Image Advance Arrivals: August 2025
[Just a FYI: No podcast this week for multiple reasons. Primarily the fact that I chose something rather lengthy to talk about and Fanime threw a wrench in our plans to record. Expect it next week. As for what it is… it’s something I should’ve done last year but didn’t and will likely fall under the “Buried Mediocrity of Manga” banner despite its creator/creative team.]
Above-the-Board Recommendation:
G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero – The Silent Missions
You know the story: Larry Hama had been wanting to do a silent issue of “G.I. Joe” for a while and when deadline pressures loomed, he and Steve Leialoha teamed up for the silent Snake Eyes spotlight issue #21 of “A Real American Hero” and blew everyone’s minds. Decades later, it’s still talked about as being not just the most memorable issue of the title’s original Marvel run, but one of the greatest comics of all time by anyone who’s read it. I wouldn’t say it’s that great, but it’s pretty good.
Now, you can read it again in this collection along with five other stories that are giving the whole Silent Issue thing a go. Phil Hester does Beachead. Dan Watters and Dani showcase Jinx. Leonardo Romero shows us Spirit. Wes Craig delivers Duke. And Andrew Krahnke brings on Roadblock – the whole reason I’m putting this collection here.
Krahnke made a memorable debut with “Bloodrik” his gonzo, go-for-broke riff on “Conan” that managed to be ridiculous, dramatic, and adrenaline-pumping all at once. He hasn’t announced his next extended comics project yet, so this issue is how I’ll have to get my post-”Bloodrik” fix until then. While I don’t want to sell any of the other creators here short – Wes Craig and Phil Hester are my best bets to also deliver the goods here – I’m expecting Krahnke’s issue to be all the more intense for its utter silence.
Escape #1: Milton Shaw is a bomber pilot who is shot down behind enemy lines in the city he helped to destroy. That’s bad. What’s worse is that he’s learned his side is about to try and end this war with the biggest bomb they have. Now Milton has to rely on the unlikely assistance of a father and son if they’re going to have any hope of making it out of the city alive. This comes to us from the “Uncanny Avengers” team of writer Rick Remender and artist Daniel Acuna. While I’m always up for seeing what genre Remender is up for exploring with his latest project, it’s great to see Acuna again. His lush style has always been eye-catching and a highlight of any comic lucky to feature it. I don’t know how long this series is meant to run for, but hopefully we’ll see the artist bring his A-game to every issue.
Universal Monsters: The Invisible Man #1 (of 4): Jack Griffin has always been invisible to the people around him; at least, in his own mind. However, when a scientific breakthrough makes his feeling of invisibility into a reality, he’s going to indulge himself to the fullest and at the expense of everyone around him. I was more interested in these “Universal Monster” stories before each one of them went directly to hardcover. While I’m still interested in checking out Faith Erin Hicks’ “The Mummy,” this new take from James Tynion IV and Dani doesn’t really do it for me. Tynion is too straightforward a writer to wring anything interesting out of this straightforward setup, but you might feel differently if you liked his take on “Dracula.”
Space Opera Xanadax Across the Unknown Dimensions of the Galaxy: This OGN comes to us from creator Tom Scioli who has managed a very successful career out of pursuing the boundless energy and invention that Jack Kirby effortlessly infused comics with. Lots of people have liked his “Transformers vs. G.I. Joe,” “Gobots,” “Godland,” and “Fantastic Four: Grand Design,” and I… haven’t been able to get on his wavelength for whatever reason. His latest project, about a brooding cyborg space-loner who mixes it up with crime lords, space pirates, and bounty hunters across the galaxy, sounds like it should be right up my alley. Maybe I’ll give this a shot when it comes out and see if things have changed over the years to where Scioli’s idea of crazy and my idea of a good time have finally aligned.
The Swords of Wintersea Book One: Immortality: The “Critical Role” people have shown that you can thrive by turning your D&D campaign into a multimedia experience. Now “Think Tank” (among other things) writer Matt Hawkins gives it a try with his campaign that’s been going on for… forty years?! Well, good for him and his friends. Whether or not his story about humans rolling up over elves, dwarves, and orcs to stop their millenia of island nation war is any good, we’ll see. At least he’s offering the means to turn the story into its own Fifth Edition campaign if you’d like to try and do it better.
Criminal: My Heroes Have Always Been Junkies: You know, I remember back when this was advertised as Ed Brubaker and Sean Phillips’ first graphic novel. That it was also an installment in their “Criminal” series wasn’t something I found out about until I opened it up. It’s a good connection too, with an unassuming setup involving a young woman named Ellie who winds up in a rehab clinic and strikes up a relationship with one of its high-end patients. Yeah, it ends badly in the “Criminal” way, but what makes it memorable is how it does so in a way you don’t expect. Or maybe you’ll have some inkling if the new Super Mega-Evil Ellie cover they’ve cooked up for this edition is any indication.
Feral vol. 3: Nine Lives: Vol. 2 is in my To Read pile and I found the time to read it between panels at Fanime. Expect a review here… eventually. The short version is that while I think it succeeds in pursuing more horror vibes, it doesn’t feel like a complete story by the end of the volume. Which this third one will hopefully rectify.
What about this third volume of “Feral?” Well, the cats find their way into an abandoned pet supply superstore. Sounds fun. I’m sure they’ll be fine.
Radiant Black vol. 7: SPOILER WARNING for anyone who hasn’t made it through the “Catalyst War:” Marshall Ward is now Radiant Black and that’s the way it’s going to stay. Until it doesn’t. But I’m sure that won’t be for a while. Still, after saving all of existence (or is it EXISTENCE) he’s due for a break. Which is why I’m sure he’s looking forward to stopping a serial killer, tackling an online conspiracy in the real world, and the emergence of new factions as Chicago rebuilds. Let’s just hope Marshall’s working vacation is more interesting to read about than the solicitation text is making it sound.