Each and every week, I, “Man of Steel” Henchman21, and “Woman of Steel” Empress Eve read a lot of comics. Seriously you guys, a lot of comics. Maybe too many comics. I mean, it is possible”¦ theoretically. Naturally, we look forward to some more than others. I mean, who doesn’t? So, let’s take a look into the depths of our pull lists, grab some comics, and we’ll let YOU know what the top books to look forward to are for the week of June 12, 2013. Single issues and trades, they’re all here.

Who’s ready to see Man of Steel? I know I am, and just like always I’m going to get myself in the mood with some good old fashioned comic booking. There’s a ton to enjoy this week, including a new series featuring everyone’s favorite big blue boy scout. But that’s not all, so read on gentle reader, and see what else you’ll want to buy this week as we go faster than a speeding bullet into this week’s The GoD List!

Henchman 21

Issues

Superman: Unchained #1 (DC Comics – $4.99) It’s a big week for one of the most popular writers in comics, with Scott Snyder launching a new series, starting a year-long epic story, and tiding over fans of his best series. First up is Superman: Unchained #1, drawn by Jim Lee. You may have heard that there’s a new Superman movie coming out this week, so of course DC is going to try to get some corporate synergy going with a new Superman series by their hottest writer, adding in their biggest artist. Let’s be honest, this series basically sells itself, at least enough to give the first issue a chance. I’m sure Superman fans are hopeful that this will be the exciting series that they have been waiting for. In the issue, Supes has to deal with some falling satellites and a mystery that he has to uncover. Snyder’s strengths have always been his beginnings, so I expect this to be a great first issue and with Lee on art, the issue is sure to look nice. You’re probably buying this already, but if you’re not, you’re going to want to.

Batman #21 (DC Comics – $3.99) Next up is Snyder’s epic look into Batman’s origin with the start of Year Zero. Snyder is looking to put his stamp on Batman’s origin with this eleven part saga. Batman’s origin is fairly well chronicled at this point, so the job here is to add something new to the mythos. That’s not going to be easy, but given what he has done in the past I’m guessing fans will be looking forward to what the story will entail. I’m a little worried about the length of the story, and if Snyder can maintain the momentum of the story throughout the whole thing. I guess anything’s possible. I’ll let you know what I think a year from now.

American Vampire: Long Road to Hell #1 (DC/Vertigo Comics – $6.99) In my opinion, American Vampire is Snyder’s best work, but the series is on a bit of a hiatus at the moment. This one-shot is co-written by regular artist Rafael Albuquerque, and brings back Travis Kidd, the bad-ass 50’s vampire hunter. He’s tracking down a couple of new vampires who are traveling the country leaving death in their wake. If you’ve heard about American Vampire, but have never read it before, I’d imagine this will be a good place to start. You’ll get a nice compact story featuring the amazing art from Albuquerque, and it should leave you wanting more. And if you’re already a fan of the series, this is all you’ll be getting till the series comes back in the Fall. So, enjoy this while you can.

The True Lives of the Fabulous Killjoys #1 (Dark Horse Comics – $3.99) I wish that this was a return of Gerard Way‘s The Umbrella Academy, but it’s close enough to get me excited. Way returns to comics with a story of music and megacorporations and whatever other crazy things he can throw in. Way has made some good comics in the past, but he’s been too busy with his music career to put out anything new and I for one can’t wait to see what he does with this new series. The description seems a little goofy to me, and it might not be something I’d normally get, but given Way’s past works and the inclusion of Becky Cloonan on art, this is a series I can’t pass up. If you liked The Umbrella Academy, I don’t see why you wouldn’t want to pick this up.

Empress Eve

Apologies everyone, it was I, The Empress of Holding Shit Up, who held up the publishing of this week’s GoD List. I was busy in E3ville proofing the barrage of posts, as well as readying for a prom and graduation, as there’s a special young lady in our home saying good-bye to high school this month. It’s been crazy and it probably will be for just a few more weeks, but I still have some info to pass along to you regarding this week’s comic book offerings.

The Crow: Curare #1 (of 3) (IDW Publishing – $3.99) Fans of the original Crow graphic novel by James O’Barr should be delighted to see the creator back behind the pen for an all-new Crow miniseries! As with the classic tale, Curare is based on a true crime, this time it’s the unsolved murder of an unidentified 9-year-old girl. Retired cop Joe Salk is plagued by this brutal crime he couldn’t solve, with his obsession over it ruining his life, but now the spirit of the Crow could finally help him put everything to rest.

Golgotha (215 Ink – $14.99) Ah, Golgotha, the place of the skull and in this case, it’s the skull of one H.P. Lovecraft. In this graphic novel, a bunch of junkie punk rockers go on a quest to retrieve the stolen skull of the late horror master. Unfortunately for the group, the author’s macabre tales starting coming true. Anything Lovecraft is going to catch my eye and this one seems like a really cool premise. I dig the cover art and look forward to checking out the interior artwork on this one.

Quick Picks

– Batman Arkham Unhinged #15
– Artifacts #28
– Dream Merchant #2 (of 6)
– Dungeons & Dragons Cutter #3 (of 5)

Recommendations from the Doom Crew

– The Crow: Curare #1 (of 3): The Crow: Curare #1 is a must-read for any Crow purist as it definitely showcases the vision James O’Barr has for his vengeful hero. – Doc Brown [Review]

– The Black Beetle: No Way Out #4: This is really the reason the term “eye candy” was invented. You can easily just stare at these pages for hours. – PS Hayes [Review]

– Breath of Bones: A Tale of the Golem #1: [Writer Steve] Niles has clearly done his homework and has stitched together a tale with both historical accuracy and a satisfying dose of (potentially cataclysmic) folk magic. – Doc Brown [Review]

– East of West #3: A good, solid, issue where ACTION motivates the story. – PS Hayes [Review]