Rob's Picks:

Avengers: Twilight #5 - The penultimate issue of Avengers: Twilight is a heavy hitter, overloaded with high-stakes action and seriously epic moments for heroes and villains alike. The Red Skull has stepped out of the shadows and set off a battle for control of America. Cap, Ms. Marvel, and the new Hawkeye are fighting in the streets with the Defenders, while Tony Stark has a long overdue confrontation with his son. The Avengers legacy, already tainted by the lies of Red Skull, is rocked once more when we learn the true meaning of H-Day. In plot, action, character dynamics, themes, everything comes to a head in this issue. Zdarsky and Acuña have exceeded themselves with Twilight. Every panel and page is expertly crafted, so engrossing and satisfying that it is nearly impossible to criticize. They even manage to increase the hype for the already much-hyped final issue with the arrival of an Avenger who has been conspicuously absent from this title. It would be nice to see this experience go on longer, but it’s a rare treat to get a book that is all good stuff, no filler.

Blow Away #1 - Writer Zac Thompson (Hunt for the Skinwalker) pens a new slow-burning, paranoid noir in the tradition of Rear Window and Blow-Up. On a remote island in the Canadian Arctic, nature photographer Brynne Brautigan practices her craft. It means many long and lonely days waiting for just the right moment to capture the perfect shot. The isolation is only broken by the occasional glimpse of a lone hunter, until her camera spies two climbers on a nearby mountain. Brynne watches their ascent, wondering at the human drama unfolding as they battle the elements, their muted arguments giving way to tragedy. But what has Brynne's camera captured? A crime, an accident, some other truth lost between the frames? The tension is thick in this Hitchcockian thriller, a great read for anyone who likes grounded and thoughtful detective stories.

Ghost Rider: Final Vengeance #2 - In issue #1, we saw the Spirit of Vengeance abandon Johnny Blaze for a new Rider, leaving Johnny to face a giant spider without the powers of hell to back him up. This installment introduces us to our new Ghost Rider, Parker Robbins. Robbins, better known as the villain Hood, was last seen in Ghost Rider Annual #1, and after being dispatched to hell he made a bargain with Mephisto for the Rider's power. Revenge on Blaze and countless others were his motivations, but now he’s learning that the Spirit has motives of its own. How will the obligation to punish the wicked challenge and change this villain? Watching Robbins discover the ins and outs of being the Ghost Rider from the inside is fascinating, another reason to be grateful that this title has been left in the capable hands of Benjamin Percy. Danny Kim is pulling his weight as an artist, putting a very MacFarlane spin on the book.

Solomon's Picks:

Ultimate Black Panther #3 - Ultimate Black Panther has been heating up, and the momentum doesn’t stop with issue three! T’Challa has become acquainted with this universe's Storm and Killmonger, who are introducing him to a side of African history he has been blinded to. Shuri and Okoye have a heated dispute that erupts into a wonderfully drawn fight between the two royals over T'Challa's sudden absence and the state of Wakanda after the king's passing. The creative team has been delivering an excellent story so far, accompanied by eye-catching and immersive visuals that take the narrative to a new level. The designs for Storm and Killmonger are excellent, and now that we can see them close-up, we can appreciate these creative and unique looks all the more. This issue did a wonderful job keeping the hype for this series going, and I’ve been loving how this story progresses. Come grab an issue today!

Moon Man #2 - The long-awaited second issue of Moon Man finally landed on shelves this week, and it was worth the wait! Picking up where we left off, Ramon has to fly out to Janus Station to provide PR after the mission incident and address the concerns over the corporation's sustainability and impact on the environment. After failing to give a direct response towards his feelings towards the company's shady dealings, he has a fight with his younger brother that leads him to storm off and practice his new abilities in an attempt at cooling down. This provides the illustrator and color artist(s) a chance to flex their skill and provide panels filled with beautiful and fluid colors, matched with bold and dynamic poses. During his practice, he stumbles upon Janus Security harassing two civilians and interferes. As Moon Man, he will publicly feud with Janus, and I am definitely interested in watching the parallel between his two personas play out. For me, this entry took what few issues I had with the first book and improved upon them drastically, leaving me much more hyped for the future of this series. Do yourself a huge favor and get on board with this series before the next issue drops!

Blow Away #1 - A new story by Zac Thompson, Nicola Izzo, and Francesco Segala comes Blow Away! Our main character, Brynne Brautigan, is a videographer on a near-impossible mission of filming an endangered Red Knot family. While she assumes she is alone, deep in the harsh mountains of Canada, she slowly starts to notice two ominous parties appear seemingly out of thin air. One is a Hunter, who circles the area she films in an almost taunting manner, and the other are two mountain climbers, who seem unbothered by the conditions around them, before having a strange incident occur before the snow makes tracking them impossible. The overwhelming feeling of isolation that the main character feels is easily translated within the first couple of pages, thanks to the clever narration. While it’s hard to gauge where this story is going, the writing and fantastic art are good enough to keep your attention and raise several questions. And with the unique narrative twist at the end, I will definitely tune into the next issue and encourage you to buy an issue yourself!