EVERYONE’S TALKIN’ ABOUT “BEFORE WATCHMEN”

It's official. BEFORE WATCHMEN has officially been announced. To see the covers and read exclusive interviews with the writers of the seven mini-series, as well as the CURSE OF THE CRIMSON CORSAIR back-up story to be featured in each issue, visit the following media outlets.

USA Today: RORSCHACH – Interview with writer Brian Azzarello

LA Times Hero Complex: MINUTEMEN – Interview with writer/artist Darwyn Cooke

The New York Times: THE COMEDIAN – Interview with writer Brian Azzarello

Entertainment Weekly: SILK SPECTRE – Interview with writer Darwyn Cooke

The Hollywood Reporter: NITE OWL – Interview with writer J. Michael Straczynski

Wired: OZYMANDIAS – Interview with writer Len Wein

Comic Book Resources: DR. MANHATTAN – Interview with writer J. Michael Straczynski

• Associated Press: CURSE OF THE CRIMSON CORSAIR – Interview with writer Len Wein and artist John Higgins

To be continued...

Previews of Wednesday’s DC COMICS-THE NEW 52 Releases

To help kick off 2012, here's a round up of exclusive previews from the first round of fifth issues from DC COMICS-THE NEW 52, on sale tomorrow.

ACTION COMICS # 5, written by Grant Morrison and illustrated by Andy Kubert and Jesse Delperdang, depict's Kal-El's escape from Krypton, and offers a new twist on this iconic sequence which we're seeing for the first time in DC COMICS-THE NEW 52. WIRED ran the exclusive preview of the issue on their homepage, with a preview that was shared between their GEEKDAD and UNDERWIRE blogs.

USA TODAY previewed ANIMAL MAN #5 and interviewed series writer Jeff Lemire. "They don't want her put into harm's way," Lemire said of Buddy and Ellen and their powerful daughter, Maxine. "It's really that tension of knowing that they may have to give her up and the greater good might be something that they have to consider rather than just being a family, and whether or not they're willing to do that is going to cause a lot of tension in their marriage and a lot of tension just thematically moving forward."

GAWKER’s KOTAKU debuted five pages from DETECTIVE COMICS #5 and GAWKER’s IO9 has your first look at BATWING #5. Meanwhile, UGO posted the first four pages of JUSTICE LEAGUE INTERNATIONAL #5 and COMICVINE has a sneak peek at GREEN ARROW #5. Over at IGN, check out a sequence from MEN OF WAR #5. Meanwhile, REVOLVER MAGAZINE showed pages from O.M.A.C. #5, COMIC BOOK RESOURCES has a glance at SWAMP THING #5, NEWSARAMA previewed RED LANTERNS #5 and IFANBOY has your premiere look at STORMWATCH #5. MTV GEEK ran an exclusive preview of STATIC SHOCK #5 and DC Comics’ official Facebook page posted four pages from HAWK AND DOVE #5.

To be continued …

Jim Lee’s Holiday Wish List

Throughout the month of December, we here at THE SOURCE have been giving you daily holiday gift ideas. And while everything we’ve suggested are (in our humble opinions at least) fantastic gifts to give, be sure not to forget to treat yourself to something this year too!

But if you’re falling short on ideas of things to get for yourself, head on over to WIRED, where DC Entertainment Co-Publisher and JUSTICE LEAGUE artist Jim Lee provided a list of items on his holiday wish list. Curious to see what items Jim is hoping to unwrap this year? Check out his list and maybe you’ll find something that you’ll want to reward yourself with as well!

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Everybody's Talkin' About BATMAN: NOEL

With Halloween behind us and Thanksgiving fast approaching, it’s time to start decking the halls and looking forward to the winter holidays. And who better to help ring in tidings of comfort and joy than…Batman? Yes, your read it right; the Dark Knight is starring in BATMAN: NOEL – a unique take on Dickens’ A Christmas Carol set in Gotham City, with the caped crusader filling Scrooge’s miserly boots. The book debuts in comic book stores today, and writer/artist Lee Bermejo has been making the rounds to talk about his work – and share some exclusive artwork from the book.

Bermejo spoke with USA TODAY, explaining the impetus for this idea and the parallel between Batman and Ebenezer Scrooge. "Very much like the character of Scrooge, as a younger man he was presented as a disturbed but bright fellow — he wasn't quite that bitter old man. That's very easily analogous to Batman's own history," Bermejo said.

And further discussing parallels between Batman and Scrooge, Bermejo talked to IGN about the characters’ shared place in the cultural heritage. “I'm a pretty firm believer in there being a few characters that, to me, don't really fall into pop culture anymore, at least in terms of my definition of pop culture. They've just been around too long at this point and popular too long. Also what's important to know is that they're just able to adapt and evolve. They're not necessarily indicative of their time. I think that makes them more literary figures than pop culture,” he said.

Check out both sites for the complete interviews, as well as exclusive artwork from BATMAN: NOEL. And if that’s not enough for you, COMPLEX MAGAZINE, WIRED and UGO all have their own exclusive preview pages from the book, as well.

BATMAN: NOEL goes on sale in comic book stores today, and in book stores November 8.

(Everybody’s Talkin’ About) DC COMICS-THE NEW 52, Monday Afternoon (ET) Edition

Sunday’s NEW YORK POST covered this weekend’s New York Comic Con and teased upcoming convention announcements. “It’s a great thing it’s here in New York,” said DC Entertainment Editor-in-Chief Bob Harras. “It’s very exciting for us.” The POST's coverage broke the very first DC Comics news of the Con: Andy Kubert will be illustrating a two part story in ACTION COMICS.

This morning, THE NEW YORK POST followed up with another exclusive announcement sure to get folks talking: Wonder Woman's new origin in DC COMICS-THE NEW 52. “In this case, making her a god actually makes her more human, more relatable," said DC Entertainment Co-Publisher Jim Lee. Head over to THE NEW YORK POST’s website for their full coverage, including the first look at WONDER WOMAN #2, in stores next week.

Can't wait for more announcements at NYCC? There are plenty of previews to keep you occupied ‘til then. Witness:

USA TODAY has the exclusive preview of SUICIDE SQUAD #2 by Adam Glass, Federico Dallocchio and Andrei Bressan. “They're making decisions and doing things that have real costs to them, and those costs are people's lives: their own or other people's," Glass said of the Suicide Squad. "You're on a team with a group of people and you don't know if someone's gonna stick it in your back."

WIRED’s GEEKDAD has your first look at DEATHSTROKE #2 by Kyle Higgins, Joe Bennett and Art Thibert. “It won’t be very long until the heroes and villains alike know just who the scariest dude in the new DC universe truly is,” GEEKDAD wrote of Deathstroke.

COMIC BOOK RESOURCES previewed RESURRECTION MAN #2 by Dan Abnett, Andy Lanning and Fernando Dagnino. They also interviewed BATMAN and SWAMP THING writer Scott Snyder as part of their ongoing BAT SIGNAL coverage. “What Gotham does is try to convince you that the things you consider your great strengths as a hero are your weaknesses, your weak spots,” Snyder said about BATMAN. “For Bruce that really is his confidence and his sense of knowledge and wisdom about the city, his confidence as its protector.” Be sure to read the full interview for your exclusive look at the cover to BATMAN #5.

Meanwhile, YAHOO!’s ASSOCIATED CONTENT interviewed writers Geoff Johns about AQUAMAN and Judd Winick about BATWING. “The goal of the first adventure takes place to establish how Aquaman is perceived on land and how he's perceived in the ocean,” Johns said of AQUAMAN’s premiere story arc. “Then we send him off on a journey to find out the biggest mystery of all: who sank Atlantis and why.”

And over at GEEKDAD, writer Corinna Lawson decided to do some research on Duane Swierczynski’s previous work before checking him out as the new writer for BIRDS OF PREY. “There’s no doubt that if non-stop, cool action sequences with fun characters are your thing, you need to read some Swierczynski stories.”

To be continued …

(Everybody’s Talkin’ About) DC Comics-The New 52, Tuesday Morning (ET) Edition

The previews for the second issues of DC COMICS-THE NEW 52 continue to roll in. Take a look at what people are saying about the books on sale tomorrow:

Following up on their recent preview of his DEMON KNIGHTS #1, the Paul Cornell enthusiasts at WIRED’s UNDERWIRE have an exclusive 4-page glimpse of STORMWATCH #2 by Cornell, Miguel Sepulveda and Al Barrionuevo.

AIN’T IT COOL NEWS interviewed MEN OF WAR writer Ivan Brandon to accompany their exclusive preview of issue #2. “He's of a different era,” Brandon said of the difference between Frank and Jack Rock. “And he's dealing with the weight of that lineage, of being down the line from a great man who was a hero in a war that didn't throw the term around. Frank Rock was a natural. Joe Rock is younger, still learning how to be a hero.”

Meanwhile, YAHOO's ASSOCIATED CONTENT has your first look at STATIC SHOCK #2. “This decision better integrates Static into the wider DCU by placing him in a major city already populated by other DCU heroes (Hawkman, Captain Atom),” said the series’ co-writer and artist Scott McDaniel about relocating Virgil Hawkins and his family to New York City. “This relocation forces the character to take the next step in his development.”

To be continued …

(Everybody’s Talkin’ About) DC Comics-The New 52, Monday Afternoon (ET) Edition

As we get ready for the third week of full releases from DC Comics-The New 52, the previews keep rolling in. Want to know what’s coming up? Check out some of the press highlights from the past few days.

THE LOS ANGELES TIMES’ HERO COMPLEX shed a spotlight on local Los Angeles writers Kyle Higgins and J.T. Krul with their exclusive previews of NIGHTWING #1 and CAPTAIN ATOM #1.

COMIC BOOK RESOURCES has the first look at GREEN LANTERN CORPS #1, by Peter J. Tomasi, Fernando Pasarin and Scott Hanna.

WIRED’s GEEKDAD and UNDERWIRE teamed up to post the exclusive preview of BLUE BEETLE #1 (and in case you missed it last week, click here to read GEEKDAD’s interview with series writer Tony Bedard).

IGN debuted the first sneak peek into Scott Lobdell and Kenneth Rocafort’s RED HOOD AND THE OUTLAWS #1.

To be continued …

(Everybody’s Talkin’ About) DC Comics-The New 52, Friday Afternoon (ET) Edition

Geoff Johns and Jim Lee stopped by the MAXIM offices to talk about DC Comics-The New 52 when they were in NYC for the Midnight Madness launch of JUSTICE LEAGUE # 1. Head on over to MAXIM to read their coverage and to check out an exclusive Batman image that Jim custom drew for them.

In anticipation of BLUE BEETLE #1 hitting stores next week, series writer Tony Bedard was interviewed by WIRED’s GEEKDAD. GEEKDAD will be posting an exclusive preview of issue 1 in the coming days, so bookmark the site, if you haven't already.

And speaking of previews, COMIC VINE has the exclusive first look at DC UNIVERSE PRESENTS #1.

To be continued …

(Everybody's Talkin' About) DC Comics-The New 52, Wednesday Morning (ET) Edition

DC Comics-The New 52 was unleashed on Wednesday, August 31st, with the publication of JUSTICE LEAGUE #1. Last week, we saw the release of ACTION COMICS #1, DETECTIVE COMICS #1 and other buzz worthy first issues that have everybody talking.

There will never be another Wednesday like it.

Until today.

Still not sure what titles to pick up from DC Comics-The New 52? We've got links to two more previews out there to help guide you in the right direction.

FEARNET has the exclusive first look at RESURRECTION MAN # 1, in which "the character is reborn for the 21st century."

WIRED's UNDERWIRE blog has the very first look at DEMON KNIGHTS. Their take? "Demon Knights has perfectly positioned Etrigan for the 21st-century fantasy addicts that have made HBO’s adaptation of George R. R. Martin’s Game of Thrones a crossover phenomenon.”

Meanwhile, SCRIPPS HOWARD NEWS SERVICE has an overview of DC COMICS-THE NEW 52 with a particular focus on Superman in ACTION COMICS. "This is a huge departure from decades of the character's role as invincible protector of the status quo. And to tell you the truth, it's fresh air. . . . I like this all-too-human Superman, and I think a lot of you will, too."

To be continued...

FLASHPOINT TUESDAY

flspv2_cv3_var1(FLASHPOINT #3 variant cover by Ivan Reis and George Perez)

Regular readers of THE SOURCE have most likely noticed the absence of FLASHPOINT FRIDAYS over the course of the past two weeks, as we unveiled titles from the upcoming launch of the new DC Universe. Not to worry, FLASHPOINT FRIDAY returns this Friday as a regular, weekly feature on the blog and today we’ll have a special Tuesday edition, including previews of several of this Wednesday’s FLASHPOINT releases.

And if you haven’t already picked up some of the recently released FLASHPOINT mini series and are curious to get a sneak peek at them, check out these exclusive previews: Newsarama showed a first look at BOOSTER GOLD #45 and FLASHPOINT: CITIZEN COLD #1. MTV Geek previewed FLASHPOINT: DEATHSTROKE AND THE CURSE OF THE RAVAGER, along with an interview with Jimmy Palmiotti. Wired’s GEEKDAD debuted pages from FLASHPOINT: EMPEROR AQUAMAN #1, and iFANBOY had a sneak peek at FLASHPOINT: FRANKENSTEIN & THE CREATURES OF THE UNKNOWN #1.

And if you’re a digital reader, be sure to check out FLASHPOINT #1, now available as a digital comic, and find out for yourself why BLASTR calls the FLASHPOINT series, “shocking and compelling,” and “one of the best event series in recent memory.”

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