Hello and welcome to Multiversity’s look at the “Best of the Rest,” where we try to summarize what’s coming your way this August 2019. We’ve already looked at DC, Marvel, Image, and manga offerings. Now let’s check out what else the Previews Catalogue has in store!
Get your pull lists ready because it’s time to see all the other stuff going on in comics.
10. Stardew Hell
The creator names are the biggest draw here. Simone and Geonvi did a lot of fun work with “Red Sonja.” Hopefully that energy translates into this new series.
Death Defying Devil #1
Written by Gail Simone
Illustrated by Walter Geovani
Published by Dynamite EntertainmentThe Winslow House is in shambles, but people call it home. It is a place for people who have almost nothing but are trying to make a life for themselves. It is also in a bad neighborhood, and no one will stop criminals from tormenting the residents…until The Death-Defying Devil shows up!
But when the Devil tries to step in and protect the innocent, things take a turn for the worse and he finds himself trapped inside the house, being taken care of by the same people he was trying to save.
Gail Simone (Birds of Prey, Wonder Woman) and Walter Geovani (Red Sonja, Clean Room) present the story of The Death-Defying Devil and a group of neighbors who will do what it takes to keep their home, and each other, safe!
9. An Artist with a Thompson
Ward and Kivelä threw all sorts of pulpy concepts together to make this new series that sounds like a lot of fun. I don’t know if it’s going to go full alternate history or just run with its world, but there’s a lot of potential for imagination.
Tommy Gun Wizards #1
Written by Christian Ward
Illustrated by Sami Kivelä
Published by Dark Horse ComicsEliot Ness and his team of Untouchables work overtime taking on dangerous criminals that hide in the seedy underbelly of 1930s Chicago. Except in this world, Al Capone isn’t dealing in alcohol, but in magic. With Lick, a drug that grants magical powers to anyone who ingests it, mobsters become wizards, ordinary men become monsters, and darker secrets than Ness can imagine lie at the heart of it all. A new genre-bending comic series from Christian Ward, artist of the acclaimed sci-fi epic Invisible Kingdom. Drawn by Sami Kivelä (Abbott).
8. Legends of the Hidden Temple
It’s The Tales of Beetle the Bard, except in Star Wars.
Star Wars: Myths & Fables
Written by George Mann
Illustrated by Grant Griffin
Published by Titan ComicsBeautifully illustrated, this unique treasury of in-world space tales takes readers to the far reaches of the Star Wars universe, including to the remote outer rim world of Batuu from Galaxy’s Edge.
7. For the Headlines
I really hope this book’s interiors reflect the same aesthetic as the cover. It would add another chilling layer to this neo-noir thriller.
Continued belowBury the Lede
Written by Gaby Dunn
Illustrated by Claire Roe
Published by BOOM! Studios* Cub reporter Madison Jackson is young, scrappy, and hungry to prove that she deserves her coveted college internship at the premiere newspaper in town, The Boston Lede, so when her police scanner mentions a brutal murder tied to the prominent Boston Kennedys, Madison races to the crime scene, looking for the scoop of the century.
* What she finds instead is the woman who’ll change her life forever: Dahlia Kennedy, celebrity socialite, now widow, covered in gore and the prime suspect in the murder of her husband and child. When Dahlia refuses to talk to anyone but Madison, they begin a dangerous game of cat and mouse that leads the young journalist down a twisted path.
* From Gaby Dunn (Bad with Money, I Hate Everyone But You) and Claire Roe (Batgirl and the Birds of Prey, Welcome Back) comes an all-new original graphic novel about the thrill of the chase and the dangers of going toe-to-toe with a potential killer.
6. The Phantoms of the Mind that Walk in Darkness
Start getting ready for the Halloween season with this latest spin on Washington Irving’s most famous story. Though from the sounds of it, this sounds like they took Tim Burton’s Sleepy Hollow and threw in some “Paper Girls” for good measure. Autumnal fun at the end of summer.
Headless #1
Written by Alexander Banchita
Illustrated by Robert Ahmad
Published by Vault ComicsSalem, Massachusetts: 1987. Two teenagers have been found dead, brutally murdered, but not by a man. When gruesome murders become a common occurrence in this sleepy town it is evident that the Headless Horseman has returned! Two brothers, having recently arrived in Salem, find themselves in a centuries-old battle between the Knights Templar (whose task it is to banish all magic from Salem) and the Headless Horseman, the one originally responsible for turning the women of Salem into witches. All Hell breaks loose when the brothers discover they are closer to his true identity than they realize…
5. Among the Cities
Sometimes the biggest, most grandoise designs don’t necessarily make for the most awe-inspiring circumstances. That seems to be the thesis behind this graphic novel from Sylvia Nickerson, which explores gentrification and identity. “Creation” sounds powerful and no doubt Nickerson’s visuals will help cement this ongoing urban dilemma.
Creation
Written and Illustrated by Sylvia Nickerson
Published by Drawn & QuarterlyA new mother takes us on a tour of Hamilton, a Rust Belt city born of the Industrial Revolution and dying a slow death due to globalization. This mother represents the city’s next wave of inhabitants: the artists and young parents who swarm a run-down area for its affordability, inevitably reshaping the neighborhoods they take over. Creation looks at gentrification from the inside out, an artist mother making a home and neighborhood for her family, struggling to find her place amid the existing and emerging communities.
4. The Glittering World
It’s “Tales of the Slayers” but for Buffy’s BOOM! age. That series was some of the most interesting and fun stuff from Dark Horse’s “Buffy” run (like, they got contributions from the likes of P. Craig Russell and Tim Sale), so I’m interested to see how this new generation of Buffy fans runs with it.
Buffy the Vampire Slayer: The Chosen Ones #1
Written by Celia Lowenthal and Mairghread Scott
Illustrated by Celia Lowenthal
Published by BOOM! Studios* The First Appearance of The Greatest Slayers in History!
* Journey back in time and witness the stories of some of the Slayers from all over the globe. Watch the birth of the Sunnydale Hellmouth – an event that will lead to repercussions across the globe… and into the present day. A can’t miss for current Buffy readers and new fans alike!
3. Nobody from Nowhere…but Not to Us
Jeffrey Brown’s “Star Wars” books are so friggin charming and adorable and fun, they’re difficult to pass up. It’s like a coffee shop AU, except in middle school and created by someone who can actually, you know, put together a story.
Star Wars: Rey and Pals
Written and Illustrated by Jeffrey Brown
Published by Chronicle BooksWhat if Rey hadn’t grown up all alone on dusty planet Jakku, but instead had a galaxy of friends to play with? New York Times-bestselling author of the Darth Vader and Son series Jeffrey Brown returns to the Star Wars galaxy with a collection of brand-new adventures starring young Rey and Kylo, Finn and Poe, Hux and Phasma, Rose and BB-8-all under the watch of Luke, General Leia, Han, and Chewie. Whether it’s Kylo trying to use the Force to cheat at Go Fish, Poe bowling with BB-8, or Rey lifting rocks to play hide and seek, Jeffrey Brown’s charmingly hilarious vision will delight Star Wars fans of all ages.
2. Clear Your Coffee Table
Six Foot Press offers up this giant retrospective of Bill Sienkiewicz’s work. Readers of the site know this man needs no introduction — he possess one of the most imaginative and unique visions in the medium. This enormous three-volume appreciation ought to be something.
Continued belowBill Sienkiewicz Revolution
Written by Ben Davis
Illustrated by Bill Sienkiewicz
Published by Six Foot PressBill Sienkiewicz is a classically trained painter whose artworks incorporate abstract and expressionist influences and combine oil painting, acrylics, watercolor, mixed media, collage, and mimeograph. Bill Sienkiewicz: Revolution is the first time the artist’s work and career have been taken out of the limited context of comic books and evaluated as fine art. Ben Davis, award-winning Senior Writer for Artnet News, considers Sienkiewicz’s process and places him within the context of art and popular culture. Sal Abbinanti, Sienkiewicz’s representative and colleague for 12 years, Frank Miller, the celebrated auteur of Sin City and 300, contributes his perspective on Sienkiewicz’s place in the pantheon of comic books. Lastly, Bill Sienkiewicz, accompanied by Award-winning journalist Susan Karlin, lends his unique voice and presents some of his greatest artistic achievements. Revolution is the first of three volumes in three years, with each volume consisting of a trade and a signed and numbered limited edition of only 500 copies that includes deluxe reproductions of 40 previously unpublished paintings, drawings, sketches, and mixed media works from Sienkiewicz’s notebooks and personal collection, as well as other private collections. A booklet signed by the artist will include a text explaining his influences and techniques and offer his view on the future of comic book art.
1. The Girl Who Would Be King
A new Kieron Gillen project usually is enough for your attention. He teams up with Dan Mora for this Arthurian romp. It’s a miniseries: with six issues planned, the story ought to be more focused and tight. Gillen typically shines his brightest with a smaller canvas. And if “Klaus” taught us anything, Dan Mora can match even the wildest of comics writers.
Once & Future #1
Written by Kieron Gillen
Illustrated by Dan Mora
Published by BOOM! Studios* When a group of Nationalists use an ancient artifact to bring a villain from Arthurian myth back from the dead to gain power, ex-monster hunter Bridgette McGuire escapes her retirement home and pulls her unsuspecting grandson Duncan, a museum curator, into a world of magic and mysticism to defeat a legendary threat.
* Bestselling writer Kieron Gillen (The Wicked + The Divine, Star Wars) and Russ Manning Award-winning artist Dan Mora (Buffy The Vampire Slayer, Klaus) explore the mysteries of the past, the complicated truths of our history and the power of family to save the day – especially if that family has secret bunkers of ancient weapons and decades of experience hunting the greatest monsters in Britain’s history!
Well, that was fun! And let me know what books you’re excited for in the comments section.
