dc

by

good this week

silver surfer #9 : barreling along in what’s going to be one of the touchstone SS runs, this galactus-ized issue sets up a thrilling 3rd act to this book’s best arc yet. the inimitable art work of michael&laura allred is worth the ticket alone. and this cover has to be an early candidate for cover of the year…

Silver_Surfer_Vol_7_9_Textless

the multiversity mastermen #1 : grant morrison continues to march across the entirety of dc’s history like adolph hitler thru 1939. wait a minute…that’s hitler on the toilet. thanks, grant.

multiv-mastermen-1-97b3a

she-hulk #12 : so, so sad to see this book go away. if you haven’t, do yourself a favor and check out what charles soule, javier pulido, and co. put together here.

background

bitch planet #3 : a world where women can wind up in an off-planet prison for…wanton obesity? but don’t worry, these ladies are about to fight back. another perfectly paced, involving episode of this early candidate for series of the year.

BitchPlanet_03_300_457

silk #1 : cindy moon was bitten by the same spider that bit peter parker. what else do you need to know?

Silk-1-review-spoilers-1.1

eight #1 : the talented rafael albuquerque throws his hat into the sci-fi ring, with some good-looking early results.

EI8HT-1-FC-FNL-4x6-5d608

–chris

by

The Locust Moon Top 40: August 2014

40. FABLES vol. 20

Willingham & Buckingham’s seemingly-endless saga wends towards its conclusion, out of the darkness of its previous volume and back towards its heroic roots.

40 camelot

39. REMAINDER by Farel Dalrymple

The tour-de-force cartooning in this WRENCHIES side story would make Moebius proud.

wrenchiesTOR06rgb400

38. KILL MY MOTHER

Jules Feiffer is one of the true architects of the comics medium — here, in his smoke-wreathed noir debut graphic novel, he shows that he’s still on top of his game.

killmy

37. This D&D Audiobook

Let Ice-T and Dan Harmon (sadly, not doing his impression of Ice-T) and friends read Dungeons and Dragons to you. It’s…something special.

36. MEGAHEX

Simon Hanselmann’s weirdly sociopathic stoner gag strip MEGG, MOGG & OWL, collected here by Fantagraphics, is a stealth delivery system for some terrifyingly dark character studies.

megahex

35. MULTIVERSITY #1

Bucking the shitty MOR trends of DC, shamanic comics mastermind Grant Morrison delivers a brain-blasting metacomic, with gorgeously detailed universes drawn by Ivan Reis. Surprising that the suits are letting the iconoclastic Morrison have this much fun with their precious continuity.

Multiversity-map_1400x1074 Continue reading →

by

good this week

Chris is out of the game this week, but I didn’t want to let these books go un-called-out…

DARK HORSE PRESENTS VOL 3 #1: The grand old lady of comics anthologies is back in new & improved form. And what better way to kick things off than with a new Big Guy and Rusty story from Geof Darrow? Throw in some new Kabuki from David Mack and a color Sabertooth Swordsman tale from Gentry, Conley, and Bergin (among other fun stories), and yeah, this one’s a winner.

dhp_vol3_1

MS. MARVEL #7: G. Willow Wilson’s truly, deeply modern-day-superhero series continues to be a blast of fresh air and new thinking on an old formula. This is the second and last (for now) issue with charming guest art by Jacob Wyatt, who I hope we’ll see back the next time Alphona needs a break. Ian Herring deserves mention for keeping the book’s colors looking consistently great (and greatly consistent).

msmarvel7

THE MULTIVERSITY #1: You were gonna read it anyways. Take the ride.

multiversity1

LITTLE NEMO: RETURN TO SLUMBERLAND #1: The other loving, modern tribute to McCay’s world — this one in monthly, rationally sized form. I was wondering how McCay’s sleep-wake cycle would translate from single-page broadsheet strips to a 20-page comic, and was pleasantly surprised by the results. Shanower & Rodriguez maintain a brisk forward momentum through dreamtime that I hope continues through the story’s end, and Rodriguez’s cityscapes — not to mention cloudscapes — really shine. Bravo, guys!

littlenemo_returntoslumberland_1

DAREDEVIL #7: Mark Waid & Javier Rodriguez made me cry. With this issue and the last, the DD team somehow managed to use Marvel’s “Original Sin” framework to craft one of their best stories in an already incredible, landmark run (on a character whose history automatically sets a high bar).

daredevil7– Andrew Carl

 

by

good this week

saga #21 : things are getting slipperier for the families on both sides here. on another note, i want FRIENDO.

saga_21

ragnarok #1 : YES. walt simonson back in the saddle, with john workman bringing the BRAKKATHOOMs.

simonson-ragnarok_1

avengers 100th anniversary #1 : james stokoe. need i say more?

avengers_100_stokoe

transformers vs gi joe #1 : tom scioli pulls off a perfect evocation of all that made generations of kids spend countless hours on kitchen floors playing out action figure battles & plots.

transformers_vs_gijoe_1

batman ’66 #13 : the most enjoyable bat book of its day sees dean haspiel ride in and deliver pitch perfect storytelling chops and just the right amount of wink-wink this book thrives on.

batman_66_13

tuki: save the humans #1 : where jeff smith goes, we follow.

tuki_1

mike mignola’s hellboy artist’s edition : seeing the master’s hand unadorned packs a punch.

hellboy_artist_edition

-chris stevens

Seconds : Bryan Lee O’Malley (with great help from Nathan Fairbairn) does it again with his new, beautiful, magical realist fable.

seconds

Street Angel HC : AdHouse Books has brought Jim Rugg’s modern classic, bar-raising series back in perfect form. Street Angel changed the way I looked at comics 10 years ago, and this new, handsomely produced edition (which includes a few bits and pieces old fans might not have seen) is the one it’s always deserved. Everyone who missed it the first time around owes it to themselves to read it now.*

street-angel_wrap

-Andrew Carl

*Diamond didn’t actually ship us our order of Street Angel HCs this week, but we’ll be getting them in soon. Regardless, this roundup wouldn’t have been right without her.

by

The Locust Moon Top 40: April 2014

40. ALL NEW X-MEN #25

An all-star line-up of creators beautifies this anniversary issue of Brian Bendis’ goofily fun stab at adding to the X-mythos.

top 40 all new

39. Compendium of Comic Maps

Every comic (and every book) should start with a map. Delving into this wealth of literary cartography, it’s easy to imagine that they do.

top 40 map

38. DARKSEID MINUS NEW GODS

top 40 darkseid

Remember Garfield Minus Garfield? Imagine that, juiced with the Anti-Life Equation.

37. SEX CRIMINALS

Matt Fraction & Chip Zdarsky bring an oddball eroticism to this supernatural sex-caper comedy, a generally gleeful creativity that springs from their ultimate turn-on: the expressive freedom of creator-owned comics.

top 40 sex

36. MoCCAFest 2014

Another MoCCAFest, another inspiring celebration of comics & craftsmanship, this one presided over by a Staypuft-Marshmallow-Man-Scale Charlie Brown balloon, and featuring well-deserved awards for Locust Moon contributors and our pals Alexandra Beguez & Dave Plunkert.

top 40 mocca

Continue reading →

by

good this week

secret avengers #2 : issue #1 was terrific and #2 tops it with a great blend of action, humor, and intelligence in ales kot’s script topped off by flawless visual storytelling from michael walsh.

Image

shutter #1 : a book with the potential for a ton of fun, with some killer art from leila del duca.

Image

all-new doop #1 : i get it, little guy. i really do. i think we’ve all had a crush on kitty pryde at one time in our lives.

Image

lumberjanes #1 : fun, funny stuff, with some fine cartooning from brooke allen.

Image

jonah hex shadows west : it’s good to see some of the fine work tim truman did in the 90’s coming back into print, with the release of the masterful HAWKWORLD last month and now this collection of hex mini series with writer joe lansdale. great hard-edged supernatural horror.

Image

spongebob #31 : spongey and patrick stay up past their bedtime.

Image

east of west #11 and east of west volume 2 : volume 2 added all kinds of wickedness while issue #11 lays the groundwork for major confrontation between the nation states. consistently excellent.

Image

–chris stevens

by

good this week

silver surfer #1 : yee haw, a surfer book by mike allred! a match made in celestial heaven here, as allred and writer dan slott start off on the new adventures of the sentinel of the spaceways. matching cosmic goodness with homey, human elements, allred is smack dab in his wheelhouse here, and i couldn’t be happier to go along for the ride.

Image

star slammers #1 : walter simonson’s bad to the bone space opera gets rolled out for the 21st century. the art & storytelling are prime simonson. ’nuff said.

Image

metabarons genesis: castaka : more metabarons mythos in a handsome slip-cased hardcover.

Image

the adventures of nilson groundthumper and hermy : a delightful forerunner to stan sakai’s beloved USAGI YOJIMBO. great cartooning.

Image

the glorkian warrior delivers a pizza : james kochalka slings pies.

Image

sandman overture #2 : better late than never? oh yes. lush, gorgeous stuff.

Image

–chris stevens

by

good this week

moon knight #1 : warren ellis steps in with a fresh take on a difficult character, and declan shalvey takes his game to a new level with killer pacing, characterizations, and design. and a swanky new look for our crazy hero.

Image

Image

turok #2 : this is an inventive new spin on a classic character, with sensitive, imaginative writing from greg pak and fine art from mirko colak.

Image

batman/superman annual #1 : a straight forward superhero romp graced by the exquisite art of jae lee and june chung.

Image

Image

uncanny x-men #18 : marco rudy, fresh off a bang up stint on marvel knights spider-man, weaves and winds through this issue with some of the most interesting layouts in a long time.

Image

afterlife with archie #4 : a powerful issue that hits you with a punch. this book is just getting better, somehow.

Image

jupiter’s legacy #4 : the best issue of this series so far, with some enjoyable character moments and peak frank quitely art.

Image

she hulk #2 : the first issue was no fluke. charles soule and javier pulido (and THE PRIVATE EYE’s muntsa vicente!) are on to something special here.

Image

starlight #1 : i hope this is the breakout book goran parlov so richly deserves. this is a gorgeous comic with impeccable design and storytelling on parlov’s part, and mark millar has a fun concept lined up.

Image

Image

wolverine and the x-men #1 : summer school kicks off at the jean grey school, and the kids are in good hands with jason latour, who slides right into jason aaron’s place with enough of his own voice to make things feel fresh, and mahmud asrar, who’s come a long way from his digital webbing days.

Image

velvet #4 : top-notch spy thriller from brubaker and epting. this series is really finding its groove.

Image

trillium #7 : we’re nearing the end of this fantastic mini series.

Image

–chris stevens

by

good this week

deadly class #2 : a strong issue that cements my hopes for this series. we get into the whole school aspect of things, and it’s a lot of fun meeting the various cliques. wes craig kills every aspect of the art–design, character, layout.

Image

hawkeye #15 : it feels like things are coming to a head for clint and his building. any time david aja drops in to draw an issue it elevates an already good book. this run is going to be an evergreen.

Image

batman/superman #9 : JAE LEE.

Image

Image

Image

elephantmen #54 : a killer cliffhanger for one of the very best serial reads there is.

Image

black science #4 : after a couple of issues that, while still excellent, felt like they were racing to keep up with the explosive debut issue, this feels like it’s leading us out of the fire and into the frying pan.

Image

sock monkey treasury : a gorgeous new collection of one of the more idiosyncratic cartoonist’s most accessible work.

Image

wolverine and the x-men #42 : jason aaron, nick bradshaw, chris bachalo and company wrap up their run on what has been one of the most fun books of the last few years. and they do it in style, with a touching, chuckling read that feels just right.

Image

miracleman #3 : you can argue with the way marvel has rolled this out, but you can’t argue with the material. this issue leads us into the truly masterful work alan moore does the rest of the way.

Image

–chris stevens