The Pull: A Look at the Comics Dropping the Week of August 28th

By David Harper

August 27, 2024

It’s a jam-packed week of contenders, as each category from this column has a bevy of issues to its name. But what makes the cut? And what leads this look at my buys, recommendations, and curiosities from the week of comics? You can find out below.

Comic of the Week: The Nice House by the Sea #2

The first issue came out as I was traveling in California, and unsurprisingly, it delivered everything we loved about The Nice House on the Lake but with a nice new spin to it — plus a fun overlap with the first volume towards the end. Those wondering about why writer James Tynion IV, artist Álvaro Martínez Bueno, colorist Jordie Bellaire, and letterer AndWorld Design would go in a completely different direction with this volume quickly got their answer, and it’s created a story with unreal potential both as a (somewhat) standalone release and as part of a larger story. This is a great series operating at the peak of its powers, and it should not be missed. That said, if anyone is going to hurt a dog — this issue apparently finds the Real World, Apocalypse Edition cast getting a dog (which is a great move because I honestly wondered why no one ever asked for a pet in the first volume) — it’s going to be Tynion. Watch yourself! WE WILL RIOT, JAMES!

Also, I really love this cover from Bueno. The way it echoes the cover to the first issue of The Nice House by the Lake is fantastic. What a smart artist! So good at what he does!

Trade/Graphic Novel of the Week: Avengers: Twilight TP

I love possible future stories from the Big Two, as they give creators and readers the ability to embrace real change and consequences in a way regular continuity stories simply aren’t. Avengers: Twilight was a great example of that, as Chip Zdarsky and Daniel Acuña delivered a tale with an accidentally ripped from the headlines vibe to it that was filled with great character beats and exceptional art. This was an underrated series at the time of release, and if you slept on it, it’s well worth a read.

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Notable Replies

tjas says:

August 28, 2024

I’m with you on the X-Men front. I’d been interested in checking out the X corner of the Marvel universe for a while now, but found the Krakoa era pretty impenetrable to get into. I believed From the Ashes would be an easy jumping-on point, but the onslaught of different titles and the accelerated release schedule has really dampened my enthusiasm. I might just stick to the Ultimate titles and FF.
gregory2 says:

August 28, 2024

I don’t entirely understand your interest in this era of X-Men has already cratered comment, because going back to your Uncanny X-Draft in February, it never sounded like you had much interest to lose. I really dug the Gail Simone Uncanny #1 and am excited to see where it goes. It’s early doors, but the idea that there are too many titles with too little relevance is not exactly a criticism unique to this era.
SKTCHD says:

August 28, 2024

You know, you had me wondering about how I’d been positioning myself on this @gregory2, because I write a lot and say a lot and maybe I’d forgotten what I said. I actually went back and listened to the Uncanny X-Draft and all I said in it about Brevoort and the line is that “Brevoort is underrated,” people need to give it a chance, and I thought it’d be back to basics with big swings on the periphery, which it seems to be. Meanwhile, this is an abbreviated version of what I said when the first wave was announced back in March: “Overall, though, it’s just fine. It’s fine! Those creative teams are interesting and the ideas are different enough and Stegman’s teaser art is teaser art. I’ll check some of the books out for sure” and “My take is while it’s not overly exciting, we also still don’t really know what this is. We won’t know that until the books arrive.” I wouldn’t say I was over the moon excited, but I was willing to give it a chance because that’s what dictates quality more than pre-release conversation.

Now that they’re here, I just haven’t been that interested in what I’ve read. Which is fine! I’m glad you like it, and that’s also fine. I’m not trying to convince anyone of my take. I just haven’t been overly excited by the opening salvo.

As for the “too many titles” note, I will say this. I did a quick browse, and by my count, the most X-Men titles at one time (if you count some related titles like Invincible Iron Man) was 16 towards the end of Krakoa. It took years to get there. By the time Laura Kinney: Wolverine launches on December 11, there will be 15 in the From the Ashes line (including the Infinity Comics title). It will have taken five months to get there. As someone who has been reading X-Men comics for 3/4 of my life and started during the beginning of the heavy X-Pansion of the 1990s, this just feels different. But again, you may disagree, which is totally fine. We’ll see, though. Maybe I’ll stick around and come around on it. There are talented folks involved, and I’m for sure going to check out some of the upcoming titles like Mystique and Storm.

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