Eight #1
Dark Horse
Words: Mike Johnson
Pictures: Rafael Albuquerque
I have to give it up to Rafael and Mike for coming out swinging with a great big awesome-weird stick and just plain hitting out of whatever passes for a park in a game played with a great big awesome-weird stick. I dig time travel stuff. I dig post apoc stories. I dig alt history mash-ups. Eight is all of those and more than all of them all at once.
Cluster #1
Boom! Studios
Words: Ed Brisson
Pictures: Damian Couceiro
Cluster is a bit like OZ meets Starship Troopers: The Movie, but with some Mad Max vibes and minus the silicone of Denise Richards (there’s just something all weird and plasticy about her).
The Woods #10
Boom! Studios
Words: James Tynion IV
Pictures: Michael Dialynas
Reading The Woods continues to be like walking through the woods for the first time. There’s the emergence of light from shadow, the sense of familiar and foreboding all at once, and a sense awe and wonder as you see parts of the woods for the first time. Walking through the woods can make you feel like there really is magic in the world; reading The Woods can give you that same feeling.
Lady Killer #2
Dark Horse
Words: Joelle Jones & Jamie S. Rich
Pictures: Joelle Jones
I can’t be the only one who got a Josie and the Pussycats meet James Bond on this issue am I? If I am, I’m good with that. (OK, that analogy only works if you swap out three piece all girl band for a one woman solo act, but still, she’s dressed up in cat ears and a tail and her name is Josie! I mean, I’m not too far off here.)
The Ghost Fleet #4
Dark Horse
Words: Donny Cates
Pictures: Daniel Warren Johnson
Donny and Daniel remind me of rock’s Toxic Twins, Steven Tyler and Joe Perry; those two make magic. Just like Donny and Daniel do with The Ghost Fleet. They lay down solid art riffs over soaring story vocals that just scream rock.
Big Trouble In Little China #8
Boom! Studios
Words: Eric Powell
Pictures: Brian Churilla
Bust out the popcorn and soda (or pizza and beer if you’re so inclined…which I am), dust off the VCR, this is some slam bang good ‘80’s Action Movie action. And while we’re at it, can we dust off Kurt Russel too? Remember how awesome Kurt was back in the day? (I’m not saying he isn’t awesome now, he just happened to be awesome back in the day.) No? Then pick this book up and read it. (Also, I’m not implying he’s currently covered in dust…but I’m not implying he isn’t either.)
Evil Empire #10
Boom! Studios
Words: Max Bemis
Pictures: Victor Santos
Man, Max and Victor show just how repulsively attractive (or attractively repulsive) evil can truly be. I’m serious. They show just how seductive even the most whackadoo ideas can be if properly positioned amongst society.
Father’s Day #4
Dark Horse
Words: Mike Richardson
Pictures: Gabriel Guzman
Mike and Gabriel wrap up what can only be described as one hell of a Father/Daughter day out. Face it, Silas and Denise won’t be posting a ton of selfies on the Instagram or Twitter after this little trek together.
Sundowners #6
Dark Horse
Words: Tim Seeley
Pictures: Jim Terry
Remember those Magic Eye images that were all the rage back in the late ‘90’s? They were just pictures of random colors and patterns, but if you looked at them just right, you could see amazing 3-D images pop from the page. (At least that’s what they told me, I never could see those damn things. Except maybe once or twice. Pretty sure it was a cow.) Even if you didn’t see them, the images were pretty mesmerizing and gave you the illusion of movement and I was never quite sure what it was I was looking at. That’s what reading Sundowners is like for me.
Colder: The Bad Seed #4
Dark Horse
Words: Paul Tobin
Pictures: Juan Ferreyra
When I get sick and run a fever, I don’t mess around. It’s not uncommon for me to run a fever of 101 to 102 on average. Anything below that is no big deal. But man, when I do run those higher fevers, my dreams are completely messed up. Oh, sure, they start out pretty normal; like I’ll be walking through my house to go to the kitchen… The suddenly it’s not my house any more, and I can’t find the kitchen. Then I’m being followed, and now I’m outside, so I start running, but I have no idea where I’m going and I’m not sure exactly why I’m running but I just can’t seem to stop and I’m not sure how long I’m going to be running but dammit I better keep running because something is back there, and I know I don’t like it but I’m not sure I’m going to like what’s just beyond this next turn either… and then I wake up. That’s what reading Colder is like; a fever dream on the page.