Underrated: Comics Not In Diamond’s Top 100 For September ’19
This is a column that focuses on something or some things from the comic book sphere of influence that may not get the credit and recognition it deserves. Whether that’s a list of comic book movies, ongoing comics, or a set of stories featuring a certain character. The columns may take the form of a bullet pointed list, or a slightly longer thinkpiece – there’s really no formula for this other than whether the things being covered are Underrated in some way. This week: Comics not in Diamond’s top 100 sellers for September 2019
This week we’re going to be looking at a list of comics that are all pretty good, but don’t get the attention that they deserve. Now I’m not even going to pretend to have a definitively exhaustive list of underrated comics here, because we’re hoping that you decide to check at least one of these series out next time you’re looking for something new either online or at your LCS, and giving you a huge list to check out would be counter productive to that. Instead, you’ll find four to six comics that are worth your attention that failed to crack the top 100 in sales. The only hard stipulation for this week: not one of the comics made it into the top 400 (yeah, I went for books that hardly any of you have read for whatever reason) for this month’s comic sales, according to Comichron, which is why they’re Underrated.
Banjax #4 (Action Lab)
Sales Rank/Units Sold: 522/876
Why You Should Read It: I said it last month, and I’ll say it again; selling less than a thousand copies is a criminal shame for this comic. Telling the story of a disgraced hero on a last quest to clear up crime in his city before his body succumbs to the cancer that resulted from the use of his powers, Banjax isn’t a comic with a happy ending, and writer Rylend Grant always seems to have another twisted angle on what could be a straight forward story to keep you guessing.
If you’re not going to read this in floppy format, at least check out the trade (assuming it gets one).
Outpost #13 (Image)
Sales Rank/Units Sold: 388/1,779
Why You Should Read It: It may be the penultimate issue, but that doesn’t mean it’s not worth reading. Actually, what it means is that this is a great time for you to plan to pick up the collected editions in the near future.
Psi-Lords #4 (Valiant)
Sales Rank/Units Sold: 292/4,460
Why You Should Read It: An epic space romp featuring some utterly fantastic art, and a story that should be read multiple times, this issue is the end of the first arc (or at least where the first trade will end), and it is also a pretty solid jumping on place for yet another strong book from Valiant. .
The Crow Hack Slash #3 (IDW)
Sales Rank/Units Sold: 288/4,656
Why You Should Read It: As a big fan of the Crow, I will always read anything Crow-related. Usually, I end up with a half decent read, but this crossover has been really enjoyable. I’ve never met Hack and Slash before, but after this story, I’m more than likely going to be reading more about them in the future.
Tommy Gun Wizards #2 (Dark Horse)
Sales Rank/Units Sold: 278/5,240
Why You Should Read It: An interesting mix of genres, it’s exactly what you think it’s going to be. Urban fantasy based around the era of Al Capone (re-imagined as a bootleg magic operator verses alcohol). It’s something different, but incredibly good – and well worth your time and money.
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Unless the comics industry ceases any and all publication look for a future installment of Underrated to cover more comics that aren’t cracking the top 100.
