Welcome to you’re new favorite Multiversity Comics column (sorry, Matt – Saturday Morning Panels is old news). As you may know, we have monthly
That said, while I think we do a good job of covering everything else in the day-to-day, all the other comics deserve their own Soliciting Multiversity column too. I’m going to be using this column to highlight my top 10 picks from entire Diamond Previews catalogue, sans the aforementioned publishers. Anything from the catalogue on a given month is fair game, but I will try to stick to highlighting new series, graphic novels, and special collections.
With that in mind, let’s get started with the inaugural column. I already had a hell of a time trying to whittle this list down to 10 picks. Reading Previews every month, I can tell you that this list could easily be 30-40-50 titles long. With that in mind, thank you in advance for checking out our new column – now let’s get to the good stuff:
10. Clara, be my pal, tell me – am I a good man?
Doctor Who is a pretty special property right now. It’s got a huge, rabid fan base that I think it definitely deserves. It’s got the pull to interest a known quantity like Peter Capaldi to come in and play around for a while and it fills a niche for wacky, enthusiastic science fiction that not much else does right now. If the teaser clip and images are any indication, Capaldi’s Doctor run is going to be a little darker, but I doubt that it’ll lose the sense of fun and adventure that they set out to accomplish with the reboot all those years ago. To go coincide with the new series, Titan Comics is releasing a 12th Doctor series. As a burgeoning Whovian – I’m definitely interesting in digesting whatever gets put out.
Doctor Who: The Twelfth Doctor #1
Publisher: Titan Comics
(W) Robbie Morrison (A) Dave TaylorAs the eighth series of Doctor Who hits BBC America, don’t miss the stunning debut of the twelfth Doctor’s all-new comics adventures! Freshly regenerated and with a new head full of unanswered questions, the Doctor whisks Clara Oswald away to a strange and distant world. Clara thought she was in for an evening of marking essays, followed by a date, if things went well. Instead, she’s facing down murderous alien fauna in her best dress, without a clue what the Doctor is searching for, or what is going to try to kill them should they find it! Offering shocks, surprises, and timestream-shaking revelations, don’t miss your chance to get on board this amazing ongoing series!
9. The ol’ “nude in class” nightmare
True story: I once showed up to school in winter with nothing on under my snowpants. Had to sit in class in big, puffy snowpants until my mom could get off of work to come bring me real pants. Having said that, it seems like this graphic anthology was written for me. But I think everyone has these fears. Even the most confident person has embarrassing moments and can relate to a fear of getting caught with their pants down. I’ll be reading this one peeking out through my fingers, I suspect, cringing all the way.
Cringe: An Anthology of Embarrassment GN
Publisher: Birdcage Bottom Books
(W/A) Cara Bean & Various (CA) John Kerschbaum, Danny HellmanCringe: An Anthology of Embarrassment collects over twenty stories of personal humiliation, shame, and awkwardness from a variety of indie cartoonists.
8. Steampunk World War
Comparisons have been made to “BPRD”, which is one of our favorite series here at Multiversity. It remains to be seen how true that really is, but the concept is certainly strong. “The Chimera Brigade” concerns an alternate, chemically-enhanced superpowered take on “World War II” (Uber?) that also looks to have a steampunk bend. Not in an obnoxious Portlandia steampunk sketch way, but more in like a “WWII mecha” way. Whatever the case, the preview art looks gorgeous.
Continued belowThe Chimera Brigade: Book 1
Publisher: Titan Comics
(W) Fabrice Colin, Serge Lehman; (A/CA) GessDuring World War II, an elite band of superhumans rise to power and take control of the capital cities of Europe in this remarkable alternate history story.
Amidst the turmoil of the First World War, a new breed of superhuman is born as a result of illegal chemical weapons. While some members of this unique new class of society choose to fight against injustice, others use their extraordinary capabilities to spread terror. However, something far more powerful is lurking on the horizon, a threat that could erase them from existence for good.
7. Seeking an anthropomorphic friend for the end of the world
I’m not necessarily a sucker for books about animals or animal-like characters, but I do get a nostalgia pang in my heart for things from my childhood like Wind in the Willows or Animal Farm when I see books like this. Dan Abnett is a quality writer. I.N.J. Culbard is a magnificent artist whose name seems to be all over the place right now. This one’s got everything going for it, folks.
Wild’s End #1
Publisher: Boom! Studios
(W) Dan Abnett (A/CA) I. N. J. CulbardWHY WE LOVE IT: We love smart takes on classic science-fiction mythos and who better to take advantage of the iconography of H.G. Wells and War of the Worlds than Dan Abnett, one of comics’ most renowned sci-fi writers and one of creators responsible for the groundbreaking run on Guardians of the Galaxy that inspired the upcoming Marvel movie. Paired with I.N.J. Culbard who has made a name for himself with the critically acclaimed adaptation of H.P. Lovecraft’s At the Mountains of Madness, it’s a team perfectly built for the visually impactful adventure stories readers love.
WHY YOU’LL LOVE IT: Inspired by the sci-fi aesthetic of War of the Worlds and the anthropomorphic characters of Blacksad and Mouse Guard, readers will be blown away by Culbard’s art while fans of Edgar Wright and Simon Pegg’s Cornetto Trilogy (SHAUN OF THE DEAD, WORLD’S END) will fall in love with Clive, Peter, and Gilbert as they try to survive an alien invasion.
WHAT IT’S ABOUT: When a rural English community of the 1930s is the victim of an alien invasion, the residents’ lives are upended by the harsh realities of life-and-death violence. Led by the town’s outsider and retired war veteran, they will have to rally together to uncover the secret of their invaders and ultimately fight back.
6. Supernatural feels alert
The Valiant Comics revival has been something truly cool. Through a small, focused launching of titles, Valiant has kept a strong rotation of titles going with pretty much nothing in the way of release delays and a general solid-to-high quality literally all throughout the line. But as good as Valiant has been, just look at the solicitation for this one. It looks really different from everything else Valiant has been doing. In fact, it has the potential to be something artful and moving.
The Death-Defying Dr. Mirage #1
Written by Jen Van Meter; Art by Roberto de la TorreWorld-renowned parapsychologist Dr. Mirage and her husband Hwen were madly, deeply, stuff-of-legends in love – until the day a tragic accident stole Hwen away. Now, Dr, Mirage will have to use every ounce of her training and talents in the mystic arts to do the one thing Hwen taught her never to do – journey across the realms of Deadside and bring her love back to the land of the living.
5. A new look G.I. Joe
It’s pretty spectacular that the adjective-less, ongoing “G.I. Joe” title is going to be spearheaded by a female character written by a female writer. I think it’s especially interesting that this is coming on the back of another #1 issue relaunch for a franchise that, while successful, can’t seem to truly make a big splash. There was a time when “G.I. Joe” was a major big dog in the industry. The solicitation says it right there: “Does the world need G.I. Joe?” – I can’t help but see that as IDW’s self-diagnosed meta commentary on the property and a challenge for this creative team to do something different and special with the title.
Continued belowG.I. Joe #1
Publisher: IDW Publishing
Karen Traviss (w) • Steve Kurth (a) • Jeffrey Veregge (c)DOES THE WORLD NEED G.I. JOE? Cobra had become an international peacekeeping force… and the future of G.I. JOE looks bleak. SCARLETT leads what’s left of America’s ultimate fighting force—but will she be able to keep hew team together? Real-world action and politics collide… and nothing will be the same.
4. The lost boys
We’ve been waiting a while for Farel Dalrymple’s new original graphic novel. There’s no doubt that Dalrymple is one of the unique comic talents with a surreal, detailed style that approximates reality just enough. A brand new 300-page volume of his work to look at? That’s worth the price of admission any day.
The Wrenchies GN
Publisher: :01 First Second
Written and Illustrated by Farel DalrympleMeet the Wrenchies. They’re strong, powerful, and if you cross them, things will quickly go very badly for you. Only one thing scares them-growing up. Anyone who survives to be an adult lives in constant fear of the Shadowsmen. All the teenagers who come into contact with them turn into twisted, nightmarish monsters whose minds are lost forever.
3. The dream of new Rucka is alive at Oni
“Stumptown is over.” Wait. No. It’s not over. In fact, it’s relaunching as a new ongoing series this time around. Rucka’s Portland detective series lives in a genre that is exceedingly common in modern comics, but always finds ways to do something different with it. I personally think it’s the Portlandia setting, and I can’t wait to see what Justin Greenwood does with it.
Stumptown #1
Publisher: Oni Press Inc.
(W) Greg Rucka (A/CA) Justin GreenwoodGreg Rucka’s fan favorite private eye is back in a new ONGOING series illustrated by Justin Greenwood (Image Comics’ THE FUSE)! Things never go according to plan for Dex Parios–it doesn’t matter whether it’s work or play. When a weekend of soccer fun (both playing and watching!) turns ugly, it’s up to Dex to get to the bottom of the violence before a heated rivalry transforms into an all out war!
2. Prep your year-end lists
I make a lot of jokes about how anything Los Bros. Hernandez does ends up winning awards and lands on every year-end list. It’s a good-natured joke, as pretty much everything they lay down is totally worth it. “Bumperhead” is another story of life told through niche subcultures. In other words, it’s totally right up Hernandez’ alley and something that’s sure to provide an emotional journey for the reader.
Bumperhead HC
Publisher: Drawn & Quarterly
(W/A/CA) Gilbert HernandezLove and Rockets cartoonist Gilbert Hernandez returns with Bumperhead, a companion book to Marble Season. Gilbert’s new book follows Bobby, a young slacker who narrates his life as it happens but offers very little reflection on the events that transpire. Bobby lives in the moment exclusively, and is incapable of seeing the world outside of his experiences. He comes of age in the 1970s, making a rapid progression through that era’s different subcultures; in a short period of time he segues from a stoner glam-rocker to a drunk rocker to a speed-freak punk. He drifts in and out of relationships with friends, both male and female. Life zooms past him. Hernandez’s approach captures the numbness and raw undirected anger and passion of a young man; a young man who waits for life to happen to him, not noticing all the while that it’s happening.
1. Darwyn Cooke melts your Face/Off
Have you been grabbing these Darwyn Cooke “Parker” books? It’s an event whenever they come out and are damn near essential for fans of crime books or noir. For the uninitiated, Cooke usually takes a Richard Stark novel and crafts a visual adventure off of it with the perfect economy of words and a heavy lean on telling as much of the narrative visually as he can. Each book is carefully crafted – no rushing anywhere – and has a gorgeous color scheme and approach unique to it. Watching Cooke do these, and do them so relatively quickly, is no less than a super-human feat of comic booking.
Continued belowEditor’s Note: the above image is not the cover to the upcoming iteration of the novel with spot illustrations by Darwyn Cooke, but rather the cover to Cooke’s one-shot from a few years back featuring an excerpt from “The Outfit.” Since there’s no good cover of what the upcoming novel will look like, we decided to share some Darwyn Cooke excellence with you instead as a placeholder.
Parker: The Man With the Getaway Face by Richard Stark With Illustrations by Darwyn Cooke
Richard Stark (w) Darwyn Cooke (a & c)The second book in IDW Publishing’s new series of Parker novels, for the first time in a deluxe hardcover format!
Written by Richard Stark (A.K.A. Donald Westlake, the much-acclaimed mystery and crime author), and with illustrations by Darwyn Cooke, the multi-Eisner Award-winning creator of the Parker series of graphic novels. The Man With the Getaway Face starts off where The Hunter finishes—Parker faced off against the crime syndicate known as The Outfit. By reclaiming what was taken from him, in true Parker style, he now has some serious enemies who will be looking for him… the kind of enemies that don’t forget, and never forgive. But the methodical Parker—as always—has a plan; he arranges to have his face altered. Once this is sorted, with little more than a glance in a mirror, Parker is off to his next score. But complications arise that could mean his new identity is exposed. A classic crime novel by the master of the craft!
Illustrating the action are 10 full color paintings by Darwyn Cooke, the incomparable artist of the Parker series of graphic novels. Cooke also lends his considerable graphic design talents to defining the look of the book, from layout to typography—producing a definitive version of Stark’s classic novels.
HC • FC • $29.99 • 226 pages • 6” x 9” • ISBN: 978-1-63140-106-0
• “Whatever Stark writes, I read.” –Elmore Leonard
• Design and typography overseen by Darwyn Cooke!
• In hardcover for the very first time!
