Welcome to Can’t Wait for Wednesday, your guide to what’s coming to your local comic shop this week. It’s a huge week for comics, so let’s get to it.
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 + Mad Cave + 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.
Transformers #25 (Skybound, $4.99): Robert Kirkman, the founder of Skybound who briefly sat in the writer’s room for the Transformer films, is getting his chance to chronicle the adventures of the Autobots and Decepticons. After ushering in the Energon Universe era with Void Rivals, Kirkman and Superman artist Dan Mora take over the ongoing Transformers title following Daniel Warren Johnson and Jorge Corona’s epic run. Kirkman and Mora will join colorist Mike Spicer and letterer Rus Wooton with this oversized issue that celebrates the series’ second anniversary. The issue also includes a second story written by Kirkman and drawn by Corona, to help bridge the gap between creative teams.
DC K.O. #1 (DC, $5.99): Scott Snyder and Javier Fernandez launch DC’s major 2025 event as the Heart of Apokolips transforms Earth into a hellscape in preparation for Darkseid’s return. The Justice League’s only chance is to enter a deadly tournament—an epic battle royale where the World’s Greatest Heroes fight to become champion and face Darkseid in the ring. But there’s a catch: the closer you get to the Heart of Apokolips, the more it corrupts you and changes you into something dangerous. Which DC character has what it takes to make it to the end, even if it means taking down friends and family? Let’s find out — and let’s get ready to rumble.
The Amazing Spider-Man: Torn #1 (Marvel, $4.99): Along with artist Pere Perez, for Amazing Spider-Man scribe J. Michael Straczynski takes us back in time to Peter Parker’s college days at Empire State University, where he’ll pine over Mary Jane Watson and Gwen Stacy, and face a new villain called Evangeline.
High Strangeness #1 (Oni Press, $7.99): SpectreVision, the genre-distorting production company co-founded by Elijah Wood and Daniel Noah, teams with Oni Press for an unprecedented excursion into documented cases of paranormal phenomena. Writer and real-life experiencer Daniel Noah joins writer Chris Condon—whose That Texas Blood is essential reading—and artist Dave Chisholm for this double-sized, prestige format opener. Chicago, 1967: Magazine writer Harry Kean investigates the disappearance of Becky Plume, a teenager who stepped into the spotlight with photographic evidence of a UFO sighting. What starts as exposing a hoax becomes a labyrinth involving a missing girl, her boyfriend, mysterious black-clad visitors and a mystery more vast than Harry can imagine.
Death to Pachuco #1 (Image Comics, $3.99): Henry Barajas and Rachel Merrill deliver a noir crime story rooted in the shameful parts of LA’s history during the summer of 1943. As fierce clashes erupt between U.S. Navy members and Mexican American youth stemming from the murder of Carlos Urbano, private eye Ricardo “Ricky” Tellez needs to find the Sleep Lagoon Killer before the racist mob kills him in the Zoot Suit Riots. The clock is ticking in this five-issue series that explores a tense period when Los Angeles became a hotbed of racial violence and injustice.
Astro Bots #1 (Massive, $5): Simon Furman and Philip Knott continue their mecha-masterwork based on Aaron Thomas’s toyline as the Pathfinders and Pioneers break new ground in the furthest reaches of the galaxy. Furman, the original Transformers comic writer and creator of Marvel’s Death’s Head, teams again with Knott, known for his work on IDW’s Transformers: Last Bot Standing, for this five-issue continuation.
Little Nightmares: Descent to Nowhere #1 (Titan Comics, $4.99): Based on the best-selling horror game and launching alongside Little Nightmares III, this four-issue series is written by Lonnie Nadler, the Narrative Director of Little Nightmares, with art by Ringo Award-nominated artist Dennis Menheere. Hush, a timid mute girl, wakes up in a jail cell and befriends another prisoner, Mono, who understands this dark world better than her. They’ll need to find a way out of the Dungeon. Elsewhere, detective Myra is exhausted by life until she meets someone who reignites her will to investigate unresolved cases of children vanishing year after year without a trace.
Super Creepshow Special (One Shot) (Skybound, $4.99): The Creep celebrates superheroes new, old and very, very disturbed in this special anthology that features a Dark Knight Returns tribute cover by Pye Parr. Dan Watters and Carmine Di Giandomenico plan a funeral for the world’s greatest superhero, but his return might be the worst thing that could happen. Ryan Stegman and Riley Rossmo introduce the Grave Ghost, a superhero who must solve the case of his own death. And Ed Brisson and Andrei Bressan unleash a chilling tale of what happens when a super serum gets injected into someone who may be more super villain than hero.
Marvel Knights: Punisher #1 (Marvel, $4.99): Earlier this year Joe Quesada returned to Marvel for Marvel Knights: The World to Come, named for the imprint he helped spearhead starting in 1998 that redefined characters like Daredevil, Black Panther, the Punisher and many more. Now his co-conspirator for Marvel Knights, Jimmy Palmiotti, returns as well for a Punisher story set in the same world as The World to Come. Palmiotti will work with artist Dan Panosian on the limited series, which features Frank Castle in “one of the most savage comics ever.”
Absolute Batman #13 (DC, $4.99): Not only does this issue feature Absolute Batman’s showdown with Absolute Bane, but it also features the debut of Absolute Catwoman, which has an absolutely killer design. It’s by Absolute Scott Snyder and Absolute Nick Dragotta.
The Guy in the Chair #1 (Dark Horse, $4.99): Hannah Rose May and Utkarsh Ambudkar deliver a spy thriller with romance and comedy as a tactical analyst finds himself yanked from behind his computer screens. Abhi works at a private military company supporting field operative Merlin’s missions as her “Guy in the Chair”—but he’s also fallen head over heels for her, against company policy. When Merlin shows up at his apartment bloody, beaten and pleading for help, the two must prevent their former employer and a cabal of corporate overlords from a hostile global takeover that threatens all of humanity.
Marian Heretic #1 (BOOM! Studios, $4.99): Tini Howard and Joe Jaro launch a provocative new take on nunsploitation, religious horror and rebellion. Sister Marian is a witch hunter, a Mother Superior and a heretic—guided by a Goddess the Church refuses to acknowledge. When the Holy Father Church brands her order blasphemers, Marian strikes a dark bargain to become their personal enforcer.
X-Men: Age of Revelation various titles (Marvel, $3.99-$5.99 each): Marvel’s X-Men titles are being temporarily replaced with three-issue miniseries set 10 years in the future — a future where Doug Ramsey, a.k.a. the New Mutant Cypher, a.k.a. the Heir of Apocalypse now known as Revelation, has created a mutant nation that has swallowed a good portion of the United States. Following last week’s introductory special, this week brings the first full week of titles, with no less than five to choose from. You can read about all of them here, but I’ll add that I’m most excited about is Gerry Duggan, Jonathan Hickman and Alan Robinson’s Longshots, which sounds like it could be a hoot.
Mary Sue #1 (BOOM! Studios, $4.99): Meghan Fitzmartin and Lisa Sterle deliver a story about fandom, friendship and what happens when your OC becomes a little too real. Cassie has plenty of friends—they just all happen to be online, where she can discuss her favorite show Riverview and get feedback on her fan fic starring Jessica, her hot vampire OC. But when her former best friend finds the fic and reads it aloud to their classmates, Cassie’s humiliation reaches new heights. Things get even worse when her very own Mary Sue pops right out of the fic—and may not be there to save the day so much as make everything much, much worse.
Harley Quinn x Elvira #1 (Dynamite/DC, $4.99): Amanda Conner and Jimmy Palmiotti—the world-famous tag team behind Harley Quinn—team the Clown Princess of Crime with the Mistress of the Dark for a crossover event for the ages. When Elvira’s beloved show is on the chopping block following a corporate takeover, her new friend Harley has an idea that’s just crazy enough to work: throw the greatest Halloween party Brooklyn has ever seen, whether the borough likes it or not. Conner not only writes and provides two covers per issue but also joins interior artist Juan Samu to provide selected story pages.
Deluge #1 (Ignition Press, $4.99): Cullen Bunn and Marika Cresta deliver a terrifying new horror series set in Sieverville Correctional Prison for Women as a hard rain causes the river to overflow its banks. The same walls keeping prisoners inside are failing to keep the water out—and with that water comes something deadly. What was once outside is now inside, and prisoners and guards must find a way free because if the water doesn’t get them, the monsters will.
Return to Planet Hulk #1 (Marvel, $4.99): Greg Pak returns to his seminal run for an all-new story of gamma-irradiated gladiatorial action on Sakaar. After escaping the Red King’s deadly arena, Hulk faces ferocious monsters and smashes his way through malicious machines and wild robotic terrors in one of his most important battles for survival on the war-torn planet. Two possible destinies are at stake: the Sakaarson, savior of the planet, or the Worldbreaker, the legendary destroyer. Carlo Pagulayan returns to provide art for this epic tale that brings fans back to one of Hulk’s best and most beloved storylines.
Temporal #1 (Mad Cave, $4.99): Stephanie Williams and Asiah Fulmore deliver a limited series about former temporal thieves who’ve traded adventure for suburban life. Savannah and Marcus were once the most skilled time-traveling artifact thieves in the business, but 10 years after settling down with their son Harper, Savannah questions whether quiet domesticity is enough. When Harper’s disappointment over a replica gaming console triggers memories of her former life, Savannah steps back into the portal for “one last job” against her husband’s knowledge and her best friend’s warnings.
Uncle Scrooge: Flintheart Glomgold’s Sinister Secret #1 (Fantagraphics, $5.99): Francesco Artibani, Jonathan H. Gray and Alessandro Perina launch a three-issue arc as Fantagraphics answers fan demand and brings legacy Disney comic books back to comic shops—an odd but welcome sight to see the publisher handling single-issue Disney licensed characters. Scrooge McDuck’s ruthless rival Flintheart Glomgold returns to Duckburg claiming he’s reformed for good and inviting Huey, Dewey and Louie to his luxurious new island estate. Since when was Glomgold a good guy or a big spender? Soon a trail of deadly trouble ensnares Scrooge and Donald Duck, pointing them to the Amazon and the legendary lost city of Z.
Strange Tales #1 (Marvel, $3.99): Jeremy Whitley and Bayleigh Underwood deliver a Halloween adventure where an RPG session turns dangerously real. Nico Minoru joins her girlfriend Karolina Dean and friends Teddy Altman and Billy Kaplan for a round of Hoosegows and Hydras, but when a dice roll materializes actual goblins and her friends disappear, Nico finds herself running through NYC streets with a very real dragon on her tail. Desperate for help, she turns to the Scarlet Witch’s Last Door.
Red Book I #1 (Dark Horse, $4.99): James Tynion IV and Michael Avon Oeming follow up Blue Book with an all-new volume of “true” tales capturing the strange world of alien encounters—this time focusing on uncanny extraterrestrial stories from Russia and China. The series opens with Russia, 1961, and the mysterious Dyatlov Pass Incident where nine students died under circumstances that remain unexplained to this day, with some theorizing the blame lies with visitors from beyond the stars. Each issue will feature “True Weird” backup stories by guest creators in this four-issue series.
Imperial War: Imperial Guardians #1 (Marvel, $4.99): Dan Abnett and Jonathan Hickman team with artists Cory Smith and Luca Maresca for this one-shot spinning out of the pages of Imperial. As the events of Imperial explode in fatal fashion, the Super-Skrull finds himself at the center of a seditious scheme with consequences that will be felt by the entire cosmos. But he’s not the only superpower looking for answers—an unlikely team is on the hunt to avert disaster before galactic order is lost for good. If you’ve been following the cosmic side of the Marvel Universe, this looks to be essential reading — and will lead the way for a new series.
Something is Killing the Children: A Monster Hunter Walks Into a Bar #1 (BOOM! Studios, $5.99): This collects James Tynion IV and Werther Dell’Edera’s story that was originally serialized across six parts in the horror anthology series Hello Darkness. This one-shot serves as a companion to their award-winning series, but with a twist: instead of following Erica Slaughter directly, the story is told from the perspective of those she saved.
Marvel: Black, White & Blood and Guts #1 (Marvel, $5.99): It’s October and the Marvel Universe is far from immune to the season of ghouls, goblins and horrifying haunts. This anthology kicks off with Al Ewing and Kev Walker delivering a blood-curdling Blade story, followed by G. Willow Wilson and Devmalya Pramanik offering their own take on the daywalker. The oversized issue closes with a story starring Iron Man from Chris Condon and Claire Roe, proving the horror characters don’t get to have all the fun this spooky season.
Conan the Barbarian #25 (Titan Comics, $5.99): Jim Zub and Alex Horley deliver an extra-sized 25th issue featuring a standalone story that serves as a perfect jumping-on point for new fans. Conan the King welcomes a strange visitor with an even stranger mission—can the Ruler of Aquilonia prove his mettle, or will the mysterious wanderer’s incredible power change the course of history?
Athanasia OGN (Vault Comics, $29.99): Daniel Kraus and Dani deliver what they’re calling the most disturbing superhero story ever told. One year out of high school and one year into sobriety, Forrest Molson works as assistant groundskeeper at Athanasia Cemetery, the final resting place of fallen superheroes from the Dynamic Guild. When she discovers the cemetery’s darkest secret—soil that bleeds a substance created from rotting superhero ooze—it becomes her new drug, granting unpredictable powers she uses to be judge, jury and executioner of Venture City’s evil citizens. But as she loses her mind to addiction, she inches closer to becoming the most evil of all.
Physics for Cats HC (Drawn & Quarterly, $21.95): Tom Gauld returns with his second collection of science-based cartoons for the New Scientist, answering important questions like what happens to a cat who goes through a wormhole.