New comics

New comics!

Six of Us 1

When I finished reading this issue, I couldn’t help myself from saying, “He’s so freaking good” out loud.  Tom King absolutely nails it with this first issue, which isn’t always the case with his titles.  (Not that they don’t almost always end up spectacularly.)  

It’s wonderful pitch: A member of this thinly-veiled cast of Friends (it’s Matthew Perry, RIP) is murdered by one of the other five.  Who dunnit?  King does a wonderful job of starting to flesh out the six actors, clearly tying them to their real-life counterparts while setting them apart with original relationships and motivations.  I can’t wait to read the rest of this.  

And who doesn’t wish that the Friends could have made a movie out of this?

Death Vigil 2

This is probably the weakest of Stjepan Sejic’s series that I’ve read.  It’s probably no coincidence that this is the most plot-heavy of his titles as well, with far less emphasis on the relationships between his characters.  I just picked up the first volume of this, and I’ll decide from there if I want to keep buying this.  

Doomquest 4

Doom lives through his own “Inner Light” (the legendary Star Trek: TNG episode).  He forswears his life of domination in order to live out a traditional family life with his childhood soulmate, Valeria.  By his own admission, it’s fulfilling, full of love, and unlike anything he’s ever experienced before.  The twist comes at the end, as Valeria’s dying of old age.  He decides that it still isn’t enough.  That’s he’s meant for more.  For he is Doom.  So he repudiates his life to her face before moving on down the timestream.

It’s heartless, cruel, cold, and utterly Doom.  A masterpiece of an issue by Ryan North.

Parker Girls 1-10

The Parker Girls, now run by Tambi, take down faux-Mark Zuckerberg.  Because he’s a murderous psychopath.  I said this last time with Five Years, but Terry Moore is such a master of the craft at this stage of his career.  The writing and art blend so seamlessly into a reading experience that’s just a joy to sit through.  

Dr Strange and Dr Doom: Triumph and Torment

A colleague recently recommended this to me, and Marvel coincidentally happened to reprint it a few weeks later.  It’s got 80’s era Mike Mignola illustrating this Roger Stern story.  Dr Strange is forced to grant Dr Doom a boon, so they journey together into Hades to confront Mephisto and save the soul of Doom’s mother.  The story is solid, and Mignola channels P Craig Russell way more than his own distinctive style (which isn’t necessarily a bad thing).  But it suffers from the 80’s wordiness that can be such a momentum killer for a banger comic.  I don’t regret buying this, but it doesn’t rank among the top tier of that decade.

Legion of Super-Heroes 1

I bought this solely due to Hayden Sherman’s name on the cover.  As long as he keeps drawing Absolute Wonder Woman.  Joshua Williamson writes a good-enough start that has the potential to be excellent.  (This looks to be a reboot of the team.)  And if it’s at all serviceable, I have no doubt that Sherman’s beautiful art will take it the rest of the way.

Superman: The Stranger 1

Wes Craig (of Deadly Class and Kaya fame) writes and draws this take on the 1920s Superman at the start of his career.  It’s lovely to look at, evoking Tim Sale’s work, but with a flavor of its own.  This is on my sub now.