One of my heroes is the late Congressman John Lewis. As one of the co-founders of the Student Non-Violent Coordinating Committee, he was on the front lines of the Civil Rights Movement at an age when most kids are trying to decide which super easy elective they're going to take to boost their Freshman GPA. He often talked about the days of sit-ins and marches, recalling all his arrests during those demonstrations as getting into "Good trouble. Necessary trouble."

Car trouble is neither of those things. In fact, it's the WORST kind of trouble.

After a long weekend of packing and shipping fundraiser orders, I went to the garage Tuesday morning for our normal school routine. Pack the kids in the minivan, then drive to school. Except, the van wouldn't start. Weird since I've only owned it for 4 months, but whatever. We'll jump start it.

...then jump starting didn't work. "Oh crap," I thought. "This is NOT what we need right now."

So all week, I've been dealing with tow trucks, mechanics, and the god-forsaken process of filing an extended warranty claim. (Thank God I paid for the extended warranty!) Our beloved Storm Trooper is in the shop indefinitely (turns out it wasn't just the battery), but things could be a lot worse.

Blind Bags! They're All the Rage!

A few months ago, Robert Kirkman and Ryan Ottley returned to the Invincible Universe with their new series Battle Beast. Their big retailer gimmick? A blind bag variant. Lucky buyers could get anything from rare incentives and signed comics to a reprint of 2005's Marvel Team Up #14 -- a rare meeting between Spider-Man and Invincible! I thought it was really cool, but I wasn't going to spend all my money trying to get the one book I was after.

This week, DC released Batman #1 from writer Matt Fraction and artist Jorge Jiménez. The first renumbering of Batman since 2016, and fourth overall. It's a big deal! An even bigger deal? The Blind-as-a-Bat Variant program. Your $10 Blind Bag purchase could get you any one of the rare incentive variants, or a run-of-the-mill Open Order variant. But hey, the fun's in the chase right?

In December, IDW's Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles is getting a new creative team at issue #13. Writer Gene Luen Yang and artist Freddie Williams II have been entrusted with ushering in a new era, complete with a new villain debut. What better way to celebrate than a blind bag? Unlike the other two I mentioned, the Turtles blind bag will come at the normal cover price of $4.99. So for $4.99, I can get this awesome 1:50 Full Art variant by Clayton Crain? Or the 1:75 by Daniel Warren Johnson?!! I'm down. In fact, give me 4 of them.

Heroes in a clamshell, or whatever that theme song said.

One Last Push

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Artist Jay Hero is amazing. His art prints are fan favorites at conventions, and I have 3 of them on the walls of my office/studio. Jay's not just an artist, but a storyteller; and he needs our help bringing his first comic to life. I had the pleasure of interviewing Jay about his project for Star Wielder #1. Check out the interview, then go back the campaign, as today is your LAST DAY to do so!

Thank You, Thank You, Thank You!

Finally, I couldn't end this week's message without a HUGE thank you to everyone for supporting the equipment fundraiser sale. I was honestly afraid to ask you guys for help, as there are much better things to spend money on in today's economy. I figured it would take us until the end of 2025 to see any meaningful progress. But you guys completely overwhelmed me with your support. We're at about 30% of our overall goal, and just $500 away from purchasing a new editing computer!

Perhaps the most surprising part is that of the funds we've raised, they're split down the middle between purchases and donations. I figured my collection would do the heavy lifting, but you guys have shown support in so many other ways. Thank you to everyone who has shared the campaign, donated even the smallest amounts, or purchased one of the books from my collection. I don't have the words to properly express my gratitude, but you have it forever.

Car trouble has me behind on creating new book listings to order, but there will be some new inventory added to the site over the weekend, and I'll have more ways for you to support starting next week. I can't thank you enough for helping me upgrade this setup, and I can't wait for you to see what I do with it.

Read Something Dope Today,

BJ KICKS