comics that kick my butt

I read comics. I have read them since I was a teenager and will probably continue to do so as long as I draw breath. It's true that I'm no longer a rabid collector of these graphic stories, but I do buy a few titles ever couple of months. There are three titles I'd like to crow about.

The first is from Marvel and it's called The Ultimates. It's a re-imagining of the venerable supergroup the Avenagers. The twist is that Nick Fury and S.H.I.E.L.D. are running the group and almost all the heroes are reprehensible cretins. Great fun.

The next title is from Dark Horse Comics. It's the Hellboy spinoff B.P.R.D., the Bureau for Paranormal Research and Defense. It's another group of misfits who generally are in trouble just beyond their abilities to handle it. Mike Mignola plots these stories with John Arcudi. Lovecraft would delight in these tales.

The last series is a manga, also published by Dark Horse, called Hellsing. I was sucked into Hellsing by the anime, which differs quite a bit from the manga. Up until this last issue, #7, I was disappointed by the series. It seemed to be devolving into a gorefest of vampires verus nazi vampires versus crazy Catholic cultists. However, this last issue has some very interesting and much needed plot twists that have hooked me again. Damn you, Kohta Hirano.

Go get your comix on, G.