A lot of exciting returns in September. Whether it’s Kelly Sue Deconnick returning to one of her greatest creations or Warren Ellis and Jason Howard taking another shot at one of their most famous series, this is a time to check in with out favorite creators and see what they’ve been up to. It’s also the end of an era, as one of my favorite Image series comes to an end. Bittersweet, isn’t that the word? So as you leave your summer vacation behind and realize you’re not yet ready to face the world, here’s ten of the best series Image has ready to help you escape. Or you know, fill you with existential dread and ennui. Comics is complicated y’all.
As always, you can get the full list of solicitations on the Image Comics website. Whole lotta rats and a whole lotta trees this month. Let’s get started.
10. Counting our reavers before the hatch
I try to make a point not to pick too many things for this list that I haven’t read yet, with the exception of exciting number 1s. Since solicits are three months out, that usually means no 2s or 3s on this list; I already know the series has potential but I haven’t had the chance to check it out myself. I seem to be making a special case for “Reaver.” There’s not really logic to it, I’m just incredibly hype for this series. It’s got a great fantasy premise, a “Suicide Squad” vibe, and every scrap of artwork gets me even more excited. So keep an eye out next month. I’ll have read #1 and if #4 doesn’t make my column, you’ll know I was disappointed. If you do see #4… then the hype is real!
Reaver #3
WRITER: Justin Jordan
ARTIST: Alex Guimaraes, Rebekah Isaacs
COVER A: Becky Cloonan
SEPTEMBER 11 / 32 pages / FC/ M / $3.99Madaras is going to hell, and only Hell’s Half-Dozen can stop it. Their suicide mission brings them to an outpost deep within enemy territory to pull a brazen heist using deception, seduction, and murder—all their most notable skills.
9. The first of many trees
I was underwhelmed by the first run of “Trees.” I mean, even the worst Warren Ellis is more interesting than the best efforts from many other creators. The dude is a legend who takes big swings, and sometimes misses big. Then I got into “Cemetery Beach,” another collaboration with Jason Howard and declared it the best Ellis book in years. So, I propose we go into this new “Trees” miniseries with fresh eyes, and see what weirdness Ellis and Howard have in store for us.
Trees: Three Fates #1 (of 5)
WRITER: Warren Ellis
ARTIST / COVER A: Jason Howard
SEPTEMBER 11 / 24 pages / FC/ M / $3.99“A uniquely exciting read.” —IGN The acclaimed series from WARREN ELLIS and JASON HOWARD—which is currently being adapted for television—returns with a brand-new story of murder and ghosts! In the remote Russian village of Toska, there’s a dead body by the leg of the Tree that landed eleven years ago. Police sergeant Klara Voranova, still haunted by that day, has no idea how this murder will change everything—nor what awaits her in the Tree’s shadow.
8. They keep killing walkers
I hear that readership on the “Walking Dead” comic is down, and viewership on the show is down as well. Which is kind of crazy, because the comic at least has been firing on all cylinders lately. Kirkman has become such an institution, it’s kind of easy to take him for granted, but the dude is seriously a visionary comic creator, and he’s been putting out some of the best issues of his staggeringly popular series. If you fell off of “Walking Dead” at some point along the way, I don’t blame you, I’ve crept in and out. But maybe as we are ramping up to #200, which ought to be a big deal, we should take some time to catch up and remind ourselves why this series has run for so long.
Continued belowThe Walking Dead #195
WRITER: Robert Kirkman
ARTIST: Cliff Rathburn, Charlie Adlard
COVER A: Charlie Adlard, Dave Stewart
SEPTEMBER 04 / 32 pages / BW/ M / $3.99“THE SWORDSMAN STRIKES” This is the end of the line—but for whom?
7. The beginning of the end of the end of the world
I do a column on “X-Men,” so I may have caught myself a vicious strain of Hickman fever. And this is truly the end of one phase of his career and the start of another. Even while he was doing mind-breaking numbers of books for Marvel, he had his creator owned stuff chugging along. But now “Manhattan Projects” has been quiet for years, “Black Monday Murders” is ended, and the crown jewel of the Hickman indie empire is concluding. “East of West” has been the quintessential Hickman book. It is to him what “The Invisibles” is to Grant Morrison, or “Preacher” to Garth Ennis, or “Wicked + Divine” to Kieron Gillen. And while I am more excited for Hickman’s “X-Man” than I have been for any comic in years, part of me is sad that this series is ending. I bet the last few issues will be breathtaking.
East of West #43
WRITER: Jonathan Hickman
ARTIST / COVER A: Nick Dragotta
SEPTEMBER 25 / 32 pages / FC/ T+ / $3.99“FAMINE” Five years of storytelling have led to this! The final arc of EAST OF WEST begins now. You wanted the End Times—well, here they come! HOLLYWOOD NEWS! Amazon Studios has put in development as an hour-long genre drama series from Jonathan Hickman and Nick Dragotta. They are teaming with Robert Kirkman who will executive produce via Skybound Entertainment’s first-look deal. The show will be created and executive produced by Hickman and Nick Dragotta and written by Hickman. Also executive producing alongside Skybound’s Kirkman will be Dave Alpert, Sean Furst, and Bryan Furst (Dice).
6. More like a grove really
This is another example where I haven’t gotten to read the issues yet, as its a duology. But the triple threat of Chip Zdarsky, Kris Anka, and Matt Wilson is worth the cover price alone (five bucks for 40 pages). Honestly though, I’ve been very impressed with Zdarsky as he’s branched away from comedy. You can still see the ways in which comedic timing serves his stories, but his “Daredevil” has proven that he can make his style work in any genre. Plus remember what happened last time these guys got together? We got the very memorable, risk taking “Star-Lord: Grounded” series. I think this is gonna be something special.
The White Trees #2 (of 2)
WRITER: Chip Zdarsky
ARTIST / COVER A: Kris Anka
SEPTEMBER 11 / 40 pages / FC/ M / $4.99Violence is on the wind, and Krylos hasn’t taken a breath in decades. Can he save his son AND his soul while regaining the trust of lost friends? The gorgeous, spectacular OVERSIZED TWO-ISSUE MINISERIES—written by CHIP ZDARSKY and illustrated by KRIS ANKA and MATT WILSON—concludes!
5. Yasss
First, addressing the elephant in the room: I reviewed the first issue from this creative team, and I didn’t give it a very high score. But allow me to take this chance to defend their work. I think the main thing holding back “Rat Queens” #16 was inexperience. This is the most high-exposure mainstream book Priscilla Petraites has ever done, and Ryan Ferrier cut his teeth as a letterer, not a writer. But you can’t criticize them for a lack of ambition or for having bad ideas. So I am going to continue to insist we give them the chance. I don’t know that they will have mastered the craft in two issues, but we should continue to track this team who have been giving the keys to one of the best franchises at Image.
Continued belowRat Queens (2017) #18
WRITER: Ryan Ferrier
ARTIST / COVER A: Marco Lasko, Priscilla Petraites
SEPTEMBER 11 / 32 pages / FC/ M / $3.99With Palisade in the grip of a madman from their past, the Rat Queens embark on their most dangerous quest ever—one that will bring about either the end of the Queens, or their acquisition of the most powerful weapon in the entire realm!
4. Polyhedral panic
So the “Die” game came out. I haven’t had a chance to play it yet, but it looks excellent. It also helps tease out some things that have only been alluded to in the comic itself, like how the world is a rolling d20, and each face of the die is a unique fantasy realm, based on whatever Kieron Gillen and Stephanie Hans are into that day. Well based on the solicit for #7, it looks like we’re going to be exploring some more facets of the tumbling world. The Tolkien issue was a highlight so far, so I have no doubt that there are some opaque meta-fictional treats in store for us.
Die #7
WRITER: Kieron Gillen
ARTIST / COVER A: Stephanie Hans
COVER B: Mathieu Lauffray
SEPTEMBER 04 / 32 pages / FC/ M / $3.99“SPLIT THE PARTY,” Part Two The rest of our heroes have to march the survivors of Glass Town across the featureless Expanse, led by contrite Isabelle and never-contrite-in-his-whole-life Chuck. But is there more than meets the eye here? Like a secret door? Or a soul?
3. Gotta find the rat!
There are some great comics creators who I am just greedy for their work. Kelly Sue DeConnick has been in the public eye lately thanks to Captain Marvel, but issues of “Bitch Planet” are few and far and in-between. And then boom, suddenly she’s doing freaking “Aquaman” of all things and it rules! Not to mention Emma Rios, who I love so much I’ve just been reading that “Doctor Strange” she did with Greg Pak over and over again. But now “Pretty Deadly” is back! The moodiest, most impressionistic book either of these two supersars have ever worked on, and it’s pulling the anthology trick, with this miniseries taking us to the golden age of Hollywood. That format seems perfect for a series like this, and I can’t wait to get reacquainted with Deathface Ginny in whatever form she chooses to take.
Pretty Deadly: The Rat #1 (of 5)
WRITER: Kelly Sue DeConnick
ARTIST / COVER A: Emma Ríos
SEPTEMBER 04 / 32 pages / FC/ M / $3.99KELLY SUE DeCONNICK (BITCH PLANET, Captain Marvel) and EMMA RÍOS (MIRROR, I.D.) begin a new chapter in the dark and deadly golden era of Hollywood.
Select praise for PRETTY DEADLY:
“Pretty Deadly going to old Hollywood is the best turn this dark fable has taken yet. One of my favorite comics, aiming right at my jugular. I can’t wait for more.” —Ed Brubaker
“With its poetry and violence, there’s nothing like this. Cherish it.” —Kieron Gillen
“This weird western saga gleefully, dreamily fuses a Greek chorus, spaghetti westerns, American trickster tales and creepy Japanese shoujo (girls’) manga. At the core of it, however, is a masterpiece of mythopoeism that many literary fantasists struggle to emulate.” —N.K. Jemisin, NYT Book Review
“A ferocious series of powerful characters born of gorgeous art. It is Sergio Leone crossed with Neil Gaiman’s American Gods, a hellish yet alluring mix of epic mythology from the ancient poets, the relentlessly unforgiving fairy tales of the Old World, and the blood-soaked folklore of the Old West.” —Tor.com
“From the moment you crack open its pages, you’re transported into a world as fantastical as any fairy tale and as haunting as any ghost story. Pretty Deadly represents genre-bending to the point of breakage in the best possible way.” —IGN
“It’s ambitious and challenging…under a facade of violence and sacrifice. Rios’s art is lush and detailed, and is more than capable of keeping up with the far-reaching story.” —Publishers Weekly
“Pretty Deadly, one of the most fascinating comics published today, is a magical realist genre-bender that began as a Sergio Leone-style Western, but has transformed into a grisly World War I story with its second arc.” —The Onion’s AV Club
2. Good doggo
I don’t know guys, it’s a comic about a barbarian who rides a giant pug. Either you’re in or you’re out.
Continued belowBattlepug #1
WRITER: Mike Norton
ARTIST: Mike Norton, Allen Passalaqua
COVER A: Allen Passalaqua, Mike Norton
COVER B: Chris Samnee, Matt Wilson
SEPTEMBER 04 / 32 pages / FC/ T+ / $3.99The hit fan-favorite webcomic created by the Eisner Award-winning duo of MIKE NORTON and ALLEN PASSALAQUA is now a NEW COMIC SERIES! It’s been a few years since the last Kinmundian saved the world with the help of his faithful Battlepug, but a new threat arises. The epic tale returns as our favorite barbarian and his trusty overgrown dog renew their quest for insane adventure! Same dog. NEW TRICKS!
1. %$!#@&@$!
“Rat Queens” #1 and “Sex Criminals” #1 both came out on the same Wednesday in 2013. I didn’t work for a website at the time, but I declared it the best day for comics ever. Nothing even came close until January 2017, when Charles Soule, the hardest working guy in comics and Ryan Browne, the weirdest guy in comics not named Chip Zdarsky, launched “Curse Words.” An astounding and charming series, “Curse Words” brought all of the manic magic energy of Browne’s “God Hates Astronauts” together with the kind of meticulous care Charles Soule brings to series like “Letter 44.” And presumably his law practice. But now, “Curse Words” is coming to an end.
Twenty-five issues and a couple of specials make up a run that feels far too short. But sometimes it’s better to be trim and to hit hard than to grow old and flabby. So I’ll try not to cry to hard at the end of “Curse Words,” but it has been singularly hilarious and heartbreaking, wonderfully irreverent, and filled with the kind of wizard riddles most of us aren’t smart enough to come up with. It has art my one friend described as “extremely vascular.” It’s an all-time classic of the modern age of comics. You should all bring joy to your life and read this magnificent series.
Curse Words #25
WRITER: Charles Soule
ARTIST / COVER A / COVER B: Ryan Browne
SEPTEMBER 25 / 32 pages / FC/ M / $3.99Friends, it’s been a hell of a ride, just a hell of a ride… and now it’s time to see how CURSE WORDS brings this ungainly wizard ship in for a landing. Will it be better than the finales for Game of Thrones, Lost, Battlestar Galactica, and M*A*S*H combined? Without a doubt. Thank you for all your support for this series over the years… we’ll see you on the next one!
