ASTRO CITY: THAT WAS THEN #1 by Kurt Busiek and Brent Eric Anderson. . The Award winning series is back…finally. It’s a tale of heroes in their own universe and, as was true with the previous series, it’s truly a love story by Busiek to the superhero loving fans. Great characters and a perfect jumping on point for readers not familiar with the other runs. Anderson’s art shines and having Alex Ross do your covers and character design can’t hurt.
BATMAN: BEYOND THE WHITE KNIGHT #1 by Sean Murphy and Dave Stewart. The continuing tale of an alternate universe Batman for DC’s Black Label continues in a new volume. Bruce Wayne is in prison, Jason is a captain of the guards and Dick works for Powers and runs the GTO. Harley is raising kids and, after a breakout, it looks like The Joker is back. Oh, did I tell you Batman Beyond is here too? Great stuff, especially if you enjoyed the previous mini-series.
CAPTAIN CARTER #1 by Jamie McKelvie and Marika Cresta. Captain Carter sacrificed herself during World War II to save the world. In the present, her frozen body is found, and she is brought back to life. So basically, this is the WHAT IF? Animated story brought t the next level. Carter is this universe’ version of Captain America and now she has to deal with living in the now. Recommended if you were a fan of that WHAT IF? Episode.
CARNAGE FOREVER #1 by Phillip Kennedy Johnson, Ram V, Ty Templeton, Edgar Salazar and Salvador Larroca. Cletus Cassidy may have had his body destroyed, but the creature known as Carnage is still on the loose looking fo a host. One of them is a little girl named Elsie and the other is a prisoner named Santiago Vellez. These stories act as a setup for the forthcoming regular CARNAGE series. If you’re a fan of Venom and Carnage, you will love this, including the “fun” page from Templeton. The art is killer and it’s pretty obvious this series will be dark. I can’t wait! Regarding the regular CARNAGE series, it was kind of a letdown. The main tale, by Ram V and Francesco Manna, sets up what’s to come as we introduce out detective hero, a murder and a host of unsavory characters. The backup by legendary creators David Michelinie and Ron Lim, is a gory revenge tale that may lead somewhere, but I doubt it.
CRASHPAD #1 by Gary Panter. Panter is a legendary, post underground creator whose most famous work was JIMBO, ADVENTURES IN PARADISE and FACETASM. But he is best known for his work as a set designer on PEE WEE’S PLAYHOUSE, where he won three Emmys. His newest work is this: a collection of pieces he worked on in 2018 and 2019. His work is like a drug infused cocktail put on paper and may be best enjoyed that way. It’s a weird journey that will surely be a hit with those who grew up on/enjoyed the classic underground books. Suffice it to say, it’s a wild ride that just proves anyone can create a comic if your mind and will allows you to..
DRACULINA #1 by Christopher Priest and Michael Sta. Maria. Priest’s run on the VAMPIRELLA titles, or some of them, continues. I love Priest’s work and pretty much everything about it from his stories, his storytelling ability and his pacing. Couple that with Michael Sta. Maria’s art and this book just adds to the legacy of these titles. This is a winner for sure.
FANTASTIC FOUR: RECKONING WAR #1 by Dan Slott, Carlos Pacheco, Rafael Fonteriz and Carlos Magno. For those who missed it, Nick Fury killed The Watcher and he replaced him, becoming The Unseen. Well, The Watcher has come back to life, coming out of his own eye. And now he has to do what The Watcher’s have always said they would never do: interfere in the progression of things to save the universe from a distant enemy that has been around throughout all of Marvel history. Of course the FF and most of the Marvel heroes get involved in the first of a twisting tale that will run through FANTASTIC FOUR over the next few months.
GEIGER 80 PAGE GIANT #1 by Geoff Johns, Peter J. Tomasi, Sterling Gates, Leon Hendrix III, Pornsak Pichetshote, Janet Harvey Nevala, Jay Faerber, Bryan Hitch, Gary Frank, Paul Pelletier, Peter Snejbjerg, Kelley Jones, Staz Johnson, Sean Galloway, Megan Levens and Joe Prado. A huge anthology title set in the post-apocalyptic world of GEIGER. 10 tales by some amazing talents, plus preview pages from the forthcoming JUNKYARD JOE. Highly recommended for fans of this great sci-fi series.
GHOST RIDER #1 by Benjamin Percy and Cory Smith. Johnny Blaze is back from his time as the ruler of Hell and all seems right with the world. He is back with his family, has a satisfying job and has a good therapist. But all is not as it seems. Johnny has always been MY Ghost Rider and I’m thrilled to have him bac in my reading collection! The story is filled with twists and some interesting tropes and Smith’s art is very evocative of classic Don Perlin stuff. Totally looking forward to this series as I try to get the taste of the last series, and Jaime, out of my mouth…even though he still invades my reading in AVENGERS FOREVER.
HULK: GRAND DESIGN #1 by Jim Rugg. This book is a wonderful love story to the big green guy. Starting with his origin and moving all the way to issue #30, Rugg retells key moments in Hulk’s history in chronological order in a cool, retro pop art style that also pays homage to the creators and styles of the past. I bought this on a whim because the art looked cool and stayed with it because he did his homework. Totally recommended!
IRON FIST #1 by Alyssa Wong and Michael Yg. Danny Rand has given up his powers to save the world and now Lin Lie has taken up the mantle. I tried…really tried to like this, but it just feels like a bad Shang Chi clone. I don’t like his character, don’t care about his family, even if something is suspicious there, and just don’t care. Rand, over the years, developed into a deep, well-rounded hero. Again, this just feels off. Maybe I’m too old-school but I want a Danny Rand hanging with Luke Cage as much as I want Fu Manchu to be Shang Chi’s father. I won’t be following the rest of this series.
MAESTRO WORLD WAR M #1 by Peter David and German Peralta. Peter David unveils the final part of his post-Apocalyptic tale of a transformed Hulk as ruler of the world. This has been a fun alternate future run and promises to go out with a true bang. Great art from Peralta just adds to the story.
PEACEMAKER: DISTURBING THE PEACE #1 by Garth Ennis and Garry Brown. At last, an origin story. And it’s got everything from his parent’s death to his relationship with his foster/adoptive parents to his mercenary service. It’s revealing and often ugly. But what would I expect from Ennis. Fun stuff.
THE PERAPHANAUTS TRIANGLE #1 by Rodd Dezago and Crag Rousseau. Back in 2005, Todd and Craig created this team of supernatural investigators working for a top-secret government agency known as Bedlam. There are two teams: Red and Blue. The prime focus is on the Blue team, consisting of Aris Hines(who has psychic powers), Choopie(a Chupacabra), Molly MacAllistar/9a ghost), MG(who can travel to other dimensions), Big(the Sasquatch) and Karl the Mothman. Basically, it’s a fun clever throwback with some very cool characters and equally fun adventures. Highly recommended for all ages!
PUNISHER #1 by Jason Aaron, Jesus Saiz and Paul Azaceta. Frank Castle is back. He has a new look(yes…the skull logo is gone) and a new mission. He is now a member of The Hand and while he has totally traded in his guns for swords, he is now encouraged to make the blade his main weapon. But he has not lost any of his lust for blood and guts and total mayhem., dismembering and shooting up like mad. And that’s not all that has changed. (SPOILER) his dead wife is alive again! It’s a fun, fun read with a lot of mystery involving how Frank got to where he is. Plus Saiz’ art is amazing!
RECKONING WAR: TRIAL OF THE WATCHER #1 by Dan Slott and Javier Rodriguez. So, Uatu is alive again and now standing trial for apparently screwing up when he gave the Fantastic Four the Ultimate Nulifier back in FANTASTIC FOUR #48-50. See, if he had let them figure it out themselves they would have defeated Galactus, despite sustaining major injuries, the Surfer would be forever free and Galactus would never threaten the universe again. Despite that, the Prosilicans are returning to threaten the universe. Cue Nick Fury. The tale continues in FANTASTIC FOUR.
RED ROOM: TRIGGER WARNING #1 by Ed Piskor. More grisly internet torture and killing courtesy of Ed Piskor. Picking u from the original series, this is a gruesome bloodbath in black and white. Part of what makes it work, besides waiting for the baddies to get their comeuppance, is the tale is told in three concurrent stories on each page. So, read the first, then the middle and then the final and you get the full details. Cool concept in storytelling.
ROGUES BOOK ONE by Joshus Williamson and Leomacs. In this Black Label title, the Rogues have broken up by Len Snart has decided to put the band back together for one last score. All your favorites are here: his sister, Mick, Trickster, Bronze Tiger, Frances Kane and a highly sedated Mirror Master, who they break out of prison. And of course, things go wrong right from the start. A fun take on what happens to villains when they are too old to cut the mustard anymore.
SAGA #55 by Brian K. Vaughan and Fiona Staples. Not a first issue…but a first issue in a long, long time. One of the best character-driven sci-fi/fantasy titles out there. If you’re a fan of titles like STRANGERS IN PARADISE, you’ll love this. Just go out and pick up the collected works while you’re grabbing the new issues.
SPIDER-GWEN: GWEN-VERSE #1 by Tim Seeley and Jodi Nishijima. Spider-Gwen is back and now on a mission that will send her through various universes, meeting various versions of herself, including Spider-Zero and a version that hold’s Thor’s hammer. What? Yeah…wild, crazy stuff that seems to make no sense but may in the end. A fun read, but I’m not holding out hope that this will all make sense in the end.
STRANGE #1 by Jed MacKay and Marcelo Ferreira. In case you missed it, Doctor Strange was murdered and a younger Strange took his place to try and solve his murder. His estranged wife Clea also returned. Our Strange got resurrected but that didn’t last long and, before dying again, he gave Clea the Eye of Agamotto and the Cloak of Levitation. Now she is the Sorcerer Supreme of the Dark Dimension. But everything is a learning curve and this journey is no different. She has to deal with Doctor Doom, who believes he should be Sorcerer Supreme, a hung over Wong, and the Blasphemy Cartel. She deals out justice but less like Strange and more like Mike Fleisher’s Spectre run. This is a fun but grim take on the role of the Sorcerer Supreme, with witty dialogue and great art. Really curious to see where this goes.
WE HAVE DEMONS #1 by Scott Snyder and Greg Capullo. That award winning team is at it again in a new original series for Dark Horse. Our heroine finds out demons are real, especially the neighbors. Seems her father was a demon hunter and Lam is going to have to carry on the family tradition. With the help of her father’s partner Gus, she is ready to battle all who come her way with her newly constructed, weaponized arm. It is a wild read, looks great and has the entire script added in the back of the book, so you can see how it went from concept to finished story. Highly recommended!
X-CELLENT #1 by Peter Milligan and Michael Allred. I loved Milligan and Allred’s run of X-STATIX, which was quirky and twisted. But that team disbanded and former member U-Girl gained new abilities and has put together a new team. Now those two teams meet and sparks fly. I’ll be the first to admit this book is not for everyone. Milligan’s characters are really weird and Allred’s art, made famous on BATMAN ’66 and especially MADMAN, is equally unusual. But I have aways thought these creators were so underrated and this title is just pur proof of their combined talents.
X DEATHS OF WOLVERINE #1 by Benjamin Percy and Federico Vincentini. Tying in with X LIVES OF WOLVERINE #1, this issue follows Moira, who had her arm cut off by Mystique and is now on the run. This tells the other half f the story that is being told in the other title. Curious to see how Percy ties them together. Vincentini’s art fits the bill.
X LIVES OF WOLVERINE #1 by Benjamin Percy and Joshua Cassara. Professor X sends Wolverine in a mental journey through all the important moments of his life. It is a nice way to tie all of the various origins that we have seen over the years, Percy’s story is a nice linear tale with nice art from Cassara. This will tie in with X DEATHS OF WOLVERINE #1, supposedly creating a cohesive interlocked tale. A mini-series which will eventually end in a rebooting of the mutant titles.
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