I know I mentioned that last issue was a filler issue, a look at someone outside of the main arcs of the book.
Man, did that change.
Issue #16 just went to town. Brutal. Violent. Vicious.
While Chloe and Killian are trapped in the memories inside the Clean Room, Artus Greenhand is calling for Astrid.
Then an assault was underway on the building. The creatures were after Capone, who just showed how much of a bad ass she is. They were after Anika, and Capone made it there in time to put an axe through the creature’s head. The Surgeon came to kill Duncan, but he got surprised by the Haverlin boys and some baseball bats.
Astrid’s crew was stepping things up, big time. Even with that, there was a feeling of hopelessness going on in the book.
Some of it may have come from the unsettling conversation between Astrid and the entity in control of the baby Derica. This was disturbing as it gets, with the baby reaching out and asking Aunt Astrid to hold it. Creepy.
This issue was packed to the gills with action and gore after a slower filler issue #15. This was a powerful issue with so many shout out loud moments. It was such a big time book and there are only two more issues to go.
It is time for the EYG Comic Cavalcade once again. Each week I get a bunch of books from my two comic shops and it always takes some time to finish reading them. With the movies and TV shows I have to watch (oh, and work at school), I am happy when I get the chance to finish this up.
I am continuing the Daily Read with the Vertigo series Clean Room. I read issue #15 today, giving me just three more to read.
Comic of the Week
Narco #1
This week’s Comic of the Week is a book from Image. There were a couple of books that were in competition but this one is the one I liked reading the most. It was written by Doug Wagner and art by Daniel Hillyard. Marcus is our main character and he has a certain trouble…narcolepsy when he gets too excited. This was a really fun introduction to this character and I am in on what is happening.
Narco #1 is one of those hot chased after books and I do think it is worthy to be chased.
Books this week:
Sleep #8. Written, illustrated and cover art by Zander Cannon (Silver Medalist). Sleep has been one of the most entertaining series of the last year. This is the finale of the series and I have to say, I did not love the final issue. I was a little unsure about the ending of the story. I didn’t hate the end, but it was just not as strong as I had expected.
Nectar #1. Written by Jeremy Robinson and art was done by Francesco Francini and Annapaola Martello. Cover art was done by Chris Shehan (Gold Medalist). This was one of the books that was in competition with Narco #1 for the Comic of the Week. I really loved this book and I was fully engaged with the mystery going on in this book.
Amazing Spider-Man #23. Written by Joe Kelly and penciled Ed McGuinness. Cover art was done by Ed McGuinness & Marcio Menyz. The second part of the Death Spiral story continued with Peter finally learning that Mary Jane was the new host of Venom. MJ then finds out that it was not Peter who blew her off before. Will Marvel ever let Peter and Mary Jane get back together?
DC KO #5. “The King Omega” Written by Scott Snyder and Joshua Williamson and art by Javi Fernandez. Cover art was done by Javi Fernandez & Alejandro Sanchez. Well, I thought Lex Luthor had won the tournament, but it sure feels as if Superman has taken the position. I guess that this is the way they are going to send Superman away for a time.
X-Men #26. “Danger Room, Pt. 1” written by Jed MacKay with pencils by Netho Diaz. Cover art was done by Netho Diaz, Sean Parsons & Fer Sifuentes-Sujo. The X-Men are out on a mission from the town, but Glob Herman was left behind, working in his garden. Things did not look good for Glob. I sure hope that he was able to avoid what it appeared to have happened.
All-New Spider-Gwen: Ghost Spider #8. Written by Stephanie Phillips and art by Paolo Villanelli. Cover art was done by David Marquez & Federico Blee. Mysterio is back and causing all sorts of trouble. The underworld of the Marvel Universe in New York is all over this book too with Hammerhead leading the way.
Avengers #36. “Assemble” Written by Jed MacKay and art by Farid Karami. Cover art was done by Russell Dauterman & Rachelle Rosenberg. The final issue of this run of Avengers as Captain Marvel goes around to all the team members that she had recruited and revealed that she was stepping down as team leader. They also had a big goodbye to Camelot. Not sure where the Avengers goes from here, but this is the final issue of Jed MacKay’s run and this super powered version of the team.
Wolverine #17. “Cold and Alone” Written by Saladin Ahmed and art by Martin Coccolo. Cover art was done by Dan Panosian. Wolverine and Silver Sable are out int he Canadian wilderness trying to help the group that has been dubbed the New Morlocks. Meanwhile, Logan and Sable are getting busy.
Exploit #1. Written by Tim Leong & Laura Hudson with art by Emiliana Pinna. A piece of satire directed at the tech oligarchy with journalist Kirby Kuo, who uncovered a secret about tech billionaire Cole Saxon and promptly published it. This leads to all kinds of trouble for her. A new Mad Cave book filled with fun.
The Twilight Zone #5. “Silent Warning” Written by L. Marlow Francavilla & Francesco Francavilla with art by Francesco Francavilla. Cover art was done by Robert Hack. We are back under the sea with weird creatures and dangers galore in the latest Twilight Zone installment.
Batman #7. “Kill Switch” Written by Matt Fraction with art and cover art by Jorge Jimenez. A captured and hooked up Joker calls for Batman, to give him a warning of something to come… and to drop a surprise bomb at the end… Joker called him “Bruce.” There is a cool foldout section at the center of this book too that was awesome.
Hello Darkness #19. Another month of a variety of horror stories and a potpourri of creative folks. Cover art was done by Rebeca Puebla and cover B was done by Jenny Frison (Bronze Medalist). My favorite of the stories was “Imposter Syndrome” written by Tate Brombal.
Whatever Happened to the Crimson Justice #5. Written by Frank Tieri and art by Inaki Miranda. Cover art was done by Dan Panosian. This is the book to complain about this week. This was a five issue series, making this the finale. However, issue #4 came out September 17, 2025. The final issue was good, but how am I supposed to care that much when it has been nearly six months between issues.
X-Men Annual #1. “The Creationist” Written by Ryan Stegman with art by Steve Skroce, Sanford Greene and Ryan Stegman. Cover art was done by Ryan Stegman & Arthur Hesli. Jean Grey aka Phoenix comes back from the cosmos to see the X-Men in Louisiana because there is a mutant using his powers to create monsters.
Daredevil & Punisher #4. “Slaughter in Sutton’s Place” Written by Jimmy Palmiotti and art by Tommaso Bianchi & Mario Santoro. Frank Castle and Daredevil end their latest team up bringing down the villains they were aiming for, in their differing styles. DD & Punisher work together in a book like this because they are so polar opposite and yet only a step or two away from each other.
Moonstar #1. “A Path Unknown” Written by Ashley Allen and art by Edoardo Audino. German Peralta did the cover art. Following up on her guest appearance in the previous Magik series, Danielle Moonstar leads this new book trying to find her proper path.
Nova Centurion #5. “Grand theft Starship Part 2” Written by Jed MacKay with art by Alvaro Lopez. Cover art was done by Alessandro Cappuccio & Rachelle Rosenberg. Richard Rider meets back up with Peter Quill, aka Star-Lord once again and the pair bring all kinds of trouble.
Absolute Superman #17. “All Together Now” Written by Jason Aaron with art by Juan Ferreyra. Cover art was done by Rafa Sandoval & Ulises Arreola. Superman steps up against a parasite that is using the people of Metropolis as a power source and Superman shows how inspiring he could be. Oh, and Hawkman may not be the great hero that we thought as he contacted Talia at the end of the issue.
Absolute Flash #12. “The War of the Flashes Part 2” Written by Jeff Lemire with art by Nick Robles and Al Kaplan. Cover art was done by Nick Robles. The first year of this series comes to an end with Wally’s father sacrificing himself to save Wally’s life. Wally dedicated himself to finding his dad and saving him. And Grodd finds someone else like him… but without the positive attitude.
Other books this week: The Nice House By the Sea #8, Tales of the Shadowman #6, Lost Fantasy #8, Lands Unknown: The Skinless man #1, The Beauty #4, Bloodland #2, and The Autumn Kingdom #2.
Quick Hits: I grabbed another one of those hit Mad Cave series off eBay. I must have missed it when it was out in comic shops. It is called The Florida Hippopotamus Cocaine Massacre #1 and it is wild and weird and lots of fun. One shot Iceman: Omega #1 was not as much fun as I did not find myself interested in the book. I have always liked Iceman so maybe it was just the issue’s approach. I grabbed a copy of D’Orc #1 second printing. I loved D’Orc and it was a huge hit so the new cover by Brett Bean and Frank Williams was cool. After enjoying the Ursula book last week, I grabbed a copy of Gaston #1 (Bronze Medalist). I like Gaston the character way more than Ursula, but I did not like this book at all. That was strange. There is a reprint of Marvel Team Up #14 where Spidey meets Invincible. The book was fun and it is nice to get a copy of a book that I am sure is sky high in original price. Speed Racer #6 is back with more dangerous racing action. Gargoyles/Darkwing Duck #3 came out this week and the two sides to the cartoon world do work well together. Defenders of the Earth: Dark Destiny #3 sees the return of Ming the Merciless. The Nightmare Before Christmas: The Shiver of Christmas Town #3 also arrived this week with some solid action and humor. Batman/Green Arrow/Question: Arcadia #3 is one of those books where I am not sure where it falls in continuity. The interactions between Batman and Green Arrow were tense. Finally Godzilla Kai Sei Era #8 brought us some big titan battle.
In what felt like a filler issue, we met Mary, a young woman whose husband Ian, was showing up to her after his death in a bungie jumping accident.
Mary wound up in the organization run by Astrid Mueller, but it really did not have anything to do with the story that we have spent the last 14 issues following.
It did take a side of the organization and looked at it in a different manner, with a different POV than what we have been used to. It was an interesting tale of Mary, but I am not sure the purpose of the issue.
We had a different artist, Sanya Anwar, doing the art, but it looked like this was the only issue that she had done in this first volume.
Astrid’s #1 fan has arrived at the Clean Room with supposedly information on the baby Derica, who spent the first several pages of this issue being horrendous. The imagery of the bridge with the human faces was nightmare fuel if I have even seen any.
The new duo of Astrid and Chloe split apart as Chloe went to see her brother Peter. Meanwhile, Chloe and Killian tried to voir dire the #1 fan.
Artus Greenhand is the name of the #1 fan and he is a piece of work. With hair just like Astird, we discover immediately that this guy is dangerous. He is a serial killer and looks on women as “critters.”
He also seemingly can control the Clean Room, which is not a good thing, as he left Chloe and Killian in a memory facing himself.
I have to say that the relationship between Astrid and Chloe seemed to take a sudden switch here and I am not sure that I think it is earned. Chloe, in particular, had real anger toward Chloe and it does not feel as if that was as resolved as it is being shown to be. However, I do think the relationship between Chloe and Killian worked extremely well and feels as if it makes more sense.
Of course, the whole “intercourse” bit was really funny.
Interestingly enough, we got a new artist for the book. Walter Geovani is the new artist replacing Jon Davis-Hunt. I had not seen an announcement in issue #12 that there was going to be a change. I did not look closely though so it could have been there.
We see a side to Astrid this issue that we had not seen before. She was ready to punish Killian and Duncan in the Clean Room because of their betrayals last issue. However, at the last minute, she reconsidered and rushed back to them. I was surprised by Astrid’s change of heart, but I did like it very much.
Then, Astrid went to Chloe and asked her to join her as one of her rooks. Chloe demanded the truth from Astrid, and… she gave it to her! I couldn’t believe that either.
Then, Astrid brough Chloe to the Clean Room where her niece, the daughter of her brother who had shot her, was at, and the little girl showed off her own evil possessed power, killing a guard. The final shot of the toddler was creepy as heck as she says to Chloe that Philip says hello.
Philip was, of course, Chloe’s fiancé who had shot himself in the head after reading Astrid’s book.
I feel that Astrid and Chloe are forming a bond, at least to work together. I am still not sure if I should trust Astrid, but I have to say I am getting there.
I had a tough choice this week that I wussed out of. I was down to four covers for the three medals and, once again, I decided to have there be a tie. Oh well…
Last week we did not have any variants in our medalists. This week, there are two of the four covers.
Also-Rans: Narco #1, Avengers #36, Batman #7, Moonstar #1, The Twilight Zone #5, Bloodland #2,
Bronze Medalist
(TIE)
Disney Villains: Gaston #1
Cover art by Milena Ciccarello
Variant Cover C
I loved this cover, helping me decide to pick this Dynamite Comics book up. I love how we get Gaston and LeFou running inside the outline of Gaston’s body. The black background makes this standout all the more.
Hello Darkness #19
Cover art by Jenny Frison
Variant Cover B
Another variant that I saw on the shelf and decided to pick it up. I have been enjoying Jenny Frison’s work on the Clean Room Vertigo series that I have been reading on the Daily Read and I think her touch really helps make these horror comic covers effective.
Silver Medalist
Sleep #8
Cover art by Zander Cannon
I have been waiting for the finale of this series for quite awhile now and I was excited to see the book come out this week. The covers of Sleep have been consistently excellent and this one is no exception. The black and white background with the blood red running down creates an exceptional contrast for the cover and really makes me want to see what the finale has in store for me.
Gold Medalist
Nectar #1
Cover art by Chris Shehan
Another new hot book has a beautiful cover featuring butterflies. How does that fit into the story? I am very curious about this book. The orange color of the butterflies and the title jump off the page, especially with that big white moon behind them.
I love this issue. We get a couple of major face offs and sets our two main protagonists on a course for each other.
Astrid video called into the board meeting, revealing that she was very much alive. The confrontation with Mr. Wenuka was like the worst Zoom call ever. Astrid sure showed that even on a mountain top, she had everything under control. I loved how she dealt with Todd, who was the assassin who attempted to kill her on the mountain. She treated him way better than I expected.
Meanwhile, inside the Clean Room, Chloe embraced her ability to control the Clean Room and to show Spark his past… something Spark did not want to see. There were some horrible scenes with Spark possessing a little girl and the tragedy around it. Chloe seemed to be in control as much as Astrid was during the video conference. Killian was shocked since she only knew of one person, Astrid, who could activate the Clean Room.
Both of the assassins, Todd and Duncan, were shown to have been hypnotized and the people around them forgave them quickly. I like that very much. It also seems as if Spark may have taken a step back from the evil that it had looked to reclaim last issue.
Astrid’s brother’s baby was discovered by Astrid’s people. They told her the baby was normal. Of course, Astrid is able to see things differently as the last shot shows the baby with the monstrous head.
Every issue has a twist that I did not see coming. I love how this series feels like a roller coaster that is just flying without me knowing where it was going.
There is a meeting of the Honest World Foundation Board, called by Wenuka, to try an take control away from Astrid.
Meanwhile, Astrid is still in the mountains with Capone, trying to gage her loyalty. Astrid believed she could be a traitor, sent to the mountain to try and finish her off.
It was shown clearly that Capone was loyal as she prevented a sniper from killing Astrid, though the sniper that was sent seemed to lack any real skills in the subject.
Chloe was able to get herself into the Clean Room with Killian to try to save Spark. While inside the Clean Room, the real traitor was revealed… Duncan.
The battle between Duncan and Killian was dope. However, in the end, it took Spark controlling the Clean Room to stop Duncan.
The only way Spark could do that was to reclaim the darkness. The final shot of Spark with an evil grin plastered across it was both scary and sad at the same time.
Things are moving quickly with this book. Only 7 more issues to go.
So, what I wrote about last issue is a touch different now.
It appeared that Spark is not dead. The electricity that was sent through him last issue did not turn him into a pile of ashes. That is what I thought happened, but we see Spark this issue, still alive, still in the Clean Room and being tortured for information. The panel where Spark spoke for Chloe Clim Clam, begging for her to help him, made me worry that Spark is going to resent her for leaving him.
In fact, Chloe knows Spark is alive and I wonder why she left him in the first place. We see her investigating Mueller holdings, and she called Astrid all kinds of nasty names, but why did she leave in the first place?
We return to the scene several days later and Astrid has left the Clean Room and gone to a mountain retreat. Killian sent Capone to retrieve Astrid, but Astrid does not seem to be planning on coming back. Suddenly, there is some feeling for Astrid, a character who I called cold and sent straight t team bad guy last issue. I had some pity for her as she dealt with the idea that her brother shot her through the heart. I am such a manipulated mark.
We also have a new pair of horrendous individuals to fill that villain role. Wenuka and Pete are Jesus-loving corporate businessmen who are looking for a takeover of Astrid Mueller’s followers. We met them earlier, but this issue, we discover that they are darker than we imagined. They had their own “Dark Room,” which made me think it was similar to the Clean Room, and they seem to be ready to torture a poor couple. Weirdos.
I was sure of how I felt about these characters after issue #9 and then #10 flipped it over again. I love that this series is able to play with my emotions. I just hope Spark does not turn angry after his suffering, blaming Chloe.
So bringing Spark into the Clean Room by Chloe was a strategy to try and save Astrid’s life from the gunshot wound that she received from her brother. It was a highly controversial idea that Killian was not a fan of, but Chloe seemed to have the drop on everyone.
As Astrid is coding, Spark possessed her to try and save her. He is able to remove the bullet and save her. As Astrid was coming around, she ordered Spark to be destroyed with 60,000 volts.
Whoa. I did not see that coming as the electricity shot through Spark and left it ashes on the Clean Room floor. Right in front of Chloe, who had promised Spark, who did not want to save Astrid, that she would protect him. Even Killian was surprised by the move… how cold, seconds after your life is saved, you kill what had saved you.
Astrid’s brother, who was the person who shot her, claimed that Astrid had killed their father, which was why he had shot her. So it looks like the questions I had about Astrid’s motivations are gone now and that she is nothing more than a cold-hearted monster.
Does this mean that I have to look at the people in this book and re-evaluate their motives? How about the Surgeon? Do I owe him another look?
Okay, so Astrid is currently planted herself on team bad guy. Is that where she is going to end up? Or is there something more that we don’t know?
Up to Issue #8 in the Daily Read of Clean Room by Gail Simone. It is truly epic so far. I really am enjoying that Vertigo series from 2016.
I bought the first appearance of Mockingbird in Marvel Team-Up #95. I am down to six more of the volume 1 run of Marvel Team-Up to complete my collection. That’s fun.
Comic of the Week:
Amazing Spider-Man/Venom: Death Spiral #1
What a massive list of Comic Book writing royalty working on this book. #1 is listed as written by Joe Kelly, Al Ewing & Charles Soule. That is three pretty solid writers for this series. Then the whole thing is drawn by Jesus Saiz. The book started off strong as Symbie (Peter’s little symbiote friend) gnawing of Johnny Storm’s head. I almost fell over. I will say that one thing could ruin it all and that would be a romantic pairing of Mary Jane and Flash Thompson. NO THANK YOU, PLEASE!
Books this week:
Is Ted Okay? #1. Written, drawn and cover art by Dave Chisholm (Silver Medalist). The runner of for Comic of the Week this week is Is Ted Ok? #1 from Mad Cave. It was a very intriguing and interesting idea that I am excited to see expand even more. What is up with Ted and why are we needing to keep an eye on him? Ted is isolated and antisocial, and Sarah, who has been assigned to watch him, starts to wish there was something she could do to help him. It’s complex and different and those are always welcomed.
Murder Drones #1. Written by Wyatt Kennedy and illustrated by Jo Mi-Gyeong. Cover art was done by Alessio Zonno. I was surprised to see this book in my pull list, because I did not think I had it on my list. I had planned on picking #1 up so I was happy I had it. I noticed that I was missing Murder Podcast #5, so I assume the wrong “Murder” book got pulled. As for moving ahead, this one will not be on my pull list. I did not enjoy Murder Drones much at all.
Murder Podcast #5. Written by Jeremy Haun and illustrated by Mike Tisserand. Cover art was done by Jeremy Haun. Unlike the Drones, Murder Podcast is a great story that has that ongoing mystery that is easily filling this story. There are so many brutal kills (some of which were hilarious) that it engages the reader. The issue ended with some military intervention that seemed important (?).
Bat-Man: Second Knight #3. Written by Dan Jurgens and art and cover art by Mike Perkins. The noir style Batman Elseworlds story comes to an exciting close as Batman and Superman learn how to work together and to stop the poisonous fear gas of the Scarecrow. The Black Label book was a lot of fun and reminded me some of Spider-Man Noir.
Universal Monsters: Phantom of the Opera #1. Written by Tyler Boss and art and cover art by Martin Simmonds. I also grabbed the die-cut cover by Andrea Milana. The next installment of Image Comics reboots of the Universal Monsters is up and it is Phantom of the Opera. The well-known saga of the man with the scarred face but beautiful voice. I have enjoyed all of these Universal Monster books and I am looking forward to more Phantom of the Opera.
Iron Man #2. “Under Pressure” Written by Joshua Williamson and art by Carmen Carnero. Cover art was done by Ryan Stegman & Frank Martin. Tony Stark is trying to figure out what Madame Masque is up to… that is, when she is not sharing his bed. Ooooh Tony. Also, who would guess that Iron Man would have to fight side by side with MODOK?
The Peril of the Brutal Dark: An Ezra Cain Mystery#1. Written by Chris Condon and art and cover art by Jacob Phillips. This is the newest Vertigo book from DC and this is the standout one for me so far. The other two were fine, but this noir detective thriller is the one I am most interested in. I have been a fan of Chris Condon over the years with That Texas Blood, The Enfield Gang and News from the Fallout, so his name on this helps to sell the book even more.
Detective Comics #1106. “The Courage that Kills” Finale. Written by Tom Taylor and art and cover art by Mikel Janin. The virus storyline comes to a close this issue as Batman is able to find the antidote to save the day from the Lion.
Infernal Hulk #4. “Alone” Written by Phillip Kennedy Johnson with art and cover art by Nic Klein. How many Hulks are too many Hulks? Well, when you are banished into the Hulkscape, that answer may not be an easy one
The Punisher #1. Written by Benjamin Percy with are by Jose Luis Soares. Cover art was done by David Marquez & GURU-eFX. Picking up right after the end of Punisher: Red Band, Frank Castle is back and out for vengeance. His rogues gallery got a return too as Jigsaw made another return from the dead. I also picked up a virgin variant cover by John Tyler Christopher..
Spider-Man & Wolverine #10. “Reunions and Partings” Written by Marc Guggenheim and penciled by Gerardo Sandoval. Cover art was done by Kaare Andrews. This brought the team-up series to a close this week. I have enjoyed this second half of the series more than I did the first arc and it is fun to see these two characters matched up.
Mortal Thor #7. “The Accelerationist” Written by Al Ewing and art by Pasqual Terry. Cover art was done by Alex Ross. The world around Sigurd Jarlson is just getting crazier. Mister Hyde is after him. People are starting to realize that he is pretty decent with a hammer. Then, that he may have a connection that they can exploit. Sigurd has some trouble coming.
Red Book #4. Written by James Tynion IV and art and cover art by Michael Avon Oeming (Gold Medalist). UFO stories out of China continue to affect the world and the way the US looks to the skies. This is the final issue of this volume of this UFO book, where Tynion IV provides us with some real world incidents and how they may be conceived. I have enjoyed these Blue/Red Book series and I will look forward to the next one in the future.
Disney Villains: Ursula #1. Written by Sherri L. Smith and art by Gabriele Bagnoli. Cover art was done by Mirka Andolfo. I grabbed this one off the shelf for the heck of it. Dynamite Comics has surprised me before with some characters that I did not think would interest me only to be enthralled by their series. Honestly, picking up Ursula #1 was just the collector in me. Let me tell you, I thought this was a great book and a fascinating story of Ursula and her missing sister. Damned if Dynamite didn’t do it again.
Maid Cafe #1. “Welcome Home, Master: Chapter One” Written by Aimee DeLong & Kazue Watanabe and adapted & illustrated by Remy “Eisu” Mikhtar. Cover art by Mark Spears. This one surprised me too, but not in the positive way. I thought this was another Mark Spears book like Monsters or Monsters and the Wolf, but it was more of a manga type, black and white book with a killer maid. Honestly, I passed on reading it so it may be more entertaining than I thought, but it did not appeal to me at first glance. There are fun trading cards inside the polybagged book.
Save Now #3. Written by Matt Kinot and art and cover art by Tomas Giorello. There is a lot of pain and anguish in this time travel series. There is a lot of loss too. Saver sticks around with Jan for awhile, watching the young girl grow into a young woman. Is his time traveling over? This is the penultimate issue of this series.
Wrestle Heist #3. Written, drawn and cover art by Kyle Starks. Our team of pro wrestlers, both active and retired, get together for Thanksgiving dinner to continue to discuss their plan on stealing from the evil promoter Buddy Hansen ( who looks a lot like Paul Heyman). Little do they know that there is a traitor in their midst. As a pro wrestling fan, there are a lot of insider things in this book that make me giddy. It is fun connecting these characters to the real life versions out there.
Absolute Wonder Woman #17. “Season of the Witch” Part 2 of 5. Written by Kelly Thompson and art and cover art by Hayden Sherman. Diana is able to free Zatanna from the control that was forcing her to take Diana’s magic and then she winds up facing a crew of her villains including Absolute Cheetah and Absolute Giganta.
Hyde Street #10. Written by Geoff Johns with art by Francis Portela. Cover art was done by Ivan Reis, Danny Miki with Brad Anderson. Sisters Hood are the newest pair arriving in Hyde Street. I do not think they are tied to the Sisterhood series we just got as they seem to be fortune tellers. Hyde Street has a lot of fun, weird horror going on.
Final Boss #4. “Stage Four: Forgotten Desert” Written by Tyler Kirkham with art by Tyler Kirkham and David Miller. Cover art was done by Tyler Kirkham (Bronze Medalist). The battles rage on as the tournament continues. The video game-like comic continues to have fun moments throughout.
Other books this week: Void Rivals #27, New History of the DC Universe: Dakota Incident #1, Nights #18, The Author Immortal #5, Be Not Afraid #5, Alice Forever After #2, Power Fantasy #16, Absolute Martian Manhunter #9, Liquidator #4, Return to Sleepy Hallow #4, Conan the Barbarian #29, and 30 Days of Night: Falling Sun #3.
Quick Hits: The Ultimates universe’s story is coming to a close as we get The Ultimates #21 this week with more Luke Cage. Escape #6 dropped the last issue of the series for a while. There will be a break for this series by Rick Remender, but it is not finished. Wiccan: Witches’ Road #3 is back with more magical shenanigans in the Marvel Universe. Wiccan’s mother, Wanda is still at it in the new Sorcerer Supreme #3 book. Rogue is after the truth from her past in Rogue #2. Cable and the members of X-Force are here in Inglorious X-Force #2 as they continue to try and prevent the future murder of Kamala Khan. The second series comes to a close with the new Justice League vs. Godzilla vs. Kong 2 #7. Lots of DC heroes/Titans action. I grabbed two covers of the Batman: The Dark Knight Returns Book One (Facsimile Edition) that came out this week. The first cover is one of the most iconic covers of all time. More boobs and sexual chicanery going down in Voyeur #4 from Ignition Press. Malevolent #2 had me thinking a lot of Leeloo from Fifth Element. The art from Oni Press’s new book Spirit of the Shadows #2 reminded me of Jack Kirby. The story of the heroes out of time came to a brutal end in Justice League Unlimited #16 this week. I was not a huge fan of the start of this group, but I did like what they did with them over the last several issues. Keenspot sent me the Pecos Bill and the Guns of Oz #2 this week. It was a fun book.
So this book took a WILD turn that I was not expecting…
Astrid Mueller is shot, the bullet going into her heart. It sure looks as if she is dying and she compels Killian to get Chloe because she needs someone to take over her role. Astrid says it can’t be Killian because Killian is a follower and the leader can not be a follower.
She also dropped a bomb…
Hell is real and the demons are trying to break through.
There are so many fascinating things going down here, including it apparently Astrid’s own brother Peter who shot her.
When Killian called, Chloe brought her own little squad with her, including Detective Avil Demaros and the Haverlin Brothers. Chloe insisted that she be allowed to bring a witness into the Clean Room with Astrid and Killing, which would be Rene.
Although, with a great ending surprise, it was not just Rene Haverlin. It was also Spark, who had possessed Rene and showed itself at the end of the book. It’s as if Chloe was really thinking ahead of the game.
What is next in this series. I can’t even think what could possibly be coming.
While I still am not sure of of the dep motives going on here, the scene with Astrid and the Surgeon made things a little clearer about what I think about Astrid.
However, Chloe has not been convinced. She met up with Detective Avil Demakos, who was looking to ask her some questions about Michael Parks, who had been killed by being twisted into a pretzel-like shape. In just a few pages, I became a fan of these two and I want a good old fashioned love story in the middle of this horror book.
We see part of a relationship between Astrid and Anika, who does not look good. Astrid does seem to have feelings for Anika (and Chloe too) even if it is not obvious to anyone that she does. Astrid feels cold, and she barely responds to some of the horrors that are around her. Even a slight tear was barely recognizable in this issue.
It was a good issue and I loved how they were setting things up with this story moving forward.
Another interesting new character makes his way to Chloe’s home: The Surgeon.
He does not look like a major problem… initially. He was an old doctor who came is speaking to Chloe, trying to convince her to come with him to the hospital.
Chloe played along… and then jammed to knives through The Surgeon’s head.
That, of course, did not kill him.
So what stops the Surgeon from killing Chloe? A phone call and a threat from Ingrid Mueller.
Ingrid has plans for Chloe. That is clear. And Chloe is not done with Ingrid either. We learned about what specifically happened to have Phillip blow his own head off.
This has been such a sensational series so far. I love these characters and I am just not sure who is the hero, who is the villain and what is going on. Gail Simone has gotten my attention once again.
Our two stories each reach a fever pitch in issue #5 of Clean Room, the Vertigo series from 2016-2017.
Astrid Mueller was inside the Clean Room with her associate Terry. Terry had shot the monster in the head, thinking he save the day.
He had, in fact, doomed himself. The creature possessed Terry and was preparing to assassinate Astrid. Then, Astrid showed how bad ass she is.
I assume everyone who works for Astrid Mueller has one of these Lifeboxes with certain memories that allow her to rip them down in a moments notice. Terry’s memory was a sad one from his youth with his brother.
Meanwhile, a demon (or whatever) possessed Rene Haverlin to speak with Chloe. The demon was called Spark and spoke in a broken English. This creature was very creepy (as was Terry in the Clean Room).
While these events were going on, Capone went and got in a hot tub naked. She was buying off an actress to lie about her pregnancy to take the heat off the questions in the air about why Rand Tanner, actor and customer of Astrid Mueller, had died of an overdose.
Once again, I do not know where some of these characters stand and I am loving it. Very little here feels black and white. There were some full page panel art throughout the book that were extremely effective in creating a tone of creepiness and a sinister feel.
EYG- Embrace Your Geekness 