Each week, MK2Fac3 and Henchman21 read a lot of comics. Seriously, a lot of comics. Maybe too many comics. They look forward to some more than others, I mean, who doesn’t? So, let’s take a look into the depths of their pull list, grab some issues, and we’ll let YOU know what the top books to look forward to are for the week of June 29, 2011. Single issues and trades, they’re all here.

This week, we’ve got some exciting visitors to the list including some fantasy mercenaries, Batman, the alive Spider-Man, British heroes, some animals, and a re-printing of Daredevil: Yellow! There are some other great books coming out this week that you should check out like Xombi (I’m watching you!), The Sixth Gun, and many more, but the comics listed below are what we’re looking forward to the most. Check it out!

MK2FAC3

ISSUES:
The Amazing Spider-Man: Big Time #1 (Marvel Comics – $5.99): When I started experience the stink of the end of The Amazing Spider-Man‘s amazing rotating cast of creators around the One Moment In Time story arc, I dropped the book. I’ve heard, however, since Dan Slott made his arrival on the book now has the aroma of success, and I hope it’s true. This mini-collection, priced at a wonderful single issue price of $5.99, contains issues #648-650, which are the first three issues of the current run. So if you haven’t gotten a whiff of Big Time, this is the perfect place to start. Marvel has been spicing up Wednesdays for the past few months by making these low-priced collections, and I’ve enjoyed the delicious scent of each. And I’m totally expecting this to blow my nose off.

Batman, Incorporated #7 (DC Comics – $2.99): How could I leave out the most electrifying book in all of comics? Grant Morrison continues his Batman story here with artist Chris Burnham. It’s my understanding that this issue continues the recent trend of Morrison writing straight forward one and done issues, and in this particular issue, we see the arrival of two of my favorite silver age characters, Man of Bats and Raven Red, the Native American Batman and Robin. Morrison has written these characters around the time of Batman R.I.P., and in my opinion, they’re making their return in a triumphic manner. This comic continues to prove that Batman is the best there is, the best there was, and the best there ever will be.

Skullkickers #8 (Image Comics – $2.99): I’ve really enjoyed this book since issue one, and not a single issue has disappointed me. I’m pretty sure that I’ve talked about it before, but if you don’t recall, Skullkickers is like Dungeons & Dragons and Dumb and Dumber, only with clever writing… and Jell-O pudding. But seriously folks, this book is a blast. It’s got middle age mythology and fantasy, which the metalhead in me loves, but it doesn’t take itself too seriously, which appeals to just about every other characteristic to personality. This is the second issue in the current storyline of this creator-owned book, so it shouldn’t be too difficult to find that last issue (it’s available digitally). Skullkickers is insanely ridiculous. And I mean that as a compliment.

COLLECTION:
Knight and Squire TPB (DC Comics – $14.99): Right, this trade paperback collects the entire six issue Knight and Squire mini-series written by Paul Cornell and art by Jimmy Broxton. I was a big fan of the mini, so it’s no surprise that the collection would end of here on The GoD List in my section. Knight and Squire, Squire specifically, are two characters I absolutely love, but we have seen much of them that wasn’t written by Grant Morrison, so this was definitely a nice change of pace. Cornell and Broxton had a great task in front of them to, in essence, create the landscape on the British leg of the DC Universe. And they did an ace job. Everything I know about British culture, I learned from this book. Granted, I don’t know a lot. And what I do know makes England sound like the greatest place on Earth. I mean, pretty much everyone over there is either a superhero or a supervillain! I mean, you could have the profession of delivering milk to people’s houses, and you could still be a supervillain! How great is that!? And they’re all is polite! That’s so awesome, innit?! Anyway, that’s all I know about Great Britain. So, stop arsing around and go get this book! It’s a fun book about British heroes! Cheers!

Henchman21

ISSUES:
Avengers Children’s Crusade #6 (of 9) (Marvel Comics – $3.99): First on the card today is the next issue in Allen Heinberg and Jim Cheung’s follow up to Young Avengers. I’ve loved the series so far, largely on the strength of Cheung’s pencils, which has been the real draw here. Cheung has some of the smoothest line work in comics today and his pages are never oversold. The angle in this series has been the return of the Scarlett Witch, who regained all of her facilities in the last issue. She’s was almost married to Dr. Doom, so we’re still left to wonder if she is going to make the turn from heel to face, or possibly go from face to heel, depending on how the other characters in the book feel about her. My only problem with the series has been the bi-monthly shipping schedule, but at least they have stuck to that schedule. Cheung’s art is worth the wait.

Flashpoint: Canterbury Cricket #1 (DC Comics – $2.99): Our Segunda Lucha is probably the most enigmatic book to come out of DC’s Flashpoint event. Who is the Canterbury Cricket? How does he tie into the Flashpoint world? Who cares, this issue has art by Rags Morales and that’s why I’m picking it up. Morales just finished off the First Wave series and if you’ve seen his art on other DC books like Identity Crisis, you’ll know that he is an amazing penciler. He packs a lot of detail into his art and has always impressed me with his abilities. Will the story hold up? I have no idea. The issue is written by DC editor Mike Carlin, so I can’t be sure what the story will be like. I’m wondering if this is some kind of Ambush Bug story, but I just can’t be sure. Hopefully it lives up to the art.

Usagi Yojimbo #138 (Dark Horse Comics – $3.50): I don’t actually read Usagi Yojimbo on a regular basis, but I have read a fair amount of the early issues, and any issue is a good point to jump onto Usagi Yojimbo. Stan Sakai’s modern masterpiece is always an enjoyable read, and to see it going for over 130 issues is an amazing thing in this market. Usagi Yojimbo is the story of a wandering samurai in Edo period Japan. Oh, and it just so happens that all the characters are animals. Don’t let the anthropomorphized animals stop you from reading it. This is a series that I need to catch up on, and there’s no better time than now. This is the main event.

COLLECTION:
Daredevil: Yellow TPB (Marvel Comics – $19.99):I keep hearing that Captain America: White from Jeph Loeb and Tim Sale will eventually be released, but until then we will have to be content to re-read their earlier work, which you can this week with a new printing of Daredevil: Yellow. I feel like this is one of the best Daredevil stores ever produced, with a wonderful story about Daredevil’s early days and spectacular art by Sale. I’m a fan of most of Sale’s work, whether it is his Batman work with The Long Halloween, or any of his Marvel series, so any book with Sale on art smells like a winner to me. If your tastes run the same as mine do, meaning you enjoy non-continuity stories with gorgeous art, you should add this to your collection. I can’t see why anyone wouldn’t want to pick up Daredevil: Yellow, unless you already own it.