Welcome to Can’t Wait for Comics, your guide to what comics are arriving in comic book stores, bookstores and on digital this week. This week brings several new Pride Month comics from DC, as well as the debuts of Dark Crisis, a Marvel/Fortnite crossover, Justice Warriors, The Ward and more.
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:
- Penguin Random House (Marvel + graphic novels + manga)
- Lunar Distribution (DC + Scout + more)
- Diamond’s PreviewsWorld (IDW + Image + Dark Horse + many more)
- ComicList (Pretty much all of the above)
- comiXology/Kindle new releases (digital comics)
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.
Dark Crisis #1 (DC, $5.99): DC’s next big Crisis event, which will take us through the end of the year, begins in earnest this week with the first of seven issues by Joshua Williamson and Daniel Sampere. After the death of the Justice League, Earth’s remaining heroes have to deal with an onslaught of attacks by their greatest foes, along with the arrive of the pending Darkness (with a capital “D”).
DC Pride 2022 (DC, $9.99): DC announced an extensive line-up for Pride Month this year, with most of that line-up coming out this week. Their annual anthology special includes contributions from Devin Grayson, Stephanie Williams, Travis G. Moore, Alyssa Wong, Nick Robles, Brittney Williams, Evan Cagle, W. Scott Forbes and more, as they tell stories about Jon Kent, Nubia, Tim Drake, Kid Quick and more. It includes an introduction by Nicole Maines, as well as a tease for her upcoming Dreamer graphic novel with artist Rye Hickman.
Poison Ivy #1 (DC, $3.99): G. Willow Wilson and Marcio Takara send Poison Ivy on a road trip this week in the first of a six-issue miniseries. After leaving Gotham, Ivy “sets out to complete her greatest work—a gift to the world that will heal the damage dealt to it…by ending humanity.”
Multiversity: Teen Justice (DC, $3.99): DC revives their “Multiversity” title for this new special focused on Earth-11’s heroes, which include Kid Quick, Supergirl, Robin, Aquagirl, Klarienne the Witch Girl and Troy. It’s written by Ivan Cohen and Danny Lore, with art by Marco Failla.
Nubia: Queen of the Amazons #1 (DC, $3.99): Continuing the story from the Wonder Woman crossover event Trial of the Amazons, Stephanie Williams, Alitha Martinez and Mark Morales return for another miniseries that spotlights the new queen, Nubia. This time around, Nubia leaves Themyscira to visit man’s world and the other Amazon tribes we saw in the crossover.
Aquaman: Andromeda #1 (DC, $6.99): I think this is the first time that Aquaman has gotten the Black Label treatment. It comes courtesy of the stellar team of Ram V. and Christian Ward in a story that features an undersea spaceship graveyard and Black Manta.
Fortnite X Marvel: Zero War #1 (Marvel, $5.99): It wasn’t that long ago that Christos Gage told the story of what happened when the DCU crossed over with Fortnite, and now he returns to the zero point to give us a Marvel/Fortnite crossover. Gage teams with artist Sergio Dávila for this five-issue series that features Wolverine, Spider-Man and Shuri, and, yes, there will be codes redeemable for Fortnite in-game stuff.
Jane Foster & The Mighty Thor #1 (Marvel, $3.99): When Thor goes missing, Mjolnir finds its way back to Jane Foster just in time for them to fight Hela, Ulik the Troll and Enchantress (and just in time for the new Thor: Love and Thunder film, where Jane will also wield Mjolnir. Synergy!) This five-issue miniseries is by Torunn Gronbekk and Michael Dowling.
The Ward #1 (Dark Horse, $3.99): Cavan Scott and Andres Ponce are on call for this new miniseries, which is about a hospital and its staff who treat minotaurs, ghosts and other supernatural creatures.
Skybound Presents Afterschool #1 (Image/Skybound, $4.99): Justin Benson, Aaron Morehead, Greg Hinkle and Giovanna Niro present a new anthology that seems to tell twisted versions of old-school afterschool specials. In this issue, a high school kid with anxiety gets an emotional support dog “with a winning smile and a killer secret.”
Archie & Friends Summer Lovin’ #1 (Archie, $2.99): This special from Archie Comcis features the debut of an all-new character to the Riverdale gang — Eliza Han, “a bi-racial pansexual teen with a remarkable back story as the brains behind a major corporation.” Here’s a preview:
This new story by writer Tee Franklin and artist Dan Parent also features Veronica’s cousin, Harper Lodge, who is revealed to be bisexual.
World of Archie Jumbo Comics Digest #120 (Archie, $8.99): Speaking of Archie, if you’re a fan of their Red Circle superheroes, you won’t want to miss this collection, which includes a new story by David Gallaher, Bill Galvan and Bob Smith that teams Fireball with the Superteens. Check out a preview here.
Astronaut Down #1 (AfterShock, $4.99): James Patrick and Rubine put a twist on the multiverse concept in this story about an astronaut who travels to alternate Earths looking for a way to save his Earth from extinction. And if you couldn’t tell from the title, things go wrong.
Justice Warriors #1 (Ahoy, $4.99): The Nib‘s Matt Bors teams with artist Ben Clarkson for this new dystopian satire that, as you can see above, features a cop with the shit emoji for a head. I don’t know what else I can say to top that, so here’s a preview:
Those last two images are the variant covers for the first issue — one by Bors and one by Ben Passmore.
Orcs! The Curse #1 (BOOM! Studios, $5.99): Christine Larsen is back with another miniseries featuring her lovable Orcs! characters, as they accidentally unleash an ancient evil while having a party and have to deal with a wizard that wants to recruit them as his army.
Potions, Inc. #1 (Mad Cave, $3.99): Erik Burnham and Stelladia tell the story of three siblings who leave behind their parents’ potion shop on the world of Primaterra to go off on a quest for a missing artifact — which happens to be in Seattle, circa 1992. Here’s a preview:
(Wait, 1992 Seattle … is this where Pearl Jam really came from?)
Time Before Time #13 (Image, $3.99): While I really dig the work that Declan Shalvey, Rory McConville, Joe Palmer, PJ Holden and others have been doing on Time Before Time, that’s not the reason I’m calling this title out this week. Issue #13 is the first of two that will feature a variant cover by Vlad Legostaev — they’re connecting covers, actually — with the proceeds from it going toward supporting Ukrainian Red Cross relief efforts. Read more about it here.
The Never Ending Party #1 (Comixology Originals, $2.99): Former Doom Patrol writer Rachel Pollack returns to comics for this new digital miniseries, with co-writer Joe Corallo and artist Eva Cabrera. You can read more about it and see a preview here.
Mazebook (Dark Horse, $29.99): Jeff Lemire’s very creative and sad miniseries about a father grieving the loss of his daughter is collected this week, along with pinups by Andrea Sorrentino, Dustin Nguyen, Dean Ormston, Matt Kindt, and Gabriel Hernández Walta.
Grip of the Kombinat (Image, $16.99): Damon Gentry and Simon Roy come together for this new science fiction graphic novel about two corporations waging an “eternal tug-of-war for the ruins of our future solar system.”