KISS #3
Written by Tom Waltz
Art by Casey Maloney
Inks by Marc Rueda
Colors by Joan I. Guardiet
Letters by Shawn Lee
Edited by Chris Ryall
Covers by Casey Maloney, Xermanico & Michael Gaydos
IDW Publishing
Release Date: August 8, 2012
Cover Price: $3.99

KISS #3 is another AMAZING issue from the folks at IDW!!! The great thing about this book is that it’s a different title almost every month. You’re not sure where you’re going to end up when you pick up an issue. This issue is fantastic for a number of reasons, but most of all, because it’s a total 180 from the first two issues.

Tom Waltz get handed the reins for this arc, and first off let me say, if you’re not reading his Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles title, you’re really missing out. That aside, his inaugural issue of KISS brings a totally different vibe than the first two issues, and that’s one of the great things. The other great things — KISS BARBARIANS!!!

After the Fire
Written by Tom Waltz
Art by Guiu Vilanova
Colors by John Alderink
Color Assists by Arto Heino, Joel Bartlett, Krista Schuhman, Leanne Fitzpatrick, Ron Kieser, Tom Rollinger & William Jones
Letters by Amauri Osorio & Tom Waltz
Title Logo by Gerry Kissell
Edits by Chris Ryall
Cover by Pintu
IDW Publishing
Release Date: July 11, 2012
Cover Price: $7.99

Debuting as an original digital graphic novel, After the Fire is being released in July as a print comic, and you should be VERY happy about that. For this review, I’m NOT going to get into the print vs digital dicsussion, but I do think the book will get a lot more exposure on the racks of comic book stores, and that’s a very good thing, because it’s one heck of a read!

Writer Tom Waltz, who’s KILLING it with his awesome Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles series from IDW right now, writes a fantastic story of supernatural revenge, good vs evil, and just all-around awesomeness. This is a comic for people who love comics, and for people who would NEVER read a comic. Seriously, if you’re looking to get one of your friends into reading comics, THIS is the book that you’ll want to give them. It’s a truly unique comic, centering around a pair of cops who are hard-working, dedicated, upstanding officers (or so we think), who are the victims of a couple of corrupt officers in their department.

Locke & Key, Vol. 5: Clockworks
Written by Joe Hill
Art by Gabriel Rodriguez
Colors by Jay Fotos
Letters by Robbie Robbins
Series Edited by Chris Ryall
Collection Edited by Justin Eisinger
Collection Designed by Robbie Robbins
IDW Publishing
Release Date: July 24, 2012
Cover Price: $24.99

Right off the bat I’m putting a light spoiler warning at the top for Locke & Key Volumes 1 – 4. If you haven’t read them yet, get on it.

Remember reading that issue of Locke & Key where they play with the head key for the first time? The key that goes into the back of anyone’s neck, makes the top of your cranium disappear like you’re the Kool-Aid Man and allows you to remove memories and emotions and oddly allows you to peer into your own mind? And that, best of all it’s a magic that only kids can see? It’s one of my fondest memories reading the series so far. It cemented that while the book would also feature edge-of-your-seat terror with truly warm characters you feel like you know, there’d also be space for a particular form of magic: an enchanted, childlike sense of magic. If you’re like me and you wait to read the book in those handsome trades, well, ta-da, Locke & Key Volume 5 Clockworks is here.

KISS #1
Written by Chris Ryall
Art by Jamal Igle
Colors by Rumulo Fajardo, Jr.
Letters by Shawn Lee
“She” Lryics by Harold Fraiser, Roget Roaime and Shannon Jones
Covers by Nick Runge, Jamal Igle, & Michael Gaydos
IDW Publishing
Release Date: June 13, 2012
Cover Price: $3.99

Did anyone really want another KISS #1? Yes, yes, we did. So here comes IDW to the rescue. The last couple KISS series have left bad tastes in fans’ mouths: The Image Comics KISS: The Psycho Circus and then the Kiss4K by…some company that went out of business. So, here comes IDW’s new KISS title and I think everyone’s expectation are not overly high, but luckily for us, this book turned out to be an awesome surprise!

Writer Chris Ryall has done what no other writer before him has done: turned out one hell of an entertaining KISS book with a story that is fresh and a completely original concept. He’s really captured the personas of what the members of KISS are on stage. There’s a fantastic narrative that runs through out the book, that’s really amazing. More importantly, this is a story that MAKES SENSE. It’s not just “KISS trying to get to the concert venue before it’s too late” (which would be a GREAT idea for a KISS kid’s comic), it’s a story of good vs evil. Well, kinda-good vs evil. OK, it’s a story of KISS vs. evil.

Stephen King’s and Joe Hill’s Road Rage #1
Written by Stephen King and Joe Hill
Adapted by Chris Ryall
Art by Nelson Daniel
IDW Publishing
Release Date: February 15, 2012
Cover Price: $3.99

Road Rage is a collaboration between Stephen King and his son, Joe Hill. Initially published as a novella and then audiobook in 2009, the publication compiles the collaborative story Throttle, and the short story which it pays tribute to, Duel by Richard Matheson. IDW is in the process of publishing their comic book adaptation of Road Rage, and the impact of the first issue is solid and memorable.

Road Rage #1 is the first chapter of King’s and Hill’s Throttle. The story follows a biker gang known as the tribe, led by Vince, with a range of characters brought to life in vivid visuals. Also a member of the gang is a man called Lemmy, clearly named – and artistically designed – after the memorable frontman from Motörhead.