Can’t Wait for Wednesday | The next generation of Ninja Turtles returns

Check out new comics and graphic novels arriving this week by Kevin Eastman, Tom Waltz, Ben Bishop, Peach Momoko, Dan Jurgens, Mike Perkins, Derek Kirk Kim, Greg Weisman, Humberto Ramos, Eduardo Risso, Paul Reiser, Lara Pickle, Johnny Ryan, Katie Cook and more.

Welcome to Can’t Wait for Comics Wednesday, your guide to what comics are arriving in comic book stores, bookstores and on digital. It’s a pretty big week, with the launch of a sequel to last year’s best-selling superhero graphic novel, not to mention another new Ultimate Universe title from Marvel, a new take on classic Bat-Man and the return of Derek Kirk Kim to comics. And that’s just the tip of the iceberg!

I’ve pulled out some of the highlights below, but for the complete list of everything you might find at your local comic shop and on digital this week, you’ll want to check out one or more of the following:

As a reminder, things can change and what you find on the above lists may differ from what’s actually arriving in your local shop. So always check with your comics retailer for the final word on availability.

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Quick Hits | ‘Demon Slayer,’ Dav Pilkey, Bill Watterson top 2023 graphic novel sales charts

Plus: ‘Monica’ wins in Angouleme, the Bram Stoker Awards ballot and more.

Pulling information from Circana BookScan, ICv2 has listed the top 20 graphic novels sold in 2023 in the superhero, manga and “author” categories. They’ve also posted lists of the top adult and kid’s graphic novels.

Looking through the lists (which don’t provide exact numbers, just rankings), it looks like the first volume of Demon Slayer: Kimetsu No Yaiba by Koyoharu Gotouge is the big winner, topping both the manga chart and the adult graphic novel chart. Or maybe I should say “a big winner,” because over on the kid’s graphic novel chart, Dav Pilkey rules supreme, as Dog Man and its Cat Kid Comics Club spinoff took 13 of the 20 positions, including the top 3.

Also, I’m not exactly sure how the superhero and author categories are defined. For instance, the Invincible Compendium shows up on the author list — which makes sense, given how popular the Amazon show is — with Robert Kirkman listed as the author. But I would have expected it to be on the superhero list, given it’s about superheroes and Kirkman isn’t the sole author.

Then for superhero graphic novels, IDW’s Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Last Ronin hardcover topped the list, followed by Tokyopop’s Nightmare Before Christmas: Battle for the Pumpkin King manga. I think you could make the argument that the Last Ronin is a superhero title, but the Nightmare Before Christmas manga seems like it’s in the wrong place. But maybe I’m misunderstanding the catgeories.

All that aside, sales numbers for comics disappeared during the pandemic when the industry went from a single distributor to multiple distributors, so seeing any kind of data like this is appreciated and interesting.

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IDW announces a ‘Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Last Ronin’ sequel

Kevin Eastman, Tom Waltz, Ben Bishop and company will continue the story in ‘Re-Evolution.’

Casey Marie Jones and the next generation of Ninja Turtles will return for another round of turtle power in Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Last Ronin II – Re-Evolution.

The next chapter is co-written by TMNT co-creator Eastman and Tom Waltz, illustrated by Ben Bishop, Esau Escorza and Isaac Escorza, colored by Luis Antonio Delgado and lettered by Shawn Lee.

“The real heart and soul for me with dusting off and bringing The Last Ronin to life three years ago was my belief that ‘Every beginning must have an end,’” said Eastman. “With all the respect in the world for my co-creator Peter Laird, I wanted to bring full circle to what we started in 1984 and set out to do in 1987. With The Last Ronin, with my friend Tom Waltz and an incredible gathering of brilliant artisans, we accomplished that 33 years later. A very fitting end indeed.”

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‘TMNT: Last Ronin’ expands with a new one-shot, director’s cut

IDW announces a tie-in story focused on April O’Neil as well as a ‘director’s cut’ version of the ‘Lost Years’ miniseries.

Tomorrow sees the release of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Last Ronin–Lost Years #1, the first issue of a new miniseries that serves as prequel to IDW recent smash hit Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Last Ronin, an “Old Man Logan” approach to the latter years of your favorite heroes in a half shell. To accompany that series, IDW has announced Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Last Ronin—Lost Day Special, a one-shot that will “straddle both the past and the future of the Last Ronin universe.”

The 40-page special issue, available in May, is by writers Kevin Eastman and Tom Waltz, illustrator Ben Bishop and colorist Luis Antonio Delgado. The story will be told from the point of view of April O’Neil, as she and her daughter raise for new mutant turtles.

“As Tom Waltz and I dig deep into the evolution of New York City post-Last Ronin, the Lost Day tale brings the future of all things TMNT up close and very personal,” Eastman said. “Buckle up, things are about to get messy!”

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Can’t Wait for Comics | Jokers, a ronin and the return of the Runaways

New comics arrive this week from Geoff Johns, Jason Fabok, Rainbow Rowell, Natacha Bustos, Eastman & Laird, and more.

We are back with a look at what’s arriving in comic shops, bookstores and on digital this week.

If you’re wondering what to get this week, check out a few recommendations below. ComicList has this week’s list of new comics arriving in stores, and the comiXology new releases page for what’s available digitally.

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Comics Lowdown | UCS will no longer distribute DC Comics starting in January

Plus: News on Terrific Production, Archie Comics, Rebellion, L.A. Comic-Con and more.

Distributors: UCS Comics Distributors, one of the two comics distributors that began working with DC Comics during the COVID-19 industry shutdown earlier this year, has told retailers they will no longer distribute DC’s books as of January 2021. Their accounts will be serviced by Lunar Distribution, the other distributor for DC that came into being during the pandemic. UCS was formed by retailer Midtown Comics, while Lunar was formed by Discount Comic Book Service.

So is UCS going away? Not according to the email they sent to retailers, which you can read over at The Beat. It says “UCS is not closing. We will be offering other exciting items that stores can use!” So it’ll be interesting to see what they offer in the future. John Jackson Miller has additional commentary.

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Mail Call | John Ridley makes his Marvel debut in January

A round-up of news from Marvel, IDW, Top Shelf and more.

Mail Call is a roundup of the announcements we’ve received from comics publishers in our mailboxes recently. Hit the links for more information.

Academy Award winner John Ridley has several projects in the works at DC right now, but DC’s not the only publisher he’s doing work for. Marvel has announced that the writer of 12 Years A Slave will have a story in Wolverine: Black, White and Blood #3. The anthology series will feature short stories about the popular mutant, told in black and white … and red. Jorge Fornés is the artist on his story.

“I can think of no better way to kick off my writing relationship with Marvel Comics than by contributing to a truly fantastic anthology series centered around Wolverine,” Ridley told Marvel.com. “Equally exciting is having the story illustrated by Jorge Fornés. I look forward to writing more stories set in the Marvel Universe, and with their roster of iconic characters.”

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