Comic Book Herald

A Comic Book Reading Order Guide For Beginners & Fans

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Shang-Chi by Gene Luen Yang & Philip Tan Review!

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Shang-Chi, the Master of Kung Fu, has been punching and kicking his way around the Marvel universe since 1973. Despite being a year older than the likes of Wolverine, he’s never really led an ongoing series (with his name on the cover). Well, if you’ve ever wondered what a Shang-Chi ongoing would look like, there’s a pilot of sorts: a propulsive miniseries by Gene Luen Yang (Dragon Hoops, Superman Smashes the Klan), Dike Ruan (Black Cat), and Philip Tan (Batman and Robin, Spawn). Shang-Chi shows us exactly what makes Marvel’s premiere martial arts hero stand out from the pack. [Read more…] about Shang-Chi by Gene Luen Yang & Philip Tan Review!

Best New Graphic Novel: Meditations in an Emergency – Review of Complex Noir-Thriller “November” [Parts I-IV]

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Image’s “November” by Matt Fraction and Elsa Charretier is a four-part, gritty, crime thriller about three women who become ensnared within a violent plot perpetrated by corrupt police, and go about fighting for their lives amidst a tide of masculine violence. Interweaving multiple perspectives, it’s a story that blends noir crime fiction with hard-boiled mystery, while smoothly including impactful lesbian romances with depth and realism.

“November” was released as four graphic novels, serialized between November 2019 and March 2021 in beautiful 60-page hardcover editions. Each moody volume gives the story a sustained momentum where the reader is able to sit longer with each character and meditate on the colorized clues. Matt Fraction and Elsa Charretier plant such intricate devils in the details, relying on a reader’s keenest faculties of observation, that “November” might not appeal to some casual readers. Nonetheless, lovers of the hard-boiled and the noir will feel this is a masterpiece. [Read more…] about Best New Graphic Novel: Meditations in an Emergency – Review of Complex Noir-Thriller “November” [Parts I-IV]

Marvels Snapshots Graphic Novel in Review!

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Marvels Snapshots: Captain America, cover art by Alex Ross, written by Mark Russell, art by Ramon Perez and Rico Renzi, lettering by Joe Sabino

Curated, edited, and sometimes co-written by comics legend Kurt Busiek, Marvels Snapshots is an engaging set of flashbacks that fill in some gaps in the greater story of the Marvel Universe. Featuring a series of covers by Busiek’s frequent collaborator Alex Ross, these stories feel like a step back into the duo’s early work in Marvels. By taking much the same ground-level view on Marvel continuity but expanding the idea so that new writers and artists can be involved, this is, at its best, an updated look at Marvel’s canon. [Read more…] about Marvels Snapshots Graphic Novel in Review!

Juggernaut Reading Order!

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Cain Marko (Codename: The Juggernaut) has been rampaging through the Marvel Universe since his first appearance in 1965’s X-Men #12. The Juggernaut serves as the avatar for the ancient deity, Cytorrak, which makes him (nearly) unstoppable. At first glance, the Juggernaut is your classic heavy but once you pry off that comically oversized helmet, you discover a man struggling with his tragic upbringing, sense of morality, and place in the world.

Marko’s step-brother just so happens to be Charles “Professor X” Xavier and their unique relationship has made Juggernaut an X-Men mainstay. But it’s his shifting role between hero, villain, ally, and threat that’s made the Juggernaut to break free of the X-books with memorable parts in stories across the Marvel landscape. [Read more…] about Juggernaut Reading Order!