DC Comics is really testing my endurance lately. Last week we had four issues, the week before that we had a whopping list of 15, and we’re back up to 15 again this week. I tell you what, these DC authors must be inhaling coffee the way they’re producing content. There were some excellent comics, each with wildly different themes. So let me give you the inside scoop of which DC Comics July 6th made my list.
Get BWT in your inbox!
Get BWT in your inbox!
The Nice House on the Lake #2
Creative team: James Tynion IV, Álvaro Martínez, Jordie Bellaire, and AndWorld Design
Publisher: DC Black Label – DC Comics
After the life-changing events of the previous issue, the guests at the nice house on the lake must decide their next steps, but there’s not exactly perfect agreement about the situation. Who among them is ready to walk out the door? And who is content to simply…float?
I had to put this issue, and the series, at the top of this week’s list because, hands down, The Nice House on the Lake is an utterly brilliant read. The art is explosive and haunting, and the plot is mysterious and well constructed. This follow-up issue to the explosive first continues to deliver high quality, and I am highly invested in running down the rabbit hole to find out what the hell is going on. What a great way to kick off DC Comics: July 6th with this issue.
The Nice House on the Lake #2 can be found on ComiXology and wherever comics are sold.
Batman #110
Creative team: James Tynion IV, Jorge Jimenez, Tomeu Morey, and Clayton Cowles, Ricardo Lopez Ortiz, and Romulo Fajardo Jr.
Batman’s bloody, no-holds-barred fight with Magistrate enforcer Peacekeeper-01 rages on in epic fashion! Simon Saint’s master plan comes to fruition as his Magistrate program makes its move on Gotham City, and things are about to heat up (not in a good way)! Additionally, the Instigator versus Ghost-Maker in a kung fu showdown!
This issue is ALL action and the art really jumps off the page and grabs you immediately. Tynion IV is a man possessed lately as he pumps out story after story, and this current issue is no exception. Also, as a bonus, he throws in an extra story tied to the Ghost Maker with one of my favorite artists Ricardo Lopez Ortiz. DC if you’re listening, I’ll take a whole series of Ghost Maker with Tynion and Ortiz leading the creative team. Please and thank you.
Batman #110 can be found on ComiXology and wherever comics are sold.
Batman Secret Files: The Signal #1
Creative team: Tony Patrick, Christian Duce, Luis Guerrero, and Andworld Design
The Signal comes back as Gotham City’s daytime protector after his time with the Outsiders. But during his sabbatical from his hometown, everything about the city and the people closest to him have changed. And the mystery of the White Market, a deadly source of weapons being trafficked into Gotham City that even Batman can’t track down, will only push the Signal further away from everything he knows and into a brand-new world of danger.
The Signal is now Gotham’s daytime protector, as he attempts to learn from his mentor Batman. It’s a good opening issue with lots of potential moving forward to tell a highly engaging story. There were some interesting premises introduced here, and I’m excited to see where they go from here. Plus, something about that yellow Bat-suit just looks bloody cool.
Batman Secret Files: The Signal #1 can be found on ComiXology and wherever comics are sold.
Crush and Lobo #2
Creative team: Mariko Tamaki, Amancay Nahuelpan, Tamra Bonvillain, and Ariana Maher
If there’s anything Crush knows, it’s that traveling through space is a great time to load up on coffee, catch up on murder podcasts, and definitely not get sucked into a spiral of depression while reflecting on your ex-girlfriend who just dumped you. When Crush’s trusty travel mug runs dry, a pit stop for caffeine puts Lobo’s daughter face to face with an old enemy whose vicious revenge could put an end to her journey when it’s only just barely begun! Tick tock, Crush…your father’s waiting.
I’m not sure I have the words to adequately express this comic, but let me give it a shot. This series is just chaotic entertainment. Actually, that was pretty easy. Crush and Lobo, led by the former, is a self-contained manically crazy story that will bring a smile to your face. You can feel the joy Tamaki embeds into this story, and paired with the wonderful art from Nahuelpan it’s just a great comic, and delightful to the very last page.
Crush and Lobo #2 can be found on ComiXology and wherever comics are sold.
Suicide Squad #5
Creative team: Robbie Thompson, Dexter Soy, Eduardo Pansica, Julio Ferriera, Joe Prado, Alex Sinclair, and Wes Abbott
After the disastrous mission to Titans Academy and an ill-fated confrontation with Red X, Task Force X looks into the Multiverse for its next recruits under Amanda Waller. Assigned to investigate the status of Earth-3, the team’s field leader, Peacemaker, begins to question what Waller plans to do with her ultimate Suicide Squad as the deadly Bloodsport takes charge.
DC is going big into the multiverse lately, with the Suicide Squad and Amanda Waller following suit. Earth-3 however is no joke, and the issue exudes a sense of “oh sh*t, we may have made a bad decision here.” Which is such the personification of this team: bad decisions and trying to figure out how to save the plan once everything goes pear-shaped from the word go. A great read and I’m curious to see where Thompson takes it next issue after the big cliffhanger he lays down.
Suicide Squad #5 can be found on ComiXology and wherever comics are sold.
The Swamp Thing #5
Creative team: Ram V, John McCrea, Mike Spicer, and Aditya Bidikar
Newly armed with the knowledge and powers he gained from the Green and yet lonelier than ever, Levi Kamei is pulled once more into service as the Avatar of the Green is summoned by primal forces to the city of London, where old ideas lie buried, slowly leaching into the reality above. The scars of old wars and the dangers of past ideologies resurface as the Swamp Thing must team up with an old trench-coated acquaintance and his new protégé to save the present from the atrocities of our past.
Ram V is a person who revels in the peculiar, and The Swamp Thing is the perfect property for him to unleash his creative brain on. It’s a truly bizarre story, with imagery from McCrea that feels perfectly attune to the plot and some fantastic cameo appearances, plus a big finish teeing up an interesting twist for the next issue.
The Swamp Thing #5 can be found on ComiXology and wherever comics are sold.
Wonder Girl #2
Creative team: Joëlle Jones, Adriana Melo, Jordie Bellaire, and Clayton Cowles
After receiving a sacred gift from the gods of Brazil, our hero seems destined for great things. Little does she know, another pantheon has been watching her as well. Hera, queen of the Greek gods, has chosen Yara to become her latest champion. But what need does the goddess have for a warrior of her own?
Jones and Melo really poured everything into this issue, and the momentum just keeps on rolling after an exhilarating opening issue. The artwork is just stupendous, and the plot is really quite daring. This one above all surprises me at how high quality it is from top to bottom. Needless to say, but I’m a fan. Each component from the creative team sings in unison with the overall direction of the story. I’m so happy they continued with a new version of Wonder Girl and it’s clear that Jones, Melo, Bellaire, and Cowles are going to unleash some electrifying content moving forward. A lovely issue to finish up this week’s DC Comics: July 6th.
Wonder Girl #2 can be found on ComiXology and wherever comics are sold.
Looking back over the selections, there’s a lot of issues that are still in their infancy so make sure if you like them to go let DC know so they continue to highlight such fantastic stories and creatives. Pick up all these comics, and more, on ComiXology.
Synopsis for the comics featured in What Comics to Read: DC Comics July 6th were taken directly from ComiXology.
