Creators: Mike Mignola and Troy Nixey, writers; Troy Nixey, artist

Atomeka, 54 pages, b&w $6.99 

"Hellboy" creator Mike Mignola takes a break from pushing pamcakes to give us this little Victorian sci-fier. "Jenny Finn" is a two-part horror tale about a mysterious little girl and a recent scourge of mutants crowding the streets of London.

Whores, serial killers and seafood -- this is the holy trinity behind "Jenny Finn." The story starts by following lovable Joe, a country boy straight off the farm who finds himself lost in the seedy underside of the big city. The kind-hearted lunkhead takes it upon himself to save the little girl from the horrors of urban living. Little does he realize that Jenny, a Mrs. Pauls version of Emily the Strange, is not the one in need of saving. The rest of the salty tale deals with revenge, murder, rape and violence. Fun, fun, fun.

The art of "Jenny" is really first class. Nixey does a great job in capturing the tragic, macabre mutants that haunt the city, as well as create an overall creepiness and dark tone for the tale.

Grade: B+

Solo #5

Creator: Darwyn Cooke
DC Comics, 48 pages, color, $4.99
So? It seems like every issue of this anthology tops the last. Cooke, a Canadian artist who worked as an animator at Warner Bros. before making a big splash on comics with Catwoman and last year's DC: The New Frontier, is an exemplar of craft and creativity. Tying his anthology together with longtime DC gumshoe Slam Bradley, Cooke writes draws, letter and apparently colors a half-dozen gems ranging from a childhood recollection to a sexy 1950s spy tale, a screwball romance between a man and his vacuum cleaner, and a creepy Batman story worthy of the 1990s animated series. Like many comics artists, Cooke's a fan of the look of the 1950s and early 1960s, though where most artists are copying the comicbook styles of those eras Cooke's art exudes the modern design of the era's larger pop culture. The stories in this book are little marvels of economy, telling complete and emotionally resonant tales that have panache and punch. The use of color is the most striking difference between these tales and shows just how important an element it is in comics. Cooke may not be as well-known as the other artists spotlighted in this series or have as large a body of work, but he deserves to be in the same spotlight and readers owe it to themselves to pick this book up. Grade: A+

X-Men: Kitty Pryde — Shadow & Flame #1

Creators: Akira Yoshida, writer; Paul Smith, artist
Marvel, 32 pages, color, $2.99
So? If Paul Smith drawing an X-Men tale evokes fond memories of his classic early 1980s run, then this miniseries was made for you. Smith's art was once described as "animation art" because of the simplicity of the linework. Today, that's not really an accurate way to describe it, but the artist does infuse the character of Kitty Pryde with the sort of plucky personality that has always made her popular. Smith deserves more credit as an action artist as he retains the uncanny ability to draw fight scenes where the reader can easily follow each blow, blast and parry. Yoshida mines some of the few unexplored bits of 1980s X-Men lore to give longtime readers plenty to reminisce about. The first issue struggles to find a way to bring those elements together in a new story that holds its own, but the foreshadowed return of one old-time villain in particular promises that picking up the next issue will be worth it. Grade: B+

"Batrman Begins" was No. 1 at the weekend domestic b.o. again, with a $26.8 million three-day gross, bringing the total domestic cume to $121.7 million. The pic also had some legs in foreign markets, taking in $26.7 million on 8,350 playdates in 85 territories. "Batman" beat out newcomer "Bewitched" but it's reign will end with the Spielberg-Cruise pic "War of the Worlds" opening Wednesday to dominate the holiday weekend. And it's only 11 days until the release of "Fantastic Four" ...

Actor Paul Giamatti has signed on to voice the lead character in Sci Fi Channel's animated pilot based on Mike Mignola's comic "The Amazing Screw-On Head." The "Hellboy" creator published one issue of the comic, about a Civil War-era secret agent who can switch his head between bodies. Patton Oswalt, Molly Shannon and David Hyde Pierce also will provide voices; the cabler hopes to have a pilot finished by early 2006.

A legal ruling clears the way for a settlement in the 2002 lawsuit filed by comics retailer Brian Hibbs against Marvel regarding returnability terms. Both sides agreed to a settlement and the current ruling allows the settlement to gain court approval and be implemented.

Heroes Convention was held this past weekend in Charlotte, N.C., to reports of good crowds. Newsarama has a report on the Marvel panel, which had no great revelations but is full of info on who's working on what these days.

Robot Vol. 1

Creators: Range Murata, Hiroyuki Asada, Yoshitoshi Abe, Mami Itou, Okama, Yu Kinutani, Makoto Kobayashi, Sabe, Kei Sanbe, Sho-u Tajima, Shin Nagasawa, Hanaharu Naruco, Mie Nekoi, Haccan, Ugetsu Hakua, Shigeki Maeshima, Yasuto Miura, Miggy, Suzihito Yasuda, Yug.

Digital Manga Publishing, 164 pages, color and black-and-white, $24.95

So? Robot is a beautiful book that only gets more fascinating the more you look at its sumptuous art and read its alternately touching and bizarre tales. For readers used to seeing manga done only in black and white, the beauty of seeing such an amazing variety of color art reproduced so beautifully will be a revelation. It’s just as fun to read the stories, which vary from apocalyptic sci-fi (Asada’s “Pez and Hot Strawberry”) to Yug’s bizarre funny animal tale “Hemohemo.” Each tale is short and looks completely different, but they all have a heart and real emotion lying under the sometimes confusing surface. Finding one story this beautiful or this delightful would be a real find; a whole book of them is a treasure. Grade: A+

Blue Monday, Vol. 4: Painted Moon

Creator: Chynna Clugston

Oni Press, 128 pages, black and white, $11.95

So? Clugston’s teen romance comedy saga returns with its mix of mod sounds, stylings and outrageous honesty, though falls a bit short of previous volumes. This time, teen Bleu Finnegan discovers the joys of masturbation, confesses her crush on her teacher and has to deal with rumors her pal Clover is a lesbian. The jokes come quickly and mostly work, though they don’t induce the laughs of previous installments. Clugston’s art is still a delightfully perfect complement to the story’s John Hughes-ish drama, but a little more focus would help. Grade: B-

Scott Pilgrim vs. The World, Vol. 2

Creator: Bryan Lee O’Malley

Oni Press, 200 pages, black and white, $11.95

So? Quintessential Canadian slacker Scott Pilgrim is still eating Kraft Dinner, living in a dumpy apartment with a gay man and still having girl trouble. And he’s still damn funny. O’Malley has a distinct voice that makes this videogame-influenced mix of young angst, love and rock and roll work just as well when it’s being absurd as when it’s being serious. The art is simple and effective, with a manga influence that nonetheless has its own charm and style. A quick, fun and hilarious read. Grade: A

IN BRIEF

Elk’s Run #1-2 (Hoarse and Buggy Prods., $3 each) tell the creepy tale of a mining town that people never really escape from. Written by Joshua Hale Fialkov and nicely illustrated by Noel Tuazon with color by Scott A. Keating, this book is creepy and fun in a very good way. Grade: A-

JLA #115 (DC Comics, $2.50) follows up directly on the events of last year’s Identity Crisis, tackling head on the rift between league members who lobotomized Dr. Light. And as that secret gets out to Batman, Martian Manhunter and beyond, the consequences grow worse for the league and makes this essential reading for anyone interested in the coming Infinite Crisis, and easy to pass by for those who don’t. Geoff Johns and Allan Heinberg keep the focus on the central points of this increasingly complex plot, while Identity Crisis penciler Rags Morales does another great job on the art. Grade: B

"Batman Begins" began well, starting off with a $15 million take its first day last Wednesday before going on to rake in $48.7 million over the weekend for a five-day opening domestic total of $72.9 million. The numbers are strong, but not dazzlingly so — a phenomenon repeated in overseas b.o. reports — and the pic is not the summer b.o. savior that some had hoped it would be. Reviews were unusually strong, however, so the second-week dropoff will be the number to watch to see if Batman has legs.

In other "Batman" news, the pic's TV rights were picked up by FX Networks in a $30 million deal that also includes "Constantine" and "Troy." Pic will start airing on the cabler in late 2007.

Mark Ricketts' Image Comics graphic novel, "Dioramas," has been picked up for feature development by Adrian Loudermilk's Venture Management.

Fox and Marvel have filed a lawsuit against Sony and Revolution, seeking an injunction against further work on the Tim Allen superhero pic "Zoom." Complaint alleges "Zoom's" use of teenage mutant heroes, an underground training complex and sinister government program infringes on the "X-Men" copyright. Key to the case is the release date. "Zoom," starring Tim Allen, was originally skedded for an August 2006 release but was moved to May 12 after Fox and Marvel had set a Memorial Day release for "X-Men 3." "Zoom," which has yet to start production, is based on the graphic novel "Zoom's Academy for the Super Gifted" by Jason Lethcoe. The complaint says that while the graphic novel differs from the "X-Men" concept, the script has become a near copy of Marvel's mutants.

Green Lantern #1 topped the direct market sales charts for the month of May, selling an estimated 168,000 copies, according to ICV2.com. That put DC ahead of Marvel both in terms of units sold and dollar share for the first time in a very, very long time. DC had 12 of the top 25 titles, fueled by strong sales on Green Lantern: Rebirth and the Infinite Crisis miniseries The Omac Project, Villains United, Rann-Thanagar War and Day of Vengeance. Marvel had the rest of the top 25 with its usual suspects, Astonishing X-Men and the various Ultimate comics. Walking Dead Vol. 3  from Image Comics was the top-selling graphic novel in the direct market for May. ICV2.com's analysis of the numbers shows graphic novels dollars were up 36%, while periodical comics were down 4% for a 1% increase overall from the same month last year. Graphic novel sales in comics shops have been growing for the past five months, while periodical sales in the same stretch have been even or down.

Sony Online Entertainment and Warner Bros. Online Entertainment signed a deal that includes the development of an massive multiplayer online videogame based on the DC Universe. Deal also has SOE aquiring "The Matrix Online" game.

Entertainment Weekly's 2005 Must List was chock full of comicbook-related items, leading off with Brandon Routh and Kate Beckinsale from next summer's "Superman Returns." Jessica Alba of "Fantastic Four" was right behind them on the list, with "Invincible" and "Walking Dead" comics scribe Robert Kirkman and AiT-PlanetLar publisher Larry Young also making the list.

And Dark Horse is presenting an online comic adapting "War of the Worlds." Not the Spielberg-Cruise version coming soon to a theater near you, but the original H.G. Wells novel that started it all.

Giant-Size X-Men #3

Creators: Joss Whedon, Stan Lee, Roy Thomas, writers; Neal Adams, Jack Kirby, Werner Roth, artists
Marvel, 80 pages, color, $4.99
So? There are really only two reasons to buy this now, their names are Joss Whedon and Neal Adams. This is an anniversary issue celebrating the 30th anniversary of the debut of the new X-Men in Giant-Size X-Men #1. The issue features one new 8-page story by Whedon and Adams, who stepped in when original new X-Men artist Dave Cockrum had to bow out for health reasons, and reprints of X-Men #9, Fantastic Four #28 and X-Men #35. Those issues reprint the first cross-overs between the X-Men and the Avengers, the FF and Spider-Man, respectively. That’s the part that’s supposed to tempt the House of M fans. Whedon and Adams make a truly tempting lead-in story even for those who’ve already read the reprinted tales. Set during the events of Giant-Size X-Men #1, it’s about Wolverine testing the new members of the team in a nasty way that Professor X ultimately does not approve of. It’s fantastic to see Adams, who drew those seminal late 1960s issues of the title, draw the X-Men even though Wolverine looks a bit too crazy and the coloring is a little dark. The reprints are marred just a bit by some technical problems with what looks like a moiré pattern on some of the gray-colored panels of the book. The cover, by John Cassaday and Dave Cockrum, is another highlight, but despite the fun of the original story, only die-hard fans will find they get their money’s worth on this celebratory issue. Grade: B-

Michael Turner’s Fathom #1

Creators: J.T. Krul and Michael Turner, story; Koi Turnbull and Jason Gorder, artists

Aspen, 32 pages, color, $2.99

So? Fathom was the book that made Turner a superstar and it’s only logical that the character make a comeback even if only to serve as the flagship of the Aspen line. Like previous Fathom comics, this is a beautifully illustrated and colored book. Turnbull follows Turner’s lead in drawing a richly detailed underwater world populated by doe-eyed supermodels and hunky but sensitive men. The story, to those who aren’t up to date on the Fathom saga, is largely impenetrable though still somehow playing off enough archetypes to get a sense of what’s going on. The production values on the book are state of the art, featuring excellent reproduction of the line art and the color, with professional-looking extras that includes a Turner-Turnbull interview with photos. The slickness of the package only partially makes up for the difficulty getting into the story, but somehow it’s still reasonably pleasant to thumb through the book. Grade: B-

"Batman Begins" hit screens just after midnight last night and will be the movie to watch this weekend. Reviews from newspapers far and near have been mostly positive, with many critics pleasantly surprised at how good the picture is. The pic opens today on 3,718 screens in the U.S. and will expand to 3,858 screens on Friday. The pic also is opening in 71 international territories the next three days and will appear on about 8,000 screens worldwide. Expectations are high given the year's slumping b.o. The record opening for a Batman film came 10 years ago, when "Batman Forever" pulled in $52.8 million in its first three days.

CLASSIC DEAL: Tribune Media Services has pacted with Classic Media for Classic to manage its library of comicstrip characters, which includes Dick Tracy, Brenda Starr, Gasoline Alley and Broom Hilda.

THEIR KIND OF TOWN: Frank Miler and Jim Lee will be guests of honor at Wizard World Chicago, which will be held Aug. 5-7 in the Windy City. Miller and Lee are collaborating on DC's upcoming All Star Batman and Robin, The Boy Wonder. Move also should put to rest the long-rumored Miller-Wizard feud, which stems from Miller's criticism of the magazine in a keynote speech several years ago and a subsequent lack of coverage of Miller's work since, up to and including the "Sin City" movie. The most recent Wizard World, held in Philadelphia a few weeks back, drew a record crowd of 27,000 attendees, up from 25,500 the year before. Rumors have been circulating that Wizard plans to bring a show to Atlanta as it continues to expand its convention business.

GORE UPDATE: The Chris Gore rant on Brett Ratner and "X-Men 3" mentioned a few days back is now available as a video clip at the G4 site. Check it out here.

Creators: Jonathan Luna, plot, art, color, letters; Joshua Luna, plot, script, layouts.

Image Comics, 22 pages, color, $2.95

So?: Hot off the successful "Ultra" series, the Luna brothers continue to make their mark on the industry with "Girls." Featuring Playboy-esque covers and a ton of unanswered questions, the first issue of "Girls" establishes the brothers Luna as old hands in the comic book biz.

This time around, the Luna brothers paint a picture of anger and frustration with Ethan, a young supermarket clerk whose knowledge of the inner workings of the female mind is limited at best. Small town living, dating and drinking leads the way to a complete meltdown in Pennystown's only bar, where young Ethan blames the female population for his troubled love life. After a small run-in with the law, the supernatural qualities of the comic start to show with events that lead the reader to believe that there is more to Ethan than meets the eye. And just when things can't get any weirder (or sadder), our hero discovers a lovely lass in the middle to the road, sans clothing. Who is she, what is her story, and why is she nekkid are all questions left to be answered in the upcoming issues.

The first issue of "Girls" does its job in creating a hook that has you eagerly anticipating the next issue. Compared to "Ultra,""Girls" features similar art, raunchy dark humor and deep character development we've come to expect from Jonathan and Joshua. The major difference is in the tone. While "Ultra" could be compared to "Sex and the City," "Girls" tends to lean towards "X-Files" meets "James at 15."

All in all, a great beginning.

Grade: A-

The winners of the 18th annual Harvey Awards were announced Saturday at the Museum of Comic and Cartoon Art in New York. The awards were part of the MoCCA Art Festival, held this weekend. The winners are:

Best New Talent: Andy Runton, “Owly,” Top Shelf

Best New Series: “Michael Chabon Presents: The Amazing Adventures of the Escapist,” Dark Horse Comics

Best Letterer: Todd Klein, “Wonder Woman,” DC Comics

Best Writer: Daniel Clowes, “Eightball,” Fantagraphics

Best Artist: Darwyn Cooke, “DC: The New Frontier,” DC Comics

Best Cartoonist: Jeff Smith, “Bone,” Cartoon Books

Best Cover Artist: James Jean, “Fables,” DC/Vertigo

Best Single Issue or Story: Eightball #23, Fantagraphics

Best Domestic Reprint Project: “The Complete Peanuts 1950-52,” Fantagraphics

Best Continuing, Limited Series: “DC: The New Frontier,” DC Comics

Best Inker: Charles Burns, “Black Hole,” Fantagraphics

Best Colorist: Dave Stewart, “DC: The New Frontier,” DC Comics

Best Graphic Album of Previously Published Work: “Bone: One Volume Edition,” Cartoon Books

Special Award for Humor in Comics: Kyle Baker, “Plastic Man,” DC Comics

Best Anthology (TIE): “Michael Chabon Presents: The Amazing Adventure of the Escapist,” Dark Horse Comics, edited by Diana Schutz; “McSweeney’s Quarterly Concern #13,” McSweeney’s Books, edited by Chris Ware

Best Graphic Album of Original Work: “Blacksad 2,” ibooks/Komikwerks, Juajono Guardino and Juan Diaz Canales

Best Syndicated Strip or Panel: “Mutts,” Patrick McDonald, King Features Syndicate

Special Award for Excellence in Presentation: “The Complete Peanuts 1950-52,” Fantagraphics

Best American Edition of Foreign Material: “Buddha,” Vertical Inc.

Best Biographical, Historical, or Journalistic Presentation: “Comic Book Artist,” Top Shelf, edited by Jon B. Cooke

Busy week, lots going on, so let's get to the highlight reel:

WORTH THE WAIT: "Batman Begins" had its premiere Monday at the Grauman's Chinese and it was a major affair with a huge elevated red carpet and a small fleet of limos. The biggest stir was caused by co-star Katie Holmes' boyfriend, Tom Cruise, who hopped across the street to sign autographs for the onlookers. Our own Alex Romanelli was on hand to talk with co-writer David Goyer, who says die-hard fans will find lots of little Easter eggs and lines plucked directly from the comics. Comics pros were on hand as well, with Jim Lee posting he flew in for Italy for the affair and sat with "Batman" legend Neal Adams and artist Denys Cowan, who drew 1989's "Blind Justice" story that influenced the pic. The Los Angeles all-media screening was last night at the Mann Bruin and was packed. So quickly did the theater fill up, that the screening actually started on time. The verdict: This movie rocks. Casual and hard-core fans will get a major kick from this pic, which is extremely well put together in every way from script to score. This is in the same ballpark quality wise as the "Spider-Man" pics and "X2," so expect some major action at the box office starting Wednesday.

WOLVIE PRODUCES: Hugh Jackman and John Palermo's new production company, Seed Prods., has signed a first-look deal with Fox that will include the "Wolverine" spinoff movie being written by David Benioff. Company also will seek projects for Jackman's wife, actress and director Deborra-Lee Furness. Deal excludes musicals, an area in which the Tony-winning Jackman has a development deal with Disney. Jackman has some behind-the-camera participation on director-juggling "X-Men 3," on which Palermo is an exec producer. "It got to be a roller-coaster ride there, but I wasn't worried because the script is so strong," Jackman told Daily Variety. "Matthew (Vaughn) had his reasons but helped make the movie better before he left. Brett (Ratner) has come in with a lot of enthusiasm and full understanding of the franchise. It has been a real learning curve, as has been putting together the script on 'Wolverine.' That project is a good start for me as producer, because I have intimate knowledge of the character." 

KILLER CUTIES: "We3," the Eisner-nominated three-issue Vertigo series by Grant Morrison and Frank Quitely about cybernetic assassin animals, has been picked up by New Line with Morrison in talks to write the feature film's script.

POST INSERT: A free Batman comicbook will be given away with copies of Monday's edition of The New York Post. The comic will reprint Batman #608, the first chapter of "Hush" by Jeph Loeb, Jim Lee and Scott Williams. The comic will have a redesigned cover and will be inserted in the Sports Extra and Late City Final Editions of The Post in the tri-state area.

FEMME HONORS: Friends of Lulu, which promotes female participation in the comics biz, has announced the noms for their Lulu Awards. The awards will be presented at the Manchester Hyatt Hotel in San Diego on July 14, the first day of Comic-Con Intl. The nominees are:

Women Cartoonist Hall of Fame:

• Donna Barr (A Fine Line Press)
• Nell Brinkley ("The Three Graces")
• Amanda Conner ("Vampirella," "JSA Classified")
• Phoebe Gloeckner ("The Diary of a Teenage Girl")
• Rumiko Takahashi ("Ranma 1/2," "Inu Yasha")
• Jill Thompson ("Scary Godmother," "Death")

Kim Yale Award for new or emerging talent deserving of wider recognition:

• Vera Brosgol ("Flight," "Hopeless Savages B-Sides")
• Stephanie Freese ("Ripped from the Headlines")
• Dorothy Gambrell ("Cat and Girl"; "The New Adventures of Death")
• Emily Horne ("A Softer World")
• Tintin Pantoja ("Sevenplains"; Girlamatic.com)

Women of Distinction Award for women in noncreator roles:

• Karen Berger (DC Comics)
• Vijaya Iyer (Cartoon Books)
• Heidi MacDonald (The Beat)
• Mimi Rosenheim (AiT/PlanetLar)
• Diana Schutz (Dark Horse)

Lulu of the Year

• Shaenon Garrity (Girlamatic.com, Modern Tales)
• Devin Grayson (DC Comics)
• Megan Kelso ("Scheherazade")
• TOKYOPOP (www.tokyopop.com)
• Flight Anthology (www.flightcomics.com)

ON THE MOVE: The Comic Book Legal Defense Fund is packing up and moving to New York City. The org had been based in Northampton, Mass., for the past ten years. The new offices will be at 271 Madison Ave. and they'll be open there on Tuesday.

MOUSE PACT: Slave Labor will create four comicbook series based on Disney characters, under a deal struck at Book Expo and reported on ICV2.com. The four books are: "The Haunted Mansion," "Wonderland," "Gargoyles" and "Tron." The comics will start appearing in the fall, with Slave Labor set to collect the books as graphic novels and sell both formats at Disney parks.

GORE GOOFS: Chris Gore of Film Threat (the magazine and the website) spoofed new "X-Men 3" director Brett Ratner last night on cabler G4 TV's geek-tech news chat show "Attack of the Show." In addition to Gore ranting from a wheelchair, a la Professor X, an actor imitating the helmer's stubble and shades look repeated the quotes the helmer has made since getting the job. Gore responded with fanboy aplomb that would make Kevin Smith proud, pleading for Marvel and Fox to slow down, take their time and make sure they get the classic Dark Phoenix story right. The clip doesn't appear to be on the show's site, but it's a good laugh if you can still catch it.