RUNAWAYS #13

If you’re still not reading this book, then you should just go ahead and burn your entire comic collection and start collecting stamps. That’s it, it’s over, you’re not worthy. In one single standalone issue, Brian K. Vaughan manages to weave a tale with more passion and meaning and humor than most writers can hope to accomplish in a ten-year span. And it goes without saying that series co-creator and penciler Adrian Alphona keeps the book looking smart and fresh, a perfect complement to Vaughan’s inventive, fast-paced stories. All ass-kissing aside, the Runaways never fails to entertain its audience, and this issue serves as a focal point for what makes the book so special. The youngest Runaway, Molly Hayes (the self-titled Princess Powerful), has been separated from the rest of the gang and must fend for herself against the deadly Provost, in a story with a clever Dickensian twist.

BATGIRL #73

Does DC hate its Bat-heroines or what? It looks like this is the end of the line for Cassandra Cain, the modern-day Batgirl. Ready to join the likes of Spoiler after a fatal battle, Batgirl is set to meet her maker this issue, and Batman’s so-called soldiers in the war on crime are about to become a boys’ club. But wait, is that a Lazarus Pit nearby or just cruel teasing? Only Andersen Gabrych knows for sure.

GENERATION M #4

One of the real stars amongst the post-House of M "Decimation" books isn’t necessarily one of the two main X-Men titles of even "X-Men: Deadly Genesis". The best stories are sometimes the smaller ones, the more subtle and less splashy, and Paul Jenkins proves once again in Generation M his knack for writing well crafted, character driven stories. The story here centers on Sally Floyd, the definition of the phrase "down on her luck" after losing her family to death and divorce and sinking into alcoholism, and her involvement in a series of ex-mutant murders. After writing a number of pieces for her newspaper The Alternative on the ex-mutant phenomenon, someone has been riled into murdering these now de-powered mutants. As the death count rises, Sally has found herself at the center of the investigation and in the spotlight of danger.

SGT ROCK: THE PROPHECY #2

Joe Kubert’s return to the legendary Sgt. Rock continues with Easy Company face to face with the precious package they must deliver into U.S. hands in a bid to turn the tide against the Nazis. With their cargo secure, the hard part’s only beginning for Rock and his men as they make their way across the most treacherous span of war-torn Europe they’ve yet to lay eyes on.

APOCALYPSE VS DRACULA #1

Sure, the concept sounds ridiculous, but the final result is a strange but enjoyable mix of the classic Dracula myth and Victorian London crossed with the X-Men’s immortal nemesis Apocalypse as the character that holds everything together. Since ancient times, Apocalypse’s goal has ever been to see that the fittest survive, and long ago in a dark age of wars, he faced Vlad the Impaler on the field of battle. Many years later, in a city already disturbed by the terrors of Jack the Ripper, Apocalypse must rise again to battle the king of vampires, Dracula! A rundown of the plot doesn’t exactly lend itself to making the whole mess sound any less ridiculous, but trust us, it’s a guilty pleasure worth giving a try---unless you just hate anything X-Men related, then the whole point is moot.

JUSTICE #4

The JLA’s most treacherous villains are doing their best to appear as saviors to mankind and getting away with it! But their plans naturally hold a sinister secret, one that the JLA may be to slow to stop. As Lex Luthor announces to the world his plans to create a Utopia for the human race, his cohorts are busy taking out the Justice League one by one in deadly sneak attacks. But it will take more than just one villain to destroy Superman, so Luthor sends Bizarro and a trio of Superman’s deadliest villains to ambush the Man of Steel and send him to his death. With things at their darkest, will the villains have finally won?