Hey there, Carol and John’s Shoppers! We’ve got a big week full of super heroics to end the month of July that we’re excited to share with you. Let’s jump in.

DC Comics

Ram V takes on Batman! The indie hit writer behind The Many Deaths of Laila Starr and These Savage Shores teams with superstar artist Rafael Albuquerque to begin a new era for the Dark Knight. “Something is terribly wrong with Batman. No matter the tests Bruce takes, nor the numbers he counts, the greatest detective in the world can’t pin down the source of this creeping dread—of his own inner demons and looming mortality. Meanwhile, real demons roam the shadows as an ancient melody haunts the Gotham night. Here now, the curtains rise, and as the eerie tune streams in… who is human, who is a demon, who is to tell? As Batman investigates Gotham’s songs and demons, he is forced to confront the oldest question… whether there has been a demon within him all along… and if so, what does it want?… and why hasn’t it taken over yet?” The Batman legend began in Detective Comics’ pages, and continues now with issue #1062 this week. I’m excited to be picking up Detective again, it’s been 8 years since I last bought an issue (way back during the excellent Francis Manapul and Brian Buccellato run)!

Another exciting team-up, this time in a brand-new 3-issue miniseries, Eisner-winning writer Mark Russell and legendary artist Mike Allred bring us Superman: Space Age #1 this week. Feeling very reminiscent of Darwyn Cooke’s DC New Frontier, this series is a new telling of the dawn of the DC superhero age, but in a new light, against the backdrop of the Space Race and the assassination of JFK. It does not take the current events of its setting lightly. Starring other core Justice League members, Batman and Green Lantern, and a villainous Lex Luthor, this miniseries soared past our expectations to become one of our top picks of the week! A must-read for any DC Comic or American History buff for sure.

“At the end of World War II, Earth was invaded by giant mechanized parademons from a planet called Apokolips. Earth’s protectors, the Justice Society of America, were devastated, and with them, the age of superheroes came to an end, and the era of the Mech began. In the ensuing years, the world has stockpiled colossal battle suits piloted by elite warriors, waiting for the day Apokolips returns. But when Kal-El, the last son of a dying world, crash-lands in Metropolis with his own war suit, he’ll face down two of Earth’s finest Mech fighters, the Flash and Batman.” Pacific Rim meets the DC Universe in this new 6-issue miniseries that packs a fun, mecha-sized punch.

Marvel Comics

The Web-Head reaches a milestone in issue #900 of Amazing Spider-Man this week. A huge oversized issue, the main story features Spider-Man and the Sinister Six and a new villain, the Sinister Adaptoid. Complete with a series of backup stories, this issue also celebrates 900 issues and 60 years of the Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man and is undoubtedly one of the biggest Spider books of the year.

“Flash back to the early days of Hank Pym’s career as the astonishing Ant-Man! It’s date night for Hank and his girlfriend Janet Van Dyne, but nobody told that to Ant-Man’s enemies! Watch as Hank’s ant-agonists band together to finally take down the scientific adventurer! But will anyone come to his rescue? And who is the mysterious stranger who stalks him? Join Al Ewing (Immortal Hulk) and Tom Reilly (The Thing) as they explore the history of every hero (past, present, and future!) called Ant-Man!” A time-bending experience that explores “Who is the Ant-Man? What is the Ant-Man? Why is the Ant-Man?”

Gambit co-creator Chris Claremont (you may have met him last year) returns to one of his many creations for a new miniseries set during his absolutely legendary Uncanny X-Men run. “Before he joined the X-Men, Gambit encountered a mysterious girl named ‘Ro — the mutant Storm regressed to her child self by the nefarious Nanny — and the two went up against the forces of the Shadow King! Now, revealed for the first time, Gambit finds his path to becoming the heroic X-Man millions of fans call their favorite! Joined by rising star artist Sid Kotian, Chris weaves a story of action, intrigue, and revenge that made Gambit the mutant he is and forged his relationship with Storm.” A fun throwback to days of X-Men past.

Donny Cates first arc to his gamma-powered smash-hit Hulk is finally collected! In this radical new take on the character, Bruce Banner is piloting the Hulk’s cybernetically enhanced body dubbed the Starship Hulk across the universe. Their first adventure sees them travel through a portal and get caught in an alternate world where Banner never became the Hulk, and President Ross has an army of gamma-powered soldiers. The Starship Hulk is immensely powerful, but the engine at the core of this beast is the rage of the Hulk that Banner can now control to insane levels! Donny Cates has had some awesome ideas for classic characters, and he’s teamed up with Ryan Ottley of Invincible fame to bring the Smashtronaut to the pages. If you aren’t caught up on this yet, now’s your chance.

To close out the month, we’ve got a big week ahead at the shop. This Friday, we’ll be hosting Eddie Munster himself, Butch Patrick! He’ll be at CNJ’s from 5 pm to 8 pm, signing autographs and taking pictures. We’ll also have the Munster Koach here that you can go for a ride in as well. It’ll be early Halloween this week at the shop, and we’ve even selected some staff favorite horror titles for you to check out as well. We’re super excited about it!

That’s it for this week. Take care, everybody, and we’ll see you around.