Thirsty Thursdays October 2019: Mutants-only FOREVER

By Allison Senecal — Happy Halloween, you all, and welcome back to Thirsty Thursdays, which I think it’s safe to say is among the top monthly looks at thirsty comic book art anywhere on the Internet. Now, you may be wondering…is this column still mutants-only? YES (mostly). But now it’s also a sex and resurrection cult.

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Thirsty Thursdays September 2019: STILL mutants only

By Allison Senecal — Welcome back to Thirsty Thursdays. Now, you may be wondering...is this still a MUTANTS ONLY affair? Let me just stop you right there — the answer is yes, but now it also involves a sex and resurrection cult. Now that everyone’s property excited, let’s get to this month’s thirstiest panels. 

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GET HYPED: Dawn of X and the New X-Line

By Allison Senecal - So, you have a brave new world. Now what do you do with it? This is the question facing the X-Men at Marvel Comics. This summer, writer Jonathan Hickman and artists Pepe Larraz and R.B. Silva with colorist Marte Garcia basically overhauled the X-Men line with the 12-weeks straight mostly alternating mini-series, House of X and Powers of X, easily the biggest thing in superhero comics all year. 

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GET HYPED: Tini Howard & Germán Peralta’s STRIKEFORCE

By Allison Senecal — If you weren’t aware, the one and only Tini Howard has signed an exclusive, announced back in April, with Marvel. Since then she’s had Thanos and Death’s Head limited series debut to critical success (and in the case of Thanos, with serendipitous movie synergy), as well as an Excalibur ongoing announced as part of the upcoming wave of Dawn of X titles. 

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Age of X-Man Round-Up: Waiting for the Other Shoe To Drop

By Allison Senecal — Rude of Marvel to announce the Hickman Era of X-Men before Age of X-Man even hits its climax. But I still believe most of these creative teams have something interesting to say with their series, so I’m hanging in there, but it has taken the wind out of X-Man’s sails a bit. We’re officially over the hump though, and May should be real exciting.

I haven’t addressed this before, but at this point I can reasonably say that all of these series should read fine on their own in trade once this is over. If a bigger event isn’t your thing, maybe a little AU side-trip to a slice of Nate Grey Heaven will be.

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Age of X-Man Round-Up: A Lot of &%#$ing Moths

By Allison Senecal — So, uh, there’s a lot of moth imagery throughout the last month or so of Age of X-Man, huh? And that’s not sad or ominous at all….

Anyway, I’m really loving this entire event and how the creators are getting to let loose with some wilder concepts. Now that we’re (mostly) past the opening set-up issues, we’re getting to the meaty stuff. Higher stakes, tauter emotions, deepening plots. Several things are primed to explode over the next month, and then my guess is…

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Thirsty Thursday March 2019: A very thirsty spring season is here

By Allison Senecal — Welcome to a special spring-time edition of Thirsty Thursday! While Marvel has been busy consummating new series announcements and signing Tini Howard exclusive (!!!), I’ve been diligently keeping track of a very intense type of comicbook art. And now, it is my absolute pleasure to share it with all of you!

Artist: Salvador Larroca
Colorist: Guru-eFX
Uncanny X-Men #14 - My only complaint is that Karma didn’t make this panel, because otherwise *chef kiss*. THE GANG’S ALL HERE. And Havok is the Summers brother with the best hair. Don’t @ me.

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Age of X-Man Round-Up: Life is not as marvelous as it seems

By Allison Senecal —  I’ve been *dramatic wheeze* deathly ill this week, so y’all are about to get what is likely a very buzzword-heavy Age of X-Man round-up this month. There are twice as many issues to cover in this one too, so brevity is key. All but one of the event’s miniseries have now launched, and we have a lot of great set-up (great, folks) but no deeper action happening just yet. Uncanny X-Men, on the other hand, is rolling along, already getting meaty. Hope everyone stuck with it after the first over-sized issue following Disassembled, because this run is quickly looking like a winner.

As a refresher: these monthly round-ups serve as both reviews and as actual honest-to-god recaps! So you, yes you, don’t have to read absolutely everything if you don’t want to, or maybe you’ll just be titillated enough to try a new series. Either way.

Lights! Camera! Glob!

Previously on Age of X-Man

Age of X-Man: NextGen #1
Writer:
Ed Brisson
Artist: Marcus To
Colorist: Jason Keith
Letterer: VC’s Clayton Cowles
Released: 2/13/2019
Key Characters: Glob, Anole, Pixie, Armor, Shark Girl, Rockslide

The crux of it? Glob gets bullied for writing X-Men fan fiction, and readers will instantly get the feeling that he remembers more about the pre-AOXM world than he lets on. The young mutants’ study session is interrupted by a house fire, which they rush to fight. Armor catches Blob mind-wiping Bling, who was seemingly attending a revolutionaries’ meeting at the house with Anole, who tells Armor not to tell anyone he was there. The issues ends with Armor confronting Glob with what she’s witnessed and him assaulting her, shouting “This is the only way I can show you the truth.”

The team here gives us a really great world-building first issue. I find “classroom world-building” a little lazy in prose, but it works better in comics, and even more so here. Some teacher narration guides us from major to major so we get a good feel for the ways in which the Summers Institute readies students for the “real world”. In typical first issue fashion for these minis, the utopian setting is normalized before its layers are pulled back, revealing that &%$# just isn’t quite right.

Age of X-Man: Amazing Nightcrawler #1
Writer:
Seanan McGuire
Artist: Juan Frigeri
Colorist: Dono Sánchez-Almara
Letterer: VC’s Travis Lanham
Released: 2/20/2019
Key Characters: Nightcrawler, Meggan, Stepford Cuckoos, Magma

The opener here is an action scene from one of Nightcrawler’s horror flicks (in this reality, he’s the world’s most famous actor), which ends with him and leading lady Meggan popping a power dampener onto the film’s antagonist and having her whisked away for reeducation (eek!). Normal behind-the-scenes hijinks ensue, with brief appearances from Kurt’s trainer, Magma, and agents, the Cuckoos. Kurt and Meggan attend a charity dinner where some folks are overheard disparaging the Cuckoos for showing off their family ties. After the dinner, Meggan kisses Kurt and they retire together. *eyebrow waggle*

Same as the other AOXM #1’s, we get a typical day-in-the-life setup, this time with a Hollywood flair. Some unsettling bits are tossed in to make us whisper-scream “what the…” and we’re left with a good hook for the next issue. McGuire is a great writer choice for Kurt, and the art team is spot-on for the needed Hollywood sleekness. I love the designs for Magma and the Cuckoos. Super sharp.

Age of X-Man: X-Tremists #1
Writer:
Leah Williams
Penciler: Georges Jeanty
Inker: Roberto Poggi
Colorist: Jim Charalampidis
Letterer: VC’s Clayton Cowles
Released: 2/27/2019
Key Characters: Psylocke, Jubilee, Northstar, Iceman, Blob, Moneta (new character)

This mini has been pitched heavily (by both fans and Williams, bless) as “horny utopia cops” and that’s….yeah. We open on a scene of frivolous normalcy, with Bobby and Jubilee trying to bake “thank you” cookies for the X-Men.  Sexy Blob interrupts everyone to deliver their newest mission, a couple on their third violation of the guiding principles. Grumpy Team Dad Northstar waits in the Vanagon and reads. After a chase and struggle, the couple is iced (thanks, Bobby!) but not before the woman lets slip that she’s pregnant. Oh no! What’re a few horny, and seemingly moral, cops to do?

I have to think this set-up is purposely at odds with their fairly militaristic guest appearances in Alpha and Nextgen. I guess if you’re gonna write about Age of X-Man’s cops, you gotta make them likeable. The main “oh no” factor here is the presence of weird little slur-slinging neo-Nazi Moneta, a mutant to whom we’re just being fully introduced, but want to know more about. Come for Rahzzah’s sexy redesigns, stay for Williams’ deft dialogue skills, including heavy-handed-humor-because-AVOIDANCE Bobby.

Age of X-Man: Prisoner X #1
Writer:
Vita Ayala
Artist: German Peralta
Colorist: Mike Spicer
Letterer: VC’S Joe Sabino
Released: 3/6/2019
Key Characters: Bishop, Beast, Forge, Polaris, Honey Badger, Dani Moonstar

Following the events from Age of X-Man Alpha, Bishop finds himself in mutant utopia...prison! It’s called the Danger Room, because of course it is, and Forge is the warden, because of course he is. Throughout the issue Bishop is plagued by visions of the real world, and via a series of (mostly nasty) interactions with fellow inmates, he comes to find out that Polaris is as well. Jacked up Beast makes several unfriendly appearances, getting upset with Bishop because he won’t leave Gabby (under his protection) alone. Gabby is a little &$#% in this universe and I still love her so much. After Beast attacks Bishop, the prison is put on lockdown, with prisoners confined to their cells, and Bishop receives a note. The dream is REAL. The reality FALSE. Get out!

It’s no secret I’m a huge fan of Ayala and Peralta (and now Spicer coloring him!) and this was my most anticipated mini going into AOXM. It doesn’t disappoint, even if this is largely another set-up issue in the vein of the other #1’s. If you weren’t familiar with Bishop pre-AOXM, after the events of Alpha and this issue, you’re at least by now rooting for him thanks to the groundwork laid by these creative teams. Of the miniseries so far, I think Bishop makes for the most straightforwardly compelling protagonist. Guess we’ll see how he fares!

Meanwhile on Uncanny X-Men

Uncanny X-Men #12 & #13
Writer:
Matthew Rosenberg
Artist: Salvador Larroca
Colorist: Rachelle Rosenberg & Guru-eFX
Letterer: VC’s Joe Caramagna
Released: 2/20/2019 & 3/6/2019
Key Characters: Magik, Dani Moonstar, Karma, Wolfsbane, Havok, Cyclops, Wolverine, Multiple Man, Strong Guy

Phew. Ok. #12 starts with Scott and Logan breaking into a O.N.E. (remember Colonel Callahan from Dead Souls and Astonishing?) facility. Of course, it goes sideways immediately and they end up fighting some new-fangled Sentinels, which turn out to have *gasp* some of the Transmode-infected New Mutants powering them. Looks like O.N.E have been experimenting on mutants this whole time. The now bolstered team heads inside to free Magik, Wolfsbane, and some Multiple Man dupes, and it’s revealed that Havok’s been used as an energy source for the whole facility since we’ve seen him last. He’s freed but one of the dupes explodes, and Strong Guy seemingly dies while shielding some of his teammates from the blast. After Cyclops stops her from taking revenge, Magik portals them all to safety.

In issue #13 we find out the X-Men are now operating out of the back of a bar owned by one of Logan’s mutant-friendly acquaintances. Cyclops presents the newly formed team with a list of targets, problems he wants to clear up to remind the world what the X-Men are all about. First target? Dark Beast. At his purported location the team instead finds an army of cyborg Multiple Man dupes, and the real Jamie Madrox who absorbs a dying dupe to find out Dark Beast’s actual location. The team tracks him down, a fight ensues (Magik quickly ends it), and they capture him. Back at their hideout, they catch footage of the Mutant Liberation Front on a tv… *ominous music*

I just really love that this series is keeping the action moving while still giving us fantastic character work. Old-school Scott and Logan bickering. Summers brothers emotions. Great carryover from New Mutants: Dead Souls on Illyana and her struggles with being what she sees as a competent team leader. We also see Strong Guy’s redemption arc from previous X-series (most recently Dead Souls) come to a (again, seeming) close with his sacrifice in #12. The scene there between him and Illyana is heartbreaking. I do hope we get more from the other New Mutants in coming issues and they don’t just get lost on the sidelines, but no other real complaints from me on this run. Even Larroca’s art isn’t losing me!

Next Time on Age of X-Man

Age of X-Man: Marvelous X-Men #2
Release Date:
3/13/2019
How do you deal with a problem like.... peaceful Apocalypse?

Age of X-Man: Apocalypse & the X-Tracts #1
Release Date:
3/13/2019
Let’s get this show on the road!

Age of X-Man: NextGen #2
Release Date:
3/20/2019
What did Blob do to Armor?? Is Anole ok? Will the teachers find out some of the students share a secret?

Age of X-Man: Amazing Nightcrawler #2
Release Date:
3/20/2019
Will Kurt and Meggan be found-out? Will the Cuckoos be ok?

Age of X-Men: X-Tremists #2
Release Date:
3/27/2019
What will our squad of friendly neighborhood watchmen decide to do with a pregnant mutant?

Check out last month’s inaugural Age of X-Man Round-Up here!

Allison buys books professionally and comics unprofessionally. You can find her chaotic neutral Twitter feed at @maliciousglee.

Thirsty Thursdays February 2019: A Thirsty Valentine’s Day

By Allison Senecal — Welcome to a special and somewhat oversized Valentine’s edition of Thirsty Thursday! It’s not all smoochin’, but there sure is a lot of it. And now, without further adieu, let’s get to this month’s very special look at a certain intense type of comicbook art.

Enjoy!

Artist: Matteo Buffagni
Colorist:
Federico Blee
Asgardians of the Galaxy #6:
Angela/Sera shippers have been waiting 84 years for this reunion and were rewarded with a kiss as soon as the two shared page-time again. Happy Valentine’s Day indeed!
💦💦💦💦💦 out of 5

Forget about guarding the galaxy, who’s going to guard my heart?

Penciler: Carlos Villa
Inker: Juan Vlasco
Colorist:
Carlos Lopez
Flashback Art: Gerardo Sandoval
Shatterstar #5 –
What? You wouldn’t reach through time and space to rescue your sad, hot, stabby boyfriend? Very seriously going to miss the team of Villa, Sandoval, Vlasco, and Lopez on this, but hey they get to do some Uncanny this summer...
💦💦💦💦💦 out of 5

Call me a romantic, but I think it’s sweet when one goes to the trouble to “reach out across the universe and find your unique signature.”

Artist: Marco Checchetto
Colorist:
Sunny Gho
Daredevil #1
– HOW DO YOU EVEN pick  a single panel from this %$#&ing comic? Matt gets to spend some quality time in bed with his three favorite things: Catholic guilt, batons, and a lot of blood. Elektra would approve.  
💔💦💔💦💔 out of 5
Read our review of Daredevil #1!

Is that your Catholic guilt, or are you just happy to see me?

Penciler: Paco Medina
Inker: Juan Vlasco
Colorist:
Jesus Aburtov
Avengers: No Road Home #2 –
In peak Hawkeye fashion, Clint spent Valentine’s Day in a hospital bed, scruffy and sad. And crying! Hell, I’ll fight the Hulk myself.
💔💦💔💦💔 out of 5

Can someone get me the heart rate monitor next? I think Clint just stole mine.

Artist: Sana Takeda
Monstress #20 –
Liu and Takeda know how to summon me from the void. Arranged lesbian wedding? A bowl of sacramental blood? Now drink it and KISS!
💦💦💦💦💦 out of 5

Once again, my favorite thing is Monstress.

Artist: Geoff Shaw
Colorist:
Marte Garcia
Guardians of the Galaxy #2 –
Come for the Thanos mystery, stay for the soft girlfriends content with Phyla and Heather. On a later page, they’re grumpy and wearing comfy PJs. It’s the best.
💦💦💦💦 out of 5
Also, check out our Guardians of the Galaxy #2 review!

And apparently there’s something going on with Thanos in this book too?

Artist: Mattia De Iulis
Jessica Jones: Purple Daughter #2 –
Back in October, I said Emma would automatically make this list every time she made an appearance, and in the spirit of journalistic integrity (and De Iulis’s Emma Frost being a stunner), voila! The Black King, darling.
💦💦💦💦💦 out of 5
Also, check out Jessica Jones, Comic of the Week!

And long may she reign.

Artist: Jon Davis-Hunt
Colorist:
Steve Buccelatto
Wild Storm #20 -
MIDNIGHTER AND APOLLO ARE 100% BACK, BABY. And in such style. 💦💦💦💦 out of 5

I can’t remember the last time this lovely couple has looked so good.

Artist: Amilcar Pinna
Colorist:
Ulises Arreola
Forgotten Queen #1-
I love when my tastes are so specifically catered to, as they were here. A charmingly foul-mouthed millennia-old personification of conflict? Is this for me? I would die for Vexana, and I’m sure she’d let me.
💦💦💦💦💦 out of 5

Clearly, Valiant has not forgotten about my tastes.

Artist: Gang Hyuk Lim
West Coast Avengers #8 -
More kissin’! This time courtesy of America and Ramone! Love that Gang Hyuk Lim is coming onto this title for a few issues. Everyone (even tired slobbery Kate) comes across dynamic, hot, and incredibly fun.
💦💦💦💦💦 out of 5

Sure, this art is thirsty, but it’s a really fun kind of thirsty.

I also have to shout-out the Stephanie Hans cover for the 2nd printing of Die, which kept me awake several nights this month….

I am 100 percent going to die from lack of sleep due to this cover.

Hope you’re looking forward to March aka my birthday month aka the Month of Bêlit.

Check out The Thirstiest Comics of January.

Allison buys books professionally and comics unprofessionally. You can find her chaotic neutral Twitter feed at @maliciousglee.

Welcome to the Age of X-Man Round-Up: Your Guide to Age of X-Man

By Allison Senecal — So! The 10-part weekly series X-Men: Disassembled came, brought Legion and X-Man back to us, and then went, seemingly leaving an X-Men-less Earth-616 in its wake. Regardless of whether you think all ten issues were necessary (I’m on the fence, myself), they certainly succeeded in setting up a comparably more enticing, new era of X-Men comics.

I’m talking specifically about the Age of X-Man event, which started last week and runs through this summer, and Matthew Rosenberg’s new run on the flagship Uncanny X-Men title! AOXM, which consists of six five-part mini-series happening in the same alternate reality, includes a fantastic and diverse slate of rising creators, such as Zac Thompson and Lonnie Nadler, who are showrunning the whole thing. AOXM looks to be a weird, wild riff on Age of Apocalypse, with its own unique aesthetic and premise. As for Uncanny, I’m largely into it because THE NEW MUTANT LADIES (and Havok, I guess) were announced for the main team, but even if you don’t love them as much as I do, I think there will be a lot to love in these comics. I’m hoping even fans disappointed by Disassembled will give one or both a go.

These round-ups, which will be running once a month, will serve as both reviews and as actual honest-to-god round-ups! So you, yes you, don’t have to read absolutely everything if you don’t want to, or maybe you’ll just be titillated enough to try a new series. Either way.

Oh yeah. Cyclops and Wolverine are back, or something! Let’s get the gang back together, eh?

Previously on Age of X-Man

Age of X-Man: Alpha #1
Writers:
Zac Thompson & Lonnie Nadler
Artist: Ramon Rosanas
Colorist: Triona Farrell
Letterer: VC’s Clayton Cowles
Released: 1/30/2019
Imagine a pastel-tinged perfect world populated only by mutants, where the X-Men are revered, the religion is Hope Summers, and every mutant child is cultivated from an early age to value themselves and their powers. Too good to be true, right? Yep. Thompson and Nadler ace plopping us right into this mutant Utopia and following up the warm fuzzies with an immediate sense of unease. Sculpture of the Original Six X-Men? Check, and you heard that right! Six! What? Did you also forget Nate Grey was a founding member of the team? To top this off, the art team perfectly nails the cozy yet sterile Mid-Century Modern vibe, which always makes me at least think of repressed sexuality and TV dinners. Color palette: perfection.

Besides the opening, where we see the new Marvelous X-Men team in action, this is a delightfully quiet world-building issue, which fits the setting and adds to the general atmosphere of cultivated peace, punctuated only by a (purposely) jarring Bishop arrest scene. This is where things get truly gnarly. Jean is re-educated as a result of her and Bishop’s forbidden romance, and X-23 is brought into the team as his replacement. Sense of cultivated peace successfully shattered. Let the Age of X-Man truly commence.

Age of X-Man: Marvelous X-Men #1 (of 5)
Writer:
Zac Thompson & Lonnie Nadler
Artist: Marco Failla
Colorist: Matt Milla
Letterer: VC’s Joe Caramagna
Released: 2/6/2019
Characters: Jean Grey, Storm, X-23, Magneto, Nate Grey, Nature Girl, Colossus, Nightcrawler

Much like Alpha, Marvelous opens on several scenes of serenity, this time domestic and not out in the larger world. Magneto cooking, Nate meditating, Jean reading. Blissful. Even the emergency alerts are tightly managed and seemingly non-taxing for our Marvelous X-Men. There are a few cracks in the facade, though. Nate again appears where he most definitely should not (since when was he a member of Multiple Man’s X-Factor team?) Colossus is painting, but it seems to be Lockheed. Noodle on that heartbreaker. The lowkey best part for me is the palette stays consistent from Alpha to this, and I hope that continues into all the minis. Really lends a cohesive and beautifully muted aesthetic to everything.

Of course, things begin unraveling on what appears to be an otherwise routine mission. Looped throughout the entire sequence is a PA system’s litany of “being alone is harmony“ (and other Nate Grey-isms) and slowly Jean begins to hear a psychic undercurrent of “it’s okay to love “ woven in. Once again, there’s a jarring scene that completely breaks the illusion, but this time it’s X-23 confronting Nate about her mission-interrupting memory of…a sister? After some bonding, Nate admits this is true and they had to be separated, and Laura attempts to attack him before being mind-wiped. During the next day’s leisure activities, Jean again hears the voice from the earlier mission, which turns out to be a psychic resistance rallying call sent by Apocalypse. *Jaws music*

Meanwhile on Uncanny X-Men

Uncanny X-Men #11
Writer:
Matthew Rosenberg
Artists: Salvador Larroca (main), John McCrea (“Wolverine Returns”), Juanan Ramirez (“The Last Blindfold Story”)
Colorists: Rachelle Rosenberg (main and “The Last Blindfold Story”), Mike Spicer (“Wolverine Returns”)
Letterer: VC’s Joe Caramagna
Released: 2/6/2019
Characters: Cyclops, Wolverine, Blindfold, Multiple Man, Layla Miller, Callisto, Chamber, Velocidad

“This is forever.”

This is, simply put, a haunting opening issue. I don’t use that word willy-nilly, but I was in bed for a good half hour thinking about this last night. I tend to dislike the device of telling the same story via different points-of-view, especially back-to-back, but they do it in this issue and it creates a feeling of ever-tightening tension and isolation. All three linked stories are fantastic,  building on each other. I will advise that anyone with suicide triggers should be careful. I feel Rosenberg didn’t make his decisions lightly (though one death was a bit of a throwaway), and I’ve had a couple ugly cries over it, but my two cents are it’s not my business to tell people how to feel when characters die, especially two who are likely favorites to some.

Cyclops is back! And he’s searching for other mutants to join his cause (finding the missing X-Men and fixing everything, because of course), because a world without X-Men is pretty dank. Blindfold eventually finds him and gives a warning. “This is forever.” It echoes through the rest of the issue like a pipe drip you can’t quite pinpoint. Scott hits up other known mutants, including a Chamber-led group in the sewers, and is found by Multiple Man. Jamie warns him about bothering Blindfold, who Scott then finds dead in her home, with the words “this is forever” scrawled next to her. A death-wish leads Scott to an anti-mutant rally and scuffle with Cap, after which he calls attention to himself on national TV and sends a message to other mutants to meet him “where this all began”. Of course he’s ambushed, and saved by Wolverine, leading to a little chills-inducing greeting.

In the next story, events then start from the beginning, this time with Wolverine watching everything from the shadows, and Kid Cable telling him to keep an eye on Scott. Layla Miller tells Logan to find Blindfold if he wants help so he heads down to the sewers where he comes across a rapidly aged Velocidad who tells him Blindfold doesn’t want to be found, of course right before she tracks Logan down and hits him with some ominous conversation. We see the altercation at the end from Logan’s perspective, and his decision to intervene and reveal himself to Scott.

The last story loop belongs to Ruth/Blindfold. We find out she’s won the lottery, getting her out of the sewers, but her powers have been shorting out since the events of Disassembled and she keeps having violent visions. She seems to no longer have a clear concept of past, present, or future. After the previously mentioned exchange with Logan, she draws herself a bath and kills herself, stating she sees she no longer has a future.

Age of X-Man: Alpha #1 provided some STELLAR hooks for the six AOXM miniseries so let’s take a look at what might be next…..

Next Time on Age of X-Man

NextGen.jpg

Age of X-Man: NextGen #1 (of 5)
Writer:
Ed Brisson
Artist: Marcus To
Release Date: 2/13/2019
What is up with that slow zoom-in on Glob’s very haunted gaze? What happens when a bunch of teens and young adults find out not everything is as it seems?

Age of X-Man: The Amazing Nightcrawler #1 (of 5)
Writer:
Seanan McGuire
Artist: Juan Frigeri
Release Date: 2/20/2019
NATURALLY, the handsomest (even without his beard) X-man is a famous actor in this perfect reality. The Cuckoos are his agents. Magma is his stunt coordinator. What could go wrong?

Age of X-Man: The X-Tremists #1 (of 5)
Writer:
Leah Williams
Artist: Georges Jeanty
Release Date: 2/27/2019
Hey, what’s a utopia without a secret police force? *ominous music* Just how much policing do they need to do? Who exactly is Moneta, this new mutant? Why is Bobby wearing suspenders?

Age of X-Man: Prisoner X #1 (of 5)
Writer:
Vita Ayala
Artist: German Peralta
Release Date: 3/6/2019
So where did Bishop go? Here, apparently! What are his fellow inmates in for? What’s up with Dani Moonstar, who is almost definitely in two places at once (here and Uncanny later this month)?

Age of X-Man: Apocalypse and the X-Tracts #1 (of 5)
Writer:
Tim Seeley
Artist: Salva Espin
Release Date: 3/13/2019
Apocalypse?! A GOOD GUY? Basically seems that way….and working with Kitty Pryde? I guess….what the #$%& is going on? Why is he sending subversive psychic messages to everyone?

Allison buys books professionally and comics unprofessionally. You can find her chaotic neutral Twitter feed at @maliciousglee.

Thirsty Thursdays January 2019: A Thirsty New Year

By Allison Senecal — Superhero comic art has evolved at a really impressive rate in recent years...so much so that sometimes it can be a lot to handle. First there’s excitement, obviously, but then that excitement turns into something else...which is why each month we’re running our Thirsty Thursday rankings, a new and different way to look at our favorite comic art. Welcome to a sporadic examination of (as the kids say) the month’s thirstiest comics.

Enjoy!

Artist: Mahmud Asrar       
Colorist: Matt Wilson
Conan the Barbarian #1 - I came into 2019 praying that the new Conan line from Marvel would deliver the goods every month, and so far it’s batting a thousand. It’s sexyyyyyyyyyyy. Here’s hoping Asrar and Wilson get to give us their take on Bêlit before they’re done. 💦💦💦💦💦 out of 5

Conan, what is best in life?

Conan, what is best in life?

Artist: German García
Colorist: Addison Duke
Barbarella/Dejah Thoris #1 - It’s been weeks and I still can’t shut up about how gorgeous and charming this damn opening issue was. García and Duke’s Dejah Thoris is the best iteration of the character I’ve ever seen, and they aced Barb’s whole vibe as well. The ideal blend of cute and sexy, with pitch perfect banter from Williams that I assume will only get better in future issues. 💦💦💦💦💦 out of 5

I hope someone brought water to this team-up because a thirst warning is in full effect!

Artists: Carlos Magno and Butch Guice
Colorist: Alex Guimarães
Invaders #1 - NAMOR! So much Namor! And Steve in a military jacket! NAMOR IN A SUIT! Bet y’all didn’t think Invaders could be a sleeper thirst series of 2019, but this art team is here to prove you wrong. 💦💦💦💦 out of 5

This guy on the left?…SAME.

Artist: Iban Coello
Colorist: Andres Mossa
Man Without Fear #3 - Tough to pick one issue of this series to highlight, and the whole thing was a Sad Matt™ thirst trap, but Coello and Mossa served up the saddest, sweatiest Matt so #3 it is. 💦💦💦💦💦 out of 5

Oh my dear dear Sad Matt™…so sad, so sweaty.

Artist: Juann Cabal
Colorist: Nathan Woodard
Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man #2 - I know this series is about SPIDER-MAN, but Johnny Storm is babysitting in this issue! I don’t even like kids, but every time Johnny is adorable with them I feel that cynical void inside me whisper “oh %$#&”. 💦💦💦💦 out of 5

I think we all need a lot of things, Johnny.

Artist: Sana Takeda
Monstress #19 - A new crossbow wife???! I keep thinking Sana Takeda is done giving me MORE women with the best designs to swoon over but...Yafaela! 💦💦💦💦💦 out of 5

Is this a type? Can this be a type? I think this is my type…

Artist: Ramon Rosanas
Colorist: Tríona Farrell
Age of X-Man Alpha #1 - Rosanas and Farrell absolutely killed it on this. The character designs (largely courtesy of Mike Hawthorne) are all super swoony and it took me about 40 minutes to read because I kept lingering on every page. I’m sure you’ll be hearing more about Nightcrawler, the X-Tremists squad, and Prisoner X here at some point (okay, many points). 💦💦💦💦💦 out of 5

Clearly, this is the thirstiest timeline.

Artist: Adam Kubert
Colorist: Frank Martin
Captain America #7 - *drags hand down face* Steven Grant Rogers. I just want to thank everyone from the bottom of my heart for the cute sweater. That is all. 💦💦💦💦💦 out of 5

The right of people to choose…how hard they totally flip for freaking CAP IN A SWEATER.

The right of people to choose…how hard they totally flip for freaking CAP IN A SWEATER.

Artist: Caspar Wijngaard
Colorist: Mary Safro
Peter Cannon: Thunderbolt #1 - I admit — and maybe this hurts my journalistic integrity in regards to this column about thirsty comics art — this is the first comic in a long time I purchased purely as a thirst read. Gillen knows it!! He compared it to Dream Daddies in a solicit, for God’s sake. I don’t know #$%& about the Thunderbolt property but 1. this was a fantastic first issue, and 2. Peter and Tabu (and Nucleon???!!) are hot. 💦💦💦💦💦 out of 5

I’ll have a glass of that too because this book is seriously thirsty.

I’ll have a glass of that too because this book is seriously thirsty.

Sorry ahead of time for the panel by panel breakdowns of Daredevil #1-2 next month. You may think I’m kidding, but am I?

Check out The Thirstiest Comics of December.

Allison buys books professionally and comics unprofessionally. You can find her chaotic neutral Twitter feed at @maliciousglee.

Thirsty Thursdays: December's Hottest Comic Book Art

By Allison Senecal — Superhero comic art has evolved at a really impressive rate in recent years...so much so that sometimes it can be a lot to handle. First there’s excitement, obviously, but then that excitement turns into something else...which is why each month we’re running our Thirsty Thursday rankings, a new and different way to look at our favorite comic art. Welcome to a sporadic examination of (as the kids say) the month’s thirstiest comics.

Enjoy!

Martian Manhunter #1
Artist: Riley Rossmo
Colorist: Ivan Plascencia
I would be remiss as a noted alien…enthusiast to not mention this sinuously-sensual scene at the very top of this month’s column. Deep Space Sixty-Nine anyone?
????? out of ?????

In space, no one can hear you scream.

Shatterstar #3
Artist:
Carlos Villa
Inker: Juan Vlasco
Colorist: Carlos Lopez
I’ll be sad when this series ends next month, but at least it’ll clear up a monthly thirst spot for someone else. Who doesn’t want a slice of Shatterstar…
💦💦💦💦💦 out of 5

Not today, fine. What about tomorrow?

Marvel Knights 20th #4
Artist:
Joshua Cassara
Colorist: Matt Milla
This issue really got to me emotionally, and I think that amplified everything. T’Challa absolutely ROCKING those street clothes, too. Any man who does that double hand clasp. Phew.
💦💦💦💦💦 out of 5

When he apologized to Ms. Cruz? I felt that.

When he apologized to Ms. Cruz? I felt that.

Namor: The Best Defense #1
Artist:
Carlos Magno
Colorist: Ian Herring
FINALLY I remember to put Namor where he belongs: on a thirst list. It’s ok, we’ll go in-depth with more Namor later this month for the first *Thirst Spotlight* (not the official title, don’t quote me).
💦💦💦💦💦 out of 5

Namor…sigh.

Namor…sigh.

Die #1
Artist:
Stephanie Hans
It’s Stephanie Hans, so you automatically know you’re getting gorgeous art and beautiful people, but this literally hits every single one of my favorite fantasy character aesthetics in one go. *weep*
💦💦💦💦💦 out of 5

This comic had me at fantasy role-playing.

This comic had me at fantasy role-playing.

Thor #8
Artist:
Mike Del Mundo
AngelaaaaaAAAAAAAAAA. I would pre-order the Heven out of a Del Mundo Angela mini, but I’m sure the man has other things to do besides draw my favorite Marvel ladies. (See: his Elektra series.)
💦💦💦💦💦 out of 5

Who said anything about worthy? The word is thirsty.

Livewire #1
Artists:
Raul Allen and Patricia Martin
The only other Valiant series I’ve read in its entirety is Secret Weapons, so I was more or less prepared for Amanda McKee being one of my favorite ladies again. Especially pleased to have her back in the hands of Allén and Martín, one of my favorite art teams going into 2019.  
💦💦💦💦💦 out of 5

I, for one, am absolutely electrified.

Coming later in January: NAMOR. Some Namor. More Namor. Followed by oh so much Namor.

Check out The Thirstiest Comics of November.

Allison buys books professionally and comics unprofessionally. You can find her chaotic neutral Twitter feed at @maliciousglee.

Thirsty Thursdays: November's Hottest Comics Art

By Allison Senecal — Superhero comic art has evolved at a really impressive rate in recent years...so much so that sometimes it can be a lot to handle. First there’s excitement, obviously, but then that excitement turns into something else...which is why each month we’re running our Thirsty Thursday rankings, a new and different way to look at our favorite comic art. Welcome to a sporadic examination of (as the kids say) the month’s thirstiest comics.

Enjoy!

The Thirstiest Comics of November 2018

Thor #7 – I mean, Odinson obviously, but have you met my new beefy Viking girlfriend, Erika the Red? SHE’S TALLER THAN HE IS. I LOVE(D) HER. The Moore/Rauch team killed it on this. Everyone looked extra…oh no my tablet is autocorrecting “likable” to “lickable”…maybe I’ll just leave it. ANYWAY… 💦💦💦💦💦 out of 5

Rarely is a new character so instantly lickable (I should maybe do something about this autocorrect, I guess).

X-23 #6 – Laura? Undercover as a gym teacher? Marvel, did I ask you for this? Ms. Tamaki, did I ask you for this? Oh, and really all the X-artists (Duarte/O’Halloran here) are really nailing clothing right now. 💦💦💦💦💦 out of 5

Yes, ma’am.

Shatterstar #2 – Hot and making me emotional? In this economy? *mouths* Thank you. This series is just so smouldery, from the Yasmine Putri covers to the cheesecakey interiors by Villa, Sandoval, and Lopez.  💦💦💦💦💦 out of 5

The only thing getting shattered in this book is my heart.

Uncanny X-Men #2 – This series has been a lot for me to process. Jean and Ororo on a coffee date. Jean and Betsy holding hands (you don’t need context, just imagine them holding hands). All three of them in the cutest and most comfy-looking casual wear money (or this art team of Silva/Di Benedetto/Rosenberg) can buy. X-Men who? 💦💦💦💦💦 out of 5

Can this scene go on for 457 more pages? Thanks.

Bitter Root #1 – All I ask of indie comics is that they give me badass new comic book girlfriends and OH MY GOODNESS, I am already in love with Blink. Stay tuned for David Mack’s cover featuring her in February because WOWZA.  💦💦💦💦💦 out of 5

I’ll just put it this way: I’m looking forward to more of this character.

Justice League #12 – I admittedly didn’t read the Drowned Earth event in its entirety but I heard “Frazer Irving” and “Mera” and came running, which is why I’m so sweaty. I swear!  💦💦💦💦💦 out of 5

All I heard was unlike the rest, strange, and powerful. But please, tell me more…

Daughters of the Dragon #1 – MISTY AND COLLEEN, Y’ALL. My favorite girlfriends, but not girlfriends, are back and oh my god. Oh. My. God. This series has the biggest energy. Misty in a SUIT. Colleen bringing back her tracksuit wardrobe. You’re just gonna have to read it, since there are too many stunning pages from Foreman, Gibson, and Delgado (whose letters really MADE THIS TRULY SEXY). 🐉 💦💦💦💦💦 🐉 out of 5

That’s an actual picture of my face on the bottom right.

If November was Gay Anxiety Month, December is Cosmic Gay Anxiety Month. I already know Angela is going to be in here twice. Of course, there's also the Extermination finale, and hopefully some spicy Namor content in those new Defenders one shots, so maybe the men will be back next month. Anyway, see you then!

Check out The Thirstiest Comics of October.

Allison buys books professionally and comics unprofessionally. You can find her chaotic neutral Twitter feed at @maliciousglee.