Hey, everyone!

This is a reminder that the submission deadline for our Kids’ Art Show is this Friday, December 1, by close of business (9:00 pm)!

For full submission details, go to:
http://www.chapelhillcomics.com/content/?p=63

We’ll be hanging the Kids’ Art Show early next week, so until then, come in and have one last look at our current art show: Who’s Who by Dan-O Parrish! There’s good, colorful, very affordable art hanging on the walls right now, that would be a perfect Christmas present for someone who loves old school Nintendo games or DC Comics! Come in and check it out, or look at our website:
http://www.chapelhillcomics.com/content/?p=62

Thanks a lot,
Andrew Neal
Chapel Hill Comics

For the first three years after I bought this store, when customers asked about my favorite comics, I’d usually show them Lone Wolf and Cub, or Hellboy, or DC: The New Frontier. I’m very excited that now I’ll also be able to show them Ragmop.

Creator Rob Walton originally published Ragmop in the mid-nineties in comic form. It’s a work of satire which immediately caught my interest because of Walton’s artwork. His art is fluid and cartoony, and beautifully executed. The cover of the first issue featured a bunch of people, demons, dinosaurs, and a raccoon chasing after a small ring which looks like it was designed by Jack Kirby. The cover was enough for me. I bought the comic, took it home, and read it several times. I bought every issue of Ragmop (thirteen issues, through Walton’s Planet Lucy Press, then Image, then Planet Lucy again), and loved it all the way through.

Why do I love Ragmop? Let me count the ways:

1. Walton’s art. Rob Walton has a wonderfully fluid, cartoony style. Check out some of the posts at Rob Walton’s blog for examples: Walton’s July entries, which feature lots of art.
2. Smart Satire. Ragmop is slam full of satirical reference to lots of serious political and religious issues. There is a political slant toward the left (the left left, not the center-left that most American Democrats now occupy), but the book is incredibly intelligent, and doesn’t ever preach or become pretentious. It’s entirely possible you could enjoy this book without knowing a thing about American politics, too, because of the:
3. Pop Culture Bonanza. Ragmop has parodies of everything, from John Carpenter’s The Thing, to Dr. Seuss, to Preacher. If you don’t know politics, you’ll know this stuff, and it’ll make you laugh! There are visual jokes worked into most of the panels which add even more humor to the already hilarious storyline.
4. Science. Walton obviously likes his science, and he works dinosaurs, string theory, discussion of Quasars, and a character based on Richard Feynman (one of my heroes) into the script just as deftly as the pop-culture stuff.
5. It’s So Funny. It would be so easy for a lesser storyteller to try to throw all this stuff into a comic and wind up with a cluttered mess, but works each element into the story for perfect effect, and there’s so much there, it’s almost impossible not to learn something while you laugh.

This comic was years ahead of its time when it came out in the nineties. About ten years ahead of its time, I’d say, which means it’s perfect timing that the collected edition is being released this week. Those of you who may have picked up the comic the first time around can rejoice that the story will finally be finished in comic form. From Walton’s Website:

Far from being a simple reprint of old material, Ragmop has been completely updated with new story and art to reflect the current dynamics of the world we live in. The art has been completely re-mastered, and dialogue has been rewritten throughout to transform the story from a serialized comic into a unified single graphic narrative. Then of course, there’s the matter of the missing ending. The original series was left incomplete. Not so the graphic novel. Like Jack Kirby’s “The Hunger Dogs” the Ragmop graphic novel will wrap up the story in dramatic and hilarious fashion.

I’m very excited to finally see the final version of this comic. I love Ragmop, and have felt for years that the fact that it was unfinished was one of the great crimes in comics. Come into the store this Wednesday and check it out yourself. You may like it too!

Thanks,
Andrew Neal
Chapel Hill Comics

These titles are scheduled to arrive Wednesday, November 29!

COMICS & MAGAZINES
52 WEEK #30 $2.50
AMERICAN VIRGIN #9 (MR) $2.99
AQUAMAN SWORD OF ATLANTIS #46 $2.99
AVENGERS NEXT #2 (OF 5) $2.99
BATMAN #659 $2.99
BATMAN THE SPIRIT $4.99
BLACK PANTHER #22 CW $2.99
CAPTAIN AMERICA #24 CW $2.99
CASTLE WAITING VOL II #3 $3.95
COMICS JOURNAL #279 $9.95
CONAN & THE SONGS OF THE DEAD #5 (OF 5) $2.99
CROSSING MIDNIGHT #1 (MR) $2.99
DEATHBLOW #2 (MR) $2.99
DONALD DUCK ADVENTURES VOL 21TP $7.95
ELEPHANTMEN #0 $2.99
EMISSARY #6 (MR) $3.50
EVERWINDS SHROOMS ONE SHOT (MR) $3.99
FLASH THE FASTEST MAN ALIVE #6 $2.99
FRIENDLY NEIGHBORHOOD SPIDER-MAN #14 $2.99
GHOST IN THE SHELL 1.5 HUMAN ERROR PROCESSOR #2 (OF 8) (C: 1 $2.99
GREEN LANTERN #15 $2.99
GUY GARDNER COLLATERAL DAMAGE #1 (OF 2) $5.99
IMMORTAL IRON FIST #1 $2.99
ION #8 (OF 12) $2.99
LOVELESS #13 (MR) $2.99
NEXTWAVE AGENTS OF HATE #10 $2.99
ONSLAUGHT REBORN #1 (OF 5) $2.99
ONSLAUGHT REBORN LIEFIELD SKETCH VAR LIMIT 5 #1 (OF 5) $2.99
POWERS #21 (MR) $2.95
PUNISHER #41 (MR) $2.99
PUNISHER XMAS SPECIAL $3.99
RUSH CITY #3 (OF 6) $2.99
SAVAGE DRAGON #130 $2.99
SEA OF RED #13 (MR) $3.50
SENSATIONAL SPIDER-MAN #32 $2.99
SHONEN JUMP JAN 07 #49 (C: 1-0-0) $4.99
SONIC THE HEDGEHOG #169 $2.25
SPAWN #162 $2.95
SPIDER-MAN FAMILY FEATURING SPIDER CLAN $4.99
STAN LEE MEETS DR DOOM $3.99
STAR WARS LEGACY #6 (C: 1-0-0) $2.99
SUPERMAN BATMAN #30 $2.99
TALENT #4 (OF 4) $3.99
TEEN TITANS #41 $2.99
TEEN TITANS GO #37 $2.25
TRANSFORMERS ESCALATION #1 $3.99
TRUE STORY SWEAR TO GOD IMAGEED #2 $2.99
ULTIMATE POWER #2 (OF 9) $2.99
ULTIMATE VISION #0 $2.99
WARLORD #10 $2.99
WETWORKS #3 $2.99
WHAT IF WOLVERINE ENEMY OF THE STATE $2.99
WHISPER #1 $3.99
X-MEN #193 $2.99
YOUNG GUNS RELOADED SKETCHBOOK $3.99
ZOMBIE #3 (OF 4) (MR) $3.99
ZOMBIES VS ROBOTS #1 (OF 2) $3.99

GRAPHIC NOVELS, MANGA, AND BOOKS
AVENGERS GALACTIC STORM VOL 2TP $29.99
BECK MONGOLIAN CHOP SQUAD VOL6 GN (OF 19) (MR) $9.99
CONAN BOOK OF THOTH TPB (C: 0-1-2) $17.95
DARK HORSE BOOK OF MONSTERS HC (C: 0-1-2) $15.95
EMILY THE STRANGE VOL 1 TP (C: 0-1-2) $19.95
ES VOL 3 GN (MR) $10.95
ESSENTIAL MAN-THING VOL 1 TP $16.99
EX MACHINA VOL 4 MARCH TO WARTP (MR) $12.99
GERARD & JACQUES VOL 2 GN (OF2) (MR) $9.99
GOON WICKED INCLINATIONS VOL 5 TPB (MR) (C: 0-1-2) $14.95
GREEN LANTERN REVENGE OF THE GREEN LANTERNS HC $19.99
GUNDAM SEED DESTINY VOL 2 GN $10.95
IS VOL 10 GN (C: 1-0-0) $7.99
J BOY GN $16.95
LAST CHRISTMAS TP (MR) $14.99
LIFE VOL 3 GN (OF 9) (MR) $9.99
MAIL ORDER NINJA VOL 2 GN (OF3) $5.99
MARVEL ADVENTURES FF VOL 4 COSMIC THREATS DIGEST TP $6.99
NEGIMA VOL 12 GN (MR) $10.95
NOBLE CAUSES VOL 6 HIDDEN AGENDAS TP $15.99
NOSATSU JUNKIE VOL 1 GN (OF 4) $9.99
OH MY GODDESS VOL 3 RTL TP (C: 1-1-2) $10.95
PRICELESS VOL 3 GN (OF 3) $9.99
PUNISHER MAX VOL 6 BARRACUDA TP (MR) $15.99
RAGMOP TP $29.95 MY FAVORITE COMIC IS FINALLY AVAILABLE IN PAPERBACK!  CLICK TO READ MORE!
SENCILLA FINALE SC (MR) $50.00
SOMEDAYS DREAMERS SPELLBOUND VOL 1 GN (OF 4) $9.99
SOUL RESCUE VOL 1 GN (OF 2) $9.99
SPARROW PHIL HALE $11.99
SUIKODEN III VOL 11 GN (OF 11) (MR) $9.99
SUZUKA VOL 2 GN (MR) $13.95
TOTALLY SPIES VOL 3 EVIL JERRY GN $7.95
TREASURY VICTORIAN MURDER VOL8 MADELEINE SMITH SC $8.95
TSUKUYOMI MOON PHASE VOL 5 GN(OF 8) $9.99
ULYSSES HC (MR) $14.95

Thanks,
Andrew Neal
Chapel Hill Comics

First of all, to anyone who might be reading this email the day it is sent out, Happy Thanksgiving!

And here’s the final sale update!  Certain items will be discounted all day at the following prices:

Wizard of Oz Lunchboxes illustrated by Eric Shanower:
normally $16.99, just $11 for one day only!  These are very attractively metal lunchboxes which you won’t find in any big retail store, and for just one day, they’re eleven bucks!

The following books and graphic novels will be 30% off all day (while supplies last):

B. Krigstein by Greg Sadowski
Big Fat Little Lit edited by Art Spiegelmanna and Francoise Mouly
Chicken With Plums by Marjane Satrapi
Down by Warren Ellis
Epileptic by David B.
Frank, Pupshaw, and Pushpaw by Jim Woodring
Kramer’s Ergot 6 by various artists
Mome: Fall 2006 by Various Artists
Mome: Spring/Summer 2006 by Various Artists
The Art of Hellboy by Mike Mignola
Wolverine: Origin
World War Z: An Oral History of the Zombie War by Max Brooks

as well as all DC Archives and Marvel Masterworks!

The rest of the sale will be as previously mentioned:

* 10-11 AM: SALE DISCOUNT IS 25% OFF!
* 11-12 AM: SALE DISCOUNT IS 20% OFF!
* 12-1 PM: SALE DISCOUNT IS 15% OFF!
* 1-9 PM: SALE DISCOUNT IS 10% OFF!

The sale does not include new comics or items already on hold!

We hope you have all had a great Thanksgiving, and we hope to see lots of you Friday at our last sale of the year!

Thanks,
Andrew Neal
Chapel Hill Comics

We have just received a nice selection of Ed Emberley’s How To Draw books. These books are delightful. Mr. Emberley has a technique for demonstrating how easy it is to draw even the most complicated things ever. How does he do it? Well, he breaks things down into simple shapes like sticks, squiggles, squares, dots, circles, and triangles, and shows you one step at a time how these shapes are used to create pirate ships, dragons, monsters, haunted houses, airplanes, anything you can imagine!

These books are great for children of all ages, boys and girls. In fact, I am planning to use these books for an applique quilt! If you need a gift for a young person who loves to draw, or interested in drawing yourself, please check out these delightful books next time you are in the shop.

Vanessa Neal
Chapel Hill Comics

Have you ever had a sleepless night? What about 365 of them in a row? People who have been said to know state that the physical strain would kill anyone who never slept. With his usual trick of the pen, Warren Ellis scoffs at traditional medicine in Desolation Jones; a warped anti-hero ridden sci-fi noir. The main character, Michael Jones, is the only survivor of an MI-6 program called the desolation test- a sort of brain rewiring program which requires a year of mandatory insomnia. Now, he’s strung out, can’t sleep, can’t eat, and has no sense of repulsion and playing detective all over the weird wonderland of L.A.. Exploring the limits of human capacity, Ellis takes his sociopath programmed drug addict through a mystery involving some very odd historical fiction and a wealthy family in a town full of ex-spooks and mystery men.

The story is dark, gritty, and at times, down right disturbing. Fortunately for lovers of the demented, the art is too. Putting the graphic back into graphic novel, Desolation Jones is NOT for the young in mind or the faint of heart, however, if you like mind warping plot twists and dirty dialogue, the Desolation Jones trade paper back is sure to keep you on the edge of your seat. You may even find it keeping you up at night.

The first paperback collection is 14.99 and in stock at Chapel Hill Comics. The seventh issue of the comic, which begins the storyline that follows the paperback, is also currently available at $2.99.

-Will Walter

Well, I was on the news last night, being “cautiously optimistic” about a new development in downtown Chapel Hill.  If you want to watch the clip, go here:

http://www.wral.com/video/10366780/detail.html

It’s in Windows Media Player format, so depending upon your connection, it may be really choppy.

Thanks,
Andrew Neal
Chapel Hill Comics

Hey, everybody!

First of all, here’s our schedule for the week:

Monday, November 20: Regular Hours (10am-9pm)
Tuesday, November 21: Regular Hours (10am-9pm)
Wednesday, November 22: CLOSING EARLY (10am-6pm)
Thursday, November 23: CLOSED
Friday, November, 24: Regular hours for SALE (10-am-9pm)

And here’s a reminder about our sale on Friday:

We’ll be open regular hours Friday, November 24, the Day After Thanksgiving, for a big sale! Almost everything in the store will be on sale.

Here’s how it will work:

* 10-11 AM: SALE DISCOUNT IS 25% OFF!
* 11-12 AM: SALE DISCOUNT IS 20% OFF!
* 12-1 PM: SALE DISCOUNT IS 15% OFF!
* 1-9 PM: SALE DISCOUNT IS 10% OFF!

The sale does not include new comics or items already on hold, and other items will have special set discounts all day long!

Also, for those of you who want to see your local comic book man on the news, I may be on the WRAL 5:30 news this evening.  WRAL’s crack news team was downtown today interviewing people about their opinions regarding a potential building development downtown.  If any of you watch the news on WRAL, and if they show me, let me know if I was coherent!

Thanks a lot,
Andrew Neal
Chapel Hill Comics

Here is the stuff we’re scheduled to receive on Wednesday, November 22, and here’s the schedule for that week:

Wednesday, November 22: Closing Early at 6pm.
Thursday, November 23: CLOSED. Happy Thanksgiving!
Friday, November 25: Open Regular hours from 10am-9pm for our Day After Thanksgiving Sale!

COMICS AND MAGAZINES
24 NIGHTFALL #1 (OF 6) $3.99
52 WEEK #29 $2.50
ACTION COMICS #845 $2.99
ALL NEW OFF HANDBOOK MARVEL UNIVERSE A TO Z #11 $3.99
AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #536 CW $2.99
ANGEL AULD LANG SYNE #1 $3.99
ANGRY YOUTH COMIX #12 (MR) $3.50
AVENGERS EARTHS MIGHTIEST HEROES II #2 (OF 8) $3.99
BLUE BEETLE #9 $2.99
BOYS #5 (MR) $2.99
BUCKAROO BANZAI #3 (OF 3) $3.50
CASANOVA #6 (MR) $1.99
CIVIL WAR FRONT LINE #8 (OF 11) $2.99
CLASSIC BATTLESTAR GALACTICA #2 $3.50
CONAN #34 (MR) $2.99
CONNOR HAWKE DRAGONS BLOOD #1(OF 6) $2.99
CREEPER #4 (OF 6) $2.99
DAREDEVIL #91 $2.99
DEVILS PANTIES #6 $4.95
DRAGONLANCE CHRONICLES VOL 2 KURTH CVR A #3 (OF 4) $4.95
DRAIN #1 (MR) $2.99
DWIGHT T ALBATROSS THE GOON NOIR #2 (OF 3) $2.99
ENIGMA CIPHER #1 (OF 2) (C: 1-0-0) $6.99
EXILES #88 $2.99
FANTASTIC FOUR THE END #2 (OF6) $2.99
FUTURAMA COMICS #28 $2.99
GODLAND #14 $2.99
HAUNTED MANSION #5 $2.95
HAWKGIRL #58 $2.99
HELLSTORM SON OF SATAN #2 (OF5) (MR) $3.99
HEROES FOR HIRE #4 $2.99
IMPALER #2 (OF 4) (MR) $2.99
JACK OF FABLES #5 (MR) $2.99
JOHN WOOS SEVEN BROTHERS #2 $2.99
JSA CLASSIFIED #19 $2.99
LOOKING GLASS WARS HATTER M #4 (OF 4) $3.99
MAN CALLED KEV #4 (OF 5) (MR) $2.99
MARVEL PREVIEWS #40 FOR CATALOG PACK DECEMBER 2006 $0.99
NEW EXCALIBUR #13 $2.99
NEWTYPE ENG ED W/ DVD DEC 2006 (C: 0-1-2) $12.98
NOBLE CAUSES #25 (NOTE PRICE) $4.99
PERHAPANAUTS SECOND CHANCES #2 (OF 4) $2.99
PIRATES OF CONEY ISLAND #2 (OF 8) $2.99
PREVIEWS VOL XVI #12 (NET) $4.50
PTOLUS CITY BY THE SPIRE #2 (OF 12) $2.99
PUNISHER WAR JOURNAL #1 CW $2.99
RED MENACE #1 (OF 6) $2.99
RUNAWAYS #22 $2.99
SAM NOIR SAMURAI DETECTIVE #3 $2.99
SAMURAI HEAVEN & EARTH VOL 2 #1 (OF 5) $2.99
SAVAGE RED SONJA QOTFW #4 (OF4) $3.50
SCREWTOOTH #2 $2.95
SIMPSONS WINTER WINGDING #1 $4.99
SNAKEWOMAN #5 $2.99
SPIDER-MAN LOVES MARY JANE #12 $2.99
STREET FIGHTER II #5 ALVIN LEE CVR A $2.95
SUPERGIRL AND THE LEGION OF SUPER HEROES #24 $2.99
TRANSFORMERS ANIMATED MOVIE ADAPTATION #2 (OF 4) $3.99
TURISTAS OTHER SIDE OF PARADISE BOOK ONE (MR) $3.99
ULTIMATE SPIDER-MAN #102 $2.99
UNCLE SAM AND THE FREEDOM FIGHTERS #5 (OF 8) $2.99
UNCLE SCROOGE #360 $6.95
USAGI YOJIMBO #98 $2.99
WALKING DEAD #32 (RES) (MR) $2.99
WALT DISNEYS COMICS & STORIES #675 $6.95
WIZARD COMICS MAGAZINE IRON MAN CAPT AMER CIVIL WAR CVR #183 $5.99
WIZARD COMICS MAGAZINE MARVEL MOVIES PHOTO CVR #183 $5.99
WOLVERINE #48 CW $2.99
WONDER WOMAN #3 $2.99
X-FACTOR #13 $2.99
ZOMBIES ECLIPSE OF THE UNDEAD #1 (MR) $3.99

BOOKS, GRAPHIC NOVELS, MANGA
BETTIE PAGE BY OLIVIA HC (MR)(C: 0-1-2) $29.99
BLAB VOL 17 GN $19.95
CAPTAIN AMERICA RED MENACE VOL 2 TP $10.99
D GRAY MAN VOL 3 GN (C: 1-0-0) $7.99
DREAM OF THE RAREBIT FIEND THE SATURDAYS HC (C: 0-1-2) $29.95
ESSENTIAL CAPTAIN AMERICA VOL3 TP $16.99
FULLMETAL ALCHEMIST VOL 10 TP(C: 1-0-0) $9.99
GUNGRAVE ARCHIVE ARTBOOK TP (C: 1-1-2) $19.95
HANK KETCHAMS COMPLETE DENNIS THE MENACE 1955-1956 HC (C: 1- $24.95
HAYATE COMBAT BUTLER VOL 1 TP(C: 1-0-0) $9.99
HEROES REBORN CAPTAIN AMERICA TP $29.99
HOT MEXICAN LOVE COMICS 2006 (MR) $5.00
IO ART OF THE WIRED HC (C: 0-1-2) $49.95
KEKKAISHI VOL 7 GN (C: 1-0-0) $9.99
MARVEL HOLIDAY DIGEST TP $7.99
NEW X-MEN OMNIBUS HC $99.99
POKEMON 3D POP OUTS CHARMANDER & FRIENDS (C: 1-0-0) $9.99
POKEMON 3D POP OUTS PIKACHU &FRIENDS (C: 1-0-0) $9.99
POKEMON TALES MEET MEW 2ND ED(C: 3) $4.95
POKEMON TALES SNORLAX SNACK 2ND ED (C: 1-0-0) $4.95
READ OR DREAM VOL 1 TP (C: 1-0-0) $9.99
REMAINS TP (MR) $19.99
SHOWCASE PRESENTS THE UNKNOWN SOLDIER VOL 1 TP $16.99
SONIC THE HEDGEHOG ARCHIVES VOL 1 TP $7.49
SUPERMAN BATMAN VOL 3 ABSOLUTE POWER TP $12.99
SWAMP THING VOL 9 INFERNAL TRIANGLES TP (MR) $19.99
TSUBASA VOL 11 GN $10.95
ULTIMATE MUSCLE VOL 15 GN (C:1-0-0) $7.95
VAMPIRE HUNTER D VOL 6 PILGRIMAGE O/T SACRED & PROFANE NOVEL $8.95
WANG WHOS YOUR DADDY GN (MR) $9.95
Y THE LAST MAN VOL 8 KIMONO DRAGONS TP (MR) $14.99

OTHER ITEMS
AQUAMAN 13 INCH DELUXE COLLECTOR FIGURE $59.99
MARVEL HEROCLIX SUPERNOVA BOOSTER PACK (C: 1-1-2) $7.99

Thanks,
Andrew Neal
Chapel Hill Comics

This is just a reminder that Tommy Lee Edwards will be signing copies of his Marvel Comic, Bullet Points, today ( Wednesday, November 15), from 1 until 3 pm.  Come by and check it out!

Today will also see our biggest shipment at the store in a while, with Civil War, Astonishing X-Men, New Avengers, and a ton of manga titles!

More information is available at chapelhillcomics.com !

Thanks,
Andrew Neal
Chapel Hill Comics