The comics I’ve chosen to highlight this week all come from a very unique place. Whether it is a brand new writer, a brand new team of heroes, a brand new hairstyle, or a brand new comic company; they all bring to light a fresh start. There are some breathtaking comics this week, from every corner of the comic world. These comic books I have chosen will bring your heart a joy that only can be found by experiencing something new for the first time.

DC

Batman: One Bad Day Penguin #1

• Written by John Ridley
• Art by Giuseppe Camuncoli

If you have not been picking up the Batman: One Bad Day one-shots then you have been truly missing out on some next-level Batman writing. Each of these one-shots centers around a top-tier Batman villain, and they have been NOTHING like what you would expect. Batman: One Bad Day Penguin #1 follows Penguin, aka Oswald Cobblepot. He is a broken man who has just had his entire empire stolen from him by his former right-hand man. There is only one option left for him, and that is to take back his city. However, will Batman, or even Gotham itself, let him?

Written by John Ridley, the screenwriter of the award-winning movie 12 Years of Slave and the mind-blowingly amazing Other History of the DC Universe brings a story of loss and hardship to someone you normally wouldn’t care about. Along with Camuncoli’s art, this team gives the reader a choice, to hope for an evil we are familiar with, or move on to an evil we don’t know.

Marvel

Crypt of Shadows #1

• Written by Al Ewing, Christian Cooper, Danny Lore, Chris Condon, Rebecca Roanhorse, Adam Warren
• Art by Adam Warren, Ibrahim Moustafa, Geoff Shaw, Fran Galan, Ramon Bachs

The Crypt of Shadows anthology comic is an absolute must-read for anyone excited about the spooky season! The level of creative talent in this book is beyond amazing. Each creative team is telling a story of one of your favorite Marvel characters fighting against the dark corners of the Marvel comic universe, the things that go bump in the night. X-23, Moon Knight, Elsa Bloodstone, Man-Thing, Werewolf by Night, and many more will explore the evils of their world. Don’t forget to read with a light on.

Independent

Alpha Betas #1

• Written by Kyle Starks
• Art by Michael Calero, Trevor Richardson, & Kenny Aitken

This book has a special place in my heart, I am beyond thrilled to recommend this book and ANY book that comes from WhatNot Publishing. Michael Calero, the main artist and cover artist for this new series, has been a friend and even a boss (from time to time) to me, and seeing his fantastic work being published to this scale is truly awe-inspiring.

The story of Alpha Betas is a mix of Rick and Morty and Tron, where we have the world’s top e-gamers fighting in a digital space for the safety of humanity. This story is crazy and hilarious. It will not only make you cry from pure laughter, but it will also make you stop and think. Kyle Starks’ writing is next level, and the art will make everything else you see going forward seem boring. I highly recommend picking up this series for anyone in need of a great laugh and an even better story.

Graphic Novel

Frizzy

• Written by Claribel A Ortega
• Art by Rose Bousamra

How a person styles their hair is a huge deal to them. It shows the world who they are and what they are trying to be. And for a little girl in middle school, she wants nothing more than to be herself. However, society has made her and her family believe that this young girl’s natural curls are something to hide away.

This story is very important to a lot of people. Hair might not seem like a big deal to some, but to others, having even their hair looked down on is a constant reminder of the covert racism still alive in the world. Showing the hair you were born with, and choosing to wear it proudly, is still something people are looked down upon for. When people say others’ hair looks “unprofessional,” it shows what the societal standard of beauty is and that needs to change.

This book is defiantly a great step in the right direction. I highly recommend this original graphic novel. The creative team does a breathtaking job of conveying this message to its fullest.