Each week, ComicsXF staff offer their recommendations for what to read. New DC books come out Tuesdays, everything else Wednesdays.
Tony’s pick: X-Men: Before the Fall: Sinister Four #1: As the 19th century draws to a close, the dying Nathaniel Essex unleashes four clones of himself into the world. They’ve been haunting it ever since, from the shadows. We know what Sinister has been up to. What about the others? Also, self-cest? Written by Kieron Gillen and drawn by Paco Medina. ($4.99)
Zack’s pick: Swan Songs #1: Writer W. Maxwell Prince (Ice Cream Man) debuts a new Image series with multiple artists to tell stories about endings — The end of the world. The end of a marriage. The end of a sentence. The end of the end of the world! (Which I suppose one might consider the beginning of a new world) Etc.! First issue drawn by Martin Simmonds. ($3.99)
Matt’s pick: Gargoyles #7: Demona is back! Goliath is in prison! Dino Dracon is on the rampage! These are things you should be excited about! As indicated by exclamation points! Written by Greg Weisman and drawn by George Kambadais for Dynamite. ($3.99)
Mark’s pick: Fantastic Four #9: Alicia, Sue and Johnny face off against Ben and Reed as they battle for the survival of their minds against an alien that can wipe their memories clean. But can they survive this brutal onslaught from their friends and lovers, the very people who know them — and their powers — better than anyone else in the universe? Written by Ryan Q. North and drawn by Ivan Fiorelli. ($3.99)
Sean’s pick: Love Everlasting #9: Joan is done running and must confront who she is, what she is, what her world is, and comes face to face with a death that changes her forever in the process. What does the end of everything mean to the woman whose life and loves are seemingly eternal? Written by Tom King and drawn by Elsa Charretier for Image. ($3.99)
Rasmus’ pick: Daredevil #13: In which super-Catholic Matt Murdock goes to hell. Written by Chip Zdarsky and drawn by Marco Checchetto. ($3.99)
Adam’s pick: X-Men #24: Hired for the dirtiest of jobs, a deadly mercenary comes crashing into the X-Men right at their most vulnerable moment. But not just any mercenary — finally, Pogg Ur-Pogg returns. Written by Gerry Duggan and drawn by Joshua Cassara. ($3.99)
Austin’s pick: Star Wars #36: With the discovery that the Empire is building a second Death Star, the Rebels are on the verge of despair. But Leia has devised an impossible mission to remind both the Rebels and the galaxy how to hope. It’s the Millennium Falcon’s time to shine as the fastest hunk of junk in the galaxy flies into the belly of the beast. Written by Charles Soule and drawn by Andrea Di Vito. ($3.99)
Dan’s pick: All Against All TP: In the distant future, a race of disembodied alien conquerors moves from world to world, harvesting promising species for their most impressive physical traits. Their quest for ever-more-effective host bodies leads them to a forgotten research station, where animal specimens from a dead Earth, along with a small human boy named Helpless, have been collected and preserved in a savage artificial jungle environment. But as they descend on the research station in search of an apex predator to harvest, they’ll find more than they bargained for when they learn that Helpless is anything but. Collecting the Image series by Alex Paknadel and Caspar Wijngaard. ($16.99)
Dan Grote is the editor-in-chief of ComicsXF, having won the site by ritual combat. By day, he’s a newspaper editor, and by night, he’s … also an editor. He co-hosts The ComicsXF Interview Podcast with Matt Lazorwitz. He lives in New Jersey with his wife, two kids and two miniature dachshunds, and his third, fictional son, Peter Winston Wisdom.
