Good news, folks who sell things at conventions: it seems sales are up and business is booming! Earlier this week, humor magazine The Devastator and comic news site The Beat released the results of their survey of sales at 2014 conventions, where folks who table at various conventions reported on business for the year. The Devastator started the survey in 2013 with 46 respondents, and this year the number swelled to 107. A larger sample size is very helpful with surveys of this sort -- hopefully the number will continue to grow in future years.

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Quantum and Woody got problems, y'all. I mean, that's basically their entire deal. They're two brothers who hate each other but are forced to team up as superheroes under the threat of a quick and explosive death if they don't bash their magic science bracelets together every day. And the thing is, that's not their main problem. That's just where it starts.

Next week, things are going to get pretty rough for them once again as writer James Asmus and artist Steve Lieber send them into a new adventure with the ominous title Quantum and Woody Must Die! And if you thought things were bad already, wait until you see this poor sap who gets splashed with a truckload of radioactive chemicals.

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After more than 45 years, Scooby-Doo is finally getting the Lego treatment. Warner Bros. and Lego announced a partnership that would see Scooby-Doo, Shaggy, and the rest of Mystery, Inc. brought to life in block form in five new sets, as well as new made-for-video features from WB Animation.

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Ever since Marvel formally announced the casting of Benedict Cumberbatch as Sorcerer Supreme in their upcoming ‘Doctor Strange’ film, we haven’t heard much else about the project. Set to be directed by Scott Derrickson, the film is currently scheduled for a 2016 release date, so it’s about time that we started hearing a little more about who else will be joining Cumberbatch as the project heads closer to production—like Chiwetel Ejiofor, who is reportedly in talks for a role.

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Marvel has unveiled a brand new look for Flash Thompson's Venom, courtesy of artist Valerio Schiti, and it's great. Schiti is currently the penciller on Guardians of the Galaxy with writer Brian Michael Bendis, and Thompson, a long-time part of the Spider-Man supporting cast, is now riding around space with the crew as the Avengers' official emissary. In this week's Guardians Of The Galaxy #23, he got a symbiote upgrade and an even newer gig as... an agent of the cosmos. And with that job title comes a spiffy new outfit.

Schiti's sketches show that he went through a few different takes on the new design before settling on one that keeps the spider motif central and distinct, but also gives Venom a much more sci-fi feel. Venom is as big as ever, but with an armored toughness and an awesome helmet design. The overall look evokes a Warhammer Space Marine.

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As part of the celebration for reaching 250,000 Facebook fans, DC Collectibles has opened its vaults to showcase some prototyped but never developed figures from the past. What's more, DC's asking for your input to see which figures out of the bunch you'd like to see made the most. If any get made at all.

Toy production is a fickle thing, and many times, the concepts and prototypes teased at events like Toy Fair never see the light of day. Whether it's due to a lack of interest at retail, unexpected production costs, or the dissolution of a line dwindling in sales, there are probably just as many ideas collecting dust in a manufacturer's studio as there are actual releases on your shelves. It's rare to get a glimpse into what could have been, but DC Collectibles has given a tiny peek inside its vaults.

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Q: Can Batman defeat a pro wrestler in his natural element? --@ykarps

A: At first glance, this seems like one of the easiest questions I've ever tackled in this column. I mean, of course he could, right? He's Batman. While the rest of us were learning algebra in 8th grade, this dude was traveling across the world learning how to be the best possible expert at everything, just in case he needed it for his never-ending war on crime. Surely that would have to include professional wrestling, the King of Sports, if only because there's no other discipline that combines theatricality and combat in the way that would serve him so well back in Gotham City.

And yet, the more I think about it, the more I realize that, as shocking as it might be for me to say this as the World's Foremost Batmanologist... I doubt even Batman could beat a pro wrestler in his natural element.

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We’ve heard for some time now that Bryan Singer’s ‘X-Men: Apocalypse’ is casting the roles of young Jean Grey, Cyclops, and Storm, as the film will focus more on the younger generation of ‘First Class’ rather than once again uniting both old and new casts. While several names were floated, Fox has officially settled on their choices, with ‘Game of Thrones’ star Sophie Turner set to play Jean, ‘Joe’ star Tye Sheridan as Cyclops, and ‘Aaliyah: Princess of R&B’ star Alexandra Shipp taking on the role of Storm.

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We make a regular practice at ComicsAlliance of spotlighting particular artists or specific bodies of work, as well as the special qualities of comic book storytelling, but because cartoonists, illustrators and their fans share countless numbers of great pinups, fan art and other illustrations on sites like Flickr, Tumblr, DeviantArt and seemingly infinite art blogs that we’ve created Best Art Ever (This Week), a weekly depository for just some of the pieces of especially compelling artwork that we come across in our regular travels across the Web. Some of it’s new, some of it’s old, some of it’s created by working professionals, some of it’s created by future stars, some of it’s created by talented fans, awnd some of it’s endearingly silly. All of it is awesome.

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Listen, there was no way that Snake Eyes: Agent of Cobra wasn't going to be my favorite comic of the week. I mean, my love of G.I. Joe has been chronicled pretty extensively here at ComicsAlliance, and the two parts of that franchise that I love with an almost overwhelming fervor are Destro and Snake Eyes, the two characters who take the spotlight in this issue. The only way it could be closer to what I wanted out of a comic would be that if it involved Batman and pro wrestling, and since DC already put one of those out last month, it's as close as we're going to get.

But while I've been in the tank for this series since it came out, I can tell you that it's great for reasons that go beyond the starring characters. It's the continuation of a smart, slick take on the G.I. Joe franchise that kicks off with a premise that's inherently exciting. It just happens to also involve two of the best characters ever.

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