With Further Ado #411: Will Murray, Man of Bronze

With Further Ado #411: Will Murray, Man of Bronze

Posted on by Ed Catto

They say to never meet your idols. I dunno, I’ve had pretty good luck over the years. I especially had good luck with writer, researcher, and historian Will Murray. Sadly, Will passed last week.

In retrospect, it seemed like Will Murray was an author that I always reading. He seemed to know so much about all the cool stuff I loved: pulp heroes (like Doc Savage, the Spider,  and The Shadow, old TV shows, comics, famous actors, even old books.  I read a zillion of his articles then started diving into his novels.

I even reviewed one, The Sinister Shadow (a Doc Savage + Shadow team-up) here.

How much fun his novels were, and all the better that they written by a fan just “like us”.

Admittedly, a fan with a lot more talent, but still. He was one of us.

I met Will a few times at conventions over the years. As I got more involved, I was over-the-moon thrilled when he accepted my invitations to be a convention panelist once or twice.

But more recently, I’ve become the Editor-in-Chief for RetroFan magazine. I inherited the job from my friend, Michael Eury, and it’s been a joy. Will Murray had long been a contributing writer to RetroFan. His regular feature, Will Murray’s 20th Century Panopticon was always one of my favorite parts. So you can imagine I was eager to work with him as EiC. Continue reading “With Further Ado #411: Will Murray, Man of Bronze” →

New Number Ones: New Comics Series and Specials Coming for the Week of 9/2/2026

New Number Ones: New Comics Series and Specials Coming for the Week of 9/2/2026

Posted on by Bob Harrison

It time that we bring you the list of new series and special editions coming on New Comic Book Day this Wednesday. We are highlighting what you need to put in your cart at the comic shop or digital marketplace.

Holy Moley Folks! What an amazing list of new series and special editions!? There are so many must reads this week that thank goodness there is a long weekend coming to help us catch up.

We have an alphabetical list with cover art and the official solicitation text from the publishers of some of the cool new comics that are coming out this week. Check below for our PCS NOTES to find out what we just have to tell you about the new comics in question.

We have books on this week’s list from:  DC Comics, Marvel Comics, Dark Horse Comics, IDW Publishing, Boom! Studios, Vault Comics, Bad Idea Comics, Oni Press, and Image Comics.

We will bring you reviews of these debut issues as they come out, and don’t forget to use the comments section to let us know what you think of this list.

New Series
New One-Shots and Special Editions

New Series This Week 

Archie #1
Oni Press
Written by Ben H. Winters
Art by Fábio Moon & Jason Wordie
Cover Art by Stuart Immonen

BEING YOUNG NEVER GETS OLD! THE MILESTONE COMICS PUBLISHING EVENT OF THE YEAR STARTS HERE AS ONI PRESS AND ARCHIE COMICS PROUDLY PRESENT A GROUNDBREAKING NEW ONGOING SERIES FOR THE MOST JOYOUS COMIC BOOK ICON OF ALL!

A new day is dawning in Riverdale as New York Times bestselling writer, Edgar Award and Philip K. Dick Award winner, and Eisner Award nominee Ben H. Winters (EC’s Cruel Universe, Benjamin) joins multiple Eisner Award–winning artist Fábio Moon (Daytripper, Casanova) to reintroduce America’s favorite teenager — and begin a star-studded countdown to Archie’s 85th anniversary — with a 21st-century testament to teenage idealism and the limitless joy of Archie Comics!

For his entire life, 17-year-old Archie Andrews has had it all: adoring friends, football glory, and a natural charm that always seems to make him the center of attention. Now, through his eyes, experience the warmth and wonder of Riverdale and its near-infinite roster of residents — the popular kids, the endearing oddballs, and everyone in between — as Archie embarks on a whirlwind, all-star adventure through his town’s past, present, and future… beginning with a local film festival that’s about to turn everything upside down!

And, at the center of it all, lies an enigmatic paradox that only Archie’s pal Jughead Jones can possibly unravel…

Plus: Puzzles! Pin-ups! Bountiful bonus stories! And a veritable sweet shop of surprises that all link to the same inextricable mystery… Finally, your antidote for postmodern malaise has arrived. Welcome to the all-new ARCHIE #1!

Release Date: September 2, 2026

PCS NOTES: A new chapter in the publishing life of Archie Andrews starts here, and it is a really good start.

Black Panther / Namor: Doomed #1
Marvel Comics
Written by Ethan S. Parker & Griffin Sheridan
Art by Stefano Nesi & Jesus Arbutov
Letters by Travis Lanham
Cover Art by Dave Johnson

BLACK PANTHER AND NAMOR TRAPPED IN HELL… WITH DOOM!!!

Black Panther and Namor must investigate Hell when Wakanda and Atlantis are attacked by demons! But once there, these rival kings discover they aren’t alone, as they cross paths with the wandering soul of Doctor Doom!

Release Date: September 2, 2026

PCS NOTES: An unlikely team up may make for interesting storytelling.

Crowbound #1
Image Comics
Written by Jeff Lemire
Art by Dustin Nguyen
Letters by Steve Wands
Cover Art by Nguyen

Margaret Atwood’s The Handmaid’s Tale meets Cormac McCarthy’s The Road with echoes of Kill Bill and Pan’s Labyrinth when a noncompliant mother makes a dark pact with an ancient, violent Scarecrow Queen to stop a totalitarian government from taking her daughter.

Rose isn’t special. She works in the Factory just like everyone else — a dark, sprawling monolithic structure that runs along the coast and cuts the world in two. All that’s left now are desolate settlements that exist in its shadow, made up of submerged villages, derelict woods, and deadly swamps. No one knows what’s left of the world on the other side…

But when Rose’s young daughter Ava is violently taken from their shanty town home a year before she is meant to join the work force, Rose will come face-to-face with the surreal, harrowing forces outside the Factory’s walls — including a terrifying figure called the Scarecrow Queen, who has an offer: one last chance to save her daughter, in exchange for her soul.

Release Date: September 2, 2026

PCS NOTES: When this creative team works together, magic happens. Can’t wait to see what they have in store for us this time.  Continue reading “New Number Ones: New Comics Series and Specials Coming for the Week of 9/2/2026” →

Pop Culture SquadCast – Live: Episode #162 with Special Guests Jacoby Salcedo and Julio Anta

Pop Culture SquadCast – Live: Episode #162 with Special Guests Jacoby Salcedo and Julio Anta

Posted on by PCS Staff

Join Bob and Mike as they chat about current Pop Culture events. Comic creators Julio Anta and Jacoby Salcedo will join the SquadCast and talk about their careers and their collaborations including the latest No Gods, No Masters. It is sure to be a great conversation. Be there.

We hope you enjoy the conversation.

If you don’t catch it live, you can watch later.

 

Brainiac On Banjo: Timing Is Everything

Brainiac On Banjo: Timing Is Everything

Posted on by Mike Gold

“You gotta give the people what they want. The more they get, the more they need, and every time they get harder and harder to please.” From Give The People What They Want, written by Ray Davies.

They say timing is everything, and to my experience that concept is as reliable as gravity and every bit as explainable. In the comic book world, it was announced a bit ago that our friends Ty Templeton and Dan Parent are doing an “Archie Meets Captain Canuck” crossover.

That’s cool. I’ve always liked Archie; well, the super-teen stuff not as much because “America’s typical teen-ager” isn’t a “typical” superhero. I’ve also always liked Captain Canuck. It’s fair play: the star-spangled Nazi-puncher Captain America has been successful. Captain Britain, the other flag-draped patriotic powerhouse, was first published after Captain Canuck debuted.

Captain Canuck was created in 1975 — that’s fifty-one years ago, for those of us who are digitally challenged. It was created by British-born Canadian artist Richard Comely and his friend Ron Leishman. As the first Canadian superhero since World War II, it was, arguably, the first “independent” comic book published in color. According to Wikipedia, that first issue had a print run of 170,000 copies.

Back in 1975, there weren’t a whole lotta North American comic books with that kind of print run. Five years later, the Canadian post office printed six million Captain Canuck stamps. That was a full three years before the United States postal service issued their first Superman stamp. Continue reading “Brainiac On Banjo: Timing Is Everything” →

With Further Ado #410: Reading Is Fundamental

With Further Ado #410: Reading Is Fundamental

Posted on by Ed Catto

As the nation mourns the passing of Dolly Parton, her many accomplishments have been recited and celebrated. And they certainly should be. What an impressive person she was.

Last year when we visited Nashville, we chose not to see that Dolly Boadway-esque show that was in previews. Not because we weren’t interested, we were, but because the tickets were really expensive. ($300+ each, as I recall.) Now, I’m kinda regretful. That would have been the time and the place to have seen that one.

In addition to everything else Dolly did, there’s one thing that I haven’t seen much in this week’s coverage.

Up until my daughter clued me in last year, I had never heard of Dolly’s Imagination Library. It’s a program she founded, back in the ‘90s, that sends free books to children. They are sent to children in the US and internationally.  Over the years, it’s distributed over 300 million free books and currently serves three million children. Continue reading “With Further Ado #410: Reading Is Fundamental” →

Pop Culture SquadCast – Live: Episode #161 with Special Guests Wendy and Richard Pini

Pop Culture SquadCast – Live: Episode #161 with Special Guests Wendy and Richard Pini

Posted on by PCS Staff

Join Bob and Mike as they chat about current Pop Culture events. Legendary Indie Comic Creators Wendy and Richard Pini will make their debut appearance on the SquadCast and talk about their careers in comics as well as their latest project Masque of the Red Death which is funding on Kickstarter. It is sure to be a great conversation. Be there. 

We hope you enjoy the conversation.

If you don’t catch it live, you can watch later.

 

Brainiac On Banjo: “And We Have — A Hulk”

Brainiac On Banjo: “And We Have — A Hulk”

Posted on by Mike Gold

“I want a world without gravity. It could be just what I need. I’d watch the stars move close. I’d watch the earth recede.” From Wicked Gravity, written by Jim Carroll.

Wikipedia defines Pet Peeve thusly: A pet peeve, pet aversion, or pet hate is a minor annoyance that an individual finds particularly irritating to a greater degree than the norm. Okay. Here’s my pet peeve.

From time to time, just about every person realizes they belong to at least one group that has been heavily discriminated against, and most of us belong to several. That is not my peeve. People who think that every comment about some act performed by a member of such a group is an insult or even an attack against all members of such group. That is my pet peeve. You can be a left-handed deaf German immigrant who wears moth-eaten lederhosen, and I may comment on your particular costuming, but that is not a comment upon on all left-handed, deaf German wearers of lederhosen.

Case in point: Mark Ruffalo, actor, activist, and Glamour magazine’s two-time sexiest actor alive. Nice guy, great actor (then again; some think Dean Cain can act), solid sense of humor, and, yup, he’s The Hulk. MAGAts do not like anyone to the left of Kevin Sorbo.

Like a majority of those who labor in our entertainment industries, Ruffalo is opposed to Paramount Skydance’s nearly finalized purchase of Warner Bros — the movie studios, the teevee studios, the cable holdings including CNN, and DC Comics. Paramount Skydance already owns Paramount, including CBS News. Already, they have crapped on their news operations by turning CBS into another redundant voice of fascism, ruining the reputation of the Tiffany Network, destroying the news division’s credibility along with the most honored American television news program, 60 Minutes. Where Paramount Skydance is concerned, you are no longer watching the CBS eye. The eye is watching you. Continue reading “Brainiac On Banjo: “And We Have — A Hulk”” →

So Long and Thanks For The Fish, Man #124: Dispatch from the Climate Conjurer!

So Long and Thanks For The Fish, Man #124: Dispatch from the Climate Conjurer!

Posted on by Marc Alan Fishman

We here at PopCultureSquad are sad to report that regular columnist Marc Alan Fishman’s normal weekly piece was not turned in this week, and in its place was the following letter left in his submission inbox. Please take caution when reading. Thank you.

–The Management

Dear Flash and the downtrodden dopes of Central City,

Tis I, Mark Mardon, more often known to you as Weather Wizard. I know all too many of you are already rolling your eyes. “What’s this? Yet-another plot hatched by our city’s rogue’s gallery by way of a stolen opinion column?!” Nay, cretins. Firstly? It’s “Rogues Gallery”, capitalized. We’re trademarking it soon. Secondly? I didn’t steal this column you’re reading today. The yutz missed his deadline, and luckily I happened to be strolling past his open laptop. Since his bearded bouffant was nowhere to be found, I did him a favor and filled in for him while he was off doing whatever columnists on this site do when they aren’t pontificating on pop culture. He was probably doomscrolling on the john, with his boxers round his ankles. HA! And lastly? I don’t hatch plots. In the past, perhaps, I’ve been known to steal, snipe, jaywalk, trespass, vandalize, or (on occasion) participate in some light(ning) tomfoolery. 

But not this time. No. Continue reading “So Long and Thanks For The Fish, Man #124: Dispatch from the Climate Conjurer!” →

With Further Ado #409: The Sonic Days of Scott Shaw!

With Further Ado #409: The Sonic Days of Scott Shaw!

Posted on by Ed Catto

Have you ever had that strange feeling when you don’t know much about a book’s subject —and don’t even have a little affinity for it—but you absolutely love that book?

Me too! That’s the case (for me) with the wonderful new hardcover, Scott Shaw!’s Sonic Days. I’m not a big Sonic the Hedgehog fan. I’m not sure if I’m too old, too young, or too square. It just never was my cup of tea. I don’t really get it. Although I’m in awe of the enduring staying power of this IP. Continue reading “With Further Ado #409: The Sonic Days of Scott Shaw!” →

Brainiac On Banjo: Hey! Know Your Rights — The Comic Book!

Brainiac On Banjo: Hey! Know Your Rights — The Comic Book!

Posted on by Mike Gold

“Here I am with my immigration form, it’s big enough to keep me warm when a cold wind’s coming, so go where you will as long as you think you can, you’d better watch out. Watch out for the man, anywhere you’re going.” From Immigration Man, written by Graham Nash.

For some — all too many — this might be the most important comic book they will ever possess.

Yeah, I know. You’re heard that before. A lot. I’ve said it before, probably in promotional copy that was supposed to motivate you to spend your last dime on a comic with my name in it… as well as other names, of course. But this time that sentence most certainly carries the ambiance of truthiness.

This critically important comic is titled Know Your Rights and it’s published by the New York City Public Schools, although outside of a few local contacts (which, generally, have corollaries in most cities) the information is completely useful throughout the United States of America. This, unfortunately, remains particularly in those large areas like Minneapolis, Chicago, Portland, Los Angeles, and way too many others where armed, nameless, cowardly masked federal agents of all sorts are lawlessly rounding up foreign-born residents and tossing them into brick-and-mortal concentration camps. Of course, after an extended period of incarceration in filthy chicken-wired pits, they are shackled and deported, usually to a country to which those people had either never been or to a country where they face torture and death due to their opposition to some of their former homeland’s government ethics.

These inmates have not been convicted of anything in open court and are not granted their rights to due process.

King Trump’s America is doing this without giving these human beings the rights we constitutionally give to all while within our borders… well, certainly, to most white men and many white women, and who are not Muslims or whatever other religions also are on the Christian Nationalist Hitlist on that day.

It turns out there are lots and lots of things people can do once being stomped upon by ICE, the FBI, the border patrol, the Proud Boys (or whatever the fuck these pigs are calling themselves today), et al. And this comic book details just what those things are.

Know Your Rights is a comic book in all aspects except some text stuff in the back. It’s thirty-two pages, comic book sized, and its done by genuine comic book talent. Continue reading “Brainiac On Banjo: Hey! Know Your Rights — The Comic Book!” →