This Week's Essential Comics: 11/10/14
It's almost Wednesday and you know what that means, right? Seriously, you do know what that means, yeah? We'd hope so if you're on Comic Vine! Well, if you don't know, Wednesday is a holiday for us comic fans because it's when new comic books are released. Dozens upon dozens of new comics will go on sale and it's often pretty tough deciding how to spend your money. Luckily for you, Comic Vine has your back. We've read the latest list of new releases and each of us will highlight the comics we're looking forward to reading the most. Once you're finished seeing what we're anxious to read, go ahead and share your list of essential comics in the comments below. Your praise for a series just may motivate another person to give it a shot. Now, let's see what the staff is excited to check out.
Tony "G-Man" Guerrero's picks
BATMAN #36
Heeee’s back! Just when Batman thought it was safe to be in Gotham City (or as safe as you could imagine it to be), he faced an incredible surprise. Attacking from afar, we saw the entire Justice League Joker-ized with Bruce having no choice but to take them on. But the fight isn’t quite over as Batman still has to deal with a Joker-ized Superman. This is the sort of issue you want to see from Scott Snyder and Greg Capullo. We can expect some incredible action and visuals as we hope to get the answer to, “Who wins in a fight, Batman or Superman?”
Besides the fighting and action, there’s still some questions we need answers to. Most importantly, how did Joker survive? Is it really the Joker behind all of this? What has he been up to since we last saw him?
Visit Buzzfeed for an extra preview page.
WYTCHES #2
Last month, Scott Snyder, Jock, and Matt Hollingsworth introduced us to a different take on the concept of witches. With the idea of someone being pledged to these evil creatures living out in the woods, it was a pretty creepy first issue. We were also introduced to a normal family that had been going through some dark times, possibly due to these witches. We know the daughter of the family had some sort of run in with them and you couldn’t help but feel for the safety of the young daughter in the story. Then of course we were left with a pretty cruel cliffhanger. Now we’ll finally get to see what happens next.
Snyder knows how to craft a freaky story. Jock’s art cranks up the feeling and Hollingsworth’s colors brings it all together. It’s not often the horror genre really works in comic book format but it is here for sure.
SUPERIOR IRON MAN #1
We’re seeing quite a few changes in the Marvel Universe taking place. In the pages of last week’s AVENGERS & X-MEN: AXIS, we saw Tony Stark take the first step in his move to becoming SUPERIOR. He appears to have big plans for everyone around him, should they want to better themselves as well.
Tom Taylor is known for shaking things up a bit and it looks like that’s what’s happening with Stark. What this will mean for his character and place in the Avengers remains to be seen. I’m also excited for Yildiray Cinar’s art. Of course we don’t want Iron Man to stray too far from who he’s supposed to be but this has the makings of a pretty interesting direction. At least for now.
THOR #2
Who is the new Thor? Or perhaps we should ask, who is the new wielder of Mjolnir? Another shake up happening in the Marvel Universe is the new status quo for Thor. Hardcore fans are not too happy with the son of Odin no longer being worthy of his mystical hammer but it is opening up the door for an intriguing story. Last issue, we saw his struggle with trying to reclaim the power of Mjolnir. Things didn’t go too well when he want up against Malekith after spending days on the moon trying to lift Mjolnir. Now a new person has claimed the hammer. From the preview here, we see she is aware of some aspects of Thor’s power but doesn’t seem to have complete insight as to how it works. (This might squash one of the suspects many have claimed will be the new Thor).
Jason Aaron has done a great job in the last volume, THOR: GOD OF THUNDER. It’s interesting to see what he has coming next. Russell Dauterman’s art has been great and getting to see Thor’s new look after his mishap will be fun.
AXIS: HOBGOBLIN #2
This book has been such a conundrum for me. I absolutely love the original Hobgoblin and the whole journey in discovering his true identity, which took over a decade. With the events from AXIS, we’re seeing some villains inclined to do more heroic things. Hobgoblin trying to franchise out superhero identities and actually being a hero himself is pretty far off from who he’s always been. But there is something in the execution.
Kevin Shinick and Javier Rodriguez have taken a simple idea of a villain as a hero and are adding something more to it. There’s a great vibe coming off this book. The only problem I have with the book is it’s only three issues long.
You can also watch the Preview Theatre video for this issue HERE.
ALL-NEW CAPTAIN AMERICA #1
There’s a new Captain America (and Nomad) unleashed upon the Marvel Universe. This continues the recent shake ups in the different titles. This isn’t the first time we’ve seen someone else take up the mantle of Cap. Falcon has long been an important part of Captain America’s life. They were partners for years but Falcon has often remained in the shadows. With a “new” person taking over the role, this allows for a chance to revitalize things a little. We get to see how someone else handles the role and responsibilities of being Captain America, a person many look up to in the Marvel Universe. We’ve already seen a strange mix of disrespect in the pages of AXIS and hopefully we’ll see that address in this series.
The other nice thing about having a new Captain America is Steve Rogers isn’t completely out of the picture. He’ll still be involved except in a different role since he lost the Super Soldier Serum and has aged as a result. I think it’s safe to say that no one wants this to be a permanent change. I absolutely want Steve returned to his youth and role. In the meanwhile, this will make an interesting change of pace and story for the new volume.
Mat "Inferiorego" Elfring's picks
GHOSTED #15
I am a broken record at this point. I've said it plenty of times that GHOSTED is my favorite on-going series. It's been a great mixture of light-horror, suspense, and mystery. The current arc, dealing with the son of Trick granting "death wishes," has been one of the coolest conceptually, thus far, and I'm pretty stoked to see how it continues to play out. The best part about the book and the series is that everything is so connected. There are clues and hints hidden in the art that all deal with what's coming up in the future of the series that really make you go back and take a close look at what's happening. Everything about this series has been rad.
GREEN LANTERN CORPS #36
Godhead has been a ton of fun so far. There's been quite a few revelations in the GREEN LANTERN issue from last week, so I'm excited to see how John Stewart takes control of the Green Lantern Corps and Indigo tribe after Hal "disappeared" in the last issue of this arc. Sure, this arc is long and goes through a ton of books, but GLC, along with GL, and GL: NEW GUARDIANS are must reads for this arc. So, if you've been enjoying Godhead thus far, pick this issue up for sure.
Gregg "k4tz" Katzman's picks
HAWKEYE VS. DEADPOOL #2
You know what's good for you? Smiling. And do you know what can make you smile a lot? Gerry Duggan's HAWKEYE VS. DEADPOOL, that's what! This limited series has been basically what you’d expect it to be: Pure silliness and a whole lot fun as Marvel’s marksman and the merc with a mouth team-up to solve a mystery. Unfortunately, Pizza Dog Lucky doesn't play a pivotal role and we haven’t seen any kind of big fight between the two leads (the title’s a tease, I say!), but Duggan’s gift for comedy is on display here and this story feels like it’s offering the best from both of the heroes’ titles. Oh, and we’re apparently going to see more of Typhoid Mary in this one, so that’s pretty neat, right?
DEEP STATE #1
I've come to realize that if a comic is by Justin Jordan, the odds are pretty fair that I'll end up really, really enjoying it. DEAD BODY ROAD, SPREAD, LUTHER STRODE... they're all awesome. So, you can bet I'm interested in seeing what his new BOOM! Studios comic is like. You know how there's no short supply of conspiracy theories, right? Some sound moderately reasonable. Others? Not so much. Jordan's presenting a world where some of those seemingly surreal ideas are real and it's up to John Harrow and a super secret agency to make sure the public never knows about it. Their job is to make sure the people who have a lead on the truth can't prove it and the world dismisses what they have to say as just theories. This story has the potential to dive into a lot of interesting topics -- who knows which theories Jordan will address? -- and the writer's history has given me faith in his abilities. So, when he produces a new series, it catches my attention. But when the premise sounds like it can go out-there in a clever and interesting way? Then I'm really looking forward to it.
Check out CBR for more preview pages.
DRIFTER #1
A character-driven sci-fi story that takes place on a brand new world and, in turn, universe? Yeah, I'm at least checking out the first issue, so sign me up. Writer Ivan Brandon and artist/colorist Nic Klein's new Image Comic has a simple premise: Abram Pollux crash lands on Ouro, a not-so-great backwater planet. Instead of coming out of the gate by explaining what every element of this new sci-fi franchise has to offer, it looks like we're focusing 100% on this guy who happens to have the misfortune of being stranded on this "lawless" planet. That approach likely means there's going to be less exposition and more organic exploration of this alien world and its society. I'm a sucker for a good sci-fi adventure, so I'm pretty excited to see how this debut chapter is handled and what they'll do to hook us.
CBR has an extra preview page.
Honorable Mention: PROMETHEUS: FIRE AND STONE #3
Corey "Undeadpool" Schroeder's picks
BATGIRL #36
The relaunch of Batgirl sent waves through the comics community, most especially the DC comics community and it wasn't for nothing: a completely new look, setting and, most especially, tone for Barbara Gordon, particularly in the dark, more serious New 52. Barbara would not only go to grad school, but get a whole new costume courtesy of Cameron Stewart and Brenden Fletcher with the most appropriately named creator since Devin Grayson, Babs Tarr, on art. And it all WORKED so wonderfully. Now Batgirl isn't cut off from the Bat-Family, but she gets to do her own thing, and it looks to take a very different tone and tenor from the rest of the New-52, and it's been a breath of fresh air so far and it feels like this'll be the new status quo for Barbara.
SPIDER-VERSE #1
Here we go, folks! All the build up, all the tie-ins, all the oddly canonical "what-ifs" have led up to this: Dan Slott and Humberto Ramos team up to give us all the Spiders ever! Not just Spider-Men, but Spider-Women and Spider-Pigs and Spider-Hulks and Spider-Everythings! With an all-star creative cast and a villain I can absolutely get behind, there's nothing about the lead-up to this series that I'm not excited about. With other high-profile names like Skottie Young and Supernatural's Robbie Thompson on other stories, there's nothing not to like about this book if you're a fan of the Spider.
CAPTAIN MARVEL #9
Carol Danvers looks like Ziggy Stardust on the cover of this comic. Written by Kelly Sue Deconnick and drawn by Dave Lopez. I can't tell you how excited I am by this convergence of events, but I'll try: now that the Flerken menace has been dealt with (don't worry, Chewie is still rolling with Carol on her spaceship) and the inclusion of X-Men also-ran Lila Cheney is an intriguing proposition. One of the things Marvel's been best at over the last several years is taking underused characters and transforming them into intriguing, interesting players on the main Marvel stage, and I believe Deconnick to be more than capable of doing the same.
BUCKY BARNES: THE WINTER SOLDIER #2
In the wake of Original Sin, Earth needs a new defender from unknowable, interstellar threats and not only do we get Bucky, but former-S.H.I.E.L.D. agent and Nick Fury protege Daisy "Quake" Johnson. The two make a fantastic team, and not just because they were both languishing in the purgatory of not knowing what to do with a great, but very specific, character but because writer Ales Kot has a plan for this book, in terms of tone and content. Based on the first issue, it's a strange, surreal plan that artist Marco Rudy will be executing on, and that's what sets this book apart: the visuals are a modernization of Jim Steranko's style of essentially crafting a comic that looks like a James Bond theme song montage. While the story's not hard to follow, there's a strange, wonderful surrealism to the visual language that grabs the reader's attention and gives the whole thing a very slick, '70s sci-fi feel.
Honorable Mention: THE WALKING DEAD #134
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