October
28 Four cool things: Joker, Spirit popup, Goon pop, UA mug

"Joker" (DC Comics, $19.99) is a hardcover graphic novel by writer Brian Azzarello of "100 Bullets" fame and artist Lee Bermejo that explores the grotesque world in which this character operates. It takes a page from "The Dark Knight" in its portrayal of the character, taking the psychopathic edge Heath Ledger brought to the screen and trying to figure out what this character would do when he's not fighting Batman. This is not a trip for the squeamish, and Bermejo's intentionally grotesque art does a lot to bring this world to life, while the story struggles — as all serious Joker stories do — with making so  psychopathic a character believable and interesting without the juxtaposition of Batman. Grade: B

"The Spirit: A Pop-Up Graphic Novel" (Insight Editions-DC Comics $34.95) is one of those super-cool things that is in retrospect so obvious you wonder why no one ever did this before. Taking Will Eisner's the classic Sand Saref story (which will be adapted to Frank Miller's upcomign film), adapter Bruce Foster both honors the original content and makes it brand new and exciting all at the same time. Grade: A-.

Dark Horse also has a new mug out featuring the logo of The Umbrella Academy, based on the comic series by Gerard Way and Gabriel Ba (Dark Horse, $12.99).

Just in time for Halloween, is a new run of Jones Soda labels featuring "The Goon." The soda was, as always with Jones, quite tasty and an excellent way to quench that Goon-size, zombie-stomping thirst.