Doctor Solar: Man Of The Atom, Volume 2
Script by Jim Shooter
Art by Roger Robinson, Agustin Alessio, Diego Bernard
Cover by Michael Komarack
Dark Horse Comics
Release Date: May 30, 2012
Cover Price: $15.99

I chose to review Doctor Solar: Man Of The Atom, Volume 2 because I really wanted to believe that Jim Shooter still has it. The “it” that I’m referring to is Shooter’s ability to create brilliant comics like the kind Marvel published with him in the 80s. I was still a young kid when Shooter was in his prime, but his contributions to comics are still felt to this day. That being said, when Shooter returned to Doctor Solar in 2010, the result was average at best. The first volume of Doctor Solar, Man Of The Atom was convoluted and utterly perplexing. With volume 2, I hoped that somehow, Shooter had turned it around. Fortunately, this time around the result is better, but not by much.

Grim Leaper #1
Written by Kurtis J. Wiebe
Art by Aluisio Santos
Image Comics
Release Date: May 30, 2012
Cover Price: $3.50

The work of Kurtis Wiebe should, by all traditional standards, work against itself. On one hand, Wiebe writes the supernatural with a vivid sense of all the horror and terrors that often come with it. On the other hand, Wiebe has a comedic timing to his writing that is a joy to read all of its own. Those two elements combined, the horrible and the absurd, have typically kept a wide berth from one another for the past few decades in comics. Combining things so brutal and inhuman with the things that force us to crack a smile is not only an uphill battle, it’s a vertical plummet. Wiebe has proven to readers with his work on Peter Panzerfaust, that he is capable of handling this tall double order. Grim Leaper #1 is another fantastic example of Wiebe’s ability to both delight and terrorize his readers.

Winter City
Written by Patrick Purcell and Carl Purcell
Art and Color by Pablo Verdugo Munoz and David Aravena Riquelme
Winter City Productions
Release Date: May 16, 2012
Cover Price: $1.99

Winter City is the physical representation of the word “gritty.” When comics like Spawn and Preacher were hitting shelves, they were always described as “dark,” “violent,” and of course “gritty.” Winter City is a love letter to those comics that set the bar for the dark places comics could take us. For their time, Spawn and Preacher shocked readers with their darkness. Now in 2012, as readers, we have become desensitized to acts of violence carried out on comic panels. It takes completely atrocious brutality to provoke a reaction from Generation Y. Winter City‘s need to emulate classic “gritty” comics, is its biggest flaw. For a comic that clearly wants to be seen as hyper-violent and shocking, Winter City is surprisingly tame.

Skullkickers #14
Written By Jim Zubkavich
Art By Edwin Huang
Color By Misty Coats
Image Comics
Release Date: May 9, 2012
Cover Price: $3.50

A portion of the official description of Skullkickers #14 reads, “Secrets revealed. The gun. The gun. The gun. The gun. The gun. The gun. The gun”¦” and continues on 12 more times. It is no surprise to say that this issue of Skullkickers is about one thing and one thing only. The gun. There has been much hype surrounding issue 14 since the secrets of Baldy and his gun were teased at Image Comic Expo. Well, now it’s here and rest assured Skullkickers fans, secrets are in fact revealed. Skullkickers #14 doesn’t dance around the secrets either. Questions are answered as directly as a gunshot that will leave your mind blown.

The Waling Dead #97
Written by Robert Kirkman
Art by Charlie Adlard and Cliff Rathburn
Image Comics
Release Date: May 9, 2012
Cover Price: $2.99

The Walking Dead #97 is the first issue in the highly anticipated “Something To Fear” story arc, which was announced back in February. Death and destruction are coming for Rick and the survivors and writer Robert Kirkman has made it clear that this time, there is a lot to lose. For several issues now, Kirkman has been building to this moment through a series of brash decisions made by his protagonists. The coming storm is the result of those decisions and to quote Wyatt Earp, “You called down the thunder, well now you’ve got it.”

When people speak about The Walking Dead, inevitably someone will bring up the point that “it is not really about zombies.” There is definitely some truth to that statement, especially in light of the comic’s current events. Issue after issue, Rick and his gang have become increasingly desperate. It is obvious that after all the loss and death, that there would be a breaking point for the survivors. In the past few issues Kirkman has depicted this despair as Rick’s veiled grasp at optimism. With food running low and winter coming the survivors have been backed into a corner. As it is with most threatened animals, instead of finding a way to escape, they simply attack.