ComicBook Countdown for the Week of July 13

There's nary a week when great comics, movies, or television shows aren't all vying for our [...]

There's nary a week when great comics, movies, or television shows aren't all vying for our attention. It can be hard to keep up with it all, but that's why we're here. Each Monday at ComicBook.Com, we take a look at the five most exciting things coming to the world of fandom to keep you in the know.

5. Astro City #25 | Vertigo Comics

The word "best" gets thrown around a lot, often just as hyperbole, but here's a case where "best" is an appropriate descriptor. Astro City is the best ongoing superhero series of the past 20 years. It has consistently delivered fantastic issue after fantastic issue over 3 volumes and 72 issues. Astro City #25 marks volume 3 as the longest running edition of the book so far, and is yet another great jumping on point. If you haven't read Astro City before, there's no better time than this Wednesday to start.

4. Hannibal, "Digestivo" | NBC

"Digestivo" is the end of the first half of this season of Hannibal (it's not dead yet!). After this episode titles turn from Italian cuisine to references concerning the novel Red Dragon. For readers of Thomas Harris' novels, this indicates several big spoilers, but I'll just leave at this: things are about to change in Hannibal in a big way. The beautifully depicted, European adventures in the show are likely drawing to a close, but what this means for Hannibal, Will, Jack, and everyone else is yet to be seen.It's difficult for anything to reach the madness of the season 2 finale, but this mid-season split may still manage to come close.

3. Island #1 | Image Comics

We're used to consuming comics in small 20-30 page installments in North America. That may be about to change as Brandon Graham brings the European magazine style anthology to Image Comics with Island #1. This almost 100 page package will include multiple comics, each ranging between 20-30 pages, and text pieces from modern greats like Graham, Emma Rios, and Kelly Sue DeConnick. If you're looking for a great new read, it's hard to beat Island at only $7.99.

2. Ant-Man | Marvel Studios

If you had told me that there would be an Ant-Man movie ten years ago, I would have laughed you out of the room. Today I'm stoked to finally see this film come to reality. Despite the loss of comedy genius Edgar Wright, director Peyton Reed has taken Wright and Joe Cornish's screenplay and turned it into something that look truly unique. Early reviews point to it being weird, endearing, and a whole lot of fun. Marvel Studios have shown us that heroes come in all sizes, and this Friday we're going to see just how big of a star this small one can be.

1. Hawkeye #22 | Marvel Comics

This is it. It's finally here. Almost three years after the series premiered and five months after the penultimate issue, the finale of Hawkeye has arrived. Despite delays, this series represents a high point for modern Marvel Comics. It has been a true passion project from some of the best creators working in comics today. When it first appeared, it seemed like an anomaly, but all of its odd traits only helped to make it one of Marvel's biggest recent successes. Not only has it been one of the best quality projects at Marvel, but it helped blaze a trail for future projects like She-Hulk and All-New Ghost Rider that combined an auteur aesthetic with fan favorite characters. Let's not be sad that Hawkeye is over, but glad that it happened at all, bro.

What new comics, shows, and other releases are you looking forward to this week? Share in the comments below.

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