Every Saturday I post what comic books I bought that week. For some reason it never occurred to me until now to post a recap for the year. So I looked at my posts and then made a master list of all the comics I bought in 2021. I left out the single issues that I tried out but never bought any more of.
The Boys: Dear Becky – 8 – This wrapped up the latest “The Boys” series that came out in 2020. It was good.
Cerebus in Hell – 10 Issues – Each issue is a new number one and the cover parodies some famous comic book cover. Other than that it’s a collection of Cerebus in Hell webcomics. I find it amusing but it might be narrowcast.
Monstress – 31-35 – This series continued into the 30s this year. It’s a good fantasy story with some fancy art.
Monstress: Talk Stories – 2 – The wrap-up of a two issue “Monstress” mini series that looks at the past of a few of the characters. It adds to the mythology of the series.
Norse Mythology – 4-6, V2 – 1-6 – Volume one wrapped up and then we also got all of volume two. P. Craig Russel and a series of artists adapt Neil Gaiman’s novel which adapts old Norse Mythology. This is an excellent series. High marks.
Usagi Yojimbo – 16-24 – The main Usagi comic. This one has been on my pull list since the mid 1980s. It was good then and it’s still good now.
Usagi Yojimbo: Wanderer’s Road – 2-6 – One of the Usagi reprint series in color for the first time.
Usagi Yojimbo: Dragon Bellows Conspiracy – 1-6 – A second Usagi reprint series. Also in color for the first time.
Taarna – 1, 3-6, Taarna Elements: One Shot – I missed issue two of this series but it was still good. It’s from Heavy Metal and is about a powerful woman warrior for guards the universe. Or some other heavenly piece of space.
Crossover – 3-10 – A series that stars super heroes from all over the comic book world and their creators! Yes, the people who make comic books are also in this weird meta-book.
HaHa – 1-5 – A mini-series from the writer of “Ice Cream Man” plus five different artists. Horror stuff. I enjoyed it.
Big Girls – 6 – The wrap up of Jason Howard’s post apocalyptic comic where people get turned into giant monsters. Fun stuff.
Home Sick Pilots – 2-10 – An ongoing comic that’s about punk rock musicians, ghosts, government spooks, supernatural giant robots, and the angst of the young. This one is pretty out there.
Kaijumax Season 5 – 6 – The wrap up of giant monsters in prison stories.
Kaijumax Season 6 – 1-5 – A new season of giant monsters in prison stories!
Nocterra – 1-6 – Sunlight turned black and also turned people into monsters. Keep the lights on or go feral. Yep, another post-apocalyptic comic.
Red Mother – 12 – I liked this horror series a lot. Weird sacrificing to the Devil type stuff happened. This was the last issue.
Savage Dragon – 256-260 – Erik Larsen continues his long running series and I continue to enjoy it.
North Force -0 – A repackaging of a recent issue of Savage Dragon that introduced the Canadian super hero team North Force. I really didn’t need to buy this one (since I have the Savage Dragoon issue) but I did anyway.
Ant -1 – Another series by Erik Larsen. Only one issue is out and I have no idea if it is an ongoing series or not.
Crimson Flower – 1-4 – A strange Matt Kindt and Matt Lesniewski mini-series. It’s about revenge and horror. I love the weird art.
Once & Future – 15-23 – A mini-series that turned into an ongoing series about people in the UK fighting to stop mythical creatures from taking over the place. They’ve gotten a lot of issues out.
Rain Like Hammers- 1-5 – Brandon Graham’s latest mini-series. This one put him on the map for me. It’s a weird, futuristic, sci-fi story with great art. It’s up for series of the year with me.
Die!Namite – 4-5 – A zombie crossover story from Dynamite Comics. These were the final two issues before they relaunched it into a second series. This series was fun but I was okay with not buying series two.
Post Americana – 2-7 – A fun Steve Skroce post apocalyptic comic. Good artwork and storytelling but nothing special in the story. I’ll buy whatever he does next though.
Spawn – 314-324 – I’ve been buying Spawn just because it’s the last of the $2.99 comics. I’ve never had it on my pull list before. It’s adequate but not magnificent. I also bought Spawn’s Universe – 1, King Spawn – 1, and Gunslinger Spawn – 1.
Dead End Kids: The Suburban Job – 1-4 – A solid story about some teenagers who find a bag of drug money and the trouble it causes them.
Fear Case – 1-4 – Matt Kindt wrote this one and Tyler Jenkins drew it. I usually like both of their stuff but this one was a bit of a miss for me. It was a horror story about a scary bag.
Psychodrama Illustrated – 4 – A wrap-up of a Gilbert Hernandez mini-series. His stuff is always good.
Resonant – 7-10 – Another post-apocalyptic series ends. It was okay.
Birthright – 46-50 – A long running magical fantasy series comes to an end. I bought 50 issue of it so I obviously think it’s good. 50 issues is a lot these days. Most series never come anywhere near issues 50.
Casual Fling – 1-4 – A mini-series about infidelity, blackmail, and crime. It was fun. It was more like an episode of a TV show than a comic. That’s rare in comics.
Radiant Black – 1-10 – A new ongoing superhero comic. A few twists and turns in the first year of this one. I look forward to more.
TMNT: The Last Ronin – 2-4 – For the first time ever I’m buying a Teenage Mutant Turtles comic. It tells the tale of the last days of the turtles. It’s good.
The Picture of Everything Else – 2-3 – This one stopped coming out but I was liking it. A horror story set in early 20th Century Paris about the painter who painted the Picture of Dorian Grey. I want more.
Terry Moore’s Serial – 1-9 – I buy everything Terry Moore does. It’s all good and this is no exception.
Ice Cream Man – 23-26 – Lots of cool covers and lots of fun horror stories. What does the Ice Cream Man have to do with it all? Who knows?
Goon – 13 – Only one issue of the Goon this year. Will there be more? I don’t know.
Karmen – 1-5 – This one is in the running for comic of the year for me. Guillem March tells the story of a dying woman and the angel (or whatever) that has to guide her to the afterlife. Lots of good art and storytelling and a story to ponder.
Deep Beyond – 1-11 – Only one issue left of this 12 issue sci-fi story (with a little post-apocalyptic fun thrown in). I’ve enjoyed this one all year.
Bitter Root – 11-15 – A good horror comic that seems to have come to an end. I’m not sure if there will be more of this but if there is I’ll pick it up.
Orphan and the Five Beasts – 1-4 – We’re still one issue away from the climax of this James Stokoe comic that is like a Hong Kong karate movie. The art is the star.
Geiger – 1-6 – Yet another post-apocalyptic comic. It was only a mini-series but more stories set in this world are coming.
The Silver Coin – 1-7 – A horror book that has a different writer every issue but Michael Walsh draws every issue. It reminds me a bit of a modern, and more adult, 1970s DC mystery comic. I like it.
Bloom – 1-4 – A mini-series that came out of nowhere for me. I saw the art in Comic Shop News, liked it, and then bought the comic. I’m glad I did. It’s a cool story about an artist who finds a model and then supernatural stuff happens. Very early 1970s trippy.
Grendel: The Devil’s Odyssey – 5-8 – We finally get an end to this mini-series. It was a weird ending that set it up for another series but I’ll buy that one too.
Locke & Key: Sandman: Hell and Gone – 1-2 – I finally started buying Locke & Key in single issues. Though I know almost nothing about the Sandman I thought this was a great story.
Love and Rockets: Volume 4 – 10 – One issue is all we got this year from Los Bros Hernandez. I’ll take it.
Outcast – 48 – The last issue of another Image comic that I’ve been buying for years. A good series.
Hey Kids! Comics! (Volume 2) – 1-6 – Howard Chaykin’s look at comic book history continues with a volume two. If that’s not enough to get you on board what is?
Time Before Time – 1-7 – This time travel gangster story started strong, wavered, but then picked up again.
Manifest Destiny – 43-45 – Only three issues this year (the third came out just this week) from this comic that is a cross between Lewis and Clark and a fantasy story. It’s wrapping up somewhere around issue 50 and I’ll be sad to see it go.
The Department of Truth – 1 (sixth print), 6-14 – I discovered and jumped onto this one this year. After reading the first collected edition on Hoopla I put it on my pull list. Lots of conspiracy stuff.
The Great Gatsby – 1-2, 2 Gold Foil Edition – I’ve been on a Great Gatsby kick this year. I reread Gatsby, read three books about Gatsby, read two Gatsby graphic novel adaptation, and am now enjoying this third (and best of the three) adaptations.
Vinyl- 1-6 – It’s a cult of killers versus a gang of serial killers in this over the top mini-series. With an FBI agent to two thrown into the mix to give us someone to relate to.
Groo Meets Tarzan – 1-4 – Not the best Groo story but issue one has a double page spread that made it all worth it.
The Me You Love in the Dark – 1-5 – A horror mini-series about a woman falling in love with a ghost. Or maybe it was just lust. Either way it’s a horror story so you know it’s not going to end well.
Elric: The Dreaming City – 1-2 – Another adaptation of Moorcock’s brooding anti-hero. I liked it. Only two issues though.
Dead Box – 1-2 – A weird horror not-quite-anthology. There are continuing parts and little self contained sub-stories about a strange town that’s isolated from a lot of the world.
A Righteous Thirst For Vengeance – 1-3 – it’s the visual storytelling that make this book. The story is about a guy who is trying to help people by posing as a hit man. Lots of intriguing stuff but not many answers yet.
Guillem March: Laura – 1-2 – I’m guessing hat the success of “Karmen” made them want to print this comic which is full of Guillem March’s earlier work. Not as good as “Karmen” but still good.
What’s the Furthest Place From Here – 1-2 – Another post-apocalyptic comic. This one is a little more quirky and peaceful than most. At least there isn’t over the top violence.
Newburn – 1-2 – I picked up two issues but that might be it. This was okay but didn’t grab me.
The Magic Order Volume 2 – 1-2 – Magic Order volume One was solid and I expect this volume to be too.
Regarding the Matter of Oswalds Body – 1-2 – A mini-series that appears to be about the crew who helped swap out Lee Harvey Oswald’s body. A good first two issues.
White Ash: Season Two – 1 – I liked Season One of this comic about a town that secretly has dwarves and elves living in it. This issue was good too. The art is terrific,
Lady Mechanica: The Monster of the Ministry of Hell – 1 – I finally decided to try a Lady Mechanica series and so far I’ve liked the first issue.
One Shots
Here is a list of the one shots I bought. They are mostly from After Shock Comics and are magazine size. I generally liked them all.
Corset – One Shot
The Beauty: All Good Things – One Shot
God Killer: Ashes – GN
God of Rumors – GN
Eden – GN
10 Years to Death – GN
After Dark: A Horror Anthology – GN
Miskatonic: Even Death May Die – GN
Tales of Mother F. Goose – GN
Bad Idea Comics
These are all the Bad Idea comics that I bought. I worked for Bad Idea this year and did the production work on these comics. You can find my name on the credits page. They’re all good comics too.
Odinn’s Eye – 1-2
Refuse x Last Resorts – One Shot
Monster Kill Squad – 1-2
Pyrate Queen – 1-3
Passive Aggressive – 1
The Lot – 1-4, 1 NFP
Eniac – 1-4, 1 NFP
Tankers – 1-3
Whalesville x Rocks and Minerals – 1, 1 NFP
Slay Bells – One Shot
Facsimile Editions
This is a list of the Facsimile Editions I bought this year. They’re all reprints of old comics.
Invincible: Amazon Promo Edition
Captain America – 117 Facsimile Edition
Amazing Spider-Man – 101 Facsimile Edition
Graphic Fantasy – 1-2 Facsimile Editions
Black Night – 1 – Facsimile Edition
Werewolf by Night – 32 Facsimile Edition
Conan -1 Facsimile Edition