Cover To Cover: STARSHIP DOWN #1

STARSHIP DOWN #1

Writer: Justin Giampaoli

Art: Andrea Mutti

Dark Horse $3.99

Jo S: Dark Horse are placing themselves firmly into the mainstream of comics with big title successes such as Umbrella Academy, Hellboy, Stranger Things and Black Hammer on their roster, along with the Berger Books imprint (curated by Karen Berger of Vertigo fame) providing some more ‘out there’ but accessible choices. Released this week then comes Starship Down, aimed square at fans of the 'sci' part of sci-fi, and packed tight with elements that tick boxes on my coming-back-for-more list.

Anthropologist Dr Jocelyn Young has been called in to a top secret site, apparently for her opinion on a set of ancient cave paintings but, as she is choppered in to the remote Siberian mining facility where the dig site is located, it becomes evident that there is much more to it than the initial briefing.

Cover To Cover: INVADERS #1

INVADERS #1

Writer: Chip Zdarsky

Art: Carlos Magno, Butch Guice & Alex Guimaraes

Marvel $4.99

Matt C: Ever since Ed Brubaker gave us some WWII Michael Lark-illustrated flashback scenes during early issues of his seminal run on Captain America, I've had a hankering for a gritty, brutal take on the Invaders, something akin to Saving Private Ryan in spandex. This latest iteration doesn't quite deliver on my dream, as it jumps back and forth from contemporary scenes to war-ravaged 1940s France, but it comes pretty damn close and the angle it takes - of acknowledging the past and how trauma and conflict can shape those who experience it - was perhaps the element missing from my imaginings that I didn't realise I needed until now.

The focus here is Namor and how his recent hawkish, violent posturings suggest he's readying to take on the surface world again with the full might of Atlantis at his command. Understandably his wartime colleagues - Captain America and Jim Hammond, the original Human Torch - are disturbed by this turn of events, unable to reconcile how their friend has fallen into warmongering. The flashbacks takes us back to the Second World War with the Sub-Mariner again in the spotlight, his hot-headed arrogance barely concealing his distress as his comrades are taken by enemy fire; he wants to think of humans as beneath his Atlantean superiority, but the deaths of ones he knows as friends hit him hard. Part of what makes this opening instalment so effective is how it embeds the bonds born on the battlefield, the connection between soldiers that most of us will (fortunately) never comprehend. They're tied together forever, and no matter where their trajectories take them, that connection remains near unbreakable.

Cover To Cover: LEAGUE OF EXTRAORDINARY GENTLEMEN: THE TEMPEST #1

LEAGUE OF EXTRAORDINARY GENTLEMEN: THE TEMPEST #1

Writer: Alan Moore

Artist: Kevin O'Neill & Ben Dimagmaliw

IDW/Top Shelf $4.99

James R: Time is a strange thing - in comics, and in our hectic lives. I noted this back when I reviewed the middle chapter of League Of Extraordinary Gentlemen: Century, and, somehow, that was seven - seven! - years ago. One of the themes of  LOEG is renewal - Moore and O'Neill have managed to keep a number of the characters alive thanks to Queen Ayesha's pool (from H. Rider Haggard's She) but beyond a plot device, it's one of the deeper themes of Alan Moore's work: timelessness.

I can distinctly recall learning about the existence of this idea in 1998 - reading a Guardian weekend guide, there was a small story about Moore starting the America's Best Comics line. Having just been dragged back into comics thanks to reading Watchmen as an undergraduate, this news seemed like manna from Heaven. I made the journey to the now sadly closed Comics Showcase in London and said, "I want all of these..." As the years have passed, LOEG has been one of the constants in my life - there may have been long gaps in between the various iterations, but it's always been there. With the publication of first issue of The Tempest, I find myself in a bittersweet mood - it's time to say farewell to a title that I've read for my entire adult life.

Cover To Cover: DOOMSDAY CLOCK #1

DOOMSDAY CLOCK #1

Writer: Geoff Johns

Art: Gary Frank & Brad Anderson

DC $4.99

Matt C: Watchmen holds such an exalted position in popular culture that any attempt to approach Alan Moore and Dave Gibbon's masterpiece with the intention of drawing further narratives from it is usually met with a variety of extreme reactions. The last time we were here was for Before Watchmen, a set of prequel miniseries that mostly fell far short of the mark, the obvious exception being Darwyn Cooke's excellent Minutemen and Silk Spectre books (especially the former). The issues of creator's rights have rumbled on for many years, and Moore in particular has been very vocal on the matter, but while his points have validity, essentially it boils down to who owns Watchmen, which is of course DC Comics. Like it or loathe it, DC and their parent company Time Warner are a businesses and from that perspective they would be foolish not to exploit such a successful property. With that in mind, perhaps we can be grateful they haven't flooded the market with inferior product, and now that they've finally decided it's time to unleash a sequel, they've placed the task in perhaps the best pair(s) of hands available. The question then is, can you blur the focus on all the arguments and instead concentrate your attention on the storytelling held within the first issue? Because even those most vehemently against the project may find it hard to dismiss the sheer quality on display here.

Cover To Cover: ROYAL CITY #1 (Advance Review)

ROYAL CITY #1

Writer: Jeff Lemire

Art: Jeff Lemire

Image $4.99

James R:  I have said it before but it bears repeating: following the ascent of Jeff Lemire over the last decade has been one of the absolute joys of reading comics. Anyone who picked up Sweet Tooth #1 as I did back in 2009 would have been struck by Lemire's singular talent and worldview - he is a master of taking an extraordinary situation and imbuing it with almost tangible human emotion. His characters are always fully formed, often haunted individuals who seek to come to terms with - or make amends for - lives touched by trauma and loss. The settings for his comics may be far-fetched, but the feelings expressed within are always familiar.

The idea of the lost soul is one that permeates through much of his output. In aforementioned Sweet Tooth, Essex County, The Underwater Welder, Descender, Black Hammer, and even his early work, the bruising Lost Dogs, the sense of loss is evident. Reading the first issue of Royal City it's clear that the theme has returned again, but this time it's richer and more involving than before. I have no doubt that this is going to be another masterpiece from Lemire, and without spoiling anything, allow me to tell you why.

Cover To Cover: GOD COUNTRY #1

GOD COUNTRY #1
Writer: Donny Cates
Art: Geoff Shaw & Jason Wordie
Image $3.99

Stewart R: Through all of the craziness that was Buzzkill and then The Paybacks, there ran sensitive, thoughtful looks at the human condition. Buzzkill took a hard look at the price of addiction, The Paybacks took a tongue-in-cheek look at the cost of doing good deeds and the corruption of authority. Now, wordsmith Donny Cates and pencil master Geoff Shaw have kicked off their new Image series God Country with a debut that feels calmer, slightly more grounded while still producing the crazy wonder and vibe of a fantasy comic. Stepping away from cityscapes and the cramped corners of civilization, we're coaxed into the wilder expanses of the Texan counties as Roy Quinlan has to cope with the pressures of family life and the heavy emotional yoke of his father, Emmett's worsening Alzheimer's disease.

Cover To Cover: SUPERMAN #1

SUPERMAN #1
Writers: Peter J. Tomasi & Patrick Gleason
Art: Patrick Gleason, Mick Gray & John Kalisz
DC $2.99

Stewart R: Following the Superman: Rebirth prelude/one-shot from a few weeks ago, Tomasi and Gleason now drop the series debut proper in our laps, establishing this 'other', pre-Flashpoint Clark's current status quo in a world that has recently lost its Superman to 'fighting the good fight'. This writing duo take the threads of Tomasi's 'Final Days Of Superman' and Dan Jurgens' recent Superman: Lois And Clark series, and weave them together with the dark, yet colourful family drama that made their Batman And Robin run a hit a few years ago. So just how super is this book? Can old themes and new ideas be found to rejuvenate the character? Or are we perhaps looking at a kryptonite-weakened level of return?

Cover To Cover: RENATO JONES: THE ONE% #1

RENATO JONES: THE ONE% #1

Writer: Kaare Kyle Andrews

Art: Kaare Kyle Andrews

Image $3.99

Stewart R: I may stand alone here, but following several years of critical, unmissable hit after hit titles, I do feel that Image's surprising run has slipped into more of a mixed bag as the breadth of releases has expanded and the quantity of new books month on month has increased. This 'levelling out' however may be no bad thing if it allows the truly great debuts to stand out from the crowd, bright and prominently. With that in mind, enter Renato Jones: The One% #1 by Kaare Andrews (Iron Fist: The Living Weapon).

As the title suggests, this is Andrews' look into the distribution of global wealth in a post 2007-2009 recession world, but from a comic book slant where the vigilante protagonist, The Freelancer, takes on the corrupt, bloated, grotesque fat cats who care nothing for the despair and destruction that their spoils have wrought and the human cost at the heart of it all.

Cover To Cover: KARNAK #1

KARNAK #1

Writer: Warren Ellis

Art: Gerardo Zaffino & Dan Brown

Marvel $3.99

James R: Sometimes it is very nice to be proved wrong. A few months ago, as Marvel announced the titles that would make up the post-Secret Wars reboot, we PCGers discussed which books we would be adding to our pull-lists. My friends were slightly surprised when I said "Ehh, I'm not too bothered..." over the release of Karnak. My fear wasn't over the obvious talents of Warren Ellis, but more over the subject matter. I've never been a big fan of the Inhumans, and despite Marvel's best efforts to get us to think of them as 'X-Men 2000', I've never read a book that's overcome my ambivalence towards them. (The closest was Earth X, but that's a story for another day...) However, the combined arguments of my friends made me realise that I really should take a punt of Karnak - and I'm incredibly pleased I did.

Cover To Cover: DOCTOR STRANGE #1

DOCTOR STRANGE #1

Writer: Jason Aaron

Art: Chris Bachalo, Tim Townsend, Al Vey & Mark Irwin

Marvel $4.99

Matt C: It’s been a rocky road for the Sorcerer Supreme. Two decades have passed since his last ongoing series but thankfully he’s always remained a perennial figure in the Marvel Universe, served by a number of miniseries along with a supporting role in various Avengers books over the last decade (as well as being a pivotal character in the current Secret Wars event series). Created by Steve Ditko, with some assistance from Stan Lee (natch), Strange flourished during the ‘60s and ‘70s when the emphasis was on cosmic, psychedelic stories in outlandish, mindbending dimensions, but while many of his ‘Marvel Age’ contemporaries achieved enduring popularity across the decades (Spider-Man, Captain America, Hulk et al), Strange fell out of favour, with the impression being that the House of Ideas was noticeably out of ideas when it came to making him accessible to a wider audience. There’s no doubting the ongoing affection many have for the character though, particularly in the creative community where there was an obvious desire to include him in numerous storylines, and now, with Marvel Studios’ head honcho Kevin Fiege's long cherished dream to get a Doctor Strange movie in the cinemas reaching fruition, there’s a definite need to get the Master of Mystic Arts back in spotlight again.

And who better to take on such a task than arguably the most versatile writer working in mainstream comics right now, Jason Aaron.

Cover To Cover: C.O.W.L. #11

C.O.W.L. #11

Writer: Kyle Higgins & Alec Siegel

Artists: Rod Reis

Image $3.99

James R: Endings are often the worst. When you fully fall in love with a piece of art or culture that's episodic by nature (comics and TV in the main) there is always a creeping malaise that comes with that affection. With each passing instalment, you find yourself thinking, "Well, how is this going to end? And what if it's a disappointment?!" Over the last few years, we've seen some examples of TV 'sticking the landing' magnificently - Breaking Bad and Mad Men did it, and despite the arguments over it you can't deny The Sopranos did too. In comics, finality is a rarer thing - the very nature of a lot of the comics we love means there is no real 'end'. Even when books do finish, there's usually the feeling that it's a pause rather than a full stop. However, there's still some occasions where a finale has delivered: Y: The Last Man, Sweet Tooth and Planetary had concluding issues that both amazed me and left a lump in my throat.

Cover To Cover: THORS #1

THORS #1

Writer: Jason Aaron

Art: Chris Sprouse, Karl Story & Marte Gracia

Marvel $3.99

Matt C: To my surprise, I’ve engaged with the Secret Wars event far more than I anticipated. I was confident that the core series would deliver, based on Jonathan Hickman’s excellent work over the last couple of years on Avengers and New Avengers (which dealt with the storyline that led directly into the creation of Battleworld), but I had sort of dismissed the various tie-ins as either pointless or superfluous, and unlikely to have any effect on how the central narrative progresses. This was a frequent point of conversation over the last few months between various members of the PCG: why do we need these books, what ultimate purpose do they serve in the grand purpose of things? Of course, I’ve gone on to pick up a bunch of these tie-ins and, on the whole, I've enjoyed them immensely, which led me back to that question: why do we need these books?

The answer is blindingly obvious: because they provide the potential for great stories.

Cover To Cover: FIGHT CLUB 2 #1

FIGHT CLUB 2 #1

Writer by: Chuck Palahniuk

Art: Cameron Stewart & Dave Stewart

Dark Horse Comics $3.99

James R: '"Recycling and speed limits are b******t," Tyler said. "They're like someone who quits smoking on his deathbed." It's Project Mayhem that's going to save the world. A cultural ice age. A prematurely induced dark age. Project Mayhem will force humanity to go dormant or into remission long enough for Earth to recover. "You justify anarchy," Tyler says, "You figure it out."' - Fight Club, p.125.

Flicking back through Chuck Palahniuk's 1996 debut novel ahead of picking up the first issue of Fight Club 2, a number of things struck me. Firstly, it is amazing how perfectly formed both Palahniuk's style and voice as an author are, and also how immensely readable and essential it remains as a story. Before we get on to the keenly anticipated sequel published by Dark Horse, it's worth highlighting just why this story matters.

Cover To Cover: SECRET WARS #1

SECRET WARS #1

Writer: Jonathan Hickman

Art: Esad Ribic & Ive Svorcina

Marvel $4.99

Matt C: In many ways, the original Secret Wars series from Marvel was Year Zero for me and my unbridled love of comic books. I’d grown up on comics in one form or another (Beano, Tintin, Asterix, the UK reprint periodical Spider-Man And Hulk Weekly) but when I got my hands on a random issue of the British edition of Secret Wars back in the mid-‘80s, everything changed. Loads of characters I’d seen in solo adventures were suddenly interacting in the same storyline alongside loads of other exciting characters I’d never heard of before. My introduction to Marvel comics happened several years beforehand, but this was my true introduction to the Marvel Universe. And I was hooked. So, yes, there’s a huge element of nostalgia in play here but I also genuinely loved the story too. What was essentially a pure high concept ‘goodies vs baddies’ tale was nudged on a different course into a far more entertaining arena thanks to a certain monarch of Latveria, who decides to play his own game entirely. There’s much more to the series of course, but it certainly did cement by appreciation of Victor Von Doom, which hasn’t wavered to this day. So, a series that had such a life-changing impact on me, getting some sort of 21st century make over, should have riled me something fierce, right?

Wrong.

And the main reason for that? Jonathan Hickman.

Cover To Cover: ALL-NEW HAWKEYE #1

ALL-NEW HAWKEYE #1

Writer: Jeff Lemire

Art: Ramón Pérez & Ian Herring

Marvel $3.99

Kenny J: With each new iteration, version or volume of a title and its cast, it is often hard not to make direct comparisons to what has come before. Was what followed Remender’s Uncanny X-force run as good or will what inevitably replaces Hickman's Avengers stand up to scrutiny? Whoever picked up the reins from Matt Fraction and David Aja after the critically acclaimed Hawkeye was always going to have their work cut out for them. That said, every new writer brings their own agenda and recurring themes they like to play with and Jeff Lemire set out his early in his career. From the wheat fields of Essex County to the star-filled Descender (also released this week) Lemire has a definite propensity for exploring the trials and tribulations of youth. And this is where we pick up with a young Clint and his older brother, Barney, as they seek to escape their abusive foster father.

Cover To Cover: STAR WARS #1

STAR WARS #1

Writer: Jason Aaron

Art: John Cassaday & Laura Martin

Marvel $4.99

James R: The other night, whilst in the pub, your ever-loving' PCG reviewers were discussing 2015's hefty slate of exciting movies, and our esteemed editor Matt C asked me (with a definite glint in his eye) "So, which film are you looking forward to most then?" He knew full well that there was only one possible answer I would give: STAR WARS: THE FORCE AWAKENS! Despite being a wild-eyed comic fan, and as excited as the next fanboy about Avengers: Age Of Ultron, there is still no competition for me. The stories set a long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away will always hold a special thrall for me. Like a lot of fans in their 30s and 40s, I caught the full blast of George Lucas' space opera as a child, and no matter how many times I hear Han yell "You're all clear kid, now let's blow this thing and go home!" there is always a ripple of excitement that runs through me. The thought of a new chapter - which at the moment, looks utterly wonderful - is a definite thrill.

Cover To Cover: AVENGERS & X-MEN: AXIS #1

AVENGERS & X-MEN: AXIS #1

Writer: Rick Remender

Art: Adam Kubert, Laura Martin & Matt Milla

Marvel $4.99

Stewart R: There’s no hiding the fact that Marvel seemed to brush Original Sin aside a little too readily in favour of pushing their big Autumn lineup with AXIS standing clearly in the limelight. As summer events go, Original Sin promised a big story, affecting the greater Marvel universe at large, yet it proceeded to be more introverted and less expansive than perhaps we were led to believe (and expect from previous Summer events), ultimately only leading to a minimum amount of changes in the wider universe. Even when we were in the midst of Original Sin it was easy to see that the publisher were angling more towards AXIS and the huge number of tie-ins that were incoming this October and November. And so the first chapter of the main series is here, Rick Remender at the helm and a handful of trusted artists set to bring us nine issues from now until Christmas Eve, but was it worth the wait and the overshadowing of Marvel's other big project of 2014?

Cover To Cover: INHUMAN #1

INHUMAN #1
Writer: Charles Soule
Art: Joe Madureira & Marte Gracia
Marvel $3.99

Stewart R: A broad plan by a comic book publisher to expand the breadth of one of their lesser known legacy properties following a successful summer event, as well as a potential necessity to find a live action alternative to a property to which they no longer hold the rights (X marks the spot), shouldn’t surprise anyone in this day and age. It is, however, not surprising to start looking a little more closely at the products related to that property when a top writer at that publisher then steps aside due to creative differences over the story and direction of the lead title.

And so, here we are, nearly five months removed from Infinity #6, Matt Fraction’s pass on the writing duties and the large marketing push that ended up targeting an initial optimistic January date Marvel wouldn’t be able to meet, with Inhuman #1 by writer Charles Soule (Letter 44, She-Hulk) and the fan favourite artist Joe Madureira (Avenging Spider-Man, Savage Wolverine, Battle Chasers). In and amongst a (some might say 'surprisingly') well polished collection of All New Marvel NOW! titles, can Marvel and this hastily readied creative team come up with brand new property that can capture the hearts and minds of readers who are potentially already feeling the pinch from the surrounding illustrated quality on offer?

Cover To Cover: ROCKET GIRL #2

ROCKET GIRL #2

Writer: Brandon Montclare

Art: Amy Reeder

Image $3.50

Stewart R: I went to New York with a copy of Rocket Girl #1 in my bag. I had it with me on the 7 hour flight and I failed to read it. I saw Montclare and Reeder on several occasions signing copies at their table at NYCC and remember thinking to myself "I should read that tonight so I can maybe speak to them about it tomorrow", but failed to find the time and so failed to speak to them about it. I could have actually gone up and bought a copy from them, read it there and then and then spoken to them about it, but only thought of that in hindsight. I even had it in my bag for the entirety of the 7 hour flight back to the UK too. Failed to read it then. It was in a rather large pile of comics I started digging through a week after getting home and remember picking it up and stupidly thinking to myself "I really do like the look of this, but I’m not in the right frame of mind for it right this minute". Fail!

And so - with potentially a little too much honesty for you all good readers - it came to one of those quick dash, pop-to-the-convenience-and-grab-reading-material-ANY-reading-material moments about a week ago (I’m sure at least 75% of you are nodding in familiar acknowledgement of such a situation) when I finally managed to read Rocket Girl #1 and it was a damn fine debut I really must say. The fantastic news this week is that I wasted no time at all in diving into the second chapter - reading it from the comfort of a comfortable desk chair with no porcelain in sight - and it thankfully, yet not unexpectedly, carries on at the high standard set last month.

Cover To Cover: SUPURBIA #12

SUPURBIA #12

Writer: Grace Randolph

Art: Russell Dauterman & Gabriel Cassata

BOOM! Studios $3.99

Stewart R: I will admit that around the halfway point of this latest season of Supurbia I had been wondering where it was all heading and whether there might just be too many elements in play to enable this to form the fully engaging comic book that it had the potential to be. The huge ensemble cast, heroes, family and villains alike all demanded page time and it was clear that some issues were going to be a harder read than others to keep the momentum going with 14 characters to nurture, grow, torture and torment towards the arc's conclusion and the weaving together of the multiple plot threads. Here, as the dust settles in my grey matter from this turbulent finale, I think I can safely proclaim that Grace Randolph has built herself (and the readership) a fantastically well rounded, emotionally-intense and, most importantly, believable superhero world that heaps evidence on the argument that there is definitely fresh life in the genre away from the recognised canons of the Big Two publishers.