Since I went through my 5 favorite Superman covers from long history, I thought I'd add 5 more, this time featuring Superman in action. It's also fitting as today is Superman's birthday...

Action Comics #300




How will he get out of this one? Another good Silver Age Superman story!

Action Comics #419



I love the style of this cover..

Superman #242



Very epic!

Superman vs. Muhammad Ali



Classic!

Action Comics #648



George Perez, Superman AND multiple Brainiacs? Definite win here!



Press Release:

DC Comics, Warner Premiere, Warner Home Video and Warner Bros. Animation have collaborated to create a unique Batman experience in Batman: Gotham Knight. The all-new, original movie will arrive July 8, 2008 on DVD and Blu-ray Disc. Order due date is June 3, 2008. The original movie will also be available OnDemand and Pay-per-View as well as available for download on the same day as release date, July 8, 2008.

Batman: Gotham Knight is a fresh and exciting new entry into the Batman mythos, spinning out of a 40-year history in animation including the Emmy®-winning Batman: The Animated Series, widely considered a pivotal moment in American animation. A cross section of distinguished creators, award winning producers, and acclaimed writers weave six interlocking stories that reveal Bruce Wayne’s journey to Dark Knight, each with stylish art from some of the world’s most revered animation visionaries.

Batman: Gotham Knight was headed by an impressive list of directors who have brought their distinctly different anime styles to the classic Batman character. The production was divided among three renowned studios – Studio 4ÂșC, Production I.G and Madhouse – and included the truly inimitable visions of directors Shojiro Nishimi, Futoshi Higashide, Hiroshi Morioka, Yasuhiro Aoki and Toshiyuki Kubooka.

With stories written by several of the most talented writers of film, comic books, and animation, including Academy Award®-nominated screenwriter Josh Olson (A History of Violence), David S. Goyer (Batman Begins), Emmy®-winner Alan Burnett (Batman: The Animated Series), Jordan Goldberg (Associate Producer, The Dark Knight), and award-winning comics writers Greg Rucka and Brian Azzarello, Batman: Gotham Knight presents thrilling new adventures of Batman that spotlight several of Gotham City’s most dangerous villains, including the fearsome Scarecrow, the freakish Killer Croc and the unnerving marksman known as Deadshot. Batman: Gotham Knight is produced by Emma Thomas (Batman Begins, The Dark Knight), Michael Uslan & Benjamin Melniker (Batman Begins, The Dark Knight), Toshi Hiruma and Bruce Timm (Batman: The Animated Series).

Batman: Gotham Knight will be available on DVD for $24.98 SRP. There will also be a 2-disc Special Edition DVD available for $29.98 SRP which contains additional bonus features. All the content from the 2-disc Special Edition DVD will be available on Blu-ray Disc for $34.99 SRP.

Batman: Gotham Knight DVD will feature incredible extras including:

-"A Mirror for the Bat: The Evil Denizens of Gotham City" - A stimulating documentary covering Gotham City’s most nefarious of characters, combined with a look into the symbiotic relationship Batman shares with his enemies.

-"Sneak Peek: Wonder Woman" - DC Universe animated original movie

-Audio Commentary - Featuring the filmmakers of Batman: Gotham Knight.

Widescreen (1.78:1)

5.1 Dolby Digital

The 2-disc Special Edition DVD will feature even more incredible extras including:

-"Batman and Me, A Devotion of Destiny: The Bob Kane Story" - The comprehensive chronology of the remarkable life of the creator of Batman.

-Batman: The Animated Series Bonus Episodes - Bruce Timm selects his favorite episodes from Batman: The Animated Series.

“Batman: Gotham Knight explores an exciting moment between Batman Begins and The Dark Knight,” said Paul Levitz, DC Comics President and Publisher, “and takes our fans on a very different visual trip through Gotham and Batman’s life. We’re extremely proud of this project, and look forward to adding to the momentum our DC Universe Animated Original Movie program has been building.”

“Batman: Gotham Knight is a perfect example of the type of release that Warner Premiere is becoming known for and that audiences are hungry for,” said Matt Bierman, Vice President, Production, Warner Premiere. “With incredible production values, a top-notch creative team and compelling, iconic characters from the DC Universe, Batman: Gotham Knight really raises the bar in the Direct-to-DVD arena and we’re proud to be a part of this production.”

“To date, over 13.5 million units of Batman animated titles have been sold and we are thrilled to release Batman: Gotham Knight, the next installment of the DC Universe animated original movies, which will be a hit with Super Hero and comic book fans alike,” said Amit Desai, WHV Vice President, Kids and Sports Marketing.

Street Date: July 8, 2008
Order Due Date: June 3, 2008
Languages: English, Spanish
Subtitles: Spanish

Run Time: 75 minutes

Aspect Ratio: Widescreen (1.78:1)
Audio: 5.1 Dolby Surround Stereo
Color / Closed Captioned
Rating: PG-13

Batman: Gotham Knight Marketing Support

Batman: Gotham Knight will be supported by a massive media campaign including primetime TV spots, national print and online coverage. Marketing support will also include strong promotional support as well as a grassroots viral campaign.

DC Universe Original Movies

DC Comics, Warner Premiere, Warner Home Video (WHV) and Warner Bros. Animation (WBA) began the production and distribution of DC Universe, a series of original, animated PG-13 movies in July 2006. This original made for DVD movie is part of the DC Universe series of animated PG-13 films written and directed by acclaimed comic book creators and animators and featuring recognizable talent. WHV will be the exclusive worldwide home entertainment distributor for all DC Universe movies, which will include a slate of 2-3 action-packed films per year. Superman Doomsday and Justice League: The New Frontier were the first DC Universe original animated movies. Other DC properties with films in development include Justice League, Green Lantern, Flash and Wonder Woman.

Basics:

Street Date: July 8, 2008
Order Due Date: June 3, 2008
Languages: English, Spanish
Subtitles: Spanish

Run Time: 75 minutes

Aspect Ratio: Widescreen (1.78:1)
Audio: 5.1 Dolby Surround Stereo
Color / Closed Captioned
Rating: PG-13

Batman: Gotham Knight (DVD)

Price: $24.98 SRP / No MAP
UPC: 085391123323

Batman: Gotham Knight (2 Disc Special Edition DVD)

Price: $29.98 SRP / No MAP
UPC: 0883929011155

Batman: Gotham Knight (Blu-ray Disc)

Price: $34.99 SRP / No MAP
UPC: 085391179511

About Warner Premiere:

Warner Premiere is Warner Bros. Entertainment’s new direct-to-consumer production company focused on the development, production and marketing of feature-length content, as well as short form digital content for the growing home entertainment market. Warner Premiere is committed to being at the creative forefront in the evolution of quality product in the direct-to-DVD business and the digital space, creating material that exemplifies the commitment to story, production and brand equity for which Warner Bros. is known.

About Warner Home Video:

With operations in 90 international territories Warner Home Video, a Warner Bros. Entertainment Company, commands the largest distribution infrastructure in the global video marketplace. Warner Home Video's film library is the largest of any studio, offering top quality new and vintage titles from the repertoires of Warner Bros. Pictures, Turner Entertainment, Castle Rock Entertainment, HBO Home Video and New Line Home Entertainment.

About DC Comics:

DC Comics, a Warner Bros. Entertainment Company, is the largest English-language publisher of comics in the world and home to such iconic characters as Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman and the Sandman. These DC Super Heroes and others have starred in comic books, movies, television series (both animated and live-action) and cyberspace, thrilling audiences of all ages for generations. DC Comics’ Web site is located at www.dccomics.com.

Batman and all related characters and elements are trademarks of and © DC Comics. (s08)

About Warner Bros. Animation:

Warner Bros. Animation has been producing award-winning original animation since 1930, when it released its first cartoon, “Sinkin' in the Bathtub.” Since then, Warner Bros. Animation’s characters have set the standard for innovative, quality animation. Producing for network and cable television, online, home entertainment and feature films both domestically and internationally, Warner Bros. Animation is highly respected for its creative and technical excellence, as well as maintaining the studio’s rich cartoon heritage. Warner Bros. Animation also oversees the creative use of, and production of animated programming based on classic animated characters from the Hanna-Barbera and DC Comics libraries. Warner Bros. Animation is one of the most honored animation studios in history, garnering a grand total of six Academy Awards®, 35 Emmy® Awards, the George Foster Peabody Award, an Environmental Media Award, a Parents’ Choice Award, a Humanitas Award, two Prism Awards and 20 Annie Awards (honoring excellence in animation).

Sweet trailer, fan made trailer based on DC's upcoming event.

Here are some videos featuring well known comic book artists drawing, they are :

John Romita
Joe Kubert
John Buscema
Bill Sienkiewicz
Dave Gibbons
Travis Charest





New Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull Trailer!



In 1957, Indiana Jones is thrust back in action, venturing into the jungles of South America in a race against Soviet agents to find the mystical Crystal Skull. Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull will be in theaters May 22, 2008.

Star Wars: The Clone Wars Trailer!

The 3-D animated movie will take an in-depth look at the space between Episode II and III, first referenced by Obi-Wan in A New Hope. Star Wars: The Clone Wars will also have an accompanying series on Cartoon Network which will launch shortly after the movie's August 15th release date. You can watch the teaser trailer here.


Fox Sues Warner Bros. Over Watchmen


20th Century Fox has initiated a legal battle against Warner Bros. over the rights to develop, produce and distribute a film based on the graphic novel Watchmen, says The Hollywood Reporter.

On Friday, the studio sued Warner Bros., claiming it holds the exclusive copyrights and contract rights to Watchmen.

Warner Bros. plans to release on March 6, 2009 a big-screen version of the popular graphic novel written by Alan Moore and illustrated by Dave Gibbons. The film is directed by Zack Snyder (300) and stars Patrick Wilson, Jackie Earle Haley, Matthew Goode, Billy Crudup, Jeffrey Dean Morgan, Malin Akerman, Carla Gugino, Stephen McHattie and Matt Frewer.

The trade says Fox seeks to enjoin Warner Bros. from going forward with the project, saying in the lawsuit that it seeks to "restrain (Warner Bros. Pictures) from taking actions that violate Fox's copyrights and which stand to forever impair Fox's rights to control the distribution and development of this unique work."

Fox claims that between 1986 and 1990, it acquired all movie rights to the 12-issue DC Comics series and screenplays by Charles McKeown and Sam Hamm. In 1991, Fox assigned some rights via a quitclaim to Largo International with the understanding that the studio held exclusive rights to distribute the first motion picture based on Watchmen, according to the lawsuit.

When Largo dismantled, the rights were transferred to producer Lawrence Gordon. Under a "turnaround agreement" between Fox and Gordon, the producer agreed to pay a buy-out price to Fox if he entered into any agreement with another studio or third party to develop or produce Watchmen, among other things.

Now, Fox claims that neither Gordon nor Warner Bros. has paid the buy-out price or advised the studio of any other conditions required under the agreement, including procedures necessary to acquire the rights to Watchmen from Fox.

Heroes Renewed for 2008-09 Season

Now that the writers strike is over, ComingSoon.net says that NBC has renewed "Heroes" for the 2008-09 season, but it looks like you won't see the show again until the fall.

NBC's Co-Chairman Ben Silverman said, "Additionally, we will be saving and re-launching our #1 drama and most successful franchise, 'Heroes,' so that it will run in all original episodes in the fourth quarter."

Shia LaBeouf on Transformers 2

Empire magazine talked to Transformers 2 star Shia LaBeouf, who says he has seen a lot for the sequel already and knows that there will be new robots on both sides of the battle. Here's a clip:

"I know of a few things I have to work on for the next one," said LaBeouf. "I've seen pre-vizes of the action scenes and I just saw Michael yesterday. It's going to be bad-ass. We're not making another one unless it is, and Mike is definitely not resting on his laurels — he's doing insane sh*t again. And the pre-vizes that I've seen… it's just massive."


You can read the full interview here. DreamWorks/Paramount is planning a June 26, 2009 release date.

Lastly... you can check out the Hellboy 2 valentine e-card here! Hellboy II: The Golden Army opens in theaters on July 11, 2008.

Supergirl v3 #1

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Supergirl v3 #80


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I miss Linda :(

Superman/Batman #13

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I love Michael Turner's work!

Supergirl v4 #22

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This cover is full of win!

Action Comics #555

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This was the first comic I ever picked up with Supergirl in it. This issue was part one of a 2 part celebration of Sgirl's 25th anniversary (Just as the Superman/Batman arc rebooting her was for the 35th)


USA Today has published this first look at Hugh Jackman as Logan in X-Men Origins: Wolverine! And some quotes...

The film will trace Wolverine's past as he discovers the world of mutants and, ultimately, the ominous Weapon X program, which turns people into living weapons.

Jackman is tight-lipped on plot details, though he says the film will hardly be a one-mutant story.

Wolverine's nemesis Sabretooth "is going to play a big part in it. And there will be a good bit of cameos" of new and familiar mutants, he says. "But you can't give too much away, because fans are pretty hard-core. Their expectations go up a level every time you come out with a new film."


Directed by Gavin Hood and co-starring Liev Schreiber, X-Men Origins: Wolverine hits theaters on May 1, 2009.



So awesome. I am so hyped for this game!


This weekend at DC's RRP meeting, it was officially announced that DC’s third weekly series, Trinity, will begin in June. The book's lead story, starring Superman, Batman and Wonder Woman will be written by Kurt Busiek, with art by Mark Bagley.

"The series will follow Countdown, but, as with Countdown and 52 which came before it, will be unrelated to the previous weekly series. That said, Trinity will be “apart,” that is, occurring in the DC Universe, but not tied to other events happening in the DCU."


You can catch DC Universe #0 (the bridge between Countdown to Final Crisis #1 & Final Crisis #1) which will sell for 50 cents (!) should be on sale at the end of April. Also,two new, 6 issue miniseries: Rann/Thanagar: Holy War (starting in May) and Reign in Hell, starting in June.

Atari is releasing a next-gen Dragonball Z for the PS3 and the Xbox 360. Dragonball Z: Burst Limit will drop sometime in 2008.

According to the company the game will feature:

* Fierce online battles and
* Radical 3D graphic effects only possible on Xbox 360 and PLAYSTATION 3
* Will "blur the line between video game and iconic anime series."

"Atari is excited and ready to offer fans the next iteration of the Dragon Ball Z video game series on the next-gen consoles," said Donny Clay, Producer, Atari, Inc. "With explosive cinematic graphics and online gameplay, fans of the series and of the fighting genre will surely enjoy Dragon Ball Z: Burst Limit."


Newsarama announced the new Superman writer suceeding Busiek after April's #675 will be James Robinson. You can read more on this here, it seems the Starman Omnibus will be due in May.

This is Vegas is an upcoming, third person action-adventure video game, featuring car chases and shootouts. The action is set in several major cities across the United States and takes place during a 48 hour period.

Development of the game began in 2003 at the now defunct Glasgow studios of Steel Monkeys. When Steel Monkeys in the UK shut down the game moved production to the secondary Steel Monkeys studio established in Minsk, Belarus.

Ign has posted some new info on this game, as well as a trailer. The screenshot pictured is from around 2005, when news first broke of the game.
This is Vegas is set for release on PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, and Windows this fall.

New segment! Every Thursday I'll post my top 5 covers of a comic subject. Since this year is the 70th anniversary of Superman, I thought I'd try to pick my favorite covers from his long history. Here's the first 5:

Superman # 233


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I've always loved this cover! This is from the era where Superman was to be "de-powered" by having all Kryptonite on Earth turned into ordinary lead.

Superman #670

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The new Superman family, nuff said.

Crisis on Infinite Earths #7


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One of the most iconic covers in comics history, this issue is where the original Supergirl died sacrificing herself for her cousin.

Superman [vol.1] Annual #10

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An awesome story showing once and for all the Pre-Crisis Superman really was the greatest of all time!

Superman #347

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When I first saw this I thought "An enemy Superman can't touch? This has to be good..."



I saw this ages ago, and since its such a great fanfilm I thought I'd post for those who haven't seen it yet. This is from the 2003 Comicon from what I hear... enjoy!

Like the title says, see which ring you would receive!

Here's what I got:

Marvel Studios has released this new photo from the Jon Favreau-directed Iron Man, coming to theaters on May 2. The comic book adaptation stars Robert Downey Jr., Terrence Howard, Gwyneth Paltrow, Jeff Bridges.

The movie tells the story of Tony Stark (Downey Jr.), a billionaire industrialist and genius inventor who is kidnapped and forced to build a devastating weapon. Instead, using his intelligence and ingenuity, Tony builds a high-tech suit of armor and escapes captivity. Upon his return to America, Tony must come to terms with his past. When he uncovers a nefarious plot with global implications, he dons his powerful armor and vows to protect the world as Iron Man. Watch the trailer after the break!

For more check out the official Iron Man website at IronManmovie.com.


I came across a great tutorial on CNET on how to upgrade your PS3's hard drive. The type of internal 2.5″ drives that work with the PS3 top out atabout 300GB. If you want more, but don't want to open up your console, external USB drives can save the day, drives with 500gb external USB drives are also readily available.








In other news... Publisher Atlus (Gulity Gear series, Odin Sphere, Trauma Center) will be releasing Arcana Hearts, an all girl fighter for the PS2 in North America on April 8 at for a retail price of $29.99.

I'm not sure if you folks have heard about this but Marvel.com has branched off a For Kids Only version of their site. It's not really anything great to speak of.. BUT they have contracted the CGI animation team from the Marvel Ultimate Alliance game to produce shorts just for that site. So you get a 3-part mini-movie every month featuring one particular character and a few guest stars...

January featured "The Adventures Of Iron Man" which guest starred Spider-Man and The Hulk... you can watch the trailers below.







Wanted is a 2008 film loosely based on the comic book miniseries Wanted by Mark Millar. The film is directed by Timur Bekmambetov and stars James McAvoy, Morgan Freeman and Angelina Jolie. The movie is in post-production, and has a target release date of June 27, 2008.

Press Release:

Dennis O’Neil, prize-winning comics writer and editor, will offer a 10 week course in writing comic books and graphic novels at New York University’s School of Continuing and Professional Studies. The course will begin on February 13th and end on April 23rd. Classes start at 6:20 in the evening and end about two and a half hours later.

For more information, see the university’s home page.

For over 30 years, editor and writer Dennis O'Neil put the "dark" in the Dark Knight and was the guiding force behind the Batman mythos. He has been called a living legend, a master of the comics form, a visionary, the thinking man’s superhero writer, the dean of American comics writers, and--his favorite--an erudite hippie. He prefers to think of himself as, simply, "a working professional storyteller."

Dennis, a native St. Louisan and graduate of St. Louis University, began his writing career as a newspaper reporter in Cape Girardeau, Missouri, over forty years ago. Intrigued by the creative revival of comics in the mid-60s, he came to New York as Stan Lee's editorial assistant at Marvel Comics. Next, he did freelance writing at Charlton Comics under editor Dick Giordano. When Giordano moved to DC Comics in 1967, he brought Dennis with him. There, Dennis scripted such titles as Wonder Woman, The Justice League of America and, notably, 13 issues of Superman, a run some aficionados say is a high point in the character's long history. In 1968, following the cancellation of the Batman television show, editor Julius Schwartz asked Dennis to revamp DC's Dark Knight. Dennis and artist Neal Adams took the character back to his roots and, adding sophistication and their own unique vision, created the version of Batman which has been an inspiration for the Emmy-winning Fox cartoon series, the mega-budget Warners movies and, of course, the current comics. In 1970, Dennis again collaborated with Neal Adams and Julius Schwartz to produce the Green Lantern-Green Arrow series that first brought him into national prominence. This series earned praise, awards and media attention for its ground-breaking combination of flamboyant fantasy with genuine social concerns such as racism, drug addiction, environmental dangers and Native Americans' problems.

During his 30-year career, Dennis has written stories for almost all of DC and Marvel's major titles, including Spiderman, Hawkman, The Atom, Iron Man, Daredevil and The Question, a series that combined authentic martial arts action with thoughtful plots and is credited with being a forerunner of today's "mature reader" comics.

Dennis' comics work has been only a part of his career. He has edited Newsfront Magazine and has written short stories, articles and reviews for a wide variety of publications including Gentleman's Quarterly, Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine, New York, The Village Voice, Coronet, The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction and Publishers Weekly. He has had five teleplays produced, adapted four Batman movies into comic book form and is the author of several novels and nonfiction books, including a guide to writing comic book scripts published by Watson-Guptil. One of his most significant achievements was converting 1,162 pages of comic book continuity into a hard cover novel which became a national best seller: KNIGHTFALL, published by Bantam Books. While he was writing the novel, he was also assisting with the adaptation of the Knightfall storyline for England's BBC radio. More recently, he adapated to novel form the movie Batman Begins, which was partially based on his comics work

An expert on comics, pop culture and folklore/mythology, Dennis is a popular guest at conventions and has been heard on literally hundreds of radio shows. He has appeared on dozens of television programs, including The Today Show, Entertainment Tonight, Extra, NBC Nightly News, Fox News, Fox Morning Show, Real News for Kids, The Anti-Gravity Room, The History Channel's comics documentary, and the Disney Channel's Audubon Show. He has been interviewed internationally on the BBC, Australian, French, Mexican, Chilean and Canadian television.

Dennis has taught writing at the School of Visual Arts and New York University in Manhattan, and at Rockland Community College in Suffern, NY,, and has lectured at the Open Center in New York City. He has also lectured at numerous colleges and universities including New York University, Fairleigh-Dickenson, Penn State, Tufts, St. Louis University, Indiana State University, the State University of New York at Stonybrook, City University of New York, UCLA, Atlantic College, the Philadelphia College of Art, Webster University. MIT, The Smithsonian, the Library of Congress, and The Learning Annex.

For 15 years, until his retirement in February, 2001, Dennis was a group editor at DC where, in addition to editing the Batman titles, he wrote a monthly title he created, Azrael, helped make policy decisions and co-supervised a large editorial staff. He now serves DC as an editorial consultant.

Last year, some of Dennis’s work provided the basis for the movie Batman Begins, for which he wrote the novel version and consulted on the video game.
He is currently contributing a weekly column to an online magazine, ComicMix.

In April, 1999, two Californians, Bob Brodsky and Kevin Hanley, began publishing The O'Neil Observer, a quarterly magazine devoted to articles about Dennis and the craft of comics writing. In November of the same year, a midwesterner, Scott McCullar, created a website to augment the magazine.

Dennis currently lives in Nyack, New York, with his wife, Marifran.

Comics Buyers Guide Fan Awards:

Favorite Editor 2000, 1996, 1989, 1988, 1986
Tenth Favorite Writer of the Century
Fifth Favorite Editor of the Century.
No Evil Shall Escape My Sight" from Green Lantern #76 placed tenth as Favorite Story of the Century
>
Denny was the Favorite Pro Writer (a tie with Roy Thomas) in the First Goethe Awards presented by Newfangles (edited by Don and Maggie Thompson) back in 1971. Also, GL/GA won for Favorite Pro Comic Book and "No Evil Shall Escape My Sight" took Favorite Comic-Book Story.

Haxtur Award for Best Short story, given by Spanish fans: 1995
Haxtur Lifetime Achievement Award: 1998
“Julie” lifetime achievement award from Atlanta Fantasy Con 2004
Academy of Comic Book Arts and Sciences Award for Best Writer: 1971, 1972.
Academy of Comic Book Arts and Sciences Award for Best Series: Green Lantern & Green Arrow, 1971, 1972.


Written by JEPH LOEB
Art & 50/50 Wraparound Covers by JOE MADUREIRA & CHRISTIAN LICHTNER
This is it, the ending you've been breathlessly waiting for! Who killed the Scarlet Witch -- and why? The answers will rock you as the Ultimate Universe is about to explode! Betrayals, secrets, and even another murder are all laid bare as superstars Jeph Loeb, Joe Madureira and Christian Lichtner conclude Volume 3! But the next big Ultimates story is just beginning, as right around the corner is...Ultimatum!
On sale in April • 32 PGS./Parental Advisory,FC, $2.99