March 7, 2023

At the moment, there are so many independent comic that I am reading. I have been grabbing several series and finding issues in my piles that are intriguing me at the moment. Plus, I am more caught up with Marvel than I thought. There are a couple of series from Marvel that I am still working on, but my most favorite ones are caught up.

I have been enjoying this trip through the independents, especially those that feature some of my favorite writers working right now.

Here we go…

Gideon Falls #1-2. Written by Jeff Lemire and drawn by Andrea Sorrentino. Just got the entire series of Gideon Falls in the mail today and I got the chance to start it off with two really great issues setting up what was happening. Father Quinn heads into the town only to find something dark and mysterious going on with the black barn. This was a great kick off and I am excited to continue it along.

Primordial #2. Written (also) by Jeff Lemire and drawn by Andrea Sorrentino. This book is mostly about a dog named Laika. A dog that was sent into space to eventually meet a monkey. It has been a fascinating start to this short series. Lemire and Sorrentino are an exciting pair that have brought us some really good stories.

King of Spies #3-4. Written by Mark Millar and drawn by Matteo Sealera. I loved the wrap up of King of Spies with Roland King finishing off with the worst monster of all…himself. The end of this series was rough but it was very poetic. This was a tight and exciting story that really worked.

Home #1-2. Written by Julio Anta and drawn by Anna Wieszczyk. This is one that I have found in the piles and I decided to start. I am still looking for #3 though (it’s here somewhere). This is an extremely political issue, featuring immigration problems that happened during the Trump Administration. Separating children from their mothers became a central moment for this comic. However, there is a super powered twist to this that makes it all the more interesting.

Moon Knight #13. “Knight feeders” Written by Jed MacKay and drawn by Federico Sabbatini. Still got some Marvel to read. Taskmaster guest stars and told the guy trying to hire him to go after Moon Knight that he wanted no part of Moon Knight. He scared him. This is a guy who will take on any number of Marvel heroes, but Moon Knight is the line he draws. I love the respect given by the villains to heroes.

The Me You Love in the Dark #3. Written by Skottie Young with art done by Jorge Corona. The book has really become a weird one as artist, Ro, continues to work on her painting while, seemingly, dating the spirit of the house. It even ends with some ‘baum-chick-a-bow-bow” at the end. Popcorn, movies and Netflix and chill with the spirit? Why not. Didn’t see that coming…so to speak.

Hulk #12. “Hulk Planet Part Four.” Written and drawn by Ryan Ottley (plotted with Donny Cates). This was actually my favorite of the Hulk books recently. Banner is struggling to prevent Titan from taking over. I am not sure if Titan is what I think it is, but it had a much more Immortal Hulk feel to the end of this issue. And there was a big time boom at the end too. This was the first issue of this run of the Hulk that engaged me. Hope this continues moving forward.

March 5, 2023

I have been picking up some recent graphic novels via eBay. In fact, I have three that were recently nominated for an Eisner. Two of which I will review below.

The third one is the most recent Eisner winner. It is called Monsters by Barry Windsor Smith. The problem is… this thing is like a textbook. It is a massive 360 pages and an attempt to start it is overwhelming.

I have read a few pages of the monstrosity, but I am not sure when this will get finished. Perhaps this is a book to wait with until summer. Or maybe a little bit every day. Either way, it is gigantic.

Otherwise, here are the rest…

Meadowlark. Creative duo of Greg Ruth and Ethan Hawke. Yes, Ethan Hawke the actor. The cover describes it as “a coming-of-age crime story.” I can see why this was nominated for an Eisner because this was a beautiful book. The art was spectacular and the color was very sepia-toned. It is a lovely book to look at, even if the story was one of pain. It followed teenager Cooper who had been giving his mother trouble lately. He wound up at his father, Jack’s, place of business- at a prison on a day when several inmates executed an escape plan. Things get rather personal for Jack and Cooper quickly. You can definitely see this as a film starring Ethan Hawke as Jack. I can’t imagine that this project is not down the road a bit. The book was a quick and thrilling read. I really enjoyed this.

Lugosi: The Rise & Fall of Hollywood’s Dracula. Story and art were done by Koren Shadmi. This is the life story of the famous actor Bela Legosi, who became most well known for his role as Count Dracula for Universal Studios. The graphic novel covered Legosi’s life from a youngster in Hungary until his death, sad and broken in California. We hear about his struggles getting any roles significant besides Dracula, his rivalries with Boris Karloff and his friendship with Ed Wood. We see Legosi’s marriages and his family issues. It is a fascinating look at an iconic actor in the early days of cinema.

Love Everlasting #3-5. Written by Tom King and drawn by Elsa Charretier. Joan Peterson made her way into plenty of love stories over these three issues. Issue five was a little different as it gave us a bit of background in what exactly was going on, but it did not lay out everything. Apparently, Joan’s mother has some involvement here- hiring the cowboy who has been killing Joan in the different timelines. Each of these issues had a different twist to them and I have been enjoying the mysterious story as in moves along.

Middlewest #1. Written by Skottie Young and drawn by Jorge Corona. Abel is a young kid whose had plenty of problems from an abusive and strict father. Middlewest is a beautifully looking book that I was attracted to because of Skottie Young’s work on Strange Academy. He has become one of those writers that I want to read because their work is always great. This world is magical and I want to know more.

King of Spies #2. Written by Mark Millar and drawn by Matteo Sealera. Roland King is back at it. He has six months to live and the former British spy has decided that he will use the time he has remaining to kill as many monsters as he can. It seemed that the British Intelligence knows who is behind the recent rush of murders and assassinations and they have called in Roland’s son, Atticus. Millar is really good at this style of story and I am intrigued with what is next.

Primordial #1. Written by Jeff Lemire and drawn by Andrea Sorrentino. The pair that would eventually work on the Bone Orchard Mythos project, worked together on this series for Image. This is a book where the advancement of the space program took a different path in the early 1960s. The sci-fi book, which made me think of Interstellar crossed with The Department of Truth, kicks off with a great mystery involving what happened to a pair of monkeys sent into space.

Jane Foster & The Mighty Thor #5. “Part Five of Five.” Written by Torunn Grønbekk and drawn by Michael Dowling. This issue wrapped up the story of Jane Foster’s search for Thor and the attack by Ares, God of War, on Asgard. Honestly, this book was, at best, adequate. There was a lot of Thor-type action and weird names that can make it tough to follow. Still, it looked great and it leads into the current storyline running in Thor currently so, it was worth the read.

Ten Thousand Black Feathers #2. Written by Jeff Lemire with art from Andrea Sorrentino. We continue to see the background and history between Jackie and Trish, setting up the mystery beneath the series… Jackie’s disappearance. Trish is determined to help her friend, even after ten years. The splitting between the girls’ lives and the fantasy element of the book is cool and keeps things moving quickly.

Regarding the Matter of Oswald’s Body #1. “Chapter One: October 55th.” I found this number one in a pile and I was curious to read it. It was from Boom! Studios which has had plenty of solid short series. The book fell into a lot of the current books I have been reading, as a mystery man named Frank is assembling a group of people. Not sure what the mission is, but the last page has a picture of Lee Harvey Oswald. Oswald starred in The Department of Justice too. I do not think I am pursuing this book any further, but it was not a bad read.

The Me You Love in the Dark #2. Written by Skottie Young and drawn by Jorge Corona. Ro is an artist trying to rediscover her mojo, but the house that she is staying at is haunted… or something like that. This is an uncommon haunted house tale, as it really is more of a character piece with most of the book centered around a conversation. I liked it so far. It was an easy read and it keeps the suspense about what is going on.

March 4, 2023

So it is post #42… which is, of course, the answer to the ultimate question. It was Jackie Robinson’s number that was retired by Major League Baseball across all teams. It was the final number of Hurley’s numbers on LOST. Number 42 is a significant number so it is a good day to do another special edition of the Comic Catch-Up.

I was pondering some questions the other day. One that I was thinking about was what causes me to try a new title? Especially now that I have been expanding my comic reading significantly past just Marvel. Why do I try something and not others?

What I came up with was clear. It was the writer.

When I was young, I was more into the artist. I remember being more of a fan of those people creating the look, the imagery, the beauty of the book than those who were writing it. I loved John Byrne, Walter Simonson, Arthur Adams, John Romita Jr (Spider-Man, of course), Frank Miller, among others.

Now, I honestly do not know a bunch of artists off the top of my head. However, when I see certain names of writers attached to projects, I feel my curiosity piqued. I have started the Bone Orchard Mythos because of Jeff Lemire. I gave Love Everlasting another chance because it was written by Tom King (who wrote the brilliant 2015 Vision series). Tom Tayler wrote my favorite run of Spidey books called Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man. Donny Cates is up and down, either being brilliant with Crossover or horrendous with the new Hulk series. Speaking of Hulk, The Immortal Hulk brought Al Ewing to the front. I have purchased several of Skottie Young’s books because of his work on Strange Academy. Even the old days would make me think about Chris Claremont. Several of those artists I mentioned earlier transitioned into becoming writers too.

Though it would be up for debate, perhaps my current favorite writer working in comics today is most likely James Tynion IV. I was introduced to his work on Something is Killing the Children and I have loved The House of Slaughter, The Department of Truth and The Closet. I never read any of his Batman books that I have heard he became known for.

One of the things I love about Tynion’s writing is that he has such a variety of tones to his work and his style, which feels the same, is actually very different. In SiKtC, Tynion IV does not use a lot of dialogue or exposition, relying heavily on the art/images to move the story along. The Department of Truth is much opposite, as several of the issues were exposition-heavy. The look of many of these books are extremely original as well. Different is important.

No matter what they style, James Tynion IV is an exceptional storyteller, in many ways pushing the format of comics into areas where they have never been before. If I see his name on the cover of a book (say, Blue Book #1), I am much more likely to pick it up than I would be if it were written by another comic writer.

So, I jumped into James Tynion IV’s oeuvre today with both feet.

The Department of Truth #18-22. The art was done on all of these issues by Martin Simmonds. I was terribly upset, because as I reached issue 22, I realized that the book had ended. I did not know that before. I was upset because I had really enjoyed this book. Even worse, I think this last few issues were just amazing. The exposition-heavy part of these issues had been lowered a bit as more and more truth started to come out. They went into more specifics about what The Department of Truth and what exactly was happening. I should have seen that as a clue that the book was wrapping up. However, they left off on a massive cliffhanger so I hope that we have not seen the last of Lee Harvey Oswald and the others.

Enter the House of Slaughter Free Comic Book Day. Art by Tate Brombal. This was the prequel for the ongoing series House of Slaughter that came out on Free Comic Book Day. I had not read it when I was doing the Something is Killing the Children catch-up day, and it was in the pile just waiting for the opportunity. With the Tynion day today, the moment was perfect. It weaved together much of the background of the original arc for Erica and threw some more spice in the mix.

The Closet #1-3. Art by Gavin Fullerton. I had no idea that there were only three issues in this series, done during the 30th anniversary of Image Comics. I had read the first couple of issues, but I did not know it ended with three because I had not finished it. So I re-read the whole thing to keep myself clear on what was going down. I am pleased that I did because it was a tough story that was filled with pain and fear. Thom is such a horrible person and a rotten father and husband, but you can still relate to the loser’s struggles. Of course, in the end, his own selfishness was causing fear for his son and the imagery of what the kid was having happen was just hard to read.

The Nice House on the Lake #1-12. Artist: Álvaro Martínez Bueno. This is the series that I ordered when I was going over the Eisner Awards looking for interesting independent books. This is not independent as it is DC Comics Black Label, but it definitely has an indie-feel to it. I loved this book as some benevolent ‘alien(?)’ who had been masquerading as a human for years, was instructed to find 10 exceptional humans to save before the end of the world. However, Walter (the ‘alien’) had grabbed the friends he had made during his time as a human and he took them all to a idyllic paradise, on a house on a lake. He found out that the human nature was too erratic. The series does an excellent job of building this group of people over the run of the 12-issues so that they are important to the reader and three-dimensional as characters. Much like a lot of Tynion’s work, the narrative is not just told in the typical comic book fashion. The use of text messages, memos and sketches make this a unique and engaging series.

March 3, 2023

It’s Friday night and I have read several comics over the last couple of days. I am going to continue to read these books and when there is enough, I will continue to do the Comic Catch-Up.

I got one of my orders from eBay today with a graphic novel. It will be the first book I discuss below as I continue to find more interest in the Bone Orchard Mythos by Jeff Lemire and Andrea Sorrentino.

Off we go…

The Passageway. Writer: Jeff Lemire. Artist: Andrea Sorrentino. This graphic novel kicked off the Bone Orchard Mythos where Jeff Lemire and Andrea Sorrentino team-up once again to build a horror book and several horror series that fall inside the same connected universe. That idea intrigued me a great deal and so I looked into the books. This graphic novel is a wonderful kick off to this horror world. The art is great with some beautiful images on these pages. The story is intense. These birds are really creepy. It is a great start to this project.

Ten Thousand Black Feathers #1. Jeff Lemire & Andrea Sorrentino’s The Bone Orchard Mythos continues with this new short series. It starts with am introduction to two characters, Trish and Jackie, and their relationship, how it began and where they went. The darkness is there and the mysterious events are extremely inventive and involving.

Basilisk #2. “Chapter Two: Blessings of the Chimera.” Written by Cullen Bunn and drawn by Jonas Scharf. This issue was a little more of a downward trend for me. I still enjoyed it, but there was a lot in here that felt like I wasn’t sure what was happening (and not in the good way) and material that did not still with me after reading it. Still love the character and the last page was beautifully horrific so I hope the narrative grasps my attention more moving forward.

Jane Foster & the Mighty Thor #4. “Part Four of Five.” Written by Torunn Grønbekk with art from Michael Dowling. Jane Foster continues her search to find Thor and the connection between the pair of these characters is developed more. And while that is going on… we get Ares. Looks like the finale of this short series could be fire.

The Department of Truth #17. Written by James Tynion IV and drawn by Jorge Fornés. Lee Harvey Oswald joins forces with President Richard Nixon. I had to let that idea sink in a minute. The rest of the book focuses in on the Apollo 11 moon landing mission. One of the interesting ideas with The Department of Truth is that you read the story and you are never really sure if what you read is what happened. It is the ultimate conspiracy theory book that is just fascinating with its big swings every issue.

The Riddler Year One #3. Written by Paul Dano with art by Stevan Subic. The cover featured art by the legendary Bill Sienkiewicz. I did have more trouble following this issue than I did with previous ones. I have a feeling I have a good idea where it is going, but I can also see a situation where I misjudged what the book is trying to tell me. It is still a beautifully original book with some great storytelling techniques.

Ghost Rider #12. “Neeropolis.” Written by Benjamin Percy and drawn by Cory Smith. Savannah is going up in flames and it seemed as if the Ghost Rider was to blame. This was news to Johnny Storm, who arrived in the city with Talia discovering that plenty of people thought he was behind this. Blaze had an idea of what had happened… and the idea of another Ghost Rider popped up.

King of Spies #1. Written by Mark Millar and drawn by Matteo Sealera. One of the world’s greatest spies, Roland King, is at a time in his life where he is having health issues. In fact, he had been diagnosed with terminal brain cancer and given 6 months to live. Instead of rolling over and dying, Roland decided to take the fight to the evil of the world. Mark Millar writes this type of character extremely well and this first issue of four was very compelling.

Cove the Dead with Lime #3. The story of Jack Teller continues as we see how he wound up becoming one of the hooded plague doktors. It is a terribly tragic tale told in a difficult manner. The art is extremely moody and tense. This has been an intriguing book written by Jonathan Chance and drawn by Hernan Gonzalez.

Love Everlasting #2. “The Hunt for Love.” Written by Tom King and drawn by Elsa Charretier. Joan finds herself in a new love story, this time as a maid who fell in love with the son of the nobleman she worked for. To say that his father approved of the love would be an understatement. Then, as the book continued, the story takes a weird turn. Love Everlasting provided, once more, a compelling and unexpectedly good story. I am very anxious to find out what is going down here.

March 1, 2023

Well, welcome to the All-New, All-Different Comic Catch-Up for March. Okay, so it may not be all-new or all-different. I got a cool new heading for March, though. Reminder that I will not be doing this post daily as I did in February, but it will absolutely be a regular post during March.

It is Wednesday, so that means it is NEW COMIC BOOK DAY. I actually bought a bunch of back issues today, including several Love Everlasting issues, but I stuck to reading the new issues tonight.

Interestingly, it was March 1st, and Marvel released like seven different books that were number ones. I got them all. There are some that I may not continue collecting moving forward, but it is a coincidence that all the number ones arrived on the first of the month.

Here is the night’s haul.

Hallows’ Eve #1. “There’s One in Every Deck.” Hallows’ Eve came from the pages of Amazing Spider-Man during the Dark Web storyline, which may not have been the biggest selling point for this book. I did not love the Dark Web event, but this issue was much more intriguing. This character had some good moments in this first issue and, I mean, she pretended to be a werewolf. Can’t beat that. Written by Erica Schultz and drawn by Michael Dowling.

I am Iron Man #1. “Chapter One: Hero” Written by Murewa Ayodele with art by Dotun Akande. I did like this book. In particular, the look of the issue was just wonderful. I was very impressed with the art from Dotun Akande. Akande’s cover was really great, harping back to a noir flavor. The story itself was a tad difficult to follow as the story trekked across several different versions of Iron Man in different time frames.

Spider-Gwen: Shadow Clones #1. Written by Emily Kim and drawn by Kei Zama. David Nakayama did the cover for this issue. This was a fun book, even if the story constantly used the C-word. Clones. That word brings back some horrendous feelings of betrayal and anger. Feelings that have never truly allowed me to give a crap about Ben Reilly, no matter what position he was in. However, Gwen is just a charming character and is fun to read.

Rogue & Gambit #1. “Buy a Girl A(nother) Ring First.” Written by Stephanie Phillips and drawn by Carlos Gomez. Cover art was done by Steve Morris. This book reminded me of how much I used to enjoy Gambit. This started out with some excellent Remy LeBeau action, albeit some drunk action. Of course, when your wife is Rogue, you are usually in a pretty good place. When Destiny shows up with one of her visions, she sends Rogue and Gambit to retrieve Manifold, the teleporter. It does not go well.

Spider-Man: Unforgiven #1. “Horror Stuff” Written by Tim Seeley and drawn by Sid Kotian. Kyle Hotz & Dan Brown did the art on the cover. This looks to be the next series of books with a new group of supernatural characters. These are the Forgiven and they are vampires who do not consume human blood and are out to look to help humans. They come across Spider-Man in this issue and next issue will meet up with the X-Men. There was a surprising betrayal in this issue that caught me, and the other characters, off guard. I hope to get more on these new characters than just their vampire powers.

Murderworld: Game Over #1. Written by Jim Zub & Ray Fawkes with art from Lorenzo Tammetta. This concluded the Murderworld story with Arcade’s Squid Game (basically). I had been cheering for the regular humans to make it through the trap-filled Murderworld. Turned out that Black Widow, who appeared at the end of the last episode, was not our Natasha after all. LMDs. Arcade showed what a manipulative villain he could be and displayed the depth of his cruelness. I’m not sure I loved the ending, but I did like this series.

Cosmic Ghost Rider #1. “Dual Identity Part One.” Written by Stephanie Phillips and drawn by Juann Cabal. This was fine. I have never been much of a fan of the character of Cosmic Ghost Rider and this did nothing to change my mind. I was fine with the book and I liked the design of Kral Dravitt. While it was fine, I will most likely not continue on with this one.

Spider-Man #6. “Part Six: The Once and Future Queen.” So there were more than just number ones this month. This is written by Dan Slott and drawn by Mark Bagley. Despite this A + creative team, I just am not into this Spider-Verse stuff. I just want my Peter Parker in Spider-Man stories. I do not need all of these variants everywhere. This is labeled as the End of the Spider-verse and I hope that it is the case.

Captain America: Sentinel of Liberty #10. Written by Jackson Lanzing and Collin Kelly. Art is by Carmen Carnero. M.O.D.O.C. is here and causing all kinds of trouble. Cap is still shaken from the betrayal of Bucky and the Invaders are here to help stop the giant headed villain. However, it seemed as if the book ends with some tragedy.

February 28, 2023

Well, here it is. The final day of February brings to an end the every day Comic Catch-up that has been going strong daily. I have made a dent in the piles of comics that I have but there are still several piles to go.

This feels like the letter page at the end of a series’ run. The writer saying how he/she had such an awesome experience with whichever character that was in the book. He/She thanked the artist, the other creative people, the editors, and the fans who had been so dedicated to the book.

There have been days when I had to squeeze the time in the day. Most of the days, however, I spent way more than the one hour that I had originally intended to give. It has been awesome. I had really missed reading my comics. I have caught up with a bunch of the titles that I currently collect, which makes NEW COMIC BOOK DAY all the better. I have also found myself more invested in the independent comics than I have ever been. I have found fun searching across eBay to pick up complete sets. Several of these will be coming in the mail this week.

After all of this reflection, I do plan on continuing the Comic Catch-Up as the calendar turns to March. It will just not have to be daily. If there is a day I get home from school and have something to watch on TV that evening, maybe I do not read anything on that day. I won’t feel the need to wake up early on busy days to read before I have to get ready for school. There is nothing saying when I have to do a post. All I can say is that there will be plenty of days when the Comic Catch-Up will continue.

I do plan on continuing the post numbering with #40. I am not ready to restart the numbering at number one like they do with comics…all the time. How many Deadpool #1s have there been?

So, with the final Comic Catch-Up of February, let’s go…

Crossover #9-13. Written (and starring) Donny Cates. Drawn by Geoff Shaw. I loved this series. It was one of the most meta stories that I have ever read. Who knew that Donny Cates himself would be a major character (who dies) in the book. I love Ellipses and Ryan. The section involving Brian Bendis was hilarious. Negan killing Robert Kirkman with Lucille? Did not see that coming. There were just a ton of surprises and exceptional cameos and guest stars. I had only planned on reading issue #9 & 10 tonight, but I was just so into the story that I had to finish it up. I sure hope that this is not the complete end of the book because the cliffhanger was compelling as hell. Perhaps the meta aspect of Crossover would wear thin one day, but that had not happened in the first 13 issues. Bring on some more.

The Department of Truth #16. Written by James Tynion IV and penciled by Alison Sampson. The Department of Truth and Lee Harvey Oswald goes psychadelic. Lee is stoned and the whole issue was a total trip. The art by Alison Simpson was utterly wild, full of color and like a fever dream. And all centered around RFK. Another outstanding issue.

Black Panther #7. “The Long Shadow Book Seven” Written by John Ridley and drawn by Stefano Landini. Cover Art by EYG Hall of Famer Alex Ross. Tosin meets up with Shuri and T’Challa’s group continues to grow. Despite the fact that these characters are preparing to fight with T’Challa, none of them seem to like him very much. Even Storm and the Dora Milaje had issues with the former king. Still, the forces are forming to oppose the power grab of Akili.

Moon Knight #12. “The Killing Time Part Two” Written by Jed Mackay with art from Alessandro Cappuccio. Stephen Segovia & Rachelle Rosenberg were featured as cover artists. This might have been my favorite issue of this new run of Moon Knight yet. All of these characters were coming to a wonderful convergence as Moon Knight and Zodiac were facing off and just when it looked like Zodiac was going to get his final comeuppance… Steven Grant arrives. Great issue.

Jane Foster & the Mighty Thor #3. “Part Three of Five” Written by Torunn Grønbekk and art by Michael Dowling. Jane taking on S’ym in Limbo is one thing, but the last few pages of this issue were shocking. I guess Thor does not know who Jane was. Now, true, amnesia is an overused plot device, but there was just something of the way in which this was revealed that made it feel fresh.

The Silver Coin #3. “Death Rattle.” Written by Ed Brisson with art from Michael Walsh. A brutal issue featuring a female thief who came across the cursed coin, which seemingly turned her into a vicious murderer. I did like a lot of the imagery and the kills involved, but the story itself felt a little lacking of depth. The ending was very intriguing though.

Hulk #11. “Hulk Planet Part Three“. Written, penciled and inked by Ryan Ottley. I guess this was the Hulk’s chance to play Quidditch. A game called Godball on this planet of Hulk worshipers. I found this one to be just ridiculous and not enjoyable at all. I am really hoping to get some form of the real Hulk back soon because this whole Spaceship Hulk thing with Banner and others piloting him is just not doing it for me. This was easily my least favorite book of the day.

So February comes to a close. March is coming in like a lamb weather-wise, but like a lion since tomorrow is NEW COMIC BOOK DAY!!!!

February 27, 2023

The Comic Catch-Up rolls along with number 38 today. The piles of comics have started to show a tad bit of a dent, which is great. I should have some new independent comics this week too sometimes.

Here is today’s haul…

Jane Foster & The Mighty Thor #2. “Part Two of Five“. Jane Foster has Mjolnir, her Valkyrie abilities and a mission to find Thor Odinson. Thor has disappeared (we get an idea of what happened to Thor to kick off this issue) and Jane is in search of her former love. Of course, she is aided by the spirit of Odin who has taken up residence in the hammer. Jane discovers that Thor may have been taken to Limbo. Written by Torunn Grønbekk with art from Michael Dowling.

Hulk #10. “Hulk Planet” Written by Donny Cates and drawn by Ryan Ottley. Hulk arrived on a strange planet where the population seemed to idolize the Hulk. The planet had been exposed to gamma radiation rom a bomb that exploded in Hulk #6. Not sure I am a fan of this arc either. I miss the Immortal Hulk.

Black Panther #6. “The Long Shadow Book Six“. T’Challa is being hunted by the forces of Wakanda for being a traitor. The forces have orders to capture or kill the King. It is a good thing Black Panther has friend… or an ex-wife like Storm… to fall back on. Written by John Ridley and drawn by Stefano Landini, the political intrigue of Wakanda continues on.

The Silver Coin #2. “Girls of Summer” Written by Kelly Thompson and drawn by Michael Walsh. This issue focuses on a camp where the campers are being murdered. And it is all because of the mysterious silver coin. A tragic story in a familiar sub genre of horror.

Moon Knight #11. “The Killing Time Part One.” Moon Knight is out for blood as Zodiac has his therapist, Andrea Sterman. With the problem facing Moon Knight, he is forced to go to the one place he really did not want to go to for help…Khonshu. Written by Jed MacKay with art by Alessandro Cappuccio.

Crossover #5-8. Issues 5, 6 & 8 written by Donny Cates and drawn by Geoff Shaw. Issue #7 written by Chip Zdarsky and drawn by Phil Hester. I am enjoying this romp through the super hero character of comics coming together. As I said, this would not be anything more than just a gimmick if the characterization of out main crew was not as exceptional as it is. Issue #7 was a bit of a detour as we follow the adventures of Chip Zdarsky and his comic book counterpart. An unexpectedly wild issue.

February 26, 2023

Second post in the Comic Catch-Up of the day as February comes to a close later this week. I spent a little time today going through piles once again searching for some more comics to get started with. I did find a few new (old) books.

The Last Book You’ll Ever Read #8. Written by Cullen Bunn and drawn by Leila Leiz. Lookie Lookie! Just today in Comic Catch-Up #36, I did issues 4-7 and I speculated that I was missing the final issue of this book and I was considering whether I wanted to pick it up or not because I was not enjoying it much. That very day, I find it in a pile, taking the choice out of my hands. And the end of the book was as unsatisfying as I could imagine. I really hated the way this book ended, and I was not much of a fan of it in the first place. I don’t know if they plan on a sequel or continuing the story on down the road, but this is absolutely literally the last book (in this series) I’ll ever read.

Moon Knight#10. “Session” Written by Jed MacKay and penciled by Alessandro Cappuccio. This Moon Knight has really become brutal. Even his own friends are a little uncertain about him. This was a rough issue where Moon Knight dealt with the problem of Waxman and dealt with him in an almost cruel manner. I wonder if Moon Knight is slipping deeper into his illness.

Hulk #9. “Hulk Planet Part One“. Written by Donny Cates and drawn by Ryan Ottley. Bruce Banner is in a therapy session with “Doc Sampson” and he flashes back to one of the few happy memories of his childhood. This is a prerequisite for Bruce to get on the ship every day. Then it appears as if Hulk has returned… home?

Black Panther #5. “The Long Shadow Book Five” Written by John Ridley and drawn by Juann Cabal with Stefano Landini. Alex Ross did yet another cover for the book. T’Challa is on the run as the government of Wakanda is beginning to believe that he committed treason against the state. Meanwhile Shuri and Omolola escape together too.

The Silver Coin #1. “The Ticket.” Written by Chip Zdarsky with art by Michael Walsh. This is an anthology horror series that kicked off with a “magical” coin finding its way into the hands of a young rock guitarist who discovered that he was suddenly so much better playing that he was before. It was a pretty sad story of a pathetic loser trying to make it in the world of rock and roll.

Crossover #1-4. Written by Donny Cates and drawn by Geoff Shaw. I pulled this book from out of the piles and started into it once again. I started at the beginning, though I think I read number one before. Truthfully though I did not remember much about it so a refresher was a good choice. The use of the other characters/artists/writers etc. is really just a gimmick that would not work if the story wasn’t strong. So far, I think the story works well.

February 26, 2023

So I spent less time yesterday reading comics because I was going to spend time watching movies. I hit Cocaine Bear at the theater and saw two Netflix films yesterday.

What that meant was today would be a larger amount. In fact, I went to finish off a couple of the series available.

I have also been getting more into certain independent comics. I, of course, blame Todd, Ben, Pat and Drew at Comic World, but the truth is that I have been active trying certain books out that even they haven’t recommended. I like a good story no matter what company it is (except DC…jk).

So I have a few number ones down here that I am trying out to see if I want to continue it. Most are Image.

Vanish #1. Story by Donny Cates and art by Ryan Stegman. This issue was interesting. I did love the art by Ryan Stegman. There was a lot of world building going on in this issue introducing us to the characters and the circumstance that he was found in. Although I did kind of like the premise that they arrived at by the end of the book, I was not that engaged by what was happening and I am going to skip this one moving forward.

The Bone Yard Orchard Mythos Prelude. Written by Jeff Lemire and drawn by Andrea Sorrentino. This was a Free Comic Book Day book that was included in an eBay order and it was very good. I do enjoy Jeff Lemire and this one hooked me immediately. I am also intrigued by the shared world that they are building with other horror comics at Image. I went into a deep dive on eBay with Lemire/Sorrentino books.

Hell to Pay #1. “The Shrouded College Book 1” Written by Charles Soule with art from Will Sliney. Cover art was done by Dave Johnson. Again, much like Vanish, this was fine, but did not inspire me to search out any more issues. The story was okay and the art was great, but I did not find myself as enthralled by the book than I wanted.

Love Everlasting #1. Written by Tom King and drawn by Elsa Charretier. I believe this is one that Todd stuck in my box. I originally glanced at it, but did not look at it closely. I do like Tom King, who wrote one of my favorite limited series, Vision. This one started like a romance comic, but suddenly, the story changed, but the main character, Joan Petersen, was in a new circumstance, with a new love and slight memories of the other. I have to say, I was intrigued at the idea. Am I intrigued enough to continue with this? No sure yet, but maybe.

The Last Book You’ll Every Read #5-7. Written by Cullen Bunn and drawn by Leila Leiz. I wanted to be done with this book because I have not enjoyed it at all, but I was already into the book so I figured I might as well finish it up. However, there looks to be an issue #8 out there that I do not have (unless it is hidden in the piles) so I am now torn. Should I be the completist and grab the last issue since I have #1-7 or do I just let it go because I have not liked this book at all. Not sure which way to go. Maybe it will depend on how easily I can get my hands on it. Just not a fan of this one.

The Department of Truth #15. Writer: James Tynion IV. Artist: David Romero. I have enjoyed this series quite a bit, and this issue took it to an all-new level. This issue was about the Mothman legend and it was laid out in a much different style than any other comic book I have ever seen. It felt more like an adult style picture book with the text being much of an interview being carried out with “Doc” Dalton Hynes. Who exactly was performing the interview was redacted in a cool detail. This issue introduces an awesome character named Indrid Cold and ends with Hynes making some fascinating comments about Lee. While I would not want this to be in this format regularly, this was an exceptional special issue.

Finally up to Marvel….

Thor #31. “Blood of the Fathers Part One” Written by Torunn Grønbekk and Donny Cates with art from Nic Klein. I have caught up to Thor’s most current issue (although I have a bunch before this that I did skip and may need to go back to read eventually). Thor heads to Hel with Valkyrie to try and figure out what was going on. They came across some cool creatures such as a couple of giant ravens and Nidhogg, eater of the dead. There was a back up story with Thor and Black Panther as well which was written by Cheryl Lynn Eaton and art by Chriscross. No hint whether that back up story would make you want to…jump, jump.

Thing #4-6. “The Next Big Thing.” Finished this short series featuring Ben Grimm and I have to say that I did not like this at all. The first three issues were iffy for me and these three just did nothing for me. The story did not feel like one that The Thing should have been involved in. Things happened that made no sense and the supporting characters were terrible. That creepy kid was not really explained. Dr. Doom showed up with a storyline that I thought was done decades ago. Just not what I want from a Thing series.

Moon Knight #9. “Stranger” Written by Jed MacKay and drawn by Alessandro Cappuccio. Cover by Cory Smith & Rachelle Rosenberg. It was nice to have Moon Knight back in the Moon Knight book after last issue’s absence. I enjoyed this issue with Moon Knight making a deal with the House of Shadows.

Devil’s Reign: Moon Knight #1. Writer: Jed MacKay. Artist: Federico Sabbatini. Cover Art: Rod Reis. I found the book that covered Moon Knight’s absence from issue #8 and I really enjoyed Moon Knight perpetuating some prison violence with a bunch of B-level villains (if not C-level). Prison brought out the wild dog in Marc Spector.

Jane Foster & The Mighty Thor #1. Part One of Five. Written by Torunn Grønbekk and drawn by Michael Dowling. A new short series to start featuring Jane Foster once again taking up the hammer to become the Mighty Thor … or will she because she has not yet taken the power of Thor (who is missing here) despite the rambling of Hammer Odin.

Black Panther #4. “The Long Shadow Book Four” Written by John Ridley and drawn by Juann Cabal with Ibrahim Moustafa. T’Challa appears to be letting his own paranoia get the better of him as he accuses his friend and sleeper agent Omolola. They fight it out on the outskirts of Wakanda. Shuri had provided evidence that the assassins were tied to the fighting style from Wakanda.