happy new year! This is another major week of comics, with comic book staff coming together to break and review as many big comics as possible this week. Now this isn’t an all-stand comic, but it’s breaking down new releases from Marvel, DC, Image Comics and Boom! Studio, Dark Horse, Dynamite, Onipress, IDW, Mud Cave Studio, DSTLRY and more!
We also created some additional space for two of this week’s Freddie The Fix #1 and TVA #1 books. If the small reviews here pique your interest, check out the full review for a much more comprehensive analysis of those issues. As for ratings, the number or half of the five is kept simple, and you can check out some of the previous reviews here. That being said, let’s go to this week’s new comic!
Absolute Batman #3 Absolute Batman #3 continues to establish that this is not something Batman DC fans know, but deepen the conflict that makes this take of Gotham so interesting. This issue delves into the history of the blues, especially with the young Selina Kyle, establishing how big and prevalent the party animals and black masks are in fact. Of particular interest is how Snyder creates completely new versions of both Alfred and Batman. This is a very obvious advice that Alfred gives to Batman, and it’s an incredible choice in the name of Batman potentially protecting his loved ones. It’s a bit late, but it’s very appealing and makes an interesting window into the Batman spirit. – Nicole Drama Rating: 4 out of 5
Action Comics #1080 Action Comics #1080 sees Superman and his allies as a bit of a cleanup duty when it comes to dealing with the Phantom Zoners, and the issue is largely composed of different escapes followed by different pairings. Despite it explaining a bit of the complicated situation they are in, it becomes a matter of behavior – Mon-El with so many escapes, limited resources, and miserable straights. But it’s fun to read, but the problem is a bit weaker than the previous entry. The final twist in particular makes it a bit cliched. Overall, this issue feels like a bridge to take us to the next main part of the ARC, but while it’s not a bad thing, it can’t stand the previous issues either. – Nicole Drumrating: 3 out of 5
Batman and Robin: Year 1 #3 Batman and Robin: Year 13 does a lot of work distributing some of the cheap moments of dialogue we saw in previous issues and setting the threats Batman and Robin are dealing with instead. Also, there is a bit of humor in the Bruce’s lack of skills, with a truly tense moment when Robin’s inexperience is completely visible, and a real stakes meaning for all involved. This may still be the best issue to execute. – Nicole Drama Rating: 4 out of 5
Batman/Superman: The world’s best #34one of the benefits of Mark Waid’s take over previous stories featuring The Dark Knight and Man of Steel is to explore more of the story that doesn’t necessarily have a Clark and Blues front and center. This time, depending on Jimmy Olsen and the Batgirl, you can learn what happened to the finest and boys of the world. In addition to Waid’s continued acquisition of all the characters in the DCU, the artist Frangaran will be involved in the writer. Here, Garan benefits from dealing with both pencils and colours, creating truly impressive visuals with a one-off story. World’s Finest continues to be one of the best books DC has printed. This has been done very consistently in previous reviews, and even with Dan Mora working with other titles, Waid’s writing, as well as new artists, are working well with these new stories. – 5.5 out of 4.5 Evan Valentination
Catwoman #71 Catwoman #71 is a long read and is generally very enjoyable. But it’s a read that requires you to stay involved forever, and once you’ve entered it without a new reading of the previous issue, it can be a little difficult to follow. This issue mainly follows Catwoman still trying to find out who has placed the grace on her head, which leads her to an old acquaintance in Stockholm. This issue is filled with interesting details and a bit of spycraft as you get closer to what Selina is looking for and reach a little cliff. If you want to invest your time reading it, that’s a good problem overall. – Nicole Drama Rating: 4 out of 5
The challenger at Unknown #1IT praises how well DC fits these new comics together and seamlessly. JLU has rewritten the status quo, but while it’s easy for someone like an unknown new challenger to get the nitty-sighted spotlight, series scribe Christopher Cantwell has found an astonishingly balanced act that not only planted the series firmly in DCU’s current events, but still feels classically “challengers.” Series artist Sean Isakse (and colorist Romulo Fajardo Jr.) also enhances the material in key ways, providing smooth action while hitting the right amount of each character. – Spencer Perirating: 5 out of 5
Green Lantern/Green Arrow: The World’s Best Special #1 scribe Jeremy Adam Spens Pen Set Deep in DC Continuity, reunites Oliver Queen and Hal Jordan from their prime. The oversized one-shot has two stories, but initially a great story, but it becomes a fun throwback issue for longtime fans. Artist Lucas Meyer is working on the first (The Ollie & Hal team-up) to skillfully design action beats over many creative moments. As for the second storyline, Hal and Barry Allen team up, artist Travis Mercer is trying to capture the silence of seconds as Barry runs through and does his thing. The biggest obstacle to this story is that it is the second moment that has already begun, and is a bit desired after the first pacing. – Spencer Perilation: 4 out of 5
The latest run at the former Boy Wonder of Nightwing #121Watters was something that had to fill in some big shoes, and although he hadn’t done so yet, the writer is getting a better handle for Dick Grayson. The current threats facing Bludhaven are not entirely original, but here thanks to artist Dexter Soy, it becomes some dynamic set pieces. Between the battle scene and Dick’s interactions with Barbara Gordon outside of duties as Batgirl, the latest Nightwing issue feels like one of the powerful entries in the new execution so far. I hope future issues take the page of problem #121 and find the perfect unison with Dick’s daily activities and his nightly excursion as a nightwing. – Evan Valentination: 3 out of 5
Question: Following the Star’s debut, along Watchtower #2, Renee Montoya’s fascinating Watchtower mystery continues with the question. With the team in place, it’s time for the investigation to start gearing. Writer Alex Segura throws all sorts of chaos and is thrown into the mix to enhance the drama and plot. The blue beetles, orators, and animal men all offer great contrasts with Rennie’s more closed attitude. That is especially true of Batwoman, as their history and dynamic grounds are greater than the life aspects of the book that surround them. But while the confusion looks great, it’s not an exaggeration to say that the question rarely looks this weird and cool. It’s not even just a matter of matter, as everyone brings so much personality to the waywardness and expression, and the exterminations look amazing, but Montoya looks effortlessly cool in every scene and is totally praiseworthy. As we continue, I want to see more mined from Renee and Kate’s history, but for now, Lenny’s days as Watch Tower Sheriff were riding the noir roller coaster I wanted. – Matthew Ajraring: 4 out of 5
Titans #18Titans #18 properly titles every family, and this issue is its strongest when the family is the focus. Writer John Rayman finds many conflicts to explore now that Justice League is back, as Titan moves into a new home and a new role within the DC Hero community. The various opinions on this change and how Titan responds to it overall are persuasive and quite relevant, but also presents an opportunity for amazing moments from Starfire, Raven and Beast Boy. The friction between Nightwing and Donna Troy is also intriguing. She’s trying to lead the team in her own way, but both characters sometimes don’t feel 100% natural in all the history exchanges they have. Sometimes the representation clashes slightly with the dialogue and overall tone, and there are moments intricate sync with the wonderful screech of Raven’s team. As Fist starts flying the teams of artist Pete Woods and Letter, Wes Abbott offers a greater welcome than life’s impact, offering the best outings of mammoths and shimmers for quite some time. The seeds of the more epic story are interesting, but hopefully there’s more twist going on, as we feel like we’ve been here before. Titans #18 is a solid issue for building some big moments and we hope that even bigger things will go our way. – Matthew Ajraring: 3 out of 5
Wonder Woman #16apes makes everything better, and Wonder Woman #16 is proof of that. The Sovereign Storyline continues to feel like something that has been dragged down a little longer, but there is something I have to say about using detective chimpanzees to expose him. Also, the follow-up that provides more details about Trinity’s early life through the incredible art in question and provides the origins of the sovereign is a rather interesting read. But when filmed overall, Wonder Woman #16 feels like he’s limping into the storyline that should actually see the moves ahead at this point. – Nicole Drama Rating: 2.5 out of 5
Daredevil #18 Matt Murdoch went through a lot in a short time with Saladin Ahmed’s run, focusing on the devil of Hell’s Kitchen’s Guardian and his confused storytelling. Daredevil draws quite a few tricks from his hat here, whether it’s his courtroom skills or superhero’s. While Ahmed writes solidly here, the real star of this issue is Aaron Kudar’s art. Cooder has been an artist I have felt for a long time that I should receive a bigger push, and he proves it here. Whether Murdoch is saving children in traffic or fighting a demon who gets too close to the house according to Daredevil’s preferences, the latest issues will help you carry out another solid issue of the latest running for the blind. – Evan Valentination: 4 out of 5
Deadpool #9 The latest Deadpool issue left a bad taste in my mouth, but not so much for its character or pun, thanks to Wade Wilson’s early ending mise being reverted. This has been a problem for a long time in both the Superhero Universe, Marvel and DC. Also, Merck, whose mouth is dead, dies from a handful of issues after being touted as a huge event against what the story is. Ellie had little time to shine in her role as the new Deadpool. She’s already been treated quite a bit from what we saw in the latest issue. There are some interesting tips on what’s coming for Deadpool and Ellie, but it’s not enough to outweigh the weaknesses of the latest outings.
Marvel’s most famous family Fantastic Four #27 Ryan North’s run hit all the right notes when it comes to Fantastic Four. Focusing on Nikki Master Grimm, the child of Skull, adopted by Ben and Alicia, we get one of the funniest comics of the year and a heartwarming story that shows why it works just as well as his dad these days. Even if you haven’t caught up with all the misfortunes that have recently fallen on the Fantastic Four, this issue works well as one thing that helps you prove what your team is. – Evan Valentination: 4.5 out of 5
Hellverine #1 Hellverine does exactly what a good first problem should do and gives us great clues as to where this is going in the future, setting premises in ways that are interesting for newcomers and longtime readers. Benjamin Percy has long proven himself to be Marvel’s secret weapon. It embraces the idea that it can become a disaster in the wrong hands and be engaging and enjoyable. Helberine is no exception. Artist Rafaelle Ienko keeps things simple, but is responsible for the title character’s perspective and transformation into his maximum effect. This may seem like a gimmick comic, but it’s definitely worth reading. – Spencer Perirating: 4.5 out of 5
Immortal Thor #18thor and Amora’s son, Magni, another reality, welcomes the family with four confrontations with the new Mudgard gods who have previously proven problems with Thor. The quick warming scenes to Magni in the game of Catch the Hammer are fascinating, but his introduction doesn’t really affect the climactic battle of this issue, so it’s clear that his introduction is intended to later bear fruit in Immortal Thor’s narrative plan. Outside of Magni’s introduction, the story, and this arc is a fairly simple superhero fare of structure. Thor has been struggling with a new enemy alliance, recruiting allies and certifying that he has won the rematch. However, this could be intentional as the title of the story “To Continue”, implying one thing, and the issue foreshadows multiple stories that have not yet been told. The artwork is fine, but it’s not very memorable from the showdown with the supervillain. This has proven to be a more subtle arc for the Immortal Thor, but it could be as important as the ongoing narrative moves into the next act. – Jamie Lovettrating: 3.5 out of 5
TVA #1MARVEL has many great shows under the umbrella, but one of the best is the feeling of timeline hopping known as Loki. The story concluded with a meaningful sacrifice to Loki Season 2, but unfortunately, it’s not likely that Season 3 will happen. Loki fans are lucky as Marvel brought a fair amount of these elements to the comics in the TVA series, and the reunion of Time Distributed Stations is forced to attack some of those lovely nostalgic codes. – Matthew Ajraring: 4 out of 5 (read the entire review here)
Ultimate Spider-Man #12 pounds, I think this might be my favorite single issue of the year. Hickman made some major changes to the Parker family as part of Marvel’s new ultimate universe, but issue 12 is what really makes use of these changes in the best way. For most of the issues, readers are not the norm for any Spidey Shenanigan, instead focusing on Parker and Watsons holidays. One of the biggest things to note is that Mary Jane’s family is so different from the original 616, giving both a mother and a sister that is part of her life. All MJ’s dialogue-rich interactions hit hard here and help to hide the fact that there is a huge, obvious thing that has been hidden in visible vision all along. The final page gives a twist on the same level as the original Thunderbolts release, giving a wild new spin on the classic Spider-Man villain. Ultimate Spider-Man is the best Spidey Book on the market today, and proves Twelve once again. – Evan Valentination: 5 out of 5
Freddie The Fix #1 Ultimally, Freddie The Fix has an interesting premise that it’s largely useless to sacrificing shocking value to the actual story and stuffing pages with so many sentences that don’t necessarily get the job done. The story is set as a debut offering for creator-owned and driven horror showcase nine circles, but it’s really a weak introduction. The story feels like an elaborate world construction rather than acting as something of terrifying and terrifying. I feel that readers should have more to this story. Unfortunately, we don’t get it. – Nicole Drumrating: 2 out of 5 (read the entire review here)
Gi Joe #2G.I. Joe kicked off a new era with a bold first problem with one hell of cliffhangers. Not only does writer Joshua Williamson establish a stake from the start, but things somehow get worse for Jaws, and are being called out again in comparison to Cobra’s technical powers. Meanwhile, artists Tom Riley, colorist Geordy Beller and Letter Russ Wooton create a sense of despair and prediction around the battle that only invests you. And the film talent they give the procedure may have a soundtrack to rise from the tile rub. All the drama within the two organizations are as appealing as ever, with new recruits simply raising more notches. Gi Joe didn’t take a step in the second issue. That last page promises even bigger things from question #3. – Matthew Ajraring: 5 out of 5
House of Slaughter #28 House of Slaughter #28 hits violently from the first page, shifting perspective several times over the course of the matter. Macro views of orders and not only fund everything, but also lethal operations add a welcome context and allow you to see the bigger picture, and then the numbers decrease and then replenish with recruits, but scale back to a more discerning perspective, exploring the dynamics within the various factions of masks. There are some interesting elements here, but the extensive dialogue and narration here slows down the pace significantly. That’s before another shift that slowly slows down the main through-line story and muddy before things get more and more on the last few pages. I usually worship Deep Dive in the history of orders and explore the various groups within it, but I feel this issue is weighted by it, so I hope things will come back in the next chapter.
Power Rangers Prime #2it is a bold new world of Power Rangers Prime, and the second issue of the series highlights it in a major way. Some of the faces are familiar, but the situation we encounter is significantly different, and the new characters we encounter significantly change the dynamics. Melissa Flores is taking time to build these new leads while taking advantage of these new dynamics. The work is already rewarded. I don’t feel like I’m waiting for Team B to show up. That being said, Flores’ Rita Inversion is simply an easy one, and she cannot command all attention whenever she is on the page. The bullied VR trooper showdown is already special, so at this point, Power Rangers Prime has hit all cylinders and shows no signs of slowing down. – Matthew Ajraring: 5 out of 5
Reuniting with the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles #5, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles #5, brings the spotlight to New York City’s new villain, a corrupt man who has been violated by his position of power, wielding government resources, juicing the power of a shadowy donor, and stealing false rage in his erroneous community. This number serves as the public face of the legged clan. The villains were once forced to operate from the shadows where the ideology of institutionalized legitimacy is celebrated. This is a movement that feels like a natural next chapter after previous community-focused storytelling in the TMNT era, taking a completely modern look at the symbolic role of urban arbitration in fiction. If the villains are now operating in power and immunity during the day, the heroes must oppose those corrupt institutions. This artwork draws readers to this harsh, shadowy, and mean world of this villain, lacking grace but not violence, as Casey Jones returns to light things up with sports-themed atrocities. The explanation of recent events provided by this issue raises several questions. Given that all four turtles are already immersed in it, it seems strange that Hale is meant to mean that he intends to consider this a strategic failure unless it is considered a strategic failure on his part, but the teenage mutant ninja Turtles navigates to maintain this multiple, to maintain this multiple, to maintain this multiple, to maintain this multiple. – Jamie Lovettrating: 4 out of 5
