January 6th, 2012

Welcome back to the first Local Heroes blog of 2012. We had a great holiday season and hope all of you guys did as well. We added a lot of new products over that last few months, and you guys seem to enjoy the comic and pop-culture related items, so we'll keep them coming. We really want this store to be a destination for comic book lovers, so if there is something you'd like to see, just let us know!

I'm not sure I've been more excited for comics as I am for the books that are coming out this year. It's no secret that I love creator-owned comics that tell original stories with obvious passion for the medium. Well, this year looks to be a great year for these types of comics! The book I'm possibly most excited for (and it's hard to pick one) is Saga, from Brian K. Vaughan and Fiona Staples. Most of you know how I feel about Vaughan and his comics. Fun to read, intelligent and instantly accessible to just about anyone. I love to turn new readers onto comics with his books. Keep an eye out for this one in March, from Image.

Mark Millar brings back Millarworld in 2012 with a ton of comics paired with amazing artists. All-new series like Jupiter's Children (with Frank Quitely) Supercrooks (with Leinel Yu) and The Secret Service (with comic legend Dave Gibbons). Mark is a master of self-promotion and writes comics that are a blast to read. I'm really excited about the potential for these books, especially give the artistic talent he's amassed! Also keep an eye out for sequels to Nemesis and a Hit-Girl series.

Image is really publishing an amazing amount of really great comics and this looks to explode in 2012. With the aforementioned Saga, Thief of Thieves from Walking dead writer Robert Kirkman and Morning Glories writer Nick Spencer look great - look for it next month. The Strange Talent of Luther Strode started late last year and has been tons of fun - Kick Ass fans would love this book. Fatale from the the mighty Brubaker and Phillips (Sleeper, Criminal, Incognito) saw it's first issue last week and it's off to a great start. These guys are the best team of the last ten years. Jonathan Hickman has a couple of new books coming out from Image this year, and he was nice enough to come to Local Heroes - so support his comics! Check out an Image book next time you're here and let us know if you need a recommendation!

Things are settling down around here after all the holiday madness, but we did manage to hire a new employee. A lot of you have already met Mat, but introduce yourselves if you're here and he's working - he needs to get to know everyone!

We hyped so many good books at the end of last year that we were worried we might not be able to pick books of the month. Well, a couple of winners came out in the last couple of weeks that made it easy. Rocketeer Adventures from IDW and X-Schism from Marvel are our books of the month for January.

IDW (who publishes a lot of beautiful books) assembled a dream team of comic creators for this Rocketeer anthology. This book is full of great short stories from some legendary talent. Dave Gibbons, Ryan Sook, Mike Allred, John Cassady, Darwn Cooke, Gene Ha, Bruce Timm, Geoff Darrow, Tony Harris, Mark Waid - I could go on and on. Unfamiliar with the Rocketeer? This is a great chance to get acquainted with a great character!

Jason Aaron might be out favorite writer working in mainstream comics (plus he was our first ever big event). His comic book mojo is strong, and we can't get enough of his books. Having not read much X-Men stuff since Whedon's Astonishing run, we were a little weary to pick up a new X-Men story. Well, we did (obviously) and it blew us away. Instantly accessible for the lapsed X-Men reader and about as much fun as any X-Men comic we've read in a good long while. The story pits the X-Men again the new and improved Hellfire Club, but the challenge might be too much for Logan and Scott, as it forces a fundamental shift in opinion on what the X-Men are for. It doesn't end well for these two, but it's great to see how they get there.

Thanks for making it this far, and we hope 2012 is an amazing year for comic books and Local Heroes. We wouldn't have made it this far without you guys - so thanks!

-Greg

November 1st, 2011

Comic Fans! We've missed you dearly, but would rather wait until we have something to say before we trick you into coming here to read up on Local Heroes. So much good stuff has been happening lately and so much cooler stuff is on the horizon, which we'll talk about right now!

Two months in and I don't think we can classify the new DC relaunch as anything other than a resounding success. So many great new books, and excitement about comics that we've never seen before. We're also happy to see so many new and lapsed readers coming into the store. You've asked what we think, well here are some of our favorites so far:

Batman: Scott Snyder (American Vampire) is killing it on this one.

Action Comics: Grant Morrison has a totally new take on the Man of Steel, and we love it!

Animal Man: Jeff Lemiere (Sweet Tooth) has made this book something special, the surprise hit of the bunch.

Aquaman: This book is funny, and Aquaman's a badass!

All Star Western: Jonah Hex in Gotham City - very cool!

Batman and Robin: Damian Wayne is such a little dickhead - and we love it!

Wonder Woman: Azzarello and Chiang is all we need to hear.

We also wanted to thank everyone who participated in our DC: The New 52 program for a chance to win a $200.00 Local Heroes gift certificate. Mark Westmeyer was the lucky winner and he couldn't be more excited. We're happy for Mark and hope he enjoys his free comics!

In case you missed the notice, the Christmas shopping season is already here, and Local Heroes will be holding its first ever Black Friday Sale! We figured comic fans need to save some coin too - here's the details:

• Select graphic novels - buy one/get one FREE!

• Comics by the pound! That's right, buy and read in bulk! Select comics will be $5.00 per pound, no limit!

• All back issues - 60% Off!

• All action figures - 30% Off!

• All T-shirts - 15% Off!

This will be the biggest sale we've ever had and we're excited to be offering such sweet deals - get here early, we'll be open regular hours - 11-8.

We've been ordering all kinds of great new products for the holiday season, which should begin arriving in the next couple weeks. We've got some really great tumblers and water bottles with DC and Star Trek designs, cool Star Wars merch and more buttons, magnets and stickers. We're also really excited to start offering Lamp-in-a-box, really great lamps with vintage Marvel Comic characters and panels - be sure to check them out! We'll be sending out a series of gift guides in December, so keep an eye out for those as well if you need ideas for the comic lover in your life.

We'd also be remiss not to talk about our favorite books over the last couple of months - Petrograd, Sweet Tooth, Habibi and the newly released 100 Bullets hardcover - so many good books!

You might not know about my man-crush on Craig Thompson (no relation) or his breakthrough book, Blankets. I'm fond of both, and like most of his fans, have been waiting for his next book with baited breath. Well, it took seven years, but it finally showed up! Habibi is one of the most beautiful books I've ever read, and just on initial inspection, you know where that seven years went. I don't think I've ever seen a book so detailed or art so intricate. From the art itself to the lettering - right down to the page numbers - it's something to behold. The story follows two central characters in a mesh of modern and ancient times. They are separated and live a great portion of their lives alone, longing to be reunited, and finally are - but it's not how either of them imagined it would be. There is a very interesting mash-up of Christian and Muslim ideology that is reflected in the stories told by, and running concurrently with, the central characters. A love story at it's heart, Habibi is unlike any book we've ever read - check it out!

Books about the assassination of Rasputin and turn of the century Russia might not seem like gripping comic material, and we would agree with you. But in the right hands (Philip Gelatt and Tyler Crook) you get Petrograd, which is a fascinating and tense book about these heavy topics. This book reminds us a little of queen and country, maybe just because there are British spies in it, or maybe because it's equally well-written. The book follows British intelligence as they attempt to stop Rasputin from making friends with the Germans, and his murder is there best bet. A great book blending the best historical fiction and spy dramas, and beautifully illustrated with a tone that matches the period, Petrograd is good comics!

100 Bullets is in our all-time top three (don't ask about the other two - they change too much) favorite comics ever. We've hoped for years that one day Vertigo would release it in a beautiful oversized hardcover. It finally happened! Read this book, it's the best crime book and the best conspiracy book all in one.

For some reason, we let Sweet Tooth slip off of our radar after the first couple of issues. Well, we caught up in trade and damn, this book is really, really great. Jeff Lemiere (Essex County, Animal Man) writes and draws this book, set in a post-apocalyptic world where some people have begun to mutate into a human/animal hybrid. The story follows one such boy, Gus, who has antlers and is protected by his father, deep in the woods, where they hide from the rest of the world. When his father dies, he is happened upon by Jeppard, and they venture out of the woods together to face all the horrors of the outside world. Awesome stuff.

Well, that's all we this time. Be sure to take advantage of the sale and, as always, let us know if you need anything at all!

-LH (Greg)

September 8th, 2011

Wow! It's been too long since we've posted here, and my mother is really on my back to write a new post - so here it is! So much exciting comic stuff has been keeping us busy in the last couple months - end of Summer comic movies, DC Universe relaunch and some store upgrades to make you like us even more.

The biggest news in comic books this year, hands down, is the all-new DC universe and relaunch of their entire line of superhero comics. We've seen two weeks of these comics and can say already that this effort has been a massive success! We've seen so many new faces and signed up so many new subscribers who are really excited for this new line of comics. Our hopes were high that DC's efforts would bring new readers into our hobby, and it appears to be working so far. Comics excitement in any form is a great thing, so hats off to DC for generating this much buzz.

Our favorite comics of this launch, so far, have been Justice League, Action Comics and Animal Man. Lee and Johns on Justice League feels like a great Summer superhero movie. Grant Morrison made Superman a folk hero and Sweet Tooth's Jeff Lemeire showed why he is one of the most talented new writers of the last five years. Great stuff. One of the books we're most excited for in the coming weeks is Scott Snyder and Greg Capullo's Batman. You might know Snyder from American Vampire and his awesome run on Detective Comics. Greg Capullo's art has never looked better, this combo is going to make for one awesome Bat-Book!

We've added a lot of really great new product lines over the last few months to resounding approval from you guys. Marvel Frenzies have been a smash hit, you can't resist the cute. I Heart Guts and Yo Gabba Gabba plush have sold out and been re-stocked. The Marvel and DC Comics plushies are great, we're almost out of the Star Wars deformed plush. We're glad you guys are digging this stuff and we'll keep bringing you comic related merch until we die.

A lot of you have asked about our annual Halloween Bash, and we're happy to announce that the Third Annual Local Heroes Halloween Bash will be held on Friday, October 29th from 8-11ish in the evening. Stop by the store for an invite!

We've missed a couple months worth of Books of the Month, but we did want to remind you about the books we chose and why, but we'll make it quick so we can get on to this month's picks.

Astonishing Spider-Man/Wolverine: Jason Aaron writes really fun superheroes.

Incognito: Bad Influences: Bruabaker and Phillips on more Incognito? Yes please.

Life With Mr. Dangerous: Cringe-inducing and voyeuristic look at an awkward love life.

B.P.R.D. Plague of Frogs HC: This amazing series, in a handsome hardcover? We'll take two.

And that brings us up to date and onto September's books of the month! A lot of quality reads this month, but Jonathan Hickman's first FF collection and Green River Killer from Dark Horse are the clear winners.

We were pretty sad to see Steve Epting leave his legendary run on Captain America, but knew Marvel would put him to good use, and quickly. Teaming him with Jonathan Hickman on the Fantastic Four was a great fit, and his art here might be even better than his Cap work. FF takes over where the Fantastic Four ended, with the team dealing with the death of Johnny and still trying to be superheroes. Hickman's work on FF has already cemented its place in history, and this version seems like a fresh start. More family oriented, funny at times when Spidey gets in the mix and some genuinely shocking plot twists make this a really fun comic. Hickman and Epting are both at the top of their game, and this is an easy jumping-on point for those of you who might've never read the Fantastic Four.

True Crime from Dark Horse is something we can really get behind, and something they don't do often enough. While we generally prefer our Crime Fiction to be, well, fictional, this one grabbed us and we burned through it in a few hours. Washington's Green River Killer is one of the most famous serial killers of all time, believed to have killed over 70 women. The book is written by Jeff Jensen, whose father, Tom Jensen, was the lead detective on the Green River case. In 2003, after the capture of Gary Ridgeway, Tom Jensen spent 188 days interviewing Ridgeway. Jeff's novel follows his fathers career, work on the case over 15 years and subsequent dealings with the Green River Killer, after his capture. Illustrated in glorious black and white by Jonathan Case, whose art reminds me a little of Chris Samnee. Creepy and engrossing, Green River Killer is a fantastic graphic novel.

That's all we have for now, but don't forget, we're here to make Local Heroes your favorite comic store, so let us know if you ever need anything at all.

Thanks Guys!

-LH (Greg)

June 1st, 2011

Wow! So much great stuff going on at Local Heroes and in the comic world this month. We've been super busy with Free Comic Book Day and our Jonathan Hickman appearance that we haven't had time for much else. Speaking of Hickman - he'll be here on the 18th - wow! We can't believe how fortunate we are to have a creator of his caliber in Norfolk to meet the fans, what a guy! Be sure to make it for the event on Saturday, the 18th!

Big news from DC Comics this week, as I'm sure most of you have already heard. They're relaunching every single one of their superhero books with new creative teams and updated characters, in an attempt to get new readers into their comics. A lot of you have asked my thoughts on this, and I'll tell you again, I think it can only be a good thing. The first time I walked into a comic shop and purchased a comic, it was a first issue. People like to start from the beginning, and most of these characters haven't been updated in 20 years or more. Anything that gets more people reading comics is a good thing, I think we can all agree on that. My hope for the DC relaunch is that they make fun comics, plain and simple. Fun comics are why we come back every week, so fingers crossed for nothing but good things from DC.

Free Comics Book Day was our biggest event ever, and a big thanks to everyone who made it out. It got a little crazy at times, but we gave away a metric ton of free comics and we hope you all had a blast - see you again next May!

A great summer for comic movies - we thought Thor and X-Men were awesome! Don't forget that Local Heroes will be at MacArthur for the midnight premier of Green Lantern, with tons of Green Lantern swag and free comics to give away - stay up late with us!

A lot of you have noticed that we've also added a lot of plush, novelties, movies, wallets and other super cool stuff to our inventory as of late. It's all been selling really well and we appreciate it. Don't forget to check the t-shirt board from time-to-time as well, as we get new shirts in every week! Our focus will always be on comics and graphic novels, but a little diversity makes the store that much more fun.

Books of the month were pretty easy for us this month, as two of our favorite authors had new work released. We'll get to those in a minute, but first, we never got to talk about our books of the month for May. We picked Uncanny X-Force from Rick Remender and SHIELD from the, Local Heroes appearing, Jonathan Hickman. Remender and Jerome Opena are writing the best X-Men book on the stands right now - hands down. Fun, beautifully illustrated, action packed and full of "oh shit" moments. Marvel let Hickman run wild with his totally original re-imagining of SHIELD as an organization with a secret history, dating back to Da Vinci and a battle with Galactus? Great stuff on both accounts - check them out!

Onto this month, we chose Chester Brown's Paying For it and Mystique from Brian K. Vaughan (finally collected in one volume).

Paying For It is Chester Brown's memoir about being a John. It might be the most honest and thought-provoking graphic novel I've ever read, as it covers topics from romantic love to the legalization of prostitution to how society views not only prostitutes, but the men who use their services. Brown is a fine cartoonist (Lois Reil, I Never Liked You) but I think he took a huge risk here, as this book will turn a lot of people off. Paying For it is funny at times and depressing at others, but engaging form start to finish. There is also a great appendix full of commentary from other creators, characters in the book, and extensive notes on prostitution from Brown, a great book.

Anyone who knows me knows that I love all things Brian K. Vaughan. From Y: the Last man to Pride of Baghdad to Ex Machina, the guy has never written a bad comic as far as I'm concerned. Mystique was some of his earlier Marvel work, and it holds up as well as any of the other books he's done. I think the appeal of Vaughan's work is that there so damn easy to get into, and Mystique is no exception. He takes a second tier X-Men villain, fleshes her out and makes her fun to read. Mystique needs protection from her enemies, and agrees to go to work for Charles Xavier, but not as an X-Man. She becomes one of Xavier's secret agents, for more politically sensitive assignments. The art in this volume can be a little rough at times, but it never detracts from the story, which is fantastic.

Once again, thanks for reading and even bigger thanks for keeping the doors open here, it means more than you'll ever know!

ntil next time...

-LH (Greg)

April 7th, 2011

The greatest day of the year is upon us, friends. It's a national holiday for lovers of all things comic book related - Free Comic Book Day is right around the corner! We can't believe that this will be out third FCBD, and this one will no doubt be our biggest ever. Check out what we have on tap:

• Free Coffee and bagels from Yorgo's in the morning
• Free Pizza from Cogan's in the afternoon
• Free face painting and balloon animals for the kids from 11-2
• Door Prizes and giveaways all day
• Sign up to win a $100.00 Local Heroes gift certificate
• Best of all - FREE COMICS

Bring a friend or two and enjoy a great day of outreach, as we try to show everyone just how great comics are. We have a ton of comics to give away, and this year's offerings might be the best ever.

Free Comic Book Day also marks the announcement of our next in-store creator event. This one is pretty huge and we worked really hard to make it happen. We're unbelievably excited to blab about who it is -aaaarrrgggghh. OK, here's a one-word hint: Architect. That's all you get until May 7th!

Lots of great comics coming out this month. It seems like Image Comics if having a bit of a Renaissance lately with the release of so many great comics. Morning Glories, Chew, Nonplayer, Butcher Baker, Green Wake, Infinite Vacation - just to name a few. If you haven't given them a chance in a few years, look again, they're our favorite publisher right now and are making a host of really eclectic books.

The Eisner Nominees were also recently named, and there are a ton of really great books and creators on the list. A lot of these are under-appreciated, so in an attempt to get you to read more great comics - we're putting these on sale through June! All the nominees on our feature table will be 15% off, so give some amazing comics a chance!

Books of the month were a little easier this month, as two collections of some of our favorite comics from last year came out this month. Stumptown and Demo are the winners this month, you need both of these books in your life.

Stumptown come from perennial comics juggernaut Greg Rucka and newcomer Matt Southworth. Greg Rucka writes some of the strongest female leads in comics (Queen and Country, Whiteout, Batwoman) and lead character Dex is no exception. She's into the local casino boss for $18,000, and agrees to use her P.I skills to investigate the disappearance of her granddaughter. The attempt to get out of debt might cause her life to unravel further. Rucka tell a strong crime story and Southworth sets the mood and delivers the Portland scenery masterfully. A great comic - own it!

Brian Wood and Becky Cloonan have been working together for years, first collaborating on a Channel Zero story, Jennie One. They worked together again a few years back on the first volume of Demo, which was a previous book of the month. They're back together again and the chemistry between these creators is amazing. This volume is a little shorter, telling six unrelated stories, each with its own supernatural element. Cloonan turns in the work of her career, in our opinion. Beautiful brush strokes that match the tone of Wood's words perfectly. This book was made by people who love to tell stories, and it shows on every page.

Thanks again for making our dreams come true by shopping at Local Heroes, and for reading. We think you're pretty awesome.

Until Next Time,

-LH (Greg)

March 4th, 2011

Comic lovers! We're back this month to give you the update on all things Local Heroes. Lots of exciting stuff coming up in the next few months - Free Comic Book Day, new Local Heroes t-shirts, hopefully a creator event (which is killing me) and all the awesome comics and graphic novels you've come to expect. Also, don't forget to get on board for the Marvel Comics event of the year - Fear Itself! It looks pretty great, with all our favorite supes finally on the same page to fight the other team.

Things have been moving along here nicely over the last month or so. We just began planning what we hope will be our biggest Free Comic Book Day ever, so mark your calendars for the first Saturday in May, the 6th. We expect you all to be here! This year's line up of books looks particularly awesome, and we'll have even more free comics than ever to supplement the already massive amounts of freeness we usually have. It should be a great day and fun for everyone, so bring a friend or two and turn them on to comic books!

Our first band parody shirt sold out pretty quickly, and is by far the most requested t-shirt. Well fear not, my friends, we have an all new shirt in the works and they should be ready in April. All the same American Apparel goodness you've come to expect, with a design we think is pretty fantastic.

We had hoped to have a creator event for you guys in February or March, but we had some scheduling difficulties and had to start from scratch. Things are looking better for early Summer, and we hope to have an announcement in time for Free Comic Book Day.

We also wanted to mention that we are a drop-off location for the Harry Potter Alliance's book drive, benefiting Our House Families - a great charity. Drop off new or gently used books all month long, and we'll put them to good use.

We read quite a few really good books this month (as always). We did, however, manage to make our top picks for new graphic novels this month: Scenes From an Impending Marriage and Morning Glories.

A lot of you may be familiar with Adrian Tomine and his comic, Optic Nerve. It's one of the best indie comics of the last ten years and has led Tomine to other, more lucrative work with the likes of the New Yorker and bands like Weezer. It's been a while since new Optic Nerve, but in the meantime, he managed to put out this great collection of vignettes surrounding the planning of his wedding. These are great, especially for anyone who has ever been involved in the planning of a wedding. Very different from Optic Nerve, these stories are sweet and laugh-out-loud funny. This is one of those great comics that you want to give to someone who has never read comics before - and only ten bucks to boot!

Morning Glories received a ton of buzz over the last few months as the next big hit from Image Comics, in the vane of Walking Dead or Chew. We sold out of all of the issues so quickly that I never had a chance to read any of it. That was remedied with the newly released first volume, which I devoured. Morning Glories is one of the country's premier prep schools, and it just enrolled six new students who all share some very strange coincidences. They soon bare witness to some seriously effed up stuff going on at their school, and realize after it's too late that they are trapped with no one to help them, but themselves. The book has a bit of a "Lost" feel, with a lot of secrets we've yet to find out answers to. Nick Spencer is definitely the next big thing, already having been snapped up by Marvel comics with an exclusive deal. That won't stop him from doing awesome creator-owned books like this, thankfully, as all the buzz on this book is well-deserved.

Thanks for stopping by, as always, and we hope to see you guys soon!

-LH (Greg)

January 4, 2011

Happy New Year comic lovers! Another year in business is as good of a reason as any to celebrate, and it's all thanks to you guys. Your love of the funny books makes this place possible, and we can't thank you enough.

2011 looks to be another fine year for comics and graphic novels, with some really great books on the horizon. There are a few we're particularly excited about. Battling Boy debuts this year from comic book madman Paul Pope, who never disappoints.
We've been waiting for Craig Thompson's new book from the instant we finished reading Blankets, and it looks like Habibi will drop sometime this year. 2011 see the return of Dark Horse Presents, a book which launched a lot of great comics. Robert Kirkman has a new book out this year called Super Dinosaur, which debuts on Free Comics Book Day - pretty awesome. And hopefully, more Parker from Darwyn Cooke, because we want the third volume right now!

We've been hard at work lately trying to line up some really awesome creators to come visit the store and drink our beer in 2011. It's harder than you might think, as they're a fickle bunch, these makers of comics.

Starting this month, after more than 25 years of same-day comic shipments to comic book stores, we'll begin to be treated as adults and will receive our shipments one day-early. This will give us time to check things in and maybe even read a book Tuesday night! We're pretty excited - and this also means that we will return to opening at 11:00 on Wednesdays for new comics! This change takes effect on Wednesday the 12th.

We read a hefty amount of the finest comics and graphic novels this month, and have come to the conclusion that the two best of the month are Thor: The Mighty Avenger and The Playwright.

Thor: The Mighty Avenger was unfortunately lost in a sea of lesser Thor releases, around the same time. Marvel typically goes heavy on any character for which they have a movie coming out, so there's plenty of books when said movie is released. This was unfortunate in this situation, because TMA was far and away the best of the bunch. Roger Landridge and Chris Samnee poured their hearts out on every page and made the most beautiful,fun and imaginative Thor comic I've ever read. A totally accessible Thor for anyone (the book is all-ages friendly), and easy to follow for someone who has never read a Thor comic. I think this one in particular has the wonder of a Stan Lee issue, without any of the cheesy-ness that accompanies. Samnee cements his position as a master cartoonist and storyteller, his art is top-notch here. Check this one out if you love a great superhero comic - you won't be sorry.

180 degrees from Thor is my other pick this month - The Playwright. Eddie Campbell (From Hell)and Daren White deliver a "dark comedy about the sex life of a celibate middle-aged man." The Playwright is wildly successful, but his career is the only area of his life where he sees any positivity. He is terribly awkward, quirky, soft around the middle and lacking any kind of social grace. Herein lies the hilarity as we're treated to an inside look at his quest to find love, or just get laid. A really funny book masterfully illustrated by veteran comic artist Campbell, The Playwright is well worth your time.

We hope 2011 treats everyone well and we look forward to seeing you all very soon - thanks for reading!

-LH (Greg)