The Top Comics to Buy for May 7 are, simply put, a rough and tumble bunch. It’s not that they are not good — these are some top-tier comics — but rather that this week seems to have aligned to deliver a set of pugilistic comics all together, all at once. Both Black Canary: Best of the Best #6 and Ultimate Wolverine #5 are, essentially, extended violent fight scenes (with meaning beneath, naturally).
And if all those punches weren’t enough, this week also sees the full arrival of Heavy Metal #1, which debuted in some shops last week, depending on distributors (it’s a whole thing right now). That all adds up to a week of punches, history, and brutally excellent comics. You can find my full set of five recommendations below, along with our usual release lists … enjoy!
Top Comics to Buy for May 7
Black Canary: Best of the Best #6
Writer: Tom King
Artist: Ryan Sook
Colorist: Dave Stewart
Letterer: Clayton Cowles
Publisher: DC Comics
The final round! With both fighters on the ropes and unwilling to surrender, the end seems as far away as Canary’s past. Can she find a way to make her mother proud and still save her from her an untimely demise? Find out as the last punches land!
Why It’s Cool: This series has been a hard-hitter from the start, depicting one long televised boxing match — and the circumstances around it — between Black Canary and Lady Shiva. In that context, the book has looked absolutely awesome, illustrated as it is by one of my favorite superhero comics artists, Ryan Sook, and colored by Dave Stewart. Tom King’s scripting has also done a fantastic job of delivering a story that feels like it does to watch combat sports, while also contextualizing what’s happening with our protagonist and why. This last issue is the perfect knock out punch.
Price: $4.99
Blood & Thunder #1
Writer: Benito Cereno
Artist: E.J. Su
Colorist: Msassyk
Letterer: Rus Wooton
Created By: Robert Kirkman, Benito Cereno, and E.J. Su
Publisher: Image Comics / Skybound
Bounty hunter Akeldama “Blood” Bledsoe and her cantankerous talking gun Thunder are the best out there at bringing in the bad guys. However, when the galaxy’s most dangerous criminal breaks out of prison, Blood’s hunt delivers her down a path that will unlock secrets about her past, present, and future…and that’s when things get REALLY BAD.
Why It’s Cool: I am nothing if not a sucker for sci-fi action comics where the protagonist talks to their gun (see Rogue Trooper, of course), and that’s what we get served up here. This series is also a fun sort of deep space police procedural, playing with some of those tropes in fun ways. I dug it, and the art looked great. Excited to see where this is headed.
Price: $3.99
Grommets #7
Writers: Rick Remender and Brian Posehn
Artist: Brett Parson
Colorist: Moreno Dinisio
Letterer: Rus Wooton
Publisher: Image Comics / Giant Generator
A first kiss, leaving friends behind, changing schools mid-year, and facing your biggest fears in public… Rites of Passage into the unknown for every kid trying to navigate the stormy seas of adolescence. All this and more in the poignant and triumphant final issue of the hit series!
Why It’s Cool: It’s been a long break between issues, with Grommets #6 having arrived all the way back in November, but now that I’ve read this mini-series finale, I’m happy to report that it was well worth the wait. Grommets has really been a blast of a book. It’s a 1980s-set skate comic that plays with teen comedy tropes, bringing it all to life with the perfect, detailed background comedy art of Brett Parson, colored here by Moreno Dinisio. It feels like a singular book, but does it have to be? I’d love to see more comics that try to be as fun and character-driven as Grommets. If you missed this book in singles, do yourself a favor and make it a point to get the trade.
Price: $3.99
Heavy Metal Magazine #1
Creators: Frank Forte, Chris Porteous, Dave Kelly, Ton-Ward, Luis Guaragna, Felipe Sobreiro, Agustin Alessio, Enki Bilal, Joshua Sky, Vicente Segrelles, Craig Wilson, John Workman, Jose Ortiz, Antonio Segura, Ian Spelling, Steve Mannion, Leah Moore, John Reppion, Anna Morozova, Michael L. Peters, Fernando Dagnino, Dwayne Harris, Keron Grant, John Stanisci, Dave Baron, Michael W. Conrad, Ilias Kyriazis, Lia Bozonelis, Joseph Michael Lisner, Janevsky, Jim Rugg, Jonathan Wayshak, David Quinn, Tim Vigil, Sergio Gerasi, Jason Pell, Jok, Paul Kirchner, and Curt Melo
Publisher: Heavy Metal
Heavy Metal magazine is back! Heavier than ever! This relaunch brings the world’s greatest illustrated magazine back to the forefront of comics. Plus Interviews, The Dossier, prose fiction and more!
Why It’s Cool: Phew, give me a second to recover here after typing that long list of creators. But that speaks to something important about this new Heavy Metal relaunch — the folks in charge are taking a big swing, trying as hard as they can to revive this historically significant comics magazine. And the first, giant-sized issue is a satisfying one, blending new comics with historical elements of the publication. This was a no-brainer pick for the Top Comics to Buy for May 7.
Price: $14.99
Ultimate Wolverine #5
Writer: Chris Condon
Artist: Alex Lins
Colorist: Bryan Valenza
Letterer: Cory Petit
Publisher: Marvel Comics
Mysteries of Ultimate Wolverine’s past are revealed when a familiar face joins the fray!
Why It’s Cool: Another month, another issue of Ultimate Wolverine, another banger story in which Logan wrecks his foes while getting wrecked himself. This book remains as gritty and violent as you’d expect a Wolverine comic to be, continuing to deliver some of the best fight scenes in all of comics as it explores Wolverine’s place in the new Ultimate Universe as well as its wider story.
Price: $4.99
Other Comics I Enjoyed
Absolute Green Lantern #2- Amazing Spider-Man #3
- Batgirl #7
- Far Down Below #2
- JSA #7
- Justice League: The Atom Project #5
- Kaya #26
- Monkey Meat Summer Batch #3
- Plague House #2
- Resurrection Man: Quantum Karma #2
New #1s and One-Shots
Amadeus Cho 20th Anniversary Special #1 (one-shot)- Captain Planet and the Planeteers #1
- Fantastic Four Fanfare #1
- Free Planet #1
- It’s Jeff – Jeff Week #1 (one-shot)
- Lady Baltimore – The Daughters of Medusa #1
- Look Out #1 (one-shot)
- Los Monstrous #1
- Space Ghost / Jonny Quest: SpaceQuest #1
- Star Wars #1
- Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Best of Old Hob #1 (one-shot)
- Vanishing Point #1
Graphic Novels and Trade Collections
- Avengers by Jed MacKay Vol. 4 Storm TP
- Avengers Epic Collection Vol. 12 Court-Martial TP
- Batman Vol. 5 – The Dying City HC
- The Body Trade TP
- Buz Sawyer Vol. 5 Island of the Lotus Eaters HC
- DC Finest – Events: Zero Hour Crisis In Time Part 2 TP
- DC’s Misfits in Magic TP
- Deadpool Modern Era Epic Collection Vol. 5 In Wade We Trust TP
- Epitaphs From The Abyss Vol. 1 TP
- Espada: The Will of the Blade GN
- Exceptional X-Men by Eve L. Ewing Vol. 1 Duty Calls TP
- Godzilla Rivals Vol. 4 Round Four TP
- Kingdom Come TP (DC Compact Comics Edition)
- Lego Ninjago Shatterspin TP
- Lore Olympus Vol. 8 HC
- Love Languages TP
- Marvel Masterworks Spectacular Spider-Man Vol. 8 HC
- Monster High New Scaremester Vol. 1 TP
- Moonshadow – The Definitive Edition Expanded GN
- Nemesis Rogues’ Gallery TP
- The Nightmare Brigade Vol. 4 – Dust-Off Dreams HC
- Outsiders Vol. 2 – Never the End TP
- Phases of the Moon Knight TP
- The Sacrificers Vol. 3 No Light Beyond TP
Star Wars Ahsoka Season One TP- Star Wars Darth Maul Black White and Red Treasury Edition TP
- Suicide Squad The New 52 Omnibus HC
- Superman Action Comics Vol. 1 Superstars TP
- Superman – Final Crisis – Legion of Three Worlds – The Deluxe Edition HC
- Trinity Generation S TP
- Tsunami GN
Read past editions of the Top Comics to Buy!
And check out the Beat’s most recent comics reviews!
