The Continuing New Comics Thread

Topic

Discuss new issues of your favourite comics here.

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Vikram wrote:

Ben wrote:

As to X-Force, hopefully, eventually, there will be an OHC4 to finish the run. Ditto for Wolverine.

When I had met him at NYCC, Percy hoped that they’d eventually print both X-Force and Wolverine together in Omnibus format, intertwining the stories from one title to another. In his eyes they were one series. I don’t quite see it that way, but they definitely compliment each other, and for my money, Wolverine has never been better than it has been under his pen.

Also, if you’ve never seen or heard him speak, Percy embodies Logan almost literally. It’s uncanny.

Percy wrote X lives/death of Wolverine right?

Never forgetting or forgiving that 🦈 jump moment.

Yeah. That wasn’t a highlight. I concur.

I mentioned here at the time that Scott Snyder and Hayden Sherman’s Dark Spaces: Wildfire was one of my favourite comics of 2022. Well, their follow up, Dark Spaces: Dungeon just concluded, and it was quite brilliant. So very different in tone than their first story, but equally engrossing. I only planned to read the first issue after tea this evening, but was so hooked I blitzed all five issues straight through. It grabbed me and wouldn’t let go.

I don’t want to say too much about the story, because I think that would risk robbing it of its impact, but it’s a twisted and creepy tale that unsettles. Very effective storytelling.

Extra kudos for the colouring on this mini series, by Patricio Delpeche. Using a far more subdued palate than what was used on Wildfire, it felt almost painted at times, adding tremendously to the overall mood and atmosphere of the mini.

I hope this creative team comes back and does another series in the future. This was good stuff.

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njerry, Dave, Ben

Just chiming in to concur the praise for The One Hand and The Six Fingers. Intriguing story, great art, and cleverly done craft. I’m interested to see how intertwined the books will become (I’ve only read the first issues of each so far) and whether or not they can actually stand alone as individual stories at the end of the day. If they manage to achieve both in a satisfactory manner that would be quite the feat.

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Ben, Dave, Uncle Retrospective

Vikram wrote:

If they manage to achieve both in a satisfactory manner that would be quite the feat.

I’d give their feat a big hand.

Ultimate Invasion #1-4 + Ultimate Universe – I unintentionally managed to buy two copies of Ultimate Spider-man #1 a few months ago, and seeing the buzz for it, sold one copy for a ridiculous profit. I invested that at my LCS picking up back issues of the preceding mini-series that I had mostly ignored. Finally read them yesterday, and really enjoyed them.

I think I was expecting a bit of a continuity w@nk-fest but I didn’t get that. Exactly. I found it quite clever as the opening salvo of a new line of titles. Not quite up there with Hickman’s House of/ Powers of duology, but enough to make me invested in what would happen next.

Hitch’s artwork was the main highlight, to be fair. Given that he’s going to be tied up at Ghost Machine for the next few years, I assume, it was nice to see him have a final hurrah with the Marvel superheroes.

The Universe one shot read like an awkward epilogue. It doesn’t really stand alone on its own, yet doesn’t really flow from the end of the mini-series either. Bit weird. I suspect the story got away from Hickman and they couldn’t get Hitch to stick around for a fifth issue, so it got hastily re-written to try and make it work as a separate thing. Oh well.

Ultimate Black Panther #1-3 – I think Bryan Hill is a pretty underrated writer. He suffers the same way that Christopher Priest did before him in that he seems relegated to always be writing the marginalised PoC books. Which is a shame. I was hoping that this could be his big break, giving him the exposure he’s not had before. And, it does sort of work that way.

This feels very much like the MCU Black Panther set in the new Ultimate Universe. There are a lot of similarities in style and tonality.

Which is great if you liked those films, but I didn’t really, so I think I’m going to drop out of this series after this. It’s good, but not for me.

Peach Momoko’s Ultimate X-Men #1 was a bit of a surprise though. A totally new, ground up reinvention of the series. I’ve never read any of her material before, and I’m not much of a manga reader, but found a lot to like here. It’s creepy and weird, and beautifully drawn. I can see why some people have had issues with this book, but I really liked it. Will be back again.

And, finally, no costumed characters even showed up in Ultimate Spider-man #4. The whole issue was a talking heads story of a double date over dinner. A bold choice, entertaining for someone already invested in the series, but I suspect this wouldn’t work at all for a new reader.

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Todd, Ben

Oh, and an interesting observation I had, all of the new Ultimate books seem to be happening in “real time.” A month passed between the last page of one issue and the start of the next. That makes each issue more or less a stand alone. There are no traditional cliffhangers. I’m unclear of the purpose, but it certainly changes the pace of the storytelling. I assume it’s done to act as a countdown to the upcoming big showdown that was promised at the end of Invasion. Maybe.

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Todd, Ben

Oh, interesting. I nabbed the Panini trade of Ultimate Invasion.

Along with Immortal Thor Volume 1.

When you get it I would be interested to know if they even have the Universe one shot in that trade, Ben?

The heist that opens the first issue is fantastic. Probably the finest example of that I’ve seen in a comic book. Very cool.

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Rocket

Nope, just Ultimate Invasion #1-4.

I flipped through an issue of Ultimate X-men a couple of weeks ago and was quite impressed at how out there they’re letting Momoko go, i have to say

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Vikram, Todd, Ben

Spectregraph #1 was a great, creepy story from Tynion with fantastic art from Christian Ward, using bold colours and inventive layouts that work really well and make good use of the larger pages of the DSTLRY format. The issue sets up some interesting mysteries for future chapters too. Looking forward to more.

The Six Fingers #3 was another cracking issue. Watters and Sumit are doing great, gripping work on this book, while also building a larger story with what is happening in The One Hand by Ram V and Campbell. The whole thing is coming together beautifully.

Hellblazer: Dead In America #4 was another excellent issue of a series that has really picked up and looks on course to match the original Spurrier/Campbell run. Pretty heavy subject matter but handled well, with great writing and atmospheric art. There’s a dark mood that hangs over this whole issue even though certain things are rarely spoken outright, which fits the story well.

Blade Runner 2039 #12 ends the Ash saga perfectly. What an achievement this excellent series has been – across 36 issues (three 12-issue runs) the book has brought us great storytelling, beautiful art, and a wonderfully compelling protagonist in Ash. I’ll miss the robust, no-flab storytelling and great, clear action sequences of this series, which is one of the best licensed books I’ve ever read.

Night People #2: I’ll admit to finding issue #1 of Night People a challenging read, but #2 went down much smoother for me. A great little story with lots of interesting ideas and connections, albeit pretty grim at times. Plus the art was very decent – I’ll look out for Tefenkgi’s work in future.

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Vikram, Sean Robinson, Ben, Todd, njerry

[Sean Robinson]

The Spectregraph HC is scheduled for Jan. 21st 2025

And Amazon does not like that word when searching.
Try adding “Tynion” if you go looking, but it still changes the word to ‘spectrograph’ (yet will nicely ask to show results instead for the words I typed in 3 times previously…)

edit:or I guess you could search for “DSTLRY”
Duh!
Oh, and look, Azzarello and Risso’s “The Blood Brothers Mother HC is Nov. 19th

• This reply was modified 7 months, 2 weeks ago by Sean Robinson.

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Ben

Ah, that’s who is publishing it.

Blackwells can be easier to fish, as it has publisher search.

Edit: Pile of good stuff due end of the year too from DSTLRY:

November:

• The Blood Brothers Mother – Azzarello and Risso

 

December

• The White Boat – Snyder and Francavilla
• One For Sorrow – Jamie McKelvie

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Sean Robinson, Dave

A new Azzarello/ Risso book is always reason to celebrate and the first issue of The Blood Brothers Mother from DSTLRY doesn’t disappoint. It’s the start of a grim and gritty revenge fuelled western.

Marvel vs Vampires #1 gets off to a bloody action packed start. There’s no time to stop and smell the roses here. It gets straight into it. The action is intense and pretty gruesome (at least in the polybagged red band edition). There’s a twist in the tale that makes little to no sense so it will be interesting to see how that pans out.

Pepe Larraz and Marte Gracia are the stars of the show though, with some stunning artwork throughout. It’s a great looking book.

The FCBD issue is a little extra scene that expands on the events of the first issue. By no means essential but it looks to be a nice lead in to #2.

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njerry, Ben

Get Fury #1 was great. For a fairly talky issue of mostly setup, it was still pretty gripping – and when the violent moments come, they’re just as uncompromisingly brutal as you’d expect. Garth Ennis and Jacen Burrows are a fantastic team and I can’t wait for more of this.

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Ben, Vikram

Vikram wrote:

A new Azzarello/ Risso book is always reason to celebrate and the first issue of The Blood Brothers Mother from DSTLRY doesn’t disappoint. It’s the start of a grim and gritty revenge fuelled western.

With Azzarello and Risso back together it felt like this should be a home run. Somehow it didn’t quite come together for me, though. As is often the case, I felt like Azz had more fun writing it than I did reading it, with his wordplay feeling more irritating and unnatural-sounding than it is funny or clever. And I think Risso maybe should have gone with a separate colourist on this, as his own colours are a little bit… vivid for this material.

But having said that, I do like the look of the story that seems to be starting just as this issue ends, so I’ll stick around for more.

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Ben, Vikram

Lol! I think you & I have had this exact discussion before about a prior Azzarello book. I really enjoy his style. Its lyrical quality and cadence. How so much of it is interpretive and relies on the artist to do the heavy lifting with body language and panel composition (and when artists like Risso and Bermejo are involved, it’s wonderful to see them step up to that).

All of that can make his books unnecessarily challenging to read, I’ll concede, but also extra rewarding I feel. A lot of the story isn’t explicitly spelt out and you need to put in the effort as a reader to connect the dots. Which you may or may not feel enhances or detracts from your enjoyment.

I did have to stop and re-read sections of The Blood Brothers Mother #1 a couple of times to make sure I followed what was going on. Which wasn’t helped by the annoying over use of cursive in the narration. I’m getting too old to read that tiny ass font non-digitally.

I have also noticed that Azzarello does seem to be leaning into this writing style harder on his creator owned books than his more mainstream DC content. I guess editorial have played a role previously in smoothing out his eccentricities for the reader’s benefit.

But, overall, Azzarello is a writer who I’ve found consistently delivers. There’s no fat. Everything is there for a reason. And his books tend to be filled with a wide variety of grotesquely formed side characters that you want to know more about, even as you enjoy seeing them get theirs in the end.

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Dave, Ben

I didn’t find the story particularly difficult to follow, it’s a fairly straightforward plot – I just felt like there were lots of times when people don’t speak like the characters that they are, but instead feel like author mouthpieces. It makes everyone feel samey and interchangeable. The same way I feel about Aaron Sorkin scripts.

Vikram wrote:

Which wasn’t helped by the annoying over use of cursive in the narration. I’m getting too old to read that tiny ass font non-digitally.

Yeah, this was a pain to decipher.

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Ben

That’s fair. It’s a lot like how Bendis’ characters all tend to sound the same too.

And, to be clear I wasn’t talking about the plot, which is a fairly straightforward setup for a classic revenge western, but the scene to scene (and sometimes panel to panel) storytelling that can be confusing at times, if you’re not paying attention.

Wasn’t calling you stoopid or anything!

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Ben, Dave

No, I didn’t take it that way! 

I get what you mean.

Dave wrote:

The same way I feel about Aaron Sorkin scripts.

HOW DARE YOU, SIR! HOW DARE YOU!!!

I do know what you mean, but I don’t quite agree. Sorkin has a style that gives everybody the same sound, to some extent, but I still think his characters are very different and the dialogue usually fits their character.

I do have this problem with Azzarello books at times, especially when he took over Hellblazer and Constantine suddenly sounded like someone out of 100 Bullets.

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Ben, Dave

This week’s issue of Transformers is fantastic, it’s well worth keeping up with even with Johnston off art.

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Andrew, Vikram, Ben

Batman: White Knight Presents Generation Joker – having really enjoyed the Harley Quinn mini-series a couple of years ago, I went into this with high expectations that sadly it didn’t meet. It was quite boring, frankly. Mirka Andolfo’s artwork was quite fun, to be fair, matching the aesthetic set previously by Murphy and Scalera. But, the story of Joker’s kids taking a road trip in the Batmobile was rather uneventful. There’s a bit of world building to support Murphy’s Justice League mini-series, but I think you could skip that easily enough and not really care. Disappointing.

I did greatly enjoy Zorro: Man of the Dead #1-4 on the other hand. The first issue was a bit of a cliche, but twists in subsequent issues brought the series to life. Be warned that this isn’t a period piece, but a more modern day spin on the character. Murphy’s artwork was brilliant. It’s a little more violent in nature than White Knight has allowed him to be, but very much in that mold of storytelling. I’m glad that I didn’t pay over the odds for the Kickstarter project, but this was a fun little mini. I’d be happy to buy more in the future. Watch out for Danny Trejo’s appearance!

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Dave

I agree on both counts. All of the non-Murphy White Knight spinoffs have been diminishing returns, although I’ve kept reading out of completism.

And Zorro was great fun, gorgeous art and some nice twists on the story that I didn’t see coming. It shows how good at the nuts and bolts of comics storytelling Murphy is, as it was a fairly unoriginal plot in a lot of ways, but the story was told so well that it was always enjoyable.

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Vikram

Did anyone read any of the FCBD issues?

My favourite that I read was the Star Wars one – in the lead strip, Soule tells a nice story about returning to Hoth to rescue some stragglers from the alliance, with great art and a nice completeness to the story.

The Conan one was also decent and set up an interesting looking crossover.

I thought the Energon Universe one was okay, but Ottley felt like he was actively trying to imitate DWJ’s art style when something more distinct might have worked better.

I also read the Amazing Spidey/Ultimates book. The Spider-Man story made me glad I dropped Wells’ run when I did, and the Ultimates story felt like fan-fiction, just lots of references to past continuity without much actually happening. And it also underlined what a mess of continuity this new Ultimate Universe is already.

The Doctor Who issue was quite fun though, a brisk outing for Gatwa’s Doctor that (like Conan) tells a complete story while also setting up bigger things to come.

lorcan_nagle wrote:

This week’s issue of Transformers is fantastic, it’s well worth keeping up with even with Johnston off art.

Thanks. Sadly my LCS didn’t have it in this week. Hopefully next.

Dave wrote:

I thought the Energon Universe one was okay, but Ottley felt like he was actively trying to imitate DWJ’s art style when something more distinct might have worked better.

That was probably my favourite of the FCBD issues this year (although I haven’t read the Doctor Who or Hellboy ones yet). There was a lot of bang for your proverbial buck in this issue. Fantastic cover too. I suspect Ottley is probably being lined up as an artist on a future arc after this.

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Dave

Geiger #1 & 2 – returns to the desolate post-apocalyptic wasteland of the original mini-series, picking up where that left off a few years ago. Tariq and Barney are wandering around trying to find the other glowing man, as an ominous figure hunts them in turn. Gary Frank and Brad Anderson on art elevate what would otherwise be a pretty run of the mill story with their art. The return of Junkyard Joe next issue, however, is promising.

Redcoat #1, by Geoff Johns and Bryan Hitch, is a double sized debut issue. It’s set in the same universe as Geiger and Junkyard Joe, and features the adventures of an immortal British soldier from the American war of independence. The title character, Simon, is basically Spike from Buffy, the Vampire Slayer as written by Geoff Johns. It’s a fun book.

The last of the three Ghost Machine launch books was Rook: Exodus, by Geoff Johns (again) and Jason Fabok. It’s the book with the most ambitious concept and scope of the three. This is a stand-alone series that has no connection to the others.

I really liked this. Probably my favourite of them all so far, because it sings to the sci-fi nerd in me. Set in the far future on an alien world where the terraforming efforts of the human race have started to go awry. There’s lots of world building in this double sized first issue, alongside some crazy action. Fabok’s artwork is beautiful too. Very much looking forward to more of this one.

I’m not a Johns fanatic by any means. He’s done a lot of stuff previously that I’ve enjoyed, but also a lot of hum drum stuff too. I wouldn’t say that he’s a radically better writer here than he was at DC, but his Ghost Machine work has all been consistently readable. Worth checking out, I think.

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Sean Robinson, njerry, Ben, Dave

Reading Hellblazer: Dead In America #1-4 I found myself wondering why this isn’t connecting with me in the same way as the earlier run.

The series so far has been a string of four loosely connected tales of Americana, a la “American Gothic”. They’re all well told tales, from a fine creative team, but not one has solicited an emotional reaction.

Then it struck me that I know what’s missing. It’s the anger. The seething anger at Boris Johnson and the fucked up path that the U.K. has been on for the last decade or so. Each page of the original run oozed with that, and it was almost cathartic reading those stories and seeing Constantine wring at least a modicum of justice out of that hopelessness.

Whilst clearly there are similarities in political climate both sides of the Atlantic, I don’t feel Spurrier or myself have that same visceral connection to what’s happening Stateside.

Don’t let that put you off though. This is still a great book from a fine creative team. But, lightning doesn’t strike in the same place twice, as they say.

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Dave, Ben

I think that’s fair up to a point – there was definitely a more personal sense of outrage and anger in those UK-set issues of the earlier run – but at the same time I still think this is a very well-written and well-drawn book, and the last couple of issues in particular still hit pretty hard.

I guess part of it may be coming from us as readers, too – I don’t relate to commentary on US society and politics in the same way as I do the UK-oriented stuff, and in the back of my mind there’s always the sense that Spurrier is looking at the US from an outsider’s, rather than insider’s, perspective.

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Uncle Retrospective, Ben, Vikram

Something is Killing the Children #36 is something of a departure from the norm for this book. It’s a done in one issue monster hunt, rather than a big 15 issue super arc. It flashes back to a younger Erica still working for the House. There’s an interesting twist to this story that will either warm your cockles or leave you cold.

It’s the first of 4 or 5 single issue flashbacks before the next arc kicks off. If you’re interested in checking the book out, without worrying about the complex mythology that has built up around it over the last 5 years, these one shots seem like the perfect opportunity to do so.

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Uncle Retrospective, Ben

White Boat #1 was excellent. The best debut issue I’ve read in a while. Genuinely unpredictable and creepy, with some fantastic page-turn moments where writing and art are working perfectly together to tell the story.

It’s also a substantial feeling book for just a single issue – even given the larger DSTLRY size, it feels like they pack in quite a lot here.

Looking forward to #2.

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Vikram, Ben

Huh. I’m behind the curve again, hadn’t even heard about DSTLRY yet. Seems like a good project.

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Ben, Dave

Christian wrote:

Huh. I’m behind the curve again, hadn’t even heard about DSTLRY yet. Seems like a good project.

Yeah, they’ve put out several books so far and the quality has generally been pretty high.

Somna is probably my favourite so far – that one has a collection out very soon, I think.

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Ben, Christian

Christian wrote:

Huh. I’m behind the curve again, hadn’t even heard about DSTLRY yet. Seems like a good project.

They’re also publishing Jamie McKelvie’s One For Sorrow.

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Uncle Retrospective, Christian

DSTLRY had some interesting looking books but at $8.99 per 48 (?) page issue, that was simply too much for me.

The Bat-Man: First Knight #3 was a nice wrap-up to what turned out to be a really solid series in the end. Decent art, a nice pulp-y story and I loved the period setting. I’d read more of this from this creative team.

Todd wrote:

DSTLRY had some interesting looking books but at $8.99 per 48 (?) page issue, that was simply too much for me.

Still, that’s better value per page than Big Two 20-page books that are typically $4 or $5 as standard. And the DSTLRY books are much nicer too – bigger pages, cardstock covers with spines, no ads etc.

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Todd, njerry, Sean Robinson

I read all the new Ghost Machine #1s over the weekend. A really nice new line of books. All interesting and engaging stories, and the quality of art is incredibly high – Hitch on Redcoat looks looser and more comfortable than he has in years, Frank on Geiger is as great as ever and Fabok on Rook Exodus is really stunning. Plus there’s a real quality feel to the books in terms of production values. I’ve already ordered the #2s of all three ongoings.

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Todd, Sean Robinson, njerry, Ben

As Krakoa was wrapping up this week, Gerry Duggan and Garry Brown (The Massive) were launching their new creator owned title – Falling in Love on the Path to Hell #1. Who can resist that cover, eh? It’s one of the best I’ve ever seen, I think. Cinematic, evocative, and immediately compelling. The debut issue starts with the death of the main protagonists, before launching into the mysterious events that will form the crux of the series. It’s a fairly quick read, despite being extra long, and I think barely scratches the surface of what the book is about, but I’m intrigued enough to continue reading. It feels a lot like the start of an old style Vertigo book.

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Ben, Dave, Todd, njerry

Once Upon a Time At The End of the World #15 wraps up Jason Aaron’s post-apocalyptic love story from Boom. It’s a confusing ending, leaving many things deliberately vague and inconclusive, but the MacGuffin was never the point of the series. The relationship between the protagonists is what this series was about and the last few issues hit you right in the feels. Hard.

Love is messy from beginning to end, and I think this story will resonate with anyone who is or has been in a long term relationship. At times joyous and at others uncomfortable. It’s a very real depiction of one couple’s journey from star struck adolescence to bitter old age.

It’s a thought provoking tale with lovely art from Tefenkgi, Del Luca, and Nick Dragotta who brings it all home in the final arc.

I enjoyed this.

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Ben, Dave

Vikram wrote:

As Krakoa was wrapping up this week, Gerry Duggan and Garry Brown (The Massive) were launching their new creator owned title – Falling in Love on the Path to Hell #1. Who can resist that cover, eh? It’s one of the best I’ve ever seen, I think. Cinematic, evocative, and immediately compelling. The debut issue starts with the death of the main protagonists, before launching into the mysterious events that will form the crux of the series. It’s a fairly quick read, despite being extra long, and I think barely scratches the surface of what the book is about, but I’m intrigued enough to continue reading. It feels a lot like the start of an old style Vertigo book.

Until the last day or so, I had no idea this existed and I’m now seeing all this positive buzz for it.

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Sean Robinson, Vikram, Uncle Retrospective

Yeah, same.
I see Falling in Love on the Path to Hell has a TP of issues 1-4 set for Jan. 21st
2005.
I’ll wait for a Hardcover. (Not being negative, just honest. They should be happy that I guarantee a pre-order)

Same for Once Upon a Time At The End of the World. The 3rd TP comes in August, but 15 issues will make a decent HC.

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Ben

Boom have mostly taught me to wait for the OHC but I did pick up Damn Them All on paperback.

The way the prices are going, it’s starting to tip the balance more back to paperbacks.

Edit – just found this:

https://blackwells.co.uk/bookshop/product/We-Called-Them-Giants-by-Kieron-Gillen-author-Stephanie-Hans-illustrator/9781534387072

Gillen-Hans going the GN route!

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Dan

Vikram wrote:

As Krakoa was wrapping up this week, Gerry Duggan and Garry Brown (The Massive) were launching their new creator owned title – Falling in Love on the Path to Hell #1. Who can resist that cover, eh? It’s one of the best I’ve ever seen, I think. Cinematic, evocative, and immediately compelling. The debut issue starts with the death of the main protagonists, before launching into the mysterious events that will form the crux of the series. It’s a fairly quick read, despite being extra long, and I think barely scratches the surface of what the book is about, but I’m intrigued enough to continue reading. It feels a lot like the start of an old style Vertigo book.

I picked this up based on this recommendation and enjoyed it. The art is very dynamic and there’s a fair amount of action for what is mostly an issue of setup. By the end it feels like the story’s only just started, but in a way that intrigues you and makes you want to learn more. Thanks for the heads up.

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Uncle Retrospective, Ben, Vikram, njerry

In advance of Absolute Power kicking off in anger this week, I thought I’d read the last Zdarsky/ Jimenez arc of Batman “Dark Prisons” (#145 – 148). This effectively ties up the creative team’s long running Failsafe/ Zur En Arrh arc before it segues into the upcoming event crossover. It’s effectively the third act in the story after “Failsafe” and “Mind Bomb” (it does include a few references to the other non-Jimenez arcs too, but I think you can safely skip those without missing out on too much). It’s a fun and exciting conclusion, with some nice character bits for Bat-family fans. I enjoyed it but I’m ready for something else now. A new creative team and/or a change in direction once Absolute Power is over.

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Dave, Ben

Wonder Woman #8-10 “Sacrifice”, by King, Sampere and Morey, is the story of how the Sovereign tries and ultimately fails to break his captive. It’s an uncomfortable read. If you’ve seen TNG’s “Chain of Command” or B5’s “Intersections in Real Time” you know how this is going to go, but there’s something of a twist at the end that was unexpected. Loving this book. I hope that the Absolute Power crossover coming up in the next few issues doesn’t derail it too much.

Speaking of which, Absolute Power #1 was a fine debut issue from Waid and Mora. It’s fast paced and exciting, although very much just set up. Waller finally makes her big move and catches everyone with their proverbial pants down. Things look really bad for our heroes by the end of the issue, with a betrayal that does appear a little out of character. But, I trust Waid to deliver on this. I’ve been reading his work for almost 30 years now. He believes. And, if there’s a recurring motif to his work, it’s that it is always darkest before the dawn. Look forward to seeing how this plays out.

I’m not planning on buying any of the tie-in issues (I’ll just catch them on DCU Infinite instead), but I did get the Absolute Power: Ground Zero one shot by Waid, Zdarsky, Williamson and Maines. I wouldn’t say that it’s an essential read, but does bridge the gap between recent DC storylines and the first issue – it tells you how Failsafe is reactivated from the end of “Dark Prisons”, for example. Nice if you’re  a continuity nerd worried about connecting the dots.

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Ben, Dave

Despite a similar premise, Marvel’s Blood Hunt is no DC vs Vampires. Maybe because it’s a sprawling event, set in continuity, and I’m only reading a handful of titles, but it just seems boring in comparison. Almost by the numbers. Don’t get me wrong. It’s not all bad. The artwork is phenomenal (Larraz and Gracia), and there are some exciting set pieces, but the stakes (excuse the pun) don’t seem as real or as scary.

I have been checking out the Avengers and Dr Strange tie ins, also written by Jed MacKay, and those have been fun. Tangential stories, almost entirely self contained. The Avengers subs team in particular is a brilliant line up that I wish could be around for a longer time than just these three issues. And, I’ve missed seeing Pascual Ferry’s artwork regularly.

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Dave

Garth Ennis’ arc on James Bond 007 #1-6, “Your Cold, Cold Heart”, was pretty decent Bond story. A Cold War tinged action adventure with an interesting MacGuffin of weaponised water, the only thing it really lacked was a decent villain.

I half expected Garth to play it for laughs, a la Jimmy’s Bastards, but he didn’t really. What humour there is is subtle and understated. Nor is it as dark as his Punisher Max work, although there are moments where his Bond is a cold bastard.

In interviews before the series came out, Garth mentioned that he really had no affection for the character until he read Warren Ellis’ run, and from there went back to the source material. This mini reads very much in that vein. I like it. I hope there’s at least a sequel to look forward to next year.

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Ben, Dave

Tynion and Blanco’s second arc on WorldTr33 (#6-11) is a decent continuation of the first, albeit focused on a bunch of new characters for the most part. There’s a lot of world building going on, with flashbacks adding a lot of back story to present day events in the book. At the end of the run we are left with multiple factions in play, leaving you to guess where the story will go next. More than any other of Tynion’s books though this feels like it has a finite shelf life. I hope he doesn’t stretch it out beyond that unnecessarily.

I know there’s a direct sequel to The Nice House on the Lake coming out soon, but tonally WorldTr33 feels a lot like that book too. A wide variety of diverse characters dealing with apocalyptic events. This is good stuff.

Vikram wrote:

Garth Ennis’ arc on James Bond 007 #1-6, “Your Cold, Cold Heart”, was pretty decent Bond story. A Cold War tinged action adventure with an interesting MacGuffin of weaponised water, the only thing it really lacked was a decent villain.

I half expected Garth to play it for laughs, a la Jimmy’s Bastards, but he didn’t really. What humour there is is subtle and understated. Nor is it as dark as his Punisher Max work, although there are moments where his Bond is a cold bastard.

In interviews before the series came out, Garth mentioned that he really had no affection for the character until he read Warren Ellis’ run, and from there went back to the source material. This mini reads very much in that vein. I like it. I hope there’s at least a sequel to look forward to next year.

Yeah, I enjoyed this one too. A solid Bond story in the traditional mould but very much in the modern world.

Had entirely forgot Ennis was doing a Bond story.

I don’t think I’ve ever read any TMNT comics beforehand, other than their crossovers with Batman that Tynion wrote a few years ago, so I’m coming into the new Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles #1 pretty cold. I am familiar with the Turtles from the various movies and cartoons, although I was a just a smidge too old for the cartoons to hook me back in the day. There’s some nostalgia here, certainly, but not as much as I have for Transformers, for example.

Jason Aaron writes and Joelle Jones is on art for #1. It’s not a perfect first issue, but it’s suitably tense, action packed and intriguing enough to make me want to read more. The eponymous turtles are separated after previous events, scattered to the four winds, with this first issue focused on Raphael who is stuck in a high security prison for reasons thus far unknown (the prelude issue that came out a month or so ago shows, with art by Chris Burnham, showed where Donatello is). There’s a cliched bit of storytelling towards the end that feels jarring, and some slightly confusing storytelling doesn’t help, but overall this is a fine first issue from a great creative team. I’ll be picking this up regularly.

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Dave

The Big Burn #1

I had zero expectations for this and knew nothing about it other than the creators, but I’ve been trying every DSTLRY book as I like the format. And I really enjoyed this one.

It’s a fun, slick, pacy heist story that takes a left turn just as you’re getting used to it and adds a more supernatural element. But the combination works really well for the story.

There’s lots of plot even in this first issue, plenty of good characterisation and likeable leads, and it leaves you with the setup all having been completed and you eagerly anticipating how it’s all going to play out. The art is nice with super-clear storytelling, and the writing has a good sense of fun to it and a refreshing lack of waffle.

A really good start.

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Ben, njerry

Vikram wrote:

I don’t think I’ve ever read any TMNT comics beforehand, other than their crossovers with Batman that Tynion wrote a few years ago, so I’m coming into the new Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles #1 pretty cold. I am familiar with the Turtles from the various movies and cartoons, although I was a just a smidge too old for the cartoons to hook me back in the day. There’s some nostalgia here, certainly, but not as much as I have for Transformers, for example.

Jason Aaron writes and Joelle Jones is on art for #1. It’s not a perfect first issue, but it’s suitably tense, action packed and intriguing enough to make me want to read more. The eponymous turtles are separated after previous events, scattered to the four winds, with this first issue focused on Raphael who is stuck in a high security prison for reasons thus far unknown (the prelude issue that came out a month or so ago shows, with art by Chris Burnham, showed where Donatello is). There’s a cliched bit of storytelling towards the end that feels jarring, and some slightly confusing storytelling doesn’t help, but overall this is a fine first issue from a great creative team. I’ll be picking this up regularly.

I tried this one too, and thought it was good but not great. Jones’ art wasn’t quite as spectacular as I hoped, but the writing was solid and I’m looking forward to seeing what other artists bring to the book over the next few issues.

Like you, I also picked up the earlier Alpha issue with the Burnham short story and I think I preferred that, so I’m glad he’ll be back.

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Vikram

A few new #1s I read recently:

Wolverine: Revenge #1: This was good fun. It seems to be quite deliberately out-of-continuity to let Hickman and Capullo tell a big, epic-scale story featuring loads of big characters without having to worry about how it all fits into the wider MU. Capullo is clearly enjoying drawing all these Marvel legends and there are some good action moments (and the cynic in me thinks there are quite a few pages designed to sell to the original art market). Despite my copy being a Red Band version with supposedly more blood and guts I still found it to be quite a fun, light read reminiscent of an earlier era of comics.

Jenny Sparks #1: This was unfortunately not as fun. Tom King doesn’t have a very solid handle on Jenny Sparks and seems to think it’s enough just to have her shit-talk people, swear (in that Tom King @#&*£# style I’ve come to hate) and smoke. There’s none of the competence, leadership or sense of history that made her so cool in The Authority and so it feels like it’s all rough edges on the outside of something that’s hollow on the inside. Plus this issue wastes lots of time getting to know secondary players in a way that could have been done more efficiently. It’s mostly a big yawn.

Babs #1: Now this is how you do a fun rough-edged female lead (Tom King take note). Ennis and Burrows are by now a well established team, and this is a fun romp that reminded me a little of Alan Moore’s Smax spinoff of Top Ten in the way it gently takes the piss out of fantasy genre conventions and has some fun with some modern parallels. Like Ennis’ Marjorie Finnegan book it feels like it’s just setting out to entertain first and foremost, and on that level it succeeds very well.

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njerry, Ben

I completed Six Fingers and The One Hand last night and, it didn’t quite work. I could see what they wanted to do, and the point they wanted to make but I am a meme that is shrugging. It started well, got the right sort of mood and then it was all daddy issues and shouting. Too much Lost, not enough Blade Runner

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njerry, Dave

I also read the Absolute Power Ground Zero one-shot and Absolute Power #1-2 today.

It’s a pretty decent setup for one of these big events, the main beats of the story reminded me very much of Civil War and similar stories. It’s not too deep but it’s not trying to be – it’s a popcorn movie summer crossover and on those terms is pretty good. And Mora’s art definitely helps as the book looks great.

I don’t think I’ll be bothered about reading any of the tie-ins but I’ll follow the rest of the main mini for sure.

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Todd, Ben

So Tom Talyor’s run on Nightwing is finished. I’m not sure I’ve ever had as much fun with a superhero book. Just straight up great storytelling, great art and more heart (no pun intended) than pretty much any other comic I’ve read in a very long time.
Thanks to whoever it was recommended in this thread.

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Todd, Vikram

I’m guessing that was probably me.

The book felt like it lost its way after #100, but I really enjoyed “Fallen Grayson” too – it was a nice return to form for the series and a fun conclusion to the Taylor/ Redondo run on the book.

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Uncle Retrospective

Vikram wrote:

The book felt like it lost its way after #100,

You’re right about that, it just felt a bit aimless until it started heading for the end straight. Thanks for the recommendation, it’s not the kind of book I usually read and this was a joy to read.

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Vikram

[Andrew]

I finally had a chance to catch up on most of the stack of new releases I’d accumulated over the past few months.

The last two issues of Batman: Dark Age – I’d been reading these as they came out and not rereading despite the big gaps but I think I still managed to keep up – it’s a really interesting book that has a lot of clever things to say about family, loss, war, crime, ageing and psychology. Allred’s art is as solid as ever but the writing is the star – I found this really affecting and look forward to rereading the whole thing at some point.

Wolverine Revenge 1-3 – weird book. I’ve been a Capullo fan since X-Force (his issue 19 might be the first X-book I ever read) and since I didn’t really care for Spawn or the long Batman run I was really looking forward to his return to colourful superhero art. The art is pretty good but maybe not as stellar as expected considering how long he’s been working on it and how much he was hyping it up. The story is… weird. Out of continuity, sure – but it seems very light and almost phoned in for a usually complicated and meticulous guy like Hickman.

Deadpool Wolverine WWIII 1-2. Somehow I missed issue 3 so I’ll have to track it down. Much more interesting than Revenge above, Adam Kubert is reliably good and IMO under-appreciated as an artist. The designs, acting, and layouts always have a lot of thought put into them but he’s so regular and prolific I think he gets taken for granted. It probably doesn’t help that he moves around from title to title a lot.

Batman Long Halloween: Last Halloween. Issue 2 with art from Klaus Janson. Initially I was disappointed to find that Eduardo Risso was only drawing the first issue rather than the whole series but the line up of artists is impressive enough to keep me going. Jeph Loeb’s Batman stories are popcorn fun but of the best kind. Simple, with decent character beats, and almost always elevated by the artists he chooses to work with, I will probably aim to do a big Long Halloween/Dark Victory/Last Halloween reread when it’s all done with.

Spider-man Reign 2 – I’m one of the rare supporters of the original book which I thought was bold and daring, with the caveat that it leaned heavily on Miller’s DKR. I didn’t expect to see a sequel but this has been a real treat so far with Kaare Andrews really putting in the effort. The book opens in an art style similar to the first series (stacked wide panels, Elektra Lives Again-era Miller linework), but at the end of the first issue old Peter is sent back in time to McFarlane-era continuity and so the book is drawn in a McFarlane-esque style – the rendering, posing, and page layouts. It’s appealed to me massively and such a departure from what has become somewhat of a house-style at Marvel. I’ll always be a 90s kid when it comes to comic art!

• This reply was modified 1 week, 3 days ago by Andrew.

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Uncle Retrospective, Dave, Sean Robinson, lorcan_nagle