For starters, let’s all wish writer Tom Spurgeon a speedy recovery. He took a blogging break earlier this year for health reasons and his essay about his health, his love of comics and his work is even more essential than his already-essential blog. If you read nothing else today, make it this.

Now let’s see what else is going on across the internets:

Sherlock: Oh, that lovable curmudgeon Sherlock Holmes is causing trouble for the uneducated, easily threatened, fragile book burners of America. Apparently, A Study In Scarlet, a classic Holmes adventure, features an insensitive remark about Mormons. Imagine, a fictional character - not Holmes or Watson - from Victorian England having an unprogressive attitude. Forgive me while I clutch my pearls and head for the fainting couch. Galleycat has more on the story, including links to downloading the public domain book for free.

Don McGregor: The writer of Killraven and Black Panther (to name but two) has some thoughts about his wife Marsha on her birthday.

Spongebob: When someone who used to draw Spongebob Squarepants for a living gets mad at you, run!

Blurb: Chris Sims looks at great cover blurbs. Bonus: not all of them are modern, many are Jack Kirby, others are Marvel.

Spider-Man: Ricky Sprague at Project Child Murdering Robot weighs in on the new Spider-Man.

Retail: Comic Book Ink in the Pacific Northwest could use a helping hand.

Alec Holland: Retailer and blogger Mike Sterling has sage advice for anyone coming late to the Swamp Thing party.

Conan: Rick Klaw looks at 10 Robert E. Howard characters that would make a better movie than his fabled Cimmerian. I agree, and I’m not even familiar with half the list! Sailor Steve Costigan and his “Waterfront Fists” anyone?

Xombi: Writer John Rozum has posted some nifty Frazier Irving concept art from the series. Go!

Norman Saunders: That guy was one heckuva painter as the examples at Two-Fisted Tales of True-Life Weird Romance proves.

Ultraverse: I love this Hardcase cover galler Depluto put up at his Ultraverse Flashback blog.

Sergio: You know what’s out this week? The second Bongo issue of Sergio Aragones Funnies.

Cracked: Rod Lott at Bookgasm looks at If You’re Cracked, You’re Happy!: A History of the World’s Second Greatest Humor Magazine. He finds the book to be not as fun or funny as it should be. Of course, your mileage may vary.

Seeds: But then Alan Cranis at Bookgasm reads himself Seeds by Ross Mackintosh, a graphic novel about the author’s dying father. Says Alan: “By keeping his story so personal, Mackintosh has hit upon something universal.” I have not read Seeds yet, but I just Amazoned it.

Cartoons: The sometimes scandal-plagued British politician and writer Jeffrey Archer is unloading his collection of original cartoon art.

And finally, I bought an old copy of Howard Chaykin's American Flagg! (#15) for 25¢ at the San Diego con this summer and enjoyed the heck out of it. I also enjoyed reading part 4 of Charles Meyerson’s text feature on Wertham and the Comics Code. I liked it so much I found scans of Meyerson’s whole series online.

That’s it for now! Use your internets responsibly!

[Artwork: Robert Downey, Jr. as Sherlock Holmes]