Being a comic fan can be tough. With so many publishers printing more and more books, canceling titles and starting new ones, it can be daunting when you head to the comic book shop on a Wednesday to know exactly what’s coming out.
The current system of presenting and ordering comics three months ahead of their release as set forth by the sole comics distributor, Diamond Comics, doesn’t make it any easier either. We’re not a fan of that system, we think it’s slowly strangling comics to death, but we realize it’s a harsh reality of how the industry works and we definitely don’t want you to miss out on any of the cool comics being published.
And so, as opposed to regurgitating the list of comics solicited in Previews each month, we present to you some of the highlights of things you probably won’t want to miss out on.
SPOILER WARNING! In order to get people to order comics, the publishers have a funny habit of revealing what’s happening in the books. If you don’t want anything at all to be spoiled, then you’ll probably want to skip this post and take your chances with your pre-orders and/or your shopping.
Marvel NOW! First Issues!
2013 kicks off with six new number ones in the great Marvel Comics volleyball rotation that is Marvel NOW!
UNCANNY X-FORCE #1
Story by Sam Humphries
Art by Ron Garney
Cover by OLIVIER COIPEL
Variant Cover by RON GARNEY
Design variant by Kris Anka
Blank Cover Also Available
Young Baby Variant by SKOTTIE YOUNGTHE DARKEST CORNERS OF THE MUTANT UNIVERSE: EXPOSED!
The X-Men: sworn to protect a world that fears and hates them. UNCANNY X-FORCE: charged to deal with situations the X-Men fear and hate! Psylocke and Storm lead a new team of outcasts and scoundrels, including fan-favorite Puck, the villainous Spiral, and the mysterious Cluster. The first adversary to strike out from the darkness? X-legend BISHOP!
32 PGS./Rated T+ …$3.99
NEW AVENGERS #1
Story by Jonathan Hickman
Art by Steve Epting
Cover by JOCK
Variant Cover by J. Scott Campbell
SKETCH VARIANT BY J. SCOTT CAMPBELL
Variant Cover by STEVE EPTING
Young Baby Variant by SKOTTIE YOUNG
Blank Cover Also AvailableTo prevent the collision of our universe with another, the Illuminati, led by the Black Panther, must assemble NOW! It’s the most powerful and brilliant team in the Marvel Universe–The Black Panther, Iron Man, Doctor Strange, Black Bolt, Mister Fantastic, Namor the Sub-Mariner and The Beast–against an infinite legion of parallel realities.
32 PGS. /Rated T+ …$3.99
THE SUPERIOR SPIDER-MAN #1
Story by DAN SLOTT
Art & Cover by RYAN STEGMAN
Variant Cover by JOE QUESADA
Sketch Variant Cover by JOE QUESADA
Variant Cover by Humberto Ramos
Variant Cover by Giuseppe Camuncoli
design variant by Ed McGuinness
Young Baby Variant by SKOTTIE YOUNG
Blank Cover Also AvailableTHEN!…Peter Parker spent a lifetime living up to the responsibilities his powers foisted upon him but his Amazing story finally ended dramatically in the historic Spider-Man #700.
NOW!…The new Amazing Spider-Man has arrived and he is better in every single way. Smarter, stronger…Superior.
32 PGS. /Rated T+ …$3.99
YOUNG AVENGERS #1
Story by KIERON GILLEN
Art & Cover by JAMIE MCKELVIE & MIKE NORTON
Colors by MATTHEW WILSON
Variant Cover by BRYAN LEE O’MALLEY
Young Baby Variant by SKOTTIE YOUNG
Blank Cover Also AvailableLegacy isn’t a dirty word… but it’s an irrelevant one. It’s not important what our parents did. It matters what WE do. Someone has to save the world. You’re someone. Do the math.
The critically acclaimed team of Gillen/McKelvie/Wilson (with added Norton Sauce) decide to reinvent the teen superhero comic for the 21st century, uniting Wiccan, Hulkling and Hawkeye with Loki, Marvel Boy and Ms. America. No pressure. Young Avengers is as NOW! as the air in your lungs, and twice as vital. It’s the book that knows Hyperbole is the BEST! THING! EVER!
32 PGS./Rated T+ …$2.99
SAVAGE WOLVERINE #1
Story, Art, & Cover by Frank Cho
Variant Cover by JOE QUESADA
Sketch Variant Cover by JOE QUESADA
Variant Cover by FRANK CHO
Young Baby Variant by SKOTTIE YOUNG
Blank Cover Also AvailableWolverine awakes to find himself transported to the Savage Land and labeled public enemy number one! With no memory of how he got there, and Shanna the She-Devil his only ally, Logan must unravel the mystery that slumbers at the heart of the Savage Land before it finds a way to kill him first. This January, Wolverine is all brawls, babes, and brachiosaurs, and you’ll never see the end — or the future of the Marvel Universe — NOW!
32 PGS./Parental Advisory …$3.99
MORBIUS: THE LIVING VAMPIRE #1
Story by JOE KEATINGE
Art by RICHARD ELSON
Cover by Gabrielle Dell’otto
Variant Cover by Ed McGuinness
Young Baby Variant by SKOTTIE YOUNG
Blank Cover Also AvailableMorbius….the hunted, haunted fugitive.
Morbius…the dead souled scientist.
Morbius…the Living Vampire.Somewhere inside Doctor Michael Morbius is a good man who just needs a second chance. After escaping from The Raft in Amazing Spider-Man 699.1, Morbius is scraping desperately through each day trying to carve out a life in a world that has turned its back on him. However his redemption…may be worse than his sin.
NOW Morbius returns in this long-awaited ongoing series, where the line between hero and villain becomes brutally and bloodily blurred.
32 PGS./Rated T+ …$2.99
Marvel NOW! Double Shipping!
At this point it’s well known that Marvel is a big fan of double shipping most of their most popular titles. What better way to squeeze some more money out of a shrinking market? And that brings us to… (See you in the next segment.)
NEW AVENGERS #2
Story by Jonathan Hickman
Art by Steve Epting
Cover by JOCK
Variant Cover by SIMONE BIANCHI• “EVERYTHING DIES”
• The Illuminati gather to plan for the death of Everything.
• Infinity gems, old wounds, lies, agendas and universal incursions.
• “It breaks hope — it crushes what makes us decent and steals what little honor remains.” –Black Swan32 PGS./Rated T+ …$3.99
THE SUPERIOR SPIDER-MAN #2
Story by DAN SLOTT
Art & Cover by RYAN STEGMAN
Variant Cover BY ED McGuinness• The All-Now Supereir Spider-Man battles All-New Sinister Six!
• PLUS: Spider-Man and Mary Jane…REUNITED!
• PLUS: Slott and Stegman… REUNITED!32 PGS./Rated T+ …$3.99
ALL-NEW X-MEN #5
Story by Brian Michael Bendis
Art & Cover by Stuart Immonen
Variant Cover by OLIVIER COIPEL• The first story of a new era comes to its conclusion.
• One of the original X-Men will be forever changed!32 PGS./Rated T+ …$3.99
AVENGERS #3
Story by JONATHAN HICKMAN
Art by JEROME OPEÑA
Cover by DUSTIN WEAVER
AVENGERS 50TH ANNIVERSARY VARIANT BY DANIEL ACUNA
VARIANT Cover BY ADI GRANOV
VARIANT Cover BY ESAD RIBIC• “THE GARDEN”
• The birth of the New Adam.
• On Mars, the Battle between The Avengers and the Garden comes to a dramatic conclusion.
• “If you want LIFE and all the good things living entails, then you’ll have to earn it.” –Ex Nihilo32 PGS./Rated T …$3.99
Marvel NOW! Double Shipping With Artist Changes!
… the effect of double shipping on the art side of these books. Obviously, unless their name is Mark Bagley or possibly John Romita Jr., one artist can’t handle upwards of 18 issues a year. So these double shipped books, they’re going to have alternating art teams.
ALL-NEW X-MEN #6
Story by Brian Michael Bendis
Art by DAVID MARQUEZ
Cover by Stuart Immonen
X-Men 50th Anniversary Variant by TBA• David Marquez (Ultimate Comics: Spider-Man) takes the artistic reins for 3 issues!
• Brian Bendis further defines the future of the X-Men!32 PGS./Parental Advisory …$3.99
AVENGERS #4
Story by JONATHAN HICKMAN
Art by ADAM KUBERT
Cover by DUSTIN WEAVER
VARIANT Cover BY ESAD RIBIC• “THE DEATH AND RESURRECTION OF MAJOR TITANS”
• The Secret Origin of Hyperion.
• The Legacy of the Garden unfolds in the Savage Land.
• “We’ll have to field test our theories here. NOW.” –Dr. Deeds32 PGS./Rated T …$3.99
Double Shipping, NOW! Without Renumbering!
But it’s not just Marvel NOW! books that are double shipping in January! (And one is saying goodbye only to say hello again the very next month.)
SECRET AVENGERS #36
Story by RICK REMENDER
Art by MATTEO SCALERA
Cover by ARTHUR ADAMS• In The Core Venom and Valkyrie set out on a mission to kill Father.
• In New York The Master Mold rises and the only way to stop him is to kill The Torch!
• Black-Ant vs Hawkeye the final showdown!32 PGS./Rated T+ …$3.99
SECRET AVENGERS #37
Story by RICK REMENDER
Art by MATTEO SCALERA
Cover by ARTHUR ADAMS
Final issue variant by Mike Perkins• FINAL ISSUE!
• The conclusion to the Rise of the Descendants! All secrets revealed!
• Father and the Descendants begin Contagious Robotic Evolution, merging the Descendants with all of humanity!
• What is the secret behind the power of Parvez?
• The ultimate test of Hawkeye!32 PGS./Rated T+ …$3.99
VENOM #29
Story by CULLEN BUNN
Art by THONY SILAS
Cover by SHANE DAVIS• AN ALIEN NATION RISES!
• Flash Thompson uncovers a mystery in Philadelphia, and Katy Kiernan may be its first victim!
• Cullen Bunn (WOLVERINE) and Thony Silas (AMAZING SPIDER-MAN: ENDS OF THE EARTH) continue the tale of Venom’s first adventure in his new home!32 PGS./Rated T+ …$2.99
VENOM #30
Story by CULLEN BUNN
Art by THONY SILAS
Cover by Paulo Siqueira• VENOM VS. THE U-FOES IN THE CITY OF BROTHERLY SHOVE!
• In a race against time, can Flash Thompson rescue not just his friends but th entire city of Philadelphia from an alien plot?
• Get ready for the most TOXIC final page in Venom history!32 PGS./Rated T+ …$2.99
WOLVERINE & THE X-MEN #23
Story by Jason Aaron
Art & Cover by Nick Bradshaw• Wolverine vs. Frankenstein!
• The Murder Circus claims its victims!32 PGS./Rated T+ …$3.99
WOLVERINE & THE X-MEN #24
Story by Jason Aaron
Art by TBA
Cover by RAMÓN K. PÉREZ• DATE NIGHT!
• Kitty and Iceman! Storm and Wolverine?32 PGS./Rated T+ …$3.99
And NOW! The Return of Pichelli!
Okay, so Sara Pichelli never really went away from Miles Morales, she just slid over to Spider-Men, but now she has slid back to the mothership and I couldn’t be more excited.
ULTIMATE COMICS SPIDER-MAN #19
Story by BRIAN MICHAEL BENDIS
Art & Cover by SARA PICHELLI• VENOM WARS BEGINS!!!
• Miles finally has his costume, his web shooters, and now he has his first A-list Spider-Man villain! There’s a new Venom in town and he’s hungry!
• All this, plus Miles’ new girlfriend and the return of award-winning Ultimate Spider-Man artist Sara Pichelli!32 PGS./Rated T+ …$3.99
The Best Book Marvel is Publishing… Right NOW!
There are a lot of best books being published at any given moment. These are three.
HAWKEYE #7
Story by MATT FRACTION
Art & Cover by DAVID AJA• Cherry’s got a gun. And she looks good in it.
• Hawkeye gets distracted. Just like you are right now.32 PGS./Rated T+ …$2.99
FURY MAX #8
Story by Garth Ennis
Art by Goran Parlov
Cover by DAVE JOHNSON• Fury and Castle are POW.
• What do the Viet Cong have in mind for the war heroes?32 PGS./Explicit Content …$3.99
DAREDEVIL #22
Story by MARK WAID
Art by Chris Samnee
Cover by Paolo Rivera• Daredevil teams up with the ALL NEW Superior Spider-Man!
• Yes, America, we’ve heard your calls! Stilt-Man Is BACK! Better than ever thanks to some last minute help from Doctor Octopus.
• The Eisner and Harvey Award winner for book of the year continues to baffle all of us here at the House of Ideas!32 PGS./Rated T+ …$2.99
Okay NOW! Brubaker is Really Done
Ed Brubaker may be saying his farewell to Captain America today but he’ll be hanging around with Cap’s sidekick until January. And then he’ll really be gone. (Not dead; to Image.)
WINTER SOLDIER #14
Story by ED BRUBAKER
Art by BUTCH GUICE
Cover by DANIEL ACUñA• The grand finale of the BLACK WIDOW HUNT
• Will Bucky sacrifice everything to save his love?
• Can Black Widow even be saved?
• Ed Brubaker finishes his critically-acclaimed run and no one escapes unscathed!32 PGS./Rated T+ …$2.99
And NOW! Something For The Old School Fan
The West Coast Avengers. For comic book fans of a certain age those four words conjure up sepia-toned memories of simpler times. Times in which Hawkeye, Mockingbird, Wonder Man, Tigra, and sometimes Tony Stark hung out in LA getting into all sorts of sun-drenched shenanigans.
AVENGERS: WEST COAST AVENGERS OMNIBUS, VOL. 1 HC
Written by ROGER STERN, BOB HARRAS, STEVE ENGLEHART & DANNY FINGEROTH
Penciled by BOB HALL, LUKE MCDONNELL, AL MILGROM, RICHARD HOWELL, STEVE DITKO & MARK BRIGHT
Covers by GREG LAND & AL MILGROMEarth’s Mightiest Heroes head west! Hawkeye splits from the Avengers and sets up shop in California. But the newly recruited members of Avengers “franchise” — including Tigra, Wonder Man, Mockingbird and a new Iron Man — soon find themselves in over their heads!
Meanwhile, Ultron and the Grim Reaper target Wonder Man’s “brother,” the Vision — and the Vision’s wife, the Scarlet Witch! Can the West Coasters keep this complex bloodline from getting bloodier?
Plus: Both Avengers teams are betrayed from within!
Also guest-starring the the Thing, Hank Pym, Firebird and Nick Fury!
Collecting WEST COAST AVENGERS (1984) #1-4, IRON MAN ANNUAL #7, AVENGERS (1963) #250, WEST COAST AVENGERS (1985) #1-16, VISION AND THE SCARLET WITCH (1985) #1-2, AVENGERS ANNUAL (1967) #15, WEST COAST AVENGERS ANNUAL #1; and material from AVENGERS (1963) #239, #243-244 and #246, and AVENGERS WEST COAST #100.
760 PGS./Rated T …$99.99
Thor Not Ready For Relationship Right NOW!
All right thinking people love this book and if you were one of those people who wanted a nice collection for our shelf, but didn’t want to pick up the two digest-sized editions, this one’s for you. The bad news? This title was still canceled before Langridge and Samnee got to tell their planned 12-issue story. The good news? Those digests must have sold well enough to justify this collection. So, that’s nice.
THOR: THE MIGHTY AVENGER — THE COMPLETE COLLECTION TPB
Written by ROGER LANGRIDGE
Penciled by CHRIS SAMNEE
Cover by CHRIS SAMNEEIt’s Thor as you’ve never seen him when Eisner and Harvey Award-nominated writer Roger Langridge and artist Chris Samnee re-imagine the God of Thunder!
Thrill as Thor battles raging robots the size of cities and fights side-by-side with Iron Man for the first time! Gasp as he tames the mightiest sea creatures and tests his might against the Sub-Mariner! Swoon as he rescues damsels in distress from the vilest villains!
Plus: When mischievous Loki’s machinations throw Thor and a World War II-era Captain America into King Arthur’s court, it’s a time-twisting tale of Camelot craziness that neither Avenger will ever forget!
Collecting THOR THE MIGHTY AVENGER #1-8, FREE COMIC BOOK DAY 2011: CAPTAIN AMERICA & THOR.
216 PGS./Rated T …$24.99
For a comprehensive list of Marvel Comics’ offerings in January, click here… NOW!
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So much good stuff out this month.
I try to cut my pull list back, but then I see Ron Garney and “Cluster”… Hmmm… I think they just got me. The bastards.
I’m definitely intrigued as well, but I don’t think I’ll have enough funds. Maybe if I hear enough good things, I’ll check it in trade…
Hyperion on the Avengers cover caught my eye!Joining the Avengers perhaps-AWESOME!
that Avengers #2 jock cover is hilarious, they should really do that in the next movie, it would be amazing
Go TEAM VENTURE!!!!
Yeah, that double shipping is killing me! It’s really making me pick and choose.
I am definitely picking up the main Avengers book, but will unfortunately not be picking up New Avengers as a consequence.
This double shipping schedule (especially for $3.99 issues) is NOT cool. I’m forced to cut books instead of trying out something new.
I feel the same. I had to drop 5 Marvel titles I actually enjoyed because I can’t afford all the double shipping.
Uncanny X-Force – SKIP
New Avengers – BUY
Superior Spider-man – SKIP (I do love how Spider-man’s front hand looks like a spider!)
Young Avengers – SKIP
Savage Wolverine – BUY
Morbius:The Living Vampire -BUY
Secret Avengers – SKIP
Hawkeye – BUY
Daredevil – BUY
Fury MAX – BUY
Winter Soldier – SKIP
Officially tradewaiting Marvel books (hickman/remender) as of this month. 3.99 + double shipping = me, off of the monthlies. Sad.
The cover of Hawkeye #7 by David Aja is just unbelievably beautiful!
The Fanboy’s seemed down on Hawkeye #3 – is this really still the best book Marvel is publishing? Their apathetic review on this week’s podcast changed my mind on whether to buy the TP when it comes out.
@Grandturk: Did you somehow miss me calling it the best issue yet?
@Conor – I think its obvious that I did. One of the other two guys was probably talking over you. lol Well that’s good. You’ve changed my mind, bro.
Hah! Your “bro” at the end there had me chuckling out loud.
With regard to Conner’s comment about the current Diamond system of 3-months in advance ordering “slowly strangling comics to death,” have there been previous systems that worked better or is there some logical and realistic way that it could be better now? I understand the difficulties for retailers and readers when a comic generates a lot of buzz only after it has been ordered in too few numbers. Why is it three months anyway? I guess they are printed only after they are solicited and ordered or something? Was the old method the thing where unsold comics were destroyed by removing the cover? I am pretty ignorant on this issue clearly. Anyone know?
Or maybe it was “Conor” who said that…
It’s actually not me specifically, it’s a jointly written opening from our editorial team that goes on top of all of these articles, regardless of who compiles them.
Ah, yes. That makes sense. So when you say “We think it’s slowly strangling comics….” it’s an actual “we” and not you speaking royally. But anyway, is there a more obvious way to do the solicitations? I’m trying to develop an informed opinion, though perhaps ignorance is bliss in this instance.
Yeah, I am anti-double shipping, especially when it’s $3.99. The only Marvel book double shipping book I get is Amazing Spider-Man. And that’s basically just to see what happens with #700. I will probably pick up the first couple of Superior Spider-Man in January but I’m guessing I will drop it after that. I love DC’s $2.99 once a month books. I can get more titles for my money. I do get some $2.99 monthly books from Marvel like Daredevil, Hawkeye Scarlett Spider and now Punisher War Zone. Those books are better than most of the $3.99 double shipping titles that I have read anyway. I will be checking out Morbius when that comes out too.
Caught up on some comics last night – Cap & Black Widow, Cap and Winter Solder. All good. Will miss Bru.
So many shakeups with NOW… I don’t know what I’ve already ordered, what I’m going to read… feel a mini-hiatus coming on while this thing sorts itself out.
Paolo Riveras covers are so damn good.
One of the main reason I don’t collect many Marvels books is that it’s way too expensive. Almost 8 dollars for a title a month is just not sustainable.
Bring on Hickman’s Avengers/New Avengers!!!!!!!!
Just look at that Hawkeye cover! COME ON! Gorgeous!
Uncanny X-Force – SKIP
New Avengers – BUY
Superior Spider-man – BUY (though on short leash)
Young Avengers – SKIP
Savage Wolverine – SKIP
Morbius:The Living Vampire – SKIP
Secret Avengers – SKIP
Hawkeye – SKIP
Daredevil – BUY
Fury MAX – BUY
Winter Soldier – SKIP
And, if Thor: The Mighty Avenger (AKA Thor: My Boyfriend) is full-size and not digest-size, I will buy the heck out that book. (Though, still hoping for a hardcover someday.)
h/t Kmanifesto for the format
Double shipping is awesome.
Two books a month of something I really enjoy.
Collected editions out sooner.
I agree, but I’m waiting for triple shipping and 4.99 books before I come back to Marvel! You can do it, Joey Q!
I would think double shipping $3.99 was cool too if I were rich.
In all honesty I do agree. No sarcasm.
More of what I want is a good thing.
I understand why people don’t like it concerning their wallets, especially when it comes to a $3.99 price tag, buuuut… For me? It’s rad.
Count me among the “cool with double shipping” camp. I totally get why people don’t like it, but as long as I enjoy what I’m reading, I say keep ’em coming.
I’m not rich, but limit my pull list to books I absolutely can’t live without or ones that really deserve/need my support in single issues (currently about 20 titles). Then I trade-wait the things I’m interested in, but don’t mind waiting for. With the 15% member discount at my LCS, I average about $15 a week on comics, even with double shipping and sampling new books on light weeks.
And for me, the number of books I pull that double ship tends to balance out with the number of indie books that ship less than monthly or go on hiatus, so the net effect of double shipping is pretty small.
I recently switched to ordering my comics online from a comic shop that gives me 15% discount, no sales tax and free shipping. Saving me a TON of money.
Yeah, that’s what I am going to do with these double shipping titles that I am interested in. Just get them in trade. Most of the new X-Titles I want to at least give a shot.
Double shipping rocks! I love having more than one issue to read a month. Its a little closer to my ideal “No Floppies” world – where everything is just a 100-200pg TP 2-3 times a year.
Anyway – I get mine from DCBS with a nice discount and all at the same time so its like having a mini-trade to read. Sometimes I let the books pile up for months so I have a good solid 4-7 issues to read at a time.
I….I just want to roll around in a big pile of all of this.
Thor: The Mighty Avenger deserves the HC treatment though.
Why the F does Marvel think double-shipping is a good idea? Surely, they’ve “tested” this strategy in some way. It seems asinine to me.
And, “alternating” art teams? Yuck.
“Why the F does Marvel think double-shipping is a good idea?”
Because enough people still buy the books to off-set any losses of readership.
“Surely, they’ve ‘tested’ this strategy in some way.”
Sure, it’s been over a year now of the double-shipping policy.
I’m with you on the art team switcheroo
See, I’d rather have 2-3 top notch artists rotating arcs on a book than have every third or fourth issue feature layouts-only by the series artists (at best) with rushed finishes by an ad hoc team of pinch hitters.
Unless your name is Bagley, Romita, or Capullo (some others too), putting out a monthly book for an extended period of time is major grind.
So if it means each artist is able to do their best work on a particular issue, I’m totally cool with rotating art teams. Errr.. provided the editorial team does a good job getting artists that mesh together (Wolverine and The X-Men and X-Men Legacy have been doing well with this).
Well… I think we can all agree the best thing is to have one artist doing their best work on a book and getting it out on time. That’s pretty good.
Next would be a group of top artists rotating in arcs. That’s really good as well – I think we’ve seen that with ASM in the past few years since OMD.
Unfortunately – I don’t think there are many other examples of the 2nd. I think we’re more likely to get a couple issues from a top notch guy followed by a few rotations of new or fair artists and then an issue or two from the original guy – rinse, repeat.
I’m down with alternating art teams. As long as the style is at least kinda similar. Don’t do no more Greg Land/Terry Dodson. That was a terrible thing to do on the x-men…
Just when you think its safe to go back in the water.
I’m so excited to Marvel now as I was to the 52 thing. But to see The avengers on the hands of Hickman… Seriously, that is utterly awesome!
And he made a logo for the new avengers! And I LOVE IT! Alpha-Omega illuminatti avengers!
I understand that I’m the only one, but I only get the books I really like so double shipping is awesome to me. A full month between books that I love always seems too long. If Daredevil or Wolverine and the X-Men or Uncanny X-Force double ship in a month then I am very, very happy. Trust me, just get the books you like, it’s what you should be doing anyway and it makes you happy about double shipping.