November 12, 2023

Boy, there was a big week of comics this week. However, there was one in there that seemed not to fit with the others.

It was Fire & Ice: Welcome to Smallville #3. I do not buy many DC books and I certainly do not buy Fire & Ice. Sometimes, Todd sticks books in my pull list as a joke. I usually come across them because I look through the pile at Comic World pretty carefully. But Todd has been sending me pics on Tuesday of what is in my box so I can tell him if there is anything missing. Since that, I did not go through the pile as closely as I would have. I found this book at home afterwards. I texted Todd and he blamed Drew, another employee and, to be fair, Drew has put books in my box before too. I’m exchanging it next week.

I have started to collect the horror anthology series, Ice Cream Man. I read the first four issues, compiled in a trade paperback, and I really enjoyed it. So I started picking up some issues on eBay and at Comic World. I actually wound up with some doubles because the set that I purchased on eBay did not have some issues listed on it (or at least, not on the one I was looking at) and I picked up these back issue at Comic World. That is fine. I am still working on completing the series. I am missing around 11-12 issues of the 37 that have been released. It looked like #38 is scheduled to come out in January.

Other books this week:

Punisher #1. “The Bullet That Follows.” Written by David Pepose and art by Dave Wachter. Cover art was done by Rod Reis. Frank Castle is gone, and we seem to have a new Punisher. I did like what I read here and, even though the Punisher has never been my favorite character, I am going to give this new version a chance.

Predator Versus Wolverine #2. Written by Benjamin Percy and art by a trio of people, Ken Lashley, Andrea Di Vito, and Hayden Sherman. The cover art was by Marco Checchetto. They followed up an excellent number one with an okay issue 2.

Amazing Spider-Man #37. Written by Zeb Wells and penciled by Ed McGuinness. I am truly ready for the Gang War storyline that is coming soon to these pages, because I have had the right amount of Rek-Rap. Looks like there may be one more Limbo demons issues of ASM so I hope to get through it and get back to some street level action.

Inside the Mind of Sherlock Holmes graphic novel. “The Case of the Scandalous Ticket” By Cyril Lieron & Denoit Dahan. A really fun graphic novel with an original Sherlock Holmes story. This graphic novel does a great job of showing us the skills of Sherlock during the story and presents it in a creative and very original manner. I love the cover with the Sherlock Holmes head cut out on it. This was a ton of fun.

What If…? Dark: The Tomb of Dracula #1. Written by Marv Wolfman and penciled by David Cutler. These What If Dark books have been up and down. This one falls right in the middle. We get Dracula transforming Blade into a full-fledged vampire. I kind of enjoyed the ending sequence, but the whole book was, at best, okay.

Avengers Inc. #2. “Case Number: 002 The Ghost of Avengers Mansion.” Written by Al Ewing and art by Leonard Kirk. Daniel Acuna did the cover art. Wasp introduced Victor Shade to Victor Shade, aka Vision. This has been an interesting comic, with a tone of noir about it. Janet Van Dyne and Victor Shade make an intriguing pair and the story was decent.

Cereal. “Sweet Darkness.” Written by Mark Russell and drawn by Peter Snejbjerg. Another book that I technically did not ask for, but Pat (another Comic World employee) had gotten one for himself and he thought that I would like it and he put it in my box. And he was right. Cereal is a weird satire of the monster movies of the past while using the characters from American breakfast cereals such as Count Chocula or Frankenberry. I was constantly looking for more allusions to the cereal mascots (there are a bunch of them) while enjoying seeing this (sorta) serious story with them involved. The Comic World guys are good to me.

Thanos #1. Written by Christopher Cantwell and art by Luca Pizzari. Leinil Francis Yu and Sunny Cho did the cover art. Okay, I did not think I would care much about this book, but I was totally engaged with it. I loved the way this book was about Roberta, a character that I did not know, but easily started to root for and when the Illuminati arrived… well, the story picked up again.

Unleashed #4. Written by Kyle Starks and art by Jesus Hervas. David Baldeon and Israel Silva did the art of the cover. The super hero pets team up, Marvel style came to a close with this issue as D-Dog heads to the great beyond. This series had no right to be as fun as it was, but I did enjoy the exploits of these animals.

Phantom Road #6. Chapter Six: “Monsters Don’t Make Campfires.” Written by Jeff Lemire and with art by Gabriel H. Walta. This series returned after a bit of a hiatus with a strong issue as we get a name for these strange creatures…Horror Men.

Transformers #2. Written and drawn by Daniel Warren Johnson. The Decepticons, led currently by Starscream are after energy and they may have found it where Spike’s dad worked. Oh… and we get the debut of Duke, from G.I. Joe. Cool.

Uncanny Spider-Man #3. “Superpositional” Kurt Wagner and Silver Sable get their groove on. And what has happened to Cloak and Dagger? This is a continuing entertaining book.

Destiny Gate #2. Written by Ryan Cady and art by Christian DiBari. Mitchell is facing the monster in the water. Destiny Gate has been a fun new horror book with some inteersting ideas.

Nights #2. “Into the Woods” Written by Wyatt Kennedy and art by Luigi Formisano. Vince has found himself in a world of vampires and creatures while he has feelings for Gray.

Other books read this week: Dark Ride #9, Captain Marvel: Dark Tempest #5, Hunt for the Skinwalker #3, Damn Them All #10, Guardians of the Galaxy #8, House of Slaughter #19, Star Signs #6, Midlife (or How to Hero at Fifty) #2, G.O.D.S. #2, Groo: In the Wild #4, and The Enfield Gang Massacre #4.

November 4, 2023

Welcome. This past Wednesday was not only NEW COMIC BOOK DAY, but it was also my official anniversary for collecting comics. I have been collecting comics for 43 years now. Sure there were stretches where I did not have much money and so I did not buy comics (I’m looking at you 1990s), but I never considered myself not a collector.

I remember staying over at a friends house over Halloween, reading a bunch of his own comics and deciding the next morning that I was going to collect comics too. He had a folder at Comic World in Dubuque and since my dad worked at John Deere and would commute daily, I would have him stop off monthly at Comic World and pick up my folder from Al Picker, the owner at the time.

Dad always gave me crap about how much money I was spending in my collection, but he never refused to pick them up for me. 43 years later, I am still picking up comics at Comic World, though Al Picker is gone from the store and it is no longer down on Central Ave.

Being the fifth week of a month, there were not as many comics this week as usual.

This week’s books:

Planetary #6. “It’s a Strange World” Written by Warren Ellis and drawn by John Cassaday. I have been pushing this book off lately while doing Omega and Howard the Duck. I have enjoyed this book so far, so it will be nice to get back into it.

Spider-Boy #1. Written by Dan Slott and art by Paco Medina. The cover art was from Humberto Ramos and Edgar Delgado. The fun new book featuring the mysterious Spider-Boy, who claims to be Spider-Man’s sidekick though no one else remembers anything about him. At this point, I find Spider-Boy interesting enough to be curious.

Ultimate Universe #1. Written by Jonathan Hickman and art by Stefano Caselli. Bryan Hitch and Alec Sinclair did the art for the cover. The Ultimate universe is being reborn with a group of characters that are somewhat like the ones we know. This has an Ultimate Thor, Ultimate Iron Man, Ultimate Doom, Ultimate Sif, along with some others. I am giving this a try, but I have never been a big fan of those books outside of general continuity in Marvel.

Unnatural Order #1. Written by Christopher Yost and featuring art by Val Rodrigues. This was on sale at Comic World for $0.25. That was why I picked it up. I read part of it. It was not for me. It felt like a D & D campaign.

Blood Commandment #1. Part 1: “Flesh.” Written and drawn by Szymon Kudranski. I picked this up because of Kudranski. He was the creator behind Something Epic which has been one of my favorite books. Blood Commandment started off very strong too with a very intriguing character named Ezra, whose relationship with his son Wil was front and center even though there was a secret in Ezra’s life. Art is absolutely gorgeous.

Avengers #7. “Twilight Dreaming” Part One. Written by Jed MacKay and drawn by C.F. Villa. Stuart Immonen did the cover art. A new arc begins for the Avengers and this started really dark. I was not sure what was happening as characters were being killed. Then, it revealed the truth. Nightmare. Looking good.

White Widow #1. Written by Sarah Gaily and art by Alessandro Miracolo. Cover art was by David Marquez & Rachelle Rosenberg. Yelena BeLova is featured in this new series. This was okay. I may not have loved it, but I did think it was fine. May check out number two just to see how it progresses.

X-Men #28. “Jail Break.” Written by Gerry Duggan and penciled by Joshua Cassara. Firestar and her undercover work is having some success as she helped Juggernaut escape and passed some vital info to the X-Men. Her time inside Orchis may be coming to an end soo though. Not sure what is happening with Sunfire, but… was that Apocalypse?

Doctor Strange #9. “Nebraska Pt. 1” Written by Jed MacKay and with art by Pasqual Ferry. Alex Ross did the cover art. The battle between Stephen Strange and General Strange intensifies and there is a little baby girl?

Scarlet Witch #10. Written by Steve Orlando and art by Sara Pichelli. This is the last issue of this series which I have been enjoying. I am sad to see it go, although apparently there is a new series coming next year called Scarlet Witch and Quicksilver. Here Wanda takes on Hexfinder, the killer of witches.

Ghostlore #6. Written by Cullen Bunn and illustrated by Leomacs. Cover art by Reiko Murakami and Jakub Rebelka. Jakub Rebelka illustrated a few pages in the center of the story when one of the ghosts was telling his story to Lucas as he is in search for his daughter.

It’s Jeff: The Jeff-Verse #1. Written by Kelly Thompson and drawn by Gurihiru. The short stories with the shark Jeff are back. That’s about all I have to say.

October 29, 2023

Funny story to start off with this week. A few weeks ago, I read issue #3 of The Cull from Image Comics, but I actually did not know it was number three. Instead I thought it was number two. Why? Well, I had not gotten number one and when I got number two (the numbers of which are very small on the cover of the comics) I thought it WAS number one.

When I read issue two, thinking it was number one, things seemed to make sense for me. Where the issue picked up, it seemed to make sense for the story and the characters. It just felt like there were some holes that I assumed would be picked up on later in the five issues.

When I noticed that I was reading number three and not number two as I thought, I was surprised. I had The Cull on my pull list, and number two wound up pulled, but apparently, number one was not there. So I quickly went to eBay and bid on a #1 of the Cull. It came this week and I read it and, guess what? It made the actual number two and three make way more sense. Who would have thunk it?

The Cull is written by Kelly Thompson and has spectacular art by Mattia De Iulis.

Other new books read this week:

The Defenders #76-77. Written by Steven Grant and art by Herb Trimpe. I guess we are starting off with an “old” new book this week. This two issue arc of The Defenders came from 1979 and was the wrap up of the Omega the Unknown storyline from Omega #1-10. That was written by Steve Gerber and I had been following along with it for awhile now. This finished up the story, which I wonder if the fans of the Defenders hadn’t read Omega #1-10, would they understand what this was all about? It was nice to get a bow tied to the storyline though.

Howard the Duck #1-6 (MAX Comics). Written by Steve Gerber and penciled by Phil Winslade (except for issue three which was penciled by Glenn Leach. This six issue series was published in 2002 and had a “Parental Advisory Explicit Content” label on the covers. I saw this while surfing around eBay and I was able to get a good deal on it. It was strange because for most of the issues, Howard the Duck had been transformed into a 60-lb mouse instead. This was very much a satire and it poked fun at everything from politics to Witchblade to religion.

Gone #1. Written and illustrated by Jock. The larger scale book from OSTLRY is an interesting science-fiction tale. It was difficult to read at times because so much of it is new and the world building is so important in a new sci-fi series. It is a beautiful book and I will certianly be looking at in the coming weeks and months.

Universal Monsters: Dracula #1. Written by James Tynion IV and illustrated by Martin Simmonds. I do love me some James Tynion IV. I also love me some Dracula so this was a clear winner for me when I saw the ad for it in Previews a few months ago. This book is another top notch job from James Tynion IV and Martin Simmonds, who worked with Tynion on several projects, brings his distinct style of artistic flair to the book. I am happy to be able to say, “Blah Blah.”

Captain Marvel #1. “The Omen” Written by Alyssa Wong and featuring art by Jan Bazaldua. Stephen Segovia & Romulo Fajardo Jr. did the cover art. The MCU movie, The Marvels is just a few weeks away, so it is time for the new ongoing series for Carol Danvers, Captain Marvel to be replaced. And the storyline seems very similar to what I know of the storyline for The Marvels. Curious timing, hm?

Amazing Spider-Man #36. Written by Zeb Wells and penciled by Ed McGuinness. Rek-Rap is back and being chased by other demons to try and get him back to Limbo. Spider-Man joins in to the excitement, but has to team up with the demon on his “big case.” I’m not a big fan of Rek-Rap, but this was a little better than his last appearance.

Uncanny Spider-Man #2. “Blue Streak” Nightcrawler, in his new Spider-Man outfit, takes on the Rhino while trying to deal with Silver Sable and Mystique too. This has been a fun book starting Kurt Wagner so far.

Marvel Zombies: Black, White & Blood #1. Three stories featuring Daredevil, Spider-Man and Moon Knight separately. The cover was a beautiful rendition of Wolverine as a zombie by Gabriele Dell’otto which was weird because Wolverine is not in this issue. The Spider-Man story was my favorite of the three with the Moon Knight one being my least favorite. Good zombie action though.

Captain America #2. “Taking A.I.M.” Written by J. Michael Straczynski and art by Jesus Saiz. I am really enjoying this new take on Captain America, going into his pre-Super Soldier past as a young boy in Brooklyn and matching it up with his current Marvel Universe world. This includes a guest appearance from Spider-Man which is always a plus for me.

Rare Flavours #2. “Chapter 2: Mirchi” Written by Ram V and illustrated by Filipe Andrade. I actually had a little hard time following this story this issue. I do find the book beautiful to look at and I am hoping that I can figure out what is happening after a re-read or so.

Money Shot: Comes Again #5. Written by Tim Seeley and drawn by Gisele Lagace. The climax of this series feels a little premature. I feel as if they could have squeezed out some more by getting a handful. It can’t be that hard. Come on…

Void Rivals #5. Written by Robert Kirkman and featuring art by Lorenzo De Felici. Solila and Darak started off together, but both had a dark future fate in their heads. Darak gets rescued by an underground resistance force and Solila has to face her destiny as a Keeper of the Light (whatever that means).

Hallows’ Eve: The Big Night #1. Written by Erica Schultz and illustrated by Michael Dowling. Ben Harvey does the cover art. Halloween is just a couple days away so we have a one-shot featuring Hallows’ Eve. She uses some new masks, including one like Captain America and another like the Hulk in her actions. This is a fun character that has been enjoyable to read and one of the better things to come out of the recent Dark Web story arc.

Uncanny Avengers #3. “The Arrogants” Written by Gerry Duggan and drawn by Emilio Laiso. Javier Garrón & Morry Hollowell did the cover art. I love it when Captain America is monologuing and everyone listens and is in awe of him. That happens this issue showing how much presence Steve Rogers has.

Immortal Thor #3. “The Riddle of Raidho” Written by Al Ewing and art by Martin Coccolo. Alex Ross did the cover art (and it is gorgeous!). Loki has Thor trapped in a dimension and seems to be playing games with his brother. Thor has to use his mind to escape instead of his typical fisticuffs.

Ms. Marvel: The New Mutant #3. “Waking Nightmare” Written by Iman Vellani & Sabir Pirzada featuring art by Carlos Gomez & Adam Gorham. Sara Pichelli & Matthew Wilson are the cover artists. There is a tense story going on inside Kamala Khan’s dreams as she is confronted by her mutant mutation and Orchis is setting her up to be the ultimate weapon against the other mutants.

Something is Killing the Children #34. “Showdown at the Easy Creek Corral” Part Four. This showdown has been building for what seems months and it seems as if it is finally here as the last panel of the book gives us a huge shocker. Next issue must be the big wrap up of this storyline.

Other Books read this week: Marvel Unleashed #3, Slow Burn #1, The Schlub #3, Newburn #12, Jean Grey #3, and Plot Holes #3.

October 22, 2023

Sadly, looks as if I am missing Avengers Inc #2. Not sure where that one was. It was due out last week according to Marvel.com

Lots of good books this week. Let’s just jump in to it:

Justice League vs. Godzilla vs. Kong #1. Written by Brian Buccellato and art by Christian Duce. Drew Johnson and Romulo Fajardo Jr. did the cover art. I liked the match up with the monsters and the JL, but this felt weird. Did this fit into continuity anywhere? The whole Clark and Lois proposal thing… didn’t that already happen? Maybe I shouldn’t worry about continuity in DC, but as a Marvel guy, I prefer when it meshes up. Is this an Elseworlds? Will we ever know?

Godzilla #3. “A Tale of Two Saviors” Written by Doug Moench and drawn by Herb Trimpe. Speaking of Marvel, in honor of the other series coming out, I picked up an issue from 1977 when Marvel had the Godzilla license. They had the Champions, Hercules, Iceman, Angel and Black Widow taking on Gidzilla outside of San Francisco. I knew where this fell into continuity.

Spine-Tingling Spider-Man #1. Written by Saladin Ahmed and penciled by Juan Ferreyra. A cool issue with Spidey winding up somewhere where no one knows who he is and he is being pursued by some horrific creatures. No powers either! Beautiful interior art.

Omega the Unknown #9-10. Steve Gerber wrote both of these issues. In fact, they list him on the cover as the “author of Howard the Duck.” I wrapped up the ten-issue Omega series. I really enjoyed the path through and I will be heading to the “conclusion” of Omega’s story in the pages of an old issue of Defenders. This series had a distinct feel to it, different than what we were used to in the Marvel Universe while still being planted firmly in continuity. I’ve used that word a few times already today.

Crypt of Shadows #1. Five short stories featuring Scarlet Witch, Hulk, Deadpool, Daredevil and Werewolf by Night. Narrated by Victor Strange, who is on his way to the pages of Dr. Strange. This was a fun Halloween special that highlights the weird corner of the Marvel universe.

Klik Klik Boom #5. Written by Doug Wagner and art by Doug Dabbs. Klik Klik Boom wrapped up after a really enjoyable five-issue run. Sprout found some secrets and kicked some massive butt. I do hope that this series receives another arc sooner rather than later.

The Sensational She-Hulk #1. Written by Rainbow Rowell and art by Andres Genolet. Jen Bartel did the cover art. This started the She-Hulk series over at a number one, but feels exactly like the previous She-Hulk series. Still had the Punch Club. Jack of Hearts. Law work with Mallory Book. Not sure why it needed to be a new number one (yeah, I know why…$$$)

Daredevil #2. “Introductory Rites” Part Two. Written by Saladin Ahmed and drawn by Aaron Kuder. John Romita Jr., Scott Hanna & Marco Menyz did the cover art. Father Matt continues his conflict with his past life as Daredevil. And someone close to Matt has sicced the police on the church where he is working. Ben Urich? What’s up with that?

Big Game #4. Written by Mark Millar and drawn by Pepe Larraz. Watching all of Millar’s characters come together only to get butchered is really a hoot. Everything seems to be coming to a huge conclusion next issue and I will be anxious to see if anyone will be left. Maybe they all just die and Millar retires.

Local Man #6. “The Dry Season.” Written and created by Tim Seeley & Tony Fleecs. Art was by Tony Fleecs. Local Man returns with his next story arc which starts off with a shoot out at Auntie Inga’s. There always feels like there is more than what you can see going on with Local Man.

Astonishing Iceman #3. “Out Cold” Part Three. Written by Steve Orlando and art by Vincenzo Carratù. Cover art was done by Jesus Saiz. Iceman faces off with the Orchis forces led by Mister Clean. Aaron Fischer, the Captain America of the Rails is right there to help. Fun with the Omega mutant. Next issue includes the Amazing friend, Spider-Man!!!

Invincible Iron Man #11. “The Honeymoon is Over” Written by Gerry Duggan and guest artist is Andrea Di Vito. Kael Ngu did the cover art. Tony Stark and Emma Frost are on their honeymoon. Unlike most couples, this entails Tony going on a covert mission to Krakoa in search of some of the special metal.

Incredible Hulk #5. “Riddle of the Man Thing.” Part Two. Written by Phillip Kennedy Johnson with art by guest artist Travel Foreman. Hulk continues his adventure in the Nexus of Realities with the Man-Thing. Honestly, I was not a fan of the art in this book and it made it difficult to read.

Deadpool: Badder Blood #5. Story by Rob Liefeld and script by Chad Bowers. Pencils were by Rob Liefeld. This mini-series with Wolverine, Spider-Man, and Venompool joining Deadpool comes to a conclusion with some success. This was a fun team-up book with some excellent characters.

Other books read this week: Ghost Rider #19, Hexagon Bridge #2, Miles Morales: Spider-Man #11, Scarlet Witch #9, Grim #14, Moon Knight #28, Antarctica #4, Kill Your Darlings #2, Guardians of the Galaxy #7, Star Signs #5, Black Panther #5, and Tenement #5.

October 15, 2023

Things are very busy here at EYG. There seems to be TV shows coming out of nowhere that I want to watch. There is the October 13 films underway. Two re-watches going on at the same time. The new release movies are still coming out. There is also my full time job as well. So I am trying to work in the reading of these comics into this schedule.

I am planning to rebag and reboard the older comics of my collection, maybe as soon as next summer. I have the unbagged books all done, but the old books are a giant job. I am collecting bags and boards every week with the comics to build up toward the start of that effort.

Books read:

Amazing Spider-Man #35. Written by Zeb Wells and art by Patrick Gleason. I have the cover D, which is the best cover of the week in my opinion. It was done by Elena Casagrande & Mate Gracia. The Goblin sins that have created the evil Spider-Man is pulled out of Peter and seem to be isolated and buried by Kraven. Or have they?

Midlife (or How to Hero at Fifty) #1. Written by Brian Buccellato and drawn by Stefano Simeone. Ruben is turning 50. And along the way, he becomes a superhero. This takes a look at heroism that we have not seen before. It is an intriguing start to this book.

Blade #4. “Mother of Evil: Part Four.” Written by Bryan Hill and art by Valentina Pinti with Elena Casagrande. Cover art was by Elena Casagrande & Jordie Bellaire. Blade and Dr. Strange battled vampires in an attempt to get the sword of Lucifer.

Omega the Unknown #8. “A Blast from the Past.” Written by Roger Stern and penciled by Lee Elias. Omega takes on Nitro the Exploding Man. James-Michael meets Richard Rory, who receives a card from Foolkiller.

Captain Marvel: Assault on Eden #1. Written by Anthony Oliveira and art by Eleonora Carlini. Cover art was by Carlos Gomez & Jesus Aburtov. Carol heads to Hala to celebrate the anniversary of the peace accord between the Kree and the Skrulls. The Supreme Intelligence may not want to maintain a peace.

Howard the Duck #2. “Cry Turnip!” Written by Steve Gerber and illustrated by Frank Brunner. Howard faces off with Turnip Man. Turnip Man? Yes, a powerful space turnip takes over control of a human. Only in Howard the Duck could this work.

Superior Spider-Man Returns #1. Story by Dan Slott, Script by Christos Gage and penciled by Mark bagely, Ryan Stegman, Humberto Ramos and Giuseppe Camuncoli. Ryan Stegman, JP Mayer & Edgar Delgado did the cover art. A story of the Superior Spider-Man from years before while Doc Ock looks for answers in the present.

Hunt for the Skinwalker #2. Written by Zac Thompson and illustrated by Valeria Burzo. Cover art by Martin Simmonds. Tom saw the things in the sky and now he is having several of his cows killed in strange ways, blood drained.

Something Epic #6. Written and illustrated by Szymon Kudranski. Daniel’s darkness comes out of his creativity and the darkness leads to the death of Dalia. The penultimate issue of the first story arc is here, setting up the final next issue.

A Haunted Girl #1. Written by Ethan Sacks and Naomi Sacks and art by Marco Lorenzana. Civer art was by Joe Quesada & Richard Isanove. A look at mental health/illness with a young girl who may not want to live, but who may need to save the world. Ethan Sacks said that this book was a personal story about depression and suicidial thoughts that his daughter went through, and now she is helping write the book.

Groo: In the Wild #3. Written by Sergio Aragonés and Mark Evanier and illustrated by Sergio Aragonés. Groo continues to look for food to eat, and causing trouble for King Putrio. More frays! Less food!

Capwolf and the Howling Commandos#1. Written by Stephanie Phillips and art by Carlos Magno. Ryan Brown did the cover art. France, 1944. Captain America leads the Howling Commandos into battle after Nick Fury is injured. And Cap gets scraped by a werewolf and becomes Capwolf!

The Cull #3. Written by Kelly Thompson and art by Mattia De Julis. The story continues to take a weird twist as some kind of being showed up to meet the others.

The Avengers #6. “Citykillers” part four. Written by Jed MacKay and drawn by Ivan Fiorelli. Stuart Immonen did the cover art. The Avengers take on Ashen Combine and free up the Immortal City. I had a guess about the Immortal City joining the Avengers and that is what happened. There is a back up story featuring Firebird called “The Truth is Out There” written by Kalinda Vazquez and penciled by Alba Glez.

Nights #1. “Vespertine” Written by Wyatt Kennedy and art by Luigi Formisano. Vincent comes to Santo Pedro and there are vampires. This was a fantastic book with some serious storytelling going on.

Spider-Man India #5. “Seva Part V” Written by Nikeshi Shukla and penciled by Tadam Gyadu. Cover art is by Adam Kubert & Brad Anderson. The battle with Lizard and Giri finished and we got a redesigned Spider-Man India costume for Pavitr.

October 8, 2023

Welcome back to EYG Comic Cavalcade. I started this week finally getting that final missing issue #3. I had a bunch of independent series that I missed issue #3 of and this week, I got The Seasons Have Teeth #3, which I then was able to read #4, that I had had for months. I did not even really believe issue#3 existed, even with Todd’s pics of the issue that he sent me. After reading it, I did enjoy these two issues.

Then, there was some intriguing events occurring involving signatures. First of all, Todd got me a signed copy of Local Man Gold, from creator Tony Fleecs. He went to a con last weekend where Fleecs was appearing. I have been a fan of his work on Local Man and Stray Dogs. It was a bit strange because he signed the book “AMF,” which is his initials. I guess it is just a quicker way to do it. Thankfully, he personalized it for me.

Then, I had purchased a copy of Howard the Duck #1 over eBay, and when I went to read it, I opened the first page and do you know what I saw? Two signatures at the bottom of the page. One was the writer Steve Gerber and the other was the artist, Frank Brunner. I was shocked as there was nowhere on eBay indicating that this was a signed copy, nor were there any pictures of the signatures on the site. The person had said that he was not an expert and that he had purchased this out of a large collection so my guess is that he never even opened the comic. I find this a treasure that I did not expect.

The rest of the books this week:

G.O.D.S. #1. Written by Jonathan Hickman and art by Valerio Schiti. Mateus Manhanini did the cover art. Jonatan Hickman’s newest creation for Marvel, deals with the mysterious Wyn and the world of magic in the Marvel Universe. This was an intriguing book with the typical Hickman convolution.

Parasocial graphic novel. Written by Alex De Campi and drawn by Erica Henderson. This is like the movie Misery meeting social media. A former TV star of show Rogue Nebula gets kidnapped by an obsessive fan and has to try to survive the situation. This was an easy read and quite the commentary on toxic fandom.

The Enfield Gang Massacre #3. “Chapter Three: The Rooftop Gambit.” Written by Chris Condon and illustrated by Jacob Phillips. How could you go wrong with a big standoff in the old West with a line gun? This book continues to be one of the more original books each month.

Doctor Strange #8. “The Doctor, the General and the Warlord.” Written by Jed MacKay and drawn by Pasqual Ferry. Alex Ross does the cover art. Last issue it seemed as if Clea was betraying Stephen for General Strange. This issue, we see that she was not intending to betray him. Instead, she was going out of her way to try and help Stephen by going undercover. Looks like there is a big showdown next issue.

Red Goblin #9. Written by Alex Paknadel and penciled by Chris Campana. Kendrick “Kunkka” Lim did the cover art. The out of control Rascal takes on the Gold Goblin, trying to stop those things that make Normie sad. There is also a cameo by Normie’s father, Harry’s skeleton. Weird, I know.

Peacemaker: Tries Hard #6. Written by Kyle Starks and art by Steve Pugh. Kris Anka did the cover art. Peacemaker wraps up his series with the end of the story of the Red Bee and a birthday party for Peacemaker with a passel of special guest stars.

Ghostlore #5. Written by Cullen Bunn and illustrated by Leomacs. This issue, we get a close look at where Harmony wound up. She finds herself with a group of people who can also see and talk to the spirits.

Transformers #1. Written and illustrated by Daniel Warren Johnson. A brand new series featuring the battle between the Autobots and Decepticons. It wound up with what looked to be the death of Jetfire, which is sad for me considering he was one of my favorites ever. A new series from Image and a new shared universe.

Strange Academy: Amazing Spider-Man #1. “Solve for X” Written by Carlos Hernandez and art by Vasco Georgiev. Nick Bradshaw & Edgar Delgado did the cover art. This wrapped up the Solve for X storyline. Honestly, I did not find this conclusion that interesting and there was just not enough Spider-Man in it for me.

Fantastic Four #12. “Saur Winners” Written by Ryan North and art by Iban Coello. I have to say that I have really been enjoying this latest run on Fantastic Four with the team in Arizona. With this issue, the FF find themselves in an alternate dimension where everyone, including Tony Stark, Captain America etc. are dinosaurs.

October 1, 2023

It has been a busy week around EYG so I am just getting to the comics from this past Wednesday. I also have a few items coming from eBay.

Let’s go…

Howard the Duck #29. “Help Stamp Out Ducks!” Written by Steve Gerber and art by Will Meugniot. I have started to flesh out my Howard the Duck collection of his original series from 1976-1979. These are really fun and the satire involved is just top notch. This issue was based on a plot by Mark Evanier of Groo the Wanderer fame.

Omega the Unknown #7. “And Then Came Blockbuster.” Written by Scott Edelman and drawn by Jim Mooney. We get some more in the connection between Omega and James-Michael and Omega speaks! This late 70s comic is fascinating and has just three more issues to go.

The Devil’s Cut. This is a large compilation from a new comic company, DSTLRY. This, according to Todd, are a group of introductions to the different titles that the company is going to produce. I picked it up because there were stories inside by James Tynion IV and also Marc Bernardin. The different stories were very varied and fun to read. Will I buy any of them? Hard to say, but I did enjoy this book.

The Invincible Iron Man #10. “Sentenced to Life.” Written by Gerry Dugan and drawn by Juan Frigeri. Lucas Werneck did the cover art. The wedding of Tony Stark and Emma Frost takes place as they are trying to stop Feilong and Orchis. We also get a look at Rhodey, who has been in jail, but now has protection thanks to Wilson Fisk. Tony is having to do things he does not want to do to try and save his friend.

Ultimate Invasion #4. Chapter Four: “Yesterday, Today, Tomorrow.” Written by Jonathan Hickman and penciled by Bryan Hitch. This has set up what appears to be a new Ultimate universe and I am curious to see where this goes.

Ms. Marvel: The New Mutant #2. “Hiding in Plain Sight.” Written by Iman Vellani & Sabir Pirzada and art by Carlos Gomez & Adam Gorham. Sara Pichelli & Matthew Wilson did the cover art. Kamala Khan continues to struggle with the new way that the world looks at her because she is now a mutant. And why does she head into her own dream? To talk with Dr. Surfer, of course.

The Oddly Pedestrian Life of Christopher Chaos #4. Based on an idea by James Tynion IV, written by Tate Brombal and art by Isaac Goodhart. Cover art was by Nick Robles. Christopher, Jordi and Viveka have a disagreement after being saved from their conflict, but they reunite at the end to go take care of their issues. This continues to be an enjoyable book with a lot of originality.

Moon Knight: City of the Dead #3. “Dead Reckoning.” Written by David Pepose and penciled by Sean Damien Hill. Rod Reis did the cover art. Moon Knight takes on his brother in an attempt to get Khalil away. However, little did Moon Knight know that Khalil has a bigger roles to play.

Spider-Man India #4. “Seva Part IV” Written by Nikesh Shukla and penciled by Tadam Gyadu. Adam Kubert & Brad Anderson did the cover art. Pavitr Prabhakar is in a lot of trouble with the Lizard and Giri Sahibi both coming after him. Things are not looking good for our hero.

Avengers #5. Written by Jed MacKay and art by Ivan Fiorelli Stuart Immonen did the cover art. The Ashen Combine continue to battle the Avengers separately as the Impossible City seems to hinting to Black Panther and Captain America that it did not want to be doing what it is doing, but there was nothing it could do about it. Things are building toward the Avengers coming together and kicking some butt!

Marvel Unleashed #2. Written by Kyle Starks and drawn by Jesus Hervas. David Baldeon & Israel Silva did the cover art. The team of animals are growing as this issue brings into the comic Throg, Frog of Thunder, and Bats the ghost dog from Dr. Strange. Throg vs. Blackheart? Yes, please. They join in an attempt to rescue Lockjaw with D-Dog, Redwing, Chewie the Flerken and Lucky the Pizza Dog. This is surprisingly fun.

Avengers Annual #1. “Contest of Chaos: Finale” The Avengers join up with Spider-Man, Jessica Jones and Clea in an attempt to stop Agatha Harkness and her team of controlled heroes as Agatha is trying to recreate the Darkhold. The running story from the annuals comes to a close here.

The Immortal Thor #2. “The Wisdom of the Fool.” Written by Al Ewing and drawn by Martin Coccolo. Alex Ross did the cover art. Thor tries to battle Totanos before the Odin sleep forces him into a slumber. Who knew it all would depend of Thor trusting Loki? Is that a good idea?

Blade #3. “Mother of Evil: Part Three” Writtenby Bryan Hill and penciled by Elena Casagrande and Valentina Pinti. Blade, Rotha and Tulip have problems to face, not the least is their interpersonal problems. And then, there is Dr. Strange.

Planetary #5. “The Good Doctor.” Written by Warren Ellis and drawn by John Cassaday. Elijah Snow goes to see Doctor Brass and the pair discuss the situation they find themselves in at Planetary. Doctor Brass certainly reminded me of Doc Savage. This issue handles Dr. Brass’s background in a cool and very pulpy manner.

Newburn #11. Written by Chip Zdarsky and drawn by Jacob Phillips. Newburn continues to try and find a way to solve the murder of the New York Yakuza boss without pointing the finger at the guy they know did it. Lots of trouble for Newburn, including from his old partner.

Void Rivals #4. Written by Robert Kirkman and art by Lorenzo De Felici. Solila, who betrayed Darak last issue, and she returned to her people… but things did not seem to go the way she had intended. Plus… Soundwave.

September 26, 2023

Sixty posts in the EYG Comic Cavalcade. I have really enjoyed this part for EYG. Tomorrow is NEW COMIC BOOK DAY and this is the remaining issues from last week.

Let’s go!

Planetary #4. “Strange Harbours” Written by Warren Ellis and drawn by John Cassaday. I guess this is not a comic from last week’s NEW COMIC BOOK DAY, but it was one of the Planetary back issues that I got. This is really a good issue and I am enjoying the strangeness of the whole story. And this one was wild with an alien ship and another dimension.

Grim #13. “Chapter Thirteen: Interlude” Written by Stephanie Phillips and illustrated by Flaviano. I have no idea what this was. I did not know who these characters were or what was happening. Grim has been slipping down the list for me, so I hope this will pick up again.

X-Men Annual #1. “Contest of Chaos: Part Seven.” I really enjoyed this issue as we got the conflict with Captain Marvel and Cyclops. They made a fascinating pairing with their dialogue during the conflict. Looks like there is one more annual in this Contest of Chaos summer arc.

Deadpool: Badder Blood #4. Story by Rob Liefeld, script by Chad Bowers and penciled by Rob Liefeld. Deadpool, Logan, Venompool and… Spider-Man team up to bring down Killville and now they are off to save Thumper. Yeah, sound ridiculous… and awesome. Great full page panels filled with some awesome art.

Guardians of the Galaxy #6. “The Hand-Dug Grave.” Written by Collin Kelly & Jackson Lanzing and illustrated by Alex Lins. The cover art was by Marco Checchetto. This is a weird issue as the Guardians are dead? I think? This has to do with the Grootfall and I’m here for it. Weird is cool at times.

What If…? Dark: Carnage #1. Written by Larry Hama and art by John McCrea. Cover art was by Philip Tan, Jay Leisten and Rachel Rosenberg. I do love What Ifs, but this just was not very interesting. Todd had poo-pooed this book before I read it and so I just kind of skimmed it. It did not feel like a What If.

Haunt You to the End #4. Written by Ryan Cady and art by Andrea Mutti. Ghosts. Storms. Frighteningly scary things. This series feels as if it is picking up for a finale. Especially with a terrifying Commander Gersh at the end.

Omega the Unknown #5. “Through the Rat Hole… Into the Cat’s Lair” Written by Steve Gerber & Mary Skrenes and art by Jim Mooney. I have now caught up to the first issue of Omega that I picked up and was so intrigued by. This one wraps up the El Gato storyline. There are four more of these before it wraps up with a two-issue arc in Defenders.

September 22, 2023

Several great new books this week. Going to jump right in…

Omega the Unknown #4. “Cats and No Dogs.” Written by Steve Gerber & Mary Skrenes and illustrated by Jim Mooney & Pablo Marcus. Well, actually, this isn’t a ‘new’ book this week. It is from 1976 and I picked up this whole series recently. I have been taking my time reading through the 10 issues, doing #4 today. These have been a really fun read and I love the mystery of what is going on with Omega and James-Michael.

Predator Versus Wolverine #1. Written by Benjamin Percy and with art from Ken Lashley, Greg Land, Jay Leisten and Andrea Di Vito. Cover art was by Marco Checchetto. There was not a book more surprising this week than Predator Versus Wolverine #1. I had zero interest in this and only picked it up because it was a Marvel #1. However, I loved this. They way they followed the battle between Wolverine and the Predator though the years and how they were both damaged as they went, well it was excellent. A lot of the story is told through the images of the art and I love that style. This was really enjoyable and I am looking forward to more.

Hexagon Bridge #1. Written and drawn by Richard Blake. This is a beautifully illustrated book with a new world that is very interesting. This first issue introduces us to several new characters and slowly gives out what is happening in this world. We meet Elena, Jacob and Adley in separate sections of the story. I am curious to see where this goes from here.

Captain America #1. “Beginnings.” Written by J. Michael Straczynski with art by Jesus Saiz. I loved this new take on Captain America. The look at his early life, prior to the Super Soldier Serum, is a fascinating look at this character and the present day gave me vibes like Matt Fraction’s run on Hawkeye. I enjoyed this book tremendously.

Amazing Spider-Man #34. Written by Zeb Wells and art by Patrick Gleason. Cover art was done by John Romita Jr., Scott Hanna & Marcio Menyz. This was the greatest cover of the week. One of the best Spider-Man covers I have seen in a long time. This whole dark Spider-Man run is tense and worrisome. I hope Peter does not do anything that he cannot come back from or that taints who he is. I surely do not want a long term Dark Spider-Man.

Fishflies #2. Written and drawn by Jeff Lemire. This one was a little more difficult to follow that last issue. Todd then let me know that there was a misprint, where a whole page was reproduced in this issue. A full black page was in twice when it was meant to be only once. That was sad that I did not realize what had happened when I read it.

Nocterra #16. Written by Scott Snyder with art by Tony S. Daniel. The story of Nocterra comes to a conclusion with the darkness that has taken over the planet removed. While there are still some of the main antagonists still out there, this is a solid wrap up for the series. The note at the end indicated that there would be more to come from this world, but this could be a solid finish if they do not return to it.

Uncanny Spider-Man #1. “Park Life.” Written by Si Spurrier and art by Lee Garbett. Tony Daniel & Sonia Oback did the cover. I did not understand why this book was happening. I did not know why Nightcrawler would be dressed up like Spider-Man. I wondered why I should care about this. Then I read it. And I loved it. I was intrigued by the set up, I loved the reason why Kurt Wagner was dressed as Spidey, and I loved Spidey’s actual use. I thought this was way better than it had any right to be.

Loki #4. “The Liar: Finale” Written by Dan Watters and drawn by German Peralta. Dustin Nguyen did the cover art. Loki’s mission to reclaim the pieces of Naglfar, the cursed ship Loki created from the fingernails of the dead. The confrontation with Bullseye (plus the inclusion of Spider-Man) was cool. This series came to an end with this, making it appear as if Loki was heading back to his lying past.

Big Game #3. Written by Mark Millar and art by Pepe Larraz. This continues to be a shocking series, as characters are just killed left and right. I wonder if things will be retconned at some point. I have been enjoying what is going on. Come on, Hit Girl!

Tenement #4. Written by Jeff Lemire and art by Andrea Sorrentino. This horror series, a part of the Bone Orchard saga, is doing a great job of creating a tense and anxious story. The use of black and red is artistically wonderful images. There are some seriously creepy moments in the book too.

Something is Killing the Children #33. Written by James Tynion IV and illustrated by Werther Dell’edera. This continues to be an excellent story, though I have to say that it does feel as if they are stretching out the story before the eventual battle between Erica and Cutter.

Rare Flavours #1. “Chapter 1: Masala Chai.” Written by Ram V and illustrated by Filipe Andrade. One of the most original new books from the week. Creating a documentary that follows Rubin Baksh around eating the most delicious foods. This new Boom! Comics offering is different and curious.

Antarctica #3. Written by Simon Birks and drawn by Willi Roberts. Antarctica has been a very good book so far. I am still learning who is who, but the story is compelling and the twists have been powerful. This has been a real exceptional book so far.

Strange Academy: Moon Knight #1. “Solve for X” Part 2. Written by Carlos Hernandez and drawn by Julian Shaw. Nick Bradshaw and Edgar Delgado did the cover art. I do love the Strange Academy, and their interactions with Moon Knight and Miles Morales is a ton of fun.

Klik Klik Boom #4. Written by Doug Wagner and drawn by Doug Dabbs. I was so happy to see Serena Biggs at the beginning of this issue because I was almost certain that she had been killed at the end of issue #3. Sprout, by the way, is just about as kick ass of a character as you are going to find.

Uncanny Avengers #2. “New Avengers.” Written by Gerry Duggan and art by Javier Garrón. The mutants involved in this issue seems to have a problem with Cap as the leader of this Unity Squad. Who would have thought that the voice of reason would come from Deadpool?

Alpha Flight #2. Written by Ed Brisson and drawn by Scott Godlewski. Leonard Kirk & Edgar Delgado are the cover artists. Alpha Flight is trying to get their way through the current world troubles with Orchis and the Box Sentinels. These are some cool characters that we have not seen a lot of and this series is a welcome change.

September 17, 2023

I have a plethora of intriguing books to look at this week, some from the NEW COMIC BOOK DAY last Wednesday, some back issues from the series I have been collecting, and some back issues from Quad Com from last week.

Here we go…

Spine Tingling Spider-Man #0. Written by Saladin Ahmed and featuring art by Juan Ferreyra. Two of my favorite things combining into one: Spider-Man and horror comics. This was a great combination of genres that was a lot of fun to read.

Daredevil #1. Written by Saladin Ahmed and drawn by Aaron Kuder. Cover art by John Romita Jr, Scott Hanna and Marco Menyz. Here is yet another volume of Daredevil, kicking off at the end of the run of Chip Zdarsky. Matt Murdock is alive and a priest, with uncertain memories of Daredevil. This is a fascinating start to the new arc of DD. Saladin Ahmed seems to be the hot new writer in Marvel and I am anxious to see where a new voice takes the character of Daredevil.

Werewolf by Night #1. Written by Derek Landy and including art by Fran Galan. Corin Howell and Rachelle Rosenberg did the cover art. A cool one shot involving Jack Russell’s Werewolf by Night and Elsa Bloodstone. The presentation reminded me of the Marvel Studios Special Presentation from last Halloween. The use of color and black-and-white art worked very well for the format of this book and helped to create the desired tone.

The Cull #1. Written by Kelly Thompson and art by Mattia De Iulis. This new Image Comics book featured a group of young people are investigating something that happened the year before, by entering a mysterious cave. Or is it an alternate earth? Or is it luminal space? Not sure, but it is a fascinating start.

Project Crypto #1. Three tales, one about a Yeti, one about a Mongolian Death Worm and one serial written by Grant Morrison. I liked the Yeti part, but the Death Worm was a stretch for me. This was a different sort of book that was a refreshing change.

Alligator Loki #1. Written by Alyssa Wong and drawn by Bob Quinn. This is a series of short bits, much like the It’s Jeff book from earlier this year. I believe these were released originally on Marvel Unlimited online. These were funny and cute. That’s about it.

Miles Morales: Spider-Man #10. “Bad Blood: Part One” Written by Cody Ziglar and drawn by Partha Pratim and Federico Sabbatini. Dike Ruani and Alejandro Sanchez did the art for the cover. Miles has a therapy session with Doc Sampson (who is in Sasquatch form), has a confrontation with Hightail and comes face to face with Blade. A lot going down for Miles Morales.

Astonishing Iceman #2. “Out Cold: Part Two.” Bobby heads back to his hometown to confront the Sapien League, specifically Helium the Unfreezable Man. Bobby is sure that Orchis is behind this, despite the denials of Helium.

Avengers Inc. #1. “The Man Who Wasn’t There.” Written by Al Ewing and drawn by Leonard Kirk. Daniel Acuna did the cover art. Janet Van Dyne is approached by NYC Mayor Luke Cage about the murders of a group of low level super criminals. However, Cage does not want costumed help. So Janet has to move forward without costumes. She finds the body of Whirlwind, and the others who were not dead. Whirlwind comes back claiming to be Victor Shade ( a name connected to Vision). This has an X-Files flair to it.

Incredible Hulk #4. “Riddle of the Man-Thing: Part One” In this new arc, we get some background on Charlie, the young girl following Banner around. The Man-Thing arrives to spirit Banner/Hulk off to the Nexus. I have always enjoyed the Man-Thing despite not reading a ton of his books. I like the use of the character in this more horror themed Hulk title.

Red Goblin #8. Written by Alex Paknadel and drawn by Chris Campana. Inhyuk Lee did the cover art. Normie ditches Miles Morales and heads off to save Tim. Normie and Rascal continue their struggle with each other, but that is seemingly over.

House of Slaughter #17. “Alabaster Part Two.” Written by Sam Johns and illustrated by Letizia Cadonici. The cover art was by Javier Rodrigues & Werther Dell’edera. There is something creepy going on with the new boy they called Big Man. I have had some trouble following this arc so far. I hope I get better at it cause it looks cool.

Dark Ride #8. Written by Joshua Williamson and art by Andrei Bressan. Sam is being attacked by weird creatures that resemble the park’s mascot. We see flashbacks to his youth at the time his mother died. It had been a long time since the last issue of Dark Ride but each one is a great book.

Planetary #3. “Dead Gunfighters” Written by Warren Ellis and featuring art by John Cassaday. A cop, murdered by his partner, comes back as a ghost to exact some revenge. Cool issue.

Something Epic #5. Written and illustrated by Szymon Kudranski. Daniel proves himself as an epic and is allowed to head into a meeting with the source of Imagination. This series continues to be beautifully rendered and creative beyond almost anything that I have read.

Captain Marvel: Dark Tempest #3. “The Ferocious Occurrence of the Feral Five.” Written by Ann Nocenti and drawn by Paolo Villanelli. Mike McKone & Jesus Aburtov did the cover art. Carol gets back to the kids, but they have already been changed into the Feral Five.

Ghost Rider #18. “Bad Education.” This issue gives us a back story for Talia Warroad. Who knew that back story would include Doctor Strange? Or the Cult of Mephisto?

Omega the Unknown #3. “Burn While You Learn!” We continue to see the connection between Omega and James-Michael, who is having troubles at his new school with bullies. Omega is taking on Electro in the meantime. I like how they are laying this out slowly in each book. James-Michael is a little robotic (I assume that is what he actually is).

The Enfield Gang Massacre #2. “Chapter Two: Pinned Down.” Written by Chris Condon and drawn by Jacob Phillips. This continues to be one of the more original books out each month. Just the feel of the book, the way it is presented like an old time comic, right down to the paper style is awesome.

Amazing Spider-Man #655-658. These are four books I grabbed at Quad Con. They were all written by Dan Slott. This is right around the time when Marla Jameson was killed and Peter started to adopt the idea of “No One Dies.” The Human Torch is also considered dead and Spidey has taken his place in the FF (not the Fantastic Four, but the Future Foundation). Reading these took me back to a different time for Spidey and it was fun.

September 10, 2023

New banner!

Good Sunday to everyone. I am back with a new Comic Cavalcade after I spent some of my day at a special event that was held at the Five Flags Center in Dubuque, Iowa. It was the Quad Con, a convention featuring all of the keys of pop culture, from comic books to toys to artwork and geek/nerd culture.

I had heard that this was a minor convention and that there would not be much there, but when I showed up at 10 AM this morning, there were quite a few people there and they had a lot of things set up. I am sure that it was not at the level of events that, say Todd, is used to, but for me, who had never attended a comic convention before, this had a ton to look at.

I will agree that comics made up about 30% of the overall exhibits on display and that there were also a ton of toys, but the comic vendors that I saw had a lot of choices and I was happy to get an opportunity to pick up some books that I normally do not see anywhere but, perhaps, on eBay.

My local comic shop from Dubuque, Comic World and games, had a presence at the show too as Pat and Jeff were here working. They had a pair of giant D & D dice to role to determine discount on what is purchased. That was fun. As always, I want to support Comic World so, even though I had seen most everything that they were going to have, I picked up a couple of things, including Action Comics #454, which Pat had said was his favorite cover of all time.

They also had some Ghostbusters cosplay going on with some cool looking set up, a Ghostbuster truck, a couple of inflatable Ghostbusters creatures, including the Stay-Puft Marshmallow Man and such. I think they were doing something special with the Ghostbusters later in the day, but I did not stick around for that.

I got a bunch of cool comics to go along with the experience of attending the con. I picked up my first ever CGC Universal graded book, Amazing Spider-Man #289, which was graded at 9.4. I thought having one of these would be cool and this was the ASM issue where they ‘revealed’ the identity of the Hobgoblin. I also pocked up Daredevil #12 guest starring Ka-Zar (which is now my oldest Daredevil book), three issues of a Hellcat series that I had never seen before (she is in a blue outfit), Not Brand Echh #1-3, What If… #61, 71, 97, 88, 92, 112 and What If Dr. Doom had Become Thing #1. Also Amazing Spider-Man issues 655-658. and 544 (Part 1 of One More Day). Ice Cream Man trade paperback (collecting #1-4). Rocketeer: Cargo of Doom #1 (from IDW)New Thunderbolts #17 (which was free on the table for coming to the con), Plastic Man #10, and issues #1 & 2 of American Vampire Anthology from Vertigo. There were a lot of fun stuff and the only thing keeping me where I was was my wallet.

Other books this week:

Planetary #2. “Island.” Written by Warren Ellis and featuring art by John Cassaday. Elijah Snow and Jakita headed to an island (that really resembled Godzilla’s Monster Island) to try and prevent a group of people from discovering the mystery of the island. We also see a giant green lizard’s carcass (which sure resembled Godzilla) on the island. Fun issue.

Omega the Unknown #2. “Welcome to Hell’s Kitchen.” Written by Steve Gerber & Mary Skrenes and illustrated by Jim Mooney. The mysterious connection between Omega and James-Michael continues as James-Michael is injured when something happens to Omega. Oh, and there is a Hulk too.

Dr. Strange #7. “Don’t Let Your Ashes Fill Your Eyes.” Written by Jed macKay and drawn by Pasqual Ferry. Alex Ross did the cover art. Doctor Strange and General Strange come face-to-face and Stephen realizes what a challenge is ahead of him. And what exactly is going on with Clea?

Swan Songs #3. Written by W. Maxwell Prince and art by Filipe Andrade. One of the most beautifully rendered books I have seen in a long time. This is simply an artistic masterpiece. Plus, a story of nuclear destruction and the survival of two individuals. Beautiful book.

Barnstormers #3. “Chapter Three.” Written by Scott Snyder and drawn by Tula Lotay. This series wraps up with a somewhat happy ending… or as it seems. The fact that this book ends about half way through the book and the second part of the book is art and covers etc.

Black Panther #4. “Reign at Dusk Part 4” Written by Eve L. Ewing and penciled by Chris Allen and Mack Chater. Jesus Aburtov did the cover art. Black Panther battles a controlled Deathlok. I am still struggling to follow this book with all the characters that I am not sure of.

Moon Knight #27. “Journey to the Center of the Mind.” Written by Jed MacKay and art by Federico Sabbatini. Cover art by Stephen Segovia and Rachelle Rosenberg. Moon Knight and Hunter’s Moon go inside the mind of Vibro’s mind to try and find out what he knows about Black Spectre is found.

Peacemaker: Tries Hard #5. Written by Kyle Starks and drawn by Steve Pugh. Cover art by Kris Anka. Peacemaker and Red Bee have to fight a bunch of Deathstroke clones, especially Teen Deathstroke and a bunch of baby Deathstroke clones. Fun series with the tone of the HBO Max show.

Silver Surfer Rebirth-Legacy #1. “Temptation” Written by Ron Marz and drawn by Ron Lim. Variant cover drawn by Frank Miller. Silver Surfer steals the time gem from Gamora to take Genis-Vell into the past to let him see his father, Captain Marvel. Everything is not as happy as it seems.

Void Rivals #3. Written by Robert Kirkman and drawn by Lorenzo De Felici. Darak and Solila have to face off with a new villain as they try to return to the Sacred Ring. Void Rivals has been a fun and intriguing series so far and it looks like a betrayal is going to where we are moving forward.

Silk #5. Written by Emily Kim and drawn by Ig Guara. Cindy Moon goes into her brother’s dream to try and stop Saya Ishii from taking her revenge on Cindy through Albert.

September 7, 2023

A whole bunch of back issues have come into my possession recently for several series that I just recently discovered. A big thank you to Todd for his efforts to find these books for me across his mountains of contacts.

There is also, of course, a NEW COMIC BOOK DAY in there as well, although this was actually a lighter week of new books for me. The whole DC Knight Terror series is done now, which is helpful in bringing down my total.

Oh, and I owe an apology to Todd for doubting that he had already found me Planetary #12 & 13, which I thought he had not. I did not recognize the pics that he showed me on his phone. He was sure that he had already gotten those two books, and he was right. My bad.

Books this post…

Avengers #502 & 503. “Chaos” Part three and four. Written by Brian Michael Bendis and penciled by David Finch. This is the Avengers Disassembled story arc that had seen some of the team killed (such as poor Scott Lang and Hawkeye) by Wanda Maximoff. The story arc is tense and exciting, if not a tad anticlimactic.

Avengers Finale. Written by Brian Michael Bendis and art by a plethora of people. The surviving members of the Avengers gather together to mourn Scott Lang, Hawkeye, Vision, while dealing with their anger/frustration over Wanda’s decisions. The book wound up with the Avengers just reminiscing over their biggest moments and felt like a minor wrap up of the more tense Avengers Disassembled series.

Kill Your Darlings #1. Written by Ethan S. Parker and Griffin Sheridan with art by Robert Quinn. This is a book considered hot, coming out of Image, and it is, of course, because I picked it out of Previewed months ago. I am a trendsetter. Seriously, this is really an engaging book with a young girl named Rose and her imaginary world… or is it imaginary? Beautiful art work and a gripping story.

Secret War #5. Written by Brian Michael Bendis and art by Gabriele Dell’Otto. The heroes get together to finally discover what Nick Fury had gotten them to do the year before in Latveria. Daisy Johnson, aka Quake, steps forward to take Fury’s back. Honestly, this felt a little anticlimactic as well. I liked the whole series, but it just did not finish up that well.

Omega the Unknown #1. Written by Steve Gerber & Mary Skrenes and illustrated by Jim Mooney. Cover art by Hannigan & Sinnott. I picked up Omega the Unknown #6 at last weekend’s super secret sale at Comic World and I loved the issue, so I went to eBay and found the whole ten issue series. I started off with number one and it was decent. I was really curious about what has been set up in the story between Omega and James-Michael. Pretty good for a series that I had never heard of before.

Amazing Spider-Man #33. Written by Zeb Wells and featuring art from Patrick Gleason. Marcio Menyz did the cover art. Well… sure looked like Kraven done f@*ked up. Last issue, he stuck Peter with a spear that he intended to stab Norman Osborn with to make him return to his darkside, but instead, it turned Peter into something horrendous. The scenes at the end of this issue with Spidey and Kraven are as cold-blooded as I have seen. It always makes me unhappy to see Spidey look anything but his happy-go-lucky self.

Hunt for the Skinwalker #1. Written by Zac Thompson and illustrated by Valeria Burzo. Cover by Martin Simmonds. Colm Kelleher and George Knapp wrote the original book that this was based on and was involved with the series. This included some weird things as the Skinwalker ranch took center stage. This is a fascinating four issue series with a strong beginning.

Scarlet Witch #8. Written by Steve Orlando and art by Lorenzo Tannetta & Sara Pichelli. Russell Dauterman was the cover artist. Wanda heads to meet up with Loki in a battle of… the truth? I never thought two comic characters could show as much chemistry as these two did. This was written beautifully and showed something that you never thought you wanted.

Fantastic Four #11. Written by Ryan North and drawn by Iban Coello. Cover art by the legendary Alex Ross. I have really enjoyed this run on FF. It has had engaging stories with the team at the Grimm family farmstead in Arizona that feel very down to earth while still having huge stakes and action. This is a Thing-centric issue as he is joined by a little dog. Good stuff.

Void Rivals #2. Written by Robert Kirkman and drawn by Lorenzo De Felici. This is another book Todd got for me because I was not aware that when I picked up issue 1 a few weeks ago that I actually was buying a second printing and that this series already had several issues released. I really loved #2 and I really liked this issue too.

Planetary #1. Written by Warren Ellis and art by John Cassaday. Another series I had never heard of before until I picked up issues #17-22 because they looked like an anthology series that was interesting. However, after reading 17 & 18, I realized that there was more to it than just an anthology series so I waited until I got #1 to continue reading. Todd got me a bunch of these and I did like #1 a lot.

X-Men #26. “Whack-A-Mole” Written by Gerry Duggan and art by Jim Towe & Javier Pina. Alex Ross did this cover too. Kate Pryde heads to assassinate Firestar, unaware that she is a mole set up by Jean Grey just before she died. Plus, Tony Stark and Emma Frost wind up in a strange moment where it looked as if Stark was popping the question leading to their wedding??? I do like how Stark and Kingpin have become major players in the mutant storyline.

September 4, 2023

I hope everyone has had a happy Labor Day spent with friends, family or engaging in their favorite geek activities. I went to a movie, although saying that I ‘enjoyed’ it would be a gross overstatement.

By the way, it really feels like Sunday night to me right now. Have to keep telling myself that it is Monday.

Before heading out to the theater though, I did some comic reading this morning, finishing off the books from last week’s pull list that I needed to read and getting some of the new back issues that I recently purchased read as well.

My comic book shop sprung a super secret sale on Sunday out of nowhere. Literally, I saw a Facebook post about it on Saturday night and Todd called me wondering if I new anything about it. LOL. Anyway, I went and sprung for a bunch of comic bags and boards for my continuing goal of getting my full collection bagged and boarded, including replacing the old books’ protective materials with new ones. However, it was quite the depressing fact because I am almost done with the bags/boards that I bought and I made it through one long box with unbagged books. I have at least two more of these long boxes to go BEFORE I get into the books in the old boxes. Suddenly, I saw the expense that I would be looking at to complete this goal…

Definitely a LONG term goal.

I originally thought it would be about a year, but that seems impractical (and quite expensive). Anyway, it is still a process.

The books read…

Omega the Unknown #6. “A Tug of the Wrench” Written by Mary Skreenes & Steve Gerber with art by Jim Mooney & Mike Esposito. Cover art by Romita/Cockrum. I bought this at the aforementioned Comic World secret sale simply because it came out in 1977 and it would allow me to make my first post in the Facebook group that I recently joined, Old Guys Who Like Old Comics. I had never heard of Omega the Unknown. I just read it and I have to say that I loved it! I was totally in on everything happening in the book and I thought it was amazingly original and unlike most anything that I have read before. Looks like a winner for the first post.

Marvel Spotlight #24. “Walk the Darkling Road.” Written by Chris Claremont and drawn by Sal Buscema. This featured Daimon Hellstrom, aka the Son of Satan. I have always enjoyed the character in his runs in the Defenders and such and I loved his involvement in the recent Hellcat series. He had a confrontation with his sister Satana, but he seemed too goodie-good for the Son of Satan. Still a fun read.

Local Man Gold. Creative team: Tony Fleecs & Tim Seeley with colors by Felipe Sobreiro. This surprised me to no end. I enjoyed the Local Man series that was recently out by Image, and this was a one shot involving him. However, there were other heroes that showed up from the past. Strangely enough, I did not recognize them and I thought they were just new characters in Jack Xaver’s life. Then, shockingly, there was Joan Petersen, the main character in Love Everlasting. I couldn’t believe it. Then, I got to the page that showed that all these characters that I thought were just new characters were actually from all kinds of Image books. It was a cool surprise.

W0rldtr33 #5. Written by James Tynion IV and featuring art by Fernando Blanco. I will be honest that I have been struggling with this book so far. However, this issue was really exciting and compelling and made me want to get the next issue immediately. Much like a lot of Tynion’s work, W0rldtr33 requires focus and is not designed for a quick skim, and that is not a bad thing.

Spider-Man: India #3. “Seva Part III.” This has been fun so far. Pavitr started selling videos making Spider-Man look bad for money. However, this is all playing back into his own self-image issues. I like Spider-Man: India and the character is interesting.

Justice League: Another Nail #1-3. Written and drawn by Alan Davis. This is an Elseworlds series featuring Superman as an Amish kid and Batman depressed over the death of Robin and Batgirl by the hand of Joker. I liked the resolution of the series, but to be honest, I did not like this that much. It felt like just a whole bunch of cameos by DC heroes that, while cool, did not service the story very well. I did not love the manner the story was told or constructed. Superman did not feel like he was Amish, with it being more in name than anything else. The Batman stuff in Hell was interesting. Overall, this was okay, but not much more than that.

Deadpool: Badder Blood #3. Story by Rob Liefeld, script by Chad Bowers and penciled by Rob Liefeld. Venompool takes on Deadpool… and Zabu? This is a great series that feels like a top notch Deadpool book.

August 31, 2023

Yesterday was a busy day, so I only had the chance to gets some of the books from NEW COMIC BOOK DAY read tonight. There will be another EYG Comic Cavalcade later this weekend (probably), but kicked it off.

There are also a few back issues in this week’s post. Some fun books…

The Tick #4. “A Big Fight.” Written and penciled by Ben Edlund. This was a great pick up by my friend Todd. These New England Comics books are unlike a lot of books. Black and white. Larger sized comic book. I know some of the basic stories told with the Tick but this included a lot of characters that I have never heard of including Paul the Samurai. It felt as if I missed some story beats too as I wasn’t sure why The Tick was doing some of the things he was doing. Still, enjoyed this a lot.

Ms. Marvel: The New Mutant #1. “New Normal.” Written by Iman Vellani & Sabir Pirzada and drawn by Carlos Gomez & Adam Gorham. Cover art by Sara Pichelli & Matthew Wilson. Our newly resurrected MUTANT Kamala Khan, aka Ms. Marvel is back in her own limited series, co-written by the actor Iman Vellani, who plays Kamala in the MCU. This was a lot of fun as Kamala head undercover for the X-Men inside a college summer program that is sponsored by Orchis. Ms. Marvel appears in her new X-Man outfit and gets a taste of the hatred given to mutants. There are some wonderful scenes between Kamala and Bruno in this book and I loved the use of Kamala as a narrator. Good stuff.

Secret War #3-4. Written by Brian Michael Bendis and art by Gabriele Dell’Otto. I am enjoying this series so far, even if some of the time jumps and the confusion of the characters involved make me a bit uncertain about what is happening. Nick Fury is causing all kinds of chaos and the super heroes are struggling to remember what happened in Latveria. Meanwhile, Captain America is back and he is ticked off.

Ultimate Invasion #3. Written by Jonathan Hickman and penciled by Bryan Hitch. We’re getting a bunch of variations of different heroes here and the Maker is more involved than is good. There are some shocking moments, including an appearance by Reed Richards in a Doom mask and an armored up Kang.

Knight Terrors: Night’s End#1. Written by Joshua Williamson and Art by Howard Porter. The two month run through the nightmares of the DC characters come to an end as the combined heroes of the DC universe and Deadman and Sandman helped stop Insomnia after 45 previous issues of horrors. The nightmares are beginning to make people feel scared of superheroes in the DC world, and they introduced a new character called Doctor Hate. The ending was fine. The overall series has its ups and downs, but I was happy I bought it.

Marvel Age #1000. A compilation of short stories from some of the top creative forces of the genre that spanned the history of the Marvel universe. It included the original Human Torch, Spider-Man, the original X-Men, the Mighty Thor, Captain Marvel, Daredevil, Silver Surfer and a cut little story with childhood versions of Stan Lee, Jack Kirby and Steve Ditko. A celebration of the entire line and history of Marvel Comics.

The Plot Holes #1. Written and illustrated by Sean Gordon Murphy. Honestly, this is one of the more original and way out there ideas I have seen in comics in a long while. This issue spent a lot of time building up the world these characters existed within and that truly required some serious build because it is a touch confusing. Still, I am curious to see where this goes.

Incredible Hulk #3. “That Old-Time Religion: Part Two” Written by Phillip Kennedy Johnson and art by Nic Klein. The Hulk is out of Banner and is as brutal as ever. The young girl named Charlie was, at first, shunned by Hulk and then, after she proved herself, was allowed to tag along. They had to face the zombies of Brother Deep. More horror in the world of the Hulk and I am here for it.

Moon Knight Annual #1. “Contest of Chaos: Part Four.” This annual featured the battle between Moon Knight and Korean hero Taegukgi of the Tiger Division. I loved the resolution of this fight as Moon Knight realized what they were doing and just said, “I quit.” We also start to see what Agatha Harkness is after in the final few pages of the story.

Blade #2. “Mother of Evil.” Written by Bryan Hill and penciled by Elena Casagrande. Blade and Tulip meet up as Blade saved her life. This leads to a lot of trouble for both of them and leaves Blade in a bad state. So far this has been different than I expected, definitely in a good way.