Another week brings more comics back to comic shops, as this week Marvel will have new print comics in comic shops for the first time in weeks. A couple DC books, however, look like they’re delayed this week, including Flash and Aquaman. Stores getting their books from DC’s other distributors have been asked to not put them on sale yet, according to the report from Newsarama.
If you’re looking for some recommendations on what you should get, here are some thoughts from the Smash Pages crew. You can check the Comic List page to see what’s arriving in your local shop, and the comiXology new releases page for what’s available digitally.
Shane Bailey
Out of all the new Dawn of X books, Marauders has felt most like the X-Men era I grew up with, the Outback team. A bunch of different X-Men that don’t quite fit exactly, but know each other and are thrown together and just kind of make it happen by sheer force of their personalities. There’s nothing but trouble in that run, and Marauders is no different.
Kitty, well, we don’t exactly know what is happening there, but she’s facing one of the X-Women tropes that has been with the series forever. Iceman is trying to be upbeat, but is forced to grow up a little… again! Bishop is just doing his thing — being awesome — but didn’t catch on to what’s going on in the story in time to stop a pretty big consequence.
This long-awaited issue sees the fallout and revenge from the White Queen and her band of misfit Marauders as they get a little payback for that consequence and the wrongs done to them. I’m sure it’s worth picking up just to see Emma’s wrath. You don’t $@#% with Emma Frost. Especially when it comes to those close to her. I’m picking Marauders #10 up just to see a good #%$ kicking and I’ll stick around for all those great character moments after.
Carla Hoffman
FINALLY! Marvel Comics HAS COME BACK…. To comic store shelves. You think I’d be excited for this, get my big foam “We’re No. 1” finger out and run the stands for a bit but… gosh I’m tired. There was something freeing to reading off the cuff for a while, not following any particular story line or creator or character, just looking at the stands and seeing what feels right. Nothing is regular anymore and keeping track of what happened months ago within the wide and vast Marvel Universe is going to take a minute, so maybe one more week of random sampling might help longtime readers get back on the horse of our never-ending carousel toward event books and new #1 issues. And new readers always feel like this, can you imagine?
So I say, don’t bother with pants, lean back into the absurd and grab a copy of MAD Magazine #13. Kids, this is what anyone over 35 used to consider memes! Over 40? Yikes.
MAD is always bringing it with pages of comedy art that borders on the eloquent subversion to the gag book kept next to the toilet at your uncle’s house. This month, they riff on music to provide satire of the Cochella scene, Thom Yorke, and probably anything else they can get their hands on. The art is always wild with pages of unique visions and crude pictographs and you are guaranteed at least one solid guffaw for $5.99 (cheap?). I’m not ready to get back to work just yet and want to slack off and reclaim a little lost slack, so this week: make mine MAD.
JK Parkin
Marvel dips their toes back into comic shops this week with a fairly light list; in addition to Marauders, which Shane talked about above, you can also find new issues of Avengers, Venom and Amazing Spider-Man. Fans of Moon Knight in particular, will be happy to see that Avengers #33 kicks off a storyline featuring Khonshu’s favorite son going head-to-head with Earth’s Mightiest Heroes.
If you’re looking for something new this week, you can’t go wrong with Rogue Planet, a new series kicking off from Oni Press by Cullen Bunn and Andy MacDonald. I’ve been looking forward to this one since it was announced back in January; it’s a sci fi/horror series that features the crew of a space salvage ship as they explore a mysterious, off-the-beaten-track planet that may hold great treasure—or great danger.
Speaking of horror, my favorite member of the Hill House line arrived in stores today, the wonderfully titled Basketful of Heads. In this latest issue, it looks like our heroine, June Branch, will be getting some answers and having a big showdown with the man who kidnapped her boyfriend. This has been a fun series thus far, and I’m looking forward to seeing what’s going to happen to June.
Dunno why I want to be creeped out so much this week — world’s scary enough right now, right? — but on the graphic novel front, I’m happy to see Declan Shalvey’s newest graphic novel, Bog Bodies, make its way into stores. Most people know Shalvey for his art, but he proved he’s got the chops to write on projects like Savage Town. He worked with Gavin Fullerton, Rebecca Nalty and Clayton Cowles on this one, and you can read more about it in this interview with the Irish Times.
Let’s end with something that’s not exactly creepy, but is filled with creeps. It took me an issue or two to warm up to Tom Taylor and Bruno Redondo’s Suicide Squad, but I’m really liking all the new characters they’ve introduced, their revealed agenda — and the subsequent reaction of regulars like Deadshot and Harley Quinn. This week’s issue #5 brings back an old favorite, Captain Boomerang, as he gets targeted by the Squad’s new boss. Dunno why it took Taylor so long (five issues is long?) to bring back his fellow countryman, but I for one am looking forward to reading it.
One thought on “Can’t Wait for Comics | Going ‘MAD’ on a ‘Rogue Planet’”