EYG Comic Cavalcade #102

June 13, 2023

It is that time of the week once again as I am providing the EYG Comic Cavalcade!

This weekend, I am heading to a comic/toy show in the Quad Cities and I am excited about it. This is the same folks who put on the one I went to last September in Dubuque. I had a lot of fun at that one, and picked up some cool comics along the way. With my collection in a much more organized manner than last September, I will have a better knowledge of back issues that I need instead of just guessing and hoping that I do not duplicate myself.

Todd also got me several of the Amazing Spider-Man Vol. 2 books that I was missing. It seemed as if volume 2 was the stretch of Spidey books that I missed the most of. It would have been during the time when I did not have a lot of money, right out of college and subbing. Todd is continuing to look for back issues for me in Kansas City this weekend. Thanks again, sir!

Here are this week’s books:

Saga #55-65. After the shocking end of volume 9 (which I thought would be the end of the series only to find out that it was not), I went to eBay and found this run of Saga. It arrived this week and I dove right into it, consuming the content quickly. Such a great series! Brian K. Vaughn and Fiona Staples are amazing together in this book.

Giant Size Daredevil#1.The Devil You Know” Written by Saladin Ahmed and art by Paul Davidson. Bryan Hitch & Alex Sinclair did the cover art. This giant size issue focuses on the return of Kingpin to relevance in Hell’s Kitchen, often times a bloody path that he has taken. This leads into the next arc in Daredevil’s own comic.

Lawful #1. Written by Greg Pak and illustrated by Diego Galindo. Qistina Khalidah did the cover art. This new Boom! Studios book has a definite flavor of Saga to it, with one of our main characters having to never break the rules. He must follow them all at all times and his friend does not seem to want to do that. Interesting start even if it does not grab you the way Saga did.

Miles Morales: Spider-Man #21. Written by Cody Ziglar and art by Brent Peeples & Daniel Picciotto. This is a Blood Hunt tie-in and shows us how Miles happened to be turned into a vampire. Miles has a tough life for sure.

Spider-Man: Shadow of the Green Goblin #3. “Eyes in the Night” Written by J.M. DeMatteis and art by Michael Sta. Maria. Paulo Siqueira & Rachelle Rosenberg did the cover art. This issue focuses upon the Osborn section of this story, seeing both Norman and Harry and what happened to them during this period.

Incredible Hulk #13. “Doctor Voodoo and the Soul Cage Part Two” Written by Phillip Kennedy Johnson and art and cover art by Nic Klein. The Hulk and Banner are trapped inside the soul cage and they are continuing to try and find Charlie before it is too late.

Avengers #15. Written by Jed MacKay and art by C.F. Villa. Joshua Cassara and Guru-eFX did the cover art. The Blood Hunt continues here as Captain America’s newly formed squad of Avengers battle the forces of Baron Blood. I like this team of Avengers, but I always like Steve Rogers on the team. Just seems right to me.

Scarlet Witch #1. Written by Steve Orlando and art by Jacopo Camagni. Russell Dauterman did the art on the cover. The new Scarlet Witch series started off by introducing to us a new character named Mantor and then promptly killing him off. Or at least as dead as one may be in a magic book. I mean, Wanda did get eaten by a giant monster. That did not stop her.

Fantastic Four #21. “To Curse the Darkness” Written by Ryan North and art by Ivan Fiorelli. Cover art is done once more by Alex Ross. This is another Blood Hunt tie in as Reed and Alicia wind up in New York facing off with “vampire-like creatures” as Reed put it. Reed used his stretching in creative ways to prevent the innocents from being attacked. Meanwhile, what is happening with the rest of the FF back in Arizona?

Transformers #9. Written by Daniel Warren Johnson and art by Jorge Corona. Cover art was by Daniel Warren Johnson and Mike Spicer (Gold Medalist). More exciting Autobots/Decepticon battles as led by Optimus Prime. Ratchet sacrificed himself to save one of his Autobot buddies. Is that it for Ratchet?

Blood Hunt #3. Written by Jed MacKay and drawn by Pepe Larraz. Larraz & Marte Gracia did the cover art. The huge crossover continues as Bloodline (aka Brielle, Blade’s daughter) learned that her father is behind everything that is happening, Doctor Strange and the other heroes were able to control Miles Morales and Sam Wilson, aka Captain America gave a rousing speech. Inspiration everywhere!

X-Men: Heir of Apocalypse #1. Written by Steve Foxe and penciled by Netho Diaz. Dotun Akande did the cover art. Since he is heading to Mars, Apocalypse is looking for someone to take his place as the overseer of the ascension of mutants on earth and 12 mutants have stepped up to vie for the position.

Strange Academy: Blood Hunt #2. Written by Daniel Jose Older and art by Luigi Zagaria & Eric Gapstur. Edgar Delgado did the cover art. When the kids from Strange Academy discover that their friend Pia was already a vampire, they changed their tune about searching for the Darkhold so all vampires could be eliminated. Oh and a strange visitor arrives in the last few pages… Dr. Doom?

Spider-Boy #8. “Fun & Games” Written by Dan Slott and art by Jason Loo. Humberto Ramos & Edgar Delgado did cover art. After turning the Humanimals back to human (or at least those that they could), Spider-Boy heads back to NYC to retrieve a photo of himself with his mother. Unfortunately, Puzzle Man has some fourth wall breaking to do.

Deadpool #3. Written by Cody Ziglar and art by Rogê Antonio. This is a phot variant cover with a pic of Deadpool from the upcoming movie, Deadpool & Wolverine. Deadpool is reunited with his daughter Ellie in the middle of a battle with Crossbones. Wade discovered that he had more in common with his daughter than just blood.

Jubilee: Blood Hunt #1. Written by Preeti Chhibber and penciled by Enid Balám. Cover art was done by Erica D’Urso & Rachelle Rosenberg. Jubilee was once a vampire. That makes her an obvious but major player in the Blood Hunt. She teams up again with the Forgiven to battle vampires in this one shot in the Blood Hunt crossover event.

Ghostlore #11. “Tests” Written by Cullen Bunn (and Riccardo La Bella) and illustrated by Leomacs (and Francesco Segala). Reiko Murakami and Riccardo La Bella did the cover art. Lucas and Harmony come face to face with Shane and discover the secret of him… he is also a ghost.

Ultimate X-Men #4. Written and drawn (and cover art) by Peach Momoko. This is a beautifully illustrated issue with much of the story being told visually. We discover an important piece of information about where this dangerous shadow is actually from. Plus, we see these new forms of the characters responding. I do enjoy this new and original rendition of the X-Men in the Ultimate Universe.

G.O.D.S. #8. “The Fourth Axis” Written by Jonathan Hickman and art by Valerio Schiti. Mateus Manhanini did the cover art. Hickman’s latest epic comes to a close with a wild time traveling encounter with Wyn going all over the place. This has been a challenging read and it is not just another comic book. There was a lot of creativity and originality in the story and characters. I love the design of the In-Betweener here too.

The Deviant #6. Written by James Tynion IV and art and cover art by Joshua Hixson (Silver medalist). This series has been excellent as there is such a intriguing mystery at its center. Could Michael really be the killer? Derek does not believe it. I forget that James Tynion does this book until I am doing the Comic Cavalcade write up, and then I realize why I love this book so much.

Deadpool/Wolverine: World War III #2. Written by Joe Kelly and drawn by Adam Kubert. Adam Kubert and Frank Martin did the cover art. Wade Wilson is in bad shape. So bad of shape that he even has some pity from Wolverine. They are in the battle for their lives.

Napalm Lullaby #4. Written by Rick Remender and drawn and cover art by Bengal. Sam and Sarah are struggling to survive their confrontation with Janitor. Still not 100% sure what is happening in this book, but it is lovely to look at. Love the character designs here too.

Geiger #3. “What are Books Good for Anyway?” Written by Geoff Johns and drawn by Gary Frank. Frank & Brad Anderson did the cover art. Geiger finds a library and a certain book that takes him back to his past. When that book gets ruined, what will happen?

Amazing Spider-Man: Blood Hunt #2. Written by Justina Ireland and penciled by Marcelo Ferreira. Bjorn Barends did the cover art (Tie for Bronze Medalist). I was talking to another customer in Comic World the other day about Blood Hunt and he mentioned how he feels iffy about the heroes killing these vampires since they are basically humans who could be turned back from their vampire forms. Spidey expresses the exact same philosophy, which is exactly what Spider-Man would be thinking about. Spidey has always been about saving EVERYBODY and that has always been one of my favorite aspects about him as a hero.

Something Epic #11. Written, illustrated and cover art by Szymon Kudranski. Noa and her duck continue to investigate the mysterious disappearance of Zeus, and they head to meet Thor and also eventually to see Set. This series is spanning all across the mythological world and has amazing art inside.

Ain’t No Grave #2. “Chapter Two: Anger” Written by Skottie Young and art by Jorge Corona. More Western action as only Skottie Young can provide as Ryder head toward the boat Her Blind Majesty. Excellent art and some wonderful visual storytelling.

Crocodile Black #2. Written by Phillip Kennedy Johnson and art by Som. Cover art by Andrea Sorrentino with colors by Dave Stewart. This is an intriguing book, even though it is fairly confusing. Our main hero is named Danny, but he had taken on the life of a vet named Leo, but it seems as if he is possessed by some kind of crocodile creature. I like this book, but it may require a re-read to understand what is happening.

Other books this week: Torpedo 1972 #4, Night People #4, and Monsters are my Business #3.

EYG Comic Cavalcade #101

June 7, 2024

Welcome to the first post-#100 entry in the EYG Comic Cavalcade. We are kicking off the next one hundred posts with a loaded one.

I visited the new location in Dubuque for BAM (aka Books A Million) the other day and I purchased a couple of graphic novels there. First, it was Fantastic Four: Full Circle with art by Alex Ross. Ross usually only does covers but this was a beautiful job. I remember seeing this at Comic World earlier last year, but I did not pick it up and look at it. Glad I did now. The other was the 40th anniversary of Maus, with both graphic novels contained within. Maus is an outstanding piece from Art Spiegelman and I am glad it is finally in my actual collection. I do have the separate books in my classroom library.

Then, I finished up the 8th and 9th volumes of Saga by Brian K. Vaughn and Fiona Staples. I got to the final volume and I was shocked! It ended on the worst cliffhanger I had ever seen. I was under the impression that this was a collected version of the entire series, but I have since discovered that I was incorrect. I immediately rushed to eBay and found issues #55-65 available and I purchased it right then and there, the epitome of impulse buying. They should arrive any day now.

Wednesday I got to spend my first summer afternoon at Comic World and it was wonderful. I was able to purchase a whole bunch of back issues, including a trove of Avengers Vol. 3 books. I also picked up a slightly creased cover of Fantastic Four #79. Otherwise, it was in pretty decent shape considering. Todd had also brought me Amazing Spider-Man #160 as I continue to add to my wall crawler collection and some more New Warriors Vol. 1, including the previously mentioned New Warriors Annual #4. No sign of Annual #2 this week.

Other books this week:

The Last Mermaid #4. Story and art by Derek Kirk Km. This series continues to be a beautifully illustrated tale, heavily using imagery to tell the story, in particular the action bits. I have really enjoyed this story that is being told in this format that stands out among the countless books being produced.

Get Fury #2. Written by Garth Ennis and drawn by Jacen Burrows. Cover art by Dave Johnson. I decided that I wanted to give Get Fury a second chance. The first time I read #1, I was not a fan, but I must say I think that I was distracted when I read it because when I read it a second time, I thought it was much better, so I picked up issue two and an happy I did. I do like Garth Ennis a lot so I figured it was worth a second chance.

Amazing Spider-Man #51. Written by Zeb Wells and art by Ed McGuinness & Todd Nauck. Cover art by McGuinness & Marcio Menyz (Gold Medalist). Picking up from last issue’s confrontation with Norman Osborn that unleashed the evil Goblin on Peter. This issue, Spider Goblin is in full force and let the Sinister Six beware.

Uncanny X-Men #35. “Dream’s End.” This issue sees the end of the Krakoa age of the X-Men. It is also Legacy number 700, so they released a double sized issue with a ton of artists and writers involved. It is quite an epic comic, leading us into the next run of X-books.

Space Ghost #2. Written by David Pepose and art by Jonathan Lau. Cover art was by Francesco Mattina (Silver Medalist). I love this new series featuring Space Ghost. Space Ghost gets a look at how the two kids are able to help him, and they get their costumes. There is also a preview of Johnny Quest contained within.

The Mammoth #1. Written by Paul Tobin and illustrated and cover art by Arjuna Susini. This new series from Mad Cave Comics is an intriguing book. I am not sure what the story is as it is just starting, but I can’t wait to see where it goes.

The Infernals #4. “The Fall” Written by Noah Gardner & Ryan Parrott and drawn by John J. Pearson & Lola Bonato. Cover art by John J. Pearson & Tia Roxae. The Morgenstern family battles dominate this issue with Abraham coming to his end. Major things happening from Hell.

Wolverine: Blood Hunt #1. Written by Tom Waltz and art by Juan Jose Ryp. Cover art by Ben Harvey. Logan in a bar, drinking. Who knew that the world would suddenly have gone dark and that vampires would spring forth. Wolverine vs. vampires? What more could you ask for?

Uncanny Valley #2. Written by Tony Fleecs and art and cover art by Dave Wachter. Another Boom! Studios interesting book, as we have a cartoon grandfather trying to take his grandson, who had no idea he was part cartoon, to save him.

Blow Away #2. Written by Zac Thompson and illustrated by Nicola Izzo. Cover art by Annie Wu. Another great new Boom! Studios book, Blow Away follows a photographer who believes that she witnessed a murder. The trick? She is in the snow on Mount Asgard.

Bear Pirate Viking Queen #2. Written by Sean Lewis and illustrated and cover art by Jonathan Marks Barravecchia. The second of three issues in this mini series features the Viking part of this book. We also get to meet the Queen who is as brutal as you would expect. I love the special feel of the art in these issues.

Ms. Marvel: Mutant Menace #4. “Terragenesis” Written by Iman Vellani & Sabir Pirzada and art by Scott Godlewski. Carlos Gomez and Jesus Aburtov did the cover art. Ms. Marvel’s new body goes through the Terragin mist once again. We also learn that her mutant powers are much like the MCU version. This is the last issue of this mini series.

Blood Hunters #2. Another issue with multiple stories. This time, we have a book featuring the Hulk, Kate Bishop and Elsa Bloodstone in individual stories involving the Blood Hunt saga.

What If…? Aliens #4. Written by Hans Rodionoff & Brian Volk-Weiss and art by Guiu Vilanova. Phil Noto did the cover art. A facehugger is running around the base and Burke wants to get himself and his daughter out of there. A betrayal shows Burke what it was like. Irony.

Profane #1. Written by Peter Milligan and illustrated by Raul Fernandez. Cover art was by Javier Rodriguez (Bronze Medalist). One of my favorite new books of the week, Profane #1 features a noir detective story with detective Will Profane. I love a good noir and this one seems to be a really good one.

The Ultimates #1. Written by Deniz Camp and art by Juan Frigeri. Duke Ruan & Alejandro Sanchez did the cover art. The new team of Ultimates are forming around Iron Man, Cap and Thor. What other heroes will step up to join this new team?

Love Everlasting #15. “Just West of Love” Written by Tom King and art and cover art by Elsa Charretier. This next arc of Love Everlasting ends with the death of the Cowboy and Joan back to her time jumping thanks to her mother.

Other books this week: The Boy Wonder #2, Minor Threats #3, What If…? Venom #5, and Ghost Rider: Final Vengeance #4.

EYG Comic Cavalcade #99

May 25, 2024

Welcome back to another episode of Comic Cavalcade.

Todd has been busy. He went to a con in Minnesota recently and he brought me back a huge amount of back issues that I had been missing. I have been filling back issues of Amazing Spider-Man vol. 1 books, and Todd got me four ASM. I told Todd to look for certain issues of The New Warriors Vol. 1 and Groo, particularly from Marvel/Epic run.

He got me a ton of these. Literally I think it was over 40 books. Of course, I had blundered too. I told Todd that I did not have any Groo issues from Image because I did not see any of them listed on CLZ. I had forgotten that those were listed under Sergio Aragones Groo. I actually had all 12 issues from Image and Todd picked up several of them for me. My bad.

Books this week:

Her Frankenstein. By Kawashima Norikazu. Originally published in 1988, this manga graphic novel has just been released. I am not sure how I felt about this graphic novel. I was not a huge fan of this book, but it was an interesting and quick read. I like the addition to my collection.

Saga Volume 5. Written by Brian K. Vaughn and drawn by Fiona Staples. Continuing my way through the compilation of the Saga story, this week I read Volume 5. Once again, it is a compelling tale and a very excellent read. I buzzed through this volume as things just keep happening.

Ultimate Black Panther #4. Written by Bryan Hill and art by Stefano Caselli. Cover art by Caselli & David Curiel. Queen Okoye takes on the force of Ra and Khonsu to try and save the world of Wakanda. She discovers her husband T’Challa, along with some help… Killmonger and Storm.

Something is Killing the Children #37. “Road Stories Part Two” Written by James Tynion IV and illustrated and cover by Werther Dell’edera. Another story from the past of Erica Slaughter. I like these past stories as we can see more about Erica and her connection to the house.

Spider-Gwen: The Ghost-Spider #1. Written by Stephanie Phillips and drawn by Federica Mancin. Cover art by Mark Brooks (Bronze Medalist) and variant cover by Ernanda Souza (Gold medalist). I picked up two versions of this book, including the foil cover. Gwen is in the 616 universe now. I am not sure where that happened, but it had something to do with the TVA and O.B. Why is Gwen being told she should not be in costume? I really liked this first issue and I am happy Gwen is in the 616 universe.

Black Widow & Hawkeye #3. “Broken Arrow Part 3” Written by Stephanie Phillips with art by Paolo Villanelli. Stephen Segova & Jesus Aburtov did the cover art. This was told in two times, one earlier in the early days of Hawkeye and Black Widow and one in the current time frame with Hawkeye and Black Widow in Madripoor.

Sensational She-Hulk #8. Written by Rainbow Rowell and art by Andres Genolet. Cover art is done by Kris Anka. She-Hulk’s confrontation with Ganymede goes physical and the relationship between She-Hulk and Jack of Hearts takes a big step. She-Hulk has been very entertaining since Rainbow Rowell took over the writing duties.

Blood Hunt #2. Written by Jed MacKay and drawn by Pepe Larraz. Larraz and Marte Gracia did the cover art. The Avengers make a come back against the Bloodcoven. What happened to Miles Morales? So much happening through this major crossover.

Union Jack the Ripper #1. “Ghoul Britannia” Written by Cavan Scott and penciled by Kev Walker. This is the full red variant cover issue. I have always liked Union Jack and this is a new take on that character, tying it into the Blood Hunt story. I enjoyed this issue very much. They also tied it into the Union mini series which I liked from a few years ago.

Amazing Spider-Man #50. Written by Zeb Wells and penciled by Ed McGuinness. Cover art was done by McGuinness and Marco Menyz. Big issue as Norman Osborn returned to the Green Goblin. It was an intense issue as Spidey and Goblin went after each other hard and evil Spidey seemed to return at the end. There are several shorter, back-up stories in this extra large anniversary issue.

Superior Spider-Man #7. “Superior Spider-Island” Written by Dan Slott and penciled by Mark Bagley. Bagley & Edgar Delgado did the cover art. Otto Octavius has sent out an army of spiders to take over the mind of EVERYBODY! Everyone is speaking like Doc Ock. Can Spidey and Anna Marie do anything to stop him?

Sam and Twitch Case Files #3. Script by Todd McFarlane and art by Szymon Kudranski. Jonathan Glapion did the cover art (Silver Medalist) Twitch continued to work on the mysterious murder investigation outside of his home city. This detective book has been great, though I have to admit that I am not a huge fan of the way the dialogue is handled, sans word balloons. I like trying something new, but this makes it harder to read.

Spectacular Spider-Men #3. “Arachnobatics Chapter Three: Meanwhile…” Written by Greg Weisman and penciled by Humberto Ramos. This was another issue that I picked up two covers this week because I really liked one of the variant covers. This was a strange issue with Peter and Miles in situations that did not feel real. Like Peter is married to Gwen, with kids.

Blood Squad Seven #1. Written by Joe Casey and art and cover art by Paul Fry. This was a new series featuring a group of super heroes who are back after a group of heroes, who were more like celebrities, were gone thirty years before. I had a little trouble following this issue, but it is an intriguing concept.

Void Rivals #9. Written by Robert Kirkman and art and cover art by Lorenzo De Felici. Desperately trying to keep Solila alive after being impaled at the end of last issue, Darak comes across an Autobot, Springer. Springer vs. Proximus round one.

Fall of the House of X #5. “The Turn” Written by Gerry Duggan and art by Lucas Werneck & Stefano Caselli. Pepe Larraz and Marte Gracia did the cover art. Major battle with Nimrod, we see some serious battle with Storm and Cyclops.

Rook Exodus #2. Written by Geoff Johns and art by Jason Fabok. Fabok and Brad Anderson did the cover art. This Ghost Machine series is one of the best of the new run at Image. I would say this is just behind Redcoat among these books. I love these new characters and I love the setting with the animals.

Cobra Commander #5. Written by Joshua Williamson and art by Andrea Milana. Milana and Annalisa Leoni did the cover art. This series comes to a close with Cobra Commander stepping up to be the head of the new group, Cobra!

Immortal Thor #11. “God of Doom” Written by Al Ewing and art by Valentina Pinti. Alex Ross did the cover art. Thor calls together the children of Odin! Who knew there were this many?

Blue Book: 1947 #4. Written by James Tynion IV and drawn and cover art by Michael Avon Oeming. We go through the story of Roswell in more detail. I enjoy this somewhat true(?) adaptation of what happened in Roswell.

Justice League vs. Godzilla vs. Kong #7. Written by Brian Buccellato and art by Christian Duce. Drew Johnson & Romulo Fajardo Jr did the cover art. This Monsterverse title comes to an end with the Titans being returned but not before the death of Guy Gardner led to Kong with a Green Lantern power ring. What? This crossover series has been iffy at times, but that moment was all cheese and fits with the Monsterverse perfectly.

Other books this week: Feral #3, Grim #17, Ghost Rider: Final Vengeance #3, Local Man #10, Man’s Best #3, and X-Men ’97 #3

Next issue of EYG Comic Cavalcade will be the epic #100! I plan on some special things to commemorate the accomplishment of 100 posts (including a Legacy number). I will reflect back over the last few years and how my personal comic collection has changed over that period of time and how EYG helped that happen. Plus, new books from next week as well.

EYG Favorite Comic Cover of the Week

Week of May 20

Welcome back to the Favorite Comic Covers of the Week here at EYG. This week is another first. Last week, we had three variant covers receive the three medals for the first time. This week there is another first. Two of the three medalists are the same comic, one with the regular cover, and one with a variant.

Here are this week’s finalists!

Bronze Medalist

Spider-Gwen: The Ghost Spider #1

Regular cover

Cover art by Mark Brooks

Gwen Stacy comes to 616 universe for good. And O.B. from Loki TV series is there. Lots of fun and a fun cover to boot.

Silver Medalist

Sam and Twitch Case Files #3

Cover Art by Jonathan Glapion

A clever and attractive cover with the frame of Sam Burke making up the cityscape. The red, black and touch of white made this an extremely intriguing cover and gives you a look inside what the story and character are about.

Gold Medalist

Spider-Gwen: The Ghost Spider #1

Variant Cover

Cover Art by Ernanda Souza

A beautiful foil cover, listed at the cover D. The gold and pink swirls behind Gwen really pop on the foil cover and you can never go wrong with the always awesome Spider-Gwen costume.

EYG Comic Cavalcade #97

May 11, 2024

It is time for the Comic Cavalcade once again. I picked up a bunch of new books this week this past Wednesday. There is also a bunch of books that I picked up on eBay and some new back issues of Amazing Spider-Man.

I have picked up some New Warriors books on eBay. I am going to start working on filling out the New Warriors. The first volume of New Warriors is missing several of the later books. I did pick up the entire volume 3, issues #1-20. I do love the New Warriors and I am always down for more of this group of characters.

New books this week:

Saga Volume 2 &3. On Free Comic Book Day, I picked up the entire 9 volumes of the Saga series from Image. I have found time to read the second and third volumes this week. They are so good. I was told that I would love this series, and I really do. There have been some shocking things happen that I did not see coming. It truly is a human story of a family struggling to get by. Hopefully, I will be able to carve out some time to keep going on this collection.

The Last Mermaid #3. Story and art by Derek Kirk Kim. I love this book too. This issue was just packed with visual storytelling and the imagery of the book is off the charts. I have to say that the design of the issue is special and helps make this excellent book stand out even more.

Avengers #14.Blood Hunt Part One” Written by Jed MacKay and art from C.F. Villa. Joshua Cassara & Guru-eFX did the cover art. A new band of Avengers, led by Steve Rogers, steps up while the other Avengers are missing/in deep trouble. Cap brings us Kate Bishop, Quicksilver, Hercules and Hazmat. These are a nice mix of characters and each one is able to share their voice during the battle with vampires.

Fantastic Four #20. “To Work Wonders” Written by Ryan North and art by Carlos Gomez. Cover art by Alex Ross (Gold Medalist). This issue focuses upon the continual familial rivalry between Johnny Storm and Ben Grimm. These two are always competing with each other, even if they are working as cashiers at the same grocery store. Very strange issue, but it did show the depth of the relationship between the two of them.

Amazing Spider-Man #49. Written by Zeb Wells with pencils by John Romita Jr. Cover art was by Romita Jr., Scott Hanna, and Marcio Menyz. The White Rabbit has been turned into a vampire and Spidey is on the case, looking to help his foe.

Crocodile Black #1. Written by Phillip Kennedy Johnson and illustrated by SOM. Andrea Sorrentino did the cover art (Silver Medalist). Brand new series from Boom! Studios and I loved this so much. I did not know what to expect, and I can guarantee that what they gave us what nowhere near what I thought it might have been. I love it when a series can keep me off balance and this certainly did. I can’t wait to see where they take this book.

Strange Academy: Blood Hunt #1. Three separate stories, all written by Daniel Jose Older. Three separate artists for each, including Luigi Zagaria, Eric Gapstur & Scott Hanna, and then Eric Gapstur. Cover art was by Humberto Ramos and Edgar Delgado. I do love Strange Academy so I was excited to see them involved in the Blood Hunt crossover. I will say that the three stories surprised me although these blended well.

Spider-Man: Shadow of the Green Goblin #2. Written by J.M. DeMatteis and art by Michael Sta. Maria. Paulo Siqueira & Rachelle Rosenberg are the cover artists. As things are happening with the Osborns, Spidey takes on the Sandman.

Ain’t No Grave #1. “Chapter One: Denial”. Written by Skottie Young and art and cover art by Jorge Corona (Bronze Medalist). New Western series with some real unexpected twists. I love Skottie Young’s writing and this takes our main protagonist into a trip to try and kill Death. Literally? Seems so. A beautifully illustrated book too.

Daredevil #9. “Introductory Rights Part Nine” Written by Saladin Ahmed and art by Juann Cabal. Cover art by John Romita Jr., Scott Hanna and Richard Isanove. Daredevil and Elektra take on Bullseye and matt Murdock finally goes to see Foggy to let him know that he is alive. Foggy does not take it well, as one would expect.

Dracula: Blood Hunt #1. Written by Danny Lore and art by Vincenzo Carratù with cover art by Rod Reis. I guess it makes sense that if vampires are everywhere across the earth that Dracula would be involved. But did you expect him to show up and help Blade’s daughter, Brielle Brooks?

Doctor Strange #15. “Blood Hunt, Pt. 1” Written by Jed MacKay and art by Pasqual Ferry. Alex Ross did this cover art too. Doctor Strange has been turned into a vampire, so he separates his astral form to try and help stop Blade.

Blood Hunters #1. Three stories featuring three separate characters: Clint Barton, Man-Wolf and Dagger. I have to say that the cover of the issue (which was done by Greg Land & Frank D’Armata) made it look like this was a team up between these characters. Instead, it was three separate stories with only the vampires to connect them. It was neat seeing Dagger and Man-Wolf again.

Captain America #9. “The Desert of the Unknown“. Written by J. Michael Straczynski and art and cover art by Jesus Saiz. Cap heads to Chile and picked up a penguin along the way. And I do not mean Oswald Cobblepot.

Giant-Size X-Men #1. “Truth or Die” Written by Ann Nocenti and art by Lee Ferguson. Bryan Hitch & Alex Sinclair did the cove art. A solo story of Angel, aka Warren Worthington III, trying to survive Maze, a trainee of Arcade. This attempts to go deep into the mind of Warren, but honestly, this was at best okay.

The Mildly Pedestrian Life of Christopher Chaos #9. Written by Tate Brombal and art by Isaac Goodhart. Cover art by Nick Robles. We return to Christopher and his life and we spend some time with Christopher and his two friends in the Monster Club. We get some info about Christopher’s mysterious background as it is sort of his birthday.

X-Men: Forever #3. “Unhappy in their own Way” Written by Kieron Gillen and art by Luca Maresca. Mark Brooks did the cover art. Two main arcs happening. One with Nightcrawler, Mystique and Destiny and the revelation about parentage. The second arc was with Hope and her potential sacrifice to save everyone.

Transformers #8. Written by Daniel Warren Johnson with art by Jorge Corona. Daniel Warren Johnson and Mike Spicer did the cover art. The Autobots are beginning their plans to fight the Decepticons and Carly wants in. Optimus Prime does not think that is a good idea.

Geiger #2. “The Hunter and the Hunted” Written by Geoff Johns and art by Gary Frank. Gary Frank & Brad Anderson did the cover art. A small town deals with the Glowing Man to take care of a recent masked raider that had been causing trouble in the town.

The Deviant #5. Written by James Tynion IV and art and cover art by Joshua Hixson. It feels like a while since we got a new issue of this series, but it is just as compelling as it was then. What has Michael done? We see some of little kid Michael in a flashback this issue as older Michael is being arrested.

Deadpool #2. Written by Cody Ziglar and penciled by Rogê Antonio. Taurin Clarke did the cover art. Deadpool and Taskmaster team up to take what was supposed to be an easy mark. Thing do not go as they had planned. Not good when Crossbones shows up.

Other books this week: Boy Wonder #1, Monsters are my Business #2, Captain Marvel #8, Night People #3, and The One Hand #4.

EYG Comic Cavalcade #96

May 5, 2024

Free Comic Book Day special edition

To all the Star Wars fans out there, happy Revenge of the 5th, the day following May the 4th Be With You. Otherwise, this is a super special edition of the EYG Comic Cavalcade featuring the events and books of Free Comic book Day!

May 4th was more than just Star Wars Day this year. This year it also was Free Comic Book Day, a day where the companies release a bunch of promo comics, and comic shops around the country give them out for free.

I hope everyone understands that these are not free for the comic shop, who has to purchase these books (yes, at a reduced rate) and pay for shipping. This is why it is so vital that when you partake of a free book, you find something else to purchase at the shop as a thank you for all you do type of thing.

I had a wonderful day with Free Comic Book Day this year. I started the day with a movie that was really bad (Tarot…quite the stinker) and lunch at Burger King before heading over to Comic World.

I walked in the store right after the shop opened at noon and there were plenty of people already there. In the hour and a half (or so) that I hung out there, it was really quite busy, which is awesome.

There were some fabulous moments as I sat and watched people in the store. Some of the highlights included one young boy, probably around 10-11, who came in asking about the free comics and store owner Ben directed him to the table of books. The boy had eyes bulging and he said “thank you” in such a grateful way that you could tell that he meant it. It was such a cool moment, a small little moment that helped make the day great. With hope, a day like this could help create a future comic book fan.

That is, of course, one of the main purposes behind the entire Free Comic Book Day concept. Comic books are a niche hobby and it is important that the comic companies find a way to find new readers than just the same people that buy their books every Wednesday.

Another fun moment for me was when my teacher friend Ambarlee showed up with her three kids to buy their first comic books. She had the boys pick out a comic from the wall each before going over to the free table. I know she also picked up a trade paperback of Rainbow Rowell’s She-Hulk run (she enjoyed the She-Hulk Disney + show). They then grabbed a few of the free comics including One Piece, the Spidey and Amazing Friends, and the Spider-Man/Ultimates book. I had to take a pic of her holding her little girl who looked to be intently reading the comic in her hand.

Then, of course, I did my own purchasing. I picked up a rousing 21 free comics. Most of them had already been pulled in my box for me, which I appreciate so much. These included such books as Romeo vs. Juliet, The Cursed Library Prelude #0, Energon Universe #1, Flash Gordon #0, Dying Inside, One Piece Ace’s Story, Marvel Voices #1, Boom! Box 10th Anniversary Extravaganza, Hellboy, Monster High, Cursedverse #1, Stories from the Atlas Comics Library #1, Absolute Power #1, Conan: Battle of the Black Stone,Dr. Who #00, The Valiants, Gannibal, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.

A couple of others:

FCBD: The Worlds of James Tynion IV: This included reprinted material, but two of them were Mementic and The Woods. I did not know either of these books and I may be interested in looking into them. The book indicated The Woods: Deluxe Edition is coming soon. Tynion is one of my favorite writers currently working with Something is Killing the Children (which is one of the key series that got me picking up independent books), The Department of Truth, and W0rldtr33.

FCBD: Blood Hunt #1: The prelude to this upcoming vampire story in Marvel includes Spider-Man fighting Doctor Dark and Dracula showing up. This also featured a back-up X-Men story by Gail Simone, featuring Jubilee. Simone will be the head writer on the upcoming new Uncanny X-Men series. Simone has been a huge proponent of Free Comic Book Day and supporting your local comic book shop.

FCBD: Spider-Man/Ultimate Universe #1. This had a weird Spider-Man story that I thought was an Ultimate Spider-Man story at first, but Peter did not have his beard, so I think this was supposed to be the regular Spider-Man. The back up story featured the Ultimates, trying to retrieve the original Human Torch. There was also a couple pages of Venom here.

Along with the FCBD books, I purchased a bunch of books from my shop.

Saga Volume 1-9. Brian K. Vaughn’s epic independent book is collected in nine volumes. I read volume one and I have to say that I was hooked. This first volume collected the first six chapters and we are introduced to some great characters and some major surprising twists. The nine volumes are contained in a beautiful container with art by Fiona Staples. I am excited to read the rest of this series moving forward.

X-Men: 198 #1-5. I picked up this mini series because I had never heard of it before and the five issues were packed together at a very reasonable price. This was a story taking place when there were only 198 mutants left on the planet (after Wanda’s No More Mutants, I believe). The government is moving the remaining mutants to Xavier’s School, and trying not to use the words internment camp. This has some really dark moments and seeing Cyclops and some of the other X-Men backing the government was tough. Kitty Pryde’s response was very understandable as the connection to the Holocaust is not missed on anyone. This was a fascinating read with a group of characters that I have not seen much of over the years.

Marvel Team-Up #9, 10,15. These have been at Comic World for awhile, and I have eyeballed them at different times, but this was a good point to buy them. I love Spidey and Marvel Team-Up was always one of my favorite books growing up. This has Ghost Rider, Human Torch and Iron Man in these issues. #15 in particular is in beautiful condition. I have not rebagged my Marvel Team-Up books yet, but I know I did not have any of these.

The Tomb of Dracula #36-38, 57. I bought several Tomb of Dracula books a few months ago and these were still at the shop. I figured this would be the perfect moment to pick them up. I do like the character of Dracula, and with the Blood Hunt coming up, this feels very relevant.

I finished up with an ice cream cone at Dairy Queen on the trip back to Maquoketa. As I was driving, I remember thinking what a great day this was. I had a blast with Free Comic Book Day and I hope everyone else had an excellent experience too.

EYG Comic Cavalcade #94

April 28, 2024

It was a regular week of comics, and yet there are still a pile of them to get through. I really do collect a ton of books from the different companies.

There are also a couple from eBay this week as I had seen an advertisement for these two in one of the Dark Horse books that I had read (I think it was the Count Crowley book) and I was interested in them. Dark Horse has been a company that I have not paid as close of attention to as I have Image or Boom! Studios when it comes to independents, but I think that is changing.

Todd also continued to pick up back issues of Amazing Spider-Man for me. He grabbed me issue #199 and #331. He did not try to price gouge me this time though. 🙂

This week’s books:

Superior Spider-Man #6. “The Greater Good” Written by Christo Gage (from a story by Dan Slott) with art by Mark Bagley. Bagley & Edgar Delgado did the cover art. The Doc Ock-Spidey team up to stop Supernova continues as the enemies are forced to work together, but they are anything but copacetic. Things are also going poorly for Spider-Boy and a bunch of people in New York City.

Borealis #1-3. Written by Mark Verheiden & Aaron Douglas with art by Cliff Richards. Borealis is one of the mini series I saw advertised and I dug the concept. It had a True Detective: Night Country vibe to it as a current trooper returned to her home in Qinu. The series included organized crime and mystical spirits. This was a quality story that I was captivated by.

Lunar Lodge #1. Written by Tyler Marceca and art & cover by Mirko Colak. This was the other Dark Horse book that I picked up on eBay and this was another hit. The first issue has a lot of set-up, but it is very intense and there is a real feel that something horrible is about to happen.

Scarlet Witch & Quicksilver #3. Written by Steve Orlando and art by Lorenzo Tammetta. Cover art by Russell Dauterman and variant cover by Romy Jones (Gold medalist). I bought two copies of this, specifically for the one cover, which I loved. Wanda and Pietro are still fighting with each other, but the Wizard is still a problem. Thankfully, Vision is there as an impartial observer.

Something is Killing the Children #36. “Road Stories: Part One” Written by James Tynion IV and illustrated and cover art by Werther Dell’edera. This felt like a one-shot issue of Erica Slaughter’s past and I liked it a lot. Just Erica helping a kid fight off a monster. The basis of the story. I wonder if the “Road Stories” arc will deliver more like this or if it will end up as an overarching tale.

Ultimate Spider-Man #4. Written by Jonathan Hickman and art by guest artist David Messina. Cover art by Marco Checchetto & Matthew Wilson. What an amazing issue. This was literally a dinner meeting between Peter and MJ and Harry Osborn and his wife, Gwen Stacy. The interactions between the four adults brought as much drama as a slugfest with a super-villain. Ultimate Spider-Man has been a spectacular Peter parker story so far.

Amazing Spider-Man #48. Written by Zeb Wells and art by guest artist Todd Nauck. Cover art by John Romita Jr., Scott Hanna & Marcio Menyz. Ben Reilly, Hallows’ Eve & Dr. Kafka are all involved going after the Winkler device which Spidey and Betty Leeds also want. It might be able to clear Ned Leeds’ name, and motives are everywhere.

Universal Monsters: Creature from the Black Lagoon Lives #1. Written by Dan Watters and Ram V and illustrated by Matthew Roberts. Roberts and Dave Stewart did the cover art (Silver Medalist). Thought eh Creature from the Black Lagoon may not be my most favorite of the Universal Monsters, this issue was fantastic! I liked it way more than the Dracula book, which I thoroughly enjoyed. I am totally in on this new Universal Monster series.

Drawing Blood #1. Story by Kevin Eastman & David Avallone with artwork by Ben Bishop. Kevin Eastman did the cover art. This was quite a story. Last week, I had, what I thought, was this issue in my pull list. It looked weird, as it was wrapped in a plastic covering. When I opened it (which I considered not doing as the collect in me), it turned out to be just a series of fliers of this issue’s cover. I assume that was meant as promo material for the store and since I was down for the book (maybe the only one?) they assumed this was the book. That got all straightened out and this came out this week. It is an interesting story of a cartoonist.

Man’s Best #2. Written by Pornsak Pichetshote and illustrated and cover by Jesse Lonergan. Our three animal characters are trying to find their way home while avoiding the Klangers. The two dogs and a cat have issues with listening to each other which puts them all in danger. This has been a intriguing Boom! Studios book so far.

The Infernals #3. “Chapter Three: Covenant” Written by Noah Gardner & Ryan Parrott. Art by John J. Pearson with Lola Bonato. Pearson & Sam Wolfe Connelly did the cover art. More demonic offerings from Sam and Jackal as they are being pursued by Saturday and Sunday, the Devil’s assassins. Wild storytelling in this series.

X-Men: Forever #2. “Quiet Council” Written by Kieron Gillen and art by Luca Maresca. Cover art was by Mark Brooks. The X-Men, including Hope, look to resurrect those killed, but the biggest force they look to bring back…the Phoenix!

Wolverine: Madripoor Knights #3. “Black Widow: Spy” Written by Chris Claremont with art by Edgar Salazar. Phillip Tan & Sebastian Cheng did the cover art (Bronze Medalist). Black Widow takes center stage inside Madripoor as Wolverine and Captain America stay in the background ready to help when needed. These three characters really work well together and make for an enjoyable series so far.

Feral #2. Written by Tony Fleecs and art by Trish Forstner. Fleecs and Forstner teamed up for the cover art. The three cats are stuck in the woods with a bunch of rabid animals chasing them. Can they escape from the danger and find their way back to their home before something eats them?

Jackpot & Black Cat #2. Written by Celeste Bronfman and art by Emilio Laiso & Giada Belviso. Adam Hughes did the cover art. Jackpot is forced into trying to steal something from the White Rabbit and her friend Black Cat tags along to help. However, there is more to the story than you would expect (although I had it figured out not too long into the story).

Daredevil #8. A oversized special edition of Daredevil with several stories contained. Some focus on Matt Murdock, some focus on Elektra and others are them together. Writers include Saladin Ahmed, Ann Nocenti, D.G. Chichester, Elsa Sjunneson and Erica Schultz. Artists include Tommaso Bianchi, Stefano Raffaele, Ken Lashley, Eric Koda and Jan Bazaldua. John Romita Jr., Scott Hanna and Richard Isanove did the cover art.

Pine & Merrimac #4. Written by Kyle Starks and illustrated and cover by Fran Galan. Parker and Linnea are stuck on an island with a cult and they have been discovered. They are desperately trying to escape from their clutches, which leads to one of the most shocking final panels of the book.

Avengers #13. “Hit Back: Part Two” Written by Jed Mackay and art by Francesco Mortarino. Cover art is by Joshua Cassara and Marte Gracia. The Avengers continue their battle with the Stark Sentinels and MODOK/3D man. However, little did we know that Black Panther has a plan.

Blade #10. “Mother of Evil: Finale“. Written by Bryan Hill and art by Elena Casagrande. Casagrande and KJ Diaz did the cover art. Blade faces off in a showdown with the ancient evil called Adana in this volume’s final issue.

Other books this week: GODS #7, W0rldtr33#9, The Six Fingers #3, Project Cryptid #8, Rare Flavours #5, The Bloody Dozen #5, and Night Thrasher #3.

EYG Comic Cavalcade #92

April 19, 2024

So, this was a huge week of comics, because of the mysterious disappearance of the shipment from the previous week to Comic World. I had 38 books this week and that was just massive.

Because of the amount of books to read this week, I decided to split this week into two sections. I have a handful of books read right now, and then I will continue to read more to hopefully do another Comic Cavalcade prior to NEW COMIC BOOK DAY next Wednesday. That is the goal, at least.

It is amazing that it was just a few years ago that I only purchased Marvel Comics books. Now, I collect more independent comics than Marvel books. Marvel is still my favorite company, but I have gained a new respect for the stories created by talented creatives. Recently, I am starting to look through the catalogue of Dark Horse, which I have not paid enough attention to over the last year or so. There are some new books from DH this week that were fun.

Books this week, Part One:

Ms. Marvel #18. “Meanwhile in Wakanda” Written by G. Willow Wilson and art by Francesco Gaston. Nelson Blake II and Rachelle Rosenberg did the cover art. So this was, of course, not a book from this past week. It is one that I picked up on eBay. I have been inventorying the collection and I found that I was missing this issue of the Ms. Marvel series. I found it on eBay to fill in that volume. I do very much enjoy Ms. Marvel. More on her later.

Monsters are My Business #1. Written by Cullen Bunn and art by Patrick Piazzalunga. Piazzalunga with Marco Brakko did the cover art. One of the new Dark Horse books I was talking about, this was a lot of fun. Strange characters and some exciting monster action.

Uncanny Valley #1. Written by Tony Fleecs and art by Dave Wachter. Boom! Studios has been a huge company too recently, as some of the best books of the month are from this company. This starts off with a troubled kid who has some kind of mysterious background and a grandfather who turns out to be a… cartoon?

Cobra Commander #4. Written by Joshua Williamson and art by Andrea Milana. Milana & Annalisa Leoni did the art for the cover. The mini series in the Energon Universe continues as the leader of Cobra heads to his power. Cobra Commander is shown to be quite the bad ass here, and we get our first glimpse of Destro.

Sam and Twitch: Case Files #2. Written by Todd McFarlane with Jon Goff (co-plot) and art by Szymon Kudranski. Thaddeus Robeck and Mirko Colak did the cover art. Problems between partners and a suspension lead Max to get out of New York and help a former friend with a serial killer case in a small town. I like this detective series inside the Spawn universe.

Roxxon Presents Thor #1. “Hate is a Color Called …Green” Written by Al Ewing and penciled by Greg Land. This is bizarre. In the continuity of the Immortal Thor, Roxxon has gotten the rights to publish Thor comics and they have made Thor a joke. This is the comic that Roxxon published and it reads like a giant product placement for Roxxon and its products. It is a strange comic and a blip in the storyline from the main Thor book.

Ms. Marvel: Mutant Menace #2. “Starstruck.” Written by Iman Vellani & Sabir Pirzada and art by Scott Godlewski. Carlos Gomez & Jesus Aburtov did the cover art. Co-written by the MCU’s Ms. Marvel herself, this book features Lila Cheney and Mojo. It is always fun with Mojo and his obsessive desire for ratings. I said how much I love Ms. Marvel earlier, and she continues to be awesome.

What If…?: Aliens #2. Part Two written by Hans Rodionoff & Leon Reiser with art by Guiu Vilanova. Phil Noto did the cover art. Like Iman Vellani in the previous book, this is another comic featuring a celebrity involved in the creative process with Paul Reiser. His son helped him develop the story and co-wrote this one. A great continuation of this What If story. I do miss the Watcher in these books, but this has been a ton of fun so far.

Miles Morales: Spider-Man #19. “Retribution: Part 3” Written by Cody Ziglar and art from Federico Vicentini. Vicentini & Richard Isanove did the cover art. A serious throwdown between Miles and Rabble that leads to a final end to the story.

Invincible Iron Man #17. “The Price of Knowledge.” Written by Gerry Duggan and drawn by guest artist Patch Zircher. Kael Ngu did the cover art. Feilong and Tony Stark comes to blows, but Feilong has a problem. He has lost control of the Stark Sentinels. AI cannot be trusted. Iron Man has an unlikely ally arrive to help out… Magneto?

Blow Away #1. Written by Zac Thompson and illustrated by Nicola Izzo. Cover art is done by Annie Wu (Gold Medalist). Another cool new series from Boom! Studios. A photographer has some mysterious job, but she is distracted watching some mountain climbers. Strange things happen in this series and I am excited to see what is going on.

Fantastic Four #19. “The Perfect Storm” Written by Ryan North and art by Carlos Gomez. Cover art by Alex Ross (Bronze Medalist). This was an awesome black and white (with red) noir detective story with Alicia Masters as the detective. It was a strange story that would make sense eventually. I really have enjoyed Ryan North’s run on this book as he has told FF stories in different manners every month.

Amazing Spider-Man #47. Written by Zeb Wells and drawn by guest artist Todd Nauck. John Romita Jr., Scott Hanna & Marcio Menyz did the cover art. Ben Reilly is back as Chasm, reuniting with Hallows’ Eve. They are after Betty Bryant and Spider-Man has to protect her.

Spider-Boy #6. Written by Dan Slott. “The Man Upstairs” art by Paco Medina & Walden Wong and “So You’re a Humanimal” drawn by Julian Shaw. Bailey Briggs is fighting the humanimals of Madame Monstrosity, trying to save his friend, Christina Xu. He does not succeed.

Something Epic #9. Written and illustrated by Szymon Kudranski. In the investigation into the death of Sherlock Holmes leads Noa and her duck friend to Mount Olympus and Zeus, who has also disappeared. They head off to see Hades in the Underworld. The new arc is fascinating and, dare I say it, epic.

Spider-Woman #6. “Star Light, Star Bright, The First Star I Punch Tonight.” Written by Steve Foxe and art from Ig Guara. Leinil Francis Yu & Rachelle Rosenberg did the cover art. Star is after Jessica Drew and they fight on a train. The train doesn’t stand a chance.

The Displaced #3. “Chapter Three: Everyone Needs to Eat.” Written by Ed Brisson and illustrated by Luca Casalanguida. This is fast becoming one of my favorite books of the month. The story of the survivors of the city of Oshawa, Ontario which has vanished, keeps getting more dramatic every issue. The cracks in the survivors’ connection are starting to show. This is a great book from Boom! Studio.

Black Widow & Hawkeye #2. “Broken Arrow: Part 2” Written by Stephanie Phillips and drawn by Paolo Villanelli. Stephen Segovia and Jesus Aburtov did the cover art. Black Widow and her new symbiote are out to save a injured Hawkeye against an assassin after him.

Spectacular Spider-Men #2. “Arachnobatics Chapter #2: Community” Written by Greg Weisman and penciled by Humberto Ramos. Ramos & Edgar Delgado did the cover art. Peter and Miles take on Vermin in the sewers of NYC and spend time at their coffee shop. There is also a mystery dealing with a burnt body. Is it a clone? I love the interaction between Peter and Miles.

EYG Comic Cavalcade #91

April 11, 2024

Well, yesterday was NEW COMIC BOOK DAY…sort of.

If you saw the EYG Favorite Comic Cover of the Week post on Wednesday, you know what happened. The new comics shipment to Comic World was lost in the mail. Last I heard they had no idea what had happened to the shipment and they were waiting on a replacement order. The only books that arrived were the DC and Image books. There are a very limited number of DC books that I get, so this week was going to be a down week for comic issues.

I did get a few Image books and so the 91st edition of the Comic Cavalcade will press on.

This actually worked out pretty well for me as Todd had picked up a bunch of Amazing Spider-Man back issues for me. I had told him that I was going to start filling out my ASM collection with issues that I was missing since I had gone through my Amazing Spider-Man box , reboarding and re-bagging them. This allowed me to see the issues that I already had, which had always been the hold back for me buying back issues. There was a time that Todd had thought that I did not like back issues, but that was never the case. I just was never sure what I had already owned. As my project to re-box, re-bag and re-board all the older comics, while inventorying the books on CLZ has been moving forward slowly, I knew what was missing in the ASM camp.

Todd did go a bit in depth with his search for these back issues and came back from Des Moines with a pile of books (41 in all) for me to buy over the next several months. Since I did not have much in the pull list this week with the great comic box disappearance (was this worse than the truck/fire thing from last year… probably not because no one died in this. More inconvenient than anything else), I intended on buying the whole lot. Todd wouldn’t let me.

I am not sure why, but he held back most of the higher priced ASM books he had and even went a far as to keep the books with him to prevent me from circling back and buying them from one of the others at Comic World. I guess I appreciate Todd’s zeal to protect my bank account.

Anyway, I have a large group of Amazing Spider-Man Vol. 1 issues mostly in the four hundreds, but a few lower. I do love Spider-Man and having these are really cool. I’ll get those other ASM books one day, though next week looks to be a double week, with the books from this week and the books from next week. Oy.

Here are the few sparse books this week:

The Last Mermaid #1-2. Written and drawn by Derek Kirk Kim. I actually got The Last Mermaid #2 last week, but I could not read it because I was waiting for #1 to come in. I had missed it and Todd picked it up for me in Des Moines, so I got the chance to read them this week and I loved these two books. Absolutely gorgeous art on the interior of the book. I loved the different shape of the book. I would not want every comic to be this size, but this make this series feel different and original. It was a fun little story of a wasteland future time with a mermaid in a mech-suit in search of usable water. This was some beautiful visual storytelling and I just loved what has been given to us so far. I actually gasped at the end of issue two. I am surprised how connected I am to this mermaid and her little axolotl companion after just a couple of issues. This is wonderful so far.

Rat City #1. Written by Erica Schultz and drawn by Ze Carlos. Cover art by Ze Carlos (Bronze Medalist). This is a book taking place in the future with a character that has lost his legs in his military service and has been given state-of-the-art prosthetics. This is connected to the multitude of new Spawn books coming too. Honestly, this was okay, but it did not grab me enough to want to continue to follow this story.

Napalm Lullaby #2. Written by Rick Remender and art by Bengal, who also did the cover art (Silver medalist). Unlike the previous book, I found this to be an awesome issue. In fact, this really picked up from an okay issue #1. I really dug the story of Sam and Sarah and their father and their beginning of a trek to kill the Magnificent leader.. which led them into…Heaven? I am in.

Phantom Road #10. “Billy Bear One” Written by Jeff Lemire and art by Gabriel H. Walta, who also did the cover art (Gold Medalist). This is the end of Book Two, but it was clearly not a end of this series. Very compelling books, kind of a mix between The Walking Dead and The Langoliers. Jeff Lemire is one of my favorite writers currently working today and I will read most everything that he writes.

Transformers #7. Written by Daniel Warren Johnson and art by Jorge Corona. Soundwave vs. Starscream. Oofta! Who is the leader of the Decepticons? And what is going on with Optimus Prime? This issue brings several questions to the front and keeps the momentum of this series moving on.

That’s it for new books this week. Next week is a huge week with the Marvel/Boom! Studios/Etc. from this week and everything from next. More Amazing Spider-Man? Who knows.

EYG Comic Cavalcade #90

It is Wrestlemania weekend, so the time has been limited. I had to squeeze some books in-between everything that was going on. I still wanted to get Comic Cavalcade #90 done and published.

Books this week:

Count Crowley: Amateur Midnight Monster Hunter #4. “The Mad Monster” Written by David Dastmalchian and art by Lukas Ketner. If you read last week’s Comic Cavalcade, you know that I actually read the trade paperback that included this issue because of a mix-up at eBay. I received the missing issue from this Dark Horse series this week.

Doctor Strange #14. “Cobolorum, Pt. 2” Written by Jed MacKay and art by Pasqual Ferry. Cover art by Alex Ross. The D & D-inspired Cobolorum is completed in this Doctor Strange issue and the interactions between Taskmaster, Black Cat, and Hunter’s Moon was one of the strongest part of this storyline.

Captain America #8. “Intermezzo, Part Two of Two” Written by J. Michael Straczynski and art by Carlos Magno. Taurin Clarke did the cover art. Lyra, sister of Asmoday, also known as Life, recruited Captain America. This pair of issues was not as strong as the previous part of this book.

Sensational She-Hulk #7. Written by Rainbow Rowell and drawn by Ig Guara. Jen Bartel did the cover art. She-Hulk is doubting her relationship with Jack of Hearts because of an old flame for Jack, Ganymede, who has shown up at the space retreat. Little does anyone know that her mission is to kill She-Hulk.

Man’s Best #1. Written by Pornsak Pichetshote and illustrated by Jesse Lonergan. Two dogs and a cat (dressed as a dog) are the center of this new series. There have been a plethora of dogs/cats/animals leading comics over the last few years. This is yet another interesting book.

Spider-Man: Shadow of the Green Goblin. Written by J.M. DeMatteis and art by Michael Sta. Maria. Paulo Siqueira & Rachelle Rosenberg did the cover art. This is another of the short series that fall into a previous time frame. This one goes a long way back to the early days of the Amazing Spider-Man. The most interesting part of this series was the interaction between Peter and his Aunt May in the days and weeks right after the loss of Ben.

Under York #1. Written by Sylvain Runberg and art art by Mirka Andolfo. This is an intriguing new Image Comic book involving magic and the underground world existing beneath New York. New characters and a fun start.

Deadpool #1. Written by Cody Ziglar and art by Rogê Antônio. Inhyuk Lee In did the cover art (Gold Medalist). New series for Deadpool and there is a new villain out there. And Deadpool feels a little heartbroken from a previous failed relationship.

Geiger #1. Written by Geoff Johns and art by Gary Frank. Cover art by Gary Frank & Brad Anderson. Part of the Ghost Machine universe from Image, Geiger returns to a new book. I really do love the design of this character and I find it very interesting a read. Some futuristic post apocalyptic action.

Rook Exodus #1. Written by Geoff Johns and art by Jason Fabok. Jason Fabok and Brad Anderson did the cover art. A second of the Ghost Machine universe and it was another fascinating book. Rook has a helmet that allows him to control birds and he has wound up on a planet after escaping from a dying earth. This was a great book and I am looking forward to seeing the book continue. Scary giant bear too. Stephen Colbert says that bears are the ultimate killing machine. This is a gigantic example of that.

Redcoat #1. Written by Geoff Johns and illustrated by Bryan Hitch. Cover art is done by Bryan Hitch and Brad Anderson. This is my favorite of the three new Ghost Machine books. A cowardly BritI ish redcoat named Simon Pure has become immortal. I enjoyed this book a great deal.

Antarctica #10. Written by Simon Birks and art by Willi Roberts. Willi Roberts did the cover art (Silver Medalist). The finale of this series. This book wraps up with Hannah and her father face a deadly moment. This has been a very original run in a combo book from Top Cow and Image.

Void Rivals #8. Written by Robert Kirkman and art by Lorenzo De Felici. We get some background details about Solila’s past. Her past is coming back to haunt her… or maybe hunt her. Wait for that last page, it is a doozy.

Sam and Twitch: Case Files #1. Written and plotted by Todd McFarlane and Jon Goff. Art was by Szymon Kudranski. Cover art was done by Kevin Keane and Todd McFarlane (Bronze Medalist). A new book inside the Spawn’s Universe features Sam Burke and Maximilian “Twitch” Williams, a pair of detectives that do not necessarily follow the rules.

Ghostlore #9. Written by Cullen Bunn and illustrated by Leomacs. Cover art by Reiko Murakami and Jorge Coelho. Things go poorly for the people helping out Harmony. Shane has some deadly ideas going down. Harmony’s father reunites with her. Things are starting to fire up.

X-Men #33. “As the World Burns.” Written by Gerry Duggasn and art by Joshua Cassara. Joshua Cassara and GURU-eFX did the cover art. The X-Men are into the final battle with Orchis and they get some help from the X-Men of Doom.

Love Everlasting #14. “Acting Out of Love.” Written by Tom King and drawn by Elsa Charretier. We focus in on the Cowboy more and we find out who is behind the plans for Joan Peterson. It is her mother! This seems to be heading toward a finale, maybe?

Immortal Thor #9. “The Land of Lost Content” Written by Al Ewing and art by Ibraim Roberson. Cover art by Alex Ross. Skurge, Enchantress, Minotaur and.. Roxxon Comics?

Vengeance of the Moon Knight #4. “Hunter’s Moon.” Written by Jed MacKay and art by Alessandro Cappuccio. Cover art by Davide Paratore. Tigra and Hunter’s Moon are out to discover who this new Moon Knight is… and they learn the shocking truth.

Avengers #12. “Hit Back“. Written by Jed MacKay and art by Francesco Mortarino. Stuart Immonen did the cover art. After keeping out of it, Iron Man officially calls the Avenger into the conflict with Orchis, and they are executing it to a precise detail.

Other books this week: Minor Threats #1, Power Pack: Into the Storm #4, Grim #16, Deep Cuts #6, The One Hand #3, and Torpedo 1972 #2.

EYG Comic Cavalcade #88

March 30, 2024

Good day. Happy Saturday. I hope everyone who celebrates it has a wonderful Easter Sunday tomorrow.

I had my first negative experience on eBay this week. I had ordered the back issue Amazing Spider-Man #400, which I initially thought I had already owned, but it was not among the Spider-Man box I went through recently. When it arrived in the mail, the package was not what I was used to for eBay and as I pulled out the book, it was all wrinkled and damaged, including a tear on the spine at the top left of the book. I could not believe it was in such poor shape.

I went back to see if it had been listed as such and it did mention a slight bend in the left corner, but nothing like what I had seen. I went to leave negative feedback for this seller as I was pretty unhappy. I had everything written out and eBay sent a message to me saying if I was sure if I wanted to leave this negative review. It suggested that I consider contacting the seller first. I looked and saw that the seller had 100% positive on his account so I decided to give it a chance.

I messaged the seller and he responded very quickly, saying that the book was not damaged when he sent it and that he did not understand how this happened. Honestly, he did seem more concerned with his 100% positive feedback than anything else as he begged me not to leave any negative comments. He refunded my money with me asking for it, so I decided to let it slide. He seemed pretty grateful for my decision.

He wanted me to send it back to him, but I am not doing that. I am not going to go through the expense or the trouble of boxing this one comic up and sending it back to him.

This did not put me off purchasing on eBay, because I have not had any other negative experiences on the site, but it may make me a little more cautious than I was before.

New books this week:

Miles Morales: Spider-Man #18. “Retribution: Part 2” Written by Cody Ziglar and with art by David Marquez, Sara Pichelli, Juann Cabal with Matt Horak, Luciano Vecchio and Federico Vicentini. Vicentini and Richard Isanove did the cover art. This was legacy number 300 for Miles and it was a big issue featuring Miles facing off with Rabble and also dealing with the Cape Killers. Old school double-sized issue without a bunch of back-up stories. I appreciated that.

Feral #1. Written by Tony Fleecs and drawn by Trish Forstner. Cover by Trish Forstner & Tony Fleecs (Bronze Medalist). I loved Stray Dogs, which was from the same creators of this comic. Feral had the same type of feel and flow as Stray Dogs and I really enjoyed the set up of this book.

Zorro: Man of the Dead #3. Written and illustrated by Sean Gordon Murphy. Cover art by Dan Panosian (Gold Medalist). An amazing cover this week on Zorro and I have really been enjoying this new take on Zorro. Present day setting and our hero may be just crazy, delusional as he deals with the dangers around him.

Ultimate Spider-Man #3. Written by Jonathan Hickman and art by Marco Checchetto. Checchetto and Matthew Wilson did the cover art. Peter gets his classic costume after a whole section of trial and error with his daughter, May. Spidey meets the Green Goblin and together they take down Bullseye. Goblin is Harry and he and Peter are getting a drink. Cool switch up.

Amazing Spider-Man #46. Written by Zeb Wells and drawn by guest artist Carmen Carnero. Cover art was by John Romita Jr., Scott Hanna & Marcio Menyz. Electro shows up to try and reclaim Sandman for the Sinister Six. Spidey and Jackpot team up to stop him.

Newburn #16. Written by Chip Zdarsky and drawn by Jacob Phillips. This series comes to a close with Emily wrapping up the story for the supposedly dead Newburn. Of course, I never once thought that Newburn was actually dead. It does provide a decent end for the series’ protagonist.

Incredible Hulk #10. “Frozen Charlotte: Part Two.” Written by Phillip Kennedy Johnson and drawn by guest artist Danny Earles. Nic Klein was the cover artist. Charlie has been taken by some creature and the Hulk is in pursuit. However, New Orleans Hulk comes across a ghost that is ready to help him. Weird and different, I definitely like where this is heading.

Thunderbolts #4. “World Strike: OP-04// Operation Doomstrike.” Written by Jackson Lanzing & Collin Kelly with art by Geraldo Borges. Terry Dodson & Rachel Dodson did the cover art. The wrap up of this new version of the Thunderbolts was great as they confronted Red Skull inside Latveria as a ticking clock counted down until the arrival of Dr. Doom! Very satisfying ending.

Deer Editor #3. Written by Ryan K. Lindsay and art by Sami Kivelä. Bucky is still at it and he is on the trail of the story. He also has one scene in particular that is so kick ass that it stood out as one of my favorite moments of the week. It all involves a flip down by Bucky. Deer Editor continues to be one of the more interesting books published outside of the big three (Marvel, DC, Image) each month.

Jill and the Killers #3. Written by Olivia Cuartero-Briggs and illustrated by Roberta Ingranata. Cover art by Sanya Anwar. Another great book published outside of the big three, Jill and the Killers keeps me off balance and this issue dove deeper into characters as Jill felt very unlikable for much of the book. I am enjoying this one a great deal.

Superior Spider-Man #5. “The Heel Turn.” Written by Christos Gage (from story by Dan Slott) and penciled by Mark Bagey. Bagley & Edgar Delgado did the cover art. Big twist at the end of the book involving Spider-Boy! Can’t wait to see what happens next.

Daredevil #7.Introductory Rites: Part Seven.” Written by Saladin Ahmed and drawn by Aaron Kuder. John Romita Jr., Scott Hanna and Richard Isanove did the cover art. Daredevil has been chasing the demons of his seven deadly sins, and he has found the person possessed by the next one. Unfortunately for him, it’s Wolverine.

Jackpot & Black Cat #1. Written by Celeste Bronfman and art by Emilio Laiso. Adam Hughes did the cover art. I have not been a huge fan of MJ being this super hero named Jackpot, but I do enjoy the chemistry between her and Black Cat, Felicia Hardy. The connection between Peter’s former lovers makes for an intriguing dynamic and carries a lot of this book.

Rise of the Powers of X #3. “The Ex Life of Moira.” Written by Kieron Gillen and illustrated by R.B. Silva. Silva and David Curiel did the cover art. Charles Xavier goes back in time to one of the past lives of Moira McTaggert as a little girl with the intentions of killing her. What results from the confrontation is very engaging.

The Oddly Pedestrian Life of Christopher Chaos #8. Written by Tate Brombal (based on idea by James Tynion IV) and art by Soo Lee. Nick Robles did the cover art (Silver Medalist). The back story of Adam Frankenstein continues in this issue. Looks like Christopher will return next issue, but I really enjoyed this detour into the past of Adam.

X-Men ’97 #1. Written by Steve Foxe and art by Salva Espín. Todd Nauck & Rachelle Rosenberg did the cover art. This is a prequel series from the period before the X-Men ’97 Disney + series began. You can see the details being set up in this book that will happen in the first few episodes of the series, but it is also telling a story involving Dazzler.

Other books this week: Local Man: Bad Girls Special #1, G.O.D.S. #6, The Six Fingers #2, Nights #6, and Killadelphia #34.

EYG Comic Cavalcade #87

March 22, 2024

An unlikely and unexpected snowstorm on March 22nd led to a no school day today, and I was able to finish up this week’s new books. I knew that the snow was in the forecast, but I really did not believe that we would get any… or more correctly, I did not expect that we would get enough to matter. It sounds as if we may be around seven inches when its done, which is quite a lot for the end of March.

I have been active on eBay recently and I have several books that are intriguing to me. It is not just filling out series that I already have like Amazing Spider-Man, Groo the Wanderer or The Defenders (which, by the way, I purchased The Defenders Vol. 1 #14, 55,56 at Comic World this week. Todd tried to entice me to buy more, but I held my ground and would not succumb to his high-pressure sales tactics. :)), but also some rare and not as popular books too. I do like some strange comics at times.

This week’s books:

Man from Atlantis #1-7. One of the series I was referring to is this one from the late 1970s featuring the character of Mark Harris, a mysterious man with webbed hands and feet that could breathe underwater. It was based on a really short run TV show of the same title starring Patrick Duffy, before he made it big on Dallas. Honestly, these issues are not great, but it filled that nostalgia quota for me as I did like that TV show when I was young. I would be curious to see what I thought about it today. [EDIT: I found it on Amazon Prime for purchase. I am going to do a rewatch on EYG starting this weekend sometime. Very excited]

Lovesick #1-7. Written and drawn by Luana Vecchio. Another series that I picked up on eBay, Lovesick was quite the bizarre book. I was a little taken back by the overall concept. I am not sure how this wound up on my radar, but I have always enjoyed picking up these independent books (this one is from Image) and reading it through. I have had more success in my random choice (like That Texas Blood or Gideon Falls) than I have not, but Lovesick is one that I am not sure I would revisit or purchase again in hindsight.

Spider-Woman #5. “Sunday in the Park with Jess.” Written by Steve Foxe and art by Carola Borelli. Leinil Francis Yu & Sonny Gho did the cover art. This was a random encounter with Jessica Drew and Spider-Boy, and it was a fun little pairing. Spider-Boy could relate to Jess’s son’s current situation, as their stories are both similar. I thought this was a good use of character in this story.

Invincible Iron Man #16. “Splash Damage.” Written by Gerry Duggan and penciled by Creees Lee. Kael Ngu did the cover art. The Sentinel Buster Mark 72 armor is in full effect in this issue as Tony Stark takes on the crew of Sentinels along with Feilong. Some great art in this issue with a lot of full page panels. I have enjoyed Tony Stark’s involvement in the X-Men/Orchis storyline.

Tenement #10. Written by Jeff Lemire and featuring art by Andrea Sorrentino. The most recent book in the Bone Orchard saga comes to a close with this issue that paid off with a very satisfying conclusion for this leg of the story. I have enjoyed diving into Jeff Lemire’s writing over the last year or so and I will be excited to see where this heads next.

Justice League vs. Godzilla vs. Kong #6. Written by Brian Buccellato and including art by Christian Duce and Tom Derenick. Drew Johnson and Romulo Fajaroo Jr did the cover art. I am not a fan of how this series is going at this point. I enjoyed it more near the beginning of the book and next issues rematch between Superman and Godzilla is promising, but the overall book feels nothing more than a Elseworld story. Especially when Guy Gardner got squished by Gorilla Grodd, and am I to believe that Grodd could mentally control both Supergirl and Kong at the same time? I hope the finale next issue is better.

Cobra Commander #3. Written by Joshua Williamson and art by Andrea Milana. This makes me think that Cobra Commander is way more bad ass than I ever thought he was. He did always seem fairly cowardly in the animated series but watching him hold out against the torture of this issue, including the little smiley face on his helmet, was impressive.

Spider-Boy #5. “Best Friends Forever” and “A Highly Evolved Opinion” Written by Dan Slott and art by Paco Medina (1st story) and Julian Shaw (2nd story). Humberto Ramos & Edgar Delgado had a fun cover for this issue. Admittedly, these two stories feel as if they just transition into one as Spider-Boy has to deal with Madam Monstrosity and Hellifino.

Displaced #2. Written by Ed Brisson and illustrated by Luca Casalanguida. I am really a fan of this new Boom! Studios comic. I find it extremely fascinating and I love the feel of the book. It makes me think of TV shows like LOST which has a major mystery and we have to try and understand what is going on. The disappearance of the city of Oshawa and the dangers of the survivors of the town, who are in jeopardy of disappearing too, is just fantastic.

X-Men: Forever #1. “A Ghost.” Written by Kieron Gillen and including art by Luca Maresca. Mark Brooks did the cover art (Gold medalist). I loved this cover, but, if I am being honest, I had no idea what was going on in this book. I obviously have not read enough of the current X-Men storyline to actually recognize or understand what was happening.

Night Thrasher #2. “If You Don’t Know, Now You Know.” Written by J. Holtham and art by Nelson Daniel. Alan Quah did the art on the cover. Night Thrasher and Rage (referred to as the O.G.) had another confrontation, but things did not turn out quite how Night Thrasher wanted.

Fantastic Four #18. “The Secret of Franklin Richards.” Written by Ryan North and art by Carlos Gomez. Alex Ross did the cover art. This was great as we discovered a little secret about Reed and Sue’s son, first born Franklin Richards. We have believed that Franklin had lost his ultimate powers, but it turned out that Franklin had used his powers to make it seem as if he did not have his powers any more so he could have a normal life.

Scarlet Witch & Quicksilver #2. Written by Steve Orlando and art by Lorenzo Tammetta. Russell Dauterman did the cover art. Hey look… Quicksilver is in his GREEN outfit. (Heh, heh, heh). The Wizard is here and he is in conflict with Wanda. She has to end up seeking help from her ex, Vision.

Web of Spider-Man #1. This is a compilation of examples of all of the major Spider-characters for the next several months including Spider-Man, Miles, Spider-Woman, Kaine, Spider-Gwen, Chasm, Spider-Society and the Spectacular Spider-Men. No Spider-Boy, which had me wondering what was up with that.

Black Panther #10. “Reign at Dusk: Finale” Written by Eve L. Ewing and penciled by Chris Allen. Taurin Clarke is the cover artist. Another volume of the Black Panther ends with this issue. It seems a lot of Marvel books are only getting ten issues and then they are moving along. It is the one creative team and then they leave and, instead of refilling the teams, the end the books, with a future new volume coming. Not sure how I feel about that.

Captain Marvel #6. “Genesis” Written by Alyssa Wong and art by Ruairi Coleman. Bryan Valenza did the cover art. The villainous Omen still has control of Genis-Vell in the name of the Undone. Carol, Yuna Yang, Phyla-Vell, Hulkling and Wiccan take up opposition.

Count Crowley: Amateur Midnight Monster Hunter #1. “The Monster Maker” Written by David Dastmalchian and art by Lukas Ketner. I saw an ad for this Dark Horse book in the Headless Horseman Halloween Special and thought it looked good. The main reason was that it was written by actor David Dastmalchian, who I do like a lot. I am going to see his new movie this weekend, Late Night With the Devil. This book was fun and I have the rest of the first series on its way and a second series, issues #1 & 2, waiting to be read.

Vengeance of the Moon Knight #3. “Soldier” Written by Jed MacKay and art by Alessandro Cappuccio. Davide Paratore did the cover art. This has been a interesting book since the death of Marc Specter and the appearance of the new, mysterious Moon Knight, whose very activity has been shining a negative light on the Midnight Mission. Soldier is front and center in this issue and is solid.

Something Epic #8. Written, drawn and cover art (Bronze Medalist) by Simon Kudranski. This series returned with a new arc, featuring paranormal investigator Noa Carpenter and a walking duck named D. Ducktive, who is ABSOLUTELY not Howard the Duck. I loved this first issue and the case of who murdered Sherlock Holmes looks to be very, if you excuse my pun, epic. Glad this book is back.

Wolverine: Madripoor Knights #2. “The Wolverine: Cutting Edge.” Written by Chris Claremont and drawn by Edgar Salazar. Philip Tan & Sebastian Cheng were the cover artists. Wolverine, Captain America and Black Widow continue their adventure in Madripoor but things don’t go well for our trio of heroes.

Resurrection of Magneto #3. “Falls the Shadow” Written by Al Ewing and drawn by Luciano Vecchio. Magneto and Storm team up in the after life to take on the Shadow King with the ultimate goal of bringing Magneto back to life. Does the cost go too high?

Blade #9. “Mother of Evil Part Nine” Written by Bryan Hill and including the art of Valentina Pinti. Elena Casagrande & KJ Diaz did the art for the cover. This sure seems to be another series that will be ending with issue 10, making this the penultimate issue of the run. Blade is working his way to try and find Adana, but the popular theory is that Blade ahs no chance against her. I guess we’ll see.

The Infernals #2. “Chapter Two: Trial” Written by Noah Gardner & Ryan Parrott and art by John J. Pearson with Lola Bonato. Nero finds out that he is not getting the big seat when his evil father kicks off. Instead it is Jackal. Or is that a major mistake?

Other books this week: Star Wars: Visions #1 (Silver Medalist), Bloody Dozen #4, Project: Crypid #7, Beware of the Planet of the Apes #3, Midlife: or How to Hero at Fifty #5 & 6, and Kill Your Darlings #7.

EYG Comic Cavalcade #86

March 16, 2024

Et tu, Brute?

Okay, I am a day late for that, as yesterday was the Ides of March, but it’s fun anyway. Welcome back to the EYG Comic Cavalcade #86 as we are piloting our way to number 100, only a few months or so away. With fifty issues of EYG Comic Catch-Up as well, that would be our 150 Legacy issue. Lots of excitement around here.

At my school, speaking of piloting, we are piloting a new curriculum for potential purchase next year. It is CKLA, from Amplify and in the 8th grade section, they have a sci-fi unit where they focus on Gris Grimly’s Frankenstein. Unfortunately, I am in 7th grade so I can not teach this graphic Novel, but I did order it from Amazon anyway. It arrived this week and it was a beautifully illustrated book. I also picked up Gris Grimly’s Edgar Allan Poe book, Tales of Death and Dementia. Both are very cool addition to the graphic novels in my collection.

Other books read this week:

Zorro: Man of the Dead #1-2. Fun new series from Massive Publishing. I had picked up issue #2 a few weeks ago and have been holding on to it until #1 came in. It came in this week and so I was able to read it and I enjoyed the new take on a present day Zorro very much. Sean Gordon Murphy and Simon Gough was the creative team behind these first two issues.

Blue Book: 1947 #1-2. Another book that I had to wait for was the new series based on the ‘true’ stories of UFOs from James Tynion IV and Michael Avon Oeming. I enjoyed the first volume of this book from Dark Horse and I discovered the second one was out a few weeks ago and was able to get both issues this week. 1947 is a big year in the mythology of UFO fans so I am excited to see where this goes. We get some examples of men in black in these issues (and that is not Will Smith and Tommy Lee Jones).

Amazing Spider-Man #45. Written by Zeb Wells and art by guest artist Carmen Carnero. Cover art (gold medalist) by John Romita Jr., Scott Hanna and Marcio Menyz. Spider-Man is back trying to help out Mary Jane’s Aunt Anna Watson, who had lost her mind from the poisoned pills from the X-Men. Pete comes across Sandman in the mental institution too and Sandman gives Peter a hint that something Sinister was coming for Spider-Man.

Headless Horseman Halloween Annual. I had ordered this back last year, but it was missed. When we discovered that it was not ordered, we were able to get it into my pull list fairly quickly. This is a fun anthology book featuring several horror tales that deal with beheading. Another good Dark Horse book this week. I need to watch out for Dark Horse more than I have.

The Immortal Thor #8. “The Last Judgment” Written by Al Ewing and with art by Ibraim Roberson. Alex Ross did the cover art (silver medal). Thor faces off with his mother Gaea looking for answers about Toranos. He’s not pleased with the answers.

House of Slaughter #21. “The Butcher’s Wife: Part One“. Written by Tate Brombal and illustrated by Antonio Fuso. Cover art by Nimit Malavia & Werther Dell’edera. The houses meet with the Old Dragon and it gives Jace a target.

Ultimate Black Panther #2. Written by Bryan Hill and featuring art by Stefano Caselli. Caselli & David Curiel did the cover art. There is a traitor inside Wakanda, and T’Challa has received a prediction for his future involving a woman of energy bearing him a child. It does not look to be Okoye. Hiya Storm.

Fishflies #5. Written and drawn by Jeff Lemire. Bug is captured in a cellar by brother and sister Butch and Betty Bracken, and they seem to have experience in killing these things. Can Bug escape with Francis or will the dastardly twins kill another bug?

Dark Ride #11. Written by Joshua Williamson and art by Andrei Bressan. Cover art (Bronze medal) by Andrei Bressan & Adriano Lucas. The penultimate issue sees Sam finding his daughter, but discovering that his and Halloween’s father had something even more dangerous in motion. Dark Ride is heading for a fiery conclusion next month for sure.

Avengers: Twilight #4. “The Firefighters” Written by Chip Zdarsky and drawn by Daniel Acuna. Cover art was by Alex Ross. Thor is back! So is the head of Tony Stark. With a new team of old Avengers heading into the Raft to try and find and free anyone they could, the new Avengers are out in the world looking for them.

No/One #8. Written by Kyle Higgins & Brian Buccellato and art by Geraldo Borges. Ben Kern is ready to stop his running, in the most final way he could. Can No/One stop him from making a mistake? Only two more issues to go. I also love the companion podcast of Who is No/One featuring Rachael Leigh Cook and Patton Oswalt.

Black Widow & Hawkeye #1. “Broken Arrow: Part 1” Written by Stephanie Phillips and with art by Paolo Villanelli. Stephen Segovia & Jesus Aburtov did the cover art. Natasha and her new symbiote (not sure where that came from) is out looking for Clint Barton on behest of Bobbi Morse. They think he may be dead. On the contrary…

Spider-Gwen: Smash #4. Written by Melissa Flores and penciled by Enid Balám. David Nakayama did the cover art. This made last week’s Spider-Gwen Giant Size issue make much more sense as this issue leads directly into it. Making Em Jay a Carnage is still rather odd. I do like the inclusion of Dazzler.

Transformers #6. Written and drawn by Daniel Warren Johnson. As it seemed that they were preparing to kill Optimus Prime (I was having horrible flashbacks to Transformers: The Movie from the theater- a transcended moment in a lot of our lives), strange things happen. I am not really sure what happened except Sparky made some kind of sacrifice to save and fix Optimus. I have no idea how he knew what to do or how it worked, but it was definitely a boss move sand was pretty cool. I just am going to try not to think too much about it.

Napalm Lullaby #1. Written by Rick Remender and art and cover art by Bengal. A brutal and new series from Image that was a bit tough to follow. It seemed as if the beginning part was borrowing an origin from Superman. Still it is intriguing and I hope to be more into it as we progress. I do like the design of these characters.

Fall of the House of X #3. “The X Deaths of Dr. Statis” Written by Gerry Duggan and art by Lucas Werneck & Jethro Morales. Pepe Larraz & Marte Gracia did the cover art. This was a satisfying issue with Dr. Statis seemingly paying a price for his horrible acts during this Orchis storyline. Nice to see Firestar back and safe too. However, the cover does seem to indicate that Wolverine would have some role to play in this issue, and he is not to be found.

Other issues this week: Night People #1, Dead X-Men #3, What If… Venom #2, Ghost Rider: Final Vengeance #1, The One hand #2, Power Pack: Into the Storm #3, and Symbiote Spider-Man 2099 #1.

EYG Comic Cavalcade #84

March 3, 2024

New banner! Exciting times! Good books this week too.

I mentioned last post that Todd was going to Des Moines and was going to get some books signed for me. He returned with the two that I had, both signed by by Eric Gapstur and one signed by both Gapstur and Joey Vazquez. He also brought Amazing Spider-Man: Gang War #1 variant signed by Vazquez and he wondered if I wanted it. I told him yes, and it is a cool thing. Todd sure seems to have connections. I guess that is what happens when you go to conventions for as many years as he has.

I purchased Zorro: Man of the Dead #2, but I did not read it yet, because I am waiting for issue #1. It looks to be a present day Zorro story and the art looks fantastic. I have always enjoyed the character of Zorro, so I am excited to read this one and see what it is like.

New books this week:

Paul the Samurai #1. Written by Ben Edlund and penciled by Dave Garcia. Another book that Todd brought back for me from Des Moines that he was wondering if I would like to purchase. Paul is a spin-off of The Tick series from New England Comics and I love the Tick so I happily bought it from him. I have been working on picking up certain Tick books via eBay and this one is a great addition to the collection.

Spider-Punk: Arms Race #1. Written by Cody Ziglar with art by Justin Mason. Takashi Okazaki & Rico Renzi did the cover art. I really like the character of Hobie Brown, Spider-Punk, especially from Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse. However, this issue just did not do much for me. I do not know why it did not grab me as much as I would have expected, but it just did not.

Grim: Pen and Ink #1. This includes not only art but also commentary from Flaviano, the one-named artist extraordinaire from the Grim books. This is a reprint of issue one but in a beautiful black and white style. Something is Killing the Children did its number one in this style last year too. It is a wonderful piece of art in this manner.

Ice Cream Man #38. “Escape from Garyland” Written by W. Maxwell Prince and including art by Martin Morazzo. Legit, I think Ice Cream Man has the most consistently original and creative stories every new issue. This whole thing with this character of Gary was thoroughly engaging and made me want to know what was happening to all these poor Garys. Cover of the week too, btw.

Amazing Spider-Man #44. Written by Zeb Wells and penciled by John Romita Jr. Romita Jr., Scott Hanna and Marcio Menyz did the cover art. The Gang War comes to its conclusion as Spidey and his band of heroes take on the double dealing crime lords and one comes out on top.

Resurrection of Magneto #2. “The Weight of the World” Written by Al Ewing and art by Luciano Vecchio. Stefano Caselli & Jesus Aburtov did cover art. Magneto has to come to the understanding about his terrible past and the pain and loss of life that he caused. Can Storm convince him to return with her, and if she does, what is the path they must take?

Phantom Road #9. Written by Jeff Lemire and drawn by Gabriel H. Walta. A weird and wild story and one of the quickest reads of the week. The imagery tells much of this story as Dom and Beverly face horrors from their past.

Avengers: Twilight #3. “With You I Can Do Anything.” Written by Chip Zdarsky and including art by Daniel Acuna. Alex Ross and Daniel Acuna did the cover art. The future tale of the Avengers rolls on with a great battle between Cap and the new Iron Man, son Tony Stark, James. Ms. Marvel makes an appearance as does Tony Stark’s disembodied head.

Immortal Thor #7. Written by Al Ewing and drawn by Martin Coccolo. Alex Ross did the cover art. There are some odd things going on in this book as it seems as if the Enchantress and Skurge have some magical being (Dario?) and the story is being told in a comic book…or so it seems. Its been weird so far, but I love Al Ewing so I will give him the benefit of th edoubt.

W0rldtr33 #8. Written by James Tynion IV and art by Fernando Blanco. Honestly, this book has been my least favorite James Tynion IV book so far. I find it confusing and I am having a difficult time following it. However, I am on board with it for however long it goes. This issue seemed to have a little more clearness for me and so we’ll see where it goes from here.

Invincible Iron Man #15. “The River”. Written by Gerry Duggan and penciled by Creees Lee. Kael Ngu did the cover art. This issue sets up what looks to be the big knockdown between Tony Stark and the Stark Sentinels. It sees the debut of Tony’s new armor and the Sentinel-Buster armor. Tony and Emma are great together too, by the way.

Punisher #4. Written by David Pepose and art by Dave Wachter. Rod Reis did the cover art. This feels like the end of the story for this new Punisher, but maybe I am wrong. I did enjoy his conflict with the new Jigsaw and his eventual acceptance of the Punisher name. I hope this is not over.

Miles Morales: Spider-Man #17. “Retribution: Part 1” Written by Cody Ziglar and art by Partha Pratim & Federico Sabbatini. The anti-vigilante legislation in New York has been repealed, but that does not mean that Miles’ problems are over. Agent Gao has more plans and they may include Rabble.

Giant Size Fantastic Four #1. “Imperious Rex” Written by Fabian Nicieza and art by Creees Lee. Bryan Hitch & Alex Sinclair did the cover art. A new story featuring Atlantis, but no Namor. A new character arrives with a past connected to the underwater city. How does the FF play into this?

Newburn #15. Written by Chip Zdarsky and penciled by Jacob Phillips. Newburn is playing chess while everyone else is playing Chutes & Ladders. Newburn is on his way to next issue’s finale no matter how many bodies he has to step over on his way.

White Widow #4. Written by Sarah Gailey and art by Alessandro Miracolo. Cover art was done by David Marquez & Rachelle Rosenberg. Yelena wraps up her own limited series with a showdown with Armament. Yelena’s voice in the comic echoes that of the MCU character from the Black Widow movie and the Hawkeye series and I am here for that.

Other books this week: Dead X-Men #2, Women of Marvel #1, Power Pack: Into the Storm #2, Slow Burn #5, Deep Cuts #5 and Rare Flavours #4.

Comic Cavalcade #83

February 25, 2024

Jumping right in this week…

Marvel Two-in-One #99. Written by Bill Mantlo and penciled by Bob Hall. Hannigan & Byrne did the cover art. I was inventorying some of the older boxes in my collection when I came across a Marvel Two-in-One. On CLZ, I saw a pic of this book. I have always loved Rom so I went to eBay and picked it up. Story was okay. I miss Rom.

Spider-Boy #4. “Nightmare Scenario” and “Missing Pieces.” Both written by Dan Slott. 1st story art by Paco Medina. 2nd story art by Ty Templeton. Cover art by Humberto Ramos & Edgar Delgado. Baily Briggs has had some difficulties, feeling a touch jealous of Miles Morales and having to deal with his monster side.

The Six Fingers #1. “In the Gaps“. Written by Dan Watters and art by Sumit Kumar. This is an intriguing new book set in Neo Novena. Johannes is at the center of the story, and he is interesting. I enjoyed this one more than last week’s One Hand.

Tenement #9. Written by Jeff Lemire and drawn by Andrea Sorrentino. The latest horror series from Jeff Lemire has its penultimate issue. This has continued to be wild and weird journey through the floors of this building.

Incredible Hulk #9. “Frozen Charlotte Part One” Written by Phillip Kennedy Johnson and guest artist Danny Earls. Cover art was by Nic Klein. Bruce is in New Orleans with Betty. Honestly, this monster-type story was not my favorite Hulk story . Hopefully I hope this improves.

Cobra Commander #2. Written by Joshua Williamson and art by Andrea Milana. The villainous Cobra Commander faces off with Buzzer and Ripper as we meet Zarana.

Spider-Woman #4. Written by Steven Foxe and art by Carola Borelli. Leinil Francis & Sunny Gho did the cover art. The Gang War arc is coming to an end but Jessica Drew continues to have her own problems with her now older son.

Ultimate Spider-Man #2. Written by Jonathan Hickman and art by Marco Checchetto. Peter Parker has found a black costume and is swinging around the city. However, with kids and a wife, Peter isn’t as lucky in keeping his secret a secret. His daughter May finds him in his costume. He also has to fight the Shocker.

Daredevil #6. “Introductory Rites Part Six” Written by Saladin Ahmed and art by Aaron Kuder. Dr. Strange guest stars as he tries to help Matt realize what has been happening with the demons he has been facing lately.

Justice League vs. Godzilla vs. Kong #5. Written by Brian Buccellato and art by Christian Duce. Drew Johnson and Romulo Fajaroo Jr. did the cover art. Luthor has created something to help battle the titans… the MechGodzilla. Monarch makes an appearance too.

Deer Editor#2. Written by Ryan Lindsay and art by Sami Kivelä. The buck noir keeps on as Bucky is tied to a chair, and he realizes that the mayor has some involvement.

Guardians of the Galaxy Annual #1. “Grootrise” Written by Collin Kelly & Jackson Lanzing. Art was by Kev Walker. Emilio Laiso & Bryan Valenza did the cover art. This brought the recent Groot storyline to a conclusion. This wrapped up the new Guardians arc, and Drax sacrificed himself to save Groot.

Animal Pound #2. Written by Tom King and illustrated by Peter Gross. The revolution is over and now the animals need to find a way to live. They are running out of food and this lead to one of the dogs killing a rabbit to eat. Politics find its way into the pound.

Sentry #3. “Legacy Part III” Written by Jason Loo and art by Luigi Zagaria with David Cutler. Ben Harvey did the cover art. This was my favorite issue of this series so far. Ryan Topper is grabbing the power from the other Sentrys. Jessica Jones appears in this book as well.

G.O.D.S. #5. Written by Jonathan Hickman with art by Valerio Schiti. Mateus Manhanini did the cover art. Mia DiMaria wants to be like Wyn and she has been doing what he asked. However, it sounds as if she doesn’t have much chance to advance. Cool creepy issue.

Captain Marvel #5. “Family Matters.” Written by Alyssa Wong and art by Jan Bazalour. Stephen Segovia & Romulo Fajaroo Jr. did the cover art. Captain Marvel is switching back and forth yet and the danger is real.

Luke Cage: Gang War #4. Written by Rodney Barnes and art by Ramon F. Bachs. Caanan White did the cover art. Luke Cage and his team of illegal vigilantes bring down the robots from Scythe. Luke has a battle armor, but it requires old school for him to win.

Other books this week: Marvel Super Heroes Secret Wars: Battlefield #4, Rise of the Powers of X #2, The Last Hunt Predator #1, Alien: Black, White and Blood #1, A Haunted Girl #4, and Nights #5.