Coming This Week: “It Was Never My Intention To Brag”

This week marks the debut of the highly anticipated DV8: Gods & Monsters #1 (DC/WildStorm) from Brian Wood and Rebekah Isaacs. It’ll be interesting to see what Wood and the crew do with a concept initially introduced by Warren Ellis back in the mid-90’s about a cast of young b-list Gen-Actives. It’s the first of 8 issues and I’m hoping it’s a fresh and insightful take that breathes some life into the ailing WildStorm Universe. I’ll also definitely be picking up the latest issue of Grant Morrison and Sean Murphy’s underrated gem, with Joe The Barbarian #4 (DC/Vertigo) hitting the street. Firestar #1 (Marvel) looks interesting, with Sean McKeever and Emma Rios on the creative team. I have fond memories of Firestar from Kurt Busiek and George Perez's Avengers run. I enjoyed McKeevers' indy book The Waiting Place and Emma Rios is the Spanish artist that’s worked a few misc. projects around the industry, most recently her piece in Marvel’s own Girl Comics about Jean and Scott, which was one of the few standout styles I recall from that lackluster anthology. For $3.99 and a c-list Marvel character though, it better bring the thunder to avoid that whiff of cancellation that already surrounds it right out of the gate. I wish it well, but most people will probably start the over-under betting pool on how long this thing lasts. It’s exactly the type of title that’ll belch out, say, 5 issues before getting cancelled and then collected in a rebranded trade (Avengers: Firestar?), ala the recent S.W.O.R.D. “mini-series.” Of interest, I also see Spirit #1 (DC). I’m not a huge Spirit fan, but art by Moritat and Bill Sienkiewicz might make me eat my words. I also noticed Okko: Cycle of Air #1 (Archaia), which has been one of Archaia’s better offerings in my opinion. The Okko franchise is an aesthetically European feeling project by writer/artist Hub, about a small band of misfit ronin. This is the third arc in the series, following up from Okko: Cycle of Water, and Okko: Cycle of Earth. Lastly, we have Terry Moore’s Echo TPB: Volume 04: Collider (Abstract Studios). Yeah, get the trade and all, but if you’re not supporting this title in single issues, then shame on you! It’s seriously one of the best series anyone is putting out at the moment.