It’s always nice when the biggest characters in comics are headlining interesting books, and that’s certainly what we get with the Top Comics to Buy for August 13. Indeed, my five top recommendations this week include Batman, Superman, Spider-Man, and the Transformers…plus also a weirdo indie video game title where kids might be dying in their dreams. That’s a fun week, all around, one that celebrates a set of comics mainstays and also the weirdo stories that make the medium so fun.
As always, you can find my five top picks below, along with the usual set of release lists. And once again, if you dig my weekly comics recs, I’ve got a comic I wrote coming to Kickstarter next month…and you can follow it by going here and clicking NOTIFY ME ON LAUNCH. Thanks!
Top Comics to Buy for August 13, 2025
Batman: Dark Patterns #9
Writer: Dan Watters
Artist: Hayden Sherman
Colorist: Triona Farrel
Letterer: Frank Cvetkovic
Publisher: DC Comics
Case 03: Pareidolia Batman. Three criminals. One gun. One wound. One life. The heart-wrenching finale of Pareidolia is here. Don’t miss it.
Why It’s Cool: Regular readers of this column likely know by now that I really love Batman: Dark Patterns. Well, I’ve thought this this third arc is the best one yet, especially given the surprise twist ending of the last issue. This issue goes on to play it out perfectly, elevating this book even further among my favorites. There’s just no other way to say it — you should be reading Batman: Dark Patterns.
Price: $4.99
Cemetery Kids Run Rabid #1
Writer: Zac Thompson
Artist: Daniel Irizarri
Colorist: Brittany Peer
Letterer: Andworld Design
Publisher: Oni Press
One year ago, four friends barely escaped the unrelenting terror of the video game called Nightmare Cemetery. After spending endless hours locked into the innovative Dreamwave—the first gaming console played entirely while you sleep—in order to save one of their own from the game’s all-too-real consequences, they survived . . . barely. But after their harrowing rescue, they’ve decided they’ve had enough of Nightmare Cemetery and its enigmatic final boss, the King of Sleep. That is, until the newest DLC, The Blighted Sprawl, suddenly appears online with a promise to reveal the truth of what actually lurks at the heart of Nightmare Cemetery’s digital darkness . . . and why its effects are now bleeding out into the real world in an array of bizarre and disturbing new ways.
Why It’s Cool: Now in its second story arc, Cemetery Kids remains a compelling blend of videogame culture commentary, dream horror, and teen buddy adventure story. The entire creative team from the first book — which was great — is back here to pick things up right where that story left off. And it’s fantastic. This book is really putting its characters through the ringer while looking great doing it, making it an easy choice for this weeks list of the Top Comics to Buy for August 13.
Price: $4.99
Transformers #23
Writer: Daniel Warren Johnson
Artist: Jorge Corona
Colorist: Mike Spicer
Letterer: Rus Wooton
Publisher: Image Comics – Skybound
ENTER THE MATRIX The last hope for the Autobots exists within the Matrix of Leadership. But will the Decepticons triumph before those answers are found?
Why It’s Cool: Daniel Warren Johnson is ramping up here toward the finale of his much-loved Transformers run (coming next month), and what that means is a WHOLE LOT of rising action. After nearly two years of teasing it, the Autobots and Decepticons have erupted into all-out war on Earth, and that makes for some truly epics comics storytelling here.
Price: $3.99
Superman: The Kryptonite Spectrum #1
Writer: W. Maxwell Prince
Artist: Martin Morazzo
Colorist: Chris O’Halloran
Letterer: Good Old Neon
Publisher: DC Comics – Black Label
Four new Kryptonites have been discovered in deep space, and Superman needs to know just what, exactly, they do to him — lest the colorful rocks of his home planet fall into evil hands! With Batman at Superman’s side, this DC Black Label Superman event explores the consequences of each never- before-seen variety of Kryptonite — all in the formal and boundary-pushing fashion that W. Maxwell Prince, Martín Morazzo, and Chris O’Halloran are celebrated for!
Why It’s Cool: This is a Superman comic by the team from the excellent ongoing Image series, Ice Cream Man, a book I’ve been heaping praise upon since my days running my old comics site, Comics Bookcase. Now, they’ve been set loose on Superman and the result is a really quirky and interesting take a Kryptonite-centric story for the character. This is the kind of first issue that is not only a satisfying read, but it also instills confidence in you that the rest of this story is one you’re going to love.
Price: $5.99
Ultimate Spider-Man: Incursion #3
Writers: Deniz Camp & Cody Ziglar
Artist: Jonas Scharf
Colorist: Edgar Delgado
Letterer: Cory Petit
Publisher: Marvel Comics
Silver Samurai attacks interloper Miles Morales! Fortunately, a band of mutants calling themselves the X-Men come to his aid! What will Miles make of the dark history of this alternate universe now that he is faced with the reality of what the Maker has done?
Why It’s Cool: Regular readers of this column will also know that I have loved Marvel’s new line of Ultimate Universe comics from the start, powered as they are by great creators and a compelling overarching story. This series has finally brought one of the few survivors from the original Ultimate Universe into the fray (Miles Morales), and now in this issue, we get to see him start to go up against the Big Bads of this new universe. What a great ride these books continue to take us on.
Price: $4.99
Other Comics I Enjoyed This Week
Action Comics #1089- Aquaman #8
- Blood and Thunder #4
- Buried Long Long Ago #4
- Godzilla: Here There Be Aliens #3
- Green Lantern Crops #7
- I Was a Fashion School Serial Killer #5
- The Slasher’s Apprentice #4
- Star Trek – Lower Decks #10
- Supergirl #4
- The Ultimates #15
New #1s and One-Shots
Bring on the Bad Guys: Red Skull #1 (one-shot)- Mighty Morphin Power Rangers / Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles III #1
- Monster High: Party Monster #1 (one-shot)
- Powerpuff Girls – Supervillain Summer Spectacular #1 (one-shot)
- Predator Kills the Marvel Universe #1
- Quick Stops 3 #1
- Space Ghost #1
- Uncle Scrooge – Earth’s Mightiest Duck #1
- Valiant Beyond – Bloodshot #1
Graphic Novels and Trade Collections
- Absolute Wonder Woman Vol. 1 – The Last Amazon HC
- Alien Paradiso TP
- All New X-Men by Brian Michael Bendis Omnibus HC
- Aquinnah HC
- Artist At Last TP
- Batman by Tom King Book 2 TP
- Batman: The Brave and the Bold – Legends of Justice TP
- Batman Year Three – The Deluxe Edition HC
- Butterfly TP
- Carlyle School For Kings TP
- Complete Hate Vol. 1 TP
- Conan the Barbarian Vol. 5 – Twisting Loyalties TP
- Day Men – Complete Collection TP
- DC Finest – Blue Beetle – Blue Beetle Challenges the Red Knight TP
- Dracula’s Brunch Club GN
- Fantastic Four by Mark Waid & Mike Wieringo Unthinkable TP
- Flash Gordon Vol. 2 Killer of Worlds TP
- Flavor Girls Return to the Mothership TP
- From The World of Minor Threats – The Brood TP
- Howard Chaykin’s Black Kiss Omnibus HC
- Incredible Hulk Vol. 5 Gods Drink Blood TP
- King Conan – The Original Comics Omnibus Vol. 1 HC
Laura Kinney Wolverine Vol. 1 One Mutant Army TP- Midst – Tales From the Cosmos HC
- Namor The Sub-Mariner Omnibus Vol. 1 HC
- Phoenix Vol. 2 Cosmic Ascent TP
- Savage Dragon Archives Vol. 11 TP
- Skin Police Vol. 1 TP
- Snoops: The Little Spirits of Halloween HC
- Superman’s Pal Jimmy Olsen – The Deluxe Edition HC
- Symbiote Spider-Man by Peter David Omnibus HC
- Young Avengers Modern Era Epic Collection Vol. 2 Dark Reign TP
Read past editions of the Top Comics to Buy!
And check out the Beat’s most recent comics reviews!
