Welcome to The Forecast. Every Monday, Ninth Art's core team of comment writers, the Ninth Eight, will be your guides to the best, worst, weirdest and most noteworthy books on the shelves of your local comic shop.

BOOK OF THE WEEK: PUNISHER, PUNISHER, PUNISHER

With the recent news that Straczynski and Frank's SUPREME POWER is leaving the Max imprint to join the other 'mature, but without breasts' titles at Marvel Knights, that leaves only one book in Marvel's abortive 'mature readers' imprint - THE PUNISHER.

While there was an impressive marketing push during Max's opening phase, it all very quickly trailed off to nought. Out of all the titles released, there were only two that ever felt they belonged, PUNISHER and ALIAS. The rest were 'Shock! Horror! Spider-Man just said fuck!' Even the excellent Ennis/Robertson FURY mini-series felt a little misplaced. No doubt owing to 'corporate restructuring', Marvel has now decided to cut its Mature Readers line back to one title. And even the future for PUNISHER looks suspect.

So while it's still here, let's take a moment to appreciate it. Last week saw the release of another of Ennis' one-off PUNISHER specials, THE CELL. The highly regarded PUNISHER: THE END was one of Ennis' better work, and this follows suit, with the dingy beauty of Lewis Larosa on pencils and what looks like another rejected HELLBLAZER cover from Tim Bradstreet. The titular Punisher, Frank Castle - vigilante about town and general psychopath - ends up in prison. Not an entirely new concept, but one that leads to plenty of bloodshed and general unpleasantness. Excellent.

Also currently in stores is a trade of the previous arc, MOTHER RUSSIA, in which Frank Castle goes - yes, you guessed it - to Taiwan. That's the last time his batteries won't be included! OK, so he goes to Russia. It features Ennis' out-of-continuity Nick Fury in full-on booze-swigging, Joe-Quesada-baiting cigar-smoking and cussing mode.

Then there's the third part of 'Up Is Down And Black Is White', which is proving to be Ennis' best arc on PUNISHER so far. Whether it was designed as his last arc or it's just fortunate happenstance isn't important, it would be an excellent way for Marvel to send off the series as Frank Castle battles evil uber-mobster Nicky Cavella. The artwork from Leandro Fernandez actually supersedes past expectations, with refined ink work that evokes McCrea and Leach at their best. The colouring is also a work of genius, as is the Bradstreet "Man With Large-bore Automatic Weapon #354" cover.

Whether this is the end of Mature Readers PUNISHER or not, I'd advise you to pick up any of these fine products. Ennis has been given utter freedom to wallow in his most popular paddling pool of piss, a place where men eat bullets and shit napalm, where women are men with breasts, where blood runs like cheap wine and internal organs are usually found externally.

In an age where decompression and character-driven titles seem to be the order of the day, Ennis is still banging out deep plotting and fascinating arseholes (not literally, obviously). Pick it up before Castle becomes THE AMAZING REPRIMANDER. [John Fellows]

GODS AND MONSTERS

I remember as a small lad going to the cinema to see SINBAD AND THE EYE OF TIGER. Unfortunately I can't think of the film anymore without hearing that bloody Survivor song, but at the time there were two things that stuck in my brain: the foot of the shape-shifting witch, trapped as the webbed claw of a seagull, and the giant beasts; the walrus, the sabretooth tiger, the troglodyte and the minotaur. The monsters were, of course, the product of the great Ray Harryhausen.

Because of the extensive stop motion used in Harryhausen's films, they often took more than two years to complete. Taking your time is all about getting it right and producing quality work. In the time since the demise of CrossGen, the laudable Butch Guice has been hard at work on OLYMPUS (DC Comics/Humanoid). From the looks of the preview pages, it looks like Guice has got it more than right.

Harryhausen's influence on Guice's portrayal of the Greek myths is obvious. The story, by Geoff Johns and Kris Gimmenger, tells of a team of archaeology students and mercenaries trapped on Mount Olympus, who discover than the myths are real. It certainly sounds like it belongs in the late 60s era of stop-motion monster movies. And I mean that in the best possible way. [Ben Wooller]

EXERCISE OF POWERS

Ah, POWERS. One of Marvel Comics' finest series - although, it hardly feels like they deserve it. After all, it's a creator-owned title, imported from Image Comics, with nudity, bad language, and plenty of "doing the do". And, to be honest, that's not where Marvel's head is at, these days.

However, sustained by its cult following, and the pulling power of its writer, Brian Michael Bendis, POWERS maintains its rather unMarvel place in the Marvel line-up. And thank goodness for that.

LEGENDS is the eighth volume in the trade paperback series, arriving in stores just ahead of the first Powers hardcover. I have successfully managed to avoid spoilers for LEGENDS, so I can't offer a detailed preview. Instead, for the uninitiated, the story so far:

Christian Walker is a homicide detective, working the 'powers' beat - that is, crimes committed by or against superhumans. As the series progresses, we learn more about Detective Walker, and his terrible existential baggage.

It's not as clichéd as it sounds.

Walker's partner is the 'spunky' Deena Pilgrim. Pilgrim is one of the best new comics characters of the last few years. She's bright, capable and funny, a perfect foil for the overly serious Detective Walker.

Naturally, I hate her.

No, I do. I really do. In fact, I laugh at her misfortune. She's a know-it-all, a gobshite, a smug, irritating little cow who was probably Scrappy-Doo in a previous life.

But she's so well crafted that she feels real to me. And that's fantastic.

POWERS balances the often gruesome plots with smooth wit and sharp humour, but it is fundamentally a dark book - artistically, as much as anything else. Michael Avon Oeming's art is superb, balancing Timm/Kirby influences with an innovative sense of page design. Much of the story takes place at night, or in dim, windowless rooms. Black gutters and page borders are employed to isolate the action and the characters, heightening the tension. Oeming's animated art works far better for the book than a drier, more realistic style would.

POWERS is Bendis and Oeming at their absolute best. It's a series that started off strong and got better. It's a serious police procedural and a fine piece of alternate-world fiction. More importantly, it is a thoroughly engrossing drama, built on the weakness of Man and the regret of years.

But with titties. [Matthew Craig]

THE SHIPPING LIST FOR MAY 18th 2005:

Shipping details come courtesy of Diamond. Visit the Diamond website for the latest information, as the list is subject to change.

DARK HORSE

MAR050041D CONAN #16 $2.99

DC COMICS

MAR050453D ABC WARRIORS VOL 2 THE BLACK HOLE TP $14.99
MAR050460D AUTHORITY REVOLUTION #8 (OF 12) (MR) $2.99
MAR050371D BATMAN DARK DETECTIVE #2 (OF 6) $2.99
MAR050365D BATMAN GOTHAM KNIGHTS #65 $2.50
MAR050374D BATMAN JEKYLL AND HYDE #2 (OF 6) $2.99
MAR050394D BIRDS OF PREY #82 $2.50
MAR050478D BOOKS OF MAGICK LIFE DURING WARTIME #11 (MR) $2.50
MAR040425D DARK KNIGHT STRIKES AGAIN HC (STAR16986) $29.95
MAR050462D EX MACHINA #11 (MR) $2.99
MAR050404D HAWKMAN #40 $2.50
MAR050409D JLA CLASSIFIED #7 $2.99
FEB058317 JLA VOL 8 DIVIDED WE FALL TP NEW PTG $19.99
MAR050435D JUSTICE LEAGUE UNLIMITED VOL 1 UNITED THEY STAND TP $6.99
MAR050484D LOSERS TRIFECTA TP (MR) $14.99
MAR050486D LUCIFER #62 (MR) $2.50
MAR050413D MANHUNTER #10 $2.50
MAR050456D OLYMPUS TP (MR) $14.99
MAR050417D PLASTIC MAN #16 $2.99
MAR050439D POWERPUFF GIRLS #62 $2.25
MAR050375D ROBIN #138 $2.25
MAR050384D SUPERMAN #217 $2.50
MAR050419D TEEN TITANS #24 $2.50
MAR050416D TEEN TITANS BEAST BOYS AND GIRLS TP $9.99

MARVEL

MAR051892D BLACK PANTHER #4 $2.99
MAR051931D CABLE DEADPOOL #15 $2.99
MAR051889D DAREDEVIL #73 $2.99
MAR051954D EXCALIBUR VOL 2 SATURDAY NIGHT FEVER TP $14.99
MAR051926D EXILES #64 $2.99
MAR051891D HERCULES #2 (OF 5) $2.99
MAR051914D LIVEWIRES #4 (OF 6) $2.99
MAR051890D MARVEL KNIGHTS 4 #18 $2.99
MAR051893D MARVEL KNIGHTS SPIDER-MAN #14 $2.99
MAR051924D MARVEL MUST HAVES NYX #1-3 $4.99
MAR051949D MARVEL TEAM-UP VOL 1 GOLDEN CHILD TP $14.99
MAR051906D NEW THUNDERBOLTS #8 $2.99
MAR051953D NEW THUNDERBOLTS VOL 1 ONE STEP FORWARD TP $14.99
MAR051922D NEW X-MEN #14 $2.99
MAR051915D OFFICIAL HANDBOOK MARVEL UNIVERSE TEAMS 2005 $3.99
FEB051937 POWERS VOL 8 LEGENDS TP (MR) $17.95
MAR051883D SPIDER-MAN BREAKOUT #2 (OF 5) $2.99
FEB051888 SPIDER-MAN HUMAN TORCH #4 (OF 5) $2.99
MAR051886D TOXIN #2 (OF 6) $2.99
MAR051875D ULTIMATE FANTASTIC FOUR #19 $2.25
FEB051878 ULTIMATE IRON MAN #2 (OF 5) $2.99
MAR051879D ULTIMATE X-MEN #59 $2.25
MAR051928D UNCANNY X-MEN #459 $2.25
MAR051896D WOLVERINE #28 $2.25
MAR051909D YOUNG AVENGERS #4 $2.99

OTHER PUBLISHERS

MAR053298E ANGEL SANCTUARY VOL 8 GN $9.99
MAR053304E BANANA FISH VOL 8 TP $9.95
MAR053305E BASARA VOL 12 TP $9.99
MAR052603E BETTY & VERONICA SPECTACULAR #70 $2.19
MAR053315E BOYS OVER FLOWERS VOL 12 TP $9.99
FEB052971F CISCO KID VOL 1 TP $10.95
MAR052923E DONALD DUCK AND FRIENDS #328 $2.95
MAR053283E FIREFIGHTER DAIGO OF FIRE COMPANY M VOL 11 TP $9.95
MAR052604E JUGHEAD #165 $2.19
MAR053297E MAISON IKKOKU VOL 11 2ND ED TP $9.95
MAR052925E MICKEY MOUSE AND FRIENDS #277 $2.95
OCT042341 NIGHTMARES AND FAIRY TALES #11 (MR) $2.95
MAR052692E SIMPSONS COMICS #106 $2.99
MAR052609E SONIC THE HEDGEHOG #149 $2.19
MAR052547E STRANGE EGGS #1 $3.95
MAR052610E TALES FROM RIVERDALE DIGEST #2 $2.39
MAR053295E TUXEDO GIN VOL 12 TP $9.99
MAR052689F WAR OF THE WORLDS BSI ED GN $13.99

The Ninth Eight are Matthew Craig, John Fellows, Kieron Gillen, Alistair Kennedy, Zack Smith, Andrew Wheeler, Ben Wooller and Bulent Yusuf.

This article is Ideological Freeware. The author grants permission for its reproduction and redistribution by private individuals on condition that the author and source of the article are clearly shown, no charge is made, and the whole article is reproduced intact, including this notice.