Please click on images or the links to buy or learn more from the publishers. Or, in the case of The Andi Watson Mini-Comics Collection Box, from me!

The Andi Watson Mini-Comics Collection Box (£4-99, Self-Published) by Andi Watson

Buy The Andi Watson Mini-Comics Collection Box from Page 45 and /or read Page 45’s Review here

Buy from our Andi Watson Mini-Comics selection and / or read Page 45’s reviews here

Brand-New Arrivals: Graphic Novels

Ascender vol 2 s/c (£14-99, Image) by Jeff Lemire & Dustin Nguyen

Buy Ascender vol 2 s/c from Page 45 and /or read the publisher’s hype here

Check, Please! vol 2: Sticks & Scones s/c (£12-99, FirstSecond) by Ngozi Ukazu

Buy Check, Please! vol 2: Sticks & Scones s/c from Page 45 and /or read the publisher’s hype here

Deadly Class vol 9: Bone Machine s/c (£14-99, Image) by Rick Remender & Wes Craig

Buy Deadly Class vol 9: Bone Machine s/c from Page 45 and /or read the publisher’s hype here

Deep Breaths s/c (£16-99, Top Shelf) by Chris Gooch

Buy Deep Breaths s/c from Page 45 and /or read the publisher’s hype here

Farmhand vol 3 (£14-99, Image) by Rob Guillory

Buy Farmhand vol 3 from Page 45 and /or read the publisher’s hype here

Moonshine vol 3 s/c (£14-99, Image) by Brian Azzarello & Eduardo Risso

Buy Moonshine vol 3 s/c from Page 45 and /or read the publisher’s hype here

Snowpiercer vol 1: The Escape s/c (£12-99, Titan) by Jacques Lob & Jean-Marc Rochette

Buy Snowpiercer vol 1: The Escape s/c from Page 45 and /or read the publisher’s hype here

Wendy – Master Of Art s/c (£18-99, Drawn & Quarterly) by Walter Scott

Buy Wendy – Master Of Art s/c from Page 45 and /or read the publisher’s hype here

Doomsday Clock h/c Part vol 2 With Slipcase (£22-99, DC) by Geoff Johns & Gary Frank

Buy Doomsday Clock h/c Part vol 2 With Slipcase from Page 45 and /or read the publisher’s hype here

Daredevil vol 3: Through Hell s/c (£14-50, Marvel) by Chip Zdarsky & Marco Checchetto, Francesco Mobli

Buy Daredevil vol 3: Through Hell s/c from Page 45 and /or read the publisher’s hype here

Fantastic Four: Epic Collection vol 5 – The Name Is Doom s/c (£35-99, Marvel) by Stan Lee & Jack Kirby

Buy Fantastic Four: Epic Collection vol 5 – The Name Is Doom s/c from Page 45 and /or read the publisher’s hype here

Iron Man: Epic Collection vol 1 – The Golden Avenger s/c (£35-99, Marvel) by Stan Lee & Don Heck

Buy Iron Man: Epic Collection vol 1 – The Golden Avenger s/c from Page 45 and /or read the publisher’s hype here

Iron Man: Epic Collection vol 3 – The Man Who Killed Tony Stark s/c (£35-99, Marvel) by Archie Goodwin & George Tuska, Johnny Craig

Buy Iron Man: Epic Collection vol 3 – The Man Who Killed Tony Stark s/c from Page 45 and /or read the publisher’s hype here

Silver Surfer Omnibus vol 1 h/c (£89-99, Marvel) by Stan Lee & John Buscema

Buy Silver Surfer Omnibus vol 1 h/c from Page 45 and /or read the publisher’s hype here

Hell’s Paradise: Jigokuraku vol 2 (£9-99, Viz) by Yuji Kaku

Buy Hell’s Paradise: Jigokuraku vol 2 from Page 45 and /or read the publisher’s hype here

Levius est vol 4 (£9-99, Viz) by Haruhisa Nakata

Buy Levius est vol 4 from Page 45 and /or read the publisher’s hype here

Ping Pong vol 1 s/c (£23-99, Viz) by Taiyo Matsumoto

Buy Ping Pong vol 1 s/c from Page 45 and /or read the publisher’s hype here

Brand-New Arrivals: Comics

Old Haunts #1 (£3-50, AWA) by Ollie Masters, Rob Williams & Laurence Campbell, Lee Loughridge

Buy Old Haunts #1 from Page 45 and /or read the publisher’s hype here

That Texas Blood #1 (£3-50) by Chris Condon & Jacob Phillips

Buy That Texas Blood from Page 45 and /or read the publisher’s hype here

And oh so many more! If a graphic novel doesn’t say “Out Of Stock” then it is in stock! Not so with comics, so if you would prefer to check if we’ve specific comics in stock before ordering, please email page45@page45.com and we’ll let you know, but FYI over the past few months These Current Comics have all come in through our doors, and we’ve plenty of older issues in those series too if you want to email and ask.

ALSO: WE ARE OPEN AGAIN NOW! Regular Page 45 Opening Hours too! Please come along and ask for personal recommendations etc. I promise you won’t have to queue, and there is plenty of space for a 2-metre distance. We’re sticking to 2 metres, cheers, much safer, and we’ve not seen more than four people in at any one time, so you’ll feel perfectly relaxed.

Until Jonathan and I start hard-selling you more lovely comics and graphic novels than you can carry or, quite frankly, afford.

Cheers,

Stephen

Please click on images or the link to buy to, you know, buy, or learn more from the publishers. Luther Arkwright and Kevin’s Great Escape already reviewed.

Department Of Mind-Blowing Theories h/c (£12-99, Canongate) by Tom Gauld

Buy Department Of Mind-Blowing Theories h/c from Page 45 and / or read the publisher’s hype here

Luther Arkwight: The Adventures Of Luther Arkwright & Heart Of Empire s/c (£35-99, Dark Horse) by Bryan Talbot

Buy Luther Arkwight: The Adventures Of Luther Arkwright & Heart Of Empire s/c from Page 45 and / or read the publisher’s hype here

You Brought Me The Ocean s/c (£12-99, DC) by Alex Sanchez & Julie Maroh

Buy You Brought Me The Ocean s/c from Page 45 and / or read the publisher’s hype here

Medicine: A Graphic History s/c (£15-99, SelfMadehero) by Jean-Noel Fabiani & Philippe Bercovici

Buy Medicine: A Graphic History s/c from Page 45 and / or read the publisher’s hype here

Paul Is Dead s/c (£14-99, Image) by Paolo Baron & Ernesto Carbonetti

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Dragon Hoops h/c (£15-99, First Second) by Gene Luen Yang

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Go To Sleep (I Miss You): Cartoons From The Fog Of New Parenthood h/c (£11-99, First Second) by Lucy Knisley

Buy Go To Sleep (I Miss You): Cartoons From The Fog Of New Parenthood h/c from Page 45 and / or read the publisher’s hype here

Bone Adventures s/c (£8-99, Scholastic) by Jeff Smith

Buy Bone Adventures s/c from Page 45 and / or read the publisher’s hype here

Kevin’s Great Escape: A Roly-Poly Flying Pony Adventure s/c (£6-99, Oxford University press) by Philp Reeve & Sarah McIntyre

Buy Kevin’s Great Escape: A Roly-Poly Flying Pony Adventure s/c from Page 45 and / or read the publisher’s hype here

Star Wars: Age Of Rebellion – Villains s/c (£14-99, Marvel) by Greg Pak with Simon Spurrier & Marc Laming with many more

Buy Star Wars: Age Of Rebellion – Villians s/c from Page 45 and / or read the publisher’s hype here

Superman Action Comics vol 2: Leviathan Rising s/c (£15-99, DC) by Brian Michael Bendis & Steve Epting with Yanick Paquette

Buy Superman Action Comics vol 2: Leviathan Rising s/c from Page 45 and / or read the publisher’s hype here

Wonder Woman: Tempest Tossed s/c (£14-99, DC) by Laurie Halse Anderson & Leila De Duca

Buy Wonder Woman: Tempest Tossed s/c from Page 45 and / or read the publisher’s hype here

The Amazing Mary Jane vol 1: Down In Flames, Up In Smoke s/c (£14-50, Marvel) by Leah Williams & Carlos Gomez, Lucas Werneck

Buy The Amazing Mary Jane vol 1: Down In Flames, Up In Smoke s/c from Page 45 and / or read the publisher’s hype here

X-Men vol 1 s/c (£15-99, Marvel) by Jonathan Hickman & Leinil Francis Yu with R. B. Silva, Matteo Buffagni

Buy X-Men vol 1 s/c from Page 45 and / or read the publisher’s hype here

Attack On Titan vol 30 (£9-99, Kodansha) by Hajime Isayama

Buy Attack On Titan vol 30 from Page 45 and / or read the publisher’s hype here

Blue Flag s/c (£8-99, Viz) by Kaito

Buy Blue Flag s/c from Page 45 and / or read the publisher’s hype here

Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure Part 4: Diamond Is Unbreakable vol 5 h/c (£15-99, Viz) by Hirohiko Araki

Buy Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure Part 4: Diamond Is Unbreakable vol 5 h/c from Page 45 and / or read the publisher’s hype here

My Hero Academia Smash! vol 4 (£7-99, Viz) by Hirofumi Neda

Buy My Hero Academia Smash! vol 4 from Page 45 and / or read the publisher’s hype here

Not Your Idol vol 1 (£7-99, Viz) by Aio Makino

Buy Not Your Idol vol 1 from Page 45 and / or read the publisher’s hype here

Perfect World vol 1 (£10-99, Kodansha) by Aie Aruga

Buy Perfect World vol 1 from Page 45 and / or read the publisher’s hype here

The Way Of The Househusband vol 3 s/c (£9-99, Viz) by Kousuke Oono

Buy The Way Of The Househusband vol 3 s/c from Page 45 and / or read the publisher’s hype here

Brand-New Arrivals: Comics

If you would prefer to check if we’ve specific comics in stock before ordering, please email page45@page45.com and we’ll let you know, but FYI over the past few months These Current Comics have all come in through our doors, and we’ve plenty of older issues in those series too if you want to email and ask.

I Tweeted a whole bunch of photos of those we’ve stock of yesterday (Tuesday June 9), but hopefully you can see for yourselves when we reopen on Monday June 15! Fingers crossed, folks!

Cheers,

Stephen

Normally retailing at £17-99 but a mere £14.39 for Page 45 Comicbook Of The Month members… this month’s selection is…

A Gift For A Ghost h/c by Borja Gonzalez

You can learn more and join the Page 45 Comicbook Of The Month here…

Meanwhile, here’s our Page 45 review of A Gift For A Ghost…

A Gift For A Ghost h/c (£17-99, Abrams) by Borja Gonzalez

“Did you really like the tape?”
“She wants to be in the group.”
“I didn’t say that.”
“Look, we have the guitar, what’s the problem?”
“I don’t know how to play any instruments. I tried to explain that to Cinderella over here.”
“Huh, you think I know how to play this? I’m not even sure what the black buttons are for.”
“Okay. I accept that knowing how to play an instrument isn’t necessary for a high school punk band, but… there’s no one who can understand these lyrics.”
“Of course you don’t understand them. Laura writes them. Imagine the Bronte sisters giving a talk about a study on the thermonuclear fusion of stars. I think its supermodern.”
“I have a gift and I must use it.”

Indeed you must, Laura, indeed you must…

It’s only upon much reflection, and a third re-read of this dainty ethereal work, at first glance pure stark juxtaposition, yet in fact so deftly immaculately intertwined, that I finally realised just how clever it truly is.

 

 

The word play is delightful, even when we can’t initially possibly grasp how precisely Borja is playing with us, with his seemingly carefree turns of phrase yet actually very purposeful choice of words…

 

 

The art too is mesmeric, stretching seamlessly across the gulf of two very different social eras with hints of elements as disparate as Tom DEPARTMENT OF MIND-BLOWING THEORIES Gould and Mike HELLBOY Mignola. It also kept making me think at times of LOVE & ROCKETS but I think that was primarily because of the girl punk band angle and the sense of playful fun that is also woven throughout this work. There’s some very interesting and clever use of colour too, and a suitably unusual palette that definitely contributes to the mildly spooky sense of atmosphere gently pervading proceedings.

 

 

(PSSST… have a peak under the dust jacket for even more butterflies!)

But how times change and how they don’t… as we start by finding ourselves back in 1856 and a girl seemingly out of time, in several senses. For whilst Teresa’s family want nothing more than to ensure she’s launched successfully onto the debutante circuit, which will of course hopefully lead to a respectable well bred hand in marriage, she’s far more interested in writing some pretty off-the-wall avant garde poetry such as “The Ghost Rider.”

“The fire velocipede hero! The fire velocipede hero?
“Can you see it beautiful lady?
“It is sparkling like the stars.
“The stars, the stars, the stars, the stars of the k…”

Her mum’s a tough audience though…

“Can you tell me what this is about? Is this what you call a poem?”
“It’s… I’m not sure yet, mother. I think it is about someone who shines.”
“It’s less than a month until your debut. Your father and I have everything ready. You know it’s important, right?”
…
“Yes.”

So when Teresa bumps into a sad skeleton late at night by the lake (who most definitely isn’t Johnny Blaze) she’s not remotely scared.

 

 

In fact, she’s more than up for some cultural cross-pollination and simply wants to chat about poetry with this amazing apparition. Shame the skeleton is having a somewhat morose time of it and isn’t really in the mood to muse about metre and rhyme.

Meanwhile, Teresa’s older sisters Gardenia and Daisy, already lost to society by having firmly established their conforming places in it with their bonnets and frilly dresses, and of course ladylike behaviour at all times, are not remotely sympathetic to Teresa’s plight. Younger sister Rose, still possessed of her rampant childish imagination, is as intrigued as she is terrified by Teresa and her tall tales of stygian assignations with fleshless wailers. She’s also a total snitch…

As we gently oscillate backwards and forwards temporally between our two sets of protagonists we start to unravel that perhaps Laura and Teresa have far more in common than one might think. Both products of their time, yet wanting to rebel against the constraints that they, as young females, find placed upon them. But perhaps not knowing precisely how to, or indeed just how much they can. There’s a question neatly posed of just how much identity is perennially forged by rebellion I suppose, but that’s not overly dwelled upon.

For this is an exceptionally well nuanced and delicately balanced work. It’s certainly one for the reader to find their own place within as they read it. I hugely admire that talent, to create something which has the potential to engender very different responses in those who engage with it. Plus then to leave people thinking about it long after they have finished… Which is precisely why I picked it up again for a second, and then a third read.

But most of all I absolutely adored the deeply mysterious, almost wilfully amorphous and I am sure deliberately ambiguous feel to it. I desperately felt throughout I wanted an answer as to how these two parallel narratives were connected, whilst suspecting I wasn’t going to get that closure. But when we do, of a fashion, it is an immensely satisfying payoff. I didn’t suspect at all. Maybe I should have. Perhaps I was just too drawn in and masterfully hypnotised to see it coming. Bravo to Borja for that!

It’s also wonderful to see just how expressive a relatively simple art style can be. None of the characters have faces, just blank visages, or are occasionally even simply silhouettes, but there is so much emotion conveyed in the body language of the figures themselves.

 

 

Thus it’s almost like mime or watching marionettes in that respect, and again, I think causes the reader to be invested more deeply emotionally into the characters sense of their identities.

Quite unlike anything else I’ve read so far this year, it’s a timely (that word again…) reminder of the prodigious power of comics to take us away from the present moment into other realms and states entirely. A gift from the very real Borja Gonzalez in this case.

Arrived, Online & Ready To Buy!

Yes, there have been new arrivals recently!!! Two whole weeks worth of goodies arrived last week (and another fortnight of fun will be arriving next week)!! For more on those new arrivals please read our Stephen’s recent blog…

Page 45 Comic & Graphic Novel Reviews AND New Comics & Graphic Novels UNDERNEATH, May 2020