All in Female Lead
All superheroes have problems- usually of the supervillain variety, but occasionally it’s alien invasions or time travel shenanigans. Then there are the problems that you can’t fight with your superpowers, the problems that you can’t call in the Avengers for.
Buffy the Vampire Slayer #9 is a particularly strong episode in Boom! Studio’s hit-or-miss reboot of the Buffyverse.
Taken as a whole, it is a dazzling, little bit of magic.
David Hine and Brian Haberlin continue a dive into pulpy adventure fantasy.
The final issue of the first series lacks some of the delicious creepiness that opened the story.
Waid puts together a solid story here, it just doesn’t necessarily feel like a Marvel story.
A fun exploration into the nature of control and subversion in modern society.
House of X and Powers of X are a hard act to follow, but this book nails it with ease.
Castellucci’s sharp characterization of Batgirl if impressively sophisticated.
The situation with Nuclear Man (issues 1-5) left Ripley with unresolved trauma, giving her nightmares for weeks. So she’s attempting to cope with this by becoming as powerful as possible to never need saving again. No matter what it takes, she won’t be put in that situation again.
The heroine has more than enough charisma to make this issue feel fresh.
There are interesting little bits of promise emerging from an intriguing concept.
The series regains some momentum as CAFU puts in some very, very deft work.
The final issue of Fearless wraps-up what really should be the first in several such series.
McGuire’s broader plans for Gwen get pulled a bit more into focus in another thoroughly satisfying issue.
Liefen has an excellent understanding of pacing.
If you want nothing more than fanservice this story is great—you can see your favorite heroes fight one on one in their swimsuits. But fanservice isn’t enough to carry an entire story.
Supergirl continues to make a very appealingly heroic presence.
Joëlle Jones returns as writer/artist auteur in a spooky, little pair of moods.
If the theme of Kamala's journey thus far has been growth and development, then this issue shows the often-overlooked consequences of these phenomenons. Saladin Ahmed writes about topics like corporate expansion and workers rights through the lens of a superhero/supervillain power struggle. Artists Joey Vazquez and Alex Arizmendi, colorist Ian Herring, and letterer VC's Joe Caramagna lend their talents to this very topical story.
