comic book review

Ms. Marvel: Mutant Menace #3 Review

Comics portal: marvel ready to ‘dazzle’ mutant fans, wayne’s comics podcast #641: interview with trevor mueller, retro review: batman #59 (june/july 1950), critical hit #743: mr. underhill (pans01e56), godzilla 70th anniversary review, doom #1 review, house of slaughter #23 review, latest news.

Ms. Marvel reunites with Red Dagger! Can Kamala Khan handle her malfunctioning powers, Orchis on her tail, and see her old flame again? Find out in Ms. Marvel: Mutant Menace #3 by Marvel Comics! 

It’s Mutant Relaunch Time, so Marvel is throwing every mutant they can to your local comics shop to see what sells!

Spider-Society features all the Spiders

In August, Marvel Comics launches Spider-Society, a new limited series that features all of the Spiders. All. The. Spiders. (Including the one climbing up your arm right now!)

FIRST LOOK: The Amory Wars: No World For Tomorrow #2

BOOM! Studios sent Major Spoilers a sneak peek at The Amory Wars: No World For Tomorrow #2 by Claudio Sanchez, Chondra Echert, Guillaume Martinez, Valentina Bianconi, and Taylor Esposito.

David Aja covers Iron Fist 50th Anniversary Special

As Iron Fist celebrates his 50-year run in comics, Marvel Comics announced David Aja is back to provide a variant cover for the Iron Fist 50th Anniversary Special.

Revenge is best served in the pages of Standstill

Image Comics announced the teaming of Lee Loughridge and Andrew Robinson for Standsill, an eight-issue mini-series all about crime, revenge, and time standing still.

Convert launches in August

Image Comics announced writer John Arcudi and artist Savannah Finley are launching Convert, a new sci-fi/fantasy series launching in August 2024.

The Magic Order launches final chapter in September

When Mark Millar moved over to Dark Horse Comics, some were wondering what would become of The Magic Order. Don’t worry, everything is under control as the final volume of The Magic Order arrives in September.

FIRST LOOK: Underheist #4

First look: fairy tale team-up: robyn hood and van helsing, first look: high on life #1, preview: x-men: forever #4, preview: wolverine: madripoor knights #4, preview: what if… venom #4, preview: aliens: what if… #3, preview: weapon x-men #4, preview: venom: separation anxiety #1, preview: ultimate x-men #3, more previews.

In Episode #641, Wayne talks with Trevor Mueller, the award-winning writer for Los Ojos , which is launching on Zoop.gg on Tuesday, May 21!

In this installment of Critical Hit: A Major Spoilers Real Play Podcast: The team searches through the mine for the lost artifact, and meets someone who has a lot of answers.

Legion Clubhouse #164: Child of Darkness, Child of Light

Who is Validus? The shocking – SHOCKING – reveal happens this week!

Major Spoilers Podcast #1075: The TMNT Podcast

TURTLE POWER! We take a look at the beginning of the IDW Publishing series this week! We review Batman/Dylan Dog #3 from DC Comics, Uncanny Valley #2 from BOOM! Studios, and Atta Boy from Mad Cave Studios! There’s a lot to talk about, so let’s get going!

Munchkin Land #700: Ticket to Ride and Atomic Mass announce new games

This week, Dan has a rundown on Ticket to Ride South Korea, new Atomic Mass expansions, and more!

Wayne’s Comics Podcast #640: Interview with Matt Kindt and Margie Kraft Kindt

Matt Kindt, known for working with Keanu Reaves and Jeff Lemire, has a surprising new collaborator who joins us in Episode #640 this week!

Critical Hit #742: Deep 13 (PANS01E55)

In this installment of Critical Hit – A Major Spoilers Podcast: The team makes it into the mine, but what evil lurks below?

Top Five Movies of 1984

This week, we share our favorite movies from the year that released the best movies, 1984!

Major Spoilers Podcast #1074: The Dark Ride Podcast

Let’s take a trip to the scariest place on Earth and check out Dark Ride…

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Monsters Unleashed #1 Review

Gigantic monsters are attacking Earth. It's up Marvel's heroes to stop them.

Reviewed on Wednesday January 18th by Tony 'G-Man' Guerrero

Superman #14 Review

Superman is about to face a new threat from outside the Multiverse.

Reviewed on Wednesday January 4th by Tony 'G-Man' Guerrero

Moon Knight #10 Review

Moon Knight has been dealing with the different personas he's created. Turns out it goes back to when he was a kid.

A.D. After Death #2 Review

The story of how a cure for death was found continues.

Reviewed on Wednesday December 28th by Tony 'G-Man' Guerrero

Hulk #1 Review

Jennifer Walters shows getting through the events of Civil War II isn't easy for everyone.

All Star Batman #5 Review

Batman is determined to bring Two-Face to justice, but the odds are stacked against him.

Detective Comics #946 Review

Can Batman and his allies put a stop to the Victim Syndicate?

Reviewed on Wednesday December 14th by Tony 'G-Man' Guerrero

IVX #1 Review

The tension has been building between the Inhumans and mutants. A battle is about to explode across the Marvel Universe.

Nova #1 Review

Sam Alexander used to be the last Nova around. That is no longer the case.

Reviewed on Wednesday December 7th by Tony 'G-Man' Guerrero

Thanos #1 Review

The Mad Titan returns in his own series. Lemire and Deodato begin the next stage in his story.

Reviewed on Wednesday November 16th by Tony 'G-Man' Guerrero

All Star Batman #4 Review

Batman's current situation keeps getting worse and worse.

Reviewed on Wednesday November 9th by Tony 'G-Man' Guerrero

Invincible Iron Man #1 Review

Riri Williams gets ready for her own armored adventures.

Unworthy Thor #1 Review

The former Thunder God is on a quest to become worthy once again.

Reviewed on Wednesday November 2nd by Tony 'G-Man' Guerrero

Vision #12 Review

The story of the Visions reaches its conclusion. It's been an amazing journey.

Reviewed on Wednesday October 26th by Tony 'G-Man' Guerrero

Infamous Iron Man #1 Review

There's a new Iron Man in town. What makes Doctor Doom feel he can take on the role?

Reviewed on Wednesday October 19th by Tony 'G-Man' Guerrero

Captain America: Steve Rogers #5 Review

Captain America's new status quo is having repercussions on Civil War II.

Reviewed on Wednesday September 28th by Tony 'G-Man' Guerrero

The Flash #6 Review

Barry teams up with a friend to take on Godspeed.

Reviewed on Wednesday September 28th by Mat 'Inferiorego' Elfring

Trinity #1 Review

With a different Superman around, how will the Trinity get along?

Reviewed on Wednesday September 21st by Tony 'G-Man' Guerrero

Detective Comics #940 Review

The battle against Batman and his allies takes a dark turn.

Reviewed on Wednesday September 14th by Tony 'G-Man' Guerrero

Moon Knight #6 Review

Moon Knight the movie is coming to a theater near you.

Reviewed on Wednesday September 7th by Mat 'Inferiorego' Elfring

Supergirl #1 Review

Supergirl continues trying to adjust to her new life on Earth with the DEO and the Danvers.

Reviewed on Wednesday September 7th by Tony 'G-Man' Guerrero

Spider-Man #7 Review

Miles deals with dreams of Hulk smashing him.

Reviewed on Wednesday August 31st by Mat 'Inferiorego' Elfring

All-New Wolverine Annual #1 Review

Wolverine and Spider-Gwen team up in an unexpected way.

Reviewed on Wednesday August 31st by Tony 'G-Man' Guerrero

The Tick Review

Amazon's new Pilot Season show, The Tick, brings the classic comic character back to life.

Reviewed on Friday August 19th by Mat 'Inferiorego' Elfring

Black Widow #6 Review

Black Widow's biggest secret has been unleashed. There will be some serious repercussions headed her way.

Reviewed on Wednesday August 17th by Tony 'G-Man' Guerrero

Supergirl: Rebirth #1 Review

Supergirl is determined to get her powers back and has gone to the D.E.O. for help.

Suicide Squad #1 Review

A team of villains comes together to complete impossible tasks.

Reviewed on Wednesday August 17th by Mat 'Inferiorego' Elfring

All Star Batman #1 Review

Scott Snyder returns and teams up with John Romita Jr to bring a new load of misery upon Batman.

Reviewed on Wednesday August 10th by Tony 'G-Man' Guerrero

Jeff Steinberg: Champion of Earth #1 Review

Jeff Steinberg finds himself representing Earth after sitting on the toilet.

Reviewed on Wednesday August 3rd by Mat 'Inferiorego' Elfring

Batman #4 Review

New hero, Gotham, has lost his mind.

Suicide Squad Review

They may be the worst heroes ever, but they're on their way to becoming your new favorites.

Reviewed on Tuesday August 2nd by Tony 'G-Man' Guerrero

Hal Jordan and the Green Lantern Corps #1 Review

Sinestro and his Corps are ruling the universe through fear!

Reviewed on Wednesday July 27th by Mat 'Inferiorego' Elfring

Titans #1 Review

With the return of Wally West, what does this mean for the Titans?

Reviewed on Wednesday July 27th by Tony 'G-Man' Guerrero

Civil War II #4 Review

A verdict is handed down, and heroes get ready to start fighting each other.

Wonder Woman #3 Review

Wonder Woman and Cheetah are on the run.

Betty and Veronica #1 Review

Get ready to see Betty and Veronica in a new light as Adam Hughes and Archie Comics launch a new series.

Reviewed on Wednesday July 20th by Tony 'G-Man' Guerrero

Detective Comics #936 Review

Batman runs into a big problem and the rest of the team gets an unexpected surprise.

Reviewed on Wednesday July 13th by Tony 'G-Man' Guerrero

Batman #2 Review

Batman works with Gotham and Gotham Girl to take down Solomon Grundy

Reviewed on Wednesday July 6th by Mat 'Inferiorego' Elfring

The Flintstones #1 Review

Get ready to "meet the Flintstones" all over again.

Reviewed on Wednesday July 6th by Tony 'G-Man' Guerrero

Justice League Rebirth #1 Review

A new Justice League comes together to take on an alien threat.

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Action Comics #1065

Green Lantern #11

Batman and Robin #9

Ultimate X-Men #3

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Outsiders #7

Aliens: What If...? #3

Uncanny Valley #2

Red Hood: The Hill #4

Ms. Marvel: Mutant Menace #3

House of Slaughter #23

Sanction #1

Blue Beetle #9

Miles Morales: Spider-Man #20

Suicide Squad: Dream Team #3

Rat City #2

Batman / Dylan Dog #3

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G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero #306

Dark Ride #12

I Heart Skull Crusher #3

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Flash Gordon: Invasion of the Red Sword (revisited)—“Royal cleavages healed at last on planet Mongo”

All Tomorrow’s Parties (review)

Creator: Koren Shadmi Humanoids, August 2023 This title is a harsh, embarrassing, wonderful documentary. All Tomorrow’s Parties details the rise and fall of avant-garde 1960s band The Velvet Underground. This is publisher Humanoids’ promotional blurb: An examination of some of New York rock’n’roll’s most iconic figures—The Velvet Underground & Andy Warhol—and the relationship that distorted their lives and changed pop culture. Born from the iconic NY art and music scene of the late ’60s and the brilliant, untamed minds of its founding members Lou Reed and John Cale, The Velvet Underground are now considered rock ‘n’ roll royalty…but that wasn’t always so. From surviving off oatmeal and donating blood for rent money, to the fame of being the de facto house band of Andy Warhol’s Factory and the objects of the socialite’s fleeting affection, to the unraveling of Cale and Reed’s creative partnership in a storm of jealousy and paranoia,

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Words: Kyle Higgins, Joe Clark Art: Ramon K. Perez, Igor Monti Image 2023 DARK WET PAVEMENT, shoe-leather rhythm, overcoat and fedora turned against the weather,

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Den of Geek

The Best Comics of 2020

It's tough to navigate the world of comics, so we're here to help. From DC and Marvel superheroes to manga, YA, and indie fare, these are the best comics of 2020 for your reading pleasure!

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It has been a year , hasn’t it?

The year started with such tenuous promise, and is ending the same way: slivers of hope among rivers of misery. But even with all the chaos, all the changes forced by the pandemic and that were coming anyway, we still got some incredible comics in 2020. 

Let us be abundantly clear: every work of art made in the last year is a small miracle. Every comic creator who put irons in the fire in a year that certainly didn’t lack fires deserves gratitude and commendation. Picking 20 comics doesn’t do justice to the herculean work and dedication that everyone who works in comics demonstrated – from the creators, to the back office folks who kept the trains running on time and let us know they were coming, to the people who actually put the books in our hands, we should be immensely grateful to all of them. 

To those creators we say: Thank you for giving us a few minutes on Wednesdays (or Tuesdays) to escape…all this. 

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With that said, there really were some excellent books, and we’re very excited to talk about the best comics of 2020.

20. Loneliness of the Long Distance Cartoonist

Adrian Tomine (Writer/Artist)

Adrian Tomine is here to share his sadness with readers and inspire it in anyone who has ever tried to make art and present it to the world. In what might be his greatest work so far, the cartoonist collects his own diary comics about being an artist and trying to release a book.

The Loneliness of the Long Distance Cartoonist is painfully raw, uncomfortably authentic, and impressively hilarious. It takes guts to make yourself the butt of the joke and to do it so well, but there is such heart and humor here that it’ll speak to any reader whether or not you’ve ever had the (mis)fortune to make your own comics or not. 

19. Witch Hat Atelier 

Kamome Shirahama (Writer/Artist)

Speaking of wonderful manga, this series is one of the best books on shelves in any genre, format, or language. It’s hard to overstate how inventive and imaginative Witch Hat Atelier is but for the sake of this list we’ll try.

Kamome Shirahama paints a wonderful world where magic is real but only a select few can use it. Coco is our heroine and when she accidentally learns the secret behind using magic she’s inducted into a witch’s coven and is thrown into a vibrant world of sorcery, spells, and uneasy friendship with her fellow students. 

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18. Daredevil

Chip Zdarsky (Writer); Marco Checchetto, Mike Hawthorne, Francesco Mobili, Jorge Fornes (Artists); Marcio Menyz, Mattia Iacono, Nolan Woodard (Colorists); Clayton Cowles (Letterer)

Chip Zdarsky’s Matt Murdock is terrific. His Wilson Fisk is Hall of Fame.

Fisk is attempting to go legit after discovering as Mayor of New York City that there is a much larger pond he could be swimming in. But the big fish in that pond (the Stromwyns – think Marvel’s Koch Brothers) don’t much get along with someone as insignificant as Fisk. What they do to him, and what Fisk does back, is incredible. 

The art on this run has been the real deal. Jorge Fornes and Marco Checchetto have handled the bulk of the pencils this year, and their dramatically divergent styles do a great job of showing the two sides of Murdock’s world – Fornes excels at the quiet investigatory work that Daredevil does, while Checchetto blows the doors off of some monster action set pieces. No lie, Stilt Man has never looked this good. This run is shaping up to be one of the best Daredevil stories of all time, a very high bar to clear.

17. The Department of Truth

James Tynion IV (Writer), Martin Simmonds (Artist)

What happens in a world where all conspiracy theories are actually true? Or that reality actually warps to accommodate new “truths” as they come into being? Such is the premise of The Department of Truth , which delivers on all the unsettling promise of its premise. The fact that it tells its story in a way that aesthetically calls to mind Alan Moore and Bill Sienkiewicz’s 1988 collaboration Shadowplay: The Secret Team , which told some unsavory details about how the CIA conducted some real world foreign policy only adds to the eerie feel.

With more and more people getting internet brain poisoning thanks to wilder and wilder conspiracy theories somehow becoming mainstream every day, The Department of Truth feels like one of the more timely comics of 2020. We only wish it could be a little less timely in some ways, though.

16. The Green Lantern Season Two

Grant Morrison (Writer), Liam Sharp (Artist), Steve Oliff (Colorist), Steve Wands (Letterer)

Grant Morrison and Liam Sharp have been quietly making one of the best superhero comics in decades over at DC, and although we can’t quite believe we’re saying this, it’s about Hal Jordan. The most boring Green Lantern of all has come to life in this trippy, experimental, and beautiful series which transcends space and time, showcasing the best of what Morrrison and Sharp do.

If you think that superhero comics are all the same, The Green Lantern will change your mind (and likely expand it) as Hal adventures through Sharp’s sprawling and stunning cosmos.

15. Immortal Hulk

Al Ewing (Writer); Joe Bennett, Mike Hawthorne, Butch Guice, Nick Pitarra, Javier Rodriguez (Pencilers); Ruy Jose, Belardino Brabo, Mark Morales, Tom Palmer, Marc Deering (Inkers); Paul Mounts, Matt Milla (Colorists); Cory Petit (Letterer)

Over at Marvel , Al Ewing and Joe Bennett have been equally delighting and horrifying readers with this reinvention of Bruce Banner and the hulking hero he becomes. This is about as close to a horror comic as a mainline superhero title can get as the team delve into the multiple manifestations of Hulk and the man behind them.

Just like The Green Lantern , The Immortal Hulk both reconsiders and revisits the lore that has made the character so iconic, and also features an impressive collection of Hulk-centric characters from throughout history. 

14. Shadow of the Batgirl

Sarah Kuhn (Writer), Nicole Goux (Artist)

DC Comics has been doing a great job bringing new visions of some of their best loved characters to the spotlight and Cass Cain got that treatment this year in this gorgeous graphic novel. Taking the one-time Batgirl and teaming her up with Barbara Gordon’s Oracle was a genius move, but the real magic here comes from the sweet natured take on the hero that Sarah Kuhn and Nicole Goux offer up.

Shadow of the Batgirl is a superhero comic with real heart and a look that feels far more like an indie comic than anything coming out of the big two. Just lovely!

Jesse Lonergan (Writer/Artist)

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Hedra is unlike anything we’ve ever seen before, and probably the same goes for you. It’s a completely silent comic, but it’s a massively dense, intricate storytelling experience. It’s light and cartoony, but it’s got panels that would look at home in an old Wally Wood comic. It’s got so many panels, and yet it’s full of moments that will take your breath away.

Lonergan manages the pace and flow of the storytelling so well that you have to experience it yourself to fully appreciate it. Hedra is a beautiful, smart, fascinating comic.

12. John Constantine: Hellblazer

Si Spurrier (Writer); Aaron Campbell, Matias Bergara (Artists); Jordie Bellaire (Colorist); Adita Bidakyar (Letterer)

Si Spurrier doesn’t seem like the type who gets mad often, but his John Constantine was fucking pissed , and goddamn if it wasn’t the best Hellblazer comic in decades. This too-brief run of comics starring everyone’s favorite dirtbag street mage was as much about England being a dumpster fire as it was about Constantine being a dumpster fire, and that low-key seethe gave this book an edge that many of Constantine’s more recent exploits have been missing.

Campbell and Bergara are gifted at depicting grimy fantasy, and Bellaire continues to be one of the greatest colorists who ever lived. In a sane, just world, a second volume of John Constantine: Hellblazer is being planned as we speak. Let’s hope.

11. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Last Ronin

Kevin Eastman, Peter Laird (Writers); Esau & Isaac Escorza (Artists); Luis Antonio Delgado (Colorist), Shaun Lee (Letterer)

When we saw a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles comic called The Last Ronin , we had no idea they meant Frank Miller Ronin . The art on this comic is astounding. 

The story is almost irrelevant, in part because it’s only just getting going (only one oversized issue has been released at the time of this writing). But it’s excellent set up – the last living Ninja Turtle assaults a city controlled by the Foot Clan to try and end their long battle once and for all. It’s set in the future, and heavily influenced by the cyberpunk ninja aesthetic so common to the genre, but filtered through a strong Miller lens that makes it a joy to discover.

10. Captain America: The End

Erik Larsen (Writer/Artist), Dono Sánchez-Almara (Colorist), Joe Caramagna (Letterer)

The superhero comic one shot is an underrated – even lost – art form these days. Annuals are often fill-in stories, and unless Marvel or DC are putting out an oversized issue to herald a line wide relaunch or a similar event, it’s rare that you get a nice thick single issue telling a self contained story of any real “importance.” Fortunately, there’s Captain America: The End .

Marvel’s The End line is exactly what it sounds like: an excuse for creators to tell not-really-in-continuity “final” stories for the biggest Marvel heroes. And while Captain America: The End ostensibly presents itself as the “final” Captain America story, it’s way more fun than that. Erik Larsen uses this opportunity to pay tribute to Cap’s greatest creative periods: specifically Jack Kirby’s two-fisted, acrobatic stint on the character in the 1960s, and his socially conscious and psychedelic late ’70s return to the book.

Wall to wall action, with Kirby-esque idea factory energy and dynamism at the forefront, Captain America: The End is one of the most purely fun superhero issues in years. But don’t mistake this for an exercise in nostalgia, as Larsen blends timely (and timeless) messages that help sum up what made Captain America great in the first place, and why we’ll never truly see the “last” Cap story.

9. Maison Ikkoku

Rumiko Takahashi (Writer/Artist)

We can’t make enough noise about how great Viz has been doing recently at making some of the harder to find manga classics available to bigger audiences. This lovely reprint of Rumiko Takahashi’s joyful slice of life comic technically came out decades ago, but most Western comics fans likely only came to it via this new printing.

Maison Ikkoku follows the misadventures of a young apartment building manager and the tenants that she has to keep in check. In turns sweet, silly, and saucy, this is truly a masterwork of manga that you must read. 

8. Billionaire Island

Mark Russell (Writer), Steve Pugh (Artist), Chris Chuckry (Colorist), Rob Steen (Letterer)

This is not Mark Russell, Steve Pugh, and Chris Chuckry’s first time on our lists , but it’s definitely the angriest they’ve been since showing up on here. If we’re really being fair, it’s entirely deserved. 

Billionaire Island is a wild fantasy story definitely based on nothing in reality about the world’s uber wealthy, who control the world, building their own island to ride out climate change while the poors all die off and suffer on the mainland. It follows a reporter with the Miami Herald, and an ex-mercenary who lost his family to Aggrocorp’s sterility experiments in Angola, as they try and bring down the aforementioned billionaires, are trapped on the island, and work to escape. 

It is every bit as hilarious as you would expect from the team who brought us The Flintstones , but there’s an edge to it that wasn’t there in Russell, Pugh and Chuckry’s earlier work. That’s probably because of the villains – The Flintstones skewered society, while Billionaire Island takes aim at the shittiest people in the world. Several of them by name.

Despite the undercurrent of anger, Billionaire Island is still packed with genuinely hilarious moments. Pugh’s sight gags remain incredible, and the comedic timing on display is outstanding. I had high expectations for Billionaire Island coming into it, and it exceeded all of them.

7. The Magic Fish

Trung Le Nguyen (Writer/Artist)

Feel like crying a lot? Because The Magic Fish got almost everyone we’ve seen read it. It’s an incredibly powerful yet quiet comic about a 13 year old coming to terms with who he is and how to talk with his parents about it. 

Tien, the aforementioned 13 year old, is a first generation Vietnamese-American with a crush on a friend and a mother who is still processing her move to the States and the family she left behind. Much of the story is about Tien trying to figure out how to broach the subject with his mother.

What stands out about The Magic Fish is how Nguyen tells the story. Much of it is is told by retellings of fairy tales – two modifications of the Cinderella story, and one of The Little Mermaid. The colors are especially effective in setting up the mood and tone of the sections of story, elegantly communicating so much about Tien’s emotional and intellectual state. And the fashion and hair are magnificent. Nguyen draws Alan Davis-good hairstyles. 

Nguyen’s The Magic Fish is accessible, deeply moving, and beautiful, a book that should be shared with friends.

6. Superman’s Pal, Jimmy Olsen

Matt Fracion (Writer), Steve Lieber (Artist), Nathan Fairbairn (Colorist), Clayton Cowles (Letterer)

It’s probably good that the prank war issue, where Timmy Olsen stole the wheel off the Batmobile for Youtube clout, was published last December, because otherwise this entire entry would be the Den of Geek reciting bits to each other like this was comics Anchorman . And all that time we’d spend telling each other we sure have created some…content…would distract from the fact that Superman’s Pal, Jimmy Olsen is one of the nicest, most thoughtful, best put-together comics in years. 

Beneath all of the gags – and there are a ton – Fraction, Lieber, Fairbairn, and Cowles put together a deceptively complex character study of Jimmy, Superman and Metropolis. This is a book that is as much about what Jimmy Olsen means to the people of Metropolis as it is about Dex-Starr puking blood on the remnants of Jimmy’s Gorilla City wedding, or the army of Kevins attacking him.

Lieber and Fairbairn were the perfect choices for art on this story: Lieber’s facial expressions and Fairbairn’s bright color palette sell every joke and set every mood that the story requires, and the way the creators play with time and information release is masterful. Superman’s Pal, Jimmy Olsen is essential reading, both because of its importance to the Superman universe as a whole, and because it’s just that damn funny.

5. Once and Future (READER’S CHOICE!)

Kieron Gillen (Writer), Dan Mora (Artist), Tamra Bonvillain (Colorist), Ed Dukeshire (Letterer)

Turns out letting Dan Mora draw his way through an English lit degree is a really good idea.

Joking aside, our readers have excellent taste, naming Once and Future their top pick for comic of the year.

Kieron Gillen takes the “story about a story” formula, smashes several more stories into the first one, and then lets Dan Mora and Tamra Bonvillain go ham on the whole thing, and the resulting comic is breathlessly exciting, and gorgeous to look at. It remixes Arthurian legend and this year added a sprinkle of Beowulf and developed the magic a little more, while juxtaposing that rich fantasy world with the mundanity of things like a senior living facility.

Mora draws monsters exceptionally well, and Bonvillain gives several scenes an ominous glow that sets a hell of a tone. Once and Future is a great pick by our readers, and is comfortably one of the best books of the year.

4. Dracula, Motherf**ker!

Alex de Campi (Writer/Letterer), Erica Henderson (Artist)

You may not realize that you need a grindhouse ‘70s story about Dracula’s brides being extremely done with his shit, but trust us, you need Dracula, Motherf**ker! in your life.

This book isn’t especially long, nor is it terribly complex. We get a lot of echoes of the original Dracula story updated to a dingy 1970s Los Angeles, and a lot of what you’d expect from a grindhouse horror comic, but it’s done exceptionally well by two incredibly talented storytellers. 

In retrospect, it’s hard to believe this is the first time de Campi and Henderson have ever worked together. Dracula, Motherf**ker! felt a lot like someone discovering peanut butter cups for the first time – there’s that dawning realization as you’re reading that it really works well, and then a secondary shock that nobody had ever done it before.

De Campi is a pro’s pro and a veritable cluster bomb of ideas. Henderson is a gifted sequential artist who gets to show off her mastery of color art as a storytelling device in these pages. The final package is outstanding. 

3. Far Sector

N.K. Jemisin (Writer), Jamal Campbell (Artist), Deron Bennett (Letterer)

The quality level of Far Sector is almost impossible to believe. Jamal Campbell doesn’t have an enormous comics resume, and this is N.K. Jemisin’s debut comic story. And yet the skill evident in every panel screams that this was made by a team of master craftsmen. 

Far Sector is the story of Jo Mullein, a new Green Lantern with an experimental, self-charging ring, dispatched to a floating megacity run jointly by three alien races; the Nah, a group of spacefaring fishtailed/winged bipeds; the keh-Topli, a group of carnivorous plants; and the @at, a race of sentient ethereal memelords. Jo is there at the request of the ruling council to investigate the City Enduring’s first murder in centuries. 

Her investigation is our way into Jemisin and Campbell’s vibrant imaginations.

This is a stunning book to look at – at least once an issue, Campbell draws something completely mind-bending. And Jemisin writes with the easy confidence and command of the form that people who have been writing comics for 50 years can’t match: there isn’t a wasted word on a single page of this entire series. It’s elegantly topical, stunning to look at, and a ton of fun to read. Far Sector is handily one of the greatest Green Lantern stories of all time.

2. X of Swords

Jonathan Hickman, Tini Howard, Leah Williams, Benjamin Percy, Vita Ayala, Zeb Wells, Ed Brisson, Gerry Duggan (Writers); Pepe Larraz, Carlos Gomez, Viktor Bogdanovic, Matteo Lolli, Carmen Carnero, Rod Reis, Phil Noto, R.B. Silva, Mahmud Asrar, Leinil Francis Yu, Stefano Casselli, Joshua Cassara (Artists); Marte Gracia, Israel Silva, Matt Wilson, Edgar Delgado, David Curiel, Nolan Woodard, Sunny Gho, Guru-eFX, Rachelle Rosenberg (Colorists); Clayton Cowles, Joe Caramagna, Cory Petit, Ariana Maher, Travis Lanham, Joe Sabino (Letterers)

X-Men fans are not commonly known for our penchant for consensus. We can and will argue over everything , from who’s a better partner for Cyclops to which story arc in the ‘90s was actually rock bottom. So when you get near unanimity that X of Swords is the best X-Men crossover since Inferno , you can pretty much take that to the bank. 

The culmination of the first phase of the X-universe’s post House of X/Powers of X plan, X of Swords tied all the mutant comics back together to take on a couple of the biggest ideas dropped in and immediately after HoXPoX . It did something that was nearly impossible: it paid off a year’s worth of stories from ten different series, with satisfying climaxes for more than a handful of storylines. 

It did this in part because several creators are making the jump to superstardom. Larraz somehow managed to do even better work than on House of X , delivering massive beat after massive beat in the final issue of the crossover. Tini Howard spent a year making Excalibur the best book in the line, and wove her plot threads through the crossover she co-shepherded (with Boss X or whatever they’re calling Hickman) to give us a foundational Otherworld and Captain Britain story. All the while, Howard also made sure that this Excalibur -centric crossover paid homage to the first Excalibur series – packing it full of magical silliness and genuine heart. Vita Ayala only got one issue in the crossover, but that issue will go down as one of Storm’s best stories of all time. And Joshua Cassara drew two issues of fights and competitions, and dropped multiple staggering spreads.

The X-Men line as a whole is the best it’s been in decades, and there’s no better proof of that than in X of Swords.

1. Blue in Green

Ram V (writer), Anand RK (Artist), Aditya Bidikar (Letterer)

Fiction is especially tough when the storyteller isn’t up to the subjects. If someone is writing a book about the smartest person in the world, the writer has to be smart enough to believably put brilliance in that character’s mouth. If someone is making a comic about a drug that makes everyone indescribably beautiful, then the art has to be angelic, or the book falls apart. 

But when a creative team IS up to the task, the end result can be sublime. That’s what Ram V, Anand RK and Aditya Bidikar gave us with Blue in Green . A comic about jazz that so perfectly evokes the form of its subject matter that I’m willing to bet this comic is taught in years to come. Blue in Green is incredible comics. 

Blue in Green ’s story is broadly familiar: it’s the crossroads tale, where the Devil meets a gifted musician and trades the musician’s life for magnificent talent. Erik is a talented saxophonist with a rough family history who’s pissing away his talents half-heartedly teaching kids how to play. He goes home for his mother’s funeral, makes his deal, and wakes up days later, after a fugue state that included him blowing the doors off of a jazz club with his sax. Eventually, the bill comes due. 

The presentation has a uniquely loose flow to it, moving from rigid grids to collage with prose attached, with surreal, disorienting colors that match the mood of the section of story marvelously. The way the storytelling shifts from section to section, the way the form changes so that it can tell the story as much as the words or art can, is one of the most skillful feats of comics creation I’ve read in years. It’s like its own kind of visual jazz. Blue in Green is an astounding piece of comics storytelling, and I can’t wait to read what’s next from everyone involved.

The Comic Book Dispatch

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X-Men ’97 #3 Preview

X-Men ’97 #3 Preview: DANGER ABLAZE! Powerful new foes descend on the X-Men, endangering not just our merry mutants – but any innocent civilians caught in the crossfire! Will humanity’s improved opinion of mutants survive the chaos – and will one member of the team find herself pushed past her limits? Find out in the penultimate installment of the official prelude to the hit new Disney+ TV show! Continue reading X-Men ’97 #3 Preview

Union Jack the Ripper: Blood Hunt #1 Preview

Union Jack the Ripper: Blood Hunt #1 Preview: UNION JACK PAINTS THE UK RED! As vampires inherit the Earth, one lone man has made it his mission to protect it. But what does Joey Chapman, UNION JACK have up his sleeves? And will it be enough? And WHO will Union Jack have to face to keep London from falling? CAVAN SCOTT and KEV WALKER bring you a UNION JACK story like you’ve never seen before! Continue reading Union Jack the Ripper: Blood Hunt #1 Preview

Ultimate Black Panther #4 Preview

Ultimate Black Panther #4 Preview: SHURI SEIZES THE THRONE! With T’Challa missing and presumed dead, Wakanda needs a new leader. Shuri wants war against Ra and Khonshu more than T’Challa ever did, but at what cost? Meanwhile, Black Panther must learn from his new allies, the freedom fighters Killmonger and Storm! Continue reading Ultimate Black Panther #4 Preview

Symbiote Spider-Man 2099 #3 Preview

Symbiote Spider-Man 2099 #3 Preview: BOND OF BROTHERS! Miguel O’Hara, the SPIDER-MAN of 2099, is more powerful than ever before thanks to bonding to a symbiote. But the cost may prove too high as its violent tendencies and VENOM 2099’s nefarious influence begin to take hold. Will Miguel trade responsibility for power? Can Nueva York survive Spider-Man without limits?! Continue reading Symbiote Spider-Man 2099 #3 Preview

Superior Spider-Man #7 Preview

Superior Spider-Man #7 Preview: Five words: Otto Octavius, the Superior Spider-Boy. That’s all you need to know. What? Do you want us to spoil EVERYTHING? Read the book. Superior Spider-Boy?! HOW? Why would we do that? Was this the plan all along?! SHHH! We didn’t even want to tell you THAT much. Hope you’re happy now. Look, JUST READ THE BOOK. Continue reading Superior Spider-Man #7 Preview

Star Wars #46 Preview

Star Wars #46 Preview: OPERATION: RESCUE MON MOTHMA! The fate of the REBEL ALLIANCE has become intertwined with accused traitor LANDO CALRISSIAN – if he falls, so will the Rebellion. LEIA ORGANA must mount a desperate rescue mission if there is any hope of defeating the evil GALACTIC EMPIRE! Continue reading Star Wars #46 Preview

Spider-Gwen: The Ghost-Spider #1 Preview

Spider-Gwen: The Ghost-Spider #1 Preview: TRAPPED IN THE 616… FOR GOOD! Welcome to New York! Gwen truly becomes a Ghost-Spider when she moves full time to the universe where Gwen Stacy died years ago. But why did she leave Earth-65? Why aren’t the other spiders supposed to know she’s here? Why isn’t she supposed to suit up? And who will get hurt when she does? Continue reading Spider-Gwen: The Ghost-Spider #1 Preview

The Spectacular Spider-Men #3 Preview

The Spectacular Spider-Men #3 Preview: Love is in the air at the Empire State University Coffee Bean as Miles Morales and Kamala Khan get their first date alongside Peter Parker and – GWEN STACY?! You aren’t going to believe this issue of the best new book of 2024. Continue reading The Spectacular Spider-Men #3 Preview

Sensational She-Hulk #8 Preview

Sensational She-Hulk #8 Preview: The conclusion of She-Hulk and Jack of Hearts’ space epic! YOUR heart is not ready for this issue. The action will get your heart pumping just in time for us to break it. Continue reading Sensational She-Hulk #8 Preview

Predator: The Last Hunt #4 Preview

Predator: The Last Hunt #4 Preview: THETA SMILES IN THE FACE OF DEATH! She tracked them across the stars, hunting like one of their own. Now they will honor her with the most glorious death! Armors and weapons mean nothing here. This is a battle of wills, a primordial clash. Human vs. Super Predator – and the prize for each is blood. Continue reading Predator: The Last Hunt #4 Preview

Immortal Thor #11 Preview

Immortal Thor #11 Preview: FOLLOWING UP ON THE G.O.D.S. PAGE FROM IMMORTAL THOR #1! Tyr had vanished, and there were whispers of cosmic forces at work. And so, the children of Odin gathered in their father’s name – to search for one of their own. Regal Thor, fierce Angela, brave Balder, swift Hermod, quiet Honir, strong Vidar, cunning Loki, even Laussa the youngest, all were there…and another beside. Another, whose name they feared. This is the story of THE IMMORTAL THOR…and the lost son of Odin. Continue reading Immortal Thor #11 Preview

Ghost Rider: Final Vengeance #3 Preview

Ghost Rider: Final Vengeance #3 Preview: THE HOOD BRINGS THE HELLFIRE! The new Ghost Rider plans his bloody takeover of Chicago’s criminal underworld! Will Johnny Blaze be able to claw his way back from the brink of death to reclaim the Spirit of Vengeance? Continue reading Ghost Rider: Final Vengeance #3 Preview

Fall of the House of X #5 Preview

Fall of the House of X #5 Preview: THE BATTLE FOR THE FUTURE! It all comes down to this – Orchis versus the X-Men, winner take the future! Orchis has pushed mutantkind to their lowest point ever, but that just means the X-Men have had to fight back like never before. Will it be enough? We continue to barrel toward the conclusion of the Krakoan Age as the two stories that are one come to an end! Continue reading Fall of the House of X #5 Preview

Blood Hunt #2 Preview

Blood Hunt #2 Preview: The vampires’ first strike has laid low the world, and their endless legions run riot across the planet. The broken Avengers join the fighters of the Midnight Mission and unlikely allies BLOODLINE and DRACULA in seeking out the one man who can do something about this: Doctor Strange. But after the apocalyptic events of BLOOD HUNT #1, what is left of Earth’s Sorcerer Supreme? Continue reading Blood Hunt #2 Preview

Black Widow & Hawkeye #3 Preview

Black Widow & Hawkeye #3 Preview: HAWKEYE HAS BEEN POISONED!  And his only chance at survival is the Black Widow’s unpredictable and vindictive symbiote – what could go wrong? A lot, as it turns out – because the fugitive pair has landed in the crosshairs of Black Widow’s old enemy, Damon Dran! Continue reading Black Widow & Hawkeye #3 Preview

Amazing Spider-Man #50 Preview

Amazing Spider-Man #50 Preview: GUESS WHO’S BACK?! THE GREEN GOBLIN RETURNS in this landmark and massive issue of ASM that boasts not only a double-sized main story but some instant Spider-Man classics by legends and legends to be! The Sins of Norman Osborn have found their way home and Norman shows his true color – green. But is it truly that simple? Spidey and Gobby’s brutal fight is one for the ages and you don’t want to miss this ending. PLUS! MARV WOLFMAN RETURNS TO SPIDER-MAN! NIKESH SHUKLA tells a story that will stay with you for a long time. And more! Continue reading Amazing Spider-Man #50 Preview

Green Lantern: War Journal #9 Preview

Green Lantern: War Journal #9 Preview: Lantern Shepherd and Kyle Rayner discover the shocking history of the ancient Dark Star of the Fenn! Meanwhile, John Stewart is trapped in its orbit, trying desperately to save his mysterious new allies from the undead First World armies searching for him! Can John prevent them from escaping the Dark Star and overrunning the universe? And can Shepherd find John in time to save his family from the mysterious new force now threatening the Earth, the shapeshifting STAR SHROUD? Continue reading Green Lantern: War Journal #9 Preview

Alan Scott: The Green Lantern #6 Preview

Alan Scott: The Green Lantern #6 Preview: Alan Scott’s final battle with the Red Lantern rages to a fever pitch! With Alan overcome with anger at his mortal enemy, will he cross a line he’s never thought he would? The explosive conclusion of one of the Green Lantern’s earliest adventures is here, and the fallout will affect Alan Scott forever! Continue reading Alan Scott: The Green Lantern #6 Preview

John Constantine Hellblazer: Dead in America #5 Preview

John Constantine Hellblazer: Dead in America #5 Preview: John Constantine, his son Noah, and bodyguard Nat have been blazing a trail across the face of America in their double-decker Routemaster bus, finding themselves on the wrong end of an eruption of supernatural and mystical threats—all thanks to a scattering of Dream’s sand. In this anthology-format issue, three particularly memorable run-ins with hitchhikers and drifters on America’s roadsides come to the fore…but can Constantine add up their meaning in time to uncover who—or what—is to blame for this rise in terror? Continue reading John Constantine Hellblazer: Dead in America #5 Preview

The Bat-Man: First Knight #3 Preview

The Bat-Man: First Knight #3 Preview: As the Voice’s grip on Gotham tightens, Jim Gordon doesn’t know whom he can trust. With monstrous beasts threatening the city, he turns to the Bat-Man for help, but to truly stop this reign of terror, playboy millionaire Bruce Wayne will step in to help guide the investigation. It all leads to a heart-pounding conclusion that will literally set Gotham ablaze! Continue reading The Bat-Man: First Knight #3 Preview

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THROWBACK THURSDAY: Ultimate Spider-Man #1: An Iconic Opener

Ultimate Spider-Man #1

Ultimate Spider-Man #1 is still a true symbol of artistic and creative mastery over twenty years later. @brianmbendis @realmarkbagley #SpiderMan #UltimateSpiderMan #ThrowbackThursday

Doom #1: The Universe According to Dylan Thomas

reminds us all to rage against the dying light in a tour de force from #JonathanHickman, @sanfordgreene, @rachellecheri, @JoeCaramagna, and #MarvelComics #Doom #DoctorDoom

X-Men Forever #4: Fight For Our Family

X-Men Forever #4

was a frankly phenomenal example of narrative art — and a satisfying conclusion to an extremely strong series. @kierongillen @marescaluca @toonfed #ClaytonCowles #MarvelComics #XMen #XMenForever #FallofX

Carnage #7: Battle in the Mosh Pit

by @gronbekk @pereperezart @erickarciniega @JoeSabino is nonstop action, with tension only increasing as Flash Thompson gains a new ally in his battle against the symbiote. #Carnage #MarvelComics

Ms. Marvel: Mutant Menace #3: Old Flames

Ms. Marvel Mutant Menace #3

Love is in the air as Red Dagger returns to Jersey City. But he’s not the only one to return, as the #XMen return … from the dead? (@imanvellanii, @Scottygod, @Erickarciniega) #MarvelComics #MsMarvel #KamalaKhan #FallofX

What If…? Aliens #3: Facehugger Chase

What If…? Aliens #3

features yet another ill-conceived attempt by someone to capture a #Xenomorph. It will surely work this time thanks to writer Hans Rodionoff and artists Guiu Vilanova and @nitro_yen. #MarvelComics #Aliens

Ultimate X-Men #3: Dark And May-Stormy Night

Ultimate X-Men #3

     (@peachmomoko60 @TravisJLanham @ZackDavisson @Marvel) makes the case for superpowers as metaphor in a quiet, enthralling Maystorm origin story. 

Venom #33: Midnight Creature Feature

Venom #33(@Al_Ewing @juaneferreyra @claytoncowles) is a visually ambitious gothic tale with action, frights, and monsters galore! #Venom #Marvel

The Avengers #14: Do The Monster Mash

The Avengers #14

A new team assembles to battle the undead in Avengers #14(@jedmackay @Cfvillaart @Toonfed @corypetit) Vampire-slaying action and witty character moments await in this thrill ride. #Marvel #Avengers

Captain Marvel #8: The Fight Goes On

Captain Marvel #8

Alyssa Wong continues to rock her Captain Marvel run with another action-packed issue

Fantastic Four #20: Paper or Plastic?

Fantastic Four #20

pits Johnny and Ben against each in the contest of who will be Cashier of the Month. It’s another fun and funny entry from @ryanqnorth and Carlos Goméz.

Darth Vader #46 /Darth Vader FCBD: No One Suspects The Schism Imperial !

Star Wars: Darth Vader #46 / FCBD Darth Vader

The Schism Imperial finally making a move against Palpatine and Vader ain’t to happy as his search for Luke continues from @gregpak @Raffaele_Ienco #MarvelComics #StarWars #MayThe4th @StarWars #DarthVader

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6 New Books We Recommend This Week

Suggested reading from critics and editors at The New York Times.

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It’s a happy coincidence that we recommend Becca Rothfeld’s essay collection “All Things Are Too Small” — a critic’s manifesto “in praise of excess,” as her subtitle has it — in the same week that we also recommend Justin Taylor’s maximalist new novel “Reboot,” an exuberant satire of modern society that stuffs everything from fandom to TV retreads to the rise of conspiracy culture into its craw. I don’t know if Rothfeld has read Taylor’s novel, but I get the feeling she would approve. Maybe you will too: In the spirit of “more, bigger, louder,” why not pick those up together?

Our other recommendations this week include a queer baseball romance novel, an up-to-the-minute story about a widower running for the presidency of his local labor union, a graphic novelist’s collection of spare visual stories and, in nonfiction, a foreign policy journalist’s sobering look at global politics in the 21st century. Happy reading. — Gregory Cowles

REBOOT Justin Taylor

This satire of modern media and pop culture follows a former child actor who is trying to revive the TV show that made him famous. Taylor delves into the worlds of online fandom while exploring the inner life of a man seeking redemption — and something meaningful to do.

“His book is, in part, a performance of culture, a mirror America complete with its own highly imagined myths, yet one still rooted in the Second Great Awakening and the country’s earliest literature. It’s a performance full of wit and rigor.”

From Joshua Ferris’s review

Pantheon | $28

YOU SHOULD BE SO LUCKY Cat Sebastian

When a grieving reporter falls for the struggling baseball player he’s been assigned to write about, their romance is like watching a Labrador puppy fall in love with a pampered Persian cat: all eager impulse on one side and arch contrariness on the other.

“People think the ending is what defines a romance, and it does, but that’s not what a romance is for. The end is where you stop, but the journey is why you go. … If you read one romance this spring, make it this one.”

From Olivia Waite’s romance column

Avon | Paperback, $18.99

ALL THINGS ARE TOO SMALL: Essays in Praise of Excess Becca Rothfeld

A striking debut by a young critic who has been heralded as a throwback to an era of livelier discourse. Rothfeld has published widely and works currently as a nonfiction book critic for The Washington Post; her interests range far, but these essays are united by a plea for more excess in all things, especially thought.

“Splendidly immodest in its neo-Romantic agenda — to tear down minimalism and puritanism in its many current varieties. … A carnival of high-low allusion and analysis.”

From David Gates’s review

Metropolitan Books | $27.99

THE RETURN OF GREAT POWERS: Russia, China, and the Next World War Jim Sciutto

Sciutto’s absorbing account of 21st-century brinkmanship takes readers from Ukraine in the days and hours ahead of Russia’s invasion to the waters of the Taiwan Strait where Chinese jets flying overhead raise tensions across the region. It’s a book that should be read by every legislator or presidential nominee sufficiently deluded to think that returning America to its isolationist past or making chummy with Putin is a viable option in today’s world.

“Enough to send those with a front-row view into the old basement bomb shelter. … The stuff of unholy nightmares.”

From Scott Anderson’s review

Dutton | $30

THE SPOILED HEART Sunjeev Sahota

Sahota’s novel is a bracing study of a middle-aged man’s downfall. A grieving widower seems to finally be turning things around for himself as he runs for the top job at his labor union and pursues a love interest. But his election campaign gets entangled in identity politics, and his troubles quickly multiply.

“Sahota has a surgeon’s dexterous hands, and the reader senses his confidence. … A plot-packed, propulsive story.”

From Caoilinn Hughes’s review

Viking | $29

SPIRAL AND OTHER STORIES Aidan Koch

The lush, sparsely worded work of this award-winning graphic novelist less resembles anything recognizably “comic book” than it does a sort of dreamlike oasis of art. Her latest piece of masterful minimalism, constructed from sensuous washes of watercolor, pencil, crayon and collage, pulses with bright pigment and tender melancholy.

“Many of these pages are purely abstract, but when Koch draws details, it’s in startlingly specific and consistent contours that give these stories a breadth of character as well as depiction.”

From Sam Thielman’s graphic novels column

New York Review Comics | $24.95

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Don Perlin, Co-Creator of Moon Knight and Bloodshot, Passes Away at 94

Don Perlin, the longtime Marvel and Valiant comic book artist who co-created Moon Knight and Bloodshot, has passed away at the age of 94

Don Perlin, the longtime Marvel artist who co-created Moon Knight and drew The Defenders for many years before being one of the major artistic forces at Valiant Comics (where he would co-create Bloodshot), has passed away at age 94.

I did a spotlight on Perlin a couple of years ago, and I'm using that to celebrate his life now.

Perlin started his comic book career in the late 1940s. Like a number of would-be comic book artists in the era, Perlin had to scrounge around wherever he could to find work. Here's Perlin doing a romance story for Love at First Sight #7...

and a horror story for The Beyond #1 (both for Ace Magazines circa 1950/51)....

After Perlin was drafted into the military in 1953, when he returned, the comic book industry had changed dramatically, and it was much harder to get work, so Perlin got into technical drawing, which he did for a number of years. In the 1970s, he was looking for new work and, as he explained to Bryan Stroud back in 2010 :

I was going for a job interview with another company to do paste-ups and mechanicals. This was before computers. I was going in on Monday morning and Sunday morning I got a call from Roy Thomas. I’d been doing some comic book work in the evenings when I got home from working at the different day jobs that I had. Roy had seen some of the horror stories that I had done for DC. He told me about two books that they were looking for artists for and asked if would I be interested? One of them was Werewolf by Night and the other was Morbius, the Living Vampire. When I went to Marvel and spoke to them I was told that Werewolf was a monthly and Morbius was a bi-monthly so I took the monthly book deciding that would be a great job....So, from then on, I worked for Marvel and didn’t miss a day. I went from the Werewolf to Ghost Rider and Defenders and Transformers. I worked on most of the characters that Marvel had while I was there. Then I went to Valiant.

Jon B. Cooke interviewed Perlin for TwoMorrows' Comic Book Artist #13 and they discussed Moon Knight a little:

Cooke: Did you help develop Moon Knight? Perlin: Well, actually, Moon Knight was developed by Doug and I for Werewolf. I designed the first costume. Marvel wanted us to come up with a new costumed hero, to help sales of the title. Moon Knight was eventually featured in two issues of Marvel Spotlight. Then we never heard about the character again. Down the line, they revived him, but I never had a hand on it again. Never got anything out of it. Unfortunately, Moon Knight was created before the royalty system was established.

Cooke: Did you ever see any royalties? Yeah, I did pretty well on The Transformers which did well. That did pay well. I made a big mistake at one point. They were looking for somebody to do The Avengers and offered me the book. But I was already doing The Defenders, which was a team book and I didn't want to do another team book. This was a lot of work with all those super guys. So they asked me to do just the current issue, which was #212, and at that point, they instigated the royalty system. They gave The Avengers to somebody else and that title made great royalties. That one issue I did made more royalties than I made on any other book. I've done a lot of "duh!" things like that. I also turned down the G.I. Joe series (thought I did a back-up story in the first issue and the entire second issue).

Perlin famously had a roughly SIX-YEAR run on Defenders from 1980-1986, working with writer Ed Hannigan at first, then J.M. DeMatteis, and finally with Peter B. Gillis (by which point the series had been re-titled New Defenders)....

Daniel Best interviewed Perlin about his departure from Marvel to Valiant in the late 1980s:

Best: What prompted you to go over to Valiant with Shooter? Perlin: It was a more creative job. At Marvel I’d oversee what somebody else had done, and show them how. To a guy who had spent most of his lifetime pencilling, inking and drawing and meeting deadlines, working around the clock this was very unsatisfying. When I got the offer, Shooter promised me that there’d be more creativity; I’d be in there creating comic books and characters. I’d get to draw a books, I’d get to edit books and I’d get to do almost everything that needed to be done around a comic book. And more money. So I went and it was an adventure. I’d never been in on the start of a comic book company and I have no regrets. We did some pretty nice stuff there.

Perlin was the original artist on Solar, Man of the Atom, written by Jim Shooter. Perlin also went to work as an editor at Valiant, but he is probably best known for his hit co-creation, Bloodshot (who he co-created with Kevin VanHook and Bob Layton). He discussed Bloodshot with Best, as well:

Perlin: Are you familiar with Bloodshot? Best: Yes I am. Out of all the Valiant characters the ones I liked the most were the Eternal Warrior for some reason, and Bloodshot - he even looked cool. Perlin: He looked good until they made him look ugly. I don’t think that character should have been ugly. He was supposed to be a ladies man; he should have been what we made him to be in the first place. But when the comic book sales started dropping they didn’t know what to do so they started screwing around with it and that’s what happened.

And later....

Best: Your favourite character that you’ve ever drawn. Perlin: I think it would be Bloodshot. I had a hell of a lot to do with creating the character. I would say it’s Bloodshot.

In recent years, Perlin had done a number of commissions for fans, especially featuring Moon Knight.

Perlin's daughter, Elaine, confirmed her father's passing on social media .

Our condolences to Perlin's family and friends.