Girls, are you tired of the average superhero doofus? Looking for someone whose brains are bigger than his biceps, but he can still kick ass? A thinker? A guy with passion? A guy with wisdom and experience? Someone who may not be all good? Maybe you'd like to meet a guy with a mysterious past. Or a tragic flaw. A secret identity, or maybe just a bad temper. If you've had enough of simple, save-the-world types, or whiny, pathetic, sensitive types, or even dumbass Gen-Xers, then I'd like to introduce you to a few of the men included in Dark Horse's stable of real bad boys. These guys are not evil (well, most of 'em aren't); they've just got that special edge. Take your pick. You won't be disappointed.

ishmaelishmael

call him ishmael, that's his name. if you like them tall, dark, handsome, and brooding, he may be the one for you. of course -- wouldn't you know it -- there's another woman in the picture, and he thinks he loves her. but don't give up hope. he doesn't know who this mysterious redhead is any more than he knows how he ended up in the strange world known as the territory. no matter what tentacled monsters ishmael must battle, he won't stop until he's found his love and discovered the truth about his own existence. written by jamie delano and illustrated by david lloyd, the territory #1 ships in january.

hunter rosehunter rose

there's dangerous, and then there's hunter rose. he's the notorious (and cruel, and brilliant, and sleek, and dark, and dashing, and devastatingly emotionally unavailable) progenitor of the grendel legacy. grendel black, white, & red is a much-anticipated return to the beginning of the grendel legend, written by matt wagner and illustrated by some of the industry's greatest talents. issue #1 (november) includes work by tim sale, d'israeli, john paul leon, duncan fegredo, and ho che anderson.

manjimanji

talk about your tortured souls waiting to be saved! this hardcore samurai's main goal in life is death, something he can't have until he slays one thousand evil men. next on manji's hit list is anotsu -- the stony-faced and unrelenting leader of the terrifying ittö-ryü. written and illustrated by award-winning creator, hiroaki samura, blade of the immortal kicks ass like no other manga!

kir kanoskir kanos

it may seem as though he has no time for anything but revenge, but in star wars: crimson empire ii, kir kanos finally shows us his soft side. if you think you could be happy with the last surviving member of the emperor's royal guard, check out this series which debuts in november. written by mike richardson and randy stradley, pencilled by paul gulacy, inked by randy emberlin.

Usagi YojimboUsagi Yojimbo

Usagi Yojimbo is as fearsome a warrior as any village maiden tormented by a murderous brigand could hope for. But his ferocity in battle is complemented perfectly by a childlike love of nature and a compassion for his fellow beings. This appealing dichotomy makes it easy to overlook the fact that he's a rabbit. Look for Usagi in Stan Sakai's beautiful and compelling series nearly every month.

Yours dreamily,
Rachel Penn
associate editrix