Hi Comic Shop Friends! We’re finally at the end of January! Did this month feel like three months to you too? It’s also a fifth Wednesday, so that means some annuals and specials to finish out the month, but first a little bit of shop news.

Late Nite Comics will be Thursday, February 15th from 8pm to midnight! We’ll be bringing out a ton of dollar stock again, and maybe we’ll have some other discounts too!

Ben will also be co-hosting the Lenora’s Midnight Rental Secret Screening at the Grog Shop on Wednesday, February 21st at 8pm! It’s gonna be a big one because it’s the one-year anniversary of the Secret Screenings, the Valentine’s Day show, and Rachel from the Grog Shop’s birthday! Stop out and join in the fun!

Then, the day after that we’re heading to Pittsburgh for the annual ComicsPro meeting! We had a great time last year, and are looking forward to bringing back some exclusives for you guys!

MARVEL COMICS

Death is only the beginning. When Prodigy, Frenzy, Jubilee, Dazzler and Cannonball lost their lives, their mission as X-Men was just beginning. Now they’re back, and must accomplish the impossible, finding Moira MacTaggert, reading her mind map, and finding the time point before she became a tool for Mister Sinister. The only way to stop the Dominion from ever forming, is this last-ditch effort by Xavier and the Dead X-Men! From writer Steve Foxe and artist Vincenzo Carratu.

Featuring four brand new stories, with an introduction from John Jennings, an interview with Denys Cowan, and a spotlight on artist Matt Baker, Marvel’s Voices Legends is this year’s Black History Month special. In “Powers for the People”, Patriot fights for what matters most to him (and Crossbones says spiffy), written by David F. Walker with art by Eder Messias. Misty Knight and Colleen Wing reminisce during a stakeout in writer Justina Ireland and artist Karen S. Darboe’s “Do You Remember When?” Then, it’s Deathlok versus Puter, when its Core Directive goes against what Deathlok wants in “Deathlok the Demolished” by Ezra Claytan Daniels and Sean Damien Hill. Lastly, “The World is Not Ready” for T’Challa and Storm’s super-powered grandchildren, written by Sheree Renee Thomas with art by Julian Shaw.

DC HEADER

Collecting the first appearances of Elizabeth Marston Prince, aka Trinity, from Wonder Woman #800 and the backup stories in the current Wonder Woman ongoing series, from Tom King and Balen Ortega. There are three stories of young Lizzie and her super brothers, Damian Wayne and Jon Kent, fighting Killer Croc, Black Mercying, and riding kangaroos! Then, one all-new story written by Tom King and Daniel Sampere with Trinity facing her last trial, and finally the story that led into the new Wonder Woman, with Trinity as the first holder of the three lassos of Fate. If you missed any of those issues of Wonder Woman (because we keep selling out, because it’s so dang good) this is your chance to get caught up!

DC Power returns with ten brand new stories spotlighting Black characters from across the DC Universe! First, N.K. Jemisin and Jamal Campbell return to the world of Far Sector for Jo Mullein’s surprise retirement party before she and John Stewart head off to her new assignment. Thunder and Lightning have to stop Condiment King when he crashes a community event, written by Cheryl Lynn Eaton with art by Asiah Fulmore. Writer Lamar Giles and artist Sean Damian Hill reveal the secret origin of the original Bloodwynd to Raphael Arce. Earth-2’s Superman, Val-Zod, contemplates the balance between his need for solitude, and protecting the people of his universe, from writer John Ridley and artist Edwin Galmon. Black Manta makes a deal with pirates, but things don’t go well in Deron Bennett and Denys Cowan’s story. Crispus Allen meets with a therapist to deal with the darkness, but an old friend reaches out, and now the Spectre and Renee Montoya are on the trail of a killer, from writer Shawn Martinbrough and artists Tony Akins and Moritat.  Writer and artist Alitha Martinez throws Mr. Mxyzptlk into Themyscira, and Nubia has to stop the dark magic that binds him there. Kid Flash shares his history to help a girl at the youth center feel less alone in Jarrett Williams and Dominike “Domo” Stanton’s short. Writer Greg Burnham and artist Jahnoy Lindsay put Mr. Terrific on guard duty for Assistant District Attorney Ray Thomas. And The Signal has a run-in with Chronos and jumps into the future, and then finds inspiration from an ally, written by Brandon Thomas with art by Khary Randolph.

Road trip! Bruce decides that in order to bond with Damian, they need to go on a camping trip, but after seeing a wall full of missing person posters, their vacation turns into a work trip. Finding themselves trapped in a “most dangerous game” hunting ground, the duo use their surroundings First Blood style to hold off the hunters and find out who’s running the show. Written by Joshua Williamson with art by Howard Porter.

It’s the World’s Finest in this first-ever series annual, curated by World’s Finest architect Mark Waid! The Just-us League start their monthly meeting in “IMPeriled” written by Mark Waid and Cullen Bunn, with art by Edwin Galmon, but something bad is coming and no one will listen to Mr. Mxyzptlk. In “The Ties That Bind”, from Dennis Culver and Travis Mercer, Metamorpho is tasked with finding the Hammer of Vulcan in an active volcano, but he finds someone there that has a connection to his past. Bumblebee’s origin is revealed in “Sting Like a Bee”, from writer Stephanie Williams and artist Rosi Kampe. And finally, the Challengers of the Unknown are recruited for a secret mission by Batman, one that may tear through reality itself, in “Time Check”, written by Christopher Cantwell with art by Jorge Fornes.

SMALL PRESS COMICS

Kid Cudi makes his comics debut! You may know him from such films as Bill & Ted Face the Music and House Party (2023), but now Scott Mescudi, with co-writer David F. Walker and artist Marco Locati, has an extra-length first issue of the new series, Moon Man. Set in Cleveland! Scott Townsend has returned from a failed moon mission, along with three other crew members, and he just wants to settle back home in Cleveland and get out of the spotlight. But something happened on that mission, and there are seven missing minutes that Scott cannot account for. That lost time may hold a secret, and Scott may find himself forced back into the public eye because of it.

A double-sized first issue of the new series from writer Olivia Cuartero-Briggs and artist Roberta Ingranata, full of true crime. Jill Estrada is finally returning to school after the unsolved disappearance of her mother, but after a year away, her friends have moved on and the only way she can connect with them is to start the hot new true crime subscription game. Each game is an “unsolved case” that is tailored to the life of the subscriber, but Jill’s game seems to be a bit too real, and may actually be connected to real-life disappearances in her town. Now she and her friends have to uncover the truth before one of them becomes the next victim.