Logan Dalton Comic Reviews

2020 Rescue #1 is a fantastic demonstration of the kind of story potential that can happen in superhero comics when female characters aren't fridged or sidelined and have agency and complex emotions.

4 Kids Walk into a Bank#1 is a painfully funny return to the awkwardness of middle school wrapped around a crime mystery story that is just beginning to heat up. It's like if you dropped the cast of Freaks and Geeks sans stoners into the middle ofReservoir Dogs.The pre-teens are overmatched for the most part, but they occasionally triumph, and it's pure catharsis every time, like when Berger uses his trusty slingshot to shoot his DnDcharacter, the orc warlord Crotch, at one of the gangsters in retribution for sucker punching Paige.Writer Matthew Rosenberg's adolescent characters actually sound like twelve year olds instead of younger looking adults, and artist Tyler Boss' clever use of layouts make for a pleasing reading experience with lots of visual comedy. With the characters introduced and fleshed out, the real fun is ready to begin.

A Thing Called Truth #1 finds a nice balance between genre thrills, contemporary commentary, and slapstick comedy. Also, by being laser focused on Magdalene's life and work, Iolanda Zanfardino and Elisa Romboli ensure that readers give a shit about her wild country spanning road trip. They leave a lot of cards on the table, and I'm excited to see them turned over as the series progresses.

Absolute Batman #1 is the Batman comic for the kids that blast She Wants Revenge while watching their Bachelor's in Public Policy diploma accumulate dust in their mom's basement. (So, basically Jonathan Hickman and Marco Checchetto's Ultimate Spider-Man for Goth kids.) That's weirdly specific, but Scott Snyder, Nick Dragotta, and Cowles craft a new take on the Dark Knight that's civically minded while also having the best extended action sequence in years. Car chase scenes in The Batman and Batman Begins, eat your heart out! The added page count creates a flow for the fighting while still allowing time to flesh out the book's cast and world. Purists may thumb their noses at this title, but Batman is character that thrives with rebirths and reinvention. I just can't wait to see what cool shit Snyder and Dragotta do with him next!

With iconic action sequences and emotional, nigh-operatic red and black flashbacks, Absolute Batman #2 continues to flesh out the nightmare world that has spawned a more brutal Batman while scattering some flecks of hope and companionship, especially in the relationship between Jim Gordon and Martha Wayne as well as the budding partnership between Batman and Alfred.

Snyder and Dragotta turn the Batman mythos on its head by making bats something that Bruce loves and doesn't fear. And the art doesn't miss a beat with fluid action scenes, the aforementioned homages, and a really cool ghostly effect from Martin when we get to a flashback with Thomas Wayne and his father.

This is definitely a have your cake and eat it too kind of comic books featuring great commentary on our billionaire-dominated, last gasps of capitalism of society as well as brutal, yet intimate (I love the tiny panels Dragotta uses!)

Absolute Batman continues to have some of the best fight choreography in comics with guest artist Marcos Martin bringing the horror-tinged noise while Batman fights to get out of one of Mr. Freeze's cryo chambers.

There are all kinds of supporting characters, backstories, and subplots filling the margin, but Snyder and Dragotta ignore this noise and masterfully meld the martial arts and slasher genres as all of Batman's training is no match for Bane. I got chills when the narration dropped out, and colorist Martin accentuates the shadows.

I can't continue to heap enough praise on Dragotta's art and page design. His splash pages are climaxes, and it's insane how much detail and character he can cram into these multi-panel grid pages.

This reckless, riverboat gambler Batman continues to be the car crash I keep returning to, and Absolute Batman #12 is no exception and takes the concept to eleven.

Absolute Batman #13 is like the movie The Dark Knight Rises was actually good and didn't have lame, ineffectual, pro-cop politics.

The conclusion to the big Bane/Venom arc in Absolute Batman from Scott Snyder, Nick Dragotta, and Frank Martin is everything I expected and more.

Scott Snyder, Jock, and Frank Martin do the nigh-impossible and put a fresh, frightening spin on the Clown Prince of Crime in Absolute Batman #15.

Absolute Batman 2025 Annual is a master class in action cartooning as well as continuing to flesh out this blue collar, socially informed take on the Dark Knight.

rk M Special adds depth and context to Absolute Batman as a whole, and artists Joshua Hixson and Roman Stevens nail the period specific details while creating a throughline between the inmates of the 19th century and the foes Batman faces in the present day.

I'm not a big Green Lantern guy, but this series definitely has my interest plus I'm digging Jahnoy Lindsay's manga inspired approach to character design and storytelling.

This comic is like listening to music with synesthesia or tasting poetry while providing a warts and all look at existence in 2025.

Deniz Camp and Javier Rodriguez's Absolute Martian Manhunter continues to be one of the most immersive and impactful comic of 2025. This is a book that can be read on a variety of levels: Rodriguez's trippy imagery and more traditional art, Camp's narrative captions for John Jones, and Martian vision, which letterer Hassan Otsmane-Elhaou conveys in (At times literal) cloudy script.

Absolute Superman #2 has a refreshing anti-AI/pro-humanity bent from his opening scene where young Kal-El gets called out for not using the Kryptonian equivalent of Open AI on his paper for his Zoom class, but make it sci-fi.

Absolute Wonder Woman #1 is a darker take on the iconic character that still preserves her heroic nature.

After the conclusion of the opening battle that began in a previous issue, Absolute Wonder Woman #2 feels more like a traditional comic, especially since Steve Trevor is a key figure in the story. Kelly Thompson, Hayden Sherman, and Jordie Bellaire still deal in hellish imagery, but there's a gentle humor to Thompson's script especially when Diana and Steve interact.

The only knock on Absolute Wonder Woman #3 is its world feels lessed lived in and fleshed out than its Absolute Universe compatriots, but Thompson and Hayden Sherman start to remedy that with the introduction of Barbara Minerva, who provides a human perspective on the gods and monsters.

Absolute Wonder Woman #4 has boss fight energy, but Hayden Sherman's art is glorious and the banter between Diana, Steve Trevor, and the Candys are charming.

Bergara is no mere fill-in artist, and he throws some beautiful, primal shapes with his layouts matching a conflicted color palette from Bellaire and painful narration from Thompson.

The first Absolute Universe crossover is an intricately drawn, smartly plotted, Gothic masterpiece from Kelly Thompson, Hayden Sherman, and Jordie Bellaire.

By digging into the heart of Superman's ability to bring hope and also his inability to save everyone, Dan Jurgens, Viktor Bogdanovic, Jonathan Glapion, Jay Leisten, and Mike Spicer giveAction Comics#987 a solid ideological foundation before the big reveal. The final page definitely surprised me and is a real shock to who Superman is as a character withAction Comics#988 providing some much needed context.

Yes, the final page of Action Comics #1000 is a huge retcon for Superman's character, and hopefully, Bendis has the reasoning and great story to back it up, or Rogol Zaar might just be a Mongul knock-off with a cooler sword.

Unless you have a Xander and Oz from Buffy the Vampire Slayer-esque fixation of different color kryptonites, this "jumping on point is worth skipping or waiting for the trade paperback.

All in all, Doomsday Special adds new depths to the creature that killed Superman by fusing him to the intricate worldbuilding of DC Comics' Hell.

Even though it's a non-stop action thrill ride with a garish color palette from Taki Soma and uniquely kinetic art from Michael Avon Oeming that's an argument against house styles, Midnighter Annual is another installment in the beautiful love story between Midnighter and Apollo, but with some very trippy obstacles. Add in the everyman vibe of Shilo Norman plus the sense of humor in Conrad and Cloonan's script, and this is is the flashy conclusion to this Midnighter arc that his fans deserve while cementing Andrej Trojan as a memorable member of his rogues gallery as he tries to avoid the thing that closes all of our loops, er, lives aka death.

Action Lab: Dog of Wonder#1 is the feel good comic of the month. Read it to your younger sibling, your dog, or just read it yourself and find a ray of hope in the smile of Action Lab himself and his selfless pursuit of helping dogs, who have been neglected by their owners even if it goes against the letter of the law. And even if the comic looks like a straightforward superhero story with dogs instead of people, Vito Delsante and Scott Fogg add some shades of grey in the characters of Action Lab's antagonist (for now), Clancy Jackson, who comes across as a jerk, but really cares about the dogs of Canaan City.

With more of an emphasis on action, flashy, yet readable visuals, and character personality instead of mystery, Adler #1 is wonderful first course into Lavie Tidhar and Paul McCaffrey's female-fronted world of Victorian character crossovers. The relationship between Jane and Adler is intrigued, there's some gunplay, and Tidhar and McCaffrey definitely left me wanting more. Adler is a penny dreadful for the 2020s. I'm looking forward to see the relationship between Jane and Irene Adler develop just as much as the next cool late 19th century/early 20th century female historical figure or literary character cameo.

With a plot steeped deep inAdventure Timelore,Adventure Time#50 wasn't for me, but more knowledgeable fans may get a kick out of it. The comic is technically sound though with creative lettering from Steve Wands to show how overblown and melodramatic the Lich is, bright and spooky colors from Maarta Laiho, and fun, expressive art from Ian McGinty. If you like a certain type of pet or hero cycles, the last few pages will be a treat.

Even if you're not an Adventure Time super-fan, this comic is worth picking up to soak in the cartooning skills of Nick Winn and Ballard.

Bubbline Special is sapphic romance at its finest set in the trippy, yet wholesome world of Adventure Time. Bubblegum and Marceline are iconic characters, but the typical college setting makes them relatable and down-to-Earth also adding to the nostalgia factor. I've been a fan of the Marceline/Bubblegum pairing for years so reading this was like a dream come true and proof that maybe once in a while humanities/STEM relationships work out.

Adventure Time/Regular Show #1 is slow to start, but when Rigby socks that annoying twerp Finn in the face, it shows that this crossover means business and has potential to be a memorable one and not just a cash-in.

Matt Fraction, Terry Dodson, and Rachel Dodson definitely take an everything but the kitchen sink approach to the form and content of Adventureman #1. It's a fully realized pulp story and family comic held together by metafictional strings. Yes, Grant Morrison fans, there's a sigil. Plus, there's a never-ending flurry of widescreen pages with detailed art. A fan of a type of story finding herself in the middle of one is just good old fashioned comfort food for dark times.

Even if you haven't read Afterlife with Archie, this issue is worth picking up as a commentary on female-driven pop music in the 20th and early 21st century through the lens of the vampire genre as Josie and the Pussycats use their transformation to seize power over their own lives and not be exploited by men, like Uncle Buddy, who skimmed off their profits, and married their former band member Pepper. And Francesco Francavilla shows why he is the maestro of comics art with his ability to capture a range of emotions and situations from four girls rocking out at a concert to shots of wholesale slaughter and close-ups of beautiful and dangerous vampire eyes that Bela Lugosi would be proud of.

Age of Conan: Belit #1 sheds some insight on the dark, yet adventurous early days of the woman who would become the Queen of the Black Coast. Tini Howard, Kate Niemczyk, and Jason Keith work in tandem to construct a character arc for Belit as well as a fast moving, swashbuckling plot that isn't bogged down in thees, thous, and world building. Belit is fierce as hell, and I can't wait to learn more about her journey to become one of the deadliest fictional pirates in this series.

Age of X-Man: X-Tremists #1 introduces a cast of six characters while Leah Williams give each of them a distinct way of speaking and seeing the world and giving the book a moral dilemma of a hook that makes you want to pick up the rest of the miniseries. Georges Jeanty and Roberto Poggi's facial and character work are nothing to write home about, but they and Jim Charalampidis do lay out a decent fight scene. This, and NextGen #1, are my favorite Age of X-Man tie-ins so far.

Ain't No Grave reminds me a lot of one of my favorite, Westerns, but with more of a supernatural bent and is an engaging slow burn of a read.

Alice in Leatherland #3 is another excellent chapter in this stylized romance story that isn't afraid to get messy and real about relationships while riffing off traditional fairy tale tropes in both the character names and the children's book that Alice is writing in-story and using to process her feelings. I can definitely start to see the destination, but the fun of this book is watching Alice find herself and community in her new gayborhood as well as seeing the creative synergy of Iolanda Zanfardino and Elisa Romboli evolve through the series.

Ohta's art isn't super breathtaking, but I love how he draws the androids as basically flawless humans plus the aforementioned xenomorph attack has a great atmosphere and chiaroscuro lighting thanks to colorist Nitro.

Zac Thompson, Daniel Piccioto, and Yen Nitro turn in a solid adaptation of an Alien Romulus prequel story by the film's writer/director Fede Alvarez and co-writer Rodo Sayagues.

Featuring an utterly hopeless tone and intergalactic scope, Aliens vs. Avengers #1 feels like a dark coda to Hickman's Avengers run.

This is Hickman at his most crowd-pleasing, and I love that the schedule for the book is giving Ribic and Ive Svorcina time to craft lovingly detailed art that still has the energy of your favorite superhero comic and the menace of space horror.

Ribic is known for his widescreen, epic work, but he showcases his gift for motion in a sequence where Wolverine, Armor, and Emma Frost try to take out Emma Frost. But Aliens vs. Avengers #4 isn't just fisticuffs, and it features some classic Hickman philosophical underpinnings about life in a universe whose creators hate it. (Seriously, best use of the Engineers from Prometheus ever.)

One of the Alien franchise's underlying themes is motherhood, and Alien Resurrection decided to beat viewers over the with that theme a few decades back. On the other hand, Gabriel Hardman's Aliens Dust to Dust #1 uses the bond behind a mother and son to supercharge a suspense filled story and give it an emotional foundation like the relationship between John and Sarah Connor inTerminator 2. He doesn't beat us over the head with extraneous facts about them, but uses touch, facial reactions, and pauses between quick spurts of dialogue to show that they're in over their heads like any of us would be if H.R. Giger's haunting designs made a rude entrance into our lives.

In All Tomorrows Parties, Koren Shadmi aptly balances the dynamic of the personalities in and around The Velvet Underground along with the ideas and influences behind their music starting with dueling opening sequences centered around Lou Reed and John Cales childhoods and young adulthoods. Its a worthy tribute to a band that is pretty much the forefather of all my faves.

All-New All-Different Avengers Annual #1 looks at fandom and fan fiction in a mostly humorous and sometimes critical light through the POV of Kamala Khan, the Marvel Universe's biggest superhero fangirl. Add in the varied art styles from creators, who mainly work on indie titles or webcomics, and it's worth picking up even if you're not keeping up with the main All-New All-Different Avengers series.

Your Pal Archie#1 has all the melodrama and slapstick of an old school, supermarket Archie digest with relevant 21st century jokes and a hint of suspense from Ty Templeton and wacky layouts and visual comedy from Dan Parent. It's a (crazy) summer vacation in comic book form.

In Your Pal Archie #2, Ty Templeton and Dan Parent go full wacky with plots centered around millions of dollars, gourmet dining with Veronica, and a strange football injury while grounding them in a redhead who just wants to hang out with his friends and eat hot dogs with ballpark mustard. And that's why I love Archie and the company that bears his name.

All-New Guardians of the Galaxy #1 is kind of funny, kind of dark, and opens a whole of bag of mysteries about these characters that we've come to love in comics and movies. Also, artist Aaron Kuder makes the transition from lantern jawed superhero to "hazy cosmic jive" (Featuring talking raccoons and mechas) with style, grace, and a funky new inking style.

All-New Henry & Glenn Comics and Stories combines classic comic strips, punk rock, heavy metal, and loving queer relationships into one silly, beautiful package. It's for folks who sing “Last Caress” and “Pink Pony Club” at karaoke and know that Danzig is a better singer than Jerry Only, but wish he had Only's suburban New Jersey dad energy.

All-New Wolverine #1 confidently establishes its premise, visual style through the slash-style layouts of David Lopez, and even comic relief in the interactions between Angel and Laura. Writer Tom Taylor and Lopez show Laura Kinney own the mantle of Wolverine as soon as she pulls off her overcoat and wears his original blue and yellow costume in the crowded streets of Paris with colorist Nathan Fairbarn blending the costume's yellow with the twilight skyline. All-New Wolverine #1 acknowledges X-23's past while laying the foundation for her redemption-tinged rise to the name and costume of Wolverine and has a freshness that hasn't been present in a Wolverine comic since he was wandering around a barren wasteland fighting in-bred Hulks.

All-Star Batman#1 is a beautiful marriage of yet another unique take on a classic villain from Scott Snyder with a suspenseful premise (Batman on the run with no technology) and powerful art from John Romita Jr. Right now, it is DC's flagship Bat-book.

All-Star Batman#7 concludes witha wonderful Francesco Francavilla-drawn backup story featuring Duke Thomas' continuing efforts to come to terms with his own relationship to Batman's villains (The Riddler in this case) that continues to be laid out like a crossword puzzle. ButAll-Star Batman#7 is truly Poison Ivy and Tula Lotay's party as shecaptures the beauty, intelligence, and passion of this complex scientist/antihero/nature goddess, whose abilities are more blessing than curse for once. This is all handled through her gaze (Not Batman's) with many panels of her eyes conveying different emotions in different colors.

With its bone dry sense of humor, hilarious parodies of sword and sorcery tales, colorful art, and a likeable loser protagonist, Allen, Son of Hellcock #1 stands out from the legions of fantasy comics hitting shelves. Writers Will Tracy and Gabe Koplowitz and artist Miguel Porto also start to show how one writes a fantasy story in a world where all the epic battles have been fought, heroes slain, and villains have won. It is filled with laughs, anachronisms, and a character, who will hit close to home for many readers. (Because barely getting paid for your writing sucks.)

However, for all the titillating variant covers, Purgatori Grindhouse feels like a PG-13 horror cutting back on the gore and freaky elements and feeling like a film you'd legitimately buy a ticket to instead of sneaking into.

All in all, the story captures the essence of what makes the character great because he has great power, yet relatable problems ("Rent!), but still perseveres no matter the odds.

Amazing Spider-Manhas issues with its pacing,art,and dialogue, but Gerry Conway shows he still has the chops to plota Spidey crime yarn whilealso starting to develop the relationship between Spider-Manand Yuri Watanabe that strikesa similar tone to earlier friendships with police officers, like the late Jean DeWolff.

America #1 definitely lives up to the hype as Gabby Rivera, Joe Quinones, Joe Rivera, Paolo Rivera, and Jose Villarrubia create a powerful, yet occasionally lost and world weary heroine in America Chavez. There are punching, one-liners, and even some surprises too, and you should check it out.

To quote the comic itself, if you like “slaying monsters, the patriarchy, and extra large pizzas” plus heart wounding feelings and art that is the polar opposite of house style,America#5 is the book for you.

This is a comic where it's ok to hate everyone and just sit back and enjoy the disaster unfolding for readers.

American Ronin #1 is a fairly visual interesting action/assassin comic from Peter Milligan, Aco, and Dean White that isn't weighed down by unnecessary exposition. Except for the last few pages, the book is fairly standalone and has a grindhouse (But slicker.) or darkly humorous tone. If you like John Woo movies, but also want to guillotine Jeff Bezos, then American Ronin is worth checking out.

Angel Season 11 #1 ends with Angel traveling back in time so maybe figures from his past will pop up and playing supporting roles and help this comic transform from Irish Supernatural-lite to the Buffyverse's "Days of Future Past." But, for now, it's just a mediocre exorcism story with a time travel twist, two stiff lead characters, and uninspiring art. It's definitely not the best wayto launch a new season.

Angela Queen of Hel#7 gives Angela and Sera the beautiful and well-earned happy ending that Marguerite Bennett has been building up during her entire run on the title. She and artists Kim Jacinto and Stephanie Hans also round off Leah's character nicely, especially in the sub story, which acts as a glimpse of possible storylines if theAngela Queen of Helwill be missed not only for having Marvel's best example of a same gender relationship and LGBT representation, but also for being one of its funniest and gravitas filled books.

As the second chapter in an epic arc,Aquaman#26 does its fair share of setup, but it's far from boring as Dan Abnett transitions Aquaman and supporting cast members, like Mera and the earlier mentioned Cetea into new roles. The villains aren't as interesting with the exception of Krush, who is a mutant, yet still is loyal to Rath for now. Finally, there's Stjepan Sejic's thrilling fantasy art that makesAquamanstand out from the other house style DC superhero books and transforms Aquaman into the king in exile, the Aragorn of the open sea.

Archie #3 introduces Veronica to the cast of characters in a visual appealing and charismatic way as Mark Waid's teen soap opera plot gets a touch crazier and gains some new pet names, and Fiona Staples scores some laughs with her art of Archie getting strung along by Veronica.

Archie #4 is an excellent showcase for Annie Wu's energetic depictions of friendship, romance, and heartbreak with subtly powerful colors from Andre Szymanowicz and Jen Vaughn. Sadly, Mark Waid's script gets bogged down in a cycle of dated and cliched teen melodrama instead of exploring the relationship and falling out between Betty and Archie in more depth. However, Jughead is funny as ever, and Veronica lights up the few pages she appears in.

Archie #5 lacks the visual panache of its first four issues and makes the interesting, if unfortunate story choice of focusing on its least likable character. Villain-centric stories can be supremely fascinating (See Hannibal, Breaking Bad, or even Kieron Gillen and Salvador Larroca's Darth Vader), but this is the equivalent of spending an entire issue on the douchebag lead of an Axe bodyspray commercial. And touching moment between Veronica and Archie and closure for Betty aside, the issue has really to add to the teen genre and falls behind both Jughead and books like Giant Days in the surreal humor department.

Even though it occasionally hits on some real teen/young people concerns, like how long is too long to wait to text someone back if you're romantically interested in them,Archie#17 is mostly stylized wackinessfrom Mark Waid, Joe Eisma, and Andre Szymanowicz, who uses some overpowering reds in Cheryl Blossom's scenes. It's pure comedic melodramatic fun.

Archival Qualityhas all the elements from a great comic from Steenz's art that has a distinct style and clearly conveys emotion, humor, and suspense to Ivy Noelle Weir taking time to let characters just be and not rushing their development for the sake of a creepy mystery. Plus it shows that it's sometimes okay to be angry about things, sometimes it's better to be alone than be in a relationship, and introduces a super rad, competent, and queer medical librarian in Holly, who is totally my professional role model as I work on my MLIS.

Gilbert Hernandez's art is one of a kind, Tini Howard combines domestic drama with grindhouse film thrills a la a the opening scene ofKill Bill Vol. 1, and Rob Davis' colors are brash and bold.Assassinistas#1 is the tasty comic book dessert you deserve for getting through 2017, and it's cool to see a genre comic centered around a mother/son relationship that deals with both big guns and pointy weapons as well as finances and bringing your boyfriend to see mom for the first time.

In Assassinistas #2, Tini Howard, Gilbert Hernandez, and Rob Davis take the messiness, yet real love between a mother and a son and throws it in the middle of a gun toting with the potential for geysers of blood exploitation flick. Its hilarious to see modern day teenagers react to intense situations they were far from prepared for, especially in the last third of the comic where Dominic goes from trading barbs with his mom to running around shirtless with a rifle. Howard and Hernadez find a solid middle ground between verbal and visual comedy without losing the suspense factor.

Deniz Camp, Eric Zawadzki, and Jordie Bellaire juxtapose the life of a migrant man named Jesus who works at a slaughterhouse with the life span of cattle in a powerful installment of Assorted Crisis Events that's not for the squeamish.

Astonishing X-Men #1 has heavy hitting visuals, nuanced characterization, and whiz bang brain action and sets itself up as the flagship X-Men book in one fell swoop.

It's the perfect combination of characterization and ass kicking with Smith and company getting ample opportunities to show off the team's power set.

Eaton and D'Amico nail the multiple crowd scenes, and Avengers Assemble keeps scratching that old school team comic itch.

This is an action-driven issue, but there's still room for social commentary on how the followers of right-wing/incel/misogynist groups end up getting exploited by their leaders in the end.

It's fun to see high fantasy and wild karaoke meet, but Babs: The Black Road South isn't all sunshine and rainbows using the protagonist's financial insecurity and incompetency to fuel the plot.

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Two issues in, and Tate Brombal, Jeff Lemire, Gabriel Walta, Jordie Bellaire, and Aditya Bidikar's Barbalien: Red Planet is easily my favorite story set in the Black Hammer universe (Black Hammer '45 is fantastic too.). It's the one I've been able to personally connect to. It's a soul-searing character study for Barbalien/Mark Markz/Luke, and how he struggles with his identity and place on Earth/Spiral City while also centering the role of BIPOC in LGBTQ+ activism during the 1980s and telling their stories as well. And it does all of this with a superhero secret identity/shapeshifting twist.

Moreci, Gooden, and Duke definitely stick the landing in Barbaric #3 shooting for both big character and action beats while ending things on the jokey tone that has made this series so endearing. If you want a fantasy comic that isn't full of shit and is self-aware, violent, and makes you deeply care about its (not so) golden trio, the three issues of Barbaric are worth seeking out.

My final note is that the portraits that mark breaks between stories should definitely be used by Lana Del Rey herself on posters or merchandise. They capture her beauty and sadness just like the various stories inBaroque Pop. If you like your pop music darker and a little more retro, then the songs of Lana Del Rey andtheBaroque Popanthology are definitely for you.

In conclusion, the overarching plot ofBatgirl#39 isall over the place, but Fletcherand Stewart really dig into Barbara's characterandshow real growth in her relationships, schoolwork,and even superhero work. Babs Tarr's character designsand settings continue to be detailed and adorable as ever,and sheand Fletcher switch up panelarrangements to showa contrast between Barbara's verbal sparringand Batgirl's physical sparring to makeBatgirl#39a stylish comic that is starting to have some substance.

The romance between Luke Fox and Batgirl may seem a little rushed even though they spent some time together last issue investigating a mystery and may have had a conversation or two in Batman Eternal, but Bengal's flirty facial expression and some sparkling dialogue from Fletcher and Stewart helps make it more believable. Some awkward (A chronometer is mentioned and then left hanging during the fight between Batgirl and Velvet Tiger.) techno-exposition aside, Batgirl #44 is a showcase for Bengal's skill with faces and panel composition, gives Frankie and Alysia some character defining moments, and continues to masterfully meld cyber thrills with relationship drama.

All in all, Batgirl #45 has romance, some light humor, beautiful art and fashion design, well-selected colors, and is a big turning point for Batgirl/Barbara Gordon's character in Cameron Stewart, Brenden Fletcher, and Babs Tarr's run. Plus there's smooching.

Batgirl #46 has a fun friendship moments, adorable art from Babs Tarr, a kick-ass fight scene, and hints at mystery plot line and foe that could create a seismic shift in this title down the road.

Some issues with guest artists and the introduction of new character (Greg), whose only purpose seems to create pointless conflict between Babs and Frankie aside, Batgirl #47 has a delightful team-up with Batgirl, Spoiler, and Bluebird that includes some adorkable jokes from Spoiler and quick action and misdirection even if it barely progresses the plot. Cameron Stewart and Brenden Fletcher also focus on the darker side of Gotham and Barbara Gordon in a couple powerful scenes where she opens up about her current mental state. Tarr's art is definitely missed and there are some pacing issues, but Batgirl #47 isn't a half bad read.

With clever dialogue and rapid plotting of Cameron Stewart and Brenden Fletcher, the fierceness, cuteness, and sadness of Babs Tarr's art, and the battle of genres and tones created by colorists Lee Loughridge and Serge Lapointe, Batgirl #48 is an excellent outing for the title, and there are more cool reveals to come. There is definitely a lot of darkness to endure before the colorful fun returns. If it ever does.

Throughout Cameron Stewart, Brenden Fletcher, and Babs Tarr's run, Batgirl has proven that it is the visual crown jewel of DC Comics, and issue 49 is a victory lap, especially thanks to the powerful work of Ming Doyle and James Harvey along with the sunny, suburban Stepford horror of Roger Robinson. It is also a tour de force into the beautiful and damaged psyche of Barbara Gordon and a real turning point in her arc in the New 52. Issue 50 can't come soon enough.

characters that fans of all genders, races, sexual orientations, body types, and disability status could see themselves in.

Batgirl#1 has fantastic artwork from Rafael Albuquerque and Dave McCaig, who excel at depicting the detailed backgrounds of a to using diagram type panels to simulate Babs' eidetic memory. Hope Larson writes some charming character interactions between Babs and Kai as well as showing Batgirl's admiration for Fruit Bat and empathy for her because they both used to be or are currently disabled. But unfortunately their time together is cut short as Babs moves onto the next country in search of some amorphous “teacher”. However, unlike some other people at DC Entertainment, Larson, Albuquerque, and McCaig respect Batgirl and depict her in a thrilling, yet nuanced way. Hopefully, the book doesn't slide into “white person is trained in martial arts by Asian person” cliches as Babs' road trip continues.

Batgirl #3 is a well-executed table setting issue as Rafael Albuquerque excels at showing Barbara Gordon as a superhero, beaten down MMA fighter, and as a suspicious friend as she and Kai part ways. Hope Larson keeps most of the information about him hidden and spends most of the issue switching the setting from Singapore to South Korea. Her plot is connect the dots detective work and sets up a battle royale in an upcoming issue so don't sleep on this comic just yet.

Hope Larson continues to write Batgirl with personality and heart, but for the most part, Batgirl #12 reads like an average "monster of the week" episode of a TV show like X-Files or Supernatural.

Batman #50 is both an action packed and a thematically resonant conclusion to the “Superheavy” arc and Scott Snyder, Greg Capullo, and FCO Plascencia's Batman epic. There are a lot of moving parts and MacGuffins flying about in this double sized, definitely worth your $5.99 issue, but Snyder ties it all together through a powerful speech from Jim Gordon about the power of ordinary human beings working together to fix things, like poverty, inequality, and crime. But Batman can only be Batman, and Paquette shows this in the heartbreaking final pages as Julie Madison rebuilds the daycare center that an amnesiac Bruce Wayne built and sadly can't be a part of any more.

Batman Annual #1 showsa rareheartwarming side of Batman and his crusade to fight crime with the Christmas holidays as a backdropand also acts as a showcase for comics talent, old and new.

Also, where else are you going to be able to see Batman fly a plane into a two story monster?

Batman#17 is technically another “setup” issue to the inevitable mano a manorematch between Batman and Bane. However,Tom King, David Finch, Danny Miki, and Jordie Bellaire makes their upcoming battle even more frightening as some of Batman's best allies are taken off the board in a swift way reminiscent of Bane unleashing the Dark Knight's rogue's gallery in “Knightfall” before breaking his back when he was utterly broken down. Bane and King both play the long game, and the next issue should be filled with big moves to competent for the utter catastrophe that is Batman's supporting cast in this issue.

Despite having bone breaking art from Jason Fabok and Brad Anderson,Batman#21 is more of a prologue than a part one. However, on a pure craft level, it is a wonderful demonstration of how comics can speed up or slow down time with a single minute stretched over many pages just like how Dr. Manhattan sees the world. Hopefully, King and company will continue to put their own variations on these old themes and not be content to play dive bar covers of classics past.

In Batman #50, Tom King, Mikel Janin, June Chung, and a talent group of guest artists craft the ultimate, tragic Batman love story and show the chemistry between Bat and Cat while also showing how their marriage ultimately wouldn't work out. This definitely isn't a big, guest star heavy special, but an intimate story of a man, who decides to work out his pain and sorrow dressed as a bat instead of finding love and peace with an enigmatic woman, who dresses like a cat.

In Batman#51,King, Weeks, and Breitweiser go beyond inserting Batman into the court room drama genre and use the trial of Mr. Freeze to probe into his anger and pain and the roots of Bruce/Batman's sense of justice. Lee Weeks' naturalistic approach to figures and faces really helps as most of the denizens of this book are ordinary citizens and not superheroes or villains.

I've generally liked the new direction and creative team but the story feels like it's mining a bit too much in Batman's history as opposed to charting a new course.

Batman #1 has high flying visuals, sleek designs, and a color palette that pops while not being afraid to probe its protagonist's wounded psyche (The Alfred appearances!) and get away from a typical hero vs villain showdown. It's not a status quo upending/everything changes #1, but Fraction and Jimenez definitely stack the deck against Batman with foes both physical and mental. The cool gadgets should help though.

The fight sequences are full of piss and vinegar, and I love how Matt Fraction writes Batman and Tim Drake's relationship like a parent and an adult child while the heat continues to come down on them in the ongoing plotline.

Sure, this comic has a lot of the usual ass kicking, but Fraction and Jorge Jimenez also show how Batman's actions influence Gotham from the board room to ordinary citizens making a lived-in tech Goth world.

I love romantic comedies. I love action movies. So, I loved loved Batman #5. This comic is a showcase for Jorge Jimenez's virtuosic art, Tomeu Morey's ability to set the mood through colors, and also Fraction's skill at quickly creating romantic chemistry and letting his artist cook. But, in a very cranked-to-eleven way, it demonstrates the best way to really know what someone is like is in a stressful situation, and I think Bruce passed with flying colors. (Until the final page.)

After last month's single action sequence centric issue, Matt Fraction and Jorge Jimenez are back to the ratatat subplot/gadget heavy storytelling in Batman #6.

Batman/Deadpool #1 is a satisfying intercompany crossover that features dynamic work from some of the best artists in comics and a range of tones and types of stories. It's fun to see Grant Morrison turn back the clock to 1990 in some ways while dropping hit and miss one-liners about Gen Z Internet culture and Absolute Batman, and Dan Mora was born for this kind of big, bad action spectacular. However, my favorite stories were the Dr. Strange/John Constantine and Nightwing/Laura Kinney Wolverine crossovers because they were both intellectually simulating and visually enticing while digging to the core of their protagonists and roles in their respective universes. Also, it's kind of epic to see Hayden Sherman draw Ghost Rider and Swamp Thing beating each other up. (One day your Alan Moore, Stephen Bissette, and John Totleben will come, Mr. Blaze/Ketch/Reyes!)

Batman/Green Arrow/The Question: Arcadia #1 (BGQA from here on out) is like Neapolitan ice cream for folks who like street level heroes and socially conscious storylines.

Batman/Superman: The Authority Special shows that a creative team other than Grant Morrison and Mikel Janin can tell a compelling story with this cast characters, and I'm excited to see some of the character moments, such as Lightray going from being hero for fame to being in real action or Apollo and Midnighter working on the whole no-killing thing, expanded up on in future issues of Action Comics from Philip Kennedy Johnson. Paper-thin villain characterization aside, this book is a solid one-shot adventure with an eerie setting thanks to memorable art from Ben Templesmith plus loads of funny interactions between Batman and Midnighter.

Underwhelming villain and potential cultural insensitivity aside, World's Finest #2 is a celebration of the weird and wonderful in the DC Universe. Mark Waid, Dan Mora, and Tamra Bonvillain get to play with all of the toys in this 84 year old sandbox, and this book has everything from blockbuster fight scenes to quick-witted one-liners and banter and the Robin/Supergirl dynamic is especially entertaining.

Scott Snyder, Steve Orlando, Riley Rossmo, and Ivan Plascencia continue to explore Batman's violent, supernatural, and handgun wielding past inBatman/The Shadow#2. Except they add a twisting, turning mystery and an idiosyncratic art style to the mix so there's a little for everyone in this intercompany crossover. There's also just a touch of the old school pulps in the comic, like the swashbuckling duel between Batman and “Ducard” that opens thestory.

The iconic Bruce Timm Batman: The Animated Seriesandthe ridiculously delightful 2003-2009 Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtlesanimated seriesdesigns are on model, but lack the motion and kinetic feeling of the source material. I would really love to see what an artist like Michael Avon Oeming or Ian McGinty would have done with these characters.Batman/TMNT Adventures#1 may appeal to young readers, who didn't grow up on these two cartoons or who enjoy the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, but it falls short of being a true "all ages" book despite its nods to nostalgia.

If Absolute Batman was revisionist, then Batman and Robin Year One #1 is vintage Batman at its finest from Mark Waid, Chris Samnee, Mat Lopes, and Clayton Cowles.

Batman and Robin Eternal #1 is a genre spanning (superhero and possession horror), kick in the pants start to this weekly comic event. Scott Snyder and James Tynion set up a creepy, overarching storyline for the series by exploring the tragic side of being a Robin. (They don't usually get out alive.) Artists Tony Daniel and Sandu Florea use speed lines, little circles, and every tool in the action cartoonist's toolbox to give the comic a hyperactive feel as the various Robins swing, kick, and ride into action while wisely utilizing full page spreads for surprise reveals that burst the nostalgia bubble of “Batman and Robin forever”. By the end of Batman and Robin Eternal #1, readers will see the relationship between the Caped Crusader and his various sidekicks in a new, complicated light.

Batman and Robin Eternal #2 is an unfortunate, early slump for the early series with glacial plotting and some poor artistic choices in what should have been a brutal, scintillating fight scene. The fun and interesting conversations between Stephanie Brown and Dick Grayson and a harrowing, thematically relevant Scarecrow flashback keep things from being a total wash though.

Batman and Robin Eternal #3 is an entertaining ride with Tim Seeley's ear for Jason Todd's bro-ish dialogue, and his conscious effort to make the badass, yet endearing Cassandra Cain a part of the Bat-family with the help of de facto team dad Dick Grayson. The various Robins share a fun family dynamic that makes the book worth checking out even when the art falters. A more gesture or facial oriented artist like Phil Noto (especially his recent work on Chewbacca) or Jamie McKelvie might bring Cass to life even more than Paul Pelletier, whose action layouts are easy to follow despite the multiple inkers, but struggles with showing character feelings. Artwork aside, this issue is a step in the right direction, and the last couple pages increase the series' threat level while not revealing Snyder and Tynion's whole mystery just yet.

With exhilarating action, the introduction of some fan favorite players on the board, some character bonding and a great final page reveal, Batman and Robin Eternal #4 is a stellar installment of this weekly series.

Batman and Robin Eternal #5 has solid art, especially when Ronan Cliquet busts out some unique layouts and detailed close-ups of Harper Row and Cassandra Cain during particularly impactful moments like when Orphan calls Cass and monster before disappearing in smoke. Steve Orlando also has a good handle on the character interactions, especially Harper and Cassandra, and writes a Dick Grayson, who is uncannily becoming a lot like Batman in Bruce's absence from the cape and cowl. Unfortunately, Tim Drake's new backstory ruins a lot of the character's endearing qualities as his personality and relationship with his family are put on hold for his role as brainwashed assassin of Mother.

The flashback with the death of Maxwell and insights into Mother's activities truly raises the threat level in Batman and Robin Eternal and makes the final page featuring Dick, Jason, Harper, and Cass jumping in the Bat-plane feel ominous although outwardly it looks like a globetrotting adventure. Daniel conveys this with the first look at Mother's, well, maternal eyes covered in shadow while Morey pours on the blacks on the Batplane signifying that Batman and Robin Eternal #6 is the first step in a darker direction for this title.

Batman and Robin Eternal #9 has brutally choreographed fight scenes from artist Roge Antonio, and scripters Jackson Lanzing and Collin Kelly craft the start of an intriguing team-up between Red Robin, Red Hood, and Bane against the Order of St. Dumas, and Azrael, who gets a speech to end all speeches complete with golden flames from colorist Allen Passalaqua on the final page. And along the way, Lanzing and Kelly turn in some solid character work with Harper and Mother. Having a villain who tells the truth is always more frightening, and this is what she does with Bruce Wayne, who turns orphans into warriors just like her.

As shown in a scene where he's crouching naked in front of a Batsuit (A page or so after the famous full frontal nudity.), Batman is definitely in pain throughoutBatman: Damned#1 as he spends the entire comic trying to retrace his steps and figure out if he's responsible for killing the Joker. Brian Azzarello's incessant John Constantine is both parts annoying and hilarious, insightful and overbearing, but Lee Bermejo's gorgeous image composition and aforementioned Gothic grit make the first DC Black Label book worth a read.

There's a rawer, more dangerous feel to Gotham in this story with Batman and Gordon being in a much more precarious position that makes it exciting.

The book is a nice entry point for fans of Catwoman in other media (Especially Zoe Kravitz's performance in The Batman) or for seasoned comics readers who want a little characterization to go with the leather outfits, acrobatic fight scenes, and jewel nabbing shenanigans.

With dashes of humor and character insights from Tim Seeley, gorgeous costuming and fight choreography from Javier Fernandez and Hugo Petrus, and a glitzy, grimy, and just plain red color palette from John Kalisz,Red Hood vs. Anarky#1 is another successful Bat-family-centric one-shot in the run-up to Batman and Catwoman's wedding. It even has some semi-controversial political commentary to boot.

Batman Rebirth #1 establishes both a new visual identity and character dynamic in the Batman title that is a little old (Alfred/Gordon) and a little new (Duke Thomas, more formidable Calendar Man) taking a cue from DC Rebirth, but while telling its own story and focusing on its own relationships. Mikel Janin also continues to be one of DC's finest storytellers as he melds the epic photorealism of Jae Lee's recent work with quick cut panels to avoid any stiffness with a side of beefcake that works in favor of Snyder and King's open, optimistic characterization of Batman. The final page twist (if it is twist) could be delineated a little better, but demonstrates Janin and Chung's skill to work with the dark chaos of Batman stories as well as his more charming side.

Batman: The Knight #3 comes across as a rough draft version of one of Batman's great mysteries and villain fights, but Chip Zdarsky, Di Giandomenico, and Ivan Plascencia masterfully show Bruce's flaws while hinting at the darkness and obsession that would make him a legendary crime fighter.

Batman: Urban Legends #1 is an absolute win for the anthology format that DC Comics has been trying out with all of the four stories in the comic being entertaining and shedding light on a unique cast of characters. The longer stories that bookend the comic are especially noteworthy thanks to Chip Zdarsky's pitch-perfect handle on the fascinating character of Jason Todd in “Batman and Red Hood” and Matthew Rosenberg and Ryan Benjamin's skill with verbal and visual humor in “Grifter”.

The Batman's Grave #1 is a fantastic Batman detective story and character study for both super fans and those who have only kept up with the Caped Crusader via other media or the occasional trade paperback. Bryan Hitch, Kevin Nowlan, and Alex Sinclair's are the right blend of epic and psychologically searing while Warren Ellis' script is sharp and momentum filled. I love the humanity that he brings to Alfred and the murder victim, Vince and kind of pity Batman after reading this one. His car is still cool though.

Abnett's character-driven writing and Dietrich Smith's clean, photo-realistic art make Death of Apollo #1 a great introduction to classic Battlestar Galactica as well as a solid start to the end of its journey.

Batwoman Rebirth#1 has fantastic art and colors from Steve Epting and Jeromy Cox, who will hopefully return her book's visuals to the lofty heights of J.H. Williams and Amy Reeder several years back. Bennett and Tynion'splot is skippable for long time Batwoman aficionadoes, and Elegyis a better introduction for new fansso this is definitely a comic you pick up just for the art and the occasional spark of intrigue or romance.

BPVQ #2's big ideas, striking imagery, and literal medieval ultraviolence definitely whetted my appetite for the series' upcoming conclusion while being an intellectually satisfying chapter in its own right.

Bee and Puppycat#11 won't bring any new fans to the property (You should check out the show on YouTube if you have any interest in Magical Girl stories.), but it's a passable diversion for fans who are already invested in the characters and a fun look into Bee's life when she's not off being a magical temp agency worker.

Beta Ray Bill #2 is a rare opportunity to see an auteur cartoonist put their mark on an in-continuity, mainstream comic, and Johnson makes me both emotionally connect with Bill's personal journey while also rocking my socks off with his approach to humor, page design, and fight choreography. Bring on the next three issues as well as the latest addition to Bill's space adventure party.

Beta Ray Bill #5 is a glorious finale filled with wrestling holds, airbrush on the side of your van-worthy splashes, and some heart and friendship too as Bill's quest comes to a satisfying close. Daniel Warren Johnson and Mike Spicer helped me fall in love with a character that I wasn't super familiar with and also demonstrate how sound effects and the use of color can help turn a fight scene into a story. I look forward to their next project, Marvel or otherwise.

Betsy Braddock: Captain Britain #1 is a love letter to the badass, queer psychic superhero that Tini Howard has nurtured for the past 3+ years while also shows the strain that taking on the role of Captain Britain, protecting the multiverse, and dealing with Otherworld has taken on her. The comic is a meditation on burnout and being spread too thin, but with killer robots, evil plans, and shrinking Tory-friendly podcasters.

The whole multiversal aspect keeps BBCB #2 from being a retread of Excalibur, and overall, this issue is a fun beat 'em up with queer romance, magic, psychic powers, and plenty of intrigue to keep the overall story moving.

With guest appearances from Brian and Meggan Braddock plus a dust-up with Furies in London's West End, Betsy Braddock: Captain Britain #3 feels like a proper Captain Britain comic with Betsy defending the country that gives her her moniker and not just the multiverse.

Towards the end of 2017, it seems like Archie Comics is going the “Elseworlds” approach with their non-flagship books, andBetty and Veronica: Vixensis a shining example of how this type of philosophy can be successful with quick one-liners and feminist critiques from writer Jamie Lee Rotante, easy to read and stylish storytelling from artist Eva Cabrera, and a varied color palette from Elaina Unger that ranges fromRebel without a Causeto the suburban bits ofEdward Scissorhands.

Betty and Veronica Vixens#3 has solid action, team-building, and raises the stakes storywise while spending most of its story time on the Vixens members while those losers Archie, Jughead (Okay, him not so much.) , and Reggie are nowhere to be found. Jamie Lee Rotante, Eva Cabrera, and Elaina Unger continue to break the mold of Riverdale stories centered around love triangles and replace them a story of female friendship and Nazi punching.

I think that this comic is a must-read for anyone who has gone to a comic convention, seen the high prices for autographs with William Shatner or Stan Lee and cursed either the celebrity or con organizers. As a veteran of both the comics and television industry, Jimmy Palmiotti is well-versed in the nuances and problems of comic conventions and exposes them in Big Con-Job #1 while creating a rag-tag bunch of washed up sci-fi actors, who just want financial security. However, Big Con-Job isn't just about geek culture and delves into things like depression, relationship problems, and the most primal human problem of all: survival. It has its sad moments, but they're balanced by a heavy helping of parody, cheesy one-liners, and pop culture references.

Like a box full of action figures, the characters are a little interchangeable, but the final scene hits like a "To be continued sequence in the 1992 X-Men cartoon so I'll be back for issue two.

If you're a huge Bill and Ted fan, have actually seen Bogus Journey, and have been praying to Neo for a third film, knock yourself out. However, paying full price for a good six page comic and an okay eighteen page one might not be in everyone's best interests, and it might be a better use of your time/money to wait for the trade and see how the future plotline plays out.

DeLandroalso uses special “window panel” to spotlight oppressionand the male gaze in different parts of the comic. For example, he uses these panels to show the guards' reaction to the prison riot, which isa source of entertainmentand titillation for them, reminding me ofa scene ina TV show featuringa certain orphaned future superhero that played it completely straight. With its dynamic characters, innovativeart,and immersive world,Bitch Planet#1 is the feminist slap in the face the world needs right now. Men's rightactivists, Gamergaters, dudebros, or whatever “clever” parlance youassholes are describing yourselves ascurrently, beware!

I love when Tom King tells these small, intimate family stories, and there's also the tension between Dinah wanting to win for her mother and also lose to treat her mother's cancer.

Having a female writer on Black Cat does wonders for her characterization, and I love the insights into what makes her tick while she runs from the cops and supervillains, who have become more bold and dangerous since Spider-Man is dealing with something over in his book.

Black Magick #2 continues to be a morally grey detective procedural with an epic backstory featuring witches, the occult, and various religions' iconography that has only barely been revealed by writer Greg Rucka and artist Nicola Scott. Scott especially excels at wringing every last bit of restlessness from Rowan Black's face as she tries to balance her occult knowledge with police work and not out herself as a killer. She and Rucka mix the day to day grind of police work with dark conspiracies so expertly that will have you pouncing on each off word as a bread crumb in this labyrinthine trail of millennia long conspiracies. Think the perverse thrills you get from reading the Da Vinci Code, but Greg Rucka actually did his research about his paganism, and Rowan Black is a fully realized character, who is pretty good at her job and has fully realized interests and emotional complexity.

Although Black Panther #1's storyline is rough in places as Ta-Nehisi Coates flits from scene to scene without letting Brian Stelfreeze do an establishing panel at times, it has a strong thematic base in the conflict between monarchy and democracy, and the always universally tradition versus progress. The comic's cliffhanger is a little less than compelling by throwing in a fan favorite character without any foreshadowing or a hook for the next issue. Coates and Stelfreeze also craft a pair of supporting characters (and antagonists for now) in the Dora Milaje turned Midnight Angels Aneka and Ayo, who are easily the best part of this comic.

Whereas his first two years of writingBlack Pantherfocused on T'challa as monarch, Ta-Nehisi Coates uses the new space operatic setting ofBlack Panther#1 to narrow in on T'challa as hero and legend. Daniel Acua's art and colors are virtuosic from the gorgeous spacescapes to T'challa getting beaten within an inch of his life. He has mastery over both cinematic and intimate moments, and the book is worth picking up for his visuals alone.

Other than Ta-Nehisi Coates' characterization of Misty Knight,Black Panther and the Crew#1 is a knock-out combination of a generation-spanning murder mystery, ripped from the headlines thoughts about police brutality and capitalist systems, and eventually superhero team-up action. It's worth thumbing or clicking through again just for Butch Guice and Scott Hanna's gift with faces and action choreography alone.

The waterfall that Natasha scales during the climactic chase scene definitely ended up being a metaphor for my reaction toBlack Widow#12.

As a serialized conspiracy story, Blackcross will definitely read better in trade so I would wait until that comes out unless you're a big fan of Ellis, Project Superpowers, or like soaking in a shadowy, rural atmosphere for a while.

This isn't a particularly deep comic, but it's a fun ride and filled with the brand of badass action that Blade is known for in other mediums.

Maybe, if you're more knowledgeable about the Image Comics creations of Rob Liefeld and Extreme Studios in general, Michel Fiffe'sBloodstrike #0 will tickle your nostalgia fancy and filter the excess of the 1990s in a stylish new way. This is definitely not new reader friendly, but it's worth flipping through to check out Fiffe's unique art and metamorphic color palette. From the backmatter and care that Fiffe takes at replicating the original costumes,Bloodstrike#0 seems like a passion project, but unfortunately that passion is hard to transfer through this story.

This book truly feels like a passion project and transported me to a bittersweet day six years when a closeted, sad teenager listened to the CD of The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stars and the Spiders from Mars and felt "not alone". It's a must read for any Bowie fan, especially those who love his early-1970s work the best.

For the most part, the cast of Box Office Poison Color Comics #1 is a pleasant, if slightly self-loathing group. The exception is Ed, who comes across as an obnoxious, sexist man child, who objectifies women and makes snide comments about their weight. In this first issue, he belongs in The Big Bang Theory instead of a well-drawn, passionate independent comic that is still a good read almost two decades after it first came out turning into a 90s period piece along the way.

Alex Robinson continues to round his cast of characters inBox Office Poison#2 showcasing Sherman's bookstore purgatory along with the kind of amazing relationship between Jane and Stephen. His characters continue to not look like the ideal human form, which fits a story about terrible jobs and falling in love in a less than Garry Marshall way.

Bravest Warriors#28 has very few problems beyonda possibly out of character moment for one of the Warriors towards the end of the bookanda couple of unclear panels during the big fight scene. Kate Lethand Ian McGinty balance different types ofaction (not just punching), flurries of humor,and one touching romance. In her writing, Leth focuses on the most important themes ofall,like loveand friendship in spite ofadversity. McGinty fleshes out these themes through how he depicts characters reacting to events in the story. If you enjoy kaiju movies, want to read one of the funniest punsin comics this year, orare looking fora genuine LGBT love story (orall three),Bravest Warriors#28 is the book for you.

The plot ofBravest Warriors#29 might not be supersuspenseful. (Ian McGinty does get to show off hisaction chops ina ball pit ofall places.) However, because the charactersare so likable,and Lethand McGinty have an impeccable handle on their voices and senses of humor, this is another enjoyableissue of Bravest Warriors. It is great to just see the team interactand havea good time.For example, Catbug shows up with the right,adorable quip or little joke when things geta little tense.Bravest Warriors#29 has the right blend of nostalgia, silly humor, character interactions,and expressive Ian McGintyartcombinedtogether ina one-off issue perfect for new readers or fans.

Anthony Oliveira and Jethro Morales elevate a middling summer Mephisto/supervillain-centric event with a touch of literary flair.

Abbi and Ilana have grown a lot as characters in Broad City Season 5, but hey, they can still have a good time as evidenced in “Along Came Molly”. The penultimate episode of the series is a love letter to the more irresponsible days of 2014 and Season 1. On a more personal note, it brought me back to a dorm room five years ago when I discovered Broad City because I was too lazy to change the channel after Workaholics was over and fell in love with these funny and relatable as hell girls, Ilana Wexler and Abbi Abrams and then their actor/writers/creators Ilana Glazer and Abbi Jacobson.

Flat colors, inset panels, and rapid fire dialogue give Bronze Faces #1 a solid flow with the entire comic fueled by righteous anger against colonialism and exploitation of artists from the Global South.

If you're a Simon Bisley fan and want to see him strut his storytelling stuff on something more than a (solid) Lobo/Harley Quinn crossover comic, then Brooklyn Gladiator #1 is the book you're waiting on. It's has all his virtues and vices filtered through a dystopian/exploitation movie lens. Story-wise, the comic isn't 100% up to snuff, but Johnny Miller has an almost charming underdog streak to go with drug habit and futuristic stoner philosophizing. I really just wanna see him kick some more cop and Nazi ass as this first issue is really only an appetizer.

All of this is to say is that BRZRKR #1 is worth checking out if you like breathtaking fight choreography and layouts with an eye for detail with a protagonist, who is a total badass, but needs a hug and not to be treated like a lab rat or go on another mission in service of American imperialism.

When I first read about BOOM! Studios' plans for their Buffy the Vampire Slayer comics, it reminded me a lot of Brian Michael Bendis and Mark Bagley's UltimateSpider-Manor Stjepan Sejic's sadly shortlived Switch.These comics were contemporary takes on the classic characters, Spider-Man and Witchblade respectively, and introduced their mythos to new fans. However, cheesy effects and bad fashion choices aside, “Welcome to the Hellmouth” does a better job of introducing Buffy, Willow, and Xander than this comic so it fails at being a gateway to these pop culture icons for a new generation of fans. Dan Mora is one hell of an artist though.

In Buffy Season 11 #1, Christos Gage, Rebekah Isaacs, and Dan Jackson establish a more blockbuster action movie look and plotting while not giving the arcs of these beloved characters short shrift. The external and internal conflicts are deftly set up for the upcoming season with quips, brooding, and dragons a-plenty.

Although it's set in an alternate universe and features middling art, Buffy the Last Vampire Slayer is a story that has some of themes and stylistic dialogue of the original TV show while featuring a complex lead character that is perfect for the literal Hellmouth we currently live in.

Bug Wars is a cool concept with epic art that is executed well and leaves plenty of mysteries on the table for future issues.

Even though it's a lot like digging through fragments of someone else's dream,Bug: The Adventures of Forager#1 is an excellent tribute to Jack Kirby's vibrant imagination by the talented family trio of Lee Allred, Mike Allred, and Laura Allred. Mike Allred's figures bounce off the page, yet have a human beauty to them, and there is something primal, almost Pixar-esque about his and Lee Allred's plotting as Forager/Bug tries to make sense of his place in the world. Is he an insect servant of Highfather, an adventurer, a god, or just a dead guy? The next five issues should hopefully unravel this colorful existential crisis.

If you enjoyed Buffy the Vampire Slayer or Charmed, but wished that the cast didn't resemble the contents of a Duke's mayo bottle so much or had a more in-depth and respectful view of the occult, then Bytchcraft #1 is the comic for you. Aaron Reese and Carril take some massive worldbuilding swings in this first issue while not neglecting the best part of the book, the interactions between Adril, Michele, and Em as well as their guardian, the ethereal Mthr. I can't to dive into this world that Aaron left behind for all us queer comics reading kids trying to find connection in an uncertain, oppressive world.

It's truly a rich urban fantasy world, and WitchTok cracked me up.

I love the blend of cosmological world-building and character interactions as Reese does an intriguing riff on Judeo-Christian concepts to set up the backbone of their universe. The tension between the coven is relatable for anyone with a longterm friend group that's started to drift apart, but more apocalyptic.

Bytchcraft is a gorgeous and immersive comic, and I'm sad to see it end next month, but it continues to be a lasting legacy for the late Reese.

There's a real undercurrent of resistance and community building underneath the pop occult fantasy, and Bytchcraft ends up being a near-perfect call to be gay and do magick.

Even though it's set in a dystopia,Calexithas its triumphant moments. It's a hopeful comic, not a defeatist one as proud as the logo of the Mulholland Resistance that seriously needs to be made into a laptop sticker or T-shirt.Itis meticulously crafted in worldbuilding, background art, and color choices by Matteo Pizzolo, Amancay Nahuelpan, and Tyler Boss and is a comic that pokes fun at summer blockbusters while having many “Viva la Resistance” kind of moments and directly opposing Trump's cool regime and terrible treatment of anyone who isn't a rich, Christian white man.

Calexit #3 definitely has a "hell yeah" ending, but it also brings up a lot of questions that aren't "Is Crowbar going to catch Zora?" because you know that guy is definitely mini-boss material.

Captain America#1 is thrilling, thought provoking stuff and hasn't been this meaty and compelling since Ed Brubaker's run on the title.

I liked the previous issue that dug into the role of Latveria during different World Wars, and how Cap inspired Doom a little better, but the series continues to be solid.

Sam Wilson Captain America #7 doesn't focus a whole lot on its title character beyond a great fight scene and heart to heart with Bucky in the early going, but there is a great moment where Steve admits that he respects and trusts Sam despite having differences over what he should do as Captain America as Crossbones beats him up. It's mostly Nick Spencer and Daniel Acuna's tribute to the character of Steve Rogers while simultaneously a game changing moment in the "Avengers Standoff" crossover, but a few confusing moments aside, it's worth picking up to see Steve Rogers written well and heroically even if you haven't kept up with the "Standoff" storyline. And this exploration of Captain America's qualities of courage, standing up for the little guy, and genuine care for the friends he made over the years extends to the backup stories of which the Whedon/Cassaday one is the highlight as they lay out the heart and soul of the character in nine fluid pages.

So, Captain America: Steve Rogers #2 should probably be titled Captain Clickbait #2: Blame It on the Cosmic Cube , but Jesus Saiz's almost horror tinged art and some interesting themes brought up by Nick Spencer about the amorality of SHIELD and the hollowness of heroes as symbols kept my interest enough for me to give issue 3 (which is solicited as more action packed and dealing with Steve Rogers' actual role in HYDRA along with the trial of Maria Hill) a shot.

Captain Marvel#1 is an enjoyable story of a character having to adapt to a new situation in space with Canadian superheroes.

Captain Marvel #7 expands upon Carol Danvers' motivations in opposing Iron Man in Civil War II and shows the hard work she put in to continue to use Ulysses to counter future threats. Ruth Fletcher, Christos Gage, Marco Failla, and Matthew Wilson also give us insights into her personal feelings about Rhodey's death, and how she acts on those emotions going forward. This issue is a solid pickup for anyone who wants some added layers of characterization in Civil War II as well as for Captain Marvel fans, who want a deeper look into her recent actions.

Carver #1 relies heavily on the tropes of the stoic, lantern jawed anti-hero, who can come unhinged at a moment's notice (If he had a beard instead of a mustache, Carver could easily be a young Clint Eastwood.) , and the masked, monologue spouting villain. However, Chris Hunt keeps things relatively fresh with the sweep of his black and white artwork using economic, striking visuals to craft his hero as well as making Stacker Lee an amusing, if ruthless villain. There is also a rich, three page backup story written and drawn by comics legend Paul Pope showing another facial haired-sporting hero handing off the baton of adventure to Carver as they watch an exotic dancer called the Black Pearl of Paris. Pope captures the decadence of 1920s Paris, which leads directly to the smoking, post-coital Carver that opens the comic. Carver #1 is a retro-styled, pulp adventure comic with striking black and white art that will only improve once Francis Carver and Stacker Lee face off.

With emotionally open art and color palette from Dalibor Talajic and Marco Lesko and honest writing from Jason Starr, Casual Fling #4 is a strong finish for a comic that was a decent erotic thriller and still had plenty of time for tough, nuanced conversations. I would definitely love to read more monthly books like it in the future.

All in all, Catwoman Lonely City is a touching, action-packed story about legacy, resisting authoritarianism, and finding family in unexpected places.

The combination of character study from Way and Rivera with exemplary storytelling and atmosphere from Oeming and Nick Filardi and just a touch of Silver Age whimsy are a few reasons why Cave Carson #1 is my favorite Young Animal comic so far.

Jeremy Whitley, Ro Stein, and Ted Brandt, and Frank DArmata capture the youthful Saturday morning cartoon energy of superhero comics and the pure power of kaiju movies in Champions #1.MU. Its the sequential art version of red velvet cake and ice cream. Watching Ms. Marvel think on her feet and wrestle a lizard monster with her polymorphing abilities should be the dictionary definition of joy, and I hope to see this talented team collaborate on more young, scrappy teen hero books in the future.

A diverse team of young hope bringing superheroes is definitely a good idea for a comic, and Mark Waid and Humberto Ramos create a nice sense of camaraderie and team chemistry between the members of the Champions. But the tone and art style of the book fluctuates between silly and serious, sincere and shallow too many times to make the first issue ofChampions any more than just a mixed bag.

Monaco brings a dose of anarchy to the comic with bursts of color any time something violent or stressful happens like Mitch dealing with an Albanian biker gang or trying to save his marriage in an Ikea.

All in all, Pop's Chock'Lit Shoppes of Horror continues to show that there is a rich vein of horror, anxiety, satire, and yes, humor to be mined from these classic all-American characters.

There are few little storytelling hiccups in Christmas 365 #1 like similar hairstyles and misplaced word balloons making it hard to keep up with the flow of dialogue and speakers, but for the most part, Christmas 365 is a mischievous, over-the-top holiday comedy that's going to last for 364 days after Christmas.

Christmas 365 #2 continues to be an over-the-top, silly read with just enough of a satirical bite.

I recommend Chrononauts #1 for Murphy's art alone as he brings his muddied line style to the past and present. (There is one two page sequence that made the history nerd in me smile.) The two main characters kind of seem incredibly smug, but like his work with some of the Marvel heroes, Millar gives them some relatable qualities and flaws so they're not wholly unlikeable. This comic is character-driven and sets up the time travel program through exposition and art, but don't be afraid, some time travel does occur, and you'll actually care about the people doing the traveling.

Mark Sable, Giorgio Pontrelli, and Emilio Lecce's Circus Maximus #2 has a really cool concept, but far too many fragmented sub plots to be a hit as an ancient Roman crime thriller.

It is nice to see Bendis taking character beats from her series and using to make the summer event more organic. However, this could turn into Minority Report if she's not careful, or works with Maria Hill. Add Olivier Coipel's sleek art that is still full of life, especially when Carol is feeling the stress of being responsible for the defense of Earth, and the event is off to a fairly promising start.

Civil War II Choosing Sides#5 features a funny and insightful Alpha Flight story, a subpar Misty Knight/Colleen Wing battle royale, and an enthralling spy thriller with virtuoso storytelling from Declan Shalvey and Jordie Bellaire. It's definitely worth picking up.

Choosing Sides #6 is a testament to the range of stories that can be set in the Marvel Universe. Hint: they don't all have to be superhero slugfests.

If you'd rather watch old Sopranos episodes on HBO Go instead of the latest Marvel Cinematic Universe blockbuster for and are okay with a touch of Philip K. Dick to go with your turf wars, Civil War II: Kingpin#1 may be the comic for you.

Clandestino#2 continues to show how Amancay Nahuelpan is a genuine comics auteur as he provides the plot, world, and just enough narration to show what makes Clandestino tick as person to go with the explosive visuals, colors, and letters. If you're a fan of the action genre or just a human being with a pulse, who isn't squeamish about ultraviolence, throw your Blu Ray copy of Expendables 3in the trash can and addthis comic toyour pull list.

Closer #1 is the equivalent of a haunting pop single from one of your favorite artists, in this case, Kieron Gillen, Steve Lieber, and Tamra Bonvillain.

Clueless Senior Year certainly isn't a Monet (This is a compliment FYI.) and gives some amazing character development to Cher, Dionne, and Tai while rocking hilarious, pop culture infused dialogue from Amber Benson and Sarah Kuhn plus some of the most stylish fashions you'll find in comics from Siobhan Keenan and Shan Murphy. In its references and fashion, Senior Year is very 90s, but its themes of independence, identity struggle, and coming of age are timeless just like the original film.

If you've read any of my past reviews, I am all in for comic books about cool bands, queer romances, and a bit of urban fantasy. Unfortunately,Coady and the Creepies#1 fails to execute its super rad premise, especially in the artwork department and is a rare misfire for the BOOM! Box imprint.

Coffin Bound #1 is a comic that looks cool and knows it thanks to Dan Watters' dark sense of humor, Dani's take no prisoners visuals, and Brad Simpson's scorched Earth color palette. It suffers a little bit when it gets away from the cat and mouse game between Isabel and Earth Eater, and sometimes the dialogue is a little bit up it's own ass. But it's nice to see a comic that's not afraid to get its hands dirty in an age of house art and polished sheen.

Collapser #1 is characterization meets strong visuals and colors with a side dish of trippy worldbuilding to literally suck you into the story. Mikey Way and Shaun Simon make Liam a little bit of an asshole; he's not the greatest towards his girlfriend and is a little insensitive at times. However, Liam's passion for music and fear of failure are all too relatable. He makes a great POV character for this wild space odyssey of which Collapser #1 is a solid first few steps.

Commanders in Crisis #1 reads like the comic book equivalent of a doctorate dissertation in superhero comics from writer Steve Orlando and star-making turn for artists Davide Tinto and Francesca Carotenuto. It's the first chapter in an epic saga that doesn't neglect character in the midst of its multiversal scope and also leaves room for fluid action, clever concepts, and moments that will make you smile or shudder. This is while basking in the glow of a cast that is truly inclusive, who I can't wait to see overcome monumental challenges in subsequent issues.

Conan/Red Sonja #4 reads like the last half hourofa goodaction movie when the die has been cast,and the hero(es) fights the villainand hopefully saves the day. But underneath the magic, muscles,and mayhem, Simone, Zub,and Green portray Conanand Sonjaas human beings, who have been through incredibly tough times,and just need someone to draw swordsand drinkandale with. With its sharpart, occasionally poetic writing,and relentlessaction,Conan/Red Sonja#4isa frenziedconclusion tothe ultimate fantasy fiction crossover.

The family drama angle of the Dothraki-like riders that capture and later team up with Conan isn't super interesting, but Cullen Bunn and Sergio Davila give Conan himself an excellent emotional arc in Conan the Slayer #1 as he must overcome his guilt and learn to become a leader of men (and women) again after getting his raiding band slaughter with the help of Mykylo, who is basically Ron Perlman in the Hyborian Age. Toss in some nice hand to hand combat, and it's a pretty exciting comic for any fantasy fan. Conan has great abs too.

I'm not expecting realism from a Marvel comic, but Concert of Champions works in broad strokes about music fandom and the festival experience putting not super well-done fight scenes over anything interesting. It's neither a good music or mutant/superhero comic.

Hellblazer #6 is a wonderful introduction to John Constantine as a character establishing him as a working class mage, who cares more about occupying his time, paying his rent, and seducing the sexy, bearded bartender at his favorite takeaway joint that being some kind of occult themed superhero. It's very funny and very dark and the best issue of the new Hellblazer so far.

If you want to reada good Kon-El Superboy story, I'd recommend you pick up the “Reign of the Supermen” trade instead where Superboy is one of the four characters protecting Metropolisafter Superman's death

You should definitely buy Convergence: Question if you're a fan of detective and superhero stories and are fans of the characters Renee Montoya or Two-Face. (Or like morally grey characters who fight with giant katanas.) But the middle part might be a little jarring because of the Convergence tie-in.

Crowded #12 is the latest, shining example of a comic that has it all. It features compelling chemistry between lead characters, thrilling plot elements with a dash of humor, engaging visuals, and a color palette that adds depth to characters and the events of the story. Crowded #12 ends on a cliffhanger with an air of menace. I cant wait to see how Christopher Sebela, Ro Stein, Ted Brandt, Triona Farrell, and Cardinal Rae wrap their tale of road trips, romance, and creepy technology in volume 3.

Crude#3 has plenty of knock your teeth out and kick mud in your face action, dangerous situations, and emotional turmoil as Steve Orlando, Garry Brown, and Lee Loughridge place Piotr on a hopeless quest for vengeance. For fans of Orlando's previous work,Crudeis moreVirgilthanJLAand has an added layer of moral uncertainty to go with Loughridge's fiery, hazy, and ever shifting color palette.

Crush and Lobo #3 finally gets the two leads of the series in the same room together, and Mariko Tamaki and Amancay Nahuelpan give the two Czarnians wonderful chemistry before blowing it all to hell. The space prison is a fun setting, and this issue has plenty of humor and fisticuffs to go with the attempts at heart-to-hearts

Crush and Lobo concludes with big splashy punches and pages from Amancay Nahuelpan seasoned with self-aware scripting from Mariko Tamaki and a color palette from Tamra Bonvillain that ranges from garish to sterile depending on if the scene is set on cool planets or in jail. It's an entertaining series and definitely proves that Crush can stand on her own apart from her more famous father even though their interactions led to a lot of humor and a little bit of soul searching.

Cry Havoc #1 is the full package with a three dimensional protagonist, revisionist take on the well-worn werewolf horror genre with a dash of real world metaphor, and innovative use of colors as Lee Loughridge, Nick Filardi, and Matthew Wilson show that they are masters of that aspect of comics.

I love the normalcy with which the vampire kids are portrayed compared to the vampire hunters without taking away the air of menace. And on the art side, Wayshak has a little bit of that Richard Corben flair for any time someone is doing something monstrous and does a little classic newspaper cartoon style for the more mundane moments.

This isn't my favorite comic right now, but Fornes' layouts and use of close-up's in emotional scenes are really effective, and I continue to be a sucker for books that dig deeper into the motivations of B and C list characters.

Danger Street #3 feels both Biblical and slice of life, nostalgic and forward-thinking, and I look forward to seeing Tom King thread these disparate characters closer together.

Daredevil #1 has art from Ron Garney and Matt Milla that is unlike any other Marvel book currently on the stands and also showsDaredevil/Matt Murdock's continued battle against his own fear and struggle against crime with no distractions in the way. Charles Soule also sets up Matt's new status quo expertly while leaving time to show his change as a character and interactions with Foggy and Blindspot. And the action scenes are unparalleled so if you enjoyed the hallway fight and the other bare knuckle martial arts brawls in the Daredevil TV show,Daredevil#1 is worth picking up.

But Daredevil is also rekindling his spiritual side, which is a positive way to deal with guilt and loss. He's definitely a complicated guy.

Daredevil #1 is the dark, tortured, Old Testament God take on the Man without Fear that we deserve from Chip Zdarsky, Marco Checchetto, and Sunny Gho. You should read this comic instead of signing those silly Change.org petitions to bring the Netflix show back.

I definitely wish that Becky Cloonan had the opportunity to both write and draw Dark Agnes because her work on Dark Horse's Conan shows that she is a natural fit for high energy, bloody adventures. However, that is not the case, and the visuals of Dark Agnes #1 make the book seem more sluggish than exciting. The writing and plotting isn't pristine either with a generic sense of setting and several cliches even though Cloonan's dialogue is musical and humorous sometimes. It's a comic to definitely trade wait for

Overall, a follow up event of a classic feels like a mash-up of too many events we've seen before.

Dark Days: The Casting #1 is another engrossing chapter in this deep dive DC Universe mystery. Also, Andy Kubert draws the hell out of Hawkman, and Jim Lee does the same with the Joker.

Dark Days: The Forge #1 is the first chapter in a dense, mysterious, yet entertaining DC Comics summer epic. You might not get all the continuity references, but at least one moment in the story will make you smile or pump your fist.

The Dark Knight III #1 is the best comic with Frank Miller's name on it since 2000, a showcase for Andy Kubert's growth as a sequential storyteller , and also a bloody playground to explore both social issues and burning questions about the nature of heroism.

The Dark Knight III #2 has some wooden dialogue and a chase scene that is a little too similar to last issue's magnificent one, but it does a great job establishing the characters of Carrie Kelly's Batman and Lara while setting up the conflict between humanity and the Master Race. The Wonder Woman backup story is a real treat and positions Diana as a wild card in the issues to come in her roles as both warrior and mother.

When it's not awkwardly taking shots at texting young people (Or depicting texting in general.), making non-statements about the media, various world leaders, striking up aStrange Fruit-esque conversation about race involving only white people , or turning Bruce Wayne into a Randian hero with Carrie Kelly as his mouthpiece and Superman as his attack dog, The Dark Knight III #3 is an intergenerational superhero epic that boasts Andy Kubert's best artwork of his career and flaming post-apocalyptic palette from Brad Anderson.

The Dark Knight III #4 definitely has style, but scatters its substance without finding a strong throughline, especially with the unceremonious offing of Superman and the Wonder Woman and Flash cameos.

With searing multiversal land (and sound)scapes from Howard Porter, Jorge Jimenez, and Doug Mahnke; enchanting and frightening colors from Hi-Fi, Alejandro Sanchez, and Wil Quintana; and a very Grant Morrison,The Wild Hunt#1 is a decent setup to theMetalfinale even though the last few pages will either make you laugh nervously or do a hard eye roll.

Scott Snyder and Greg Capullo getting the band back together and telling a Crisis-type story is the perfect recipe for some epic comics. Metal #1 features one of the coolest final pages you will read in comics in this year.

Dazzler #1 is a must read for any superhero fan or even if you just like pop girlies.

Dazzler #2 definitely ups the stakes and fear and hated quotient. My one qualm with the book is that the art is a little too Marvel house style, but Loureiro does turn in some gorgeous fits for Alison Blaire and company, especially a secret guest star.

It's just another mutant fight comic, but with musical accompaniment.

Dazzler X-Song#1light show visuals from Laura Braga and Rachelle Rosenberg that perfectly fit a book starring Alison Blaire and a strong message of pride and intersectionality from Magdalene Visaggio. It shows that cool mutant/Inhuman powers, social commentary, characters arc, and sassy humor can co-exist in one great comic book. Now, I need a follow up comic where Alison meets Karen O…

Green Lantern/Space Ghost Special is a pretty nifty space parable meets superpowered buddy cop adventure. The art isnt the greatest fit, but James Tynion and Christopher Sebela turn in an interesting, yet wordy script that is entertaining, humorous, and will inspire you to tear off your own intellectual shackles and learn more around the world around you. The comic demonstrates that superheroes and philosophy go better than Oreo cookies and chocolate milk, or an episode of Space Ghost Coast to Coast and an early morning hangover. Also, the next Hanna-Barbera crossover should be Larfleeze/Zorak, who make funny cameos in an early double page spread.

The more cartoonish backup with art by Byron Vaughns andCarrie Strachanruns a few of its jokes into the ground, but has a hilarious Calendar Man cameo. However, it's a nice relief after in-your-face crime noir with a side dish of lisps and hunting metaphors.

Marvin the Martian/Martian Manhunterhits that sweet spot between serious and silly. Steve Orlando and Frank Barbiere explore the reasons behind Marvin's cynicism and J'onn's optimism while delivering a pretty fun superhero-meets-Saturday morning cartoon beat 'em up with a clever twist ending that is something Alan Moore would do. They also make Marvin legtimately evil. And Aaron Lopresti and Jerome Moore get the biggest laughs for drawing his tiny self in the DC house style

And since the feast in Themiscyra is in Taz's honor, the traditional Trojan War story takes a bit of a chaotic twist. However, it makes the backup story and the wholeWonder Woman/Tasmanian Devil Specialthat much endearing as Tony Bedard, Barry Kitson, and company start with the horror of Diana being hunted by Taz and end up in riotous comedy of them feasting and poking fun at the Trojan War.

DC Pride #1 is a fantastic showcase not just for DC Comics' LGBTQ+ characters, but the company's LGBTQ+ creators too as they capture a range of relationships, feelings, sexualities, and gender identities. There's a lot of focus on established romantic relationships, but some of the stories explore activism, community, and the Midnighter/Extrano/John Constantine is a straight up adventure yarn. I enjoyed seeing myself and my queer siblings uplifted in this comic and hope DC can do something more ongoing with these characters, situations, and especially creators.

DC Pride 2025 is an ambitious comic with summer crossover energy that tells an epic story with DC's LGBTQ+ characters while still taking time to dig into their individual hopes, fears, and dreams. It's a showcase of queer representation on the page and on the issue's creative teams, and Blake and Sara Soler's memoir is a beautiful coda and rallying cry to continue to be queer and fearless in an increasingly dark and hateful world.

DC x Sonic Hedgehog #1 has plenty of action and even more fun while staying true to the core of these iconic characters. Honestly, this might make a great first DC comic for kids who dig the recent, underrated Sonic live action films.

The 2nd installment of Ian Flynn, Adam Bryce Thomas, and Matt Herms' intercompany crossover suffers from a slight case of sequelitis with many pages going into the expositional nitty gritty of Darkseid's plan to take over Sonic's universe.

It's fanservice at its finest, but it's nice to have a break from the big plots and just have Sonic and his friends interact with more characters in the DC Universe with some colorful action from Adam Bryce Thomas and Matt Herms.

While temperatures soar and outside world continues to plunge into ideological darkness, the DC x Sonic the Hedgehog has been a nice escape as two, well-matched teams of wholesome heroes work together to save the universe and learn something about themselves through their experiences in different settings. I could read Ian Flynn's dialogue for the interactions between these iconic characters all day, and Thomas and Herms bring the candy colored action that makes you feel like you're playing video games in your neighbor's basement after a long hot day. The recent live action Sonic the Hedgehog films are a great way to introduce kids to the superhero genre, and this comic kind of bridges the gap between those movies and something like the DC Animated Universe or even the vast never ending world of Detective Comics Comics.

Although Dead Romans is based on a badass historical event, it sadly doesn't live up to the hype or the sheer metal quality of its title. Featuring thin characterization, truncated fight scenes, and lack of context about the the twilight years of the Pax Romana and the role its characters play in it, it ends up not having much to offer fans of Roman history or general interest readers.

Although Wes Craig and Lee Loughridge continue to bring the stylish visuals that drew me to Deadly Class way back in 2014, Deadly Class #45 is basically mansplaining the comic and squanders its new setting and status quo. It's definitely not a good jumping on point and made me realize I'm only following the title because of sunk cost fallacy.

Deadman #1 is a nearly flawless, Gothic romantic treat with a diverse cast of characters when it comes to both race, body type (Kudos to Medina.), and sexuality that has chills, thrills, and gorgeous scenery to go along with poignant themes of love, death, and the messiness of relationships. The incorporation of the character Deadman adds a touch of humor and the fantastic to these lofty themes while he also gets to learn more about humanity through his bond with Berenice.

Deadman: Dark Mansion of Forbidden #2 is a suitably haunting follow-up to its flawless first issue, and Lan Medina and Jose Villarrubia give Deadman and Adelia some real chemistry in the first half with their play of red, black, and ghostly white in the dark environs of Glencourt Mansion. Splitting the book between Deadman and Berenice's narration continues to be a clever device from Sarah Vaughn as both characters do some soul searching.Deadman#2 is filled with thoughtfulness and reflection on love, death, and tragedy that erupts into a full-out horror comic by the time you turn the final page.

Deadman Dark Mansion of Forbidden Love#3 is an exciting and satisfying ending to a wonderful Gothic romance with exquisite set design from Lan Medina, Phil Hester, and Jose Villarrubia. Each moment that Sarah Vaughn writes featuring Berenice and Sam will give you those happy, goosebump chills that you get when you see two humans that are perfectly matched for each other.

Forall its comedyand characterization,Deadpool #37 has its share of problems. Even though Bellaire's colors match each settingand mood, Dugganand Posehn switch ita lot. It starts as aholiday superhero caper anda reunion ofsupporting charactersand then turns intoAxis-liteand/or “The Good, The Bad, The Ugly” Part 2. This dissonance between eventand character-driven storytelling can definitely be seen in this comic. Luckily, the character side wins,andas someone who hasn't readAxissince the third issue,the plotwasn't confusing and easy to follow. It'sa little constrained byAxis,but Deadpool's new personalityand Jordie Bellaire's colors makeDeadpool#37a pretty good comic.

Deadpool#41 is dark, but not too dark by virtue of his interactions with supporting characters. Even though I still don't know why they're married, Shiklahand Deadpool sharea fun backand forthas she continues to give hima hard time for being less ofa “man” when he was Zenpool. Posehnand Dugganalso continue theDeadpooltradition of turning Z-list villains into basically stand-up comedians,and readers will be either laughing with oratan old Human Torch foe by the end of the story. Theyalso manage to throw ina little political satirealong the way, but nothing too deep or super controversial for people witha sense of humor.Deadpool#41 isa simultaneously hilariousand soul searching start to the new storyarc, but itsart is serviceableand doesn't really pop out compared to Posehnand Duggan's writingand Staples' colors.

Deathstroke #11 is an intelligent, tightly plotted, and well-researched piece of vigilante fiction from Priest, Denys Cowan or the comic book equivalent of the 1995-1996 Chicago Bulls starting lineup It's worth picking up even if you don't know your Deathstrokes from your Deadshots (Or Deadpools.) and rewards rereading.

Defenders #1 feels a lot like a veteran musician revisiting the sound that made him great (And won Bendis Eisners.) over a decade ago. It's not super fresh, but there is a real staccato zest to Bendis' snarky dialogue, Marquez's art, and Ponsor's colors that is best exhibited in a scene where each Defender "interrogates" Diamondback's men in their own way. More scenes like this where Bendis and Marquez play off the unique personalities of each Defender, and the series could be a hit for Marvel and not just a Netflix cash-in or a nostalgia trip for fans of Marvel's street level books in early 2000s.

Dejah Thoris#1 introduces new fans to one of science fiction's oldest heroines (She first appeared in the Edgar Rice Burroughs novelA Princess of Marsin 1912.) while setting up a scenario where she must "find herself" as a character by going on the run as a common soldier. Frank Barbiere's plot has an almost hyperactive pace as Dejah goes from queen to prisoner and fugitive in the space of a few pages, but he and artists Francesco Hanna and Morgan Hickman do allow her to have moments of reflection as well as bonding with John Carter and Thana. And the story will only get more exciting once Dejah begins to learn how to survive in the world outside Helium hinted at in the first few pages, and revelations about her past come to light.

Demon Days: X-Men #1 has some cool designs (Juju's was my favorite), fun character interactions, and the story and backmatter are a great introduction to Japanese folklore and yokai stories via American pop culture. However, Peach Momoko's plotting is predictable, and she is better at drawing landscapes and conversations than fight scenes. But the comic isn't a total wash, and it's nice to see an artist whose style is a far cry from most of the “house style” Marvel books get to put her own imprint on iconic characters. Also, the final pages are damn good and made me interested in the nature of this universe that Momoko has created.

With the exception of the poetic flashbacks, Detective Comics #948 lacks the interpersonal tension that has been the best part of James Tynion's run on the title, especially when Spoiler confronted Batman in the last arc. This incident isn't even mentioned in this comic as he, Marguerite Bennett, and Ben Oliver decide to play a juggling act with the repercussions of the Monster Men, the resurgence of the Colony, and try to do a backdoor pilot for Batwoman's upcoming series. Hopefully, we learn more about what makes Kate tick as a person and crime fighter in the next issue of "Batwoman Begins" instead of just rehashing (Not so.) old storylines.

James Tynion concludes his run on Detective Comics with smiling, hugs, and the simple refrain that maybe one should take things one day at a time instead of coming up with complex algorithms and plans for the future.

By starting Detective Comics #983 with a pair of tragedies that Batman failed to prevent, Bryan Hill, Miguel Mendonca, Diana Egea, and Adriano Lucas immediately place the Dark Knight on the defensive and challenge his preconceptions and reliance on young people to assist in his war on crime. Black Lightning is an organic fit for the story and doesn't seem like a second fiddle with struggles and strengths of his own. Finally, Mendonca, Egea, and Lucas' art work captures the power of a superhero action sequence without glossing over the pain that comes after especially in Duke's case.

Detective Kaiju #1 feels like a collection of loose incidents instead of a coherent chapter in a narrative although I appreciate Calero's lettering and some of Wallis' design choices.

I'm here for Stephanie Hans' fantasy world construction inDieand Kieron Gillen's tempering of the joy of fantasy with the horror of loss.Die#1 makes a smart choice by presenting character dynamics in the foreground and cool, scary fantasy world-building in the background. But Hans' memorable visuals is what will stick with me the most. Never has the casual roll of dice had so much power.

One last thing, you should definitely check out the essay Gillen pens at the end of the comic. For reasons.

Kicking Die Loaded with a wake is an ingenious piece of storytelling from Gillen and Hans as the various old/new characters reacquainting themselves with each other mirrors readers coming back to a series that made an impact on them, but it's been a few years. The focus on Ash and Sophie's dynamic as partners and parents is a wonderfully mature hook for the series before it goes into Goth Jumanji chaos, and it gives a freshness to the sequel instead of going the Die Harder route. I feel both blessed and cursed (In an in-universe kind of way.) to return to this world.

Two issues in, and Gillen and Stephanie Hans have crafted two messy, yet endearing protagonists for this ominous journey in the world of RPGs. They also use the beautiful, yet dangerous world of art to explore how visual art can make life worth living, but also lead to sadness and despair, especially if you're a young, struggling art student. Die Loaded #2 taps into the primal emotions of rage and motherly love to keep the story grounded while expanding this world that seems easy to escape, but we know from experience that's not going to be the case.

Kieron Gillen and Stephanie Hans continue to make side characters protagonists in Die Loaded #3 with the appearance of Sol's mom, Margaret, who becomes the party's Dictator.

Overall, Ninth Doctor #1 has some highly entertaining character interactions, some thought-provoking ideas, and gorgeous two and single page spreads of space. Blair Shedd's art looks like a much higher budget version of the TV show, and he uses speed lines and a panoply of colors to reveal the beauty of darkness of space. Ninth Doctor #1 serves as a great introduction to the world of Doctor Who for new fans and also reminds old fans of the sass and darkness of this regeneration of the Doctor.

Doom Patrolisn't nostalgic comfort food for fans of DC Comics, but original almost to a fault and Way, Derington, and Bonvillain use the versatility of the comic book medium to linger or flip through pages and panels to skillfully recreate the falling into an unfamiliar world and decision to press on that artists like Lewis Carroll, Luis Bunuel, Salvador Dali, David Bowie, Grant Morrison, and The Wachowski Sisters or any kind of hallucinogenic drugs have tried to evoke or simulate throughout the years. And Derington's interplay between the clean lines of his heroine Casey and her new “friend” Terry None and the geometrical corporate toadies creates a feeling of multiple realities without the usual clunky exposition.

Doom Patrol#7 is a statement of this comic's freedom from ordinary superhero storytelling using Niles Caulder as a metaphor with vibrant wit and an idea a minute plot from Gerard Way and transformative art from Mike Allred and Laura Allred. Old white guys usually don't know best even if they can regrow limbs in a jiffy or travel between dimensions, and sometimes trying some weird and creative can be more fun than reading the same, “To me *insert old superhero team name here*” over and over again.

At times,Doom Patrolseems to be Morrisonian for the sake of being Morrisonian, but Way's writing has sly humor and bits of sweet humanity and Derington, Fowler, and Bonvillain's art has a manic, sugar high rush that makes it stand out from DC's more “traditional” books. Plus Robotman punching things a lot is always a good time.

Doomsday Clock #1 shows that for better or worse, Geoff Johns, Gary Frank, and Brad Anderson are taking their time with their DC Rebirth/Watchmen crossover and spend time reestablishing and tearing down the world of Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons' comic before having Superman punch Dr. Manhattan or having Ozymandias and Lex Luthor swap plans for world domination over vodka sodas. Johns' writing is awkward, but his plotting is focused and gets the proverbial clock ticking while Gibbons' art is a real treat. Some parts of Doomsday Clock are pretty groan worthy, but others are pretty damn cool.

All in all, Doughnuts and Doom is an eminently relatable and fiercely queer romantic comedy graphic novel that will warm your heart like the "Hot and Ready sign at your local donut shop coupled with your favorite track on your "yearning playlist. (It pairs nicely with "Silk Chiffon by MUNA, or "Pang by Caroline Polachek.)

Dreamers of the Day is an enjoyable and educational read from Beth Barnett, who by inserting herself and her own enthusiasm in the narrative as well as using a minimalist, yet heavy on the emotions art style, makes the life and work of TE Lawrence accessible and inspiring in 2019.

Even though Kaare Andrews' art and Brian Reber's colors crackle with energy, E-Ratic Recharged #1 is a pretty, by the numbers teen superhero comic. Andrews' female characters are basically all written and drawn interchangeably, and the new one he introduces this issue has more thong wedgie shots that ones of her face even though she plays a pivotal part in this plotline.

I love the horror franchise that this story ends up being a riff on, and Kano's art is a tortuous delight. If you like classic horror, hate capitalism, and maybe are just a little sick and twisted, then you'll enjoy Catacomb of Torment #2.

Cruel Kingdom #2 uses the settings of war-torn kingdoms, superstitious villages, and a medieval kingdom ran like a macabre Civilization campaign to reveal truths about the dark side of human nature. As both a fantasy and horror fan, I'm looking forward to future installments and their miniature macabre worlds.

Two bangers and one mediocre story isn't bad for an anthology, and for the most part, Cruel Kingdom #3 transforms "eat the rich from theory into praxis.

Cruel Universe #1 has one stone-cold classic, a couple solid morality tale thrillers, and one stinker so not a bad batting average for this anthology's first outing. I definitely enjoyed the art and colors in each short story, especially Kano and Artyom Toplin's work.

Minor Arcana #1 is a melancholy tone poem that hits like the scrawly Depeche Mode and The Cure posters in Theresa's childhood bedroom.

If you like fantasy stories that are less heroic and more a dark mirror of current society with halflings, dwarves, swords, dragons, and smoky taverns, then Cruel Kingdom #1 is the comic for you.

If you're a fan of classic comic book storytelling, the Western genre, or just want to see Tony Moore draw ghostly coal miners afflicting a member of the management class, then Outlaw Showdown is a must-buy and fits neatly into anti-colonial and postmodern readings of the genre while still having plenty of entertainment value, blood, and gore.

Should I read this comic? Yes, you should. In a time when everyone and their mom is doing a high concept sci-fi comic, Ei8ht #1 is a unique riff on the genre with its mysterious "Meld" setting, an incredibly likeable protagonist, and Albuquerque applying his thick pencil and ink work to futuristic sci-fi. Plus there's a dinosaur.

Electricity is Her Element is J.RR. Tolkien's “Ainulindale” with a sense of humor. It's Hesiod's Theogony without the toxic masculinity. Character sketches and bios at the end of the comic add depth to Crow's worldbuilding. It helps make this comic worth picking up for all lovers of beauty and truth.

This series isn't essential, but could potentially be a solid intermediate step between Emma Frost the White Queen and Emma Frost the superhero.

Eternals #10 uses the focus of an infiltration mission to flesh out its large cast's personalities while also sowing the seeds for a conflict with the Avengers with Esad Ribic's art ranging from statuesque deities to light comedy. While this is going on, Gillen continues to craft Thanos' arc as he wields moral dilemmas and family trauma as weapons instead of finger snaps and flashy jewelry. Kieron Gillen's take on Thanos is quickly becoming one of my favorites as he continues to add new wrinkles to the usual Big Bad formula. I can't wait to see what devilish conundrum he comes up with next.

As a book, Eternity Girl #1 is nestled in anice nichebetween artsy indieand superhero comic, butleaning more towards to the artsy side thanks to the fragmented nature of Magdalene Visaggio's plot and Sonny Liew's art plus scattershot, intergalactic colors from Chris Chuckrytowards the end. However, Visaggio, Liew, and Chuckry use this niche to honestly probe and explore the feelings that come with depression and create opportunities for connection and empathy in regards to mental health through this engaging comic book. Because sometimes you don't fear death, you long for it…

Eve Stranger #1's story is a tad derivative of the action movies that I mentioned in the first paragraph, but David Barnett and Philip Bond seem to be just as concerned with their protagonist's emotion and quest for autonomy as showing her doing cool things. Plus the art and colors are stylish, distinct, and the opposite of house style, which has been one of the strengths of the Black Crown imprint as a whole.

The visuals continue the aesthetic of the series provided gore and terror as John has to decide what he needs to do to escape what he sees before him. It's an interesting issue and key for fans of the film revealing the answer to a mystery of the series.

Plus its fun to see the crack team of Bendis and Maleev get down and noir-y in a new universe. Maleevs use of shadows that imply Batman is hiding something are a thing of beauty, and as long as youre okay with a little bit of decompression with your espionage noir, Event Leviathan #1 is worth checking out and is more Agatha Christie than Michael Bay.

I'm definitely on the fence as far as my opinion of Excalibur #13. It's not my favorite issue of “X of Swords”, but it's considerably better than, say Wolverine #6 and X-Force #13. Some highlights are Tini Howard and R.B. Silva's portrayal of the relationship between Betsy, Brian, and Jamie Braddock as well as the legacy of the Captain Britain Corps, and Nolan Woodard's heavy metal color palette. Some not-so-great parts are the battle between the Braddocks and the Excalibur doppelgangers even though the character designs are quite fun. It has all the trappings of a “mandatory fight scene”, and I felt less emotionally connected to it than when Betsy and Brian almost came to blows. With their deep personal connection to Otherworld, I'm interested to see how Captain Britain (Betsy Braddock) and the newly-minted Captain Avalon (Brian Braddock) fare in the “tournament” part of “X of Swords”.

Eve Ewing and Carmen Carnero's Exceptional X-Men continues to be a delightful slice of life title (Cubs and White Sox fans arguing at the bar Kitty Pryde works at, cute dates at soccer games), but is starting to shape up into a proper X-title with the introduction of two additional young mutants.

With its small, tightknit cast and lack of missions/fight for the sake of fights, Exceptional X-Men is a breath of fresh air in the mutant/superhero space.

I love that Ewing takes this seriously and has Kitty call out Iceman in a powerful sequence that demonstrates how deadly she is. But this is still the fun, more slice of life X-Men title with memorable moments like the kids trying to figure out a musical theatre actress to compare Bronze to, or Iceman awkwardly talking about his past dating life with Kitty.

Exceptional X-Men continues to not be a superhero beat 'em book, but digs into the lived experience of being a marginalized person with a side of superpowers. I love Thao's phasing and invisibility abilities match her ability, and Carnero draws them in a clear way.

This is another solid issue of Eve Ewing, Carmen Carnero, and Nolan Woodard's Exceptional X-Men #6 as Bronze, Axo, and Melee get internships at Priti's consulting company and meet a CEO who preys on young mutants' insecurities.

Exquisite Corpses #1 was so epic in concept and execution that it's normal that Exquisite Corpses #2 has a little bit of a sophomore slump. However, James Tynion IV, Michael Walsh, Mariana Ignazzi, and Jordie Bellaire have fun with a little sexy killer versus creepy killer as well as showing hopeless it is for the townsfolk of Oak Valley.

I'm still getting to know this book's sprawling cast of characters, but the creators do a good job of squeezing in human moments like 2 EMTS having a heart to heart or two young people trying to make a connection on the dance floor between the behind the scenes maneuvering and carnage.

Like almost every issue of Exquisite Corpses, the story is sprawling and split between a massive cast, but it's nice to see the good guys get a bit of a W for once. Also, Jordie Bellaire's flat black and reds continue to accentuate the violence and menace through her color palette.

Extraordinary X-Men #1 will probably be seen as energetically drawn and colored sacrilege by both long time X-Men fans and ones, who jumped on with Bendis' work. And for new fans, it's darkness for darkness' sake as the X-Men's outsider metaphor is drowned out by the Inhumans and turned into yet another post-apocalyptic story.

Faith #1 focuses on its protagonist's personal life as much as her superheroic exploits and gives her relatable struggles and problems. It has bright colors, a shocking cliffhanger, and some great pop culture references too for the geek in you.

Faith #2 is filled with familiar superhero story beats, but Jody Houser, Pere Perez, and Marguerite Sauvage continue to develop Faith into a multi-faceted heroine filled with enthusiasm, warmth, and some doubts so you won't even notice while you're enjoying the comic.

Finally, Archer should always dress up like Legolas. He pulls it off better than Orlando Bloom.

Honestly, Faith #5 is worth picking up for Marguerite Sauvage's double page spread of Faith imagining herself as a Sailor Scout when she sees the (evil) talking cat at the mall that is manipulating Zoe Hines. It is a showcase of how important and inspirational superheroes are to people everywhere as in two separate stories, Faith beams with joy as two young girls look up to her and combines the real world, pop culture, and the superhero genre into one pleasing comic book mixture. It is also nice to see a talented group of female comics creators from different eras team up and do their own takes on one of the best female superheroes and hopefully inspire yet another generation of female comic book fans and creators.

In Faith#2, Jody Houser, Francis Portela, and Marguerite Sauvage give Faith Herbert have both a mix of optimism and pessimism about the world while being an adorable geek. (She uses her superpowers to help rearrange her action figures while on the phone with her hacker friend "@X", which is the perfect alias.) She wants to make a difference as a superhero, but is aware about the cost to people around her. And the upcoming issue presents her with an important choice to go with its hell of cliffhanger.

Houser does a good job of showing how Faith's superhero/science fiction fandom help her process the world around her even though the sci-fi cursing can be a little much at times.

Whether you've been reading the title since 1961 or this is your first FF adventure,Fantastic Four#1 is definitely worth your $5.99.

antastic Four Fanfare #3 is another fun installment in a great series that lets readers dip into evergreen adventures of Marvel's First Family while you're catching up on Ryan North's Fantastic Four run like this writer.

Tom Scioli shows his clear reverence for Marvel's Silver Age comics, especially the work of Stan Lee and Jack Kirby, in Fantastic Four Grand Design #1 with his powerful figure work, far out colors, and soap opera on speed plotting. He uses the beginning of the comic to try to place the Fantastic Four in an, er, grander cosmic narrative, but it all falls apart by the end. With its 20+ panel pages coupled with high attention to detail on each panel, Fantastic Four Grand Design is more hyper-caffeinated history level than an enjoyable comic, and honestly, would have worked better as a page a day webcomic in the vein of Scioli's previous creator-owned work than a traditional floppy.

This is a frenetically paced, action packed comic and sets up new challenges for the main cast of characters.

Tyler Kirkham's Final Boss has that old school 90s image feel with brutal fight scenes and a focus on style over substance. Seriously, this book at its peak when it shuts the hells up and has protagonist Brazen Bull work over his gimp mask wearing opponent in the ring that starts like an MMA fight and turns into something out of Mortal Kombat.

With its attention to the rhythms of how its characters speak, at first, Firefly #2 might seem nostalgic. However, Greg Pak, Dan McDaid, and Marcelo Costa actually start to craft a narrative casting a deep shadow on the characters we've quoted, admired, and dressed up like for over a decade. It strikes a nice balance between having its own story and being a prequel.

There's a little shard of an anti-authoritarian bent in Firefly 'Verses #1, but mostly it's just an opportunity for Parrott to indulge in his nostalgia for the show. Sharma does do a good job of making the story slightly askew and offputting though.

The Flash #1 has some nice flare in Ivan Plascencia's color choices, and some of the layouts used by Carmine Di Giandomenico bring The Flash's agile body and mind to life. But Williamson's story (sans the action sequences) is weighed down by overwrought narration, a boring villain, and a focus on one of Barry Allen's character traits at the expense of the others. Fans of the character are better off watching the CW show, and there's no real connection to the bigger DC Rebirth mystery storyline so it's not even worth picking up for that.

With art that is constantly in motion by Howard Porter along with some nostalgic imagery,The Flash#22 is a suitable end to a storyline that's only job was getting readers excited for a storyline down the road. However, Joshua Williamson and Porter make time to show Batman and Barry Allen's personal reactions to this crazy journey so it's not all sizzle and no steak. “The Button” crossover also shows the care that the Powers that Be at DC Comics are taking to restore and rebuild their history and continuity via the vehicle of relatively self-contained crossovers and slow burn mystery thrillers instead of making Superman a fascist or something.

Free for All is an action book for the shitty fascist, late capitalist reality that is 2026. It's kind of utopian, kind of dystopian, and kind of about a couple slamming the door shut on their relationship in a way that affects the world economy. Patrick Horvath has become a comics superstar for his work on Beneath the Trees Where Nobody Sees, and this is another exciting addition to his body of work showing off his fight choreography chops and satirical bite.

Overall, Future State: Immortal Wonder Woman #1 has one strong, epic story and another story with potential that it doesn't fully live up to that also shows the difficulty of transitioning from prose fiction to comics. However, this book is definitely worth picking up for Jen Bartel's career best take on the final battle between good and evil in the DC Universe with punches that make galaxies trembles and facial expressions that will make you tear up while Becky Cloonan and Michael W. Conrad write a Diana, who is trying to cling onto hope in an utterly no-win situation.

Future State: Immortal Wonder Woman #2 wraps up with two very different takes on the iconic DC Comics superhero. Becky Cloonan, Michael Conrad, and Jen Bartel tell an archetypal self-contained story of life and death, hope and despair, and finding purpose when there's nothing to live for starring Diana Prince. Plus it really captures the range of emotions one would feel before the inevitable end of the universe. In the second story, L.L. McKinney, Alitha Martinez, Mark Morales, and Emilio Lopez cram in lore, exposition, multiple villains, and one kick-ass fight scene to lay the foundation for future stories featuring Nubia. It's like a two-hour pilot screaming for a series order whereas the lead story is a beautiful elegy with career-best interior art from Jen Bartel, who masterfully depicts both the cosmic and human.

When Marguerite Bennett is connecting the larger themes of Kara Zor-El Superwoman to specific incidents in characters' lives or journeys, her writing sparkles and complements Marguerite Sauvage's magical visuals that can occasionally be dark or playful depending on the tone of the story. However, when she's in monologue about good deeds and virtues mode, the book loses steam and feels more like beautifully drawn and colored lecture and superhero comic. However, I love how Bennett and Sauvage craft the character of Lynari, and I hope they have staying power beyond Future State with their cool powers and emotional openness although their backstory is derivative of several characters already in the DC Universe like Amethyst of Gemworld.

Future State: Superman/Wonder Woman #2 wraps up what is almost the platonic ideal of a superhero team-up with Dan Watters, Leila Del Duca, and Nick Filardi telling a tale of troubleshooting on a universal scale with plenty of wit, bright colors, and heroes acting, well, like heroes. Mythology, science fiction, and a pinch of snark (Mainly Yara telling Jon that Earth could survive without him.) all come together in perfect harmony and minimal continuity baggage.

Future State: Swamp Thing #1 is a smart take on one of DC's most beloved characters as well as being a holistic take on the "dark future" genre, and it even adds a touch of mystery at the end.

Future State: Swamp Thing #2 is a powerful and thought-provoking conclusion to Ram V, Mike Perkins, and June Chung's saga of humanity versus nature in the shadow of the end of the world. Swamp Thing himself is portrayed as a complex figure, who must make difficult choices about whether to cast his lot with his children (Who are really just extensions of himself) or with the humans, who have some good eggs but are also trying to blot out the sun and end life on this planet. Future: Swamp Thing is a disaster story with soul that ends on just the right note of hope and tragedy.

Generation Gone#1 is a beautiful marriage of character study and ideas with just a pinch of techno-horror and is a pleasing comeback for Ales Kot.

Getting It Together #3 continues the dramatic escalation of the previous issues while providing insight into Lauren's creative drive, Jack's relationship issues, and Sam's mental health. Sina Grace and Omar Spahi's writing continues to be sharp as ever, and they hit that drama/comedy sweet spot. Jenny D. Fine and Mx. Struble continue to provide expressive, DIY style visuals while experimenting with layouts and finally descending into utter madness and fluidity during the drug trip sequence. Struble adds that extra bit of emotion to the musical performances in Getting It Together #3, which was a skill that they demonstrated in on their previous work with Grace on Lil Depressed Boy even if this book doesn't have any AJJ or Childish Gambino cameos.

Ghosted in L.A.‘s creative team fires on all cylinders in this issue. The book is a wonderful fusion of memorable character designs and facial expressions, well-paced plotting (Daphne discovers the ghosts after she hits rock bottom.), and a protagonist that is easy to connect to. Sina Grace and Siobhan Keenan explore the universal themes of loneliness and belonging through Daphne's specific trials and tribulations with L.A. and a (mostly) kind family of ghosts as the backdrop. It's what I want out of a good magical realism story. I can't wait to learn more about Daphne and the world, no, the community that she has joined in this adorable comic.

Giant Days #1 is another great all-ages comics from BOOM! Studios that's silly, snarky, and filled with heart. Even though they have little fights and drama, Daisy, Esther, and Susan share a strong rapport and actually seem like friends. Giant Days has the laughs of your favorite sitcom mixed with a slapstick/realist visual style that can only be realized in the comic book medium. Buy a copy for yourself and another for your room/flatmate!

Giant Days #18 is a hilarious testament to the relationships that John Allison has developed throughout the series, and Max Sarin, Liz Fleming, and Whitney Cogar add energy and humor to everything from an end of term dance (Where someone obviously gets lucky.) to a shouting match at the local Games Workshop.

An engaging romance between Daisy and Ingrid that leads to massive changes in her character as falling in love at 19 only can along with the usual humorous cartooning of Max Sarin and Liz Fleming, insightful characterization from John Allison, and wacky color palette from Whitney Cogar shows that Giant Days #22 is still the best slice of life comic going into 2017. Also, I'm a little too excited to see Esther's reactions to working at a comic book shop in future issues.

The dinner party is a time-honored sitcom setting to have different sets of characters bounce off each other and also create change, but John Allison, Max Sarin, Liz Fleming, and Whitney Cogar put a bit of a Giant Daystwist in it with plenty of awkwardness and over the top jokes.Giant Days #23 is worth picking up for the interactions between Ingrid and Dean alone, which are truly "avant-garde cabaret" and for finding out the amazing reason why the cops get called on it.

Giant Days #24 deals with some pretty serious issues like death, marital problems, and regressing back to childhood. (The looks on Daisy and Esther's face when Ed tells them that Big Geoff is their butler is spectacular.) But John Allison, Max Sarin, Liz Fleming, and Whitney Cogar depict these issues in their usual quirky, yet deadpan way with plenty of funny cutaways like a heavenly image of Daisy and Esther losing their mind that they got to pick out their own snack at the movies instead of sharing a box of Raisinettes.

While building on her dad's sorry plight in the previous, John Allison, Max Sarin, Liz Fleming, and Whitney Cogar do something a little different withGiant Days#25 by looking at family drama instead of friendship from the POV of Susan Ptolemy. She cuts a heroic figure in trying to save her parents' marriage, but solving other people's problem doesn't end her own, especially if they involve McGraw.

Giant Days#26 is a comic where a character's reaction to a gross, green smell can lead to a chuckle or full out laugh thanks to the humorous art of Max Sarin, Liz Fleming, and Whitney Cogar. John Allison also continues to be a master of telling a story with a largecast by focusing on small groups of characters in the beginning and paying off with big moments in the end like a skilled sitcom showrunner. This comic is worth picking up for seeing Daisy as a unicorn alone.

Giant Days#40 shows how essential Max Sarin's gift for drawing expressive eyes is to the title and has a great emotionally honest conversation about relationships laid down in the mix between banter and DIY projects.

Giant Days Holiday Special 2017is figgy pudding proof thatGiant Dayscan get experimental, weird, and do a 40 page riff onLove Actuallyand still be a fantastic comicbecause of the humor, adorableness, and friendship at its core thanks to John Allison, Jenn St. Onge, Sarah Stern, and Kieran Quigley. In the tradition ofDoctor Whoand other British things, I hope there are many more of these light and clever Holiday Specials.

The spy action is as sleek as the robot fight is clunky. The ending is a little abrupt, but it's a good first foray and would probably make Guillermo Del Toro smile.

It's not required reading, but a perfect chaser after watching Godzilla Minus One or Monarch during these long, bleak nights.

The first part of Giant-Size Little Marvel #3 nails the feeling of learning about a bunch of superheroes as a kid for the first time. But the second half loses steam with a string of less than funny gags and a focus on Zachary and Zoe. The last page is an adorable mini-masterpiece though, and this miniseries could have a chance at getting you hooked on a feeling again.

At its best, Giant-Size Little Marvel is unhinged, unapologetic superhero mayhem drawn in Skottie Young's half twisted, half adorable "Marvel Babies" style. (Giant-Size Little Marvel #4 is worth flipping through to check out some of the villain designs on the final page. I hope Rhino gets a solo title soon so he can do the variant.) At its worst, it's kids being annoying and canned joke. The miniseries as a whole (and this issue) is a mixed bag, but it has more candy bars than toothbrushes.

Giga #1 has some interesting world-building and ideas and is a solid mash-up of mecha and post-apocalyptic fiction with a color palette that is both bleak and intense courtesy of Rosh. There are a couple of explosions and some big damn (and one little) robots, but Alex Paknadel and John L structure their story around Evan's relationships with the world around him instead of going the blockbuster action route and use these relationships to ask big picture questions about the connection between humans with different beliefs and humans and technology. Giga is sure to be another SF jewel in the Vault crown.

Jim Zub, Djibril Morrisette-Phan, and K. Michael Russell channel the pain of rejection and the cutthroat nature of Hollywood in Glitterbomb #1 to craft a new kind of anti-hero in middle aged actress Farrah while fully immersing the comic in both the revenge thriller and body horror genres.

Scott's script is a cross between Karen Berger's Vertigo books and Axel Alonso's crime ones he edited before going to Marvel so there's a little bit of nostalgic feel to the comic while also being something new.