New Comics Reviews 3/26/25: Batman H2sh, Absolute Martian Manhunter, Patrick Horvath’s Free for All & MORE!
New Comics Reviews for Wednesday 3/26!
Hello! Here are our new comics reviews for the week of 3/26/25, featuring Batman H2sh, Absolute Martian Manhunter, Patrick Horvath’s Free for All, and We’re Taking Everyone Down with Us!
Joe’s Reviews:
Cover by Jim Lee
Batman #158
DC Comics
Written by Jeph Loeb
Pencils by Jim Lee
Inks by Scott Williams
Colors by Alex Sinclair
Letters by Richard Starkings
32 pages for $4.99
Solicit: THE HOTLY ANTICIPATED SEQUEL TO THE SMASH-HIT STORYLINE! Jeph Loeb! Jim Lee! An all-new epic saga begins here. Hush returns!
Review: Batman: Hush 2 Part One! If you haven’t read a Batman comic in 20 years, then this is the issue for you! Writer Jeph Loeb ignores pretty much anything that’s happened over the past two decades in a script that feels stuck in the past. Everything about it from the storytelling style to the characterization feels outdated. There’s not much meat on the bone here, plot-wise. Hush is back, but now he’s got a sidekick, and he’s targeting Batman’s rogues gallery for…reasons. Jim Lee’s art is fantastic as always. Scott Williams and Alex Sinclair are old pros when working with Jim, so the three of them are like a well-oiled machine. The first Hush story was fine at best, but it was also an uneven mess. Batman #158 feels like more of the same. I didn’t need a sequel – certainly not one that interrupts the flow of the ongoing title.
Rating: SKIM IT
Cover by Patrick Horvath
Free for All One-Shot
Oni Press
Written drawn, and lettered by Patrick Horvath
56 pages for $7.99
Solicit: From Eisner Award-nominated writer/artist Patrick Horvath (Beneath the Trees Where Nobody Sees) comes a 56-page, self-contained one-shot that delivers a brutal new vision of capitalism by combat . . . In the future, the World Finance League exists to benefit all, randomly choosing those from among the billionaires and trillionaires of the world and presenting them with a choice: either donate half of their assets to the common good-or defend them in ritual combat. Reigning champion and real estate magnate Ted Brooks has 22 victories under his belt-defending the wealth he schemed and stabbed to get-when he is forced to face his ex-wife, Luella Dominguez, in a fight to the death. Luella has been training, waiting for this moment. But will she have what it takes to defeat the man who would do anything-absolutely anything-to keep his fortune? It’s every shareholder for themselves when death and bankruptcy collide in Free for All #1, a giant-sized, one-shot spectacle of commerce and carnage coming this March from Eisner Award-nominated cartoonist Patrick Horvath!
Review: After Beneath the Trees Where Nobody Sees, you knew anything Patrick Horvath put out was probably an instant buy. This earlier work centers on Ted Brooks, real estate mogul and current champion of the Free for All, who would rather hold onto his fortune and revel in the brutality of the arena. After his latest win, he decides to skip the lottery and take on his ex-wife in the next battle. His ex Luella also refuses to pay her fine, but not to hoard wealth…So she can deliver BRUTAL VENGEANCE! Horvath doesn’t pull any punches when delivering his message, but I won’t say more about the story other than that I was riveted from beginning to end. His art is dark and gruesomely detailed. The visuals hit different when they aren’t dealing with cute and cuddly animals. Patrick Horvath’s Free for All is sharply satirical but also extremely relevant in today’s socioeconomic climate. I can’t recommend it enough.
Rating: BUY IT
Matt’s Reviews:
Cover by Stefano Landini
We’re Taking Everyone Down With Us #1
Image Comics
Written by Matthew Rosenberg
Art by Stefano Landini
Colors by Roman Titov
Letters by Hassan Otsmane-Elhaou
40 pages for $3.99
Solicit: The explosive double-sized first issue! After her mad-scientist father is killed by the world’s greatest spy, 13-year-old Annalise is left all alone in the world. Sort of. Her dead dad’s robot bodyguard is following her around for some reason. Now Annalise has a choice: try to lead a normal life for the first time ever…or seek revenge and maybe overthrow the world order in the process. Image Comics proudly presents a journey of regret and retribution, super spies and pseudoscience, growing up and global domination from brilliant artist Stefano Landini and okay writer Matthew Rosenberg.
Review: Matthew Rosenberg’s latest creator-owned title may have a long name like his other books, but that’s where the similarities end. WATEDWU is a timeless thriller, inspired by the best 1970s sci-fi TV shows. Landini and Titov infuse the story with immense style, featuring sleek, super-strong robot characters reminiscent of a more capable C-3PO. The robot designs—which look like they belong on the cover of an Isaac Asimov novel—the architecture, and even the clothing and characters’ haircuts demonstrate the art team’s attention to detail. When paired with Rosenberg’s darkly funny, whip-smart dialogue, the art elevates the story to cinematic levels, like reading a Wes Anderson film storyboard. The narrative follows Analise, a foul-mouthed young girl who stumbles upon the shocking truth that her neglectful yet brilliant scientist father is involved in something far bigger than just creating powerful robot guardians to raise her. In just 33 pages, this creative team crafts a visually stunning mystery dripping with style. With We’re Taking Everyone Down With Us #1, Rosenberg delivers yet another creator-owned hit starring my new favorite angry kid.
Rating: BUY IT
Cover by Javier Rodriguez
Absolute Martian Manhunter #1
DC Comics
Written by Denniz Camp
Art by Javier Rodriguez
Letters by Hassan Otsmane-Elhaou
36 pages for $4.99
Solicit: DENIZ CAMP AND JAVIER RODRIGUEZ TRANSFORM THE ABSOLUTE UNIVERSE! Beyond Mars… beyond physical form… beyond Human Understanding… all that’s left is the ultimate alien: the Absolute Martian Manhunter!
Review: Dennis Camp takes on the Martian Manhunter for DC’s Absolute line, recreating J’onn J’onzz—who, so far, is just FBI Special Agent John Jones—without falling into many of the pitfalls that longtime fans often criticize. This version of J’onn appears to be a human who may be bonded to something Martian. It’s unclear for now, but also not important. This version of J’onn seems to be a human who might be bonded to something Martian. It’s unclear so far, but it’s also not important, yet. Camp’s script steers away from the depressive, unemotional Green Martian of the regular DCU and instead focuses on the human aspect of a character who believes he’s going insane while discovering his own abilities—and why he’s so skilled at investigating seemingly random criminal behavior for the FBI. It’s a fantastic take on the Martian Manhunter, and Javier Rodríguez’s amazing pop-art cartooning visually conveys J’onn’s psychic powers in a way I’ve never seen before, using a rainbow of bold colors that at times devolves into madness. The result is an incredible new interpretation of the Martian Manhunter and a comic that looks like nothing else on the stands.
Rating: BUY IT
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