This Week in Comics August 27, 2025

Yes, I read other stuff too and my pull list for this week.

I figured before I moved to this week’s comics I’d mention a few other things I’m reading & recommend you check them out.

There are a few authors I like and unfortunately for me a number of my favorite authors aren’t necessarily people I’d want to chat with in person or be alone in a room with they are ones I have to separate the creator from the creation due to their actions. From what I can tell, as of right now, John Scalzi (https://bsky.app/profile/scalzi.com) is not one of them. According to his social media posts he’s currently fostering kittens. 😁

I became aware of Scalzi with his book Redshirts. Being a Trekkie I picked up a copy at my local library and devoured it. It was amusing and part of a genre I have found I really enjoy (Humorous Science Fiction/Fantasy). One that doesn’t take itself too seriously. From there I moved on to Starter Villain and then The Kaiju Preservation Society. All taking a trope and dropping it on its head. The main characters are common people thrown into a situation we all know about from pop culture and have to figure it out how to get out of it alive. Starship crew member fated to die, Bond villain, and that Door Dash guy dealing with giant monsters that could destroy the Earth. I’m avoiding any major spoilers on purpose.

The reason I bring this up is last week I decided to branch out and read some of his earlier stuff. I started with Old Man’s War. Serious science fiction (Hugo nominated) about intergalactic colonization. Which lead me to Ghost Brigade the second book in the series. I will continue as soon as I can get the books from my local library. If you read (and liked things like Starship Troopers (the book or the film), or Ender’s Game the book more than the film- there was so much more in the book…) you should really like this series. The second book didn’t just continue where the first one left off. Ghost Brigade went further to develop the universe and only mentioned the original main character a couple of times in passing.

This Week’s Comics

I have been going through my collection recently and soon will be cutting my pulls even more as storylines end. I want to focus more on titles I am collecting and have been collecting even spend some effort to hunt down holes in my collection. I recently picked up some Silver Age Flash issues and a few other titles that I was missing only a couple of issues.

I got into a discussion this week about legacy numbering dealing with Batman since the new Matt Fraction run begins Wednesday before the end of the current Hush 2 storyline. We both figure this will create some confusion since two Batman titled comics will be available at the same time, one restarting with number 1 and the other in the 160’s. Only legacy numbering will help us understand where it all fits in the holy continuity… or will it?

• Absolute Wonder Woman #11 DC Comics W: Kelly Thompson A: Hayden Sherman Eisner award winner for best new series and well deserved. I have mentioned before that this comic is a unique tweak to the Wonder Woman mythos and the artwork is simply amazing as it definitely says to the reader “Things are different here.”

• Absolute Martian Manhunter #6 DC Comics W: Denis Camp A: Javier Rodriguez You would think things are wrapping up in this series which I think was the original idea. The creative team is taking a break and releasing another 6 issue arc later in the year. I’m curious after this issue what is coming next.

• The Invisible Man #1 Image Comics W: James Tynion IV A: Dani

• Ultimate Spider-Man #20 Marvel Comics W:Jonathan Hickman A: David Messina With only four more issues to go until the ultimate showdown with the Maker this month was a nice catch up with MJ getting most, if not all her questions answered bringing the reader up to speed with anything they might have missed.

• The Last Boy #5 Boom Studios W: Dan Panosian A: Alessio Avallone The final issue as we learn what happens to Peter Pan when he grows up. Personally as a “kidult” I loved this series.

• Minor Arcana Boom Studios W & A: Jeff Lemire

• Nemesis Forever #1 Dark Horse Comics W: Mark Millar A: Matteo Scalera Mark Millar’s ultimate bad guy is back and ready to take on… everyone?

• Star Trek Strange New Worlds Seeds of Salvation #1 IDW Publishing W:Robbie Thompson A: Travis Mercer

• Huck Big Bad World #4 Dark Horse Comics W: Mark Millar A: Rafael Albuquerque

• Superman #29 DC Comics W: Joshua Williamson A: Dan Mora

• We’re Taking Everyone Down With Us #5 Image Comics W: Matthew Rosenberg A: Stefano Landini I think things aren’t going the way I had thought… which is fine by me.

• Flash DC #24 Comics W: Simon Spurrier A: Vasco Georgiev I hate saying this, but The Flash has been a catalyst in the past getting me to take a break from comics. Usually there is some strange story arc that doesn’t click with me. This current run has reached that point. I’m happy to see a conclusion in sight, but I just don’t care how it ends…

  

  The Flash #24 Jai isn’t the only one… I liked it when it was bank robberies and punching muggers.

• Tex Arcanum #1 (of 4) Dark Horse Comics W: Christopher Monfette A: Migual Martos

• Sonja Reborn #1 Dynamite Entertainment W: Christopher Priest A: Alessandro Miracolo

Not pictured (even I make mistakes):

• News From The Fallout #3 Image Comics W: Chris Condon A: Jeffrey Alan Love It’s not that I don’t like this series, it was that I couldn’t get issue #2 and needed to catch up. Looking at the surface it’s an atomic bomb creates monsters story. The art work combined with the story makes it move beyond that.

---

The Invisible Man #1 Image Comics W: James Tynion IV A: Dani As a kid I was (and still am) a fan of classic monster movies. I haven’t followed all the comics, sticking with the monsters related to the second tier. I loved Faith Erin Hicks The Mummy and decided to check out the Invisible Man next. Four issues to tell the story and I’m looking forward to seeing how it plays out. This issue introduces us to the “mad” scientist who will become the Invisible Man and we see the back story of his experiments along with his mental state. I can sympathize with his feelings towards his coworkers and boss, and can see how it will lead to “bad things.” As with any first issue, the idea is to set the stage, and in the next three issues we get to see how it all turns out.

Sonja Reborn #1 Dynamite Entertainment W: Christopher Priest A: Alessandro Miracolo I keep trying to push myself beyond my comfort zone and hopefully remove some of my beliefs when it comes to certain genres and titles. While I play role playing games set in a fantasy world, I can’t say I’ve ever been a fan of the muscle bound fighter saves the world, or the bikini clad warrior saves the world genre. Sadly most of the bikini clad warrior genre deal with the fact that to be a completist you need to get all 3,527 variant covers of each issue. These include a number of NSFW and cosplay varieties. As a teenager I admit buying some fantasy covers just for the pictures, but now I’m looking more for well told stories than T&A. I decided to try out a new series of Red Sonja because I know there have been some critically acclaimed stories. I figured with a number one issue I’d be safer when it comes to knowing all the backstory. This may have been an error, but only time will tell.

This series deals with a 21st century woman falling through portal and possessing Red Sonja. Therefore our main character has no clue about their own history. What I currently am enjoying is the British slang peppered in since Margaret Sutherland is the “Deputy Assistant to the Junior Adjutant , H.M.G. Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster.” Fortually for all of us she does get the muscle memory of Red Sonja so she knows how to be a proper bikini clad warrior. The jury is still out after my initial reading… Oh and for the record- 37 variant covers. 🙄 I picked up cover Q

Tex Arcanum #1 (of 4) Dark Horse Comics W: Christopher Monfette A: Migual Martos Another stepping outside of my comfort zone comic. This one deal with magic, and cryptids and weird stuff. Avery Belle seems to be the guy you call if you are in the Texarkana area and things go weird. The story begins with a bit of historic backstory. It seems that the settlers to the area were told not to cross the river and settle there. They were advised that crossing the river would be “bad” and they really should be happy planting themselves where they were. Of course, being red-blooded ‘Muricans they ignored any advice and now things have gotten progressively weird as the decades have passed. Avery starts the story by disposing pf a possessed trailer… he ends up figuring out what has gone wrong in a nearby town to cause… plagues, pestilence and other not so nice things.

I blame working at a comic shop that plays the trailers for new comics on a video screen for getting me to buy this one. When I pulled it about a month ago, I thought it looked interesting… then I saw the trailer (repeatedly) and figured I should at least read it to figure out what was going on. It’s only four issues, so I think I’ll still it out - if we get the rest of the series.

Superman #29 DC Comics W: Joshua Williamson A: Dan Mora If DC Comics is known for anything it’s being in crisis. It all started with Crisis on Infinite Earths which was their way to hit the “reset button” back in the 80’s. From that point DC has used these massive events as a crutch to reset things and go back to the start with new #1 issues of all their titles. They make money and new collector feel special about owning a #1 issue that will be worth millions sometime in the future. 🙄

After Absolute Power DC launched the “Absolute Universe” in which Darkseid (bad guy ICYMI) has tainted the universe and changed every heroes life. These titles have been a breath of dank musty air. Actually they have been great, but rather dark in their take on the heroes. For some it was like bringing the Snyderverse to life in the comics. Whatever. The heroes in the regular DC universe have been dealing with their own problems blissfully unaware of this new universe. Until the last issue of Superman. When the Legion of Super Heroes for the Absolute Universe decided to visit Superman. This issue Superman goes to hopefully help save his old friends from the future and save the current universe in the process. I figure this is the beginning of the end. Let’s just say- Superman may be in for more than he bargained for… This is part 2, so I’m guessing we’ve got at least 2 more issues and then a wrap up or a push into the big absolute crisis coming up. Of course DC KO is the next crossover event, so it might be a while.

Minor Arcana #10 Boom Studios W & A: Jeff Lemire I think I was first thrown a Jeff Lemire comic as one of those “try it, you’ll like it” years ago. I did try it, I did like it. While his stories currently for DC are definitely more in the “superhero” story telling vein, his stories like Minor Arcana go back to what was interesting about his storytelling. Usually set in a small town with typical small town problems. The place is getting run down, it’s definitely not Norman Rockwell. It’s that setting that we put a reluctant main character who had thought they had escaped the dull location and trauma of their childhood. There are usually family issues to contend with. skeletons in the closet, and a host of other things that by the end of the story, you not only know these characters, but you care about them. I’ve been sucked into Jeff Lemire stories enough times, to just know it will happen. I can’t tell you what issue, but I know that by the time we reach a conclusion, I feel like I’m saying good bye to some old friends.

We’ve been through 9 issues so far learning about the run down psychic shop, Theresa’s reasons for leaving, the bad guys, and now in this issue we learn about her grandfather and maybe, just maybe, the reason why Theresa can do the stuff she can do (and why she wears that coat). I’m really loving this and the slow build up that Lemire puts into all his stories. This may be why I have a few titles sorted specially by writer and one box devoted to Jeff Lemire.

Bailey would like to remind you that life is too serious to take everything seriously.