Scheduled to arrive at your local comic shop this week: Castle Waiting Vol. II #14 by Linda Medley. As previously noted, Castle Waiting comics arrive in comic shops before we have the issues available here on the website, so hit your area brick-n-mortar if you want the issue now! Here's a first look at the cover:

(A small meta note: from now on we'll only be posting New Comics Day updates on weeks when we actually have new titles shipping to comic shops. No update means nothing new from us that week.)

• List: Rina Ayuyang posts her Best of the Year comics list, with Ganges #2 by Kevin Huizenga and Abandoned Cars by Tim Lane on it

• Review: Vice gets a 5 year old kid's verdict on Johnny Ryan's Angry Youth Comix dolls

• Blurb: Precocious Curmudgeon looks at this week's new comics, recommends Castle Waiting Vol. II #14 by Linda Medley (which will be in stores before we have it for sale here)

• Interview: Optimum Wound gets all kinds of information out of Ho Che Anderson

• Things to see/interview: The ASIFA-Hollywood Animation Archive Project Blog posts a trove of Eldon Dedini's Playboy cartoons, along with a video interview clip

• Events: Here's a list of current and upcoming art shows where you can view work by Andrice Arp

From photographer Jennifer Juniper Stratford, behind the scenes at Esther Pearl Watson's Unlovable video shoot, starring Leslie Hall!

NOTHING SAYS LOVE LIKE COMIX!

Looking for a perfect Valentine’s gift for that special someone? Or just want to catch up on your reading during dreary winter weather? You’re in luck!

Fantagraphics Bookstore & Gallery in Seattle is mounting a special sale of lovely comix and graphic novels this Thursday through Saturday, February 12, 13 and 14. Hundreds of new and slightly damaged books are reduced from 20% to 50%.

While bargain hunting, you can view our delightful new exhibition, UNLOVABLE by Esther Pearl Watson, and check out new offerings by some of your favorite Fantagraphics artists. And don’t miss the festive Georgetown Second Saturday Art Attack this Saturday from 6:00 to 9:00 PM, featuring lively visual and performing arts presentations at dozens of locations throughout the enchanting neighborhood – a romantic destination for Valentine’s Day revelry. For more information visit: www.georgetownartattack.com.

Fantagraphics Bookstore & Gallery is located at 1201 S. Vale Street (at the corner of Airport Way S.) in Seattle’s Georgetown arts community. Phone 206.658.0110. Open daily 11:30 to 8:00 PM, Sundays until 5:00 PM. See you all soon.

Coming soon in its 9th printing (and still available in its redesigned 8th printing), Stan Sakai's Usagi Yojimbo Book 1: The Ronin is the introductory chapter of this timeless all-ages classic, and we're pleased to bring you this multimedia preview glimpse for the first time. Click here if the embedded slideshow above is not visible, and/or to open it larger in a new window.

• Review: J. Caleb Mozzocco offers "Nine not particularly insightful thoughts about Beasts! Book 2" (which are more insightful than advertised)

• Review: Ticket to Anywhere checks out Castle Waiting by Linda Medley

• Review: Weltklasse Serier reviews Ganges #2 by Kevin Huizenga in Swedish and says "this is a fantastic series. Read it. Now," according to the Google translation

• Review: I Love Rob Liefeld proffers a short review of Chance in Hell by Gilbert Hernandez, calls it a mind-reeling grand slam

• Blurb: Sandbox World anticipates Sam's Strip by Mort Walker & Jerry Dumas

• Blurb: Sacha Peet praises The Lagoon by Lilli Carré

• Blurb: Comix 411 hypes up our forthcoming Humbug collection and its downloadable preview

• Things to see: A tribute to Lux Interior by Zak Sally

• Things to see: More sketchbookery by Jim Woodring and Tom Kaczynski

We're pleased to present another brilliant but short-lived comic strip from the mid-20th Century, rescued from obscurity and presented in a handsome softcover volume. Sam's Strip: The Comic About Comics collects the entirety of Mort Walker and Jerry Dumas's sharp-witted feature, ahead of its time for its use of fourth-wall-breaking meta-humor. Click here if the embedded slideshow isn't visible above, and/or to view it larger in a new window.

Just one today:

• Excerpt/things to see: On his blog Anders Nilsen posts a sequence from his new book Monologues for Calculating the Density of Black Holes, along with a couple of other pieces

Here's a teaser for ya: Bob Fingerman has provided the image above, an outtake from his upcoming book Connective Tissue, for use on the exclusive signed bookplate that will be available when you order the book from us (we'll probably have it up for pre-order sometime in the next couple of weeks). Bob's the first -- and won't be the last -- artist to provide us with exclusive artwork for one of our free signed bookplates!

We're excited to introduce a new addition to our roster of online comics: Johnny Ryan's Blecky Yuckerella, as seen in Vice magazine, the Portland Mercury, and of course her very own collections from Fantagraphics! We'll be posting a new adventure starring America's smelliest, stupidest, stubbliest second-grader (and her disgusting friends) every week right here, starting right now!

And of course it's time for the next installment of Steven Weissman's in-progress pages from "Blue Jay," an epic 32-page story from Chocolate Cheeks, the next collection of the Yikes! gang's adventures. In this week's installment: securing a meeting place.

And don't forget to catch up on our current 5-day chunk of Martin Kellerman's hilarious Swedish smash-hit Rocky, updated Monday-Friday! This week: Rocky in front of the camera. Plus: waffles!