Hey, welcome to 2021! We made it.
This week brings a whole lot from DC, as they wrap up Death Metal and launch their next big event, Future State. This week also sees new titles kick off from Marvel, BOOM! Studios, AfterShock and more.
Here’s a look at what’s arriving in comic shops, bookstores and on digital this week. Check out a few recommendations below, or visit ComicList for this week’s list of new comics arriving in stores, and the comiXology new releases page for what’s available digitally.
The grand finale of DC’s big seven-issue miniseries by Scott Snyder and Greg Capullo (not to mention countless specials and tie-ins) arrives this week, putting a bow around what came before and making room for what comes next. As for what to expect, it sounds like Wonder Woman has a plan to deal with the Darkest Knight once and for all … and Bryan Hitch and Yanick Paquette stop by to, presumably, help out with the “not one but two mind-blowing epilogues that lead directly into the next phase of the DC Universe.” Wait, were you expecting an ending here? Comics …
And with Dark Nights: Death Metal‘s last issue, DC clears the table for the launch of DC Future State. The linewide event will take over DC’s regular titles for two months, introducing future versions and takes of various characters. Of particular note this week are the launch of The Next Batman, an anthology that’ll include John Ridley and Nick Derington’s story of a new face wearing the cowl (which should be excellent, given their previous work), and Wonder Woman, which introduces Yara Flor, who will become Wonder Girl in the current DC timeline when it returns in March ( … if that’s not confusing). The other thing to note is that many of the creative teams taking over during Future State will remain with the characters after the event, so this should be a good indication of what to expect from DC’s line for the rest of 2021.
And then there’s Generations Shattered, featuring three writers and at least six artists telling a story that spins out of Detective #1027. If Death Metal’s ending sets up DC Future State, then this … this is definitely the odd man out. You can read the Wikipedia page about Generations if you’re interested in the back story on this, which seemed like it was supposed to be something bigger back when Dan Didio was in charge of DC, so I’ll just say that the title seems appropriate at this point.
Now, if you’re looking for something from DC that doesn’t tie into a larger event, have line-wide implications or could possibly get bogged down by continuity that happened before you were born, I’d suggest looking to their YA line, which has been very successful in telling fun, out-of-continuity stories. They may be aimed at a younger audience, but adult readers will likely enjoy many of them as well. This week brings House of El, a YA story about Krypton by Claudia Gray and Eric Zawadzki.
And finally, on the digital front, DC launches two new series in the new year. Both are anthologies; Truth & Justice will feature stories about various DC characters each issue, starting with Vixen by Geoffrey Thorne and ChrisCross. And Sensational Wonder Woman will feature stories about the Amazon princess by rotating creative teams, starting with Stephanie Phillips and Meghan Metrick.
Turning now to Marvel, this week brings the premiere of a new Eternals title by the team of Kieron Gillen and Esad Ribic. Created by Jack Kirby, the Eternals were supposed to hit the big screen last year, but then COVID struck, so it’s been delayed — but it makes sense Marvel would relaunch the title, and with a superstar creative team to boot. I don’t remember what the last Marvel U. title was that Gillen worked on, but it’s been quite awhile, as he’s been focused on his creator-owned work and licensed titles like Star Wars and Warhammer. So this should be a treat.
Jason Aaron returns to writing Valkyrie — or in this case, Valkyries — as he teams up with Torunn Grønbekk and Nina Vakueva for a King in Black tie-in that features Jane Foster, Dani Moonstar, Hildegarde and a mysterious new Valkyrie.
From BOOM! Studios’ BOOM! Box imprint comes the oversized first issue of The Last Witch, a new title by Kill Shakespeare‘s Conor McCreery and artist V.V. Glass. It’s about a young girl who discovers she has secret magical powers.
Going to the Chapel writer David Pepose teams up with Lost Soldiers artist Luca Casalanguida for a new title from AfterShock Comics. Scout’s Honor is set in a post-apocalyptic world where a new society rises, using an old scouting manual as their bible.
Dragonfly and Dragonflyman both return for Wrong Earth: Night and Day #1, the sequel to the original AHOY comic by Tom Peyer, Jamal Igle and Juan Castro. This time around, the two heroes from opposite worlds will actually meet.
One of AWA’s flagship titles returns this week, as J. Michael Straczynski and C. P. Smith present Resistance: Reborns, the followup to the first miniseries about a global disaster that kills millions but leaves others with superpowers.
Cullen Bunn is always a busy guy, and his work for AfterShock over the last few years has added up to enough content to get his own omnibus. This includes several miniseries he wrote, like Knights Temporal and Dark Ark, as well the Witch Hammer OGN and a couple of short stories. It’s 496 pages of comics for $80.
Nnedi Okorafor’s short story “On the Road” gets the graphic novel adaptation treatment this week, courtesy of John Jennings and David Brame. After the Rain is the story of a Nigerian-American woman named Chioma who returns to Nigeria and tries to help a boy whose touch burns like fire.
James Kochalka is back with another all-ages book that features a fox who rides a banana — his name is Banana Fox, naturally. Your kids will love it.
Stephanie Cooke and Insha Fitzpatrick team up with artist Juliana Moon for Oh My Gods!, a new middle grade series about a girl who moves to Olympus to attend junior high with gods and mythological creatures.