History and fiction blend with action in mystery

Donny Cates’ and Tradd Moore’s “Silver Surfer: Black” collects all five issues of the series featuring colors by Dave Stewart, letters by Clayton Cowles, and cover art by Moore and Felipe Sobreiro. The story focuses on the Silver Surfer trapped at the beginning of the universe as he battles the dark god, Knull, the King in Black. Norrin Radd must decide who he will become and what his legacy will be as he fights Knull and partners with Ego, the living planet. Cates and Moore craft a story worthy of the legacies of Jack Kirby’s and Moebius’ work with the character. It takes place after events in the regular Marvel Universe, but is set far before them so that it can stand alone. This oversized treasury edition is the perfect way to appreciate how the art and story work together.

“DC Pride: The New Generation” features work written by ladzia Axelrod, Brandt & Stein, Ivan Cohen, Kevin Conroy, Dani Fernandez, Meghan Fitzmartin, Devin Grayson, Tini Howard, Greg Lockard, Danny Lore, Travis G. Moore, Stephanie Phillips, Stephanie Williams, and Alyssa Wong; illustrated by Alberto Jimenez Alburauerque, J. Bone, Brandt & Stein, Evan Cagle, Samantha Dodge, W. Scott Forbes, Meghan Hetrick, Giulio Macaione, Travis G. Moore, Belén Ortega, Nick Robles, Zoe Thorogood, Brittney Williams, and Lynne Yoshii; colored by Erica Eren Angiolini, J. Bone, Tamra Bonvillan, Brandt & Stein, Evan Cagle, Triona Farrell, Nick Filardi, W. Scott Forbes, Luis Guerrero, Jeremy Lawson, Marissa Louise, Giulio Macalone, and Alejandro Sanchez; with letters by Aditya Bidikar, Pat Brosseau, Frank Cvetkovic, Lucas Gattoni, and Ariana Maher; and covers by Phil Jimenez & Arif Prianto. These stories celebrate DC’s LGBTQIA+ characters from Jon Kent to Tim Drake, Harley & Ivy, Batwoman, Kid Quick, and more. It's a fantastic anthology showcasing some of DC’s best heroes in standalone stories as well as short tales that connect to larger storylines. A great celebration of all that Pride stands for!

Rodney Barnes’ “Star Wars: Ahsoka – Season One” collects all eight issues of the Marvel comic adaptation of the Disney+ original series featuring art by Steven Cummings and Georges Jeanty, inks by Wayne Faucher, Karl Story, and Dexter Vines, colors by Rachelle Rosenberg, letters by Travis Lanham and Joe Caramagna, and cover art by David Nakayama, Taurin Clarke, Phil Noto, E.M. Gist, and Rod Reis. The story continues threads from “The Clone Wars,” “Rebels,” “The Mandalorian,” and “The Book of Boba Fett.” It follows Ahsoka in the years following the fall of the Empire and the rise of the New Republic. Mercenaries seemingly trained in the Jedi ways help Morgan Elsbeth break out of New Republic confinement following Ahsoka Tano’s capture of her during the events of “The Mandalorian.” She turns to General Hera Syndulla and Sabine Wren for assistance in discerning Elsbeth’s plan to bring back Grand Admiral Thrawn, who Ezra Bridger defeated during the events of “Rebels” with both disappearing to parts unknown. Sabine longs to rescue Ezra, but her plans may also aid Thrawn and endanger the galaxy. She and Ahsoka have fallen out in the years after Ahsoka unsuccessfully attempted to train Sabine as her Padawan. Part of it was Sabine’s Mandalorian temperament, part of it was due to Sabine’s disgust at the Rebellion’s failure to prevent or avenge the Great Purge of Mandalore. Ahsoka similarly struggles with her legacy as she continues the Jedi’s way of life even after having left the Order before Order 66. The knowledge of her master’s fate makes her all the more wary as she works to defeat Thrawn and prevent the next war. Hera, a great leader in the Rebellion, finds herself struggling with the bureaucracy of peace, but is fortunately surrounded by allies. Part of that bureaucracy is senator Hamato Xiono, thereby linking this story to “Resistance” and thus the sequel trilogy. To that end, “Ahsoka” ties together several “Star Wars” stories. Just like the television series, “Star Wars: Ahsoka – Season One” builds upon threads of “Star Wars” stories spanning several different series across a couple decades. It also incorporates elements of Timothy Zahn’s “Heir to the Empire” trilogy, even name-dropping the first book. Barnes’ adaptation continues the tradition of offering comic adaptations of live-action “Star Wars” stories.

“NYX: What Comes Next Will Be Marvelous” collects “NYX” no. 1-5, written by Jackson Lanzing and Collin Kelley, penciled by Francesco Mortarino and Enid Balám, inked by Mortarino, Balám, and Elisabetta D’Amico, lettered by Joe Sabino, with cover art by Sara Pichelli and Federico Blee. The story focuses on Kamala Khan/Ms. Marvel, Laura Kinney/Wolverine, Anole, David Alleyne/Prodigy, and Sophie Cuckoo as they navigate life in New York City after the fall of Krakoa. Each issue focuses on one of the characters while building a larger story in which mutants plan a false-flag attack in the hopes that it will cause targeted pushback from non-mutants that might in turn galvanize mutantkind into fighting back and demanding their own space rather than working for integration. Kamala Khan balances her new life as a mutant and an Inhuman with her superhero life. She studies with Sophie Cuckoo at Empire State University, where David Alleyne teaches as a professor teaching “Examinations of Post-Krakoan Diaspora.” Anole is similarly trying to find his way as a mutant who cannot pass for human on the surface world, who wants to find a community, but also does not feel that he should hide his identity. Lanzing and Kelley’s story manages to craft a narrative that moves the X-Men into the post-Krakoan age while also touching on the main messages at the heart of the X-titles. Additionally, the changing character focus from issue to issues allows them to take a deep dive into each of the characters and examine how they’ve changed and grown, with Anole, Prodigy, and Sophie Cuckoo being standouts among the five. Great for X-Men fans, especially those who loved the Academy era.

“Phases of the Moon Knight” collects issues 1-4 of the 2024 series focused on others who served Khonshu prior to Marc Spector. It features stories written by Erica Schultz, Benjamin Percy, Jed MacKay, Declan Shalvey, Yuji Kaku, Justina Ireland, Chris Giarrusso, Fabian Nicieza, and Tom Watlz; art by Manuel García, Rod Reis, Jorge Fornés, Eder Messias, Daniel Bayliss, Moises Hidalgo, Ken Lashley and Brian Level; with inks by Sean Parsons; and colors by Ceci de la Cruz, Lee Loughridge, Yen Nitro, Dee Cunniffe, Fer Sifuentes-Sujo, Dono Sánchez-Almara, Erick Arciniega, and Antonio Fabela. The stories focus on Moon Knights from the future, the distant past, the recent past, and a story set during Marc Spector’s apparent death. They feature Moon Knights who were Crusaders, who battled those that abuse women in Japan, and who once lived in ancient Mesopotamia. Each story builds on the legacy of the Moon Knight while also establishing the new version of the character in a way that stands out. Fabian Nicieza’s Moon Knight serves to question those who looted Egypt’s antiquities as Chris Giarrusso’s Moon Knights reflect the malleability of the character. A fun collection for Moon Knight fans!

“Ultimates by Deniz Camp, Vol. 1: Fix the World” collects “Ulitmates” #1-6, “Ultimate Universe” #1, and “Free Comic Book Day 2024: Spider-Man/Ultimate Spider-Man” #1 written by Deniz Camp and Jonathan Hickman with art by Juan Frigeri and Stefano Caselli, colors by Federico Blee and David Curiel, letters by Travis Lanham, Cory Petit, Joe Caramagna, and cover art by Dike Ruan & Alejandro Sánchez, Neeraj Menon, Ryan Stegman, JP Mayer, Brad Anderson, Bryan Hitch, and Alex Sinclair. The story takes place in Earth 6160, which the Maker – Reed Richards from the original Ultimate universe, Earth 1610 – reshaped to his own agenda while disrupting the origins of established heroes. Anthony Stark, the son of Tony Stark, works as Iron Lad with Doom, his world’s Reed Richards who the Maker tortured, to create the Ultimates and remake the world as it was meant to be. They free Captain America from the ice, resurrect the original Human Torch android, and recruit Thor, Sif, Wasp, Giant-Man, a different Hawkeye, She-Hulk from Gamma Island, and America Chavez, who crashed to Earth 6160 through a dimensional portal. They face agents of the Hand, billionaire Midas who rules North America as part of the Maker’s Council, as well as Bruce Banner’s damage to a Pacific Island in order to fix the damage the Maker did. The exploration of Banner’s experiments reflects the modern U.S.’s own nuclear experimentation in the Pacific without even a semblance of concern for optics on the international stage. This new “Ultimates” series evokes the savvy of Mark Millar and Bryan Hitch’s work while also crafting something entirely new for readers who are unfamiliar with Marvel continuity. A great addition to the Marvel canon!

“Ultimates by Deniz Camp, Vol. 1: Fix the World” collects “Ulitmates” #1-6, “Ultimate Universe” #1, and “Free Comic Book Day 2024: Spider-Man/Ultimate Spider-Man” #1 written by Deniz Camp and Jonathan Hickman with art by Juan Frigeri and Stefano Caselli, colors by Federico Blee and David Curiel, letters by Travis Lanham, Cory Petit, Joe Caramagna, and cover art by Dike Ruan & Alejandro Sánchez, Neeraj Menon, Ryan Stegman, JP Mayer, Brad Anderson, Bryan Hitch, and Alex Sinclair. The story takes place in Earth 6160, which the Maker – Reed Richards from the original Ultimate universe, Earth 1610 – reshaped to his own agenda while disrupting the origins of established heroes. Anthony Stark, the son of Tony Stark, works as Iron Lad with Doom, his world’s Reed Richards who the Maker tortured, to create the Ultimates and remake the world as it was meant to be. They free Captain America from the ice, resurrect the original Human Torch android, and recruit Thor, Sif, Wasp, Giant-Man, a different Hawkeye, She-Hulk from Gamma Island, and America Chavez, who crashed to Earth 6160 through a dimensional portal. They face agents of the Hand, billionaire Midas who rules North America as part of the Maker’s Council, as well as Bruce Banner’s damage to a Pacific Island in order to fix the damage the Maker did. The exploration of Banner’s experiments reflects the modern U.S.’s own nuclear experimentation in the Pacific without even a semblance of concern for optics on the international stage. This new “Ultimates” series evokes the savvy of Mark Millar and Bryan Hitch’s work while also crafting something entirely new for readers who are unfamiliar with Marvel continuity. A great addition to the Marvel canon!

Literally the worst book. The plot was all over the place with spelling and grammar issues throughout.