The 5th week of the month is always a little short with comics, but there are several really good covers any way.
One variant and two A covers this week. All three are very apropos for the time of the year we are (Happy Halloween everybody!)
Also-Rans: Mighty Thor #3, Undeadpool #1, Runaways #5, Cloak or Dagger #1, The Phantom #2, Sleep #6 and Return to Sleepy Hallow #1.
Bronze Medalist
Black Cat #3
Cover art by Adam Hughes
Felicia has herself a top notch cover. I have not read the book yet, but that sure makes me think about Sandman. The black suited Felicia sure stands out beautifully from this sandy background.
Silver Medalist
Stake Presents Jessamy #1.
Cover art by Francesca Fantini
I had no idea what this book was, but this cover was so beautiful that it drew me to it. What a stunning cover with some wonderful imagery. The blood roses and the bats around the big moon… just exceptional.
Gold Medalist
Feral #17
Variant Cover B
Cover art by Trish Forstner
I love these horror film homages that Feral has been doing and there is yet another gold medal for it. This is a homage to Halloween and the jack lantern with the fangs just makes the cover. Love the black background against the orange pumpkin. Another sensational Feral Cover B variant.
Just a few days away from Halloween! Happy Halloween to all. This is my favorite holiday of them all.
Then, Saturday, Nov. 1 is my anniversary in comic collecting. I have been collecting comics in some form since I was in 5th grade. I remember staying over at my friend Jeff Wagner’s house to go trick or treating on Halloween and then spending the night reading comics he was getting from Comic World in Dubuque, back when the shop was over on Central Ave. I remember a bunch of X-Men books and Avengers. I was hooked, already a fan a superheroes. If my math is close, this would be my 45th year collecting (plus or minus a year or so).
Books this week:
Ultimate Spider-Man: Incursion #5. Written by Deniz Camp & Cody Ziglar with art done by Jonas Scharf. Cover art was done by Sara Pichelli & Tamra Bonvillain. Miles Morales finally got his hands on his baby sister and returned to his own universe…at least, his current universe. He also remembered everything from before.
No Man’s Land #2. Written, art and cover art (both B and A covers which were Gold and Bronze medalists respectfully) by Szymon Kudranski. I love this book. The worst part about it is that it is only three issues. I am not sure how they finish this mystery with only one more issue remaining. Either way, I can’t wait to see how this wraps up.
Ultimate Spider-Man #22. Written by Jonathan Hickman with art by Marco Checchetto. Cover art was done by Marco Checchetto & Matthew Wilson. Spider-Man and Goblin are back together and Peter also gets to spend some quality time with MJ.
Miles Morales: Spider-Man #39. “Thick as Thieves Part Three” Written by Cody Ziglar and art by Luigi Zagaria. Cover art was done by Federico Vicentini & Rachelle Rosenberg. Miles and his team up with Black Cat and Misty Knight concludes.
The Ultimates #17. Written by Deniz Camp with art by guest artist Phil Noto. Cover art was done by Dike Ruan & Neeraj Menon. This issue continues to build toward the return of Maker and focuses on Ultimate Doom.
The Undead Iron Fist #2. Written by Jason Loo and art by Fran Galan. Cover art was done by Whilce Portacio & Alex Sinclair. With Danny Rand back from the dead, we get a team-up with our undead Iron Fist with Daredevil. I love this new book with Iron Fist.
Radioactive Spider-Man #1. Written by Joe Kelly and art by Kev Walker. Cover art was done by Giuseppe Camuncoli, Lorenzo Ruggiero & Marte Gracia. It is the Age of Revelation and this book checks in with Peter Parker and sees where he is X years later. I liked this book because it still felt like Peter Parker. A lot of times with these alternate futures, they use it to create versions of the characters that are not like the current ones. This is not that way, at least so far.
Omega Kids #1. Written by Tony Fleecs and art by Andres Genolet. Cover art was done by Rod Reis. Quentin Quire is the leader of a group called the Omega Kids, who work for Revelation. However, there feels as if some of the kids may not be as loyal as they seem.
Exquisite Corpses #6. Written by Tyler Boss with James Tynion IV and art by Gavin Fullerton with Michael Walsh. Cover art was done by Michael Walsh. The tournament continues as the G4m3r Kid and Calvin were the next victims. This book continues to be one of the best on the market.
War Wolf #1. Written by Steve Orlando with art by Marco Perugini. Cover art was done by David Talaski. Sometimes your heroes are regular people and they will be the ones to fight the aliens. Mad Cave has had way more hits than misses lately and this has Steve Orlando behind it.
Fantastic Four #4. “Basic Obedience” Written by Ryan North with pencils by Humberto Ramos. Cover art was done by Humberto Ramos and Edgar Delgado. The FF have a new puppy… or is it? Why is it that Alicia Masters-Grimm is the only one who can tell this dog is not what it seems.
X-Men: Book of Revelation#1. Written by Jed MacKay with art and cover art by Netho Diaz. The Age of Revelation is moving along and this books looks closer at Doug Ramsey and his position as Revelation. He also may be denying the desires of Apocalypse himself.
Murder Podcast #2. Written by Jeremy Huan and illustrated by Mike Tisserand. Variant cover B art was done by Mike Tisserand. The murder podcast is still out and causing all kinds of troubles once again.
News from the Fallout #5. Written by Chris Condon with art by Jeffrey Alan Love. This is once again one of the best reads of the month, with some of the most compelling art that builds a tone and mood better than just about any comic out there. There is only one more issue to go and I have no idea where this is heading. That is awesome.
The Last Wolverine #1. Written by Saladin Ahmed and art by Edgar Salazar. Cover art was done by Martin Coccolo and Matthew Wilson. I was not sure what this book was going to be, but, it is the Age of Revelation and X years later, anything could happen. So when I saw that the “last Wolverine” was actually Leonard, the teen who had been turned into a Wendigo and who Logan tried to help, I was ecstatic. I really loved that character and I was sad he left the pages of Wolverine. Glad to get him back in this limited series during the Age of Revelation.
Universal Monsters: The Invisible Man #3. “Things Worse Than Death.” Written by James Tynion IV and art by Dani. Cover art was done by Dani & Brad Simpson. Looks like Jack is planning his serum out and he is up to human trials. However, he does not try the formula on himself first, which means there may be another person out there. Another great adaptation of a Universal Monster.
Detective Comics #1102. “The Courage that Kills Part Two.” Written by Tom Taylor and art and cover art by Mikel Janin. Batman has been infected and he has a limited amount of time to find a way to cure himself before major problems come around. Tom Taylor continues to be an exceptional writer, building amazing plots and conflicts for our heroes.
Spider-Girl #5. Written by Torunn Grønbekk with art by Andre Risso & Diogenes Neves. David Nakayama did the cover art. Guest starring Spider-Man, Spider-Girl has to team up with Spidey to try and stop Hijack. Oh, and Rogue shows up too.
Thanksgiving #1. Written by Mark Russell and art and cover art by Mauricet. What happens when that weird uncle at the Thanksgiving dinner admits to being a infamous serial killer? You always suspected right? This was a fun book with a strange group of characters.
Marvel Zombies: Red Band #2. Written by Ethan Parker & Griffin Sheridan with art by Jan Bazaldua. Greg Land & Rachelle Rosenberg did the cover art. The zombies hit the X-Men, the night when Jean Grey first arrived. Jean, Spider-Man, Cap, Iron Man, Jessica Jones try to stop them. What happens when an infected Jean Grey becomes Zombie Phoenix?
The Terminator Metal #1. Written by Declan Shalvey & Rory McConville with art done by Lorenzo Re. Cover art was done by Declan Shalvey (Silver Medalist). Some humans are being protected by a reprogrammed T-800. Is that a good idea? I guess we will find out.
Hello Halloween #1. A special Halloween edition of “Hello Darkness” featuring several stories including R.L. Stein’s Graveyard Club. The cover was done by Frazer Irving. The horror stories are the usual mixed bag.
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles #12. “The Untying” Written by Jason Aaron an art by Juan Ferreyra. Cover art was done by Jorge Fornes. This is the final issue of the run with Jason Aaron and Juan Ferreyra on TMNT. I really enjoyed the 12 issues of this book, and I am not sure if I want to continue with it with a new creative crew. May give #13 a shot and see what I think.
Drawing Blood #9. Written by David Avallone and art by Ben Bishop. Cover art was done by Kevin Eastman. Bookman is back, but in a recovery place (instead of jail). This was an interesting issue of this book and I liked the development.
Justice League Unlimited #12. Written by Mark Waid and art and cover art by Dan Mora. Ten of the time displaced heroes team up to try and help protect the earth and oversee the evacuation of the planet while the big guns are dealing with the KO.
Other Books this week: New History of the DC Universe #4, Green Lantern Dark #7, Predator: Black, White & Blood #4, Harley Quinn #55 (pumpkin spice), Outlaw Showdown #1, Immortal Legend Batman #3, Captain Henry and the Graveyard of Time #1, Silverhawks #9, and Red Vector #3.
Quick Hits: Last week when I picked up the Hector Plasm Bigfoot book, I went to eBay and found one of his earlier appearances in Hector Plasm: Totentanz book from Image. Space Ghost #4 sees Space Ghost trying to prevent a war. The Headless Horseman guest starred in Hornsby & Halo #11. I picked up Mad Magazine #46, which came out last week but I missed it then. It is a magical issue of Moon Knight: Fist of Khonshu #13. Things are not going well in Orla #3 as she is losing her control. Escape #3 heads back into the war with a dramatic issue. Sisterhood #4 took a turn between Sophie and Violet, setting up the finale in issue five. Absolute Wonder Woman #13 has Diana battling some electrical creature. Maria Llovet’s Artifical #2 finds us back with the android dates. The Oddly Pedestrian Life of Christopher Chaos: Children of the Night #4 finds the conclusion with Dr. Jekyll. The eerie story of It Killed Everyone But Me #2 rolls on in its dark path. Speed Racer: Tales from the Road #1 focuses on a tale about Racer X, told in a very original manner and spectacular art design. Then, Predator Kills the Marvel Universe #3 continues to be a surprisingly good read.
This week’s favorite covers feature one variant and two A covers. One of the variants is a cool homage to a movie.
Also-Rans: Thanksgiving #1, Hello Halloween #1, Fantastic Four #4, Space Ghost #4, Universal Monsters: The Invisible Man #3, Harley Quinn #55 (Pumpkin Spice Variant), and News from the Fallout #5.
Bronze Medalist
No Man’s Land #2
Cover art by Szymon Kudranski
A spooky cover using the skull formation mixing in with the snow. Szymon Kudranski is a great artist and I have missed his work. This cover is clearly a standout.
Silver Medalist
Terminator Metal #1
Cover art by Declan Shalvey
The new Terminator series from Dynamite kicked off with a solid issue one cover. The theme of the color scheme really worked with this book. The metallic look makes this a beautifully designed cover.
Gold Medalist
No Man’s Land #2
Variant Cover B
Cover art by Szymon Kudranski
I love the Silence of the Lambs homage for No Man’s Land #2, which lands twice in the metal round. In fact, No Man’s Land #1 was a gold medalist too. Szymon Kudranski had a big return to cover art with this two covers this week.
Good day everyone. We are up to the #175 post for the EYG Comic Cavalcade. Who knew this would last so long. I feel as if I am getting close to getting this back on track to do on Saturday or Sunday. This weekend, I was busy with the October 13, but I think soon the schedule will straighten out. Monday night are never good to do these.
Books this week:
The Monster and the Wolf #1. Written, art and cover art by Mark Spears (Gold Medalist). The blind bags arrived from Kinesport this week and I was able to open all eleven books that I got. Two duplicates. I thought that was pretty good. The covers were all awesome.
Endeavour #1. Written by Stephanie Phillips and art and cover art by Marc Laming. I have been waiting for this DSTLRY book for quite a while. The Endeavour was a ship sailed by Captain Cook and this current day version turns into a “Lord of the Flies” type situation. Looking forward to continuing this one.
Don’t Forget Your Briefcase #4. Written by Eliot Rahal and art and cover art by Phillip Sevy. The penultimate issue of this Mad Cave book came out this week. I have really enjoyed this book so far with this political thriller.
Blue Falcon & Dynomutt #2. Written by Jimmy Palmiotti with art by Pasquale Qualano. Cover art was done by Lucio Parrillo. Blue Falcon is on a rampage, looking for the people who killed his dog. However, Dyno may not be official dead. We continue with the origin of Dyno-Mutt.
Nightwing #131. “Cirque Du Sin. Part 2: Circus Music.” Written by Dan Watters and art and cover art by Dexter Soy. Nightwing and Nightwing Prime are on a training mission but problems are happening. I am not sure if I am a fan of Nightwing Prime. It gives me those Spider-Man/Rek Rap vibes.
The Punisher: Red Band #2. Written by Benjamin Pearcy and art by Julius Ohta. Cover art was done by Marco Checchetto & Matthew Wilson. Punisher is back and he is out to kill everyone he wants. Kingpin is here too and things are nasty.
Unbreakable X-Men #1. “Guarding the Gate.” Written by Gail Simone and art and cover art by Lucas Werneck. I also grabbed the foil cover by Mateus Manhanini. This is a great story of loss and grief as Rogue dies and Gambit has to deal with his grief. I am very pleased that Gail Simone is continuing with one of the Age of Revelation books. I have been quite a fan of her Uncanny X-Men run so far.
Rogue Storm #1. Written by Murewa Ayadele with art by Roland Boschi. Cover art was by Humberto Ramos & Edgar Delgado. The Age of Revelation continued with this book with Storm and.. Rogue? Wait, didn’t Rogue just die in the Unbreakable X-Men #1? A cool idea to be able to maintain Rogue in this world.
Sinister’s Six #1. Written by David Marquez and art by Rafael Loureiro. Cover art was done by David Marquez & GURU-eFX. It is the X-Factor team, led by Havok, and they are dealing with Venom. I am not sure which Venom this is, but it was a fascinating book. It is unknown as to which ones are working for which ones.
Iron & Frost #1. Written by Cavan Scott with pencils by Ruairí Coleman. Dustin Weaver did the cover art. They were married once, but now we get to find out what the Age of Revelation holds for Tony Stark and Emma Frost.
One World Under Doom #8. “To Will the God” Written by Ryan North and art by R.B. Silva. Ben Harvey was the cover artist. Doom seems to be winning, battling all of earth’s heroes, but an unexpected collateral damage stops Doom in his tracks.
Captain America #4. Written by Chip Zdarsky and art by Valerio Schiti. Ben Harvey does the cover art. The big slugfest between Cap and Dr. Doom comes to a conclusion here and the “new” Cap goes to the brutality.
Incredible Hulk #30. “The Requiem Plain” Part Three. Written by Phillip Kennedy Johnson and art by Nic Klein. Cover art was done by Nic Klein. The final issue of Incredible Hulk sees Hulk and Banner split apart (yet again) which leads to another, very frightening version of Hulk. This leads to the new series, The Infernal Hulk #1.
Artillery: Weapons of Art #1. Written, drawn by and starring Jimmie Robinson. A new book from a new company. The company is known by Invader Comics. This is an intriguing new book with the concept of art being magical. The writer/artist of the book is also a supporting player in this book. Cool stuff here.
Justice League Red #3. Written by Saladin Ahmad and art by Clayton Henry. Cover art is done by Clayton Henry and Arif Prianto. The plans of Red Tornado continues as they rescue Red Canary and bring in Deadman (YAY!). Now they are heading off to take on Black Adam!
They Choose Violence #5. Written by Sheldon Allen and illustrated by Mauricio Campetella. Cover art was done by Rahzzah (Silver Medalist). This book comes to an end with this issue. This was quite a violent book and was very much connected with race. The covers have been spectacular.
Terrorbytes #1. Written by Mark Russell and art by Felix Ruiz. Juan Doe did the cover art. I had no idea what this book was, but between seeing Mark Russell as a writer and being a new book from Mad Cave, I decided to give it a chance. It was an intriguing new book with a mysterious future with AI. Looking good.
Survive #2. Written by Robert Venditti and art by Doug Braithwaite. Cover art by Eduardo Risso. The Bad Idea comic company has been doing some good work and this thriller involving a sinking submarine is an exciting and dramatic book.
Godzilla Destroys the Marvel Universe #4. Written by Gerry Duggan with art by Paco Medina and Javier Garrón. Cover art was done by Mark Brooks. We got giant Hulk vs. Godzilla. The Marvel heroes are pulling a whole Power Rangers concept with their giant robot to fight the King of Monsters.
Save Now #1. Written by Matt Kinot and art done by Tomas Giorello. Cover art was done by Jorge Fornes. Another new cool book from Bad Idea. This was a story where one of the main characters can travel back in time to redo problems that he faced. It was pretty great.
Amazing Spider-Man #14. Written by Joe Kelly and pencils by Ed McGuinness with Todd Nauck. Cover art was done by Patrick Gleason & Marcio Menyz. I also picked up the variant cover by Lee Bermejo. We are back with Norman Osborn on earth as he struggled to maintain the mantel of Spider-Man.
Hector Plasm: Hunt the Bigfoot #1. Written by Benito Cereno and art by Derek Hunter. Cover art was done by Ryan Ottley & Dave McCaig. I do love bigfoot stories and this is a fun combination of ghosts and more. Hector Plasm is an intriguing character and it feels as if he has had other books prior.
Sonja Reborn #2. Written by Christopher Priest and art by Alessandro Miracolo. Cover art was done by Stjepan Sejic. The new Red Sonja with the mind swap is a fascinating story.
Other books this week: Ghost Pepper #4, Return to Skull Island #4, GI Joe #12, 30 Days of Night: Falling Sun #1, Good as Dead #2, The New Gods #11, Fantastic Four x Gargoyles #1, Superman #30, and Viking Moon #1.
Quick Hits: This week’s Bronze medalist was The War #3, which ended that reprint story from Hello Darkness. Speaking of that, Hello Darkness #15 had two covers this week that I bought including one by Jenny Frison. Krypto: The Last Dog of Krypton #5 was another final issue for a series. There was a new Christmastime story called Yuletide #1. Charles Soule’s The Lucky Devils #5 carries on as well. DC’s Absolute Flash #8 focused in on Barry Allen and his involvement in the project that led to Wally West becoming Absolute Flash. Everything Dead & Dying #2 continues its zombie story which is unlike most any other zombie story you’ll come across. Apparently, I got that a week late, though I did not realize it. We get some origin of Darkwing Duck in Darkwing Duck #6. Racer X #2 is a bit of a cross over with the last Speed Racer story, which was a weird POV shift. Tama #3 seems to be taking that character and making it antagonistic. The Tama character is very wild at this point. I picked up Titans #28 to give it a chance. I liked the Titans when they were being used in Tom Taylor’s Nightwing run, and I am giving this variation a chance as it moves into the big Darkseid return. Godzilla Escape the Dead Zone #3 finally gave us a shot of Godzilla in the book. Finally, there was Zdarsky Comic News#16 which is always a lot of fun.
It is Friday, not Thursday because my Parent/Teacher Conferences played havoc with my comic schedule.
I received my box of books from Keensport that was the new Mark Spears book, The Monster and the Wolf. It was a blast opening those Blind bags of those books. I really thought that those would all take the top three medal spots this week… and then I went to Bettendorf and found a few other books that changed that choice.
Also-Rans: Blue Falcon & Dynomutt #2, Iron & Frost #1, Sonja Reborn #2, Amazing Spider-Man #14 (Cover B), Hello Darkness #15, Endeavor #1, and Unbreakable X-Men #1 (Variant Foil Cover).
Bronze Medalist
The War #3
Variant Cover B
Cover art by Bjorn Barends
What a beautifully powerful cover with the representation of death. The colors are amazing and work so well. It was a variant cover and I chose this over cover A.
Silver Medalist
They Choose Violence #5
Cover art by Rahzzah
This was the cover that led to the decision to NOT let Mark Spears’ new book own the top three spots. The brutal and bloody cover was as compelling as I have ever seen. In most weeks, this would be the number one book. I mean, look at the blood around the mouth of this person. It is so disturbing and beautifully frightening.
Gold Medalist
Mark Spears’ The Monster and the Wolf #1
Cover art by Mark Spears
I decided to take all of the Blind Bag books and bunch them together as the gold medalists this week. I used the Star Wars homage issue as the example because this is one of the standouts of the books I got. It’s a lot of fun.
Here we go with this week’s brand new EYG Comic Cavalcade. Plenty of books again this week. I’m going to jump right into it as the Dodgers are on in a few hours.
Books this week:
World of Revelation #1. There are three stories inside this book. All of them deal with this new world of Revelation that Marvel is building. The three writers involved with this book are Al Ewing, Steve Foxe, and Ryan North. This new future has started off strong so far. We’ll see how it goes.
Rocketfellers #9. Written by Peter J. Tomasi with art and cover art by Francis Manapul. This gives us a clear look at everything that happened prior to the trip of the Rocketfeller family into the past.
Avengers #31. “Prospero” Written by Jed MacKay with art by Javier Pina. Cover art was done by Cafu & Moreno Dinisio. This Avengers issue featured Kang and everything to do with Kang. No Avengers make more than a few small appearances in this issue.
Spider-Man & Wolverine #6. “Life and Death Choices” Written by Marc Guggenheim and penciled by Gerardo Sandoval. Cover art was done by Kaare Andrews. I spoke about how I have been disappointed by this book because of the way Spider-Man has been written. I think this issue was the best display of Spider-Man of the whole series. This was much better and I enjoyed this interaction of Peter and Logan.
SIKTC: A Monster Hunter Walks into a Bar #1. Written by James Tynion IV and illustrated and cover art by Werther Dell’Edera. This is the collection of the story that appeared in the Hello Darkness series. It is a nice compilation and a beautiful cover.
Transformers #25. Written by Robert Kirkman and art by Dan Mora & Jorge Corona. Cover art was done by David Nakayama. I have the die cut cover too by John Amor and Andres Juarez. A new arc for the Transformers kicks off with this issue, as Robert Kirkman takes over the writing. We have the lines still being drawn between the Autobots, the Decepticons and the human race.
Amazing Spider-Man: Torn #1. Written by J. Michael Straczynski and are by Pere Perez. Adam Hughes did the cover art. It seems as if J. Michael Straczynski likes to set stories in the hero’s past. We saw him do that with Captain America, and this book is set back before Peter and Gwen even got together. I am never a huge fan of past stories, but I do like Straczynski’s writing style.
Red Book #1. Written by James Tynion IV and art and cover art by Michael Avon Oeming. The next in the Blue Book series takes a look at the UFO tales in the former Soviet Union. I have always enjoyed these books and this works very well.
Deluge #1. Written by Cullen Bunn and illustrated by Marika Cresta. Cover art was done by Riley Rossmo. This book is new from Ignition Press and it is pretty cool. It starts off like Orange is the New Black, with a female prison. However when the prison is getting flooded, more tragic things happen. This book has its own “Deep Blue Sea” moment (if you know, you know) as I literally gasped when it happened.
DC KO #1. “Chapter One: Into the Ring” Written by Scott Snyder and art by Javi Fernandez and Xermanico. Cover art was done by Javi Fernandez & Alejandro Sanchez. Darkseid is back. The DC Universe is desperate to try and find a way to stop him. How about a tournament? And you’ll never believe who the first one out is. This had multiple covers and blind bags too.
High Strangeness #1. “Book One: 1967” Written by Chris Condom and Daniel Noah and illustrated by Dave Chisholm. Cover art by Jock. This new series from Oni Press has a new take on UFOs and the Men in Black. It had a very X-Files feel to it and I liked it. I am not sure if this is an anthology series because it did sounds as if issue two might be different.
The Department of Truth #0. Written by James Tynion IV and art by Martin Simmonds. Second story written by Scott Snyder and art by Joshua Hixson. Cover art is done by Martin Simmonds. This special issue of Dpeartment of Truth includes a back up story with the truth about Elvis Presley.
Marvel Knights: The Punisher #1. Written by Jimmy Palmiotti and art and cover art by Dan Panosian. The idea of Jimmy Palmiotti and his ability to write crime stories matched up with the Punisher. What could be better?
Strange Tales #1. Written by Jeremy Whitley and art by Bayleigh Underwood. Cover art was done by Bayleigh Underwood & Jim Campbell. Nico Minoru, chased by a dragon, finds herself getting some major help… from the Scarlet Witch.
Author Immortal #1. Written by Frank J. Barbiere with art and cover art by Morgan Beem. A literary story about a failed writer who gets pulled into his favorite childhood story. The art style makes me think about Minor Arcana with Jeff Lemire.
Spider-Man ’94 #2. Written by J.M. DeMatteis and art by Jim Towe. Cover art was done by Nick Bradshaw & Rachelle Rosenberg. This book is extremely well written. I love how this book does feel like an advanced version of the animated cartoon. The use of Morlun is a great fit. And Aunt May’s bombshell was unexpected.
C.O.R.T.: Children of the Round Table #2. “Chapter 2” Written by Tom Taylor and art by Daniele Di Nicuolo. Cover art by Daniele Di Nicuolo & Rain Beredo. Our new kids with their talking weapons need to face what is coming.
Batman: Dark Patterns #11. “The Child of Fire Part 2” Written by Dan Watters and art and cover art by Hayden Sherman. Batman is in bad physical shape but fire is still causing trouble. With Batman nursing his injuries, Gordon tries to get info from Firebug.
Superman: The Kryptonite Spectrum #3. Written by W. Maxwell Prince and art by Martin Morazzo. Cover art was done by Martin Morazzo & Chris O’Halloran. I also got the B cover with art by Juan Ferreyra (Gold medalist). Superman is currently in his Superboy form and hanging out with Billy Batson at a amusement park run by Dr. Sivana and Toyman. This has been a fun series so far with the Ice Cream Man crew manning the creative team.
Harley Quinn x Elvira #1. Written by Amanda Conner & Jimmy Palmiotti and art by Amanda Conner and Juan Samu. Variant cover art by Mark Spears (Bronze Medalist). The combination of DC Comics wild Harley Quinn and the always sensual Elvira is combustible fun. I am not sure how the DC character of Harley wound up in the Dynamite book, but I am okay with it.
Absolute Batman #13. “Abomination Part Five” Written by Scott Snyder and art by Nick Dragotta. Cover art was done by Nick Dragotta and Frank Martin. Lots of stuff happening in the world of Absolute Batman, including the debut of the Absolute Harley Quinn.
Falling in Love on the Path to Hell #10. “The Winds of Change” Written by Gerry Duggan and art and cover art by Garry Brown. I love this series, but it is such a inconsistent comic. It feels like it just came back on a regular schedule and now it seems as if it is going on hiatus until 2026. It feels difficult to stay in it with the disruptions.
Eddie Brock: Carnage #9. Written by Charles Soule and art by Juanan Ramirez. Cover art was done by Jesus Saiz. Eddie Brock has been captured by the mysterious woman at the Green Phoenix Wellness Retreat. She has a way to end Carnage, and Eddie may be okay with it.
The Unchosen #4. Written by and art and cover art by David Marquez. This is another series that is ending with this issue, though there seems to be a suggestion that The Unchosen would be back in 2026. Not sure what that means, but I did enjoy this one more than the first issue.
Captain Planet and the Planeteers #6. Written by David Pepose and art was done by Eman Casallos. Cover art was done by Chad Hardin. This is another book that feels as if it just came to an end. Captain Planet vs. Captain Pollution.
Absolute Superman #12. “The Battle of Kansas” Written by Jason Aaron and art by Rafa Sandoval. Cover art was done by Rafa Sandoval & Ulisses Arreola. Superman and Lois come to Kansas. The emo Superman is pretty cool here with his special cape.
Other Books this week: Power Fantasy #12, Blood & Thunder #6, Ancestral Recall #3, The Creeping Below #4, Death to Pachuco #1, Absolute Green Lantern #7, Ultimate Black Panther #21, Event Horizon: Dark Descent #2, and Return to Planet Hulk #1.
Quick Hits: This week, Marvel started to amp up its Age of Revelation with four new titles including Amazing X-Men #1, Binary #1, Laura Kinney: Sabretooth #1, and Longshots #1. I enjoyed all four of these new books. The new Boom Studios book Marian Heretic #1 looked interesting. We will see if I continue liking it. I can see my attention being drawn away. The GI Joe universe expanded a bit with Cold Slither #1 which was unexpected. Mary Sue #1 is another new Boom Studios book. Marvel: Black, White & Blood and Guts #1 which uses the word cavalcade on the cover. I was not in love with the new book The Guy in the Chair #1 from Dark Horse. Cul-De-Sac #3 continue its cool vampire action in the Bad Idea comics. Conan the Barbarian #25 felt like a big deal issue. Super Creepshow #1 won the Silver Medal this week thanks to an awesome Dark Knight Returns homage cover. Masterminds #2 takes its second issue with the underground world. The World to Come #3 still confuses me of the continuity to the main Marvel Universe. So does Imperial War: Imperial Guardians #1. I do like the inclusion of Darkhawk, who I have always enjoyed as a character. Then, there were two Godzilla books out this week with Godzilla (Kai Sei Era)#3 and Godzilla: Here There Be Aliens #5.
It is Thursday and that means it is time for the cover of the week. We are nearing the end of 2025, and we have a blow out going on in the cover competition. Unless there is some insane push of an artist doing brilliant work over the next two months, it’s a race for the silver and bronze medal at the end of the year as of now.
This week we have two variant covers from three different comic companies.
Also-Rans: High Strangeness #1, The Department of Truth #0, Marvel Knights: The Punisher #1, Marvel: Black, White & Blood and Guts #1, SIKTC: A Monster Hunter Walks into a Bar #1, Red Book #1, DC KO #1 (two variants from the Blind Bag).
Bronze Medalist
Harley Quinn x Elvira #1
Variant Cover E
Cover art by Mark Spears
Mark Spears with yet another medal in 2025, with this lovely cover featuring two iconic females. Oh, and what exactly is Harley Quinn staring at? Beautiful purple background keeps these two ladies bursting out…
Silver Medalist
Super Creepshow #1
Cover art by Pye Parr
I love this Dark Knight Returns homage cover. The flashing lightning in the background against the dark blue of the evening sky is an iconic image and is extremely effective in the imagery of this cover.
Gold Medalist
Superman: The Kryptonite Spectrum #3
Variant cover B
Cover art by Juan Ferreyra
Saw this variant cover on the stand and I had to have it. Such an awesome image of Superman coming through the years, facing off with the Kryptonite right before him.
I have so many comics this week. Mainly because I went to the special anniversary celebration at In This Issue in Bettendorf and participated in their bag sale. Everything you could fit into a bag they provided for $45. I went both Friday and Saturday, and did a bag each day. Day one I had 90 books in the bag and Saturday, I was able to get 104 books in the bag.
I picked up 10 Amazing Spider-Man Annuals. I grabbed a bunch of Thor Vol. 1 in the 400s. Several cool independents that I never heard before. I picked up a bunch of variant Amazing Spider-Man covers too.
It was a fun couple of days.
New Books this week:
Spider-Man Noir #1. “The Gwen Stacy Affair” Written by Erik Larsen and art by Andrea Broccardo. Cover art was done by Simon Di Meo. I do like me some noir. Spider-Man Noir is even better. I liked this first issue more than some of the previous Spider-Man Noir stories and the arrival of Gwen Stacy is cool.
The Last Day of H.P. Lovecraft #1. Written by Romualo Giulivo and illustrated and cover art by Jakub Rebelka (Bronze Medalist). One of the more interesting new books from Boom Studios. It chronicled the final day in the life of author H.P. Lovecraft, and, of course, Lovecraft is anything but ordinary. Weird and wild and a lot of fun.
Gotham Academy: First Year #1. “First Day of School.” Written by Brenden Fletcher with art by Marco Ferrari. Cover art by Karl Kerschl. New comic that was giving me Wednesday (Netflix) vibes. Olive Silverlock is our protagonist in this new series. I am not familiar with her. I am not sure if I should have been. However, the issue does a nice job introducing her to me.
X-Men: Age of Revelation-Overture #1. Written by Jed MacKay with pencils by Ryan Stegman. Cover art was done by Ryan Stegman, JP Mayer and Marte Gracia. The next major X-event kicked off with this issue. The consciousness of Cyclops is pulled X years into the future to see the current landscape of the MCU. Doug Ramsey, aka Revelation, the heir of Apocalypse, has become a mutant savior and things are really bad. There are a whole bunch of new X-titles coming out during this event and I hope they are as enjoyable as this one. I am usually not the biggest fan of the alternate futures, but this has been good so far.
Pinupocalypse #6. Written, drawn and cover art by Andrew Tarusov (Cover B- Silver Medalist). So one of the biggest surprises of 2025 came to a close here with a very satisfying final issue. With all of the zombies, UFOs and other things, we have a homage to the Attack of the 50-foot woman. This was such a fun and enjoyable series. Maybe we’ll get some more one day.
Absolute Evil #1. Written by Al Ewing and art and cover art by Giuseppe Camuncoli & Stefano Nesi. I also got the foil variant by Riley Rossmo. A bunch of new Absolute versions of some villains become the Absolute Justice. There was a literal gasp of shock over one big moment. Big book.
Batman #2. “Robin Rides the Black Mariah.” Written by Matt Fraction with art and cove art by Jorge Jimenez. I also picked up the virgin foil of this issue too This issue is focused in on Robin, and the way that the Gotham PD is now going to be treating Batman and Robin. A great spotlight on Robin and his skills.
Rook Exodus #7. Written by Geoff Johns and art by Jason Fabok. Cover art (A & B) by Jason Fabok & Brad Anderson and (Cover C) by Kael Ngu. Rook Exodus is back with the search for the other wardens. Rook encountered some other wardens on the way. It is nice to have this Ghost Machine book back after a long intermission.
White Tiger Reborn #1. “Reborn” Written by Daniel Jose Older with art by Bruno Abdias. Cover art was done by Mike Hawthorne & Federico Blee. I enjoyed the story involving the White Tiger. We get the ghost of Hector following along the White Tiger, his sister Aya Ayala.
Amazing Spider-Man #13. Written by Joe Kelly with art by Pepe Larraz. Cover art was done by Pepe Larraz & Marte Gracia. After not seeing him last issue, we go into space with Peter as he tries to keep everyone safe as always. Pete tries to convince the others to remain non-lethal.
Gunpowder Prophets #1. Written by Justin Jordan and art and cover art by Patrick Piazzalunga. A new Mad Cave book debuted this weekend with yet another winner. Huck and Marley are for hire, and they bring the violence. I liked this new pair with Marley being the big bad. I am intrigued to see what is next.
Ultimate Wolverine #10. Written by Chris Condon and art by Alex Lins. Cover art was done by Phil Noto. Wolverine faces off with Omega Red and, in a shocking moment, wins. What’s in the box???? Wolverine pulls a se7en on Omega Red.
Speed Racer #3. Written by David Pepose and art by Davide Tinto. Cover art was done by Alessio Zonno. Speed Racer takes on Racer X. Nuff said.
Vanishing Point #5. Written by Mark Russell and art by Ryan Alexander-Tanner. Phil Hester & Ryan Cody did the cover art. This story had a definite Twilight Zone feel to it. It had a really good twist to it. It was very surprising end and I thought it was great.
Something is Killing the Children #44. “All Her Monsters” Part Four Written by James Tynion IV and illustrated and cover art by Werther Dell’edera. We continue to see an adventure from the history of Erica Slaughter.
Other books this week: Good Devils: Don’t Play Fair with Evil #1, Deadpool/Wolverine #10, DC’s Zatannic Panic #1, Eat Your Young #2, Kill All Immortals II #1, Toxie Team-Up #4, Tales of the Shadowman #2, Ultimate X-Men #20, Red Hulk #9, and Look Into My Eyes #3.
Quick Hits: Our DC criminals continue to plot out their plan to rip off the Justice League in Cheetah & Cheshire Rob the Justice League #3. I did not like the new Ghost Rider team up book, Spirits of Violence #1, so i will not be buying that one from now on. I picked up this cool Juggernaut cover for X-Men: The Undertow #1. I have been having a lot of fun with Star Trek: Red Shirts #3. It is a clever concept for a Star Trek series. The Justice League: The Omega Act Special #1 is a major kick off for the next big DC event, trying to save the DC Universe. TexArcanum #3 was one of the bronze medal winners this week as we had a tie. I was not planning on getting Starship Godzilla #1 because it reminded me too much of that horrendous arc when the Hulk was a ship, right after the epic Immortal Hulk run. However, I loved the Star Wars homage cover so I picked it up anyway. I do not plan on continuing it either. Speaking of Star Wars, Star Wars #6 was out this week. Be Not Afraid #4 is a bit confusing, but a good looking book. Sam & Twitch Case Files #18 was a solid book this week and the New Avengers #5 brought the evil Reed Richards clone down. Big week.
Big week this week. We have a tie for the Bronze Medal this week because I just could not narrow it down to three. In fact, there are a bunch of the also-rans that could easily have placed in the medal round.
Also-Rans: Cheetah & Cheshire Rob the Justice League #3, Batman #2 (Foil Variant), Starship Godzilla #1 (Star Wars homage variant), White Tiger Reborn #1, X-Men: The Undertow #1 (B Cover variant), Spirits of Violence #1 (C Cover Variant), and Spider-Man Noir #1.
Bronze Medalist (TIE)
The Last Day of H.P. Lovecraft #1
Cover art by Jakub Rebelka
This cover really creates a wonderful mood of this book, featuring one of the great horror, sci-fi, fantasy writers of our time. The red and black background makes this stand out.
Bronze Medalist (TIE)
TexArcanum #3
Cover art by Miguel Martos
I love this beautiful cover of the giant dragon beneath the water, a boat on the surface. The green tint across the cover truly makes this an impressive cover and it builds a curiosity of what is inside.
Pinupocalypse #6
Variant Cover B
Cover art by Andrew Tarusov
The final issue of this surprisingly epic series is a fantastic homage cover to the classic movie, The Attack of the 50 Foot Woman. This gives that place of honor to Foxy. What a wonderful cover, perfect for this series’ tone.
Gold Medalist
Poison Ivy #37
Pumpkin Spicy Variant Cover
Cover Art by Nathan Szerdy
Todd told me about these Pumpkin Spicy DC books, and I specifically looked for this issue. I do not collect Poison Ivy, but look at it. I mean, was an absolutely gorgeous cover.
Trying to catch up after the SiouxperCon last weekend. I think I am pretty close. Most of the films and TV shows are back on track, and I just have to get the Comic Cavalcade back on a regular schedule. I was able to get most everything read and I am ready for the write-up.
Books this week:
Mark Spears Monsters #7. “All That Remains.” Written, art and cover art by Mark Spears. Cover F was the Gold Medalist this week. This comic has a bunch of great covers once again. Every time the book comes out, there are so many excellent Mark Spears covers. I have been enjoying the story too.
Sleep #5. Written, drawn and cover art by Zander Cannon. I actually had this copy last weekend at SiouxperCon when I went to Zander Cannon’s booth. He had an early copy of the book and I got it signed. This week I got the issue from my pull list. This has been an excellent book.
Wild Animals #3. Written by Ed Brisson and art and cover art by Andy Kuhn. Speaking of an excellent book, Wild Animals has been one of my favorite books so far. It is a revenge story that really has me guessing about what is next. Wild Animals has been so fantastic so far that it make me anxious for the next issue.
Justice League Unlimited #11. Written by Mark Waid with art by Carmine Di Giandomenico. Cover art was done by Dan Mora. This issue of the JLU is a prelude to the next big DC event, DC KO, which is expected to lead to the return of Darkseid. If what is happening on the Watchtower is any example, things are not going to be good for our heroes.
The Twilight Zone #1. “Blanks” Written by Dan Watters and art and cover art by Morgan Beem. I was excited about the debut of this new Twilight Zone comic from IDW. I enjoyed this first issue as it had a definite feel as the original TV show did. It was in black and white, which helped create the tone of the series. The story did feel like it ended quickly, but that is something that some Twilight Zone episodes felt like too. A good start for this book.
Conan: Scourge of the Serpent #1. “Stealing Faces & Finery.” Written by Grim Jim Zub with art by Ironclad Ivan Gil. Cover art was done by Roberto De La Torre. This story kicks off with three men from three different eras: Conan, Kull, and Professor John Kirowan. Let’s see where this one takes us.
The Last Starship #1. Written by Jackson Lanzing & Collin Kelly with art by Adrian Bonilla. Cover art was done by Francesco Francavilla. This was another new IDW book that I just picked up because it was on the stand. I have been enjoying the Red Shirts book and so I thought having this number one would be fun. Then, I really loved the book and the story it was telling. Starfleet was viciously attacked and most of their major starships were destroyed, leaving one more. This was very compelling and surprised me.
Hyde Street #9. Written by Geoff Johns and art by Francis Portella. Cover art was done by Ivan Reis & Danny Miki with Brad Anderson. Plastic surgery can be a great use for horror stories because of how terrible things could be, and Hyde Street uses it as a wonderful bit to make these characters all the more sad.
Escape #2. “No Trees Tomorrow.” Written by Rick Remender with art and cover art by Daniel Acuna. We get some background information prior to Milton’s efforts in the war in Nuropia. Escape is more than just another anthropomorphic comic. It gives me a little feel about Maus.
Spider-Man & Wolverine #5. “Consequences.” Written by Marc Guggenheim and art by Kaare Andrews. Cover art was done by Cory Smith. I had to buy the 1:25 variant because the regular issue was sold out before I could get to it. This was my favorite issue of this series so far because Spider-Man felt like Spider-Man. I have been disappointed with this book, but this issue helped me see Spider-Man in th estory.
The Phantom #1. Written by Ray Fawkes and art by Russell Olson. Cover art was done by Freddie Williams II, who also did the variant cover that won the Bronze Medal this week. The EYG Hall of Fame iconic character The Phantom is back in the new Mad Cave comic. Phantom kicks this off with some great action and new character work.
News from the Fallout #4. Written by Chris Condon and art and cover art by Jeffrey Alan Love. Variant cover art by James Harren. This has been such a good book so far. I love the different art style and the way they present the story.
Ultimate Spider-Man #21. Written by Jonathan Hickman and art by David Messina. Cover art was done by Marco Checchetto & Matthew Wilson. Another issue of Ultimate Spider-Man that does not have Spider-Man. We focus in on Mister Negative here and it is really solid.
The Mortal Thor #2. “Storm Warning.” Written by Al Ewing with art by Pasqual Ferry. Cover art was done by Alex Ross. Sigurd comes out in a massively brutal fighting style. Spinning that hammer around on the chain… whoa. It was remarkable.
All-New Spider-Gwen: Ghost Spider #2. Written by Stephanie Phillips and art by Paolo Villanelli. Cover art was done by David Marquez & Marte Gracia. Spider-Gwen has a bit of a temper. I am not sure where that came from but she was blowing up at people throughout this issue.
Universal Monsters: The Invisible Man #2. “Chapter Two: Things Men Should Leave Alone.” Written by James Tynion IV with art by Dani. Cover art by Dani & Brad Simpson. I also got variant cover B with art by Mike Del Mundo (Silver Medalist). Another great use of a Universal Monster character.
Space Ghost #3. Written by David Pepose with art by Jonathan Lau. Cover art by Francesco Mattina. Tarko the Terrible was frozen in a block of ice, and they pulled a Captain America thaw out, bringing the powerful danger to the present day.
Viking Moon #1. Written by Joe Pruett with art and cover art by Marcelo Frusin. How could you ask for more? Vikings and werewolves? I mean…come on. This was way cool. I will continue on with this new Image book.
Black Cat #2. “II: Your Friendly Neighborhood Cat Lady.” Written by G. Willow Wilson with art by Gleb Melnikov. Adam Hughes did the cover art. Superhero Black Cat feels a little weird to Felicia Hardy, but she has been coming across plenty of trouble. And she seemed as if she was drooling over Daredevil (Can you blame her?).
Detective Comics #1101. “The Courage That Kills Part One.” Written by Tom Taylor and art and cover was done by Mikel Janin. A new storyline with Batman kicks off here and Tom Taylor brings the excellence once again. It’s a virus storyline and Batman is stuck in quarantine.
X-Men #22. “Dawning of an Age.” Written by Jed MacKay with art by C.F. Villa. Cover art was done by Ryan Stegman & Marte Gracia. Doug Ramsey comes to join the X-Men. Doug Ramsey is the heir of Apocalypse, going by the name of Revelation. The final shot of the issue shows that things are not going to be good as the Age of Revelation starts next month.
Daredevil #25. “Rites of Reconciliation” Part Six. Written by Saladin Ahmed and penciled by Jose Luis Soares. Cover art was done by John Romita Jr., Scott Hanna, and Richard Isanove. This is the final issue of Daredevil, which shocked me. Daredevil and Elektra make a change in their relationship status and they have to fight a brutal Kingpin.
Battleworld #1. Written by Christos Gage with art by Marcus To. Cover art by Leinil Francis Yu & Romulo Fajardo Jr. A group of heroes from different universes are pulled together by Korvac to battle. It was interesting to see these heroes in different places of their lives or different formats of their careers. Maestro is here and I love him. Young Spider-Man. King Thor. Old Hank Pym. Ms. Marvel aka Carol Danvers. Lots of interesting interactions.
Spider-Girl #4. Written by Torunn Grønbekk and art by Andre Risso and Moises Hidalgo. Cover art was done by David Nakayama. Spider-Girl is in action, and her efforts bring out a special guest star, the Amazing Spider-man.
The Thing #5. “The King of Yancy Street” Conclusion. Written by Tony Fleecs and art by Justin Mason. Cover art was done by Nick Bradshaw & Rachelle Rosenberg. The Thing’s little solo adventure trying to protect a little girl comes to its conclusion with this issue. I do enjoy Ben Grimm and he showed his power.
Other books this week: Mr. Terrific Year One #5, Endless Night #4, Predator: Black, White & Blood #3, New History of the DC Universe #3, Sherlock Holmes The Dark Detective: Knights of Frankenstein #3, Emma Frost: White Queen #4, Silverhawks #8, Red Vector #2, and Zdarsky Comic News #15.
Quick Hits: Things are getting tougher for Zach and Rose in Hornsby & Halo #10. Rose is starting to show some of her darkness and anger. Vision & Scarlet Witch #5 brings this short series to a close and we return Vision to his original state. It was nice to see Viv Vision back once again. I am not sure how I am feeling about the Death of Silver Surfer #4. I was not a big fan of this issue. Void Rivals #23 continues its major war and battles between the two worlds. Absolute Wonder Woman #12 introduces us to the Absolute Zatanna and Hippolyta finds out Diana is alive. The futuristic Batman in Immortal Legend Batman #2 was a little less interesting than last issue. Godzilla is bringing the pain and the power into the Marvel Universe in Godzilla Destroys the Marvel Universe #3. The X-Men give it their all. The Ultimate universe expanded a bit with Ultimate Hawkeye #1 (one shot). The Thunder War concludes in Storm #12 with several guest stars who think they are storm gods. This is another series ending before the Age of Revelation. I do not know if the Storm book returns after that X-event or if it gets a reboot. Far Down Below #5 is a great Mad Cave book that also sees its final issue this week. Blue Palo Verde #4 was really weird this week. I found it to be less engaging as I did before. Then there was more bayou crime action in The Voice Said Kill #3. One more of those to go.
After SiouxperCon last weekend, I am still trying to get caught up. As I type this, I am also watching Marvel Zombies on Disney +. I have no idea when I am going to read this large pile of books.
It was worth it to meet some awesome comic creators.
This week, we have three variant cover winners.
Also-Rans: Escape #1, Space Ghost #3, The Mortal Thor #2, News from the Fallout #3 (cover B), The Twilight Zone #1 (Sorry Todd, not a medalist this week), Wild Animals #3, All-New Spider-Gwen: Ghost Spider #2, Mark Spears Monsters #7 (cover B), and The Invisible Man #2 (cover A).
Bronze Medalist
The Phantom #1
Variant Cover E
Cover art by Freddie Williams II
I love the color choices on this cover. It grabbed my attention as I already had cover A in my possession. The light purple and webs really work together.
Silver Medalist
The Invisible Man #2
Variant Cover B
Cover art by Mike Del Mundo
How else can you make something invisible? How about an eraser. Such a neat concept and I was really attracted to it. This was another book that I already had the cover A, but needed to own it too.
Gold Medalist
Mark Spears Monsters #7
Variant Cover E
Cover Art by Mark Spears
Mark Spears is back on top. What an awesome Halloween inspired cover. This is a different style than we are used to from Spears and it is very exciting.
Wow I am late this week. There is a compelling reason, though. I went to South Dakota this weekend to attend the SiouxperCon with my friend Todd. I left on Friday, stopped off in Fort Dodge for the night, and went on to Sioux Falls Saturday morning. We spent the weekend with such comic luminaries as Gail Simone, Phil Hester, Keith Champagne, and Zander Cannon, to name a few.
Of course, I did not have much time for reading over the weekend, and I had a whole bunch of comics from the convention too. It threw off my schedule over many things with TV show watching and movies. I finally caught up to last week’s pull lists so I could write the EYG Comic Cavalcade. That is with NEW COMIC BOOK DAY being tomorrow.
The goal is to get some of the con books read and do a special edition of the EYG Comic Cavalcade. I am not sure when that is going to happen, but I hope to accomplish it.
Books this week:
Deadpool/Batman #1. The new, big crossover event with Marvel and DC started this week with Marvel’s version of the team-up between Batman and Deadpool. Yes, it was a lot of fun. As were several of the other shorter team ups in the book, including Captain America and Wonder Woman, Green Arrow and Daredevil, Krypto and Jeff the Shark, and Logan turning into Logo. There were a bunch of covers for this crossover and I picked up three of them.
No Man’s Land #1. Written, drawn and cover art by Symon Kudranski (Gold Medalist). My favorite book of the week, No Man’s Land takes us back to the year after the Cuban Missile Crisis and investigates a murder on the frozen bridge-the Ice Curtain- that happens at times between Alaska and the Soviet Union. Poor FBI agent Collins just wanted to retire. I expect some Cold War spy thriller goodness in this new series.
Uncanny X-Men #21. “Of Mice and Mutants” Written by Gail Simone and art by Luciano Vecchio. Cover art was done by David Marquez & Matthew Wilson. One of the people we met at SiouxperCon was Gail Simone and I really love what she has done with the Uncanny X-Men book. I don’t know if she is writing the upcoming Age of Revelations series this book becomes, but I sure hope that this is not her last hurrah on this book.
Fantastic Four #3. Written by Ryan North and penciled by Humberto Ramos. Cover art was done by Humberto Ramos & Edgar Delgado. I also picked up the wrap around MCU cover done by Wesley Burt. The Fantastic Four continues their struggle against Emperor Doom.
Orla #2. Written by John Lees and art by Sally Cantirino. Cover art was done by Sally Cantirino and Dearbhla Kelly. Orla is on another date, but this time she is hitting it off with the guy. She liked him so much, she did not want to eat him! Will he survive? Who knows!
Exquisite Corpses #5. Written by Jordie Bellaire with James Tynion IV and art by Claire Roe with Michael Walsh. Cover art was done by Michael Walsh. I also picked up the stealth variant cover with cover art by Sebastian Fiumara (Silver Medalist). The body count continues to rise as the competition gets wild.
Incredible Hulk #29. “The Requiem Plain” Part Two. Written by Phillip Kennedy Johnson and art by Adam Gorham. Nic Klein did the cover art. The Hulk takes on the Eldest in a brutal and violent issue. It is only going to get worse.
Justice League Red #2. Written by Saladin Ahmed and art by Clayton Henry. Cover art was done by Clayton Henry and Marcelo Maiolo. Cyborg joins the fun and he is not happy with the manipulation (if not our right lies) of Red Tornado. I have found this book intriguing and I want to know what is behind Red Tornado’ current behavior.
This Ends Tonight #3. Story by Gerry Duggan, Kelvin Mao, and Robert Windom with art by Jae Lee. This was the final issue of this three issue series and I have to say I felt disappointed at the conclusion. It was clearly not designed to be concluded here as it left off on a gigantic cliffhanger. It is a fun series, but I did not enjoy the finale.
They Choose Violence #4. Written by Sheldon Allen and illustrated by Mauricio Campetella. Cover art was done by Rahzzah (Bronze Medalist). Big background issue with big origins abounding everywhere. There is a creative stretch where it is more of a script than a comic. And it was original.
Slasher’s Apprentice #5. Written by Justin Richards and art and cover art by Val Halvorson. The serial killer story comes to a shocking conclusion as this book ends. I think it was a little obvious what was going to happen, but it did turn out enjoyable.
G.I. Joe #11. Written by Joshua Williamson and art by Andrea Milana. Cover art is done by Tom Reilly. Baroness and Cover Girl’s story comes to a conclusion with a great ending with Baroness showing her loyalty to the Joes.
Amazing Spider-Man #12. Written by Joe Kelly and penciled by Ed McGuinness. Cover art was done by Ed McGuinness and Marte Gracia. All of the other Spiders came after Norman Osborn Spider-Man and kick his butt. Norman facing off with Gwen Stacy (aka Spider-Gwen) is an iconic moment.
Absolute Flash #7. “The Trials of the Flash” Part 3. Written by Jeff Lemire and art by Travis Moore. Cover art by Nick Robles. Absolute Flash fight a hurricane. Well, sort of. And then, he joined the Rogues. I enjoyed this month’s Absolute Flash.
Runaways #4. “Think of the Children” Part Four. Written by Rainbow Rowell and art by Elena Casagrande, Lee Ferguson, and Roberta Ingranata. Stephanie Hans did the cover art. It turned out that Nico does have her magic power, but only when she is holding hands with Gert. I do enjoy the Runaways and their drama.
Nightwing #130. “What I Was Afraid Of.” Written by Dan Watters and art and cover art by Dexter Soy. Dick has to deal with the Nightwing Prime as the Justice League approached Nightwing with this problem. I do love how much respect Superman shows Nightwing. There can’t be more difference in their power set, but he talks to Dick with the total respect.
The New Avengers #4. Written by Sam Humphries and art by Tiago Palma. Cover art was done by Stephen Segovia & Rain Beredo. The Sub-Mariner clone of the Killumnati faces off with the New Avengers. Oh and Clea is just back after she left last issue.
Miles Morales: Spider-Man #38. “Thick as Thieves” Part Two. Written by Cody Ziglar and art by Luigi Zagaria. Federico Vicentini & Neeraj Menon did the cover art. Miles and Black Cat team up to face off with the new villains, Inari and White Cat, but things wind up in a surprising way.
Bat-Man: Second Knight #1. Book One. Written by Dan Jurgens and art and cover art by Mike Perkins. Pre-World War II Batman? The black label book is an awesome story and places Batman in a new light. This one was a lot of fun.
Marvel Zombies: Red Band #1. Written by Ethan S. Parker and Griffin Sheridan with art by Jan Bazaldua. Cover art was done by Greg Land & Rachelle Rosenberg. The return of the zombies correspond with the debut of Marvel Zombies tomorrow. This focuses on the Fantastic Four zombies.
Krypto: The Last Dog of Krypton #4. “Spring.” Written by Ryan North and art by Mike Norton. Cover art was done by Jae Lee & June Chung. Krypto meets a friend… another dog…. who was just not going to make it. Even the narrator hinted that this would be a sad issue. We also get to see Krypto’s super powers arrive.
Other books this week: New Gods #10, The Seasons #8, Star Wars: Boba Fett-Black, White & Red #1, Deadpool/Wolverine #9, Dark Honor #5, The Expanse: A Little Death #1, Ultimate Black Panther #20, Magik #10, and Ghost Pepper #3.
Quick Hits: There were several issues of books this week ended this week. Buried Long, Long Ago #5 is one of those. This was a solid horror comic. Blink and You’ll Miss It#2 was a little confusing. I have to refocus on this book. The Ultimates #16 has some intriguing storytelling with a character that I am not sure who it was. Good as Dead #1 arrived at Image Comics this week and it was a different read. I did enjoy the return of Crimson Justice in Whatever happened to the Crimson Justice #4. There are some dangers in the Marvel Universe in Predator Kills the Marvel Universe #2. More movie characters appear in Star Wars #5. I do love Luke and Han together. Captain Planet #5 brings the Planeteers back together after some conflict and Captain Planet will face off with Captain Pollution. Phoenix#15 comes to an end (temporarily???) as Jean Grey faces off with the powers of the universe. I picked up a beautiful cover for Absolute Batman #12 by Stevan Subic and this cover glows in the dark. Finally Godzilla Escapes the Dead Zone #2 actually does not have Godzilla in any way except a few pics.
Ahoy all on Talk Like a Pirate Eve! We all be ready to be speakin’ like a buccaneer tomorrow! While we be preparin’, here be the weekly booty of the best covers of the week. Surely full of treas-arrrrr. In honor of Talk Like a Pirate Day, I be puttin’ aside the medals this week in order to be awardin’ beauties, Pirate doubloons. Some of the best Pieces of eight ye ever be seein’.
We be keelhaulin’ Marvel and DC this week, as our jolly rogers all go to independent comapnies. Avast me hearties!
It be a shame that there be no X-Men books this week as we could have said that X marks the spot!
Covers t’be walkin’ the deck: Absolute Batman #12 (glow in the dark), Fantastic Four #3 (Marvel Studios Wrap-Around Variant), Marvel Zombies: Red Band #1, Marvel Zombies #1: Red Band (cover E), Krypto: The Last Dog of Krypton, Phoenix #15, and Amazing Spider-Man #12 head down to Davy Jones’s Lock-arrrrr.
Bronze Doubloons
They Choose Violence #4
Cover art be done by Rahzzah
Arrr… what a lovely cover this be. The curtains in the background an the masks make a statement. As does the splash of blood across the title. Shiver me timbers.
Silver Doubloons
Exquisite Corpses #5
Cover D Stealth Variant
Cover art be scribbled by Sebastian Fiumara
Avast landlubbers! This be a lovely green and black cover featurin’ an upside down wench. I be seein’ this one on the shelf and I knew I had to be plantin’ me flag with this treasure!
Gold Doubloons
No Man’s Land #1
Cover art be by Szymon Kudranski
Yo Ho! Ye scurvy sea dogs, this be the return of Szymon Kudranski, whose work on Something Epic was just like that title said. He be one of the most amazin’ artist around and this eyeball not be covered by a patch. This truly be top notch swag!
It is time for the EYG Comic Cavalcade. Next week’s edition may be very late because I am going with Todd to Sioux Falls, South Dakota to attend the SiouxperCon 2025. I’ll be busy at the convention on Saturday and Sunday, so I may not have as much time to read, and certainly won’t have time to do this write up next weekend. I am looking forward to heading down to SiouxperCon where I plan on meeting Gail Simone, Zander Cannon, Phil Hester among others. I do plan on using my phone to do some postings at EYG next weekend, maybe with some photos taken at the event.
Meanwhile, I picked up a graphic novel at In This Issue Comics this week by Brian K. Vaughn and Niko Henrichon called Spectators. I had put this on my pull list early on, but it was a weird thing. They sent the shop a promo copy of the book and the online listing indicated that it was pulled for me. It was weird, but then the list removed Spectators from my list. I decided not to worry about it. I saw it on the stands Thursday and I grabbed it. That was when the owner saw me with it and said they were trying to remember who had asked for this book and had the list try to pull the promo copy. They did have the book pulled in a separate place behind the desk. I just finished the book before starting this. It was a great read, but there were more penises than I have ever seen in a graphic novel.
Books this week:
Red Hood #1. “The Tower Part 1” Written by Gretchen Felker-Martin with art and cover art by Jeff Spokes. Okay, this one has a story behind it. I had heard a bunch of people complaining about this book before it ever came out with some of the writing of it. However, that is not the big story. Gretchen Felker-Martin posted a comment on the assassination of conservative Charlie Kirk and, because of that controversy, DC Comics canceled the new book. Heck, it was a day after it was released. I’ve never seen a book canceled so quickly. In fact, there was some book shops that removed the book from its shelves. Goes to show you how social media can cause troubles.
Murder Podcast #1. Written by Jeremy Haun and illustrated by Mike Tisserand. Variant cover B art was done by Mike Tisserand & Nick Filardi. A new podcast has seemingly sent some normal listeners into a murderous fugue state. It is a intriguing new book from Ignition Press.
Feral #16. “The Rule Breaker.” Written by Tony Fleecs and art by Trish Forstner and Tone Rodriguez. Variant cover art was done by Trish Forstner and Tony Fleecs. The cats are facing off with some scary potential consequences. Will the mall cats eat Lord? There is more tension in this book than most comics in a month. Feral has been an exceptional book.
Ultimate Spider-Man: Incursion #4. Written by Deniz Camp & Cody Ziglar with art by Jonas Scharf. Cover art was done by Sara Pichelli & Tamra Bonvillain. Miles Morales remains searching through the Ultimate universe for his little sister. He winds up in a fight with Illyana Rasputin. Miles is finding it even more difficult as memories of his other universe keep popping up.
It Killed Everyone But Me #1. Written by Ryan Parrott with art by Letizia Cadonici. Cover art was done by Jorge Corona. The brand new Mad Cave comic is a fun new idea. Twenty five years ago, Sutton Reed was the sole survivor of her friends who were slaughtered by a demonic force. She was able to imprison. Now, there is another series of grisly murders and she must confront the old demon. I look forward to see how this goes.
One World Under Doom #7. “Doom Versus Everyone” Written by Ryan North and art by R.B. Silva. Ben Harvey did the cover art. Doom has been shown to be anything but a magnanimous ruler and that leads to some battles. Specifically, a good chunk of this issue featured Doom facing off against a magic-using Reed Richards. Huh?
C.O.R.T.: Children of the Round Table #1. Written by Tom Taylor and art by Daniele Di Nicuolo. Cover art was done by Daniele Di Nicuolo and Rain Beredo. I subscribed to this series because I love Tom Taylor’s writing so much. This feels like a younger book, but I enjoyed it anyway. We dive into the King Arthur legend again with this book.
Don’t Forget Your Briefcase #3. Written by Eliot Rahal and art and cover art by Phillip Sevy. Elmo, upset by everything going on around him with the briefcase, runs off and steals his mom’s car. Things do not go well after that. This is a really fun spy thriller book from Mad cave, which continues to be one of the most consistently good independent comic companies of 2025.
Survive #1. Written by Robert Venditti with art by Doug Braithwaite. Cover art was done by Jorge Fornes. A Russian submarine is sabotaged and we have more action beneath the ocean as the sub sinks. This feels like a cool story from comic company Bad Idea.
Captain America #3. Written by Chip Zdarsky and art by Valero Schiti. Cover art was done by Ben Harvey. Cap and Doom face off. First it seemed as if Doom respected Cap, but he is still playing the game. It is a brutal story that shows some of Cap’s naivety.
Absolute Batman #12. “Abomination Part Four” Written by Scott Snyder and art by Nick Dragotta. Cover art was done by Nick Dragotta and Frank Martin. Whoa. Seems like Absolute Batman’s rogue gallery has come to the absolute universe in full force. Penguin, Killer Croc, Two Face, Riddler, Catwoman all made appearances here. And they are all tied to Bruce. This could be tough on Bruce.
Space Ghost #2. Written by David Pepose and art by Jonathan Lau. Francesco Mattina did the cover art. Eclipse Woman makes her return but winds up having to aid Space Ghost, Jan, Jace, and Blip.
Redcoat #14. Written by Geoff Johns and art by Bryan Hitch. Cover art was done by Bryan Hitch & Brad Anderson. Fascinating issue as Simon Pure finds himself at the White House as it is burning and he helped first lady Dolley Madison rescue a portrait of George Washington. The ghost of George Washington is on his way.
Batman: Dark Patterns #10. “The Child of Fire” Part 1. Written by Dan Watters and art and cover art by Hayden Sherman (Gold Medalist). This starts the final arc of this series, which is an absolute shame because Dark Patterns has been exceptional Batman work. This issue of Dark Patterns is quite literally FIRE!
Superman: The Kryptonite Spectrum #2. Written by W. Maxwell Prince and art by Martin Morazzo. Cover art was done by Martin Morazzo and Chris O’Halloran. The duo from Ice Cream Man continues their trip into Superman. The new kryptonite has caused some new troubles for Superman. Specifically, making him a kaiju sized giant.
The Undead Iron Fist #1. Written by Jason Loo and art by Fran Galan. Cover art was done by Whilce Portacio & Alex Sinclair. Danny Rand is back from the dead and I really loved this first issue of this new series. A great new redesign of the Iron Fist costume and a guest appearance for Miles Morales made the issue epic.
Blue Falcon and Dynomutt #1. Written by Jimmy Palmiotti and art by Pasquale Qualano. Cover A art was done by Lucio Parrillo (Silver Medalist) and cover D art was done by Francesco Mattina. The new Dynamite book featuring the Hanna Barbera super hero is great and we have an origin for Dynomutt kicking off the book.
The Punisher: Red Band #1. Written by Benjamin Pearcy and art by Julius Ohta. Cover A art was done by Marco Checchetto & Matthew Wilson. I also got Cover B by Frank Miller. The new Punisher book is excellent. It takes place, I believe, in the time frame of The World to Come, but you could not tell by this issue. It was great to see Frank Castle back in the outfit. This was quite bloody and might be the first Marvel “Red Band” book that really deserved it.
Project Chimera: The Hero Trade #2. Written by Matt Kindt and art by David Lapham. Corey Wolfe did the cover art. I did not know that this was the just a two-issue series so when it all wrapped up in the book, I was very surprised. I did enjoy this very much and I would have liked it to continue.
Transformers #24. Written by Daniel Warren Johnson and art by Jorge Corona. Daniel Warren Johnson & Mike Spicer did the cover art. This was a huge final fight between Optimus Prime and Megatron. I say final, but I don’t actually mean that. There is no way that was their last fight. However, it was a huge boss battle. It was the final issue for Daniel Warren Johnson who has been with the book since the beginning.
Exceptional X-Men #13. Written by Eve L. Ewing and art by Federica Mancin. Carmen Carnero & Nolan Woodard did the cover art. This is the final issue of Exceptional X-Men, which makes me sad. I have enjoyed the Kitty Pryde/Emma Frost team. I do not know if it is coming back after the Age of Revelation. It felt like an end to the series.
Wolverines and Deadpools #3. Written by Cody Ziglar and art by Roge Antonio. Cover art was done by Alessandro Cappuccio and Mattia Iacono. This short series came to an end. It was a fun little series with the father-daughter tandems working together to stop the Shadow King. Ellie even broke the fourth wall.
Red Hulk #8. “Allies” Written by Benjamin Percy and art by Geoff Shaw. Cover art was done by Geoff Shaw and Marte Gracia. Thunderbolt Ross is going through a ton of stuff. However, Machine Man, Deathlok and Wildstreak are there to help him.
Racer X #1. Written by Mark Russell and art by Nuno Plati. Cover art was done by Francesco Tomaselli. Another book that falls into the world of Speed Racer. Racer X is Speed’s supposedly dead brother. Racer X is a fun series and I am curious to see how it crosses over with Speed Racer.
Other books this week: Spider-Verse vs. Venom-verse #5, Imperial War- Nova: Centurion #1, Blood Type #4, Powers 25 #1, Superior Avengers #6, Blood & Thunder #5 and X-Men of Apocalypse Alpha #1.
Quick Hits: Todd picked me up Maria Llovet’s Artificial #1, a new romance book with robots to purchase for dates. It is kind of a sexy book. Tama #2 wound up with the Bronze Medalist this week. There were more Kong action with Return to Skull Island #3. Trinity: Daughter of Wonder Woman #4 sees Trinity searching for Damian corgi by heading to a timeline where Batman is getting married to Catwoman. Hello Darkness #14 has its horror once again. Godzilla is busy this week with both Godzilla (Kai-Sei Era) #2 and Godzilla: Here There Be Aliens #4. There are a bunch of Godzilla books available these days. Eddie Brock: Carnage #8 sees the problems continue to rise between Carnage and Eddie Brock. Ultimate Wolverine #9 brings out the Sentinels. Conan the Barbarian #24 has a tough loss for Conan. The book Cul-De-Sac #2 from Bad Idea came out this week too. I still have liked The Unchosen #3 more. I was not a fan of number one, but this has improved each issue.
Welcome back to the EYG Favorite Comic Covers of the Week. The are some nice covers this week, but none that I would consider to be big time winners.
Also-Rans: Space Ghost #2, Murder Podcast #1 (cover B), It Killed Everyone But Me #1, Trinity: Daughter of Wonder Woman #4, Absolute Batman #12, Transformers #24, Hello Darkness #14, One World Under Doom #7, Blue Falcon and Dynomutt #1 (cover D), and the Undead Iron Fist #1.
Bronze Medalist
Tama #2
Cover art by Dustin Nguyen
This is a fun little series from Panick and I love the white background. The grey, purple and green really work with the white. This is cool.
Silver Medalist
Blue Falcon and Dynomutt #1
Cover art by Lucio Parrillo
I love Blue Falcon and Dynomutt from Hanna Barbera. This is a great cover, which was the A cover. D cover was in the Also-Rans. This is very majestic with these two characters getting the Dynamite update.
Gold Medalist
Batman: Dark Patterns #10
Cover art by Hayden Sherman
I mean… the fire is coming out of Batman’s face. How can you come up with a more compelling cover? The contrast is awesome and this week’s winner. This one is literal FIRE!
EYG- Embrace Your Geekness 