Welcome back to a very merry Upcoming Comics! The yuletide season is upon us, and that means plenty of food, cold nights, and family. Of course, when you eventually get sick of your family, you'll need some comics to escape to. Well don't worry; we here at Batman News have got you covered. Let's take a look at all of the seasonally festive comics about a traumatized man who fights crime in a horrible city:
Upcoming Comics
Batman: The Brave and the Bold #8
Guillem March’s gripping, white-knuckled “Back to Year One” Batman adventure concludes! In part two of Kyle Starks and Fernando Pasarin's "Wild Dog: Here Comes Trouble!", Wild Dog comes face to face with the new gang taking over the Quad Cities! Aquaman’s bare-knuckle mission takes him to…Gorilla City?! Gabriel Hardman’s undersea adventure continues!
- Written By: Guillem March, Kyle Starks, John Higgins, Gabriel Hardman
- Penciled By: Guillem March, John Higgins, Gabriel Hardman, Fernando Pasarin
- Inks By: Guillem March, John Higgins, Gabriel Hardman, Oclair Albert, Wade von Grawbadger
- Colors By: Arif Prianto, Matt Herms, Matt Hollingsworth
- Cover By: Simone Di Meo
Thoughts: For whatever reason the solicitation fails to mention that this includes a black and white story by John Higgins, so I guess any Higgins-heads out there should keep that in mind.
Batman News Critic: Jackson
Titans #6
As the world is overrun by beasts, the Titans face the man who put it all in motion…Brother Eternity. But the cult leader might not be what he appears to be. What shocking secret does Brother Eternity hold, and will Starfire survive it?
- Written By: Tom Taylor
- Penciled By: Nicola Scott, Travis Moore
- Inks By: Nicola Scott, Travis Moore
- Colors By: Annette Kwok, Tamra Bonvillain
- Cover By: Nicola Scott, Annette Kwok, Clayton Henry, Marcelo Maiolo
Thoughts: It's almost funny that the world is being turned into animals in a Titans-led event, but their story is still focused on taking down Brother Blood Eternity for the forty-seventh time.
Batman News Critic: Aaron
The Penguin #5
With the dust settling in the aftermath of the Gotham War, Penguin’s gathering the final member of his team before his return to Gotham…but who is this mysterious villain and what’s his connection to the Dark Knight?
- Written By: Tom King
- Penciled By: Rafael de Latorre
- Inks By: Rafael de Latorre
- Colors By: Marcelo Maiolo
- Cover By: Carmine Di Giandomenico
Thoughts: Every Tom King story that I ended up reviewing I really liked, but this just isn't able to do anything for me.
Batman News Critic: William
Harley Quinn #35
Freshly washed but just as emotionally messy-I’m ready to finally solve THE CASE OF WHO THE #&$@ HAS BEEN SCREWING WITH ME!!! Now I’ve just got to round up a crew of butt-kickin’ individuals to help me go kick some multidimensional space butt in time for me to come home to my beautiful Pammy! Plus, my first cousins twice removed Hannah Rose May and Leomacs tell the gut-bustin’ story of how I traveled to a lost city of dinosaurs in search of a mysterious treasure! Snap that quip!
- Written By: Tini Howard, Hannah Rose May
- Penciled By: Logan Faerber, LEOMACS
- Inks By: Logan Faerber, LEOMACS
- Colors By: Jason Wordie, Triona Farrell
- Cover By: Sweeney Boo
Thoughts: With Theresa gone, no one is willing to keep reviewing this title. C'est la vie.
Batman News Critic: None
Detective Comics #1080
“Batman: Outlaw” concludes in part five of five of the biweekly Detective Comics event! The Batman is dead. The Reality Engine, a device capable of amplifying the Orghams’ hypnotic powers, has roared to life. The people of Gotham, having watched the Dark Knight die on the gallows, begin to forget there ever was a Batman, and the Gotham that the Orghams have been working toward since their arrival in the city emerges: a city without a Batman. A city that never had a Batman. Check out the reality-bending, city-altering finale to “Batman: Outlaw,” and ask yourself: will Gotham ever be the same again?
- Written By: Ram V, Dan Watters
- Penciled By: Jason Shawn Alexander, Mike Perkins, Christopher Mitten
- Inks By: Jason Shawn Alexander, Mike Perkins, Christopher Mitten
- Colors By: Dave Stewart, Triona Farrell
- Cover By: Evan Cagle
Thoughts: This is the best Detective Comics has been since Ram V took over, so I'm excited for the mini-arc's finale.
Batman News Critic: Jackson
Batman Beyond: Neo-Gothic #6
THE FINAL ISSUE. The dark heart of the Garden is revealed. Donovan Lumos’s City of Light brings forth a terrible darkness. Neo-Gotham will fall. And the future of Batman will rise.
- Written By: Collin Kelly, Jackson Lanzing
- Penciled By: Max Dunbar
- Inks By: Max Dunbar
- Colors By: Sebastian Cheng, Rain Beredo
- Cover By: Max Dunbar, Sebastian Cheng
Thoughts: Soon I will be free of this title.
Batman News Critic: Jackson
Batman - Santa Claus: Silent Knight #4
It’s a Christmas Night Fight: The search for a stolen child leads to Santa versus Krampus in the final, climactic battle for the soul of Christmas! The Justice League are stretched thin battling the mightiest monsters of the ages when the true menace is revealed!
- Written By: Jeff Parker
- Penciled By: Michele Bandini, Danny Kim, Stephen Segovia
- Inks By: Michele Bandini, Danny Kim, Stephen Segovia
- Colors By: Alex Sinclair
- Cover By: Dan Mora
Thoughts: I'm interested to see Cam's thoughts on this series, given that it started to lose me as it went on. Looking at reactions to the title online, I think I might be in the minority.
Batman News Critic: Cam (Full series review 12/26)
Titans: Beast World #3
The world has gone wild, and Amanda Waller is the only one who can bring order! The mastermind behind the Suicide Squad has now been given frightening authority to deal with the threat at large. She knows what is needed to end this, but will her brutal methods put her on a collision course with the Titans?
- Written By: Tom Taylor
- Penciled By: Lucas Meyer
- Inks By: Lucas Meyer
- Colors By: Romulo Fajardo
- Cover By: Ivan Reis, Danny Miki, Brad Anderson
Thoughts: I'll be frank, I'm getting sort of tired constantly seeing Amanda Waller scheming behind everything going on at DC for the past year or so.
Batman News Critic: Aaron
Beyond the Bat
Welcome to Beyond the Bat, where we take a quick look at the rest of DC’s comics coming out this week.
Graphic Novel Watch
Sometimes you need more than floppies. Sometimes you want something that can sit nicely on your shelf that proudly displays your favorite stories. That’s when you turn to graphic novels. Let’s see what bat collections are coming out this week:
Ratings
Most Excited: Detective Comics #1080- I've gone from generally critical of this title to a big fan over the past couple months
Least Excited: Harley Quinn #35- I wanted to put Neo-Gothic in this slot, but I feel I owe it to Theresa to give it to Harley Quinn.
Wild Card: Titans: Beast World #3- I've been pleasantly surprised at the quality of this event, so I'll be watching to see if it continues.
Well that’s it for this week! Let us know in the comments what comics you’re looking forward to.
