First Freedom: The Story of Opal Lee and Juneteenth
(W) Angélique Roché (A) Alvin Epps, Bex Glendining, Millicent Monroe (C) Damali Beatty (L) Alexis Bennett with Andworld Design
First Freedom: The Story of Opal Lee and Juneteenthwas created with the support and involvement of both Dr. Lee and her granddaughter, Mrs. Dione Sims, and is brought to life by three distinguished artists. Writer Angélique Roché conducted in-person interviews with Dr. Lee and immersed herself in extensive research for the book. The ambitious biography, which includes back matter that provides more insights into Juneteenth’s history and the making of the graphic novel, will be released 46 years after Juneteenth was first recognized as a statewide holiday by the state of Texas and five years since it was finally recognized as a national federal holiday. The book will also be published as part of a yearlong celebration of Opal Lee’s 100th year on Earth.
Born on October 7, 1926, in Marshall, Texas, Opal Lee grew up in a racially divided America and dedicated her life to overcoming the obstacles presented therein. A lifelong educator, Dr. Lee has been a community activist all her life, and she would take on the movement to celebrate and commemorate Juneteenth not just as a holiday, but as a symbol of comprehensive freedom for all people.I n June 2021the then-94-year-old Dr. Lee sat in the front row as an honored guest at the White House as President Joe Biden signed the bill to make Juneteenth a federal holiday. Dr. Opal’s life personifies the fight for everyday freedoms that leads to lasting change – and as the Grandmother of Juneteenth says, “There is so much more to do.”
Three modern witches must parlay with ancient gods and battle supernatural forces to stop a biblical entity from ascending to godhood, unaware their resistance plays perfectly into their enemy’s plan.
Adriyel of the All-Seeing Eye, a pretentious oracle who speaks with the gods. Michele of Mother Earth’s Flesh, a nature wytch with a tender heart. Em of the Living Hellfire, an emo necromancer with a sharp tongue. These three friends are bound together through magick and blood as a queer coven in New York, each following their own magickal path under the watchful eye of their spectral coven matriarch, MTHR.
When the coven accidentally sends all of New York into a supernatural eclipse and sends the magick of the city into imbalance, their presence is revealed to a religious zealot and their angelic beast of retribution. Not only that, they soon discover they are at the center of an ancient prophecy, and all of wytchkind hangs in the balance! Now, each of them must face the secrets of the past, present, and future in order to save the magick.
Created by the late Aaron Reese, Bytchcraft is a love letter to queer friendship, Black Magick, and the found families that sustain us. Enter the magickal world of Bytchcraft and remember – God Save the Wytch.
2025 was a hellscape of a year so in my comics reading habits, I fell hard into the “escapism” genre, including a lot of DC Comics. I don’t know if it was residual goodwill from James Gunn’s Superman, or the fact that they hired some of my favorite writers and artists, but I enjoyed so many books from the company formerly known as National Comics this past year. I also fully embraced the one-shot format this year, and honestly, the majority of this favorite comics list could have been made up of one-shots. I’ve always been a pop single girlie (And even purchased CD singles once upon a time) so it’s natural that I would enjoy this kind of thing in comics whether it’s Archie meeting my favorite stoners from the View Askewniverse, a glorious intercompany crossover between Thor and Shazam, or the singular book that topped this list.
There’s something rewarding about struggling with a comic early on, but eventually embracing and having it become one of your favorites. That describes my relationship with Kieron Gillen and Caspar Wijingaard‘s The Power Fantasy to a tee. I always enjoyed Wijingaard’s approach to fashion, layout, and color palette, but the book’s narrative started to draw me in during year two as he and Gillen toppled dominoes and showed just how frightening a world with godlike heroes could be. This concept has been explored in more juvenile ways in the past (I won’t name any names). However, Kieron Gillen and Caspar Wijingaard take more of a premium cable anti-hero approach in The Power Fantasy that is quite riveting and prioritize ethics and relationships over punching although this book had its fair share of pyrotechnics in 2025.
Writer Aaron Reese sadly passed away in January 2025, but they left us with a lasting legacy of Bytchcraft, a magical and fiercely queer series about a coven of witches in New York battling the apocalypse. Reese and artist Lema Carril crafted a world with a fascinating cosmology and magic system that definitely had Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Charmed, or Supernatural vibes, but its cast didn’t resemble the contents of a Duke’s Mayo bottle. Also, Carril’s eye for fashion made the characters some of the best-dressed in comics to go with a flashy color palette from Bex Glendining. Above all, Bytchcraft is a call to be queer and do magick, and I will clutch to it in the coming years.
A tense smash and grab job under the nose of a kaiju attack is one of the coolest concepts I’ve heard in a while, and Van Jensen and Kelsey Ramsay pull it off in their Godzilla : Heist miniseries with style, grace, and social commentary. Genre blends are tough to do, but Ramsay’s line art and Heather Breckel’s colors know when to go for gritty urban crime mode or pull it back for the big monster reveal. Plotwise, there’s plenty of cool gadgets, double crosses, and general mayhem, but it’s all grounded by protagonist Jai, who wants to get back at the British government for being imperialist losers and screwing over his mother. And the King of Monsters ends up being the perfect partner for this vengeance quest.
In its second and unfortunately final year, Deniz Camp, Juan Frigeri, and Phil Noto’s The Ultimatescontinues to be revolutionary pop art. Camp and Frigeri turn corporate mascots into avatars of resistance infusing them with leftist, anti-capitalist, and anti-imperialist ideologies while simultaneously making us care about them larger-than-life human beings. The Ultimates also gives each single issues its own unique identity whether that’s a commentary on the school-to-prison pipeline courtesy of Luke Cage, an epic poem set in Asgard, a kung-fu epic, or the wonderful Noto-drawnissues with Doom aka Earth-6160 Reed Richards trying to recreate the Fantastic Four that can be read in five different ways. It’s one of the best Marvel runs in recent memory, and I bittersweetly look forward to seeing how it all wraps and then going back and following the threads Deniz Camp seeded in early issues.
The combination of Hayden Sherman being a layout deity, Jordie Bellaire unleashing a color palette that is part Gothic nightmare and part ancient Greek pottery-inspired, and Kelly Thompson giving Diana a proper heroic-in-the-face-of-darkness character arc made Absolute Wonder Woman one of my favorite reads of 2025. Even the fill-in arcs drawn by Mattia De Iulis and Matias Bergara reveal important information about the cost of Wonder Woman using her abilities and her literally hellish past. But the real highlight is we got an honest to Hera Minotaur/labyrinth plotline featuring the return of some favorites from Greg Rucka’s Wonder Woman run as well as Sherman nailing the claustrophobic feel with their visuals. Also, Absolute Zatanna and the end-of-year crossover with Absolute Batman cemented this book as a proper blockbuster title.
Ryan North, Mike Norton, and Ian Herring’sKrypto : The Last Dog of Kryptonwas the one comic in 2025 that made ugly cry. Structured by seasons, Krypto explored tough topics like death and pet abuse in an honest, yet empathetic way and was also filled with a multitude of wholesome moments establishing its protagonist as the ultimate good boy. (Who can sometimes be naughty.) North and Norton drop the Silver Age concept of Krypto being able to talk and instead rely on body language and gestures to move the story forward. He also provides a listening ear and insight into characters like Lex Luthor and Superboy as well as the ordinary folks who cross his paths. Krypto : The Last Dog of Krypton isn’t just *the* definitive Krypto comic, but an evergreen for DC in general.
Al Ewing, Steve Lieber, and Lee Loughridge’s beyond sadly cut short six issue Metamorpho, The Element Manseries (Right before its lead’s triumphant big screen debut.) was the funniest and most clever comic of 2025. On the surface, Metamorpho is a send-up of Silver Age comics with Ewing channeling the late Stan Lee in his omniscient, mock-Beat, fourth wall leaning narration. However, as the series progressed and revealed its Big Bad, Metamorpho revealed itself as a love letter to the weird and wacky side of superhero comics, which is something I feel like DC has over Marvel. (See the Brotherhood of Dada and Brother Power the Geek, for example.) To name a few things, we had a Mod-themed antagonist, a supervillainous skewering of generative AI, and an emotional arc for Simon Stagg’s Neanderthal servant, Java. Finally, this book wouldn’t have succeeded without Lieber’s period-perfect visuals and impeccable comedic timing, especially during the more espionage-tinged issues where he pulls off Jim Steranko-esque layouts without being a weird racist.
3. Flip (First Second)
Cartoonist Ngozi Ukazu puts an original spin on the body swap genre in her graphic novel, Flip. In the book, a Black working class nerdy girl named Chi-Chi swamps bodies with a wealthy white jock named Flip Henderson, who she has a crush on and accidentally asks to the school dance via Power Point in an engaging, embarrassing opening scene. Flip showcases Ukazu’s skills with character acting, and it’s rewarding to slow down and see how Flip and Chi-Chi move differently in each other’s bodies. The story also has poignant commentary on race, class, and mental health, but also fun K-Pop dances and fandom. Seriously, every time Chi-Chi, her friends, and eventually Flip chat about their favorite K-Pop group and their biases, the comic takes on a sparkling energy. In a world of full of division, Flip makes the bold call to empathize with folks, who have different experiences, in an entertaining way.
After a strong launch in 2024, Scott Snyder, Nick Dragotta,Marcos Martin, Clay Mann, and Jock’sAbsolute Batman reached masterpiece status this year finishing especially strong with the conclusion of the horrific “Abomination” arc and even more horrifying stand-alone story that introduced Absolute Joker. Toxic, working class, and incredibly jacked Batman just works in our day and age, and Snyder and company aren’t afraid to take big swings and put truly original spins on iconic heroes, villains, and all the folks in-between. Reading this comic is like taking both a physical and psychological beating, and there is real power in the punches and moves Dragotta draws and in Martin’s flat colors. And the lobster to this juicy steak of a comic is the Absolute Batman Annual where skilled cartoonists like Daniel Warren Johnson, James Harren, and Meredith McClaren put their own stamp on this grimdark universe and also draw Batman breaking Nazis’ limbs and doing cool wrestling moves.
My favorite comic was Adventure Time : The Bubbline College Special aka the cutest sapphic romance ever between a STEM princess and a humanities vampire queen. This one-shot from one of the most hilarious cartoonists in the game, Caroline Cash, is a love letter to slow burn romances, fan fiction, unexpected LGBTQ+ representation in pop culture, and finding someone you connect with even if you start out on the wrong foot. Cash’s color palette revels in the trippy weirdness of the Adventure Time universe while still making room for tender glances and shoulder brushes. It hits the right balance between indie and mainstream, which is about perfect for my own personal comics-enjoying aesthetic.
Honorable mentions: Giant-Size Criminal (Image), Street Sharks (Oni Press), Exquisite Corpses (Image), DC x Sonic the Hedgehog (DC/IDW), Thor/Shazam (Marvel/DC)
On February 3, 2026, Oni Press will release First Freedom: The Story of Opal Lee and Juneteenth, the first-ever graphic novel dedicated to the history and origin ofthe Juneteenth holiday. This timely and topical 208-page biography chronicles the inspirational journey and resilient determination of Dr. Opal Lee — known as the Grandmother of Juneteenth — who spent decades in pursuit of one singular cause: to officially recognize American emancipation with its own national holiday. Ahead of its publication during Black History Month in February 2026, Oni Press is unveiling the very first preview of this historic and eagerly anticipated publication by acclaimed journalist, producer, and author Angélique Roché, artists Alvin Epps, Bex Glendining, and Millicent Monroe, and colorist Damali Beatty with lettering by Alexis Bennett with Andworld Design.
First Freedom: The Story of Opal Lee and Juneteenthwas created with the support and involvement of both Dr. Lee and her granddaughter, Mrs. Dione Sims, and is brought to life by three distinguished artists. Writer Angélique Roché conducted in-person interviews with Dr. Lee and immersed herself in extensive research for the book. The ambitious biography, which includes back matter that provides more insights into Juneteenth’s history and the making of the graphic novel, will be released 46 years after Juneteenth was first recognized as a statewide holiday by the state of Texas and five years since it was finally recognized as a national federal holiday. The book will also be published as part of a yearlong celebration of Opal Lee’s 100th year on Earth.
Born on October 7, 1926, in Marshall, Texas, Opal Lee grew up in a racially divided America and dedicated her life to overcoming the obstacles presented therein. A lifelong educator, Dr. Lee has been a community activist all her life, and she would take on the movement to celebrate and commemorate Juneteenth not just as a holiday, but as a symbol of comprehensive freedom for all people.I n June 2021the then-94-year-old Dr. Lee sat in the front row as an honored guest at the White House as President Joe Biden signed the bill to make Juneteenth a federal holiday. Dr. Opal’s life personifies the fight for everyday freedoms that leads to lasting change – and as the Grandmother of Juneteenth says, “There is so much more to do.”
Discover the life of an extraordinary woman’s path through contemporary American history and the rarely told true story of the Juneteenth holiday itself in First Freedom: The Story of Opal Lee and Juneteenth – coming in February 2026 from Oni Press.
MTHR has done all she can to prepare the coven to face unspeakable threats, and now they must do so…alone. Adri, Em, and Michele prepare for a final confrontation that holds not only wytchkind in the balance, but multiple planes of existence. They have each other, but will that be enough to take down Eve and stop the endless midnight?!
MTHR has transported Adri, Em, and Michele away from the sanctum, so she alone can face the threat that has been hunting and killing the wytches across the city. However, this threat and MTHR are connected by a fateful night years ago, and that connection could prove to be MTHR’s undoing. Will the coven be able to finally unlock the sight and save not only MTHR, but all of wytchkind?!
The coven, Adri, Em, and Michele, transported themselves to The Sacred Green…One of the many “God-Realms” on Earth! They might be able to find the key to combating the dark forces trying to eliminate all wytchkind in this realm…if they can survive the Sacred Green’s monstrous sentry and its master!
The coven, Adriyel, Em, and Michele, need to end the ominous magickal eclipse they caused…however, the danger only continues to escalate as wytches throughout New York City are being massacred. Is the endless wytching hour connected to the sudden attacks? Will the wytches survive long enough to unravel the mystery and save all of wytchkind?!
Set against the backdrop of modern-day New York City during a seemingly permanent supernatural eclipse, Bytchcraft follows a queer coven bound by magic and blood, each bringing their own flair to the craft: a pretentious oracle who speaks with gods, an emo necromancer with a forked tongue, and a nature witch with the soul of a fairy tale princess. Under the guidance of their enigmatic guardian MTHR, the coven discovers they’re at the center of an ancient prophecy, and all wytchkind hangs in the balance!
To preface this review, I’d like to say that I used to hang out with Bytchcraft‘s writer Aaron Reese at various cons before the COVID pandemic, such as C2E2 and Brooklyn’s Flame Con. They were a beautiful, creative soul with an amazing sense of humor and the fiercest sense of fashion. Aaron’s work for Comics Alliance inspired me in my early days as a comic critic, and even though we lost touch in recent years, I loved seeing them share art and images from Bytchcraft on Instagram and was incredibly sad to hear about their passing earlier this year. Reading Bytchcraft #1 was like having one last conversation with Aaron, and I’m glad that the whole comic book reading public can experience their literal magical vision.
Like all good first issues, Bytchcraft #1 establishes its three key characters, chief conflict, and offers an initial look at a world full of danger, magic, and badass queer witches. Aaron Reese and Lema Carril go beyond a simple light/dark magic dichotomy and take a nuanced look at the occult through the perspectives of the series’ three leads, Adriyel, Michele, and Em. Reese gives each lead a completely unique personality and voice as well as a complex web of relationships that’s only hinted at in this first issue. “Emo boi” necromancer Em is my favorite character so far, and some of their dialogue makes me laugh out loud like a line where they mention their dancing style. Bytchcraft deals with apocalypses, creepy cults, and eclipses, but there is still time for fun like an extended night club sequence, which is an opportunity for Carril to show off their flair for fashion and reveal more about the protagonists through their clothing choices.
Speaking of Lema Carril, their line art and Bex Glendining’s majestic color palettes make Bytchcraft #1 a memorable first issue. Carril’s character designs are iconic, but they have storytelling chops as well. For example, they and Aaron Reese use a lot of three panel layouts to play off Wicca’s Rule of Three and reveal the separate, yet unified nature of the book’s main coven. Triangles, and sacred geometry in general, also play a key role in the world of Bytchcraft so this all connects to the creators’ triplicate approach to layouts. To top things off, Glendining adds an extra sheen to sequences with magical energy and a complexity to the dark background colors that play off the characters’ approach to magic. They also make sure the characters are well lit so Reese’s dialogue and Lema Carril’s facial expressions can stand out.
If you enjoyed Buffy the Vampire Slayer or Charmed, but wished that the cast didn’t resemble the contents of a Duke’s mayo bottle so much or had a more in-depth and respectful view of the occult, then Bytchcraft #1 is the comic for you. Aaron Reese and Carril take some massive worldbuilding swings in this first issue while not neglecting the best part of the book, the interactions between Adril, Michele, and Em as well as their guardian, the ethereal Mthr. I can’t to dive into this world that Aaron left behind for all us queer comics reading kids trying to find connection in an uncertain, oppressive world.
