White Widow #4
(W) Sarah Gailey (A) Alessandro Miracolo (CA) David Marquez
Rated T+
In Shops: Feb 28, 2024
SRP: $3.99
FIGHT FOR THE FUTURE!
When Armament’s leader turns out to have ties to Yelena’s past, the fight gets personal. But will everything Yelena’s learned about herself be enough to protect her present – and Idylhaven’s future?
White Widow #3
(W) Sarah Gailey (A) Alessandro Miracolo
(C) Matt Milla (L) Travis Lanham
(CA) David Marquez (VCA) SAOWEE
Rated T+
In Shops: Jan 17, 2024
SRP: $3.99
When a shady corporation called Armament threatens Yelena Belova and her neighbors with eviction under suspicious circumstances, she decides to take the problem into her own hands. After all, there’s rarely a problem a little murder can’t solve! But Armament is not quite what it seems – and a single mistake could cost Yelena everything.
White Widow #3
(W) Sarah Gailey (A) Alessandro Miracolo
(C) Matt Milla (L) Travis Lanham
(CA) David Marquez (VCA) SAOWEE
Rated T+
In Shops: Jan 17, 2024
SRP: $3.99
When a shady corporation called Armament threatens Yelena Belova and her neighbors with eviction under suspicious circumstances, she decides to take the problem into her own hands. After all, there’s rarely a problem a little murder can’t solve! But Armament is not quite what it seems – and a single mistake could cost Yelena everything.
Wednesdays (and Tuesdays) 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 week.
Batman/Santa Claus: Silent Knight #2 (DC Comics) – The first issue was WAY more fun than it had any reason to be. The concept might sound silly but it worked and worked really well. A perfect release for the season.
Beneath the Trees Where Nobody Sees #2 (IDW Publishing) – They may look like cute animals but there’s a serial killer among them! A twisted tale whose first issue was one of the best of the year.
Beyond Real #1 (Vault Comics) – June discovers we’re in a computer simulation and sets out to meet the world’s creator. The second of Vault’s interesting release experiment!
Punisher #2 (Marvel) – A new Punisher, same ole action. The first issue felt like a back to the roots return for the character and we want to see more over the top kills and action.
Underheist #1 (BOOM! Studios) – A hardboiled heist series with a supernatural twist.
White Widow #2 (Marvel) – The first issue was solid fun and we’re hoping for more of the same for the second.
Worm: A Cuban American Odyssey (Metropolitan Books) – We already reviewed this one and it’s one of the best of the year. The true story of artist Edel Rodriguez as he escapes Cuba for the US and becomes a world famous artist.
Zawa + the Belly of the Beast #2 (BOOM! Studios) – The first issue had a nice fantasy story to it with amazing art. We’re expecting more and want more.
White Widow #2
(W) Sarah Gailey (A) Alessandro Miracolo
(C) Matt Milla (L) Travis Lanham
(CA) David Marquez (VCA) Elena Casagrande, Peach Momoko
Rated T+
In Shops: Dec 13, 2023
SRP: $3.99
Just as Yelena Belova begins to settle into life in suburbia as a consultant for honest, hardworking assassins, change comes in the form of Armament – a company whose endeavors seem to infiltrate every aspect of life in the tiny town of Idyllhaven. But what exactly is Armament’s interest in Idyllhaven – and what does it have to do with Yelena’s rogue mentees?
Gear up for 2024 with Marvel’s Stormbreakers! Throughout December, these elite artists show readers what New Year’s Eve looks like in the Marvel Universe in the latest monthly collection of Stormbreakers Variant Covers. See your favorite heroes party, toast, and share a midnight kiss as they enter the New Year in style!
Each month, Marvel’s Stormbreakers bring their incredible talents to your favorite comic series and characters and flex their skills with exciting themed variant cover collections. The current group of artists includes Elena Casagrande, Nic Klein, Jan Bazaldua, Chris Allen, Martin Coccolo, Lucas Werneck, Federico Vicentini, and C.F. Villa. Each of these artists embody the raw talent and creative potential to shatter the limits of visual storytelling in comics today! As the next evolution of the groundbreaking Marvel’s Young Guns program, Marvel’s Stormbreakers continues the tradition of spotlighting and elevating these powerful artists to showcase their abilities, artwork and prominence in the world of comic books.
Check out December’s eight Stormbreakers Variant Covers now and preorder them at your local comic shop today!
The weekend is almost here! What geeky things are you all doing? Sound off in the comments below! While you wait for the weekday to end and the weekend to begin, here’s some comic news and reviews from around the web.
CBR – National Science Foundation Studies Whether Comics Are Better For Teaching STEM – Nice.
Reviews
CBR – Giant Robot Hellboy #1
The Beat – Phantom Road Vol. 1
The Beat – Tying The Knot With An Amagami Sister Vol. 1
TCJ – Viscere #1
CBR – White Widow #1
Yelena Belova returns! Superspy. Rogue agent. Shadow of the Black Widow. Yelena Belova has been many things, but striking out as a hero in her own right is new to her. Now that she’s finally free to choose her own path, who will she become? With the spotlight coming on the big screen, Marvel is ramping up the spotlight on Belova, the White Widow, kicking things off with White Widow #1… and it’s an ok start.
Written by Sarah Gailey, there’s a lot ot like about White Widow #1. Where it’s good, it’s really good but overall the plot is a bit odd and a headscratcher. Yelena is trying to figure things out in her life. She’s moved to a town away from all of the superheroes and running her own business, acting as a mentor to other assassins and spies. She lives in a house with a bunch of other quirky characters and of course has a dog she adores. With her life being either controlled or stolen from her, she’s on a mission to figure things out. That includes small details about her likes, dislikes, and what she’s neutral about. And that’s where the issue shines.
Gailey delivers a fun comic showing off the quirks of Belova as she literally makes a list of the small details of her life. We get to see her thoughts laid out in lists and quips like Ladybugs don’t have enough spots. It’s a minor thing in the big picture but it gives personality to the character and delivers some laughs. That concept of trying to find one’s path is perfect for White Widow, a character who has mostly played a secondary role in the Marvel Universe. Gailey’s focus on that, and her lists, emphasizes this is a character who has never quite fit one column herself, being a villain, hero, and something else depending on the situation.
Where the comic stumbles is the big picture villain and that might have to do with the fact it’s a monthly comic and not a graphic novel to be read in one sitting. Of course there’s bad things happening in the small town she has moved to. A mysterious company has been buying up all of the businesses in the town and even has gone so far to send an assassin to try to intimidate the last owner and Yelena to sell out. It’s all a little over the top going from 0 to 60 without any escalation. Wouldn’t you just send some punks or gang to start? Why an augmented assassin? And of course the town Yelena just so happens to move to is having this problem.
The fact Yelena also seems to be struggling to connect the dots when things are so obvious is a little frustrating. The company doing the purchasing is also the same company trying to hire her mercenary/assassin proteges. The connection feels obvious but plays out in an odd way. Yelena immediately going into action to hunt down the company feels much more logical than what happens in the comic. The tactics used by the evil corporation also feels so over the top as presented as well, but once we get a better idea as to their wants, maybe it’ll make a bit more sense.
The art by Alessandro Miracolo is good. With color by Matt Milla and lettering by Travis Lanham, the comic has a nice balance in the visuals. There’s some action, some lighthearted moments, some comedy, and it all works. There’s also some solid layouts and design to introduce readers not just to Yelena but also the town and other characters. What particularly stands out is Yelena’s lists. While not everything is 100% readable, it feels like the comic goes out of its way for you to get a chance to read most of it or enough to guess as to what’s covered up. It’s a nice detail that adds a lot to the comic and delivers some solid humor.
White Widow #1 is an ok start overall. There’s a lot to like and the details deliver a fun read. But, it’s big picture plot feels a bit convoluted and as presented doesn’t make a whole lot of sense. That all could change as the series progresses but if you’re diving in, come for the cool action and decent laughs, just don’t think too much about anything else.
Story: Sarah Gailey Art: Alessandro Miracolo
Color: Matt Milla Letterer: Travis Lanham
Story: 7.0 Art: 8.0 Overall: 7.0 Recommendation: Read
Marvel provided Graphic Policy with a FREE copy for review
Purchase: Zeus Comics – Kindle
Wednesdays (and Tuesdays) 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 week.
Almost Dead #1 (Ablaze) – After having an accident on her way home to visit her family, Sara Walker awakens to find that the world has changed. Now she must travel up the Eastern Seaboard, using suppressed survival skills she learned as a child, in hopes of reuniting with her loved ones in the midst of a viral pandemic that has turned humans into monsters.
Blood Commandment #1 (Image Comics) – Living an isolated life in a shadowed valley surrounded by mountains and a thick forest, a father and son are terrorized by a dangerous supernatural presence. Only the father’s dark secrets can save them…or damn their souls for all eternity!
Count Dante #4 (Scout Comics) – The series has done an amazing job of balancing fact and fiction in the world of martial arts and based on a true story.
Dying Days #1 (Red 5 Comics) – It’s the ultimate race against time! When “The Aging” starts, people are aging at a rapid rate. Can the cause and solution be found, before it’s too late?
Faceless and the Family #1 (Oni Press) – Matt Lesniewski’s art alone will suck you in.
A Haunting on Mars #1 (Scout Comics) – Mars is a wasteland: A dead colony, founded by a dead billionaire, holding darkness and secrets within. Secrets which Echo Team are sent to uncover. A hacker. A psionic. An empath. A soldier. And their corpo loyalist leader. They’ve crashed far from the LZ and their sanity’s already unraveling!
It’s Jeff: The Jeff-Verse #1 (Marvel) – The first issue was really cute and a lot of fun and we’re hoping for more of that.
Ranger Academy #2 (BOOM! Studios) – The first issue was a lot of fun with a familiar concept of an outsider arriving at a school. In this case, it’s one dealing with the Power Rangers.
Red Light #1 (AWA Studios) – Get ready for a red-hot futuristic erotic thriller that sits at the intersection of sex and tech!
Return of Superman 30th Anniversary Special (DC Comics) – It should be fun to revisit this classic period with the creators behind it.
Savage Red Sonja #1 (Dynamite Entertainment) – Tasked with retrieving a long-hidden gem from a crumbled, ancient kingdom, the She-Devil With a Sword is traveling alone through a dangerous wasteland when fate intervenes, and her solo adventure is sidetracked by a wayward prince and his bride as they try desperately to escape from fearsome desert bandits – only to be attacked by a monstrous beast from beneath the sands!
Space Between #1 (BOOM! Studios) – Two individuals from two different social castes meet aboard an interstellar ark.
Spider-Boy #1 (Marvel) – We haven’t paid too much attention to the character, but we’re intrigued to see where the long game goes with him.
Stories of the Islands (Holiday House) – In Stories of the Islands, debut graphic novelist Clar Angkasa takes three folk tales from her childhood in Indonesia and gives them back to the girl characters, following their hopes, dreams, and journeys for independence from malevolent forces-both natural and unnatural.
Traveling to Mars #9 (Ablaze) – One of the best comics on the market right now.
Ultimate Universe #1 (Marvel) – While the recent limited series left us unimpressed, this first issue is actually solid and more of what we were looking for.
Unnatural Order #1 (Vault Comics) – After the fall of the Britons and the Roman invasion of Hibernia, the captive known only as the Druid is released, sending a darkness across the world…an age of horrors, of fire and entrails.
White Widow #1 (Marvel) – Yelena Belova gets the spotlight!
White Widow #1
(W) Sarah Gailey (A) Alessandro Miracolo
(C) Matt Milla (L) Travis Lanham
(CA) David Marquez (VCA) Adam Hughes, Stanley “Artgerm” Lau, Declan Shalvey, Leirix
Rated T+
In Shops: Nov 01, 2023
SRP: $4.99
Yelena Belova returns! Superspy. Rogue agent. Shadow of the Black Widow. Yelena Belova has been many things, but striking out as a hero in her own right is new to her. Now that she’s finally free to choose her own path, who will she become? Sarah Gailey (Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Eat the Rich) joins forces with Alessandro Miracolo (Obi-Wan, Yoda) for a groundbreaking new chapter in the life of one of Marvel’s most enigmatic antiheroes.
