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Vertigo – Baby Demon Penises, The Alien West Wing, Deadton Abbey And Grave Expectations

Published Wed, 08 Feb 2012 08:46:24 -0600

Last updated Wed, 08 Feb 2012 12:46:21 -0600

I read a little concern from certain retailers over the Vertigo Preview 2012, out free in comic stores today, over the fact that the Fairest preview contained full frontal nudity, and they may not have expected that in a free giveaway. Goodness, I thought. And considered that it would be remiss of me not to at least take a look and see what's what. On your behalf, you understand.

And indeed there is full frontal nudity. Of the blue baby demon variety.

Bloody hell. With Before Watchmen on the way, that's all we need, more small blue penises. Thankfully, for the more male, heterosexual, non-paedophile, there is some eye candy in the Fairest preview, albeit fully clothed. And I mean fully clothed.

Swit swoo. Thank you Bill Willingham, Phil Jimenez and Andy Lanning.

From fairytales to zombies, The New Deadwardians by Lanning's common writing partner, Dan Abnett and INJ Culbard beautifully picks up on the recent revival of Upstairs, Downstairs and the success of Downton Abbey by pitching a zombie storyline both above and below stairs.

The epiome of the class system here is turned on its head, the masters and the servants, reflected in the living and the undead, and with all the language that comes with this kind of period piece. Oh and bit of Sherlock Holmes while we're at it.

And, just as with such pieces, we have those characters stuck in the middle, neither comfortably one side or the other, an making those on either side vaguely uncomfortable. With tragedy laying out, without a single gag, without a set up or punchline, purely the juxtaposition of realities, it's hilarious.

Not something you can say of Dominique Laveau: Voodoo Child. You can read the whole preview at io9, by Selwyn Seyfu Hinds with artists Denis Cowan and John Floyd giving us a kind of Mark Bagley roughed up a bit with some spiralling layouts to boot, as a child comes face to face with hr heritage. Not everyone wants their inheritance…

But the best of the bunch is Saucer Country by Paul Cornell and Ryan Kelly. With a potential presidential candidate having visions of being abducted by aliens. We're always told that the President of the USA knows all about alien landings on Earth and covers them up. Well here, someone wants to get to that position in order to find the truth. But to do so… the comic has to basically become the West Wing. Now I loved the West Wing. And I think this scene feels so right, so very right.

Voodoo, zombies, aliens and fairy tales. With American Zombie the question we must now ask is… where are the werewolves and mummies?

Vertigo Preview 2012 is available free from comic stores today. Comics are courtesy of Orbital Comics in London, UK. They are currently exhibiting the original art of Mary Talbot and Bryan Talbot's Dotter Of Her Father's Eyes.