My weekly round-up of comics — some of them about video games — is back, in a slightly new format. Read on for my recommendations.
Our Week In Comics column will run every Wednesday, the day new comics are released in comics shops across America and, increasingly often, for download on the iPhone and iPad. Let me know what more you want from this column. For now, some tips on what's worth caring about:
Comics You Should Consider Buying
Batman Odyssey #6: Neal Adams drew beautiful Batman comics in the 70s and finally has returned to the character with Odyssey. Adams' involvement ensured Batman Odyssey would look great, but I had no idea that his writing would be so… amazing. In one issue you've got Batman being shot in the cowl, and in the next you get a painstaking explanation why that's no big deal, as Batman keeps beating up bad guys who are possibly trying to steal an electric car (which they'd been spending about four issues doing.) Then Aquaman shows up. The comic has been nuts. The new issue has Batman teaming up with The Joker, and Deadman, naturally.
Legion of Super-Heroes Annual: Because Keith Giffen is drawing it, and you, like me, may have a weakness for his wonderful, kinectic-yet-blocky art.
Transformers Infestation #1: Look, you might be burned if you spend $4 on this comic and it sucks, but you would own a comic that pits the Autobots against… zombies. It also is part of a cross-over that sends zombies after G.I. Joe heroes and people from Star Trek. How zombies pose a threat to any of these well-armed groups is a mystery to me, a mystery that can only be solved in comics. (Read the preview at our sister site, io9)
Comics With Video Game Connections
DC Universe Online Legends #1: This comic is based on the new DC Universe Online game, though I'm not sure if it is intended to tell the same story the game tells, to expand it, spin-off from it or what. Equally odd is that this comic is coming out every other week for 13 weeks and that it's written by Marv Wolfman and Tony Bedard. Wolfman also co-wrote the game — not sure why the game and the comic need co-writers — but the draw for me is Bedard, a fantastic up-and-coming writer whose R.E.B.E.L.s and Green Lantern Corps comics have been full of surprises.
Kane and Lynch #6: I've got no insight on this one. It's the finale of the Kane and Lynch comic. Official description: "The hard-hitting, bullet-riddled conclusion is here! Kane and Lynch have killed their way around the globe, fighting every thug and assassin thrown at them and lived. But how do they survive their greatest obstacle of all – each other?! This showdown of epic proportions leads into the best-selling Kane & Lynch: Dog Days video game!"
Pokemon Arceus and the Jewel of Life (Graphic Novel): "Long ago, Legendary Pokémon Arceus was betrayed by a human it trusted with its life. Now Arceus is back for vengeance. With the help of their new friends Sheena and Kevin, Ash and Dawn must convince Arceus not to destroy humankind."
Sonic The Hedgehog #221: I'll let the professional promotions people explain this one: "Sonic's eager to hear the new sound of Mina and her band, but will he like what he hears? Tensions are running high, and that's before an evil presence starts lurking in the shadows! Then, in 'Second Impressions,' Nicole and Espio deal with the fallout from the Iron Dominion invasion - along with a surprise third party!"
And Over On The iPad…
Comixology's Comics app is daring to sell some old Clone Saga Spider-Man comics for $1.99 a pop. Those are from the much-maligned story that involved a clone named Ben Reilly proving to have been the guy we all thought was Spider-Man for over a decade. Fans hated this, but I am morbidly curious. Tempting! They're also starting to offer $1.99 issues of Alan Moore's wonderful Top 10, a police procedural set in a city where everyone, from the cops, to the criminals, to the citizens has super-powers. The Comics+ app is selling the Dead Space: Salvage graphic novel for $8 (I haven't read it, so I don't know if it's good.)