Top Comics to Buy for January 29, 2020: Ice Cream Man, The Flash, X-Men, and more!
By Zack Quaintance — After a few quieter weeks to start the year, the unstoppable flow of excellent new comics has returned. This is a heavy week on basically all fronts, from new superhero stuff to new creator-owned monthlies to new collected volumes/original graphic novels. Basically, whatever you’re into in the world of comics, there is probably something you’ll like coming at you this week.
With that in mind, we’ve worked hard to get you some solid picks as a guide/starting point. Enjoy!
Top Comics to Buy for January 29, 2020
*PICK OF THE WEEK*
Ice Cream Man #17
Writer: W. Maxwell Prince
Artist: Martin Morazzo
Colorist: Chris O’Halloran
Letterer: Good Old Neon
Publisher: Image Comics
Price: $3.99
NEW STORY ARC
"CAPE FEAR"
Presented here: a handsome being from far away rockets to Earth and combats evil on our behalf. Tall fella, wears a cape. Lives in a fortress; flirts with a reporter.
A suppurating, super-something story that's certain to see you lose your supper.
Why It’s Cool: Ice Cream Man is a horror anthology comic that is so good that every issue feels like an event. The stories in this book have all been unique, disparate but there is a prevailing sensibility that I can best describe as a Lynchian look at the seediness underneath the seemingly clean and ordinary. This issue points that lens at one of the foundational properties of American comics — Superman, twisting the character into another top-tier Ice Cream Man issue. Our committee (of one) especially enjoyed the story taking place through the lens of the Lois Lane analog. This is a great read for fans of this series as well as anyone who has heard great things about it (some of them from us) and wants to give the book a shot.
Black Stars Above #3
Writer: Lonnie Nadler
Artist: Jenna Cha
Colorist: Brad Simpson
Letterer: Hassan Otsmane-Elhaou
Publisher: Vault Comics
Price: $3.99
Eulalie holds the life of an otherworldly infant in her hands. Desperate to keep it safe, she finds refuge in an abandoned cabin taken over by hunters, who also seek relief from the worsening storm. While these men offer shelter, food, and companionship, they ask for something in return. For they view the ever-shifting snow as a herald of great change in the nation, and their minds have succumbed to the icy embrace of winter.
Why It’s Cool: In a market over-saturated with horror comics, we’ve enjoyed watching these scary books branch off into niche forms of terror. Black Stars Above, for example, is a cosmic horror book set in the 1800s amid the snowy Canadian wilderness, complete with log cabins and trappers and more. Every issue of the book to date — including this one — has been just fantastic, blending historical fiction with deeply unsettling imagery and ideas, creating a sense of tension that remains during even the most seemingly-mundane scenes. There are many books on the market these days with disquieting ideas or imagery, but few that pull them together with narrative and ambience as strongly as this one.
The Flash #87
Writer: Joshua Williamson
Artist: Christian Duce
Colorist: Luis Guerrero
Letterer: Steve Wands
Publisher: DC Comics
Price: $3.99
"Rogue's Reign" aftermath! Central City is in ruins! The Rogues are on the run! The Speed Force is in chaos-and the Flash's powers make him too dangerous to remain free! But who can bring him in? Plus, a surprise character returns from Barry's past with a grave warning about his future!
Why It’s Cool: With Batman and Deathstroke having concluded last month, Joshua Williamon’s run on The Flash is now the last Rebirth run standing, and that’s a very good thing, given that it’s currently using what has long been one of the most potent storytelling weapons in The Flash arsenal — the rogues. This issue promises a heavy interaction between The Flash and the leader of The Rogues, Captain Cold, and we’re always game for that. There’s nothing flashy about this Flash run, but it’s been solid as all get out for a very long time, longer than any other title at DC Comics, and we continue to really enjoy the book.
Something is Killing the Children #5
Writer: James Tynion IV
Artist: Werther Dell’Edera
Colorist: Miquel Muerto
Letterer: Andworld Design
Publisher: BOOM! Studios
Price: $3.99
The time for investigation is over. The hunt begins, as Erica Slaughter brings her namesake to the monsters of Archer's Peak.
Why It’s Cool: It seems wrong to call this series a delight, since it deals so heavily in as the title implies Something Killing the Children, but it has been excellent since it started. This issue is no different. We don’t want to give anything away, but if you’re been obsessively wondering what that Something is, you get some answers here — although there are still many mysteries remaining for the sixth issue to address. This is one of those books where for every one or two questions answered, one or two more rise up to quickly take their places.
X-Men #5
Writer: Jonathan Hickman
Artist: R.B. Silva
Colorist: Marte Gracia
Letterer: Clayton Cowles
Publisher: Marvel Comics
Price: $3.99
The X-Men, the most powerful heroes on the planet, deal with an old nemesis' surprising return...
Why It’s Cool: X-Men #4 was the best issue yet of the Dawn of X flagship title, pushing forward some of the ideas set forth in the HoX/PoX X-Men reinvention in a more meaningful way than we’d seen previously. This issue looks like a bit of a return to the more character-centric one-off stories that marked the first three issues of this book, but that’s not such a bad thing, especially not with writer Jonathan Hickman being joined by Powers of X collaborator, R.B. Silva. What’s impressed us most about this series since the launch has been the range, the way no two issues seem to rely on the same ideas or concepts, and we expect more of the same here.
New #1s and One-Shots
Amazing Spider-Man: Daily Bugle #1
Avengers of the Wasteland #1
Captain Marvel: The End One-Shot
Deadpool: The End One-Shot
Doctor Strange: The End One-Shot
Frankenstein Undone #1
Game of Thrones: Clash of Kings, Vol. 2 #1
Protector #1
Ravencroft #1
Usagi Yojimbo Color Classics #1
Vagrant Queen: A Planet Called Doom #1
Weapon Plus World War IV
Others Receiving Votes
Action Comics #1019
Avengers #30
Criminal #12
Detective Comics Vol. 2, Annual #3
Dial H For Hero #11
Green Lantern: Blackstars #3
Immortal Hulk #30
Justice League #39
Killadelphia #3
Monstress #25
New Mutants #6
Olympia #3
Sex Criminals #26
Suicide Squad #2
X-Force #6
Trades and OGNs of Interest
Adventures of Superman - Jose Luis Garcia Lopez Vol. 2 HC
Clue Candlestick TP
Earth X TP New Printing
Go With the Flow HC
Heart of Darkness Graphic Novel HC
Man and Superman, and Other Stories by Harvey Kurtzman HC
Marvel Masterworks Mighty Thor Vol. 19 HC
Metabarons Definitive Edition Box Set HC
Nils Tree of Life HC
Perry Bible Fellowship Almanack HC 10th Anniversary Edition
Plain Janes HC
Pogo Complete Syndicated Comics Strip Box Set Vols. 5 & 6
Shadow of Batgirl TP
Sports is Hell GN
Thumbs Vol. 1 TP
Year of the Rabbit GN
See our past top comics to buy here, and check out our reviews archive here.
Zack Quaintance is a tech reporter by day and freelance writer by night/weekend. He Tweets compulsively about storytelling and comics as Comics Bookcase.