Welcome to Can’t Wait for Comics, your guide to what comics are arriving in comic book stores, bookstores and on digital. This week brings the end of one DC crossover and the beginning of a new one, as Knight Terrors wraps up and The Gotham War kicks off. We also have the resurrection of Ms. Marvel, the beginning of the end for Black Hammer, lots of anthologies and, oh yeah, G’Nort!
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 + IDW + Dark Horse + more)
- Lunar Distribution (DC + more)
- Diamond’s PreviewsWorld (Image + BOOM! + 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.
Batman/Catwoman: The Gotham War-Battle Lines (DC, $5.99): DC kicks off their big fall crossover, Gotham War, with this one-shot by Chip Zdarsky, Tini Howard, Mike Hawthorne and Adriano Di Benedetto, as Batman and Catwoman go to war with each other. From here the event will continue in the regular Batman and Catwoman titles, as well as in a miniseries featuring the Red Hood.
Ms. Marvel: The New Mutant #1 (Marvel, $4.99): Ms. Marvel actress Iman Vellani comes on board to co-write this new series with Sabir Pirzada, with art by Carlos Gómez and Adam Gorham. It ties into Fall of X and follows the Hellfire Gala special that saw Kamala Khan return to life (among other things) thanks to the fact that she’s actually a mutant.
Knight Terrors: Knight’s End #1 (DC, $5.99): Joshua Williamson and Howard Porter bring DC’s big summer crossover event to a close with this one-shot that features Deadman going up against Insomnia as well the introduction of someone called Dr. Hate.
Kaptara: Universal Truths #1 (Image, $3.99): Chip Zdarsky and Kagan McLeod’s somewhat bizarre 2015 science fiction series returned a couple of years ago via Zdarsky’s Substack newsletter, and now it returns to print as well at its original publisher. Circle of life, right?
IDW Endless Summer one-shots (IDW, $4.99): IDW celebrates summer with four one-shots featuring some of their licensed titles, including Sonic the Hedgehog, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, My Little Pony and Dungeons and Dragons.
Mighty Morphin Power Rangers 30th Anniversary Special (BOOM!, $9.99): This anthology one-shot celebrates the pearl anniversary of the Power Rangers and features stories by Ryan Parrott, Melissa Flores, Mat Groom, Amy Jo Johnson, Matt Hotson, Maria Ingrande Mora, Hendry Prasetya, Eleonora Carlini, Marco Renna, Jo Mi-Gyeong and more.
Marvel Age #1000 (Marvel, $9.99): Speaking of anthologies, Marvel celebrates 1,000 issues of their hype mag Marvel Age (anyone remember that?) with a collection of stories by Rainbow Rowell, Jamie McKelvie, J. Michael Straczynski, Mark Waid, Kaare Andrews, Steve McNiven and more, but sadly no Fred Hembeck.
The Devil’s Cut (DSTLRY, $9.99): It’s anthology week, and here comes DSTLRY with their first comic, featuring stories by Mirka Andolfo, Brian Azzarello, Marc Bernardin, Elsa Charretier, Becky Cloonan, Tula Lotay, Jamie McKelvie, Stephanie Phillips, Scott Snyder, Francesco Francavilla, Lee Garbett, Ariela Kristantina and more.
Black Hammer: The End #1 (Dark Horse, $3.99): Jeff Lemire and Malachi Ward helm the biggest event in the Black Hammer universe thus far, as they continue the world-hopping story started in Black Hammer Reborn.
G’Nort’s Swimsuit Edition (DC, $5.99): G’Nort is back in possibly the least expected way ever — as the lead in a swimsuit special. Note that this title no longer seems to have “Illustrated” in the title, probably for legal reasons. But what it does have is illustrations by Paul Pelletier, Nicola Scott, Mikel Janin, Jeff Dekal, Daniel Sampere, Gleb Melnikov, Derrick Chew, Stanley Artgerm Lau, Emanuela Lupacchino, Joelle Jones, Megan Huang, Terry Dodson, Babs Tarr, Pete Woods, Joe Quinones, Helene Lenoble, Otto Schimdt, Michael Allred, Sweeney Boo, David Talaski, Jenny Frison and more, as well as a randomly inserted centerfold, distributed in equal quantities: Poison Ivy by Jen Bartel, Nightwing and Barbara Gordon by Jorge Jimenez and Alejandro Sánchez, and G’Nort by Simon Bisley.
Local Man Gold Special (Image, $4.99): With a cover and title that pays tribute to the big Image/Valiant crossover event Deathmate, Tim Seeley and Tony Fleecs’ great new series Local Man gets a spinoff special. This one features Crossjack literally confronting his past as he teams up with some of Image characters from Marc Silvestri’s Cyberforce, Jim Rugg’s Street Angel, Tom King and Elsa Charretier’s Love Everlasting and Beau Smith and Tim Harkins’ BOOF And The Bruise Crew.
Action Comics Presents Doomsday Special (DC, $5.99): Oh, I’m all in on Dan Watters (Home Sick Pilots, Loki) getting to tell the bonkers story of Doomsday ruling in hell and deciding to come back to the land of the living, unless Martian Manhunter and Supergirl can keep him at bay. Eddy Barrows will make it look great, and as a bonus there is also a story featuring Bloodwynd.
The Cloven, Book Two (Fantagraphics, $24.99): Garth Stein, author of The Art of Racing in the Rain, and artist Matthew Southworth present a second volume of their story about a group of cloven-hoofed mutants living in the Pacific Northwest.
Funny Things (Top Shelf, $39.99): Italian creators Luca Debus and Francesco Matteuzzi bring their unique style to tell the story of a very American legend — Peanuts creator Charles Schulz — in graphic novel form.
Den (Dark Horse, $34.99): Dark Horse continues their partnership with Fantagor Press as they release another volume of Richard Corben’s work, this time his classic Den. This special edition also features bonus material, art pages restored by long-time Corben collaborator José Villarrubia, new lettering by Nate Piekos of Blambot and an introduction by Patton Oswalt.
Kariba (Catalyst Press, $21.99): James Clarke, Daniel Clarke and Daniel Snaddon present an “African fantasy-adventure graphic novel inspired by the mythology of the Zambezi River and the history of the Kariba Dam, one of the largest dams ever constructed.”
Punch Up (Oni Press, $15.99): Zachary Sterling’s new graphic novel is about an aspiring fighter who travels to the big city to compete in a tournament and be trained by his idol — all under the eye of an emperor who might have it out for him.