So in the tradition of transparency, I did not get to read as many comics as I usually do before making this issue. A few weeks ago my second son was born so many of my nights have been spent taking care of a cranky baby. Not going to lie despite it cutting into my comic reading time it has been worth it. With that said I was still able to read a number of great comics this week with some major moments occurring. A reminder this list is based on my opinion so may differ from other reviews on the site. With that onto the list”¦
Writer: Brian Wood
Artist: Mack Chater
Publisher: Dark Horse
Description: Elsbeth Dagsdottir has not forgotten the oath her father made to her on that remote Icelandic beach: to deliver revenge upon the Forty Swords clan that burned their village and murdered her mother. It might take them a lifetime of strife, but it is a promise they are willing to die to keep.
Why it Made the List: This issue marks the return of this series and that layoff made it evident how much has changed since the first issue was released around a year ago. How the dynamic of this story has flipped from a father protecting his daughter to a father becoming the powerless one dependent upon his grown child. It works as a tale about the price of revenge and how the inability to conquer grief can leave a distance between those still living. There“s a quiet beauty to Mack Chater“s art. There is a stillness that lets the emotion settle in and carry weight.
Writer: Tom Taylor
Artist: Trevor Hairsine
Publisher: DC Comics
Description: Millions are dying every minute. Heroes and villains alike are falling. Can the Justice League unite to find a way to stop the spread of death? Can they save humanity from extinction? Can they even save themselves? The key to survival may hinge on the last moments of one of the World“s Finest Heroes”¦
Why it Made the List: I like many thought DCeased was going to be DC“s version of Marvel Zombies. Part of me wondered if we really need that in the world, but the more I thought about it why not give it a shot? Comics can use some off the wall stories in today“s market. Mostly I trusted Tom Taylor and he is proving this is more than his version of a past story. Unlike Marvel Zombies it has more of a serious tone where deaths actually carry a bit of weight without being full of dread. The added aspect of electronics causing the spread of the virus adds a different dimension to this ongoing threat. Tom Taylor has been given the keys to his own kingdom and his is clearly having fun destroying it bit by bit.
Writer: Robbie Thompson
Artist: Niko Henrichon
Publisher: Marvel Comics
Description: Â The Warner family may be alien infiltrators trying to bring down human civilization, but could PROJECT BLOSSOM actually be WORSE?! Don’t sleep on the book that everyone will be talking about for years to come!
Why it Made the List: When this series was announced I was super excited for the concept of a behind enemy lines story through the eyes of Skrulls. Part of me wonders if I built it up too much as I have enjoyed it but not to the level I hoped. This issue changed much of that as it had an emotional impact I was not ready for. I found out I began to truly care for some of these characters and knowing this was its own self contained story with new characters I wondered who if anyone would make it through. That“s a rare feeling when reading a book from the big two. I hope Marvel does other mini-series like this that exist in the Marvel universe but through a never before seen perspective.Â
Writer: Mark Russell
Artist: Mirko Colak
Publisher: Dynamite
Description: Like an all-consuming fire, the armies of Dragan The Magnificent pursued Sonja The Red until there was nowhere else to flee. The corpses of her people scattered before her like charred rabbits, she turned to face his exquisite wrath. And prayed in vain for death to take her quickly. The epic continues by MARK RUSSELL (Exit Stage Left: The Snagglepuss Chronicles, The Flintstones) and MIRKO COLAK (Conan).
Why it Made the List: (Full Review) Every issue of Red Sonja has centered on a different aspect of war and leadership and this issue was no exception. That has made each issue feel like its own complete story while still being a part of this larger narrative. Here the theme centered on sacrifice and what often must be done to survive. How you may even need to give up the very thing you are protecting in order to succeed, and how true leadership often means making the impossible decision despite the repercussions. Plus elephants. Who doesn“t love elephants? Although, as this issue shows just make sure you are not following behind the elephant army. That’s not a trail you want to follow.Â
Writer: Grant Morrison
Artist: Liam Sharp
Publisher: DC Comics
Description: Green Lantern teams up with Green Arrow to stop a cosmic drug cartel that“s using Earth as its main distribution base! It“s a brilliant homage to the team-ups of old, as Morrison and Sharp do the 2019 version in a story we can only call “Space Junkies!”“
Why it Made the List: I feel like ever creative that takes on Green Lantern or Green Arrow has to have that issue or arc that pays homage to Danny O’Neil and Neil Adams infamous Green Lantern/Green Arrow run that revolutionized the medium. Despite the over redundancy of that fact, this issue worked because Grant Morrison and Liam Sharp have been diving head first into the oddity of the Silver Age since the start. In a way, this was the issue I was waiting for since this run began and I feel it did not disappoint. They did not try to replicate the serious tone of that original story which was the right call.Â
Writer: Brian K. Vaughan
Artist: Cliff Chiang
Publisher: Image Comics
Description: PART FOUR OF THE FINAL ARC! It“s the final showdown between past, present, and future in this explosive penultimate issue of the series!
Why it Made the List: This is the penultimate issue of Paper Girls which is just sad to type. Being a fan of Brian K. Vaughan“s work after next issue it will be some time until we will be able to read a monthly comic from him again as Saga remains on hiatus. Plus I will never tire of seeing Cliff Chiang“s art with Matt Wilson“s neon colors. By the third issue of this series I was concerned, it would be nearly impossible to bring everything together and as we near the end they are proving me wrong. I cannot wait for this to be all collected because this will only get better on rereads. It has changed from fighting against what can happen to try to avoid what must. There is an inevitability to how this will end so of course that most likely means we are in for some major surprises.Â
Writer: Ed Brubaker
Artist: Sean Phillips
Publisher: Image Comics
Description: Dan Farraday, private detective and skip-tracer, comes to town looking for a dangerous woman. This issue begins the long and winding tale of THE SUMMER OF ’88”¦ the story of the last days of Teeg Lawless. As always, CRIMINAL contains back page art and articles only found in the single issues.
Why it Made the List: Reading an issue of Criminal is like going to your favorite restaurant that is so consistently good once you step into its atmosphere you automatically feel entrusting in what you are about to experience. This was a classic crime procedural of the methods a private eye must go through in order to find someone who does not want to be found. I wish more comics would take notice from Criminal onhow to handle a ficiotnal world. Where characters and stories are intertwined without being dependent upon one another. You can easily pick up nearly any issue of this series and without reading what came before, yet if you stick with you those narrative build upon each other in such a way that makes the experience richer.
Writer: John Allison
Artist: Max Sarin
Publisher: Boom! Studios
Description: When McGraw’s father dies unexpectedly, the small friend group is shaken. Susan struggles to be there for McGraw, but his usual stoicism has turned into a solid wall. With McGraw at home and Susan in their empty apartment alone, Esther and Daisy have to help Susan deal with someone who doesn’t seem to be dealing. What do you do for someone you love when you have no idea what they’re going through?
Why it Made the List: Based upon how the last issue ended and the cover of this issue I was getting ready for a depressing read full of massive amounts of emotion, but that is not what happened at first. Instead, this gets into how awkward and impossible it can be to help someone you love through a painful moment. Using comedy as a defense mechanism at first to avoid facing the hard truth. How patience is necessary as grief can play some tricky games. One moment you feel calm then the next the entire world comes crashing down. What has made Giant Days such a great series is despite how larger than life much of it is they are times when it can come down to earth for some real moments.
Writer: Scott Snyder
Artist: Jorge Jimenez
Publisher: DC Comics
Description: The “Sixth Dimension”“ storyline wraps up in this oversize issue as Superman faces down the World Forger to save the Justice League! Can Superman withstand the might of a being that can create worlds from nothing?! Plus, with the Justice League away, Mr. Mxyzptlk“s been wreaking havoc! Can anyone on Earth stand up to the fifth-dimensional menace?
Why it Made the List: (Full Review) I have had a conflicted relationship with Scott Snyder“s run on Justice League. At times I can get lost in the machinations of all his plot elements and the story becomes distant to the point I become apathetic to what is occurring. Then when you get an issue like this I am reminded how strong his character work can be. The Superman moments in this are some of my favorite moments in comics this year. How it taps into the importance of family in how it drives him both in a motivational and moral way. Oh and Jorge Jimenez is a phenomenal storyteller. He knows how to build to a momentous moment such as the ”˜one punch“ we see here. The lead-in with the fists flying to the splash page of Superman with his family surrounding him is pure comic book magic.
Writer: Robert Kirkman
Artist: Charlie Adlard
Publisher: Image Comics
Description: “AFTERMATH”“ Carl fights for the Commonwealth”¦ but who is he fighting against?
Why it Made the List: When I do these lists I try to stay away from spoilers as much as possible. My hope is this list will lead others to pick up some of these books so revealing what happened would ruin that experience. So with that in mind, I will not reveal the exact reason why this issue of The Walking Dead was as massive as it was. Just know a major event occurs that changes everything moving forward. Every so often Robert Kirkman reminds us how effective he can be at playing with our emotions, and that he will take a story places which will only make it harder for him as a writer. This issue was more than a moment, and more than just death to capture headlines. It was well crafted in both staging and execution especially in how small and intimate some of the major scenes were. Showing tragedy can be frustrating just in how mundane it can occur. Now nearly two hundred issues into this series and the dynamics have completely changed forever.
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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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