5. SIMON DARK #1
Written by Steve Niles; art by Scott Hampton
DC
32 pgs | $2.99

Steve Niles is the creator of 30 Days of Night which not only sees a 5th anniversary re-release this week but is also about to be a major motion picture. That book made a name for Niles in the horror comic genre and now he's using that clout to launch a new ongoing book set in the DC Universe and starring a brand new original character (not an easy feat by either Marvel or DC in the past couple of decades). Simon Dark is a Frankenstein-ish creation whose sewn-together parts resemble some very familiar boogie-men like Freddy, Leatherface and Candyman (okay maybe he's not all that original of a character). Roaming through Gotham City and disrupting various crimes - you know it's only a matter of time before Dark crosses paths with Gotham's other creepy vigilante.

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4. BRAWL #1 (of 3)
By Dean Haspiel and Michel Fiffe
Image
32 pgs | $2.99

The influence of the movie Grindhouse, continues to weave it's way through the comics industry as we get a "Creature Romance Double Feature" in this 3 issue series containing two separate stories. Dean Haspiel's Billy Dogma features the tough guy title character in a hardboiled/cosmic romance while Michel Fiffe's Panorama is a psychedelic noir about a teenage runaway with a frightening affliction. Both stories originated as webcomics on the ACT-I-VATE livejournal site and are collected together here for the first time in print.

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3. JAMES STURM'S AMERICA: GOD, GOLD and GOLEMS
By James Sturm
Drawn & Quarterly
$24.95

James Sturm's America collects three previously separate stories by Sturm that collectively tell a story of some of the quieter times in American history. The Revival takes place in Kentucky in 1801 and deals with the perils of religious zealotry in the camp of a revival preacher. Hundreds of Feet Below Daylight is set in the late 1800s in a gold mine in California where tension arises between the miners and the mine owners. And, the best known of the three, The Golem's Mighty Swing is about a Jewish baseball team in the 1920's that become popular after adding a Golem to the team.

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2. CHRONICLES OF WORMWOOD
Written by Garth Ennis; art by Jacen Burrows
Avatar Press
144 pgs | $19.99

Garth Ennis' Preacher was one of the hallmark comics of the 1990's and dealt with epic religious issues in Ennis' own inimitable and often vulgar way. His latest book once again treads on biblical territory, this time telling the story of the son of Satan. Featuring a talking rabbit, a mentally challenged Jesus and of course Satan himself, The Chronicles of Wormwood has all the shocking humor that you'd expect from the man who brought us Arseface.

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1. SHORTCOMINGS
By Adrian Tomine
Drawn & Quarterly
$19.95

One of the most talented writer/artists of his generation has a new graphic novel out, and that is worthy of a number one slot on any list. Collecting the 3 part story that recently ran in his comic, Optic Nerve, Adrian Tomine's Shortcomings brings us his most interesting and controversial character ever. Ben Tanaka is a conflicted young Asian-American whose own attraction to white women leads him down a painful path of heartbreak, prejudice and self-hate. Tomine's sharp and insightful writing is matched by his crisp, realistic yet expressive artwork. This will surely be one of the big award-winning graphic novels of the year.