White Widow #1 - Marvel Comics

WHITE WIDOW No. 1, January 2024

Perhaps a little surprisingly weighing in as the twenty-second best-selling comic of November 2023, and featuring an impressive opening which sees the titular character face-off against Captain America, things certainly seemed to be going in the right direction for Issue One of “White Widow” when the mini-series first hit the spinner-racks. Indeed, Yelena Belova’s initial interaction with the First Avenger, along with the appearance of the Superspy’s mentee Marthe appears to promise plenty of future skirmishes between the rogue agent and the finest super-heroes that the Marvel Universe can offer.

Disappointingly however, this notion seems to go completely out of the window once Sarah Gailey’s storytelling begins in earnest within the somewhat sleepy town limits of Idylhaven, and the American author rather unimpressively throws more information about the titular character’s new neighbours at her audience than any reader can possibly assimilate with even a couple of perusals. True, rattling off a number of lists concerning people’s ages, jobs and motivations, as well as those detailing the titular character’s loves, likes, dislikes and hates, certainly helps establish some sort of context for this book’s adventure in quick order. But it also arguably brings the publication’s pace down to that of a snail's crawl too.

Finally, any hope for Belova’s fans that this twenty-five-page periodical will show the Shadow of the Black Widow knee-deep in a yarn about international espionage, or simply tell of the deadly assassin’s code of conduct inexorably crashing into the moral virtues of the World's Mightiest Heroes are soon disconcertingly dashed when its revealed that the former Thunderbolt will just be confronting a somewhat small-time extortion racket in her own back yard; “I wanted someplace where things aren’t so much happening all the time, you know?” This underwhelming plot development must genuinely have frustrated those onlookers expecting so much more from a comic dedicated to “one of Marvel’s most enigmatic anti-heroes” and caused a fair few to refrain from pre-ordering its second instalment.

Unhappily, Alessandro Miracolo’s layouts don’t debatably live up to this “groundbreaking new chapter” in Yelena’s life either, despite the Italian illustrator demonstrating so much promise with his pencilling of the White Widow’s aforementioned skirmish with Captain America. Much of this frustration is undoubtedly due to the comic’s rather clunky script rather than anything else though, as whenever the artist is asked to sketch a punch-up or pulse-pounding panel he ramps up the adrenalin-fuelled violence in spades.

Writer: Sarah Gailey, Artist: Alessandro Miracolo & Color Artist: Matt Milla

Dungeons Of Doom #2 - Marvel Comics

DUNGEONS OF DOOM No. 2, April 2026

It’s debatably a little difficult for anyone perusing this thirty-page periodical to shake off the notion that they’re somehow participating in a game of “Dungeons & Dragons” rather than simply reading a comic penned by Phillip Kennedy Johnson and Benjamin Percy. Indeed, this mini-series’ second instalment throws so many of Gary Gygax’s well known tropes at its audience, whether that be the all-seeing Eye of Khonshu, a mysterious Skull-Shaped Herb and the well-named Hammer of Treachery, that with each passing challenge any and all bibliophiles will feel that they’ve somehow outwitted another of Doctor Doom’s deeply buried dangers.

Perhaps foremost of these short-lived episodes is the one following Major Simmons and his depleted squad of American soldiers. Desperate to regroup alongside the formidably strong Red Hulk, this party of adventurers arguably appear to have the most humanity of the different “warring global factions” inadvertently hurled into “Doom’s most secret, most forbidden dungeons.” However, if any onlooker thought such a motivation was somehow going to protect them from the horrors trapped behind brick and mortar, they are soon put right – courtesy of their commanding officers’ well-meaning move to allow a limbless cadaver to somehow once again speak its words of magic.

Likewise, despite solely consisting of a lone Wakandan, the story of Umbra bravely diving into so ghastly a pit of unholy terrors appears just as riveting. Admittedly to begin with the white-clad operative does appear to be little more than a “thief” transgressing Latveria’s sovereign territory for their own ends. But such a label soon falls flat when its revealed that the agent’s mission is to penetrate a chamber packed full of T'Challa’s national treasures which Doctor Victor Von Doom has clearly stolen from the Black Panther's kingdom over a period of time.

Finally, the notion that a single publication featuring the work of five different artists would ordinarily be somewhat scoffed at by most comic book critics. And yet the illustrations of Justin Mason, Robert Gill, Carlos Magno, Georges Jeanty and Karl Story all seem to blend together quite magnificently, with only the odd strangely-sketched image of General Thunderbolt Ross’ colourfully-skinned alter-ego making those perusing Issue Two of “Dungeons Of Doom” momentarily doubt Senior Editor Jordan D. White’s decision to utilise so many talents all together.

The regular cover art of "DUNGEONS OF DOOM" #2 by Leinil Francis Yu & Romulo Farardo Jr.

Nightwing #138 - DC Comics

NIGHTWING No. 138, July 2026

Initially seeming to pit Dick Grayson’s alter-ego against “something bestial lurking in the forests just outside of Blüdhaven”, Dan Watters’ narrative for Issue One Hundred And Thirty Eight of “Nightwing” appears to be about to dip its toes into one of the intriguing mysteries currently haunting the city’s new super-highway. Indeed, the notion of farmer Jones fending off some deadly bipedal fiend with his shotgun and disconcertingly still coming off second-best suggests that the English writer is rather enthrallingly planning to take his audience on a trip down memory lane for the former whaling town which will raise another unpleasant supernatural link between its violent past and concrete structure obsessed present.

Unfortunately though, a quick blood test at ‘the scene of the last crime’ soon has this fascinating notion shelved for a much more straightforward storyline featuring a crash-landed alien from the Vega system, and resultantly so much of this script’s mystery arguably evaporates almost instantaneously. Now admittedly, the presence of an extra-terrestrial known to have subjugated and experimented upon Princess Koriand'r of Tamaran does lead to a surprise cameo by Starfire herself. But the powerful Teen Titans’ presence also means that the lone Psion invader is quickly dispatched.

Perhaps therefore a much more interesting sub-plot is the notion of Nightwing being sued for Manslaughter by “the families of eight of the deceased” from the recent pile-up upon Blüdhaven’s new super-highway. This private investigation and vilification by Miss Eastbourne appears to be packed full of just the sort of legal casework which could see the titular character lose his vigilante status, and even worse make him a target of the city’s law enforcement department which he has spent so long building up a working relationship with; “If you’re here to intimidate me out of taking this case against you. You’re very much barking up the wrong tree.”

This book’s disappointing departure from the place’s paranormal history also debatably appears to detrimentally affect the layouts of Denys Cowan too, with so much of the twenty-two page periodical becoming a somewhat sedentary, dialogue-drive yarn. To begin with the American artist’s pencilling appears to work so well with farmer Jones’ aforementioned clash with a hungry Psion. Yet as soon as the much more wordy side of the storytelling starts, the poor illustrator is repeatedly tasked with just depicting Nightwing and Starfire in profile making conversation.

The regular cover art of "NIGHTWING" #138 by Jorge Fornes

Conan The Barbarian #31 - Titan Comics

CONAN THE BARBARIAN No. 31, June 2026

Essentially comprising of a tussle between this ongoing series’ titular character and his latest adversary, there is unquestionably a lot for its readers to enjoy inside Issue Thirty One of "Conan The Barbarian". Indeed, for much of this comic Jim Zub actually appears to pen the mighty Cimmerian as nothing more than an experienced, and impressively strong warrior who appears to be facing a paranormal foe whose power clearly exceeds his own; “Which means the only advantage Conan has is his battle instincts.”

This reluctance to imbue Robert E. Howard’s creation with some implausible superhuman attribute not arguably ever seen in the character's prose stories genuinely provides the contest with a palpable sense of intriguing danger, and adds an alarming air of deadliness to The Son of the Tooth which would certainly have been missing had the Canadian writer simply made the sword and sorcery hero just as extraordinarily strong as his otherworldly opponent. In addition, it soon becomes clear just how badly the Cimmerian is being outmatched, and these extra deaths of innocent bystanders raises the stakes even more so as Conan understandably tries to save as many of their lives as he can.

Unfortunately, the resultant blood bath whilst entertaining, does though also raise the issue as to just why a trained assassin would suddenly risk so many people knowing of both his memorable looks and presence in Khoraja. True, it appears clear that the cut-throat soon realises he might be outfought by his prey if he doesn’t quickly ‘juice himself up’ with some additional souls. But the sheer pandemonium the mass-murderer causes in the frontier trade city will apparently be spoken of for years to come – something some within this publication’s audience might feel is a little odd for a cold-blooded slayer who ordinarily sticks to the shadows before dispatching his target.

Lastly, having refrained from falling into the common trap of making the titular barbarian unconvincingly ‘shrug off’ a plethora of deadly knife cuts and physical injuries for so much of this twenty-two page periodical, the Animex Honorary Award-winner debatably does just that at its very end by having artist Doug Braithwaite pencil the Cimmerian inexplicably recover from a good half-dozen wounds so he can stab his would-be-killer straight in the throat with one swift movement. This opportune reversal just doesn’t sit right after such a beating, especially when its apparently caused by The Son of the Tooth bizarrely refraining from delivering his final blow so he can look up at an alignment of the Moon within the clouds.

The regular cover art of "CONAN THE BARBARIAN" #31 by Mahmud Asrar

Batwoman #1 - DC Comics

BATWOMAN No. 1, May 2026

Whilst there were doubtless a fair few comic book fans who were excited with Greg Rucka returning to a character he hadn’t written for “after almost twenty years”, it is arguably highly unlikely that this particular twenty-two-page periodical will successfully “bring Kate to a new generation of thrill seekers.” Indeed, despite the Eisner Award-Winner desperately hoping that this publication is “new reader friendly”, it is probably a safe bet that if anything “Eschatology” will lose the ongoing solo series fans rather than attract many new ones; “You look much better today. Hopefully the pain has passed.?”

To be honest though, a lot of this story’s accessibility doesn’t really lie in its penmanship, as the “co-creator of the modern Batwoman” definitely provides his audience with an intriguing insight into the costumed crime-fighter’s emotional psyche by placing her deep inside a Greek Sanatorium. There the vigilante has clearly been both mentally and physically traumatised by her recent battle with her identical twin sister Elisabeth, and is understandably struggling to overcome her injuries, as well as the notion of her sibling falling to her death.

Furthermore, Kate Kane’s welfare interview with Doctor Zena Sidaris is neatly interspersed with some pulse-pounding panels packed full of action-packed gun-play, punches and knife-blows. These adrenalin-fuelled flashbacks genuinely make the book much more of a joy to read, as the notion of Batwoman failing to stop Alice from setting off the fire pit and killing millions of innocent people is surprisingly palpable – especially when the central protagonist is stabbed and shot early on in the proceedings.

Disappointingly however, what does debatably interfere with this tale’s success is the pencilling of “visionary artist DaNi”, which despite the illustrator’s reputation doesn’t really work when it comes to the aforementioned sedentary scenes set inside the mental clinic and then later at Eschaton Tower. Admittedly, the Athens-born artist’s drawings during Kate’s desperate struggle against her sister certainly does its job well enough. But the lady’s somewhat sketchy-looking style is something of an acquired taste, and appears to make some pictures rather hard to discern – such as one presumably depicting the Monks of the Stone practicing somewhere along the Mediterranean coastline.

Writer: Greg Rucka, Artist: DaNi, and Colorist: Matt Hollingsworth

Nightwing #137 - DC Comics

NIGHTWING No. 137, June 2026

Whilst many a bibliophile will doubtless agree it’s always enjoyable to see the original Caped Crusaders working together, those who read Issue One Hundred And Thirty Seven of “Nightwing” will also surely believe that Batman’s presence throughout this comic is also the only good thing about it. Sure, the notion of two snipers besieging Bludhaven Bridge from opposite ends definitely sounds like a solid basis for a modern-day, no-nonsense storyline. But the implausible purpose behind one of the shooters’ actions, and supposed unwillingness to actually kill anyone makes the entire situation rather lack-lustre and unconvincing.; “Even the woman she shot was probably a lucky hit.”

To begin with, this book’s audience are meant to believe that when Ioana gunned down a “public defender” with a single bullet to the head just as she was leaving a taxi, the markswoman was actually purposedly missing her fiancée who was busy working on the flyover’s infrastructure. Such a notion just smacks of Dan Watters being desperate to pen a reason for Commissioner Sawyer to call in her city’s masked vigilante for aid, and then later explain just how Dick Grayson’s alter-ego is only nicked in the face when he subsequently makes himself a plain target by standing still on the viaduct.

Furthermore, it’s not arguably all that clear why the Romanian woman ever agreed to her brother’s plan in the beginning, if she wasn’t going to go through with it and murder the man she loved. The English writer appears determined to mask this misguided motivation with a ghost tale about the pair’s great grand-father being buried alive in the bridge’s foundation as a sacrifice to its stability. However, none of this reasoning is ever properly explored or even shown to be true and debatably makes any spectral machinations behind the gunplay disappointingly meaningless – even if Nightwing does anxiously attempt to convince Batman that without the cold-blooded killings a fatal hairline fissure in the structure would never have been discovered.

Slightly more credible than this periodical’s plot are Denys Cowan’s pencils, which at least help imbue a somewhat statically-based script with a bit of vigour here and there. The comic’s opening view of Bludhaven Bridge being scanned by both Nightwing and Batman is particularly well drawn. Though it does raise the question as to why the Police need to call in the likes of the Dynamic Duo for something that they’re clearly trained to deal with on their own..?

Writer: Dan Watters, Pencils: Denys Cowan, Inks: Norm Rapmund and Colors: Francesco Segala

Star Wars: Jedi Knights #6 - Marvel Comics

STAR WARS: JEDI KNIGHTS No. 6, October 2025

Whilst there’s undoubtedly something akin to an acceptable adventure lurking within this publication’s twenty-page plot, the way Marc Guggenheim delivers his narrative for Issue Six of “Star Wars: Jedi Knights” will probably disappoint a fair few fans of the science fiction franchise. Furthermore, the notion of starting this tale after Jedi Master Fondar Etzis has already been assassinated on Mina-Rau will surely give many a bibliophile the unshakeable feeling that they’ve disappointingly missed the yarn’s true beginning; “He was instrumental in dealing with a group of bandits who had been stealing our crop yield.”

To make matters even worse though, the American screenwriter appears to utterly waste the characters of Mace Windu and Aayla Secura, relegating the top tier Jedi Masters to insensitive bumpkins who can neither feel the “darkness surrounding Master Etzis’ remains”, or anticipate the imminent attack upon them by Corlis Rath. Admittedly, this lack of basic Force powers does allow Qui-Gon Jinn with the opportunity to face his mysterious attacker single-handed. But it doesn’t arguably say much for the likes of Windu – the so-called “ greatest champion of The Jedi Order.”

Lastly, this comic shows Count Dooku’s protégé getting rather easily out-witted by his Sinsaran opponent when he has the dual-blade wielding hit man on the ropes. Such a shocking and seemingly fatal blow to the innards, certainly seems to set the scene for this ongoing series’ next instalment – something which hasn’t really happened before. Yet, it also debatably begs the question just why Rath risked tackling three of the Jedi Council’s top tier operatives alone and head-on, when he could surely have just poisoned Jinn when he was on Coruscant in a similar almost untraceable fashion to that used to murder Fondar..?

Far more successful than this book’s penmanship is Madibek Musabekov’s pencilling, which really comes into its fore during the ‘sword-fight’ between Qui-Gon and Corlis across a humongous, fully-functioning agricultural machine as it busily reaps the annual harvest. This adrenalin-fuelled action sequence is extremely well drawn with both participants exchanging blows as they leap amongst all the deadly working parts, and it’s genuinely a shame that this frantically-paced fray is ultimately so short-lived as the pair attain some level of safety on the combine’s topmost section.

The regular cover art of "STAR WARS: JEDI KNIGHTS" #6 by Madibek Musabekov & Jesus Aburtov