1. THE WALKING DEAD #100
How could this NOT be at the top of the list this week? We're 100 issues in to Robert Kirkman and Charlie Adlard's
The Walking Dead, and speculation has run rampant as to what will be in this landmark instalment. The solicitation promises that it, "contains one of the darkest moments in Rick Grimes' life, and one of the most violent and brutal things to happen within the pages of this series." When you think back to what we've seen in the series so far, that's quite a promise! Just a few of the theories put forward by fans include the death of Rick Grimes, a jump forward in time to Carl as an adult and even the return of Lori! Regardless of what it contains,
The Walking Dead #100 is a must-have for fans of the series.
2. BATMAN #11
Batman #11 very nearly took the #1 spot this week; especially as it's the final chapter in Scott Snyder and Greg Capullo's epic "The Court of Owls" storyline. The Caped Crusader has finally come face to face with their leader and he claims to be none other than Bruce Wayne's forgotten brother, Thomas Jr.! Is there any truth to his claims? Well, with any luck, we'll find out in "The Fall of the House of Wayne"; a title which couldn't really be any more ominous if it tried! With pencils from Greg Capullo, a recent preview released for the book featured a very brutal showdown between the two. Of course, fans won't have an awful lot of time to catch their breath as the next major arc will see the return of The Joker...
3. SPIDER-MEN #3
Three issues in and Brian Michael Bendis seems to be keeping
Spider-Men at a consistently high level of quality. Last issue, the two Spidey's unmasked each other and after being taken into custody by Nick Fury, Peter Parker was all set to find out exactly what happened to his Ultimate counterpart...until he and Miles were attacked by Mysterio of course! The plot continues to thicken (the villain has discovered the alternate universe and has been visiting it with the use of a robotic avatar) and it currently remains unclear as to whether or not there will be any lasting ramifications for each of the character's following the end of the series. What will happen in this third instalment? Well, the duo need to beat Mysterio before we get to find out!
4. AVENGING SPIDER-MAN #9
Terry Dodson returns to pencil Spider-Man in this very special team-up issue which features the debut of the all-new Captain Marvel, Carol Danvers! Kelly Sue DeConnick is on writing duties, so this will be our first indication of what she has planned for the character in her upcoming
Captain Marvel solo series.
Avenging Spider-Man has featured some great tales (especially Zeb Wells' standalone Hawkeye and Captain America team-up's) so here's hoping DeConnick will be able to return this book to its former glory after last month's mediocre "Ends of the Earth" conclusion. Fans of past Spider-Man/Ms. Marvel team-up's will remember that there has been a fair bit of romantic tension between the two, so here's hoping that it is touched upon at some point in this issue.
5. UNCANNY X-FORCE #27
Rick Remender has quickly become one of Marvel's best writers, and
Uncanny X-Force is easily one of their best titles. This issue continues the debut of the all-new Brotherhood of Evil Mutants. Wolverine, Deadpool, Fantomex, Nightcrawler and Psylocke are all on the ropes and facing perhaps their greatest challenge since Apocalypse. Will they be able to survive this threat?! Well, the solicitation details for the book promises that we'll see a new member join the team, so it sounds as if we should expect plenty of exciting developments and hopefully a bit of back-up for Logan and his team! Mike McKone returns on art duties, while the stunning cover is provided by rising star Julian Totino Tedesco.
THE BEST OF THE REST...
6. SWAMP-THING #11
7. BEFORE WATCHMEN: MINUTEMEN #2
8. WOLVERINE & THE X-MEN #13
9. AVX VS. #4
10. VENOM #20