Welcome back to Everything We Read This Week. This is the place that we make our weekly trip through this week’s pull-list. It features mostly spoiler-free brief analysis and commentary of each book.
We got to read some excellent comics by a variety of publishers this week. Some important series ended and we have the reviews for you. Some series definitely raised the stakes. Find the comics you like and remember, Read More Comics!!
We reviewed books from DC, Marvel, Vault, Image, Action Lab, Dark Horse, Dynamite, and AfterShock Comics this week. As always, we hope you might find what we say interesting enough to try some of these comics.
Also, Don’t forget to check our hotlist of new books debuting this month over here. You will see books that we were looking forward to with the designation Hot #1 by them. There are a few of them out this week, and they are really good.
DISCLAIMER:
There is a 4 star rating system. It is simple and not to be taken too seriously as everyone gets their own impressions of art. These ratings are just to give our readers an idea of what we thought of the book, and they will be on the generous side normally. So don’t expect to see a lot of 1 Stars. After all, it’s not often that you have a bad book on your pull-list.
The rating system is as follows:
Great
Good
OK
Not Good
And here are the books we read in alphabetical order:
Aero #1
Marvel Comics
Written by Zhou Liefen & Greg Pak
Art by Keng & Phop Mhan
Colors by Frederico Blee
Letters by Joe Caramagna
Cover art by Keng
This book contains two stories featuring the new hero Aero. Both are well designed and executed. There is some solid comic storytelling in this book. The thing that stands out the most is that at the end of the issue, I am wanting more. Both stories are compelling, and the art is excellent. This is not a book that I expected to like as much as I did. Definitely give this a read.
Descendent #3
AfterShock Comics
Written by Stephanie Phillips
Art by Evgeniy Bornyakov
Colors by Lauren Affe
Letters by Troy Peteri
Cover art by Juan Doe
This book is really getting good. The story has hit its stride as the primary characters are fleshed out and comfortable. The information being delivered is astonishing and enticing. Phillips is weaving a truly captivating tale. Bornyakov does a fantastic job conveying emotion in an issue that is light on action. We can’t wait to see what happens next.
Doom Patrol: Weight of the Worlds #1
DC Comics / Young Animal
Written by Gerard Way & Jeremy Lambert
Art by James Harvey
Colors by Harvey & Sajan Rai
Cover art by Nick Derington
Hot #1
The strangest super-hero team is back and up to their strange ways. This series picks up after the previous Young Animal series and this issue does a good job of setting the status quo without a wholesale retelling of what came before. Lambert’s art is the perfect amount of kooky for this group. The story seeds that are planted are intriguing, and we will be looking forward to where Way, Lambert, and Harvey take this team in the future.
Fantastic Four: The Prodigal Sun #1
Marvel Comics
Written by Peter David
Art by Francesco Manna
Colors by Espen Grundetjern
Letters by Cory Petit
Cover art by Mico Suyan & Rain Beredo
The story that is begun in this issue is meant to move to a series of other interconnected titles. In this issue, the Fantastic Four travel to the Savage Land. I must say, for a one shot the writing was extremely entertaining. Peter David’s humor is a major selling point for this book. Manna’s art portrays the setting of the Savage Land and its inhabitants perfectly. This book was very engaging and has us interested in where the story of the Prodigal Son shows up next.
Female Furies #6
DC Comics
Written by Cecil Castellucci
Art by Adriana Melo
Colors by Hi-Fi
Letters by Sal Cipriano
Cover art by Joelle Jones & Laura Allred
The only bad thing about this book is that the series is over. The amazing tale of empowerment and righteous rebellion has been a thrilling ride. The Furies have grown both emotionally and philosophically in these five issues, and it is sad to see them go. Castellucci should be proud of what she has done here and the incredible creative team has stuck the landing on this issue. We haven’t mentioned the amazing cast of talented cover artists that tackled the wrappers to this series, but each one is astonishing.
Lois Lane #1
DC Comics
Written by Greg Rucka
Art by Mike Perkins
Colors by Paul Mounts
Letters by Simon Bowland
Cover art by Perkins
Hot #1
If you are not interested in current political commentary in your comics, this is not the issue for you. If you are, then buckle up, and keep you hands inside the car at all times. What a triumph of comic storytelling! Lois Lane is a force and Rucka is clearly displaying that to anyone who doubted it. This book is mostly a spy/investigative reporter story, but there is much more to it. The structure of the story is excellent, and the art by Perkins is extremely complimentary for the tone of the book. Paul Mounts’ colors are exquisite in, what I see as, a stretch from his normal style. This is really a great book.
No One Left to Fight #1
Dark Horse Comics
Written by Aubrey Sitterson
Art by Fico Ossio
Letters by Taylor Esposito
Cover art by Ossio
Hot #1
This book is a visual tour-de-force. The garish colors and incomprehensibly complex costume designs are powerfully welcoming. The barely over the top facial acting by Ossio is perfect. The combination of the outlandish but supremely executed visuals and Sitterson’s emotional interpretation of a “Welcome Home” story make for an excellent start to this series. The groundwork for more in depth stories has been laid, and we are definitely here for the ride.
Red Sonja #6
Dynamite Entertainment
Written by Mark Russell
Art by Mirko Colak & Robert Carey
Colors by Dearbhla Kelly
Letters by Hassan Otsmane-Elhaou
Cover art by Amanda Connor & Paul Mounts
This series has been excellent from page one. This issue is fantastic. The story of the war that Sonja has been waging reaches a turning point. The game of mental chess that the warring monarchs have been playing sees a massive gambit wagered and the outcome may decide the war. The method that Russell has been informing the audience about Sonja’s inspirations for her moves in the game is truly genius. It speeds up the reading and enlightens without being pedantic. The art by Colak, Carey, & Kelly is truly gorgeous. This is a book that you should be reading.
Sea of Stars #1
Image Comics
Written by Jason Aaron & Dennis Hallum
Art by Stephen Green
Colors by Rico Renzi
Letters by Jared K. Fletcher
Cover art by Green
Hot #1
Stop Scrolling!! This is a fantastic comic book. It is smartly crafted. It is beautifully illustrated. It will tickle your imagination with the possibilities of the life that is led by the main familial unit in the book, and then it will rip your heart to shreds leaving you a puddle of angst. While you pick up the pieces and trudge forward to an unknown fate with the remnants of what you started with, you will say, “That Jason Aaron writes some good comics!” Kudos to Aaron, Hallum, Green, Renzi, Fletcher and everyone else involved in this book. It is a must read.
Spencer & Locke 2 #4
Action Lab Comics
Written by David Pepose
Art by Jorge Santiago Jr.
Colors by Jasen Smith
Letters by Colin Bell
Cover art by Santiago & Smith
As I was reading the finale to this second volume of Spencer and Locke, I was struck by just how good the individual collaborators of this effort are. Their unified delivery resulted in a truly effective conclusion to the current story. Without giving any spoilers, this issue is everything that I hoped for, but not what I expected. Take a bow guys, you have done it again.
Test #1
Vault Comics
Written by Christopher Sebela
Art by Jen Hickman
Colors by Harry Saxon
Letters by Hassan Otsmane-Elhaou
Cover art by Hickman
This is a funky read through a dangerous trip. Sebela and Otsmane-Elhaou manage to create a chaotic reading environment that makes the reader as uncomfortable as the lead character. Hickman’s are matches that feel and is really we done. This book about a human guinea pig test subject is unnerving. It is very good, but at the completion of the issue, the reader feels like it was a physical experience. We will be coming back for more.
The Walking Dead #193
Image Comics
Written by Robert Kirkman
Art by Charlie Adlard
Tones by Cliff Rathburn
Letters by Rus Wooten
Cover art by Adlard
I need to be honest. I haven’t read the previous eighty or so issues of The Walking Dead. I stopped reading somewhere after issue 100. When the news broke that Kirkman and Company had ambush ended the book, I felt that I should read the last issue. The giant-sized issue was excellent. The resolution of a story that they have been telling for sixteen years was incredibly satisfying. There was a really good complete adventure that appropriately honored the past and celebrated the constant theme of moving forward that the book has always been about. It is difficult to see how anyone can be upset about this ending. The Walking Dead is Done. Long live The Walking Dead.
The Wild Storm #24
DC Comics
Written by Warren Ellis
Art by Jon Davis-Hunt
Colors by Steve Buccallato with John Kalisz
Letters by Simon Bowland
Cover art by Davis-Hunt
Ellis and Davis-Hunt let it all hang out in this finale to The Wild Storm. The visual carnage that Davis-Hunt delivers is a beautiful as it is shocking. Ellis is a master of fitting all the pieces together after he has scattered them across the board, and this series is a great example of it. This was an excellent series, and the ending is wonderful.
