Lovecraftian beasties against gangsters, angry teens with superpowers, and the return of the messiest ’90s anti-hero top our list of favorites this week.
X #1Duane Swierczynski has a facility with anti-heroes, as shown by his run on Judge Dredd and Bloodshot, and while his zero issue for this first miniseries was relatively shallow compared to the humor and surprising depth that he reached with the other two books, that doesn’t mean the series proper won’t offer some of the same amusements. If anybody can update X to be genuinely relevant and interesting in the modern age, it’s Swiercynski, and we’ll be curious to see what he brings to the table.
Chin Music #1Steve Niles can be a controversial writer among comic nerds, but one thing is absolutely for sure: Gangsters and Lovecraft tend to mix like chocolate and peanut butter. Whether it’s the beloved but hard to find HBO TV movie Cast a Deadly Spell, or Ed Brubaker’s intense thriller Fatale, there’s nothing really wrong with mixing the two, and thus Chin Music is going to be worth a first issue, at least.
Harbinger #12 Valiant has been, slowly but surely, putting together some of the best superhero comics on the stands, but Joshua Dysart’s team of uncertain teens is possibly their best book. Dysart’s characters run the gamut from a nerd girl overjoyed at her powers to a kid who literally projects a macho facade that his body can’t back up. This book, tying into the Harbinger Wars crossover, promises to put real strain on the team and see where they come together and where they fall apart. And we can’t wait.
Got a favorite of the week you want us to know about? Let us know in the comments.