Top Comics to Buy for August 3, 2022

This week’s Top Comics to Buy for August 3, 2022, has a good amount of variety to it, with the usual highlighted list featuring selections from three major direct market publishers. Within that, we get a pair of outstanding superhero miniseries, a new start of sorts for the Hellboy universe, the continuation of a favorite crime comic, and a terrible priest tumbling through space. See what I mean? Variety.

Enjoy the usual picks and lists below!

Top Comics to Buy for August 3, 2022

Frankenstein: New World #1
Writers: Mike Mignola, Christopher Golden, and Thomas Sniegoski
Artist: Peter Bergting
Colorist: Michelle Madsen
Letterer: Clem Robins
Publisher: Dark Horse Comics
Safely tucked away inside the hollow earth where humanity survived after Ragna Rok, precocious young Lilja receives visions of a new darkness taking root on the surface. Defying her elders, Lilja awakens the timeless oracle–once known as Frankenstein–to investigate the warnings and, perhaps, even explore the new world above.
Why It’s Cool: This is the first Hellboy Universe story set after the ending of Ragna Rok, which essentially ended the world as well as the overarching narrative that had been playing out in various Hellboy and B.P.R.D. comics for more than two decades. Well, as they say nothing ever ends, and now we are seeing what happens after all that. With a three-headed Mignola-verse writing team and excellent artwork from Peter Bergting and Michelle Madsen, this issue is a great start to what happens next.
Price: $3.99

New Champion of SHAZAM! #1
Writer: Josie Campbell
Artist: Evan “Doc” Shaner
Letterer: Becca Carey
Publisher: DC Comics
Mary Bromfield has always struggled to determine who she is outside her family…kinda hard to do when you’re all superheroes! Now, after Billy Batson’s heroic sacrifice, the power of Shazam has vanished, and she’s been left powerless. Most heroes would be distraught, but not Mary. It’s finally time for a voyage of self-discovery as she prepares for her freshman year of college and a civilian life. But nothing is ever truly normal for this young hero, because she’s just been chosen as the new champion of Shazam! (At least according to a talking rabbit sent by her estranged brother Billy.) Will she embrace the power? Or will it die alongside this world’s hope of survival against the mysterious magical forces waiting to take control? 
Why It’s Cool: If you’re going to have a teen superhero, you ought to make school part of their book. This is just one of the (many) things that New Champion of SHAZAM! #1 absolutely nails. The list also includes just top-tier SHAZAM artwork by Evan “Doc” Shaner, a script as adept with jokes as it is with heart by Josie Campbell, and an overarching story that springs well from the DC Universe’s shared continuity. This book gets a full and hearty recommendation from me on this week’s list of Top Comics to Buy for August 3.
Price: $3.99

Poison Ivy #3
Writer: G. Willow Wilson
Artist: Marcio Takara
Colorist: Arif Prianto
Letterer: Hassan Otsmane-Elhaou
Publisher: DC Comics
Fixing the world isn’t easy work, and Ivy’s all hot and sweaty because of it! Getting her hands dirty was never an issue, but when plant assassins come after her, Ivy must be willing to play dirty as well.
Why It’s Cool: Myself and the other writers around here who contribute to the DC Round-Up have just been raving about this miniseries every chance we get. It’s so well-done, in basically every way, but one of the things that really makes it standout to me is that this is a miniseries in which each chapter feels episodic. I thought doing that was a lost art, but through three issues, this book is pulling it off wonderfully.
Price: $3.99

Sacrament #1
Writer: Peter Milligan
Artist: Marcelo Fruisin
Letterer: Sal Cipriano
Publisher: AWA Studios
The Exorcist meets Alien in this sci-fi/horror story. In the year 3000, Mankind abandoned Earth and fled into outer space.
Now, a disgraced priest, called into action to perform an exorcism on a remote space colony, is about to discover that no
matter how far you run, you can’t escape your demons, and the Devil is, in fact, real.
Why It’s Cool: I am generally pretty weary of books that seem (outwardly) to just be throwing other types of stories into space, and in Sacrament #1, what we get is in part an exorcist story…just in space. It is, however, all in the execution (or should I say exorcism?), and the execution on this one is really impressive. Writer Peter Milligan’s central space priest is a flawed and compelling character, operating in an interesting galactic world, while artist Marcelo Frusin’s linework is clean and imaginative, second only to the visual storytelling chops.
Price:$3.99

That Texas Blood #16
Writer: Chris Condon
Artist: Jacob Phillips
Publisher: Image Comics
“THE SNOW FALLS ENDLESSLY IN WONDERLAND,” Part Three
With questions about the murder swirling, the sheriff’s office discovers a seemingly abandoned vehicle that may be a link to the RQK serial killer.
Why It’s Cool: I’ve really enjoyed all of That Texas Blood, which sort of transcends the usual crime comic by making great and regular use of its titular setting — Texas. This current arc is quite possibly the creepiest one yet, and this issue just ads to it, making great use of the current arc’s two main villains — the serial killer and a rare Texas blizzard. Plus, there’s a great scene in here about local politics that I absolutely loved. 
Price: $3.99

Others Receiving Votes

• Aquaman: Andromeda #2
• Batman: Killing Time #6
• Batman #126
• The Closet #3
• Dark Crisis #3
• DC Vs. Vampires #8
• Fox and Hare #2
• Immortal X-Men #5
• Iron Man #22
• Killadelphia #24
• Mind MGMT: Bootleg #2
• Moon Knight #14
• Once and Future #28
• Stillwater #14
• X-Men Red #5

New #1s and One-Shots

• 20XX: Transport #1 (One-Shot)
• Batman White Knight Presents: Red Hood #1
• Black Adam: The Justice Society Files – Cyclone #1
• Dead Lucky #1
• Demon Wars: Iron Samurai #1
• Edge of Spider-Verse #1
• Godzilla Rivals Vs. Battra #1 (One-Shot)
• Golden Rage #1
• Razorblades The Horror Magazine: Small Cuts Special #1
• Survival Street #1
• Sword of Azrael #1
• Sword of Azrael: Dark Knight of the Soul #1 (One-Shot)
• Transformers: Best of Rarities #1 (One-Shot)
• Vineyard #1

Trade Collections and Graphic Novels of Note

• Babyteeth Year Two HC
• Black Manta TP
• The End HC Revised and Expanded Edition
• Ice Cream Man Sundae Edition Vol. 1 HC
• Icon & Rocket Season One TP
• Rush Complete Series TP