September 6, 2024

Friday afternoon and I am diving into the EYG Comic Cavalcade for the week.

This weekend, I am heading up to Dubuque to the Dubuque Comic & Toy Show this Sunday at the Five Flags Event Center. I went last year and had some fun. This year WWE Hall of Famer Honky Tonk Man is in attendance. Not sure I am going to do anything with him, but he does connect back to my childhood. I know Comic World will have a presence at the event, so I will probably go to their table as well.

Books this week:

Exceptional X-Men #1. Written by Eve L. Ewing and art by Carmen Carnero. Carnero & Nolan Woodard did the cover art. Another new X-book, this time featuring Kate Pryde, who has apparently stopped demanding that people call her Kate and reclaimed the name of Kitty. Thank goodness. I was very tired of that little bit of character development. I am very pleased with Kitty becoming a somewhat happy person again.

Plastic Man No More #1. Written by Christopher Cantwell and art by Alex Lins. Alex Lins & Marcelo Maiolo did the cover art (Bronze Medalist). Plastic Man has always been a comedy character, but this new take on him brings a more serious tone to him as he is starting to break down. Can he escape the Justice League’s laughs to help himself or save the fate of his son?

Minor Arcana #1. Written, illustrated, and cover art by Jeff Lemire. The brand new series from the creative mind of Jeff Lemire appeared this week, focusing on the daughter of a local psychic who returned to her hometown to try and take care of her mother. Of course, there are more things going down than just that as any Lemire book can tell you.

Daredevil #13. “Introductory Rites, Part Thirteen” Written by Saladin Ahmed and art by Chris Campana. John Romita Jr., Scott Hanna, and Richard Isanove did the cover art. Daredevil is facing off with the demons that have been torturing him over the last thirteen issues as things are coming to a head. And you see the Kingpin unlike you have ever seen him before.

The Ultimates #4. Written by Deniz Camp and guest artist Phil Noto. Dike Ruan & Neeraj Menon are the cover artists (Gold Medalist). Doctor Doom of the Ultimate universe is trying to reestablish the Fantastic Four, but there has not been a huge success as of yet.

Incredible Hulk #16. “Lament for a Fallen Crown, Part Two“. Written by Phillip Kennedy Johnson and art by Danny Earls. Nic Klein is the cover artist. This weird Hulk story arc continued this issue and I have just not been much of a fan of what is happening so far. I remain optimistic that things may pick up.

Miles Morales: Spider-Man #24. “Birds of a Feather, Part Two.” Written by Cody Ziglar and art by Federico Vicentini. Federico Vicentini & Neeraj Menon did the cover art. Newly vampired-up, Miles is desperate to maintain his bloodlust, but his anger is loosed upon The Vulture.

What If…? Donald Duck Became The Mighty Thor #1. “Donald Thor vs. the Stone Ducks of Saturn.” Variant cover art by Walter Simonson & Laura Martin. The fun Disney/Marvel mishmashes return with Donald Duck this time finding the enchanted walking stick that would transform into Mjolnir and change Donald into the Mighty Thor.

The Spectacular Spider-Men #7. “The Kitchen Sink.” Written by Greg Weisman and penciled by Humberto Ramos. Cover art was done by Humberto Ramos & Edgar Delgado. Peter and Miles bring down K.N.A.I.V.E. (which stands for New Artificial Intelligence Villain Extreme… the K is silent).

Animal Pound #5. “Who’s A Good Dog?” Written by Tom King and illustrated by Peter Gross. Variant cover art by Jorge Fornes. This thrilling series brought to a conclusion with plenty of shocking moments. Animal Farm mixed with the ins and outs of current day politics brings you this amazing series. I have no idea who Piggy is meant to represent (hmm… it ain’t Tim Walz).

Spider-Boy #11. “Massive Course Correction.” Written by Dan Slott and art by Paco Medina. Paco Medina and Edgar Delgado did the cover art (Silver Medalist). Bailey Briggs is back in the memories of the world after spending the last three years out of their minds. The memories bring Bailey’s mother back into the mix, and her parenting style may be shunting his buzz.

The Immortal Thor #15. “Return of the King.” Written by Al Ewing and art by Jan Bazaldua. Alex Ross did the cover art. Thor has taken in the power of Zeus… and it may be too much. And how does Loki play into this? Thor is the King of Asgard and he has some power.

Scarlet Witch #4. Written by Steve Orlando and art by Jacopo Camagni. Cover art was done by Russell Dauterman. Wanda vs. Griever battle to see if Wanda can come back alive. Quicksilver and Polaris play huge roles in the adventure too.

Public Domain #8. “New Life.” Written and drawn by Chip Zdarsky. More drama surrounding the creation of the new Domain comic book. How fun is it to hire a new letterer? Find out here.

Uncanny Valley #5. Written by Tony Fleecs and art and cover art by Dave Wachter. Oliver is facing off with The First, with a little help from his mother and his grandfather Pecos Pete. This has been a remarkably creative series so far and this penultimate issue sets up a powerful final.

Rook Exodus #5. Creators Geoff Johns and Jason Fabok. Jason Fabok and Brad Anderson did the cover art. Rook is having problems connecting with his flock because of his own deep seeded traumas. Can Pumba help Rook straighten things out? Rook Exodus has been a really solid part of the Ghost Machine imprint.

Moon Knight Annual #1. Written by Dan Watters and artist Marco Renna. Salvador Larroca & Edgar Delgado does the cover art. The Mind Stone is playing havoc with Colleen Wing. And Nightmare does not help the situation at all. Moon Knight steps up and tries to help out.

Get Fury #5. “As Flies to Wanton Boys.” Written by Garth Ennis and penciled by Jacen Burrows. Cover art was done by Dave Johnson. Frank Castle has finally found Nick Fury in the Hanoi Hilton… or at least what remains of Nick Fury. There are some actually disturbing images of Nick Fury in this book. There is a reason it is listed as ‘explicit content.’

Other books this week: Venom War: Spider-Man #2, The Boy Wonder #5, Spider-Man: Homeroom Heroes #1, Marvel Zombies: Dawn of Decay #1, Arkham Horror #2, and The Infernals #5.