Reviews
Geoff Johns is doing horror anthology and it works. Reis art has a real grit to it that fits the tone. A little uneven in places but the high points are very high. Excited to see where the larger Ghost Machine universe lands.
Geiger ongoing earned its place. Frank's art is unmatched for post-apocalyptic vibes, and Johns is doing his Walking Dead-style slow burn. Lower stakes than the Unnamed event books but more satisfying issue-to-issue.
Deniz Camp is writing the best big-team superhero book on the stands. The Maker reveal worked, the politics around it work, and Juan Frigeri brings the kind of weight cosmic books need. Don't skip this — it's peak Ultimate.
Cates did the impossible — making me care about Thor again after the Aaron run. Klein's art has weight. The Black Winter setup is exactly the kind of "stakes feel earned" Marvel cosmic that I miss.
Hickman gets Peter Parker. Full stop. The pivot in this book — older, married, with a kid — and the rebuilt status quo is the boldest Spider-Man swing in years. Marco Checchetto's art is breathtaking.
Ewing knows exactly what kind of horror book he's writing. The opening gas station scene is restrained and brutal. Bennett's art makes you uncomfortable in the best way. Modern Hulk peaked here.
Tynion has written enough horror that he could phone it in — but he absolutely does not. Department of Truth is a paranoid masterpiece and Simmonds' art is a genuine event. Best new launch of 2020.
Sana Takeda's art is the reason. Liu builds a world dense enough you trust her with every twist. Issue one is a high-effort entry — it asks you to keep up — and rewarded everyone who did.
Hickman pulled off the impossible — soft-rebooted the X-Men without alienating anyone. Larraz is a revelation. The data pages are a swing that completely lands. The Krakoa era starts here and it's a hell of an opening.
I keep coming back to this issue. BKV's opening line is iconic for a reason and Staples just blows the doors off the first page reveal. The romance, the worldbuilding, the absurdity — every comic launch since has been chasing this.
Tom King and Mitch Gerads turning Mister Miracle into a meditation on depression, fatherhood, and capes is the kind of swing that wins Eisners for a reason. Issue one sets up the impossible question and earns every page.
Local Man is the only book on the stands that pulls off the meta superhero genre swap. Tony Fleecs and Tim Seeley clearly have a blast with the format. The 90s flashback throwbacks are a great touch.
Hard to overstate how fresh this felt in 2003. Kirkman builds the world with restraint, Walker keeps it grounded. You feel the genre love in every panel. The first issue every other "kid in a superhero costume" book gets compared to.
Day one zombie comic. Restraint is the magic — issue one is more about people than walkers. That cliffhanger still holds up. Kirkman/Moore lit the fuse on a 16-year run that changed indie comics for good.
Gaiman finds the voice almost immediately — by issue one we're in his world, not borrowing from someone else's. Sam Kieth's art on this opening arc is rougher than what came later but it has its own charm.
Re-read. Still works. Moore/Gibbons/Higgins built the seminal deconstruction of superheroes here and the symbolism in just the cover works on three levels. If you've never read Watchmen, start tonight.