HOT FIVE (ish): Week of September 19, 2018

Welcome to Comicosity’s Hot Five(ish). Hot Five(ish) is a short(ish) list of the top books we think you’ll want to be checking out. Be they new title launches, key issues or just continuing stories from some of the industry’s most acclaimed books, this list is your guaranteed gold in the comic market.

BATMAN #55
Written by Tom King
Art by Tony Daniel (Pencils), Danny Miki (Inks) & Tomeu Morey (Colors)
Published by DC Comics – $3.99

The KGBeast lives! The Russian super-assassin is back-but under whose orders? Does he have a specific mission, or is this simply some leftover Cold War mayhem? Nyet, comrade-it has to do with Bruce Wayne’s recent court case involving Mr. Freeze. Something is rotten in Gotham, and you can still smell it, even if it’s on ice!

Why It’s Hot: Nightwing and Batman back together on patrol like old times. Bruce and Dick have spent most of their lives out patrolling the streets of Gotham, so nothing can possibly go wrong. Right? The next big, status quo changing moment of Tom King’s modern classic Batman run is upon us. Will the Dynamic Duo ever be the same again?

BATMAN: DAMNED #1
Written by Brian Azarello
Art by Lee Bermejo
Published by DC Comics -$6.99

DC BLACK LABEL, the highly anticipated new imprint from DC Comics, starts here!

The Joker is dead.

There is no doubt about that. But whether Batman finally snapped his scrawny neck or some other sinister force in Gotham City did the deed is still a mystery.

Problem is, Batman can’t remember… and the more he digs into this labyrinthine case, the more his mind starts to doubt everything he’s uncovering.

So who better to set him straight than… John Constantine? Problem with that is as much as John loves a good mystery, he loves messing with people’s heads even more. So with John’s “help,” the pair will delve into the sordid underbelly of Gotham as they race toward the mind-blowing truth of who murdered The Joker.

BATMAN: DAMNED is a bimonthly super-natural horror story told by two of comics’ greatest modern creators-a visceral thrill-ride that proudly puts the “black” in BLACK LABEL.

Why It’s Hot: Yes, this is the book everyone has been talking about over the past few days. In a week where Dick plays a major role in several of the bat-books, the dick in this issue will be the one people remember most. In all seriousness though, DC has bet big on their mature readers “Black Label” line, and the entire imprint starts here. Azarello and Bermejo are no strangers to one another, as their stellar Joker OGN was a hit several years back. This comic is absolutely stunning, and the mature readers label allows the creators, in more ways than one, to show off more of Batman than we are used to seeing.

CAPTAIN AMERICA ANNUAL #1
Written by Tini Howard
Art by Chris Sprouse & Ron Lim (Pencils), Karl Story, Walden Wong & Scott Hanna (Inks), Jesus Aburtov, Erick Arciniega & Israel Silva (Colors)
Published by Marvel Comics – $4.99

• During an advance scouting mission in World War II, Captain America and Bucky come across an old farmhouse where a group of concentration camp escapees are fending off recapture.
• If they can hold the line, the Allies will come to the rescue. But it’s going to be a long night…
• Rising star Tini Howard joins superstar Chris Sprouse for a powerful, gripping journey into Captain America’s storied past!

Why It’s Hot: Rising star Tini Howard writing a WW2 era Captain America story with legends Chris Sprouse and Ron Lim on art duties. That should be all you need to know to understand why this comic is a must read this week.

DICK TRACY: DEAD OR ALIVE #1
Written by Lee Allred & Mike Allred
Art by Rich Tommaso (Pencils) & Michael Allred (Inks)
Published by IDW Publishing – $3.99

IDW Publishing proudly presents the rebirth of one the most iconic comic-strip heroes of all time, Dick Tracy! The All-American detective just made the biggest collar of his career, and it only cost him his job! But now the honest cop has packed his bags for “the city by the lake,” and its criminals better watch out! Reimagined for the 21st century through a retro lens by the superstar team of Michael Allred, Lee Allred, Rich Tommaso and Laura Allred, Dick Tracy: Dead or Alive is a lock to be the pop-art event of 2018!

Bizarre villains! Crooked cops! Gunfights galore!
Cover art and co-written by Eisner Award-winning superstar Michael Allred (Madman, iZombie, Silver Surfer, Batman ’66)!
Illustrated by Rich Tommaso (Spy Seal, Dry County) with Michael Allred inks!

Why It’s Hot: The Allred Brothers and Rich Tommaso bringing Dick Tracy back into the spotlight at IDW? Sign me up! You can look at the success the publisher has had in the past with properties like The Rocketeer to get even more excited to see what they have in store for one of the more recognizable and memorable detectives in all of pop culture. This should be very, very good comic booking.

HARLEY QUINN #50
Written by Sam Humphries
Art by A Whole Bunch Of Great Artists
Published by DC Comics – $4.99

In a special anniversary story, “Harley Saves the Universe!”-no kidding! While reading a mysterious Harley Quinn comic book, H.Q. accidentally breaks all of reality. And you know the saying: if you break it, you bought it! Now it’s up to Harley to travel through both time and space to fix all the continuity errors she created. Luckily, she’ll have a little help, ‘cuz riding shotgun is none other than special guest star Jonni DC, Continuity Cop! Good thing, too, because if Harley fails, it means her own mom will be lost forever. Gulp! That doesn’t sound very funny!

Why It’s Hot: Harley Quinn has broken continuity, and only she can put it back together again. Join writer Sam Humphries and a whole bunch of ridiculously great artists for an extra sized anniversary celebration unlike any that has come before it. This comic is a love letter to DC Comics with a big splash of Harley to make it that much sweeter.

INFINITY WARS: SOLDIER SUPREME #1
Written by Gerry Duggan
Art by Adam Kubert (Pencils) & Matt Wilson (Colors)
Published by Marvel Comics – $3.99

INFINITY WARPS?!
Classified 4-F by the military, Stephen Rogers was unable to serve his country in World War II…until a secret government program tapping into arcane sorcery transformed him into the Soldier Supreme, the magical warrior embodiment of the American spirit!

Why It’s Hot: Marvel has been pushing and teasing the Infînity Warps concept for a few months now, and last week we finally found out what the deal was in the pages of Infinity Wars #3. Now we have the amazing creative team of Gerry Duggan and Adam Kubert set to kick off the first short miniseries featuring these mashed up characters. Soldier Supreme is a combination of Captain America and Doctor Strange, and it’s really cool. The best part is that you don’t have to be reading Infinity Wars to fill the Amalgam sized hole in your heart, or to enjoy Bucky Wong: The Winter Soldier.

JUSTICE LEAGUE #8
Written by James Tynion IV
Art by Mikel Janin (Pencils) & Jeromy Cox (Colors)
Published by DC Comics – $3.99

Part two of the “Legion of Doom” storyline focuses on Lex Luthor’s recruiting efforts-and this time around, he’s targeting both Cheetah and Black Manta for membership! Lex knows just what buttons to push to acquire his super-powered muscle, and this issue it’s all about getting revenge on Wonder Woman and Aquaman, respectively. We bet they sign right up as soon as they find out Lex has METAL’s Batman Who Laughs locked up in Doom HQ!

Why It’s Hot: The Batman Who Laughs is back, and business is about to pick up in the second Legion Of Doom focused issue of the latest Justice League series. What could Lex Luthor need bad enough to think that it’s a good idea to unleash this monster on the world again? More consequentially, what does the most twisted version of Batman in any universe want in return? One of the best team comics just keeps on getting better.

MISTER MIRACLE #11
Written by Tom King
Art by Mitch Gerads
Published by DC Comics – $3.99

If there’s one thing popular fiction has taught us by now, it’s: never make a deal with the devil! And yet Mister Miracle is still listening when Darkseid approaches him with just such a devilish proposition-if Scott sends his newborn son to Apokolips, there will be peace on New Genesis. Since when has Darkseid been famous for his honesty?! It’ll be a miracle if this doesn’t blow up in Scott’s face.

Why It’s Hot: Mister Miracle and Big Barda come face to face with Darkseid in the penultimate issue of the very best series that superhero comics have to offer. It doesn’t get better than this. Darkseid Is.

RETURN OF WOLVERINE #1
Written by Charles Soule
Art by Steve McNiven (Pencils), Jay Leisten (Inks) & Laura Martin (Colors)
Published by Marvel Comics – $4.99

HE’S BACK, BUB.

Why It’s Hot: After all the teases, appearances, and “Hunts” the man known as Wolverine is back. The guys that killed him a few years back are now in charge of setting the stage for Logan’s big reintroduction to the Marvel Universe. That’s of course depending on whether Logan even remembers the name Wolverine…

WEST COAST AVENGERS #2
Written by Kelly Thompson
Art by Stefano Caselli (Pencils) & Triona Farrell (Colors)
Published by Marvel Comics – $3.99

• You thought giant land sharks were bad? How about former West Coast Avenger Tigra transformed into an extremely grouchy, extremely ENORMOUS Woman?!
• But Tigra isn’t the half of it. Who’s the insanely handsome man behind the curtain pulling her strings?
• Hawkeye, Hawkeye, America Chavez, Fuse, Gwenpool and Kid Omega are here to uncover the mystery and save the city of Los Angeles from certain death (but not extreme property damage!)
• They may not be the heroes we need, but they’re certainly the ones we deserve! Strap in, folks!

Why It’s Hot: The first issue of the latest volume of West Coast Avengers took comic book fans by storm last month. It was fun with snappy dialogue from Kelly Thompson, and pitch perfect art courtesy of Stefano Caselli. How is this new team going to stop a giant, out of control Tigra? Will B.R.O.D.O.K. be able to help? Speaking of B.R.O.D.O.K. what is that guy’s relationship to A.I.M. and M.O.D.O.K.? This is the comic, and the team that the best, I mean west coast has been waiting years for.

ALSO AVAILABLE THIS WEEK:

* Amazing Spider-Man Annual #1
* Avengers #8
* Burnouts #1
* Death Or Glory #5
* Edge Of Spider-Geddon #3
* Flavor #5
* Hit-Girl #8
* The Immortal Hulk #6
* Kick-Ass #7
* The Life Of Captain Marvel #3
* Mr. And Mrs. X #3
* Multiple Man #4
* Nightwing #49
* Oh S#!t It’s Kim And Kim #2
* Pearl #2
* Rumble #7
* Seven To Eternity #11
* Stellar #4
* Thor #5
* Vagrant Queen #4
* Venom #6
* WWE NXT Takeover: Into The Fire #1
* The Wild Storm #17

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