I finally finished the comics I bought at this year's Small Press Alternative Comics Expo - which was in April - and this year's Motor City Con - which was in May.

Bang ashcan preview from Geekocracy: This is a fun-looking western about a lawman tracking down gunmen who have shot up a bank but didn't bother to rob it.  I love westerns, so I'll be on the look-out for this.  www.geekocracy.org/store

Cemetary Moon #1 from Fortress Publishing: This is a prose horror anthology with a heavy dose of quirky and weird stories and poetry.  My favorite is Zombie Camp, which is a funny story about a summer camp for undead kids.  www.fortresspublishinginc.com

The Chimera Strikes! #2 from Satyr Play: Mike Indovina is a genius.  Not only does he know more about Greek mythology than you have forgotten, but he's created one of the best pulp superheroes around.  The Chimera and his gal Friday Andrea Webb fight the mysterious Voice - a criminal overlord who speaks from old cathedral-style radios.  What I love most about this book is that the Chimera isn't the main character (even though it's his book).  Andrea is.  Mike got our mutual pal Paul Schultz to draw this issue and the combination is fantastic.  www.geocities.com/mikeindovina/Satyr.html

Death Nouvea #1 from Torc Press: Another batch of indie comics genius are Joseph and Ryan Morris at Torc Press.  They create amazing David Lynch-esque comics that, as bizarre as they are, still maintain a three-act structure and are easy to follow while remaining mysterious.  This book comes with a CD of original music by Ryan's band - the Dr. Orphyus Project.  Each track corresponds with a different page of the book.  Brilliant.  www.torcpress.com

Downs #1 and ashcan preview #2 by Tony Goins: Tony's a nice indie comics dude I met at either SPACE or the Mid-Ohio-Con.  He's created this neat comic about a paranormal investigator with no eyes but who can "see with her mind."  It's a neat mix of mystery, Asian mysticism, and good dialogue.  www.tonygoins.com/downs

Dutchy Digest #3 and Free Comic Book Day edition: I was sold on this as soon as Steve Hager told me it was about an Amish farmer who wants to be a detective.  Issue 3 has Amos Dingledorffer and his pet chicken investigating a haunted quilt.    The FCBD edition is a story of Amos' father trying to find Amos on the farm.  Good light-hearted stuff.  www.dutchydigest.tripod.com 

Elemental Fources #'s 4-6 from New Baby Productions: This wraps up the first Elemental Fources mini-series.  The last three issues are told at a breakneck pace as the elemental superhero team fights against demons and the organization that controls the Fources.  Eric Mullarky (the editor) is a good joe.  www.elementalfources.com

The Experts #'s 1-3 from Near Mint Press: This is a good, fun, and unpretentious superhero team book with some bonus stories thrown in most of the issues.  Kenn Minter and Clarence Pruitt have created a team of superheroes who talk like real people, have mixed-up relationships like real people, and screw up like real people.  This book makes me want to dust off a similar project I've had on the back burner for years.  I just hope I can do it as well as these guys.  www.expertscomic.blogspot.com

Franklinstein 36 Craven Street from Penny Dreadful Press: This book makes me want to kick its creator, Dave Arhar, in the junk.  Dave came up with the great idea of "What if Ben Franklin created the Frankenstein monster?"  It's astoundingly brilliant.  It's one of those "Why couldn't I have thought of that?"  He even got Paul Schultz to draw it.  Arhar is a genius who has such great ideas he is begging for my foot to slam into his groin.  www.pennydreadfulpress.net

Geekocracy #2: From the folks who brought you the above-mentioned Bang ashcan, this ashcan mini-anthology has three fun stories about love and relationships.  Don't let the "Charles Manson in drag" cover scare you away.

Haunted #1 from Break the Line Comics: Knifely, creator of this amazing espionage book, also makes me angry because he writes espionage so much better than I.  If you like espionage, snappy dialogue, and intrigue - you need these books.  Seriously.  Buy everything he has.  www.breakthelinecomics.com

Iron Sirens #4 from JM Productions and Digital Webbing: These guys are men after my own heart.  They like to write comics for beautiful women.  This book is about a superhero team based on fitness models Kristal Richardson, Jenny Lynn, and Adela.  They're trapped in a hostile dimension fighting the villainess Diva X.  What more do you want?  My pal Uko Smith did a great cover and the back is full of pin-up photos.  www.myspace.com/ironsirens

L'il Buddha Loves You by Ryan Dow is a fun comic.  The tagline is "Then again, he loves everybody."  It's Dow's journey toward enlightenment as he struggles with remembering to meditate and remembering to make indie comics.  Funny stuff, especially if you like Asian philosophy as much as I.  www.introspectivecomics.com

Mary Monster #0 from Jay Fife: Jay Fife, pin-up artist extraordinaire, and the incredibly busy Paul Schultz have put together a fun ashcan of a hot monster gal fighting bigger meaner monsters.  This book can't miss.  A hot monster gal in tight, tiny clothes slugging it out with lumbering hulks?  Sounds like a winner!  And it is!  www.jayfife.com

Monstracity from Three Crows Press:  Matt Dembicki and Steve Loya brought me more giant monsters, but fighting each other.  This oversized book is Dembicki and Loya's tribute to kaiju films and they have a blast depiciting their wild monsters destroying the Earth and each other.  www.dcconspiracy.com

Mysterious Visions Anthology #8 from SPA Comics: There's some good stuff here.  There's a fun story (told from various perspectives) of a kid stealing a porn magazine from a convenience store and a good heist tale of professional thieves tricked into working a job.  www.spacomics.com

No Gods #'s 1-3: Dustin Carson told me the main character in this book thinks he's a clone of Jesus Christ.  I was sold.  The first six issues are out, but I foolishly only bought the first three.  The story is non-linear, so don't expect it to make a heck of a lot of sense at first.  That's half the fun, however.  It's an intriguing read.  www.myspace.com/nogodscomic

Panda-Monium from Banshuwa Studio is a little collection of panda-themed art from my pal Russell Merritt.  The Iron Man panda is hysterical.  www.banshuwaart.bravehost.com

Schmuck Mini-Comix by Mark Sahagian: I bought three of these mini-comics.  Antichrist Comix! is a funny story about how the devil really doesn't have much to do up here.  I Drew This at Work! details how Sahagian screwed off all day on Labor Day 2007.  Dirty Money is another story from Sahagian's job that has to be read to be believed.

The Secret History of the Ineffables #'s 1-2 from Mystery City Comics: Craig Bogart's weird superhero team (which includes a living piece of abstract art, a "normal dude," a living Easter Island statue, and Abraham Lincoln) gets weirder as some of the members die, come back to live, and explore weird dimensions in-between.  This book is always a good read.  Seek them out.  www.theineffables.com

The Serial Squad!  Terror at the Bottom of the World! #1 from Bad Place Productions: If we, the comic book readers of the world, give Paul Schultz half the chance, he will perhaps single-handedly bring back fun adventure comics to the mainstream.  Gone will be the inane cross-overs and Cosmic Events of Incredible Magnitude.  In their place will be comics like this.  Fun, exciting adventure comics that remind you why you love comics in the first place.  www.badplaceproductions.com

Slam-Bang #4 from Fan-atic Press: This 150 page anthology is filled with music-themed stories and comes with a CD of indie bands and costs a mere ten bucks.  It's a steal.  My favorite story is perhaps the one about cavemen having the first battle of the bands.  www.fanaticpress.com

Space Pilot Girl: In the Steal of the Night ashcan from Comix Mill: Tim Fischer draws lovely ladies and he also draws them in space brawls and shooting things with ray guns.  This is a fun good-lookin' book.  Fischer isn't afraid to draw real women with curves and to include a lot of sexy eroticism in his stories.  He also drew me a great Vampirella sketch.  www.comix-mill.com

Timeless web comic preview from Satyr Play: Another intriguing piece from Mike Indovina, this about a woman who's having weird flashbacks to past lives in which she's everything from a demigoddess to a pulp hero.  I can't wait to see the rest of this.

Tiny Titans: Welcome to the Treehouse from DC Comics: Art Baltazar is knocking this book out of the park.  He and his pal Franco have created a fun, cute all-ages book that everyone can enjoy.  I know that seems like a trite, hackneyed review, but I swear it's true.  I also love the way Baltazar draws Cyborg.

Uncle Samson and the Phantoms of Lost Liberty ashcan from Pennydreadful Press: Remember when I wrote I wanted to kick Dave Arhar in the junk for Franklinstein?  Well this ashcan makes me want to punch him in the throat.  Arhar has created the coolest-looking superhero team since the JSA.  Where does he get these fantastic ideas?  I may have to put him in an ankle lock to make him tell me.  He can't get this book out fast enough. 

Wide Awake 666 from Wide Awake Press: This is a fun horror anthology.  It's chock-full of great art and fun, weird stories.  I'm not sure I could pick a favorite.  www.wideawakepress.com

Zoir #1 from Geekocracy: A crime noir story with a zombie private eye?  I'm there.  Mason Johnson and Sergio Carrera have crafted a great, fun story with all the noir elements you want and some new zombie elements you haven't thought of before. 

Whew!

Next up will be some comics I bought in Chicago last week.