Welcome back to Conskipper’s New Comic Day Picks for the week of June 23, 2021!
Some weeks are tougher than others when we assemble the New Comic Day Picks, and without exaggeration, we could have assembled three lists this week with no problem. It was a tough choice, so be sure to browse the racks completely, as there are many of excellent choices this week at your local comic shop.
–Black Hammer: Reborn #1 (Dark Horse Comics): There have been plenty of excellent Black Hammer spin-offs over the past few years, but fans who have been anxiously awaiting a sequel to the original series will be rewarded this week with Dark Horse Comics Black Hammer: Reborn #1. Jeff Lemire and Dean Ormston’s Eisner Award-winning superhero epic returns in a new ongoing series that picks up twenty years after the events of the original Black Hammer series.
Lemire is joined by artist Caitlin Yarsky for issues and “…checks in on legacy hero Lucy Weber (the daughter of the legendary Black Hammer) and finds Lucy in a very different life situation, with a strained relationship with her husband and the responsibilities of raising her children.”
This one is THE pick of the week (and perhaps the year).
–Heroes Return #1 (Marvel Comics): Jason Aaron wraps ups his gonzo Heroes Reborn series with the inevitable Heroes Return climax. The series has been one of the most enjoyable ones from Marvel in years and this oversized issue features the ultimate battle between the Squadron Supreme and the Avengers for the final fate of the universe. Aaron is joined by frequent collaborator Ed McGuinness for the showdown and fans of their work on the Avengers will be pleased with the results. If you’ve missed any of the issues of Heroes Reborn, and are looking for well-written escapism in the “Mighty Marvel Manner”, be sure to pick up the entire series at your local comic shop this week.
–Infinite Frontier #1 (DC Comics): Infinite Frontier proved to be a critically and financially successful initiative by DC Comics this spring, so why not return to the well once again?
As Conskipper reported in May, the new limited series picks up “Following Infinite Frontier #0 (when the DC heroes saved the Multiverse from Perpetua in Dark Nights: Death Metal) it appeared that everything was “fixed” in terms of the fractured multiverse (and storytelling issues), but as expected, there is always more work to be done! The new series assembles heroes from all over the multiverse, including Alan Scott, Jade, Obsidian, Roy Harper, President Superman, Barry Allen, Flashpoint’s Batman, and many other surprise heroes. On the other side of the ring are the two most likely suspects when it comes to problems in any multiverse: the Psycho Pirate and Darkseid.”
With solid scripting by Joshua Williamson and expressive art by Xermanico, fans of Infinite Frontier-charged series will be pleased.
–Spawn’s Universe #1 (Image Comics): If you are going to kick off a brand new Spawn Universe expansion, the only way to do so is with a double-sized, 52 page one-shot.
Todd McFarlane will expand on his perennial best seller with Spawn’s Universe #1, which will contain four different stories, four different characters, and four different artists, including Jim Cheung (the original Spawn), Brett Booth (Gunslinger Spawn), Stephen Segovia (Medieval Spawn), and Marcio Takara (She-Spawn).
Spawn’s Universe lays the ground work for future spin-off series and a team book, so if you love Spawn, you need to get in on the ground floor with this special.
-Batman: Reptilian #1 (DC Comics): Garth Ennis? Liam Sharp? Batman? Sign me up! Ennis and Sharp’s highly-anticipated Black Label four issue series features a mysterious monster and many of the Dark Knight’s rogues gallery in a comic for older and more seasoned Batman fans. This one will satisfy fans of either creator and those looking for a horror-tinged, serious Bat-Tale.
That’s it for this week. Be sure to keep supporting your local comic shop in a safe manner.