Narrowing down your pull list is quite a chore, isn't it? We here at Comic Vine understand the weekly struggle and we want to help. Every week, we'll go ahead and check out the new releases. Each staffer will pick comics they're really excited for and explain why. Maybe something here will catch your eye and you'll end up loving the series. Or, maybe you already dig it and we're on the same page. When all is said and done, be sure to sound off with your own "essential comics" below!
And just in case you missed it, here's the full list of this week's releases.
Tony 'G-Man' Guerrero's picks
THE X-FILES SEASON 10 #1
It's hard to believe the last episode of The X-Files aired in 2002. If you're not familiar with the premise or it's been a while since you've thought about it, the show focused around two FBI Agents. Fox Mulder had been designated to a low corner of the FBI dealing with cases of the unknown and paranormal. Mulder was a believer and took the cases no one wanted. Mulder's belief stemmed from the claim his sister was abducted by aliens.
Dana Scully was assigned to be Mulder's partner in large part to debunk Mulder's cases and findings in order to justify the closing of the X-Files branch. Along the way, a lot of crazy stuff went down.
With nine seasons and two movies, the series now continues in comic form with Mulder and Scully trying to live an anonymous life away from the agency after they formed a romance and Mulder broke into a to secret government facility.The series picks up from the series and as Mulder and Scully find themselves being pulled back, it's not going to be a good thing for them.
The comic is written by Joe Harris and series creator Chris Carter so you know it will have right vibe. Michael Walsh's art (often seen here in Awesome Art Picks and recently in COMEBACK from Image) is perfect for the series.
CBR has the rest of the preview.
100 BULLETS: BROTHER LONO #1
100 BULLETS is back! These days it's not often you see a series last for 100 issues. It's also rare to see the same creative team remain together for that many issues. When the series ended with a bang, it seemed that was the end.
100 BULLETS was focused on individuals given the means to get revenge against those that seriously wronged them. A mysterious Agent Graves would approach them, give them an untraceable gun along with 100 bullets. Of course there was an ulterior motive for Graves. Later we slowly find out that Graves was the leader of a group called the Minutemen.
Lono was a Minuteman but also a violent sadistic man and possible psychopath. Spoiler! It appeared Lono's death was imminent when he was shot in the chest and fell out a window. He managed to walk away and now we'll see he got better. What he's been up to since and why he's apparently working on the "side of the angels" in Mexico is just part of what we'll discover in this eight-issue miniseries.
Brian Azzarello, Eduardo Risso and the entire creative team have reunited for this series and you won't have to have read the previous series in order to follow this story.
AGE OF ULTRON #10
This is it. This is the end.
This has been an interesting series. Having gone through different directions with the involvement of time travel, many readers have been left wondering what is going on and how it will all end. That's the key right there. Brian Michael Bendis and Marvel have kept the ending of this series under extreme secrecy. What happens in this issue is such a secret, Joe Quesada, former Editor-in-Chief and current Chief Creative Officer of Marvel Entertainment, went back to the drawing board in order to pencil the final secret pages.
What could possibly happen here? Will this final issue give readers the payoff they've been waiting for? You have to believe something big is going to happen here. Will it 'change everything'? It's hard to say. Even AVENGERS VS X-MEN had an impact on the Marvel Universe. Regardless if you've stuck through this entire series or not, chances are you won't want to miss how it all ends. It's likely to be pretty crazy.
Seeing as the issues will be in polybags, it's safe to bet there won't be a preview.
Gregg Katzman's picks
BATMAN & BATGIRL #21
Batman may be busy with all kinds of crazy situations in countless other titles, but BATMAN AND reminds us every month of the terrible, terrible tragedy Grant Morrison hit us with back in BATMAN, INCORPORATED #8. The death of Damian Wayne wasn't just the death of another Robin -- it was the loss of Wayne's only child. Something of that caliber needs to have a lasting impact and by all means should be covered for months to come. We tend to joke that comic book deaths are often pointless or even meaningless because characters will indeed one day come back (most likely) or an appropriate amount of time isn't dedicated to the character.
So far, writer Peter J. Tomasi has been doing a good job overall, with issues ranging from good to I'M NOT CRYING THERE'S JUST SOMETHING IN MY EYE! We've already seen Wayne encounter Jason Todd and Tim Drake as he tries to bring back his son, and now we'll see him interact with Batgirl. What's sure to make this even more interesting is Barbara has removed the bat symbol from her costume. Prepare for drama and maybe even tears. Oh, and Patrick Gleason's art is always worth celebrating.
MTV Geek has an exclusive look at the issue.
TMNT VILLAIN MICROSERIES #3 OLD HOB
Remember that time I couldn't stop praising IDW's take on TMNT? It was probably yesterday, but you know what? I'm about to do it again and it's all because there's a new issue this week. 'City Fall' is all kinds of awesome in the primary ongoing, but now it's time to shine the spotlight on one of the villains: Old Hob. The foe has mostly received the short end of the stick in the classic franchise's new ongoing, but now the villain is getting an entire issue to prove he deserves more credit.
Writer Jason Ciaramella will dive into the bad guy's origin story. This tale will hopefully make us believe Old Hob has the potential to be far more than a mere lackey. It's clear he's telling the story to Slash, so my fingers are crossed we'll get to see more from the duo in the present, too! Regardless, it's always going to be a good day when there's a new TMNT issue.
Comics Alliance has the last few pages.
Mat ' Inferiorego' Eflring
ULTIMATE SPIDER-MAN #24
It's "one year later" (where have I heard that before?), and while that concept really bugged me, with the last issue. I've gotten off my angry fanboy bus of miserableness and gotten into a sedan of comfort. Of course, at some point, Miles is going to have to be Spider-Man again, after seeing his own mother killed simple because he existed as Spidey.
This is still a very young kid dealing with some big, real life, adult issues, which I love seeing take place on the page. Miles deals with death, but also has to deal with doing the right thing, which means helping people in need because with great power comes great responsibility.
We also get to see Ultimate Cloak and Dagger, which didn't excite me all that much, but it's nice to see a new edition to the Ultimate universe.
Here's the thing. I've been reading Ultimate Spider-Man since Carnage was introduced, and this series is usually a fantastic and amazingly fun read. Plus, David Marquez is doing the art. Have I mentioned how much I've loved his work ever since I saw it for the first time in SYNDROME? Solid creative team. Solid story. You need this book.
ULTIMATE COMICS ULTIMATES #26
That's right. Both my essential books this week are from Marvel's Ultimate universe. If you don't read these, it will be an ultimate regret. See what I did there? That's clever.
In the last issue, we saw Hulk do a lot of smashing. We saw the infinity gems and the gauntlet. We also saw the return of one of the coolest villains in recent years, Ultimate Reed Richards. With the return of Reed comes the forming of the Dark Ultimates, which is all led by one of my favorite 616 villains: Kang (The Conqueror). Is it a conquering Kang or one who wants to save the world?
I'm very excited with the direction new writer Josh Fialkov is taking this book. The last issue was a ton of fun, and I had a blast reading it. Carmine Di Giandomenico had some fabulous art in the first issue. And all around, creatively, it was an awesome book that provided a great read. Plus... Hulk smash.
Sara 'Babs' Lima's picks
FANTASTIC FOUR #9
Although Fraction's FANTASTIC FOUR series hasn't been as consistently good as his FF book, it has still been a pleasure to see him dig into these characters and delve into the mind of Reed Richards. FANTASTIC FOUR # 9 will be all about Doctor Doom and his journey into becoming one of the most formidable villains in the Marvel Universe. But what did Ben Grimm have to do with Victor's descent into darkness? This issue promises to explore and answer that question. Doom is one of the greatest villains in comics, so his appearances are generally some that I look forward to the most. FANTASTIC FOUR #9 will feature Doom, the Council of Dooms and a whole lot more.
WONDER WOMAN #21
This month's WONDER WOMAN #21 will likely be action packed. Diana will be facing off against the First Born, a character that will likely give her the battle of her life: but she won't be doing it alone: she will be getting a little bit of help from Orion. And although these two are probably going to be working together, if history proves anything it's that they will probably do so a bit reluctantly. The interactions between these two characters on panel has been consistently interesting and entertaining and its one reason why I am definitely looking forward to picking up this next issue.
Hero Complex has an exclusive look at the issue.
Jennifer 'MissJ' Aprahamian
CAPTAIN MARVEL #13
Carol Corps, things are getting REAL in CAPTAIN MARVEL right now. We're at the mid-point of THE ENEMY WITHIN, and this issue looks like it's going to be one of the most intense yet -- giant-sized threats, an appearance by Thor, and what Marvel is teasing as "the most pivotal event in Captain Marvel's history." Considering that history? I'm pretty psyched.
MARA #5
Are you reading MARA? You should be reading MARA. It's honestly unlike anything else out there; there are elements of superhero, action, and dystopian sci-fi, but it's so much more than any of those parts. If you haven't been picking this one up, the gist is this: super-elite athlete in a super-futuristic society ends up being (...wait for it) super-powered. It's character-driven, it's dramatic, and it has a mega-cool female lead. Also, it's brought to you by the powerhouse team of Brian Wood - Ming Doyle - Jordie Bellaire.
Visit CBR for the rest.
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