The Hellfire Gala returns in July

This year’s annual giant-sized X-Men one-shot brings together Jed MacKay, Gail Simone, Eve L. Ewing, Saladin Ahmed and more for a locked-room murder mystery.

The Hellfire Gala — Marvel’s most glamorous and, at the same time, reliably dangerous annual mutant tradition — is back this July with X-Men: The Hellfire Murder #1. The giant-sized one-shot serves as both a capstone to the past year of X-Men storytelling and a launchpad for what’s coming next.

The setup sounds really fun: when an iconic mutant power player is murdered at a masquerade hosted by Sebastian Shaw, Wolverine and Jubilee find themselves investigating a locked-room mystery with dire consequences for all of mutantkind. Everyone at the Gala is a suspect, and the party isn’t over yet. The issue will also reveal the formation of an all-new Hellfire Club, setting up major developments in the X-Men titles.

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DC Pride 2026 puts Galaxy and Dreamer at the center of a major Justice League event series

Years of character-building across DC’s YA and main comics lines culminate in ‘Justice League: Dream Girls,’ a four-issue Pride Month event co-written by Nicole Maines and Jadzia Axelrod

It’s Trans Day of Visibility, which seems like an excellent time to mention DC’s Pride 2026 plans.

Their plans represent something the publisher has been building toward for years — LGBTQIA+ heroes not just celebrated in standalone anthology specials, but placed at the center of a continuity-driven Justice League event series. This year’s initiative spans YA graphic novels, mainline comics and a new four-issue miniseries, anchored by Galaxy and Dreamer. It’s also spanning several months, rather than just Pride Month in June.

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DC’s Summer of Supergirl brings new comics, anthology, an Elseworlds series ahead of this summer’s film

From Sophie Campbell’s ongoing run to a new Elseworlds survival story, DC is giving Kara Zor-El her biggest publishing moment ahead of her new film.

DC is rolling out an ambitious publishing initiative tied to the upcoming Supergirl film, which comes out June 26, and the comics line supporting it spans multiple formats and creative teams.

Just like we saw with Superman last year, DC has declared this summer the “Summer of Supergirl,” which will kick off with the previously announced Supergirl: The World anthology on June 2. June will also bring:

  • Summer of Supergirl Special #1, an anthology one-shot
  • Supergirl: Survive #1, an Elseworlds tale
  • Facsimile editions of Supergirl and the Legion of Super-Heroes #23 and Lobo #1
  • An oversized artbook DC W.I.P.: Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow #1
  • Variant covers across many of DC’s June titles
  • And of course, the regular Supergirl monthly title by Sophie Campball.

You can find more details on each of them below.

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Can’t Wait for Wednesday | Chip Zdarsky vs. Deadpool in an April Fool’s Day showdown

Check out new comics and graphic novels arriving this week by Patrick Stump, Gail Simone, Sergio Aragonés, Kevin Smith, Nick Pitarra, Joelle Jones, Stephanie Phillips, Lee Garbett, Mark Waid, Dan Mora, Marcello Quintanilha and more.

Welcome to Can’t Wait for Wednesday, your guide to what’s coming to your local comic shop this week. Comics arrive on April Fool’s Day this week, and publishers are taking advantage of that by releasing some quirky and fun projects.

I’ve pulled out some of the highlights for this week 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 check with your retailer to see what’s arriving at their shop this week.

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Slugfest | Armageddon arrives, the Ultimate Universe ends and the Swimsuit Special returns at Marvel in June

From Chip Zdarsky’s long-building Avengers event to a new Jeff the Land Shark adventure and a 50th anniversary What If? celebration, here’s a rundown of notable items from Marvel’s June 2026 solicitations.

Slugfest is a roundup of cool announcements about projects coming to a shelf near you. This edition features new stuff in Marvel’s June 2026 titles, mostly. Click the links for more information.

Writer Steve Foxe and artist Salva Espin, who collaborated on the prelude comic series for X-Men ’97‘s first season, reunite for X-Men ’97: Season Two, a five-issue limited series bridging the gap between the acclaimed animated show’s first and second seasons. The series picks up in the immediate aftermath of Season One’s cliffhanger ending, following the X-Men left behind in a world that hunts and hates mutantkind while the rest of the team is scattered across time. Colors are by Matt Milla.

“Everyone who watched Season One knows the team left us one heck of an era-spanning cliffhanger, and our prequel for Season Two doesn’t take any cheats or shortcuts around that wild status quo,” Foxe said. “We got to work closely with the series team to make sure this comic is a vital, additive experience for our mutants — what’s left of the X-Men, anyway.”

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Quick Hits | Rounding up the awards

With news on the Nebula Awards, the Lambda Literary Awards and more.

Nominees have been announced recently for several different book awards programs, many of which include comic or graphic novel categories.

Let’s start with the Nebula Awards, which recognize the best in science fiction literature, games and media — and now comics, too. The Nebulas added a “Best Comic” category this year (along with a “Best Poem” category), and the nominees include:

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Fanbase Press is crowdfunding ‘Shrub,’ a middle-grade graphic medicine series about a sentient plant

The eight-issue Kickstarter-funded series from Emmy nominee Shane Portman and artist Andy Alves explores loss through the eyes of an unlikely traveling companion. Check out our exclusive preview.

Fanbase Press has announced Shrub, an eight-issue series that they’re crowdfunding through Kickstarter, and we’re excited to share an exclusive four-page preview ahead of the publisher’s appearance at WonderCon in Anaheim this weekend.

The series follows Shrub, an aptly named sentient shrub, who joins a grieving brother and sister on a cross-country road trip to Hollywood, with pit stops, wacky plant enthusiasts and unexpected detours along the way.

Written by Emmy Award nominee Shane Portman of Tumble Leaf and Shape Island fame, and illustrated by Andy Alves (Top Shelf’s Cosmic Cadets), with colors by Sophia Du and Celia FitzGerald and lettering by Oceano Ransford.

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Lewis LaRosa unleashes cover art for Matt Kindt + Brian Hurtt’s ‘Fort Psycho,’ plus a look inside his career retrospective ‘Carbon Based’

The comics artist behind ‘Punisher MAX,’ ‘Bloodshot Reborn’ and more marks his return to cover duties with the Oni Press maxi-series that launches in August.

We’re excited today to reveal an exclusive first look at Lewis LaRosa’s variant cover for Fort Psycho #2, the upcoming maxi-series from writer Matt Kindt and artist Brian Hurtt, along with an early peek inside Carbon Based: The Art of Lewis LaRosa, the artist’s first career-spanning retrospective, arriving in comic shops this week from Oni Press.

LaRosa, known for his raw, realism-driven work on Punisher MAX and Bloodshot Reborn, will serve as a cover artist for all 12 issues of Fort Psycho, joining Hurtt who handles interior art. His contributions mark his first consistent return to ongoing cover duties in several years. LaRosa’s black-and-white artwork will also be available as incentive variants throughout the series’ run.

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Can’t Wait for Wednesday | Spider-Man + Superman, together again!

Check out new comics arriving this week by Mark Waid, Jorge Jimenez, Ryan North, Dan Slott, Peter Bagge, Jeremy Adams, Phil Noto and more.

Welcome to Can’t Wait for Wednesday, your guide to what’s coming to your local comic shop this week.

I’ve pulled out some of the highlights for this week 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 check with your retailer to see what’s arriving at their shop this week.

Continue reading “Can’t Wait for Wednesday | Spider-Man + Superman, together again!”

Rest in peace, Sam Kieth

The creator of ‘The Maxx’ and co-creator of ‘The Sandman’ has passed away at the age of 63.

Sam Kieth, the visionary comic book artist, writer and creator of The Maxx, passed away on March 15, at the age of 63, following complications from Lewy body dementia.

Former Wildstorm and IDW editor Scott Dunbier confirmed the news on social media and shared a statement from Kieth’s family. As per Kieth’s wishes, there will be no memorial service, and in lieu of flowers, his family has asked for donations to be made in his name to the Hero Initiative, the Comic Book Legal Defense Fund or the Lewy Body Dementia Association.

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Smash Pages Q&A | Ben H. Winters on ‘Benjamin’

The creator of TV’s ‘Tracker’ talks dead sci-fi authors, sunny noir and why comics let you do “any damn crazy-ass thing you want to.”

Ben H. Winters has built a career out of defying easy categorization. He’s the Philip K. Dick Award-winning novelist behind The Last Policeman trilogy and Underground Airlines, a TV writer whose credits include FX’s Legion and Apple TV’s Manhunt, and the creator of Tracker, currently one of the biggest hits on CBS. If that sounds like a lot, it is, yet somehow he’s also found time to dive headfirst into comics.

After contributing to Oni Press’s acclaimed revival of the EC Comics line, Winters has now made his miniseries debut with Benjamin, illustrated by the Leomacs. The book follows Benjamin J. Carp, brilliant, slightly self-destructive sci-fi author who died in 1982, as he wakes up inexplicably alive in 2025 Los Angeles, forced to investigate the impossible mystery of his own existence. It’s surreal, funny and deeply strange in the best possible way. The trade paperback collection of Benjamin is out now from Oni Press.

I got the chance to talk to Winters about how he came to comics, what makes Benjamin tick, and what it’s like to bounce between network television and deeply weird graphic novels. He also let slip some details about what’s coming next.

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Can’t Wait for Wednesday | Usagi Yojimbo goes to the ’80s

New comics and graphic novels arrive this week by Zack Rosenberg, Jared Cullum, Eve L. Ewing, Tiago Palma, Mark Waid, Skylar Patridge, Sophie Campbell, Robert Kirkman, Dan Mora, Mike Maihack and more.

Welcome to Can’t Wait for Wednesday, your guide to what’s coming to your local comic shop this week.

I’ve pulled out some of the highlights for this week 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 check with your retailer to see what’s arriving at their shop this week.

Continue reading “Can’t Wait for Wednesday | Usagi Yojimbo goes to the ’80s”