Welcome to Comicosity’s Hot Five. Hot Five is a short 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 for the week in the comic market!
ADVENTURE TIME: BANANA GUARD ACADEMY #1
Written by Kent Osborne & Dylan Haggerty
Art by Mad Rupert
Published by BOOM! Studios – $3.99
WHY WE LOVE IT: Not only are the Banana Guards hilarious as the Candy Kingdom’s protectors, but this series is written by Kent Osborne, head writer of the ADVENTURE TIME animated series. Kent is responsible for some of our favorite episodes of the show and we’re thrilled to have him write his first comic book.
WHY YOU’LL LOVE IT: If you love ADVENTURE TIME, you can’t get beat a comic series written by one of the show’s writers and the creator of Root Beer Guy! Also great if you like bananas.
WHAT IT’S ABOUT: Turns out that there is a lot to being a Banana Guard—but being a Banana is not mandatory. This crazy adventure follows Root Beer Guy as he starts his search for new recruits among Ooo’s citizens. Only the best will do in his quest to protect the Candy Kingdom!
Why It’s Hot: As many of you can attest to, Adventure Time is one of the absolute best animated shows on television. One of the wonderful things about the show is the world building, and the variety of different characters that have been introduced. One of the more recent, and memorable additions to the Adventure Time universe is Root Beer Guy, head of the Banana Guard. The co-creator of the character/head writer of the show, Kent Osborne, has made the jump to the comic books for this mini series event! The Adventure Time comics have been able to capture the spirit of the show and have proven to be massively popular, and there’s no reason to believe that Banana Guard Academy won’t continue this trend.
GRAYSON #1
Written by Tim Seeley & Tom King
Art by Mikel Janin
Published by DC Comics – $2.99
Dick Grayson. Former sidekick. Former Super Hero. Former dead man. And now…agent of Spyral?!
A thrilling new chapter of Dick Grayson’s life begins in this new, ongoing series. It’s a super-spy thriller that will shock you and prove one thing: You might think you know Nightwing – but you don’t know Dick.
Why It’s Hot: Dick Grayson is dead, long live Dick Grayson! The world believes the former Nightwing to be dead following the events of Forever Evil, and Batman has used this to his advantage by sending his adopted son on his most dangerous mission yet! For the past decade Marvel Comics has had their fair share of espionage with Secret Avengers, Captain America and Winter Soldier, but now it is DC’s turn to provide their unique spin on the popular genre. Writer Tim Seeley teams with former CIA officer turned writer, Tom King to give readers a Dick Grayson story unlike any other! Then throw one of the best artists in comics today, Mikel Janin, and the New 52 debut of Helena Bertinelli, and you have a highly anticipated debut issue!
ORIGINAL SIN #5.1
Written by Jason Aaron & Al Ewing
Art by Simone Bianchi & Lee Garbett
Published by Marvel Comics – $3.99
THOR: THE TENTH REALM
• Thanks to the events of ORIGINAL SIN, the deepest secret of the Nine Realms is revealed… a Tenth Realm!
• Thor and Loki embark on a quest to discover this strange new world — and the sister Thor never knew he had… Angela!
• But can Loki be trusted? And will brother and sister murder each other before the truth comes out?
Why It’s Hot: A story so big that not only does it spin out of Original Sin, but it takes the place of Thor: God of Thunder and Loki: Agent of Asgard for the next two months! The creators behind two of Marvel’s best titles are telling the story behind Angela’s connection to two of the most popular characters in comics with a story that promises to reverberate throughout the Marvel Universe¡
MAGNUS ROBOT FIGHTER #0
Written by Fred Van Lente
Art by Roberto Castro
Published by Dynamite Comics – $3.99
An ALL-NEW GOLD KEY adventure spinning directly from the events of MAGNUS: ROBOT FIGHTER #4! Magnus is A robot fighter…but not THE robot fighter. How has the merciless LEEJA: HUMAN HUNTER kept the robot fighters from causing chaos on earth? And how does it tie into THE SINGULARITY? It’s overstuffed action and intrigue from FRED VAN LENTE (Conan) and ROBERTO CASTRO (Warlord of Mars)!
Why It’s Hot: The Gold Key line of books currently being published by Dynamite are some of the best comic books being published today. They feature classic characters being reinterpreted by some of the top creators working in comics today. This week sees the release of a special zero issue of Magnus: Robot Fighter that fits in between issues two and three of the series. Also released this week are issue five of Magnus: Robot Fighter, and issue six of Turok: Dinosaur Hunter which features the writing of Greg Pak. Do yourself a favor and jump on board one of the comic book industry’s biggest surprises of 2014!
SPREAD #1
Written by Justin Jordan
Art by Kyle Strahm
Published by Image Comics – $3.50
Ten years ago, we dug too deep. We unleashed something ancient that couldn’t be controlled. Something that couldn’t be stopped, twisting everything it touched into more of itself.
The Spread.
Humanity was nearly destroyed before we found a way to slow the Spread to a crawl. Now, deep inside the quarantined zone, one man has found the key to stopping it forever: a baby girl. And if he can save her, he might save the world.
Why It’s Hot: Justin Jordan is one of the fastest rising stars in comic books and whether it be the Luthor Strode books, or Dead Body Road, his creator owned titles have been nothing but phenomenal. Now Jordan is joined by artist Kyle Strahm as they bring a new Sci-Fi book to Image that looks to be parts Lone Wolf & Cub, and Children of Men. This is a book to be on the lookout for, and you may want to pick up a copy before it’s too late!
