Welcome to Can’t Wait for Wednesday, your guide to what comics are arriving in comic book stores, bookstores and on digital.
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:
- Penguin Random House (Marvel + IDW + Dark Horse + more)
- Lunar Distribution (DC + Image + more)
- Diamond’s PreviewsWorld (Dynamite + more)
- ComicList (Pretty much all of the above)
- Amazon/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 check with your retailer to see what’s arriving at their shop this week.
The Umbrella Academy: Plan B #1 (Dark Horse Comics, $4.99): Fans of The Umbrella Academy show on Netflix saw the Sparrows, an alternate reality version of the Umbrella Academy, take flight in season three. Now the concept makes its way to the comics, as Gerard Way and Gabriel Ba present their take on the group. They have a different origin story than their TV counterparts, which should prove interesting.
Marvel United: A Pride Special #1 (Marvel, $5.99): Marvel’s Pride anthology returns with four stories “celebrating LGBTQIA+ creators and characters.” The four stories include:
- Al Ewing and Kei Zama’s story is about Aaron Fischer, the Captain America of the Railways, as he battles the Hate-Monger.
- Arnie Roth, a childhood friend of Steve Rogers who is said to be the first openly gay character to appear in a superhero comic, will fight alongside Captain America against Hydra in a story “about the past that will reshape the future.” It’s by Anthony Oliveira and Pablo Collar.
- Following last’s year Pride special, which featured Mystique and Destiny’s marriage, author Wyatt Kennedy and artist Bayleigh Underwood catch up with the couple in a story that co-stars their son, Nightcrawler.
- Writer Zoe Tunnell (Blade Maidens) makes her Marvel debut alongside artist Federica Mancin “for a Black Cat heist gone haywire as the super thief finds herself alongside heavenly hero Sera in a dark battle against the fear-inducing demon D’Spayre.”
Robin and Batman: Jason Todd #1 (DC, $4.99): Jeff Lemire and Dustin Nguyen return to Gotham for another look back at Batman’s dysfunctional relationships with his sidekicks. While 2021’s Robin & Batman featured Dick Grayson in his early days, this new miniseries moves forward in time to put the spotlight on Jason Todd. This can’t end well, can it?
Blood Type #1 (Oni Press, $4.99): This new title from Oni’s EC Comcis imprint is the first-ever continuation of an EC Comics anthology short, “picking up the thread of how one lone vampire lost at sea will soon wash ashore on a tropical isle, where she is not the only creature with a taste for flesh and blood,” according to Oni Publisher Hunter Gorinson. The vampire Ada made her debut in Epitaphs from the Abyss #3, in a story by Corinna Bechko and Jonathan Case, while Andrea Sorrentino joins Bechko for this miniseries.
“Unlike a human monster, Ada is a monster who hasn’t been human for a very long time,” Bechko told me. “She’s a loner, but a self-confident one. She believes herself fully capable of getting out of any situation, and that makes her prone to leap before looking. Still, it’s worked for her so far, so why change? She’s perfectly happy with herself.”
Death of the Silver Surfer #1 (Marvel, $4.99): Things aren’t sounding so great for the former herald of Galactus in this new miniseries by Greg Pak and Sumit Kumar:
The Silver Surfer returns to defend a war-ravaged Earth, but Norrin has a galaxy-sized target on his back. Facing a threat capable of stealing away everything he is or ever will be, a single human life may be all that decides the Surfer’s salvation…or damnation. If the Surfer falls, who then wields the awesome Power Cosmic?
Plus the title’s a bit ominous, don’t you think? With the character being played by the wonderful Julia Garner, you gotta wonder if Marvel is clearing the path for a new, female Silver Surfer. I guess we’ll see.
Action Comics #1087 (DC, $4.99): Mark Waid returns to Action Comics and to Smallville for a story featuring Superboy. Artist Skylar Patridge joins him for a story set in Clark Kent’s teen years as he journeys from the Kent farm to the Expo of Tomorrow in Metropolis.
Blue Palo Verde #1 (Mad Cave Studios, $4.99): Ray Fawkes and Rimanti team up for this folk-horror tale about a woman fresh out of jail who goes looking for her missing father in a mysterious town in the New Mexico desert.
Spider-Girl #1 (Marvel, $4.99): Torunn Grønbekk and André Risso will reveal more about the character introduced in Spider-Boy as the former villain named Funhouse becomes Spider-Girl and leaps into her own title.
Absolute Batman #9 (DC, $4.99): A familiar name makes his Absolute Universe debut as Bane comes to Gotham, and Batman attempts to infiltrate the mysterious Ark M facility. This one’s by the red hot team of Scott Snyder and Nick Dragotta.
New Avengers #1 (Marvel, $4.99): Think you’re getting a new Thunderbolts title? Think again! In a synergistic move, the New Thunderbolts* title announced previously is actually called New Avengers, just like the film. Sam Humphries and Ton Lima bring together a new team led by Black Widow and Winter Soldier featuring a team of heavy hitters who don’t have much of a connection to the Thunderbolts or the New Avengers, now that I think about it …
Toxie Team-Up #1 (Ahoy Comics, $3.99): The Toxic Avenger’s line of comics at Ahoy continues to expand with this team-up title — the first issue of which, by Mark Russell and Richard Pace, features the toxic one teaming up with Jesus Christ from Second Coming.
Runaways #1 (Marvel, $4.99): The Runaways and their resident DoomBot were destined to make their way into the One World Under Doom crossover, and this week they do just that, as recent Runaways writer Rainbow Rowell teams with Elena Casagrande on this five-issue miniseries.
Trinity: Daughter of Wonder Woman #1 (DC, $3.99): Tom King and Belén Ortega bring Trinity, Wonder Woman’s possible future daughter, into her own miniseries. Trinity has appeared in back-ups in the pages of Wonder Woman, and this miniseries will feature her adventures with her two modern-day “babysitters,” Jon Kent and Damian Wayne, as they get turned into … corgis. Yes, the press release uses the term a “Crisis of Infinite Corgis,” so be prepared.
Giant Size Amazing Spider-Man (Marvel, $7.99): Amazing Spider-Man gets the “Giant Size” treatment this week, with an oversized anthology that features stories by Kevin Smith, Giuseppe Camuncoli, Al Ewing, Mark Buckingham, Chip Zdarsky and Cafu.
Giant Size Dark Phoenix Saga (Marvel, $4.99): Speaking of Giant Size, the latest series-of-one-shots from Marvel features Ms. Marvel and Legion traveling back in time to important moment sin X-Men history, starting here with the Dark Phoenix Saga. It’s written by Collin Kelly and Jackson Lanzing with interior art by Rod Reis, plus a back-up story by Steve Foxe and Lucas Werneck.
Avengers Academy #1 (Marvel, $5.99): I’ve heard a lot of good things about Avengers Academy, the digital comic by Anthony Oliveira, Carola Borelli and Bailie Rosenlund that’s been running on the Marvel Unlimited app, and now that story comes to print. This latest “class” of young Avengers includes Escapade, Bloodline, Kid Juggernaut and more.
Dimwood (Dark Horse, $39.99): As part of their publishing partnership with Fantagor Press, Dark Horse Comics releases the final work of legendary underground artist Richard Corben, who passed away in 2020. Dimwood is about a woman who returns to her childhood home to try to recover missing pieces in her memory. Written and illustrated by Corben and lettered by Nate Piekos, the hardcover includes a dust jacket, an introduction by author Joe Lansdale, an epilogue by project art director José Villarrubia and other bonus material.