New Releases by David Hine

DARKNESS FALLS IN WITCHBLADE''S 19TH ANNIVERSARY! In another life Jackie Estacado was Sara Pezzini''s lover and the father of her child. Now he has used the power of the Darkness to endanger the whole of human existence and only the Witchblade can stop him. Here at last is the untold story...the Death Of Jackie Estacado!

"THE AGE OF REASON" Jenny is losing her mind, Hope is becoming more corrupted by her Darkness abilities, and an ancient, more powerful evil is about to return to the surface of our world. What will it take for Jackie Estacado to reclaim the Darkness and put an end to the madness that he helped create? Collects THE DARKNESS #112-116

Collects Spider-Man Noir #1-4. It was 1933 and the Great Depression was just getting started. And so was the corrupt mob boss the Goblin. When embittered, angry Peter Parker meets a spider and its life-changing bite, he may have just inherited the force to honor the phrase, "If those in power can''t be trusted, it''s the responsibility of the people to remove them."

SERIES FINALE! As The Darkness virus becomes a citywide epidemic, the Old Gods run rampant. What will it take for Jackie Estacado to reclaim the Darkness from his nefarious Doppelganger?

When a crime team arrives on the frontier planet of Amaranth to investigate a series of mysterious deaths, they begin to uncover secrets that could unravel the fabric of the universe. With elements of westerns, mysteries, and political thrillers, this critically-acclaimed series is far more than just "CSI in Space." The first season builds an enigmatic and complex world that will surprise and horrify you. Collects STORM DOGS #1-6

Extreme horror for desperate survivors in a world overrun by psychopaths (think The Walking Dead meets Texas Chainsaw Massacre), as written by best-selling authors David Lapham and David Hine! Journey back to the earliest days of the Crossed outbreak, when an outbreak of viral insanity first plunged an unsuspecting world into darkness, in two tales scribed by the masters of modern horror, David Lapham and David Hine! In high school, Edmund earned his nickname “Yellow Belly” by running away and hiding whenever confronted by conflicts or fears. But when the Crossed infection ignites at a local circus, when a world of color and delight turns to anguish and misery, perhaps it’s that very same cowardice that will save him in the end! Meanwhile, a group of self-centered and hedonistic college kids head to a writer''s retreat to explore their inner selves... but end up surrounded by berserk killers. What depths will they sink to in order to survive the grinning, gruesome hordes hunting them through the wilderness?

A classic film noir set in a Lovecraftian world, Ryder on the Storm follows Ryder, a private eye hired by the beautiful femme fatale Katrina Petruska to investigate the horrifically bizarre suicide of her lover, Michael Hudson. Ryder''s journey to solve the case and finish Hudson''s work leads him to discover a truth more sinister and terrifying than he could ever have imagined- daemons walk among us. Now, he must team up with the latest daemon hunter, Charles Monk, to take down the cabal of ancient evil controlling the city while struggling to reconcile the dark side of his own nature.

Written by DAVID HINE Art by JEREMY HAUN Cover by CLIFF CHIANG Following Black Mask''s destruction of Arkham Asylum, Dr. Jeremiah Arkham has rebuilt the Asylum following the design of his mad Uncle Amadeus. But will the new Arkham be a haven for the criminally insane - or a house of torture? Collecting BATMAN: BATTLE FOR THE COWL - ARKHAM ASYLUM #1, ARKHAM REBORN #1-3 and DETECTIVE COMICS #864-865. On sale August 4- 144 pg, FC, $12.99 US

The end of an era. When Al Simmons was murdered, he made a deal with the demon Malebolgia and became a Hellspawn so that he could return from the grave. Now he faces death once again and this time there is nothing that can save him from the jaws of Hell.

The end of Spawn. ''Nuff said.

Spawn battles his inner demon. Is he a force for Good or Evil? If Evil wins, Wanda dies. If Good triumphs, this is the end of Spawn. We mean it!

Spawn battles his greatest enemy... HIMSELF! When Al Simmons was resurrected as a Hellspawn, he became symbiotically connected to his living necroplasmic costume. Now that costume has turned against him, and it''s tearing him apartÉ

War is Hell. France, July 1st 1916 -- the bloodiest day in the history of human conflict. On the battlefield of the Somme, one man makes the ultimate sacrifice. A new Hellspawn is born and the dead rise to follow him into endless war.

Imagine you are a monster, abandoned by your family, confined to a locked room, friendless and alone. Imagine you are so repulsive that the only people who can stand to look at you are the ones who are paid to attend to you. Imagine you have been given unbelievable power. Imagine what you would do... The stunning conclusion to ''The Monster in the Bubble.''

People are dying and witnesses swear the killer is a ghost. Police profiler Marc Simmons thinks he knows better, but his suspect has the perfect alibi. Can Spawn solve the riddle of ''The Monster in the Bubble?''

The showdown! The Hellspawn known as Gunslinger hits town, aiming to bring Hell to the high plains. The townspeople have one chance of survival. One man who will go up against the Gunslinger... if they don''t lynch him first.

As Spawn continues to explore the past, he finds that Mammon''s influence on the Simmons'' family goes back further than he has imagined. Al Simmons'' great-great-grandfather was a Buffalo Soldier, but what happened when this hero of the Old West crossed paths with an emissary from Hell? Two words: Gunslinger Spawn!

Collect no. 170-175 of "Spawn, " including the "Legend of Gunslinger Spawn."

"A Tale of Three Brothers" continues as Al Simmons becomes a cold-blooded killer, while his brothers follow their own paths, one to become a man of justice, the other descending into drug addiction and mental breakdown. As the memories flood back, Spawn begins to realize that it was no accident that he was chosen to become a Hellspawn.

Featuring sold out issues of the most talked about SPAWN story arc in years! Finally, after all these years, the war Al Simmons was created to fight is here? but which side will he choose? Join DAVID ''Civil War'' HINE and PHILIP ''X-Men'' TAN on the beginning of their historic SPAWN run!

What made Al Simmons the person who grew up to be Spawn? Al struggles to recover his lost memories of an encounter with a sinister stranger. An encounter that led to bloody murder and changed the destinies of three young men in "A Tale of Three Brothers."

When Spawn re-made the world he closed the portals to Heaven and Hell. With no fresh souls to torment, the demons are getting restless. In this issue, the door is breached. One man faces judgement and if he is guilty the price will be a one-way ticket to eternal damnation.

Are your kids misbehaving? Nothing puts wayward teenagers back on the straight and narrow faster than a dose of Hellfire. And who better to create the genuine experience than a couple of honest-to-god demons. Ab and Zab are born again in "Hellhouse."

Desperate to regain her powers of magick, Nyx seeks help among the Voudou community of New Orleans. But the price she has to pay proves too high. Only Spawn can save her from the evil she encounters. The problem is, the last time they met, Spawn swore to kill her if their paths ever crossed again. Poor Nyx. Out of the cauldron and into the fire.

Spawn thought all was right with his newly created universe. But it seems he''s recreated everything -- even some of his old foes! Its "mano a mano" time with the new much more dangerous Clown vs. Spawn. Be there for the battle to end all battles!

Spawn thought all was right with his newly created universe. But it seems he''s recreated everything -- even some of his old foes! Its "mano a mano" time with the new much more dangerous Clown vs. Spawn. Be there for the battle to end all battles!

The new world that has been created by Spawn begins in this issue. It seems as if the world is more than perfect, but the cracks are starting to appear, as the new world begins to show its true colors.

Issue 165 breaks continuity and features a Mandarin Spawn one-shot. Lan Medina, part of the Eisner award-winning team on Fables, is doing the art honors. The Mandarin Spawn action figure has long been a fan favorite, and in response to their requests over the years, this issue provides the origin of the character.

The Final Conflict is over. So what happens after The End of the World? A pivotal issue in a must have story arc in the Spawn mythos, wrapping up 163 issues of continuity. Saying any more would just give it away.

This is the big one: Armageddon! Not a trick, not an imaginary story: The end of the world is at hand. God and Satan go head to head in the Final Conflict and as Spawn''s counter heads towards zero, it looks like he is about to lose the battle to save the human race.