Previews Picks: December 2018
“Batman: Damned” got off to a headline-grabbing start last week. Not because of its status as the debut “Black Label” title for mature readers superhero comics, or the quality of the storytelling from writer Brian Azzarello and artist Lee Bermejo. No, it grabbed all of those headlines because in one scene Bermejo drew Batman disrobing in a way that showed off his penis. That’s right, the Batpenis is now an official part of comics canon. Assuming you picked up a physical copy of the comic — the Batpenis has been removed from the digital editions. If you didn’t, then you’d better act soon because it’s very unlikely DC will keep the Batpenis in subsequent print editions. Copies of the first issue of “Damned” are already going for $85 on Ebay right now as a result of this.
No more mentions of the Batpenis in this article after the break — I promise…
DC Comics:
… if only because by the time this article goes live the first issue of “Heroes in Crisis” will have hit the stands. For all of writer Tom King’s skill, I think this is a deeply misguided attempt to add depth to the superhero genre. Not only does the idea of addressing trauma and PTSD in this context look to undermine the suspension of disbelief necessary to enjoy the genre, but the idea of killing off several characters who are suffering from these issues comes off as tasteless in the extreme. Even more so if the rumors about who will be doing the killing turn out to be true. It could turn out that my initial impressions about “Heroes in Crisis” are all wrong and it winds up being the best comic of the year. I’d honestly prefer that to be the case.
The Batman Who Laughs #1 (of 6): “Metal” wound up being decent enough, but kind of a letdown considering its creative team. Now one of its breakout characters is getting a miniseries of his own from writer Scott Snyder and artist Jock. It turns out that the Batman Who Laughs survived the end of “Metal” and is busy enacting a new sinister plan across the multiverse. Okay, fine. Where the solicitation starts to lose me is when it brings up the idea that Batman may have to kill the Batman Who Laughs in order to stop him. I’ve been reading “Batman” comics enough to know misdirection when I see it. Particularly when this miniseries has also been said to feature a Batman who takes after the Punisher when it comes to stopping criminals. Even if he’s working with the villain, Bat-Punisher seems like a more likely candidate to put a permanent stop to this villainous plot.
Freedom Fighters #1 (of 12): Bringing back a patriotic figurehead like Uncle Sam is always a dicey proposition. The most likely scenarios are that you’re either going to wind up with something that jingoistically patriotic or a ham-fisted critique of America. I’m not sure which we’ll get here, or if writer Robert Venditti will manage to thread the needle and give us a worthwhile read. He’s at least picking up from an interesting starting point as this takes place on Earth X, where the Nazis won WWII. (No word on whether or not this is specifically picking up from the version of the world seen in Grant Morrison’s “Multiversity” series.) If nothing else I think we can all agree that seeing the takedown of a world of Nazis is the kind of story we all need right now. Anyone who disagrees can get the fuck right out.
Dark Nights: Metal: The event series gets a paperback edition… WITH TWO ISSUES THAT WEREN’T IN THE HARDCOVER?!?! That’s right, “Batman: Lost” and “Dark Knights Rising: The Wild Hunt,” the two tie-in issues co-written by Scott Snyder will be in this edition. Which is a fine “FUCK YOU!” from DC to the fans like me who shelled out for the “deluxe” hardcover edition. I think this may be a first, where the paperback edition of a story first published in hardcover has received additional content like this. I’ll definitely remember this for the next time that I consider buying a collection of a DC event series.
Wonder Woman by Brian Azzarello and Cliff Chiang Omnibus: I’m not sure how much of this run remains in continuity after Greg Rucka’s run, but you shouldn’t let that stop you from reading this. It’s a brutally modern take on mythological figures and one that never forgets to let its title character be a hero.
Marvel Comics:
So there was going to be a new “The Vision” miniseries from writers Chelsea Cain and Marc Mohan with art from Aud Koch that would be following up on the events of the previous series from Tom King and Gabriel Hernandez Walta. Not anymore. Marvel cancelled it after four issues had already been completed without giving an official reason for it, though they did make sure the creative team was compensated for the work they had done. While we’ll likely never get an official reason as to why this miniseries was cancelled, the rumor mill suggests that Cain and Mohan’s take diverged too heavily from how the events of the original series had been followed up on already in the Marvel Universe. Cain has been outspoken in her frustration about this while also mentioning that Marvel had asked her to keep this “quiet.” The resulting fallout from all this suggests that no one had learned anything from the experiences of Cain’s previous Marvel series “Mockingbird.”
Fantastic Four #5: In which Ben Grimm and Alicia Masters get married. It says a lot about the current state of comic book weddings that the solicitation text has to mention that this isn’t a bait and switch (or a Skrull plot). Still, writer Dan Slott is smart enough to know that there has to be some twist or some drama to the proceedings to make it a memorable event. If all goes well, then this extra-sized issue should be a great example of how to properly do a superhero wedding.
X-Force #1: Wait, I thought that “Weapon X” was the current “X-Force” series. I mean, the current arc is even called “Weapon X-Force.” Oh well. This comes from “Extermination” and “Old Man Logan” writer Ed Brisson, with Dylan Burnett providing the art, and brings back the original team of Cannonball, Warpath, Boom-Boom, Domino, and Shatterstar. Which at least gives them a good connection to the name. The initial storyline has them following up on one of the key plot points from “Extermination” so I’ll be waiting to read that series before I decide how excited I should be about this one.
Killmonger #1&2 (of 5): If you needed any further proof about how much of an event the “Black Panther” movie was, then consider that the character of Erik Killmonger is now popular enough to warrant his own miniseries. Writer Bryan Hill and artist Juan Ferreyra explore the character’s early days and how his mindset was shaped. Considering that these issues indicate that Wilson Fisk was involved, it should be no surprise that Erik turned out the way he did.
Miles Morales: Spider-Man #1: In which the character takes his first steps into a much larger world — one where his solo adventures are no long written by Bendis! “Black Bolt” writer Saladin Ahmed takes over for writing Miles and Javier Garron provides the art. The first issue solicitation doesn’t give much info beyond suggesting that we’re getting the usual “Spider-Man” action here, but I’ve heard that Ahmed’s “Black Bolt” series was much better than you’d think for being a solo series about the Inhumans’ mostly silent king. I’ll be picking this series up once it’s collected just to see if there’s any hope of Miles getting a definitive adventure that finally sets him apart from his superhero namesake after all this time.
Star Wars: Doctor Aphra vol. 4 — The Catastrophe Con: So my main complaint about the previous volume was that it felt overstuffed. This time around we’ve got Aphra in a prison, which might also be haunted, and sent to a war zone, where the Rebellion is looking to get the info they want from the doctor. Oh, and Aphra’s current flame Tolvan meets up with her ex, Sana, which is less of problem when you consider that a certain tall, dark, and malevolent Sith Lord is also about to re-enter the picture. This doesn’t look to be any less packed than vol. 3, but I will take reassurance with the fact that writer Si Spurrier still brought it in for a solid enough landing in the end. Best of luck to him in accomplishing the same here.
Death of the Inhumans: I’m just hoping for this collection to deliver on what the title has promised. Make me proud Donny.
Dark Horse:
Hellboy Winter Special 2018: This issue may have Mike Mignola and Ben Stenbeck giving us the story of Hellboy dealing with a seance gone wrong and Tonci Zonjic writing and illustrating a “Lobster Johnson” story. However, serious Mignolaverse fans will realize that the real attraction here is Gabriel Ba and Fabio Moon doing a follow-up to their “B.P.R.D.: Vampire” storyline. That was one of the best Mignolaverse stories and the fact that we’re getting a (brief) return to it is reason enough to get excited. If for some reason you’ve never read “Vampire” then wait a few months to read the new edition which will collect this story. I’ll just pick up this issue itself to see what’s in store.
B.P.R.D.: The Devil You Know vol. 2 — Pandemonium: The latest “B.P.R.D.” series didn’t get off to the greatest of starts. What it did have was an ending that demanded its readers pick up the second volume. I mean, Hellboy is back?! From Hell and the Dead?! Even if it’s just a trick, which I doubt because Mignola doesn’t go in for that kind of bait-and-switch, I have to know what’s going on. I’m excited to read this volume for that reason alone, which is kind of a problem considering everything else that was set up in the volume didn’t do a whole lot for me.
Mind MGMT Omnibus vol. 1: Collects the first two volumes of Matt Kindt’s mind-bending psychic/psychological warfare story. If you’ve ever been curious about this series, then this is the edition to get. Arguably, it’s the edition that should’ve been released first since I’m still bitter about how that first volume ended in such a predictable and potential-destroying way. Kindt managed to get past that in subsequent volumes, but reading the first two together will help it go down much, much smoother.
Xerxes: The Fall of the House of Darius and Rise of Alexander HC: Frank Miller’s follow-up to “300.” Considering his output since that epic series, I’m honestly not sure if I’m brave enough to pick up and read this one. Even for purposes of hatereading.
Berserk: Deluxe Edition HC vol. 1: Now this is interesting. While it doesn’t surprise me to see “Berserk” get the omnibus treatment, Dark Horse is really going all-out for it. The first three volumes are being reprinted in a hardcover 7in by 10in format. For reference, those dimensions are standard comic book hardcover format (or the size of the “Attack on Titan: Colossal Edition” volumes). The good news is that mangaka Kentaro Miura’s art is so detailed that enlarging it will likely only help you appreciate it more. The bad news is that this edition will set you back $50. And that the possibility of Miura finishing this series remains shaky at best. Should we all take that as read at this point?
Image Comics:
Die #1: Not to be confused with “DIE! DIE! DIE!” also being published by Image, or the idea that Kieron Gillen wants his devoted readership to kick the bucket. No, this latest series from the writer is all about a group of kids who played a game of “Dungeons & Dragons” only to get sucked into its world and have to fend for their lives until they made it out. Now they’re adults and the magical d20 that sent them there has finally resurfaced. Gillen has yet to disappoint me with anything he’s done, so I’ll be all over this once the collected editions start rolling out. Stephanie Hans provides the art and she’s done excellent painted work in the past. This will be the first monthly title she’s illustrated so don’t be surprised if the series winds up taking “Saga”-style breaks between arcs.
Hardcore #1: Andy Diggle takes over another Robert Kirkman concept for this series about a government program that allows its agents to take over the body of anyone on Earth. The fun starts when their best agent winds up stuck in one body and only 72 hours to find out who set him up. Diggle delivered the best volumes of Kirkman’s “Thief of Thieves” (that’d be volumes 3 & 4) before delivering its two most disappointing and leaving Brett Lewis to wrap the series up. Here’s hoping we get Diggle’s A-game here, though with Alessandro Vitti illustrating this, we can be assured that it’ll at least look good.
Farmhand vol. 1: Jebediah Jenkins is a farmer, but he doesn’t grow food. No, Jebediah grows customizable organs that can be transplanted into any body. It’s a business that has served his family well for years, but now things are starting to go wrong. This comes to us from “Chew” illustrator Rob Guillory and it looks to have a darker bent than that series. Still, Guillory was so in synch with writer John Layman for the entirety of that series’ run that I’m expecting some of the demented fun from that title to carry over to this one.
Paper Girls vol. 5: It’s not that I want to say that I’ve given up hope of this series ever being as good as writer Brian K. Vaughan’s other creator-owned work, but… The solicitation for this volume reminds us that we’re now in the future of this series and the reason that the Grand Father has been pursuing the girls across time will be revealed here. Which is interesting because the previous volume offered up a compelling reason for that as well. If nothing else I’ll just settle for this series becoming a little less puzzle-box-y with this volume.
Seven to Eternity vol. 3: Rise to Fall: Only four issues in this collection, and they had all better feature Garlis Slum in them! Seriously, the two issues he didn’t feature in from the last volume were the least interesting ones. And they were even illustrated by James Harren! Vol. 3 is billed as the end of the first chapter of this series. Let’s hope it ends with Garlis winning Adam Osidis fully to his side and triumphing over the sanctimonious do-gooders who’ve been pursuing him since the start of the series. Given that this is a series written by Rick Remender, it’s entirely possible that such a thing could happen!