RETURN

With DC/Vertigo’s The American Way: Those Above and Those Below #1, Academy Award-winning writer John Ridley (12 Years a Slave, American Crime) and veteran artist Georges Jeanty (Buffy the Vampire Slayer) return to the world they established with 2006’s WildStorm miniseries The American Way. Documenting the misadventures of mostly fraudulent superheroes created to lull the American public into a false sense of security, the series centered on Jason Fischer, the nigh-invulnerable “New American” and first Black hero on the Civil Defense Corps. The series’ focus zoomed in on race and country in the 1960s — to keep up appearances, Fischer was hidden head to toe by his costume, a modified astronaut suit. Those Above and Those Below picks up a decade after the original story, and there’s still plenty of injustice to be had. It’s 1972, and the gulf between a radical left and reactionary right is spread wide. The CDC has disbanded, but Fisher is still active as a hero. Only the line betwee

Zodiac Starforce has returned for a second volume subtitled Cries of the Fire Prince, with the creative team of Kevin Panetta, Paulina Ganuchaeu and Sarah Stern showing consummate ease as they head straight back to the fantastical world they created so compellingly in 2015. On the basis of this first issue, the series retains a fully established sense of what it wants to be — and that’s a slight yet fun comic hiding a surprising amount of depth and intent behind the magic powers. The high concept really doesn’t matter so much as the friendships between the lead characters, making this a comic which happily disengages from the chest-puffing and preening of superhero action, and in doing so finds a fulfilling sense of heart and charm. The strength of the creative team lies in their ability to hold back the urge to go over the top and ridiculous, with even the fight scenes being somewhat slowly composed. The characters are more likely to talk tactics for a few panels than they are to ki

Billed as a prequel to “The Dark Knight Returns,” “Dark Knight Returns: The Last Crusade” by Frank Miller, Brian Azzarello, John Romita Jr. and Peter Steigerwald had a very high bar to clear; despite these expectations, though, the team puts together a tense, action-stuffed story about addiction and its consequences with a Bruce Wayne who can’t stop being Batman. The Batman we met in the pages of “Dark Knight Returns” was dark and uncorked, a man letting go of a rage he’d stuffed inside himself long before. Miller and Azzarello walk us back to the beginning of the end for that man in order to show us Bruce Wayne’s rock bottom moment. Before they get there, though, we learn all about how out-of-control those days were. The solicits promised a lot of villains in this story, and it definitely delivers on that front, while also revealing just what happened to Jason Todd. INTERVIEW: Miller & Romita Reunite for New “Dark Knight Returns” Story When the story kicks off, Jason is becoming

Boom! continues its streak of lost and forgotten property adaptations with this week’s “Bill and Ted’s Most Triumphant Return” #1. Fans of the original material will be happy to see and hear how closely Brian Lynch hews to the characters in the films. The plot, taking place moments after “Bill and Ted’s Bogus Journey,” is an instant reminder of everything that came before it, though it wanders a little. Though the effort is there, the comic book has very little in the way of introduction for anyone unfamiliar with the original films, as the script operates on the assumption that the reader has already seen them both and understands the world. It’s an odd choice for a comic sequel being released 24 years after the previous installment. Lynch definitely understands the characters in this series and has an affinity for the material. Bill and Ted both sound like the kind-hearted valley goofs they were as portrayed by Alex Winter and Keanu Reeves. The script addresses the pressure of how

The return to the old Valiant Quantum and Woody wraps its nostalgia trip with a big action finale full of revelations, sacrifice and the gang getting back together. Priest delivers a lot of exposition up top, which is necessary to smooth out the complex plot established in the previous four issues, before diving into a quick finish that leaves the characters little room on the page to process the proceedings. The story spends a lot of time at the gala with Eric locked in political and ethical debate regarding the synthetic humans coveted by various governments and targeted by Koro. It feels like it slams the brakes on the overall plot to drop a Wikipedia entry’s worth of science that winds up feeling overwritten, which is surprising for Priest, who is usually concise with his information and sharp with his dialogue. There is a bit of pallor over the story; much of the light-hearted fun is missing from the book and, though “Quantum & Woody” was always known for going both light a

“Return of the Living Deadpool” #1 provides a slowly structured follow-up to “Night of the Living Deadpool.” The world has been taken over not just by zombies but by ever-multiplying Deadpools, and the Merc with a Mouth has to find a way to stop them. Though it picks up some time after “Night” left off, new readers will have no trouble diving into this easy, inviting story. Writer Cullen Bunn and artist Nik Virella haven’t crafted the “Deadpooliest” (you know what I mean) of Deadpool issues, but they tell the story effectively and enjoyably. If the first issue is any indication, this series should be just as successful as its predecessor. Artist Nik Virella deserves quite the kudos for her stylish, inviting work in this issue. Her clean, neat figure work is supplemented with breezy, scratchy details, creating an atmosphere that feels surprisingly easy and indie for the apocalypse. It’s exactly the sort of wasteland where one might expect to find Deadpool and girls wielding wheelsaw-

Christopher Priest and MD Bright return to their cult classic creations with “Q2: The Return of Quantum & Woody” #1, a mini series that picks up decades after the original in the storyline. It’s mostly setup and reintroductions, but is entertaining while it does the heavy lifting of catching up new readers and showing old ones where the story fits in to the world’s most dysfunctional superheroes’ world. Looking to get the drop on a theft at the Guggenheim, Quantum ambushes the scene of the crime in conjunction with the police, who are actually The Sword arriving to kill them both. After Quantum is thrown out of a window, a middle-aged Woody arrives to take care of his better half, only to find a stranger under the mask and someone else claiming to be Woody under the lid of an urban assault tank. Priest and Bright slip right back in to these characters with ease. Priest has always had a knack for balancing comedy and drama through character development and Bright’s pencils would

I’ll be the first to admit that I was a little worried about “Little Nemo: Return to Slumberland” #1. Windsor McCay’s “Little Nemo in Slumberland” broadsheets were real works of genius, inventive works of art nouveau transformed into comics. So did we really need a modern version of the comic? But then I saw the creative team — Eric Shanower and Gabriel Rodriguez — and I was intrigued enough to want to buy the comic rather than avoid it. As it turned out, that was the right decision. Shanower sets “Little Nemo: Return to Slumberland” some time after the original “Little Nemo” comics; the Princess of Slumberland wants a new playmate, but none since Nemo have been a worthy companion. When one of the new possible friends for the Princess is named James Nemo Summerton, though, the Princess chooses him… and so our adventure begins for Jimmy. Shanower gives us a slightly resistant main character in the form of Jimmy, and that’s a good thing. It would have been far too easy to have the new

In “Tiny Titans: Return to the Treehouse” #1 Art Baltazar and Franco Aureliani bring readers everything they have been missing from comics since March of 2012. Filled with energetic drawings, imaginative stories and fun-loving characters, this all-ages issue is a welcome sight. Baltazar and Aureliani make a point to keep the story upbeat and friendly to all audiences, like “Peanuts” with capes and masks. Readers who have enjoyed the duo’s previous comics are certain to find everything they like about Aureliani and Baltazar’s work with a decidedly friendly DC Comics twist, and vice versa. Terra and Beast Boy like each other, but in a grade school fashion, with Terra alternating between pelting Beast Boy with rocks and making kissy faces with him. Robin and Superboy are naturally pals, working together to try to find the treehouse. Beyond simply wearing adorable costumes and looking cute, the Tiny Titans have traces of their mainline personalities, like Brainiac 5 showing up, brimming

Ben Hatke’s colorful Zita The Spacegirl and her impressively large cast of supporting characters — both old and new — all come together for one last epic adventure in “The Return of Zita The Spacegirl,” centered around breaking Zita out of prison. However, in appropriate Zita fashion, the story is more about saving the world and doing what’s right. Hatke’s designs for Zita’s world have always been well-informed, vibrant and lovely. As he brings together a massive cast of all Zita’s friends and allies, Hatke’s work feels almost effortless here. His storytelling has a fluid and loose feel to it but he knows just when to slow things down and focus on character beats and emotions. Hatke’s strengths are in some of the visual comedy elements, world-building choices, expressive character work and unique characters. New characters Ragpile and Femur are the standouts of this new volume and they get all the best and funniest lines. Though Hatke is also good with action there are times in this