September 9th, 2020
J.R's Picks:
Dark Nights Death Metal Trinity Crisis #1 – Think of every DC buzzword that’s ever existed and I think it has a place in this book. Snyder tries to make the most meta story and contain DC’s vast event history all in one issue. Perpetua, now a part of this too, is revealed to feed on “crises”. Everything that’s ever happened in DC comics has happened and she eats these worlds’ energy. While the One Who Laughs tries to catch Wally West to gain his power (even though he has Dr. Manhattan’s brain/power in his head?), the trinity heads beneath his castle to access a portal he placed there for some reason to go to all the crises that they won (Final, Infinite, Infinite Earths). There’s a lot of good-looking things going on here that will hopefully come together in subsequent tie-ins.
Ultraman: The Rise of Ultraman #1 – I’m not familiar with the decades-long lore associated with the kaiju-fighting hero Ultraman but this issue sets up an engaging story in the modern times. Kiki is an agent for the Japanese branch of the United Science Patrol. The USP is Earth’s first resistance against monsters that come to the world through an interdimensional space. Kiki’s friend Shin also happened to discover this secret organization but wasn’t up to snuff for their standards. That all may change as they’re both caught on sight for an emerald alert, one which promises the return of the titular hero. A good read for anyone looking to kick monster butt.
Cyberpunk 2077 Trauma Team #1 – One of our first looks into the world of the next big video game comes with a damn fine story and characters too. Nadia is the last surviving member of her trauma team which was wiped out by a group of gangsters. In this gritty, dystopian world, trauma teams are sent out to save the lives of people who can afford them. The issue begins with Nadia being interviewed to make sure she’s ready to go back into the field. Once she’s deemed alright for active duty, she’s sent out on a mission that will instantly test her loyalty to her medical company. This one has me excited for what’s to come in this universe.
Web of Venom Wraith #1 – Some small answers to the Annihilation event of some select scenes of cosmic comics finally arrive in the form of this book. Wraith travels to his home planet to find more answers in his father’s lab after dispatching some bad guys in the utmost style. He sees and a symbol he does not recognize amongst information on Knull. Moving decisively, he uses some of the last juice of his teleporter to take him to Klyntar, the home world of the symbiotes. There he runs into Knull who relieves Wraith of his symbiote powers which he saw as a curse. That’s only the ramp up though as the climax sets up for big things coming this winter in The King In Black….
Diarra's Picks:
Joker/Harley: Criminal Sanity #5 - After that last filler issue we finally get the show down we have been waiting for. After chasing the Joker for months, Harley finds him in her apartment. They both walk away unscathed, but the Joker is far from done with preying on the people of Gotham. As the body count rises, Gotham PD is really putting pressure on Harley, as an outside consultant. Joker was impressed by how close Harley came to finding him, and he is about to start making things personal.
Cyberpunk 2077 #1 - The year is 2077, and Nadia is apart of a medical team sent out to save/rescue the sick. What the infection is remains unknown, at least to us readers. What’s really strange is the climate in which they have to enter to save these people, because they aren’t your average ambulance. People seem to be fighting over the bodies of the sick, and Nadia and her team are more like a military extraction team. Nadia lost her entire team during her last mission, and after convincing the company psychiatrist she is ready to return, her suspension is lifted. Now it’s her first mission back and their client is the last person they expected to be saving.
The Rise of Ultraman #1 - This story takes place in present day, but we have to go back to 1966. That’s the year Earth had it’s first contact with an alien race, and everything around the event was kept pretty hush-hush from the public. Now it’s 2020 and The United Science Patrol have been dealing with extraterrestrial ever since. Their mission is to go out and hunt these creatures down before they can harm or make themselves know to civilians. As new recruit, Cadet Fuji, is trained she realizes even the members of USP don’t know much about how organization operates. It’s a very ‘shoot first, ask questions never’ situation. But on Fuji’s latest mission, friendly contact is made for what may be the first time and things will never be the same!
Stone's Picks:
Web of Venom: Wraith #1 – With the threat of Knull fast approaching, just how will the heroes of Earth stop such an imposing force? The answer may have just been given to us in this newest issue of Web of Venom. A Kree with an identity crisis travels back to where he lived as a child to access his father’s lab. Upon discovering information that involves Knull, he makes a teleport to the planet of Klyntar and home of the symbiotes. Upon his arrival, Knull is released from his prison and the two talk. After finding the answers he sought, he is thrown in the void to float endlessly. His only salvation comes from an ethereal light. A light that tasks Wraith with one final task of delivering a message to the one man who must hear it.
The Amazing Spider-Man #48 – the Sin Eaters' forces continue to grow, and they are making their presence in the city felt. The Sin Eater has declared his next target as Norman Osborne which causes a serious moral conundrum for Peter. Norman has been the cause of so much pain in his life that he struggles with the decision of letting the Sin Eater cleanse Norman of his sin. After contacting other Spiders in the city and gathering their opinion on the matter, Peter is forced to make a choice, and his actions will cause those who are his allies to become his obstacles.
Dark Knights Death Metal: Trinity Crisis #1 – After the realization that Perpetua obtains her power from crisis energy, the heroes plan on attacking the source of her power. The Batman Who Laughs has created worlds that continually play out the events of all the major crisis-es from the DC universe, and it is through this means that Perpetua acquires power. While the Darkest Knight chases Wally and the other speedsters through the speed force, Batman Wonder Woman, and Superman make their move. They are each individually sent to the different crisis worlds to cut off the supply of crisis energy, but that will prove to be a bigger task than they anticipated.