An absolute delight.

Wow. This series continues to emotionally connect. This month, we receive a soulful treatise on loss, grief, regret, and mortality as narrated from the perspective of a cigarette. My only regret is that we have only two more issues before this series ends. I'm not ready for it. I want to spend more time experiencing these stories, even if what they are building towards ultimately may not matter. As we progress beyond the half-way point of this series, I can't help but feel (in the words of "Laila") "the possibilities of what could've been begin[ning] to fall away, leaving you with less, each time more precious, to be savored, like a cigarette."

The Many Deaths of Laila Starr continues to be a "must read." more

Best Radiant Black issue yet! Marshall is a much better and more compelling Radiant Black than Nathan was. That shouldn't surprise anyone who has been reading this series. What will surprise you is how significantly the stakes escalate over the course of the issue. Also, seemingly important new character appearances at the end.

The first five issues have introduced a number of characters and been exposition-heavy while juxtaposing two youngsters - one aligned to the Jedi, the other to the Nihil. This issue's story is good; Art is a little too busy due to the junk planet environment, but I'm glad they wrapped up this initial arc tidily enough.

Fans of the High Republic books in general should note that there is a VERY interesting reveal at the end of the book - not of a "shocking twist" variety, but more of a reveal you won't want to miss with regards to a specific character. more

What were the odds that two Batman comics with "Detective" in their title would be released in the same week, with both ending with Bruce Wayne being arrested? Out of the two, I preferred this one.

In Batman: The Detective #3, we take a break this month from the Equilibrium story driving this series and instead re-live the first meetings between Henri Ducard and Batman via extended flashbacks. Ducard's an interesting character, a modern take on a chain-smoking private eye out of a gritty mid-century noir story, and he's given great development in this issue.

Is it an indictment against the Equilibrium story for me to ask for another Batman/Ducard flashback story next issue? Probably not - this is more of a situation where the creators did a superb job this month adding more color to an underutilized Batman frenemy. more

It's a shame this comic came out the same day that the first episode of Loki dropped on Disney+, as it has a similar premise of a "time cop" attempting to bring in someone whose actions are causing temporal chaos. I don't want to compare the two, especially because they inhabit different mediums, but I kinda need to. I had a hard time keeping focused while reading this - and we're now two issues in and I don't have a sense of what this series is going to be about. Garth Ennis is one of my favorite comic writers, but this kind of sci-fi story is not a great fit for his talents. more

Solid debut, some of it spectacular. Story was good enough to hook me in; I'm intrigued enough to look forward to reading next month's offering. There is a twist at the end, and it works as it should: I now need to know more. My only complaint with the writing is that the dialog could be a touch more natural than it is.

I enjoy that there are some disturbing aspects of this story, and these elements are well-executed and appropriately horrifying. If you have a problem with depictions of graphic violence against children, this issue is not a great fit for you. Interior art does not stand out either positively or negatively (despite comments online I've seen from other people bashing the art, which I simply can't agree with at all), and is cohesive enough to carry the story forward. more

A not-so-interesting story wrapped around an intriguing topic. First, the good: Piskor does well when he righteously mocks Internet chatroom culture. It wasn't a horrible read, and I'll probably give it one more issue. The bad: I wasn't grossed out or disturbed by this comic, and I feel I should have been. There is gore in this book that other reviewers are describing as horrific and intense, though perhaps I'm broken -- because the brutality and grotesqueness of Red Room seems mild compared to Nemesis, Crossed, The Boys, or anything involving Garth Ennis really. I'm no gorehound, but I find Red Room's art to be cartoonish, and the lack of realism in the violence (the "victims" are all drawn like zombies rather than actual human beings) actually takes me out of a story that should be much more disturbing. more

This book deserves the praise it is getting. This is a wonderfully poignant and human story about a God, told like a fable. Unforgettable art and thoughtful writing; so far the best comic issue I have read this year.

Val Riggs continues to be a well-written and compelling character, and this series continues to be excellent. It feels as though there may be a tonal shift coming soon, as the mysteries of the eternal PM are more deeply explored. For now, I'm enjoying the journey: I could easily spend a hundred issues with Val in her eighteen-wheeler, outrunning antagonists, or racing towards salvation.

I'm hooked. You have my money for the next 12 months, DC. Great writing and story, as can be expected from the very dependable James Tynion IV. Tynion is great at capturing the current times we're living through, and how human beings actually talk and interact with each other. There's an easy flow to this dialog and he builds a sense of purpose and destination throughout the story. Martínez Bueno's art is remarkable, foreboding, and restrained as of yet. Issue #1 is not the splatterfest the series may ultimately become, but it is deeply unsettling. more

Better than I thought it would be. Stakes are low in this issue, but it's a fun read. I love the final pages, with the psychotic menace emanating from Lobo's facial expressions - great work by Nahuelpan. In the hands of lesser writers, Crush can come across like a one-dimensional Damian Wayne d-bag character, but not here, fortunately.

Art is good. Story is a bit of a mess. The reader is thrust into a world that has clearly been well thought-out, and exposition is thoughtfully delivered via inference, but the dialog is not natural. Sometimes the jokes work, other times they're cringe-y. Make no mistake, despite my criticism of the story, this is great writing as Zenescope comics go. It is unfortunate that the art and covers set a bar that the writing can't quite reach. more

This continues to be the weakest of all Star Wars books currently. Sana and Aphra continue to meander around the galaxy, barely escaping each situation they find themselves in through Aphra's charisma and a bit of luck. I remember how much I loved Aphra's early appearances in Darth Vader (2015), and I'm beginning to think she works best as a supporting character, not a series lead. There are only so many of these type of stories you can tell. The Nihil Hyperdrive is a rather flat MacGuffin, not anything we ever use to find out more about the Nihil or the High Republic. Aphra's an archaeologist, no? If the writers of this book were more clever, wouldn't they use this as a way to tell cool stories that bridge eras? Hopefully, the upcoming War of the Bounty Hunters tie-ins gives this series the kick in the pants it needs. Right now it is irrelevant. more

I've noticed a disturbing trend in HaHa: each issue is becoming more light-hearted. This one is borderline uplifting. HaHa #5 is a comic I'd gladly read to my 5-year-old. We've come a LONG way in a short time through a series that began with the protagonist being shot in the head after losing his job and being robbed. Or issue #2's clown mom prostitute. Yes, I liked this, though I have no idea what to expect from next month's series finale. more

A LOT of setup and not much action. That said, the writing isn't too tedious, and the pieces are in place for part 2 to potentially be awesome, as it continues the exploration of previous generations of Jedi and lore.

After a promising first issue, the tone lightens considerably in Robin #2, much to its detriment. Damian Wayne continues to be a difficult character to maintain my interest when writers don't give him the benefit of any personal evolution. Here, we continue to see his character step sideways, rather than forward, while other supporting characters try to give us a reason to continue reading.

Solid read. Even if I dislike Clayface stories, the writing and art are good enough that I enjoyed it despite that story element. Love the development of Mr. Worth so far; seems to have the potential to become a classic bat villain over time, between his imposing physical stature, easy rage, political pull, and Wayne-level wealth.

We are so spoiled to have so much Tynion right now. Even by his standards, and those established with earlier installments of SIKTC, this is an excellent "setup" issue that starts the story of Erica Slaughter's origin, beginning immediately after Octo (her monster that killed her parents) is slain. While there aren't any surprises yet, they will undoubtedly come.

Disappointing story choices taint issue #4, which is too bad, since this series WAS a trashy-fun read before this installment. The "twist" from the last issue has virtually no impact. Now, out of nowhere, the antagonist is revealed to be a flat-out rapist, removing any and all of his subtlety, which conveniently helps avoid dealing with the questions the previous installments raised about how much one should be held accountable for their infidelity when they are seduced by someone with ill-intent. Somehow, despite making the villain more despicable, they manage to reduce his level of menace, and everything gets wrapped up far too tidily.

Also, there's an implication by one of the side characters (who seemingly speaks for the writer) that the work-at-home dad with the lesser career is responsible for his lawyer wife's infidelity by being too focused on raising their kids and not giving her enough attention. If the roles were reversed and the husband with a fancy job cheated, and if it was then implied that a career-sacrificing work-at-home mom was the cause, I doubt AWA allows this comic to be published. more