By ANDREW A. SMITH, Scripps Howard News Service

Yes, it's true: Disney bought Marvel Comics for $4 billion.

Let's get the jokes out of our system right away: The House of Mouse buys the House of Ideas, Spider-Mouse and Duckdevil, Fantasia Four (Billion).

But what does it mean? Obviously, Disney isn't going to blab about its plans, but we do know some things and can guess some others. Here are the questions I hear the most:

I love Vikings. And the existence of "Northlanders," a series from DC's mature-reader Vertigo line, tells me I'm not alone.

"Northlanders" doesn't have a continuing story line or characters. It's just a series of disparate stories set during the Viking era, all written by Brian Wood ("DMZ") and each drawn by a different artist.

Occasionally I recommend a book without pictures, and such is the case with Brian Cronin's "Was Superman a Spy? And Other Comic Book Legends Revealed!" (Plume, $14).

I was working the night shift when two gorgeous lookers appeared at my desk. They looked like trouble, but as Sam Spade said, "I don't mind a reasonable amount of trouble."

If you crossed "To Kill a Mockingbird" with "Alice in Wonderland," you'd get something similar to the remarkable graphic novel "Bayou" ($14.99).

It's the golden age of reprints at DC Comics. But which titles are hidden gems -- and which should just remain hidden? Here are some quick picks:

One of the most popular writers in fiction will bring the very first patriotic superhero to DC Comics -- and no, the character isn't who you think it is, and he's not coming alone.

A lot of comics from the past are offensive to modern sensibilities, reflecting as they do the derogatory racial stereotypes prevalent at the times. Not so "Green Lama," a 1940s character being reprinted by Dark Horse.

Some say the future ain't what is used to be. But those folks clearly haven't read "Science Fiction Classics: Graphic Classics Vol. 17 ($22.50)," where the future is just like we remember!

For one of the most attractive and popular characters in DC's superhero books, Power Girl is a mess. But two writers have vowed to clean her up.
"The fans were demanding" a Power Girl book, said co-writer Jimmy Palmiotti. "DC Comics wanted to try it, and the guys in charge liked what we did on a few other books and rolled the dice and gave us a shot."