Revenge is a dish best served at night, and Moon Knight has a fresh serving for Norman Osborn in the extra-sized Vengeance of the Moon Knight #1! The red hot team of writer Gregg Hurwitz and artist Jerome Opeña unleash an all new Moon Knight on the streets of New York City with a flurry of high tech weaponry in his vengeful arsenal! Exiled by Osborn’s rise to power, how does Moon Knight bring law and order to Norman’s Dark Reign? From whom did he acquire his stunning new armor? And does he still kill criminals? One thing’s for sure, there’s something very different about this Moon Knight! Don’t miss covers by Leinil Francis Yu, Alex Ross and Tim Sale!

Marvel urges retailers to check all orders of Vengeance of the Moon Knight as it continues to garner significant buzz from all corners before its release! Marc Spector might be gone, but Jake Lockely is back in town, and he has a bone to pick with Norman Osborn. With new weapons, a new vehicle, and a new attitude, the extra-sized Vengeance of the Moon Knight #1 is a must read!

VENGEANCE OF THE MOON KNIGHT #1 (JUL090555)

VENGEANCE OF THE MOON KNIGHT #1 TIM SALE VARIANT (JUL090556)

Written by GREGG HURWITZ

Penciled by JEROME OPEÑA

50/50 cover by LEINIL FRANCIS YU

50/50 cover by ALEX ROSS

Variant Cover by TIM SALE

Parental Advisory…$3.99

FOC–8/13/09, On-Sale—09/02/09

DC previews for Secret Six #12 and The Red Circle: The Hangman #1

Via DC’s The Source- http://dcu.blog.dccomics.com/

SECRET SIX #12

When a crisis of conscience divides the team amidst a horrific war involving Amazons led by a delusional Artemis, can the team survive? But that’s just the icing on the cake, folks: Jeannette and Wonder Woman step into the ring for an all-out brawl. Still on the fence? Scroll down for a few preview pages to whet your appetite, from the top-notch team of Gail Simone and artist Nicola Scott.

SECRET SIX #12 hits 8/5.

Seriously one of the “Must Read” series currently being published! Do yourself a favor and pick up this issue and any others prior and you wont be disapointed!

THE RED CIRCLE: THE HANGMAN #1

J. Michael Straczynski’s re-imagination of the Red Circle heroes begins here, with JMS teaming up with artists Tom Derenick and Bill Sienkiewicz to introduce The Hangman to the DCU.

The Civil War was one of our nation’s bloodiest conflicts, but one of the participants remains alive. Union doctor Robert Dickering found himself on the wrong side of the battle lines, and despite his heroic efforts to save a Confederate soldier, he also found himself on the wrong end of a noose. But when a shadowy power offers him a chance at immortality — with the caveat that he must roam the Earth, saving the lives of wrongly-condemned innocents like himself — Dickering agreed, and becomes the mysterious Hangman. But it doesn’t stop there, friends. We’ve got a first look at the issue right here.

THE RED CIRCLE: THE HANGMAN #1 hits 8/5.

I’m not too familiar with the Red Circle characters, nor do I subscribe to the JMS newsletter (though I’ve enjoyed some of his work). I’m hoping the characters and series find their fans, but I’m not too optimistic to be frank.

Mandroid- My love of DC comics is real, though I am not!

We’ve been given a sneak peak at tomorrow’s Amazing Spider-Man Family #8, drawn by Chad Hardin. The issue hits stands tomorrow, July 1st, 2009.

Chad was kind enough to send over some pages and answer a few questions.

Be sure to head over to his blog and follow him closely. You’ll be seeing a lot of great things from him: http://hardinartstudios.blogspot.com

Big Shiny Robot!: How did the opportunity to pencil this issue come about?

Chad Hardin: Ironically it happened at the San Diego Comic Con talent search way back in 2007. Chris Allo saw my stuff, really liked it. After I got his email it was a matter of following up until they gave me stuff. I actually penciled this way back in December of 2008. Steve Wacker, was happy with what I did so he handed me the Back-up story to the Marvel Apes story line 3 of which were printed before this book came out.

BSR!: What’s your favorite thing about drawing Spider-man?

CH: Just the fact that I’ve loved Spider-Man since I was 4. it was like… super wish fulfillment. I really hope I get to do it again.

BSR!: What’s the most challenging thing?

CH: I used to think it was the webbing on the costume, but after doing these pages I’d have to say its all the crazy contortions Spidey does to evade bodily harm. Weird poses, fun but weird.

BSR!: You have any other Marvel work coming up?

I believe I have one more back-up in Marvel Apes, the last part of the “Darwin” story. After that, its DC for a while. I need to drum up some more Marvel stuff for sure!

(If you guys want to see Chad doing more Marvel work, be sure to go to the Marvel message boards and demand it! http://marvel.com/boards/)

In the meantime, look for Chad’s work in DC’s Warlord #4, 5 and 6. Be sure to add it to your hold.

The good folks over at Marvel have given us a look at John Romita Sr.’s variant Cover of Amazing Spider Man #600 which hits stores on July 22.

Today we found this in our email. Marvel’s promo for The End. That’s about all I know about, but my curiosity sensors have been tripped.

WEDNESDAY COMICS!

Well, we’re roughly 22 days away from DC’s next weekly project, “Wednesday Comics” (release date July 8, 2009) and as I’d planned to cover it before release, I figured the “lateness” of this column landing on a Wednesday was the perfect opportunity.

Two things I love about DC is it’s iconic, classic heroes and the company’s willingness to experiment. Like DC’s SOLO and ALL STAR line, Wednesday Comics is presenting DCU’s sandbox sans continuity restraint by fantastic talent.

Mark Chiarello, you may not know his name, but you’ve read his stuff (if you haven’t, shame on you!). He’s the man behind such projects as Batman Black & White and SOLO (both unrestrained “takes” by talented creators), in addition to teaming Jim Lee and Jeph Loeb together for the popular “Hush” run on Batman.

Just look at what’s lined up!

* Batman – story by Brian Azzarello with art by Eduardo Risso

* Adam Strange – story and art by Paul Pope

* Metamorpho – story by Neil Gaiman with art by Michael Allred

* The Demon and Catwoman – story by Walter Simonson with art by Brian Stelfreeze

* Deadman – story by Dave Bullock and Vinton Heuck with art by Dave Bullock

* Kamandi – story by Dave Gibbons with art by Ryan Sook

* Superman – story by John Arcudi with art by Lee Bermejo

* Wonder Woman – story and art by Ben Caldwell

* Green Lantern – story by Kurt Busiek with art by Joe Quiñones

* Teen Titans – story by Eddie Berganza with art by Sean Galloway

* Supergirl – story by Jimmy Palmiotti with art by Amanda Conner

* Hawkman – story and art by Kyle Baker

* Sgt. Rock – story by Adam Kubert with art by Joe Kubert

* The Flash – story by Karl Kerschl and Brenden Fletcher with art by Karl Kerschl

* Metal Men – story by Dan Didio with art by José Luis García-López

Each issue featuring 16 pages in a huge 28″ x 20″ tabloid-sized format will run for 12 issues (one a week) and comes folded twice into a 7″ x 10″ size so you can still fit them in standard bags/ boards if that’s your thing.  Keeping with the format, DC announced that USA TODAY will be syndicating the Superman strips into their newspapers and online site! Huge comics! Huge characters! Huge talent! What’s not to love!

Regarding the above statement, it’s not going to make some happy with the format unfortunately, plus some may not pick it up either due to price point ($3.99) or the “lack” of continuity. The talent alone should be the selling point, but I know small groups of retailers and fans are concerned with “how well will it do?/ how many to order?” and “Should I pick it up?/ Wait for the trade?” respectively. With the “waiting for the trade”, it’s unknown if the size will remain in collected editions or even if the entire series will be collected in one edition?

So, if you’re on the fence about it, despite my DC bias I think this is going to be one of the greatest books of the year, so take a chance on it. Tell your local retailer to order it in for you as you wont want to miss out!

And on another note, Mark Chiarello is the man who should be spearheading a new line of DC comics either “rebooted” or “remixed” like an Ultimates line, only ten times more excellent (as DC has the greatest superheroes in my opinion). All Star Comics is great for what it is, but I still want to see a new line of DC with Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman and co. sans nearly a century of continuity (I’m more a “consistency guy if you couldn’t tell).

Things you must buy this week!! My DC picks of the week! (full ship list below)

DC Comics available today, 6/17/2009

BATMAN: STREETS OF GOTHAM #1

Written by Paul Dini and Marc Andreyko; Art by Dustin Nguyen and Derek Fridolfs and Georges Jeanty and Karl Story; Cover by Dustin Nguyen : Variant Cover by JG Jones

Paul Dini and Dustin Nguyen return to Gotham City, this time with more of a focus on the people of the city, like secondary support characters such as Commissioner Gordon and the GCPD. Judging from solicitation info, “Bruce Wayne” will be returning with Dini & Nguyen continuing their story with Hush/ “Tommy” Elliot/ Faux Wayne.

Also, Marc Andreyko and Georges Jeanty will be continuing the adventures of Kate Spencer AKA Manhunter as she sets up shop as Gotham’s new DA.

BATMAN: THE BLACK CASEBOOK

Written by Bill Finger, Edmond Hamilton and others; Art by Sheldon Moldoff, Dick Sprang and others; Cover by Alex Ross

Featuring reprints of Batman #65, 86, 112, 113, 134, 156 And 162, Detective Comics #215, 235, 247 And 267, And World’s Finest Comics #89 and an intro by Grant Morrison. A “must have” for fans of classic Batman, and/or insight into recent Batman stories in Morrison’s run.

HITMAN VOL. 1: A RAGE IN ARKHAM – NEW PRINTING

Written by Garth Ennis; Art by John McCrea

Preview Available at dccomics.com

Hitman “finally” avalible again in a new series of Softcover TPB’s collecting The Demon Annual #2, The Batman Chronicles #4 And Hitman #1-3! Batman hits a guy (Tommy Monaghan, the title character of the series) so hard he pukes on him!

THE STARMAN OMNIBUS VOL. 3

Written by James Robinson; Art by Tony Harris, Gene Ha, Dusty Abell, Phil Jimenez, J.H. Williams III and others; Cover by Tony Harris

Collecting Starman #30-38, Starman Annual #2, Starman Secret Files #1 And The Shade #1-4. Features a Batman team-up that includes the greatest Solomon Grundy story ever told, and a discussion on favorite Woody Allen Movies (Batman in naturally resistant to such shenanigans).

DC/ JOHNNY DC

* ACTION COMICS ANNUAL #12

* BATMAN: STREETS OF GOTHAM #1

* BATMAN: THE BLACK CASEBOOK

* THE BRAVE AND THE BOLD #24

* CARTOON NETWORK BLOCK PARTY #58

* FINAL CRISIS AFTERMATH: DANCE #2 (OF 6)

*FINAL CRISIS AFTERMATH: ESCAPE #2 (OF 6)

* GREEN ARROW/BLACK CANARY #21

* GREEN LANTERN: SINESTRO CORPS WAR VOL. 2

* HITMAN VOL. 1: A RAGE IN ARKHAM – NEW PRINTING

* THE OUTSIDERS #19

* POWER GIRL #2

* THE QUESTION: THE FIVE BOOKS OF BLOOD

* THE STARMAN OMNIBUS VOL. 3

* SUPERGIRL #42

* SUPERMAN/BATMAN #61

* TINY TITANS #17

* VIGILANTE #7

* WILL EISNER’S THE SPIRIT ARCHIVES VOL. 26

VERTIGO

* AIR #10

* FABLES #85

* HELLBLAZER #256

* JACK OF FABLES #35

* YOUNG LIARS #16

WILDSTORM

* EX MACHINA #43

* GEARS OF WAR SOURCEBOOK

* MYSTERIUS: THE UNFATHOMABLE #6 (OF 6)

* SLEEPER SEASON ONE

* WORLD OF WARCRAFT #20

DC DIRECT

*LEGENDS OF THE DARK KNIGHT BOX SET (feat. 4 repaint figures, Batman, Commissioner James Gordon, Joker, and Two-Face + Legends Of The Dark Knight Special, a unique 64-page collection of stories featuring each character’s secret origin and other tales.)

*DC UNLIMITED: WORLD OF WARCRAFT: SERIES 4: LADY VASHJ

*DC UNLIMITED: WORLD OF WARCRAFT: SERIES 4: MURLOC 2-PACK: FISH-EYE AND GIBBERGIL

*DC UNLIMITED: WORLD OF WARCRAFT: SERIES 4: SUCCUBUS DEMON: AMBERLASH

For more info check out dccomics.com!

Thanks for reading!

If you watch one video today, it needs to be this one.  Yesterday saw the release of a cinematic cut-scene from Bioware’s The Old Republic video game, a massively multi-player online roleplaying game set 3,500 years before the rise and fall of Anakin Skywalker.

This might be enough to get a lot of Star Wars geeks (myself included) to buy a PC and dig into an MMORPG.

This cinemtic depicts the Sith’s sacking of Coruscant.  The backstory goes that the Sith Empire was negotiating with the Old Republic and their Jedi protectors and lured their most powerful Jedi to Alderaan for a diplomatic meeting.  While they were away, Lord Angral leads a daring assault against the heart of the Republic, centering on the Jedi Temple itself.

This video is a cut above anything I’ve ever seen in a video game and there’s nothing like a dozen Sith igniting red lightsabers in unison and charging a team of Jedi in their own temple.

Here’s the youtube version below, or you can watch it on the official site.

They are planning on releasing another Metroid game apparently it is coming out in 2010, it looks pretty bad ass. Here’s the trailer.

Pre-order your copy of Metroid Other M on Amazon. It’s ship date looks to be early 2010.

Tomorrow Lost will be airing its fifth season finale. As you may already know, this will be the final season finale as the next (sixth season) finale will be it for the series. Check out the 4 sneak peaks below and be sure to be back here Thursday for mine and Proletaria-Tron’s 2 cents on the season finale!

There’s a lot I could say about this, but I think it pretty much speaks for itself:

Official Press Release from Marvel:

MARVEL PRESENTS SPECIAL PUNISHER STORY IN COLLABORATION WITH EMINEM AND XXL MAGAZINE TO CELEBRATE NEW ALBUM RELAPSE

EMINEM/PUNISHER: KILL YOU

All-new 16-page story to be featured exclusively in the June issue of XXL magazine and on Marvel Digital Comics Unlimited on May 5^th

NEW YORK – Marvel Comics has teamed up with Eminem and XXL magazine to celebrate his anticipated upcoming album Relapse with an all-new story featuring the renowned rapper and Marvel’s notorious vigilante, The Punisher, in Eminem/Punisher: Kill You.

Back from a three-year hiatus, Eminem is set to grace two XXL covers posing as The Punisher for the magazine’s June issue on stands May 5, two weeks before his fifth solo album, Relapse, hits stores May 19.

A special collector’s edition, the magazine also includes the first part of an exclusive collaboration between XXL, Shady and Marvel Comics — Eminem/Punisher: Kill You — a special edition Punisher comic book starring Eminem and created by Marvel Comics.

This all new story written by Fred Van Lente (Amazing Spider-Man) with art by Salvador Larroca (Invincible Iron Man) takes place in Detroit after Eminem performs on stage and gets involved in a conflict with The Punisher and his old foe Barracuda.  The first half of the story will be featured as a bonus eight page special edition comic printed in the June issue of XXL magazine, with the eight page conclusion available exclusively on Marvel Digital Comics Unlimited  (www.marvel.com/eminem) for free starting May 5^th.

“When we learned that Eminem is a fan and collector of Marvel comics, we could only imagine what would happen if The Punisher and Slim Shady met up in the Marvel Universe,” said Marvel’s Editor-in-Chief Joe Quesada.  “This was a unique partnership and the team had a blast working with Eminem and incorporating the rapper into the Marvel fold.”

For fans of the Punisher, Eminem and those wanting to own a part of the action, visit your local newsstand to purchase the magazine on May 5, 2009 and then be sure to visit www.marvel.com/eminem to experience the second part of the story.