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The other day it was announced that Jonathan Hickman was leaving FF in October, after a very successful run there. With his other Marvel work also winding down, there was mucho speculation about what this "architect" would be up to. One thing is his new series (on sale today) THE MANHATTAN PROJECTS (with artist Nick Pitarra) which will be released digital day and date. To make ready, Hickman is also releasing TEST PATTERN, a digital anthology of his previous five collections, THE NIGHTLY NEWS, PAX ROMANA, TRANSHUMAN, A RED MASS FOR MARS, and THE RED WING, available exclusively via comiXology for $34.99. An affordable way to keep Hickman's body of work readily available for those discovering his new book? Sounds like it.

With all the chaos and hype going on today, it sometimes comes to pass that not all good books get the attention they deserve. Here's a quick rundown of things you might not be picking up that are worthwhile. (I'm assuming you've already had someone nagging you to pick up Mark Waid's Daredevil run, so we won't get into that here.)

In case you haven't noticed, Image Comics is gunning for the Big Two this year, in terms of creators and concepts and now, bang for your buck. Jonathan Ross and Bryan Hitch are releasing AMERICA'S GOT POWERS in April, and the first issue will be 38 pages for $2.99, which, they point out, is a lot more story than you get with a Marvel comic.

Anonymous Image creator on the mood at the Image Expo. It was by all account a successful weekend if only as a pep rally, with hopes for the future and independence for creators. The crowds weren't immense, except on Saturday, but they liked what they saw.

There seemed to be some mixed thoughts going around about Image Expo and that seems to be best summed up by a conversation between a local retailer and a pro who'd been to a lot of shows in Oakland.

From Image, another new series:

Here's more of the promo art that came out over the weekend from various Image projects, mostly released at CBR or on Twitter. Previously, MARA and CHIN MUSIC.

It's a very sleepy Sunday at the Image Expo. Retail hasn't started big Sunday markdowns yet, but there's one booth with 50% off or $5/tpb. On the other hand, there is a trickle of cosplay starting.

By Todd Allen Charles Brownstein is starting out with a history of comics censorship. Step 1: the Senate inquery sets up the Comics Code. Step 2: The...

It seems there is another convention at the Oakland Convention Center/Marriott today. Another "image" convention.

By Todd Allen Vaughan says he missed doing a monthly series and Jay Faeber had been on him to do something at Image. Vaughan had earmarked...

Day two and attendance is up a bit. I'm hearing a couple long time residents talking about how much larger the crowds at Wonder Con were, the last couple years it was in this venue. To me, it looks about right for the first year of a new show. the amount of space to move around on the floor is roughly what you'd be looking for at a business to business show (as opposed to consumer shows, where you pack them in like sardines). You could add maybe 20% before it started getting to be annoying trying to move around the floor.