June 1st, 2022
Caroline's Picks:
Nubia Queen of the Amazons #1 - Things are changing for the Amazons, a new Queen is on the throne and she intends on having a much more present role in the world. After the events of the trial the women of Themyscira deserve some ease to their life, the rest want to help create positive change with their sisters in Brazil. And after a quick peek into how Nubia's closest allies feel about her departure were taken to the Hall of Justice to see how Nubia and her royal Court are getting along with the Justice League members. These little moments between characters were really enjoyable, it's rare to see them interact with anyone other than the Amazons. The jokes and teasing are such a delight to start what I'm sure is going to be a rather dark descent into man's world for the Amazons and their new Queen. Especially when their Queen is being hunted by an unknown enemy on a very short timeline.
The Closet #1 - I might have unrelated opinions about this but Tynion's The Closet is a great new horror series. Basically, any horror book this man writes is as good as gold. We all remember being kids and having ‘monsters’ in the closet but they were never real. Thom is out grabbing a drink before he heads home to help finish up packing, long day and all that so why not have a drink before heading back. Just one more drink. We learn about his strained relationship with his wife and the nagging and how his kid is having nightmares about the monster in his closet. But that's all manageable since they’re leaving town, starting a new life in a new town with a new closet that the monster can’t follow them to. But this is a James Tynion IV book and things are never that simple and pretty when that man is writing, oh no. Things have only just begun for Thom and his family.
Step by Bloody Step #4 - I’ve thoroughly enjoyed this entire series. I’m astonished by the story that can be told with absolutely no dialogue, completely silent yet filled with emotional highs and lows that you can almost touch. The final issue is no exception to this, starting right off the bat with the major loss of our girl's robot/human-self companion she's left to run from her attackers and try and complete her mission. She’s constantly being helped by others throughout this series despite what little they have or the conditions they live in and once again when all hope seems lost humanity steps in to help guide her. Now all she has to do is face her past and fight through the storm of memories to understand why she’s on this journey and what she needs to do to succeed. There were significant twists in the history of this character and her reason for being on the run that I genuinely never saw coming or ever considered. I’m absolutely hoping to see more from this creative team in the future.
We Have Demons #3 - We were warned in the beginning this wasn’t going to be a happy story and we are one again at the beginning of this last issue. Lam’s father has been turned, the man she put all her faith into seems to have finally lost his own and let himself over to the Horn. Yet even still Lam can’t bring herself to doubt him, he had his faith and though her is different it is strong and she intends for it to carry her through to the end. With the turning of her father the team is all but certain they are being set up for a trap when they try and recover the Horn set to land on Earth, after all the man who told them where to find it had been turned himself. But what will they do when that proves to be true, it was all a set up to end the Glories and rid the world of Halo once and for all? Fight back of course, and the battle that ensues is epic and unexpected. After all, how can we have a story about the fall of man without also including their rise?
Diarra's Picks:
Ghost Rider #3 - While Johnny Blaze was living his dream life as a family man, Ghost Rider was imprisoned in his mind. Johnny notices a couple inconsistencies in his reality, which caused enough concern to summon Ghost Rider and he high tailed it out of crazy town. Unfortunately, that doesn’t improve their situation much. Whoever is responsible for this some how managed to separate Johnny Blaze and Ghost Rider’s conscious’ completely. Meaning Johnny had no idea how or why his family just turned into demons, Ghost Rider has no idea which hell spawn is responsible for this, and worst of all, when they aren’t in control of the body they have no idea what the other is doing. What they both know is that they need answers to these questions, and they are leaving a trail of bodies in their wake that hasn’t gone unnoticed. The underworld is a buzz Ghost Rider is back on the streets and the FBI’s Paranormal Unit is hot on their trail. They think Ghost Rider is responsible for opening a door to the underworld, and unbeknownst to him or Johnny, he kinda is.
Black Panther #6 - T’Challa has managed to make himself public enemy number one in Wakanda. If you haven’t been reading the series, the trade collecting #1-5 hits the shelves June 15th. This series got a lot of spec’ attention with #3 being issue the 200th Black Panther issue, but the story itself is definitely worth a read! Here’s a quick recap… T’Challa has been kicking butt with the Avengers and while he is still king of Wakanda, it is in title only. An elected prime minister handles the governing of Wakanda, but T’Challa still felt the need to place sleeper soldiers loyal to him across the globe in case he needs to take back his role in Wakanda. But when those sleeper agents start getting attacked, T’Challa has to come clean about his secret plan B and no one is pleased. Storm recently broke into the vaults of Wakanda via a Krakoa gate, but she was still upset when she found out T’Challa placed a sleeper in Krakoa. Despite the recent mistrust from both sides, they still manage to have a very touching moment this issue. They were ready to go all Mr. and Mrs. Smith on the soldiers sent to kill the Black Panther in the name of Wakanda, when Shuri shows up with some much need back up!
Flashpoint Beyond #2 - The Flashpoint storyline is definitely one of those loved/well known DC titles, where Eobard Thawne aka Professor Zoom uses the speed force to send our Flash to an alternate timeline. Here his mother is alive, he isn’t fast, and Thomas Wayne is Batman. In preparation for the release of this series, DC reprinted the 2011 Flashpoint: Batman Knight of Vengeance story, and a zero issue just to set the scene. That should be enough for you to understand what’s going on in this beyond series because Thomas Wayne is nothing like our world’s Batman. In the original series, Thomas Wayne helps Barry set the timeline back, but now things have changed again and Thomas Wayne seems to be the only one who realizes…or so he thought. When people with time travel abilities start popping up murdered he realizes whoever changed the timeline wants to keep it that way. He breaks into Arkham to talk to Roger Hayden aka Psycho-Pirate, but it’s too late, it appears he has committed suicide but Wayne knows it’s murdered (but we get to see some of this timeline’s ‘bizarro’ Arkham inmates!). Thomas is going to kill everyone he suspects and has gotten the attention from a new hero who in another world, is an old friend…and back to enemies in another. This series is so full of twists and turns!
K's Picks:
The Closet #1 - I'm beyond just hyped for this one. As a horror fan I really see a lot of potential with the characters and art. At a lonely bar, we follow Thom, a guy who's had it more than just a little rough. With a disastrous relationship and a troubled son, Thom seems to be having a hard time holding it together but that may be the least of his troubles. Everything down to the atmosphere, dialogue, and art somehow gives me a quiet and sad feeling. It's downright creepy and works really well! This issue alone opens the door to a lot of interesting ideas and mysteries. The one I'm most concerned about is... what's in the closet?
Batman: Flashpoint Beyond #2 - Time has been fractured due to Barry Allen's actions, creating a dark a cruel world one where Thomas Wayne, father of Bruce Wayne, is the Batman. Honestly, I didn't think there was more you could do with the Thomas Wayne timeline but it seems there's a more vast world to explore with this new Gotham. Thomas Wayne is currently looking for any ties to our world's Flash in order to fix not only Bruce's world but a world that was originally believed to no longer exist. After Thomas found a lead in Roger Hayden, the only man aware of the changes in their reality, he's left with more questions. Following this path has left Thomas unhinged and more dangerous to the streets of Gotham.
Justice League: The Road to Dark Crisis #1 - This event is going to be a ride! With all the members of the League "dead", the remaining remnants of genies are still trying to cope while living their everyday heroic lives. Dick Grayson hasn't given up on the deceased believing that it's only a matter time before they come back. Superboy hasn't come to terms with this at all. The news of the Justice League's passing is common knowledge to everyone but Hal Jordan, this world's green Lantern. With everyone trying to hold a smile and hope for tomorrow, there's a more looming threat ready to take advantage of our heroes' loss. This one has a lot of moving parts and I love it when I get the chance to piece things together - genuinely happy to see this on the shelf!