New Comics Reviews 8/13! Superman: The Kryptonite Spectrum, Predator Kills the Marvel Universe, Valiant Beyond: Bloodshot & Uncle Scrooge: Earth’s Mightiest Duck!
New Comics Reviews for Wednesday 8/13!
Hello! Here are THN’s new comics reviews for the week of 8/6/25! Featuring Superman: The Kryptonite Spectrum, Predator Kills the Marvel Universe, Valiant Beyond: Bloodshot & Uncle Scrooge: Earth’s Mightiest Duck!
Be sure to check back every week for New Comic Book reviews and check out the New Comics Review Show if you want to hear our full discussions!
Joe’s Reviews:
Cover by Morazzo & O’Halloran
Superman: The Kryptonite Spectrum #1
DC Comics/Black Label
Written by W. Maxwell Prince
Art by Martin Morazzo
Colors by Chris O’Halloran
Letters by Good Old Neon
32 pages for $5.99
Solicit: The team behind the critically acclaimed Ice Cream Man comic comes to DC to apply its singular storytelling style to none other than the Man of Steel! Four new Kryptonites have been discovered in deep space, and Superman needs to know just what, exactly, they do to him — lest the colorful rocks of his home planet fall into evil hands! With Batman at Superman’s side, this DC Black Label Superman event explores the consequences of each never- before-seen variety of Kryptonite — all in the formal and boundary-pushing fashion that W. Maxwell Prince, Martín Morazzo, and Chris O’Halloran are celebrated for!
Review: Thanks to the influence of the Ziggurat’s newest Love Slave Heckatron, Ice Cream Man has moved way up on my list of series to read. I was really excited to check out the ICM creative team’s take on Superman for this very reason. Based on their reputation, I was expecting this comic to be a whole lot weirder, but writer W. Maxwell Prince plays things remarkably straight. As straight as this issue’s concept (no spoilers) would allow at least.
The solicit tells you everything you need to know: there’s suddenly a bunch of new Kryptonite varieties in the world and Superman needs to know how they’ll affect him. I don’t want to say much about this issue’s plot because I think learning the effects of the new Kryptonite is part of the fun, but Prince weaves a lovely, twisting narrative that makes the most out of the concept, and Martin Morazzo’s fantastic art. His takes on Batman, Lex Luthor, Lois Lane, and Jimmy Olsen are pretty timeless, especially Jimmy’s “aw gee Superman” bowtie-wearing weirdo. There’s a surprising amount of emotional drama given the page count and the already busy script, and it really gets to the heart of this “evergreen” version of Superman.
Morazzo’s work here, alongside some lovely color work by Chris O’Halloran, is really fantastic. Morazzo maintains a visual style all his own while still delivering a timeless (there’s that word again) Superman feeling. The lineart is only one part of the equation however. This story would not hit the mark nearly as well without Morazzo’s excellent sense of pacing and storytelling. The writing and art combine to pull off a story that sticks to this issue’s theme in expert fashion.
Superman: The Kryptonite Spectrum #1 isn’t JUST a showcase for the wonderfully bizarre talents of Prince and Morazzo. Nor is it JUST an excellent execution of Black Label’s mandate to tell evergreen stories featuring DC characters. It’s a great Superman story PERIOD. And there’s still plenty of time – and kryptonite colors – left to get WEIRD.
Rating: BUY IT
Cover by Rodolfo Migliari
Valiant Beyond: Bloodshot #1
Valiant/Alien Books
Written by Mauro Mantella
Art by Fernando Heinz Furukawa
Art Assistant: Juan Pablo Massa
Colors by Brushu Studio and Rocio Zucchi (AKA Dewnoir)
Letters by Ezequiel Inverni
28 pages for $4.99
Solicit: A NEW ERA OF SUPERHERO STORYTELLING BEGINS HERE! Designed as the ULTIMATE jumping-on point, the Valiant Beyond line of comics are ABSOLUTE must-reads that will ENERGIZE your love for superheroes! A powerful new drug is unleashed on Japan and has set the underworld ablaze! There’s only one force strong enough to stop the B-S… and he’s not looking for an invitation to start kicking butt! It’s Bloodshot like you’ve never seen him before in this all-new cutting-edge series from writer Mauro Mantella (BLOODSHOT UNLEASHED: RELOADED) and artist Fernando Heinz Furukawa (X-O MANOWAR: INVICTUS)! Get ready to sink your teeth into 28 pages of action and chaos in this special introductory-priced issue!
Review: This issue kicks off the grand reboot of the Valiant Universe, and to the book’s credit, you can jump right in without knowing a thing. There’s a one-page origin recap that fills you in on everything you need to know about this version of Bloodshot, which barely diverges from the last one as far as the broad strokes go.
We’re given a fairly simple premise to start with: a group of vampire Yakuza members are using a diminished version of Bloodshot’s nanite-infused blood to corner the drug market in Japan and our boy ain’t about to take that shit lying down. There are a couple of interesting – and eye-rollingly juvenile – ideas here, and there’s a fun twist ending that I’m curious to see “B.S.” get out of. The problem is that this comic is so poorly translated from the writer’s native language that it reads like a poorly localized video game from the 80s. But that’s an editing problem, not a writing one. The writing problem is that is that it also reads like Mauro Mantella just learned the word “fuck” and now he won’t stop repeating it. It feels like they’re trying a bit too hard to be edgy.
On a positive note, I thought the art by Fernando Heinz Furukawa was pretty good. He does a great job conveying a sense of movement, which is a big plus in a project where action is a huge component. The action is also very well-choreographed with inventive panel layouts and use of perspective.
With a solicit packed full of ALL-CAPS references to the popular Absolute, Ultimate, and Energon universes, I can’t decide if Alien Books is trying to trick people into reading their big relaunch or making a good-natured joke. Either way, I think they’ve got their work cut out for them. Bloodshot #1 is okay, but Alien needed more than “okay” to get me excited about their Valiant Beyond initiative.
Rating: SKIM IT
(EDIT: Allegations about writer Mauro Mantella’s transphobia surfaced after my review was posted, and I fully admit that I was oblivious to it here. I’m leaving my written review as is for the record. – Joe)
Matt’s Reviews:
Cover by Gabriele Dell’Otto
Uncle Scrooge: Earth’s Mightiest Duck #1
Marvel Comics
Written by Jason Aaron
Art by Mahmud Asrar and Ciro Cangialasi, Giuseppe Camuncoli and Daniele Orlandini
Colors by Arianna Consoni
Letters by VC’s Joe Caramanga
32 pages for $4.99
Solicit: The planet has been conquered by alien invaders, the Connoisseurs, nefarious hoarders of the rarest antiquities from throughout the cosmos. As they tear the Earth apart, pillaging its fabled treasures, only the world’s greatest adventurer can possibly stop them. But Scrooge McDuck is facing a battle unlike any he’s ever fought, trapped inside his own mind, fighting to preserve his most precious memories. From writer Jason Aaron (Uncle Scrooge and the Infinity Dime, plus some other things) and an extravagance of all-star artists comes the most epic adventure in Duck history.
Review: Jason Aaron proved he could write a great Disney Duck story with his Uncle Scrooge and the Infinity Dime one-shot. Now he’s back with a four-part miniseries that will explore Scrooge’s entire past, revisiting classic Duck adventures with special guest artists on each issue.
The art talent in this first issue alone is incredible, with each artist bringing a unique style to different segments of the story. Mahmud Asrar’s opening sets the stage for the modern Scrooge, Cangialosi illustrates the future where Donald and his nephews lead the resistance against alien collectors, and Camuncoli and Orlandini deliver incredibly detailed flashbacks of young Scrooge from his memories.
Like The Infinity Dime, Aaron’s story is a riot. Donald Duck’s entrance is a laugh-out-loud, badass moment, and I love the take on Heuey, Dewy and Louie. Aaron is taking the stakes to ridiculous superhero heights, proving these characters can thrive in any genre. Whether you grew up watching Ducktails or reading the classic Carl Bark’s Scrooge stories Earth’s Mightiest Duck is Disney Duck madness that’s clever fun for readers of all ages.
Rating: BUY IT
Cover by Leinil Francis Yu
Predator Kills the Marvel Universe #1
Marvel Comics
Written by Benjamin Percy
Art by Marcelo Ferreira and Daniel Picciotto
Inks by Jay Leisten and Daniel Picciotto
Colors by Frank D’Armata
Letters by VC’s Clayton Cowels
32 pages for $5.99
Solicit: It’s the bloody kickoff to an epic battle between the Predators and Marvel’s heroes! A Predator King, emboldened by a new vibranium arsenal and aided by a surprising human ally, launches an all-out invasion of Earth, claiming the planet as a hunting preserve! You’ll need to read to see just who — if anyone — will survive and to witness some shocking twists and turns as the entire Marvel Universe finds itself in the Predator’s tri-laser crosshairs!
Review: Ben Percy’s Predator vs. stories come to a head, and since they couldn’t kill Wolverine, Black Panther, or Spider-Man, it seems it’s time to give the Predators vibranium and a partner in Kraven the Hunter so the murder of the Marvel U’s greatest heroes can commence.
I’ll buy that the Predators are highly trained and armed with high-tech gadgets—and one-on-one, they’ve proven to be tough opponents for Schwarzenegger in his prime and even Wolverine—but the way Percy has them carving through some of Marvel’s heaviest hitters is a bit ridiculous. Unlike the other hyper-serious Predator vs. books, this one tries for an almost comedic tone, which mostly falls flat. The result feels less like a story and more like an exercise in killing Marvel heroes with ease, without much thought going into the plot.
The art takes a similar comedic approach, with equally poor results. There are strange poses and exaggerated facial expressions that make characters look bizarre, especially in the Fantastic Four scenes, which feature some of the worst Sue Storm faces and poses I can recall. And The Thing? He looks more like the Armadillo—a C-list Captain America villain. The design of the vibranium-clad Predators is less interesting than their usual look, coming off more like a gladiator extra from an early Star Trek episode and the king Predator looked to have a throne made of cotton candy.
The sudden shift in tone and uneven art make Predator vs. the Marvel Universe feel like a poorly thought-out rush job—or worse, a mean-spirited excuse to kill beloved characters just to sell comics to people who dislike them. I can’t say I was a Marvel Zombies fan either, but at least that book was fun.
Rating: LEAVE IT
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