The Weekly Pull: Action Comics, Ultimate Spider-Man, Adventureman: Ghost Lights, and More
01/09/2024 11:36 am EST
Action Comics #1061
- Written by Jason Aaron
- Art by John Timms
- Colors by Rex Lokus
- Published by DC
Action Comics is coming out of a long, well-received run showcasing the entire Superman Family. I found the era to be a bit crowded with a full house of superpeople. Action Comics #1061 begins the "Superman Superstars" initiative Action Comics, which is a big swing in the opposite direction from the previous run. Instead of a long run featuring every character with an "S" on their chest, "Superman Superstars" is telling big, single-arc stories from top creators focusing on Superman and his most iconic villains. Kicking things off are writer Jason Aaron, who is currently writing the other half of the World's Finest duo in Batman: Off-World, and artist John Timms telling a slobber knocker of a story that sees Superman squaring off with his opposite number, Bizarro. This is bound to be a super-spectacle worth seeing. -- Jamie Lovett
Adventureman: Ghost Lights #1
- Written by Matt Fraction
- Art by Terry Dodson and Rachel Dodson
- Colors by Terry Dodson
- Letters by Clayton Cowles
- Published by Image Comics
Comics may no longer be the most prominent portion of Matt Fraction's creative portfolio (be sure to check out the outstanding Monarch: Legacy of Monsters, if you haven't yet), but the writer hasn't lost a single ounce of his panache in the medium as Adventureman: Ghost Lights #1 is sure to remind readers this week. The riff on classic pulp archetypes that debuted in 2020 features a family of eccentric sisters picking up old legacies to engage in wondrous battle in, above, and far below the streets of Manhattan. It returns at the start of 2024 (after a nearly two-year hiatus) with a fresh #1 issue that serves up the entire premise alongside a new adventure for new and returning readers alike. None of the series' humor, charm, or wonder have been lost in the interim either. That's in no small part due to the excellent-as-always artistic contributions of Terry and Rachel Dodson. Their characters appear on the page like fully formed ideas—informing readers of their personality with their very presence—even when surrounded by grand spectacle. Ghost Lights #1 features even more sparkling depictions of New York City at its best alongside fantastical, ghostly apparitions of the city that make for fabulous spreads and set the stage for another undeniably enticing Adventureman story. It's not one to miss. -- Chase Magnett
Marvel-Verse: Spider-Man & Madame Web
- Written by Various
- Art by Various
- Published by Marvel Comics
We're a little over a month away from the arrival of the Madame Web movie, the latest installment in Sony's Spider-Man Universe of films. The film has piqued some Marvel fans' curiosity ever since it was first announced, seeing as the first Madame Web, Cassandra Webb, has very little comic precedent behind her. If you want to explore Cassandra's comic history, and how it relates to the world of Peter Parker, this new Marvel-Verse collection is here to help. — Jenna Anderson
Rise of the Powers of X #1
- Written by Kieron Gillen
- Art by R.B. Silva
- Colors by David Curiel
- Letters by Clayton Cowles
- Published by Marvel Comics
Krakoa's final chapter got off to a rough start in last week's Fall of the House of X #1, but Gerry Duggan's X-Men ongoing series has been trending in that direction ever since the X-Men: Hellfire Gala 2023 issue's "Mutant Massacre." Meanwhile, Kieron Gillen has been writing Immortal X-Men, which has consistently been the best book in the Fall of X line. Rise of the Powers of X sees Gillen teaming up with Powers of X artist R.B. Silva to presumably follow up on the big revelations from Immortal X-Men's finale, involving Nathaniel Essex, Mister Sinister, Mother Righteous, and the Dominion looming over all of time and space. The Sins of Sinister event already showed readers how good Gillen can be at imagining dystopian futures for the X-Men based on big ideas, and no one writes Mister Sinister quite like he does. Take that with Silva's consistently clean and gorgeous artwork, and you have the making of the must-read title in this end-of-era X-Men comics lineup. -- Jamie Lovett
The Sensational She-Hulk #4
- Written by Rainbow Rowell
- Art by Ig Guara
- Colors by Dee Cunniffe
- Letters by Joe Caramagna
- Published by Marvel Comics
I have already sung the praises of the new Sensational She-Hulk run so many times — and this week's new issue gives me yet another reason to do so. Jen's new and messy status quo is set to get impacted in some major ways, as her relationships with Patsy Walker and Jack of Hearts come to the surface. I have faith that Rainbow Rowell and company will deliver yet another outstanding, and hilarious, issue. — Jenna Anderson
Ultimate Spider-Man #1
- Written by Jonathan Hickman
- Art by Marco Checchetto
- Colors by Matthew Wilson
- Letters by Cory Petit
- Published by Marvel Comics
The second iteration of the Ultimate universe won't look anything like the first; that was the essential promise of writer Jonathan Hickman's relaunch of the brand in Ultimate Invasion, which witnessed The Maker controlling the development of superpowers and global superpowers to his own ends. With The Maker removed (at least, temporarily) from control, this new vision of the Marvel universe can develop new stories and it only seems appropriate that they will begin, once again, in the pages of Ultimate Spider-Man #1. Hickman, alongside superstar artist Marco Checchetto, is focusing on Marvel's most recognizable hero in an unrecognizable position. True to the promise of Ultimate Invasion, this is a Peter Parker who came to adulthood without any superpowers and now exists as a family man married to Mary Jane with two children. So what happens when he gains his powers as an adult? That's the question Ultimate Spider-Man seeks to answer. It promises to be far more than an interesting "what if…" scenario, though, as the premise seeks to engage with questions of responsibility, power, and maturity far beyond the bounds of adolescence. Hickman's own perspective after nearly 20 years of success in American comics is bound to influence this approach, and the writer has repeatedly proven that he has some of the most amazing (and innovative) ideas still to be told in the realm of superhero comics. -- Chase Magnett
Wolverine #41
- Written by Benjamin Percy, Victor LaValle
- Art by Geoff Shaw, Cory Smith
- Ink by Oren Junior
- Colors by Alex Sinclair
- Letters by Cory Petit
- Published by Marvel Comics
Victor LaValle's Sabretooth and Sabretooth and the Exiles miniseries with artist Leonard Kirk were, quietly, some of the best comics released during the X-Men's Krakoan era, featuring surprisingly subtle (for a Sabretooth story) storytelling about incarceration and those who suffer so that other can live in a better world. There was talk of a Sabretooth trilogy, but any plans for a third series that may have existed were seemingly scrapped. Instead, Victor Creed is back in the orbit of his old nemesis, Wolverine. "Sabretooth War" will be told in the pages of the ongoing Wolverine series and is billed as the "most violent Wolverine story ever told." LaValle teams with Wolverine writer Benjamin Percy for the telling. Kirk is nowhere to be seen, with Geoff Shaw and Cory Smith taking the artistic reins. It's a little annoying that the last arc of LaValle's Sabretooth saga is being shoehorned (at least from an outsider's perspective) into Wolverine and framed as another Logan vs. Creed showdown. And yet, LaValle's work with the character has been so impressive that it's impossible not to be excited and hope that "Sabretooth War" turns out to be as excellent as the Sabretooth stories that preceded it. -- Jamie Lovett
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