The Saga Re-Read: Saga #46, ‘#*$& your mercy in the face’

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By Zack Quaintance — One of the qualities I find impressive within Saga is the way the series can both linger with you for the scope of its massive (and defiantly coherent) narrative, while also consistently landing some of the best individual moments in comics. For example, I remember this stretch of issues as the abortion arc, a somber aside that fit into the larger story because it sort of settled the question of whether Marko and Alana would have more kids. Upon losing and subsequently terminating the pregnancy to save the mothers life, they realize they won’t. It’s a vital part of the massive story going on here, if a bit of a side quest, so to speak.

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GET HYPED: WildCats #1 looks like a madcap victory lap with killer art

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By Zack Quaintance — I have been supremely hyped about the latest iteration of DC Comics’ WildStorm books, since I first read the Wild Storm #1, which (believe it or not) first came out back in February of 2017. That’s more than two years ago, and a lot has changed since then. That series has published all 24 of its issues, essentially wrapping up in a somewhat neat fashion. 

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REVIEW: Detective Comics #1007 is a showcase for top-tier artwork

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By Alex Batts — Detective Comics #1007 sees the end of a two-part tale featuring the Vengeance of God, the long-tenured DC character, The Spectre. The creative team of Peter Tomasi, Kyle Hotz, David Baron, and Rob Leigh set the stage for this story last month in Detective Comics #1006, with another great mystery for Batman to solve. The inclusion of The Spectre adds an unorthodox element, and the interplay between him and Batman has been a blast to read. 

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REVIEW: Why Second Coming #1 might be the most important comic this year

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By Zack Quaintance — An incredibly reductive (if necessary) summary of the new series from Ahoy Comics, Second Coming, is that it’s a satire about Jesus returning to earth and becoming roommates with Superman (or close enough). This was, perhaps, the elevator pitch, with additions in the room to explain that the book is a look at how modern society—specifically modern Christians—have lost site of Jesus’ original, more subversive teachings about forgiveness, empathy, understanding, peace, etc. 

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REVIEW: Batman #74, a raw and emotional battle between father and son

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By Alex Batts — Batman #74 brings about the close of “The Fall and The Fallen”, the current story arc running in Tom King’s epic run. This arc started in issue #70, with Batman awakening from his nightmares and fighting his way out of an Arkham Asylum under the control of Bane. It led to a slugfest, and ultimate beatdown of Batman in his own home, by the master strategist, Bane. The last chapter is a globe-trotting tale following Thomas Wayne and Bruce as they trek through the deserts of Khadym in search of the Nain Pit, a secret Lazarus Pit belonging to Ra's Al Ghul. 

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REVIEW: Ghosted in L.A. #1 is a great story about Los Angeles that also has ghosts

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By Zack Quaintance — I probably used the ideal opening line for my headline, so I’ll just re-purpose it again here: Ghosted in L.A. #1—a new comic from BOOM! by  Sina Grace, Siobhan Keenan, Cathy Le, and DC Hopkins—is an absolutely great story about youth and love (both romantic and platonic) and Los Angeles...that also happens to have some ghosts in it.

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The Return of the Justice Society – DC’s First Family

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By Jack Sharpe — The Justice Society of America (JSA) is the first family of DC Comics. They were the first major team set up in the DC Universe, and their influence is felt even today through characters like the Flash and Green Lantern. Ever since Flashpoint (a 2011 event that seemed to reboot DC continuity),  this team has been missing from the main DC Universe. Incarnations of the team appeared in the Earth 2 comics – but the legendary team from the WWII era was no more in the main DCU.

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Top Comics to Buy for July 10, 2019: Batman Universe, Criminal, Second Coming, and more!

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By Zack Quaintance — I’m sure I wrote in this space last week that this was OMG such a great week for comics! And to be sure, I loved my books last week. There were many flashy comics (from the War of the Realms finale to the consistently-excellent The Green Lantern to the journalism wish-fulfillment of Lois Lane). Trust me when I say after looking at the Top Comics to Buy for July 10, 2019...that is also OMG such a great week for comics!

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Comic of the Week: No One Left to Fight #1 asks, what happens after the big battle?

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By d. emerson eddy — There's been an interesting resurgence of stories recently that endeavor to tell the story of what happens after the happily ever after (or the opposite) at the end of a tale. Basically, filling in the what's next after the end of a story. Not as a sequel or a deconstructionist take on a particularly genre, but an attempt to explore what happens once the big fight, the big world-saving struggle, is over and there's seemingly a jarring absence of purpose. No One Left to Fight #1 embraces that literally in its title, as we're treated to the beginning of the story of what happens when a hero who has saved the world countless times realizes that there's no one left to fight.

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REVIEW: Lois Lane #1 is character-driven wish fulfillment for journalists and those who love them

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By Zack Quaintance — I’ve always appreciated a good Lois Lane story. Moreover, I’ve long considered Lois Lane my favorite character in comics. I wrote a longer piece about this some time in the past, but both my wife and I are reporters. My wife is also considerably better at being a reporter than I am. As silly as it sounds, reading about Superman (himself a reporter, of course) and his wife, Lois Lane, the world’s greatest reporter, is a big kick for me. 

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REVIEW: The Walking Dead #193 ends with a sweet surprise (SPOILERS!)

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By Zack Quaintance — I’m still processing what The Walking Dead did today and why. Now, normally when I say this, it has to do with a much-loved long-standing character having something grisly and horrible happen to them. That’s certainly not the case here. What happened in The Walking Dead #193 is that the story ended, and it ended with little warning on fanfare. 

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REVIEW: Test #1 is a strange and wholly captivating comic

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By Jarred A. Luján — Vault Comics has a new title out this week, Test #1, from writer Christopher Sebela and artist Jen Hickman. I know Hickman mostly for her work on AfterShock’s Moth & Whisper. Sebela, meanwhile, actually writes one of my favorite current ongoings, with the creator-owned book from Image Comics, Crowded. These two teaming up made me excited as soon as I heard about it, but it was really that Test’s concept also involves technology that got me truly fascinated. Sebela has done some sort of funny-while-tragic stuff involving the future of technology over in Crowded, so I was really excited to see him tackle the topic again, perhaps in a different way. 

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Top Comics to Buy for July 3, 2019: Lois Lane, Heathen, The Wild Storm, and more!

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By Zack Quaintance — The day before Fourth of July is a great day for comics to come out, because if you’re like me, it means you can shuck a decent number of your responsibilities to sit and read your books on America’s birthday. Before venturing out into the thick humidity in search of bright flashes, loud noises, and maybe a hot dog (if that’s not an advert for staying in…). Anyway, this year we get a great crop of comics for the holiday, too.

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Comic of the Week: Canto #1 is offbeat, thought-provoking, heartrending, and more

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By d. emerson eddy — In the past few years, we as readers have become absolute gluttons for unique, personal stories told in comics that come at storytelling from oblique angles, presenting things that are offbeat, thought-provoking, and often heartrending. Stories that embrace the limitless possibilities of comics and tell something new. Canto is one of these stories, catching me off guard with its simplicity and beauty. It's a fable in the vein of Edward Scissorhands or 9, of potential constructs proving that they're more than the sum of their parts.

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The Saga Re-Read: Saga #45 is as heartrending and suspenseful as this book gets

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By Zack Quaintance — Saga #45 put us directly into the heart of a story arc in which Marko and Alana must go to a wild west planet in search of a discrete medical procedure to help her with the baby she lost in the last story arc. This sounds silly for me to say, but as I re-read it, this story arc is proving to be much darker than I remember. I think that has to do with reading it with weekly breaks, rather than with months…

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INTERVIEW: Liana Kangas on ‘She Said Destroy,’ more

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By Jarred A. Luján — If you’re anywhere near the comics stratosphere, by this point you’ve probably heard of Liana Kangas. You’ve seen her art in 2000 AD, or in the Eisner-nominated Where We Live anthology. She spent some time doing the mini-series Black AF Devil’s Dye with Vita Ayala, which was published by Black Mask Studios. Basically, Liana has been…busy.

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GET HYPED: Why the Bad Weekend hardcover should be on every shelf

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By Harry Kassen — Welcome to another iteration of Get Hype, where we talk about the books we’re excited to read and why we’re excited to read them. Those of you familiar with this feature might think my pick is a little bit of a cheat, given that I’ve already read it, but my excitement for the Criminal: Bad Weekend hardcover edition is through the roof, and there’s no way I’m not going to write about it.

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REVIEW: War of the Realms #6 is a thunderous (sorry) finale

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By Zack Quaintance — War of the Realms, for those of you who for some reason read this site but have managed to not hear about it, is Marvel’s big summer event this year. It is a story that has grown over the course of Jason Aaron’s ongoing run on Thor, which at this point is among the all-time best with the character. In it, the dark elf Malekith has conquered nine of the 10 realms, with the lone holdout being Midgard (Earth). This is the story of Malekith and the mighty forces he has rallied, trying to take over…

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REVIEW: Detective Comics #1006 launches another intriguing mystery story

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By Alex Batts — The Arkham Knight story arc in Detective Comics wrapped up a few weeks back, excellently introducing the character to the mainstream comics continuity. With the closing of one arc starts the beginning of another. Detective Comics #1006 is part one of a new arca called “There Will Be Blood,” and it sees Jim Corrigan and macabre The Spectre character in Gotham City for a grizzly murder mystery in which the Vengeance of God seeks out the help of the World’s Greatest Detective. 

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REVIEW: Marilyn Manor #1 is ‘delightfully weird’

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By Jarred A. Luján — Let me start off by just saying that Magdalene Visaggio is one of my favorite writers. Eternity Girl (a Young Animal comic that featured art by Sonny Liew) absolutely blew me away. I know this is a review for Marilyn Manor, but if you haven’t read that comic, consider going to your shop, slamming your fist on the counter, and demanding a copy of Eternity Girl. I’m fairly certain you’ll be grateful you did. 

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