The Weekly Pull: Guardians of the Galaxy, The Sandman Universe: Nightmare Country, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles / Usagi Yojimbo, and More

It’s almost another new comic book day, which means new releases hitting stores and digital platforms. Each week in The Weekly Pull, the ComicBook.com team highlights the new releases that have us the most excited about another week of comics. Whether those releases are from the most prominent publisher or a small press, brand new issues of ongoing series, original graphic novels, or collected editions of older material, whether it involves capes and cowls or comes from any other genre, if it has us excited about comic books this week, then we’re going to tell you about it in The Weekly Pull.

This week, Marvel launches a new Guardians of the Galaxy series, The Sandman Universe: Nightmare Country returns, and the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles travel through time to team up with Usagi Yojimbo. Plus, a classic Guardians of the Galaxy collection, and more.

What comics are you most excited about this week? Let us know which new releases you’re looking forward to reading in the comments, and feel free to leave some of your suggestions as well. Check back tomorrow for our weekly reviews and again next week for a new installment of The Weekly Pull.

The Great British Bump Off #1

• Written by John Allison
• Art by Max Sarin
• Colors by Sammy Borras
• Letters by Jim Campbell
• Published by Dark Horse Comics

I’ve had warm feelings toward The Great British Bake Off (or The Great British Baking Show, as United States viewers know it due to copyright) since I first encountered it years ago, but it wasn’t until the 2020 pandemic lockdown that I, and many others, became fully invested its brand of friendly competition. Knowing how many people recently binged every available season of these how (That wasn’t just me, right?), now may be the perfect time to set a whodunit mystery in the legendary tent (or at least a reasonable facsimile). I’d trust no creative more than British writer John Allison and Finnish artist Max Sarin to realize this enticing combination of the British baking competition and “cozy murder” subgenres. Their previous collaboration on the Eisner-winning series Giant Days proves they can bring quirky characters to life with a warm tone and humor that doesn’t become twee. Let The Great British Bump Off begin. — Jamie Lovett 

Guardians of the Galaxy #1

• Written by Jackson Lanzing and Collin Kelly
• Art by Kev Walker
• Colors by Matt Hollingsworth
• Letters by Cory Petit
• Published by Marvel Comics

Guardians of the Galaxy launches a new series just in time for the conclusion of James Gunn’s Guardians of the Galaxy trilogy on the big screen (i.e. the strongest MCU franchise by far) and it’s set to embrace the same approach that made the film adaptations excellent: Not being another superhero story. Where Gunn embraced the soap opera elements, writers Jackson Lanzing and Collin Kelly, along with artist Kev Walker, are imagining The Guardians as a space-bound Western. The premise sets many of the most familiar members of the team—Star-Lord, Gamora, Drax, Nebula, and Mantis—on the outskirts of the galaxy where disorder is the status quo and the Guardians are as desperate as everyone around them. They even stick Peter Quill in a cowboy hat that Walker makes appear effortlessly cool. It’s a promising premise and one that hasn’t been tested before with this particular team. Given Lanzing and Kelly’s recent collaborations on Captain America: Sentinel of Liberty, it’s apparent they can capably uplift minor characters, introduce new conspiracies and settings, and play the long game while still delivering outstanding single issues. While the Guardians comic book franchise is often hit-and-miss, everything about the newest volume of Guardians of the Galaxy is prepared to deliver another wild ride with some of Marvel’s best, oft-overlooked characters. Let’s ride. — Chase Magnett

Guardians of the Galaxy Epic Collection: Earth Shall Overcome

• Written by Various
• Art by Various
• Published by Marvel Comics

We’re officially less than a month away from the premiere of Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, which is expected to culminate so many stories regarding Marvel’s lovable cosmic misfits. If you want a trip down memory lane back to the team’s origins, before characters like Star-Lord and Groot even entered the picture, this week’s Epic Collection is here to help. Collecting a wonderful hodgepodge of stories involving the original 30th-century team, this is a must-read for any Guardians fans. And honestly, I wouldn’t put it past James Gunn to somehow homage these stories in Vol. 3. — Jenna Anderson

The Sandman Universe: Nightmare Country – The Glass House #1

• Written by James Tynion IV
• Art by Lisandro Estherren
• Colors by Patricio Delpeche
• Letters by Simon Bowland
• Published by DC Comics

It seems that any title bearing the “Sandman Universe” label at DC Comics is a sure bet in recent years. Whether it’s the gone-too-soon Hellblazer revival or the outstanding current of The Dead Boy Detectives, these series collect A-list creators to engage in some of the most inventive comics horror stories to be found today. That’s true of Nightmare Country, too, a story of various nightmares from Dream’s realm wandering the United States with their own schemes reflecting the horrors of modern American life. The first series left readers with plenty to anticipate based on a killer cliffhanger that drew the many characters involved together for the first time and it resumes in the pages of The Glass House this week. While it’s difficult to recommend this new series to the uninitiated, it’s easy to suggest that this #1 issue pairs well with the collected Nightmare Country providing a terrifying binge session before joining monthly readers in awaiting each new chapter. Wondering how artist Lisandro Estherren will deploy classic terrors like The Corinthian or what new ones they may invent will provide plenty of thrills as this exploration of the American nightmare continues. — Chase Magnett

The Seasons Have Teeth #1

• Written by Dan Watters
• Art by Sebastian Cabrol
• Published by BOOM! Studios

I’ll be honest, after Coffin Bound and Arkham City: Order of the World, I could read Dan Watters’ horror twist on the phone book and probably love it. This week’s debut of The Seasons Have Teeth is his latest creepy concept, following a war photographer who decides to follow the physical, kaiju-like manifestations of the four seasons. Watters and Sebastian Cabrol’s work is sure to be the perfect blend of horrifying and enthralling, and I can’t wait to see what it has in store. — Jenna Anderson

Star Wars: Return of the Jedi – Ewoks #1

• Written by Alyssa Wong
• Art by Paulina Ganucheau, Casp Wijngaard, Lee Garbett, Kyle Hotz
• Colors by Javier Tartaglia, Rachelle Rosenberg
• Letters by Joe Caramagna
• Published by Marvel Comics

If we’re being honest, there’s always been something a little unsettling about the Ewoks. They may appear as cute, oversized, merchandisable teddy bears, yet the Battle of Endor proved they’re capable of considerable organized violence. Then there’s the lingering question of where they got that dress for Leia. That’s why I knew I’d be checking Star Wars: Return of the Jedi – Ewoks #1 out as soon as I heard it included an Ewok horror story. While Star Wars: Doctor Aphra‘s Alyssa Wong wrote the issue, solicitations describe it as taking an “art-forward” approach to storytelling, with artists Paulina Ganucheau, Caspar Wijngaard, Lee Garbett, and Kyle Hotz interpreting Ewok campfire stories in their distinct styles. Star Wars: Return of the Jedi – Ewoks #1 should fit the bill for fans looking for something different from Star Wars comics. — Jamie Lovett

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles / Usagi Yojimbo: WhereWhen #1

• Written by Stan Sakai
• Art by Stan Sakai
• Colors by Hi-Fi
• Letters by Stan Sakai
• Published by IDW Publishing

Usagi Yojimbo and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles are two of the greatest success stories to come out of the black-and-white self-publishing boom that struck comics in the 1980s, with both enjoying continued success to this day. From early on, the mutual admiration shared between TMNT creators Kevin Eastman and Peter Laird and Usagi Yojimbo cartoonist Stan Sakai led to each happily loaning out their characters to the other. This respect, and the do-it-your-self self-publishing spirit, has led to numerous crossover stories over the years, both in comics and with Usagi popping up in the Turtles’ various animated series. However, none have been as exciting as Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles/Usagi Yojimbo: WhereWhen. This four-issue miniseries is an adventure through time that sees the Turtles following a time-traveling villain back to feudal Japan, where he plans to create an alternate timeline he rules. Written, drawn, and lettered by Sakai (with colors by Hi-Fi), Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles/Usagi Yojimbo: WhereWhen promises to be Usagi’s most epic and enjoyable encounter with the Turtles yet. — Jamie Lovett