For new releases 12/29/21!
We are back with your Weekly Round-Up, our top 4 picks of the week! It's the LAST week of 2021 (thank goodness) and we both couldn't be more hype about it! What books helped us wrap up this year the best? Let's get into it!
Lauren’s Picks
Marvel Comics
Writer: Chip Zdarsky
Artist: Marco Checchetto
Colorist: Marcio Menyz
Letterer: Clayton Cowles
This is the first Marvel event I’ve read in recent years that I’ve really been digging. I read Empyre but that did almost nothing for me… the cosmic stuff seemed almost wasted. Here in Devil’s Reign, tho, with all the heroes in the streets? It’s magnificent. Zdarsky is one of the biggest writers in the business currently for good reason. My only issue with this series is that Luke Cage is colored way too lightly. He almost looks like a tan white man… that is NOT acceptable when he is a black man. I’m not sure why this is happening, considering Marcio Menyz has colored Luke Cage plenty in the past… but he needs to be colored as he is: a black man and a DARK black man at that. Beyond that, the rest of the creative team lights up this event perfectly. It feels like it will have real ramifications for once and I’m here for it!
DC Comics
Writer: Joshua Williamson
Penciller: Roger Cruz
Inker: Norm Rapmund
Colorist: Luis Guerrero
Letterer: Troy Peteri
Thank GOD DC is caring about the Al Ghuls again. It may have taken a kid with Batman to do it, but we are finally getting more Al Ghul lore with this series and I adore it. All elements of this series come together naturally; it feels like the creative team has been working together for decades! I can’t wait to see what happens as each issue continues leading up to the impending Shadow War next year!
Marvel Comics
Writer: Jed MacKay
Artists: Greg Land, Jay Leisten, Mark Bagley, Kev Walker, Andrew Hennessey
Colorist: Marte Gracia
Letterer: Ariana Maher
Designer: Nick Russell
I absolutely adore Kang the Conqueror as a villain. I adore him even more after reading the limited Kang the Conqueror series that just finished. The Timeless series continues to further my love of him. Am I excited for Kang in the MCU? Absolutely! But I’ve loved Kang since I read the original Young Avengers line years ago and I’m just glad he’s got a place in comics again. Don’t sleep on Kang; he’s coming soon to the big screen for a reason, and Jed MacKay’s writing makes one of the best cases as to why!
DC Comics
Writer: Jeff Lemire
Art: Doug Mahnke
Colorist: David Baron
Letterer: Steve Wands
This book is a horror masterpiece! Dark, terrifying, and going right for the heart- would you expect anything less from Lemire’s writing? Doug Mahnke’s lines and David Baron’s washed-out colors make the atmosphere feel something akin to a Stephen King movie. I love this AU and can’t wait to see how much more terrifying it gets, and the magazine size prestige format is no joke! Add this one to your pull STAT!
You can find Lauren, Your Friendly Neighborhood Bi, at all her links here:
Joe’s Picks
DC Comics
Writer: Jeremy Adams
Artist: Fernando Pasarin & Matt Ryan
Colorist: Jeromy Cox
Letterer: Rob Leigh
This is one of those titles where if you're wanting to read something not Batman-related, and are not sure where to look, look here! Bold, fun, superhero action, currently featuring the Justice League Dark. Plus in this issue, there's some focus on Jai and Iris, which I loved to see and really grounds the book amongst the crazy things Wally is currently going through. I'm a sucker for those family dynamics in books, especially when it's showing superheroes in domestic settings, something about how it humanizes them is always so appealing to me. This has been such an enjoyable run, and it's starting to kick into high gear, check it out!
DC Comics
Writer: Tom King
Artist & Colorist: Greg Smallwood
Letterer: Clayton Cowles
There's no other word to describe this series other than enchanting! Whenever I read a new issue, it has this hold over me, and I'm so captivated I can't stop reading. Largely due to Smallwood's gorgeous art. Seriously, it's glorious! It has that smooth, soothing pastel feel to it, and his use of lighting to create an atmosphere is just so beautiful to see. I'm loving King's development of the story here, I'm so intrigued by the mystery and the characters. It's just really nicely paced, each issue feeling satisfying in its own right whilst also pushing the overall story forward. Which is important to me and isn't always a given for King. Great stuff, really enjoying this and looking forward to seeing how it continues!
DC Comics
Writer: Joshua Williamson
Artist: Roger Cruz
Inker: Norm Rapmund
Colorist: Luis Guerrero
Letterer: Troy Peteri
Along with Nightwing, this is one of the most fun and enjoyable books not only from DC but on the shelves in general! It never fails to impress. There's a certain energy to every issue which always puts me in a good mood after reading it. From the ideas to the brilliant supporting characters, to the character work done with Damian, one of my favourite comic book characters, there's so much to like here! Additionally, sometimes when there's a fill-in artist it can feel jarring and out of place, but I didn't even notice until I checked the credits to put here! Great story, awesome artwork, another issue I just loved! Highly recommend catching up on this series when you can, I don't think you'll regret it.
Image Comics
Writer: W. Maxwell Prince
Artist: Martín Morazzo
Colorist: Chris O'Halloran
Letterer: Good Old Neon
I was looking back through my picks for this week and realised how close to a clean sweep DC came! Which just makes the accomplishments here all the greater. In the days of long sprawling storylines, one and done issues, when done right, have become something special to look out for as a break from those epic sagas.
Enter Ice Cream Man. Read a couple issues here and there but only began reading regularly a few issues ago, and my pull list has been all the better for it. This issue was particularly impressive to me for its ability to shift tones so effectively and subtly you're just left thinking about what you just read by the end.
An incredible issue, in a way only this series can provide. The way it goes from generally unsettling to some body horror through to some seemingly mundane existentialism that's so realistic it's somehow more chilling than anything else in the first half of the issue. And the way it all links back to ice cream, however tangentially, just wow. Then the ending was so simplistically chilling.
No other issue stuck in my mind so prominently, that there was no other choice for pick of the week I could have chosen. An incredible 32 pages of mostly self-contained comic book storytelling.
Can you tell we both love DC Comics lately? What were your top picks this week? Let us know what we missed! You never know; your recommendation could end up on our lists in the future!
Come find us both on Twitter and let's talk comics and good times :)
You can find Lauren, Your Friendly Neighborhood Bi, at all her links here: beacons.ai/friendlynbhdbi
You can follow JoeLovesComics over on Twitter for (albeit shorter) thoughts on comics he loves.
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