Marvelous Market: Best New Comics April 8

High Literature, Godzilla, and High Literature With Godzilla

GODZILLA’S MONSTERPIECE THEATRE was one of my favorite comics last year. We’re getting a series of one-shots with a similar concept, starting this week.

Hello and welcome to the Marvelous Market, my weekly guide for anyone interested in going to a comic book store today. In addition to a full list of new # 1s and new volume 1s, I’ll be giving you my top 4 recommendations in 4 categories. Like Houston legend Mike Jones rapped, “We’re still tippin’ on four-fours.” I’m going to give you the top four new comics, top four ongoing comics, the top four graphic novels, and the top 4 preorders.

The work going into this curation is made possible by readers like you. For less than the cost of a cup of coffee a month, you can help make this work possible.

New Issue # 1s

EVERYONE LOVES A JEWEL THIEF # 1

SOLICIT COPY:

What’s a struggling writer to do except…pull off a jewel heist!

Novelist C. Scott Frederiksson hasn’t written anything of note in years. He’s about to lose his adjunct position at the University, be dropped by his agent, and possibly dumped if he doesn’t publish a hit and soon.

Scott has it all figured out. A masterfully scripted spectacle to dazzle the masses without doing any real harm. A local celebrity will be robbed of her prized possessions, and Scott will come out on the other side as an antihero, showered with publicity and a lucrative new book deal.

But he can’t do it alone. Every compelling heist needs a crack team of like-minded crooks, and Scott’s top recruits are his old high school D&D group and their ragtag townie friends coming in clutch with the getaway Geo Storm.

It’ll either be the greatest story C. Scott Frederiksson has ever told, or someone’s going to end up dead. Maybe both!

Grab a D20 and roll for stealth in this new heist-acular adventure from Tim Seeley and Aaron Campbell because “Everyone Loves a Jewel Thief”!

THE FURY OF FIRESTORM # 1

SOLICIT COPY:

The community of Bedford, Colorado, is a sleepy small town. The people say hello to their neighbors, attend town hall meetings, and root for the local high school football team on Friday nights. But this idyllic small town is thrown upside down when the Nuclear Man arrives and starts… experimenting. Firestorm has turned buildings to sand and people to glass with no remorse and no warning. But what exactly provoked Ronnie Raymond to commit this heinous act, and can anyone contain the fury that is Firestorm?

Brought to you by the incredible team of Jeff Lemire (Absolute Flash, JSA) and Rafael De Latorre (The Penguin) comes the next epic in the Next Level line.

GODZILLA’S MONSTERPIECE THEATRE PRESENTS: ROMEO & JULIET AND GODZILLA # 1

SOLICIT COPY:

The explosive literary mashup series returns! But this time, Godzilla is taking on the classics one story at a time. O Godzilla, Godzilla, wherefore art thou Godzilla? First, it’s invading the Bard’s most revered play, Romeo & Juliet. Families at war! Forbidden love blossoming! Godzilla on its path of destruction! Fair Verona won’t be so fair for long!

And that’s not all: Tom Scioli is returning to the series to write and illustrate a backup story starring the legendary thief entitled “Robin Hood and the Monster of Nottingham!”

THUNDERCATS X SILVERHAWKS # 1

SOLICIT COPY:

CIVILIZATIONS COLLIDE IN THE CROSSOVER EVENT OF THE MILLENNIUM! When Panthro originally set out on his mission to launch a new satellite high above Third Earth, he never imagined that he would wind up changing the destiny of two entire galaxies. But as soon as he boarded the mysteriously deserted space station and began digging into its workings, that destiny was set in motion — and now the day of reckoning is at hand!

Alerted to an anomaly at a long-dormant base in a quarantined sector, The Copper Kid, Quicksilver, and Chromium — the SilverHawks’ newest member — defy Stargazer’s orders and set out on their own to investigate. But as soon as they land on the forbidden planet, they are confronted by a fearsome band of strange, cat-like warriors — and quickly find themselves in a fight for their lives!

The battle is joined by more ThunderCats, including several whose fearsome abilities threaten to overwhelm the isolated SilverHawks. But when a second vessel appears in orbit, it becomes clear to Panthro that reinforcements are on their way — and not even the Eye of Thundera will be able to stop them!

ThunderCats mastermind DECLAN SHALVEY kicks off his greatest Thunderan saga to date with ThunderCats X SilverHawks #1, both writing and drawing this 40-page inaugural issue that serves as the spectacular opening chapter in his 15-part crossover event spanning three titles over five months!

Featuring astronomically appealing covers from SHALVEY, LUCIO PARRILLO, ERIC CANETE, and BEN OLIVER, as well as a special piece of classic ANIMATION ART, ThunderCats X SilverHawks #1 also features two tremendous incentive editions — a special cover reproducing Declan Shalvey’s original layouts for the issue, and an autographed edition of Ben Oliver’s cover signed by ThunderCats original series voice actor LARRY KENNEY!

Ongoing Series

ABSOLUTE GREEN LANTERN # 13

SOLICIT COPY:

Tomar-Re is here, and he will not allow Jo Mullein’s inexperience to compromise his mission. It’s Anomaly versus Anomaly!

BLEEDING HEARTS # 3

SOLICIT COPY:

Poke returns to his horde after meeting Mama and Rabbit—profoundly changed and a bit confused. He’s experiencing things he cannot explain…things like compassion and sadness. He’s tried his best to convince Mama that he means them no harm and that they should stay hidden, but for Mama, trust is something hard-earned. So how much of a risk is she willing to take? And can Poke keep the latest hunting party from descending upon their hiding spot?

THE MORTAL THOR # 9

SOLICIT COPY:

THE RADIOACTIVE MAN! Radiation can pass through solid walls. Radiation destroys human tissue. Radiation cannot be hit with a piece of wood and metal. Sigurd Jarlson is only human. Dr. Chen Lu, the Radioactive Man, is not. Somewhere in the city, a man with a hammer faces a fight he cannot win…

LEGACY #795

TRANSFORMERS # 31

SOLICIT COPY:

THE SECRET OF MEGATRON REVEALED! Megatron has a vision that will change the course of his life. And no one in the Energon Universe is safe.

Trade Paperbacks, Hardcovers, and OGNs

THE AUTHOR IMMORTAL vol. 1 TP

SOLICIT COPY:

A queer, literary fantasy about the stories that shape us—and what happens when we outgrow them.

Hector Ramirez dreamed of changing the world with words. Years later, he’s given one last chance: to help reboot the fantasy series that shaped his childhood. But when he discovers the author has vanished into his own creation, Hector is pulled into a realm built from fiction and ruled by a story that refuses to end.

He’s not alone. Along for the journey is Al, his nonbinary teen child searching for their place in both the real world and the story that now threatens to consume them. Alethea, once the series’ bright young mage heroine, also fights alongside them as a battle-worn warrior, questioning whether she still belongs to the story she was created to serve. Together, they must uncover the forces tearing this world apart and what it means to live inside a story that no longer wants you.

As fiction and reality collide, Hector, Al, and Alethea face a painful truth: to move forward, they’ll have to confront the very story that made them.

From writer FRANK J. BARBIERE (FIVE GHOSTS) and artist MORGAN BEEM (Swamp Thing: Twin Branches), THE AUTHOR IMMORTAL is a lush, character-driven fantasy for fans of Nimona , Lore Olympus, and MONSTRESS—a mythic, deeply human story about creation, queerness, and finding yourself in the ruins of someone else’s myth.

Collects THE AUTHOR IMMORTAL #1-5.

CORTO MALTESE: The Fate of Venice and Other Adventures TP

SOLICIT COPY:

International award-winning graphic novelist Hugo Pratt’s Corto Maltese returns to American readers in a new collection of classic Corto tales, featuring a brilliantly executed wild chase through Venice for a vital occult treasure!

Artist Hugo Pratt’s most famous creation, the indefatigable sailor Corto Maltese, sails back to American readers after a far too-long absence in Corto Maltese: Fable of Venice and Other Adventures.

Corto, a modern Ulysses whose wanderings in the early decades of the 20th century take him to the most fascinating places on Earth, is a hard-luck, hard-driving iconoclastic anti-hero who values freedom and independence more than wealth and status. In “Fable of Venice,” a riddle from a deceased friend plunges Corto into a phantasmagorical mystery thriller that zigzags between the solidity of dreams and the fluidity of reality. 

A frantic chase in 1921 Venice ensues, up twisting stairs and down tangled alleys, as Corto vies against Freemasons, occultists, budding fascists, and his friend (suddenly back from the dead) in a mad scramble to secure a mystical emerald that will open the doors of forbidden magic and unravel time and space itself!

In addition, this collection of quintessential seafaring adventures also presents the Corto Maltese classics “The Secret of Tristan Bantam,” “So Much for Gentlemen of Fortune,” and “The Seagull’s Fault,” making this book an exciting introduction to Pratt’s work.

EVERYTHING DEAD AND DYING TP

SOLICIT COPY:

The Walking Dead meets Essex County in this haunting, rural character piece set during a zombie outbreak.

Jack Chandler is the sole survivor of the zombie apocalypse in his rural farming community, but rather than eliminate them, he has chosen to continue living alongside the undead — including the husband and adopted daughter he fought so hard to have. But when his town is discovered by outsiders, Jack suddenly becomes the one thing standing in the way of his family and those who hope to kill them for good.

Eisner Award-nominated creators Tate Brombal (Barbalien, Batgirl) and Jacob Phillips (That Texas Blood, Newburn) team up for this original story.

Collects all issues #1-5.

PUNK’N HEADS TP

SOLICIT COPY:

This band plays together, lives together…and unfortunately two of them are sleeping together. Whatever, I’m sure it’s fine. Now put on your punk’n mask and let’s rock!

Hannah Lipsky isn’t sure what’s happening. She dreamed of becoming a fine art painter, but after breaking up with her girlfriend, she’s suddenly dropped out of art school, moved into a flophouse, and gotten roped into singing in a campy horror-punk band. With costumes. To make things even more complicated, she might be hooking up with her housemate/bandmate/high school crush, Jerry. Wherever this is leading, it’s going to be messy.

Critically acclaimed, Eisner-nominated creators Nicole Goux (Forest Hills Bootleg Society, Pet Peeves) and Dave Baker (Everyone Is Tulip, Mary Tyler MooreHawk) join forces for a raucous and revealing new graphic novel about making music, making mistakes, facing your past, and choosing your future. 

Preorders on Final Order Cutoff

BEN TEN # 1

SOLICIT COPY:

A fresh take on a 21st Century classic! Fan favorite BEN 10 returns in an all-new series that will appeal to longtime fans and new readers alike. When a mysterious meteor crashes to Earth, 10-year-old Ben Tennyson discovers the Omnitrix, a high-tech alien gauntlet of incredible power and potential. With this device on his wrist, Ben has the power to transform into incredible alien forms. But can he control this power? If the story sounds familiar, think again!

This is the modern, definitive take on Ben 10 from the team that created him – Man of Action – kicking off with writer Joe Casey, joined by amazing artist Robert Carey, with covers by Carey, Man of Action member Duncan Rouleau, Dustin Nguyen, Sebastian Piriz, and a special MYSTERY VARIANT BLIND BAG containing one limited edition of the issue selected randomly from a range of covers exclusive to this offering! Please The number of Blind Bags is limited, and allocations may occur.

THE BOOK OF JUSTKO TP

SOLICIT COPY:

The Book of Jusko showcases the very best of Joe Jusko’s decades spanning career and painted legacy.

In 1992, Joe Jusko’s Marvel Masterpieces trading card set exploded into pop culture—redefining how the world saw superheroes with raw power, larger-than-life drama, and breathtaking realism in every brushstroke. It became a cultural landmark, inspiring generations of fans, artists, and collectors.

Now—due to overwhelming demand—we’re opening the vaults to celebrate the full scope of Jusko’s legendary career. Inside you’ll discover iconic illustrations, rare and unpublished works, private commissions, trading cards, and personal archive pieces—some revealed here for the very first time.

This is the definitive collection of Joe Jusko’s art—a must-have for anyone who treasures painted comics, fantasy illustration, or fine art.

HELLBOY AND THE BPRD: 1955-1957 TP

SOLICIT COPY:

This second collection of Hellboy’s earliest days as a B.P.R.D. agent takes him across the globe in adventures that tie in to the darkest corners of the Hellboy and B.P.R.D. comics.

Join Hellboy and his fellow agents on globe-trotting horrifying mystery adventures from a fire ghost in a forgotten dinosaur theme park to vengeful demons in Hong Kong, Cold War weapons tests that lead to mutilated monsters in the South Pacific to a forgotten ghost in a NYC potter’s field and more, plus the true story of Hellboy’s turn on the silver screen in Mexican luchador films!

This volume collects Hellboy and the B.P.R.D. across volumes 1955, 1956, and 1957, from a slew of extraordinary talents including Mike Norton, Alison Sampson, Shawn Martinbrough, and more in this paperback edition!

SHE-SPAWN # 1

SOLICIT COPY:

A former solider, assassin, superhero, and mother, Priest now finds herself pulled into a brutal confrontation with an angelic cult determined to sacrifice a child in the name of their God. What begins as a mission quickly becomes something far more personal, forcing Jessica to confront the regret and responsibility that have followed her long after she stepped into the role of She-Spawn.

What did I miss?

If there are some great comics, collected or in single issues, that you think I should be reading, tell me about them! And if you do try out any of these series, let me know how you liked them, or didn’t. This is a safe space for haters. If you enjoy this service, please share this article on social media or tell someone that you know reads comics about it.

Divining Comics is brought to you by generous support from the “Best Friends of Divining Comics,” Alex Seubert.

Divining Comics is also brought to you by the support of the “Friends of Divining Comics,” Comic Book Herald.

If you would like to add your name to the list of friends, best friends, or best friends forever, support this work for less than the cost of one cup of coffee a month at patreon.com/diviningcomics. You can also leave a one-time tip/buy my zines at ko-fi.com/spikestonehand. Or, if you can’t afford to support me financially at this time, simply follow me on Twitter, Instagram, and Bluesky and share my posts there.

Today's the "birthday" of longtime Superman foe Brainiac.

(Comic art by Ed Hannigan, Jerry Ordway, and Dario Brizuela.)

#1976DCCalendar #DCComics #comics #Brainiac #Superman #ScoobyDoo #Superfriends 

The DC Comics Fall 2026 solicitations feel very solid to me. We've got DC K.O. books, we've got the new DC/Marvel crossovers, we've got omnibuses from Spectre to Warlord to Absolute Power to New Titans, Tim Drake compendiums as Robin and Red Robin, the new Vertigo series, two DC Finest for Crisis and one for Legends, the Absolute Universe Vol. 3s, and so much more. This feels like a good one — all the details at the link. #comics #comicbooks #dccomics ⬇️

https://www.collectededitions.blog/2026/04/dc-ko-dc-marvel-cosmic-kiss-reign-superboys.html

The Miracle in Kansas

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VIxnhy_uTXc

#thedarkknaik #superman #supermanforallseasons #jephloeb #timsale #dc #dccomics #dcu #jamesgunn #lexluthor #lanalang #loislane #comicbook #comicbookreview #comics

🎬 Support & unlock more on Patreon → patreon.com/TheDarkKnaik