By Allison Senecal — This is a “NO HUMANS” thirst zone this month (and possibly forever, let’s be real). All HOUSE OF X and POWERS OF X, as well as some sweet sweet covers from the announced Dawn of X titles. A mutants-only VIP list, if you will.
Read MoreBy Harry Kassen — When it comes to Batwoman, there is no creator more heavily associated with the character than J.H. Williams III. From drawing the “Elegy” story arc in Detective Comics, written by Greg Rucka, to co-writing, with W. Haden Blackman, the majority of the New 52 Batwoman series and providing a good portion of the art for that run as well, Williams’ take on the character is the one that comes to mind whenever I think of Kate Kane. Reading back through his run on the character, however, has shown me that, visually, there isn’t just one version of the character, or any character in the series. Williams shifts his style constantly to give information about the characters and the worlds they inhabit, a brilliant move by a brilliant artist.
Read MoreBy Zack Quaintance — I absolutely loved House of X #1 last week, giving it a perfect 10 out of 10 score and describing it as ‘a landmark comic.’ Keep that in mind as I tell you now that this week’s companion comic, Powers of X #1, makes House of X #1 look safe by comparison. I don’t mean this as praise or criticism. In a story as dense and assured as the big one being told now in the X-Men comics by Jonathan Hickman, good or bad doesn’t quite factor in. It’s all good, it’s all fascinating and ambitious. Still, Powers of X #1 is the almost-objectively more experimental and less predictable of the two books.
Read MoreBy Nick Couture — Christopher Sebela is coming off of a great year. With 2018 books like Crowded — a fast-paced hilarious romp through the near future that’s filled with murder apps and really cute dogs — and Cold War — a kinetic futuristic action tale and art showpiece for superstar artist Hayden Sherman — Sebela is a must-read creator in 2019. Test #2 follows up a phenomenal debut issue, with more dense world building and a couple answered questions.
Read MoreBy Alex Batts — A few months back I wrote a piece talking about my hype for Scott Snyder, Greg Capullo, Jonathon Glapion, and FCO Plascencia’s then-unreleased Batman: Last Knight on Earth. We're now two issues in, and the series has exceeded my high expectations. Snyder has said often in interviews that advice Grant Morrison gave him about Batman has stuck with him: give his Batman a beginning and an end. If Zero Year was the beginning, Last Knight on Earth is the end, and this outstanding creative team is pulling no punches for its conclusion.
Read MoreBy Jarred A. Luján — She Said Destroy, a sci-fi/fantasy hybrid comic by writer Joe Corallo and artist Liana Kangas is back with its third issue this week. This has been one of my favorite titles on my pull list since its debut, so I’m going to preface my review with simply telling you how excited I was for this book.
Read MoreBy Zack Quaintance — It’s kind of odd how a single comic can really make a week feel so much better in terms of new comics. For me this week, that comic is Powers of X #1. I absolutely loved House of X #1, a grandiose and confident comic that seemed for the first time in nearly 20 years to announce that the X-Men were starting something that will feel both new and important. As a child of the ‘90s, this feeling is one that I have greatly missed. And I get to have it again this week…
Read MoreBy Zack Quaintance — I am nothing if not a sucker for a strong opening page, an opening page that orients you as a reader, that tells you in a broad sense what this story is about, that draws you in with artwork and prose and maybe even a bit of timeliness, that leads right up to a killer page turn a big reveal that speeds you off through the plot like hitting a turbo boost in Mario Kart. While I’m uncool and have no idea if I nailed that last reference, what I do know is that The Mall #1 has an absolutely killer opening page. The exact type of opening page I’m looking for when I dive into any new #1 comic, especially a creator-owned book like this one with a wholly new (and very interesting concept).
Read MoreBy d. emerson eddy — Spinning out of the Justice League: No Justice weekly series and event last summer that redefined crucial elements of the DC Universe's cosmogony and fundamental forces, Justice League Dark has for the past year or so explored DC’s magical corners. Sometimes delicately, sometimes with a giant hammer smashing it to bits in order to forge something new. The series has wonderfully been navigating the connective tissue of the characters filling out DC's “sophisticated suspense” of '80s, the Shadowpact explorations of the '00s, and the weirdness beyond, while building upon a new foundation for whatever comes next. Justice League Dark #13 does…
Read MoreThis is a bit of an unusual release, due to Ed Brubaker and Sean Phillip’s interesting exercise in the collected release of the Bad Weekend arc from the current Criminal monthly series. The Bad Weekend hardcover collects issues #2 and #3 of the series, and tells the story of aging cartoonist Hal Crane and his criminal misadventures when attending a comic book convention. Joining him is Jacob Kurtz, a recurring character in the world of Criminal.
Read MoreSecret Wars is epic and subversive, but not in the way that you might think. Instead of paying off Jonathan Hickman’s Fantastic Four and Avengers runs in a traditional way that could involve swathes of characters from the 616 and the Ultimate universe going at it, quipping with each other and generally having a ball, Hickman went in another direction.
Read MoreBy Zack Quaintance — Last July at San Diego Comic-Con, Marvel Editor-in-Chief C.B. Cebulski announced the company was bringing back its beloved Uncanny X-Men title. The news was vague, with just a glimpse of a familiar Uncanny X-Men logo on a projector screen (eliciting ravenous howls). Cebulski, however, was announcing more than just a comic revival. To me, what happened in that room was an announcement that after roughly a decade-plus of corporate isolation, the company was bringing the X-Men back into the creative fold.
Read MoreBy Alex Batts — Detective Comics #1008 sees the return of artist Doug Mahnke, accompanied by inker Jamie Mendoza and colorist Dave Baron. This isn’t the only return seen in the issue though, because for the first time in a while The Joker makes his way back to Gotham. This time with a devious plan to terrorize pedestrians at the local amusement park (named Bolland Park after Brian Bolland, artist of The Killing Joke, which has its own iconic amusement park scenes).
Read MoreJonathan Hickman’s multi-year three-segment plan to return the X-Men to the top of prominence at Marvel Comics starts today with House of X #1. For the next 12 weeks, House of X and Powers of X will alternate chapters, leading to the re-launch of the entire X-Line in October…
Read MoreBy d. emerson eddy — Collapser #1 is the second of a new wave of comics from DC's Young Animal, presenting more weird and unique approaches to superheroes. The series introduces us to Liam James, a young man going through a kind of coming-of-age as he tries to find himself, caught between working as a retirement home attendant and a late night DJ trying to make it big. The plot begins when Liam stumbles into weirdness inherited from his mother. It appears to be removed from the standard DC Universe, but there's still a lot to be revealed in this series.
Read MoreBy Alex Batts - The end begins. With the release of Batman #75 this week , the final story arc of Tom King’s Batman epic gets underway. City of Bane is the beginning of the end for the journey the Caped Crusader has been on since issue #1 back in 2016 at the start of DC Rebirth. Though this won’t be the final story King tells with the Dark Knight (see Batman/Catwoman, a 12-issue maxi series launching in January 2020) it is the bombastic finale to his run on the main title. King is joined by longtime creative partners Tony S. Daniel and Tomeu Morey on main art duties, with Mitch Gerads contributing a brilliantly illustrated 8-page epilogue/prologue of sorts following the main cliffhanger ending. Rounding out the team is consistent Bat-letterer Clayton Cowles.
Read MoreBy Nick Couture - Writer and Godfather of the Valiant revival, Joshua Dysart, along with Cafu and Kano on art, Andrew Dalhouse on colors, and Dave Sharpe on letters, continue to reach for a crescendo with Life and Death of Toyo Harada #5. It’s an issue that lets the story breath a bit while revealing key moments from Toyo’s past. Over several years of development, Dysart has written a character that fits in perfectly with the likes of Magneto or Vader, and that is no small feat. All that’s missing is an iconic costume, though that black suit is killer.
Read MoreBy Zack Quaintance — Sera and the Royal Stars #1 is one good-looking comic, so much so that I want to start this review by highlighting artist Audrey Mok and colorist Raul Angulo’s vast contributions to this story. This is a fantasy comic, one beholden to certain visuals (cloaks, swords, arrows, boots, horses, etc.) as fantasy comics often are. Within that, however, Mok and Angulo’s work quickly sets a tone for this world, nodding to certain real world cultural touchstones while taking scenes and settings and extending them into fantastical and creative new aesthetic territory. They pull influences, they add their own touches, they bring us to a world at once familiar and intriguing. The visual world-building here is all very done.
Read MoreBy Zack Quaintance — So, some good news: my backlog of comics for 2019 is down to only 62. This is a minor miracle, considering that at one point immediately after my move (Sacramento -> Washington, D.C.), I found myself with a (figurative) pile in the triple digits. Now, I’m going to enjoy this, but only briefly—going to San Diego Wednesday through Sunday is sure to push it right back up.
Read MoreBy d. emerson eddy — Critical Role could be considered a kind of cultural phenomenon in mainstream appeal of Dungeons & Dragons, helping bring interest and entertainment to the game, both to playing and to watching others, all through the adventures of a group of “nerdy-ass voice actors” every Thursday night. Critial Role started small with a stream on Geek & Sundry's Twitch channel and has now ballooned into a multimedia juggernaut, a growing company with numerous productions, its own merchandise, and one of the largest crowdfunding campaigns to finance an animated series (it was originally just a special and then ballooned with donations and stretch goals) based on the characters from its first campaign. Critical Role also had a comic series in 2017 that served as an introduction to the characters and a gathering of the team.
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