It’s almost time to close out the year. December is long and chaotic, so make sure to take some time for yourself with comics. We’ve already seen what DC, Marvel, Image, and manga publishers are offering; now, let’s take a look at everything else that’s coming.
1. Trapped in the Triangle
Sometimes you’re just after a good Bermuda Triangle story, the weirder the better. John Layman certainly has the capacity to let his imagination fly, while Nick Bradshaw, a fixture of superhero comics, can cram so much into a page. It’s always fun to see what artists can accomplish freed from the constraints of the superhero power houses.
Bermuda
Written by John Layman
Illustrated by Nick Bradshaw
Published by IDW ComicsAn all-new tale of high adventure and pulpish mystery from John Layman, New York Times bestselling writer of Chew, and superstar artist Nick Bradshaw (Wolverine & the X-Men, Astonishing Spider-Man)!
There’s a region in the Atlantic Ocean where planes disappear, ships are lost, and traveling souls go missing… never to be heard from again. And there’s an island within this place, mysterious and uncharted, untouched by time and civilization, where all who are lost end up.
It’s a mysterious place inhabited by dinosaurs, pirates, crazed magicians, strange monsters… and a girl named Bermuda. Sixteen-years-old, scrappy, and a survivor, this has been the only life she has ever known. Until today. Today she discovers something on her island that will either open a doorway between her world and ours… or destroy them both!
2. What the Future Became
There was a time when cyberpunk seemed like a distant, horrifying future. Now, we’ve evolved to a place where the worst parts of the genre — corporate overlords, technological exploitation, enormous cultural rifts — are ever present, without any of that cool aesthetic stuff. “Buckhead” by Shobo Coker and George Kambadis, seems attuned to this new reality and is ready to lean into it for this YA thriller.
Buckhead #1
Written by Shobo Coker
Illustrated by George Kambadis
Published by BOOM! StudiosWhat strange secrets lie in the mysterious town of Buckhead, USA?
Toba and his mother, a renowned scientist, have just immigrated to the US. But instead of living in the Big City like Toba always dreamed, they’ve moved to a sleepy little town in the Pacific Northwest called BUCKHEAD.
In the middle of the picturesque and pedestrian town, Toba discovers that things aren’t as perfect as they seem…
Toba and his newfound friends find a strange video game, a perfect replica of the town and its people. Soon Toba is on the run from men in black, with his friends brainwashed by microchips.
An astonishing new series from Shobo Coker (Outcasts of Jupiter) and George Kambadais (The Black Ghost) perfect for fans of Eve and Home Sick Pilots!
3. Eventually, Everything Returns
Jessie Zabrasky’s “Witchlight” was this gorgeously illustrated and immersive comic, subversive and enthralling. There’s no reason to think she won’t bring that same poise and energy to her current work, with its dual storylines and sapphic romance. Zabrasky’s visual eye is keen and sharp, making each page wondrous to behold.
Continued belowComing Back
Written and Illustrated by Jessie Zabrasky
Published by Random HousePreet is magic.
Valissa is not.
Everyone in their village has magic in their bones, and Preet is the strongest of them all. Without any power of her own, how can Valissa ever be worthy of Preet’s love?
When their home is attacked, Valissa has a chance to prove herself, but that means leaving Preet behind. On her own for the first time, Preet breaks the village’s most sacred laws and is rejected from the only home she’s ever known and sent into a new world.
Divided by different paths, insecurities, and distance, will Valissa and Preet be able to find their way back to each other?
A beautiful story of two young women who are so focused on proving they’re meant to be together that they end up hurting each other in the process. This gorgeous graphic novel is an LGTBQ+ romance about young love and how it can grow into something strong no matter what obstacles get in the way.
4. Three … Two … One … This Jam
There is no reason for the live action version of Cowboy Bebop to exist. And, O.K., the cast seems cool, but it’s all part of Netflix’s continual desire to envelop every IP, regardless if they have the rights to the original or not. The show is part of the ongoing problem where producers refuse to see animation as anything serious. Like a title cannot have merit or worth if it’s drawn out. On top of that, the new series doesn’t seem to be doing anything fresh with the material, either, except make each episode longer. The original Sunrise series, overseen by Watanabe Shinichirō, were tight, concise, and perfect. From the clips that have been released, it all seems so slow, as if it’s a beat behind where it should be. (Probably because animation allows for more control of time.) In any case, there’s a comic book spin-off, though I have no idea if it’s an adaptation of the new show or, like the manga, something that takes it in another direction.
Just watch the original show.
Cowboy Bebop #1
Written by Dan Watters
Illustrated by Lamar Mathurin
Published by Titan ComicsBASED ON THE NEW NETFLIX LIVE-ACTION ADAPTATION OF THE ORIGINAL ANIME!
An original story set in the year 2171. The bounty hunter crew of the spaceship Bebop chase an ex-gang member who holds a vest which gives the wearer unlimited luck.
New Netflix series starring John Cho (STAR TREK), Mustafa Shakir (LUKE CAGE) and Daniela Pinada (JURASSIC WORLD: FALLEN KINGDOM).
5. She’s Waited for Him Everlong
Ryan Lindsay and Sami Kivela throw every idea they have into comic. Cosmic creatures and dead children and desperate attempts to get home . . .. It sounds emotional, thrilling, and wild, filled with illustrations that capture the insanity of the plot.
Everfrost
Written by Ryan Lindsay
Illustrate by Sami Kivela
Published by Black Mask ComicsVan Louise retired to the ice coast so she could quietly find a way off planet from a world on the wrong side of societal collapse.
She biohacks a dead leviathan to orchestrate passage away into the universe, but her plans are about to get chewed up by a mounting war between the Warlords (violent gatekeepers for the global ruling elite) and the Bloom (who risk extinction living on the water) as well as a family reunion with her son she hasn’t seen since he died in her arms when he was a child.
6. Cold Comfort
The concept behind this book sounds fine, but I’m including it here because it’s brazen enough to go for that title.
No Holds Bard #1
Written by Eric Gladstone
Illustrated by Gabrielle Kari
Published by Behemoth ComicsWhen Queen Elizabeth I is kidnapped, only the dramatic duo of William Shakespeare and William Page in their superhero alter-egos, THE BARD and PAGE can save her! Written in iambic pentameter, No Holds Bard is a throwback comedy adventure 400 years in the making.
Gail Simone says, “…brilliantly written, gorgeously illustrated. This is why I am in love with comics.”
7. The Trauma, the Violence
Black Panel Press presents this highly emotional and charged comic, about death and the usual existential questions. Gianluca Nori’s art possesses a lot of tooth; his panel breakdowns are rhythmic and propulsive. “No One Knows” will inevitably be a tragic story, but that swell of emotion will only make us all the more connected.
Continued belowNo One Knows
Written by Salvatore Vivenzio
Illustrated by Gianluca Nori
Published by Black Panel PressNo One Knows is a story that begins with an end. The end of a woman’s life; a mother, daughter, partner, and patient. After her death, those closest to her struggle to deal with their loss and its consequences. Grief poses the ultimate existential question: What comes after death? And there is only one answer: No one knows.
8. The Force Will Be With Us . . . Always
All the creators behind the High Republic initiative are here for its first “Star Wars Adventures” annual. IDW’s Star Wars stuff has been leaps and bounds better than the material from the other publisher, with more imagination, and a stronger will to explore the goofier parts of the galaxy. Also, we need more stories away from the Rebellion/Empire, Resistance/First Order, more stories that have nothing to do with those Skywalkers.
Star Wars Adventures: The High Republic Annual 2021
Written by Claudia Gray, Charles Soule, Justina Ireland, Daniel Jose Older, and Cavan Scott
Illustrated by Sam Beck, Jesse Lonegran, Jason Loo, Yael Nathan, and Stefano Simeone
Published by IDW PublishingJoin all five High Republic authors, together in one book for the FIRST TIME EVER, as they each explore different corners of the galaxy during the height of the Galactic Republic. From daring Jedi, to the always adventurous Geode, and nefarious Nihil, The High Republic Adventures Annual has it all!
9. It’s a-Him!
This special edition of the “Super Mario Encyclopedia” comes with plenty of neat features, like a holofoil print, vine bookmark, colored page edges, a slipcase, and four different covers. It also comes with a bonus code for an audiobook version read by Chris Pratt, in character. At the end of every chapter, Miyamoto Shigeru will come out to remind us, He’s so cool!
The Super Mario Encyclopedia
Published by Dark Horse ComicsThe Super Mario Encyclopedia is jam-packed with content from all seventeen Super Mario games and spans more than 30 years of the franchises history-from the original Super Mario Bros to Super Mario 3D World. Track the evolution of the Goomba, witness the introduction of Yoshi, and relive your favorite levels. This tome also contains an interview with producer Takashi Tezuka, tips to help you find every coin, star, sun, and mushroom–even explanations of glitches! With information on enemies, items, obstacles, and worlds from over thirty years of Mario, Super Mario Encyclopedia is the definitive resource for everything Super Mario!
This deluxe limited edition comes with an embossed slipcase specially designed to look like the iconic Super Mario Question Mark Block! Inside, you’ll find one of four covers-Super Mushroom, Fire Flower, Super Star, or 1-Up Mushroom-each accentuated with shimmering holofoil! The book also includes a ribbon bookmark, printed with the original vine design from Super Mario Bros., and a sky-and-cloud design printed along the pages’ edge.
Buyers will receive one of four covers, chosen randomly (Super Mushroom, Fire Flower, Super Star, or 1-Up Mushroom), each in the “Question Mark Block” slipcase.
Specific cover image cannot be requested or guaranteed.
Each cover variant is printed in equal quantities.
10. The Family that Rides Together Rises Together
Family means never having to get into a mech suit alone.
We Ride Titans #1
Written by Tres Dean
Illustrated by Sebastian Piriz
Published by Vault ComicsKaiju hit hard. Family hits harder.
Trying to keep your family from imploding is a tall order. Kit Hobbs is about to find out it’s an even taller order when that family has been piloting the Titan that protects New Hyperion from kaiju for generations. Between a spiraling brother, a powder keg of a father, and a whole bunch of twenty-story monsters, she’s got her work cut out for her.
As always, that was fun. Let us know what you’re excited for in the comments!
