10 Comics to Buy This Week: 7/11/2012

@Miss_Garrick said:

How am I not supposed to be offended by punk rock Jesus? That is very insulting to all Christians!

One could argue that all Christians are insulting to Jesus.

The biggest one I'm looking forward to is Batman. That being said, I'm also stoked for the new Swamp Thing and the second issue of The Massive. Also, I'd like to point out that, as successful as Kirkman's run has been with The Walking Dead, it's still got a ways to go to be the most successful creator owned imprint. That belongs to Todd MacFarlane and the rest of the gang that do Spawn. 20 years and 221 issues strong beats 9 years and 100 issues. Just sayin'.

@Miss_Garricksaid:

How am I not supposed to be offended by punk rock Jesus? That is very insulting to all Christians!

Can't wait for X-Force! Money's certainly on E.V.A. becoming humanoid and joining the team.

Getting Batman, and Batman and Robin. Considering Minutemen and Walking Dead.

Underappreciated,and yet Epic

I got Animal Man and Swamp Thing last week, they always come the same week... Digitally :-)

This week i am getting batman beyond, batgirl, batman, batman & robin, demon knights, avenging spider-man, avx vs(maybe), venom and american vamp.

@longbowhunter said:

@Miss_Garrick said:

How am I not supposed to be offended by punk rock Jesus? That is very insulting to all Christians!

What is so offensive about Punk Rock Jesus? Is it the title, the plot or just the general use of him in a work of fiction?

Well, that certainly can't be her problem. :P

Getting Batman and waiting for Minutemen and Punk Rock Jesus trades.

Should have at least added some Brian Wood. Either Conan the Barbarian, the Massive or Ultimate X-Men^^
And no mention toNeil Gaiman's Midnight Days: The Deluxe Edition? Is it because the deluxe edition came after the regular trade?
BB

I don't read the walking dead and I thought the show was terrible, but I'm really interested to see what happens in issue 100, maybe 101 will be when I jump on

I almost burst into flames after seeing the Jesus comic. It doesn't look legit though so my skin just got a bit hot.

Close call.

I am not getting any comics from the list, but can't wait to hear about the Walking Dead #100

Wow, 3 Scott Synder books in one list:)

From this list I'm getting Batman #11.

But I'm also getting Batgirl #11 and Demon Knights #11.

@yo_yo_fun: word up on Demon Knights. Most unexpected fun and interesting "original" series out of the 52 IMHO.

Also the TC for Demon Knights comes out this week so it is a great chance to get friends to jump on. Lord knows I already convinced one or two. :)

Please, less spoilers! I have been spoiled now for the Night of Owls (there are some of us that they don't buy their comics right away).

Batman was going so well until they said he was his brother. i was just like well this is stupid, really comic book cheese level stupid. in ten years everyone will look back and go "urgh how did we think that was cool"

@Novemberx2 said:

Batman was going so well until they said he was his brother. i was just like well this is stupid, really comic book cheese level stupid. in ten years everyone will look back and go "urgh how did we think that was cool"

I suggest you read this week's #11 ;)

@DarkChris: Sorry about that! I honestly didn't think about it while writing this column. I know it's too late now, but I've gone ahead and added a spoiler warning in the post. I'll also be more cautious of this next time.

@Miss_Garrick said:

@feebadger: you have a valid point there, but I'm tired of how it feels like we Christians are not treated with respect anymore.

I'm not a Christian myself, so maybe i'm not getting it, but why do you think someone writing a story like Punk Rock Jesus is disrespecting Christians? In fairness, you haven't read the series yet and don't know what it's intention is. Perhaps it's a tale that uses the cloning of Jesus to highlight the fact that there is only one Jesus and that the tale is actually an affirmation of Christianity as a religion of true faith and beauty. More realistically, it may be offensive to every single Christian out there in its lack of understanding or appreciation of your faith. My point is, and i mean this with the utmost respect, but what difference does it make to your faith either way? Why is it offensive to you and your faith if someone writes a fictional tale incorporating elements of your religion?

You like the movie Big Trouble In Little China? That draws heavily from Eastern religion. The seires Monkey, the same. Is it okay to extrapolate from religion, just as long as it's not your own? Star Trek? Many episodes incorporating religious allegory. Doctor Who? The same. Is it okay for certain artists to draw inspiration from the Bible and not others? Do certain creators have Christianitys' blessing while others are judged? That doesn't seem very Christian to me.

C.S Lewis met with Christian controversy when he released The Lion, The Witch And The Wardrobe. Some loved the religious allegories but meny found them to be offensive for hte same reasons you find Punk Rock Jesus to be offensive. Yet, C.S Lewis was an theist, someone who, in his blind belief that htere is no God set out to prove himself right and, amazingly, was startled to discover he was wrong. He converted to Theism in 1929 at the age of 31, some twenty years before he wrote the Narnia chronicles and wrote many books and did many talks on the absolute and definite existence of a God. A piy he was judged so harchly by those who should have known better.

Like i said, i'm not a Christian myself, but i respect your right to express your faith and your religion in any way you see fit. I just hope for the same from your faith in regard to others. Oh, and regarding Christians not being treated with respect anymore, let's face it, they never were ;P. The colosseum and the lions anyone?

Interested to hear your response, Miss Garrick.

You're right that I enjoy certain movies and tv shows that uses element from other religions, I guess since it wasn't my religion, I wasn't that bothered. I should definitely fix that viewpoint because I want to be respectful to others. Thanks for pointing that out. I just have a thin skin when it come to works of fiction that use my religion. I can't stop being uncomfortable when it happens and it's something I can't easily ignore. My sister is a Christian too, and she has been working on a novel that involves the Afterlife and Angels of death, but she insists that it's not inoffensive because it's fiction. She has a much more open minded view on stuff like this. I just have to try and remember that when this comes up, it's fiction and I should just relax.

I have no problem with C.S. Lewis' Narnia series as he was a Christian when he wrote it, so it's aimed at a christian audience.

My problem overall with the punk comic is suggesting that someone found Jesus' body and cloned it. If the writers read the Bible, they would know how that can't work, but it's Vertigo and they just do stuff like this all the time.

@Miss_Garrick: I can completely understand why you would be thin skinned about such a thing, Miss Garrick. It is your faith, it is a very intimate relationship you have with your belief and your God and when you feel it is being attacked, you want to defend it. I feel the same about the things i love in my life also. Yet what i don't understand with religious beliefs, is the sometimes hypocritical viewpoint on who gets to use what and why. Example; Why is it okay for C.S Lewis to use Christian allegory and not others? Just because he was a born again Christian, does it give him any more right than someone else? There are Christians far more devout and learned than C.S Lewis was who would have every right to be offended with the allegory of Christ in Aslan. The Bible is an ancient text, no one person has the right to claim ownership on its content and its use. It is public domain in the most literal of senses, as it is the word of God, and that word belongs to every one of us, to do with what we please. If you truly believe in a benevolent and loving God (as all true Christians should), then you must believe that all things on this earth are the will of God and part of his design, and that sometimes people find God in the strangest of ways, in the strangest of places (even comic books). Be not so quick to judge or be offended by his plan, i say. I assume He knows what he's doing ;P

@feebadger: Wow, you made a great point. (^_^)

I know I say this ever 2nd week of every month...but I'm surprised Demon Knights isn't on this list. The series keeps getting better and better, and it's regrettable that more people don't know about it.

@bladewolf said:

I know I say this ever 2nd week of every month...but I'm surprised Demon Knights isn't on this list. The series keeps getting better and better, and it's regrettable that more people don't know about it.

I've been meaning to spotlight it on the list, but it's also unfortunate it falls on a week with all this other amazing stuff. This week especially is stacked.

I tried Demon Knights. I think I read the first 3 issues. I just wasn't able to get into it. Maybe I will retry it soon. Batman 11 is amazing! I think issue 1 of Revival is something everyone should give a try.

@erik_norris said:

@DarkChris: Sorry about that! I honestly didn't think about it while writing this column. I know it's too late now, but I've gone ahead and added a spoiler warning in the post. I'll also be more cautious of this next time.

Thanks. :)

Wait, I thought Punk Rock Jesus was an ongoing, where does it say it's a miniseries? That's disappointing :(

@Jack the Ripper said:

Wait, I thought Punk Rock Jesus was an ongoing, where does it say it's a miniseries? That's disappointing :(

Even the solicits say it's a mini...some Vertigo fanboy you are...*shakes head*
BB

@Billy Batson: I don't like reading solicits too much, usually if it's a mini it will say #1 (of 6)

@Jack the Ripper:

BB

Also, why're people getting offended over Punk Rock Jesus, I highly doubt Sean Murphy's being malicious and hell even some writers who do try to be malicious (like Garth Ennis) make great points with their stories (when he actually tries). Sean Murphy explained the origin of the story over on the Vertigo blog, while he admitted he became an atheist, he could've claimed to be a Christian and people would have thought of it as a thought-provoking piece so that seems a little unfair. John Milton was a Christian and he made Satan out to be the tragic hero, why aren't people offended about that?

@Billy Batson: I seem to recall you being the one to originally tell me it was an ongoing...I'm going to have to start disregarding everything you tell me

@Jack the Ripper:

Nonsense, I said it was a mini. I only said the Collider was an ongoing. You were probably drunk at the time, eh?
BB

@rawr said:

@yo_yo_fun: word up on Demon Knights. Most unexpected fun and interesting "original" series out of the 52 IMHO.

Also the TC for Demon Knights comes out this week so it is a great chance to get friends to jump on. Lord knows I already convinced one or two. :)

Definitely! I thought it sounded interesting when I first heard about it but I didn't expect to like it so much!

I am definitely going to get the trade for Demon Knights! I missed the first story arc.

Honestly, I think I only have like one friend who actually reads comics, I'm probably going to have to convince him to read the trade:)

Wow. Another 10 comics to read that i will only read 3 of .

@erik_norris said:

@bladewolf said:

I know I say this ever 2nd week of every month...but I'm surprised Demon Knights isn't on this list. The series keeps getting better and better, and it's regrettable that more people don't know about it.

I've been meaning to spotlight it on the list, but it's also unfortunate it falls on a week with all this other amazing stuff. This week especially is stacked.

That is true and regrettable...maybe I'll get lucky next month!

@Wolverine0628 said:

@Miss_Garrick: I was very much offended as well. People should be so careful not to make a mockery of Jesus. They're going to regret it.@feebadger: C.S. Lewis used allegory to help children and adults understand more about their faith. You can't compare his work, which was meant to edify, with this Punk Rock stuff, which is meant to make a mockery of Jesus.

The point i was trying to make, Wolverine0628, is who are you, or any Christian, to tell someone what is offensive or not? Just because you, personally are offended does not mean that the material is, empirically offensive. It is just your opinion, Christian or not and you do not speak for the entire Christian faith. If you read it carefully, my comment did not compare Lewis' work to Punk Rock Jesus (i haven't read Punk Rock Jesus, and i'm assuming you haven't also, so how could i), but i did use him as an example of process, the hypocrisy of religious followers and the finding of faith. A good example here is that, if i read you a brief sunopsis of The Lion, The Witch And The Wardrobe without you having read the actual book and having known nothing about hte writer, the nperhaps you would be equally as offended as the Punk Rock Jesus synopsis. They both involve allegory and they are both written in genres very much outside of hte traditional Bible text. You are judging Punk Rock Jesus without having read it and i do remember reading somewhere "judge not lest ye be judged." Seemed like an important sentiment.

Also, i don't really understand a faith that uses terms like "People should be so careful not to make a mockery of Jesus. They're going to regret it" It sounds very much like a threat and vaguely like the mafia ;P I think the God i choose to believe in is more forgiving than that. God is love, is he not? He created us. He understands us. He forgives us. Perhaps we could all follow that example as opposed to the wrath and judgement one.

You forgot Deathstroke, Batgirl, and Grifter.... definitely great comics in my eyes.

@rvitz13: Deathstroke really?

It's intriguing to see that Bats has a twisted brother after all of this. I can hardly wait to read issue #11 today. But I definitely couldn't wait to read The Walking Dead #100 yesterday. A very gruesome event indeed.

Gonna give Batman a try. It should be interesting

Batman and walking dead.

Can I get a link to the list of new stuff this week?

@RoboShark: https://www.google.ca/

I'm intrigued by Punk Rock Jesus. Going to have to check it out.