Valerie D’Orazio makes some excellent points over at her blog.

Truly, my heart weeps for those fanboys inconvenienced by 1,000s of Robert Pattinson fans. It is so unfair. And they’re “not even really supposed to be there,” right?

[snip]
Where was this whining when people were going freakin nuts over “Watchmen?” Or when I couldn’t even get through the fanboy phalanx to meet up with friends because of the Hellboy roadblock?

Fandom and conventions are big enough for EVERYBODY. And instead of complaining about “Twilight” fans, maybe somebody should figure out how to get these legions of fangirls to buy more comics.

Seriously. The headline she links–”Female Fans Prepare to Trample Men“–is hilariously ironic because it reflects perfectly the fear in so many articles. The implication that ZOMG WOMEN ATTACK is just so darn Freudian it’s hard for me to unpack it without giggling.

I’m a female fangirl. I have been for years. And I’ve absolutely been trampled at cons–and punk rock shows, and even sporting events, all areas with typical male fan bases that certainly didn’t seem to think anything shocking about being in a room with hundreds of boys and a few girls.

I came to comics through a subculture that, if it had existed back in the day, would certainly have embraced Twilight. As a somewhat overeducated adult, I read the books and saw the movie and thoroughly enjoyed both, if occasionally with the very adult pleasure of laughing at all the wrong moments. I both defend the right to have something like Twilight that is so unabashedly girly that it inspires tons of squealing girls to unload at Comic-Con just for its panel, and despise the tendency to split fandom into two worlds: the comics are for boys, the sparkly vampires are for girls.

Leaving out for a moment the teenage boy sitting next to me at a subway stop reading New Moon on his iPhone (yes, I can recognize the story from a glimpse over his shoulder. What?), why the heck can’t we admit that comic cons were packed full of people fighting for seats before Twilight was thought of, that Hollywood has been trying to find ways to tap into the zealous–and zealously consumerist, willing to buy tons of movie-related merch–comic con audience for a good while now, and that the only thing different when it’s Twilight is that the fans are teenage girls (and their moms, the fear of whom brings up a whole other level of Freudian analysis that I’m REALLY not qualified to do).

So really. Do these guys need to keep Comic-Con a He-Man Woman Hater’s Club that badly, or can they learn to embrace the girls and cross that invisible line between Twilight fans and comic fans? Because who knows, maybe if they dropped the defensive act and realized that more girls in their fandom does not mean less stuff for them, that pop culture is not a finite commodity, maybe more girls WOULD buy comics. And far from that being a problem, it would create more money for comics creators, and thus…MORE COMICS FOR ALL. Win-win.

Comics readers will find several things to be thankful for this week, including the debut of the new Umbrella Academy miniseries, the end of the “R.I.P” storyline in Batman, and the long-awaited Body Bags one-shot.

(Yes, I know Thursday is Thanksgiving only in the United States, but you can still be thankful for something — like, say, the arrival of Mesmo Delivery in comics shops.)

If you’re looking for more books to keep you entertained between parade viewings, food courses and football games, Wednesday also sees an American Elf collection, another Captain America Premiere Hardcover, Scott Morse’s Tiger Tiger Tiger, and … Tijuana Bibles.

To see what other titles Chris Mautner and I think are worth mentioning, just keep reading. As always, let us know your choices in the comments below.

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If I’m running a little late this week, blame it on the winter weather. Or, at the very least, the avalanche of comics based on movies, television shows and video games.

Angel, Battlestar Galactica, Dead Space, Doctor Who, Halloween, Heroes, Star Trek, Star Wars, Street Fighter II, Transformers, The X-Files, World of Warcraft — they’re all represented on shelves this week.

If those aren’t your thing, there’s also an omnibus edition of Jack Kirby’s The Demon, a Walking Dead oversized hardcover, a collection of Stan Lee’s old monthly columns, Mark Waid’s debut on the Brand New Day-era Amazing Spider-Man, and yetis. Well, at least one yeti.

To see what other titles Chris Mautner and I think are worth mentioning, just keep reading. As always, let us know your choices in the comments below.

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If you’re a fan of comics with spines, this is a good week for you.

Image Comics brings out the first volume of the Ted McKeever Library and a new printing of Bill Sienkiewicz’s Stray Toasters, while Dark Horse collects the “Wolves at the Gate” storyline from Buffy the Vampire Slayer Season Eight. Marvel returns to Civil War with a 512-page hardcover, and gives Hulk the premiere treatment.

DC Comics, meanwhile, releases the much anticipated collection of James Jean’s Fables covers titled, appropriately enough, Fables: Covers by James Jean.

On top of that, there’s another volume of CF’s Powr Mastrs, the beginning of Kevin Smith’s Batman: Cocophony, and a complete set of Kia Asamiya’s Junk.

To see what other titles Chris Mautner and I think are worth mentioning, just keep reading. As always, let us know your choices in the comments below.

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Ah, Election Day, when a citizenry whose collective brain has been scrambled by 24-hour news channels and poll-tracking websites finally stumbles, zombie-like, into the voting booth.

What’s that have to do with this week’s comics shipping list? Nothing, really. But as “Can’t Wait for Wednesday” is a couple of hours late, I’m pointing to the election as an excuse.

If you’re not as election-obsessed as I am, your attention may be turned to what titles are hitting comics shops tomorrow.

From DC Comics, we’ll see the final volumes of New Teen Titans Archives and The Absolute Sandman, as well as Final Crisis: Resist and the first issue of The Sandman: The Dream Hunters adaptation. Marvel rolls out the Daredevil & Captain America: Dead on Arrival and Wolverine: Chop Shop one-shots, and the first issue of the big Ultimatum event. Dark Horse, meanwhile, collects Dean Motter’s Mister X sci-fi saga.

Elsewhere, IDW Publishing releases Kevin Colden’s Xeric-winning Fishtown, Macmillan publishes the autobiographical Alan’s War, and … Chris Mautner recommends porn. Really.

To see what other titles Chris and I think are worth mentioning, just keep reading. As always, let us know your choices in the comments below.

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I’ve written enough about Halloween-appropriate books over the past couple of weeks, so I won’t highlight titles like Bernie Wrightson’s Frankenstein, or Screamland, or Cthulhu Tales #7, or Hellboy: The Chapel of Moloch.

Instead, I’ll focus on a Batman manga twofer: the collection of Yoshinori Natsume’s Batman: Death Mask, and the much-anticipated Bat-Manga! The Secret History of Batman in Japan.

If Batman, or manga, isn’t your cup of tea, there’s Final Crisis: Rage of the Red Lanterns, which further lays the groundwork for DC’s next big events. For those in a more political mood, there’s American Presidents and more biographies of John McCain and Barack Obama.

Or, while we’re on the subject of biographies, there’s always Bill Schelly’s Man of Rock: A Biography of Joe Kubert.

To see what other titles Chris Mautner and I think are worth mentioning, just keep reading. As always, let us know your choices in the comments below.

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After a couple of somewhat slow weeks, Marvel and DC return to their summer event comics with new issues of Secret Invasion and Final Crisis — plus a pair of tie-ins, of course.

They don’t stop there, though. DC’s Vertigo imprint rolls out collections of Northlanders and Y: The Last Man, and re-releases Paul Pope’s Heavy Liquid as a hardcover. Not to be outdone, Marvel brings out their dead, and undead, with omnibus editions of Frank Miller’s Elektra, and The Tomb of Dracula.

Elsewhere, Blank Slate Books debuts Trains Are Mint and We Can Still Be Friends, Rebellion revisits The Ace Trucking Co., Viz delivers the penultimate volume of Naoki Urasawa’s Monster, and Del Rey and Dabel Bros. unleash The Dresden Files: Welcome to the Jungle.

To see what other titles Chris Mautner and I think are worth mentioning, just keep reading. As always, let us know your choices in the comments below.

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With slightly more than two weeks to go, publishers are ramping up their Halloween-themed releases, from superheroes battling the supernatural to a boy dreaming of becoming a vampire.

Shadowline kicks off its Silverline all-ages imprint with Dear Dracula just as The Hulk slugs it out with Frankenstein’s monster, and Superman and Batman team up to tackle vampires and werewolves. Plus, there’s a Hack/Slash special, and another installment of Ben Templesmith’s Welcome to Hoxford.

If pre-Halloween chills aren’t for you, there’s always the second issue of Final Crisis: Legion of Three Worlds, Art Spiegelman’s Breakdowns, or the third issue of Jeff Smith’s Rasl.

To see what other titles Chris Mautner and I think are worth mentioning, just keep reading. As always, let us know your choices in the comments below.

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As Americans brace themselves for tonight’s presidential debate, it’s fitting that tomorrow marks the release of IDW Publishing’s heavily promoted biographies of Sens. John McCain and Barack Obama.

In a similar vein, Wednesday also will see After 9/11: America’s War on Terror, Sid Jacobson and Ernie Colon’s follow-up to their celebrated adaptation of the 9/11 Report.

But if politics and war — and the politics of war — aren’t your bag, you’ll also find the first issue of the new Marvel Zombies miniseries, the third installment of Grady Klein’s The Lost Colony series, oversized editions of Hellboy and I Luv Halloween, and an Owly collection. Those are just for starters, though.

To see what other titles Chris Mautner and I think are worth mentioning, just keep reading. As always, let us know your choices in the comments below.

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As we skid into October, I find myself having a bit of an off week, at least comics-wise. I just don’t see much that catches my eye.

Chris Mautner, on the other hand, has spied a veritable treasure trove, from a Baby Huey collection to Batman #680 a Complete Peanuts box set.

So, maybe it’s just me.

Wednesday also sees the Dark Tower: The Long Road Home hardcover, the debut of Steve Niles’ future-noir City of Dust, and a one-shot dedicated Bruce Campbell’s My Name Is Bruce movie.

To see what other titles Chris and I think are worth mentioning, just keep reading. As always, let us know your choices in the comments below.

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It’s a good week for fans of classic comics as publishers roll out collections ranging from Nemesis Archives, Vol. 1, and Showcase Presents: Metal Men, Vol. 2, to Walt Disney’s Donald Duck: The Barks/Rosa Collection, Vol. 3, and The Complete Terry and the Pirates, Vol. 4.

Looking for something a little more recent? Then try the Absolute edition of Frank Miller’s Ronin, the premiere hardcover of Grant Morrison and J.G. Jones’ Marvel Boy miniseries, or the special edition of Dan Clowes’ Ghost World.

But if single issues are more your thing, there’s a new Solomon Kane series, the end of The Ultimates 3, the introduction of Lady Bullseye in Daredevil, and the finale of the Atlas story arc in Superman.

To see what other titles Chris Mautner and I think are worth mentioning, just keep reading. As always, let us know your choices in the comments below.

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This week, we say good-bye to Morrison and Quitely’s All-Star Superman, give a passing nod to another installment of Secret Invasion, and take a second look at a handful of popular manga, conveniently repackaged for our enjoyment.

Wednesday also sees the return of Linda Medley’s Castle Waiting, the second issue of Millar and Harris’ destined-to-be-a-movie War Heroes, a hefty hardcover collection for Wood and Kelly’s Local, and an outsider’s view of Burma in the form of Guy Delisle’s new graphic novel.

To see what other titles Chris Mautner and I think are worth mentioning, just keep reading. As always, let us know your choices in the comments below.

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If you prefer your comics in hardcover form, this is the week for you.

DC Comics collects Batman #667-669 and 672-675 in The Black Glove, as well as the first three arcs of Ed Brubaker, Greg Rucka and Michael Lark’s celebrated Gotham Central.

Marvel, meanwhile, celebrates the 10th anniversary of Kevin Smith and Joe Quesada’s Daredevil: Guardian Devil storyline with a premiere hardcover, releases a collected edition of the recent Omega: The Unknown miniseries by Jonathan Lethem, Farel Dalrymple & Co.

Plus there’s another volume of Krazy & Ignatz from Fantagraphics, American Widow from First Second, Good Neighbors, Vol. 1, from Graphix, and Naruto: Collector’s Edition from Viz Media.

And those are just some of the hardcovers.

To see what other titles Chris Mautner and I think are worth mentioning, just keep reading. As always, let us know your choices in the comments below.

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How many of you went to the comics shop at lunchtime only to realize — too late! — that the new books don’t hit the shelves until Thursday?

Pesky Labor Day.

But when you return tomorrow you should find another issue of Buffy Season 8 — complete with centaur-Dawn! — a new Love & Rockets series, the first volume of Takehiko Inoue’s popular Slam Dunk, and a things-will-never-be-the-same 75th issue of Fables.

Oh, and strangely enough, a pair of miniseries about missing or sunken submarines — one each from Marvel and BOOM!

To see what other titles Chris Mautner and I think are worth mentioning, just keep reading. As always, let us know your choices in the comments below.

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If this week’s shipping list is any indication, we may have reached the Dog Days.

For those with extra cash in your pocket — hey, gas has dropped 15 cents a gallon, right? — Marvel is releasing the hardcover Daredevil By Brian Michael Bendis Omnibus for $100. If you’re looking for something a little less expensive, Wednesday also sees the premiere of the third volume of Runaways, by Terry Moore and Humberto Ramos.

DC says good-bye to Catwoman and hello to two more Final Crisis tie-ins: DC Universe: Last Will and Testament and Superman Beyond.

Elsewhere, Dark Horse collects Chris Onstad’s popular Achewood comic, Abrams spotlights Al Jaffee’s Tall Tales strips, and Image debuts Guerillas.

To see what other titles Chris Mautner and I think are worth mentioning, just keep reading. As always, let us know your choices in the comments below.

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Although the two big summer-event miniseries take a breather this week, Wednesday sees the debut of DC’s much-anticipated tie-in Legion of Three Worlds — which could end up faring better than Final Crisis itself.

For Marvel it’s all about collections: Mighty Avengers, Amazing Spider-Man, Punisher: War Journal Classic, Spider-Man Loves Mary Jane and X-Men: Divided We Stand, for starters.

Elsewhere, Dark Horse releases the first volumes of Herbie Archives and MySpace Dark Horse Presents, IDW Publishing debuts Doctor Who: Forgotten and a Scorchy Smith hardcover, Viz reaches the home stretch with Naoki Urasawa’s Monster, and Dynamite rolls out the fifth issue of Project: Superpowers.

To see what other titles Chris Mautner and I think are worth mentioning, just keep reading. As always, let us know your choices in the comments below.

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If you’re into Secret Invasion – I mean really into it — this is a good week for you. Or if not “good,” at least pricey: The fifth issue of the miniseries event hits this Wednesday, along with four direct tie-ins and a peripheral title.

DC, meanwhile, debuts another Final Crisis tie-in, Revelations, and dusts off the 20-year-old Millennium. Yes, the crossover that gave the world the New Guardians.

If superhero event comics aren’t your bag, Fanfare/Ponent Mon releases Hideo Azuma’s Disappearance Diary and Jiro Taniguchi’s The Ice Wanderer, IDW Publishing debuts Ben Templesmith’s Welcome to Hoxford, and Viz Media brings out Hiroe Rei’s Black Lagoon.

To see what other titles Chris Mautner and I think are worth mentioning, just keep reading. As always, let us know your choices in the comments below.

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August kind of creeps up on you, doesn’t it? It seems like only yesterday that we were counting down to crises, and being infiltrated by one alien or another.

And now, here we are, with the third issue of Final Crisis — plus a “Director’s Cut” of Issue 1! — and the second issue of the ancillary Secret Invasion series Front Line.

This week also sees the first Creepy Archives from Dark Horse, a trio of “Batman R.I.P” tie-ins, the (limited) return of NYX and Spider-Man Loves Mary Jane, a hardcover Bleach Collector’s Edition and, after some delay, the appearances of Special Forces #3 and Okko: The Cycle of Earth.

To see what other titles Chris Mautner and I think are worth mentioning, just keep reading. As always, let us know your choices in the comments below.

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With all of the hustle, bustle and hype of Comic-Con, we could all use a little break. So it’s probably good that it’s a light week for big releases.

Well, mostly. Del Rey Manga has seven noteworthy releases this Wednesday, from the first volume of Me and the Devil Blues to the second volume of Toto! to the fourth volume of Parasyte. Image uncorks a second installment of the Popgun anthology, and Winsor McCay’s groundbreaking Little Nemo in Slumberland gets two hardcovers.

To see what other titles Chris Mautner and I think are worth mentioning, just keep reading. As always, let us know your choices in the comments below.

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Although most eyes will be on San Diego this week, at least a few bodies will end up at the comic shop.

If one of those bodies is yours, what will you likely find? Three significant anthologies — Comic Book Tattoo, Flight, Vol. 5, and Meathaus S.O.S. – the landmark 500th issue of Uncanny X-Men, and a mammoth Scud hardcover, for starters.

Plus, the just-optioned-by-Showtime Exterminators ends at Vertigo, while at Avatar, Warren Ellis’ Black Summer wraps up.

To see what other titles Chris Mautner and I think are worth mentioning, just keep reading. As always, let us know your choices in the comments below.

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