In all the Sturm und Drang of the really incredible events of the last 18 months in the world of comics it is only now occurring to me that the main thrust of almost all of the really and truly great "Event" stories have been steeped in Sci-Fi themes and Cosmic execution. Between the New Gods angle of Final Crisis, the Skrulls of Secret Invasion, and the whole of War of Kings and Blackest Night the world of comics has been looking to the stars in a big way for the last 2 years or so. And consequently they have been creating a whole lot of really great comics that both fans of super-heroes and space operas can truly appreciate. Writers like Tony Bedard, Dan Abnett & Andy Lanning, Geoff Johns, Peter Tomasi, Grant Morrison, Brian Michael Bendis and others have been given the chance to talk about the oft overlooked corners of the greater universes of both DC and Marvel Comics. Starting back in 2005 when Geoff Johns kicked off the reinvigoration of the Green Lantern franchise and Keith Giffen launched the Annihilation event at Marvel that introduced a whole new generation to Silver Surfer, Nova, Drax, and Thanos. In the intervening 5 years we have seen a great deal of new series launch that have been cosmic based and space has never looked brighter in the world of major comics publishing. And while many of them have developed rabid, hungry fan bases it seems like the really great titles often go overlooked, and so I decided that with my podium here on the front page I would let you know about some of the creators and comics that have been keeping the Sci-Fi nerd in me thrilled month in and month out (and I'll even talk about some of the lesser known titles that might be flying under your radar).

Dan Abnett and Andy Lanning have been working together for the better part of 2 decades having worked on such seminal books as 2000 AD's Judge Anderson (a spin off character from the much more well known Judge Dredd) and The Legion of Super Heroes, but their recent works have held the rapt attention of a great portion of the comics community and perhaps deserves even more notice. Both of their ongoing series: Nova and Guardians of the Galaxy spun out of the events of Annihilation and both books are incredibly good. Nova has a much more serious feel and carries the feel of a Green Lantern Corps style book in the Marvel Universe, but for most of the series Richard Rider (Nova) has been alone in his efforts as he tries to slowly and deliberately rebuild the Nova Corps. The events of War of Kings created the greatest need for an expanded Nova Corps and so as the series progresses into the Realm of Kings era the book has taken on a larger cast and that is exactly the kind of thing that allows Abnett and Lanning to shine even brighter. No further evidence is needed of this simple fact than their other ongoing series, Guardians of the Galaxy. Put together by necessity rather than desire the Guardians banded together by Star Lord (who helped to stop the terrifying events of Annihilation) in order to undermine the efforts of the the Phalanx during Annihilation: Conquest. The series plays a lot like an intergalactic A-Team and has an incredibly unique story telling style where the events are narrated by the characters as part of their after-action reports. The series features a bizarre cast of characters that have incredible chemistry and manage both the action and the humor of the series with great class.

Another writer who is great with ensemble stories is Tony Bedard who really made his name when it comes to sci-fi story telling with Negation at CrossGen comics. His experience there spun into working on Exiles at Marvel and a few things here and there before he started work on another great space faring ensemble series for DC Comics: R.E.B.E.L.S., a book that benefited more from it's inclusion in the events of Blackest Night than any of the other so-called "Ring Books". R.E.B.E.L.S. follows the adventures of Vril Dox, also known as Brainiac-2, the former leader of the intergalactic Police-for Pay agency L.E.G.I.O.N. as he runs from the agents of the agency he once rain. Along the way he has encountered former agents as well as former enemies who have joined in his quest to regain the control of his agency. In his travels he has also come across an army of mindless soldiers controlled by Starro the Conqueror, who is apparently not the giant starfish we all though we knew, but is a warrior king from another galaxy that has overtaken planet after planet and with every new mind controlled he becomes even more powerful. They have also encountered the innumerable forces of the Black Lanterns during Blackest Night. Further proof of Bedard's skills are only made more evident with the recent announcement that after the end of the Blackest Night a third Green Lantern ongoing series, Green Lantern: Emerald Warriors which will be written by Peter Tomasi and Tomasi will in turn be leaving Green Lantern Corps ... on which Bedard will take up writing duties.

Be they space faring or earth bound there are a great number of other great sci-fi series being published by companies large and small, the adaptation of the Ender Wiggin series by Marvel comics or the continued adventures of the crew of the Farscape at BOOM! Studios even books like King City at Image, Resurrection at ONI, the Soleil publications released by Marvel (Sky Doll, Universal War One, Kookaburra K, and Scourge of the Gods chief among them), or even the great anthology series 2000AD. It couldn't be a better time to be a sci-fi nut in the comics world.

My Fellow Americans, I come to you all today to inform you of some of the really exciting things that are going on in the comics industry. And while I will be focusing primarily on the actions of late of the "Big Two" as they have come to be known I will also take a few moments to discuss what is going on with some of the smaller companies involved as well. I will endeavor to remain spoiler free. I do this for you, the American People.

Things have been heating up in the world, some might even say that there is some hotness on the horizon. When these people speak of this there are two things of which they are likely to be speaking: the first is The Heroic Age. For too long now our Marvel heroes have been mired in Dark Days, perhaps even under a Reign of Evil of sorts ... and now they find themselves be-Siege-d on all sides. But worry not my fellow Americans, for brighter days are coming. A new and bold Heroic Age is only around the corner, should we all wish to see it. We need only persevere a brief while longer. And then these heroes, who have been New for so long, will return to being Earth's Mightiest Heroes. They will no longer have to hide out under rocks or in basements, they will be encouraged to come out into the sunlight and to be washed clean so that they may be once again seen as the heroes we had all known and loved. Perhaps you may have heard who will be bringing about this bold new age of heroism ... but perhaps you have not. For those of you who may find yourselves unaware two names will become important in the very near future, those of Brian Michael Bendis, and John Romita Jr. These bold men will usher in a new age with some familiar faces and with others that are new to our times. Some of these names have been revealed to us and we will share them here.

Richard Buchanan "Bucky" Barnes is a name known by millions in our country as he once stood bravely beside our greatest patriot, Captain America. But in recent years he has taken on the mantle of his fallen, but now returned, comrade. He may look different than we had become used to but he certainly wields The Shield of mentor with the same brazen bravery to which we had become accustomed. We welcome him with the same open hearts that we once opened to Steve Rogers.

The second name and face is also well known throughout not only our country but the entire world as it was worn by a recent invader as she and her people attempted to Secret-ly conduct an Invasion of our world from all fronts. The face worn by the Skrull Queen was that of Jessica Drew. The newly returned Jessica Drew, known the world over as Spider-Woman, has begun a campaign not only to show the world that she is still a hero and is not the menace who wore her visage for so long. She has been revealed as another Avenger as well as having joined one of our Intelligence Agencies, which has come to recent prominence in light of the same Invasion that was lead by the woman, nay creature, who wore her face: S.W.O.R.D. An off-shoot of the far more well known S.H.I.E.L.D. that has protected our earth from those who call her home and yet would seek to do her harm. S.W.O.R.D. protects us from the skies, from those creatures known and unknown who would see Earth as a pawn in a grand galactic game or perhaps as simply a rich source of fresh resources or a labor force awaiting enslavement.

The other source of heat that is on the horizon comes from our friends at DC Comics and is known simply as: The Brightest Day. While we have spent the last six months waiting with baited breath as The Blackest Night has held us all enthralled perhaps the more significant announcement has been the recent admission that after Blackest Night will come Brightest Day. Being brought to us by two names that have become synonymous with the Lanterns of Light, Peter J. Tomasi, and Geoff Johns, Brightest Day promises a year of bi-weekly updates as the universe becomes more illuminated under the watchful eye of The New Guardians. 

Another log on the fire is the recent announcement that many of the major players from Blackest Night will be given representation in the recently revived HeroClix game through an upcoming boxed set featuring the Bearers of many of the colors of Light that make up the primary excitement of the Blackest Night Event. The revealed images show both the bearer of the Green Light, Hal Jordan as well as the deputized bearer of Red Light Mera, Dethroned Queen of Dimension Aqua and current Queen of Atlantis. 

Also coming from DC Comics is the return of one of the most beloved characters of this or any age, Barry Allen. The return of the Fastest Man Alive of the Silver Age began in 2008 with his reappearance in Final Crisis and built last year as his Rebirth began and his reemergence as a front-line character was solidified by his part in the pages of the previously mentioned Blackest Night. But perhaps it is his return to ongoing comics that has people most excited. With this spring's Flash #1 written by the aforementioned Geoff Johns and with art by his recent companion on Adventure Comics, the incredibly talented Francis Manapul, Barry Allen couldn't be in better hands as he returns home as Central City's proudest native son and once again patrols her streets leaving behind justice and a tell-tale red blur in his wake. Along with the return of The Fastest Man Alive is another great piece of memorabilia from the folks at DC Comics and while we cannot promise that there will be a compact Flash Costume hidden in the secret compartment (or that there will even be a secret compartment at all) we can promise that this Flash Ring is going to be one of the hottest items of the Spring

Another announcement came recently from actress Erica Cerra who has stated a desire to be considered for the role of Wonder Woman in the eventual Big Screen Live Action Adaptation. And she proposes that her coming turn as Hera in Percy Jackson & The Olympians: The Lightning Thief will prove to any doubters that she can pull off the other worldly grace that would be necessary to play Diana Prince, Princess of the Amazons.

Finally we come to the many wonders of the Small Press ... And while I would love to tell you about all the exciting things that are coming from companies like Dark Horse, Image, DDP, Dynamite and others I think that pictures will do them more justice:

 Dynamite Brings Kevin Smith's Green Hornet to LifeArchaia Goes Down to Fraggle Rock!Top Cow Open's Pandora's Box and Reveals 2 New Aritfact Bearers.Stuff of Legend Returns for 2 Additional Volumes.