Courtesy of IDW Publishing, here's an exclusive sneak peek of Mars Attack #4, featuring a script by John Layman of Chew and John McCrea of Hitman fame. This issue hits stands this Wednesday, September 26. Check out the preview art below.

We've already fallen for Brad McGinty's kaiju Santa cross-sections and xenomorph anatomy t-shirt. Fortunately, McGinty has continued to work with these fantastical physiologies, turning his x-ray vision on a range of movie monsters and aliens.

Science fiction is overrun with Martians, from monstrous invaders to shapeshifting superheroes to Santa-kidnapping buffoons. To make sense of over a century's worth of Martians, we present this grid ranking scifi Martians on their goodness and just how alien they are (click to expand).

Welcome to the third io9 music smackdown! We're putting together the ultimate science fiction (and fantasy) playlist - all the music that every self-respecting fan should have on his or her iPod.

Peeps: delicious to some, disgusting to others. At least we can all agree that these sugary Easter sweets make for some fantastic dioramas, remaking scenes from some favorite scifi movies, books, and TV shows.

In 1962, Topps released the pulpy Mars Attacks bubblegum card series, which would eventually inspire the 1996 film. Now, the original cards are being reprinted as art prints, so you can enjoy the skull-faced invasion in your living room.

Two gothic treasures have lost their dark lustre, according to the Onion AV Club. When asked which pop-culture artifacts they'd fallen out of love with, the Onion AV Club editors fingered Donnie Darko and Tim Burton.

If you've ever longed to dress like a character from one of Tim Burton's films — or are simply looking for an extremely expensive Halloween costume — check out this Burton-directed fashion shoot, showcasing the dark, quirky looks for fall.

Space is silent and vast, but we can't feel the awe and terror of epic space battles without great music. Here's our list of the ten composers without whom science fiction would feel as empty as the void. (With samples.)