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Graphic Policy’s Top Comic Picks this Week!

Posted on March 22, 2016 by Graphic Policy Team

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!

We’re bringing back something we haven’t done for a while, what the team thinks. Our contributors are choosing up to five books each week and why they’re choosing the books.

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

Alex

Top Pick: Batman #50 (DC Comics) – Scott Snyder is one of the best writers to get his hands on the Dark Knight in recent memory. I’ve made no secret of my love for his current run on this series (have you been reading Mr H and Alex Discuss…?), and I am chomping at the bit to get my grubby mitts on this comic, and for once I don’t care about the inflated price. With Bruce Wayne returning under the cape and cowl, it’s going to be an epic.

All-New Classic Captain Canuck #1 (Chapterhouse Comics) – Spinning out of the back up strips of Captain Canuck comes the adventures of the classic Captain. The #0 issue last month was fantastic, an anthology of the back up strips to date. This first issue in the new series features a version of the character that is more appealing to me, personally, than the more modern version. I’m looking forward to this issue.

Hyperion #1 (Marvel) – The previews had me sold when I read that Hyperion may use a transfer truck as a baseball bat. That’s an image I have to see.

Klaus #4 (Boom! Studios) – As outlandish as the whole Santa Claus: Year One concept is, in Grant Morrison and Dan Mora’s hands it’s one that has been working better than it has any right to be. Absolutely brilliant series.

Javier

Top Pick: Delete #1 (Devil’s Due) – More indie sci-fi, but this is from the same team that is currently writing Harley Quinn. A young mute girl, in a future where memories can be implanted and removed, witnesses a murder and is on the run with her protector. Looks promising.

Birthright #15 (Image Comics) – Wizardry and sword fighting fantasy running amok in our world. Love it.

Grayson #18 (DC Comics) – Tim Seeley and Tom King are making the James Bond thing work for Grayson. More people should be reading this.

Pencil Head #3 (Image Comics) – Ted McKeever’s fictionalized and irreverent behind the scenes look at the comic book industry is a fun, but twisted, read.

Venus #4 (BOOM! Studios) – This is the final issue. I’m sad to see this one go; I was hoping for a 6 to 12 issue run on this sci-fi piece with a re-imagined dystopian American/Chinese space race.

Brett

Top Pick: Batman #50 (DC Comics) – Things have been building for so long, it’s kind of hard for this comic to not be at the top of my pick list. We’ll most likely see Bruce Wayne again as Batman, taking up the mantle once again to save Gotham. And yes, that makes my inner kid a little giddy. This is hopefully the payoff we’ve been waiting for.

All-New Captain Canuck #1 (Chapterhouse Comics) – I love the relaunched Captain Canuck, and to be able to get a double dose of the character is fine by me. It’s superhero stories that gets rid of the grim and gritty and instead inject old school fun.

Circuit Breaker #1 (Image Comics) – The first issue is crazy and so out there, I don’t know how to describe it. It feels like very Japanese stereotype mashed together in an anime-ish style that is a visual assault. And of course if focuses on evil robots.

Independence Day #1 (Titan Comics) – The movie gets the comic book treatment before the sequel hits theaters this year.

Superman: Lois and Clark #6 (DC Comics) – I think this is the best Superman comic on the market right now with a great mix of old and new and some fantastic visuals. I hope we see more of this with Rebirth.

Exclusive Preview: Grayson #18

Posted on March 18, 2016 by Graphic Policy Team

Grayson #18

Written by: Collin Kelly, Jackson Lanzing
Art by: Roge Antonio
Cover by: Mikel Janin
Variant cover by: Stephen Platt
U.S. Price: $3.99
On Sale Date: Mar 23 2016

Civil war has broken out at Spyral with Dick Grayson stuck in the middle. When true allegiances are revealed, which agents will be left standing?

DC Reveals Stephen Platt’s Grayson #18 and Massimo Carnevale’s Wonder Woman #50 Variants

Posted on February 26, 2016 by Graphic Policy Team

Back in December, DC Entertainment announced that our ongoing monthly themed variant cover program for March would showcase variants for ten of DC Comics’ most popular Batman and Superman titles. The variants are to be polybagged with a Batman v Superman theme, concealing stunning cover artwork by the comic industry’s most talented artists!

March’s Batman v Superman polybagged comics will follow a format similar to December’s Harley’s Little Black Book variant program, where three different versions of each variant were printed in equal quantity. All ten upcoming Batman v Superman comics will also have three versions printed in equal quantity, but this time they’ll be published in full color, fade and character spotlight.

What’s that look like? Two more of these top-secret images are now ready—Stephen Platt’s variant covers for Grayson #18 and Massimo Carnevale’s variants covers for Wonder Woman #50! Check them out below!

For the full list of comic books that will feature these fun and collectible covers, please see below:

3/2: Detective Comics #50 (variant by Rafael Grampa)
3/9: Action Comics #50 (variant by Martin Ansin)
3/9: Batman/Superman #30 (variant by Kevin Maguire)
3/16: Robin Son of Batman #10 (variant by Ryan Ottley)
3/16: Superman #50 (variant by Kaare Andrews)
3/23: Batman #50 (variant by Chris Daughtry and Jim Lee)
3/23: Grayson #18 (variant by Stephen Platt)
3/23: Superman/Wonder Woman #27 (variant by Charlie Adlard)
3/23: Wonder Woman #50 (variant by Massimo Carnevale)
3/30: Batgirl #50 (variant by Kevin Nowlan)

Around the Tubes

Posted on January 28, 2016 by Graphic Policy Team

It was new comic book day yesterday! Did folks have luck picking up their new comics? Anyone impacted by the snow? For those that weren’t, what’d you like from this week’s releases? What was a clunker?

Around the Tubes

Huffington Post – Diversity in Comics: Defining Afrofuturism, Afro-Blackness and The Black Fantastic – A good read for those that might know about these things.

A.V. Club – A California college is offering a free online course about comic books – Who’s signing up?

Atoll Comics – Listening to Phonogram: The Immaterial Girl #6 – Read about why you should check out this series now that its wrapped.

Around the Tubes Reviews

Comic Vine – All-New, All-Different Avengers #4

Talking Comics – Cry Havoc #1

ICv2 – DC Comics: Secret Hero Society #1

Comic Vine – Deadly Class #18

Comic Vine – Deathstroke #14

CBR – Faith #1

Talking Comics – Ghostbusters International #1

Comic Vine – Grayson #16

Talking Comics – Old Man Logan #1

Comic VIne – Old Man Logan #1

Talking Comics – Tomb Raider #1

The Beat – Up Down Clown

Talking Comics – Victorie City #1

Around the Tubes (Video Game) Reviews

Kotaku – LEGO Marvel’s Avengers

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Race in Grayson #15

Posted on December 15, 2015 by Elana Levin

I’ve been enjoying Grayson overall but I need to call attention to this issue’s handling of race, especially in context of policing.

As the second part of DC Comic‘s “Robin War” storyline, the issue begins with a grid of the faces of 16 young Gothamites of various races, subcultures and levels of costuming all saying “I am Robin,” claiming a mantle and identity for themselves that empowers them to fight for justice. It is also a statement of solidarity between youth.

Cut to a page of three white dudes and one light brown kid (I think, it’s hard to tell and Damian shouldn’t be white but he’s usually drawn that way) telling the young Gothamites “no you’re not”. Dick then modifies that statement to be “at least not yet”.

Then Grayson, Red Hood, Red Robin and Damian Wayne go to teach the kids what it means to be Robin.

What ensues should be a cool training sequence but each of Batman’s former sidekicks are written as the most cartoonish versions of themselves. Each of their personalities polished down to almost a catchphrase. I sympathize with the writer Tim Seeley here– he’s been tasked with showing the difference between the four former or current Batman-approved sidekicks and he ties each to a particular lesson. It’s a sensible approach and I don’t know what I’d suggest he do otherwise. But it just comes off as trope-y and cliche.

Dick takes Duke Thomas on a training run– I enjoy their interactions here a lot. But here’s where the record skips; In Dick’s attempt to protect the We are Robin army of self-appointed Robins, Dick leads them all into a trap to be arrested. He explains “I control the arrests, make sure they’re safe….Make sure they’re all safe and all ready to break out, when I figure this out.” Excuse me, but you cannot ensure the safety of black or brown people while they are being arrested or incarcerated (or lgbtq people or, or, or).

Dick’s actions are disastrous and a massive display of the character’s privilege (I can’t tell if new 52 Dick is supposed to be Romani or not so I’m not going to say white privilege in this case because who knows…)

People of color are regularly hurt and even killed in the process of being arrested. Remember Sandra Bland? Eric Garner? Being arrested while brown is not at all the same as being arrested while white, especially given the long term consequences of having an arrest on your record. Even if Grayson breaks them out and wipes their records clean they have still been forced into trauma by his actions.

The image of Grayson and Duke (who’s black) perched on a gargoyle with their backs to the wall, a GCPD spotlight focused on them while the cops shout “Hands! Hands! Now!” is incredibly disturbing, especially in light of Michael Brown’s murder by the police while his hands were raised. Perhaps this disturbing image is on purpose? I hope so. It’s the most effective page in the issue.

Dick then gracefully dives off the side of the skyscraper, balletic and free while leaving Duke in the clutches of the police. Quite the metaphor for #CrimingWhileWhite.

While I’m sure that other characters in the story are going to debate over whether or not Dick was wrong to get the Robins arrested, it is crucial for the racial implications of Dick’s actions to be addressed in this specific series.

I’m going to keep reading this series in the hope that the racial implications in this issue are explicitly addressed. I hear that in other “Robin War” crossover comics the police are cruising around profiling kids on whether or not they might be a Robin and arresting them for it. That would certainly work as a metaphor for certain kinds of police profiling.

This isn’t the only time lately that Dick has behaved imperiously in ways that hurt others. The fact that the creative team introduced Helena Bertinelli as a biracial woman and that Damian looks like he’s MAYBE supposed to be a person of color gives me hope here. If the next steps in the story address the racial implications of Dick’s actions I’ll be ecstatic. It would be worthy of Snyder’s breakthrough work writing about structural racism in Batman #44. I’m waiting….

Around the Tubes

Posted on December 11, 2015 by Graphic Policy Team

The weekend is almost here and lets face it, we’re all counting down until Star Wars: The Force Awakens hits theaters this coming week. While we await that, here’s some comic book news and reviews from around the web to keep you busy.

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CBET – Star Wars condoms keep your saber covered – Can you jump the shark from the merchandising?

Unicorn Booty – This Graphic Novel Is Fighting To Save Free Speech Worldwide – This is really interesting, sounds very cool and we want to check it out.

Nerds of Color – Fear of an Asian Martial Artist: The Thing about Stereotypes & #AAIronFist – A retort to the retort.

Around the Tubes Reviews

The Rainbow Hub – Batman and Robin Eternal #10

The Rainbow Hub – Grayson #15

ICv2 – Monthly Girls Nozaki-Kun Vol. 1 TP

Talking Comics – Secret Wars #8

Comic Vine – Secret Wars #8

Talking Comics – Scarlet Witch #1

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Graphic Policy’s Top Comic Picks this Week!

Posted on December 8, 2015 by Graphic Policy Team

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!

We’re bringing back something we haven’t done for a while, what the team thinks. Our contributors are choosing up to five books each week and why they’re choosing the books.

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

Alex

Top Pick: Batman/Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles #1 (DC Comics/IDW Publishing) – If this comic doesn’t excite you in some way, then I don’t really think anything I say here will change that. But this is a comic I’ve been waiting a decade for.

Ninjak #10 (Valiant) – A new story arc sees the technologically advanced ninja cross into the supernatural. I’m looking forward to seeing Ninjak as a fish out of water, so to speak.

We Stand On Guard #6 (Image Comics) – I’m sure there’ll be an epic conclusion here, and with all the rich connotations that have been sown throughout the series I don’t know how comfortable it’ll be to read. Which is exactly why I want to.

Brett

Top Pick: Monstress #2 (Image Comics) – The first issue blew me away with a deeply layered comic that mixed genres, concepts, and packaged it all with beautiful art. The first issue was oversized and I still craved more, it was that good. One of the best debuts of the year, I expect the second issue to be just as good.

Detective Comics #47, Gotham Academy #13, Grayson #15, Red Hood/Arsenal #7 (DC Comics) – All Robin War tie-ins. The lead in comic kicking off the event was solid, and this is event is one that I’m really looking forward to.

The Massive: Ninth Wave #1 (Dark Horse) – The original series tackled the concept of survival in a post ecological disaster world. I could debate that ending for along time, but the rest of the series was good. This prequel takes us back before the collapse and features the familiar crew of the Ninth Wave. This is environmental activism in comics.

Tomboy #2 (Action Lab: Danger Zone) – The first issue of this series was one of the other best debuts of the year. It completely caught me off guard, and holy crap was it good. I can’t wait to read the second issue, it’s one of the first comics I plan to read this week to see what happens next and where this series goes.

The Walking Dead #149 (Image Comics) – After the ending of the last issue how could this not make it on the list? We’re one away from the big 150, and I expect something huge for that issue, so need to see the build up too.

Elana

Constantine the Hellblazer #7 (DC Comics) – Constantine reunites with Swamp Thing: the herbacious hero in who’s book he first appeared! This is my favorite DC series now. Creative, funny, dark and damaged.

Gotham Academy #13 (DC Comics) – Brand new story arc for my favorite teenage characters in my favorite fictional school. It looks like they’ll be forced to take sides in a currently political debate over teenage vigilanteism going on in Gotham. Can’t wait to hear these kids hash out a serious issue. Enjoy Karl Kerschl’s beautiful art on this book while he’s still there!

Monstress #2 (Image Comics) – Easily the most imaginative new fantasy series in ages. Breathtaking art. Complex fantasy world-building that feels entirely fresh. The series touches on real world evils like war crimes, slavery and eugenics. And there are no bearded white dudes that you can’t tell apart. Actually, I think there’s no white people in this at all! Marjorie Liu was our podcast guest: listen to our interview with her to learn more.

No Mercy #5 (Image Comics) – College bound kids on a “charity” trip to pad their resumes now find their lives in peril. This series is both extremely suspenseful and thus far, extremely realistic in ways that make it even more disturbing. The cast of teens are so damn familiar because you’ve met them all in real life. Yet no reader could have a clue about what’s going to happen next. Check out our podcast with writer Alex Di Campi to hear more.

Snow Blind #1 (BOOM! Studios) – Alaskan teen trying to get to the bottom of his messed-up family’s mysterious past. Quirky art, heavy on the symbolism. Promising start for a new series.

Javier

Limbo #2 (Image Comics) – This is my pick of the week. Yes, yet another supernatural detective story. This one is set in Dedande (Dead End?) City. A sort of Magnum PI based Mexican purgatory I’m guessing, but Dan Watters hasn’t revealed much yet. This urban fantasy has a voodoo queen with a fetish for 80s mixtapes, and Wijngaard’s art is captivating.

Ninjak # 10 (Valiant) – I’m a big fan of Valiant books; they put out quality work. This is a good jumping point for new Ninjak fans. Operation: Deadside, a four issue arc written by Matt Kindt, starts this week. Plus Shadowman makes an appearance.

Saints #3 (Image Comics) – Saintly super-powered teenagers on a road trip. I’ll admit I’m into the religious themed good versus evil themed books (i.e. Tithe is another favorite). Mackey’s snappy dialogue and Lewis’s sacrilegious art has me hooked; but I can see how this is going to be one of those books you either love or hate.

Snow Blind # 1 (BOOM! Studios) – This new four issue series from Boom!Studios, written by Ollie Masters (The Kitchen) and drawn by Tyler Jenkins (Peter Panzerfaust) promises to be a witness protection noir story set in the snow-covered landscape of Alaska. If this is consistent with Ollie’s work on The Kitchen we are in for a cold-blooded treat.

Ultimates #2 (Marvel) – Black Panther, Captain Marvel, Ms. America Chavez, Spectrum, and Blue Marvel are back this week to tackle the Galactacus problem. This issue can make or break the series. Issue #1 I thought was spectacular, and I’m rooting for them to do more of the same this month.

Paul

Top Pick: Scarlet Witch #1 (Marvel) – Wanda has her own title. That is all :)

Secret Wars #8 (Marvel) – This series is trudging along to the finale….I just want to see how it all ends already! But I am looking forward to the Thing laying a king size smack down.

Ultimates #2 (Marvel) – How do you solve a problem like Galactus? Apparently the Ultimates have the answer…but does Galactus even want to hear it? This is going to be interesting.

Around the Tubes

Posted on November 3, 2015 by Graphic Policy Team

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Around the Tubes

The Daily Dot – Amazon sells out of ‘Preacher’ comic books after AMC trailer debut – Not too shocking. Those folks flipping out due to content in 3…2…1…

Kotaku – Chris Brown’s ‘Zero’ Artwork Sure Looks Familiar – Yes. Yes it does.

Kotaku – One-Punch Man Shows Why Manga Will Always Matter – Worth us checking this out?

ICv2 – Is the Subscription Model for Digital Comics Inevitable? – Already a few different options are out there!

Around the Tubes Reviews

CBR – Grayson #13

CBR – Polar: Eye for an Eye

CBR – Rick & Morty #7

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Around the Tubes

Posted on October 29, 2015 by Graphic Policy Team

It was new comic book day yesterday! What’d everyone enjoy reading? While you decide on that, here’s some news and reviews from around the web in our morning roundup.

Around the Tubes

Teen Vogue – I’m a Girl, and I’m a Huge Fan of Comic Books — Here’s Why You Should Be Too – Awesome to see this, especially in Teen Vogue.

GamePolitics – Rep. Katherine Clark urges SXSW to reinstate panel about online harassment – Bets as to when SXSW backtracks completely?

Around the Tubes Reviews

CBR – Batgirl #45

Newsarama – Batgirl #45

Comic Vine – Batman & Robin Eternal #4

Comics Beat – The Black Hood #6

CBR – Black Magick #1

CBR – Fight Club 2 #6

Comics Vine – Grayson #13

Comic Vine – Howling Commandos of S.H.I.E.L.D. #1