When new magazines are trying to generate buzz, a strong mission statement and a stellar roster of contributors seldom beats the irresistible allure of controversy and connections. One of the most anticipated 'zines in recent memory (granted, it doesn't have a lot of competition), the Jewish pop-culture magazine Heeb has already generated more press than most magazines of its size and scope do during their entire run. Early news stories played up its loose connection to Steven Spielberg, who apparently serves on the board of a group that helps fund it, while the magazine's title has inevitably stirred controversy. Ridiculed as the product of dippy dilettantes by The New York Observer, parodied (the Ironminds website ran a piece about Wop magazine), and analyzed before it even went to press, Heeb faces the sort of expectations and scrutiny that can kill a publication without a strong sense of purpose, as Tina Brown might be willing to attest. The editors of Heeb have, unsurprisingly, pleaded innocent of all charges of opportunism, and the first issue backs them up, as the magazine's provocation pretty much begins and ends with its title. Although visually slicker than most 'zines, Heeb is, for the most part, refreshingly guileless and earnest, clearly the work of twentysomethings devoted to turning likeminded people on to stuff that they and their friends think is cool. "Kindly check your neuroses at the door," admonishes Jennifer Bleyer's opening letter from the editor, and while the concept of a neurosis-free Jewish publication might seem counterintuitive, it ultimately works. Optimistic and idealistic, Heeb engages in its share of Kosher Kitsch, with articles on Krusty The Klown, Neil Diamond, and Jewish afros, but it nicely balances those pieces with more serious articles about Jewish activists and a tender reminiscence about Allen Ginsberg. Though Judaism serves as Heeb's overarching theme, the magazine's take on the subject is unabashedly secular, having infinitely more to do with Woody Allen, syrupy-sweet Manischewitz, and The Beastie Boys than the Talmud. At this point, Heeb's philosophy doesn't seem to extend much beyond thinking that Judaism is cool, but the magazine's breezy, enjoyable debut issue suggests that that might just be all the philosophy it needs.