For all you who’ve been patiently waiting for your April issue of Back Issue and Alter Ego, copies FINALLY arrived here at TwoMorrows HQ today, and will go in the mail tomorrow.

The hold-up was caused by US Customs. Now that both mags are full-color, we have to print them overseas to keep the cover price from skyrocketing, and all the copies got held up at the US port, waiting for, I guess, some SHIELD agents to inspect them. After weeks of sitting in a warehouse, they were finally released and delivered, and subscribers’ links to the digital edition were emailed today.

Back Issue #56 spotlights the history of the Avengers, just in time for this weekend’s movie debut, so check it out before you head to the cineplex.

Our kids just went back to school after a great, relaxing Spring Break (aahhhh, carpool…), and I know everyone’s scrambling to get their taxes in the mail this week. So just for fun, we’re putting all our “How-To” books, mags, and DVDs on sale for 40% off till the end of April. (Digital stuff’s 10% off.) Just click the big “Sale 101” banner at the top of our home page, and you’ll go right to the list of sale items. Enjoy!

…somebody in the category of Best Comics-Related Journalism, of which TwoMorrows is a nominee. That’s right; Eisner nominations were just announced, and instead of one or more of our individual magazines getting nominated this year, the nominating committee chose to group ALL FOUR of our comics mags together as one “TwoMorrows” nomination.

In essence, it’s recognition for all four of our editors and their staff and contributors, which is OK by me. So hats off to:

TwoMorrows Publications: Alter Ego edited by Roy Thomas, Back Issue edited by Michael Eury, Draw edited by Mike Manley, and Jack Kirby Collector edited by John Morrow (who he?)

Ballots go out in mid-April to comics creators, editors, publishers, and retailers. A downloadable pdf of the ballot is available online, and a special website has been set up for online voting: www.eisnervote.com. The results in all categories will be announced in the big shindig ceremony on Friday night, July 13 at Comic-Con International.

The new issue of Diamond’s PREVIEWS comic shop catalog is out, listing our June releases, including our new Modern Masters book on ERIC POWELL. You can check all our June listings out HERE.

You’ve gotta love ALTER EGO #108’s Sub-Mariner vs. Human Torch cover by BILL EVERETT & CARL BURGOS. The issue features 1970s Bullpenner WARREN REECE talking about Marvel Comics and his encounters with those two legends, plus JOHN ROMITA, STAN LEE, MARIE SEVERIN, NEAL ADAMS, GARY FRIEDRICH, ROY THOMAS, and other, plus the usual great features like Mr. Monster and FCA (Fawcett Collectors of America). And now AE’s in FULL COLOR! Still edited by ROY THOMAS.

Check out the free preview HERE.

And you can order it HERE.

The new issue of our LEGO mag BrickJournal (#18) focuses on LEGO in Japan, and documents the amazing creations by builders in the Land of the Rising Sun. Check out the free preview HERE.

If you like it, order it in print or digital format HERE.

This is for TWO WEEKS ONLY! All of our MODERN MASTERS books and DVDs are on sale for only $10 each when you order at www.twomorrows.com, now through MARCH 14.

Here’s a list of the artists featured in the books that are on sale:

Alan Davis
George Perez
Bruce Timm
Kevin Nowlan
Jose Luis Garcia-Lopez
John Byrne
Mike Wieringo
Kevin Maguire
Charles Vess
Michael Golden
Jerry Ordway
Frank Cho
Mark Schultz
Mike Allred
Lee Weeks
John Romita Jr.
Mike Ploog
Kyle Baker
Chris Sprouse
Mark Buckingham
Guy Davis
Jeff Smith
Frazer Irving
Ron Garney

and our two “Modern Masters: In The Studio” DVDs:
George Perez DVD
Michael Golden DVD

We’ll be heading off for WONDERCON in Anaheim, CA (booth 721) on the 15th, so don’t delay placing your order till the 14th, or we might not get it shipped until after WonderCon…

BACK ISSUE #55 and DRAW! #22 are on press now, so if you haven’t pre-ordered at your local comics shop, here’s the scoop:

BACK ISSUE #55 (84 pages, FULL-COLOR, $8.95) checks in on “Licensed Comics”! Spotlighting: Twenty years of Star Wars at Dark Horse Comics, Indiana Jones in comics, the adaptation of TV’s Man from Atlantis, DC Comics’ 1970s Edgar Rice Burroughs backups (John Carter, Pellucidar, Carson of Venus), Marvel’s Warlord of Mars, and an interview with CAROL SERLING, wife of Twilight Zone creator ROD SERLING. Featuring art by and/or commentary from MURPHY ANDERSON, JOHN BYRNE, CHRIS CLAREMONT, DAVE DORMAN, JAN DUURSEMA, MICHAEL KALUTA, CAM KENNEDY, JOHN JACKSON MILLER, FRANK MILLER, JOHN OSTRANDER, MIKE RICHARDSON, RANDY STRADLEY, TIM TRUMAN, TOM VEITCH, MARV WOLFMAN, and more. With a never-before-seen Clone Wars cover by BRIAN KOSCHACK. Now in FULL COLOR! Edited by MICHAEL EURY.

Diamond Order Code: JAN121362

Download a FREE PDF preview at this link: http://www.twomorrows.com/media/BackIssue55Preview.pdf

Ordering link: http://twomorrows.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=1022

BACK ISSUE #55 will be on sale in comic book stores on Wednesday, March 21.

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DRAW! #22 (84 pages with COLOR, $7.95) presents an in-depth interview with one of the top inkers of the modern age, SCOTT WILLIAMS! From his days at Marvel and Image, to his work with JIM LEE on such pivotal series as “Batman: Hush”, Scott discusses his working process with editor Mike Manley, and shows he’s an accomplished solo artist in his own right (as evidenced by this issue’s striking cover). Then, DANNY FINGEROTH interviews superstar writer/artist FRANK MILLER about his career and working methods, including samples of Miller and KLAUS JANSON’s working process, showing examples of their work from thumbnails and pencils to finished inks. Plus, there’s another installment of MIKE MANLEY and BRET BLEVINS’ “Comic Art Bootcamp”, a “Rough Critique” of a newcomer’s work by BOB McLEOD, product and art supply reviews by “Crusty Critic” JAMAR NICHOLAS, and more!

Diamond Order Code: JAN121376

Download a FREE PDF preview at this link: http://www.twomorrows.com/media/Draw22Preview.pdf

Ordering link: http://twomorrows.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=1006

DRAW #22 will be on sale in comic book stores on Wednesday, March 14.

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My recuperation from gall bladder surgery is taking lots longer than anticipated (the anesthesia and I apparently didn’t get along too well), so I’ve gone ahead and extended our 40% off sale on Companion books through the end of February. Just click the big heart banner at the top of our home page for the full list of items on sale.

About 10 years ago, during our annual Comic-Con trip, I had to go to the San Diego ER in the wee hours of the morning, doubled-over with a sharp, stabbing pain in my upper stomach. Back then, they diagnosed me with three relatively small gallstones, gave me pain meds, and sent me on my way, saying if it ever happened again, I’d need my gall bladder removed. (If you saw my brief appearance on the “Jack Kirby: Storyteller” documentary that was an “extra” on the Fantastic Four film DVD release a few years ago, you may’ve noticed I looked kinda glassy-eyed, and even goofier than usual; that was from the pain pills I was on, as it was filmed the afternoon I got out of the San Diego ER. But don’t let the still image of me above scare you away; click the link above to see the first of five parts of this great, star-studded bio of Jack.)

Well, I’ve had occasional minor pain in my upper abdomen since then (usually during high-stress times), but the docs always guessed it was some kind of hernia or ulcer, although despite a few rather unpleasant procedures to find something, they’ve never been able to actually pinpoint anything specific.

We may now have an answer. This past Monday just after midnight, I ended up at our local emergency room again, only this time it was even worse (think Wolverine repeatedly going ‘snikt’ just under your ribcage). The local ER’s ultrasound found some big honkin’ gall stones wedged in my gallbladder (they’ve apparently doubled in size in the last ten years), and so I was rushed into surgery to have my gall bladder yanked out. While the actual surgery went pretty well all things considered, the recovery’s taking a lot longer than I’d hoped, and I hope these sentences are making sense, as I’m still on some pretty strong meds for pain.

Needless to say, we’re not getting too much done around here this week, so thanks for your patience if you’re waiting on a return email or phone call. The always reliable Eric Nolen-Weathington is working overtime to help out with getting orders out to our customers. There’s nothing better in this life than friends you can count on!

I’ll spare you the photos they gave me of the almost 1 inch diameter rocks they found inside me, but Danny Fingeroth told me he anxiously awaits the debut of our new mag, “The Gall Stone Collector”. He thinks the first issue’s cover should be “…a Kirby-style photo montage with the FF having to protect themselves from the digestive danger of the vile villain who could only be called… Bile!”

Any budding artists want to give that one a shot? I’ll run the best ones in the next Kirby Collector, assuming they’re not TOO gross!