It was new comic book day yesterday! What’d you all get? What’d you like? Sound off in the comments below. While you think about that, here’s some comic reviews from around the web to start the day.
ICv2 – The Black Ghost Vol. 2
Comic Crusaders – Clear #1
CBR – The Flash #794
Comicbook – The Gimmick #1
Comicbook – Predator #1
CBR – Predator #1
Comicbook – Teen Titans: Robin
Collected Editions – War for Earth-3
CBR – X-23: Deadly Regenesis #1
Clear #1 kicked off one of a handful of new series Scott Snyder launched in 2022 in partnership with comiXology Originals and now is seeing a physical release courtesy of Dark Horse Comics.
Set in a dystopian future, Clear #1 introduces us to a world where you can purchase “veils”. Veils are basically skins that change how you perceive the world. You can make it look like cartoons, the old west, a utopia, full of zombies, it’s your choice. The vast majority of the people use the technology with those that don’t being “clear”. Detective Sam Dunes is one of those clear.
Written by Snyder, Clear #1 is a fairly traditional detective story set in an atypical world. Dunes’ opening case involves a “cheating” husband who may be purchasing blackmarket veils. It allows him to see someone other than his wife in front of him. It’s a small detail but the type that makes the series stand out as original. Dunes is also a former cop. Then there’s the case moving the story forward. It all comes together for an opening that feels like something we’ve read, but not something we’ve seen.
It’s the details that makes the comic stand out. The world that Snyder is crafting is an interesting one. While Dunes is clear, we can’t be sure of what we’re seeing as readers. A lot of those impressive aspects of the comic are due to the visuals.
Francis Manapul handles the art and color with lettering by Andworld Design. The colors give the comic early on a neon hue of pinks and oranges which contrast the latter part’s cold blues. The visuals play with the veil concept during one action-packed sequence as Dunes isn’t sure what he’s seeing and we the reader get to experience the trippy ride. But overall, the comic has a look that’s familiar but just slightly different, much like we the reader have our own veil as to what this future is like. It’s a comic visually, like the story itself, rooted in traditional detective tropes and styles and it works so well by doing so.
Clear #1 is a solid start for those who enjoy detective stories. It’s an exciting start that blends classic tropes and beats with a look that feels more Blade Runner than anything else. There’s a familiarity of it all while also folding in new ideas and concepts which have potential for creating an intriguing series going forward.
Story: Scott Snyder Art: Francis Manapul
Color: Francis Manapul Letterer: Andworld Design
Story: 8.15 Art: 8.65 Overall: 8.25 Recommendation: Buy
ComiXology provided Graphic Policy with a FREE copy for review
Purchae: comiXology – Kindle
Dark Horse Comics will bring Clear, a dazzling, visual thrill ride through a hard-boiled sci-fi dystopia, by bestselling writer Scott Snyder and super-star artist Francis Manapul to print for the first time in 2023. Clear will be published in three oversized periodicals and feature variant covers by acclaimed artists, with issue #1 debuting March 8, 2023. The trade paperback collection of Clear will be published in Fall 2023.
Clear is the story of a not-too-distant future where mankind no longer sees the world as it truly is. The invention of neurological filters has made it so one can view reality however they may choose—Old Hollywood monochrome, zombie apocalypse, anime… the possibilities are endless.
Neo-shamus Sam Dunes is one of only a handful who choose to live without a filter. When the death of an old flame reveals foul play, Dunes is set on a wild and twisting mystery that will take him from the city’s deadly underworld to the even deadlier heights of wealth and power.
Clear issue #1 will arrive March 8, 2023, Clear #2 will arrive April 12, 2023, and Clear #3 will arrive May 10, 2023 in comic shops. The Clear [144 pages / color / MSRP $19.99/$25.99 pbk / ISBN: 978-1-506728322 / Dark Horse Books] trade paperback will be released on September 19, 2023 and will be available for pre-order through Amazon, Barnes and Noble, and your local comic shop.
Clear #5
Written by Scott Snyder
Art by Francis Manapul
Purchase
A sci-fi mystery thrill-ride into a strange dystopian future, where a neurological internet connection is transforming reality.
Batman writer SCOTT SNYDER and Detective Comics artist FRANCIS MANAPUL unite to take readers on this hard-boiled sci-fi journey.
Scottober continues with Clear #1, one of a handful of new series Scott Snyder is launching in partnership with comiXology Originals. The second release, Clear is far from the subject of the debut series We Have Demons. Set in a dystopian future, Clear #1 introduces us to a world where you can purchase “veils”. Veils are basically skins that change how you perceive the world. You can make it look like cartoons, the old west, a utopia, full of zombies, it’s your choice. The vast majority of the people use the technology with those that don’t being “clear”. Detective Sam Dunes is one of those clear.
Written by Snyder, Clear #1 is a fairly traditional detective story set in an atypical world. Dunes’ opening case involves a “cheating” husband who may be purchasing blackmarket veils. It allows him to see someone other than his wife in front of him. It’s a small detail but the type that makes the series stand out as original. Dunes is also a former cop. Then there’s the case moving the story forward. It all comes together for an opening that feels like something we’ve read, but not something we’ve seen.
It’s the details that makes the comic stand out. The world that Snyder is crafting is an interesting one. While Dunes is clear, we can’t be sure of what we’re seeing as readers. A lot of those impressive aspects of the comic are due to the visuals.
Francis Manapul handles the art and color with lettering by Andworld Design. The colors give the comic early on a neon hue of pinks and oranges which contrast the latter part’s cold blues. The visuals play with the veil concept during one action-packed sequence as Dunes isn’t sure what he’s seeing and we the reader get to experience the trippy ride. But overall, the comic has a look that’s familiar but just slightly different, much like we the reader have our own veil as to what this future is like. It’s a comic visually, like the story itself, rooted in traditional detective tropes and styles and it works so well by doing so.
Clear #1 is a solid start for those who enjoy detective stories. It’s an exciting start that blends classic tropes and beats with a look that feels more Blade Runner than anything else. There’s a familiarity of it all while also folding in new ideas and concepts which have potential for creating an intriguing series going forward.
Story: Scott Snyder Art: Francis Manapul
Color: Francis Manapul Letterer: Andworld Design
Story: 8.15 Art: 8.65 Overall: 8.25 Recommendation: Buy
ComiXology provided Graphic Policy with a FREE copy for review
Purchae: comiXology – Kindle
The comiXology Originals line of exclusive digital content kicks off October with the debut of the first three creator-owned titles penned by New York Times bestselling writer Scott Snyder and co-created by some of the top artists in the industry. First comes We Have Demons #1 written by Scott Snyder with art by co-creator Greg Capullo on October 5th, then on October 12th comes Clear #1 written by Scott Snyder with art by co-creator Francis Manapul. Next comes Night of the Ghoul #1 written by Scott Snyder with art by co-creator Francesco Francavilla on October 19th. Closing out the month on October 26th the wickedly curious can get a glimpse at the next five upcoming titles in a Halloween Sampler.
The “Scottober” celebration headlines comiXology’s presence at New York Comic-Con 2021. Fans at the convention can find comiXology located in Artist’s Alley at Booth #H1B5 which will be decked out for the occasion. Come take a Scottober themed selfie between 11:00am – 6:00pm daily and get an electronic image for sharing and a commemorative print out.
Exciting giveaways include limited-edition enamel pins and exclusive We Have Demons posters (available while supplies last) which you can get signed by the superstar duo during their two signings. And don’t miss their live panel conversation moderated by The Beat’s Heidi MacDonald.
Schedule of appearances below:
Friday, October 8th
4:30pm-6:00pm—Signing Scott Snyder and Greg Capullo at comiXology Booth #H1B5
Saturday, October 9th
3:00pm-4:30pm —Signing Scott Snyder and Greg Capullo at comiXology Booth #H1B5
5:00pm-6:00pm —ComiXology Originals Presents: CONversations with Scott Snyder and Greg Capullo in Room 1A21.
In addition to what’s happening inside the convention, look for billboards outside the Javits Center and the nearby 7 subway stop.
Here is the schedule of debuts for the month of October:
October 5, 2021
We Have Demons #1 (of 3) written by Scott Snyder with art by co-creator Greg Capullo and Jonathan Glapion with colors by Dave McCaig and letters by Tom Napolitano.
In practically every folklore throughout history, there’s a struggle between angels and demons–beings of goodness and light and monstrous beings of darkness. But what if this struggle, this war for the soul of humanity, wasn’t rooted in the mystical or supernatural, but in science?
Lam was named after the first female angel, “Lamassu.” Lam never really understood her father’s devotion to their small-town Unitarian church. And when he dies under mysterious circumstances, she starts to question everything she thought she knew.
We Have Demons is full throttle entertainment by two comic book megastars, featuring action, conspiracies, secret organizations, monsters, mayhem, and a climactic war of good and evil with no less than the fate of the world hanging in the balance.
October 12, 2021
Clear #1 (of 6) by Scott Snyder with art by co-creator Francis Manapul and letters by Andworld Design.
Welcome to the future, a world where people can connect to the internet neurologically and mediate the real world through the lenses of their eyes, transforming reality. Everything can be skinned to fit a preference from steampunk to old fashioned Hollywood glamour. If you can name it, you can live it. You choose how you see the world and no one else knows what you’re seeing.
San Francisco, private detective Sam Dunes is working a case when he’s approached by his former police partner, who informs him of his ex-wife’s alleged suicide. But nothing about this adds up. And when he receives a gift in the mail, Dunes finds himself pulled into a wild and twisting mystery that stretches from the city’s deadly underworld to the even deadlier heights of the city’s wealthy and powerful elite.
October 19, 2021
Night of the Ghoul #1 (of 6) written by Scott Snyder with art by co-creator Francesco Francavilla and letters by Andworld Design.
It was said to be the greatest horror movie in cinematic history. Shot in 1936, “Night of the Ghoul” by writer/director T.F. Merritt was meant to sit beside “Frankenstein” and “Dracula” as an instant classic… But the legendary film never made it to the silver screen. Just before editing was finished, a mysterious studio fire destroyed the footage and killed the cast and crew during their celebratory wrap-party. Rumors of the doomed film’s greatness persist to this day, but no footage from it was ever recovered…until now.
Forest Inman is a horror film obsessive who digitizes old films for the famed Aurora movie studio. When he stumbles across a seemingly forgotten canister of footage, his discovery sends him on a dark odyssey to the California desert, where he’s warned by a mysterious old man that the film’s ghoul is far more than a work of fiction.
Night of The Ghoul is a dazzling work of contemporary horror, intercutting between the present-day narrative and the story of the lost film (drawn by Francavilla in stunning black and white).
Scott Snyder has tested the waters of creator-owned comics, crowdfunding, and now has signed a deal with comiXology to co-create eight original titles for the digital platform. Through Snyder’s Best Jackett Press, the comics will first debut digitally on comiXology and Kindle and then later be printed through Dark Horse.
We Have Demons with Greg Capullo is one of the series announced. Others involved include Rafael Albuquerque, Francesco Francavilla, Jamal Igle, Jock, Tula Lotay, Francis Manapul, and Dan Panosian. The comics will begin to be released in October.
The decision by Snyder was expedited due to shifts in the industry due to COVID as well as publishers cutting rates.
While Amazon will get a brief first look, the company has no rights to the comics allowing Snyder and the artists to control the projects when it comes to film, television, and merchandise.
Check out the full releases below.
Barnstormers: written by Scott Snyder with art by Tula Lotay and colors by Tula Lotay and Dee Cunniffe — A high flying adventure romance set just after the First World War.
The Book of Evil: written by Scott Snyder with illustrations by Jock — A prose story about four young friends growing up in a strange, near future where over 90 percent of the population are born as psychopaths.
Canary: written by Scott Snyder with art and colors by Dan Panosian — It’s 1891 and a mine collapses into itself. Find out what the dark substance found 666 feet underground is in this horror Western!
Clear: written by Scott Snyder with art and colors by Francis Manapul — A sci-fi mystery thrill-ride into a strange dystopian future, where a neurological internet connection is transforming reality.
Duck and Cover: written by Scott Snyder with art by Rafael Albuquerque — A manga-influenced teen adventure set in the strange post-apocalyptic America… of 1955. In conjunction with Albuquerque’s Stout Club Entertainment.
Dudley Datson and the Forever Machine: written by Scott Snyder with art by Jamal Igle and Juan Castro and colors by Chris Sotomayor — A rollicking adventure story about a boy, his dog, and a machine that controls time and space! What could go wrong?
Night of the Ghoul: written by Scott Snyder with art and colors by Francesco Francavilla — A dazzling work of horror, intercutting between the present day narrative and the story of a lost horror film.
We Have Demons written by Scott Snyder with art by Greg Capullo and Jonathan Glapion and colors by Dave McCaig—The conflict between good and evil is about to come to a head when a teenage hero embarks on a journey that unveils a secret society, monsters, and mayhem.
