UPROXX’s Top Twenty Comics For February 10

This New Comic Book Day saw a particularly strong showing from indie publishers. Who made the top twenty this week?

1) Last Sons of America #3

Phillip Kennedy Johnson and Matthew Dow Smith deliver a gut hook of a third issue in this series about what happens when America is attacked with a contraceptive weapon and children become currency. Johnson goes to some dark, dark places here, but they’re all logical and not done for shock value. They also, sadly, reflect some real-world problems. Smith, meanwhile, delivers some great pacing and flow, delivering a smart, tense thriller with something to say about the value of a person against the value of money.

2) Harrow County #9

Carla Speed McNeil fills in for Tyler Crook in this great jumping-on point for one of the best books on the stands. From the beginning, Emmy has had a friend in a boy with no skin, a boy who doesn’t know his own name. And in one terrible night, that boy is going to have his soul and mind sorely, sorely tested. Cullen Bunn’s script is, as usual, a superb example of literary horror and folklore done right, and this once again is a must-read book.

3) Arcadia #8

Alex Paknadel and Eric Scott Pfeiffer wrap up their superb SF miniseries, where the majority of humanity is uploaded into a server farm to escape a deadly virus. But that server farm has secrets, and they come back with a vengeance in this smart finale. If you haven’t been following this series, now is definitely the time to pick it up; some amazing work is being done here and it’s worth paying attention to.

4) Jughead #4

Jughead is out to prove that Riverdale High has been taken over by, well, by somebody nefarious, even if Jug isn’t sure who. What stands out about Chip Zdarsky’s script is how effortlessly funny it is, paying tribute to the old Jughead while revitalizing him elsewhere. Similarly, Erica Henderson delivers some top notch comedy art, especially in this issue’s hilarious daydream, proving Jughead isn’t much of a pirate. A great laugh and a great read.

5) Darth Vader #16

Vader, newly out from under the thumb of the Emperor, is sent to deal with a rebellion. Suffice to say, like most rebels, you don’t want to run into an angry Vader. This new arc from Kieron Gillen and Salvador Larroca stands out because we both get a sense of Vader’s ruthless nature and grasp just how the Empire keeps control; it’s one thing to be violent but quite another to be as ruthless as the Sith.

6) Constantine, The Hellblazer #9

Riley Rossmo gets to show off his skill with the absurd and grotesque in this issue, which is all about Constantine and Papa Midnight trapped in Hell. Or, rather, Dis, which is in Hell, but somehow less pleasant. Ming Doyle and James Tynion IV deliver a black comedy here that’s often as cringe-inducing as it is laugh-out-loud funny in places, making it one of the better books on the stands this week.

7) Descender #10

Tim-21 finds himself at a crossroads, in a place where he belongs, but yet he doesn’t want to live in. Jeff Lemire makes this the heart of this issue, trading physical safety for emotional, and all of it is beautifully evoked by Dustin Nguyen’s careful, beautiful watercolor work. One of the best SF books on the stands, and just getting better.

8) Shaft: Imitation of Life #1

David F. Walker’s Shaft was a revelation of a miniseries, giving the ’70s classic a new feel while keeping what made it great. This new mini, from Walker with Dietrich Smith taking over art from Bilquis Evely, jumps right into it: Shaft is asked to track down the gay son of some upstate New Yorkers, and promptly gets in trouble for it. Walker gutsily doesn’t make Shaft a progressive hero; he struggles with the gay community, even if he’s not violent towards them. It’s a smart, complex series and a must-read for fans of crime comics or noir.

9) Ms. Marvel #4

Kamala is overworked and overtired; between superheroics, school, and her brother’s new fiancée, she’s fried. So, like any teenager, instead of prioritizing and asking for help, she turns to superscience with questionable results. G. Willow Wilson does an excellent job of making Kamala relatable, even if she’s sticking to a classic plot here, and Takeshi Miyagawa delivers some bright, fun, funny art.

10) Slash and Burn #4

Si Spencer and Max Dunbar continue their compelling mix of a pyromaniac barely keeping it together and a murder mystery that just may have a mystical tinge. Somebody is killing the former fire-obsessed friends of Rosheen, a pyromaniac who works as a firefighter, and it’s not clear whether it’s a human or the Matchstick Man, a being of fire that may or may not exist. But it’s a great read either way, even if Dunbar could stand to inject a little more atmosphere.

11) No Mercy #7

Alex de Campi and Carla Speed McNeil take what, for this book, is a breather issue; some of the Princeton 20, the freshman brats off to the jungle to polish their humanitarian resumes, are safe and sound. Others are safe, if not sound, which the book uses for comedy. And still others, well, others are pretty screwed. Once again, this thriller delivers a mix of thoughtful politics and sheer tension in a strange, but fun, package.

12) The Dark and Bloody #1

Iris, an Iraq war veteran and a moonshiner, has had a rough life, but it’s all over for him now. He lives in the quiet Kentucky woods, making whiskey for a buck and helping his pregnant wife and growing son. But there’s more to his life than Iris quite realizes yet, and little of it is good. Shawn Aldridge smartly avoids clichés here, even if it seems like he’s dancing up to them; Iris may not be the sharpest tool in the box, but he’s no dummy, and he’s a fundamentally decent man. It helps that Scott Godlewski’s has some clean art that leaves the mystical aspects of the book open to interpretation. In all, a good start to a mystical noir, and a smart use of a classic American setting.

Shawn Aldridge smartly avoids clichés here, even if it seems like he’s dancing up to them; Iris may not be the sharpest tool in the box, but he’s no dummy, and he’s a fundamentally decent man. It helps that Scott Godlewski’s has some clean art that leaves the mystical aspects of the book open to interpretation. In all, a good start to a mystical noir, and a smart use of a classic American setting.

13) James Bond #4

Warren Ellis and Jason Masters once again mix the best of the movies and the novels in one extended fight scene in this issue. This has all the elements of classic Bond, from death traps to creepy henchmen, and they’re perfectly executed.

14) Leaving Megalopolis: Surviving Megalopolis #2

A city full of insane superheroes is not a pleasant place, but how did the former city of heroes turn into such a terrifying place? That’s what Gail Simone and J. Calafiore are exploring here, and they have some clever things to say about superhero tropes and hero worship along the way. If you like deconstructed superheroics, this is a must-read.

15) Black Science #20

Rick Remender and Matteo Scalera are back, delivering some ridiculously dark yet densely wacky science fiction as Grant McKay, self-absorbed jackass and brilliant scientist, tries to become a better person by murdering a death cult of telepathic millipedes. We told you it was both dark and wacky, but all of it is great, and it’s nice to see one of the better SF books on the stands back in top form.

16) New Suicide Squad #17

Come for Juan Ferreyra’s cleverly disturbing art, stay for Tim Seeley kicking this entire book over and starting something new. Whatever you’re expecting from a comic book named after a movie, let’s just say Seeley and Ferreyra are doing the exact opposite, and it’s a thrilling change of pace.

17) The Death-Defying Doctor Mirage: Second Lives #3

One of the smarter touches in Jen Van Meter and Roberto De La Torre’s clever followup to their original miniseries is just how carefully grounded it all is. De La Torre’s scratchy, spiky art is great at creating the right atmosphere, but it’s his work with faces and body language that gives this book a surprisingly realistic feel. There’s a twist here that has nothing to do with the main plot and Van Meter and De La Torre capture the emotional confusion such an event would bring on masterfully. There are a lot of books about death out there, but few about life with it, and this is a smart take on the idea.

18) Spider-Gwen #5

Jason Latour and Robbi Rodriguez’s reinvention of the Marvel Universe continues, but focuses mostly on Captain Stacy, Gwen’s father and a man stuck between his job and his daughter, and between a kingpin and his city. It’s a fun read for the way Latour and Rodriguez swap things around, of course, but more than that, it’s a compelling book that stands on its own, and it’s often head and shoulders over the universe that inspired it.

19) Deus Ex #1

Video game comics can lean too heavily on playing the game to work, but Alex Irvine and John Aggs instead use the setting and deliver a clean, engaging action book that’s heavy on the plot while filling in Adam Jensen’s character in negative space; everybody may hate the guy because of his cyborg nature, but he’s still doing the right thing. The net result is a brisk, engaging, straight ahead action book fans and casual readers alike can enjoy.

20) Interceptor #2

Do you need a reason to pick up a comic book about a robot from space who crash-lands on a planet of vampires and winds up fighting alongside the human resistance? We mean beyond the plot summary. Donny Cates and Dylan Burnett know exactly what they’re doing here, and it’s hilariously over-the-top. So much so that we can’t show you the cover, but trust us: It’s worth reading.

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