July 18

Welcome to the EYG Comic Cavalcade. I am getting tired of repeating myself every week when I call it “another big week” of comics. It seems as if every week falls into that category. I really do pick up a bunch of books every week.

In fact, when i added the Comic World batch of books to my CLZ, I realized that I was eight books away from 22,222 in my collection. So I decided to find eight more back issues to reach that number. Todd helped me pick out these eight books: Storm Vol 2 #1-6, Son of Satan #4, and Hercules #11 (from Modern Comics). I left Comic World that Wednesday with the exact number of 22,222.

It lasted one day as I bought some more books at In This Issue on Thursday.

I completed the Daily Read that I started this week with Starhenge Book One: The Dragon and the Boar #1-6. Starting on Monday, I read an issue a day until I completed the book. It was by Liam Sharp and it was a wonderful sci-fi/fantasy story with Merlin, Arthur and a woman named Amber who was from present day and she narrated it with references to all sorts of cool pop culture mentions including The Princess Bride, other comics, Grant Morrison among many others. I picked it up because I had purchased Starhenge Book Two: A Kiss for Atticus #1 a couple of weeks ago and I did not want to start it without reading the first series.

Comic of the Week

The Ring: The Man Who Beat the Man #2

This was am unexpected pick this week, but I was just really engaged with this issue of the mini-series from Gail King at Dark Horse. Issue one came out last month and, truthfully, it was fine. I was not as into that first issue as I thought I would be.

However, this issue, focusing on two different boxers, I was fully into and I was just entertained fully. It was one of the last handful of books that I read this week and it was such a treat.

Books This Week:

Mark Spears Monsters #11. “Chapter 11: The Council of Monsters” Written by Mark and Lucas Spears with art and cover art by Mark Spears (Cover C-Bronze Medalist). This issue found all of the monsters on the Council discussing who should be in charge and what they should do about Dracula. This discussion was amazing and with the arrival of Malik and the Slayer. It ended in the weirdest place though as I was just confused, wondering if they had left out a page or two.

3W/3M: Foundations #1. Written by Jonathan Hickman & Nick Spencer with art by Mike Huddleston, Mike del Mundo, and Jerome Opeña. Cover art was done by Mike Huddleston. Four of the top creators in comics band together to provide a new comics universe and some straight up science fiction. It is an interesting book and I am curious to see how it progresses moving forward. The over-sized book does make it feel more special.

A Mischief of Magpies #1. Written by Simon Spurrier and art and cover art by Matias Bergara. DSTLRY feels as if it is back on track fully as we get the first number one since the company took several months off to attempt to fix the problems they were having with Diamond and their money. A Mischief of Magpies is another sci-fi epic where our protagonist, Mar, as he slipped out of the world into a mechanical city. It is another book where the format is very original and feels like a big swing.

Kingdom of Earth #1. Written by David Dastmalchian & Leah Kilpatrick with art and cover art by Soo Lee. We have another post-apocalyptic book where humans have two paths, either as livestock or being slaughtered. Our protagonist Frankie escaped being livestock and now is trying to survive in a monstrous wasteland. Dark Horse has another winning formula here. David Dastmalchian continues his horror success.

Nightwing #140. “The Dive” Written by Dan Watters with pencils by Denys Cowan. Cover art was done by Jorge Fornes. Nightwing is investigating the bar called “Divebar” while the city prosecutor has given him a deadline to turn himself in. The issue also brought us a new character called “Cannibal Colm” and this guy is creepy.

Captain America #13. “Hell’s Angel”-Part 2. Written by Chip Zdarsky with art by Ton Lima. Cover art was done by Valerio Schiti and variant cover (Marvel Dimensions) was done by Alex Ross (Gold Medalist). Cap and Doom are in Hell, trying to round up a crew to help them take on Mephisto. Meanwhile, Spider-Man comes to sit at the comatose Captain America’s bedside.

Something Epic #13. Written, illustrated, and cover art (all variants) by Szymon Kudranski. I loved this book, but it has been on hiatus for nearly to years. I was excited to see it back and I loved the various homage covers that the variants were displaying. Noa and D-Ductive are back and investigating the Land of Horror after a tragedy. They find yet another dead (?) body at the very end of the new issue. I am a fan of Szymon Kudranski and I love that this is back in the rotation.

Punisher vs. Amazing Spider-Man #1. “Professional Differences” Written by Dan Abnett with art by Matteo Della Fonte. Cover art was done by Jonas Scharf & Alex Guimarães. This featured the relationship between Spider-Man and Punisher, which makes one wonder why that is. They actually have some things in common, except for their methods, which is a area of contention in this book. It takes place early after Punisher and Spidey meet the first time in ASM #129.

Avengers Armageddon #2. Written by Chip Zdarsky with art by Delio Diaz and Frank Alpizar. Cover art was done by Dike Ruan & Moreno Dinisio (Silver Medalist). The big Marvel series gets its number two as the Avengers and Fantastic Four look to try and stop the Red Hulk’s democracy rampage. Colton and Red Hulk go one-on-one and Colton seemed to flip his head. There is a huge feel of danger and suspense in the series so far.

Junk Punch #2. Written by Paul Tobin with art by Carlos Javier Olivares and Lin Visel. Junk Punch continues to be a comic that makes me laugh. I still wonder if the joke of punching someone in the groin area will remain as funny, but I did like this issue. We are introduced to several new characters in the Junk Punch world. Let’s see how this moves on.

D’Orc #6. “Fate is Fickle” Written, art and cover art by Brett Bean. Speaking of consistently funny, D’Orc is one of my favorite books every month. We learn this issue why Gloinspear is, as D’Orc said, “….such a dick?” Surprise, surprise. Gloinspear is D’Orc’s father. Okay, so it wasn’t as big of a surprise as say, Vader and Luke, but it was fun.

Smile: For the Camera #5. Written by Hannah Rose May with art by Miriana Puglia. Cover art was done by Skylar Patridge. This mini-series based on the movie series, Smile, came to a close with this issue and I have to say that I really liked the wrap up of the story. It did not end as I expected and I do like to be surprised. It felt like the ending was earned for our main character.

Mister Nemo #1. Written by Mark London with art by Alden Kaye. Cover art was done by Duncan Rouleau. This new book from Mad Cave was one of the best of the week. The art was fabulous and we get a current day adaptation of Captain Nemo, including the Nautilus. The first issue was a really cool start as we are introduced to the concept and our new hero.

Inglorious X-Force #7. “As Luck Would Have It.” Written by Tim Seeley with art by Michael Sta. Maria. Cover art was done by R.B. Silva & David Curiel. Cyclops and Quentin Quire come to have a talk with Cable and the X-Force. Scott and Nathan are, of course, father and son, while Quire is still dealing with past issues with Akihiro (whom he knew as Daken).

War Wolf #7. Written by Steve Orlando and art by Marco Perugini. Cover art was done by David Talaski. Bruin goes to the leaders and tells them what he is going to do. This penultimate issue of the series is here to set up the finale, Father vs. Son, Bruin vs. Worldkiller.

Assorted Crisis Events #9. Written by Deniz Camp with art and variant cover C art by Eric Zawadzki. “The issue centers on a kid named Chuckie who uses “TEMPS”—the first cross-temporal employment app—to secure quick cash in a pointless, cross-time war where untrained temp workers from all of human history are sent to fight. ” (Brooke, AIPT). It has been six months since we had an issue of this sci-fi/satire series from Image Comics. This one is a lot of fun.

Fantastic Four #14. “Irrational” Written by Ryan North and art by Ramon Rosanas. Cover art was done by Humberto Ramos & Edgar Delgado. This issue, featuring Jo-Venn and N’Kalla Masters-Grimm, the adopted kids of Ben and Alicia, proved the dangers of MATH, specifically the dangers of pi and its never ending digits. It is clear that math is the true villain in the world today, especially in the world of 616. We’ll see if Todd actually reads these posts.

Spider-Versity #4. “Most School Spirit” Written by Jordan Morris & Joe Kelly with art by Pere Perez. Cover art was done by Giuseppe Camuncoli, Lorenzo Ruggiero & Marte Gracia. Norman’s sneakiness is out in the open to Spider Woman, but there are more troubles than the double-dealing Osborn. The Carnage symbiote is free and has possessed one of the Spider-Versity.

X-Men #33. “Anomaly”, Part 3. Written by Jed MacKay with pencils by Tony S. Daniel. Cover art was done by Tony S. Daniel & Fer Sifuentes-Sujo. Variant cover C was done by Matteo Della Fonte. The X-Men’s science team discovered the answers to the anomalies that were plaguing the Canadian Rocky Mountains. It came from the unconscious mind of Schwarzchild, member of the 3K. Ben and Quentin went inside the mind to try and stop the horrific anomalies.

Minotaur #1. Written by Si Spurrier with art and cover art by Mike Dowling. Ignition Press has been hot as can be over the last six months to a year, putting out some excellent mini-series. The latest is a sci-fi series called Minotaur. Gloria Monday was the protagonist of this series as a photojournalist who does not seem to have much empathy. She is documenting people who are haunted by outbreaks of the future.

The Rocketfellers #13. Written by Peter J. Tomasi and art by Francis Manapul. Variant cover C art done by Francis Portela. Tommy Townsend III and his robot Sterling, along with Rose & Zach, come to the door of the Rocketfellers, who are in the middle of trying to celebrate Rachel’s birthday. Part 3 of 4 in The Unbelievables? crossover sees our typical hero on hero fight and a betrayal by Sterling.

Absolute Green Arrow #3. “The Longbow Killer”-Chapter 3. Written by Pornsak Pichetshote with art by Rafael Albuquerque. Cover art was done by Rafael Albuquerque & Marcelo Maiolo. Dinah is on the case of who exactly is the Longbow Killer, and along the way, she comes across the absolute version of Solomon Grundy. Absolute Green Arrow has been extended from six issue mini series to a 12-issue series, which is great because Green Arrow has been a great read and the mystery is engaging.

The Department of Truth #38. Written by James Tynion IV with art by Ben Templesmith. Cover art was done by Martin Simmonds. The dinosaurs living in Florida is the latest Fiction making its way around the world as Hunky is on the case. He discovered at the end of the issue that his father, Huck passed away. Is that the truth? Not sure. Who ever knows the truth in this book?

If Destruction be Our Lot #3. “I Would Rather Be a Little Nobody Than to be an Evil Somebody” Written by Matthew & Mark Elijah Rosenberg with art by Andy MacDonald. Cover art was done by Andy McDonald and Francesco Segala. Abe comes across a human being, and this little girl runs from him. Abe tries to pursue but only gets himself into more trouble.

Absolute Flash #17. “Gorilla City- Part 2 of 2” Written by Jeff Lemire and art by Haining. Cover art was done by Nick Robles. Wally keeps his search going for Grodd, as Wally convinces the Rogues, whose mission is to kill Grodd, that it was not Grodd causing the problems, but actually Grodd’s father. Unfortunately, that just meant that the Trickster wound up shooting Grodd’s father in the head, killing him.

Space Ghost Annual #1. Written by David Pepose with art and cover art by Jonathan Lau. Space Ghost is ready for it all to be over, perhaps giving up the mantel of Space Ghost. First, he and the twins need to defeat Magnus. Space Ghost has to deal with the death of future Jace, Space Spectre. This annual leads into a crossover with the Herculoids.

Infernal Hulk #9. “Flash Magic” Written by Phillip Kennedy Johnson with art by Adam Gorham. Cover art was done by Nic Klein. Banner and Doctor Voodoo head inside a soul cage to confront the Hulk, in an attempt to get the Hulk power back. Banner offers up Voodoo as a prize in a contest, the Riddle Game.

GI Joe #24. Written by Joshua Williamson with art by Andrea Milana. Cover art was done by Tom Reilly. Baroness has discovered the undercover Zartan, who has been posing as Hawk. This was after working with Destro to escape their troubles.

Tigress Island #5. Written by Patrick Kindlon with art and cover art by Ephk. This mini-series form Image ended with this issue, as out surviving women are able to escape form the island. There are lots of explosions and deaths in this issue as everything is wrapped up, although there’s one who floated away, potentially alive.

Other Books This Week: Dungeon Crawler Carl #0, Arcadia #6, End of Life #4, M1: Monster Racing League #2, John Le Carre’s The Circus: Losing Control #3, and Alien: King Killer #4.

Quick Hits: This week we kick off the Quick Hits with Of the Earth #3. This series from Chris Condon continues to be one of the more engaging books each month. We got an interesting What If…? Jessica Jones #1 where Jessica gets bitten by the radioactive spider. I liked this, but I did think the identity of the Green Goblin in this issue was painfully predictable. That did hurt the overall book. More inside the house drama is going down in Fall of the House of Slaughter #3. I loved the cover on this book, but since it was a huge week for covers, it did not achieve a medal. On a normal week, this cover by Sam Wolfe Connelly surely would have been in the top three. I will say that I was kind of disappointed with Banana Number One #1 from Bad Idea. It was goofy as all get out, but that was not the problem. The Banana Number One part of this book was maybe the first third. The rest of the book was other stories that I did not want to read. I wanted more banana. More anthropomorphic animals arrive with the Super Mondo Mega Mutts #1 from Oni Press. Honestly, I found this one to be average at best. I guess you can reach a limit with your anthropomorphic animals. Who knew? Antarctic Press Comics released Horror Comics #1, which I grabbed. I like horror comics, but this is really more of an art book with each page being a cool horror drawing by several artists. There was one short story in the book which went about three or four pages. The rest would be pin-ups with horror themes. It was great art, but not what I expected. Murder Podcast #8 brought this Ignition Press comic to an end. Honestly, this was another one that I found a little disappointing. For as creative of an idea this was, the conclusion felt very typical. Kill Switch #3 is placing our body jumping characters into some real troubling situations. Tankers vs. Ancient Aliens #2 still is more focused on dinosaurs, but it looked like those pesky ancient aliens are coming next issue. Megalith: The Olympus Saga #0 continued the weird trend of Bad Idea books releasing issues #1 and 2 and then releasing issue #0. Dynamite ended Ursula #5 which was one of the bigger surprises for me this year. No way I enjoyed this series… but I did. Star trek: The Last Starship is setting up a big confrontation between Kirk and Captain Sato. Finally, there is a book called The Last Ronin: Training Day #1 from IDW that takes place between gaps in the Last Ronin saga.