By Zack Quaintance — This is always a strange Wednesday, the one that falls in the sleepy end week that straddles Christmas and New Years. Publishers don’t generally seem to roll out marquee releases, preferring instead to release some more idiosyncratic and interesting titles, and that’s exactly what we have here in our picks for the Top Comics to Buy for December 30, 2020.

We’ve found some strong books coming this week, and here’s hoping you do, too. See you all next year! Oh, and don’t forget to keep checking the site this week for our Best of 2020 content…

Top Comics to Buy for December 30, 2020

PICK OF THE WEEK
Batman Annual #5
Writer: James Tynion IV
Artist: James Stokoe
Letterer: Clayton Cowles
Publisher: DC Comics
The riveting new vigilante known as Clownhunter was a breakout star of “The Joker War”- but what’s the tragic origin of this teenage assassin? How did his parents die at the hands of The Joker, and is there a place for him in the evolving Gotham City? Can there be redemption for the infamous Clownhunter? This epic tale reteams writer James Tynion IV and artist James Stokoe, the storytellers behind the definitive Clownhunter tale from Batman: The Joker War Zone #1!
Why It’s Cool: Two towering comics talents — both of whom are named James — use this week’s Batman Annual #5 to deliver a killer origin for Clown Hunter, a character who might have come off as a throwaway gimmick in the hands of lesser storytellers. This book is a rich and fantastic read from start to finish, and if you’ve started to enjoy this new Batman run as much as I have, you’re going to absolutely love this comic.
Price: $4.99
Buy It Digitally: Batman Annual #5

I Walk With Monsters #2
Writer: Paul Cornell
Artist: Sally Cantirino
Colorist: Dearbhla Kelly
Letterer: Andworld Design
Publisher: Vault Comics
The horrors of Jacey's past are unpacked as she and David walk into the lion’s den. And what exactly is this monstrous form that David can assume?
Why It’s Cool: We as a website were collectively blown away a bit by the excellence of I Walk With Monsters #1, and now this week late in the year we’re getting the sophomore issue. This series through two chapters has just been such a wonderful mash-up of genre trappings with something deep and honest to say about trauma and abuse. It’s really sort of the 2020 indie comics ideal — a story that revels in the traditions of the fantastical while always doing so in the service of something personal and poignant to say. Simply put, this is a wonderful book.
Price: $3.99
Buy It Digitally: I Walk With Monsters #2

King In Black: Iron Man/Doom #1
Writer: Christopher Cantwell
Artist: Salvador Larocca
Colorist: Guru-eFX
Letterer: Cory Petiti
Publisher: Marvel Comics
Iron Man has risked everything to save Eddie Brock, but now he’s left with nothing but guilt. As longtime ‘frenemy’ Doctor Doom shows up with both counseling words and ulterior motives, they’lll be forced to battle an all-too-familiar specter of the holiday season—albeit one now twisted and controlled by the recent invasion of Earth by the symbiote homeworld. As Iron Man and Doom fight as temporary allies, their unexpected encounter both with each other and a horrifying inversion of yuletide joy may ultimately reveal to them the true meaning of Knull-mas.
Why It’s Cool: The Iron Man-Doom relationship is a severely underrated one within superhero comics, explored well as it has been in recent years by creators like Brian Michael Bendis. Now, we get rising star superhero comics writer Christopher Cantwell taking his turn, after having established himself as a top-tier writer on both Iron Man and Doctor Doom on those respective titles. With an event tie-in and a holiday theme, we’re not really sure what to expect from this plot, but we’re very excited for it all the same.
Price: $3.99
Buy It Digitally: King in Black - Iron Man/Doom #1

Monstress: Talk Stories #1
Writer: Marjorie Liu
Artist: Sana Takeda
Letterer: Rus Wooton
Publisher: Image Comics
Once again bridging the gap between the fifth and sixth arc (which resumes January 2021), Part Two of MONSTRESS: TALK-STORIES follows Maika as she opens up to Kippa and recounts an important day from her childhood in Thyria.
Why It’s Cool: Monstress - Talk Stories #1 for my money was one of the best single issues of the best fantasy in comics to date, diving as it did into the semi-tangential backstory of excellent side character, Kippa. The second issue of this two-part interlude is poised to do the same thing, this time diving into an incident from the childhood of the protagonist, Maika Halfwolf, and I absolutely cannot wait. Also, for folks who continue to follow our Best of 2020 content, you’re going to want to keep an eye out for more Monstress.
Price: $3.99
Buy It Digitally: Monstress - Talk Stories #2

Wasted Space #18
Writer: Michael Moreci
Artist: Hayden Sherman
Colorist: Jason Wordie
Letterer: Jim Campbell
Publisher: Vault Comics
Lucky 18! Billy learns that his purpose on Earth might be a little different than what he imagined, and Molly and Dust dig deeper into who's behind all this madness.
Why It’s Cool: Wasted Space is one of those comics that has been so good for so long, that I think we as a comics consuming community can have a tendency to take it for granted. It’s an amazing space opera with characters who have been so familiar and relatable that new issues of this book have started to feel like going home a bit. Within all that, series artist Hayden Sherman has started to quietly do next level work, elevating his career to new and imaginative levels, and the result has been some of the best issues of what’s already an outstanding run.
Price: $3.99
Buy It Digitally: Wasted Space #18

Others Receiving Votes

• Avengers #40

• Bad Mother #5

• Canto II: Hollow Men #4

• Colonel Weird - Cosmagog #3

• Engineward #6

• Justice League: Endless Winter #2

• Kaiju Score #2

• Nailbiter Returns #8

• Neil Gaiman - Norse Mythology #4

• ROM: Dire Wraiths #3

• Shang-Chi #4

• Usagi Yojimbo: Wanderer’s Road #2

• Vampirella #16

• X-Men #16

New #1s and One-Shots

• Avatar - Next Shadow #1

• Dark Nights: Death Metal - The Last 52, War of the Multiverses One-Shot

• Ghost Rider: Return of Vengeance One-Shot

• Jinny Hex Special One-Shot

• Taarna #1

• Tales From the Dark Multiverse: Dark Nights Metal One-Shot

• Transformers: Escape #1

Graphic Novels and Trade Collections of Note

• Aleister & Adolf TP

• Bad Reception TP

• Complete Hate HC

• Heist, Or How to Steal A Planet, Vol. 1 TP

• New Teen Titans Vol. 12 TP

• Spider-Man Noir: Twilight in Babylon TP

• Young Justice Vol. 2: Lost in the Multiverse TP

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.