This Wednesday, something magical is going to happen. Dozens upon dozens of brand new comic books will go on sale! Sometimes the enormous selection can be a little overwhelming and leave you questioning how you should spend your budget. Well, we're here to help you out and make sure you're ready for the upcoming edition of new comic book day. The Comic Vine staff has read the list of this week's full releases and each of us will tell you which issues we're excited to read and why we think they're so promising.
Tony "G-Man" Guerrero's picks
BATMAN #37
Joker is back and it doesn’t look like he’s messing around. Hitting Batman with a vengeance, he’s actually pretty ticked off after their last encounter. So what has he been doing since then? Apparently he’s been cooking up a pretty insane plan to take down all of Gotham City. Batman’s always managed to take down Joker before but this isn’t the regular Joker we’re used to. With a new and stronger virus unleashed upon the city, Batman will have his hands full.
Scott Snyder and Greg Capullo don’t appear to be holding back. With this the final story arc before April’s CONVERGENCE, who knows how it will all end. Sure, we expect Batman to triumph but there’s bound to be some casualties and consequences to deal with.
Go to Nerdist for an extra preview page.
WYTCHES #3
Sigh. This is starting to be the book that I look forward to reading but also dread reading at the same time. Scott Snyder and Jock have introduced us to a different idea and motives involving witches. There’s a big sense of creepiness oozing off the pages courtesy of Jock’s art. With the introduction to the Rooks family, we’ve seen that they’ve gone through some hardship. In particular we saw their daughter involved in a bad situation.
With the idea of being pledged to the witches, you never know when they’ll come to collect and if there’s any way out of it. It’s been easy to become concerned and attached to these new characters. Because this is a creator-owned series, there’s more at stake. No one is safe. Scott Snyder is just the guy to write bad things happening to good people. To make it even creepier, Matt Hollingsworth’s colors manages to take Jock’s art even further. Get ready for the chills.
Check out Entertainment Weekly for one more preview page.
MOON KNIGHT #10
Things are getting a little interesting for Marc Spector. Last issue he confronted the mysterious doctor that tried killing him a couple times. We found out about her thirst for vengeance. With that being Khonshu’s deal, you can imagine how things might go. This might not be the first time Moon Knight’s found himself in a sticky situation without assistance but now we’re going to see Moon Knight try to break into the United Nations building? Unless because of what happened last issue, we’re seeing a different sort of Moon Knight taking the lead in the action.
Last week we found out Cullen Bunn will be taking over the series with issue #13. That’s good and bad. We still have a few more issues with this current creative team to enjoy. With how it’s been going, it’s a safe bet that we will enjoy each issue.
MULTIVERSITY THUNDERWORLD
Okay, do we really have to tell you why you need to pick this issue up? Grant Morrison’s been doing some crazy and amazing things in each one-shot issue of THE MULTIVERSITY. In the next self-contained chapter, we get to visit Earth-5. Going to Thunderworld means old school Captain Marvel/Shazam action. All the gang will be here, the Big Red Cheese, Captain Marvel Jr, Mary Marvel, and of course, Doctor Sivana.
Joining Morrison on art is Cameron Stewart. The two have worked together before and Stewart’s art is perfect to capture the Captain Marvel feel we’ve been longing for. This issue is almost guaranteed to put a smile on your face.
IGN has an extra preview page.
AXIS: HOBGOBLIN #3
This is the end of this miniseries. It’s an unfortunate thing but at the same time, you have to wonder how long this story could go on. Hobgoblin has always been one of my favorite villains. With the Inversion Spell from AVENGERS & X-MEN: AXIS, we saw the Hobgoblin turn into a hero…sort of. He’s started doing some good deeds, usually in front of the cameras, and has been offering words of encouragement to other wanna-be heroes. All of this hasn’t sat well with Phil Urich, the former “good” Green Goblin who later thought he killed the original Hobgoblin and took over his guise. It’s okay, because he has a new identity now.
This has been one of my favorite things to come out of AXIS. I can’t wait to see how it ends and what it could mean for Hobgoblin after this.
Honorable Mention: THE SANDMAN: OVERTURE #4
Mat "Inferiorego" Elfring's picks
MANIFEST DESTINY #12
I feel like this book has flown under a lot of people's radars this year. However, it's one of Image's consistently amazing book. By the way, this book is still awesome. Now that the crew is free from the giant underwater arc and the man eating giant frog, more adventures await Lewis and Clark and company. The creative team does a fantastic job with building up this fantasy version of early America. Is this a good place to jump on? Maybe? Give it a shot. If they taught this in high school, u would have done a lot better in American History class. Schools need more buffalomen, plant, zombies, and man eating frogs.
MILES MORALES: THE ULTIMATE SPIDER-MAN #8
So that last fight was pretty awesome huh? MILES MORALES: THE ULTIMATE SPIDER-MAN continues to be a really really solid Marvel book month after month. we are getting some awesome fights and there's nothing better than seeing Green Goblin and Miles Morales and Peter Parker going at it with each other. David Marquez is doing some of his best work here and Justin Ponsor has some of his best color work in this book. There's still a lot unfinished stories here too so there's a lot to look forward to in this book.
Honorable Mention: FANTASTIC FOUR #14
Gregg "k4tz" Katzman's picks
BATMAN AND ROBIN #37
Peter Tomasi and Patrick Gleason (along with Mick Gray and John Kalisz) have sent Batman on an action-packed adventure that's all kinds of ridiculous, but in the best way possible. People who think the Dark Knight's overrated and hate seeing him demolish all opposition should avoid this -- and something tells me bigDarkseid fans should, too -- but watching Wayne step into a shockingly sophisticated armor and beating down anything that stands in his way has been very entertaining and so much fun. We've seen the Caped Crusader topple everything that Apokolips has thrown at him, but now it's finally time for him to face DC's biggest villain, Darkseid. Considering the way things have been going, this is pretty much guaranteed to be more totally over-the-top and amazingly fun action. Considering the next Robin has been revealed, I wouldn't be shocked if there's a great cliffhanger involving the character as well. If you love Batman and really love seeing him as an insanely formidable hero, you've got to pick this one up. This is one of DC's consistently great books and it's still just $2.99 per issue. How awesome is that?
Visit CBR to see more.
ELEKTRA #9
When anyone picks up a comic book, they hope it'll deliver a story and artwork that'll leave them stunned. Sure, the quality of a comic is technically subjective and what one person loves another person may hate, but I feel pretty confident saying that a vast majority of you will absolutely love ELEKTRA if you give it a shot. Haden W. Blackman's writing a story that's full of familiar organizations and faces yet he's handling it in such a creative, exciting, and insightful way. Every issue has defied my expectations and left me wanting more. Then there's Michael Del Mundo's spectacular pages. Honestly, calling them "spectacular" is selling them short, so how about "awesomely amazing and astonishing artwork." There, that seems more accurate. Don't believe me? Just check out the preview to give your eyes a good time and appreciate just how brilliant both the artwork and script has been. It's such a shame this comic will end with issue #11, but let's enjoy the ride while it lasts and be thankful this creative team had the opportunity to produce some memorable issues.
PREDATOR: FIRE AND STONE #3
Totally honest here, the release schedule for Dark Horse'sFire and Stone can be a little confusing. There's several limited series, each taking place at different points in time, and the release schedule is alternating between titles. That said, PREDATOR: FIRE AND STONE has done a really, really good job standing on its own. Now, that's not a jab at the other titles -- I'm really enjoying most of them; ALIEN VERSUS PREDATOR is the only one I'm not overly enthusiastic about -- but it's instead complimenting Joshua Williamson's writing. It's a simple tale about a guy who will do anything to survive being forced to work with a very formidable and very intimidating Predator. It's a character-driven story and full of action. Plus, who doesn't love learning about a new Yautja? If you love the franchise, you really should be reading this. Seriously, it's that simple.
ALL-NEW CAPTAIN AMERICA #2
Becoming Captain America shouldn't be easy. No matter how good or how smart you are, Steve Rogers raised the bar incredibly high when it came to inspiring his fellow heroes and overcoming the odds with brilliant tactics and displays of bravery. Sam Wilson, the longtime ally of Rogers, certainly deserves more time in the spotlight, but becoming one of Marvel's most inspiring heroes should be a huge challenge for him. Clearly, Rick Remender understands this and the first issue of ALL-NEW CAPTAIN AMERICA really won me over. Not only did the writer do an effective job humanizing Sam and giving us a look inside his head, but he also showed us how difficult it can be to live up to what Captain America represents and to wield the shield like he once did. Oh, and considering how entertaining the fight with Batroc the Leaper was in the last issue, you can bet I'm really, really anxious to see how Sam's fight with Crossbones will play out. The guy may not have any super powers, but Rogers once said the villain is one of the "roughest foes he's ever faced" (that was in Streets of Poison, if I remember correctly) so hopefully this will truly put Sam's abilities to the test. Even if the battle's disappointing, it's safe to assume Stuart Immonen will make it look solid.
Honorable Mention: DRIFTER #2
Corey "Undeadpool" Schroeder's picks
SCARLET SPIDERS #2
Ah, Scarlet Spider. Is there any name in the pantheon of Marvel comics that inspires more divisive opinions? Whether it be his hoodie from the Kmart summer collection or his more traditional spider-duds, Ben Reilly is a character who's always courted controversy. And while this Reilly is from another dimension, he mostly matches the upbeat positivity of the 616-dimension's puddle of spider and last issue we got to see how wonderfully that juxtaposes and clashes with Kaine's pull-out-all-the-stops attitude, which makes Ultimate Black Widow something of the odd woman out, an interesting role in and of itself. Mike Costa's doing a great job establishing these characters both for potential new readers and readers familiar with the characters and Paco Diaz's art is perfectly stylized and cartoonish enough to give the series its own unique voice and feel.
MS MARVEL #10
Kamala Khan's got a giant new ally, a giant new mode of transport and a giant new pet all in one adorable package! Apparently she'll need all those aspects of Lockjaw in order to assemble a team and take on the maniacal, bizarre Inventor, though they apparently won't be going in as a merely a duo. Whatever C. Willow Wilson is up to, it's been enough issues that I am onboard for the ride by default. It's always worth checking out when series regular Adrian Alphona returns to bring the title that signature, exaggerated, whimsically bizarre look that's made it such a darling over the last half-year.
GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY #22
The Venom symbiote, originally of Spider-Man, has never really had its backstory explored, in spite of being a fixture in Marvel's pantheon, tied to some of its most popular characters both of one era and of all time. And yet this never seemed strange to me until Brian Bendis finally raised the question in the pages of GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY. Bendis has always had a knack for asking the unasked about fixtures and situations in the Marvel Universe that are taken for granted (see also: SECRET WAR) so the fact that he's helming the answer to the question is as fantastic as the idea of a whooooole planet of symbiotes. And any book that gives Valerio Schiti more work will have my attention AND my interest, particularly one that lets him flex his creative muscle as much as this one sounds like its going to.
Honorable Mention: THE WICKED + DIVINE #6
Log in to comment