will THIS Kevin Smith series be?” pool? I’m putting five bucks down on “July ‘09” for the third issue.

SEP080038 BtVS #20 Chen Cvr 2.99
Buffy the Vampire Slayer is almost back on track after its hiatus, and this stand-alone issue explores what might-have-been for the planned Buffy Animated Series, with art by Animated Series designer Eric Wright. Look for #21 on January 7^th. Oh, and we should be completely restocked on Buffy back issues any day now.

SEP083781 Code Geass Suzaku o/t Counterattack GN Vol 01 9.99
This popular anime series features designs by CLAMP, and a genuinely interesting story. Looking forward to this manga.

SEP084145 Compleat Next Men TP Vol 02 24.99
For you John Byrne fans…

SEP083803 Farscape #1 3.99
I have to admit, I totally don’t get this TV series at all, but a bunch of my friends are huge fans and have been anxiously awaiting this new series. Well, it’s in store December 31st, and we ordered plenty. See you here.

SEP080151 Green Lantern #36 2.99
THE RAGE OF THE RED LANTERNS BEGINS! BEWARE THE BLOOD-VOMITTING SPACE-KITTY! Heh.

OCT080223 Hellblazer #250 (note Price) 3.99
This anniversary issue of Hellblazer featured a number of old creators coming back for another go at Constantine, including Brian Azzarello, Jamie Delano, Dave Gibbons, Peter Milligan, Sean Phillips, Eddie Campbell, Rafael Grampá, David Lloyd, and more!

OCT082431 Marvels Eye Of Camera #2 (of 6) 3.99
Did you know that there’s a sequel to MARVELS coming out right now?

SEP084253 Rt Comics TP Vol 02 Year Two 16.95
This is the second Rooster Teeth Comics Collection, from the folks who created RED VS. BLUE.

OCT082512 Runaways TP Dead End Kids 15.99
The Joss Whedon Runaways story gets an inexpensive soft cover edition. I thought this was a lot better than most people seemed to.

AUG082429 Secret Wars Omnibus HC 99.99
Re-buy your youth in the most expensive format possible! I am seriously tempted by this in a way that makes me feel a bit guilty.

OCT082301 Walking Dead #56 2.99
2008: The year that The Walking Dead got back on schedule. Hurrah! There’ve been like 5 issues of this in the past 3 months or so.

OCT080196 Wintermen Winter Special #1 3.99
Finally, the conclusion to the WINTERMEN ltd. series that… never really ended. Now it has! All 8 of you who bought this at our store should be very, very happy. (I kid because I love, this was a solid little series).

–

- Chris @ The Beguiling

Here's a list of recent books we've received that have not shipped to most comic stores yet, for various reasons.



We've got all kinds of New Del Rey! On the left you can see the long-delayed Genshiken Fan Book, Me and the Devil Blues 2, Pumpkin Scissors 4, and Kujibiki Unbalance 2. On the right, we've got Psycho Busters 4, Shiki Tsukai 4, Shugo Chara 5, Minima 3, and My Heavenly Hockey Club 7.



We've also received a ton of new adults-only yaoi! We've got His Arrogance, Hanky Panky, I Shall Never Return 5, and You Will Fall In Love on the left side, and Red Blinds The Foolish, FreshMen, Object of Desire, and the non-adult Tricky Prince on the right side. Actually, Object of Desire isn't a yaoi title, it's an adult-oriented Josei (women's manga) title, just for the purists.



Finally, we've got the second excellent volume of Ed Piskor's WYSIWIG graphic novel, a fictionalized biography of hacker legend Kevin Mitnick. This has been a great series so far, and totally under the radar of most folks because it's an 1) indy 2) self-published series with 3) no distribution through Diamond. Really strong cartooning too.

Anyway, those are just some of the excellent stuff we've got here at the store that aren't really available at most shops. If you're ever looking for something off the beaten path, be sure to ask us and we'll do what we can to bring it in (if we're not already carrying it...).

- Chris

The following comics and graphic novels are shipping to The Beguiling Books & Art in Toronto, Canada on Wednesday December 31, 2008. NOTE: All prices listed in U.S. Dollars.

Click here to see the list: /081231shipping.txt

That's right folks, no delay on new books again this week. But! A reminder: We will be opening at 10am and closing at 4pm on Wednesday because it's New Years Eve.

We're going to be doing another post in about an hour or two with our recommendations from the past 3 weeks, because we haven't had a chance and some great books have come out! Watch for it.

- Chris @ The Beguiling

BOXING DAY SALE
Friday 11-6, Saturday 11-7, Sunday 12-6
(Back issue bins completely unavailable during this time.)

Hey folks! The only sale we’ve had in 2008 is this Boxing Day Sale, so we hope you’ve saved a little bit of money for it. Full details were sent out to everyone on our mailing list two days back! If you didn't get our e-mail, check your spam filter and add us to your safe-senders. Or, make sure you're actually signed up!

GROUND RULES
1. We reserve the right to refuse sale of any item to any customer for any reason.
2. We will probably not do this, but you’d be amazed at the number of people who insist that certain things are on sale when they’re clearly not, so yeah, rule #1 ("no, the original art is not 50% off".). Honestly, none of us can remember having to do this. We’re good people, deep, deep down. :)
3. Out-of-print books, comics, anime, statues, etc, are exempt to sale pricing.
4. Anything put on hold prior to Boxing Day is entirely exempt to sale pricing.

ALSO: BACK ISSUE BINS and WALL BOOKS will not be accessible for these three days. They are not on sale, they aren’t even really FOR sale. We are sorry, but we’re focusing on other product during this sale and we need the space and attention for other things. We will be having a sale on these items in early 2009, it is worth your time to wait a few weeks.

GENERAL SALE ITEMS:
U.S. Cover Price on all Trade Paperbacks and Graphic Novels (both floors)
U.S. Cover Price on all Art Books, Erotica, Prose
20% off Stickered European graphic Novels
All DVD/Anime/Sets 10% off sticker price.
All T-Shirts are buy 3, get 1 free. T-shirts will be out and easy to browse too!
Stickered Japanese Import Art Books 20% off sticker price. (second floor)
Boxes of deep-discount anime, including about 100 discs at $1 EACH.

NOTE: None of these sales apply to OUT OF PRINT (O/P) books/items. Those are still priced as marked.

SINGLE BOOK DEEP DISCOUNTS:
We’ve got some amazing deals on some really great books that we happen to have a little too much inventory on, so we’re hoping you can help us out with that. Some of these are brand new, some are warehouse finds, but they’re all good deals! NOTE: Quantities may be limited on some items, but we have tried to ensure at least 10 of each listed special will be available. See Prices In Store.

Apocalipstix Vol 1, by Ray Fawkes and Cameron Stewart
Bat-Manga Limited Edition Hardcover, by Chip Kidd, Jiro Kuwata
BLACK JACK Vol 1 HC, by Osamu Tezuka
Book of Leviathan, by Peter Blegvad
Dean Koontz' Odd Thomas: In Odd We Trust
Dirty Stories 3, Fantagraphics Anthology
Dungeon Monstres Vol 1, by Trondheim, Sfar, Mazan, Menu
Dungeon Monstres Vol 2, by Trondheim, Sfar, Blanquet, Andreas
Dungeon Twilight Vol 1, by Sfar & Trondheim
Embroideries HC, by Marjane Satrapi
Final Fantasy 20th Anniversary Collection, by Various
Glenn Fabry: Monograph HC, by Glenn Fabry
Japan Edge, by Various
King Cat Classics HC, by John Porcilino
Lady Pep, by Julie Doucet
Little Nothings, by Lewis Trondheim
Lucky HC, by Gabrielle Bell
Mad Poster Book, by The Usual Gang of Idiots
MARVEL HARDCOVERS, Assorted
Phoenix Wright: Casebook Volume 1, by Various
Playboy's Silverstein Around The World, by Shel Silverstein
Scorchy Smith and The Art Of Noel Sickles, by Noel Sickles
SHARKNIFE VOL 1: CHAMPION EDITION, by Corey Lewis
Simpsons Handbook (Secret Tips From The Pros), by Matt Groening, Various
Star Wars Comics Companion, by Various
Storyville, by Frank Santoro
Strange & Stranger: The World Of Steve Ditko, by Blake Bell
Water Baby, by Ross Campbell
Will Elder: The Mad Playboy of Art SC, by Will Elder

Sale runs through Sunday at close.

The following comics and graphic novels are scheduled to ship to The Beguiling Books & Art in Toronto, Canada, on Wednesday Decemeber 24th 2008. That's right folks, no delay due to the Christmas holidays!

Note: All prices in U.S. Dollars. Full list here: /081224shipping.txt

Unfortunately, we're still a little too busy for any recommendations? But I'm sure if you see us in store we'd be happy to point some out for you.

- Chris

We just got in a good selection of new smut here at The Beguiling, for all of your Christmas(?) needs. We also restocked a bunch of stuff. Oh, and we're probably going to be having an Eros-Comics-Oriented smut "Secret Sale" in the next week or so, make sure you're signed up for our mailing list if you want the deets.

Note: All of these books are intended for readers 18 and over. We ID everyone. Sorry, we can't do mailorder on any of these books. Finally, every link in this message is Not Safe For Work. You've been warned!

Preview it online at http://www.clubstripes.com/.

We’ll admit, it's a little strange for us here at The Beguiling to be giving away a set of perfume (perfumes?), but this is a pretty cool perfume.

Pop singer Gwen Steffani just released a set of signature perfumes in her “Harajuku Lovers” apparel line. It’s a collection of five perfumes, each inspired by Gwen and a member of her crew, and each bottle is actually shaped like the little chibi-versions of the ladies. Check it out:

1. Subscribe to The Beguiling’s events mailing list. You can subscribe at http://www.beguiling.com, in the upper-right corner of the page. Winner must be subscribed to The Beguiling mailing list for the duration of the contest to claim their prize.
2. Send an e-mail to chris@beguiling.com with your name, telephone number, and “HARAJUKU LOVERS” in the subject line.
3. Send that e-mail before Monday, December 22nd 2008 at 11:59pm.
4. Winner will be determined by random draw on the morning of Tuesday, December 23rd, 2008.
5. Entrants must be 18 years of age or older (sorry kids, get your parents to enter for you). 5. Only one entry per household.
6. Odds of winning depend on number of entrants, but are roughly 250:1.
7. Not open to residents of Quebec because they’ve got pretty harsh rules about this sort of thing.

So, good news for all of you, our wonderful customers, because Christmas and New Years aren’t going to interrupt the Holiday Shipping Schedule at Diamond. At all. I mean, in the U.S.? Yeah, they’re getting boned. But us? Wednesday business as usual. And we're opening later and earlier than usual through the weekend and next week, in order to accommodate your holiday shopping needs.

BEGUILING HOLIDAY HOURS AND SCHEDULE:

W Dec 17: 11am-7pm, New Comics Day
Th Dec 18: 11am-7pm
F Dec 19: 11am-9pm
Sa Dec 20: 11am-7pm
Su Dec 21: 11am-7pm

M Dec 22: 11am-7pm
Tu Dec 23: 11am-9pm
W Dec 24: 10am-4pm, New Comics Day, Christmas Eve
Th Dec 25: Closed. Christmas Day
F Dec 26: 11am-6pm, Boxing Day
Sa Dec 27: 11am-7pm
Su Dec 28: 12pm-6pm

M Dec 29: 11am-7pm
Tu Dec 30: 11am-7pm
W Dec 31: 10am-4pm, New Comics Day, New Years Eve
Th Jan 1: Closed, New Years Day
F Jan 2: Back to Normal!

Faith Erin Hicks Signing!
The Creator of Zombies Calling and The War At Ellsmere
Wednesday, December 17th, 2008 5PM-7PM
@ The Beguiling, 601 Markham Street
http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=38595744643
FREE

The Beguiling is proud to welcome Faith Erin Hicks, the creator of ZOMBIES CALLING and the new graphic novel THE WAR AT ELLSMERE to the store this Wednesday, December 17th. Faith will be signing and sketching for fans from 5pm to 7pm in support of her new graphic novel!

Beguiling customers may remember Faith from our awesome signing last year 'round this time for ZOMBIES CALLING. It was well attended and a lot of fun, and so we hope you'll come around this year to check out her new book.

THE WAR AT ELLSMERE and ZOMBIES CALLING are published by SLG, and both graphic novels are currently available for sale at the store. For more on these books, check out Faith's website at http://www.faitherinhicks.com/and the SLG website at http://www.slgcomic.com/.

- Chris @ The Beguiling

The following comics and graphic novels are scheduled to ship to The Beguiling Books & Art in Toronto on Wednesday December 17th, 2008. All prices listed in US Dollars.

Full list: /081217shipping.txt

Sorry folks, no time for recommendations this week. We're a little busy (Christmas!). I will say that there are still copies of Kramers Ergot Volume 7 available following our signing, if you were hoping to scoop one up before they all disappeared.

- Chris @ The Beguiling

We've just received a bunch of movies and season box sets. Some are new to us and some we've had before but never at these prices.

• Aqua Teen Hunger Force Seasons 1, 2, 3, & 4 - $23.95 each
• Astro Boy Collection (51 episodes + lots of extras) - $29.95
• Harvy Birdman Attorney at Law Seasons 1 & 2 - $19.95 each
• Harvy Birdman Attorney at Law Season 3 - $23.95
• Metropolis (Osamu Tezuka) - $28.95
• Nana 2 (live action movie) - $22.95
• Venture Brothers First and Second Seasons Bundle - $58.95
• Makoto Shinkai Two Movie Set (Voices of a Distant Star & The Place Promised in Our Early Days) - $36.95
• Voices of a Distant Star (movie & soundtrack) - $18.95
• The Place Promised in Our Early Days - $18.95

KRAMERS ERGOT 7 TOURS TORONTO
Presented by The Beguiling Books & Art

Featuring Shary Boyle, Sammy Harkham, Kevin Huizenga, John Pham, Ron Rege Jr., Souther Salazer, and Seth!

Thursday December 11th, 2008, 7PM-10PM
918 Bathurst Street (Former Buddhist Temple)
1 Block North of Bathurst TTC [Google Map]
http://facebook.com/event.php?eid=30811628299
FREE

Kramers Ergot is the name of the groundbreaking comix anthology that has taken up the tradition of Art Spiegelman and Francoise Mouly’s RAW MAGAZINE in bringing the most innovative, challenging, and beautiful comics work to the masses… and volume 7 is the greatest yet! This massive new tome includes brand new comics from some of the world’s greatest living graphic novelists, and this December several of the contributors will be in Toronto to officially launch the new book!

Kramers Ergot Volume 7 is sure to top many critics’ Best Comics Of 2008 Lists, thanks to its all-star line-up of contributors including Seth, Chris Ware, Shary Boyle, Andrian Tomine, Dan Clowes, Ivan Brunetti, and Gabrielle Bell to name just a few. But equally as stunning is the book’s presentation: Kramers Ergot Volume 7 is a massive 16 inches by 21 inches in hardcover, with each contributor offering up an original double-page spread of brand new work for the book. Kramers Ergot Volume 7 will make its official debut at this launch event, and will not be available in stores before then. It is sure to be in short supply this holiday season.

“People are focusing on the enormous size of this book, and with good reason,” says Peter Birkemoe of The Beguiling. “But the sheer talent assembled into this volume, from established names and friends of The Beguiling like Seth and Shary Boyle, to relative newcomers including John Pham, that’s what will have people lining up for this one.”

The following comics and graphic novels are scheduled to ship to The Beguiling Books & Art in Toronto, Canada on Wednesday, December 10th, 2008. Note: All prices listed in U.S. dollars.

Click here to view the list: /081210shipping.txt

The Beguiling Recommends

AUG084225 Nocturnal Conspiracies Gn 14.95
Thanks to the nice folks at NBM I've got a copy of this one sitting on the desk in front of me already. The full title is "Nocturnal Conspiracies: Nineteen Dreams from December 1979 to September 1994." It's an interesting work from recent Beguiling guest David B., a collection of dream comics drawn in his trademark heavy-lined style, accompanied by an eerie near-incandescent blue spot-colour. Really potent imagery in this one too. I'm very much looking forward to sitting down to read it.

AUG084349 Tezuka's Black Jack Px Hc Vol 02 24.95
So following a two-week delay (seriously, we have no idea why) the second volume of Osamu Tezuka's awesome amoral surgeon comic BLACK JACK makes an appearance in its special hard cover form, with Bonus Story! Seriously, if you read the bonus story in the first volume of this, you know it's worth the extra few bucks for the hardcover. A fantastic series.

OCT084120 Nicolas Gn 9.95
I mentioned this one a little bit yesterday, but this is the newest graphic novella in the "Petit Livres" line of books from Drawn & Quarterly. It's a sparsely-drawn short story about two little boys, sort of. It's really quite a good, affecting little book.

OCT084306 Courtney Crumrin And Prince Of Nowhere 5.95
This is the third Courtney Crumrin one-shot book in the past few years, and all of the first two were really outstanding. Now that this is out, we'll likely see a fourth digest-sized volume early next year. I quite enjoy this series.

OCT082373 Wonderful Wizard Of Oz #1 (Of 8) 3.99
SPECIAL: First Week Only, Wonderful Wizard of Oz #1 just $2!
Curiously, Marvel is going all-out on this new adaptation of Frank L. Baum's Wonderful Wizard Of Oz. They've got avowed OZ-fan Eric Shanower writing it (and providing a variant cover), and "hot" artist Skottie Young providing art chores, making for one of the nicest-looking books in their line of adaptations. They even slapped a J. Scott Campbell variant on it! So what the hell, we'll meet them half-way. Try out the first issue for just a couple bucks.

ALSO OF NOTE

SEP084094 Thieves & Kings Apprentices Gn Vol 01 15.00
A new collection from Mark Oakley.

OCT082440 Punisher War Zone #1 (Of 6) 3.99
This six-issue mini-series reunites Garth Ennis and Steve Dillon to square The Punisher off against one of the more amusing villains from the previous series. If you're itching for a "Preacher" fix, you should dig this.

OCT080160 Watchmen #1 New Ptg 1.50
Yes, they're doing a new printing of Watchmen #1. No, they are not doing a new printing of the other 11 issues. This would have made a much better Free Comic Book Day book, in my humble opinion...

AUG080114 Final Crisis #5 (Of 7) 3.99
Hey, look! Another issue of Final Crisis!

JUL080156 Camelot 3000 Hc Deluxe Edition 34.99
You know, I've never read this. But it's getting the 'deluxe hard cover' treatment Watchmen just did? Sort of?

SEP080219 Jack Of Fables Tp Vol 04 Americana (Mr) 14.99
Any new Fables trade is usually a cause for celebration here at the store...

OCT083790 Zombies Calling Gn (O/A) 9.95
We've been having an awful time trying to get this book back in stock here at the store. Sorry about that. As it is, they aren't sending us all of the copies we ordered here. Urgh. Hopefully we have some in time for Faith's signing on the 17th.

- Christopher

BOOKS!



Nicolas, by Pascal Giraud. From Drawn & Quarterly. $11.95. A heart-breaking/heart-warming tale.

SHIRTS!



Achewood: Great Outdoor Fight T-Shirt. From Chris Onstad's recent tour. Less than 10 of these shirts are available in each size, and this was a one-time only deal. On American Apparel Brown Ringer Melange Shirt.

POSTCARDS!



Team Macho: Precious Gems Postcard Set. From Koyama Press. Patterned after the Chronicle postcard booklets, these feature 30 awesome reproductions of art from Toronto's Team Macho collective. In postcard form.

KITTENS WITH PARTY HATS!



Just kidding, that's one of the postcards from the postcard book.

- Chris @ The Beguiling

Hey folks, thanks to everyone who came out for the launch of Dave Lapp's first-ever graphic novel DROP-IN last night. We had an amazing turn-out, sold a ton of books, and made Dave a happy guy. Lapp will be dropping by in the next few days to sign the rest of our in-stock copies, in case you couldn't make it out last night.

And remember, next Thursday (a week from today!) is our MASSIVE Kramers Ergot 7 Launch Party! Lots of guests! Sponsored by Steam Whistle Brewing! In an amazing building, just north of The Beguiling! For more info, click here.

Cheers,

- Chris @ The Beguiling

Just a quick reminder that we would love to see you at the launch for Dave Lapp's book Drop In.

7pm Tonight at Central (right next door to The Beguiling).

click here for more details

We just received the following new books from Viz:

Battle Angel Last Order Vol 10 - Angel Goes Nova
Excel Saga Vol 18
Gimmick Vol 4
Inu Yasha Animanga Vol 30
Nightmare Inspector Vol 5
One Pound Gospel Vol 4
Zatch Bell Vol 22

Hey folks, in addition to our regular weekly DVD orders and reorders, we've restocked a bunch of great anime and live action stuff that's either new, or has been unavailablefor a while now! Check it out:

Anime
Castle of Cogliostro (Lupin), directed by Hayao Miyazaki
Cat Returns, directed by Hiroyuki Morita
Dead Leaves, directed by [Production I.G.]
Kiki's Delivery Service, directed by Hayao Miyazaki & Studio Ghibli
Millennium Actress, directed by Satoshi Kon
Osamu Tezuka's Metropolis, directed by Rintaro, screenplay by Katshiro Otomo
My Neighbor Totoro, directed by Hayao Miyazaki & Studio Ghibli
Paprika, directed by Satoshi Kon
Perfect Blue, directed by Satoshi Kon
Tokyo Godfathers, directed by Satoshi Kon

Other Animation
Batman: Gotham Knight, by various (Anime Batman! Sort of!)
Robot Chicken Season Three Set
Triplets of Belleville, directed by Sylvain Chomet

Live Action (Japan/HK)
Death Note
Funky Forest: The First Contact
Honey and Clover
Hula Girls
Kamikaze Girls
Linda Linda Linda
Love*Com: The Movie
Machine Girl
Maiko Haaan!!!
Nana
Nana 2
Ping Pong
Train man: Densha Otoko
Zebraman, directed by Takeshi Miike

--

- Christopher

The following comics & stuff are scheduled to arrive at The Beguiling on Wednesday, December 3rd, 2008. You can check out the full list here: /081203shipping.txt

The Beguiling Recommends

War At Ellsmere Tp 12.95
Hey folks! It's the new graphic novel from Zombies Calling! creator Faith Erin Hicks. We've been giving out previews of this for a little over a month, and it looks great. Make sure you pick up a copy this week... And if we're lucky, we MIGHT have a signing for Faith here at the store this Holiday Season!

Hellboy Wild Hunt #1 (Of 8) 2.99
The follow-up to the recent DARKNESS CALLS mini-series drops this week, with Mike Mignola joined by Duncan Fegredo and Dave Stewart. I think this is the longest Hellboy story yet?

Also of Note:

Sandman Dream Hunters #2 (Of 4) 2.99
The first issue of this very pretty adaptation is still available, and the second issue drops this week.

Criminal 2 #7 3.50
One of our staff favourites.

Marvels Eye Of Camera #1 (Of 6) 3.99
The long, long-awaited sequel to Marvels.

Secret Invasion #8 (Of 8) Si 3.99
Marvel Previews Dark Reign Ed (Bundle Of 25) (Net) FREE
Secret Invasion wraps up this week, unveiling the dramatic new status-quo for the Marvel Universe. Think "The Initiative" but, Darker. Dark Reign-er. So Marvel is also releasing a special edition of Previews that uncensors some of their recent solicitations.

X-Men Noir #1 (Of 4) 3.99
X-Men Noir #1 (Of 4) Calero Var 3.99
Due to Diamond screw-ups, we've been severly alocated on the first issue of this mini-series. More copies are coming next week, if you can wait.

- Chris @ The Beguiling