Today I took a personal day from school so I was able to spend NEW COMIC BOOK DAY at my two stores. Started the morning at In This Issue in Bettendorf and spent the afternoon at Comic World and Games in Dubuque. Always fun spending time with others who appreciate the hobby.
Even more so, I got to do some reading, and I got all my new books on the same day so I do not have to wait to chose the cover of the week until Thursday night.
Also-Rans: The Thing on the Doorstep #1, Space Ghost #8, Marc Spector: Moon Knight #1, Absolute Batman #15 (Second printing-foil), The Digger #1, and Bleeding Hearts #1 (foil virgin).
Bronze Medalist
DC KO #4
Variant cover G/Bracket Cover
Cover art by Dan Mora
This one reminded me of the Godzilla vs. Marvel Universe covers that I really liked from last year as they set this up like a fight poster, the match-up of the tournament front and center. I like how this builds this tournament up with the images of those that remain.
Silver Medalist
Hank Howard Pizza Detective: The Two Hollywoods #2
Cover art by Andrea Sorrentino
I love the shades of purple across this cover for Bad Idea’s new book. It has a compelling imagery across it as well, with the black standing out beautifully among the purples.
Gold Medalist
Wade Wilson: Deadpool #1
Cover art by Geoff Shaw
There were some outstanding covers for the new Deadpool series, and the cover A is right up there with some of the best of them. Something has made Wade Wilson want to end his life, which is a difficult thing for him to accomplish. The look of Wade on this cover gives that feel of hopelessness and all-consuming anger despite not seeing his actual face. The cover does a great job of telling you what this new arc is all about.
Welcome to the Big Game Day! Patriots vs. Seahawks later today. Before we get to that, I want to get to the EYG Comic Cavalcade. I am a Patriots fan so… good luck to them!
I have just about mined the full possible Marvel Team-Ups from the collection at In This Issue. I think there was one more available to me that I left behind because it was a little more expensive. I plan on picking that up next week.
Books this week:
D’Orc #1. “D’Orc Days Ahead” Story and art by Brett Bean. I picked up three covers. Cover A by Brett Bean, Cover B by Jorge Corona and Cover C by Jason Howard. This is my favorite new book of the week. This Image Comics book features the debut of D’Orc, a half-orc, half-dwarf, and he is hilarious. He has a talking shield and I really get a Groo the Wanderer vibe from this book. It is funny and written extremely well. It is really hot right now too. I love D’Orc.
Storm: Earth’s Mightiest Mutant #1. “Tea Ceremonies, Masquerades, and Funerals.” Written by Murewa Ayodele with art by Federica Mancin. Cover art was done by R.B. Silva & David Curiel. Storm is back and she continues to show off how powerful she has become.
Avengers #35. “The New Universe” Written by Jed MacKay and penciled by Sergio Davila. Cover art was done by Russell Dauterman & Rachelle Rosenberg. The Avengers are on the precipice of a new universe in their struggle with Kang. Who knows where this cosmic tale is headed?
Amazing Spider-Man #21. Written by Joe Kelly and Penciled by John Romita Jr. and Todd Nauck. Cover art was done by John Romita Jr., Scott Hanna and Marcio Menyz. Norman Osborn has been taking his lumps as he tried to step into the shoes of Spider-Man. Fortunately for Norman, Peter Parker is back on earth!
Crescent City Monsters #1-4. Written by Newton Lilavois and art and cover art by Gian Carlo Bernal. This four issue series is also autographed by its creator Newton Lilavois. I saw an ad for this on TikToc with Lilavois himself selling it and it looked very interesting. The books are beautiful black and white, but I have not yet read them. I am looking forward to reading them as soon as I can find the extra time.
Batman #6. “Long Night” Written by Matt Fraction with art by Jorge Jimenez. Cover art was done by Jorge Jimenez and Tomeu Morey. Batman is back out after the tough date night from last issue. Things do not get much better. There are some nice scenes with Jason Todd and Damien.
Ultimate Endgame #2. Written by Deniz Camp with art by Terry & Rachel Dodson and Jonas Scharf. Cover art was done by Mark Brooks. I also picked up cover C by Lee Garbett and cover D by R.B. Silva. The big Ultimates universe crossover event continued with the Ultimates, Spider-Man, Killmonger, and the Master. Does the Master take over Doom? Is that a bad thing? No polybags this time!
All-New Spider-Gwen: Ghost-Spider #7. Written by Stephanie Phillips and art by Paolo Villanelli. Cover art was done by David Marquez & Federico Blee. Gwen and Fabian sitting in a web.. k-i-s-s-i-n-g… that is until all the crap hits the fan. There is a very circular situation that seemingly happens in this issue that is a call back to Amazing Spider-Man #122. Or is it all Mysterio?
The Nice House by the Sea #7. Written by James Tynion IV with art and cover art by Alvaro Martinez Bueno. Cover C art is done by Javier Rodriguez. Here is another book that has been on the shelf for a long time. Issue six came out in March of 2025. Almost a whole year. However, this is tied to DC Comics new version of Vertigo so now is a good time to return to the comic shop, I guess.
Planet of the Apes Versus Fantastic Four #1. Written by Josh Trujillo and art by Andrea Di Vito. Cover art was done by Greg Land & Rachelle Rosenberg. A powerless FF arrive on the Planet of the Apes and have to face off with the classic characters. What does the Red Ghost have to do with this? This issue is a lot of fun as the Marvel vs. 20th Century Studios faceoffs continue.
Wolverine #15. “Alpha Flight” Written by Saladin Ahmed and art by Mike Henderson. Cover art was done by Dan Panosian. After teaming up with Silver Sable and just before they engaged in a little noogie noogie, Alpha Flight attacked Wolverine in an attempt to capture him. Wolvie should know that Canada is not the friendliest place for him.
Superman: Chains of Love #1. “Creepers” Written by Leah Williams and art by Ig Guara. Variant cover D art by Ig Guara and Arif Prianto. I loved this book. The Creeper is one of my favorite secondary DC characters and his relationship in this book with Livewire is a lot of fun. Super heroes (villains?) as podcasters is a funny idea.
War Wolf #4. Written by Steve Orlando and art by Marco Perugini. Cover art was done by David Talaski (Silver Medalist). The truth about what really happened to Bear Bruin is coming to the front. What is the truth? It is coming to the front.
Magik & Colossus #1. “Bound by Blood.” Written by Ashley Allen and art by German Peralta. Cover art was done by David Nakayama. The Rasputin siblings get their own feature in the Shadows of Tomorrow arc in the X-Men universe. I am not sure who it is behind the troubles for Piotr and Illyana, but I have a guess….
Knightfight #4. Written by Joshua Williamson and art and cover art by Dan Mora. Batman is going through all kind of trouble with his battles with alternate Batmen… all seemingly for him to get back involved in the KO tournament. Not sure how that is fir, but I guess we’ll find out in DC KO #4 next week.
Uncanny X-Men #23. “Where Monsters Dwell” Part One. Written by Gail Simone with art by David Marquez. Cover art was done by David Marquez & Matthew Wilson (Gold Medalist). In what felt like an intervention for Gambit, we get Elsa Bloodstone and a bunch of monsters including Morbius, Mummy and others.
Ripcord #1. Written by Cullen Bunn and illustrated by Aneke. Cover art was done by Jorge Fornes. Ripcord is a new drug that will transform the user into mindless killers. Dillon, however, will not give up until she finds her sister. Great first issue from Ignition Press set in the Australian Outback.
Absolute Superman #16. “This Universe Will Break Your Heart, Kid” Written by Jason Aaron with art by Juan Ferreyra. Rafa Sandoval & Ulises Arreola did the cover art. We get the debut of the Absolute Hawkman and I really like this version of that character. Absolute Lex Luthor also shows up as Brainiac tries to recruit him.
The Twilight Zone #4. “False Bottom.” Written by Written, drawn and cover art by Nate Powell. I also picked up variant cover B art by Francesco Francavilla. This Twilight Zone issue is one of the more tragic examples of a story. It felt like a real Twilight Zone episode you would have seen, but the unhappy ending was tough to handle.
Other Books this week: Event Horizon: Dark Descent #5, Marian Heretic #4, Absolute Green Lantern #11, Godzilla #7, Eat Your Young #6 and DC KO Boss Battle #1.
Quick Hits: The final issue of Dark Horse’s Space Scouts #3 dropped this week as the whole competition came to a finale. Cullen Dunn had another book released this week, which was The Autumn Kingdom: The Wraithbound Queen #1. It felt like a sequel to something that I was unaware of, but it was pretty solid. Dunn is a top notch writer. Sam & Twitch Case Files #21 was the Bronze Medalist cover this week. Nova Centurion #4 showed off Richard Rider’s power and his intelligence as the last Nova. More conspiratorial action dropped in Department of Truth #35. Godzilla: Infinity Roar #1 sees the King of Monsters across the cosmos of the Marvel Universe. Maybe Godzilla is finally getting around to destroying the Marvel Universe as was mentioned in his previous book. The latest crossover comes to the forefront with Archie X The Army of Darkness #1. Archie Andrews and Ash Williams together? Seems like a match made in Hell. DC x AEW #1 brings the world of professional wrestling into the DC universe. High Strangeness #4 continues its weird story arcs through the decades. This one is especially odd. Ultimate Wolverine #14 is counting down until the end of the Ultimate Universe. One of the surprises of the week was Gargoyles/Darkwing Duck #1. I have been collecting Dynamite Comics Darkwing Duck book, but I did not think I would be buying this book moving on. It was way better than I thought it would be.
An intriguing week with a couple really great covers, but not as deep as some weeks. I had a hard time choosing the top three, but it was not as deep of a week as usual.
Also-Rans: Superman: Chains of Love #1 (C cover), Twilight Zone #4 ( A cover), Twilight Zone (B Cover), and Ripcord #1.
Bronze Medalist
Sam and Twitch Case Files #21
Cover art by Van Randal
I find this awesome cover a little creepy. I will say that this guy made me think of Muse from Marvel. The black and white always makes me happy and the red hands is even creepier.
Silver Medalist
War Wolf #4
Cover art by David Talaski
War Wolf #4 has a really cool cover that makes me feel like an old time newspaper, especially like a tabloid newspaper. I find this a clever use of the cover to help make me more excited for the book.
Gold Medalist
Uncanny X-Men #23
Cover art by David Marquez & Matthew Wilson
A great shot of the Uncanny X-Men cast in the darkness. I love this cover. It truly stands out making these characters look bad ass.
Once again, I am very late with this column. Still, with the Genre-ary coming to a close until 2027, I hope I can get this back on a more regular basis.
I have been picking up a lot of back issues recently, both from my two comic shops and off eBay. I am still working on Marvel Team-Up from In This Issue, the Amazing Spider-Man Vol. 2 books I am missing, and I got a bunch of Sensational She-Hulk during John Byrne’s run.
I need to catch up with putting these books away too. I have a couple of large piles awaiting me to put them in the proper boxes. I need to get this done before the next round of new comics on NEW COMIC BOOK DAY, which is just a couple of days away.
Books this week:
Survive #5. Written by Robert Venditti with art and cover art by Doug Braithwaite. Survive has been one of my favorite books of the last several months. The Bad Idea comic was very cinematic in its storytelling. ZI will say that I think the conclusion was a little short of what it has been so far, but I can understand that I had the bar set really high. This was a wonderful five issue series.
Amazing Spider-Man Annual #1. Written by Saladin Ahmed with art by Federico Vicentini. Cover art was done by Francesco Mobili & Marte Gracia. Spider-Man and Rapid team up to try and stop the weirdness of Screwball in this fun pairing.
Iron Man #1. “A New Nightmare” Written by Joshua Williamson with art by Carmen Carnero. Cover art was done by Ryan Stegman & Frank Martin. There is a brand new arc for Tony Stark, as he is still just pushing the limit. So much so that a new group of Illuminati are looking into what they need to do to keep Tony Stark under control. Good start for the armored Avenger.
Malevolent #1. Written by Justin Jordan with art and cover art by John Bivens. I also picked up the Cover B which may or may not be done by Phil Hester. Either Hester or Jorge Corona. 30 years before, demons were unleashed into the world of humans. However, now humans have created a weapon to kill the demons… if she does not kill the humans first. Interesting new dystopian future story from Image Comics.
Wrestle Heist #2. Written, Drawn and Cover art by Kyle Starks. Is Grave Digger the best wrestler to never win the big one? And who is Ocho Bolo? How does it all work together in this pro wrestling saga? What evil plan does promotor Buddy Hanson have? We know he has one.
Infernal Hulk #3. “Whatever Happened to Bruce Banner?” Written by Phillip Kennedy Johnson with pencils by Kev Walker & Nic Klein. Cover art was done by Nic Klein. We get a look in this issue of where Bruce Banner is and how his life is going. Iron Man and Reed Richards make a cameo appearance looking for help to face the Infernal Hulk.
Miles Morales: Spider-Man #42. “Webs of Regret: Conclusion” Written by Cody Ziglar with art by Marco Renna. Cover art was done by Federico Vicentini & Neeraj Menon. This is the final issue of Miles’s current book as he and Peter take down the Assessor. I enjoyed the banter between the two Spider-Men in this book and I expect that Miles will be back in his own title sooner rather than later.
Spirit of the Shadows #1. Written by Daniel Ziegler & Nick Cagnetti with art and cover art by Nick Cagnetti. Erik Leroux was a musician who loved his music and his love, Katrina. His sudden death sent his soul to a carnival-like Spirit World beyond this world. But death did not end things for Erik. Another intriguing horror series from Oni Press.
Feral #20. Written by Tony Fleecs with art by Trish Forstner & Tone Rodriguez. Cover B art was done by Tony Fleecs, Trish Forstner & Allen Passalaqua (Bronze Medalist). I do love these horror covers that Feral has been doing the last year plus. It has also been one of the best books on the market consistently every month. The issue is tense and suspenseful and you are never sure what is going to happen next.
Dust to Dust #7. Written by JG Jones & Phil Bram with art and cover art by JG Jones (Gold Medalist). Dust to Dust has not been seen since #6 came out August 2025. I looked that up and, honestly, it felt like it should have been much earlier. It was a pretty good issue considering I was uncertain about what was going on.
Strange Tales #4. “Hela on Earth?!” Written by Jeremy Whitley and art by Bayleigh Underwood & Carola Borelli. Cover art was done by Bayleigh Underwood & Jim Campbell. Hela is here. The young heroes in Strange Tales, including several Runaways, Spider-Gwen and Wiccan & Hulkling wrap up this short series.
Detective Comics #1105. “The Courage That Kills Part Five” Written by Tom Taylor with pencils and cover art by Mikel Janin. Things are going really poorly for Batman, who is infected by Lion’s virus, and realized that the whole thing was a distraction.
Final Boss #3. “Stage 3: The Wharf” Written by Tyler Kirkham with art by Tyler Kirkman with David Miller. Cover art was done by Tyler Kirkham. The video game-like book that reminded me of Street Fighter continued this week with some solid action. This has been a fun book that makes me feel like I am playing a video game.
Absolute Batman #16. “Bat Out of Hell” Written by Scott Snyder & Nick Dragotta with art by Nick Dragotta. Cover art was done by Nick Dragotta & Frank Martin. We continue the team up between Absolute Batman and Absolute Wonder Woman as Batman and Wonder Woman head to the Underworld to look for a way to help Bruce’s friend, Waylon. Not sure things worked well.
Drawing Blood #10. Written by David Avallone with art by Ben Bishop and cover art by Kevin Eastman. Another book that is back after quite a long layoff. This book about a comic artist who is trying to deal with his greatest creations being changed for a movie has been pretty solid. I actually felt like I was able to get back into this book easier than some of the others that take the long break.
Punisher: Red Band #5. “Urban Warfare” Written by Benjamin Percy with art by Julius Ohta. Variant cover art was done by Clayton Crain. This red band book came to an end, but it sounded as if this series was being picked up in the next Punisher book coming soon. I am still not sure what the continuity of this book is and I am not sure what that means for the next Punisher #1. I guess we will see.
Marvel Zombies: Red Band #5. Written by Ethan S. Parker & Griffin Sheridan with are by Jan Bazaldua. Greg Land & Rachelle Rosenberg did the cover art. This was a great version of Spider-Man in the zombie world. I thought this use of Spider-Man was right on spot. Jean Grey was back again as Phoenix.
Justice League Unlimited #15. Written by Mark Waid and art by Dan Mora & Sean Izaakse. Cover art was done by Dan Mora. Mister Terrific and the time misplaced Leaguers have had better days. Batman and Superman do not make it and we find that we have a traitor in the group. JLU has been good during this time of KO, when all the main Leaguers are gone.
Justice League Red #6. Written by Saladin Ahmed and art by Clayton Henry. Cover art was done by Clayton Henry & Arif Prianto. The drama around the Red Tornado and the Crimson Cloud ended in this issue as the JL Red brought the end to this saga.
Terminator Metal #4. Written by Declan Shalvey & Rory McConville with art by Fabio Gallo. Cover art was done by Declan Shalvey. This was one of the better issues of the Terminator books, going back to the original series. I really enjoyed this issue a lot.
Absolute Flash #11. “The War of the Flashes” Written by Jeff Lemire with art and cover art by Nick Robles. This has a feeling of a big finale happening as Absolute Flash is getting a lot of the story from ghost Barry Allen and is preparing to take on all the problems.
Escape from Skull Island #1. Written by Simon Furman with art by Christopher Jones. Cover art was done by Maria Wolf. The story picked up from Return to Skull Island, a mini series from last year. There is a lot of Kong in this book, but he had seen better days.
Void Rivals #26. Written by Robert Kirkman with art by Andrei Bressan. Cover art was done by Lorenzo De Felici. The Quintesson War Part 2 is underway and we meet the bizarre Quintesson judge, Judge Naven. Once again, the book has broughtDarak andSolila are back together again. Still the best this book gets is when they are together.
Absolute Wonder Woman #16. “Season of the Witch, Part 1 of 5” Written by Kelly Thompson and art by Hayden Sherman. Cover art was done by Hayden Sherman & Jordie Bellaire. We get the debut of Absolute Zatanna and the Absolute Suicide Squad. Zatanna is taking Diana’s magic powers away from her.
KO: The Kids are all Fight Special #1. Written by Jeremy Adams with art by Travis Mercer. Cover art wa done by Bruno Redondo. This is a one shot that kind of brings together a bunch of the young heroes of the DC universe that are on their way to the Titans series. This was an interesting group of characters and I may give this a chance when they become the new Titans.
Other books this Week: Tales of the Shadowman #2, Astro Quantum #1, The Author Immortal #4, Harley Quinn x Elvira #4, Lost Fantasy #7, Blink and You’ll Miss It #5, DC’s Supergirl: Next Door #1, Conan the Barbarian #28 (Silver Medalist), and Be Not Afraid #5.
Quick Hits: Another good use of Spider-Man is in Marvel’s 1776 #3. I hate it when books use Spidey but do not do him justice or have him do things that are not in his character. This one has done a solid job. A new book from Invader Comics is Do Not Disturb #1. It is a noir-type book dealing with a character that has died and a mystery. It’s pretty good. Save Now #0, the origins of the Save Now characters is strong too. Wanda vs. Agatha Harkness in Sorcerer Supreme #2. More Oz action in No Place #3. The horror anthology book Hello Darkness #18 has some of the most original stories in all of horror comics. A one shot book following up on Bug Wars was released this week with Bug Wars: The Spyder Wytch Special #1. I picked up Sonja Reborn #5 from Dynamite, ID’s Return to Sleepy Hollow #3 and Absolute Martin Manhunter #8.
I am a couple of days late for this column this week. I think the biggest issue has been the Genre-ary, which has been going on every day this month. It has been busy so this post just never crossed my mind until tonight as I was reading these books. With the Genre-ary done until 2027, hopefully this will get back on track.
Also-Rans: Survive #5, Malevolent #1 (sketch cover), Do Not Disturb #1, Iron Man #1, Sonja Reborn #1, Spirit of the Shadows #1, and DC’s Supergirl Next Door #1.
Bronze Medalist
Feral #20
Variant Cover B (Halloween H20 homage cover)
Cover art by Tony Fleecs, Trish Forstner & Allen Passaloqua
The horror movie homage covers for Feral has been consistently sensational. This is one I recognized immediately as the Halloween H2O poster is the homage here. I love these homage covers.
Silver Medalist
Conan the Barbarian #28
Cover art by Gerardo Zaffino
This is a beautifully brutal cover with the blood running down Conan’s head. The black and white cover with the red blood is very striking.
Gold Medalist
Dust to Dust #7
Cover art by JG Jones
Dust to Dust is back after quite a layoff, with its fantastic covers jumping right back into the medal rounds. The beautiful image of the fire in the background makes this cover pop. JG Jones has been a regular in this column with Dust to Dust, and the Image book is right back into the race.
It has been a cold weekend here in Iowa. I was finishing up reading my pile of books this week.
Books this week:
Exquisite Corpses #9. Written by Tyler Boss with James Tynion IV and art by Valentine De Landro with Michael Walsh. Cover art was done by Michael Walsh. I got variant cover B by Valentine De Landro as well. Exquisite Corpses continues to be one of the best books on the market. There are only four more of this series coming so things are ratcheting up.
Bloodland #1. Written by B. Clay Moore and art and cover art by Mack Chater. A new Ignition Press book featuring the collapse of America and vampires. Yes, there has been a lot of vampire books over the last few years, but this one felt very original and different. Ignition Press has been solid over the last six months or so and this feels like another winner.
Fantastic Four #7. “All Mankind’s Concern” Written by Ryan North and penciled by Humberto Ramos. Cover art was done by Humberto Ramos & Edgar Delgado. The FF are off earth to respond to a call from Galactus, but they expect an alien invasion. Their kids form a team, with some help from other heroes. Mad Thinker has an idea about this all.
Inglorious X-Factor#1. “A Force to Be Expected” Written by Tim Seeley and art by Michael Sta. Maria. Cover art was done by R.B. Silva & David Curiel. Cable is back and he is recruiting a team of X-Factor once again. He pulls in Archangel, Boom Boom and Hellervine, which make a potent group of mutants. What is the true story here? And why is Domino ready to shoot Cable in the head?
Spider-Man ’94 #5. “Chapter Five: Resurrection” Written by J.M. DeMatteis with art by Jim Towe. Cover art was done by Nick Bradshaw & Rachelle Rosenberg. The mini-series that continued from the end of the 1994 animated series comes to an end with a final battle with Morlun and Kaine.
Wiccan: Witches’ Road #2. Written by Wyatt Kennedy with art by Andy Pereira. Cover art was done by Lucas Werneck. Down, down, down the road…. Wiccan has to fight a dragon on the Witches’ Road… but not just any dragon… but Fin Fang Foom!
X-Men #24. “Three Thousand” Written by Jed MacKay and penciled by Tony Daniel. Cover art was done by Tony Daniel, Mark Morales, & Fer Sifuentes-Sujo. The group known as 3K takes center stage as the Hank McCoy who actually went into the future, returned to the present with all the details of the Age of Revelation and the formula for the Mutant Virus.
Everything Dead & Dying #5. Written by Tate Brombal and art and cover art by Jacob Phillips. This Image book is one of the better books Image has put out recently as the final issue brings some powerfully sad moments. One of the most creative uses of zombies in any comic recently appeared in this book.
The Mortal Thor #6. “Hide and Seek” Written by Al Ewing and art by Pasqual Ferry. Cover art was done by Alex Ross (Bronze Medalist). Sigmund has to face off with The Cobra, showing off his skills with the hammer once again. There are a few people questioning what is going on with this guy.
The New Avengers #9. Written by Sam Humphries and art by Ton Lima. Variant cover B art was done by Karen S. Darboe. Can we trust the Black Widow? That is what Bucky is trying to figure out, but it sure seems like the question he should ask is ‘Can he trust Carnage?’
The Beauty #3. Written by Jeremy Haun & Jason A. Hurley with art by Emanuela Lupacchino. Cover art was done by Jeremy Haun. Who is the Boogeyman? How does he fit into the world where everyone wants to catch the latest STD, which turns you beautiful? This feels as if something bad is about to happen.
Captain America #6. “Doom’s Shadow” Part 1. Written by Chip Zdarsky with art by Delio Diaz & Frank Alpizar. Cover art was done by Valerio Schiti and Frank Martin. I also picked up the foil version by Ivan Tao (Gold Medalist). Cap is approached by Nick Fury Jr. with an offer that Cap is not too keen on accepting. He also is trying to have a date with Sharon.
Rogue #1. Written by Erica Schultz with art by Luigi Zagaria. David Nakayama did the cover art. Rogue is here with her solo comic under the Shadow of Tomorrow banner. Though it is a solo book, she has Gambit appear as well as some of the other X-Men from her Louisiana team. She heads off to find Mystique and Destiny, and is shocked by what she finds.
Amazing Spider-Man #20. Written by Joe Kelly with pencils by John Romita Jr., Paco Diaz & Todd Nauck. Cover art is done by John Romita Jr., Scott Hanna, and Dean White. I picked up another variant cover by Lee Bermejo (Silver Medalist). Norman Osborn continues to struggle in his replacement of Peter. Aunt May wants to talk to Norman. Ooh…
Nightwing #134. “The Game” Written by Dan Watters with art by V. Ken Marion. Cover art was done by Dexter Soy. Nightwing and Zanni face off in the Fifth Dimension where their effects dramatically cause destruction in Bludhaven. What can Nightwing do?
Assorted Crisis Events #8. Written by Deniz Camp and art and cover art by Eric Zawadzki. One of the best books of the week. I love this creativity of this story, with our comic fourth wall breaking. Even the design of the book’s format is something that I have rarely seen, certainly not in the details of the format.
Redcoat #16. Written by Geoff Johns and art by Bryan Hitch. Cover art was done by Bryan Hitch & Brad Anderson. Another book I loved this week. Albert has found Simon with a problem. Benedict Arnold is back. And… oh he is BACK! Great set up for the new arc. I am anxious to see how this moves on.
Gunpowder Prophets #4. Written by Justin Jordan and art and cover art by Patrick Piazzalunga. Huck and Harley are on the path of finding America, who has been taken. This is a fun series with two of the most violent characters you’ll ever get.
Planet She-Hulk #3. Written by Stephanie Phillips and art by Emilio Laiso. Cover art was done by Aaron Kuder & Sonia Oback. More outer space adventures by She-Hulk. There was a mention of She-Hulk in space in another book, which makes me happier. The cosmic continuity has bothered me and so I hope this is an answer.
X-Men of Apocalypse #2. Written by Jeph Loeb and art and cover art by Simone Di Meo. Alternate universal X-Men versus each other. Oh… and there is Phoenix too. This is an interesting book for what is is. Not sure if it means anything.
Cul-De-Sac #6. Written by Mike Carey with art and cover art by Jonathan Wayshak. This Bad Idea book wrapped up with this issue. It is another vampire book that has a lot of creativity and originality behind it. I have enjoyed the characters of Cul-De-Sac vey much.
Other books this week: Power Fantasy #15, Death to Pachuco #4, Psylocke Ninja #1, Ghost Pepper #7, Good as Dead #5, Nights #17, Ultimate Black Panther #24, and Star Wars #9.
Quick Hits: Cap has to face off with a surprise monster during WWII in Alien vs. Captain America #3. Flash Gordon is in a lot of trouble in Defenders of the Earth: Dark Destiny #2. I was missing The Last Starship #3 so I picked it up off eBay, and then The Last Starship #4 came out this week. I mentioned earlier how strong Ignition Press has been. Murder Podcast #4 is another example. Doctor Who: The Prison Paradox #3 provides more excellent sci-fi action. Terrorbytes #4 is an excellent sci-fi story this week with Mr. Brace. More trouble between Daredevil & Punisher #3. Can’t we all just get along? Spidey and Wolvie are still jumping around the multiverse in Spider-Man & Wolverine #9. There is some great crime action in American Caper #3. Mad Cave has been dropping a bunch of Speed Racer content over the last several months and the new one-shot Speed Racer: Tales from the Road #1. Green Lantern: Galactic Slam #1 brings Kyle Raynor into the world of cosmic wrestling. Finally, we got the time travel action of Liquidator #3.
It’s a cold, cold night… and the wind was blowing through the poplar tree…
That was something my dad would say on cold nights. And we are in a stretch now that is really cold. So cold that school has been canceled for tomorrow. That gives me a chance to get these new comics read. Since I got new comics the last two days, it is time for the Favorite Comic Covers of the week!
Also Rans: Terrorbytes #4, Bloodland #1, The Beauty #3, The New Avengers #8 (VARIANT), and Rogue #1.
Bronze Medalist
Mortal Thor #6
Cover art by Alex Ross
Alex Ross is a former winner of the Comic Cover Artist of the Year and he has consistently given us class covers, such as this Thor cover with the Cobra on it. It is a classic Alex Ross cover!
Silver Medalist
Amazing Spider-Man #20
Amazing Vision Variant
Cover art by Lee Bermejo
This a cool cover (even though Juggernaut is not in this issue). Bermejo has become one of the best Spidey variant artist around as this is a beautiful action moment between the two characters.
Gold Medalist
Captain America #6
Variant Foil
Cover art by Ivan Tao
I have been ignoring foil covers lately, but I could not pass this one by. It is so beautiful, especially the big, silver star on the chest of Captain America. This foil is a masterpiece.
I hope everyone is having a great MLK Day. I know not everyone is off work today, but my school is still off, so this has given me a chance to get this finished after yet another busy weekend.
I have been picking up a bunch of Marvel Team-Ups recently. The ones I got this week include #5, 6, 16, 17, 22, 23, 25, 26, 27, 55,57, 64, 66, 68,72, 73 and 86.
Books this week:
Uncanny X-Men #22. “No Clean Hands” Written b y Gail Simone and art by David Marquez. Cover art was done by David Marquez & Matthew Wilson. Mutina is back and wanting to join the X-Men. Yes, it may not be the most heroic reason and it sure seemed as if Wolverine and Nightcrawler have a different mind about that.
Where Does the Rainbow End? #1. Written by Francesca Perillo and art and cover art by Stefano Cardoselli. New book from Mad Cave. A new futuristic story involving robots and humans and how they now interact with one another.
Like a Bell in the Month of May #1. Written by Dustin Victor and art by Metro Catpiss. This was a book I picked up at In This Issue in Bettendorf. The owner of the shop told me that this was a couple of local creators who did this book. I thought it was cool so I picked it up. It is a weird story. It felt as if there was a page missing or something. I am still happy to have picked it up.
Avengers #34. “Heroes” Written by Jed MacKay with art by Farid Karami. Cover art was done by Russell Dauterman & Rachelle Rosenberg. I also picked up variant covers by Leonardo Romero and one by CAFU. This is Legacy number 800 for the Avengers. However, this issue felt a little lesser than I expected. It felt more like one of those clip show episodes of a TV show that reviewed previous episodes.
The Ultimates #20. Written by Deniz Camp with art by Phil Noto. Cover art was done by Dike Ruan & Moreno Dinisio. We get a bunch of the new Ultimate Vision and Nick Fury as we are moving toward the end of the Ultimates Universe.
Amazing Spider-Man: Torn #4. Written by J. Michael Straczynski and art by Pere Perez. Cover art by Humberto Ramos & Edgar Delgado. There is a scene in this book that I absolutely loved and felt vintage Spider-Man. When Spidey finds Evangeline sitting on a construction site, what follows is perfection.
Dungeons of Doom #1. Written by Phillip Kennedy Johnson & Benjamin Percy with art by Justin Mason, Robert Gill, Carlos Magno, George Jeanty & Karl Story. The aftermath of the death of Doctor Doom rages on in the Marvel Universe and we get a bunch of people looking to take advantage of the situation.
DC KO #3. “No Mercy” Written by Scott Snyder and Joshua Williamson with art by Javi Fernandez and Xermánico. Cover art was done by Javi Fernandez & Alejandro Sanchez. It is tag team time as the remaining competitors get to choose a defeated champion as their partner… and no one chose Batman.
Black Cat #6. “Night Court” Written by G. Willow Wilson and art by Andres Genolet. Cover art was done by Adam Hughes. Black Cat needs help so she goes in search of Daredevil so he could help her find…. Matt Murdock? She needs him to help defend her in the court of vampires.
Geiger #20. Written by Geoff Johns and art by Gary Frank. Cover art was done by Gary Frank. I also grabbed the Wicked homage cover by Sean Von Gorman (Gold Medalist). The Northerner is here and looking for help from Geiger… and he’s not too anxious to join in.
Doctor Strange #2. Written by Derek Landy and artist is Ivan Fiorelli. Cover art was done by Alex Horley. Doctor Strange and Angela are running around the world of Asgard. I have to say that I was not as into this issue as I expected.
Sai: Dimensional Rivals #1. Storytellers included Peach Momoko, Iban Coello, Stan Sakai with Emi Fuji. Cover art was done by Peach Momoko. Sai is around the dimensions with different artists. Some of the work of this book was fabulous and I especially loved the black and white pages. This is an intriguing book that I am interested in continuing.
Minor Arcana #13. Written, illustrated and cover art by Jeff Lemire. Theresa heads to another fortune teller with some specific questions. The fortune teller is out of C.A.N.O.E. (Clairvoyant Association of Northern Occultists & Esoterics).
Alice Forever After #1. Written and cover art by Dan Panosian and illustrated Dan Panosian (London part) and Giorgio Spalletta (Wonderland part). A new series set in Wonderland with the characters of Alice in Wonderland. Where is the White Rabbit?
Space Ghost #7. Written by David Pepose and art by Jonathan Lau. Cover art was done by Francesco Mattina. Space Ghost takes on the Anti Matter Man. Can our hero stop him? Doesn’t seem like it.
Crownsville #3. Written by Rodney Barnes and illustrated by Elia Bonetti. Cover art was done by Jason Shawn Alexander. We got ghosts! Crownsville has been a fabulous book so far and the story of this haunted asylum is really creepy.
Axi-Cab #1. Written by Philip Nelson and art and cover art by Cee Raygun. There are two actual stories in this book, first one entitled “The Warden’s Last Ride” and the second one being “In the Air Tonight.” A murderous cab drives around looking for justice or vengeance. Another new horror story that was pretty good.
G.I. Joe #17. Written by Joshua Williamson and art and cover art by Tom Reilly. The Dreadnok War closes with an unlikely alliance between the Dreadnoks and Cobra Commander. Plus, a shocking final page of this story.
Transformers #28. Written by Robert Kirkman and art by Dan Mora. Cover art was done by David Nakayama. Man… Megatron is just absolutely brutal in this issue. The last few pages of this issue show how monstrous Megatron can be.
Other Books this week: Knull #1, Good as Dead #4, Logan: Black, White & Blood #1 (Silver Medalist), Luna Snow: World Tour #1, and Blood & Thunder #9.
Quick Hits: So Battleworld #5 finished this series off with a really weird final page. Is it meant to be a tease for another Battleworld series?? Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles #14 is hopefully my final issue of this series. I have had some books ordered before I wanted to cancel the book so I needed to buy them (store policy). It did have a nice cover. The penultimate issue of this series is Die!Namite: Blood Red #4. Still fun with the group of female comic stars. C.O.R.T: Children of the Round Table #5 brings our heroes into more training and prepping them of the final issue. Things are getting strange with The Last Day of H.P. Lovecraft #3. I picked up Peter Cannon: Thunderbolt #2 off eBay since I missed it when it was out. Silver medalist cover this week went to Wonder Woman: Black and Gold 2026 Special #1. Finally, this week we got It Killed Everyone But Me #5, which I actually have not had a chance to read yet.
A busy week with some good comics, but honestly, not as many comic covers this week as some have been. Most of them are good, but few that really pop out among the others.
Also Rans: The Monster and the Wolf #2 (Cover E)- Last week I got these early, but this week I picked up cover E with Creature of the Black Lagoon on it. It just fell short of being the first variant to metal in consecutive weeks. The Ultimates #20, Uncanny X-Men #22, Space Ghost #7, and Like A Bell in the Month of May #1 (a comic from local creators in Davenport).
Bronze Medalist
Wonder Woman Black and Gold 2026 Special
Cover Art done by Cliff Chiang
The coloring of this book is what makes it the bronze medalist this week. I love the gold and black with Diana in the middle. Really stands out.
Silver Medalist
Logan: Black, White & Blood #1
Cover art by Alex Maleev
An awesome and brutal looking feral Wolverine. The black and white cover with just a few splashes of red for the blood makes this truly beautiful.
Gold Medalist
Geiger #20
Cover art by Sean Von Gorman
Spotted this variant cover on the stand and I loved it. It is an homage to Wicked, with Geiger playing the role of Elphaba. It works on so many levels, with the green and black and the white cloak on the side.
It is Sunday night and I have finally gotten to the EYG Comic Cavalcade. It has been a busy weekend of movies and completing season one of Agents of Shield. There is a lot of good stuff this weekend, but I had to make sure there was time to finish reading the comics from this week.
I finally got my Ultimate Endgame blind bags from eBay. I picked up 10 of them and did decent with the copies. I got the Peach Momoko cover, the wraparound cover, the Skottie Young cover, the Wasp 1:50 incentive, and the Cafu variant. I also got a few duplicates that I had already gotten, including three of the Spider-Man/Wolverine covers. I also picked up a blank blue line variant. Fortunately, none of my books were damaged, which a lot of the Ultimate: Endgame books were. Marvel should not put the A cover inside the blind bags, as I have seen some people get multiple copies of that issue. The Mark Spears blind bags were much better since there were more variety inside them.
Books this week:
X-Men #23. “Assassin” Written by Jed MacKay with pencils by Tony Daniel. Cover art was done by Tony Daniel, Mark Morales, & Fer Sifuentes-Sujo. The future Cyclops’ mind takes roto inside the past Cyclops body, and he tries to kill Doug before he becomes Revelation. Doesn’t work.
Amazing Spider-Man #19. Written by Joe Kelly with art by Pepe Larraz. Cover art was done by Pepe Larraz & Marte Gracia. I also picked up the variant cover with art by Lee Bermejo (Bronze Medalist). Peter and his space crew prepare to face off with Hellgate in an attempt to get Peter back to earth. We will see how things go.
Hank Howard: Pizza Detective in The Two Hollywoods #1. Written by Robert Venditti with art by David Lapham. Cover art was done by Alex Maleev. Another fun, new book from Bad Idea, Hank Howard is a private detective who seems to specialize in cases involving pizza. Huh? I do love me some noir, which this fits perfectly.
Wolverine #14. “Silver and Snow” Written by Saladin Ahmed with art by Martin Coccolo. Cover art was done by Dan Panosian. Wolverine meets up with Silver Sable in the wilderness of Canada to help a couple of mutants stay free. This draws the attention of Alpha Flight!
The Twilight Zone #3. “The Relic” Written, drawn and cover art by James Stokoe. A futuristic post-apocalyptic tale in the style of the classic TV show. This was my least favorite of the Twilight Zone issues from IDW so far, but I do love the black and white layout.
Deluge #3. Written by Cullen Bunn and illustrated by Marika Cresta. Cover art was done by Riley Rossmo. The prisoners of the flooded prison have more to worry about than water. They are being attacked by the creatures that are in the water… and they are frightening. Deluge ahs been a great book so far for Ignition Press.
Blue Falcon & Dynomutt #5. Written by Jimmy Palmiotti with art by Pasquale Qualano. Cover art was done by Lucio Parrillo. I believe this was the final issue of Blue Falcon & Dynomutt, which upset me. I have been enjoying this book and I love the new take on the Hanna-Barbera characters.
Absolute Batman: Ark M #1. “A History of Arkham” Written by Scott Snyder & Frank Tieri with art and cover art by Joshua Hixson. We get a comprehensive history of Arkham Asylum in the Absolute Universe. This was a fascinating book to read and gave us a real intriguing story.
Batman #5. “Date Night” Written by Matt Fraction with art and cover art by Jorge Jimenez. I also picked up the 1:25 variant cover by David Aja (Silver Medalist). Bruce Wayne and Dr. Annika Zeller are on a “date” (depending on whom you ask) but they are being pursued by a new villain named The Ojo. This is a fun book with no appearance by Batman.
Spider-Man: Noir #4. “The Gwen Stacy Affair, Part IV” Written by Erik Larsen with art by Andrea Broccardo. Cover art was done by Simone Di Meo. Someone has taken away Peter’s super powers and has been dressing up as Spider-Man and being more violent.
The Monster and the Wolf #2. Written, drawn and cover by Mark Spears (Cover B- Gold Medalist). I ordered this from Keenspot directly, and I got it in the mail late this past week even though it technically is not released in comic shops until next week. I do love the Monster books from Spears.
Cheetah & Cheshire Rob the Justice League #6. Written by Greg Rucka with art by Nicola Scott. Cover art was done by Nicola Scott and Annette Kwok. This heist book concludes with this issue as Cheetah and Cheshire are able to show off how complex they had made their plot. Every time you thought it was done, there was a twist. Nicely written.
The Phantom #4. Written by Ray Fawkes and art by Russell Olson. Cover art was done by Freddie Williams II. The Phantom is shot. Can he make it to safety and still survive? Only with a little help from his friends.
Spider-Gwen: Ghost-Spider #6. Written by Stephanie Phillips with art by Van Randal. Cover art was done by David Marquez & Federico Blee. Gwen is hoping that her new band can win an upcoming Battle of the Bands. Why are there always super villains around?
Nova Centurion #3. “For the Corps” Written by Jed MacKay with art by Alvaro Lopez & Matteo Della Fonte. Cover art was done by Alessandro Cappuccio & Rachelle Rosenberg. Richard Rider has been fun in this series so far. I have always like Nova and this has been giving him to me in a new and exciting manner. I am still unsure about time and continuity, but I am trying not to let that bother me.
Absolute Superman #15. “In Blue” Written by Jason Aaron with art by Juan Ferreyra. Cover art was done by Rafa Sandoval & Ulises Arreola. Superman is trying to do everything he can to help the people of earth. Not only that, but he is reading poetry to Ra’s Al Ghul. Oh, and Brainiac is walking around. That can’t be good. Superman is in his new blue suit too, while he is sucking up wildfires.
War Wolf #3. Written by Steve Orlando and art by Marco Perugini. Cover art was done by David Talaski. Bruin returned from the spaceship after all of the aliens retreated. He was able to parlay that story into a senator-ship and political power. But what really happened on that ship? Mad Cave has another good book going.
Other books this week: Conan: Scourge of the Serpent #4, Ultimate X-Men #23 (A & B covers), Marvel Rivals: The Cities of Heaven #1, Marvel: Black, White & Blood and Guts #4, and Arcadia #2.
Quick Hits: Starting off this week with a new series from Dark Horse called Devil on My Shoulder #2. It is brutal and violent revenge tale that has been very entertaining so far. Absolute Green Lantern #10 is out this week. It has been picking up steam a bit after struggling to keep my attention. This is still decent, but one of the lower of the Absolute books. Knightfight #3 picked back up after kind of losing me last week. This week was much more engaging than the whole weird Clayface stuff from last issue. Ultimate Wolverine #13 has a brutal fight between Wolverine and Ursa Major. It is a battle that was way more graphic than many of the Red Band series. We have a new issue of Batman/Green Arrow/The Question: Arcadia #2. Not sure what Batman is doing in this issue with some of his choices. FML #7 is back after a LONG hiatus. I hate it when independent books take such a long break between issues. It is nearly impossible to keep up any sort of momentum. FML #6 came out September 3, 2025 making it about 4 1/2 months between issues. Godzilla Kai-Sei #6 had two covers for me this week. I picked up one of its covers that was an homage to Superman #75. It was a cool cover. Eat Your Young #5 came out too, with the violent struggle within a family to survive.
Welcome back to the EYG Favorite Comic Covers of the Week. The more things change, the more they stay the same. You’ll see what I meant by that in a little bit.
Also-Rans: Godzilla Kai-Sei #6 (Superman #75 homage cover), The Twilight Zone #3, Blue Falcon and Dynomutt #5, Cheetah & Cheshire Rob the Justice League #6, Absolute Superman #15, Absolute Batman: Ark-M #1, and Ultimate X-Men #23 (B cover).
Bronze Medalist
Amazing Spider-Man #19
Amazing Visions Variant
Cover art by Lee Bermejo
A lovely cover featuring the Punisher. Bermejo really made this epic. Punisher looked unhinged… just as he should look.
Silver Medalist
Batman #5
Variant 1:25
Cover art by David Aja
This is an awesome cover with Batman and a crow (or raven, perhaps) squawking on his shoulder. The expression on Batman’s face is priceless. I have always been a fan of white backgrounds.
Gold Medalist
The Monster and the Wolf #2
Cover B
Cover art by Mark Spears
2026 looks to be just like 2025. Our Cover Artist of the Year for 2025 is back on the top in 2026. Technically, this book shouldn’t be out yet. It is released next week, but Keenspot sent this to me today, so they must have known that Mark Spears was heading back to the Gold Medal stand. This is a really creepy cover with disturbing imagery.
Happy New Year! On the most recent NEW COMIC BOOK DAY, there was a small number of books. DC Comics did not put out anything at all and Image only had a handful of books. That made the day a little lesser.
There were a couple of MAJOR events this week though that led to me picking up a variety of covers.
I traded some of the duplicates of the Mark Spears Monsters #8 with a few of the others at Comic World. I have 29 separate covers of that book as of right now.
X-Men: Age of Revelation-Finale #1. Written by Jed MacKay and penciled by Ryan Stegman with Netho Diaz. Cover art is done by Ryan Stegman, JP Mayer & Marte Gracia. I also picked up Cover C with art by Marcus Martin (Gold Medalist). The last three months have been dominated by this X-Men future story and it was brought to an end with this issue. It left off with a mystery as the Beast whose mind had been believed to have been brought into the future with Cyclops was not the Hank McCoy that we knew. This mutant story was interesting and looks to still be threatening our regular Marvel Universe.
The Lucky Devil #6. Written by Charles Soule with art and cover by Ryan Browne. After quite a break for this series, Lucky Devils are back to cause more trouble for the humans that they are whispering to from their shoulders. The art in this book continues to be one of the best of all independent books.
Ultimate Endgame #1. Written by Deniz Camp with art by Terry & Rachel Dodson and Jonas Scharf. Cover art was done by Mark Brooks. I picked up a blind bag of this book where I got a cover by CAFU. I also grabbed the foil by Derek Chew and a Spider-Man/Wolverine variant by Dan Panosian. The story of the return of the Master and the downfall of the Ultimate Universe begins in this issue with some major things that happen.
The Ultimates #19. Written by Deniz Camp with art by Juan Frigeri. Cover art was done by Dike Ruan & Neeraj Menon. The story focuses on the Ultimate Wasp and Ultimate Hank Pym and their background. It also brings us the debut of the Vision, who promptly rips the brain out of Nick Fury (who I believe is a LMD).
Predator Kills the Marvel Universe #5. Written by Benjamin Percy and penciled by Marcelo Ferreira, Daniel Picciotto, and Brent Peeples. Cover art was done by Leinil Francis Yu & Matt Milla. We get Iron Man suits for Wolverine and Spider-Man in order to stop the Predators. Too bad Kraven doesn’t get one. This series comes to a close.. for now.
Marvel Zombies: Red Band #4. Written by Ethan S. Parker & Griffin Sheridan with art by Jan Bazaldua. Cover art was done by Greg Land and Rachelle Rosenberg. Spider-Man, Jessica Jones, Ultron and Doc Ock meet up with the New Avengers… and Spidey is guilted into revealing his identity to everyone. Meanwhile, zombie Reed Richards gets his hands on the Infinity Gauntlet. SNAP.
The Punisher: Red Band #4. Written by Benjamin Percy with art by Julius Ohta. Variant cover art was done by Kaare Andrews. Punisher is on his way to Tombstone, and is leaving a path of blood and brains along the way. One of the better uses of the Red Band polybag is this Punisher book.
Harley Quinn x Elvira #1. This came in a Mystery Variant Blind Bag from Dynamite. I picked up one where I got a cover by Amanda Connor (Bronze Medalist) and another where it was the cover from the #1 by Mark Spears (thanks Todd). Blind Bags are just a lot of fun… unless you get the same basic cover out of nearly every bag (sorry Todd).
Feral #19. Written by Tony Fleecs with art by Trish Forstner & Tone Rodriguez. Cover art was done by Tony Fleecs and Trish Forstner. I also picked up the horror homage cover B done by Tony Fleecs, Trish Forstner & Allen Passalaqua (Silver Medalist). Feral continues to be one of the best books every month. The drama inside the Pet Store is coming to a head as Elsie heads out of the store on her own.
Sorcerer Supreme #1. Written by Steve Orlando with art by Bernard Chang. Cover art was done by Leirix. Stephen Strange is gone. Doom is dead (for now). That leaves earth without a Sorcerer Supreme. Not for long… Wanda Maximoff, the Scarlet Witch takes the mantel for herself, the hell with anyone else. The Vishanti may have something to say about that.
The Undead Iron Fist #4. Written by Jason Loo and art by Fran Galan. Cover art was done by Whilce Portacio & Alex Sinclair. Danny Rand completed his mission and returned to his death… although it sounded as if he might be called back to the real world again in the future. This series ended with this issue. I did enjoy this book and I wish it would have had a longer shelf life.
Tin Can Society #9. Written by Peter Warren with art by Francesco Mobili. Cover art was done by Francesco Mobili and Chris Chuckry. This Image book put out its final issue as well with this one. I have to say that this series felt like it kind of sputtered to the end, though part of that could have been the release schedule for it. I have to say that I was less excited for this finale than I was for the series in the first half of the books.
Other Books this Week: The World to Come #5, Escape #5, Lost Fantasy #6, Marian Heretic #3, and Mary Sue #3.
We start off with the 2026 Favorite Comic Cover Artist race. Year one was won by Alex Ross and year two was won by Mark Spears. Will either of them repeat for year three? Spoiler: neither are in the medalists this week.
It is a skip week for DC and there were not very many other books released this week.
Also-Rans: Sorcerer Supreme #1, The Punisher: Red Band #4 (Cover B), The Undead Iron Fist #4,and Escape #5.
Bronze Medalist
Harley Quinn x Elvira #1
Variant Blind BagVirgin
Cover art by Amanda Conner
This was from the Harley Quinn x Elvira Mystery Variant Blind Bag. It was a virgin cover from Amanda Conner, who did several different covers for the bags. I love the sketch version of the art, though she apparently had a few special, hand-drawn version in the bags. This is not that, but still a cool idea. Blind Bags are all the rage right now.
Silver Medalist
Feral #19
Variant Cover B (Horror Homage)
Cover art by Tony Fleecs, Trish Forstner & Allen Passalaqua
The horror homages from Feral continue to be some of the best covers on the market. This one is in honor of Five Nights at Freddy’s, but this book is much better than that one.
Gold Medalist
X-Men: Age of Revelation-Finale #1
Variant Cover C
Cover art by Marcus Martin.
The big finale for the X-Men event has this awesome Cyclops variant cover, showing off future Cyclops blasting his optic blast into the air. The white with gold is a real standout among a bunch of great covers for the finale issue.
We are up to the final Comic Cavalcade of 2025. The next NEW COMIC BOOK DAY is New Year’s Eve and, even with a smaller pull list as it looks to be, there is no way to finish it up before the clock strikes midnight.
2025 has been a great year for comics. With this last week’s load of books, I passed 20,000 comics in my personal collection. That was a cool thing. It was just a few years ago that my collection was in such a mess that I had no idea how many comics I had. Now, after several years of work, my books are all bagged, boarded, boxed, and counted. Sure, there are books where I am unsure where they are still, but it is certainly progress.
I received my order of Mark Spears Monsters #8 this week. I picked up 24 blind bags from Keenspot and I wound up with 19 new covers. I only had 5 duplicates, which I am considering a huge success. I also got three foil covers and three glow-in-the-dark covers in the blind bags. I am pleased with the delivery, even if it felt as if the package was never going to get here.
Books this week:
Sleep #7. Written, drawn and cover art by Zander Cannon. The penultimate issue of Sleep came out this week and it continues to be one of the best, most creative books on the market. I am anxious to see what surprises we are going to have in store for us in the finale next month.
Red Book #3. Written by James Tynion IV with art and cover art by Michael Avon Oeming. More UFO stories from the Soviet Union and, setting up, China for next month. Tynion IV writes this as if it is the truth and that it is out there.
The Will of Doom #1. Written by Chip Zdarsky with art by CAFU. Cover art was done by Jonas Scharf & Alex Guimarães. Dr. Doom is gone (yeah, right) but the Doombots are causing trouble. One issue with the Doombots is that they always believed that they were the true Doom. This one-shot feels important as Chip Zdarsky is heading toward the big event next summer. How will this fit into that?
Orla #5. Written by John Lees with art by Sally Cantirino. Cover art was done by Sally Cantirino & Dearbhla Kelly. Orla was a fun book that seems to believe in true love, even over that desire to murder and eat your lover. This is the final issue of this Mad Cave series.
DC KO: Red Hood vs. The Joker #1. Written by Scott Snyder & Joshua Williamson with pencils by Dustin Nguyen & Giuseppe Camuncoli. Cover art was done by Jorge Corona & Sarah Stern. I also picked up cover C by Guillem March (Gold Medalist). This was the most interesting of the first round match-ups in the KO tournament because of the history between Red Hood and Joker. Many of the other match-ups did not have much background to them, but this one was firing on all cylinders.
Gunpowder Profits #3. Written by Justin Jordan with art and cover art by Patrick Piazzalunga. Marley and Huck got in trouble for their murder of the motorcycle gang last issue, but it seemed as if the gang was not going to let death stop them. Just an excuse for Marley to be even more violent. Meanwhile, America has been snatched away.
Sisterhood #5. Written by Maytal Zchut and art by Leila Leiz. Cover art was done by Leila Leiz with Alex Sinclair. The final issue of this Hyde Street story sees the weird end to the friendship as one person is arrested for the crime. Was it the right person though?
Rocketfellers #11. Written by Peter J. Tomasi with art and cover art done by Francis Manapul. The Rocketfellers have been running through time to avoid Raina Rocketfeller, Roland’s sister. However, Raina has caught up with the family which lead to, apparently, a tragic result. I did not see this coming.
Justice League Unlimited #14. Written by Mark Waid with art and cover art by Dan Mora. The Terrific Ten storyline continues as yet another of the out-of-time heroes bites the big one here. That means that they are down to six.
Absolute Superman #14. “Son of Nowhere, Nothing and No One” Written by Jason Aaron with art by Rafa Sandoval. Cover art was done by Rafa Sandoval & Ulises Arreola. Big finale between Superman and Ra’s Al Ghul. The last panel brings the character a little closer to his true look. Thanks Ma.
Trinity: Daughter of Wonder Woman #6. “What’s the Point of a Corgi?” Written by Tom King with art and cover art by Belen Ortega. With the time travel shenanigans going on in this series, we now have Trinity gain a chance to meet her father, Steve Trevor. Admittedly, it is only via the clay molding manner which does not sound nearly as fun.
Justice League Red #5. Written by Saladin Ahmed with art by Clayton Henry. Cover art is done by Clayton Henry & Arif Prianto. Black Adam is throwing shade to Red Tornado. Is the mind behind the Justice League Red actually plotting against them? As I am not as much of an aficionado of DC, am I supposed to know who the Crimson Cloud is?
Tama #5. Written by Adam Schlagman & Doug Pasko with art by Daniel HDR. Cover art was done by Ashley Witter. Tama continues his brutal path of killing people. Can the video game creature be shut down before it becomes the ultimate monster? Spoiler: Answer is no.
Detective Comics #1104. “The Courage That Kills Part Four” Written by Tom Taylor with art and cover art by Mikel Janin. Batman is in a race against time as he has now become symptomatic with the virus that he has been fighting against. How does the Scarecrow fit into this?
Amazing Spider-Man #18. Written by Joe Kelly and penciled by John Romita Jr. Cover art was done by John Romita Jr., Scott Hanna & Marcio Menyz. I also picked up the variant cover by Simone Di Meo, featuring Mary Jane. Norman Osborn and J. Jonah Jameson sit down to talk about their connection to Peter Parker.
Spider-Man ’94 #4. Written by J.M. DeMatteis with art by Jim Towe. Cover art was done by Nick Bradshaw & Rachelle Rosenberg. Spidey and Kraven take on the powerful Morlun. Somehow, it sure looked like Morlun turned into Swamp Thing on the final page. Marvel should watch out for copyright lawsuits.
X-Vengers #3. Written by Jason Loo with pencils by Sergio Davila. Cover art was done by Mike McKone & Morry Hollowell. The X-Vengers X-ssembled! Or something like that. This is another of the Age of Revelation books that was fun, but felt unneeded. It just gave a flavor to the rest of the Marvel Universe.
Cloak or Dagger #3. Written by Justina Ireland with art done by Lorenzo Tammetta & Edoardo Audino. Cover art was done by Mike McKone & Rachelle Rosenberg. This was another fun book as we get a chance to see Cloak and Dagger’s daughter kick some butt during the Age of Revelation.
Undeadpool #3. Written by Tim Seeley with art by Carlos Magno. Cover art was done by E.M. Gist. I liked this book at first, but I am not sure if I enjoyed its conclusion during the Age of Revelation. Deadpool got himself got it appeared. Still lots of death X Years Later.
1776 #2. “Our Sacred Honor” Written by J. Michael Straczynski with pencils by Sean Damien Hill. Pete Woods did the art for the cover. Okay, Spidey and Cap together with the revolutionary war soldiers is a hoot. I love their little hats. Clea vs. Morgan Le Fey is a bigtime throwdown.
No Man’s Land #4. Written, drawn and cover art by Szymon Kudranski (Silver Medalist). This awesome story of a murder mystery that could lead to major troubles between the US and the USSR comes to a close. While the mystery is not a great one (considering we did not really have a list of suspects), the resolution is epic. The scene with the showdown was amazing and I actually had my jaw drop with the presentation of it. I loved this four-issue series.
Hello Darkness #17. Variant cover art was done by Jenny Frison (Bronze Medalist). Another strong issue with multiple horror stories. There is always a great deal of variety in this Boom! Studios book.
Absolute Wonder Woman #15. “The Mark of Hecate” Written by Kelly Thompson and art by Hayden Sherman. Cover art was done by Hayden Sherman & Jordie Bellaire. After over a year of publications, the Absolute Universe has finally crossed over. In this book, we get the first ever team-up between Absolute Wonder Woman and Absolute Batman. The story will continue in the next Absolute Batman book.
Other books this week: Masterminds #3, Godzilla Escapes the Dead Zone #5, Blink and You’ll Miss It #4, Titans #30, Absolute Martian Manhunter #7, Fire and Ice; Nekron #1, Event Horizon: Dark Descent #4, Gray Lady #1, Immortal Legend Batman #5, Return to Sleepy Hollow #2, and Red Vector #5.
Quick Hits: Final Boss #2 is back with more hand to hand fighting in the style of the classic video games. In the spirit of the awesome blind bag trend, I picked up an Image Christmas Blind Bag that was supposed to guarantee me a incentive comic of one of Images books. I got the 1:25 version of Assorted Crisis Events #5, which was a cool cover. Hornsby & Halo #13 featured a battle with an angel and devil in search of our heroes. The crime comic called American Caper from Dark Horse is, once again, a very enjoyable book. Dynamite put out The Lion King #2 as Simba was on the case of a missing elephant baby. The Marvel Winter Break Special #1 follows up the Marvel Swimsuit special from earlier this year. Still silly, but some fun art. Expatriate X-Men #3 was my least favorite of the Age of Revelation books this week. Justice League vs. Godzilla vs. Kong 2 #6 sees our heroes and the big titan monsters in bad shape. Is that supposed to be a monster version of Cheetah? The Quintesson War has begun in the pages of Void Rivals #25. Ignition Press comics gave us Voyeur #3 this week as we get even more adult comic action. I received Hero Hiro #2 from Keenspot this week along with the Monsters book. While this is a little young, I do like the story that they are telling. Finally, it is Star Wars #8 as Luke is doing his best Spidey under the rubble routine.
So we have come down to the final Comic Covers of the year. Of course, these are the lame duck ones, since none of these will go into the vote for Best Comic Cover artist of the Year. We have already given the medals for that, with Mark Spears winning the 2025 Award.
Also Rans: American Caper #2, Event Horizon: Dark Descent #4, Gray Lady #1, The Will of Doom #1, The Lion King #2, and Cloak or Dagger #3,
Bronze Medalist
Hello Darkness #17
Variant Cover B
Cover art by Jenny Frison
A Jenny Frison cover always awesome, and this one is just so with that eyeball lollipop. I love the red in the background as it matches her eyes.
Silver Medalist
No Man’s Land #4
Cover art by Szymon Kudranski
This is actually the first of the four No Man’s Land covers that did not end up with a Gold Medal. It is still beautiful with the snow white on the cover and the blood splatter in the middle. Kudranski wound up with the Silver Medal for the Cover Artist of the Year.
Gold Medalist
DC KO: Red Hood vs. The Joker #1
Variant Cover C
Cover art by Guillem March
This variant cover of the DC KO fight books jumped off the stand as I was looking at the DC books. The veiny arm of the Joker holding that crowbar, which means so much to Jason Todd. It is a stunning piece of art and a fine, final gold medal cover for 2025.
Next week will start the new year’s Comic Cover Artist competition fresh for 2026.
EYG- Embrace Your Geekness 