OK, granted, Planetary creators Warren Ellis, John Cassaday and Laura Martin were interrupted several times by illness and other projects. And OK, out of 26 previous issues every one was a hit. And OK, they never promised a regular schedule and then went back on it, they were always upfront about delays and hiatuses. And OK, I can't exactly bitch since my own webcomic went on two hiatuses in a year…

The thing is, is it worth the wait? 3 years since the last one?

Haven't read it, beyond the preview pages at the Wildstorm blog. But I'll be buying it the day it comes out, and so should you. And if you haven't read the rest of them, go get them. I'll wait.

If you were living in a world full of superpowered people, how would you find out what they've been doing? Especially if they didn't want you to know? You build a group like Planetary; three archeologists uncovering 100 years of secret superhero activity.

The three have their own abilities — Jakita Wagner is strong, fast and tough, The Drummer can detect and manipulate information streams, new recruit Elijah Snow can extract heat from nearby substances at will — and there is a hidden Fourth Man running the show as they search for clues to what really happened in the last century. It's fast, subversive, thought-provoking, and often hilarious (the DC crossover special where they encounter every version of Batman that's been seen, from the original to the Dark Knight to the 70's hero to Adam West must not be missed) and features barely concealed and not-very-flattering references to almost every other iconic hero like Superman, Captain Marvel, Sherlock Holmes, Wonder Woman, Green Lantern, Nick Fury, Godzilla, the Justice League, the Fantastic Four and the Hulk.

The art by John Cassaday is breathtakingly believable, and Laura Martin's colors ground it even further into reality. Also, Warren Ellis is a sick, sick man.

With any luck the release of this will trigger a new edition of the whole series, but for now we'll make do with the collections. Planetary #27 will be an oversized issue, with a 3-piece wraparound gatefold cover drawn by Cassaday, coming out sometime in October.