THE LI'L DEPRESSED BOY
S. Steven Struble & Sina Grace, Image
I've been picking up this title for a year now and it still maintains the dreamy, simplistic charm it had in issue one. Our hero is a perpetually unhappy sack doll desperately trying to make sense of friendship, girls and near adulthood. Dialogue is sparing and delicate where it does occur, while the pace gives the melancholy atmosphere room to breathe. There are also moments of absolute joy to be had, and for the cool kids among us, cameos from real-life hipsters such as The Like and Childish Gambino. If you like your books with a bit more heart than biff-bang-pow, this is for you. Issues 1-8 are collected in two trade paperbacks.
RACHEL RISING
Terry Moore, Abstract Studios
Terry Moore is a name many of you should know well. His 'Strangers in Paradise' was one of the most acclaimed dramatic comics of all time, a complex love triangle/espionage opus that ran for over 100 issues. More recently Moore gave us Echo, a book which combined his acclaimed and realistic portrayals of women with sci-fi and fantasy. And in the last year we have been treated to Moore's take on the macabre with Rachel Rising. Part mystery, part zombie/occult shocker, part ghost story, Rising is a wonderfully absorbing tale which begins with the eponymous Rachel waking from her apparent death - and that's just the first of many weird, frightening and puzzling developments in this haunting and snow-covered saga. Issues 1-6 have just been published in trade format.
HIGHER EARTH
Sam Humphries & Francesco Biagini, Boom! Studios
Another absolute gem from wunderkind writer Sam Humphries, filling the void left by the eternal wait for his fourth issue of Sacrifice. It must be difficult to come up with fresh and interesting stories based around the idea of a multiverse, but Humphries pulls off the task with aplomb. Bagini's art and layouts are a smorgasboard of fast-moving, sprawling chase sequences and add perfectly to the feel of an expansive and fragmented multiverse. The 'Higher Earth' of the title is an Earth which has conquered 99 other Earths, and our main protagonists are Heidi, a strong outlaw, and Rex, a rogue soldier who serves as her protector. Three issues in so far, and well worth catching up with.
THE MANHATTAN PROJECTS
Jonathan Hickman & Nick Pitarra, Image
This book is just incredible, and knocks it out of the park every single month. Presenting what is in effect an alternate history of twentieth century scientific discovery, the premise poses the question (from the cover of #1): "What if the research and development department created to produce the first atomic bomb was a front for a series of other, more unusual, programs? What if the union of a generation's brightest minds was not a signal for optimism, but foreboding? What if everything... went wrong?" Cue one of the most mind-melting, frightening, unsettling comics you'll ever read. Each issue so far has focused primarily on a different (real) character from the (real) Manhattan Projects, providing each with a psychopathic, sociopathic or otherworldly spin. Hickman's imagination is unstoppable, and Pitarra's art is somewhere between cartoony and nightmarish. Issues 1-5 are now collected in trade format, #6 is out now. Do it!
FERALS
David Lapham & Gabriel Andrade, Avatar
This is one you'll either love or hate. If you're a sucker for horror comics, then this will not disappoint: gore, gore and more gore, with a little gratuitous nudity thrown in for good measure. A spin on the werewolf genre, Lapham's book centres around law enforcement officer Dale Chesnutt, who is thrown into the world of the 'Ferals' when he meets a woman named Gerda in a bar while investigating the death of his friend. Gerda gets into Dale's head instantly, and may not be what she seems... As Dale investigates further, it becomes apparent that Gerda comes from a community which is hiding a terrible secret - they're not entirely human - and maybe Dale isn't either! Andrade's art is just great, and while I was worried that the story had run its course, the second arc has successfully refreshed and spun the story in a new direction. You can pick up the first 7 issues now.
BATWOMAN
JH Williams III & W.Haden Blackman, DC
WONDER WOMAN
Brian Azzarello & Cliff Chiang, DC
SWAMP THING
Scott Snyder & Yanick Paquette, DC
ANIMAL MAN
Jeff Lemire & Travel Foreman/Steve Pugh, DC
I LOVE these four books from the New 52. Initially last year I was only picking up Animal Man, which Andrew's already looked at here, but thanks to the thematic tie-in of Swamp Thing I started getting that too. The art in both books is incredible, especially Yanick Paquette's layouts and Foreman's work on Animal Man. Both books are now converging to a full blown crossover, with the epic 'Rotworld' storyline to follow this months #0 issues. Meanwhile, Wonder Woman is just great, the art by Cliff Chiang especially making it stand out - and the revelation at the close of last month's #12 is something to get us Kirby/Fourth World fans salivating. Batwoman, meanwhile, is my favourite of the Bat family of characters - the quality here standing up to Rucka's 'Elegy' run from Detective Comics (get the trade, it's amazing). All four have had their first arcs collected in trade format.
Speaking of DC, as promised to those who give a shit on our Facebook page (like us at www.facebook.com/ifckinglovecomics) my post on the history of the DC multiverse is almost done. Maybe next week... in the meantime, please keep checking back. I know we are not the most prolific bloggers but we really do fucking love comics.
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