Check it out, fellow geeks: the holiest of holidays is once more upon us! Free Comic Book Day is this Saturday. Drop by any participating store and grab a fat freakin’ fistful of comic book goodness. This year marks the tenth year celebrating FCBD, an event dreamed up by comic shop owner Joe Fields to promote reading and collecting comic books. Note that you can’t just grab any comic you want, though. FCBD offerings are limited to specific titles from participating publishers.This year’s selection can be found at the official FCBD website. Be sure to show up early to have the best chance of grabbing the ones you want.
I’m a big fantasy, science fiction and horror fan, so here are the ones I’m hoping to score:
Locke & Key: Free Comic Book Day Edition.
Fans of cosmic horror in a Lovecraftian vein should definitely have this one on their “pull” list. No slim “preview”, this is a humongous 26 page story from creators Joe Hill and Gabriel Rodriguez. (Hill is both exceptionally talented guy and a heck of a nice guy, to boot. I recently had the pleasure of sitting down and interviewing him. If you haven’t seen that, click here.) Note: Locke & Key is soon to be a hit TV series!
Mouse Guard/The Dark Crystal Flip Book:
Two awesome titles for the price of one – free! On one side is another harrowing tale of the Mouse Guard, elite soldier mice who protect their common brethren from natural predators and war; on the other, a preview of the new The Dark Crystal graphic novel series, inspired by the cult classic film.
Baltimore/Criminal Macabre:
Another split title, this one featuring Steve Niles’ supernatural noir investigator Cal McDonald and Mike Mignola’s vampire hunter Baltimore. Both monster-hunting characters have been featured in both novels and comics alike. Sounds like a great pair-up.
Elric: The Balance Lost:
Michael Moorcock’s doomed, albino swordsman Elric returns to comics with this special premiere issue, written by the always awesome Chris Roberson. I’ve been an Elric fan for years, and can’t wait to see how this turns out. Not familiar with Elric? You should be! Elric, a traitor and exile, was the last emperor of the decadent kingdom of Melnibone. A sickly person by nature, he is dependent on the life-sustaining benefits of a demon-possessed, soul-eating sword named Stormbringer. Unfortunately, Stormbringer has an agenda of its own…one that usually involves destroying anything and everything Elric loves.
The Top Ten Deadliest Sharks/Dinosaurs and Prehistoric Predators
Um, yeah. This one isn’t science fiction, fantasy or horror. I just like sharks and dinosaurs. Know what would be awesome? A shark vs. dinosaur fight. That would be suh-weeeeeeeeeet.
