June 8

Good day. It is time for the EYG Comic Cavalcade.

This past Wednesday was the first NEW COMIC BOOK DAY of the summer months so I got to spend the afternoon at Comic World, reading my books and waiting for the late arriving Diamond order to be divvied out. Good news, Comic World is going to be finally done with Diamond. Here’s hopin’ that Penguin will be more consistent than Diamond has been the last six months or so.

Books this week:

X-Men #17. “Visitor” Written by Jed MacKay and art by Ryan Stegman. Ryan Stegman & Marte Gracia did the cover art. Piper’s twin vs. Magneto (inside and controlling a Sentinel). At least it appeared as if they were able to find Kid Omega and that he was not dead.

Mark Spears Monsters #5. Written, illustrated and cover art by Mark Spears (TIED- Bronze Medalist). Monsters continues to be an amazing series of cover art as well as some of the best interior art around. Mark Spears has been a star this year and this book, which has ties to Monster Squad, is highly entertaining.

Amazing Spider-Man #5. Written by Joe Kelly with art by Pepe Larraz. Cover A art was done by Pepe Larraz & Marte Gracia. I do love it when the cover art incorporates the title in some creative manner. I also picked up cover C, whose art was done by Joelle Jones & Rachelle Rodriguez. The poisoned Peter arc wrapped up as Spidey faces off with the Hobgoblin.

Justice League vs. Godzilla vs. Kong 2 #1. Written by Brian Buccellato and art by Christian Duce. Christian Duce & Luis Guerrero did the cover art. This is a sequel to the previous mini-series featuring an alternate world where the JL fought the big two monsters. Things are back with more trouble for the Justice League.

The Patchwork Girl of Oz #5. Adapted and illustrated by Otis Frampton. I was upset by the end of this book because there was a note inside saying that they were going to have 15 more issues to tell this story, but from now on, it would be only available digitally, or in a trade paperback. I had enjoyed this series through the first five issues and this made me very disappointed. I do not like digital comics. I want to hold it in my hand (as the book called it … a floppy). This made me mad and disappointed.

Ultimate Spider-Man: Incursion #1. Written by Deniz Camp & Cody Ziglar with art by Jonas Scharf. Cover art (foil version) done by Kael Ngu. I grabbed this lovely foil cover featuring Miles Morales fighting the Spot. Miles finds himself in the Ultimate universe. Is he home? What does this mean for the 616?

Be Not Afraid #1. Written by Jude Ellison S. Doyle and illustrated by Lisandro Estherren. Cover art was done by Reiko Murakami. I grabbed both the A cover and the virgin cover for this new Boom! Studios book. This is a dark horror story dealing with a family and a frightening spirit out for something dastardly.

Imperial #1. “One” Written by Jonathan Hickman with art by Iban Coello & Federico Vicentini. Cover art was done by Marco Checchetto & Marte Gracia. Jonathan Hickman brings his sweeping epic to the cosmic world of Marvel. Lots of characters involved including Nova, Star Lord, Hulk, Gladiator and the Shi’ar, the Skrulls & Kree, just to name a few. It feels like another future story, but I was interested so far.

All-New Venom #7. Written by Al Ewing and art by Carlos Gomez. Adam Kubert & Laura martin did the cover art. All-New Venom has to face off with Agent Venom, so it is MJ vs. Flash Thompson. Plus, there is more with Rick Jones who still thinks Robbie is the new Venom.

Marvel Knights: The World to Come #1. “Part One: The Death of Kings” Created by Joe Quesada and Christopher Priest. Cover art by Joe Quesada. We have another possible future story, and this one has created a huge wave of controversy as they have introduced a white man as the new Black Panther. Oh my….. As if Quesada already doesn’t receive enough hate for his Marvel stuff.

Return of the Living Dead #4. Written by S.A. Check & James Kuhoric with art by Andrea Arcari. Cover art was done by Mark Spears (Gold Medalist). This was an explosive finale for this remake of the Return of the Living Dead. This was a fun zombie series from American Mythology Productions.

Daredevil #22. “Rites of Reconciliation.” Part Three. Written by Saladin Ahmed and penciled by Jose Luis Soares and Carlos Nieto. Black armor Daredevil discovered the answer to the dangerous spores that were being sent around by our villain. Too bad Joel and Ellie did not know about it.

Immortal Thor #24. “The Death of the Immortal Thor.” Written by Al Ewing and art by Jon Bazaldua. Cover art was done by Alex Ross (Silver Medalist). It appeared that Thor had made it through the huge battle against the prophecy. Thor expected to die in a heroic sacrifice. He did not. Everyone is happy. Oh… and then Loki stabbed him in the back.

The Terminator #8. Written by Declan Shalvey and art by Colin Craker. Cover art was by Declan Shalvey (Tied- Bronze Medalist). Kind of a review of what has happened so far in the Terminator. It is a very original way to showcase what has gone before.

Laura Kinney: Wolverine #7. “My So-Called Perfect Life, part 2” Written by Erica Schultz and art by Giada Belviso. Elena Casagrande & Edgar Delgado did the cover art. Laura broke out of the “perfect life” she had been trapped in to face off with the Badoon.

Storm #9. “Sinister Schemes of the Stars and Stripes Part Two” Written by Murewa Ayodele with art by Lucas Werneck. Cover art by Mateus Manhanini. Storm is in trouble with the federal government for her aid to Professor X in escaping custody. Jennifer Walters is on the case.

The Slasher’s Apprentice #2. Written by Justin Richards and art and cover art by Val Halvorson. Riley makes a pitch to the Hopton Valley Killer (which she will call HVK, because it is easier to say) to join him and learn from him on how to be a serial killer. This Mad Cave book feels very warped so far.

Pop Kill #4. Story by Dave Johnson and Jimmy Palmiotti with art by Juan Santacruz. Cover art is by Dave Johnson. This is the final issue of the soda pop wars as the twins face off over the formula that would have forever fizz. Dina is struck in the middle.

Ultimate Wolverine #6. Written by Chris Condon and guest art by Alex Lins. Cover art was done by Alessandro Cappuccio & Frank Martin. Logan looks as if he has been snapped out of the mind control forced on him as the Winter Soldier. He is the best at what he does…

Other books this week: Buried Long, Long Ago #2, The Moon is Following Us #10, The Secret Six #4, Plague House #3 and Let This One Be a Devil #4

Quick Hits: Mad Cave comics has another new number one that I picked up. It is called Endless Night #1 and it was okay. I have really liked the Mad Cave books recently and I think it is worth taking a look at them. Godzilla Heist #5 is out this weekend. There are a bunch of Godzilla comics. Almost as many as Batman. I picked up the Dynamite Comics book Giant-Size Wacky Races #1. That was a silly book. I always liked Mumbly from the Laff-A-Lympics from my childhood. I think this was a one shot but I doubt that will be a regular book on my list if it continues. Spider-Gwen: Ghost Spider #14 has Gwen still with King Loki in space. I would like her to get back to earth soon. I do enjoy the Dark Horse book You Never Heard of Me #4. There is one more book in that series. Absolute Superman #8 starts a new story arc and brings Superman into the orbit of Lois Lane and Jimmy Olson. Absolute Green Lantern #3 has some fun things going down with our Lanterns. I am very intrigued by Hal Jordan and his dark hand. The final issue of the series of The Atom Project #6 featured an end to the troubles of the different Atoms.

June 1

Summer is officially here as I am out of school and on break. I have the June Swoon 4 underway starting today, and more Dodgers baseball later tonight, but I am going to fit the EYG Comic Cavalcade into the mix.

I wanted to give a shout out to Pleasant View Comics on eBay. They had a special recently where they offered a “buy two, get two free” offer. Plus, they had only a $1.99 shipping cost and if you know anything about eBay, you know sometimes the sellers have some extremely high shipping costs. I have had one book and the shipping is listed as $6.99 or even more.

Any way, I had done two separate orders from Pleasant View Comics, one with some Power Pack back issues and the other with some back issues of Marvel Classic Comics. Without me asking, they took the two separate orders and combined them into one and refunded me one of the $1.99 shipping costs I had already paid. They shipped me a package of eight comics for just $1.99, and the packaging was well done. It arrived this week and I was very happy with their service. These are the type of sellers that give eBay a good name. Just thought I’d share…

Books this week:

Giant Sized X-Men #1. “The Mutant That Walks Like a Man” Written by Jackson Lanzing & Collin Kelly with art by Adam Kubert. Cover art was done by Adam Kubert & Laura Martin. There was a backup story called “Revelations: Superior” written by Al Ewing with art by Sara Pichelli as well. Ms. Marvel goes time hopping to the moment when the new X-Men faced off with Krakoa. I’m not sure how this is supposed to affect things or if this is just a What If type of situation. Honestly, the story was okay, but that was about it.

Uncanny X-Men #15. “As Close to Evil.” Written by Gail Simone and art by David Marquez. Cover art was done by David Marquez & Matthew Wilson. The Dark Artery storyline continues here with The X-Men and the Outliers confronted Lady Henrietta, who wanted Deathdream to take her place as guardian of the city of the dead, Penumbra.

Hyde Street #6. Written by Geoff Johns and art by Francis Portela. Cover art was done by Ivan Reis & Danny Miki with Brad Anderson. Mrs. Goodbody and Pranky have their own conflict while Mister X-Ray lured a group from a bus to the movies. Some seriously weird stuff going down on Hyde Street.

Pinupocalypse #3. Written, drawn and cover art by Andrew Tarusov. Must be the week for horror comics to go to the movies as Roxy and Foxy take refuge in the theater. Of course, the zombies apparently like movies too. More satirical fun with this series.

Ultimate Spider-Man #17. Written by Jonathan Hickman and art by David Messina. Marco Checchetto & Matthew Wilson did the cover art. Harry is back and he is contacting Uncle Ben and Jonah. Another issue of Ultimate Spider-Man where we barely see Peter Parker. Yet it is very compelling. That tells you how strong the supporting cast is for Spicer-Man.

Predator Versus Spider-Man #2. Written by Benjamin Percy and penciled by Marcelo Ferreira. Cover art by Paulo Siqueira & Yen Nitro. Kraven is hunting the Predator as Spidey is in pursuit. Unfortunately, there seems to be a battalion of Predators on their way. Another surprisingly satisfying mash up.

You’ll Do Bad Things #3. Written by Tyler Boss and art by Adriano Turtulici. Tyler Boss did the cover art. I loved this cover by Tyler Boss and I almost picked it for the medal this week, but there were so many choices that this one fell to the side. Still is an impressive cover and an engaging book.

Daredevil: Cold Day in Hell #2. Written by Charles Soule & Steve McNiven with art and cover art by Steve McNiven. Elektra showed up in this future story with Matt Murdock, who had just had his powers return for a short time.

Captain Planet and the Planeteers #1. Written by David Pepose and art by Eman Casallos. Cover art was done by Mark Spears. Here is another new Dynamite Comics series with a character that has no reason to be as good as it is. Captain Planet always just seemed like a joke of a character to me, but this was really solid.

Feral #13. “Cats and Dogs.” Written by Tony Fleecs and art by Trish Forstner and Tone Rodriguez. Variant cover B art by Tony Fleecs and Allen Passalaqua (Gold Medalist). This is a fantastic variant cover. The book does horror themed variant covers have been fun, but this issue, Feral the 13th, was the best yet.

Universal Monsters: The Mummy #3. Written and drawn by Faith Erin Hicks with a cover art done by Hicks and Lee Loughridge (Silver Medalist). More background with Helen and Ankh-es-en-Amun. Creepy love stories.

The Goddamn Tragedy #1. Written by Chris Condon and illustrated and cover art by Shawn Kuruneru. I have been waiting for this one shot for awhile because of the awesome title of this book. I also love Chris Condon and his writing style worked well for this genre. A family story based loosely on the Donner party? Yes, please. I’ll take that any day.

West Coast Avengers #7. Written by Gerry Duggan and art by Danny Kim. Cover art was done by Ben Harvey. Simon Williams returned this week to confront Killerwatt’s adoption of the Wonder Man name. They did it in a different way that surprised me. West Coast Avengers has been excellent so far with this variation of the book.

Mr. Terrific: Year One #1. “Back to the Beginning.” Written by Al Letson and art by Valentine De Landro. Valentine De Landro and Marissa Louis did the cover art. I am exited about this book as I have not known much about Mr. Terrific and a “Day One” story will work well for me.

New Champions #5. Written by Steve Foxe and art by Ivan Fiorelli. Ricky Yagawa did the variant cover art. I have enjoyed this group of characters combining into the New Champions. I would like more of a story for them than what we have gotten so far.

The Department of Truth #30. Written by James Tynion IV and art and cover art by Martin Simmonds. Will Lee Harvey Oswald make the country great again? The last scene of this issue opens up the possibilities to an amazing story. Department of Truth has been really a great book consistently.

Avengers #26. “Masters of Evil” Part Two. Written by Jed MacKay and art by Andrea Broccardo. Cover art was done by Valerio Schiti and Federico Blee. Captain America stands alone against the new Masters of Evil and Sam shows off his ability.

Justice League Unlimited #7. “Rise of Gorilla Grodd.” Written by Mark Waid and art by Travis Moore. Cover art was done by Dan Mora. This story arc has felt up and down to me and this one is another bit of a down. I am not sure I am vibing with what they are doing here. I will say that the Justice League that shows up on the last page of this issue makes me curious.

Infinity Watch #5. Written by Derek Landy and art by Ruairi Coleman. Variant cover art by Inhyuk Lee. I’m not sure if I enjoyed the finale of this short series as much as I had thought I might. I enjoyed these characters, but I am not sure if what happened with them is what I would be happy happening. I hope we get some more of the Infinity Watch somewhere down the road.

Magik #5. “Fate Unbound.” Written by Ashley Allen and drawn by German Peralta. Cover art was done by J. Scott Campbell & Tanya Lenoux. This book felt weird at the beginning…as if we missed out on something big between the end of issue four and the beginning of five.

Minor Arcana #7. “Wheel of Fortune: Part One-Temperance” Written by Jeff Lemire and illustrated by Letizia Cadonici. Cover art was done by Jeff Lemire. I found this issue’s relationship between Theresa and Officer Brad to be extremely well written and it helped to develop these two characters to a point where I wanted more from them. It feels as if there is a big arc coming for this book and I am all in as I am a big fan of Jeff Lemire’s work.

Kill Train #5. Written by Olivia Cuartero-Briggs and art by Martina Niosi of Outclass Studio. Skylar Patridge did the cover art. This fun Mad Cave series ended with this issue as Vanessa and Kay fought to escape from the Kill Train. Vanessa certainly ended up as a bad ass in this series.

Uncanny Valley #9. Written by Tony Fleecs and art by Dave Wachter. The variant cover B art was done by Tony Fleecs. Oliver is in real trouble, but fear not, his mom is on the way, as she is reclaiming her cartoon side. This has been a remarkably creative book so far and it looks like this is a penultimate issue of the series.

Crush Depth #3. Written by David “DB” Andry and Tim Daniel with art and cover art by Alex Sanchez. Told in flashback format, this gives us even more background on the characters and the horrors that they have found themselves caught in. There is some horrifying imagery in this book that really help create a tone.

Hornsby & Halo #7. Storytellers are Peter J. Tomasi & Peter Snejbjerg. Cover art by Peter Snejbjerg & John Kalisz. Zach and Rose are going out of their way to try and deny or avoid the information that they were presented last issue. Meanwhile horrifying things are going on around them.

G.I. Joe #7. Written by Joshua Williamson and art and variant cover art by Andrea Milana (Bronze Medalist). We get a Beach Head issue here and it was good. I love the die cut cover gimmick this book has as a variant.

The Last Boy #3. Written by Dan Panosian and illustrated by Alessio Avallone. Cover art was done by Dan Panosian. Peter pan’s problems in Neverland continue to grow as the boy still denies the death of Hook. The Phantom King is a creepy villain that Tinkerbell and the other fairies had to save Peter from. Wendy’s black and white arc continued as well with a bunch of kids and a pond.

Werewolf by Night: Red Band #10. Written by Jason Loo and penciled by Sergio Davila with the cover art done by E.M. Gist. This edition of Werewolf by Night comes to its close after a battle with Lilith. Sorcerer Supreme Victor Von Doom also makes a cameo as a Deus ex machina.

Who are the Power Pals?#3. Written by Duane Murray and art and cover art by Ahmed Raafat. The issue spends most of its time building a rift between our two main protagonists so that when trouble comes, they are separated. One must wonder why these tow completely different people have been friends for so long.

Other books this week: Venom: Original Sin #1, The Power Fantasy #9, Mommy Blog #1, Assorted Crisis Events #3, Rogue The Savage Land #5, Doom’s Division #3 and Darkwing Duck #4.

Quick Hits: I had an unexpected book in my box this week, but it is because Todd is taking care of me. Green Lantern #23 has a cool Mark Spears cover (even though it did not make the medals this week). I do love me some Mark Spears. Deadpool/Wolverine #5 was out this week with Cable guest starring. I do think I may have reached my limit with Deadpool and Wolverine team ups. Dark Honor #1 is new from Image and it is a sci-fi type book that needs another issue or two to see what I think of it. Dark Pyramid #3 took a truly bizarre turn this month. In the book, We’re Taking Everyone Down With Us #3, something weird is going on with Annalise. There is more to her story than what we have been told so far. Disney What If issues are back with What If…? Donald Duck Became Iron Man. These Disney What If books all feel fairly similar. Metamorpho #6 breaks the fourth wall to beg the audience to write to DC to get more Metamorpho books. Weird and fairly brazen. Absolute Wonder Woman#8 and Absolute Martian Manhunter #3 were both kind of meh this week. And speaking of meh, Void Rivals #19 missed out on momentum from last issue and instead went to the planet of Junkion. They did it without “Dare to Be Stupid” playing in the background. If you know, you know. Eddie Brock: Carnage #4 puts Eddie through the ringer and Spider-Boy#19 sees Spider-Boy disappointing Spider-Man, setting up the final Spider-Boy issue next month.

May 18, 2025

The weekly challenge that is Diamond continued this week. This week there was a shipment made to Comic World, but it was missing a few books. It is better than not having any Marvel books at all, like prior week. I have picked up several of the missing books, variant versions basically, in Bettendorf. I do not know if the missing box from last week will ever show up at Comic World, but I have it covered, I believe.

I keep waiting for Mark Spears Monsters #4 books that I ordered from Keenspot directly to be delivered. I sent a message to the company and they responded with a nice email, but I am getting anxious waiting for them to get here.

Books this week:

Look Out #1. By Dan Baillie and Tim Bradstreet. This is an illustrated novella from AWA and Vertigo Entertainment. This was something I picked up on eBay and I did not expect what it was. It is not a graphic novel. It is more of a story with illustrations than anything else. It is a lovely book though.

Red Hulk #4. “Enemies of the State.” Written by Benjamin Percy and art by Geoff Shaw. Cover art was done by Geoff Shaw & Marte Gracia. Thunderbolt Ross and Deathlok continue to try and make their way through Latveria in an attempt to “recharge” the Red Hulk.

Exquisite Corpses #1. Written by James Tynion IV and art and cover art by Michael Walsh. I also have a variant cover done by Jenny Frison. I love this new book from James Tynion IV. The secret group that runs the world is getting together to determine which of them will now run the organization. They do it with a competition between killers that feels like a Hunger Games type of situation. This one was truly fun.

Phoenix #11. Written by Stephanie Phillips and art by Roi Mercado. Cover art was done by Lucas Werneck. This starts a new arc with Jean Grey and her supposedly deceased sister Sara. Cable is involved as well. There is something weird going on.

Godzilla vs. X-Men #1. “A World That Hates and Fears Them.” Written by Fabian Nicieza and art is done by Emilio Laiso. Cover art was done by Tony Daniel & Marcelo Maiolo. The running stories of Godzilla vs. the Marvel Universe comes to the X-Men. Secret… they wind up working together eventually. That feels like a continuous theme among these Godzilla books. Good to see Sunfire.

Daredevil #21. “Rites of Reconciliation Part Two” Written by Saladin Ahmed and penciled by Jose Luis Soares & Carlos Nieto. Variant cover art by Alex Ross. This was one of the missing books this week that I grabbed a variant cover of. It is the Timeless variant with Alex Ross and this cover featured a lovely picture of Iron Fist on the virgin cover. Meanwhile Daredevil feels as if he has stepped into the world of The Last of Us with all of the plants around.

Immortal Thor #23. “Come at the King.” Written by Al Ewing and art by Jan Bazaldua. Variant cover C art by Giuseppe Camuncoli. Another book that was missing in the Diamond order this week and this variant cover is the Impossible Man variant as Thor looks like the Impossible Man. Thor is having plenty of troubles as he battled the god Kemur.

Phantom Road #12. “The Horrormen Part 2 of 5” Written by Jeff Lemire and art and cover art done by Gabriel H. Walta. The second arc of this Image series continues with Agents Weaver and Harold continue their pursuit of Patrick Hanover. The agents are finding themselves in the other side.

Batman: Dark Pattern #6. “Voice of the Tower Part 3” Written by Dan Watters and art and cover art by Hayden Sherman. The storyline with Scarface ends with this issue as the building burns out. I was not sure that this Batman series was going to continue, but it does look as if it will start a new storyline next month.

Silverhawks #3-4. Written by Ed Brisson and art by George Kambadais. Issue three variant cover art was done by James Stokoe and issue four was done by Mark Spears (Gold Medalist). Some brutality going down in these issues as the Silverhawks veteran heroes do not come out well.

Transformers #20. Written by Daniel Warren Johnson and art by Jorge Corona. Cover art was done by Daniel Warren Johnson & Mike Spicer. Starscream is repaired by Megatron. Starscream thought Megatron was going to kill him, but he did not. However, the newly repaired Starscream found out that Megatron was not just being kind.

Wolverine #9. “The Long Road Home.” Written by Saladin Ahmed and art by Javier Pina. Cover art was done by Martin Coccolo & Bryan Valenza. I liked this book this week as Logan faced off with Department H in an unexpected manner. Plus, Logan is on his way to face off with… Victor.

Absolute Batman #8. “Absolute Zero.” Written by Scott Snyder and art by Marcos Martin. Cover art was done by Nick Dragotta & Frank Martin. This issue featuring Mister Freeze really has some horror aspects to it and it is a cool issue (ignore the pun).

Zdarsky Comic News #11. The newest news pamphlet from Chip Zdarsky includes an interview with Cody Ziglar and the continued war against “books being so big they crush your ‘boys’ when you try to read them in bed.” This still reminds me of the old Marvel Age book.

Green Hornet Miss Fury #5. Co-written by Alex Segura & Henry Barajas with art by Federico Sorressa. Variant cover B art by Jae Lee & June Chung. This short series ended with a shocking conclusion. It also does not feel as if the story is done. I guess we’ll see if there is more in the future.

Spectacular Spider-Men #15. “Gone Girl, Found Family.” Written by Greg Weisman and art by Andres Genolet. Cover art was done by Mark Bagley & Edgar Delgado (Silver Medalist). This is the final issue of this Spider-man team-up book with a great party at the coffee shop. I will miss this intriguing book.

Supergirl #1. “Misadventures in Midvale Part 1” Written, art and cover art by Sophie Campbell. Supergirl gets her own new DC book, but I did not find myself engaged by this comic. I did like the look of the book.

I Was a Fashion School Serial Killer #2. Written by Doug Wagner and art by Daniel Hillyard. Cover art was done by Daniel Hillyard & Michelle Madsen. Rennie goes out of her way to aid her … “friend.” It surprises her too. I do enjoy this unlikely series. We have had several serial killer books lately and this is one of the better ones.

Space Ghost #12. Written by David Pepose and art by Jonathan Lau. Francesco Mattina did the cover art. After last issue’s inglorious defeat, Space Ghost returns and put the hurt on the Council of Doom.

Godzilla: Here There Be Aliens #1. Written by Frank Tieri and art and cover art by Angel Hernandez. This is a fun way to use Godzilla… with space aliens involved. I am not sure if I am going to continue to grab these issues, but this number one was fun, if nothing else.

Red Sonja vs. the Army of Darkness #2. Written by Tim Seely and art by Jim Terry. Variant cover B art by Tim Seely. Red Sonja and Ash Williams are in search of the Book of the Necronomicon. Along the way they have to fight a unicorn. I am worried that Ash is going to get his sexual harassment kicked out of him by Red Sonja.

Past Time #2. Written by Joe Harris and art by Russell Olson. Mark Chiarello did the cover art. This cover art is a beautiful one and it would have definitely been a medalist had I not gotten it until after the Favorite Comic Covers of the Week came out.

Dark Regards #1. Written by Dave Hill and art and cover art by Artyom Topilin. Dark Regards is a new book from Oni Press that tells the mostly true story of the internet viral sensation from the early 2000s when he invented his black metal band. I was not engaged in this book either, but I may give it another chance before issue two comes out.

When I Lay My Vengeance Upon Thee #4. Written by Gus Moreno and illustrated and cover art by Jakub Rebelka. Father Barrera and Stygian are having some issues but the problems are loading up. Barrera has had a tragic backstory and it is being manipulated by the demon.

Jumpscare #2. Written by Cullen Bunn and art and cover art by Danny Luckert. The new superhero based on horror movies, Jumpscare, has her sister kidnapped. Does she care about that at all? She certainly does not want her parents to think she does. Jumpscare has been a really fun new book from Dark Horse.

Behemoth #4. Written by Grant Sputore & Ryan Engle and art by Jay Martin. This was the final issue of this excellent mini series from Dark Horse. It was a great conclusion too as I loved the way the story played out.

One World Under Doom #4. “Dormammu vs. Doom.” Written by Ryan North and art by R.B. Silva. Ben Harvey did the cover art. The title of this issue absolutely is the perfect one for this issue. It is Dormammu trying to take advantage of Dr. Doom. These two are basically the only two characters in this book. And Doom has not come to bargain.

Uncanny X-Men #14. “An Infectious World” Written by Gail Simone and the art is done by David Marquez. David Marquez & Matthew Wilson did the cover art. Rogue punches a dragon. We learn more about Lady Henrietta. Gail Simone has written some compelling stuff and this is building to have some exciting New Orleans action.

Miles Morales: Spider-Man #33. “God War Part II” Written by Cody Ziglar and art by Marco Renna. Federico Vicentini & Neeraj Menon did the cover art. Miles has found himself deep inside the trouble as the war between Anansi and Ares is underway. Miles gets to recruit his team for the battle. Who does he choose? Hint, there is no Peter Parker or Steve Rogers (why not, Miles!!!)

Geiger #14. Written by Geoff Johns and art by Gary Frank. Gary Frank & Brad Anderson did the cover art. The Glowing Man battles the Glowing Woman. Geiger continues to be one of the best books of the Ghost Machine books.

X-Factor #10. “Survivor’s Guild.” Written by Mark Russell and art by Bob Quinn. Cover art was done by Greg Land & Frank D’Armata. The X-Factor series is over after this issue as it seemed as if Havok and Polaris finally got back together. Angel came back and made up with everyone too.

The Toxic Avenger Pinup Special #1. I picked this up just for fun. It is a book from Ahoy Comics that featured several cool full pages of artwork as well as a couple of stories starring Toxie. This was another cover that might have been a medalist had I gotten it earlier.

Thunderbolts: Doomstrike #4. “My Dinner with Doom.” Written by Jackson Lanzing and Collin Kelly with art by Tommaso Bianchi. Leinil Francis & Romulo Fajardo Jr. did the cover art. Doctor Doom faced off with Bucky Barnes.

Other books this week: Energon Universe #1, Grimm #22, Ultimate X-Men #15, Spider-Verse vs. Venomverse #1, The All-New, All-Deadly Gwenpool #1, Ultimate Black Panther #16, Worldtr33 #14, and The Hive #4.

A few other thoughts: I also grabbed some cool covers of books that I already have. This included the fairly hot Pop Kill Cover B book. I had picked up this book twice for other people as I had purchased the cover A of it. I was pleased that it was still available. I got the Mark Spears Space Quest #1 book too which is a beautiful piece of art. I grabbed the A cover of Amazing Spider-Man #3. I grabbed Ripperland #4 which ended with this issue. I have Psylocke #7 with the aforementioned Impossible variant cover as Psylocke is portrayed as the Impossible Man. Amadeus Cho #1 was another of the missing books that I picked up this weekend. I like this cover with Amadeus flexing. Hello Darkness #10 always seem to have an awesome cover.

May 3

Happy Free Comic Book Day everyone!!!!

This is always one of the best days of the year for comic collectors like me. The comic companies put out free books to promote things they are going to release over the next year. Comic book shops set up special tables and give great sales to encourage people to purchase comic books.

It is important though for the customers to not only pick up the free comics, but also buy something in the shops. The comics are free for us, but not for the shops. It does cost the shops money to stock these books for us, so, if you have not yet gone for your free comics, make sure you get something else as a thank you for the shops for giving this excellent opportunity.

I picked up several vol. 1 Ghost Riders, a couple of Thanos books, a Chip Zdarsky written Jughead book, Weapon X-Men #3 (which I missed on New Comic Book Day), and an Amazing Spider-Man that I did not have yet. I also grabbed a book that I had never seen before. It was called Mildly Microwaved Pre-Pubescent Kung-Fu Gophers #1. It was so funny as it was clearly making fun of the TMNT. So I went up to the check out and showed it to the workers. They told me that it was a satire of the Turtles. I smiled. Yeah, I got that.

The Free Comics I picked up today included The Phantom #0, Black Mirror, Post Malone’s Big Rig #0, Will Eisner: A Comic Biography, Fantastic Four #1, Amazing Spider-Man/Ultimate Universe #1, Godzilla; New Heroes, Kanga-U, Mark Spears Monsters #0, Diablo, The Mighty-Nein Origins, Def Leppard’s Hysteria #0, IDW: Find Your New Fear, and Conan: Scourge of the Serpent.

Lots of great things coming in the world of comics.

Books this week:

Lost Fantasy #1. “Book One: A World Beneath.” Written by Curt Pires and art and cover art by Luca Casalanguida. My favorite new book of the week. Lost Fantasy has a cool concept and a bad ass final page. I was completely engaged with this issue when I read it this morning that I immediately sent a text to Todd saying that he needed to pick this new Image book up.

TVA #5. Written by Katharyn Blair and art by Pere Perez. Cover art was done by Pere Perez and GURU-eFX. A Scarlet Witch variant is here to cause more trouble for the erstwhile agents of the TVA. It was fun to see the characters from the Loki Disney + series in this Marvel comic. And anytime I can get more Miss Minutes is a good time.

Crush Depth #2. Written by David “DB” Andry and Tim Daniel with art and cover art by Alex Sanchez. This continues as a great new series by Mad Cave. Liana does not appear to be a heroic individual, but she may have to change if she hopes to survive under the water in the submarine that is filled with some kind of monster. Crush Depth has had two excellent issues and I am excited to see where it goes from here.

Pinupocalypse #2. Written , art and cover art by Andrew Tarusov. The newly created zombies are after Foxy and Roxy but it allowed Foxy to head back to her own house. I do not think I have ever seen a zombie surprise birthday party before. Only here. This is a fun new zombie series that turns the genre on its head.

Planet Death #0. Written by Derek Kolstad & Robert Venditti with art by Tomas Giorello. Tomas Giorello & Dave Stewart did the cover art. This is a opening issue of a series from the once again new company Bad Idea. I guess there is quite the rabbit hole of info on Bad Idea that I started to go down, but pulled myself out of. This book was cool and it was printed on the old comic newsprint. Apparently, the company is launching a new Planet Death series in July.

Fantastic Four #31. “The Fantastic Two.” Written by Ryan North and penciled by Cory Smith. Cover art was done by Joshua Cassara & Dean White. things aren’t looking good for the FF. It seems that since Ben has lost his powers because of Doom, the others are also losing their powers. So they have to try and get Ben all rocky again.

Red Sonja & the Army of Darkness #1. Written by Tim Seely and art by Jim Terry. Cover art by Mark Spears. I have always enjoyed Ash Williams from the Evil Dead franchise. I loved the TV show Ash vs. the Evil Dead. I have never thought much about Red Sonja. To be honest, I was more interested int he Mark Spears cover. I did like the book. Dynamite has been doing some good work with IPs that you wouldn’t expect. This is another one.

Mark Spears: Monsters #4. Written, illustrated and cover art by Mark Spears (Silver Medalist). I am not sure how this was delivered early, but I am glad it was. This book is solid monsters action every time out. It still has that Monster Squad vibe to it, clearly alluding to that series. The Wolfman’s howl in this issue is a perfect example.

Something is Killing the Children #41. “All Her Monsters” Part One. Written by James Tynion IV and art by Werther Dell’Edera. I purchased cover A by Werther Dell’Edera and Virgin Cover D by Anwita Citriya (Gold Medalist). Erica Slaughter is back. After a bit of a break, Something is Killing the Children is back with more tales from Erica’s backstory. I have missed this series quite a bit and so I am thrilled that this series is back.

Godzilla vs. Spider-Man #1. Written by Joe Kelly and art by Nick Bradshaw. Variant cover F art by Jerry Ordway. It is Spidey’s turn to take on the King of Monsters. Mismatch you say? Yeah it is. But that is why we love Spider-Man. He never gives up. And what happens when Godzilla gets taken over by the Venom symbiote?

Ultimate Spider-Man #16. Written by Jonathan Hickman and art by Marco Checchetto. Cover art was done by Marco Checchetto & Matthew Wilson. Oh, big time twist this issue. Did not expect anything like what happened here. Bad things are happening for Peter (and Kraven, by the way).

The Patchwork Girl of Oz #4. Adapted, illustrated and cover art by Otis Frampton, based on the novel by L. Frank Baum. Scraps is here and she is wildly entertaining. Rhyming everywhere, Scraps feels like a real chaotic creation. This has been a lot of fun so far and the book is setting up the adventure to save the newly rocky Unc.

Green Hornet/Miss Fury #4. Co-written by Alex Segura & Henry Barajas with art by Federico Sorressa. Variant cover B art was done by Jae Lee & June Chung. Green Hornet vs. Kato? Can the heroes avoid all of the mind controlled innocents that are out to get them? Who knows, but this penultimate issue sets up a big time finale.

Nights #15. “Tricky Snakes and Ladders.” Written by Wyatt Kennedy and art and cover art by Luigi Formisano. Back cover art by Armand Luro. Victor’s vampire adventures continue as this series takes an even more fantastical turn.

Rogue: The Savage Land #4. Written by Tim Seely and art by Von Randal. Cover art was done by Kaare Andrews. Rogue, Magneto and Ka-Zar are on their mission, trying to stop a Savage Land war while their powers are sort of on the fritz. However, Magneto thinks he knows what is going on.. it’s Rogue’s doing. Huh?

Void Rivals #18. Written by Robert Kirkman and art and cover art by Lorenzo De Felici. I have been losing interest in Void Rivals over the last few issues, but this one brought everything back to the beginning as Darak and Solila are reunited, though maybe not in the best moment possible. I think these to being separated was a big reason I was losing interest in this book. I hope things get worked out.

World’s Finest Annual #1. “Chapter Three: Certain Doom.” Written by Christopher Cantwell with plot by Cantwell & Mark Waid with art by Dan McDaid. We are Yesterday moves on. Gorilla Grodd’s Legion of Doom is executing a plan dealing with time travel. It feels a bit convoluted and poor Cheetah.

The Rocketfellers #5. Written by Peter J. Tomasi with art and cover art by Francis Manapul. When Rae unexpectedly faints, the Rocketfellers rush her to the hospital. A group of mercs come to their home with plans. This left only the dog, Rex to handle the situation… and handle it he does. A shocking final page of the issue gives us a glance at an upcoming antagonist.

Thunderbolts Doomstrike #3. “No Unconquered Land” Written by Jackson Lanzing & Collin Kelly and art was done by Tommaso Bianchi. Cover art was done by Leinil Francis Yu & Romulo Fajardo Jr. The new team of Thunderbolts take on the originals over Doom.

Human Fly #4. “Terror Tour” Written by Jason Franks and art and cover art by Jan Scherpenhuizen. The Human Fly has a tough issue… and he has a concussion. Mercury is here too fighting beside Fly.

Red Hulk #3. “Uncharted Territory.” Written by Benjamin Percy and art by Geoff Shaw. Cover art was done by Geoff Shaw & Marte Gracia. Thaddeus Ross, with Deathlok and and energized down Machine Man, is looking for a burst of energy to generate the Red Hulk. They are on their way to a nuclear plant, but Doom may have a different idea.

Hellhunters #5. Written by Phillip Kennedy Johnson and art by Adam Gorham. Cover art was done by Declan Shalvey. This demonic WWII series closes up with a fun episode. These heroes are very fun together in this book. I would be down with seeing more of this team. I mean, Bucky was picking his nose. This was great.

Kid Juggernaut #1. Written by Emily Kim and art by Minkyu Jung and Peter Nguyen. Cover art was done by Woo-Chul Lee. This adapted Marvel Voices issues with Kid Juggernaut. I thought this was a really engaging one shot and I am more excited about Kid Juggernaut than I ever was before this.

Who are the Power Pals #2. Written by Duane Murray and art and cover art by Ahmed Raafat. The second issue of this Dark Horse book continues the look at these characters of the Power Pals. I think this twosome is not being shown as a great pair. They are not necessarily likable and I think that is an interesting step in these characters’ development.

Killer Kobra #1. “The Hunt Begins Part 1 of 3” Written by Joe Brusha and artwork by Rodrigio Xavier. Cover art was done by Igor Vitorino & Ivan Nunes. I had never heard of this book before I saw it on the shelf in Bettendorf. It is from Zenescope and i had one thought… crossover with Man Goat and Bunnyman!!!

Doom Academy #3. Written by Mackenzie Cadenhead and artwork by Pasqual Ferry & Joao M.P. Lemos. Variant cover B art by Woo Chul Lee. Doyle, Shaylee and Scoop are trying to save Zoe who has been pulled into a book with fairy tale creatures. I loved Strange Academy and I think things are just as cool with them in Latveria.

The Question: All Along the Watchtower #6. “The Price.” Written by Alex Segura and art by Cian Tormey. Cover art was done by Tormey & Romulo Fajardo Jr. The six issue series drew to a finale with this issue as Renee Montoya, aka The Question, steps up to save the Justice League from the forces that have been assaulting the Watchtower in this series. I really enjoyed this book and I hope to see more of The Question in Justice League Unlimited.

You’ll Do Bad Things #2. Written by Tyler Boss with artwork by Adriano Turtulici. Cover art was done by Tyler Boss (Bronze Medalist). There are a bunch of independent comic books dealing with the idea of a serial killer (or multiple ones). This is another of those books, with Seth trying to move on from his police work and write a romance novel. I’m not sure that is going to happen.

NYX #10. Written by Jackson Lanzing & Collin Kelly with artwork by Francesco Mortarino. Cover art was done by Sara Pichelli & Federico Blee. NYX ends with this issue, as Ms. Marvel, Laura and the others bring down Mojo. I am going to miss this group as I have enjoyed this series. I know Ms. Marvel is going to be at the center of some big X-Men issues moving forward, but I will miss her group of New York mutants.

Feral #12. “Up a Tree” Written by Tony Fleecs and art by Trish Forstner. Cover art was done by Tony Fleecs, Trish Forstner & Tone Rodriguez. The cats escaped the big confrontation last issue with the bear only to meet up with the cat Lucky and his pet dog. They all have an idea of a way to save themselves from the horrors of the outside… Pet City Supercenter!

Kill Train #4. Written by Olivia Cuartero-Briggs with artwork by Martina Niosi of Outclass Studio. Cover art was done by Skylar Patridge. This was another penultimate issue of a great series. Kill Train gave us an unexpected twist at the end of this issue that caught me off guard. This has been bloody and brutal and I love it.

The Slasher’s Apprentice #1. Written by Justin Richards and artwork and cover art by Val Halvorson. Here is yet another new Mad Cave book that is awesome and deals with a serial killer. This time, a slasher. Our main protagonist wants to be an apprentice at the learning tree of the Hopton Valley Killer.

Dark Pyramid #2. Written by Paul Tobin and artwork and cover art by PJ Holden. Becca is in search of her missing boyfriend, a podcaster who had fallen off a mountain and disappeared while recording his show. Becca has gotten help from Shailene but has come across some mysterious and frightening creatures.

Darkwing Duck #3. “Where Did Darkwing Learn Martial Arts?” Written by Daniel Kibblesmith and artwork by Ted Brandt and Ro Stein. Tad Stones did the cover art. This issue goes into Darkwing’s mysterious past and we find out that he was just like Po in Kung Fu Panda and Stephen Strange in Doctor Strange. Funny book.

Other books this week: Wolverine and Kitty Pryde #1, Godzilla vs. Los Angeles #1, Frankenstein: New World-The Sea of Forever #3, Parliament of Rooks #5, Doom’s Division #2, The Seasons #4, and Something Crawled Out #1-2.