TheHeroBlog.com

Iron Man For Sale

Interested in owning the complete 2005-2009 run of Iron Man? I've got more comics up on ebay - it's a great lot, but the gem in there is really the Iron Man series. A lot happens in this run, including:

+ Iron Man's "Extremis" Upgrade
+ The return of Mandarin
+ Civil War
+ Stark becomes director of S.H.I.E.L.D.
+ World War Hulk
+ Secret Invasion
+ War Machine "relaunch" lead in

I should probably hold on to this until IM2 comes out and sell it during the craziness, but I need to clear out some space now. Anyway - check it here if you're interested. Other complete sets and runs up for sale this time around include Captain Britain, Marvel Zombies 2, 3, and 4, Infinity, Inc., and more. 

One last bit of Iron Man info to end the week - rumor has it that the IM2 trailer will be showing before Sherlock Homes. That'd be sweet - it's not that far off!

Comic Books are Recession-proof!

Amidst all the economic turmoil this year, business have closed, jobs have disappeared, homes have been lost...but our superheroes are stronger than ever! From Dailyfinance.com:

According to industry estimates, sales to specialty retailers rose 1% to $324.66 million between January and September. Experts say that it's too soon to say whether they will show a gain for the year because of the importance of holiday sales. But if sales do decline, it would be the industry's first drop-off since 2000.

Wow - since 2000! Imagine how well the industry would be doing if we didn't just go through a recession. It'd be off the hook, right? Well, maybe not:

Comics, though, seem to flower during periods of economic stress. Indeed, [analyst John] Miller points out that comics nearly died in the 1950s, and the Internet stock boom years of 1994 to 2000 were terrible for the industry. The Golden Age of comics, which witnessed the birth of Superman, Batman and Captain America, began during the Great Depression. Characters such as the X-Men and the Amazing Spider-Man emerged during the Silver Age of the 1960s.

Check the rest of the article out here. A good read.

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The Baldman is off this week and next. But he shall return...and he shall be full of turkey when he does!

Hitting Shelves Today - 11/18

If you follow The Hero Blog's Facebook page, then you already know about the Alien Legion movie in the works. Here's your chance to find out what all the fuss is about - Alien Legion Omnibus #1 comes out today.

Footsloggers and soldiers of fortune, priests, poets, killers, and cads -- they fight for a future Galarchy, for cash, for a cause, for the thrill of adventure. Culled from the forgotten and unwanted of three galaxies, they are trained to be the most elite, and expendable, of fighting forces. Sometimes peacekeepers, sometimes shock troops, the Legion is sent into the Galarchy's most desperate internal and external conflicts. Legionnaires live rough and they die hard, tough as tungsten and loyal to the dirty end.

* Alien Legion Omnibus Volume 1 features over three hundred story pages of the groundbreaking series and lays cover fire for a new Alien Legion series from Dark Horse slated to begin in late 2009!

A new A.L. series? Sweet!

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The Gauntlet begins! Spider-Man's most famous foes start pounding the crap out of our favorite web-slinger starting in this week's Amazing Spider-Man #612:

They’re Hunting Spiders…THE GAUNTLET begins here The event that redefines Spider-Man’s classic arch-enemies one by one starts with one of his deadliest – Electro! Destitute and desperate, conned out of his life’s meaning and worth—Max Dillon becomes the voice of the common man against the brutal injustice of a system overloaded by greed. With Spider-Man already looking over his shoulder. Mark Waid and Paul Azaceta bring you the story of a hero with everything to lose against a man with nothing left to gain. Prepare for death’s short, sharp shock. Prepare for Electro.

Looking forward to it!

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Because the fans demanded it, we're finally getting Dr. Horrible #1! Joss Whedon's web-based phenomamon gets its own one-shot:

From the Joss Whedon-helmed webmovie Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog comes the origin story of the next greatest supervillain of all time: Dr Horrible! In this one-shot comic, Zack Whedon and artist Joëlle Jones (Token) establish how a young, impressionable, but brilliant Dr. Horrible was drawn into a world of crime. Readers are reacquainted with the charming, brawny, crime-fighting superhero extraordinaire Captain Hammer when Dr. Horrible crosses paths with his greatest enemy in an all-out showdown of immeasurable proportions. Special guest appearances include Dr. Horrible's love interest, Penny; his sidekick, Moist; and a meter man.

If you haven't seen the original series - do yourself a favor and check it out here. You'll never look at Neil Patrick Harris the same again.

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Here's a list of what's dropping today and how much it'll set you back:

DARK HORSE COMICS
ALIEN LEGION OMNIBUS TP VOL 01 $24.95
CASPER FRIENDLY GHOST 60TH ANNIV HC $9.95
CONAN THE CIMMERIAN #16 $2.99
DEADLOCKE ONE SHOT $3.50
DR HORRIBLE ONE SHOT (OSW) $3.50
DR HORRIBLE ONE SHOT (OSW) VAR #1 $3.50
DR HORRIBLE ONE SHOT (OSW) VAR #2 $3.50
PICTURES THAT TICK TP $19.95
STAR WARS KNIGHTS OLD REPUBLIC #47 DEMON PT 1 (OF 4 ) $2.99
TARZAN THE JESSE MARSH YEARS HC VOL 04 $49.95

DC COMICS
ADVENTURE COMICS #4 (BLACKEST NIGHT) $3.99
AIR #15 (MR) $2.99
AUTHORITY THE LOST YEAR #3 (OF 12) $2.99
AZRAEL #2 $2.99
BATMAN BATTLE FOR THE COWL HC $19.99
BATMAN CONFIDENTIAL #37 $2.99
BATMAN STREETS OF GOTHAM #6 $3.99
BATMAN THE UNSEEN #4 (OF 5) $2.99
BLACK LIGHTNING YEAR ONE TP $17.99
BLACKEST NIGHT SUPERMAN #1 (OF 3) 3RD PTG $2.99
BLACKEST NIGHT SUPERMAN #3 (OF 3) 2ND PTG $2.99
BRAVE AND THE BOLD #29 $2.99
FLASH REBIRTH #5 (OF 6) $2.99
GREEN LANTERN CORPS EMERALD ECLIPSE HC $24.99
HELLBLAZER #261 (MR) $2.99
JIHAI VOL 03 $9.99
JSA TP VOL 03 THY KINGDOM COME PART 2 $19.99
JUSTICE SOCIETY OF AMERICA 80 PAGE GIANT #1 $5.99
MAD MAGAZINE #502 $5.99
OUTSIDERS #24 (BLACKEST NIGHT) $3.99
SHOWCASE PRESENTS DC COMICS PRESENTS TP VOL 01 $17.99
SPIRIT TP VOL 04 $19.99
SUPER FRIENDS #21 $2.50
SUPERGIRL #47 $2.99
SUPERMAN BATMAN #66 (BLACKEST NIGHT) $2.99
TINY TITANS #22 $2.50
VICTORIAN UNDEAD #1 (OF 6) $2.99
VIGILANTE #12 $2.99
WORLD OF WARCRAFT #25 (NOTE PRICE) $3.99

IMAGE COMICS
COWBOY NINJA VIKING #2 (MR) $3.50
CYBERFORCE HUNTER KILLER #3 (OF 5) PORTACIO CVR B $2.99
CYBERFORCE HUNTER KILLER #3 (OF 5) ROCAFORT CVR A $2.99
FALL OUT TOY WORKS #2 (OF 5) $3.99
G-MAN CAPE CRISIS #4 (OF 5) $2.99
INVINCIBLE #68 $2.99
UNDERGROUND #3 (OF 5) $3.50
VIKING #4 (MR) $2.99

MARVEL COMICS
AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #612 $3.99
BLACK KNIGHT #1 $3.99
DAREDEVIL NOIR PREM HC $19.99
DARK AVENGERS #11 $3.99
DARK AVENGERS TP VOL 01 ASSEMBLE $19.99
DARK REIGN LIST AMAZING SPIDER-MAN ONE-SHOT $3.99
DEADPOOL MERC WITH A MOUTH #5 $2.99
DESTROYER PREM HC $24.99
DOMINIC FORTUNE #4 (OF 4) (MR) $3.99
HERCULES FULL CIRCLE PREM HC $19.99
INCREDIBLE HULK #604 $3.99
KOOKABURRA K #1 (MR) $5.99
KOOKABURRA K #1 US MITRIC VAR (MR) $5.99
MIGHTY AVENGERS #31 $2.99
MIGHTY AVENGERS TP EARTHS MIGHTIEST $14.99
NEW AVENGERS TP VOL 11 SEARCH FOR SORCERER SUPREME $14.99
NOMAD GIRL WITHOUT A WORLD #3 (OF 4) $3.99
POWERS ENCYCLOPEDIA VOL 01 (RES) (MR) $4.99
PUNISHER #11 $2.99
PUNISHER DARK REIGN TP $16.99
REALM OF KINGS $3.99
REALM OF KINGS INHUMANS #1 (OF 5) $3.99
RUNAWAYS HOMESCHOOLING PREM HC $19.99
SPIDER-MAN 1602 #2 (OF 5) $3.99
SPIDER-WOMAN #3 $2.99
STAND SOUL SURVIVORS #2 (OF 5) $3.99
THE NAM TP VOL 01 $29.99
THUNDERBOLTS #138 $2.99
WAR MACHINE #11 $2.99
WAR OF KINGS HC $39.99
WOLVERINE ORIGINS #42 $2.99
WOLVERINE ORIGINS ROMULUS PREM HC $19.99
WOLVERINE ORIGINS TP DARK REIGN $15.99
WOLVERINE WEAPON X #7 $3.99
X-MEN LEGACY #229 $2.99