#and I liked trying to create a parallel between Jason and Danny's deaths

[pickleking8]

14 - Adoption Isn't All It's Cracked Up to Be - Chapter Fourteen

Word Count: 1363

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Now, anyone who knows anything about running crime organizations (organizations of any legal status, really), is that information is gold. It pays, literally, to know who’s making the drug deal in the alley at three am, who’s smuggling weapons by the docks, hell, how many bananas Johnny’s grandmama bought at the market yesterday. 

Everyone knows this. But, more importantly, Jason knows this. Which is why two weeks after his return to Gotham, he has eyes everywhere. Camera systems already in place? Hacked, they’re his now. Informant that you treated badly? Hey, a couple of well placed hundred dollar bills, and boom, he’s got a network going. Not even to mention the League of Assassins grade cameras monitoring nearly every street. 

Point is, Jason is ready. Batman? Going down. Revenge? About to be dished out in glorious fashion. 

Except for this one small, really teensy-weensy hiccup in his plans. Laughable, really, how easily he can dismiss this and continue on. No problems here. None, nada, zilch and zip. 

…

Fuck. 

Alright, reassessment. There appears to be a child. 

A child that looks like him. Just like him. Same injuries, even.

…

The child is in the manor. The child does not want to be in the manor. Bruce is keeping the child from leaving the manor. 

Double fuck.

Bruce called the child Jason.

Ohh, so many fucks. Infinite fuck. With a side of goddammit.

The couch protests, creaking with age and indignation, as he flops (in a very dignified way) onto it. It might interest you to know, dear reader, that this particular safe house had a very fascinating ceiling. It was white, and extraordinarily bumpy, bowing down and browned in some places from water, cracked into and covered with spider webs in others, and all together was in rough shape: does this interest you?

No?

Well, it sure seemed to interest Jason, as he laid staring at it for the better part of an hour. 

…He has to save the child.

Three short buzzes from his phone, vibrating in his jeans pocket distracts him from his musings. Huffing out a sigh, the moth-bitten couch complains once more as he sits up. One of his new informants, calling him. David, if he remembers correctly. Nice guy, always showing pictures of his cat (David wasn’t lying, it really did have the prettiest eyes of any cat Jason had ever seen). 

“What?” comes out as an uncouth greeting.

“Hey, boss. You know how you said to report if anything particularly unusual happened?” Jason straightened.

“Yeah? What happened?” 

“Well, I saw this kid, running like a bat out of hell down 39th and 2nd. Pretty run of the mill, except the kid just kept… flickering, going invisible and back again. White, black hair, male, looked maybe fifteen and panicked as all shit. Injured. Turned into an alley and just… disappeared. Thought you might wanna know, with that ‘keep kids safe’ rule you got.” 

“ Fuck. Okay, David, listen to me very carefully. Did anyone else see the kid? Which alley did he go into?”

“The one near Ms. Baker’s apartment. And no, I don’t think so, at least. It was pretty late, street was deserted, but I can’t be sure.”

“Okay, okay. Listen, anyone comes asking after the kid, you don’t tell them shit, got it? You find out anyone else saw, you tell them the same thing. I’ll take care of the kid. Understood?” 

“Got it, boss. If anyone asks, I wasn’t even outside tonight.” 

“Good.” 

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His breath sounds loud through the modulation of his helmet, rasping and rattling; a last breath after a last breath after a last breath, Jason’s heart continuing to beat and lungs continuing to expand long after they should’ve stopped. Ever since he clawed his way to air, emerged with dirt and blood under his fingernails, he’s been aware of his breath, noticing each inhale, exhale, and gasp. Afraid that if his attention drifts, he’ll find himself back in that silk-lined prison of a coffin. 

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Danny’s breath echoes in the space between the walls. It’s not the only sound present, he can hear the building settling around him, bits of cement dust trickling down, and somewhere, something with claws skittering across the brick. He tried not to pay attention to the way his breath was so loud it sounded as if the building breathed with him, creaking and groaning. 

Ever since he stumbled out of that portal, body crackling with electricity and a circle spelling ‘ON’ branded permanently on his palm, he didn’t like hearing his breathing, reminding him that every inhale was stolen and every exhale a signal he was on borrowed time. Reminding him what a freak of nature he truly was, that when the universe stitched itself together with a loving hand, it never intended this, it never intended him. 

He felt better when he was a ghost, when he didn’t have to breathe. When the aching in his chest subsided and he no longer felt like hands were crawling their way up his throat. When he was human, the feeling returned again, that wrongness, that stark reminder with every beat of his heart that he wasn’t meant to be. 

Some creepy little boy with creepy little powers, indeed. 

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The trail was damning: scattered trash, shoved aside in a panic here, a small smear of blood there, all pointing to… the wall. 

The solid brick wall. 

The suspiciously clean patch of solid brick wall.

Fuck, a meta. Jason had seen this before, metas who weren’t particularly good at phasing, or just not paying as much attention as they should have. They’d take the dirt and grime and such with them as they went, only phasing through the atoms they thought were in their way. Phasing was tricky like that, nearly as dependent on one’s mind as it was on one’s physical ability. It worked on a different set of rules: you phased through what you set your mind to phase through. You forgot about grime? Well, it comes with you. Hence: free wall cleaning. 

Now, the real question was, did the kid phase all the way through, or did he stay in the wall? Jason had seen the kid earlier, and from what David had said, he was running on fumes. The state of the alley said he was too panicked to cover his tracks properly. Jason would bet that as soon as the kid thought he was out of sight, he’d dropped. 

Well, shit. Now, there’s a kid that’s probably in the wall and scared out of his mind, and Jason’s got to get him out. 

Double shit.

…Jason knocks. On the wall. Three raps, in quick succession, with his brass-covered knuckles.

A slight rustling, the quietest hitch of breath.

“Kid? I know you’re in there. I’m not gonna hurt you.” 

More rustling, louder this time. Panicked. 

“Please. I want to help.”

A head sticks out, mist spilling out of its mouth, floating gently upward, so all he can see of the kid’s face is piercing, glowing eyes of an all too-familiar shade. 

He stares at the kid. The kid stares back, tense and ready to run. 

“And who the fuck are you? Actually, it’s better if I don’t know. You’re dead, and that means you need to get the fuck out of this city and watch for hazmat suits. That’s the best I can do for you right now.” 

The kid’s words are breathless, tinged with a melancholy bitterness that spoke to what could have, should have been, his eyes darting around, scanning the alleyway and the rooftops and Jason himself, assessing. 

Jason breathes. In, out, ever so slowly; preparing himself to make a decision that cannot be undone. He needs something, something to get him to stay, something to get him to talk long enough for Jason to help him. So, he makes a decision that screams against every ounce of training he’s ever received. 

He tells the kid his name, the name that has haunted this child for weeks, binding him to an identity, a person that isn’t him, isn’t him, isn’t him :

“I’m Jason. And you, I take it, are not.” 

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Taglist (let me know if you want to be added): @tkiesai, @simplestoryteller

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Hey, everyone!! Apparently my writing juice only flows when I have a million exams next week, and I wrote this instead of studying for those :p

Ah well, it'll be okay. I'll just cram for the rest of today, wish me luck. Anyway, here's the latest chapter! Jason finally finds Danny! I struggled a little bit writing their interaction in the end, and I'm not entirely happy with how it turned out, but so it goes. As a side note, one of my personal head canons is that Danny's death scar isn't just the lichtenberg scarring, but the 'on' button branded into his palm as well. He got really into fingerless gloves after the accident.

Thank you for reading, and let me know what you guys think of the chapter!

[fearsmagazine]

WEREWOLVES WITHIN - Review

DISTRIBUTOR: IFC Films

SYNOPSIS: Newly arrived forest ranger Finn has come to the small town of Beaverfield to look into the divisions that have risen in the community over a proposed pipeline. When a snowstorm traps its residents together inside the local inn it is up to Finn and the local postal worker Cecily to try to keep the peace and uncover the truth behind a mysterious creature that has begun terrorizing the community.

REVIEW: WEREWOLVES WITHIN is based on the Ubisoft VR video game in which players discover what characters sitting around the campfire are werewolves. There were other little twists, turns, and elements to the game, but you get the basic idea. Author turned screenwriter, and ex-wife of comic Marc Maron, Mishna Wolff (kind of ironic her last name is Wolff) turns the concept into a cinematic who-done-it comedy with interesting characters and fresh dialogue. It’s a fun setup that harkens back to cinematic comedies like “Clue,” “Murder by Death,” or even “Shaun of the Dead.” She’s discarded most of the game’s elements other than the basic premise that there is a werewolf hiding amongst the group and they’re trying to figure out who it is before anyone else dies.

Director Josh Ruben does an excellent job of capturing the grandeur of this picturesque mountain town and some funny moments. The film focuses more on the comedy than the werewolf, but there are some grisly moments, after all it is a werewolf movie. The big reveal transformation scene is no “The Howling” or “An American Werewolf in London,” but as it is kept mostly in the dark body movement and sound design go a long way to add creepiness to the scene. There are also many creative edits that add a bit of smoke and mirrors to the plot. Ruben does an excellent job of maintaining the film’s energy and delivers a fun, engaging and entertaining view.

The film is a delight to watch largely due to the work of actor Sam Richardson and actress Milana Vayntrub, yes the AT&T spokeswoman from the commercials. When they work together to try and unravel the mystery it turns into this buddy type situation with their unique personal issues and problems. The performances are grounded, but there is also this light and airy element to the performances that make it enjoyable and delightful to watch. I have to admit that I only had a limited awareness of their other work and was mesmerized by their performances here. I was shocked to see the body of work credited to these actors. The rest of the cast does an excellent job creating these characters grounded. They could have easily become these clinched stereotypes that were simply there to serve as victims, but it is an enjoyable ensemble cast.

I never played the Ubisoft VR video game WEREWOLVES WITHIN so I could not tell you if there are any “easter eggs” in the film that involved the game. In a time when I’ve sat through so many Seth Rogan, Danny McBride, James Franco, or any of the sophomoric comedies of the last few years it’s refreshing to watch a film that relies more on the craft and performances than 1that of vulgar and the exploitative elements for  comedy. Director Josh Ruben’s work makes a solid case for my argument that there is a unique parallel between horror and comedy in that it all comes down to the timing. The film has a talented ensemble cast and two stellar leads that make WEREWOLVES WITHIN a howling good time… pun intended!

CAST: Sam Richardson, Milana Vayntrub, George Basil, Sarah Burns, Michael Chernus, Catherine Curtin, Wayne Duvall, Harvey Guillén, Rebecca Henderson, Cheyenne Jackson, Michaela Watkins, and Glenn Fleshler. CREW: Director - Josh Ruben; Screenwriter - Mishna Wolff; Based on the Ubisoft, VR video game; Producers - Jason Altman, Margaret Boykin, Andrew Lieberman, Natalie Metzger, Matt Miller, Sam Richardson, and Benjamin Wiessner; Cinematographer - Matt Wise; Score - Anna Drubich; Editor - Brett W. Bachman; Production Designer - Bret August Tanzer; Costume Designer - David Tabbert; Special Effects Supervisor - Eugene Hitt; Visual Effects Supervisor - Jeffrey Kalmus. OFFICIAL: www.ifcfilms.com/films/werewolves-within FACEBOOK: N.A. TWITTER: N.A. TRAILER: https://youtu.be/wryaiTGFKak RELEASE DATE: In theaters on June 25, 2021 and on Digital Rental & VOD on July 2, 2021.

**Until we can all head back into the theaters our “COVID Reel Value” will be similar to how you rate a film on digital platforms - 👍 (Like), 👌 (It’s just okay),  or 👎 (Dislike)

Reviewed by Joseph B Mauceri

[eddycurrents]

For the week of 30 September 2019

Quick Bits:

Absolute Carnage: The Immortal Hulk #1 is an absolute must if you’re reading The Immortal Hulk, even if you’re not following Absolute Carnage. Though it does deal with how Hulk is working with the rest of the gang in the event, here Al Ewing, Felipe Andrade, Chris O’Halloran, and Travis Lanham elaborate on how Bruce’s alters work, including an appearance from a much-missed old friend, and deals with some ongoing plot points like Betty’s change, Ross’ status, and Jones’ recuperation.

| Published by Marvel

Batman #80 starts the turn for the “City of Bane” arc as John Romita Jr., Klaus Janson, and Tomeu Morey come aboard for the art duties, and Batman and Catwoman return to Gotham. I really like the stylization here, it fits the overall shift in direction and it’s just nice to see Romita and Janson back together.

| Published by DC Comics

Berserker Unbound #3 is another brilliant issue of this series from Jeff Lemire, Mike Deodato Jr., Frank Martin, and Steve Wands. This one gets to the heart of the existential crisis that the Mongrel King is having in a time that neither he understands or understands him. Though, there are some nice attempts at communication and some great character moments.

| Published by Dark Horse

Birthright #40 is pretty huge as it essentially rounds out the current Mastema arc. Joshua Williamson, Andrei Bressan, Adriano Lucas, and Pat Brosseau make a pretty dramatic turn here, with some interesting ramifications.

| Published by Image / Skybound

Black Cat #5 delivers a fairly funny conclusion to this heist as Felicia and her crew have to overcome Blastaar. Jed MacKay, Travel Foreman, Brian Reber, and Ferran Delgado are consistently giving us an entertaining and compelling story here with an ongoing narrative broken into discrete, separate pieces that can ultimately be enjoyed on their own.

| Published by Marvel

Black Terror #1 features a rather unique take on the character, and on superheroics in general, from Max Bemis, Matt Gaudio, Brittany Pezzillo, and Taylor Esposito. This explores what happens when the Black Terror hangs up his boots, self-medicates for his problems, and begins to suffer withdrawal from the superhero business. It’s all rather...disturbing, but still entertaining.

| Published by Dynamite

Breaklands #2 starts building up the cast as Kasa falls in with a number of other people to help and rescue her brother. Though there are elements of familiar post-apocalypse narratives here, what Justin Jordan, Tyasseta, Sarah Stern, and Rachel Deering are creating here feels incredibly fresh and different.

| Published by Justin Jordan

Canto #5 is fairly action-packed as Canto and crew bring the fight to the Furies. It’s a different change of pace here, but we still get some intriguing symbolism and advancement of the fable narrative in rather inventive ways. David M. Booher, Drew Zucker, Vittorio Astone, and Deron Bennett are driving us towards the end here and I feel like it’s going to be a big one.

| Published by IDW

Contagion #1 is probably going to get some comparisons to Marvel Zombies and DCeased, running through similar horror territories, but it doesn’t really matter. While the elements may familiar, it’s still an entertaining start to this series from Ed Brisson, Rogê Antônio, Veronica Gandini, and Cory Petit.

| Published by Marvel

Copra #1 begins a second volume of Michael Fiffe’s previously self-published series, dropping us into the middle of action, picking up where the last series left off. While it is at least initially a bit confusing, Fiffe does include plenty of information, including an issue-by-issue breakdown of the previous series, to get people up to speed. It’s basically ‘80s-inspired superheroics.

| Published by Image

Daredevil #12 is more magnificence. Chip Zdarsky, Marco Checchetto, Nolan Woodard, and Clayton Cowles continue “Through Fear” as Matt has an...unfortunate confrontation with crooked cops beating up a Daredevil stand-in and Fisk has a meeting with the rich “elite”. I really quite like the parallels of both of them falling back on old/new tricks.

| Published by Marvel

Dark Ark: After the Flood #1 begins the very welcome next chapter in this story from Cullen Bunn, Juan Doe, and Dave Sharpe, picking up on what’s been going on after landfall. There’s also some really interesting revelations about Kahlee’s past.

| Published by AfterShock

DCeased #5 is the big penultimate issue, giving us hope as two sanctuaries are established. And then... Tom Taylor, Trevor Hairsine, Stefano Gaudiano, Rain Beredo, and Saida Temofonte give us another chilling story here with some very heartbreaking moments.

| Published by DC Comics

Die #8 keeps the pressure on, Kieron Gillen, Stephanie Hans, and Clayton Cowles continuing to hammer at your emotions as they explore the party even further. This one gives us a bit of a deeper look into our Grief Knight, Matt, and it’s amazing that the bleakness is almost oppressive.

| Published by Image

Doctor Strange #20 is kind of a bizarre end to this series as it transitions over to Doctor Strange, Surgeon Supreme later this year. As he searches out ways to implement his newly recovered dexterity, Strange teams-up with Kanna for what feels like one last adventure with her, against the nefarious Cyb(not equal)rdSmPhp (seriously, those symbols may “look” like Cyberdemon, but that’s not what it means) and his master. Great art from Javier Pina and Brian Reber.

| Published by Marvel

Doom Patrol: Weight of the Worlds #4 is another weird one as the team travels to Destiny Beach and Flex Mentallo runs into his old crew. Gerard Way, Jeremy Lambert, Nick Pitarra, Tamra Bonvillain, and Simon Bowland give us an interesting tale of magical muscle mystery here as they try to bring magic back to the beach.

| Published by DC Comics / Young Animal

Dungeons & Dragons: A Darkened Wish #3 gets to the heart of what caused Rayonde to turn in the future and shows what changed between the party. It gets pretty dark as the “darkened wish” plays out. Gorgeous artwork from Tess Fowler and Jay Fotos.

| Published by IDW

Everything #2 keeps building the mystery of this story, layering on even more strange events and deaths that keep you guessing. Christopher Cantwell, INJ Culbard, and Steve Wands are crafting a weird horror story here that’s rather unique. There are elements here that feel like Twin Peaks and Fargo, mixed with Vertigo, Love & Rockets, Stray Bullets, and the works of Daniel Clowes and Charles Burns, but at the same time something wholly its own.

| Published by Dark Horse / Berger Books

Fantastic Four #15 introduces us to Unparalleled, the heroes of the planet Spyre, in this second part of “Point of Origin”. Dan Slott, Paco Medina, Bob Quinn, Jesus Aburtov, and Joe Caramagna give us an interesting take on the Fantastic Four here as invading alien monsters, complete with monster dialogue, and it’s neat to see them from a different perspective.

| Published by Marvel

Forgotten Home #1 is a new digital Comixology Original from Erica Schultz, Marika Cresta, Matt Emmons, and Cardinal Rae. It’s a very nice mix of magic and police procedural, hinging on a vast missing persons case, and family drama.

| Published by Vices Press

Ghost Rider #1 is a spot on return for Johnny Blaze and Danny Ketch, picking up on the recent rumblings throughout the Marvel Universe (though exactly how it fits in with Robbie Reyes and Avengers is yet to be seen), and veering off into wildly interesting new directions. Ed Brisson, Aaron Kuder, Jason Keith, and Joe Caramagna deliver a first issue that should have old school (and oldish new school, I mean Ketch is a 30 year old character now) fans delighted. Even as Danny’s life is a bit of a mess right now.

| Published by Marvel

The Green Lantern #12 is the fairly impressive “season finale” to this series from Grant Morrison, Liam Sharp, Steve Oliff, and Tom Orzechowski before we get a three-month break with Blackstars and then the start of season 2 next year. Some very big revelations here as we find out what all of the disparate parts of this story have been amounting to. It’s interesting as to how epic all of this feels.

| Published by DC Comics

Grendel: Devil’s Odyssey #1 puts a big goofy grin on my face. Aside from blips here and there and the Grendel vs. The Shadow mini-series featuring the original Grendel, Hunter Rose, it’s been almost two decades since we saw the ongoing adventures set in this universe, even longer a story written and illustrated by Matt Wagner (the last one part of canon, Past Prime, was a novel written by Greg Rucka with spot illustrations by Wagner). Like the recent third chapter to Mage, this is a very welcome return. Matt Wagner, Brennan Wagner, and Dave Lanphear take us in an entirely new direction as Grendel Prime is tasked to find humanity a new home.

| Published by Dark Horse

Immortal Hulk #24 closes out the confrontation with Fortean and looks like it’s setting up the next phase for this series (in a two-fold way, both in the immediate future and in the far-flung end of the universe). Al Ewing, Joe Bennett, Ruy José, Belardino Brabo, Marc Deering, Roberto Poggi, Paul Mounts, and Cory Petit continue to work wonders on this series. This issue is horrifying. And perfect.

| Published by Marvel

Joe Golem: Occult Detective - The Conjurors #5 concludes this chapter from Mike Mignola, Christopher Golden, Peter Bergting, Michelle Madsen, and Clem Robins. There’s some very nice Lovecraftian fun here and an ending that sets to fully cap off the upheaval of this series’ status quo.

| Published by Dark Horse

Justice League #33 escalates the “Justice/Doom War” from Scott Snyder, James Tynion IV, Bruno Redondo, Daniel Sampere, Juan Albarran, Hi-Fi, and Tom Napolitano. The various factions of the League are still fighting across time as Perpetua’s lock on power is looking even more certain. The tension throughout this story is incredible.

| Published DC Comics

Legion of Super-Heroes: Millennium #2 concludes this trek through DC’s future history, stopping in to check on Booster Gold and OMAC, before getting to the main event with the Legion of Super-Heroes themselves. I really hope that the futures seeded here are followed up on. Gorgeous artwork throughout from Nicola Scott, Jim Cheung, rare interior art from Jeff Dekal, leading to Ryan Sook’s Legion.

| Published by DC Comics

Lois Lane #4 continues to move at a fairly slow pace, but it’s allowing for some great character moments like Jon discussing going off to join the Legion and Vic and Renee trying to piece together continuity that doesn’t exist any more. The art from Mike Perkins and Paul Mounts is still worth picking up this series for alone.

| Published by DC Comics

Mountainhead #2 turns things up a notch as everything just gets stranger and a bit more extreme. That odd, not-quite-right atmosphere is perfectly captured by the artwork from Ryan Lee and Doug Garbark.

| Published by IDW

The Necromancer’s Map #2 concludes the bit with the Void Sickness, with some fairly interesting reveals, and throws in some tragic romance while it’s at it. I really quite like how this is pacing along, weaving through details and side bits, while developing Bethany’s larger quest. Beautiful art from Sam Beck and Ellie Wright.

| Published by Vault

No One Left to Fight #4 is stunning. Fico Ossio is delivering the most beautiful art in his career. I mean, just look at it. It’s freaking gorgeous. It also helps that the story from him, Aubrey Sitterson, and Taylor Esposito continues to be incredibly captivating. As we get more old friends and the set up of an old villain’s return.

| Published by Dark Horse

Promethee 13:13 #2 continues this excellent prequel series from Andy Diggle, Shawn Martinbrough, Dave Stewart, and Simon Bowland. The implementation of the conspiracy aspect of the invasion is wonderful to see as the seeds of what’s to come are brought to bear. Gorgeous artwork from Martinbrough and Stewart.

| Published by Delcourt / Soleil

Red Sonja #9 sees Sonja seek out other allies in her quest to defeat Dragan in the form of some rather nasty sorcerers. Mark Russell, Bob Q, Dearbhla Kelly, and Hassan Otsmane-Elhaou deliver another entertaining chapter here, full of magic and more deceit, that certainly makes things a little bleaker.

| Published by Dynamite

Ruby Falls #1 is a wonderful debut from Ann Nocenti, Flavia Biondi, Lee Loughridge, and Sal Cipriano. This first issue introduces us to Lana, her rather unique dysfunctional family, and the backdrop of the tiny former mining town of Ruby Falls. There’s a mix of fallible memories and a criminal past for the town wanting to be forgotten that is very compelling.

| Published by Dark Horse / Berger Books

Savage Avengers #6 continues Conan’s trek as he and Frank Castle travel across the Savage Land and through ordinary Antarctica, as they try to bring Frank’s family back to America. Gerry Duggan, Kim Jacinto, Tamra Bonvillain, and Travis Lanham deliver a fairly interesting story here, transitional, but still an interesting look at the similarities between Conan and Frank.

| Published by Marvel

Sea of Stars #4 gives us hints of possibly what happened to Kadyn in order to make him the way that he is, while his father fights for his life on another hostile alien planet. I really quite like how Jason Aaron, Dennis Hallum, Stephen Green, Rico Renzi, and Jared K. Fletcher have been progressing this story, building up the characters, and letting explanations out slowly in what feels like a natural progression.

| Published by Image

Seven Days #1 kicks off this event series from Gail Simone, José Luís, Jonas Trinidade, Michelle Madsen, and Saida Temofonte in grand fashion, developing a new threat to the world behind the “event” that kicked off everyone’s powers and transformation. We get a nice team-up of luminaries Noble, Summit, and Accell before everything goes to hell.

| Published by Lion Forge / Catalyst Prime

Star Wars Adventures: Return to Vader’s Castle #1 is a welcome return of this Halloween anthology series featuring chillers, thrillers, and horrors around the Star Wars Universe. There’s a framing story illustrated by Francesco Francavilla that sets up the theme and reintroduces a character from the first volume, and a central tale illustrated by Megan Levens and Charlie Kirchoff dealing with post Phantom Menace Maul. Both written and letter by Cavan Scott and AndWorld Design respectively. I quite like this format and these stories are highly entertaining.

| Published by IDW

Strange Skies over East Berlin #1 is a riveting beginning from Jeff Loveness, Lisandro Estherren, Patricio Delpeche, and Steve Wands. It starts off behind the Iron Curtain in the heart of Cold War era Germany, with all of the tension and distrust of Russian-controlled East Germany, and it’s ratcheted up higher as a strange light appears as something crashes behind the Wall. The atmosphere is made even more surreal by the almost impressionistic art from Estherren and Delpeche. A great start to this series.

| Published by BOOM! Studios

Young Justice #9 continues the team’s confrontation with their evil Earth-3 counterparts, but also gives us a look at Teen Lantern’s origins. André Lima Araújo’s line art during these sequences is worth it alone, but overall I like how Brian Michael Bendis incorporates this into the overall narrative structure.

| Published by DC Comics / Wonder Comics

Other Highlights: Batman/TMNT III #6, Bettie Page Halloween Special, Bizarre Adventures #1, Bury the Lede, Champions #10, Charlie’s Angels vs. Bionic Woman #4, The Dark, Dead Eyes #1, Deathstroke #48, Deep Breaths, The Dreaming #14, Future Foundation #3, gen:Lock #2, Harley Quinn #66, House of X #6, Manifest Destiny #34, Marvel Action: Black Panther #3, Nomen Omen #1, Old Man Quill #10, The Punisher #16, Runaways #25, She Said Destroy #5, Space Bandits #4, Spider-Verse #1, Star Pig #3, Star Wars #72, Star Wars: Doctor Aphra #37, Superman: Up in the Sky #4, Sword Master #4, Thanos: The Infinity Ending, Transformers/Ghostbusters #5, Vengeance of Vampirella #1

Recommended Collections: Edgar Allan Poe’s Snifter of Terror - Volume 1, Giant Days - Volume 11, Immortal Hulk - Volume 1, The Last Space Race - Volume 1, Major X, Mind MGMT - Volume 3: Eraser & The Immortals, Morning in America, Pathfinder - Volume 3: City of Secrets, Stronghold - Volume 1: Primacy, Superman - Volume 1: The Unity Saga - Phantom Earth, The Wicked + The Divine - Volume 9

d. emerson eddy has been trapped by a cat. Please send pizza.