AT THE STAR-LINED EDGES OF INFINITY, EC COMICS’ SCI-FI SMASH HIT RETURNS TO DRAW MORE WORLDS INTO THE MAW OF ITS GRAVITATIONAL VORTEX WITH AN ALL-NEW AND UNRELENTING 12-ISSUE MAXI-SERIES! Whether future or past, Earth or a distant world, no man can outrun the infinite singularity within us all: FEAR! Join this doomed expedition into the cold, unforgiving galaxies beyond our own as nihilistic navigators Charlie Adlard (The Walking Dead), J. Holtham (EC’s Epitaphs from the Abyss), Kano (Immortal Iron Fist), Ann Nocenti (Daredevil), David Rubín (Sherlock Frankenstein), and Greg Pak (Planet Hulk) smash the laws of science . . . and splice tmore
Cruel Universe 2 #1 is a stunning return for one of 2024's best anthologies, delivering a trio of deeply thematic sci-fi stories that challenge, entertain, and provoke. With top-tier creators bringing their A-game, and a nod to the past with an EC Comics reprint, this issue reaffirms Oni Press' bold, socially-conscious vision for the series. It's the kind of comic that dares to say something, and actually means it. Read Full Review
I liked the first series, even though the first few issues were better than then the last. This gave me the feeling of those good issues. I liked all these stories. The Ann Nocenti one was my favorite.
Cruel Universe has been the most uneven of the EC reboots IMO and this issue is a prime example. I have no issue with these stories as vehicles for political satire and social commentary, but the first story was so on the nose as to feel painfully regressive. It's 2025, not 1955 - can we please have a more sophisticated critique of our uniquely troubled times? The second story is poorly conceived - why make such a big deal about the dolphin translation device when it barely figures? - and the third is just bland and predictable. Give us something we can't predict from the first panel, please!
The graphics are mostly well done in style of the old. The content of the stories though, is terribly bland, predictable and to be honest just weakly disguised propaganda pamphlets.