From the perils of a Fifth Week to an absolutely loaded slate. That’s more like it. So, with that in mind, let’s explore my buys, recommendations, and curiosities from the week of comics, with all that led by a continuing (and new) fave and an old love returning in a new form.

Comic of the Week: Captain America #2

With a writer/artist pair behind it that’s as good as Chip Zdarsky and Valerio Schiti, I expected the first issue of that duo’s new Captain America run to be good. It was more than that. It was great, with Schiti bringing his typically potent art to it — all amplified by Frank Martin’s exceptional colors — and Zdarsky giving each character the life they need to make the story resonate in a real way. Even though it’s a story set in the past, at least for now, it feels like an of the moment story in the best of ways, one with exceptional craft behind it. What’s the second issue going to bring our way? I’m not sure.

But I’m excited to find out, which is how I know I loved the debut of this series.

Trade/Graphic Novel of the Week: DC: The New Frontier — Compact Comics Edition

If you’ve never read DC: The New Frontier, well, you’re in for a treat this week. This story from cartoonist Darwyn Cooke and colorist Dave Stewart is an all-time classic from DC Comics, residing on the shortlist of titles that best exemplify what the publisher is all about. It’s a hand in glove fit for the Compact Comics edition, as its six issue fit nicely in the format, its energy jives nicely with the expectations that come with, and it will be unbelievably satisfying for a whole mess of first-time readers to pick this book up for just $9.99. If I owned a comic shop, I’d have ordered big on this release and sell everyone hard on it. I might even go with a “if you don’t like it you can return it” offer, simply because it’s hard to imagine someone not liking this comic.

So, yeah. If you’ve never read DC: The New Frontier, make sure to pick it up. It’s a classic for a reason, and a heck of a showcase for one of the best to ever do it in Cooke.