The image, sent out by Marvel with only the words "The Year of Spider-Man is 2010," seems to contain at least three different Spider-Man, as well as Arana (AKA Spider-Girl, not to be confused with this Spider-Girl) and the oracular Madame Web. The return of infamous "Spider-Clone" Ben Reilly has been teased for some point during next year's thrice-monthly Spider-series, and Avengers: The Initiative has already featured people not called Peter Parker in the red-and-gold "Iron Spider" costume, so is this a bait and switch or are we going to see multiple Parkers spinning webs at some point in the twelve months to come?

Okay, sure; there are other books being released this week that you might want to check out. Dark Horse are starting a new series of Hellboy spin-off BPRD, after all, called The Black Goddess, which is sure to be worth a look.

IDW are launching not only a new GI Joe series but also their Terminator: Salvation Movie Prequel series. Marvel is putting out the much-hyped Amazing Spider-Man #583 (The Obama issue, in case you were wondering). And DC collect the first few issues of the enjoyable quasi-anthology House of Mystery into the Room And Boredom paperback (which, admittedly, is very worth your time and attention at $9.99).

But, honestly? The book that stands out from this week's shipping list? That would be Battlestar Galactica: Cylon War.

The four-issue series, timed to coincide with the final episodes of SciFi's epic television show, takes us back to the first Cylon War, to show us all the backstory that we've only had hints of before, about just how that whole little "war" thing got started, letting us see how the Cylons got their human-killing groove on in the first place, and offering up lots and lots of old-school Centurion action to boot. It may not be a full-scale Ronald D. Moore-written television series like we'd want, but it's the next best thing... and perhaps the perfect way to get in the mood for Friday's BSG Season 4.5 premiere.

Definitely a good reason to use the Comic Shop Locator, just in case you don't know where your local android's dungeon is, if nothing else.

For now, writer Marc Guggenheim (Eli Stone, Green Lantern) isn't saying. The only thing that's certain is that the comic is a respectful look at the experience of being a soldier in Iraq — early copies have already been distributed to soldiers in the field, and they've already written Guggenheim fan mail. Artist Barry Kitson (whose pencils are, characteristically, lovely to look at) put a lot of work into making all the army gear and other details look accurate and convincing. And it looks like Spidey himself winds up over there.

Guggenheim makes a big point of saying, in an interview with the L.A. Times, that he chose to put Flash in Iraq, rather than Afghanistan, because people always show soldiers in Afghanistan to avoid political overtones. Guggenheim didn't want to do a political story, per se, but he also felt like U.S. soldiers in Iraq are underexposed in popular media.

I'm not sure how I feel about these sorts of "very special" stories, like the spate of AIDS comics in the early 1990s. It would be better if Flash Thompson hadn't been such a cipher for so long — he was Peter Parker's enemy, but then he became more mature (after fighting in Vietnam, actually) and then he and Peter became friends. And more recently, Flash suffered a weird and somewhat convenient case of amnesia, which made him revert to bullying Peter Parker again. But eventually the amnesiac Flash became Peter's friend again, and even helped hide Parker when he was on the run after the huge "Civil War" storyline. And now he's randomly going off to war. I barely know who this guy is. On the other hand, the pencils (over at the Times site) do look amazing. And there's something cool about seeing the normally New York-based Spidey in a different, even grittier setting. [LA Times]

Let's get everyone else's books out of the way first, shall we? Dark Horse ask what may be the unexpected question of the week - "Who wants to relive Pamela Anderson's second-greatest hit?" - with their Barb Wire Omnibus release. But then they make up for it with the particularly awesome MySpace Dark Horse Presents anthology, collecting the best of the first year of their web anthology, including the deservedly award-winning Sugarshock by Joss Whedon and Fabio Moon. Image Comics are offering the first collection of their new-age illuminati supervillain book New World Order, and Marvel continue their alien war story with the first issue of Secret Invasion: Amazing Spider-Man. Much more interesting from the House of Ideas is the first issue of the third volume of Runaways or the first hardcover "omnibus" collection of Brian Michael Bendis' Daredevil run.

But, as I said, DC just plain have everyone else beat this week. They have the collection of mind-bending Duncan Rouleau's time-traveling robot Metal Men, which was completely underrated when originally released and will reward anyone willing to put the time and effort into it. Same goes for the Brave And The Bold: The Book Of Destiny collection, which features time travel, parallel worlds and more super-heroes than you can shake multiple sticks at.

If you're following the Final Crisis storyline, then you might want to check into Brad Meltzer's DC Universe: Last Will And Testament, which shows what happened to your favorite characters on the last night before Darkseid took over. Then skip over to Grant Morrison's sure-to-be-awesome Final Crisis: Superman Beyond, in which everyone's favorite corporate icon breaks free of reality's bounds in order to save his true love. (And if you find that Morrison's take on the Man of Steel agrees with you, then you should definitely pick up this week's paperback release of All-Star Superman, if you've somehow missed it until now.)

More Morrison can be found in the first hardcover re-release of his over-the-top JLA run, which features alien invasions, robots learning about humanity and the trouble with falling for your own dreams, all dispatched with humor and surprising speed. Somewhat stunningly, each of these - well, maybe with the exception of the Meltzer book, and that's only because of my personal distrust of any man who has a crush on Terra - is well worth your time and money. They're the kinds of books that reawaken your love of superheroes, science fiction or just comics that like to tackle their subjects with imagination and a sense of humor. Go forth and spend your hard-earned dollars with only a little bit of fear.

As you may have heard by this point, a full list of this week's books can be found here, and you can take that list to the comic books store closest to you... which you can locate by going here. Just remember to tell your local store clerk that, like Elvis, you were born standing up and talking back.

Marvel Comics have their lightest week in quite some time, which clears the way for Amazing Spider-Man #568, the first part of the six-issue "New Ways To Die" storyline that brings Venom back into Spider-Man's world, as well as introducing the potentially-awesome, potentially-disastrous new character "Anti-Venom" to the world. If any Spider-fans need more reason to pick it up, what if I tell you that it also returns Norman Osborn, the Green Goblin, to his rightful place as Spider-villain? Exactly.
DC Comics have two great launches to compete against any number of webheaded bad guys, however; Final Crisis: Legion of Three Worlds sees uber-writer Geoff Johns and uber-artist George Perez team up to smash three different versions of the 31st century together and see what survives, while G. Willow Wilson and M.K. Perker's Air offers up a heady mix of technology, terrorism and spirituality in a story that starts with a flight attendant who's afraid of flying and ends up somewhere off any map you've ever seen.

If those two books don't tickle your fancy (and if not, then for shame: they're the two I'm most looking forward to this week), then IDW and Dark Horse have you covered: Doctor Who: The Forgotten is due in stores tomorrow, launching IDW's "All of the Doctors, ever" mini-series with story by Tony Lee and art by Y: The Last Man's Pia Guerra. More excitingly, though, Dark Horse has Star Wars: The Force Unleashed, a graphic novel based upon the upcoming video game (and written by the game's writer , Haden Blackman); you can find a seven-page preview of the book here, if you're not convinced, but for those of you who may be craving a less cartoony take on George Lucas' legacy, this is for you.

By this point, you know what comes next: A full list of this week's books can be found here, which you can use to build your very own shopping list that you can take to your very own local comic store... which you can locate by going here. Use those powers wisely, my friends, and remember: Fear leads to anger. Anger leads to hate. Hate leads to suffering, and suffering leads to you realizing how much you need something like The Force Unleashed to remind you why you liked Star Wars the first time around.

Iron Man:

I know I said we weren't going to talk about the Samuel L. Jackson cameo in Iron Man ever again, but then people started posting cameraphone copies of it on YouTube. Here's our version. [Thanks, Greg!]

X-Files: I Want To Believe:

X-Files 2 is a return to the "horror genre X-Files started in," says David Duchovny. Also, Scully is working in a Catholic infirmary called Our Lady Of Sorrows Hospital, which is really an abandoned mental hospital in Vancouver. One scene involves Scully, a bed-ridden boy, and a "vulture-like priest." And there's a scene which takes place in the hospital's chapel. Also, that rural house where Mulder is living at the start of the movie? He's hiding out there, because he's still a fugitive. [X-Files News]

Indiana Jones And the Kingdom Of The Crystal Skull:

A memorabilia site has photos from Indiana Jones And the Kingdom Of The Crystal Skull for sale, and some of them are quite spoilery, including some pics of Indy handling the eponymous skull of crystal. Plus, Indy in quicksand! (Is Mutt using a snake to get him out, or a big stick?) And Indy getting choked by soldiers! And Indy in a weird 1950s pastiche with plastic kids. Huh? [Worst Previews and Slashfilm]

Batman: Gotham Knight:

Warner Home Video released some new images for Batman: Gotham Knight, its direct-to-DVD animated anthology that comes out July 8. And Alan Burnett, who edited all six of the scripts, revealed some new details about the sixth segment, which he wrote. Titled "Deadshot," it features the gunman with perfect aim from the Bat-comics. Says Warner, "The segment ties together threads from all the film's chapters as Batman must thwart an unerring assassin whose love of guns and disregard for human life lets him cross lines that even a Dark Knight shies away from." Burnett, who worked on the seminal Batman: The Animated Series says he was never allowed to use Deadshot in the TV cartoon because they weren't allowed to show real bullets. In the DVD, Deadshot's first murder takes place against a backdrop of fireworks and balloons. [Warner Home Video]

Amazing Spider-Man:

On the heels of that picture we showed you of Anti-Venom, who's like the antifreeze to Venom's engine oil, more details about this summer's Amazing Spider-Man storyline have come out. "New Ways To Die" runs from ASM #568-573, and features Norman Osborn, current Venom Mac Gargan and original Venom Eddie Brock... who is now Anti-Venom.

Besides totally radical fashion sense, these villains have one thing in common: they knew Spider-Man's secret identity long before he unmasked in the "Civil War" storyline. Now that the timeline has changed in the wake of Spider-Man's deal with the Devil (don't ask), suddenly these three villains don't know his identity any more. The storyline crosses over with Thunderbolts, where Norman Osborne is in charge, and culminates in one of the most asked-for battles of all time. Oh, and it's written by Dan (She Hulk) Slott, who's quite good when he's allowed to be fun. [Comic Book Resources]

Iron Man:

As you've probably heard, Iron Man doesn't feature the rumored cameo by Samuel L. Jackson as eyepatch-wearing superspy Nick Fury. At least, not the version shown to preview audiences. But some people are claiming the final version released to theaters will have an extra added scene that was left out of the preview version, in which Jackson shows up as Fury, recruiting for a group called the Avengers. Whether this is towards the end of the film, or after the end credits, I'm not sure. [JoBlo]

Also, director Jon Favreau has a slight cameo in the film as Happy Hogan, a supporting character from the comics who will be much more important in the second film, if any. And the DVD of the first movie will include a deleted scene at a party in Dubai where Tony meets Ghostface Killah and they know each other. [Superhero Hype]

Robert Downey Jr. says he thinks the Iron Man sequel will deal with Tony facing his newly godlike power, and Tony will turn to drink as he contemplates the enormity of what he's done. And Gwyneth Paltrow's Pepper Potts gets a boyfriend, and Tony says he's happy for her while taking a drink to console himself. Then Tony gets drunk and shows up at Pepper's place during her date, dressed in his Iron Man suit, demanding to know what the boyfriend has that he doesn't. [Sci Fi Wire]

Superman: The Man Of Steel:

And speaking of actors who aren't named Edward Norton but still have script ideas, Brandon Routh has some hints about the sequel to Superman Returns, which seems to be officially called Superman: Man Of Steel. Routh says this time around, Superman will have a "good villain that we can actually have physical altercations with." Because Superman didn't get to punch anyone/anything in the first movie, so it'll be good to have more punching this time. And there'll be more humor from Clark, plus more funny Clark/Jimmy interactions. And maybe things between Superman and Lois will be more smoothed over, and Lois "can afford to be nicer to Clark." Routh still believes Superman and Lois will end up together. [Superhero Hype]

Wolverine:

The new Wolverine-focused X-Men prequel movie, due out in 2009, is much darker than the X-Men trilogy, and is more along the lines of Batman Begins, promises star Hugh Jackman, who could star in another 10 or 11 Wolverine movies. [MTV Movies]

Star Trek:

The new Star Trek prequel movie starts with the crew going off on the start of their five-year mission, says Uhura actor Nichelle NIchols. [TrekToday]

Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles:

Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles is scouting for two new recurring characters: Becky, a "hot teenaged hipster" who may be John's new girlfriend. And Catherine, an "unusually earthy" business leader in her early 40s, who's sort of a female Bill Gates. [Ask Ausiello]

Battlestar Galactica:

On Battlestar Galactica, the search for Earth may not take as long as you might think this season. [Ask Ausiello again]

Lost:

Here are two more clips from tomorrow night's new Lost episode, in which Jack needs medical attention. [Spoilers Lost]

Doctor Who:

More about those Doctor Who spoilers from Death Ray magazine: Gwen and Ianto from Torchwood are definitely in the season finale, the magazine says. And maybe they recruit Mickey and Martha into the depleted Torchwood team? Also, Martha is in episode six, "The Doctor's Daughter" — where the Doctor meets his daughter. And faces aliens called the Haff. Oh, and Death Ray speculates that his daughter really does come from stolen DNA. [Thanks to Keith]

Smallville:

Here are some more new images from Thursday's Smallville episode which takes place in an alternate universe, featuring Lex Luthor as president of the U.S. and Clark as the bespectacled version from the comics. And in an upcoming Smallville episode, another regular character is going to die. [Buddy TV]

Also, in the season finale, Clark's cousin Kara tells Lex that he's destined to defeat the Traveler, and offers to take him to the Fortress of Solitude to learn how. Clark is shocked that Kara would go to Lex, but she turns out to be Brainiac in disguise — the real Kara is trapped in the Phantom Zone. Chloe gets arrested by the Dept. of Domestic Security, and Lana awakens from her coma. And then Clark and Lex face off in the Fortress, and Lex learns Clark's secret. [Turkey Whisperer]

Amazing Spider-Man:

The Amazing Spider-Man comic will feature a new character named Anti-Venom, who's sort of an inverted version of the old Venon symbiote, who sported a white-on-black version of Spidey's costume. (Image below by John Romita Jr./Marvel.) Another image reveals some more upcoming stories: A shadow falls over Kraven the Hunter's grave, and Mary Jane is back. Also back are Eddie Brock, the original Venom, and Norman Osborn, the Green Goblin. [Entertainment Weekly]

Real World Metropolis was the second fan movie in a row made by Wells that won Wizard Magazine's now defunct "Direct To Video" contest (Superhero Birthday Party having won the year before), and at a Wizard-sponsored convention that year, his acceptance speech caught the attention of Marvel editor Axel Alonso:

So they show it - a spoof episode of The Real World, with super heroes in the house. Not blisteringly original but my friends make up for it by being funny as hell. I got to give a little speech afterwards. I got up there and took some friendly jabs at [Marvel Editor In Chief] Joe Quesada and [star Marvel writer] Brian Michael Bendis, spending ample time addressing the timely subject of how worthless my friends and I are - one of the few subjects I'm an expert in.

The next day I heard that Axel was looking for me, almost threw up, then ran into him in a bar that night. He asked me to send him some ideas for [now-cancelled anthology title] Spider-Man's Tangled Web. We went back and forth a bit and eventually he told me to just write it. It was pretty rough, but he helped me tighten it up. I'm sure I don't need to say it, but he's a damn good editor. And then I was off and running, head still spinning.

Real World Metropolis [YouTube.com]

Another "shocking" Marvel comic book is Captain America #33. Cap's former sidekick Bucky finally confronts the man he blames for the Captain's death, Iron Man. Rumor has it that a new Captain America will emerge at the end of this issue, as a result of a deal that Bucky makes with Iron Man. Plus check out Steve Epting's gorgeous art of the Red Skull:

Grant Morrison's Batman finally emerges from the long "Resurrection of Ra's Al Ghul" crossover with issue #672. We're back to dealing with the "imposter Batmen," a big theme of Morrison's run. The "third Batman" is shooting up a police precinct, and his ultimate goal is to kill the real Dark Knight. It sounds as though we'll get some explanation for the extra Bat-guys. And since the zany imp Bat-mite guest stars, it appears that Wacky Grant will be showing up for this round.

Tom Beland (True Story Swear To God) writes a Fantastic Four one-shot called Isla De La Muerte. The Thing takes his annual "secret vacation" in Puerto Rico, and his team-mates follow him, only to confront an old enemy and the Chupacabras. Judging from the preview pages, it looks like a dose of old-school angst-free FF without much substance.

Mike Baron's crazy superhero Badger is back in a new mini-series from IDW, Badger Saves The World. How excited you are about this comic depends on your degree of 80s nostalgia. The "mentally ill superhero" thing has become such a cliche by this point, it's hard to see this comic winning much of a new audience. But it does have Pavlov, a terrorist who uses trained dogs.

Speaking of 80s nostalgia, this week also sees the collection of the Buckaroo Banzai mini-series Return Of The Screw. Original writer Earl Mac Rauch wrote the continuation of the movie's story, and director W.D. Richter was also involved. Buckaroo and his team save the world again, plus there are guitar solos, gun battles, a human pickle and a giant sombrero. In other words, if you're one of the people who quotes Buckaroo dialog to your friends, you'll probably want to grab this.

Also, there's the giant hardcover Daredevil By Frank Miller Omnibus Companion. Frank Miller's groundbreaking work on Daredevil #158-191 reinvented the character and put Miller on the map in a huge way. Those essential issues are collected in the Daredevil by Frank Miller and Klaus Janson Omnibus, which came out last spring. This new hardcover contains all the other work Miller did featuring Daredevil. There's some nice stuff here, but it's basically for completists.

Finally, you can relive all of Batman's wackiest team ups from the 1950s in Showcase Presents Brave and the Bold, volume two.