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Graphic Policy’s Top Comic Picks this Week!

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Wednesdays are new comic book day! Each week hundreds of comics are released, and that can be pretty daunting to go over and choose what to buy. That’s where we come in!

Each week our contributors choose what they can’t wait to read this week or just sounds interesting. In other words, this is what we’re looking forward to and think you should be taking a look at!

Find out what folks think below, and what comics you should be looking out for this Wednesday.

Doomsday Clock #7 (DC Comics) – After a bit of a break, the DC event is back and we’re still intrigued as to where it’s all going as it moves into the latter half of its run.

Edge of Spider-Geddon #4 (Marvel) – Each issue so far in this lead up to the main event has been fantastic. All its done is made us wish that each of these characters had their own series! We expect no less from this one.

Extermination #3 (Marvel) – When it comes to the Mutants, Marvel and them seem to be their best when it involves crazy time travel stories. This one has been lots of action and shockers and this is another we have no idea where it’s all going.

Faith: Dreamside #1 (Valiant) – Faith is always a fun time and mixing her with the Dreamside? Yeah, we’re in for that.

Fantasmagoria #1 (Starburns Industries Press) – A horror comic that explors mythology specific to Mexico. That alone has us intrigued to check it all out.

Fearscape #1 (Vault Comics) – This one sounds a bit like a new take on the Sandman and that sort of storytelling. Vault has some fantastic releases so we’re excited to check this out and see what it’s all about.

Fence #10 (BOOM! Studios) – This series has been fantastic bringing the sports manga concept to the twist. BOOM! has been killing it when it comes to that and this one has been amazing with every issue.

Friendo #1 (Vault Comics) – A personal marketing VR has gone haywire. Again, Vault has been top notch when it comes to releases so we’re excited to check this one out.

Gamma #1 (Dark Horse Comics) – Pokémon meets Power Rangers… um ok. Sounds awesome to us!

Heroes in Crisis #1 (DC Comics) – There’s been a hell of a build up to this new event series that explores the trauma that superheroes experience.

High Heaven #1 (AHOY Comics) – AHOY’s first release was amazing and we’re expecting more of the same from this upstart publisher that wants to deliver more when it comes to comics.

Illegal (Sourcebooks) – A powerful graphic novel exploring immigration and undocumented immigrants.

Infinity Wars: Iron Hammer #1 (Marvel) – The first issue that mashed together Captain America and Thor was fun and this one with that’s Iron Man and Thor? We’re expecting lots of drinking… and more fun.

Justice League Odyssey #1 (DC Comics) – The space/tech Justice League… you have out attention.

Man-Eaters #1 (Image Comics) – Chelsea Cain… nuff said.

Scarlet #2 (Jinxworld/DC Comics) – The first issue was a great return for the character and series and we want to see if the second issue can continue to deliver.

Spider-Geddon #0 (Marvel) – The newest Spider-Man event is kicking off and Marvel has been rocking it with the Multiverse Spider-Man stuff. Plus, this issue marks the debut of the recent video game version of the character.

Star Trek vs. Transformers #1 (IDW Publishing) – The title really says it all.

Stranger Things #1 (Dark Horse Comics) – The popular television show comes to comics.

Transformers: Lost Light #24 (IDW Publishing) – IDW is wrapping up their current run on Transformers and we have no idea what’s coming next. We just know this series is wrapping up and bringing all the pieces of the puzzle together.

Ulises Farinas and Erick Freitas’ Sci-Fi Comedy About Pocket Monsters, Giants Monsters, and Human Monsters Returns!

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It’s Pokémon meets Power Rangers in Ulises Farinas’ and Erick Freitas’ dark parody of popular Saturday morning monster media! Initially serialized in Dark Horse Presents and later collected in a one-shot, Gamma returns for a brand-new prequel series that takes inspiration from kaiju cinema and imported Japanese children’s classics to tell a raucous tale of how a young monster trainer named Dusty Ketzchemal failed upward to go from plucky teen hero to old loser.

Gamma begins in the early seventies in the Philippines, a few years since the Great Sentai War, a world war that ravaged cities across the planet, but established a new world order. The new world is run by The Guardian Force, a military organization that uses super-powered super suit wearing teenagers to patrol the planet and protect it from a plague of monsters. Dusty, Sandy, and Crash are orphans living in the post-war Philippines, kids left behind by parents who could not feed them. The three hustle every day to catch monsters, trading them or selling them, or eating them.

Dive into a bizarre, yet somewhat familiar world where kids in Power Rangers type suits are the foot soldiers of a World Government, people have become used to living alongside Aliens, Robots, and Giant Monsters, and a young monster trainer can’t stop making things worse. But making things worse is the only way to make things better.

Gamma #1 (of four) goes on sale September 26, 2018. Gamma is co-written by Ulises Farinas and Erick Freitas with Farinas providing interior and cover art with Melody Often on colors.

Week in Review: July 22-28, 2013

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I hope everyone’s finally recovered from the intensity of SDCC and all of the incredible announcements that came out of the con. Our very own Brett, your host and founder of Graphic Policy, was in attendance and helped keep us up to date (you can find his posts and updates on SDCC here). This week saw the debut of The Wolverine, origin-story sequel to X-Men Origins: Wolverine, and in comics we got a little more light cast on the events of Age of Ultron via Hunger #1, witnessed the start of a new crowd favorite Lobster Johnson mini-series, and took a look at the ever-advancing Trinity War saga, along with plenty of other reviews of one-shots, on-going series, and even a graphic novel!

Graphic Policy Radio

July 23, 2013—Elana and Brett cover the glorious Nerd-vana of SDCC, and they take a look at the convention floor, its announcements, and some of the people Brett had a chance to meet. We had some technical issues, so catch the show this coming week.

Comic Reviews

Batman/Superman #2—the second issue in Greg Pak’s and Jae Lee’s already fantastic series gets relatively high marks from Sean, despite the fact that it’s still a tad confusing…

Batwoman #22—Scott picks apart the latest Batwoman issue, and poses some interesting points about where the series is going and why this issue is hollow compared to the rest of the series.

Blood Brothers #1—a new vampire comedy, with a taste of something different gets high ranks; worth buying and reading.

Dark Horse Presents #26—an awesomely (and somewhat overwhelmingly) large anthology of horror, sci-fi, and fantasy comic shorts, featuring reviews of two of many stories.

Devil Executioner One-Shot—a thrilling and creepy one-shot by UK independent creator Martin Ian Smith, which could easily be the beginning of a serious about a bad-ass exorcist. Buying and reading this is a great way to support a young, up-and-coming comic creator!

Gamma One-Shot—a zany, hilarious comic by Ulises Farinas which Sean reads as a satire of some awesome 1990s children franchises.

Hunger #1—Brett takes us on a tour of Fialkov’s exploration of the long-established Ultimate universe as things get down and dirty with…Galactus!

Justice League Dark #22—Trinity War continues in what Sean found to be the second-best piece in this saga (we’re only five parts in, with the Constantine and Pandora tie-ins, and JLA #6 seems to be the best), seeing all of the Justice Leagues rearranged by their loyalties to the World’s Finest and to the Trinity of Sin.

King Conan: Tee Hour of the Dragon #3—Andrew gives us a look at this acclaimed addition to the Conan franchise, hearkening back to the sword-and-sorcery quality of early Conan comics.

Lazarus #2—Scott provides an in-depth review of Greg Rucka’s hot-and-heavy sci-fi dystopic comic; get on board with this if you haven’t yet!

Lobster Johnson: A Scent of Lotus #1—the much anticipated beginning of a new Lobster Johnson mini-series by Mignola gets high praise from Andrew, as a new plot develops with the Tong assassins in a definitely pulp style.

The Massive #14—hot shot Brian Wood continues his sci-fi series, which Brett calls “one of the best monthly series on the market.”

Mind MGMT #13—a surreal one-shot about The Home Maker sleeper agent, which featuring some of the best art this week (I took a look at this myself, and damn it’s great looking).

Movie Review

The Wolverine—I haven’t seen it myself, but Brett (ever our movie reviewer for all things comics and nerdom) found The Wolverine to be a good addition to the X-Men movies, despite finding it a tad boring and predictable. But see for yourself, folks!

Graphic Novel Review

Hellboy: House of the Living Dead—Sean looks back on a two-year old Mignola and Corben graphic novel that takes a look at Hellboy as a luchador, as well as a nod to the great monster films of the early 20th century.

Well that’ll just about do it for this week. Check out our reviews, updates, news, info, and previews, because there’s always more coming! See you next week, Geeks!

Review: Gamma One-Shot

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22970“Gotta catch ‘em all!” That’s the goal right? Catch all 150 of those self-absorbed, name-calling pocket monsters? At least that’s what I spent too many hours, days, weeks, and, well, years doing as a child of the 1990s. Frankly, Pokémon were the shit. (Of course I never would’ve said that word!) But what happens when you catch them all, when you’ve beat the Elite Four and become a League Champion after gaining all those trainer badges, and you’ve leveled all your Poke-friends up to level 100? First of all, I’d like to see someone get all 150 original Pokémon leveled up that high.

Ulises Farinas and Erik Freitas have at least one answer in the form of Dark Horse’s one-shot Gamma, and fans of young, naïve Ash Ketchum will get to see what fame and glory really does to a Pokémon master. This one-shot is a story about…not much, really, but despite that it promises to be one of the funniest books you’ll read this week, and probably one of the wittier comics you’ll read all year, especially since it draws on the nostalgia of 90s pop culture by showcasing brilliant mockeries of Pokémon, Power Rangers, the Kaiju craze that hit America in the form of games like Rampage, and there are even visual references to Godzilla, Legos, and Galactus, ultimately turning these into an army for fighting a commentary on the dangerous bio-ecological growth of the Pokémon population of late.

With both Farinas and Freitas on the story, Farinas is also the illustrator, doing all of the artistic manhandling of this joker’s tale. In the hands of anyone else, Gamma may have come off as ridiculous. I can see less-talented artists thinking that the satirical content should be hilariously juxtaposed by serious art work; they would be wrong, and this book would pass into obscurity as a sad piece of graphic art with a good story—the kind of embarrassment you forget despite its better qualities. Not with Farinas! He brings the same parodic wit from his writing into his art, utilizing a style that appears to draw heavily on the Adventure Time animation…but for a mature audience, boobs, booze and bar fights notwithstanding.

Farinas and Freitas’ Gamma one-shot is nothing less than a brilliant ode to my (and probably your) childhood, wrapped up in a messily light-hearted adult package. A laugh-your-ass-off bonanza with unique art and an oddball story. A must have, if just to experience its zany charm.

Story: Ulises Farinas and Erik Freitas  Art: Ulises Farinas
Story: 9  Art: 9  Overall: 9  Recommendation: Buy

Dark Horse provided Graphic Policy with a FREE copy for review

Pick(s) of the Week: Batman/Superman #2 and Many More!

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BatSupeComboCover095956--525x800Welcome to the new pick of the week, where we survey the Graphic Policy team to see what they’re looking forward to this week or what they know will be a solid read. This week, the team has one book among them that they agreed upon, Batman/Superman #2 by DC Comics.

Consistently mentioned by each contributor is Greg Pak’s writing combined with Jae Lee‘s art. The combination is clearly a draw for each of us. Plus, we’re all intrigued to find out what happens next!

Check out below for each team member’s picks and find out what you should be on the lookout for this Wednesday.

Andrew:

Batman/Superman #2 (DC) – Although I wasn’t thrilled with the first book, after hearing the announcement of a Batman/Superman movie at SDCC, I think it’d be smart to give this series a chance.

Lobster Johnson: A Scent of Lotus #1 (Dark Horse) – Seriously looking forward to Mike Mignola’s Hellboy spinoff and cult favorite, Lobster Johnson, in this two part mini series. I give this first book a stellar review in a forthcoming post.

Mass Effect Foundation #1 (Dark Horse) – Most video game to comic book series fail to impress, but they’ve secured Mac Walters, the writer of the second and third Mass Effect games, and I don’t want to pass this up.

Batman The Dark Knight #22 (DC) – I’ve been on a pulp kick lately that’s made me neglect the Caped Crusader. Once I catch up on the Mad Hatter’s finale, I’ll jump into Hurwitz’s latest story arc.

Ghostbusters #6 (IDW Publishing) – Just because I didn’t give I glowing review to the previous issue, doesn’t mean I don’t want to know what happens. I’m willing to stick with it and see what happens as the paranormal investigators reintegrate back into society.

Brett:

Top Pick: The Massive #14 (Dark Horse) – Brian Wood’s amazing series following the crew of the Kapital and their search for their sister ship in a world devastated by environmental disaster. The current story arc is tense with the threat of further destruction in the shape of nuclear war.

Mind MGMT #13 (Dark Horse) – Matt Kindt’s crazy tale of special agents with amazing powers. The small details in every comic makes the series stand out, not to mention the amazing story telling and Kindt’s art.

Red Team #4 (Dynamite Entertainment) – Garth Ennis’ tale of a team of rogue cops is as gritty and heartbreaking as they come.

Thumbprint #2 (IDW Publishing) – Joe Hill’s horror story (I think) involves a female Iraq War vet. It’s a bit, I Know What You Did Last Summer, but I’m hooked.

Wild Blue Yonder #2 (IDW Publishing) – The first issue caught me off guard and blew me away. An amazing fun story of a world dominated by those who live in the sky. Fun characters and exciting sequences with fantastic art makes this one stand out for me.

Scott:

Top Pick: Lazarus #2 (Image) – The first issue of Lazarus set up such an engaging world and interesting characters, and I’m interested to find out when the first arc will really begin to pick up steam. Plus, it’s Greg Rucka and Michael Lark, so there’s really no reason you shouldn’t be reading this book.

Batman/Superman #2 (DC) – Come on. Jae Lee drawing Batman. That’s all.

Lobster Johnson: A Scent of Lotus #1 (Dark Horse) – I’ve never read a Lobster Johnson book before, but I’m a sucker for pulp adventure heroes, and Sebastián Fiumara’s art looks absolutely exquisite: grim and detailed when necessary, bold and cartoony a page later. And Dave Stewart is a master colorist.

Mark Waid’s The Green Hornet #4 (Dynamite Entertainment) – I’m so excited for this issue because Mark Waid, in only three issues, has crafted an emotionally complex story, and I just can’t wait to see what happens next.

Rocketeer/Spirit: Pulp Friction #1 (IDW Publishing) – I love the Rocketeer, and I loved Waid’s last Rocketeer mini (Cargo of Doom); it was perfectly ridiculous. I’m really curious to see how this pulp inspired team up works out.

Sean:

Top Pick: Batman/Superman #2 (DC)—because we need to figure out what the heck that first issue was about! Plus, Greg Pak and Jae Lee make a great team on this strange, singular book with wonderful art and somewhat ominous plotting. The first issue blew me away, and left me wanting exactly this next issue. $3.99.

Gamma One-Shot (Dark Horse)—Ulises Farinas debuts what looks like a sci-fi, Adventure-Timey weird-fest; check this out if you’ve got the extra $2.99.

Larfleeze #2 (DC)—Giffen’s and Kolins’ Douglas-Adams-esque breakout book about the funny-as-Hell Orange Lantern continues with a battle against Laord of the Hunt. $2.99.

Lobster Johnson: A Scent of Lotus #1 (Dark Horse)—Mignola brings back Lobster Johnson to track down the Crimson Lotus, starting off a new mini-series. $3.50.

Superior Spider-Man Team Up #1 (Marvel)—and while Superior Spider-Man #14 (also out this week) is a must have in my opinion, if you’re on a budget you’ll want to check out the beginning of this new team up book which starts with Spidey and the Avengers figuring things out. $3.99.

TPB of the Week: Camelot 3000 (DC)—collecting the 1982-1985 maxi-series of the same name, this TPB presents not only a major piece of DC Comics history, since Camelot 3000 was one of the first direct market series and DC’s first maxi-series (think Brightest Day), but it is also a crazy-cool reimagining of the King Arthur stories, in typical 1980s fashion, mixing the tale with nuclear issues, challenging gender roles, and…aliens! $19.99 (but I ordered it from Amazon for $16.51).