by Brian Michael Bendis (writer), Mike Deodato & Greg Horn (art), Rain Beredo (colors), and Cory Petit (letters)

The Story: As the Avengers find themselves subjected to the whims of Molecule Man, Victoria Hand scrambles.

What’s Good: As Hand takes center-stage this month, we finally get a three-dimensional character out of her.  It’s very interesting to see how her motivations largely stem out of an uncompromising sense of integrity mixed with a desire to do as much as good as possible.  Hopefully this is a seed that will come back to bite Norman.  Either way, it’s always great to get to know a character as an individual, let alone one who’d been little more than scenery up until this point.  Having Hand become more developed will undoubtedly add more to the series.

Meanwhile, in the present, Hand is thrust into a central leadership position, and we see just how awkward, uncomfortable, and perhaps even unprepared and flustered she is in such a role.  Victoria Hand finally feels and looks human and almost likable.

Molecule Man is the other central figure this month and he’s definitely creepy, particularly thanks to Bendis’ godlike portrayal of his ill-defined Silver Age power set.  I also really liked how Bendis wrote his voice.  While not openly bonkers, there’s just something off about his dialogue.  Bendis is clearly trying to convey the character’s complete social ineptitude, isolation, and consequent difficulty conversing with others.  It’s very subtle, but that makes it all the more skillfully executed.

Greg Horn also does a fantastic job illustrating the “dream sequences” this month, with his hazy, softer, painted feel contrasting beautifully and suddenly with the usual heavy, dark, muscled fare that Deodato brings.

What’s Not So Good: Nothing really wowed me about this issue.  I think that that’s largely due to the book spending an incredible amount of time with Molecule Man as the main character weaving the text together.  Probably not a good call when we’re unattached to the character.  Also, while his voice is good, his “I want to be left alone” rhetoric does repeat.  This would normally be just fine, but when he’s holding together the entire issue, it gets a little dry.

Also, outside of Hand’s scenes, the structure of this month’s issue is so apparent that it creaks.  Every member of the team gets one scene where they feel the power of Molecule Man.  It’s a really uninventive way of getting a new villain’s power across and it also makes the latter half of the issue feel more like a series of skits or vignettes than a single coherent book.  As each Avenger is visited, I can almost feel Bendis ticking off boxes.  Of course, page-count concerns also reduce the length of each scene, sometimes to a single page, so it’s not like any of them particularly resonate either.

Furthermore, was it really necessary to see Sentry get pulverized again?  It’s getting ridiculous how the most uber-powerful character in the Avengers-line has been turned into a complete bitch throughout Dark Reign thanks to the writer’s inability to figure out what to do with him.  It’s not like anyone would take anything resembling a death for the character seriously at this point anyway.

As a final note, I mentioned this last month, but Deodato really does love to draw scantily clad women.  For the second month in a row, the needless skimpiness annoys.  As does seeing page after page of naked bodybuilder Norman Osborn.

Conclusion: It’s cool getting to know Victoria, but outside of some neat work by Horn, the rest of the book is a bit of a wash.

Grade: C+

-Alex Evans

I went to the Big Apple Comic Con this weekend and had a great time. I shot a lot of video, but I also took some photos, which are shown below. I interviewed two artists that I’m a huge fan of: Joe Madureira and Greg Horn. Enjoy!

Wicked Cool Comics will be attending Mini MegaCon next weekend.

MegaCon is typically in March, but this year is the first ever Mini MegaCon. It is the halfway point between this year and next year for MegaCon goers. The show seems to be a bit smaller that the typical MegaCon gathering, and is a 2 day event instead of 3.

There are several creators we are excited to meet. For us, it’s about them. Although we do love the costumes, too!

Here’s the guest list so far:

Drew Geraci, Dick Giordano, Greg Horn, Casey Jones, Phil Noto, Christian Slade, Tony Bedard, Sergio Cariello, Jim Cheung, Amanda Conner, Darwyn Cooke, Chuck Dixon, Greg Land, Alvin Lee, Jimmy Palmiotti, Jeff Parker, Mike Perkins, Brandon Peterson, Steve Scott, Arne Starr, Amanda Stevens, Billy Tan, Tim Townsend, and Renee Witterstaetter.

You can also see great people attending artist alley!

Let us know if you are planning to attend, we would love to meet you. Also, get a picture with us in your costume and you could end up in our costume gallery! We post our favorites from each convention we attend.

Living Green: A Practical Guide to Simple Sustainability by Greg Horn

Greg Horn’s Living Green: A Practical Guide to Simple Sustainability is one of the best examples you’ll ever find of an easy-to-read, sensible primer on suggestions for sustainability. This book was one of greendom’s first best sellers. From it’s back cover it promises, “The most affordable and practical ways to live more lightly on the planet.” And Greg delivers. Get it, read it and use it and you’ll be glad you did.

We’ve read Living Green: A Practical Guide to Simple Sustainability from cover to cover and found it especially interesting, useful and even enjoyable. So, to give you an overall feeling of what it offers, let me offer other snippets from the book’s back cover.

- “Over 85% of Americans today express concern about health and the environment, but only a small fraction say they know where to begin.”

- “The most chemically intensive personal care, household cleaning, and lawn care products, with effective natural alternatives.”

- “How a simple carbon filter can dramatically improve your everyday health and potentially add years to your life.”

- “Why an organic mattress is the most important health investment you can make.”

History of Hostess - how the inspiration to manufacture Twinkies actually happened.

Greg is a man blessed with lots of common sense and experience in green matters. Paraphrasing one of my favorite bromides of his, Greg recommends that if you can’t pronounce the name of an ingredient in your food, or you don’t know what it is, you should put it down and select something else. That makes sense, right? Ask yourself if companies like Enron, Dow, Hostess Cakes and General Foods ever have your best interests at heart.

Another surprising recommendation Greg offers is that if you want to put something in contact with your skin, it has to be something you can eat, otherwise it’s toxic. Knowing what I do about chemistry, companies and bodies, having synthetic, un-pronounceable chemicals in our stuff is sales baloney, but wasn’t inclined to do anything about it until I tried a simple test Greg suggests; try rubbing a little crushed garlic on the sole of your foot and take notice of what happens in about 15 minutes. To be scientific about this, I’d suggest using latex gloves on your hands while you’re crushing the garlic so you don’t bathe your hands with the pungent stuff. And then think about what Greg wrote and see where your thoughts lead you.

You mean I can take something ucky that's been in the ground for millions of years, have a herd of chemists work on it, and they'll tell me it's safe to slather all over me? Cool!

When I first considered this, I wondered why the cosmetics manufacturers insist on putting chemicals like methylparaben, dimethicone or petroleum jelly in products like skin moisturizers. The manufacturers would say those chemicals are safe, right? Since the only two scientists on Earth who could agree upon and completely understand the effects of low-level, chronic toxicity of synthetic chemicals weren’t available for interview at press time, I thought much less of mainline consumer companies’ safety criteria.

You might conclude the same thing I did – that chemicals in products applied to your skin are safe in exactly the same way PG&E’s hexavalent chromium was, made famous by Erin Brockovich. Here’s the truth: unless someone can prove something from a long-term study, no one’s gonna cop to slowly poisoning your skin. There’s no good incentive for them to do it. And whether something’s mildly toxic or will kill you instantly is a counterproductive distinction – like being “a little pregnant.” Thanks to Woman’s Day for providing the wonderful photo next door, from their article titled, “5 Things To Do With… Petroleum Jelly.”

Greg has divided Living Green: A Practical Guide to Simple Sustainability into three sections, “Sustainable Health,” “Sustainable Home” and “Sustainable Future.” Simple and direct is his writing and information, based on good research and personal experience. He also makes suggestions in getting started which are easy to follow, and which I can verify from own experience make a great deal of sense. Greg’s suggested beginning “Top Ten” are:

1. Eating organic
2. Going carbon zero – offsetting your own carbon footprint
3. Recycling
4. Denying disposables
5. Switching to natural personal care
6. Using natural lawn care
7. Cleaning green – using environmentally friendly cleaning products which are also far less toxic
8. Filtering your tap water
9. Increasing energy efficiency
10. Staying informed

Greg Horn, best-selling green author

If you’re looking for more credentials to back up what Greg has written in Living Green: A Practical Guide to Simple Sustainability, these things occur to me as worthy of primary mention:

… While Greg was Chief Executive Officer of General Nutrition Centers (GNC), expanding the company from $400 million to $1.5 billion in revenue over his 11 years – he solved his own personal health challenges resulting from multiple chemical sensitivities. He write about them in Living Green.

… Greg’s a speaker and advocate for sustainable living and founder of Just Do One, a leading on-line community for sharing ideas on sustainable living.

… Greg co-founded several branded nutrition and healthy living companies and Eco Shoppe, a retail brand offering simple solutions for living green.

… Was turnaround CEO of Garden of Life, Inc., an organic food and nutrition supplements company.

Blue Planet Almanac wants to put a dulcet-toned bug in your ear about our special guests who’ll visit with us on the air. Set a reminder now on your smart-phone so you’ll tune into HealthyLife.net at 2:00 PM Pacific time on Tuesday, 7-14-09 to hear this vital information!:

Greg Horn, best-selling author and green business wizard

Greg Horn, Maestro of Green Business

We’ll be having a “Cut-to-the-Chase” conversation with best-selling green author and brilliant captain of business Greg Horn, Operating Advisor to Pegasus Capital Advisors about the hottest investment and business trends in sustainable, green futures for a healthy Earth. “Hottest” in this context sort’a has a whole, new level of meaning, eh? Pegasus Capital Advisors manages $1.8 billion in assets. And with Greg’s mere 20 years in business, his personal story also compelled him to pen the best-selling book, Living Green: A Practical Guide to Simple Sustainability, which offers architecture founded on his compelling personal experiences.

Pause just a moment and consider this; with all the current attention given to sustainable technologies and lifestyles, where are people in-the-know investing their dollars? Why should it matter to you? What’s driving consumer markets and the sustainable businesses that serve them? What are the most important trends which will affect you and everyone else?

Greg will give us glimpses down the road we’re all already following – even if we’ve not noticed our direction of travel – to provide insights on where to invest your time and money, to reap your best rewards from green consciousness. A guiding principle here is simple but especially far-reaching: one of the quickest paths to get us out of the problems we’ve all created from an oil and consumer-based economy, is to use the existing mechanisms of our consumer-based marketplace.

Living Green: A Practical Guide to Simple Sustainability by Greg Horn

Don’t get left out of decisions about your future. Move past all the insufferable media greenwashing, the endless news stories about new environmental legislation, the arresting thoughts of climate change and disappearance of species, and think about what’s going to be the quickest and biggest help in solving our problems. Wouldn’t it make perfect sense to modify the marketplace systems we’re using, rather than toss them out the window for a new model? This Blue Planet Almanac hour’s an outgrowth of the concepts embodied in Blue Planet Almanac’s first show with Dr. Ellis Jones, author of the Better World Shopping Guide. Vote with your purchase and investment dollars as well as your political conscience.

Greg Horn has an impressive, “two decades of experience in developing and managing companies associated with personal health, nutrition and environmental sustainability, and…

• was Chief Executive Officer of General Nutrition Centers (GNC), and was instrumental in building the GNC brand and in expanding the company from $400 million to $1.5 billion in revenue over his 11 years in management. When GNC was acquired in 1999 by Royal Numico, he was chairman of the North American Executive Committee, overseeing all the company’s $2.5 billion specialty retail, mass market, and direct selling operations in North America.
• is a veteran of over $4.5 billion in completed M&A transactions ranging from venture through public company acquisitions.
• is a speaker and advocate for sustainable living and founder of Just Do One, a leading on-line community for sharing ideas on sustainable living.
• is an entrepreneur, having co-founded several branded nutrition and healthy living companies and Eco Shoppe, a retail brand offering simple solutions for living green.
• was turnaround CEO of Garden of Life, Inc., an innovative organic food and nutrition supplements company.
• is current advisor to companies such as Lighting Science, whose sustainable LED products are used in large projects such as those from Sony, Cartier, Saks 5th Avenue, Tufts University, Chanel, Orange County Performing Arts Center and Times Square New York.
• is current advisor to iGPS Pallets whose sustainable pallets are used in hundreds of global industries.
  

Christina Walsh and William Preston Bowling of the Aerospace Cancer Museum of Education

Christina Walsh and William Bowling,
Anti-Cancer Crusaders

And to find out where we’re going, you also have to glance back at where you’ve been. We’ll also have a candid conversation about one of Uncle Sam’s least-favorite secrets and deadly health ripples from southern California’s legendary aerospace industry.

With William Preston Bowling and Christina Walsh, founders of the Annenberg Foundation-funded, nonprofit Aerospace Cancer Museum of Education (ACME-LA) in Chatsworth, CA, we’ll discuss a 3,000-acre toxic Superfund site at the eastern edge of the San Fernando Valley. Known broadly as the Santa Susana Field Laboratory, companies and their divisions including North American Aviation, Atomics International, Rocketdyne and Boeing had operations there for a variety of aerospace and energy contracts, including many with NASA. The U.S. government also owned contractor-run facilities such as the Energy Technology Engineering Center at Santa Susana. All this took place within 20 casual minutes’ driving distance from of the most highly-traveled freeway in the U.S., next door to millions of Angelino residents and workers. Does the site mean anything to you or should it simply be ignored because Uncle Sam’s government “took care of it” for you?

From a front-page article in a local paper, The Acorn, I found these two remarkably-dedicated folk. It seems there’s been an unusual spike in cancer cases in my neck ‘o the woods, several miles away from the arresting subjects of ACME-LA’s nonprofit. And people are now going hunting for causes. Local residents even invited ACME-LA to present what it knows. What caused this spike? Could the sudden passing last Fall of a wonderful, 14 year-old child, stricken with leukemia have anything in common with the spike? Blue Planet Almanac’s family had met the child. There have been many more cancer sufferers and one is one too many.

After Blue Planet Almanac attended the reception for Aerospace Cancer Museum of Education’s one-year anniversary, we were impressed with William and Christina’s dedication to their attendees and facts. As just one example of Los Angeles’ residents who were directly-affected by local aerospace activities, we met and talked with the daughter of a southern California mayor whose two brothers lost both their eyes and both succumbed to cancer before manhood. The fact that her brothers lived near the Santa Susana Field Laboratory with their family, and the fact that she was never affected with the problems because she never lived near the lab, don’t seem to be coincidence to anyone thoughtful.

And there’s much more. Through ACME-LA, William and Christina are spokespeople for convincing proof that the highly-toxic chemicals used at the Santa Susana Field Laboratory, such as TCE or radionuclides could have lots to do with hundreds of cancer patients concentrated near Chatsworth. It’s also William and Christina’s assertion that one of the largest nuclear accidents on U.S. soil took place at the famed Santa Susana Field Laboratory in Chatsworth, CA, at the eastern edge of the San Fernando Valley. Nope, they’d say, it wasn’t Three-Mile Island that was largest nuclear accident on U.S. soil. And after you hear what they have to say, you’ll agree.

What, exactly, went on in Chatsworth and the Santa Susana mountains? What’s going on there now? Well, for one thing, 50 years ago, in July 1959, the Sodium Reactor Experiment located at Atomics International’s Santa Susana Field Laboratory facility melted down. One of nine nuclear accidents at the same site! According to Aerospace Cancer Museum of Education’s Website, the Los Angeles Times reported that one accident released 240 times more radioactivity than did 1979’s Three-Mile Island. Do Atomics International’s nuclear accidents have anything to do with the spike in cancer cases? What other discernible factors could have contributed? What other high-risk, high-technology activities were undertaken in Santa Susana? Is anything being done to clean up the remains of ALL the toxic activities at the site?

Tune-in and find out!

Greg horn

Greg Horn is an American comic book artist best known for his work as a cover artist for Marvel comics and various other publications. Working primarily as a digital painter, he is well known for detailed and realistic painted characters, paintings of beautiful female characters, and expressive lighting effects. In addition to comic book covers, his art has been featured in posters for Basketball at the 2004 Summer Olympics, video game magazines such as Official Xbox Magazine and InQuest Gamer, and several covers and illustrations for the comic book news magazine Wizard.

His latest projects include covers for the on-going Ms Marvel series from Marvel Comics, Jenna Jameson’s Shadow Hunter from Virgin Comics , as well as a series of pieces promoting Marvel’s 2008 “event” Secret Invasion.

◊GALERIA◊

Due to overwhelming interest in our Family From Hell contest for Jenna Jameson’s Shadow Hunter, we’ve decided to extend the entry cut-off date to April 1st. Please keep in mind that any entry submitted to familyfromhell@virgincomics.com will be eligible to win, but we can only post submissions that include some sort of visual element in our interactive Kyte player. We have received numerous text-only entries, which are still in the running to win but cannot be updated onto our Kyte player.

The grand prize winner will be drawn into the graphic novel edition of Jenna Jameson’s Shadow Hunter by acclaimed artist Greg Horn. No word yet on how badly the winner’s butt will get kicked by the Shadow Hunter! Other prizes include Jenna Jameson-signed lithographs and a collection of graphic novels from Virgin Comics.

Go to www.jennacomix.com for more information on the contest. The two newest entries we posted are titled Family From Hell: A Documentary and The Family From Hell Song- be sure to check them out!

To celebrate the release of Jenna Jameson’s Shadow Hunter #1, we’ve launched a DOWNLOADS section at JennaComix.com where you can get exclusive wallpapers, buddy icons, and artwork.

Also, there is still plenty of time to enter the Shadow Hunter FAMILY FROM HELL contest. All you have to do is submit videos, pictures, or stories explaining why your family is from hell, and the grand prize winner will be drawn into the graphic novel edition of Jenna Jameson’s Shadow Hunter by acclaimed artist Greg Horn. No word yet on how badly the winner’s butt will get kicked by the Shadow Hunter! Other prizes include Jenna Jameson-signed lithographs and a collection of graphic novels from Virgin Comics.

TALL TALES OF VISHNU SHARMA: PANCHATANTRA – ON SALE 2/13

Written by Samit Basu
Art & Cover by Ashish Padlekar

SOME OLD STORIES NEVER LOSE THEIR BITE…

The tales of Vishnu Sharma have barely begun and already he’s been kidnapped by talking animals, had a near-death experience with a homicidal boy wizard, and now he’s expected to walk INTO a book called the Panchatantra, the ancient collection of Indian fables of which Vishnu is supposedly the guardian. If that weren’t enough, when Vishnu is pulled inside the pages of folklore and fantasy, death and oblivion seem all too real. This fairytale is more like a nightmare, where “THE END” is something he desperately wants to avoid.

JOHN WOO’S SEVEN BROTHERS #5 – ON SALE 2/13

Created by John Woo
Written by Ben Raab & Deric A. Hughes
Art by Edison George
Cover by David Mack

Don’t miss this heart-pounding final chapter of JOHN WOO’S SEVEN BROTHERS!

Having tapped the very essence of the Seven Brothers’ powers, Li Jiao has become a seemingly unstoppable force. But the Brothers’ secret weapon, Ronald and his Dragon alter-ego, are still missing. As Jiao uses his newfound aptitude for destruction to settle a score, can the Seven Brothers bring down the renegade monk before he makes good on his promise to avenge his father’s death?

RAMAYAN 3392AD RELOADED #4 – ON SALE 2/13

Written by Shamik Dasgupta
Art& Cover by Jeevan Kang
Variant Cover by Luke Ross

Captured by a violent tribe, Rama and his brother Lakshman are thrown into the dungeons, whileSeeta is imprisoned in a harem. Facing almost certain death, Rama is offered a chance to escape but does he dare trust an enemy with his life and the lives of his comrades? Plus, a Seeta backup story by Ron Marz and Luke Ross!

JENNA JAMESON’S SHADOW HUNTER #1 – ON SALE 2/20

Created by Jenna Jameson
Written by Christina Z.
Art by Mukesh Singh
Cover by Greg Horn

From the mind of Jenna Jameson, NY Times Bestselling author and iconic entertainer and written by Christina Z (WITCHBLADE) comes a dark talef one woman’s struggle with forces beyond ordinary perception. In this Special Oversized issue, star artist Mukesh Singh (GAMEKEEPER) illustrates the beginning of the saga. A young, orphaned, beautiful woman attempts to make a life for herself in the big city. As she grapples with mundane problems like making rent and a creepy manager at work, something deeper brews; a nagging suspicion that her life is not her own. Seeking answers (not to mention extra cash) she enrolls in a past life regression experiment which seems to ignite visions of a demonic past that no one can explain.

Then comes the titillating and strangely dangerous power she’s not sure she can control, and a mysterious guy with the sword who just won’t leave her alone. It’s one hell of a day for our heroine, especially when she discovers who her real father is.

SPECIAL 40 PAGE OVERSIZED ISSUE FEATURING 32 STORY PAGES.

JONATHAN MOSTOW’S THE MEGAS #1 – ON SALE 2/27

Created by Jonathan Mostow
Written by John Harrison
Art & Cover by Peter Rubin

ALL MEN ARE NOT CREATED EQUAL!

From the visionary director of Terminator 3, Jonathan Mostow, we enter the world of The Megas. Beautiful. Powerful. Better. They’re everything you’ve ever wanted to be. But at the heart of this dystopic society lies a regime struggling for control over a populace that may just be tired of being inferior. Agent Jack Madison finds himself in the middle of a maelstrom as he struggles to solve a crime and come to terms with a truth he’s not ready to face. Not to mention a mysterious symbol and the seeds of rebellion.

THE STRANDED #2 – ON SALE 2/27

Written by Mike Carey
Art by Siddharth Kotian
Cover by
Variant Cover by Christopher Moeller

Continuing the first book in the groundbreaking new Virgin/SciFi line, created and written by acclaimed novelist/comics writer Mike Carey (X-MEN, The Devil You Know)!

What if your past, everything you knew, was a lie? A mysterious assassin called Janus knows…and he’s determined to kill the Stranded one by one before they can learn of their true, extraterrestrial origins. Now Tamree, their protector, races against time to awaken them to their true nature and powers. But Janus holds a secret weapon: his inhuman companion, Dzin — whose connection to Tamree may doom the protector’s mission before it’s even truly begun.

Featuring a painted cover by fan-favorite artist Christopher Moeller (LUCIFER, Magic: The Gathering, IRON EMPIRES).

DAN DARE #4 – ON SALE 2/27

Written by Garth Ennis
Art by Gary Erskine
Cover by Garry Leach
Variant Cover by Glenn Fabry

It’s the last stand on Port Napier as Dan Dare and the colonists find themselves nearly overrun by the onslaught of Torr, vicious killing beasts. Trying to hold them off until they can be rescued, what they don’t know is that the entire royal navy has been thrown into disarray by the disappearance of the Prime Minister back on Earth. As Peabody attempts to piece together the puzzle—and the government—Dan and Digby brace themselves for total annihilation, hoping for a miracle.

SADHU: THE SILENT ONES #5 – ON SALE 2/27

Written by Saurav Mohapatra
Art By Manikandan
Cover by Jeffrey Spokes

The second Sadhu saga reaches its stunning climax! James Jensen, the British soldier who became a mystic warrior, and his mysterious ally Trishanku launch an all-out attack on the stronghold of the Silent Ones in a desperate effort to save Jensen’s son. But even as they breach the outer defenses of the cult’s fortress, Jensen and Trishanku realize that the devious Grand Mistress has sprung a trap that might forever change the very fabric of this world and beyond!

DEEPAK CHOPRA PRESENTS INDIA AUTHENTIC #10 – ON SALE 2/27

Created by Deepak Chopra
Written by Saurav Mohapatra
Art by Virgin Studios
Cover by Siju Thomas

“At first, I shed tears at the massacre of my kin at the hands of a ruthless king. The Axe mocked me. I felt the anger well up in my heart, screaming to be unleashed. The Axe encouraged me. I tried to veer myself away from the path of vengeance. The Axe whispered in my ears. Once, I was a scholar, a man at peace with his soul. But now who I am is long gone. I have vowed to rid the earth of my enemies. The man I used to be is dead, his identity washed away in a deluge of retribution. Once, there was a hermit named Rama, now there is only The Axe.”

Virgin Comics and Deepak Chopra present as part of the INDIA AUTHENTIC series, a look at the metamorphosis of a peace loving hermit named Rama into one of the most feared warriors on the planet. When a tyrant massacres his family, Rama picks up the Axe and vows to rid the earth of Kings.

Witness the rage and fury of a man pushed too far as he embarks on a bloody campaign and the thirst for vengeance transforms him into the very thing he set out to fight.

The first time I saw the cover on Previews it got me interested, but not to the point of buying it. But then I read that Christina Z was working on the title and decided to buy it blindly. She wrote Witchblade since the beginning (up to #34), personally the best issues of the series.

The cover by Greg Horn is stunning. The six page comic preview penciled by Mukesh Singh (Devi). Includes an interview with Christina Z, and gorgeous pinups by Horn, Greg Land, Daniel Brereton, J. Michael Linsner, Niko Henrichon, and more art by Singh. The story is about a woman who has visions about monsters, but the monsters begin to materialize in real life.

Even though it’s 25c and you still haven’t picked it up, you can download it for free at Playboy.com. Issue #1 Ships 2/20/08 (Grade: B+)

-Daniel Yanez

The Web’s Most Downloaded Woman Creates “Shadow Hunter” Comic for Virgin’s Celebrity “Voices” Line

SAN DIEGO COMIC-CON—July 25th, 2007— World-famous entrepreneur, adult entertainment icon and New York Times best-selling author Jenna Jameson is creating and starring in her own series of comic books, it was announced today by Virgin Comics CEO, Sharad Devarajan, at Comic-Con, the industry’s annual super-festival in San Diego. The series, titled Shadow Hunter, debuts in comic shops and online comic retailers in December. The complete 108 page Shadow Hunter book will be available in June 2008 at all major book sellers. A new site, JennaComix.com will host additional information, previews and pre-orders of the comic art and books.

Shadow Hunter is the story of a provocative superheroine who survives a brush with death only to find herself fighting the legions of hell for her very soul. Cover art for the first issue has been created by Greg Horn, a top illustrator of comic books and video games. The story, while provocative and sexy, contains no nudity and is intended for a mainstream audience.

“Jenna Jameson is a cultural force,” said Virgin Comics CEO Sharad Devarajan. “She is an entrepreneur who is taking the taboo to the mainstream and has built an industry around her brand.”

“I’m thrilled to be collaborating with Virgin to bring this story to life, first as comics and eventually in film and other formats,” said Jenna Jameson. “Working with comics is creatively liberating – everything is possible. My character is sultry, sexy and kicks ass!’

“Jenna brings a defiance and edge to everything she does, said Gotham Chopra, Chief Creative Officer of Virgin Comics. “She’s a provocateur and there’s no doubt that our creative team at Virgin is going to have a blast collaborating with her. I can assure you every artist we have in our studio is vying to get assigned to this project!”

San Diego Comic-Con is preparing for record crowds when Jenna makes her very first appearance at this event that attracts more than 100,000 fans. Jenna will be speaking about Shadow Hunter and signing autographs for fans on Saturday afternoon, July 28 at 4:30 PM. Images from the series will be available from the Virgin Comics booth at the San Diego Convention Center.