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Since the dawn of DC in 2023, DC Comics, now an absolute universe, has leaned violently towards reinvention. Whether Joshua Williamson runs in both Green Arrow and Superman, to Tom King’s run in Penguin and Wonder Woman, the DC All-in initiative will only continue its quality. Absolute Batman #1 by Scott Snyder and Nick Dragotta has become the bestselling comic of 2024, proving that readers are hungry for bold new take on classic heroes. But long before the absolute line, DC experimented with another, more fundamental reinvention: the Blue Stim’s Justice League: Gods and Monsters (2015). Universe without icons Originally…
In this week’s Wednesday Comics Reviews, the team reviews Mad Cave’s new sci-fi comic Red Vector, the latest classic monster revival with Universal Monsters: The Invisible Man, an instant-classic Hellboy one-shot, and more! Meanwhile, we look ahead with a review of new book The Author Immortal in our FOC Watch section, while Ensign’s Log returns with a review of the new Star Trek: Strange New Worlds comic. Plus, as always … The Prog Report! Red Vector #1 Writers: D.B. Andry and Tim DanielArtist: Chris EvenhuisColorist: Sjan WeijersLetterer: Buddy BeaudoinPublisher: Mad Cave Studios Review by Khalid Johnson I got near instant Star Wars vibes when…
Marvel Comics builds a rather quietly an epic story featuring the Infinity Stones, with the latest chapters taking place on Infinity Watch. A trade paperback is on sale this week, featuring the fifth epic poem that bends time and space while holding down the comic format. If we explain that the Infinity Stones acquire human hosts, this story has been made for years. The concept of stones that acquire human personas is interesting, and based on this story, a rather compelling new super team has an epic mission to save the universe. Infinity Watch #1 is an interesting comic in…
The Marvel Universe is a famous and strange place. I’m not talking about the incidents of the Atomic Age, the failed space flight, and mutants (well, not perfect). No, Marvel’s universe is odd to its basic fabric. Superpowers and Supernaturals bring their history back to prehistoric times. There was no ordinary part of human history. Amazing Sabretooth: The Dead Don’t Talk is set in New York in the 1800s and is set to show how extraordinary the city was in the post-industrial era. Think of a New York gang. But one of those gangs is made up entirely of revived…
Predator: Black, White & Blood’s debut issue not only lived in Marvel’s distinctive anthology style, but also offered a truly unique trio of stories. Predator: Black, White & Blood #2 continues to approach that, but there are themes that connect all three stories. It is Yautja culture and how it drives hunting. One of the best things the Predator franchise has done in recent years (except for letting Dan Tratchenberg take away creative control) is to dig into what makes Jautza such a deadly killer. To that end, part two of Joe Kelly and Alvaro Lopez’s “Bloodwood” gives the spotlight…
Since Jed Mackay took reign of the Avengers, he has teased the comprehensive story that Earth’s strongest heroes have done in search of “the moment of missing.” The Avengers had to fight vampire invasions, invade intergalactic casinos and fight an entirely new evil master, but Avengers #29 ultimately revealed the secrets of the moment when they were missing and how it connects. Yes, we see that Mr. Fantastic plays a role in this epic saga, and to Mackay’s credit, he comes up with a clever explanation of not just the moment of his disappearance, but why it is so sought…
Jean Gray is no stranger to the resurrection. In fact, she is probably one character who died and resurrected throughout the entire 60-year publication history of X-Men comics. Jean’s first standard death occurs in the creepy X-Men #101. In this X-Men #101, Jean Gray protects his teammates from deadly sun rays before impacting the space shuttle into Jamaica Bay. The surviving X-Men temporarily lamented her fallen teammates and declared Phoenix in what is now considered one of the most iconic comic book pages of all time, believing that she hadn’t survived the crash before Jean won and came out of…
“For many of you, I kept the Egg of Parademon. I believed that was my peculiar destiny. But now I know that Lord Darkseid placed me in your world for a second purpose.” As a result of yesterday, everyone in the league is on alert. Trinity is enthusiastically debating Air Wave’s failures regarding betrayal, but The Watchtower team must save the trappers of their dying time. The ground team is trying to track the origins of Apokoliptic Fire Pits, which are flying around the world. In all the chaos, enemies from past issues incite fiery questions about the length of…
Hosted by Mad Cave Something big is happening at Mad Cave Studios. Among them is the release of Nakama Press. The press release describes it as a mix of indie stories and partnerships with respected studios such as Tatsunoko Productions, Rainbow Group and more. The combination of fresh talent and beloved franchises promises to provide an engaging reading experience that appeals to cartoon lovers and newcomers.” For more information about Nakama Press, Comics Beat is catching up to senior editors at Nakama Press Kristen Simon and Nakama Press creator Mathieu Reynès (Theory of KO) via email. See what we find…
One of the most fascinating and quirky documents covering comic languages is The Lexicon of Comicana by Mort Walker. The creator of Beetle Bailey has compiled a study of what he calls “tetology,” the way cartoon expressions express emotions and other cartoon words. It is mostly something we almost unconsciously absorbed: “TeTeology” is just one of the vast terms that Walker created to catalog the effects of books’ comics published in 1980 as something like a humorous takeoff in a guidebook. And a new edition is ongoing from the New York Review Book. For Mort Walker, creator of the iconic…