New Releases by John Layman

A senator with bloodstream full of drugs and a belly full of chicken is stone dead in the morgue, and the trail leads back all the way the Arctic, to a joint U.S./Russian space observatory that has been singularly focused on a single, distant, Earth-like planet. Tony Chu and his partner are about to discover whatever secret this planet holds does not compare to those being kept by the astronomers. Yeah, that weird stuff just got weirder, in a spacey story from Image''s deliciously twisted new series about cops, crooks, cooks, cannibals and clairvoyants!

Amelia Mintz is a food critic and a Saboscrivner. That means she can write about food so accurately, so vividly and with such precision, people get the actual sensation of taste when reading her restaurant reviews. Since the government prohibition of poultry, she''s lost her enthusiasm for the culinary world, and only reviews restaurants with a ''D'' rating or less from the Health Department. Her last review caused half the city to projectile vomit, and sent hundreds to the hospital with severe food poisoning. Agent Tony Chu has been assigned to arrest Amerlia Mintz, but there''s just one problem with that...he''s madly in love with her!

It''s Tony Chu''s first day on the job as a federal agent for the FDA, the most powerful law-enforcement agency on the planet. He''s got a new partner who thinks he knows everything, a boss who hates his guts for no good reason, and his first order of business is to eat a decomposing finger found in a fast food cheeseburger. By the end of the day, Tony will ingest rancid sushi, face Yakuza assassins and meet the girl of his dreams. It''s all in a day''s work for Tony Chu, in the latest chapter of ''Chew,'' a deliciously unsettling new comic about cops, crooks, cooks, cannibal and clairvoyants.

The cross-over no one asked for - or expected - is finally here! Too big for the movie or television screen, Dynamite presents the ultimate "Why Not?" tale as Ash and Army of Darkness meets Xena, the Warrior Princess! Written by John Layman and illustrated by Miguel Montenegro, the first volume of our most unnecessary adventure finds Ashley J. Williams transported to the world of Xena and Gabrielle - and, most importantly, Autolycus, who of course, bears more than a passing resemblance to our main man Ash. Throw in the Necronomicon and an evil little Ash taking charge of a group of fairies (the winged kind) and hey, you''ve got yourselves a story!

Writer John (Marvel Zombies Vs. The Army of Darkness) Layman returns to the world of Xena, and he''s joined by artist Noah Salonga as they present the story of Dark Xena Taking place some time after the series finale of Xena: Warrior Princess and before the events of the "Contest of Pantheons," Dark Xena finds Gabriele making a request of the Gods and learning that you must be very, very careful what you wish for - and how you wish for it! Xena is Dead, Long Live Xena.. er.. Dark Xena, that is... and by Dark, we mean just plain Nasty...Mean... and Evil! Plus: The Xena Annual by writer Keith (Arena) Champagne and artist Noah Salonga.

All hail Emperor Penguin! The avian-themed antagonist has put a hit out on Bruce Wayne. Can Batman save himself from the menace of the Penguin?

Batman''s final confrontation with the Wrath is here. Can Batman stop his evil counterpart from claiming any more victims as an epic battle bursts onto the city streets?

A "Death of the Family" tie-in issue! As the Joker continues to wreak havoc on The Dark Knight and his allies, Batman is forced to cut a deal with The Penguin...one that will come back to haunt both of them when a new villain interferes!

Part 2 of 5: Detective Makoto Sato is on a quest to bring down the Takahashi crime syndicate. Sato''s efforts earn him a one-way trip to a tropical getaway, courtesy of the Tokyo criminal underworld. The exotic locale? MONSTER ISLAND! Alone and facing death at the hands of both gangsters and goliaths, Sato must use his wits to survive - and enlist the aid of some most unusual friends. Join superstar creators John Layman (Chew) and Alberto Ponticelli (Unknown Soldier) for this unusual and exciting mini-series of monster mayhem!