It’s hot and humid outside and has been raining on and off (if you are living in NYC at least) and this is the perfect weather to stockpile a bunch of comics and enjoy the colorful adventures of some incredible heroes and villains. There is some cool stuff coming from DC Comics this month so sit back and enjoy a coffee or chocolate milk and peruse the awesome. As usual, the copy and any images come from DC Entertainment resources while the closing editorial is all us. Let’s go.
ADVENTURES OF THE SUPER SONS #1: The Super Sons are back in an all-new 12-issue miniseries written by Peter J. Tomasi! Check out the lost and secret adventures of Damian Wayne (Robin) and Jon Kent (Superboy) in this flashback miniseries that takes a deep dive into the bombastic bromance between the sons of the DC Universe’s greatest heroes. It’s an epic dual storyline that transcends current events, as Superboy and Robin find themselves targets of an interstellar team of young badasses called the Gang.
written by PETER J. TOMASI; art by CARLO BARBERI and ART THIBERT; cover by DAN MORA
THE SANDMAN UNIVERSE #1: From the mind of New York Times #1 bestselling author Neil Gaiman comes a new world filled with dreams, nightmares and wonderful characters living together in a shared universe for a new story unlike anything we’ve ever seen before. A rift between worlds has opened, revealing a space beyond the Dreaming. Meanwhile, a book from Lucien’s library is discovered by a group of children in the waking world where it should not exist. Lucien calls for Matthew the Raven to seek out their master, Daniel, Lord of Dreams.
As Matthew flies across the Waking World and others, he finds a young boy named Timothy Hunter who, in his dreams, has become the world’s most powerful magician—but in his nightmares he is the world’s greatest villain. A new House has appeared in the realm of the Dreaming: the House of Whispers, with its proprietor, a fortune-teller called Erzulie. And elsewhere, Lucifer has fallen again, only this time he might be trapped in a Hell of his own design. Spiraling out of this special issue will be four all-new series set in the Sandman Universe. It all starts here!
story by NEIL GAIMAN; written by SI SPURRIER, NALO HOPKINSON, KAT HOWARD and DAN WATTERS – art by BILQUIS EVELY, DOMINIKE “DOMO” STANTON, TOM FOWLER, MAX FIUMARA and SEBASTIAN FIUMARA; cover by JAE LEE
PEARL #1: From the Peabody Award-winning creators of Jessica Jones comes a brand-new creation. PEARL is the story of an exceptional tattoo artist and accidental assassin for one of the modern-day San Francisco Yakuza. She was born into one life, but another is calling to her. When Pearl accidentally meets one of her peers, her doppelgänger from another clan, she starts to dream of a better life. But Pearl has a very special ability that keeps pulling her back into the violent world she is desperate to escape. PEARL is a major series launch from writer Brian Michael Bendis and artist Michael Gaydos that features their first brand-new original character since Jessica Jones. Fans of the Jessica Jones comic and TV show will be thrilled and delighted by this bold new direction the creative team has taken.
written by BRIAN MICHAEL BENDIS; art and cover by MICHAEL GAYDOS
SCARLET #1: From the creative team that brought you Daredevil and Infamous Iron Man comes the latest explosive chapter in their creator-owned epic, which IGN called one of the best comics on the stands. SCARLET tells the story of a woman whose life has been ripped apart by police corruption. When she pushes back, she starts a chain reaction of events that will bring about the next American Revolution.
In this brand-new, new reader-friendly chapter, fully painted by Eisner Award-winning artist Alex Maleev, SCARLET tells the story of what happens when one young woman is pushed too far—and what one country will do to stop her.
written by BRIAN MICHAEL BENDIS; art and cover by ALEX MALEEV
BATMAN AND THE JUSTICE LEAGUE MANGA VOL. 1 TP: From mangaka Shiori Teshirogi (Saint Seiya: The Lost Canvas) comes a new series starring Batman and the Justice League. Currently being serialized in the monthly Japanese anthology Red, the story focuses on a young boy who comes to Gotham City from Japan. He’s trying to solve the mystery of what happened to his scientist parents after their disappearance following a factory explosion a year earlier. As it turns out, the factory was owned by Lex Luthor, who has now teamed with The Joker. Together, they plan on using the research of the boy’s parents to tap into a mystical, all-powerful, worldwide energy source. But for what purpose? It’s a bigger challenge than Batman can handle on his own, so he’s going to need some help from the League. This series will be published in the original manga right-to-left format.
written by SHIORI TESHIROGI; art and cover by SHIORI TESHIROGI
BATMAN: KINGS OF FEAR #1: Legendary artist Kelley Jones makes his triumphant return to the Dark Knight in this explosive miniseries written by former BATMAN editor Scott Peterson! Batman’s been overseeing Gotham City for years now and isn’t sure how much of a difference he’s making. Doubt, fear and insecurity are starting to take over. And as all of those negative feelings set in the Scarecrow orchestrates a riot at Arkham Asylum to give the Dark Knight one of his greatest challenges yet! This six-issue miniseries will see the Scarecrow in a horrifying new way that you’ll have to read to believe.
written by SCOTT PETERSON; art and cover by KELLEY JONES
CATWOMAN/TWEETY AND SYLVESTER SPECIAL #1: In his relentless pursuit of Tweety, Sylvester suddenly finds himself with a new, human ally—Catwoman. Tweety then realizes that he’s going to need some help too, and recruits a super-hero of his own. It isn’t long before the scale of the conflict begins to get out of control and suddenly theres’s a full scale war between cats and birds that threatens to take over all of Gotham. ONE-SHOT
written by GAIL SIMONE; art by INAKI MIRANDA; cover by EMANUELA LUPACCHINO
backup story written by SHEA FONTANA; backup story art by WALTER CARZON
HARLEY QUINN/GOSSAMER SPECIAL #1: A violent storm leaves a large crate washed up on the beach at Coney Island. When Harley breaks it open to see what’s inside, she suddenly has a new playmate to add to her cast of friends—a large, furry, orange beast called Gossamer. It’s all fun and games until a giant robot attacks them. But who sent it? Harley immediately suspects only one man, but is it really The Joker behind this destructive rampage? ONE-SHOT
written by JIMMY PALMIOTTI and AMANDA CONNER; art by PIER BRITO; cover by AMANDA CONNER
backup story written by SHOLLY FISCH; backup story art by DAVE ALVAREZ
THE JOKER/ DAFFY DUCK SPECIAL #1: When Daffy Duck pays a call to the Acme corporate headquarters in Gotham City, he finds the company long gone and their abandoned building now occupied by The Joker. With a hit in progress, Daffy tries to sneak away, only to find himself in the clutches of the Clown Prince of Crime. But Joker decides that there’s some potential in this manic bird and forces Daffy to join his gang. Will he find a way to escape…or will he become The Joker’s new right-hand duck? ONE-SHOT
written by SCOTT LOBDELL; art and cover by BRETT BOOTH and NORM RAPMUND
backup story written by JOEY CAVALIERI; backup story art by LUCIANO VECCHIO
LEX LUTHOR/ PORKY PIG SPECIAL #1: Facing financial and personal ruin, a desperate Porky Pig applies for and gets and entry-level position with LexCorp. Grateful to his new benefactor, Porky becomes Luthor’s most loyal employee and defender. But when a major scandal breaks in the news and Lex is called before a Congressional Committee, guess who is about to be offered up as the sacrificial pig? ONE-SHOT
written by MARK RUSSELL; art by BRAD WALKER and ANDREW HENNESSY; cover by BEN OLIVER
backup story written by JIM FANNING; backup story art by JOHN LOTER
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DAMAGE ANNUAL #1: Damage’s earliest origins are revealed with an issue that delves into what made soldier Ethan Avery volunteer to become the monstrous, living weapon of mass destruction. Also discover what happened to the other recruits to the top-secret program that birthed Damage and tasked him with destroying any enemy trying to create their own monster on a leash.
art by DIOGENES NEVES; written by ROBERT VENDITTI; cover by AARON LOPRESTI
HAL JORDAN AND THE GREEN LANTERN CORPS #50: This. Is. It! It’s an extra-sized anniversary celebration, and one of the biggest battles the Green Lantern Corps has ever fought to mark the occasion. John Stewart issues a dramatic order: no lethal force! The Green Lanterns need to prove they can keep law and order in the universe without killing. Elsewhere, Hal Jordan faces down Tomar-Tu, and looks to use the Darkstars’ armor as a weapon against them—with some psychic help from Hector Hammond (who probably shouldn’t be trusted). FINAL ISSUE
written by ROBERT VENDITTI; art and cover by RAFA SANDOVAL and JORDI TARRAGONA
NIGHTWING ANNUAL #1: The smart city overhaul of Blüdhaven was just the beginning—a single battle in a larger cyberwar that Nightwing is only starting to understand. But now the story of the Dark Web organization begins to expand as Grayson travels to Gotham City and partners up with Vicki Vale. We live in an era of fake news, alternative facts, disinformation. The gatekeepers of truth can’t be trusted anymore, and sometimes elections, businesses and even lives are at stake. Nightwing faces off against the first of three lieutenants in the army of the Dark Web: Vire, the psychic embodiment of malware who can unearth your darkest secrets.
written by BENJAMIN PERCY; art and cover by OTTO SCHMIDT
THE SILENCER ANNUAL #1: Silencer visits Gotham City, but she’s not there to see the sights—she’s there to shut down Talia al Ghul’s latest secret weapons plant. Obviously, this brings her into conflict with Batman—but there’s a secret history to Bruce Wayne and the Silencer that complicates everything! Will Batman slap the cuffs on this metahuman hit woman—or will one of Batman’s rogues get the drop on them both for the mysterious Leviathan organization?
art by JACK HERBERT; written by DAN ABNETT; cover by TYLER KIRKHAM
SUICIDE SQUAD ANNUAL #1: Thrown together to apprehend an escaped inmate, Solomon Grundy, Rag Doll and Merlyn head into the muck surrounding Belle Reve, but no one is prepared for a meeting with the Swamp Thing. Bodies decay quickly in the bayous of Louisiana, and the avatar of the Green doesn’t care if the Squad makes it out alive.
written by CULLEN BUNN; art by RONAN CLIQUET; cover by PAUL PELLETIER and MICK GRAY
ACTION COMICS #1000: THE DELUXE EDITION HC: The celebration of 1,000 issues of ACTION COMICS continues with a new Deluxe Edition of the amazing comic that won raves when it hit comics shops in April! This hardcover includes all the stories from that issue, plus the tale by writer Paul Levitz and artist Neal Adams that appeared in the ACTION COMICS: 80 YEARS OF SUPERMAN hardcover, as well as all the variant covers (open to buy and retailer exclusives), design sketches by Jim Lee for Superman’s new look, scripts for the stories, the original art from the lost story featuring art by Curt Swan and more! Plus: a complete reprint of the stories that started it all—the Superman stories from ACTION COMICS #1 and 2 from 1938!
written by DAN JURGENS, PETER J. TOMASI, MARV WOLFMAN, GEOFF JOHNS and RICHARD DONNER, SCOTT SNYDER, TOM KING, LOUISE SIMONSON, PAUL DINI, BRAD MELTZER, PAUL LEVITZ and BRIAN MICHAEL BENDIS – art by DAN JURGENS, PATRICK GLEASON, CURT SWAN, OLIVIER COIPEL, RAFAEL ALBUQUERQUE, CLAY MANN, JOSE LUIS GARCIA-LOPEZ, JOHN CASSADAY, NEAL ADAMS, JIM LEE and others; cover by JIM LEE and SCOTT WILLIAMS
PiercingMetal Thoughts: I’ve mentioned that I am usually purchasing the first issues overall but a few of these I need to peruse on the racks first since there are quite a few pricey volumes in this rundown. As a lifelong fan of the Hanna Barbera cartoons, I am a big fan of the pairing of those characters with the heroes so I will likely be snagging those. I am on the fence about the final issue of “Hal Jordan and The Green Lantern Corps” but might pick it up in the event that what closes up in that series is the beginning of the title that will be following it. What do you readers think about these offerings? Which titles are you adding to your own weekly pull list? Chime in down below as you know we love to hear from you about it.
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