Buying comics can be an expensive hobby. A lot of fans simply can’t afford everything they’re interested in, due to rising prices and the over-saturation of the market with superhero titles.
That’s why we’re here. Every week, the Multiversity staff is asked “What would you buy this week if you couldn’t go over $20?” and shares their reasons why, in order to help others who might have similar tastes make their own decisions in buying comics on a budget. Be sure to leave your own picks in the comments!
Mark’s Picks:
The Lonesome Hunters: The Wolf Child #2 ($3.99): I just finished reading this issue. Tyler Crook is putting so much of himself on the comics page in this arc, clearly drawing from personal experience. I know that’s an odd thing to say about a story with a magic wolf with a human child, but these fantasy elements are ways to explore other things. Anyway, best you read it for yourself to see what I mean.
Miss Truesdale and the Fall of Hyperborea #4 ($3.99): My review for this will go live tomorrow, and I’ve got a lot to say about it. The short version: this is one of the all-time great stories in the Hellboy Universe.
Panya: The Mummy’s Curse #2 ($3.99): This and the remaining two recommendations are all ones I’m saving to read in collections, but I feel confident with recommending them based on the creative teams. For “Panya: The Mummy’s Curse,” the team is Chris Roberson and Christopher Mitten. Mitten seems to bring out some of Roberson’s best writing, and this is a story they’ve been teasing for a few years now, and given that Panya has long been one of the more cryptic characters in both “B.P.R.D.” and “Witchfinder,” I look forward to seeing her as a more fully realized character.
Wild’s End #3 ($3.99): I couldn’t help but notice the original three arcs of “Wild’s End” are being collected together in paperback as Book One of “Wild’s End,” so that would indicate this new story is destined to run longer than the currently started six issues. That’s good to see. Plus that’ll be a relatively inexpensive way for readers to jump onto Dan Abnett and I.N.J. Culbard’s series.
Something Is Killing the Children #32 ($3.99): I feel like this series has such strong word of mouth, I don’t really need to recommend it at this point. This is more of a reminder that the latest issue is out this week.
Total: $19.95. ’Tis a good week!
Johnny’s Picks:
Wild’s End #3 ($4.99): The creative team of Dan Abnett and I.N.J. Culbard weave such an incredible tale steeped in genre and location, it’s not hard to get immersed in this Wellsian tale of sci-fi horror. While the characters are lovingly crafted and well-rounded, Abnett and Culbard do not coddle their creations, allowing for the deadly narrative to pack an incredible punch. Can’t recommend this book highly enough!
Miss Truesdale and the Fall of Hyperborea #4 ($3.99): My absolute favorite comic so far this year wraps up this week, with cartoonist Jesse Lonergan bringing this excellent time-twisted sword-and-sorcery book admirably to a close. I am in awe of Lonergan’s talent, and I hope to see more collaborations with the Mignolaverse in the future.
Santos Sisters #5 ($5.00):Last but definitely not least is the always enjoyable offering from Greg and Fake Petre, the lost Archie comic series from a parallel universe much cooler than our own, “Santos Sisters” is just a well-crafted funnybook. From the newstand paper to the fake ads to the droll but razor-sharp wit, the comic is much more than a lazy parody you might see in Mad Magazine, but an uncanny sidestep into world that *could* have been, where Harvey and Archie Comics IP’s were allowed to grow up and enjoy the sort of metafiction sensibilities afforded their American superhero comic counterparts.
Total: $13.98 – if you’ve got the extra cash to spend, I also recommend the “Pen & Ink” deluxe format reprint version of “The Many Deaths of Laila Star #1” featuring commentary from artist Filipe Andrade throughout the stunning black and white interior.
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Kate’s Picks:
Dark Spaces Hollywood Special #1 ($3.99): This is giving me Murder on the Orient Express vibes, and I’m here for it. Also fun fact: Minersville, PA is a real town – – I had to go there for a college friend’s wedding. Didn’t see any collapsed mines though. It’s not far from Centralia, PA, which is a great horror story of a town actually ON FIRE from the coal mines beneath the town that needs to be a comic or graphic novel.
The Cull #1 ($3.99): It reads like Stand by Me meets The Goonies meets I Know What You Did Last Summer meets Stranger Things, but I loves me some 80s nostalgia.
Marvel’s Voices: X-Men #1 ($6.99): I am what you could call a casual X-Men fan, which is probably the worst thing to be when they have such extensive lore. This is one of those times I feel like I can dip into and out of Marvel’s Merry Mutants without feeling lost.
Rare Flavours Tasting Menu Ashcan #1 ($2.99): I love supernatural stuff. I love Indian food. Gimme this and a plate of naan and some chicken korma and I am set.
Total: $17.96
