By Zack Quaintance — Traditionally, New York Comic Con is where DC Comics makes big announcements, and this year their stuff was headlined by Brian Michael Bendis curating a new Wonder Comics imprint, focused on teen characters. Aside from bad optics with all dude creators, the line looks solid. It’s flagship title is Young Justice, from Bendis and superstar artist Patrick Gleason, with a squad led by a trio of fan favorites: Connor Kent, Bart Allen, and Tim Drake. The real headlining news from that announcement, in my opinion, is that Mark Russell is writing a Wonder Twins comic to be drawn by Stephen Byrne.

Given a long enough time line, I’d have probably guessed DC would do Young Justice. I could have maybe even figured out it’d be from Bendis and Gleason. But Russell and Byrne on Wonder Twins? What a delightful surprise. Marvel, meanwhile, released some new covers and clarifying details about upcoming titles and one-shots, but, as usual, the publisher seemed content to make its new series announcements by partnering with comic news sites, rather than at a show.

Annnnyway, all that said we have some cool new books coming at us following NYCC, and so that’s what we’re here to take a look at today...NYCC 2018’s 10 Coolest New Comic Announcements. Let’s do it!

NYCC 2018 New Comics

Wonder Twins by Mark Russell & Stephen Byrne
Publisher: DC Comics
Release Date: Early 2019
More Info: Bendis Announces Wonder Comics Imprint
Why It’s Cool: Our favorite announcement at NYCC. Writer Mark Russell has the best track record in comics of taking dated, often dismissed cartoon properties (The Flintstones and Snagglepuss, namely) and spinning stories that are compelling and also among the keenest satire today. Wonder Twins is the perfect superhero property for Russell to once again work that magic, made even richer here by the inclusion of artist Stephen Byrne, whose work we’ve missed seeing regularly since he filled in at times on Ben Percy’s run on Green Arrow.

Dial H for Hero by Sam Humphries & Joe Quinones
Publisher: DC Comics
Release Date: Early 2019
More Info: Bendis Announces Wonder Comics Imprint
Why It’s Cool: The Joe Quinones artwork released with this announcement, number one. Number two is that Sam Humphries is a clever character-driven writer who can really ground this fantastic (if underutilized) property in the book’s hero. His work is also a natural fit for an imprint overseen by Bendis.

The Girl in the Bay by J.M. DeMatteis & Corin Howell
Publisher: Dark Horse Comics’ Berger Books Imprint
Release Date: February 6, 2019
More Info: The Girl in the Bay
Why It’s Cool: With books like Seeds and She Could Fly to its credit, Dark Horse’s Berger Books imprint is among our favorite things in the industry. This coming-of-age miniseries set in the ‘60s seems poised to endear the imprint to us even further.

Black Widow by Jen and Sylvia Soska & Flaviano
Publisher: Marvel Comics
Release Date: January 2019
More Info: Women of Marvel Live Announces New Black Widow Title
Why It’s Cool: Black Widow books often tell great espionage with Marvel continuity, and this one is poised to do so with the help of artist Flaviano, who we’ve said for a while needs a more prominent chance to shine. It’s also nice to see Marvel giving us more of one of the most prominent heroines in all of comics, with rumors swirling that The Widow will have a movie announced officially soon.

Young Justice by Brian Michael Bendis & Patrick Gleason
Publisher: DC Comics
Release Date: Early 2019
More Info: Bendis Announces Wonder Comics Imprint
Why It’s Cool: Since DC’s Flashpoint story reset its universe and kicked off the New 52, many of the company’s beloved legacy characters have felt rudderless. This book could change that a bit, with a team helmed by Connor Kent, Bart Allen, and Tim Drake. Also, the more Patrick Gleason, the better.

Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man by Tom Taylor & Juan Cabal
Publisher: Marvel Comics
Release Date: January 2019
More Info: Taylor, Cabal, and Woodard Swing into Friendly Neighborhood Ongoing
Why It’s Cool: On the surface, this looks like just another Spider-Man book in a market that’s waaaay saturated with Spider-Man books, but Tom Taylor has an incredible history of taking ideas that look unnecessary on their surface and turning them into absolute gold. See Injustice, see X-Men: Red. While we continue to demand that one of the Big 2 get this man a flagship title, we’ll be reading this comic while we continue to wait.

Man Without Fear by Jed MacKay & Danilo Beyruth
Publisher: Marvel Comics
Release Date: January 2019
Why It’s Cool: Although we’re admittedly unfamiliar with these creators, Daredevil has a way of teasing out great work from young creators. This is a four-part weekly series, and for all we know, it could very well do the same.

Naomi by Brian Michael Bendis and David F. Walker & Jamal Campbell
Publisher: DC Comics
Release Date: Early 2019
More Info: Bendis Announces Wonder Comics Imprint
Why It’s Cool: David F. Walker is one of our favorite writers in the industry, as we noted recently in our list of Tragically Cancelled Comics. We remain super-stoked for his new Image book Bitter Root, which is due out next month, but his return to DC is exciting news too.

Savage Sword of Conan by Gerry Duggan & Ron Garney
Publisher: Marvel Comics
Release Date: February 2019
More Info: Conan Slices into Second Ongoing Marvel Series
Why It’s Cool: Put simply, more Conan. Also, more Garney.

H1 Shared Universe from John Cassaday, Mark Waid, and More
Publisher: Humanoids
Release Date: 2019
More Info: Humanoids Announces a New Shared Universe
Why It’s Cool: Humanoids is a veteran and celebrated European publisher, and they’ve brought aboard two giants of the American comics industry as they work to broaden their footprint over here on this continent. They’ve also done well to establish a great stable of young talent for this new shared universe, including Kwanza Osajyefo and Yanick Paquette, among others.

Plus One More

Buffy the Vampire Slayer by Jordie Bellaire & Dan Mora
Publisher: BOOM! Studios
Release Date: January 2019
More Info: Jordie Bellaire and Dan Mora Bring Buffy the Vampire Slayer to BOOM!
Why It’s Cool: Dan Mora is a massive talent as an artist, and he’s joined here by Jordie Bellaire, who has been a favorite colorist of ours for a long while. We’re interested to see what the duo do on this Buffy comic, which we’re totally thinking of in our heads as Buffy by BOOM!

Zack Quaintance is a tech reporter by day and freelance writer by night/weekend. He Tweets compulsively about storytelling and comics as BatmansBookcase.