It’s Spider-Week! Well, only kind of, with two of the four books I’m eyeing featuring some sort of arachnid motif from the House that Stan (and Jack and Steve others) Built. But if the creepy crawlies aren’t your thing, there’s teenage drama and superhero fantasies to keep your interest.
Buffy the Vampire Slayer #2 (BOOM! Studios)
Jordie Bellaire and Dan Mora’s first foray in Sunnydale absolutely slayed (yay for puns!), and readers have been itching to see where they take the Scooby Gang in their follow-up. The writing is as electric as the artwork. The new Buffy reads as if Joss Whedon had created the show today – the setting is updated but the characters are as they were back in 1997.
Amazing Spider-Man #16 (Marvel)
Nick Spencer’s run on ASM has dedicated a lot of real estate working with the mythos established during Dan Slott’s 10-year run, which had great ideas rarely executed to their full potential. Now, Spencer begins an arc which he has seeded throughout the previous 15 issues. There’s a lot riding on this too, as Kraven the Hunter has had only two stories of note (not for good reasons) since being resurrected from his Last Hunt. Hopefully, the third time is the charm for the famed hunter.
Venom #11 (Marvel)
Unfortunately, toxic elements of the comics community exist, and the death threats Donny Cates has received over his Venom series is disgraceful. It does prove Stan Lee correct in readers only wanting the illusion of change. However, that means Cates is doing something rarely seen in the Big Two: altering the status quo. Sure, it’ll probably be retconned in the future by some other writer or more likely, some Disney exec. But in the meantime, Venom continues to be a wild ride.
Mage: The Hero Denied #15 (Image)
The Mage saga has finally come to an end. 35 years after its debut, Matt Wagner’s superhero-fantasy mashup is wrapping up the last of its three arcs. Loosely using the term “semi-autobiographical,” Wagner isn’t thought of as belonging with the likes of Alan Moore and Grant Morrison, but Mage has proved that he perhaps should. After all, if he can stick the landing this journey will have been magical.