By Zack Quaintance — It’s New York Comic Con week, and so for folks heading to the show (myself included), the new releases might take a bit of a backseat...which isn’t an indictment of quality. It’s not really a statement either way. Timing is a thing that happens, etc. Anyway, the big headliner for me this week in the Top Comics to Buy for October 2 is House of X #6.

While it’s not the ending of this Jonathan Hickman X-Men revival, it’s the last House of X chapter, and (for my money) that series has been the much stronger of the two. My guess would be that the last major shifts that need to establish the new mutant status quo take place here, with next week’s Powers of X going on to add context and seed the forthcoming Dawn of X chapters. But we shall see.

And now, on to this week’s comics!

Top Comics to Buy for

*PICK OF THE WEEK*
House of X #6
Writer: Jonathan Hickman
Artist: Pepe Larraz
Colorist: Marte Garcia
Letterer: Clayton Cowles
Publisher: Marvel Comics
Price: $4.99
THE INEVITABLE FUTURE. The revolutionary tale of Mutantkind's rise comes to a conclusion that will lay the groundwork of the X-Men's stories for years to come! Superstar writer Jonathan Hickman (AVENGERS, FANTASTIC FOUR, SECRET WARS) and Marvel Young Gun artist Pepe Larraz (EXTERMINATION, AVENGERS) wrap the series that changes everything!
Why It’s Cool: I really sort of jumped the gun and started to explain why this comic was cool in the intro. So if you skip that part but are still somehow looking for clarity on whether the 11th part of a 12th part story is cool enough for you to purchase, maybe start there. What I will add down here is that the answers to what happens in this comic are probably buried somewhere in the intro (as the answers to what happens in basically all of House of X have been). So, I won’t say this is an unpredictable story (although it feels that way sitting here now). I will say, however, that it’s akin to one last push into the seas that the new X-Comics will inherit for the foreseeable future, and that is a very cool thing.

Berserker Unbound #3
Writer: Jeff Lemire
Artist: Mike Deodato, Jr.
Colorist: Frank Martin
Letterer: Steve Wands
Publisher: Dark Horse Comics
Price: $3.99
The warrior known as the Mongrel King, trapped in a modern world with no one but a sympathetic homeless man to keep him company, finds himself confronted by new dangers and old threats from his homeland. From the Eisner Award-winning team of Jeff Lemire, Mike Deodato Jr., and Frank Martin comes this urban warrior fantasy series!
Why It’s Cool: This book has been as understated as all of my favorite Jeff Lemire stories, homaging Conan the Barbarian while taking it to new places with added layers of depth and realism. Oh, and loneliness. Lemire is nothing if not direct market comics foremost purveyor of sci-fi/fantasy/action stories that also remind you of the extreme loneliness that is often inherent to the human condition. This chapter is one of the best in this series so far, building on the strengths of the past chapters (the relationship between the two leads), and giving us one hell of a cliffhanger. Dark Horse Comics offerings this week are strong, and this title is chief among them.

Daredevil #12
Writer: Chip Zdarsky
Artist: Marco Checchetto
Colorist: Nolan Woodard
Letterer: Clayton Cowles
Publisher: Marvel Comics
Price: $3.99
After reuniting in explosive fashion with DAREDEVIL #11, Chip Zdarsky and Marco Checcetto continue their senses-shattering run on DAREDEVIL! As Matt Murdock continues to struggle settling into a life without his horned alter-ego, a FAKE DAREDEVIL is captured by dirty cops. PLUS: The ongoing saga of MAYOR WILSON FISK takes a brutal, bloody turn in a sequence that'll have DD readers talking for months!
Why It’s Cool: I approached this title with a certain weariness, as I tend to do all new runs of Daredevil. So much top-tier work has been done with this character, that my default mode when it comes to Matt Murdock is satisfied. It’s hard starting these runs to even conceive of what’s left to do with the character. Zdarsky and Checchetto came in with a slow-burning concept — what if ol’ Catholic guilt Matt Murdock slipped just a tiny bit and killed a man, entirely on accident? And they’ve built from there, mixing in new compelling ingredients at a slow pace like they were stirring up a long-simmering stu. It was somewhere in the middle of last issue that I realized, yes, I am very much into this run, and I’m not looking back from here.

DCeased #5
Writer: Tom Taylor
Artist: Trevor Hairsine
Colorist: Stefano Gaudiano
Letterer: Saida Temofonte
Publisher: DC Comics
Price: $3.99
The world is dying at the hands of the infected, and the very survival of humanity is at stake. Facing extinction, Superman and the heroes will make a decision that will fundamentally alter Earth's present...and future!
Why It’s Cool: I’ll admit to thinking that (prior to release) DCeased looked like a really bad idea. I’ll admit to thinking that much of Tom Taylor’s superhero work has looked like a really bad idea (the Injustice video game tie-in, the fifth X-Men team comic, the fourth Spider-Man solo book), but you know what? Tom Taylor keeps defying all logic and absolutely murdering even the most hackneyed concepts. I attribute this in large part to Taylor doing the empathetic work to get a thorough understanding of the relationships that have powered these massive inter-connected universes for however many years. He’s certainly done that in DCeased, taking this title from being just another weird zombie thing to a DC Universe end-of-the-world epic. Kudos.

No One Left to Fight #4
Writer: Aubrey Sitterson
Artist: Fico Ossio
Colorist: Fico Ossio with Raciel Avila
Letterer: Taylor Esposito
Publisher: Dark Horse Comics
Price: $3.99
The comic you always wanted continues to give you exactly what you need with "Enter! The Arboreal Sanctum!" From Aubrey Sitterson (The Comic Book Story of Professional Wrestling, G.I. Joe) and Fico Ossio (Spider-Man, Revolution), the iconic heroes of No One Left to Fight believe they've found a peaceful retreat, until they're confronted by a monstrous threat from their past-revivified, improved, and ready to finish what he started.
Why It’s Cool: No One Left to Fight is the best feel-good creator-owned comic of 2019. That’s not to say it’s without drama. There’s maaaaajor relationship drama all over this book. It is to say, however, that each and every panel here is approached with such good-natured enthusiasm by these creators, and the result is a comic that reads like the people making it are having the times of their lives. I absolutely love this series.

New #1s and One-Shots

Absolute Carnage: Immortal Hulk #1
Bettie Page Halloween One-Shot
Bizarre Adventures #1
Black Terror #1
Catalyst Prime: Seven Days #1
Contagion #1
Copra #1
Dark Ark: After the Flood #1
Dead Eyes #1
Flash Giant #1
Ghost Rider #1
Grendel: Devil’s Odyssey #1
Gutter Magic #1
Mezo #1
Nomen Omen #1
Ruby Falls #1
Spider-Verse #1
Star Wars Adventures: Return to Vader’s Castle #1
Strange Skies Over East Berlin #1
Vengeance of Vampirella #1
WWE Smackdown Live Special #1

Others Receiving Votes

Batman #80
Canto #5
Deathstroke #48
Die #8
Doom Patrol: Weight of the Worlds #4
Everything #2
The Green Lantern #23
Immortal Hulk #24
Justice League #33
Legion of Super-Heroes: Millenium #2
Lois Lane #3
Mountainhead #2
Red Sonja #9
She Said Destroy #5
Young Justice #9

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.