Comic Book Herald

A Comic Book Reading Order Guide For Beginners & Fans

Sara Century

The Old 52: Revisiting DC’s Villains Month

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The New 52. What a ride, am I right? An attempt to reimagine the DC Universe from the ground up that was almost immediately bogged down by increasingly complex continuity and a series of retcons-for-retcons-sake that would ultimately get wiped off the board when the need for another company-wide reboot was required in just five short years. Yet, a lot of fans that are still reading today had their entry to comics during this era, and it would be disingenuous to say that there was nothing good to be found here. Crossovers may not have delivered, but there were certainly some good ideas being thrown around, and Villains Month was one of them.

Focusing on antagonists and antiheroes like Poison Ivy, Bizarro, Darkseid, Solomon Grundy, Black Manta, and Cheetah, this crossover-within-a-crossover indicates both the best and the worst of New 52. Lacking the time and space to actually explore the new ideas they set forward, these stories range from the incredibly satisfying to the wildly disappointing, but on average tend toward the middle of the road. [Read more…] about The Old 52: Revisiting DC’s Villains Month

Gore, Guts, and Glory in the Predator Omnibus

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Dark Horse began publishing the Predator comics in 1989 with the story now generally referred to as Concrete Jungle, not long after debuting its Aliens line the year prior. Rather than focusing on an ongoing, the publisher pushed short appearances in the Dark Horse Presents anthology while offering up a number of limited series and one-shots over the years.

Foregoing the larger world building that the Aliens franchise has explored in novels and comics to focus on repeating the format that makes the Predator movies so great, it’s easy to forget about the early Predator comics in comparison to the Aliens and AVP series. Aliens offers more character and plot development while AVP has even more epic fights, which leaves some of these stories in the dust. On the other hand, the original outings with the Predators did offer massive amounts of bloodshed and a revolving series of backdrops and characters, which means that Predator Omnibus still has a lot to offer for fans of the films.

Collects: Predator (1989) #1-4, Predator 2 (1991) #1-2, Predator: Big Game (1991) #1-4, Predator: Cold War (1991) #1-4, Predator: The Bloody Sands of Time (1992) #1-2, Predator: Bad Blood (1993) #1-4, Predator: Invaders from the Fourth Dimension (1994) #1, Predator: Dark River (1996) #1-4, Predator: Strange Roux (1996) #1, Predator: Kindred (1996) #1-4; material from Dark Horse Presents (1986) #46, #119; Dark Horse Comics (1992) #1-2, #4-7, #10-14, #16-18, #20-21; A Decade of Dark Horse (1996) #1 [Read more…] about Gore, Guts, and Glory in the Predator Omnibus

To Kill or Not to Kill Baby Thanos in Cosmic Ghost Rider

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Thanos #15, written by Donny Cates, art by Geoff Shaw and Antonio Fabela, lettering by Clayton Cowles

Sometimes comics are poetic, sometimes they’re an action-filled romp, and yet other times comics can be the reading equivalent of listening to a particularly epic/absurd metal album. Much of the work brought to us by the creative team behind Cosmic Ghost Rider, Donny Cates and Geoff Shaw, fits in the last category, and nowhere is that more true than this omnibus. Even as we see new creators bring new takes on the character, these stories by their very nature are filled to overflow with theatrical fights, absurd comedy, cosmic threats, and, one imagines, lots of guitar solos.

Cosmic Ghost Rider is said to have taken cues from DC’s Lobo: a spacefaring agent of chaos, chomping cigars and traveling through the stars on a space motorcycle. The character likewise bears more than a passing resemblance to Deadpool or Harley Quinn, cracking wise while put into one impossible situation after another. This is all to say that while there might not be a ton of substance, this omnibus is a heck of a lot of fun to read, and the adventures collected here take us all the way through the Marvel Universe and back again.

Collects: Thanos (2016) #13-18, Thanos Annual (2018) #1, Cosmic Ghost Rider (2018) #1-5, Cosmic Ghost Rider Destroys Marvel History (2019) #1-6, Guardians of the Galaxy (2019) #1-6, Avengers (2018) #22-25, Revenge of the Cosmic Ghost Rider (2019) #1-5; material from Thanos Legacy (2018) #1, Wolverine: Black, White & Blood (2020) #3 [Read more…] about To Kill or Not to Kill Baby Thanos in Cosmic Ghost Rider

(Very Little) Sympathy for the Devil in the Loki Omnibus

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Avengers #1, written by Stan Lee, art by Jack Kirby, Dick Ayers, and Stan Goldberg, lettering by Sam Rosen

For those who discovered Loki through the MCU, it might cause a bit of cognitive dissonance to read the early days of the Lee/Kirby collaboration that gave us his foundational comic book counterpart. The Loki of today is a more thoughtful and well-rounded character than in his early days, but there’s no way to get to one without the other. Looking back in Loki Omnibus Vol. 1, the relationship between Loki and his brother and father was always a little more complicated than could easily be defined, even in their first appearances.

Even at his most spiteful, Loki had a point in his outrage towards the Asgardians, who pigeonholed him as a malevolent force in his infancy and often refused to allow him to grow beyond the mistakes of his youth. It’s true that he’s a lot more complex today, but so is Thor, and each of their character’s development through over the years has gone in tandem with the other’s. Regardless, Loki’s stint as a ruthless villain comes with a lot of hijinks, tricks, and pranks all his own, and even his gestative era gave Thor a nemesis who was always more than meets the eye.

Collects: Avengers (1963) #1; Journey into Mystery (1952) #85, #88, #91-92, #94, #97, #100-104, #107-108, #110-125; Thor (1966) #126-129, #142, #147-157, #167, #173, #175-177, #179-181; Thor Annual (1966) #2; material from Strange Tales (1951) #123; Tales to Astonish (1959) #101; Silver Surfer (1968) #4 [Read more…] about (Very Little) Sympathy for the Devil in the Loki Omnibus

What’s Old Is New in Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic

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Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic #23, written by John Jackson Miller, art by Dustin Weaver, Dan Parsons, and Michael Atiyeh, lettering by Michael Heisler

Occurring after the Star Wars: Tales of the Jedi comic series but serving as a prequel to the 2003 RPG on which it is based, the Knights of the Old Republic (aka KotOR) comic series ran for five years and fifty issues, warranting a brief return with the War mini-series. Main characters from the game would make appearances in KotOR, but it was given a surprising level of wiggle room when it comes to new characters and scenarios. Much of the cast of the book is unique to the series, and few have been seen since it drew to a close. This was the flagship title of the 2005 line relaunch from Dark Horse Comics, and one of the company’s top-selling titles.

KotOR has the distinction of having a single writer throughout its lengthy run, and of more or less existing outside of the greater story of Star Wars due to it taking place some four thousand years before Luke Skywalker was born. The Jedi we meet here are complicated and even villainous, and many politicians and government officials belong to larger networks of intergalactic criminals. As such, much of this tale is about doing the right thing despite incredible pressure to conform to the party line, making it somewhat unique in the Star Wars mythos. Despite that, the well-meaning kid with his ragtag group of friends at the story’s center will be familiar to even the most casual fan.

Comics reviewed include: Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic (2006) #1-50, Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic – War (2012) #1-5, Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic Handbook (2007) #1, material from Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic/Rebellion (2006) #0 [Read more…] about What’s Old Is New in Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic