Every week, tons of new books hit the stands, each with potential. Some live up to that potential. We pick the ones we think have the best shot at heating up. Here are the picks of the week for delivery this Wednesday
What is up Wednesday Warriors? Feels like the first week in a while with books to really talk about. Check out what is on tap:
New Series
Alien vs Captain America #1 – It’s World War II and Hydra seeks a new weapon to defeat the Allies and win the war. To that end, the Red Skull has sent Baron Strucker on an expedition to the Himalayas to find the fabled city of Atilan. But instead of finding the Inhumans, Strucker uncovers something much more deadly. Much more…Alien. Can Captain America and the Howling Commandoes stop the Skull and his newfound xenomorph weapons…or will the First Avenger learn that in war-torn Europe…no one can hear you scream?
Circus Maximus #1 – Rome. 64 AD. The most daring heist in history is being planned by an unlikely crew – a former slave, a Vestal Virgin, a charioteer and a disgraced architect û each with their own personal motives. While Rome is distracted by the chariot racing and gladiatorial games of the Circus Maximus, the crew plans to rob the Imperial treasury under the Temple of Saturn. But when Emperor Nero sets fire to the city, they’ll be lucky to escape his wrath with their lives, let alone the loot.
Crownsville #1 – Super-excited about this one as Crownsville is right around the corner from my house and the history (and haunted history) is well known. SINS OF THE PAST DON’T STAY BURIED . . . THEY ALWAYS FIND A WAY OF RISING FROM THE GRAVE! From Eisner Awardûnominated writer and master storyteller Rodney Barnes (Batman: Full Moon, Killadelphia) and phenomenal artist Elia Bonetti (Death of Wolverine: The Logan Legacy), enter a century-spanning tale of suspense and sorrow as true crime meets shocking terror inside an infamous asylum with a tortured past in this double-sized, 48-page debut . . . Founded at the turn of the 20th century outside of Annapolis, Maryland, the Crownsville Hospital was a notoriously segregated, all-Black psychiatric institute. After decades of overcrowding and neglect—alongside darker, more-persistent rumors of patient abuse and illegal medical experiments—it was finally closed. Today, it stands condemned—a crumbling testament to a legacy of all-too-real terror inflicted on a marginalized and vulnerable community. But even as a ruin of its former self, Crownsville still casts a long shadow. . . . When an unexplained death inside the abandoned hospital is ruled a suicide, Annapolis police detective Mike Simms and journalist Paul Blairare are compelled to dig deeper, only to discover the reality of the horrors that once took place there . . . and the powerful connection they share to the anguished spirits of the dead that are still locked within its walls.
Planet She-Hulk #1 – SHE-HULK is back, and she’s…stuck on Sakaar?? Spinning out of Jonathan Hickman’s hit cosmic epic, IMPERIAL, Jennifer Walters made a promise to her cousin, HULK, to watch over the planet Sakaar and its people for a few days. But it’s been longer than a few days, and now She-Hulk is in charge of keeping the peace on a planet at war! But Jennifer is a VERY different Hulk than the one that once smashed Sakaar into submission…is she up for the task?
Space Scouts #1 – A young girl heads to the center of the universe to compete in a reality show to become the next “Space Scout.” What starts as a teenage drama turns into deadly war at the edge of the universe as the “winning” recruits are sent into a clandestine interminable battle that they most likely won’t survive. Space Scouts is the latest release from Flux House Books, a new boutique imprint that will feature the writing (and sometimes) art of acclaimed comics creator Matt Kindt, with crime, science fiction, horror, and humor stories, all told and presented in startling and untraditional ways. A special magazine-sized space odyssey, each issue features special bonus material!
Notable Reprints
Archie Facsimile #9 Sabrina The Teen-Age Witch 1 – MILESTONE FIRST ISSUE OF SABRINA’S FIRST-EVER COMIC SERIES! Re-live the magic when everyone’s favorite teenage witch got her very own comic series! Experience history (and even more pages than ever!) in SABRINA THE TEENAGE WITCH #1, faithfully reprinted in a full-facsimile edition!
Batman #47 Facsimile Edition – The Caped Crusader takes on a crooked prison warden, matches wits once more with the villainous Catwoman, and at long last learns the name of his parents’ killer! What will happen when Bruce Wayne finally stands face-to-face with Joe Chill? Be there as Batman closes the book on his most personal case ever!
For the Cover
Birds Of Prey #27 Christian Ward Cover – The Shadow Army’s plan to turn virtual violence into real-world bloodshed is closer to coming true than anyone realizes. And the line between game and reality shatters as the Birds enter the Unreality. Armed with the ultimate disguises and with the wildly unpredictable Inque now on their side, can the Birds of Prey stop the ultimate game over before it’s too late?
One and Done
Impact Winter Evenfall #1 – Was optioned by Netflix a while back, Impact Winter returns to comics The year is 1953. The Cold War is at its height, and intelligence operative Penelope Chambers is running an off-the-books investigation into the disappearance of female agents in Eastern Europe. When she’s called to Soviet Prague for a routine drop, Penelope will come face-to-face with death or the possibility of everlasting life
Tales Of Paranoia #1 – FIRST ROBERT CRUMB COMIC BOOK IN 23 YEARS! The seminal cartoonist who single-handedly invented the alternative comics format of the one-person anthology in 1967 with ZAP returns at age 81, still raging at the world and himself, still drawing like a master, and still funny… mostly. In his latest comcis excursion,Crumb dives down internet and newspaper rabbit-holes, and comes up asking questions. Who benefited from the COVID-19 vaccines? Why don’t we know the real background of deep state careerists? And is Crumb just as paranoid as everyone else tells him he is? Or is that just what THEY want you to think? Mixing memoir, essay, polemic, neurosis, and conspiracy across 12 short comics
DC Pick of the Week
DC K.O. Knightfight #1 – Supposed to be the first appearances of The Batman Who Fell, first Team appearance of Robin Inc. and first appearance of Dick Grayson, Batman. If this all pans out in the issue it could be a great issue to grab.
Marvel Pick of the Week
Amazing Spider-Man #15 – Witness the first full appearance of a new major character! Spider-Man’s suit seems to be an off shoot of Warlock from New Mutants. New suit, new alien, new nemesis.