Short but sweet is a phrase that seems crafted specifically for writer Kel Symons’ Image comic series I Love Trouble. With the release of issue #6, Symons and guest artist Nathan Stockman (Anti-Hero) bid farewell to I Love Trouble, tying up loose ends, providing just enough resolution necessary, and leaving the door open for other tales, just in case.

It’s a bird! It’s a plane! It’s . . . a book?

Don’t be too disappointed. This is no ordinary, average, everyday book! This an anthology and not just a good one, but a super-powered edition that is able to leap smaller collections of sub-par stories in a single bound! Alright, enough with my cheesy humor. In all seriousness, Super Stories of Heroes & Villains, the new anthology from Tachyon Publications, is flexing some serious muscles in a genre that doesn’t suffer lightweights. Filled with engaging and intelligent stories and featuring an impressive list of contributing authors, Super Stories of Heroes & Villains is one “text-only” volume that has earned a well-deserved place on the shelf in any respectable (and friendly), neighborhood comic book shop!

Blame it on the uncertainty that accompanies a modern world shaken by a severely damaged global economy, violent ideological extremists, and continuously worsening climate change, but apocalyptic (and post-apocalyptic) stories are at the forefront of pop culture these days. Whether it be the stark and harsh realism of The Walking Dead, the epic sci-fi flavor of The Hunger Games, or the hilarious and campy nature of stories like Zombieland, it seems clear that the public distrusts authority, has a cynical feeling about the future, and wants to read, watch, and consume TONS of stories about the end of the world! Not content to let others have all the fun, writer Russell Nohelty (Ichabod Jones: Monster Hunter) has thrown his hat in the post-apocalyptic arena with his snarky, sexy, and a attitude-filled new comic, Katrina Hates the Dead.

As I’ve mentioned before, there’s a strange phenomenon surrounding official movie novelizations and how, if they’re written well, they can actually exceed the quality of the film version of the story. (I will direct skeptics, once again, to check out the official movie novelizations of the Star Wars prequels if they need convincing.)  Much like his recent adaptation of The Dark Knight Rises (read my review here), author Greg Cox has done it again by delivering an official novelization of Zack Snyder’s Man of Steel that will surely thrill fans of the film and also most likely sit better with the film’s detractors than the movie itself.