#and also the writing as a whole will suffer. Chip Zdarsky is a pretty good Tim writer. I'd maybe read a Tim solo written by him.

[cluescorner]

I cannot imagine being a Damian stan right now. You've got both Zdarsky's bullshit (where he clearly doesn't give a shit about your boy) and The Boy Wonder (where Juni Ba clearly gives so many shits about your boy) coming out on the same day. The whiplash must be insane. I hope y'all get some nice warm soup for your efforts jfc

[eddycurrents]

For the week of 6 November 2017

Quick Bits:

The Archies #2 kicks off the band’s inaugural road trip and, naturally for Archie, everything goes to hell pretty quick. There are some pretty funny moments throughout the issue as the band deals with their predicament.

| Published by Archie Comics

Birthright #28 is going to play with your expectations. Nothing is quite as it seems and Joshua Williamson is potentially turning things on their ear again with our understanding of the world and its adversaries. Andrei Bressan and Adriano Lucas again make it look gorgeous.

| Published by Image / Skybound

Centipede #4 somehow gets weirder. Kafka dreams and 8-bit graphics.

| Published by Dynamite

Coyotes #1 is one of the most beautiful, unique, and haunting debuts from Image that I’ve seen and it’s not like there’s a dearth of beautiful and unique Image comics lately. Sean Lewis and Caitlin Yarsky have managed to create something here that elevates the horror genre with a mix of a coming of age story and a kind of metaphor for the dogs of society. 

The art from Caitlin Yarsky is also absolutely gorgeous. Her art reminds me a bit of Emma Rios mixed with Jeremy Haun and Declan Shalvey and it has this interesting quality about it that just seems to blend the ephemeral and realistic. I’m particularly impressed by the way that the lettering is incorporated to tell us more about the characters as well. A lot of thought looks like it’s gone into the presentation of this story and it pays off in spades.

| Published by Image

Eugenic #2 jumps ahead to a society now ruled and manipulated by the Numans, subjugating the remaining humans to walled off ghettos and putting a lie to the concept that this new “perfect” race would be any better than its predecessor. 

I also appreciate the moment that James Tynion IV and Eryk Donovan take to comment about representation in media. It’s highly important and highly relevant and it’s nice to see that reflected outright in science fiction.

| Published by BOOM! Studios

Grass Kings #9 shifts point of view again this issue, this time to Ashur and Pinball as they pick up some of the threads in regards to the investigation of Jenny Handel’s death. I really like how Matt Kindt has been weaving this story together, a patchwork of overlapping narratives building one upon the next.

| Published by BOOM! Studios

Hack/Slash vs. Vampirella #2 has some great art from Rapha Lobosco again. I really like his style, at times I swear I’m looking at pages by Eduardo Risso, and that kind of dark, highly shadowed work fits perfectly with horror. This issue also seems to amp up the comedy aspect, bringing more of the feel of Hack/Slash proper to the crossover.

| Published by Dynamite

Harbinger Renegade #0 is kind of nice in the wake of “Massacre” to see HARD Corps get spanked so thoroughly. It’s also terrifying as Rafer Roberts and Juan José Ryp unleash the next nightmare upon the Valiant universe in this bridge to Harbinger Wars 2.

| Published by Valiant

The Harcourt Legacy #1 is something from a publisher I normally don’t pay much attention to, but the write-up about it sounded interesting. It’s a kind of family drama about a dying relative leaving his inheritance, the family fighting over the will, etc., but it’s also about magic and the interpretation of magic through music. Brendan Cahill gives it an interesting spin, with believable characters, and I’m looking to see what’s next. The art from Jason Federhenn is also very good, he’s got an angular style similar to Giuseppe Camuncoli.

| Published by Action Lab / Danger Zone

Harrow County #27 gives us Bernice kicking all kinds of ass, it’s very satisfying. Her confrontation with Kammi is just a wonderful thing to see, showing how far that she’s come and what she can really do. It’s just a shame what happens next. Emmy’s vengeance against Kammi is going to be epic.

| Published by Dark Horse

Injection #15 is very pretty. Declan Shalvey and Jordie Bellaire seem to up their game again this issue and this is just lovely.

| Published by Image

Kid Lobotomy #2 does the nigh impossible and is somehow even better than that first issue. Gloriously insane doesn’t do justice to what Peter Milligan and Tess Fowler are creating here. Milligan is presenting a story of familial strife, blending literary allusions to Shakespeare and Kafka throughout, across a backdrop of madness that transcends even his work on Shade: The Changing Man. The artwork from Fowler also is wonderful. The layouts and character designs are enthralling, making the book as visually interesting, if not more so, than even the story. This is great stuff.

| Published by IDW / Black Crown

Kong on the Planet of the Apes #1 is the expression of a crossover of properties so fitting that you’re left wondering why no one thought of it before and secured the license and publishing rights. (It’s, of course, understandable why Universal and Fox didn’t do it themselves). This just works so well that Ryan Ferrier’s story is seamless, playing upon the scientific and religious implications of giant apes present in the Planet of the Apes world. It’s also nice to see Carlos Magno back working on both properties.

| Published by BOOM! Studios

Pestilence #5 continues hitting hard with its medieval zombies. It’s also interesting to see the religious reaction to the undead as the Pope gives a deathbed confession, pushing our knights to search a new destination.

| Published by AfterShock

Port of Earth #1 is the new series from Eclipse’s Zack Kaplan with Andrea Mutti handling the art chores. It’s another interesting take of science fiction, turning a woefully technologically disadvantaged Earth into a way station for space vessels and suffering the consequences of murderous aliens. Mutti’s art really gets to shine, even with the kind of faded blue wash Vladimir Popov’s colours provide, giving us some great designs for aliens and their technology.

| Published by Image / Top Cow

Redlands #4 veers left into an unexpected ghost story this issue, as Bridget, recovering from her injuries last issue, begins investigating a cold case from 1985. I really like how Jordie Bellaire is telling these stories and developing the characters in a very organic, flowing fashion. Although clearly thought out and planned, everything in the story just seems to flow together. Equally impressive is Vanessa Del Rey’s art. This issue brings back rounded corners, but this time only for the whole page. It’s a subtle technique, but it adds a different element to planned storytelling within a frame, rather than just discrete panels. It’s a nice touch.

| Published by Image

Slots #2 is good, damn good. Dan Panosian delves into the seedy backstory of Stan’s history with Les, while fleshing out more about the various characters across Vegas. His art is also incredible.

| Published by Image / Skybound

Star Wars #38 reunites the original Marvel Darth Vader team in Kieron Gillen’s first issue on the main title. It’s kind of a follow-up from Rogue One, as well as a surprise appearance from a character from the previous Darth Vader run, but it reads well enough on its own, setting up the stakes of this new arc. It helps that the artwork from Salvador Larroca and Guru e-FX is absolutely stunning.

| Published by Marvel

The Unbeatable Squirrel Girl #26 bills itself as the “zine issue” and as such is essentially an anthology of oddities with some guest art by the unusual suspects. It’s pretty hilarious with contributors like Chip Zdarsky, Carla Speed McNeil, and a Galactus short with Jim Davis.

| Published by Marvel

Other Highlights: Astonisher #2, Daredevil #595, Despicable Deadpool #289, Falcon #2, First Strike: Transformers #1, Jessica Jones #14, Half-Past Danger II: Dead to Reichs #3, Marley’s Ghost, Master of Kung Fu #126, Moon Knight #188, The Normals #6, Rock Candy Mountain #5, Royal City #7, Royals #10, Runaways #3, Scales & Scoundrels #3, She-Hulk #159, Slam! - The Next Jam #3, Spider-Man vs. Deadpool #23, Spirits of Vengeance #2, There’s Nothing There #5, TMNT/Ghostbusters 2 #2, The Unbelievable Gwenpool #22, Uncanny Avengers #29, Venom #157, X-Men Gold #15

Recommended Collections: 4 Kids Walk into a Bank, Black Panther - Volume Four: Avengers of the New World - Part One, Edge of Venomverse, Rose - Volume One, Star Wars: The Force Awakens

d. emerson eddy does not like green eggs and ham. He does not like them on a boat. He does not like them with a stoat.

[eddycurrents]

For the week of 11 June 2018

Quick Bits:

30 Days of Night #6 concludes this retelling of the original 30 Days of Night story. The art from Piotr Kowalski and Brad Simpson has been great, but as the series has progressed, I’ve increasingly been wondering what’s the point? While there have been minor differences, this essentially amounts to the same story extended out further. Personally, the decompression doesn’t add a lot for me.

| Published by IDW

A Walk Through Hell #2 continues this weird and creepy horror story, with Garth Ennis, Goran Sudžuka, and Ive Svorcina giving us an ever present sense of dread with this story. It’s heavy. It’s dark. Ennis is dealing with some dark and depressing subject matter through politics, homophobia, and child sex trafficking and that’s just the backstory in the flashbacks. In the present, we get more terror and the appearance of one of Ennis’ favourite recurring story items. Also, the art is gorgeous.

| Published by AfterShock

Analog #3 takes a bit of a detour following up on Oona’s night out and the ramifications of it. I really like how Gerry Duggan and David O’Sullivan are teasing out this story, giving us glimpses into Jack’s character and supporting cast, making us really care about them and their predicaments, even while his job and being snatched by the government continue to simmer.

| Published by Image

Animosity: Evolution #6 begins the next stage in this story, as Adam continues to search down what exactly happened in the death of most of the lex animata. I love the mix of politics and thriller that Marguerite Bennett is throwing at us with this series.

| Published by AfterShock

Astonisher #8 kicks things into high gear as we approach the end of this arc. We get some impressive action sequences from Al Barrionuevo in the second half of this book, as Magnus begins to enact his plan to stop his brother’s nefarious plans and save his girlfriend from the clutches of Dr. Saperstein.

| Published by Lion Forge / Catalyst Prime

Babyteeth #11 nicely plays with conventions as Sadie trains to enter the hell dimension of the Red Realm to rescue Clark. In a typical action/horror story the hero trains and finds herself ridiculously good at everything, Donny Cates doesn’t play it like that. It’s kind of hilarious. Also, Gerry Brown shows off some impressive hellscapes as we get a little more information on the Red Realm.

| Published by AfterShock

The Ballad of Sang #4 takes an interesting turn as we focus on the Dandies capture of Sang and Lucy trying to talk some sense into the Black-Eyed Betties. This series has been over-the-top violence and fun, this issue is no different.

| Published by Oni Press

Betrothed #4 sees the crap hit the proverbial fan as the betrayal of Kieron and Tamara lies out in the open and everything goes to hell pretty fast. The action from Steve Uy is particularly nice.

| Published by AfterShock

Bloodshot Salvation #10 takes us almost in sync to when the series began, giving us a look at why Magic and Jessie were on the run, and what Ray was doing in 4002. It’s interesting how Jeff Lemire has been using time in this series.

| Published by Valiant

Bloodstrike #0 is an oddity, beginning the “Brutalists” arc that runs through this issue and then the two missing issue numbers from the original ‘90s series, #23 & #24. I’m not exactly the target market for this, as I have no real affinity towards Bloodstrike, but this is still interesting. Michael Fiffe is presenting a kind of origin story here, so you needn’t worry about having read any Bloodstrike before, but what makes it stand out is Fiffe’s approach to the artwork and storytelling. It looks and feels like an indie book out of the ‘80s, the offbeat and highly violent stuff that was out there and it has a nice appeal about it.

| Published by Image

By Night #1 is a fun debut issue, featuring all of the charm and humour that John Allison brings to Giant Days, plus some great art from Christine Larsen and Sarah Stern.

| Published by Boom Entertainment / BOOM! Box

Coda #2 is every bit as good as the first issue, possibly even better, as Hum finds himself the prisoner of an old wizard with dementia and his doting daughter. I loved Matías Bergara’s art in Cannibal, but the art here, with Michael Doig, is incredible. Bergara makes it look like he was born to draw this kind of weird fantasy.

| Published by BOOM! Studios

The Damned #10 begins “Daughter’s Danse”, with Cullen Bunn and Brian Hurtt kicking off Maura’s scheming. It adds another wrinkle to the already complex mess of the series’ crime drama.

| Published by Oni Press

The Dead Hand #3 keeps this thriller chugging along, with a new obstacle in an obstinate MI-6 agent trying to find his missing friend. The missing friend who, last issue, was murdered after stumbling upon the series’ mysterious test city in Russia. Some particularly nice action sequences from Stephen Mooney and Jordie Bellaire this issue, great layouts and use of colour washes.

| Published by Image

Deadpool: Assassin #1 reunites Cullen Bunn with another Deadpool mini-series, this time with some impressive art from Mark Bagley, John Dell, and Edgar Delgado in tow. Bunn writes some good Deadpool.

| Published by Marvel

Death of Love #5 ends this series in an unexpected way. Sure, some people are likely to be angry about it, but when you think about it, and read Justin Jordan’s missive in the backmatter, it makes sense. Dudebro Eros is also pretty funny. Good art from Donal DeLay and Omar Estévez.

| Published by Image

Dejah Thoris #5 is a bittersweet end to this first arc, with Dejah finding Ephysium and the source of the waters of Mars. Amy Chu and Pasquale Qualano are largely playing this as straight-forward adventures and it certainly works as that.

| Published by Dynamite

Domino #3 begins to give us some flashbacks to Neena’s childhood. I’m somewhat reticent when characters who bank on a mysterious past start to have their backstories filled in, but I trust what Gail Simone is doing here.

| Published by Marvel

Dry County #4 goes into the expected territory of an amateur detective’s professional (and personal) life suffering due to obsession with a case. Despite being expected, it’s still highly entertaining.

| Published by Image

Hunt for Wolverine: Adamantium Agenda #2 continues this bunch of New Avengers members search for Wolverine. It’s still one of the groups investigating that makes the most amount of sense, and the picture of what’s going on here comes even more into focus with a couple of other character reveals. Good stuff from Tom Taylor, RB Silva, Adriano di Benedetto, and Guru-eFX.

| Published by Marvel

Kick-Ass #5 shows again how easy it is to get in over your head when doing the wrong thing and addicted to the cheap, “easy” fix. Then everything goes to hell. Definitely like what Mark Millar, John Romita, Jr., and Peter Steigerwald have been doing with this story.

| Published by Image

The Magic Order #1 is an interesting start to this first series borne of Millarworld’s sale to Netflix. The art from Olivier Coipel and Dave Stewart is suitably gorgeous, with some really nice designs for the villain and one of the tricks to take the family off the board.

| Published by Image

Marvel Two-in-One Annual #1 is possibly one of the best things that Chip Zdarsky has written. This is an excellent character study in Doom, wrapped in revelations of bits of Victor’s past, the end to Secret Wars, and more. All with gorgeous art from Declan Shalvey and Jordie Bellaire.

| Published by Marvel

Nancy Drew #1 is a great first issue, presenting the kind of fun and exciting, beautifully illustrated mystery adventure that I’m used to seeing mostly from Boom these days. Kelly Thompson, Jenn St.-Onge, and Triona Farrell pack a lot into the initial salvo, giving us a conclusion to a goat-napping adventure, before propelling us into a personal crisis for Nancy Drew, while delivering a fairly large supporting cast. It’s fun and the art is wonderful.

| Published by Dynamite

New Mutants: Dead Souls #4 has the X-Men of all sorts coming together for Rictor’s funeral. Matthew Rosenberg and Adam Gorham put Magik through the wringer as she tries to deal with the loss and the burdens of leadership. Then the other shoe drops.

| Published by Marvel

Oblivion Song #4 has a lot of quiet moments, allowing for Lorenzo de Felici and Annalisa Leoni to really show off their chops.

| Published by Image / Skybound

Old Man Logan #41 begins another two-parter. I like how Ed Brisson is structuring these arcs, contributing pieces to the larger whole of the elder Logan’s story of his diminished healing factor, while telling discrete, entertaining stories in their own right. Also, some really nice art here from Francesco Manna and Carlos Lopez.

| Published by Marvel

Port of Earth #6 foreshadows something horrible happening at the port, as the introductory interview starts diving further into potential problems with one of the agents, looking for what looks like a target for blame. I like how Zack Kaplan is setting this up, even if the story does move relatively slowly in execution.

| Published by Image / Top Cow

Proxima Centauri #1 is some very weird sci-fi. It’s being done by Farel Dalrymple, so it should come as no surprise that there are odd visuals, strange characters, and bizarre occurrences, just as it’s rather entertaining and beautiful to look at.

| Published by Image

The Punisher #226 pivots Frank’s direction a bit to attacking Hydra. Matthew Rosenberg is layering a lot of humour into the script and it’s working very well.

| Published by Marvel

Quicksilver: No Surrender #2 continues what is an excellent character study of Quicksilver. I would argue that Pietro’s characterization of himself is a little too favourable, but don’t we always cast ourselves in a better light than we often are? Great work from Saladin Ahmed, Eric Nguyen, Rico Renzi, and Chris Brunner.

| Published by Marvel

Stellar #1 sees the return of another creation from Robert Kirkman and Marc Silvestri’s turn at Top Cow’s Pilot Season back in 2009/2010 after Demonic in 2016. You don’t need to have read the original one-shot to follow this. Joe Keatinge and Bret Blevins handle the creative and this is, well...stellar. Blevins’ artwork is amazing, with some truly breathtaking sci-fi imagery. This is a damn fine looking comic. The story of a reticent soldier trying to make amends for her horrible past is a common one, but it’s entertaining. Especially when you add the mix of possible unreliable memory and fuzzy reality. This looks like another winner for Skybound.

| Published by Image / Skybound

Thor #1 begins the third act in Jason Aaron’s epic run, turning towards the War of the Realms and the previously Unworthy Thor reclaiming his name and mantle. The various Thor series have been blessed with god-tier artists from Esad Ribić through Russell Dauterman, and this book continues that traditional with Mike del Mundo handling the main story and Christian Ward the back-up. Even if the story wasn’t exciting, with an added amount of humour that’s been missing for a bit as the last volume took a serious turn, the art alone would be worth the price of admission.

| Published by Marvel

Tomb Raider: Inferno #1 follows on from the story in the Survivor’s Crusade mini, with Lara travelling to Antarctica to discover the secret that Trinity is willing to kill to protect there. It’s nice to see Phillip Sevy doing more Tomb Raider artwork. If you like the games since the 2013 reboot, I largely consider these comics a must. 

| Published by Dark Horse

Transformers: Lost Light #18 continues this arc that, like its counterpart in Optimus Prime, is bringing all the chickens home to roost.

| Published by IDW

Venom #2 is just as excellent as the first issue, with Donny Cates, Ryan Stegman, JP Mayer, and Frank Martin building upon Eddie Brock’s legacy and adding new lore to the history of the symbiotes. Stegman is probably doing the best art of his career here, this book looks incredible.

| Published by Marvel

The Weatherman #1 is an interesting debut, bringing to mind to me some of the weird, offbeat, and humorous sci-fi like The Fifth Element. Jody LeHeup and Nathan Fox start this series off straight enough, with a future Mars mourning the loss of Earth, seemingly transfixed only by the “extreme” antics of the titular weatherman. It’s a weird premise, sure, but it’s entertaining, and gets even more so when the other shoe drops. Some really great art from Fox and Dave Stewart.

| Published by Image

Witchblade #6 sees Alex assemble her Scooby Gang to help investigate the kidnapping of her guardian demon, Asher. Caitlin Kittredge is doing a great job of building up the supporting cast, as well as giving us glimpses into Alex’s past. This continues to be one of Top Cow’s best looking books, with phenomenal art from Roberta Ingranata and Bryan Valenza.

| Published by Image / Top Cow

Xena: Warrior Princess #5 brings the first arc of this series to a conclusion. The art from Vicente Cifuentes and Triona Farrell has been a real high point for the book and this issue is no different.

| Published by Dynamite

X-Men Blue #29 jumps ahead a bit, taking us past the original five’s return to Earth and the events of Venomized, to spotlight a transformed Jimmy Hudson on the run from the team. It’s a good follow-up to the Venom event so far with some very nice art from Nathan Stockman and Matt Milla.

| Published by Marvel

Other Highlights: Accell #11, Betty & Veronica: Vixens #7, Copperhead #19, DuckTales #9, Exiles #4, The Fix #12, Invader Zim #31, Kaijumax: Season 4 #1, Mage: The Hero Denied #9, Marvel Rising: Alpha #1, Mech Cadet Yu #9, Monstress #17, Peter Parker: The Spectacular Spider-Man #305, Resident Alien: An Alien in New York #3, Rose #12, SHIELD #6, Spider-Man vs. Deadpool #34, Star Wars: Darth Vader #17, Star Wars: Thrawn #5, The Unbeatable Squirrel Girl #33, World of Tanks: Citadel #2

Recommended Collections: Babyteeth - Volume 2, The Beauty - Volume 4, Dakota North: Design for Dying, Defenders - Volume 2: Kingpins of New York, Invincible Iron Man - Volume 2: Choices, Rumble - Volume 4: Soul Without Pity, Slots - Volume 1

d. emerson eddy thinks it’s probably a bad idea to eat deep fried mozzarella sticks and marinara sauce at one in the morning, but is doing it anyway. Clearly, he’s a demented rebel just asking for a heart attack.