What says romance more than comics? If there is anything, we don't want to know about it. Once again we're offering a special selection of romantic and/or erotic gift books with which to woo your sweetie this Valentine's Day. From classic romance comics to cutting-edge erotica, from sweet to twisted, from timeless to unexpected (zombies?), these comics are fluent in the many dialects of love.

From now through the day in question (February 14, 2009), SAVE 15% on all of our Valentines Day gift selections!

Must Read: The New York Times looks at the "Schulz's Beethoven: Schroeder's Muse" exhibit currently on view (and listen) at the Charles M. Schulz Museum and Research Center. (Grateful thanks to tipster Paul Hornschemeier.)

• Review/profile: Rick Klaw looks back at Frederick & Eloise and other early work by Brian Biggs

• List: Bully, continuing with the "Fun Fifty of 2008" list, plunks Tales Designed to Thrizzle by Michael Kupperman in at #11

• List: Alan David Doane and numerous other comics pros list the 2009 titles they're most looking forward to, and there's a bunch of our stuff in there

• In-joke: Here's one for Jacob

• Things to see: Check out the illustrations by Esther Pearl Watson and some other folks we like in this New York Times article from a couple of weeks ago about the economic meltdown

• Review: Le Visage Vert looks at the Monte Beauchamp-edited Devilish Greetings: original en Français; Google translation

• List: Our pal Bully puts Bottomless Belly Button by Dash Shaw at #25 on his annual "Fun Fifty" list

• Things to see: Kevin Huizenga draws in Douglas Wolk's sketchbook

• List: On the Forbidden Planet International blog, Chris Marshall puts Willie & Joe: The WWII Years by Bill Mauldin at #2 on his Best of the Year list

• Things to see: Laura Park reveals her cover for the new Vice

From Robert Goodin: "I've just launched a blog called Covered that has an artist redrawing a comic cover in their own style.  Participating artists will come from the fields of comics, animation, graphic design, and galleries from all over the world and some will be well known and some not so well known." There's just a couple of entries so far, but it looks like it's gonna be great. Above: Jeffrey Brown's version of Secret Wars #10.

Due in February, Hank Ketcham's Complete Dennis the Menace 1959-1960 features the tiny troublemaker's encounters with bobby-soxers, beatniks, cats and hobos, and of course plenty of mischief at home and in the neighborhood, all expressed through Ketcham's dazzlingly fluid line. Click this link if the embedded slideshow doesn't appear above, and/or to open it in a new window.

The Comics Journal #295
Edited by Mike Dean & Kristy Valenti; Gary Groth, executive editor

The Comics Journal #295 is chock full of all the comicky goodness that you’ve come to expect from our fine publication! Check it out:

• Sean T. Collins interviews writer Brian K. Vaughan about Y the Last Man, Ex Machina, Runaways, Pride of Baghdad, how a career in comics led him to writing for the hit television series Lost, and much, much more.
• Paul Karasik presents a conversation with Italian cartoonist Gipi, who talks about Garage Band, Notes for a War Story, the Ignatz books and how he narrowly avoided a life of crime.
• Rob Clough offers us a chat with humor cartoonist John Kerschbaum, covering everything from The Wiggly Reader to Pete & Pussy to why he couldn’t figure out why his first editors hated him so much.
• Michael Dean examines the page rates paid by the Best American Comics anthology series.
• Noah Berlatsky digs into the comic-book closet and finds out what’s hiding back there.
• R.C. Harvey examines the life of Flash Gordon/Rip Kirby creator Alex Raymond.
• Our comics section this issue: Charles A. Voight’s short-lived newspaper strip The Theorist, in its entirety.

As always, we’ve got free online previews of our Brian K. Vaughan, Gipi and John Kerschbaum interviews to whet your apetite. The Comics Journal #295 — around the comics world in 208 pages! Don’t miss it.

200-page b&w/color 7.5" x 9.5" squarebound softcover magazine • $11.99
Add to Cart • Read More...

• Review: Panel Patter explores House by Josh Simmons

• Review: The Daily Cross Hatch guarantees that Ted Stearn's Fuzz & Pluck will make you laugh

• List: Largehearted Boy names his "Favorite Graphic Novels of 2008," including Bottomless Belly Button by Dash Shaw

• List: At RevolutionSF, Rick Klaw names "What Is Best in 2008," including The Number 73304-23-4153-6-96-8 by Thomas Ott (reproduced from his top comics list on his "Nexus Graphica" column)

• List: Zack Soto names his personal "best of/favorite" comics of 2008, including Perla La Loca by Jaime Hernandez, Love and Rockets: New Stories #1 by Jaime and his brothers, and Bottomless Belly Button by Dash Shaw

• List: At Robot 6, what Ivan Brunetti (and others) is reading

14 Italian artists, including Ignatz creators Marco Corona (above), Gabriella Giandelli, Lorenzo Mattotti and Sergio Ponchione, illustrate the articles of the Italian Constitutional Charter for an exhibit opening in Bologna tomorrow, January 13. Marco Corona's blog has details in Italian; here's the Google translation.