This week’s Top Comics to buy for June 26 features the return of a major Image Comics title for a new story arc, with Department of Truth #23. On top of that, I was digging a pair of ongoings penned by Rick Remender, as well as the latest Black Label title, and a cool conclusion. You can find all five of my recs below, along with the usual set of release lists … enjoy!
Top Comics to Buy for June 26, 2024
Department of Truth #23
Writer: James Tynion IV
Artist: Martin Simmonds
Letterer: Aditya Bidikar
Publisher: Image Comics
Confronted with an enemy intent on exposing their secrets to the world, the Department of Truth makes a shocking choice-go public first. But to understand Lee Harvey Oswald’s risky gambit, we have to return to where it all started: Dallas, 1963, as President John F. Kennedy’s motorcade passed the grassy knoll… Multiple Eisner-winning writer James Tynion IV and acclaimed artist Martin Simmonds bring their celebrated series back from hiatus with the bang heard around the world!
Why It’s Cool: This has been one of my favorite books since it started, playing with the idea of the power of belief in a story…even when it’s false. And the start of this new story arc is really a doozy, going right at some of the core mysteries of the title. I couldn’t put it down.
Price: $3.99
Grommets #2
Writer: Rick Remender & Brian Posehn
Artist: Brett Parson
Colorist: Moreno Dinisio
Letterer: Rus Wooton
Publisher: Image Comics – Giant Generator
The Grommets’ big day out! After some fine dining at the Bell, Rick and Brian meet up with the Jens to skate a parking garage. They’ll face security guards, jock thugs, and wipeouts in a classic day of unsupervised danger, fun, and adventure in the lives of 80s suburban latchkey kids.
Why It’s Cool: This comic has been such a welcome surprise, a charming teen drama filled with detailed engaging artwork and great characters. The 1985 Sacramento setting is also a lot of fun, and the plot finds great ways to make the stakes seem high. This is my favorite book of the year that wasn’t on my radar at all before it launched.
Price: $3.99
Rare Flavours #6
Writer: Ram V
Artist: Filipe Andrade
Color Assists: Ines Amaro
Letterer: AndWorld Design
Publisher: BOOM! Studios
Against all odds, Rubin and Mo’s documentary seems like it will finally be finished… but with Rubin nowhere to be found, just what exactly is he intending? Ram V and Filipe Andrade’s delectable story of celebrity, demons, and that indelible magic of cooking reaches its climactic final issue, with an ending that cements the book as another must-read from the Eisner, Harvey, and Ringo-Award nominated team.
Why It’s Cool: This latest Ram V-Filipe Andrade collaboration has been compelling and smart from the jump, and now we get a (very satisfying) finale. In short, if you haven’t been reading this one, you’re going to want to catch up in trade now.
Price: $4.99
Sacrificers #9
Writer: Rick Remender
Artist: Max Fiumara
Colorist: Dave McCaig
Letterer: Rus Wooton
Publisher: Image Comics – Giant Generator
With the world falling deeper into chaos, the consequences of Pigeon’s choices come back to haunt him. Now, he must decide if he’ll be consumed by guilt and loss, or if he’ll rise up to take his vengeance on the gods.
Why It’s Cool: What’s been an excellent series from the start feels like it’s realizing its true vision here — which is an abused former doomed sacrifice taking on the literal powerful gods who were feeding on people like him. See any real world parrelels there? Oh, and the art in this comic is absolutely amazing.
Price: $3.99
Zatanna: Bringing Down the House #1
Writer: Mariko Tamaki
Artist: Javier Rodriguez
Letterer: Hassan Otsmane-Elhaou
Publisher: DC Comics – Black Label
And now, the moment you’ve all been waiting for…please put your hands together for Zatanna Zatara! The greatest entertainer in the crappiest hotel and casino of Las Vegas! Not that the ritzier spots on the Strip haven’t come calling, of course. But since a devastating instance of magic gone wrong that forever changed the course of her childhood, Zatanna would much rather live out her days as a top-hat-and-fishnets-wearing sleight-of-hand stage act than bother with real magic. These days, she doesn’t think much of the past at all. That is, until an interdimensional vortex cracks open during Zatanna’s act, and a terrifying demon crawls out to kill her. If she hopes to survive the horrors that follow it, she’ll need to take herself and her power seriously for the first time in a long time–and fast. Because when it comes to your past, you can run…but you can’t hide forever!
Why It’s Cool: This is one of a growing number of DC Black Label books that pairs the perfect creative team with the perfect classic DC character — to great results. Everything Javier Rodriguez draws is a must buy, and this dive into the world of Zatanna and her magic is no exception. Something special is starting here.
Price: $5.99
Other Favorites
Blood Squad Seven #2- Blue Book 1947 #5
- The Flash #10
- Green Arrow #13
- Lester of the Lesser Gods #2
- Rook Exodus #3
- Superman #15
- Ultimate Black Panther #5
- Universal Monsters – Creature From the Black Lagoon Lives #3
- Void Rivals #10
New #1s and One-Shots
- Absolute Power – Ground Zero #1 (one-shot)
- Gatchaman #1
- Gatchaman – Ken Deathmatch #1 (one-shot)
- Giant-Size Little Marvels #1
- Godzilla – Here There Be Dragons II – Sons of Giants #1
- Neil Gaiman’s Anansi Boys I #1
- Resident Alien – Book of Life #1
- Thanos Annual #1 (one-shot)
- Sonic the Hedgehog – Spring Broken #1 (one-shot)
- X-Men Blood Hunt Magik #1 (one-shot)
Graphic Novels and Trade Collections
Batman/Catwoman – The Gotham War HC- Brownstone TP
- Cobra Commander Vol. 1 – Determined to Rule the World TP
- Dark Ride Vol. 3 – The Devil’s Due TP
- Denizen TP
- EC Archives – Crime SuspenStories Vol. 2 TP
- Hack/Slash Back to School TP
- Hellboy – The Crooked Man and the Return of Effie Kolb TP
- Kaya Book 3 TP
- Lobo – Big Fraggin Compendium 1 TP
- Our Bones Dust TP
- The Penguin Vol. 1 TP
- Realm of X TP
- Sins of Sinister TP
- Usagi Yojimbo 40th Anniversary Reader TP
Read past editions of the Top Comics to Buy!
