The delightful world of Digital Lizards of Doom is back with a new volume of adventures from Mad Cave Studios and Papercutz, but that doesn't mean there's not plenty of fun still to be had in Volume 1. More fun is right around the corner with Digital Lizards of Doom Vol. 2, which hits stores on June 25th, but Vol. 1 is in stores right now, and those who dive in will find a bevy of pop culture and comic Easter Eggs throughout. The talented team of Gabriel Valentin, Ernie Najera, Margo Prodan and Dan Brozo have woven in all sorts of hidden geekery throughout Vol. 1, including nods to Wizard of Oz, Alien, Dune, The Legend of Zelda, and more, and you can check out our five favorite Easter Eggs from Digital Lizards of Doom Vol. 1 below.

1. Wizard of Oz

It doesn't get much more iconic than Wizard of Oz, and the 1939 film is the perfect place to start our Easter Egg journey. The book follows a similar pattern to Dorothy's adventure in the film, which starts out in black and white and then shifts into full color when she finds herself in Oz. Similarly, the Digital Lizards of Doom moves from black and white artwork to the world of full color when things shift to another dimension, and taking that well past coincidence is the dialogue. Dorothy then says "Toto...I have a feeling we're not in Kansas anymore", and in DLoD the next line is "I have a feeling you're not on earth anymore."

2. Alien and Dune

For our next set of Easter Eggs, it's all about Pineapple Pete's slick gaming room, where he tells us to choose a character as he sets up the first level of our video game adventure. If you glance above him, you will find homages to two beloved properties. The poster on the left is a tribute to Ridley Scott's Alien film, while the poster on the right is a tribute to Frank Herbert's Dune novels. There's actually more connections than just the posters themselves though, as Dizzy Doom's arc and story is heading in a similar direction to Dune and Alien's lead heroes.

3. Samurai Jack

Pineapple Pete has more tricks up his sleeve, including one that homages the beloved and legendary Samurai Jack. As Pete explains the origins of the DLoD universe, he says "Long ago in a distant land...I, Pineapple Pete, pineapple demon of Darkness." Fans of Samurai Jack will notice that his statement is very similar to how the villainous Aku introduces himself in every episode, where he says "Long ago in a distant land...I, Aku the shapeshifting master of darkness..." This also showcases the relationship between the main villain and the main hero, so it's quite a bit more than just a fun nod to the source material.

4. The Legend of Zelda

One of the true timeless franchises in gaming is The Legend of Zelda, and there is a fun Zelda-styled moment in Digital Lizards of Doom Vol. 1, though you might have missed it. In one scene, Dana Deathly is saying they will need the help of Fat Cat Roger to make this victory happen, and as he tries to come to terms with this predicament, Deathly says "It's dangerous to go alone". That phrase will be familiar to fans of the Zelda franchise, and it first showed up in Legend of Zelda on NES in 1986. It's since become a well-known phrase in the series, and it also represents Zelda's move from the safety of his immediate location and village to the lively but dangerous world that lies beyond his home, and that moment and shift can be found in Dizzy Doom's story as well.

William Shakespeare

For our final Easter Egg, we move to the realm of real-life history, with a host of nods to the literary icon William Shakespeare. In the book, fans are introduced to the cyborg cat pirate Captain Fat Rogers, but they are also introduced to Fat Rogers' first mate Shakey Spears. Spears is connected to Shakespeare in several ways, including the fact that he is a Dryad, a favorite of Shakespeare's. Shakey's clothes are also an ode to Shakespeare, but the most apparent homage is Shakey's exclusive use of poetic verse in his dialogue. You can check out the image above, you can find the official description for Digital Lizards of Doom below.

"When a magical trickster secretly traps an entire universe inside a video game world, a young warrior named Dizzy Doom must search for answers to unravel the mystery. But as villains from another galaxy come to attack his kingdom, Dizzy is forced to make an unlikely alliance with a mysterious ninja and cyborg cat pirate. Dizzy's ideology will be tested, as he comes to realize everything is not always as it seems."

Digital Lizards of Doom Vol. 1: Dizzy Doom is in stores now. Digital Lizards of Doom Vol. 2: Commander E.K.O. is in stores on June 25th.

Are you excited for more Digital Lizards of Doom? You can talk all things comics and graphic novels with me on Threads and Twitter @mattaguilarcb!

Dark Horse Comics and CD Project Red are partnering once again to bring one of Andrzej Sapkowski's beloved short stories to life in graphic novel form. The short story is pulled from the acclaimed short story collection The Last Wish and will be titled The Witcher: The Edge of the World. The story will be adapted by writer Magdalena Salik (Ptomien, Gildia Hordow), artist Tommaso Bennato (Mystic Heart), colorist Chris O'Halloran (Mortal Terror, Hellboy in Love), and letterer Hassan Otsmane-Elhaou (The Witcher: Corvo Bianco), and will be featured in a stunning hardcover volume. You can check out the gorgeous cover by Kai Carpenter (Books of Magic, The Last God) below.

The Edge of the World is a favorite of Witcher fans, and that includes writer Magdalena Salik, who loves how the story plays with assumptions and preconceived notions of what is good and what is evil. That's all intertwined with the sort of humor, wit, and adventure that Witcher stories excel at, and now longtime fans have a new way to experience the story, while new fans can hop in for the first time.

"The Edge of the World is one of my favourite Witcher stories," admits Salik. "Why? Because of its characters who are diverse and counter-intuitive. Everyone has some ideas about devils or pixies - say farewell to them. In this story Sapkowski plays with your established notions about heroes and villains; and plot twists as well. For me it's one of the wisest short stories ever, going far beyond typical fantasy quest versions of this scenario. There is all we love about The Witcher: jokes, quest, a lot of action, captivating characters. But apart from that there is also a strong message which leaves you both amused and pondering. In other words - enjoy and expect the unexpected."

"For me, who loves the Fantasy genre," says artist Bennato. "Working on a story of 'The Witcher' was a great pleasure and I hope that the fans appreciate the commitment and the passion that I put in trying to bring out the emotions of the characters and, in the case of the Sylvan, enrich his design with leaves, springs and mushrooms. Enjoy this incredible adaptation! I've done it, and I had fun drawing it!"

The Edge of the World description reads, "Work is hard to come by for Geralt. And for his bardic traveling companion, Dandelion, the doldrum of the road is not a worthy subject for his rhymes or ballads. As they travel to the edge of the known world, townsfolk speak of many stories, but it seems that's all they are- recitals of monsters and superstition- until a man follows Geralt with news of a devil scavenging the local fields. Get rid of the beast, but under no circumstances is it to be killed. Only how can Geralt hunt the creature, when there are no such things as devils?"

Andrzej Sapkowski's The Witcher: The Edge of the World will hit bookstores on December 17th and then will hit comic stores on December 18th. You can pre-order the new graphic novel from your local comic store, bookstore, Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and TFAW for $17.99.

Are you excited for The Edge of the World adaptation? You can talk all things comics and Witcher with me on Threads and Twitter @mattaguilarcb!

The ComicBook Nation crew breaks down Marvel's milestone ending to X-Men's Krakoa Era and previews what's coming with the "From the Ashes" reboot of the comics. There's also a look at the teaser trailer for Disney's Moana 2 and the all-star cast of Knives Out 3!

PLUS: A review of Jennifer Lopez's Netflix movie Atlas, the MCU Blade Movie is in trouble (again); is James Gunn Tapping a The Boys star for a major DCU Role? As well as streaming reviews for Madame Web, The First Omen and more!

MORE: Full List of New X-Men Comics Coming in 2024

In A Violent Nature Review

ComicBook Nation host Kofi Outlaw gives In a Violent Nature 3 out of 5 stars, writing that while the main distinguishing feature of the film (being told from the perspective of a Jason Vorhees Slasher-Killer) wears thin at times, some innovative kills (including one instant-classic scene) and a wave of anxiety and fear that's achieved in the final section make writer/director Chris Nash's debut a noteworthy one.

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The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles are turning 40 (yet remain teenagers) in 2024 and IDW Publishing is celebrating with a new line of comics, a fresh ongoing TMNT series relaunch with writer Jason Aaron (which begins with next week's Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Alpha) and the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: 40th Anniversary Comics Celebration. The one-shot issue features new stories from beloved creators who have worked on the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles packaged inside a new cover from TMNT creators Kevin Eastman and Peter Laird. The stories within the issue are set across the entire spectrum of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles eras and continuities, ranging from the original Mirage Studios universe to IDW Publishing's modern comics timeline, and dips into the animated universe of 2003, 2012, and Rise of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.

IDW Publishing has provided ComicBook with a first look at some stories featured in the celebration. Two are set in IDW Publishing's TMNT universe, which wrapped up the longest ongoing Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles comic book series in the franchise's four-decade series with its 150th issue. The first 100 issues of the series came from the pen of Tom Waltz, who re-teams with another familiar name for fans of that TMNT series, artist Michael Dialynas.

"It was an honor to return to TMNT for the 40th anniversary and to draw Tom Waltz's heartfelt script," Dialynas says. "The last time we worked together was on issue 100 so I loved how this story was an emotional callback to the events of 'City at War,' it really spoke to me, drawing emotional turtles is my favorite thing! haha."

Waltz adds, "This has been such a fantastic opportunity for me. Not only do I get to celebrate the 40th anniversary of the Heroes in the Half Shell with all my fellow TMNT fans, I also get to re-team with the amazing Michael Dialynas to revisit the IDW TMNT ongoing series canon with our story contribution (and, man, he knocked the artwork outta the park as always!). What an honor -- I couldn't be more proud and grateful to be a part of the book!"

The second IDW Publishing-continuity story comes from Ronda Pattison and Pablo Tunica. Pattison is best known to Turtles fans as the colorist on IDW's ongoing Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles series but gets to show her writing skills in the anniversary special.

"I was thrilled to have the opportunity to write for TMNT again, and when I learned I was being paired with artist Pablo Tunica, it seemed natural to set a story within the timeline he'd already established," Pattison says. "I chose #131-132, where the turtles train with Saki. I love stories with a bit of humor, and I knew Pablo's expressive style would be great at conveying physical comedy. I just wanted to make something fun, and I hope we did that."

Artist Sarah Myer and writer Erik Burnham will offer a story set in their ongoing Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Saturday Morning Adventures series, which is inspired by the 1987 Turtles cartoon and recently pulled off a "Turtle-verse" crossover with various other TMNT continuities (sort of). Fans can likely expect the same blend of action and humor from the tale as they get in each installment of the ongoing series.

"The rambunctious little kid who pretended to eat pizza with three fingers could not fathom that they'd someday be drawing a story for the TMNT 's 40th anniversary," Myer says. "I'm honored and thankful that I have the opportunity to illustrate the '87 turtles as they reflect on their past, present life made new in SMA, and on their potential future. It's a privilege and a pleasure to be included as one more piece of the legacy with these talented artists and writers whom I admire; Thank you so much!"

Burnham adds, "I've been fortunate enough to tell TMNT stories in the IDW-verse for over a decade, but the 1987 cartoon is where I first met these fellas, so it'll always have that special place in my heart. The challenge of this 4-page story was to distill everything I love from this iteration of the Turtles -- the mix of action, memorable villains, humor, and maybe a nice little bit of wisdom from Splinter. I think Sarah Myer, Luis Antonio Delgado, and I pulled it off. (Just like we do in the regular monthly Saturday Morning Adventures comics! What a plug -- Raph would be so proud!)."

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: 40th Anniversary Comics Celebration goes on sale in July. The issue's complete solicitation information follows.

• Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: 40th Anniversary Comics Celebration
• FEB248838
• (W) Various (A) Various (CA) Michael Dooney
• The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles turn 40! Revisit some of their greatest eras with stories told by some of the many creators of the page and screen who made each iteration of the Turtles so special! This all-new anthology takes a look all the way back to the start, celebrating that initial spark of creativity from Kevin Eastman and Peter Laird, and then works its way through the next four decades, highlighting fan-favorite touchstones from comic books and beyond. Eastman leads a host of incredible talent who are contributing new stories and pinups from a gaggle of legendary TMNT contributors, including Jim Lawson, Tristan Jones and Paul Harmon, Sophie Campbell and Pablo Tunica, Tom Waltz and Michael Dialynus, Ciro Nieli, Lloyd Goldfine with Khary Randolph and Emilio Lopez, Andy Suriano, and many more, all hearkening back to the era of TMNT they are best known for, ranging from the initial Mirage series through the 1990s and up until now, as well as the Tales of TMNT and Rise of the TMNT.
• Featuring a host of covers designed to celebrate individual decades, including new pieces by Eastman, Campbell, Randolph, the Escorza Brothers, Michael Dooney, Ben Bishop, Vincenzo Federici, Michael Dialynas, and the mighty Simon Bisley! Plus a special "Golden Age" cover by Michael Cho!
• In Shops: Jul 10, 2024
• Final Orders Due: Jun 02, 2024
• SRP: $11.99

Strangers in Paradise creator Terry Moore paid a visit to Abbey Road Studios this week, and left some SIP-themed graffiti behind on a wall that encourages guests from around the world tagging it. Abbey Road, a functioning recording studio which became famous with everyday fans after The Beatles named a record after it, has been a tourist destination ever since 1969. That year, The Beatles released Abbey Road, which features a famous photo of the four band members crossing the street at a crosswalk near the recording studio. Recreating that image has become a rite of passage for fans who find themselves in the area.

Moore stopped by the studio to take a couple of selfies, and to draw Katchoo (the lead character from his series Strangers in Paradise and Parker Girls) on the wall outside. There, a long tradition of fans covering the wall in signatures and graffiti is so widely accepted that you can see previous layers of the practice just below the white paint in photos.

You can see Moore's post below.

Abbey Road was the final album recorded by The Beatles (although it ended up being released before Let It Be), and is often seen as their best work. As documented in the Get Back documentary by Peter Jackson, the band functionally broke up during the Let It Be sessions, so it's also remarkable that Abbey Road exists at all, let alone in a form that's as coherent and impressive as it is.

Moore himself is also a musician. His love for The Beatles is fairly well-documented, and his music wasn't just a career before comics, but something that has been a part of his comic book work for years. Everything from songs written into Strangers in Paradise to a rock star character playing a surprisingly big role at the end of that series, to a couple of songs he recorded and released based on Strangers got fans of the series interested in Moore's musical background all the way back in the '90s.

Strangers in Paradise is a love story set against the backdrop of an organized crime story, and is one of the most celebrated indie comics of the '90s. It was the first comic by Moore, who almost immediately joined names like Jeff Smith and Dave Sim on "best-of" lists of the era. He has worked consistently in comics since, creating his own little "Terryverse," a shared universe of comics that often don't seem to have much connective tissue, but which all take place in the same world.

One of the longest-standing debates in the Marvel fandom has been the question of who would win in a fight between Thor Odinson and The Incredible Hulk. As two of the Avengers' biggest powerhouses, Thor and Hulk's respective power levels (strength, stamina, durability) are often too close rank decisively; in the finale to the Avengers: Twilight event series, Thor and Hulk have to take things all the way in a fight to the death - and there can only be one winner.

Avengers Twilight #6 sees Luke Cage's new Defenders team (led by an elderly Steve Rogers) locked in a furious final battle with The Red Skull. In his clandestine takeover of America, Red Skull brainwashed Hulk into being his one-man Weapon of Mass Destruction. With an enraged Hulk on the battlefield, there's only one person who can counter the threat: Thor.

Thor and Hulk battle (quite literally) across America, from Washington D.C. to Los Angeles. During the fight, Thor manages to get through to Banner, who tragically confirms that he is little more than an echo now, and slave to Red Skull's hijacking of his Hulk form. Bruce's consciousness is haunted by all the people he's killed and places he's destroyed while under Red Skull's thrall. Banner has one message for Thor: kill him before Hulk's rampage destroys so much more. Thor holds off as long as he can - until he's battered and bloody, and his armor is broken - until he has to make a final, drastic decision to give Banner what he wants.

How Thor Kills Hulk, Explained

To finish the fight, Thor uses the one advantage in power he has over Hulk: his mystical hammer Mjolnir. Thor flies Hulk to the bottom of the Pacific Ocean and traps him there by placing Mjolnir on his chest. As Marvel fans know, Mjolnir's enchantments make it impossible for anyone but Thor (or someone equally "worthy") to lift. With the hammer pinning him, and Thor choking the remaining air out of him, Hulk eventually runs out of oxygen and drowns. The death is confirmed in the epilogue to Avengers: Twilight, in a scene where Tony Stark (who also dies in the final battle with Red Skull) runs into Bruce Banner in the great beerhall of Vahalla.

Marvel lore has always been spotty when it comes to defining the limits of Hulk's power. The debate varies with different versions of Hulk (the prime 616 version, the "Ultimate" 1610 version, and this "Twilight" version). On the whole, it's generally accepted that Hulk does not have unlimited ability to breathe underwater - to the point that the 2022 event series Maestro: World War M had a major twist reveal that Hulk's powerful future self variant (Maestro) had developed the ability to breathe underwater, allowing him to defeat a shocked Namor in the underwater setting of Atlantis.

...That's all to say, Avengers: Twilight might be an alternate reality, but the way that Thor killed Hulk feels like it's very much in line with Marvel canon.

Avengers: Twilight is now available to read at Marvel

Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse assembled Spider-people from all walks -- and webs -- of life. The animated movie inducted a number of arachnid adventurers into the Spider-Society, an elite strike force dedicated to the security of the multiverse led by Miguel O'Hara/Spider-Man 2099.

Marvel had been teasing that the Spider-Society would be spun out of the Edge of Spider-Verse anthology series and into their own comic book, but the roster was a question mark: With infinite Spider-Men and Spider-Women to choose from, which Spider-heroes would form the Spider-Society?

February's Edge of Spider-Verse #1 saw Julia Carpenter, the clairvoyant known as Madame Web, warn Earth-928's Miguel that the Web of Life and Destiny connecting the multiverse's many Spider-Totems was in danger from a mysterious threat. "We need to form a society of the unexpected," Madame Web said, tasking Miguel with recruiting "a task force built on the Spider-Heroes these villains would never see coming." In March, that threat was revealed in Web of Spider-Man #1: the Sinister Squadron, an assemblage of multiversal Spider-villains that includes the Gwen Stacy Green Goblin.

After Miguel recruited Anya Coraz?n, a.k.a Ara?a, he was attacked by the Sinister Squadron and taken off the board before he could put together the Spider-Society. Anya has been acting as Web's chief recruiter, and her roster was revealed on the final page of this week's Edge of Spider-Verse #4. The Spider-Society includes:

• Anya Coraz?n / Ara?a (Earth-616)
• Miles Morales / Spider-Man (Earth-616, formerly Earth-1610)
• Mayday Parker / Spider-Girl (Earth-982)
• Gwen Stacy / Ghost-Spider (Earth-616, formerly Earth-65)
• Jessica Drew / Spider-Woman (Earth-616)
• Bailey Briggs / Spider-Boy (Earth-616)
• Peter Parker / Weapon VIII (Earth-72)
• Felicia Hardy / Night-Spider (Earth-194)
• Hobie Brown / Spider-Punk (Earth-138)
• Sergei Kravinoff / Kraven the Hunter-Spider (Earth-31)
• Zarina Zahari / Spider-UK (Earth-834)
• Pavitr Prabhakar / Spider-Man India (Earth-50101)
• Peter Potnoodle / Spider-Ramen (Earth-54202)
• Peter Porker / Spider-Ham (Earth-8311)
• Pter Ptarker / Spider-Rex (Earth-66)

Spider-Society #1, written by Alex Segura (Edge of Spider-Verse) and drawn by Scott Godlewski (Ms. Marvel: Mutant Menace), will "spin the entire multiverse into one epic saga," per Marvel's official description.

"We've had such a blast building toward and teasing Spider-Verse in the pages of Web of Spider-Man and Edge of Spider-Verse," Segura said. "I hope readers enjoy the amazing roster of Spider-Heroes we're bringing together to face off a new, but eerily familiar threat."

"Scott Godlewski's the perfect choice to bring our Spider-Verse adventure to life, and his take on the Spider-Heroes, from Spider-Man 2099 to Spider-Ramen, is spot-on," he added. "Readers can expect a wild Multiversal ride full of surprises and fun character moments, evoking the Spider-Verse tales they love. August can't come fast enough!"

Spider-Society #1 (of 4) is on sale August 14 from Marvel Comics.

The latest figure in Mezco Toyz's outstanding One:12 Collective lineup is a classic Marvel comic book inspired Doc Ock, who comes complete with a huge assortment of accessories and interchangeable parts. Highlights include a removable lab coat, three interchangeable head portraits, and tons of customizable tentacle options.

A full breakdown of the accessories is available in the list below, but first we have the details on how you can add the Doctor Octopus One:12 figure to your collection. It is currently available to pre-order here at Entertainment Earth for $112 with free US shipping slated for January 2025. You won't be charged until it's on the way to your doorstep.

Doctor Octopus One:12 Collective Action Figure Features:

• One:12 Collective body with over 28 points of articulation
• Hand painted authentic detailing
• Approximately 16cm tall
• Three (3) interchangeable head portraits
• Six (6) interchangeable hands
  • One (1) pair of fists (L&R)
  • One (1) pair of posing hands (L&R)
  • One (1) pointing hand (L)
  • One (1) chop hand (L)

Costume:

• Bodysuit
• Laboratory coat (removable)
• Belt

Accessories:

• Four (4) short tentacle arms
• Four (4) medium tentacle arms
• Four (4) long tentacle arms
• Twenty (20) interchangeable tentacle claws (attach to tentacle arms):
  • Two (2) pairs of grabbing tentacle claws
  • Two (2) pairs of open tentacle claws
  • Two (2) pairs of holding tentacle claws
  • Two (2) pairs of floor standing tentacle claws
  • Two (2) pairs of closed tentacle claws
• One (1) One:12 Collective display bases with logo
• One (1) One:12 Collective adjustable display posts

The Spider-Woman who debuted in Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse has officially joined the Marvel Universe. Issa Rae voiced Jessica Drew in Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse, and the film introduced a motorcycle-riding, pregnant Jessica Drew to viewers. While moviegoers may not have been familiar with the Spider-Verse, comic book readers have enjoyed its exploits most recently in Edge of Spider-Verse. The miniseries caught up with fan-favorite Spider heroes while also creating all-new heroes. One of the short stories in the final issue of Edge of Spider-Verse put the spotlight squarely on the new Spider-Woman, and the romantic relationship she had with an Avenger.

*WARNING: The following article contains spoilers for Edge of Spider-Verse #4. Continue reading at your own risk!

The story "The Hard Road" in Edge of Spider-Verse #4 comes from the creative team of Nilah Magruder, Marcus Williams, Eric Gapstur, Ra?l Angulo, and VC's Joe Caramagna, with special thanks to Phil Lord. Spider-Woman narrates for the reader, and we learn that she's retelling an old story to her kid about a time when she was late to a dinner anniversary with their Dad. While driving on her motorcycle, she spots an explosion on top of a high-rise building and races up its side to check it out. There she's met by Hawkeye, who she has a romantic history with.

"Yes, that's right. You were nearly Little Baby Barton," Spider-Woman narrates to her child. She also states how Hawkeye was one of her biggest mistakes in life. This Hawkeye is working with Taskmaster, but according to Hawkeye, it's complicated. Spider-Woman and Hawkeye then spend their time fighting with their fists, arrows, webs, and words, taking shots at each other verbally while also physically.

Spider-Woman ultimately wins their fight and ties Hawkeye up for the authorities to find. Before they go their separate ways, Hawkeye tells Spider-Woman that whoever she is with now is a lucky guy. Later that night, Jessica Drew shows up for her date, and the story ends before we learn who she's in a relationship with now. Is it another established Marvel character that we already know? Maybe we'll find out in Spider-Man: Beyond the Spider-Verse.

Issa Rae comments on pregnant Spider-Woman

ComicBook spoke to Issa Rae on the red carpet for the Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse premiere, where she talked about how the filmmakers used their knowledge of the character to craft something truly unique among Spider-Lore.

"You know, I'm so excited that the filmmakers chose to use their nerdy knowledge of the Spider-Man canon to incorporate this specific art for Jessica Drew where she happens to be pregnant, kicking a** on a motorcycle. Which I am terrified of," Rae laughed. "I just think it's just, so special. She's also like the only Spider-Person who doesn't wear a mask and she's out here saving the world because she doesn't have anything to hide. She's like you can get this work any time."

There are a few constants in the superhero landscape -- an origin story, a massive villain, and some sort of upgrade in a costume. As the latest issue of one of DC's comics reveals, that latter fate was recently given to two fan-favorite characters. Spoilers for Green Arrow #12 from Joshua Williamson, Phil Hester, Eric Gapstur, Sean Izaakse, Romulo Fajardo Jr., and Troy Peteri below! Only look if you want to know! The issue largely consists of the Arrow Family's fight against Malcolm Merlyn / Dark Archer, who has been trying to keep them apart in a wide array of ways over the years. Eventually, Oliver Queen / Green Arrow is able to deliver a near-fatal blow to Merlyn -- just as his friend and ally, John Diggle, shows up to help transport Merlyn into custody. Diggle can be seen wearing a new bright-green-and-grey tactical outfit, which echoes some of the superhero ensembles worn by his television counterpart on Arrow under the mantle of Spartan.

Additionally, the issue shows a new costume for Lian Harper / Cheshire, who is now sporting her cat mask alongside an orange-and-yellow outfit reminiscent of the classic duds worn by her father, Roy Harper / Arsenal. While there's no telling what involvement Diggle and Lian will have in the ArrowFam's future adventures, these new costumes at least help formally induct them into the supersuit-wearing ranks of their friends and family.

What Is the New Green Arrow Series About?

In Green Arrow, the Emerald Archer is lost, and it will take Oliver Queen's whole family to find him! But dangerous forces are determined to keep them apart at any cost! Spinning out of Dark Crisis on Infinite Earths, Green Arrow by DC architect Joshua Williamson (Dark Crisis on Infinite Earths, Superman) and artist Sean Izaakse (Thunderbolts) is an action-packed adventure across the DCU that sets the stage for major stories in 2023! The series was previously upgraded to an ongoing series, after originally being ordered for a six-issue miniseries.

"It's been a blast writing this series," Williamson explained in a post on his Substack. "A dream come true. My goal for this series to tell a kind of "Hush" level story with Ollie and his family. We're only 3 issues in and we have a lot of characters to bring in for this Arrow Family reunion."

The jump between 2019 and 2024 has been WILD for just about everyone - including Marvel's X-Men. Five years ago, the X-Men franchise was a dimly-lit ember compared to the wildfire of interest in characters like Spider-Man and The Avengers - largely sparked by the success of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Marvel writer Jonathan Hickman stepped in to relaunch X-Men comics in a bold new way - and did just that with the House of X / Powers of X two-part event.

Now the "Fall of X" event has torn the dream of Krakoa was finally torn apart. The X-Men's mutant nation was decimated by the anti-mutant organization Orchis (in allegiance with future Sentinels Nimrod and Omega Sentinel), while Mister Sinister's original human alter-ego, Nathaniel Essex, achieved near-godhood becoming "The Enigma," where he nearly controlled all of the X-Men's fates, past, present, and future.

The ending of X-Men's Krakoa Era saw Jean Grey resurrected as the Phoenix and the cycle of many lifetimes lived and re-lived by Moira Mactaggert (creating multiple new alternate X-Men timelines and realties) finally end. The X-Men were left in some interesting places, with a very uncertain status quo.

So...

What's Next for X-Men After The Krakoa Era?

X-Men Comics will relaunch in June under the new banner "From the Ashes." There's already an extensive list of titles for the relaunch, including:

1. X-Men by Jed MacKay (W) & Ryan Stegman (A)
2. Phoenix by Stephanie Phillips (W) & Alessandro Miracolo (A)
3. NYX by Collin Kelly Jackson Lanzing (W) & Francesco Mortarino (A)
4. X-Force Geoffrey Thorne (W) & Marcus To (A)
5. Uncanny X-Men by Gail Simone (W) & David Marquez (A)
6. X-Factor by Mark Russell (W) & Bob Quinn (A)
7. Exceptional X-Men by Eve L. Ewing (W) & Carmen Carnero (A)
8. Wolverine by Saladin Ahmed (W) & Martin C?ccolo (A)
9. Storm by Murewa Ayodele (W) & Lucas Werneck (A)
10. Dazzler (limited series) by Jason Loo (W) & Rafel Lourerio (A)

The release strategy will see the first four books released in July; the next two in August; Exceptional X-Men, Wolverine and Dazzler in September, and Storm in October. You can read the synopses for the first waves of books, below:

X-Men - "FROM THE ASHES! Krakoa is gone, ORCHIS has fallen...but the X-Men remain, always. Cyclops leads, because that is what he does. Beast builds, because that is what he does. And from their new home in Alaska, the X-Men raise a flag of defiance. Mutant business is their business. Join Cyclops, Beast, Magneto, Psylocke, Magik, Kid Omega, Temper, and Juggernaut as new forces in the world move into position, battling for the destiny and philosophy of the mutant species."

Phoenix - "She is JEAN GREY. She is PHOENIX. She saves the world. She brings death. One woman, alone in space, who not only must do what no one else can: she yearns to. A desperate S.O.S. from NOVA brings the Phoenix to the edge of a black hole, where hundreds of lives hang in the balance...and whatever Jean does - or fails to do - will bring darkness to the universe and haunt her in ways she can scarcely imagine..."

NYX - "THIS IS NYX!This isn't a book about X-Men. This is a book about mutants living past the end of their world and into a new beginning. This is MS. MARVEL embracing her mutant life in the neon streets of the Lower East Side. This is ANOLE trying to keep his head above water. This is WOLVERINE in the shadows of Bushwick, protecting her own. This is PRODIGY writing history as it happens - and SOPHIE CUCKOO finding her own way. The news reports are bleak. The streets feel dangerous. There's something lurking underground. Evil coming from every direction. But they're determined to make it. This is mutant community. This is mutant pride. This is NYX.

X-Force - "The world is fractured. FORGE uses his powers of invention to devise the only fix: an all-new, all-different X-FORCE! Forge leads a custom-made, handpicked team of mutants - RACHEL SUMMERS, BETSY BRADDOCK, SAGE, SURGE and introducing TANK - in off-the-books missions so dire, so integral to the fate of the Marvel Universe, there's no time to stop for permission! As Forge detects increasing threats across the planet, he will recruit a specialist for each target - first up: that regenerating degenerate, DEADPOOL! Be here for an X-Force like you've never seen them before, stick around to see who joins, who lives, who dies, and uncover the mystery of Forge's discovery!"

X-Factor - "Formed by the government in response to a post-Krakoa outbreak of mutant paramilitary, ops squads, and mercenary teams, X-FACTOR will be co-led by Angel and Havok and include recruits like Pyro, Frenzy, Feral, and more. Part special agents for missions that require an arsenal of superpowers and part celebrity propaganda machine, X-FACTOR will wage war against emerging factions like the Mutant Underground and X-Term. Whether they believe in their actions or are just doing it for a check, the members of X-Factor are no fools when it comes to shady politics. As hidden agendas rear their ugly head, they'll fight against the dark consequences and disastrous public opinion from the inside!"

Uncanny X-Men - OUTLAW HEROES ONCE AGAIN, THE X-MEN EMBARK ON A NEW MISSION! Making themselves at home in the Big Easy, the X-Men protect a world that hates and fears them! Join ROGUE, GAMBIT, NIGHTCRAWLER, JUBILEE and WOLVERINE on explosive super hero adventures. Uncanny as ever, the X-Men are back to saving the day mutant-style!"

Exceptional X-Men - "MUTANTKIND'S TWO GREATEST TEACHERS MOLD THE NEXT GENERATION OF X-MEN! KATE PRYDE has returned home to Chicago following the war with ORCHIS. Having stepped away from the world of mutantdom, she is nevertheless called back into action as she crosses paths with a trio of new young mutants, BRONZE, AXO and MELEE, who clearly need training and guidance. Unfortunately for Kate, EMMA FROST thinks so as well!"

Wolverine - "There's a killer in the woods - and as Wolverine's attempt at peace is shattered, an old enemy will re-emerge as a new villain rises that will bring Logan to the brink of his berserker rage. But Nightcrawler knows his old friend is capable of doing what's right, and before long, Logan will have to unleash his claws, push his healing factor to the limit and demonstrate he's the best there is at what he does once and for all - nice be damned! Note to collectors: the new series kicks off with a key first appearance and a major addition to the lore of Wolverine!"

Dazzler - "OUT & PROUD AS A MUTANT AND BACK ON THE ROAD! Dazzler, Marvel's glittering mutant songstress, has been in and out of the limelight over the years - but now the time has finally come for her to take center stage! Dazzler embarks on a new world tour, the culmination and celebration of her entire musical career. But while Dazzler may be ready to focus on her music, her celebrity-mutant status and a violent attack may sideline the entire endeavor before it's even begun..."

Storm - "Ororo Munroe has lived many lives. She's been a thief, a goddess, an X-Man, a queen, and now... an Avenger! She is the most prominent, most respected and most powerful mutant on the world stage--and in that role, she intends to be a force for positive change. First up: a major meltdown at a nuclear facility in Oklahoma City draws Storm from her Sanctuary in Atlanta--and into a moral conflict that will test her iron resolve! As one of the year's biggest launches, it'll be packed with guest stars including Storm's fellow Avengers, X-Factor's Frenzy, and more!"

X-Men: From The Ashes Begins on July 10, 2024.

Marvel has officially brought X-Men's "Krakoa Era" to an end, after five years of some of the most re-inventive and divisive X-Men storytelling, following the 2019 "House of X/Powers of X" reboot event. And in its final story arc, "Fall of X," the Krakoa Era came to a close in about as epic a way as is possible for Marvel Comics.

Fall of X's culminating chapters were told in the two series Fall of the House of X and Rise of the Powers of X. Rise of the Powers of X #5 marks the conclusion of Fall of X's storyline and the end of the Krakoa Era as a whole.

X-Men: How The Krakoa Era Ends, Explained

Rise of the Powers of X #5 brought two cosmic powers into conflict, with the fate of reality at stake: Jean Grey, Hope Summers, and the mutants stranded in a realm outside of space and time (the "White Hot Room") successfully re-birthed the Phoenix Force - which turned out to also be the original birth of the cosmic entity. After being re-connected to the Phoenix, Jean Grey was locked into a cat-and-mouse game of cosmic chase against Nathaniel Essex, the scientist who created Mister Sinister and three other clones. Essex hijacked Moira Mactaggert's mutant gift (dying and being reborn over and over, with full memory of the lifetimes she lived) to accumulate the shared knowledge of his clones' lives, transforming Essex into a god-like being called "The Enigma," an interstellar intelligence that exists outside space/time.

Fall of X saw the X-Men battling on two fronts: a war against anti-mutant organization Orchis on Earth and in orbit, while also battling the omnipotent threat of Enigma, who sought to play god with the timeline, guaranteeing his ascension and survival by taking away the one threat to a dominion's existence: Jean Grey's Phoenix powers. In Rise of the Powers of X #5, Enigma darts across time, trying to tweak little events that can stop Jean from becoming the Phoenix, or reconnecting with its power, while Jean pursues, correcting each deviation that Enigma makes. Finally, Jean uses the Phoenix to become a cosmic avatar for all mutants, who collectively stab Enigma through the head with a flaming set of Wolverine-Phoenix claws. Enigma doesn't die, though: he's trapped in a perpetual final moment, forever in the throes of dying, unable to escape back to the safety of the realm outside time/space.

Enigma is defeated, while Orchis and the Sentinel threat of Nimrod and Omega Sentinal were ended in Fall of the House of X #5. In the aftermath, Charles Xavier submits himself to be arrested for his crimes, while the X-Men get set to embark on a whole new era.

The Krakoa Era began in HoX/PoX by revealing that Moira Mactaggert is in fact an omega-level mutant. We learned that Moira has reset the Marvel Universe timeline in an attempt to prevent a man-mutant-machine war across no less than ten lifetimes.

The new "Phoenix Timeline" is announced by a final epilogue scene in Rise of the Powers of X #5, which sees an adolescent Moira Mactaggert awaiting that fateful moment when her mutant power kicks in again - only to find that it doesn't happen. Moira declares "I'm free. It's over," as she happily dances across a field.

What Does The Ending of Fall of X Mean?

In terms of comic book storylines, Marvel will relaunch the X-Men franchise under the new "From the Ashes" tagline in the summer of 2024. That will see the X-Teams and specific characters (like Wolverine) trying to move forward in a world where Krakoa is gone, and most mutants are still living on Mars, or are stranded in another dimension.

MORE: Full List of New X-Men Comics Coming in 2024

Behind the scenes, Immortal X-Men and Rise of the Powers of X writer Kieron Gillen just put a definitive period ending on the Krakoa Era, by negating the biggest thing that defined it: the many realities of Moira X's lives. Moira is back to being an unremarkable side character, and the entire wild re-imagining of the X-Men that Jonathan Hickman started now exists in a bubble, to be revisited and mined by later generations of X-Men writers that will follow.

The House of X - Fall of X era of X-Men is available to read at Marvel.

The latest issue of Ultimate Spider-Man puts the focus on Green Goblin. One of the highlights of Marvel's new Ultimate Universe is it gives readers a different perspective on familiar characters, which is how the Ultimate Universe was originally set up in the first place. For example, Peter Parker becomes Spider-Man as a married man and father of two kids. Green Goblin is another character that has a different origin compared to his Earth-616 counterpart, and readers finally get to see what caused Harry Osborn to put on the Green Goblin suit and become a vigilante, and not a villain.

WARNING: The following article contains spoilers for Ultimate Spider-Man #5. Continue reading at your own risk!

Ultimate Spider-Man #5 comes from the creative team of Jonathan Hickman, David Messina, Matthew Wilson, VC's Cory Petit, and VC's Joe Sabino. It begins by taking readers back in time, months before there even was an Ultimate Spider-Man. Norman Osborn and his wife Emily are at an event in a high-rise building, waiting for Harry to arrive. Norman gives Harry a fatherly speech about what the Osborn name means, and his expectations for Harry when a blast rockets from the sky and vaporizes the building Norman and Emily are in, as well as the surrounding area. Harry can only watch helplessly from the street below.

Green Goblin's Ultimate Universe origin revealed

Fast-forward a few weeks and Harry, with his wife Gwen Stacy, attend a meeting for Norman Osborn's estate. Everything is left to Harry and Gwen, along with a spade trading card that just showed up at the attorney's office that day. The card is from Wilson Fisk, and Harry meets him the next day. With the fall of Stane/Stark, Wilson is now the Kingpin of Manhattan, a man with extraordinary power. And with that power, he hands the Stane/Stark company over to Harry.

Harry, Gwen, and Otto Octavius, who fans will recognize as Doctor Octopus, dig into one of Stark's labs and come across some of his Iron Man armors. But what's more interesting are the files that Otto uncovers. They reveal how there is a secret council ruling over this Ultimate Universe, which The Maker set up during Ultimate Invasion. Maker's goal was to recreate the Ultimate Universe without superheroes, appointing various characters as the rulers of different regions. Not only are they responsible for keeping heroes like Spider-Man from reaching their full potential, but Harry believes they are the ones responsible for Norman's death. Also, with Tony Stark's inventions, Otto Octavius is able to create Harry Osborn's first Green Goblin armor.

One of Harry's first stints as the Green Goblin involves tracking down Shocker and taking his gauntlets, which are Stark proprietary tech, back. Finally, we jump back to the present, where we see Ultimate Bullseye, one of Wilson Fisk's cronies, captured by the Green Goblin.

This was a nice departure from what has already been an entertaining installment of Ultimate Spider-Man. Getting to learn Harry Osborn's motivations, and see just how he's trying to correct the wrongs that have taken place on his Earth, and hopefully avoid the villainous turns Earth-616 Harry Osborn committed. We'll have to see if he sticks to the hero's path, or if something turns Green Goblin and Spider-Man into mortal enemies.

Hasbro is adding to their Marvel 85th anniversary lineup of Marvel Legends figures with The Cabal 3-pack, which is inspired by Siege: The Cabal comics. The set includes Iron Patriot, Taskmaster, and Doctor Doom along with 17 accessories such as alternate heads, hands, weapons and effects.

The Marvel Legends The Cabal 3-pack will be available to pre-order starting May 29th at 10am PT / 1pm ET here on Amazon as an exclusive priced at $74.99. UPDATE: The set launched at $99, but a price adjustment to $74.99 is expected before it ships on September 1st. Pre-order customers will automatically get any discounts. Details on previously announced figures in the Marvel 85th anniversary Marvel Legends lineup can be found below. Reveals include Skaar, Son of Hulk, Wolverine, Superior Spider-Man. Warbird, an Iron Fist and Luke Cage 2-pack, Ghost Rider, Venom, and more.

Last week, Hasbro unveiled a new Hulkbuster figure that's inspired by the Iron Man comics. It will stand at over 9 inches tall, and will include swappable hands, armor pieces, and a tony Stark head.

Pre-orders for the figure are now available here at Entertainment Earth (free US shipping on orders $79+ / $10 - $50 off orders of $100 or more during Memorial Day Sale) and here on Amazon priced at $59.99.

MARVEL LEGENDS SERIES WOLVERINE (MARVEL 85TH ANNIVERSARY) - $24.99 / Available here at Entertainment Earth and here on Amazon: "With unstoppable healing powers and adamantium metal claws, the astonishing Wolverine battles threats alongside the mutant X-Men team. Celebrate the MARVEL UNIVERSE and 85 years of MARVEL COMICS with this MARVEL LEGENDS SERIES WOLVERINE (MARVEL 85TH ANNIVERSARY) figure. This quality 6-inch scale figure features deco inspired by the character's appearance in Marvel's Astonishing X-Men comics. The figure features extensive articulation and is highly posable for display and play. Includes figure and 6 comics-inspired accessories including masked and unmasked heads and hands with and without claws."

MARVEL LEGENDS SERIES SUPERIOR SPIDER-MAN (MARVEL 85TH ANNIVERSARY) - $29.99 / Available here at Entertainment Earth and here on Amazon: "When Doc Ock swaps bodies with Peter Parker, gaining his powers and conscience, he becomes the unlikely hero Superior Spider-Man. Celebrate the MARVEL UNIVERSE and 85 years of MARVEL COMICS with this MARVEL LEGENDS SERIES SUPERIOR SPIDER-MAN (85th ANNIVERSARY) figure. This quality 6-inch scale figure features deco inspired by the character's appearance in Marvel's The Superior Spider-Man comics. The figure features extensive articulation and is highly posable for display and play. Includes figure and 11 comics-inspired accessories including alternate head and Spider-Arms with removable backpack."

MARVEL LEGENDS SERIES IRON FIST AND LUKE CAGE (MARVEL 85TH ANNIVERSARY) - $49.99 / Available here at Entertainment Earth and here on Amazon: "Luke Cage and Iron Fist reach new heights as heroes when they're called to join the roster of New Avengers, teaming up to fight for justice. Celebrate the MARVEL UNIVERSE and 85 years of MARVEL COMICS with this MARVEL LEGENDS SERIES IRON FIST AND LUKE CAGE (85TH ANNIVERSARY) 2-pack. These quality 6-inch scale figures feature deco inspired by the characters' appearances in Marvel's The New Avengers comics. The figures feature extensive articulation and are highly posable for display and play. Includes 2 figures and 12 comics-inspired accessories including alternate head and hands for each figure."

MARVEL LEGENDS SERIES GHOST RIDER (DANNY KETCH) (MARVEL 85TH ANNIVERSARY) - $49.99 / Pre-orders will launch on 4/30 at 10am PT / 1pm ET here at Entertainment Earth / Amazon: "When Danny Ketch crosses paths with a cursed motorcycle, he is transformed into the Spirit of Vengeance, wielding supernatural powers as Ghost Rider. Celebrate the MARVEL UNIVERSE and 85 years of MARVEL COMICS with this MARVEL LEGENDS SERIES GHOST RIDER (DANNY KETCH) (85TH ANNIVERSARY) figure set. This quality 6-inch scale figure and vehicle features deco inspired by their appearances in Marvel's Ghost Rider comics. The figure features extensive articulation and is highly posable for display and play. Set comes with 6-inch scale Hell Cycle vehicle with moveable foot peg, semi-translucent fire wheels, and fire stands for displaying on 2 wheels or 1. Includes figure, bike and 9 comics-inspired accessories including motorcycle display pieces and alternate hands and chain for figure".

MARVEL LEGENDS SERIES VENOM (MARVEL 85TH ANNIVERSARY) - $24.99 - This Walmart Exclusive is expected to launch on July 25th or 26th during Walmart's next SDCC Collector Con event. When it does drop, you'll be able to find it here. "When Spider-Man breaks free from an alien symbiote, it latches onto Daily Bugle reporter Eddie Brock - who becomes the supervillain Venom, seeking revenge on the web-slinger. Celebrate the MARVEL UNIVERSE and 85 years of MARVEL COMICS with this MARVEL LEGENDS SERIES VENOM (MARVEL 85TH ANNIVERSARY) figure. This quality 6-inch scale figure features deco inspired by the character's appearance in Marvel's Spider-Man comics. The figure features extensive articulation, is highly posable for display and play and comes on collectible cardback packaging with retro-inspired design. Includes figure and 3 comics-inspired accessories including alternate hands and an alternate head."

MARVEL LEGENDS SERIES SKAAR, SON OF HULK (MARVEL 85TH ANNIVERSARY) - $39.99 / Fan Channel Exclusive / Release Date TBA: A born fighter from the brutal world of Sakaar, the Son of Hulk seeks the power needed to destroy his enemies. Celebrate the MARVEL UNIVERSE and 85 years of MARVEL COMICS with this MARVEL LEGENDS SERIES SKAAR, SON OF HULK (85th ANNIVERSARY) figure. For the first time, fans can add Skaar, the son of Hulk to their collection. This quality 6-inch scale deluxe figure stands 8 inches tall and features deco inspired by the character's appearance in Marvel's Skaar: Son of Hulk comics. The figure features extensive articulation and is highly posable for display and play. Includes figure and 5 comics-inspired accessories including alternate head, hands, and weapons accessories."

MARVEL LEGENDS SERIES MARVEL'S WARBIRD (MARVEL 85TH ANNIVERSARY) - $24.99 / Target Exclusive / Release Date TBA: "After damaging her powers while saving Earth's sun, Carol Danvers joins a team of Avengers and takes on the codename of Warbird. Celebrate the MARVEL UNIVERSE and 85 years of MARVEL COMICS with this MARVEL LEGENDS SERIES MARVEL'S WARBIRD (85th ANNIVERSARY) figure. For the first time, fans can add Carol Danvers as Marvel's Warbird to their collection. This quality 6-inch scale figure features deco inspired by the character's appearance in Marvel's Avengers comics with her black Warbird-era costume from her time on the Avengers team. The figure features extensive articulation and is highly posable for display and play. Includes figure and 5 comics-inspired accessories including alternate head, hands, and power FX."

The concept was a one-off for a Wolverine and Ghost Rider crossover from nearly 15 year ago, so why resurrect it now? Well, because Ben Percy has been killing it as the writer on both Ghost Rider and Wolverine for a few years now. And with Wolverine #50 concluding his titanic run on that series this week, it seems Marvel is letting Percy cut loose with a four-issue Hellverine miniseries.

There isn't much to the character in this opening issue as he's more of a force of natue as he spends the issue plowing through sinful victims like an over-zealous Ghost Rider. But instead of simply being shown to be the latest "Spirit of Vengeance," Percy hits readers with a surprise revelation that he's actually tied to a victim from the "Sabretooth War" - the 10-issue event that concluded his Wolverine run. It's a welcome surprise, revealing that this miniseries is an epilogue of sorts on top of it being a fun ride for its own sake.

It's still goofy in how the story addresses occult-based government cover-up, cannibalistic aristocracies, twisted priests and undead soldiers infused with Hell-based energy (the DOOM franchise would like a word...) with complete seriousness. But artist Julius Ohta has an absolute blast bringing it all to life in his artwork. The biggest beneficiaries are Hellverine himself and the aforementioned undead soldiers, who look like the answer to the question, "What if Jigsaw designed a team of Cenobites?"

Hellverine #1 gets a strong recommendation from me, even if you haven't been keeping up with either Wolverine or Ghost Rider. Percy has shown his knack for crafting compelling stories since his days writing Marvel's audio dramas and the artwork revels in the ridiculous nature of it all.

Published by Marvel Comics

On May 29, 2024

Written by Benjamin Percy

Art by Julius Ohta

Colors by Frank D'Armata

Letters by Travis Lanham

Cover by Ryan Stegman, J.P. Mayer, and Marte Gracia

When you read as many comics as I do, you may learn to find a special joy in a perfectly paced first issue. There's a distinct pleasure in a debut that sums up the new series beyond what was already offered in the solicitations and delivers a complete, well-crafted story that's enjoyable entirely on its own. William of Newbury #1 by Michael Avon Oeming offers such joy, presenting readers with a complete tale and a relatable new hero they will surely want to follow on future adventures.

In creating William of Newbury, Oeming took inspiration from the real-life William of Newburgh, a historian-priest who lived through an English civil war called "The Anarchy." William of Newburgh put to paper historical events and local folklore around such undead creatures as revenants. Oeming chooses to anthropomorphize the inhabitants of his fictionalized England, adding a deliberate dose of unreality to separate it from the real history. Although William of Newbury, here rendered as a raccoon, is no less devoted to the Lord, Jesus Christ than his historical counterpart (which leads me to wonder what kind of animal God chose to corporealize into, but that's a divine mystery for another time).

Rather, that faith is William's defining characteristic and source of his power. William's faith is strong enough to cast out demons (which are very real in this version of medieval England) with a sense of routine. He is entirely unperturbed by their infernal appearances, even grateful to learn that it is a demon haunting the lower level of his patron's castle rather than a squatting bandit or dog. Yet, while he's unfazed by the supernatural, he still fears bandits, plague, and rickety stairs, explaining at one point that "God is on the side of my soul... but my body has to look out for itself!" Which, in a way, makes a lot of sense. If your soul is going to be spending all of eternity with God while your body rots away in the dirt, why would the Almighty be all that concerned with your physical well-being? Setting that theological meditation aside, William displays the powerful faith of a saint and the nonstop neurosis of an amateur detective on a network television dramedy, a combination that proves immediately endearing.

Getting to know him quickly, thanks to the structure Oeming has adhered to in the issue, helps readers invest. A cold-open-like mini adventure sees William banishing the demon in the basement, showing readers what he's capable of before sending him back to his monastery and the unhappy circumstances he's dealing with there. Then it's immediately off to another adventure, which also wraps up in this issue and serves to introduce us to William's newly acquired sidekick, a young ruffian named Winnie. It's a lot, but it never feels like a lot because Oeming knows how to pack personality into every panel and bit of prose. The pacing, structure, and anthropomorphized characters are likely to remind readers of Usagi Yojimbo while the occult subject matter and high-contrast, shadowy-heavy artwork share DNA with Hellboy (an elevator pitch combination I swear I formulated in my mind before I noticed Dark Horse Comics using the very same one on their in-house ads for the series).

While the focus is primarily on the adventure, Oeming doesn't let the civil unrest of the historical setting go to waste. There are themes of discontent throughout, as William's clients complain about both sides of the conflict, neither of whom seems to care much about the hardship their fighting is inflicting on the people they are competing to rule. William is more concerned with his brother, Connor, who happens to be the priest running their monastery, and who looks down on William's adventures, seeing them not as William helping those plagued by demons, but as William sullying himself by allowing himself to be put in the proximity of such devilish beings. Connor is more concerned with the financial stability of the monastery, which is not great. William is increasingly coming to believe that his brother has lost sight of his true purpose. There's also William's relationship with Winnie, which is based on the promises that William will teach Winnie literacy in exchange for her protection, a deal struck after a discussion that involves the advantages of the educated upper class. The powerful contrast between light and shadow in Oeming's art style helps underpin these emerging ideas about class stratification and the separation of institutions from those they are meant to serve.

William of Newbury #1 is a masterclass debut. It's thematically rich, gorgeous, and dripping with atmosphere and personality. It's as close to a perfect first issue as I've seen this year, and it makes me hope for many more adventures to come.

Published by Dark Horse Comics

On May 29, 2024

Written by Michael Avon Oeming

Art by Michael Avon Oeming

Colors by Michael Avon Oeming

Letters by Michael Avon Oeming

Cover by Michael Avon Oeming

The story opens on a cherubic Rick (last name unmentioned) being dropped to his first day at a new high school in Sacramento by his father. Brett Parson's artwork communicates a wave of nostalgia with slightly exaggerated forms that capture the details of the era well and human figures in expressive fashion. It's a fun world to occupy and as soon as Rick arrives to school it becomes apparent just how varied Parson's work can be as he communicates dozens of personalities in a splash panel of the school population.

This introduction also serves to set the series' tone as Rick's arrival is met by a wave of comments picking at every imaginable insecurity. It's not true to life, but it's certainly true to the experience of life. Readers are in Rick's head as he goes about his day at school, bearing down to escape to a skatepark.

That heightened reality filtered through memory is consistent throughout the rest of the issue. There's a purposefully cartoonish air surrounding these people and settings that makes for the often lewd humor of the era to land more softly. But it remains a world of consequence as the minor cruelties of high school are wont to remind them.

This tone is intrinsic to the issue's constant dance between moods of humor and darkness. There are moments of schtick, like a parade of exhausted high school teachers, but much of the humor comes naturally from the characters. A new friend prone to massive exaggeration is a source of charm for readers looking back with some perspective.

His grandfather does the same, adding some raunchy humor to the mix, until the issue reminds readers that some dark jokes come from genuinely dark places. There's no question that the characters of this story face real risks; the series manages to never indulge potential dourness nor overplay its comedy. The line is balanced so that the everyday fears and fun of life in this setting seem earned. If this is Remender's memory of life growing up, he's communicating the emotions surrounding it very clearly.

Parson maintains a sense of momentum through every sequence ensuring that even if a moment may not land for a specific reader, their eyes will already be quickly rolling to the next. Even the most standard sequences, like a car ride conversation stretching five pages, is filled with animated panels and inventive layouts along with a few gags. When more exciting environs like the skatepark arrive, he unleashes a dazzling collection of details that will reward repeat readings.

As readers find themselves rushing along with Parson, they will eventually find themselves aligned with the issue's pi?ce-de-r?sistance, a climactic joke that I would not dare to spoil here. But it lands like a wonder and I can't wait to read it again.

Grommets #1 may not be what readers expected based upon their own relationship with aspects of the source material, but what it delivers at the end is something uniquely excellent. As I found myself laughing and fondly recalling the great flights and follies of adolescence, I found myself enjoying Grommets entirely on its own terms. This fictionalized account of growing up tells a story in a fashion that could only be accomplished in comics and has me very excited to see it explore both its characters and setting in the months to come.

Published by Image Comics

On May 29, 2024

Written by Rick Remender and Brian Posehn

Art by Brett Parson

Colors by Moreno Dinisio

Letters by Rus Wooton

Cover by Brett Parson and Moreno Dinisio

Mortal Kombat 1 players have finally gotten to see more of Homelander in action with a full gameplay trailer shared this week showing off some of his moves, his Kameo partner Ferra, and perhaps most importantly, his Fatalities. The character from The Boys pulls straight from that Prime Video show for his Fatalities with those killing moves pulling right from big moments from the show just as other licensed characters tend to do in Mortal Kombat 1. The Homelander trailer comes just before the character's arrival in Mortal Kombat 1 with The Boys set to crossover with the game on June 4th.

Both of Homelander's Fatalities have been hinted at before in teaser trailers and in snippets of gameplay shared online, but we get to see them nearly in full here in this new gameplay trailer. One of them shows Homelander using his laser vision to melt his opponent's head similar to what he did to a protestor in Season 3 Episode 8, a scene which marked a turning point for Homelander and also spawned one of the best reaction memes from The Boys. The other Fatality recalls a Season 1 scene involving Homelander and a plane, though this one plays out a bit differently compared to what happens in The Boys.

Still, the gameplay trailer does not outright confirm Homelander's voice despite him talking during the trailer. Many called for The Boys Antony Star to voice the character, especially given that he's already done so in the Call of Duty crossover, but it's not looking as if that'll be the case here. Credits in Mortal Kombat 1 seem to suggest the Homelander voice actor might be Chris Cox who's worked in Mortal Kombat games before, but again, nobody's plainly confirmed it yet.

June 8th is when the early access release will happen for Homelander, so only those who own the Kombat Pack in Mortal Kombat 1 will be able to play as him then. All others will have to wait until June 11th whenever Homelander becomes available for individual purchase like Omni-Man, Peacemaker, and other DLC characters are now after their releases.

With Homelander and Kameo character Ferra included in this next drop, the final character from the first Kombat Pack in Mortal Kombat 1 will be Takeda.

Over the past few years, sitting down to read the annual DC Pride anthology has become a distinct tradition for me. Each time, I know that I'm going to get a smattering of creative short-form storytelling, both from characters and creators that I already know and love, and from those that are just entering my radar. I also know that I'm going to get an opportunity to reflect on the previous year's highs and lows for LGBTQ+ culture, and the ways that comic storytelling can honor and challenge the latest status quo. I was very curious to see how DC Pride 2024 would reflect the current moment where parts of the LGBTQ+ experience are being challenged for simply existing, whether in the form of severe anti-trans legislation or in media being boycotted out of libraries and schools. As it turns out, the answer is both groundbreaking and familiar, as the title finds its groove within the age-old adage of "We're here, we're queer." DC Pride 2024 is another entertaining, oft-inspired showcase of what LGBTQ+ storytelling can mean under its umbrella.

As the title suggests, DC Pride 2024 centers around the adventures of DC's various LGBTQ+ characters, as well as the impact they have on the world around them. Each premise strikes a perfect balance the epic and the profoundly personal and mundane, whether in the form of awkwardly reconnecting with an ex amid the backdrop of superhero duties (as shown in Starman's "Hello, Spaceboy" and in Natasha Irons and Traci 13's "Steeling Time") or overcoming all-too-familiar prejudice in an otherworldly conflict (as shown in Poison Ivy's "Marasmius" or Dreamer's "Lessons in Astral Projection"). The centerpiece of the occasion, and arguably the best encapsulation of this dichotomy between the ordinary and the extraordinary, is "Spaces," which recounts DC veteran Phil Jimenez's lifelong connection to the myth and promise of Themyscira as he grew into his identity as a gay man.

Compared to previous years, DC Pride 2024 provides an interesting, multifaceted snapshot of the LGBTQ+ stories DC is (and will soon be) telling. Almost all of the stories are able to stand on their own from the current events of existing continuity, outside of Circuit Breaker's conflict in "Phantom Rodeo," which plays a surprisingly pivotal role in the current The Flash run. There is a joy in having those stories be so accessible, in part because they'll easily motivate a reader towards an existing book, whether "Marasmius" leads them to the already-excellent Poison Ivy ongoing, or "Steeling Time" leads them to Natasha's recent exploits with the Super Family. The issue also, brilliantly, serves as a bridge towards DC's current young adult graphic novel offerings, through both the literal preview of the forthcoming "The Strange Case of Harleen and Harley," and through "Lessons in Astral Projection" and the Jackson Hyde and Orion team-up "The Rivers and the Lakes That You're Used To" prompting fans to discover Bad Dream: A Dreamer Story and Barda, respectively. At the same time, DC Pride 2024 does lead a reader to wonder why some characters --Starman, Aqualad, and even some of the heroes and villains in the issue's pinups--aren't having their stories told more often. Thankfully, DC has proved itself to be pretty receptive and celebratory of its LGBTQ+ characters far beyond the month of June, so there is a sense that many of these protagonists won't be put on a shelf until 2025.

Along the way, there's also a sense of comfort on display in DC Pride 2024 - among the creators, as well as among the characters, no matter what uncomfortable situation they're being thrown into. It no longer feels like every story needs to tackle a specific LGBTQ+ issue, or perfectly encapsulate a part of queer identity, to justify its existence. Instead, these stories just happen to be about LGBTQ+ characters who are already compelling in their own right, being changed in some way by their latest experiences. That being said, the stories that choose to get topical are incredibly effective, with "Marasmius" addressing anti-LGBTQ+ bigotry and "Hello, Spaceboy" folding in a discussion about how Starman's sexuality has been labeled in the past. "Spaces" is in a whole other category altogether, as Jimenez's autobiographical script is not only a brilliant and necessary ode to decades of Wonder Woman mythos, but a celebration of the role fiction can play in the lives of LGBTQ+ youth. While an individual reader's mileage on every story might vary (the deluge of Gen Z slang in the Jon Kent-led "Bros Down in A-Town" eventually became ineffective for me), it is undeniable that DC Pride is evolving to meet its fans, and the current cultural moment, where they are at.

Aesthetically, DC Pride 2024 absolutely gives a reader their money's worth, with each story offering a visual richness that fits their respective storylines. This is reflected in the stories that bookend the issue, with Stephen Byrne's excellent sartorial flair and moody "bi lighting" on "Hello, Spaceboy" and Giulio Macaione's gorgeous blend of sepia-toned autobiographical cartoon and pastel-hued wonderland in "Spaces." Other highlights include Jordan Gibson's excellent linework and facial expressions in "Lessons in Astral Projection," and Claire Roe's densely-designed alien cityscapes in "Marasmius." That's not even mentioning the issue's many pinups, which cohesively celebrate even more of the publisher's LGBTQ+ characters, ranging from Helen Mask's art nouveau take on Connor Hawke and Pied Piper, to Valentine Smith's (in her long-overdue debut for the Big Two) dynamic portrait of Bluebird and Obsidian mid-battle. The lettering, brought to life across the issue from current industry mainstays like Aditya Bidikar, Ariana Maher, and Lucas Gattoni, perfectly complements each story.

In its fourth year, the grand experiment of DC Pride is proving to be a reliably wonderful success. Through its various premises and lovely rapport, DC Pride 2024 champions the publisher's LGBTQ+ characters and creators, and the impact they have upon readers. Whether covering the lofty ambitions of queer storytelling, or simply providing an intimate character drama, every chapter within DC Pride 2024 provides something validating, inspiring, or simply entertaining.

Published by DC

On May 28, 2024

Written by Al Ewing, Ngozi Ukazu, Gretchen Felker-Martin, Jamila Rowser, Jarrett Williams, Nicole Maines, Calvin Kasulke, Melissa Marr, and Phil Jimenez

Art by Stephen Byrne, Ngozi Ukazu, Claire Roe, Oneilljones, D.J. Kirkland, Jordan Gibson, Len Gogou, Jenn St-Onge, and Giulio Macaione

Colors by Triona Farrell, Marissa Louise, and Jeremy Lawson

Letters by Aditya Bidikar, Lucas Gattoni, Jodie Troutman, Ariana Maher, Morgan Martinez & Andworld Design, and Frank Cvetkovic

Pinups by Robin "Zombie" Higginbottom, Chloe Brailsford, Ego Rodriguez, Helen Mask, Valentine Smith, and Bailie Rosenlund

Cover by Kevin Wada

DC's young-adult graphic novel line has been thriving for several years now, recontextualizing the stories of a lot of the publisher's heroes and villains for a new generation. One of the next to join that list will be Barda, a new graphic novel that arrives in bookstores and comic book shops in early June. Set during her years serving under Darkseid and Granny Goodness, Barda follows Big Barda as she finds herself curious about the idea of love, even on the harsh world of Apokolips.

Barda is brought to life by cartoonist Ngozi Ukazu, who has already built a loyal fanbase thanks to her work on the beloved hockey webcomic Check, Please!. Ahead of Barda's debut on June 4th, ComicBook spoke with Ukazu about putting a new spin on Barda's origin story, as well as on the iconic mythos of Jack Kirby's Fourth World.

ComicBook: I was so delighted to see that Barda was a part of the Free Comic Book Day offerings. I know at my store, it was flying off the shelves. It was really hard to get a copy. How does it feel to be a part of Free Comic Book Day?

Ngozi Ukazu: Oh, it's a huge honor. DC Comics, when they decide they want to put your title or your series as part of a Free Comic Book Day, it means that they really believe in your story. It's a wonderful co-sign from marketing, publicity, and my editors that they were like, "We want as many people as possible to get their hands on it." Also, getting to do Free Comic Book Day as an author for the first time, it's so exciting just giving your stuff away. It's just like, "No, this is free. This is free."

What was your familiarity with the DC universe beforehand? What is your story, just as a DC fan?

DC Comics is why I make comics. I watched Justice League and Justice League Unlimited when I was in middle school and high school. I was just devouring DC Comics when I was in middle school and high school. I have the story from when I was in the seventh grade. I was reading Kevin Smith's [Green Arrow:] Quiver with my best friend, and we're reading it in English class. Our English teacher comes up and snatches up our book because he's like, "What are you girls doing? What are you hiding under your desk?" Then he opens the book to the most scandalous page. It's some demonic sacrifice orgy thing. We were really cool seventh graders, obviously. He gives it back to us. He's just like, "You know what? I'm just glad you guys are reading." DC Comics has been part of my nerdy interest since I was a kid. It's just exciting to get to finally play with the characters and not get in trouble for it.

On the topic of getting to play in the DC sandbox, I was so surprised to see you attached to Barda. It felt like a perfect fit, but it was never something that would've occurred to me. What drew you to want to tell Barda's story out of all of the characters that the universe has?

When I was originally pitching to DC, I was just thinking about the vast catalog of characters that I've been interested in. Of course, I was thinking about Blue Beetle and Booster Gold. I was thinking about different unexplored aspects of Superman and Metropolis. But I landed on Barda, because it's really this unusual story about this big, strong woman who is not a damsel in distress. In fact, she's credited with rescuing the character who becomes her husband in the comics. I love that. I love that role reversal where she's the protector and she's really strong. Scott Free, her husband, he adores her. I love romance. Check, Please, my webcomic series, is a romance that is about a little bit of unexpected characters falling in love. It did seem like a natural jump.

You mentioned Barda and Scott's love story. How did you approach recontextualizing it for this younger context?

It's interesting, because it is part recontextualization, showing Barda and Scott as younger characters. But we actually never really see their love story and how it develops. In the original comics, Jack Kirby introduces Barda out of nowhere and just says, "Don't worry, they have a past!", which is actually storytelling I appreciate. Over the course of the Mister Miracle comics, they just work together, and live together, and eventually get married, and that's wonderful. But when we first see them first introduced, I think Barda literally strangles Scott within five seconds of meeting him, and then ten comics later, they're married. I'm like, "Wait, what happened in between?"

When it comes to recontextualizing it, I was like, "Okay, let's take what we know and just make this a fun story about teens who have the most bizarre crush in the world, because it's a crush that they're having on a planet where love is forbidden." Yeah, I think, it's very Romeo and Juliet off the bat. It's like Romeo and Juliet meets Star Wars.

I also love your take on the Furies. They're all delightful, and heartbreaking at times as well. How did you approach that ensemble?

One thing I do love doing is writing ensembles. My webcomic is about a hockey team, so you have to write the entire team. Also, something I learned in college is that, whenever you have a protagonist, they may be on a team, or they may have ancillary characters. Those characters actually all represent different parts of your protagonist. It goes back to Greek Theater, the chorus says what the protagonist is thinking. With the Furies, it's like Batman with his rogues' gallery. They're all different parts of Bruce Wayne. With the Furies, each one of them represents just a little part of Barda. Lashina is like Barda's really insightful nature. Bernadeth is, kind of, Barda's curiosity. Stompa is her toughness. Aurelie is her heart. Then you have a character like Mad Harriet, who's just maybe Barda's insanity, I don't know. But I really wanted each of them to comment -- everything they say is exactly what Barda would say, but just with a little bit of a twist to it, which is why they're not Barda.

I really loved seeing your art style interpret the Kirby-isms, and a lot of the character designs that were already there. What was the biggest challenge, or the thing you were most excited to play around with, when filtering that through your art style?

Probably doing action. Even though my background is drawing stories that are more sports-based, I've never really drawn a comic that is so much combat, so much animated violence. Jack Kirby has a really particular way of approaching action. No spoilers for the story, but the scene that I really wanted to convey action and that "boom! pow!" comic book feel, was towards the end where we have this huge splash page. Barda finally gets back at the person who's been holding her down, and I wanted it to feel as much of a tribute to Kirby as I could. I learned so much drawing this comic.

How did you approach leaning into the darker elements of Fourth World, while still knowing that this was going to be read by a younger, all-ages sort of audience?

That's the most interesting thing about Fourth World comics. These were comics that were for kids. Kids would go to the comics rack, pick it up. Kirby loved throwing around a word like "Holocaust", like "apocalypse." Slavery and evil were taking place, and it's really, really brutal. Very intense. Honestly, I really didn't do much, because I was like, "If it was for kids then, then I'm kind of even lightening it a little bit with my art style, which is more open and cute, with the humor in it, with the romance." Yeah, I honestly think those comics were, even, maybe darker.

What would you say surprised you the most about the experience of working on Barda?

The biggest surprise, 100%, was how viscerally I react to all of Jack Kirby's work now. I always say that I am now an acolyte in the cult of Kirby. I'm an ambassador. I now have strong opinions on Stan Lee. I didn't think it would get that way.

Welcome to the club.

I was in Boston and I was at Comicazi, a wonderful bookshop. One of the owners was talking about Orion. They're like, "Orion, that guy sucks, doesn't he?" The way that I left my body for a moment to say, "Actually, no, he's a noble hero and he's been misinterpreted." I didn't think I'd ever be that way, but here I am. Working on this book, that's how it's affected me.

What do you hope readers take away once they've read Barda?

Oh, I hope they just dive into DC comics. I hope they ask questions, because my biggest question is "What happens to Barda and Scott?" I hope they go into the vast backlog of DC comics and DC comics characters. I really hope a kid reads Barda for the first time, has no idea what happens, and then picks up Mister Miracle and then goes, "Oh my God, they get married." That's my spoiler, that they've been married for fifty years, but I really hope that's what people get.

You mentioned the comics that are already there, but without getting into spoilers, it definitely seems like there's room for a sequel, if you wanted to tell it. Would you want to tell that story, or another story in Fourth World, or in the DC universe?

Yeah! No spoilers, but there is something in the works. I am really excited that I might get to really investigate other Fourth World characters. I will say that on May 28th, DC Pride 2024 #1 comes out, and that does feature Orion in a very interesting mentor role. I've already gotten to write more Fourth World characters, but there might be more to come.

***

Barda will be available wherever books and comics are sold on June 4th.

One of DC's newest -- and weirdest -- teams just got a major upgrade. Spoilers for the "Time Jerks, Part 1" story in Batman: The Brave and the Bold #13 from Mark Russell, Jon Mikel, Mike Spicer, and Ferran Delgado below! Only look if you want to know! The story opens with Booster Gold landing his Time Sphere on a prehistoric version of Earth, where he crosses paths with the dinosaur-themed Jurassic League. Booster and the Jurassic League are cordial with each other, as they repair Booster's Time Sphere so he can return home to the present day.

Once he does so, however, he immediately realizes that things are different -- the world is filled with modern dinosaurs. As Skeets reveals, the Time Sphere accidentally collided with the asteroid that would have killed the dinosaurs, and changed history in the process. Booster is then greeted by a modern-day version of the Jurassic League.

Booster Gold and The Jurassic League! by @Manruss (writer), Mike Spicer (colors), Ferran Delgado (letters) and me (art). You can enjoy the story in Batman: The Brave and The Bold #13, coming May 28, 2024. I hope you enjoy this adventure as much as we've enjoyed doing it. pic.twitter.com/7hJ5zbmH8J

-- Jon Mikel (J??n Mee-kel) (@jonmikel_comic) May 27, 2024

Who Are DC's Jurassic League?

2022's Jurassic League reimagined the heroes and villains of the DC universe are anthropomorphic dinosaurs. In the series, the Trinity, alongside a league of other super-powered dinosaurs, join forces to save a prehistoric Earth from the sinister machinations of Darkseid. Wait ... what? Okay, maybe you don't know the story. So join us and bear witness to a brand-new - yet older than time - adventure and experience the Justice League as you have never seen them before! The events of the series have since been officially canonized in the DC Multiverse as Earth-27.

"Jurassic League is all I want to draw: dinos and epic fights," Gedeon revealed when the series was first announced. "My own version of a 90s cartoon or videogame. Expect a story about survival, unity and hope where the strong protect the weak in a world where danger lurks in every corner."

"It's been an absolute pleasure to join Juan Gideon in creating a new world for DC, complete with dinos, cavemen, and extinction level events," Johnson echoed. "Batsuar suplexes a Joker dilophosaurus, you're welcome!"

Are the Jurassic League Getting a Movie?

According to a report from earlier this year, DC Studios is currently developing Jurassic League as an animated feature film. This would be the first animated film project within the new DC Studios slate, although it is unclear at this point if it would be under the Elseworlds banner.

Although the project has yet to be confirmed by the studio, DC Studios co-CEO James Gunn will reportedly executive produce Jurassic League, with Minions and Secret Life of Pets writer Brian Lynch writing the script.

Batman: The Brave and the Bold #13 is now available wherever comics are sold.

This is a great week for comic books! The top ten has a little something for every collector. Fans of comic book artwork will be thrilled to see Inhyuk Lee and Jenny Frison covers hit our top ten! We also see Logan Lubera pay homage to another horror cover and fans receiving a long-awaited J. Scott Campbell cover. Fans of Doom and late rapper MF Doom will be happy to see those books taking off, along with key issues featuring two femme fatales. Although X-Men '97 may have wrapped up, a certain character is still making our top ten. His name's Gambit... remember it!

Want to know what comic books are trending each week and why? COVRPRICE.COM uses live sales analytics to identify and compile the most robust market price guide, highlighting the weekly top trending comics. No opinions. Just data. Each week, they present a newly updated list of the TOP 10 COMICS trending in the aftermarket. These trends are due to rumors, fan-favorite covers, story-driven content, and content-related news.

Top 10 Comic Books Rising in Value for the Week of 05/27/24

#10: MAD MAX: FURY ROAD: FURIOSA #1 | DC | 2015: Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga debuted this past weekend, and reception has been mostly positive. Fans and critics alike praise the film, claiming it to be a film for "fans first, general audiences second." The film's debut has increased interest in Furiosa's first appearance and legacy. We saw the book make a climb throughout the past couple of weeks leading to the film's debut! We tracked it at a high sale of $124 for a CGC 9.8, and a current NM raw FMV is at $21.

#9: THE SENSATIONAL SHE-HULK VOL.2 #2 | MARVEL | 1989: Taylor Swift single-handedly propelled Dazzler comics into the spotlight. Except, it wasn't Swift that did anything. It was a simple rumor that she would cameo in the Deadpool and Wolverine movie as the mutant that made the books take off. This book is experiencing the same fuel on the heels of the next Swift rumor. According to a few leakers, Marvel has been in talks with Swift to take on the role of the Blonde Phantom, a little-known heroine from the Golden Age of comics. The problem is, her first appearance was in 1946's ALL SELECT COMICS #11, which is both hard to find and already pretty pricey (recent 2.0 raw sale of $1,795). A confirmation of Taylor playing this blonde bombshell will surely spike values; budget consensus collectors turned to this more modern issue, featuring her first appearance in a comic since her golden age appearances. Granted, it's only a two-page panel cameo of her as an older woman called "Weezie." However, in issue four, it's revealed that she's the retired superhero known as The Blonde Phantom and features flashbacks of her Alter Ego's character in action. There hasn't been any official support or denial of this rumor, but for now, it is enough to fire it up on the aftermarket. We tracked it at a high sale of $115 for a CGC 9.8 and a current raw NM FMV of $10.

#8: SPIDER-GWEN: GHOST SPIDER #1 - JENNY FRISON - VIRGIN (1:100) | MARVEL | 2024: To say that Jenny Frison is a rising star is an understatement. Her covers have been highly sought after on the aftermarket. The increasing popularity is well-deserved, as her unique art style captivates collectors. Moreover, Spider-Gwen is one of the most popular spider variants in the spider-verse. Pairing these two powerhouses has led to a spectacular retailer incentive. The high ratio, 1:100, will make it a tough find for fans of Jenny Frison and Spider-Gwen. We tracked it at a high sale of $200 for an NM raw and a current NM raw FMV at $167.

#7: DOOM #1 - ADI GRANOV | MARVEL | 2024: This book marks the first in a series for Doom since the 2000s. Marvel also used this book as a platform to provide a tribute to the late rapper MF Doom. The book took off due to the character's popularity and the story's quality. The book continues to skyrocket as fans discover the tribute to the rapper on the story's first page. The tribute is subtle, highlighting a few key lyrics as the beginning text of the story. We tracked it at a high sale of $90 for a CGC 9.8 and a current NM raw FMV at $22.

#6: ASCENCIA #22 - J. SCOTT CAMPBELL - TORPEDO COMICS - HIDDEN MAIL-IN EXCLUSIVE | WAKE ENTERTAINMENT | 2024: Most of the best variant covers on the market are the ones that drifted by most casual collectors' radar. This book took a lot of work and patience to obtain. Fans of the Ascencia series had to collect coupons from books #13-17 and mail them in for a secret J. Scott Campbell cover. This promotion had significant delays, halting production for nearly a year. This week marks the distribution of this long-awaited cover. It quickly hit the aftermarket and started to hit new all-time highs with each sale, with popularity that will likely continue to grow. With an estimated print run of 380, it's that much more desirable! We tracked it at a high sale of $350 for NM raw copy and a current NM raw FMV at $286.

#5: THE UNCANNY X-MEN VOL.1 #266 | MARVEL | 1990: This book is back on our top ten list! It originally took off due to rumors that Channing Tatum would take on the role of Gambit in the upcoming Deadpool and Wolverine movie. It then took off a second time after the 5th episode debuted on X-Men '97, and everyone wanted to collect the brave hero's key books. It kicked off again after the series finale when Marvel teased a possible comeback for Gambit in the after-credits scene. Regardless of the reason, his popularity on the aftermarket continues to grow as fans pursue this book to add to their collection! We tracked it at a high sale of $594 for a CGC 9.8 and a current NM raw FMV at $139.

#4: BLOOD HUNT: RED BAND EDITION #2 - LOGAN LUBERA - CRIME SUSPENSTORIES #16 HOMAGE (1:25) | MARVEL | 2024: Marvel's red band titles have been tapping into classic horror covers for homage inspiration. The move is quite brilliant, and the retailer incentives have been blowing up. The first issue retailer incentive has an NM raw FMV of $145. This book was just released last week, and it is already taking over the aftermarket as fans of the homage covers are hunting it down. The book has an NM raw FMV of $188. Wolverine is the perfect Marvel hero to step into this cover homage! We tracked it at a high sale of $275 for an NM raw copy.

#3: THE NEW MUTANTS #98 - INHYUK LEE - 2024 FACSIMILE (1:25) | MARVEL | 2024: Marvel has slowed down movie production this year; the only MCU film we're getting is Deadpool and Wolverine. These two characters are already massively popular, but this movie's hype has propelled it to the top of every collectors' want list. Last week was the release of another facsimile edition of Deadpool's first appearance. Interestingly, the 1:25 ratio sketch variant by Inhyuk Lee was the top seller! It may not be a direct homage to the original cover, but that is what makes it a hot variant. The sketch cover of the merc-with-a-mouth has become wildly popular in the aftermarket. We tracked it at a high sale of $59 for an NM raw copy and a current NM raw FMV at $56.

#2: DOOM #1 - SANFORD GREENE - REGULAR | MARVEL | 2024: This book took off when it hit the stores, and many copies were instantly on the aftermarket. Doom is a massive Marvel villain, and fans of the character are there for any new Doom solo series. The book quickly took off but what gave it another big boost was a subtle tribute found on the first page of the book. The book starts with the lines, "Living on borrowed time... The clock ticks faster..." lyrics from rapper MF Doom's track 'Accordion.' The rapper was known for wearing a Doom mask and tragically passed away in 2020. We tracked 206 it at a high sale of $50 for NM raw copy and a current NM raw FMV at $35.

#1: X-MEN '97 #2 - ANIMATION ART - 2ND PRINT | MARVEL | 2024: X-Men '97 was a crucial step in the reintroduction of the X-Men. The animated series debuted to positive reception from fans and critics. Every episode left us on a cliffhanger, anticipating the next episode's release in the following week. However, no episode left us needing more than episode 5's attack on Genosha. The episode had many twists and turns, but none left us more at the edge of our seats as Gambit's noble sacrifice. This cover is an incredible tribute to that moment, as we see a fading Gambit saying his goodbye to Rogue as he fades away. Fans of the series were waiting for this cover to drop. Given the number of books that moved on the aftermarket this week, it is clear how many collectors loved the series! We tracked it at a high sale of $19 for NM raw copy and a current NM raw FMV at $10.

Raphael patrols the streets on a new cover for IDW Publishing's Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles relaunch. As one era of TMNT comics comes to an end, a new one begins this summer. April saw the release of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles #150, marking the end of the franchise's longest-running ongoing comic book series. But fans won't have to wait long to find out what IDW has in store for the heroes in a half-shell. Writer Jason Aaron is helming the relaunch of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, and to celebrate the first issue, acclaimed artist Danny Earls is providing cover art for one of its variants.

ComicBook can exclusively reveal Danny Earls' cover of July's Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles #1. The cover features Raphael leaping through the New York City streets with a sai in each hand, and a subway car speeding across the tracks. There are also some Easter eggs for eagle-eyed TMNT fans. The subway car has a stick for the year 1984, which is when creators Kevin Eastman and Peter Laird's original Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles comic was published. Eastman also gets an individual shoutout on the subway as well.

Danny Earls is an Irish footballer turned comic book artist, working on such titles as Batman, Dark Vader: Black, White & Red, Darth Maul: Black, White & Red, Incredible Hulk, and more. You can find him on social media here.

"Launching a new TMNT comic series in the midst of the characters' 40th anniversary is clearly one of those dream jobs of all comic book dream jobs," Jason Aaron said in a statement to ComicBook on the announcement of his TMNT gig. "Especially for me, a kid who first fell in love with the Turtles all those years ago because of that original Mirage Studios series, buying those groundbreaking issues fresh off the rack, comics that kicked you in the face with their action-packed grit and gloriously raw attitude. I couldn't be more honored and thrilled to get to add to that esteemed legacy of comic book face-kicking, especially as part of an amazing IDW run that has expanded the world and timeline of the Turtles in such daring and exciting ways. In terms of what's to come, the kid in me wants you to know that you can expect some good old-fashioned grit, a sprinkle of dark, new attitude and all the bone-cracking action that four mutated ninja brothers can possibly handle."

Stay tuned to ComicBook as we get close to the launch of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles #1.

McFarlane Toys is set to launch a Darkseid (DC Classic) Megafig in their DC Multiverse lineup today, May 28th at 9am PT / 12pm ET, and we expect it to be a quick seller. Just look at it. UPDATE: Pre-orders are available here at Entertainment Earth now priced at $39.99 (free US shipping on orders $79+) with a release date set for August. It should also arrive here on Amazon at some point in the near future. Keep in mind that Entertainment Earth is currently running a Memorial Day sale that offers $10 - $50 off all orders $100 or more, though it will only last through the end of the day. You can shop all of their McFarlane Toys figures right here.

"The DC Collector Megafig Wave 8 Darkseid DC Classic Action Figure features ultra articulation with up to 22 moving parts for full range of posing and play. Darkseid is featured in his classic DC Comics look and is in scale with the 7-inch figures in the DC Multiverse line (sold separately). Darkseid comes with a soft goods cape, extra hands, extra head portrait, and display base. Also included is a collectable card with artwork on the front, and a character biography on the back."

On a related note, McFarlane Toys launched a wave of 7-inch DC Direct action figures last week that they've dubbed as "PHYGITAL" releases. As the name suggests, each physical figure will be paired with a digital collectible, which is a strategy that that McFarlane Toys is leaning into more and more. In this case, a virtual piece that can be used to construct a virtual Animal Man when you collect all three figures. Yes, digital Build-A-Figures are a thing now.

Still, the wave is an interesting one with The Atom (DC: The Silver Age), Superman (Our Worlds at War) abnd Green Arrow (Longbow Hunter) figures. Note that this is the second wave of figures in the DC Direct Phygital series following a Batman, Green Lantern, and Aquaman wave that launched earlier this year and quickly sold out.

• DC Direct The Atom DC: The Silver Age 7-inch scale figure ($24.99) - See at Entertainment Earth
• DC Direct Green Arrow Longbow Hunter 7-inch scale figure ($24.99) - See at Entertainment Earth
• DC Direct Superman Our Worlds at War 7-inch scale figure ($24.99) - See at Entertainment Earth
• Collector's Case of 6 - See at Entertainment Earth
• You can also find these figures here Amazon.

In other McFarlane Toys news, they just launched another Gold Label Amazon exclusive in the DC Multiverse lineup, and this time around it's the Killer Croc Megafig inspired by Batman: Arkham Asylum. First launched in 2022 as a standard figure in the DC Multiverse lineup, the Gold Label edition includes glow-in-the-dark paint deco, an art card, card stand and display base.

Pre-orders for the Gold Label Killer Croc Megafig are available here on Amazon for $49.99 with a release date set for July 26th. The previously released standard version is also available on Amazon priced at $36.

This summer, DC is reprinting Police Comics #1, featuring the first appearances of Firebrand, Plastic Man, Phantom Lady, and the Human Bomb. Originally published by Quality Comics, Police Comics #1 is in the public domain and widely available on digital sites, but DC uses, and owns trademarks for, most Quality Comics characters. Not only have these characters appeared in numerous DC stories since the 1980s crossover Crisis on Infinite Earths, but they have been prominently featured in some, like Infinite Crisis and Freedom Fighters. Releasing a new, recolored and remastered version of Police Comics also likely gives DC a fresh coat of paint in terms of copyright, allowing them to differentiate their version from the relatively low-quality scans circulating online.

The news of a facsimile edition of Police Comics #1 comes on the heels of speculation that Warner Bros. plans to exploit Plastic Man in the forthcoming DC Universe (on film and TV) from producers James Gunn and Peter Safran.

"Who would've thought 11 years ago the two most popular rides in the world are Guardians of the Galaxy ride?" Gunn said back in February. "Two most popular rides in the world are based on a comic that fucking 20,000 people knew. And so being able to try to create these other properties, use our diamonds, our Batman, Superman, Wonder Woman, to prop up our Booster Golds or Green Lanterns or Plastic Mans or whatever is important."

It's hard to call that a conclusive statement -- it sounds very much like he was pulling a kind of random example of a B-list character -- but "random" might not be easy to prove when every other IP mentioned there has an upcoming project that has already been announced. While Wonder Woman 3 might not be coming anytime soon, there's still an Amazons-related project joining Superman, Batman: The Brave and the Bold, Booster Gold, and Lanterns.

You can see the solicitation text below.

POLICE COMICS #1 FACSIMILE EDITION

Written by JACK COLE, S.M. IGER, GEORGE BRENNER, GILL FOX, CLARK WILLIAMS, VERN HENKEL, AL BRYANT, FRED GUARDINEER, ARTHUR PEDDY, and PAUL GUSTAVSON
Art by JACK COLE, REED CRANDALL, GEORGE BRENNER, GILL FOX, CLARK WILLIAMS, VERN HENKEL, AL BRYANT, FRED GUARDINEER, and PAUL GUSTAVSON
Cover by GILL FOX

$6.99 US | 64 pages
ON SALE 8/7/24

Prepare your eyes for the frame-bursting, mind-stretching introduction of Plastic Man from the limitless imagination of Jack Cole! This full facsimile reprinting of the Golden Age classic also features the first appearance of Phantom Lady and more.

While the comparisons between this Ultimates and the original are inevitable, they are most alike in how differently they approach the challenge of reimagining Marvel comics. Ultimates #1 is instantly distinguished by its narrative approach; it presents readers with a densely woven story combining an ensemble of conflicted characters, grandiose sci-fi, and a layered timeline. It has much more in common with the highlights of prestige television than the "cinematic" comparisons of the early 2000s. Ultimates #1 is a comic book that assumes its audience is intelligent and treats them accordingly.

This series addresses the high-concept framework for Earth-6160, which is summarized in a few paragraphs on the opening page before the story picks up where Ultimate Invasion left off. Camp seeds key ongoing character arcs and plot elements from that series throughout the first issue, ensuring that even if readers are joining in media res they won't be lost by the issue's end.

The sci-fi mechanics provide a compelling framework for the story at hand and are woven into the artwork as expository dialogue plays with visual elements and characterization to avoid growing dry. It's an effective presentation that moves too quickly to grow dull. It sets global stakes for a small team of heroes and the resulting underdog dynamic is undeniably compelling. Camp and Frigeri's vision of the Marvel universe is still loaded with colorful, superpowered individuals, but most of them are in league with authoritarian systems or resigned to their fate. It makes the resistance of a few bold individuals stand out more than the waves of endless Avengers found on Earth-616.

Frigeri proves an excellent match for this approach. They capture the mood of a world resigned to its fate in the issue's opening splash of a decimated Manhattan. Despite notable changes like this or the inclusion of Moloids, the world outside of Tony Stark's lair is recognizable and manages to make the wondrous costumes and powers displayed seem grounded in their relationship to the billions of people on Earth. There's a sense of consequence when these figures move through the streets of New York City and even their own resplendent hideout still seems to be composed of steel and glass.

Frigeri knows how to draw a superhero and the costume designs range from good to outstanding with a couple of reimagined classics standing out. Rather than running from the style of superhero comics for something more realistic, like what audiences have come to expect from every new MCU film, Frigeri leans into the strengths of the medium. Superheroes are still figures of wonder, even if their costumes hide very human figures beneath them.

Those figures contain the greatest strength of Ultimates #1. As it presents an ensemble composed of seven superheroes on the cover alone, the issue provides each of them with at least one notable character beat and serves to define their conflicts and relationships well enough that I found myself invested in the entire cast after only 30 pages. Nowhere is this better exemplified than in the introduction of Hank and Janet Pym who arrive as recognizable personalities grappling with sympathetic dynamics and traumas in a way that emphasizes their humanity. Where a prior volume of Ultimates opted to flatten Hank into an unsympathetic wretch, Ultimates #1 offers him sympathy and understanding without denying his flaws.

It's the fallen nature of this superhero team that defines Ultimates #1, each of them grappling with failures while recognizing the need to act in a world desperate for heroism and good actors. They serve to reflect a readership surrounded by tides of uncertainty and horror. How does one respond to climate change, rising fascism, and worsening wars? It's an impossible question, but Ultimates #1 serves to remind readers that heroism lies in rising to face great threats without any certainty of victory.

Published by Marvel Comics

On June 5, 2024

Written by Deniz Camp

Art by Juan Frigeri

Colors by Federico Blee

Letters by Travis Lanham

Cover by Dike Ruan and Alejandro S?nchez

Alex Ross's Fantastic Four: Full Circle will get an oversized, hardcover "extended edition" from Marvel and Abrams Books in the fall. With almost 300 pages of bonus material including sketches and behind-the-scenes material, it's more than just a "bonus scene at the end," and more like DC's Annotated Watchmen, which saw artist Dave Gibbons work with the publisher to create a scholarly work that was published alongside the original comic. In the case of Full Circle, you could draw comparisons back to the early collected editions of Kingdom Come, in which Ross provided concept art, sketches, and unique insights into his creative process.

Fantastic Four: Full Circle Expanded Edition will be available from Abrams Books on October 1, 2024. In addition to the original story and plenty of extras from Ross, the book will reprint a classic Fantastic Four issue that served as the inspiration for the story -- Stan Lee and Jack Kirby's The Fantastic Four #51.

"This is the Fantastic Four story I have been wanting to tell for years, and visually it is one of the greatest artistic experiments I have attempted," Alex Ross said when the project was announced. "I'm excited to share this work with everyone, as it unites the two great publishing forces of Marvel and Abrams ComicArts in a bold new collaboration."

"Alex and I have been working together for close to 30 years, when I was an editor at DC Comics and hired him to paint his very first book cover back in 1993, before Marvels was published," added Ross's longtime editor Charles Kochman. "In Fantastic Four: Full Circle, Alex revisits a classic Stan Lee-Jack Kirby comic from the 1960s and introduces the storyline for a new generation of readers."

Per an announcement from Marvel, the expanded book will include "288 additional pages of jaw-dropping bonus material from Ross" -- a massive jump from the original comic's 64 pages. In the book, "Ross walks readers through his process and vision for the making of the book which School Library Journal called a 'pop art masterpiece.' Showcasing early visual concepts through final art, Ross takes readers behind-the-scenes, revealing for the first time his proposal, thumbnails, sketches, inks, and color guides, models and never-before-seen preliminary artwork, alongside all-new commentary."

While collected editions of Ross's comics are among some of Marvel and DC's most evergreen, celebrated titles, Fantastic Four: Full Circle was pitched as the first fully original graphic novel Ross had done for the publishers. While projects like Kingdom Come and Marvels helped to reshape superhero comics, Full Circle falls a little more in line with Ross's series of oversized coffee table one-shots like Superman: Peace on Earth and Batman: War on Crime, which told stand-alone stories featuring classic versions of the characters.

Naruto has thrown one of the most surprising twists ever into Bortuo: Two Blue Vortex. Vol. 1 of Boruto (Naruto Next Generation) shocked the fandom when Naruto's Nine-Tailed beast Kurama sacrificed himself to help save Naruto and his son Boruto. Now Kurama has been resurrected in the most unexpected of places: inside of Naruto's daughter Himawari.

In just the short time since this reveal was made, it's been made clear that Himawari isn't just your typical Jinchuriki; as Kurama tells it, his being bonded to Naruto when he conceived Himawari meant the girl inherited a piece of his essence as part of her DNA, creating a new type of bond between woman and beast.

Why Himawari Will Be The Best Nine-Tails Jinchuriki Ever

In short: Kurama isn't taking up residence inside of Himawari as a separate entity being hosted; the two of them are a fully fused hybrid being. Himawari is only now about to be tested in her first real battle, but we can already tell some things that are going to be very different.

The first obvious thing is that Himawari's Nine-Tails powers are being set up to exist in a very different level of power hierarchy than we saw in Naruto or Naruto: Shippuden. Boruto: Two Blue Vortex has been all about establishing a new power dynamic in the Naruto Saga: the new threat is Otsutsuki Divine Trees that have evolved and gained sentience; Naruto's son Boruto and his friend/rival Kawaki have both become human/Otsutsuki hybrid beings via their respective Karma seal marks. Old heads Naruto and Sasuke have both been swept off the board and left in comatose stasis - a formal sign that the old powers are just that, old, and new powers are rising to take their place.

Nine-Tails Himawari is one of those new powers rising and one of the most exciting. Himawari physically transforming into a human and Tailed Beast hybrid already gives her much more of a werewolf quality than Naruto ever had. It's a power and a threat that is also much more interesting in the hands of a young girl who is coming of age - in terms of how she emotionally manages the monster inside as she matures, and how the world treats her as a female who potentially holds one of the greatest new powers in the world.

For hardcore Naruto fans, seeing the range of Kurama's powers, as well as the forms he unlocked with Naruto, remixed for his new hybrid form will be a major thrill. Right now it's also exciting to know that Himawari will be having to unlock and explore these powers in the heat of battle, without Naruto there to guide her. That opens the door for her to make the Nine-Tails power truly her own, in a way that totally breaks with the tradition of the Jinchurikis who came before.

Read Boruto: Two Blue Vortex on Shonen Jump.

Fans got to witness some of Wolverine's past as a part of Team X in a prequel story to X-Men '97. The animated series recently came to a conclusion, and left viewers with more questions than answers. How did the X-Men get lost in the timestream? Which new X-Men will join Bishop and Forge to go find them? Is Apocalypse going to resurrect Gambit? For fans eager for more X-Men, Marvel is publishing an X-Men '97 companion series, which takes place before the events in X-Men '97 Season 1. In its latest issue, readers got to meet a figure from Wolverine's past.

WARNING: The following article contains spoilers for X-Men '97 #3. Continue reading at your own risk!

X-Men '97 #3 comes from the creative team of Steve Foxe, Salva Esp?n, Matt Milla, and VC's Joe Sabino. It features the X-Men versus the Marauders on the streets of Westchester. Just as Wolverine is about to renew his rivalry with Sabretooth, he's shot from behind by someone named Agent Carl Denti. He's there to arrest all mutants involved in the skirmish and appears to have an anti-mutant agenda. Once Wolverine catches Agent Denti's scent, he's reminded of his time as a part of Team X alongside Maverick and Sabretooth.

We get a flashback of the trio during one of their missions to take down some dirty agents selling state secrets to a militia. Agent Denti is taken down by Team X and also suffers a facial scar that he still wears to this day. This all explains his vendetta against mutants, and Wolverine specifically. The Marauders eventually escape, leaving the X-Men to deal with Agent Denti. Valerie Cooper shows up and reveals Agent Denti is operating without her authorization, and states that the government doesn't consider the X-Men enemies of the state. Of course, Agent Denti disagrees, but gets taken away to be disciplined. Before he leaves, Agent Denti alludes to his connection to the anti-mutant organization Friends of Humanity.

X-Men '97 gets Season 2 update

"It's still an animatic phase. Animation takes so long to make as I'm sure you know. There was a great bit about this in Invincible Season 2," Marvel's head of streaming, Brad Winderbaum, told ComicBook. "They just nailed it so hard, it is the greatest. And it takes a long time. Because the studio wants to see how successful the first season is before they greenlight the second season there's a lag. We were lucky enough to get the greenlight before we aired so there's maybe less of a lag. People are just going to have to be patient with us.

The first season of X-Men '97 is now available to stream on Disney+.

In the late 1980s, Todd McFarlane became a superstar illustrating Amazing Spider-Man for Marvel Comics. But after creative clashes with the publisher over censorship during the "Sabotage" crossover with McFarlane's adjectiveless Spider-Man and Rob Liefeld's X-Force, the visionary writer-artist quit Marvel. McFarlane and six other creators -- including Liefeld and McFarlane's successor Spider-Man artist Erik Larsen -- formed their own company, Image Comics, in 1992. It was there that McFarlane birthed Spawn, an anti-hero forged in hell and star of the most successful independent comic book ever published.

McFarlane announced via ComicBook that his McFarlane Toys will be collaborating with Marvel to bring some of his iconic Amazing Spider-Man covers to life as a collection of 3D statue-like figures, part of a first wave featuring the works of Amazing Spider-Man artists Steve Ditko and John Romita Sr., and former Marvel artists and Image co-founders Liefeld and Jim Lee. Speaking exclusively to ComicBook about the collection, which launches this summer, McFarlane gave an update on his upcoming Spawn movie reboot from Blumhouse and revealed if the Marvel collaboration might spawn another: a Spider-Man/Spawn crossover comic.

"I don't know if it will. I have conversations with Marvel on a semi-regular basis, and that's the only topic of conversation we have," McFarlane tells ComicBook. "Usually, it's a 20-second conversation. It's like, 'Todd, are you any closer to thinking about it?' And it's like, 'No, not really.'"

McFarlane's long-running Spawn comic has crossed over with another Image title, Witchblade, but it wasn't until Spawn/Batman that his creation starred in an intercompany crossover. Published by Image in 1994, the one-shot was written by The Dark Knight Returns visionary Frank Miller and drawn by McFarlane, who had penciled Batman in issues of Detective Comics for DC in the late '80s. The Hellspawn and the Dark Knight would cross paths again in the one-shot Batman/Spawn: War Devil, by legendary Batman writers and artists Doug Moench, Chuck Dixon, Alan Grant, and Klaus Janson; in 2022, McFarlane scripted Batman/Spawn, a third crossover one-shot drawn by Spawn and Batman artist Greg Capullo.

Unlike Spawn/Batman and Batman/Spawn, McFarlane will handle both writing and art duties when he eventually returns for his first Spider-Man story in more than 30 years.

"It's a massive undertaking for me because it has to be Spider-Man/Spawn, and I have to do all the artwork," McFarlane explains. "Anything less than that is not doing it proper. So I just have to be able to see myself clear to be able to devote the time needed and not feel like I'm a little bit here, and a little bit here, and I'm rushing it, because it will show on paper. I need to be able to channel all the things that people like in my artwork when I was doing it on a regular basis and put it back on the paper."

McFarlane paid homage to his covers for 1987's Amazing Spider-Man #298 and Amazing Spider-Man #299 with Spawn #298 and #299 during "War to 300," the lead-up to the history-making Spawn #300 in 2019. In 2020, McFarlane took to social media to share a "momentous occasion in comic book history": his first official artwork featuring Spider-Man and Spawn together. The piece (above), a cover for the Overstreet Price Guide, was embraced by fans who then asked: Will McFarlane ever bring Spider-Man and Spawn together in a comic book?

The Image Comics president and McFarlane Toys CEO likens a potential Spider-Man/Spawn crossover to a "revival tour for a band." And like many long-awaited revival tours, it could be another decade before McFarlane returns to the stage to play the hits, so to speak.

"Will [Spider-Man/Spawn] ever happen? I don't know," McFarlane says. "But my guess is that it's probably more likely to happen once I sort of wind down the distractions in my life and I actually do have time and I go, 'I can just go back to drawing and don't have to worry about a hundred other things I have to do.' It might be 40 or 50 [years after Spider-Man] by the time we get there, but we'll get there."

One of DC's most iconic storylines is getting a new chapter. On Saturday, during DC's panel at MCM London, the publisher announced Batman The Long Halloween: The Last Halloween, the final act of Jeph Loeb and Tim Sale's Batman: The Long Halloween. The ten-part mystery will spin out of the events of 2021's Batman The Long Halloween Special, and will see Loeb joined by a number of artists, following Sale's passing in 2022. For the debut issue, Loeb will be joined by fan-favorite artist Eduardo Risso (100 Bullets, Detective Comics, The Batman Who Laughs), Dave Stewart and Richard Starkings, with art for future issues of the series provided by some of the top artists in comics, including Klaus Janson (Batman: The Dark Knight Returns, Detective Comics, Batman: Legends of the Dark Knight), Mark Chiarello (Batman: Black and White, Batman/Houdini: The Devil's Workshop), and others to be named later.

"Batman The Long Halloween: The Last Halloween is Tim Sale's parting gift to me," said writer Loeb. "Tim and I had already decided to tell this last chapter following Batman: The Long Halloween Special, which will serve as the prologue to this 10-part action-packed mystery."

What Is Batman The Long Halloween: The Last Halloween About?

Batman The Long Halloween: The Last Halloween is described as a 10-part mystery continuing the story from 2021's Batman The Long Halloween Special. In the debut issue, Gotham City learns to fear Halloween once more as a terrible event threatens to destroy Jim Gordon's life and puts Batman and Robin's teamwork to the test more than ever before. In a city of liars, masked vigilantes, and criminals...can anyone be trusted?

"Tim's unfortunate passing put our plans for this series on hold," Loeb continued. "About a year later, after speaking with Mark Chiarello and Richard Starkings, my partners on the previous Long Halloween titles, we decided the time was right to move this forward as a tribute to Tim, who continues to be with us in spirit. This story concludes the war between the freaks and the crime families forever, as Batman, Robin, and DC's most infamous Bat-villains face off against Holiday, and secrets dating back to Batman The Long Halloween Special will be revealed."

Batman The Long Halloween: The Last Halloween #1 will be available wherever comics are sold on Wednesday, September 25th.

Last year, McFarlane Toys released a DC Multiverse figure and vehicle set that includes Lobo, his Spacehog ride, and his alien dog buddy. It includes chain and guitar accessories as well as an alternate head. Note that McFarlane Toys previously released a standalone DC Rebirth Lobo figure, but this set comes with the bike, the additional accessories and, most importantly, Dawg.

If you didn't snatch it up when it launched, your patience has paid off. At the time of writing it's available to order here on Amazon with a 30% discount ($48.82), which is its lowest price ever.

Will Jason Momoa Play Lobo in the DC Universe?

James Gunn and Peter Safran were asked if Momoa would be playing multiple characters in the new DC Universe -- a rumor that had surfaced along with rumors that the actor could be playing Lobo in DC Studios' new cinematic world. According to Gunn, however, Momoa will not be playing two characters.

"Jason will not play two characters despite what you guys might think," Gunn said, before adding that she's "really happy" with the actor.

Safran went a little further, suggesting that things are still undecided about several things -- including a third Aquaman film -- but that there are no plans for the actor to play two characters.

"It's too early. Listen, he definitely... Jason always thought Aquaman was a trilogy, in his own mind," Safran said. "But listen, he loves Lobo. He's been very clear about that, too. He's never going to play two characters, but no decisions have been made."

A new Moon Knight series will explore all of the different Fists of Khonshu throughout Marvel's illustrious history. Moon Knight is one of the more complicated heroes in the Marvel Universe, but also one of the heroes with a loyal fanbase. Marc Spector was the current Moon Knight, but his death has left a void that others have tried to fill, with varying success. However, Marc Spector is not the first Fist of Khonshu, and soon readers will get to meet several Moon Knights from the past in a new spinoff series from an all-star list of creators.

Phases of the Moon Knight is a four-issue miniseries featuring Khonshu avatars you may already know, along with those readers have never met before. This is similar to how fans have met previous Ghost Riders, Iron Fists, and Black Panthers in the pages of Jason Aaron's Avengers and other series. Some of the creators attached to Phases of the Moon Knight include Benjamin Percy, Rod Reis, Erica Schultz, and Manuel Garcia.

What is Phases of the Moon Knight about?

Below is a description from Marvel of Phases of the Moon Knight #1:

Though he is among the most recent, Marc Spector is far from the first Fist of Khonshu! As fans have witnessed in the pages of Jed MacKay's hit run, Marc and Hunter's Moon are only the latest in a long line of diverse and fascinating Khonshu champions. The spectres of their predecessors have been called upon to aid in their most desperate battles, and now it's time to learn their stories!

• Following Marc Spector's death, the supernatural villain known as the Shroud rose as a darker, more vengeful Moon Knight! Writer Erica Schultz and artist Manuel Garc?a take readers back to the night it all started when the Shroud undertook his new mission and began enacting his unique and violent vision of justice!
• Writer Benjamin Percy and artist Rod Reis introduce an all-new Moon Knight from the ancient past: the Moon Knight of the Old Crusades! Forged in the crucible of a holy war, this mighty Moon Knight crusader finds himself in Ancient Egypt where he'll clash with one of the first mutants--APOCALYPSE!
  

Marvel reveals identity of new Moon Knight

Vengeance of Moon Knight is a new series that takes place after Marc Spector's death, and follows the Midnight Mission as they search for the identity of the new Moon Knight. Tigra and Hunter's Moon have been following the trail of this mysterious Moon Knight, and once they finally catch up to him, he's unmasked to reveal its Shroud.

That story takes a backseat to Jed MacKay and Pepe Larraz's Blood Hunt event, which sees a vampire uprising take over the Marvel Universe. Since MacKay is the writer of both Vengeance of the Moon Knight and Blood Hunt, it's quite possible that we could see Marc Spector return in splashy fashion to help quell the creatures of the night.

Phases of the Moon Knight #1 goes on sale August 28th.

Marvel has announced that a Predator vs. Black Panther comic is on the way!

Marvel has been doing a lot with the Predator and Alien franchises on the comic book front, with "Predator Vs...." being the latest installment. Marvel fans already got a treat with the Predator vs. Wolverine miniseries that was released in Summer of 2023; now it's Summer of 2024, and T'Challa's Black Panther is the next character to put his hunting skills to the test against a Predator!

What Is Predator vs. Black Panther About?

io9 got to sit down with Predator vs. Black Panther writer Benjamin Percy to talk about the series and its unique take on the Predator.

"What's the Black Panther story people are most familiar with? The battle over the throne between T'Challa and Killmonger. I'm channeling something similar to that here--except on a cosmic scale," Percy teased. "This Predator King has two sons who are at war with one another. Vibranium might be the weapon that determines their claim."

The Marvel Comics writer revealed how Predator vs. Black Panther will be a story with a larger scope than Predator vs. Wolverine's 'Man vs. Monster' premise:

"If the first installment was about the hunt for a man, it made sense to elevate the stakes and make this book about the battle for a kingdom" Percy explained. "There are a number of reasons that Black Panther makes for a great adversary and Wakanda makes for great stage (including the fact that the perimeter shield, when locked down, creates a hunting preserve)."

There's also one element in Marvel lore that makes all the sense in the world to mix with Predator lore:

"You throw Vibranium into the mix, and you've got a really interesting (and fresh) Predator narrative. The Yautja covet their weapons and trophies-and the kingdom's vast stores of this rare cosmic metal would be impossible to resist."

Is Predator vs. Black Panther Part of Marvel Canon?

The Predator vs. Wolverine series definitely leaned into established Marvel Universe canon, rather than being a complete standalone or What If...? story. So will Predator vs. Black Panther be any different?

"Those who read Predator vs. Wolverine will know that I adhered to canon in a dancing-between-the-raindrops kind of way. Is it officially canon? I honestly don't know," Percy admitted, before adding that "I'm treating it like it is, because I want people to feel like the story matters, like the Yautja have been in the 616 all along, hunting."

Predator vs. Wolverine was a success in terms of both fan reception and sales. The series is officially establishing its anthology nature with Predator vs. Black Panther, and Benjamin Percy is teasing that he already knows what the next installment will be:

"I not only know what match-up is coming next, I have plans for the match-up that follows it. We'll see how it all plays out, but we're for sure locked in for the third story (which I am so, so damn excited about)."

...Predator vs. Hulk, anyone?

Predator vs. Black Panther
Written by: Benjamin Percy (Predator vs. Wolverine, Wolverine, Ghost Rider, Hellverine)
Art: Chris Allen (Marvel Stormbreaker artists, Black Panther)
Cover art: Ken Lashley (Predator vs. Wolverine)
Release Date: August 21st.