Critical Hits & Misses #177

• We don't talk nearly enough about women and POC artists on this blog, and that's a failing we hope to remedy this year. Here's a wonderful discussion of Canadian artist Feist, and her latest album, "Pleasure." 


• The Feminism in India blog has a pretty unforgiving piece on the hypocrisy of progressive men, within the context of the allegations of sexual and mental abuse by Kumar Sundaram of India Resists. Lots of discussion about victim-blaming, giving men a pass, and how the public is quick to give men the benefit of the doubt. 

For today's musical hit, we have Feist and "Pleasure"

Today's critical rolls: Do you have any favorite musical women artists, or artists of color, that you think everyone should know about? We'd love to feature more, regardless of genre! So feel free to post your suggestions in the comments!


Critical Writ has a super-duper strict comment policy that specifies a single rule above all others: we reserve the right to ban you for being a terribad citizen of the internet.

Critical Hits & Misses #176

• The Chicago Tribune did to Aaron Rodgers, Olivia Munn's boyfriend, what media outlets do to women all the time, and the residents of the internet's Dudebrodia lost their collective shit. /slowclap


• Metro lists the 13 ways we feminists sometimes forget what we're fighting for and fall into old nasty societal habits. Not gonna lie, as a hardcore feminist, I've done a few of these. I still sometimes do. 

For today's musical hit, we have Baiyu and "Invisible"

Today's critical rolls: What are some of the ways you've caught yourself being a "bad feminist?" Keep in mind, you don't have to agree with Metro's whole list (I see nothing wrong with admiring wedding gowns, or any beautiful clothing, for example). And maybe there are things missing off the list that maybe we still do unconsciously or because it's drilled into us by culture.


Critical Writ has a super-duper strict comment policy that specifies a single rule above all others: we reserve the right to ban you for being a terribad citizen of the internet.

SNL Scraps: Promos And Time Zones

The new promos for Saturday Night Live have arrived! Jimmy Fallon is known for having a sense of style on his show. Whether you like it or not, you do have to acknowledge that he knows how to have fun, both on his editions of Late Night and The Tonight Show. He brings some of that sense of playfulness to the promos, featuring him and Harry Styles having a fun dance party. And, yes, as can be expected, he does start laughing during the final segment.

In other news, the final hosts for the season have been announced. Jimmy Fallon will host next week and Harry Styles will make his debut as a solo musical guest. The next month will feature Melissa McCarthy officially become a member of the Five-Timer's Club and Dwayne Johnson will head the season finale.

This Saturday's episode will also be notable because it'll be the first episode to be broadcast live in all time zones. This is major for the show and most likely a result of this season's increased ratings and publicity. I'm excited to see what happens! I hope that, if it's successful, this will be extended to the next season.

Saturday Night Live airs on NBC. You can check your local listings for the official time.

Zachary Krishef is an evil genius. Do not question his knowledge of Saturday Night Live trivia or Harry Potter books.

Critical Hits & Misses #175

Gender-neutral mods make games like Stardew Valley a better experience for those who identify as non-binary. 

• If you’re a genderqueer fan of video games, you probably bemoan the fact big budget titles only ever allow you to play as a male or female character. It’s probably going to be a while before AAA publishers are going to catch up with reality. Until then, at least we can still count on mods, as Matt Sayer finds out in an article for Rock, Paper, Shotgun.


• Warning: the following story and article contain mention of incredibly disturbing racism in school, some antisemitism, and a whole lot of wtfuckery. You will probably be really pissed off, and you should be. Ahadi Bugg-Levine discusses the mock slave auction and slave posters made by children at a school in a progressive New Jersey community, and she dives deep into how progressives need to be ever more vigilant in their own local communities, and how we progressives have failed people of color overall with our "color blind" way of communicating. 

For today's musical hit, we have The Tontons and "Golden"

Today's critical rolls: If you're a PC gamer, do you mod much? What are some of your favorite mods out there?


Critical Writ has a super-duper strict comment policy that specifies a single rule above all others: we reserve the right to ban you for being a terribad citizen of the internet.

Critical Hits & Misses #174

• Over at the New York Times, Eve Ewing penned an amazing op-ed on why authoritarians, both current and historical, have attacked the arts. A genuinely fascinating piece of historical importance, as well as relevant to the current list of crappy things Trump is doing in office. 

• There’s a lot of positive buzz about Marvel’s new and hopefully-not-cancelled-in-6-issues series, America by Gabby Rivera and Joe Quinones, starring the queer Latina, America Chavez. Over at Fusion, the writer explains how her experience as a queer Latina herself helped shape the comic. 

For today's musical hit, we have Bat for Lashes and "Daniel"

Today's critical rolls: What do the arts mean to you? What kind of artistic expression do you like (whether you practice them yourself or you just enjoy them as an observer).


Critical Writ has a super-duper strict comment policy that specifies a single rule above all others: we reserve the right to ban you for being a terribad citizen of the internet.

Suicide Squad/Banana Splits Annual #1 (And The Snagglepuss Backup) Review: Combining Sweetness And Sourness Leads To A Hit

The Suicide Squad/Banana Splits Annual #1 special is a boatload of fun, from start to finish. What more could you expect from a group of singing animals teaming up with a group of deadly assassins? I admit, I've never actually watched the original Hanna-Barbera show, but that wasn't necessary to enjoy the story. Even if I hadn't done some research on the characters beforehand, the introduction would have caught me up almost instantly.

"And if you thee the Muppets, tell them to thtep off or Stompy will thow them just how he got his name!" "HONK!"

Most of the humor comes from the sheer absurdity of a band of singing animals and the sheer zaniness that ensues. Some of it satirizes modern situations, such as the aforementioned picture. Obviously, the police officers don't react well to them and draw fire, leading to the comment "It's open season on Animal-Americans!"

Some time spent in Belle Reve adds to this, with a group of animal-themed metahuman criminals urging the Banana Splits to stay with 'their own kind' and join up with their gang. Unfortunately, the jovial band doesn't really understand what they're talking about, and the resulting chaos leads to Amanda Waller recruiting them as a backup Suicide Squad. Most of the best jokes just come from the Squad and the Splits interacting.

"Please don't kill us, Waller said we're expendable! Wait..."

It's a wonderful story. If I had to make one criticism, it would be that the revamped look of the Splits at the end isn't very interesting. I preferred the bubblegum pop edition, if only for the novelty. Also, there was no song during the final battle. If you want to read an amusing, unlikely crossover event, I definitely recommend it. Also, I present this image with zero context. Enjoy!

As for the backup feature, it's a fairly short teaser for Mark Russell's next DC Comics project, a Snagglepuss tale. It stays completely true to the original tone of the character while also giving a powerful lesson on ethics and morality. It's also hilarious, with Snagglepuss giving snarky answers to a group of grumpy politicians. The Flinstones may be ending in June, but Mr. Russell will still be writing wonderful stories for years to come.

Suicide Squad/Banana Splits Annual #1 is written by Tony Bedard, drawn by Ben Caldwell, inked by Mark Morales, colored by Jeremy Lawson, and lettered by A Larger World's Troy 'N' Dave. "House Fires" is written by Mark Russell, drawn by Howard Porter, colored by Steve Buccellato, and lettered by Dave Sharpe. You can find it at your local comic book shop.

Zachary Krishef is an evil genius. Do not question his knowledge of Saturday Night Live trivia or Harry Potter books.

The Stars Are Legion: Book Review

What was the last book you read that had no female characters? Was it The Hobbit, or 20,000 Leagues Under The Sea? Are you struggling to remember if there were any women in Moby Dick? Did you even notice that when you reading?

I feel it may be necessary to say that I’m not suggesting that these are bad books because they have no women, but merely that it’s hardly commented on, or noticed at all. But then comes along The Stars Are Legion by Kameron Hurley, a book in which there are no men.  That immediately brings a lot to the table that the reverse situation rarely does.

The story follows Zan, a woman with no memory, and Zayd, who protects her from ever recovering it. They are seeking to save the Legion, a mass of world ships that is slowly decaying as they fight one another to survive. Zan knows little else except that she needs to conquer the rogue world Mokshi, and there lies her answers and her memory.

The Stars Are Legion is a brutal space opera. The world ships are organic, and if you are squeamish you might not be happy with the amount of body horror and general amount of bodily fluids this book describes. As a squeamish person myself, however, it was uncomfortable but never totally unreadable. The Legion is a horrible place to be, and most characters are various degrees of villains rather than heroes. It’s grimdark, but thankfully does not take a turn down Edgelord Drive and instead allows moments of levity to lift the mood. It’s not all bad here, and the world is worth saving.

The middle of the story does drag a bit, with Zayd held captive and Zan sent on her real journey through the levels of the world with a rag tag group of misfits to help her find her way back. The journey feels like a device used to get these characters to work together and build camaraderie, rather than necessarily illuminating much about the nature of the world ships. We also only get to see three planets in total in the entire book; it’s hard to picture the mass of the Legion when we don’t see much of it, and travel between the three planets is quick even though we’re told they’re actually far apart. There isn’t quite the sense of of a huge mass of worlds that the premise hinted at.

Despite dragging on a bit and a cheesy villain moment (any use of “we’re a lot alike, you and I” or any of its variants should be banned), the ending is extremely satisfying, which is a little unexpected for such dark stories like this one. Ultimately, this is why I like it so much. It’s gross and violent many times, but it isn’t above having light moments or triumphs or dare I say, optimism. It doesn’t wallow in it’s darkness, but seeks to rise above it.

While stark in the beginning, it’s also easy to forget after a time that all the characters are female. Despite that, I found myself curiously gendering the characters all the same as I pictured them; the action heroes are butch in my mind, and the more political characters like Zayd are femme, despite little description pushing me that way. Like Ancillary Justice and The Left Hand of Darkness, the book forces the reader to examine their own bias when it comes to the depiction of gender and how we imagine the characters. And yet, we don’t really do this with books such as The Hobbit, so what gives, brain? It’s so common to leave women out of the narrative but when the tables are turned, I find myself imagining women where it feels "a man should be."  I don't really like what that says about me, but I can't resent the book for holding up that mirror.

The Stars Are Legion is sure to be a contemporary classic. I would particularly recommend it to fans of Saga, who might need that space opera itch scratched while they wait for the next volume.

The Stars Are Legion by Kameron Hurley was published by Saga Press on February 7th 2017 and is available wherever fine books are sold.

Megan “Spooky” Crittenden is a secluded writer who occasionally ventures from her home to give aid to traveling adventurers.

Critical Hits & Misses #173

• The New York Times discusses the Kendall Jenner ad that Pepsi pulled after a whole lot of controversy last week. The ad used imagery from the Black Lives Matter movement. Not really a good look there, Pepsi. 


• Also from the New York Times: the 'Penis Seat' on the Mexico City subway caused quite a stir. It was part of an awareness campaign and had the following sign with it: "It is annoying to travel this way, but not compared to the sexual violence women suffer in their daily commutes.” Kind of an awesome campaign, if you ask me. 

For today's musical hit, we have Mumford & Sons and "I Will Wait"

Today's critical rolls: Happy Monday! How was your weekend? Let us know if you did anything exciting!


Critical Writ has a super-duper strict comment policy that specifies a single rule above all others: we reserve the right to ban you for being a terribad citizen of the internet.

Saturday Night Live S42, E17- Louis C.K., The Chainsmokers: Louis C.K. Brings Morbidity To SNL

Cold Opening: Baldwin's Trump returned for a question and answer session with citizens of Kentucky in this week's cold opening. Sadly, it wasn't very funny. To put it in serialized television terms, it felt like filler. The Trump character is slowly starting to realize that he's losing respect from some of his supporters and he doesn't know what to do. Some jokes were worth a chuckle, such as the chili reference, but most of it fell flat.

Monologue: Louis C.K. is a stand-up comedian, so he played to his strengths with a stand-up comedy monologue. I do have a weird relationship with his comedy. I like the way he goes from topic to topic and the segues that he uses to flow between segments. On occasion, I also like the different voices that he uses. 

Even if I don't like what he's saying, I can appreciate the way he says it. Still, there's just something that rubs me the wrong way. I don't know precisely why. Still, his monologue had a few amusing bits, including the ending bit on white privilege and a brief riff on what it must be like to be a moose.

The Lawyer: I love Seinfeld-style observational humor, and this sketch had a lot of it. It takes place in a court case, where Louis's character distracts and manipulates the jury and the judge by batting his eyelashes. It's a great piece, filled with amusing visual gags. Based on the final punchline, it most likely also serves as another positive example of a branded content sketch, similar to the recent Olive Garden comedy sketch.

Thank You, Scott: Yes, you too can fix the world's issues simply by sharing something on social media. This felt like a classic Lonely Island music video, despite the fact that they had nothing to do with the video, as far as I know. Combining a catchy song and some potent satire, it's definitely one of the highlights of the episode.

Soda Shop: My God, it's the Riverdale effect, taking a happy environment and quickly revealing the horrors behind it. In this case, a nice gathering at the malt shop turns into a really creepy sketch. The soda jerk, played by Louis, hits on one of the teenagers, as played by Cecily Strong. It gets even weirder when she reveals that she knows about his crush and deliberately baits him into doing stupid things of that nature. Surprisingly, I actually really liked it.

Pepsi Commercial: You knew something would happen about this. However, instead of doing what you might expect and just making a flat-out parody or exaggeration of the trailer, the writers chose a more introspective approach. The backstory of the director was revealed, showing a surprisingly sympathetic point of view. 

I really appreciate how instead of just making a blanket statement about everyone involved in the production, it shows the mindset of the main person in charge. He's so excited about the commercial and really hopes that it will change society, but an increasing amount of distressing phone calls prove otherwise. With nothing else to do, he sighs and begins work on the shoot again, knowing that he made a huge mistake.

The Chainsmokers Musical Performance #1- "Paris": I enjoyed the peacefulness of the song.

Weekend Update: I can't believe it, but Weekend Update made me slightly dislike The Three Stooges. Don't get me wrong, comparing the current political administration to the comedy trio was funny, but I'm not going to be able to forget that whenever I watch them. After that, Kate McKinnon appeared as her recurring loony artist character, this time commenting on a bizarre statue of a soccer player.

The O'Reilly Factor with Donald Trump: I actually didn't realize that Alec Baldwin was playing Bill O'Reilly in the sketch until I saw a comment about it a few minutes in. Personally, I prefer his O'Reilly impersonation to his Trump character. The absurdity of a live Baldwin-O'Reilly interacting with a pre-recorded Baldwin-as-Trump elevated the sketch and made it funnier. The absence of Louis C.K. was slightly off-putting, but maybe he needed to get some intensive makeup on for a sketch.

Birthday Clown: Wow, this is awkward. Judging from what I know of Louis's tv show, this could also easily appear as an episode. It doesn't end there, as Bobby Moynihan's birthday clown character nervously performs for his grossly age-inappropriate solo audience. It just doesn't go well, and the ending joke of Louis telling the clown that he's going to chop him up and put him in the fridge only slightly elevates the gloomy tone.

Sectionals: It's an incredibly theatrical infomercial for sectional couches. In between frenetic descriptions of the couches, Louis's character sadly talks about the loss of his family. That's really all you need to know. It's about as dark as the previous sketches in the episode, but as more of a twist at the end. Thankfully, it wasn't as draining as the previous short film.

The Chainsmokers Musical Performance #2- "Break Up Every Night": I enjoyed the visuals.

Tenement Museum: SNL mocks the romanticization of history by showing that people were just as racist in the past as they are now, if not more so. I think that Louis really liked the accent that he did in the sketch because he broke character a few times to giggle and even gave the standard thanks yous in it during the good nights. Personally, I didn't really like it.

Final Thoughts: I think that the episode needed more of the other cast members. It felt very focused on only a select few, and a little variety goes a long way. Next, the episode's increasingly morbid tone started to wear on me. Then again, I probably should have expected something like that, seeing as all things dark and disturbing seem to be Louis's bread and butter. I did appreciate the Don Rickles tribute at the end. Here's hoping that Jimmy Fallon can bring some of his trademark charm to the show next week!

Make a Solicit Check - Best of June 2017 Comics Solicitations

There are many comics coming out every month, it’s easy to lose track of promising new releases. That’s why we here at Critical Writ have started "Make a Solicit Check" — a monthly column devoted to the most interesting announcements.

This month: non-compliant ladies, ice-controlling superheroes and Lovecraftian eldritch monstrosities from beyond time.

10. Hush, Little Baby

Babyteeth #1 - Donny Cates, Garry Brown (Aftershock)

Oh, this one can go really good or horribly wrong. Thus far, Donny Cates had a winning string with Buzzkill, Paybacks, the amazing God Country and the upcoming Redneck; taking the fantastic and looking at it through a more human lens. For instance, God Country is Thor/Kirby's New Gods from the perspective of a family taking care of a member suffering from Alzheimer's, now cured thanks to a Mjolnir-like magic weapon.

This, though, will require more from Cates particularly; it's a Rosemary's Baby-style horror, told from the perspective of a pregnant teenage girl, whose baby will be the Antichrist. This type of horror can be already exploitative of fears and anxieties related to pregnancy, and taking an underage mother's perspective can turn it into a interesting story — or make it even more exploitative, depending on how it is written. Fingers crossed that Cates manages to make it work.

9. One Flew Under the Cuckoo's Nest

The Unsound #1 - Cullen Bunn, Jack T. Cole (Boom! Studios)

Cullen Bunn's Marvel output is mixed, but his creator-owned stuff, especially of the horror genre like Harrow County is top notch. This time, he's trying his hand at a horror set in a psychiatric hospital, which could turn out interesting, or tread old grounds by demonizing people suffering from mental illness. Our protagonist, Ashli, starts her new job in one of the aforementioned hospitals, only to find a new, darker world set in its bowels. I'll say this: even if the writing turns out to be disappointing, at least the art is going to be amazing. Just look at this cover.

8. Ice, Ice, Baby*

Iceman #1-2 - Sina Grace, Alessandro Vitti (Marvel)

The reveal that Bobby Drake of the X-Men is gay was met with trepidation. On the one hand, yay for increased diversity in mainstream comics! On the other hand, the handling of the reveal is commonly considered to be awkward, making the person responsible for the reveal –Jean Grey– look invasive and unconcerned with the privacy of Bobby's thoughts. There's also the fact that Iceman's had a sizable list of female love interests, so identifying him as gay is a bit weird when other orientations like bi or pan seem more fitting. Regardless, it's a new world for Bobby Drake, with his first ongoing solo ever. Sadly, yet in line with Marvel's other picks for RessurrXion (ugh), it will not be written by a gay man (or even a bi or pan one), but a straight man. Of course. Let's hope it's at least enjoyable enough.

*Oh like you wouldn't have done that yourselves.

7. It's Not Easy Being Dead

September Mourning, Vol. 1 - Mariah McCourt, Emily Lazar, Sumeyye Kesgin (Image)

So here's a weird thing: generally the word "volume" is reserved for collected editions and graphic novels that are part of a series. Even Scott Snyder and Jeff Lemire's A.D.: After Death, despite each of its three parts being extensively longer than a regular issue, refers to each of them as an issue. So this new series, using the word "volume," should be a graphic novel and thus noticeably more expensive, right? Except it's only twice as long as a regular issue and it costs only a dollar more than any other new Image series.

In any case, the series sounds pretty interesting. Created by an all-female team, it'll tell the story of an amnesiac girl turned into a human/grim reaper hybrid by a former Reaper of the lonely, injured and abused. Left in charge of the souls of the "worthless", she aides them in remembering and finishing the last thing they left undone in their lives.

September Mourning, Vol. 1 is set to be released on June 14.

6. Heartbreak Hotel

Heartthrob Season 2 #1 - Christopher Sebela, Robert Wilson IV (Oni Press)

I really like Oni Press's seasonal model of releasing its original comics; on the one hand, it allows creators to test the waters, to see if readers like the concept. It allows them to release shorter and easier to produce regularly stories, with breaks between seasons allowing them a manageable production schedule. On the other, readers get a chance to test new stories from new creative minds and see if they can provide a satisfying payoff without needing to invest in a long-running title that can go off the rails before reaching the destination that might not even be worth the journey. Everybody wins.

Heartthrob is proof it works. Its first season, released in 2016, told the story of Callie Boudreau, a terminally ill woman saved by a heart transplant (at the time when this procedure was revolutionary), who discovered that along with a stranger's organ she also got his soul in the deal, sharing her mind. What followed was a story of love, crime, Fleetwood Mac and the eventual breakup. Now Callie's in hiding from the FBI in Canada, trying to live a normal life. Except Mercer is still inside her mind, waiting for his chance at payback.

Heartthrob Season 2 #1 will be released on June 7.

5. Fghtan! Fghtan! All-Ages Fghtan!

Calla Cthulhu - Evan Dorkin, Sarah Dyer, Erin Humiston (Dark Horse)

H.P. Lovecraft is a touchy subject in the sci-fi/fantasy/horror fandom. On the one hand, he create possibly the world's first and most enduring modern mythology that influenced many works in ways big or small. On the other... the guy was a horrible racist prick with questionable writing skills. Luckily, you don't have to enjoy him or his work to enjoy anything influenced by it, including this all-ages comic. Calla Cthulhu (quality pun) is a regular teenage girl except for the fact that in her veins runs the blood of the Great Old Ones. When others take summer jobs at McDonald's, she has to battle otherworldly threats, like her uncle, the King in Yellow. And this time, she also has to stop a terrifying Dread Dead One from awakening in the ruins of R'yleh. Written by Evan Dorkin (Beasts of Burden) and children's author Sarah Dyer, it's promising to be a fun read, with a subtle smattering of scares.

Given that it's an advance solicit, you'll have to wait until August 16 to read it.

4. Lon the Professional

Beautiful Canvas #1 - Ryan Lindsay, Sami Kivela (Black Mask Studios)

I love how exciting and unpredictable Black Mask's output is. This time, we have a story of a hitwoman named Lon Eisley, hired to kill a little boy—only a few days after finding out her girlfriend is pregnant. She spares the kid and together they hit the road across the dystopian world, which sounds like it's influenced by the Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas aesthetic.

3. Heroes We Need

Secret Weapons #1 (of 4) - Eric Heisserer, Raúl Allén, Patricia Martin (Valiant)

I honestly feel bad for not covering Valiant often enough in those columns. This indie superhero publisher has built itself a nice niche, and I can only compliment its release strategy. Knowing full well it isn't as big a fish as either of the Big Two, Valiant doesn't overstretch its capabilities, only releasing generally about a dozen titles (ongoings and miniseries) and primarily investing in quality by hiring talents like Matt Kindt, Jeff Lemire, Fred Van Lente and Jody Hoser.

Sadly, few releases means not every character gets their chance to shine. And out of all its characters, few have been as underutilized as Livewire. This African American female technopath has been part of the universe since its reboot in 2011, and a key member of Unity; the publisher's Avengers/Justice League equivalent. Well, in June she'll finally get her chance to shine. Written by the screenwriter behind the Oscar-nominated Arrival and upcoming Valiant superhero movies (Harbinger and Bloodshot), this comic will see Livewire build her own team from people ignored by the universe's greatest villain, Toyo Harada, in his quest to build an army that would turn his vision of a utopia into reality. Where he saw disappointments, she sees talent that can be utilized. Secret weapons, if you will.

Secret Weapons #1 will be released on June 28.

2. The B Is Back

Bitch Planet: Triple Feature #1 - Cheryl Lynn Eaton, Andrew Aydin, Conley Lyons, Maria Fröhlich, Joanna Estep (Image)

There hasn't been a new Bitch Planet issue for a while now, and the store shelves are poorer for its absence. To make up for it, Kelly Sue DeConnick and Valentino DeLandro are bringing a special anthology special issue for this feminist sci-fi satire comic. Written and drawn by creators hand-picked by DeConnick and DeLandro, the three stories featured promise to provide us with the series' trademark revolutionary rage and biting criticism of real life patriarchy. This series has been deeply missed, so it's fantastic to see it return with a bang.

Bitch Planet: Triple Feature #1 is set to be released on June 14.

1. It's Just Another Freaky Friday

Crosswind #1 - Gail Simone, Cat Staggs (Image)

She may be taking a break from mainstream comics, her hit Vertigo horror series may be on hiatus, and her all-ages Wonderfalls book may be still in development, but there's still one title by comics queen Gail Simone to look forward to. Announced in late 2015, her ongoing  that mixes body-swapping and mob stories will finally see the light of day. Ever since her exclusivity contract with DC ended, Gail has been on a roll, releasing quality series one after another, so this especially worth looking forward to.

Crosswind #1 is set to be realeased on June 21.

TRADE-SPOTTING - JUNE 2017 EDITION

(NOTE: many of the below trade solicits are advance solicits and won’t be released until August or later.)

Boom! Studios: Mega Princess (August); Namesake (August); SLAM! Vol. 1 (August)

Dark Horse: Dead Inside Vol. 1 (August 2)

DC Comics:  Clean Room. Vol. 3: Waiting for the Stars to Fall (July 12); Deathstroke. Vol. 2: Gospel of Slade (July 5); Frostbite (July 26); Midnighter and Apollo (July 19); Mother Panic. Vol. 1: A Work in Progress (July 26); Shade, the Changing Girl. Vol. 1: Earth Girl Made Easy (July 12)

Image Comics: Descender. Vol. 4: Orbital Mechanics (June 21); Monstress Vol. 2 (June 21); The Wicked + The Divine. Vol. 5: Imperial Phase (I) (June 7)

Marvel: Ghost Rider. Vol. 1: Four on the Floor; Hulk. Vol. 1: Deconstructed (July 12); Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur. Vol. 3: The Smartest There Is; Ms. Marvel. Vol. 7: Damage Per Second (July 19); Patsy Walker, A.K.A. Hellcat! Vol. 3: Careless Whisker(s) (July 19); The Totally Awesome Hulk. Vol. 3: Big Apple Showdown (July 12); U.S.Avengers. Vol. 1: American Intelligence Mechanics (July 19)

Oni Press: Angel City: Town without Pity (August 16)

Dominik Zine is a nerdy demisexual lad from northeastern Poland and is generally found in a comfy chair with a book in hand.