This was an interesting week of comics full of some surprises and some disappointments. Books like Amazing Spider-Man #13 and Fantastic Four #6 I had high hopes for but ended up just being okay. Other books like Detective Comics #996, Middlewest #3, Babyteeth #14, and James Bond: Origin #5 I really enjoyed but didn’t not quite enough to make the list. Again these picks are based strictly on my personal opinion so feel free to disagree in the comments below.Â
Writer: Brenden Fletcher, Karl Kerschl
Artist: Karl Kerschl
Publisher: Image Comics
Description: Olwyn has returned from the land of the dead, but did she return alone? The journey to Isola continues.
Why It Made the List: Isola #6 marks the return of this series and based on this issue the wait appears to be worth. Since its first issued I have been amazed by Isola“s artwork. Kark Kerschl and Msassyk have mastered how to utilize the digital medium to craft pages that look like the finest animation stills. It was an effective touch to make the opening of the second arc parallel the opening of the series. Showing we are still on a similar journey but these characters are bringing much more baggage with them. This week Isola did something unexpected but also including a prologue to provide some additional backstory. Only the second arc in and it feels like Isola is a series that is still very much in the early stages.
Writer: Cullen Bunn
Artist: Juan Doe
Publisher: Aftershock
Description: The Ark has landed. Shrae struggles to maintain order among the beasts. Now that they do not rely on the sorcerer for survival, many of the monsters have designs on killing Shrae and his family. A shocking dis-covery may bond the monsters together once more. Somehow, they are not the first creatures to set foot on the island.
Why It Made the List: Cullen Bunn has a twisted creative mind and we comic fans are the benefactor of it because of series like Dark Ark. With the Ark reaching land it seemed like the inevitable end was rather close. That end may still soon be coming but this issue brought with it a rather unexpected twist. One that made provided a brand new and powerful threat to everyone“s wellbeing. Â What happens when pure evil has something to fear? It appears we will be finding out.
Writer: Chip Zdarsky
Artist: Carlos Magno, Butch Guice
Publisher: Marvel Comics
Description: THE GREATEST GENERATION OF MARVEL HEROES IS BACK ”“TO STOP ONE OF THEIR OWN! In commemoration of Marvel“s 80th anniversary and springing from events in the pages of AVENGERS and THE BEST DEFENSE, the Marvel Universe“s first super-team is back! CAPTAIN AMERICA. THE HUMAN TORCH. THE WINTER SOLDIER. NAMOR. They fought in WORLD WAR II together as THE INVADERS. But now NAMOR is the enemy, a global threat more powerful than ever. His deadly plans are as deep and far-reaching as the ocean and REVELATIONS about his past could THREATEN the MARVEL UNIVERSE! It“s up to his old teammates to stop him, but what chance do they have against the man who knows their every move? ”“War Ghost”“ begins here!
Why It Made the List: With this year being Marvel“s 80th anniversary they are bringing back some of their most classic series. Marvel“s connection to World War II has always been one of the biggest factors in connecting it to actual reality. Whether it is Magneto being a survivor of the Holocaust or Captain America being a literal piece of America propaganda. With Invaders #1 Chip Zdarsky and team are utilizing that past to share the future. I could not help but think back to the way Ed Brubaker helped shape his Captain America run over a decade ago. How it would bounce throughout time with ease, and how the unique history of these characters was used to benefit their current characterization. One of the best first issues Marvel has put out in some time.
Writer: Scott Snyder
Artist: Jock
Publisher: Marvel Comics
Description: After the shocking ending of issue #1, a ticking clock sets Batman on a trail throughout the different realities of the Multiverse. He starts to see all the iterations of his life, and what could have been”¦but more importantly, Bruce Wayne begins to deduce that his current life is somehow wrong, and that all the mistakes he“s made are somehow connected. Meanwhile, the Batman Who Laughs raises the curtain on his second act, pulling out the big guns to break into Arkham Asylum”¦enter one of the most punishing Batmen of the Dark Multiverse: the Grim Knight!
Why It Made the List: When Scott Snyder and Jock get together good things happen. WIth the second issue of Batman Who Laughs they have quickly raised the stakes. You have Alfred trying to save the life of Batman“s greatest foe while Batman attempts to turn into the one thing that scares him the most. So far this has been a series about pushing Batman to the edges of everything he stands for. To give him a threat that seems unbeatable even for him. Jock“s art brings a special creepy feel makes the Batman Who Laugh into the most threatening horror villain one could imagine.
Writer: Matt Kindt
Artist: Tyler Jenkins
Publisher: Boom! Stuiods
Description: The Black Badge program has been around for generations, and has a storied history to match. The Black Badge program is built on legacies, on recommendations, on families. How many fathers have sent their sons to a new class of Black Badges. This issue looks back at a previous generation of Black Badge, and the family ties that connect them to the current generation.
Why It Made the List: Matt Kindt and Tyler Jenkins“s Black Badge series started as this combination of Apocalypse Now by way of Stand By Me. One that looked at the way we shape future generations through the theater of war. How we may our youngest pay for our greatest sins. This series divided further into the idea by showing the history of the White Badges. That gave me one of my favorite pages of the year which included faces of young girls being looked down upon with hateful and condescending remarks. It was a powerful page that told a far too universal story. Â What followed was a story that took the idea that females were less capable and destroy it with extreme prejudice. It also ended on a major twist that will change the fabric of the Black Badges moving forward.
Writer: Donny Cates
Artist: Ryan Stegman
Publisher: Marvel Comics
Description: Eddie Brock takes a walk down memory lane and revisits San Francisco for the first time in years. The homecoming is anything but pleasant, though, as he comes face-to-face with his estranged father and a little brother he never knew he had. This while the Venom symbiote remains silenced, perhaps forever, leaving Eddie to struggle by himself”¦
Why It Made the List: I, like many, have enjoyed Donny Cates“s run on Venom since he took over the title. However, when he first began my biggest concern is that the character of Eddie Brock was being left behind in favor of this massive story that reshaped the fabric of the Marvel universe. This second arc has majorly changed that, and this issue especially gave a much-needed backstory to better flesh out what has made Brock the man he is today. Cates approached some truly challenging topics here as child abuse is not a subject matter that should be used lightly. Cates and Ryan Stegman do not hold back and deliver one of the more emotionally devastating Marvel comics in some time.
Writer: Rick Remender
Artist: Wes Craig
Publisher: Image Comics
Description: “NEVER GO BACK,”“ Part One (of Five) Before Marcus can return to class he has to go on a different kind of journey. One fueled by regret, sorrow, and peyote. Only when he“s faced the demons that lurk within his own soul can he hope to stand toe-to-toe with Master Lin and make good on his vow to bring an end to Kings Dominion forever. RICK REMENDER and WES CRAIG“s darkly humorous look at the 1980s underground comes full circle.
Why It Made the List: Deadly Class has been one of my personal favorite series since it first debuted so it is always great to see it back on the shelves. Rick Remender and Wes Craig decided to open this first issue of this arc with this off the wall dreamlike narrative where Marcus faces his demons in a surreal way. At first, it almost feels like you missed an issue or two. Once it ends what is happening becomes overtly clear. While Remender“s script is strong, it is the work of Craig that made it such a standout issue. His work was a tour de force on how to visually tell a story.
Writer: Robert Venditti
Artist: Bryan Hitch
Publisher: DC Comics
Description: Next stop: Krypton! As Hawkman“s intergalactic road trip continues, the next location on his itinerary is the ruins of Krypton, the alleged location of the super-weapon that will help him stop the Deathbringers. There, he“s suddenly whisked away to Krypton“s final moments and meets his past-life predecessor, Catar-Ol. Hawkman tries to learn the final fate of the super-weapon, but the planet goes boom before Carter can get the goods. Looks like it might be time for Plan B”¦
Why It Made the List: Hawkman is one of those characters that no one can ever seem to get right. His convoluted history and mythology leads to stories that can never get out of their own way. It is that fact that has made Robert Venditti“s run on the character so incredible. He has found a way to cut through the fat fact and tell not only a coherent story but a compelling one.  This issue was fascinating as Hawkman was attempting to save a future using nothing more than the power of conversation in the face of absolute destruction. It goes against the grain of what you would typically expect from a superhero comic, and that has worked so far for this series.Â
Writer: Jason Aaron
Artist:Â Mahmud Asrar
Publisher: Marvel ComicsÂ
Description: BEYOND THE SAVAGE BORDER! CONAN finds himself beyond the Black River, surrounded by the warlike PICTS! But the tribesmen may be the least of his worries if he cannot fight his way through the demonic beasts slithering around the forest! The epic return of the mighty Conan continues”¦
Why It Made the List: People often make a big deal when there are plot similarities between two different stories. I do not doubt that many would argue that this issue is nothing more than a Conan version of Dances with Wolves, and that is not necessarily incorrect. It is Conan growing as a character and warrior by spending time with the very people who he assumed were his enemy. Still, it was superbly executed when you consider one issue of a comic fit as much story as a nearly three-hour film. It also sets up an interesting dynamic moving forward. How does Conan now go back to his own people with this new found respect for their enemy? Will he try to convince them they are not what they feared? Bringing peace through diplomacy is not necessarily what he is known for. While I enjoyed the first issue this was far and away a much more dynamic tale.
Writer: Jeff Lemire
Artist: Andrea Sorrentino
Publisher: Image Comics
Description: “ORIGINAL SINS,”“ Part Four The past finally catches up to the present when Doc gives Father Fred a rather gruesome history of Gideon Falls. And if finding a needle in a haystack is impossible, what chance does Norton have of finding one in a giant garbage dump? Hollywood News: Picked up for TV by Hivemind after a multi-studio bidding war with long-time producing partners Sean Daniel and Jason Brown, Bad Robot veteran Kathy Lingg, and former Valiant Entertainment CEO & Chief Creative Officer Dinesh Shamdasani.
Why It Made the List: Going into this week I assumed Gideon Falls would most likely produce my favorite issue of the week and it did not disappoint. Typically I am not a huge fan of stories that have a large amount of surrealism. I can respect them and appreciate their craft but the inability to have a foundation to hold onto leads to a lack of investment. What Jeff Lemire and Andrea Sorrentino did that others typically do not do is take time to invest into the characters before diving into the crazy. Now ten issues in the intensity is at an all-time high. Andrea Sorrentino is one of the most exciting artists in comics today because when his name is on a book there is a good chance you will see something that was never done before in comics. When you have a book that centers on the breaking of reality you need someone like Sorrentino who does not hold back.
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- A fan of all things comics. Growing up on a healthy diet of 90's Batman and X-Men cartoon series ignited a love for the medium that remains strong today.
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