PICKS OF THE WEEK - Feb. 5, 2020

• MARTIAN MANHUNTER #12: The final issue of the J’onn J’onzz maxi-series is here and it is a grand finale for the manhunter from mars. If you haven’t checked out this series, please do. Steve Orlando paves a winding road for J’onn and does so with style and substance to which the character hasn’t really been shaded with yet. There is a humor and a lightness to Riley Rossmo’s art that helps give the book a more cartoony, animated feel which pumps some heart into a sometimes rather morose character. This ending though is classic super heroics at its finest and gives you a lesson on why The Martian Manhunter is one of the most powerful heroes in the DC pantheon. Check this out if you’ve been following or wait for the trade to come out shortly to shadow J’onn and his new lease on life.

• X-MEN / FF #1: The X-men and the Fantastic four are at it again with this new, mini-series-reboot of these two titanic teams coming to blows. Chip Zdarsky is Marvel’s go to guy when they want to tell a good story fast. He cuts right the chase with this one, as the X-men go to the Richards’ household to offer an invitation, for their all-powerful mutant son Franklin, to join them on the newly formed island-nation of Krakoa. Of course, like everything with Marvel’s first family and the Merry mutants, it never goes that easy. This mini-series sets up a struggle and even drops a few bombs that will keep you guessing as to how far this series is going to go. Chip juggles a lot of personalities and continuity and does so flawlessly with Terry Dodson at the helm of visuals, as they must have had so much fun bringing these two forces together playing with the many sci-fi elements the two teams center around. Nab this one off the shelves for a straight shot of Marvel comics goodness straight to the brain.

• STAR WARS: DARTH VADER #1: Vader is back and he is badder than ever in this new #1 for the Star Wars line. Just like the regular Star Wars title, which relaunched last month, this tale takes place just after the events of ‘Empire Strikes Back’ and follows Vader as he goes on the hunt for Luke and his past. What follows is an incredible story of the Sith lord learning about Luke’s upbringing, while confronting his own, as the parallels between the two become ever present. Writer Greg Pak has done the lord’s work in giving you everything you want out a Vader story, which makes him more dangerous and vulnerable than in the movies. Raffaele Ienco’s art is stunning and ads a gravitas to the story and character of which the legendary Darth Vader demands. This book is riding high like the series that came before in dissecting the fallen Jedi knight. For fans of Star Wars or Vader this a must buy; and anyone interested in starting the title will find one of the best comics on the shelves today.