January is quickly approaching and with four new comic book days it can be daunting to pick which books to buy. We breakdown a list of a few new comics we are excited to read including Bulls of Beacon Hill #1, Trojan #1, TMNT: The Last Ronin – The Lost Years #1 and more!
Of course, there are many on-going books that have release dates in January, but we are focusing on new series releases. Most of our selections come from independent publishers, but you may also see books from Marvel and DC Comics as well. This list is also subjective to what we are interested in reading.
Lastly, release dates are always subject to change due many different reasons. We will do our best to update this list as we are made aware of these changes.
Bulls of Beacon Hill #1
Release Date: January 4
Publisher: AfterShock Comics
Writer: Steve Orlando
Artist: Andy MacDonald
The team behind Justice League of America reunites for some hard-hitting revenge!
Doctor Christopher Boldt has everything he ever wanted: A successful career as a surgeon, a supportive and loving boyfriend, and an overload of hype on his rumored run for Boston City Council. But there’s one problem – it’s all held up by a lie. For years, Chris has been hiding in plain sight, desperate not to be connected to his father, Orin Paige, one of Boston’s most notorious gangsters.
Until now, Chris has been able to live with the secret. And Chris’s father has been just as happy to deny any connection to his queer son, who he sees as a liability in the mob world. Now, Chris’s political aspirations have put father and son on a collision course. A collision course bathed in blood.
From Eisner and GLAAD Award-Nominated writer Steve Orlando (Extreme Carnage, Midnighter, Darkhold) and artist Andy MacDonald (Rogue Planet, Loki, My Date With Monsters), comes Bulls of Beacon Hill, a story of family secrets and violent retribution.
Trojan #1
Release Date: January 4
Publisher: AWA Studios
Writer: Daniel Kraus
Artist: Marco Lesko, Laci, (CA) Jeff Dekal
Once upon a time, we lived alongside Legends. Creatures of myth. Centaurs, fauns, gorgons, kelpies, gnomes, and more. They were spectacular. Majestic. Powerful. Peaceful. Pure. In comparison, we were ugly. Weak. Warmongering. Rotten. Is it any wonder we could not live alongside them any longer? After driving these Legends to the fringes of society, an uglier form of mythos takes shape in the form of rumors of live snuff shows for dark web high rollers.
When a mysterious young woman, Nessa, enlists the help of a hacker to take a tour of the grisliest corners of the Dark Web, she sets in motion a war between those who peddle to mankind’s darkest fantasies and a world that transcends imagination. Trojan is fantasy thriller full of wonder and horror in equal measure.
Daniel Kraus will join the Capes and Tights Podcast for Episode 76 in early 2023 to discuss Trojan and Year Zero, Vol. 0.
Children of the Black Sun #1
Release Date: January 4
Publisher: Ablaze Publishing
Writer: Dario Sicchio
Artist: Letizia Cadonici
From the artist of the hit series House of Slaughter!
“It is not difficult to be happy under a blue sky. But it takes a lot of courage to be strong even under a black sun.”
Over the years, a black sun has risen twice. A dark dawn whose rays have done terrible things to people’s minds, driving them to all sorts of horror. Twelve years have passed since the last time and the world still fears the return of that inexplicable phenomenon. But fear is not the only legacy of those terrible days. All the women who got pregnant under the influence of the black sun have given birth to babies with some… peculiarities. White hair, ashy skin, abnormal proportions, and eyes as red as fire: the Children of the Black Sun.
Brightvale is a small town like many others. Here the Children of the Black Sun are treated with particularcontempt, especially in the days leading up to the anniversary of the two disasters. The hatred of their fellow villagers, terrified of a possible return of that horror, will push these kids to unite and embark on a hallucinatory journey to discover themselves and their true nature. But is the black sun really about to return?
Mosely #1
Release Date: January 4
Publisher: BOOM! Studios
Writer: Rob Guillory
Artist: Sam Lotfi
From Farmhand creator Rob Guillory and Sam Lotfi (Harley Quinn), Mosely is a satirical sci-fi blockbuster perfect for fans of God Country and Ghost Cage!
In the hyper-technological world of the later 21st century, Mosely is a bitter old janitor on a mission from a higher power-to unleash holy Hell upon the “too big to fail” Tech Gods.
Can one man bring down the corporate powers who’ve used their vast influence to oppress an all too complacent human race (and hopefully win back the favor of his estranged family while he’s at it)?
Mosely’s taking up the Holy Hammer and you better believe he’s gonna smash some $h!t until he sets mankind free!
Each issue has wall to wall content, and will feature a bonus story by series writer Guillory starting with issue #2!
Darkwing Duck #1
Release Date: January 11
Publisher: Dynamite
Writer: Amanda Deibert
Artist: Carlo Lauro, (CA) David Nakayama
He is the terror that flaps in the night…He is the ferocious fowl who plucks the evil eye from the face of foul play…He is Darkwing Duck! Alongside his trusty sidekick Lauchpad McQuack, Darkwing hyper-vigilantly defends St. Canard from the dastardly, devilish demons who would wage wanton war! By night, our caped defender lurks in the shadows, striking fear (and maybe confusion?) in the heart of the criminal underworld…but by day, no one suspects that Darkwing is also mild-mannered Drake Mallard, a well-meaning father to his adorable adopted daughter, Gosalyn!
Can Darkwing successfully navigate his two separate lives, all while looking incredibly cool and impossibly handsome? (Hint: Probably not, but…) You’ll have to read to find out!
All Night & Every Day #1
Release Date: January 11
Publisher: AfterShock Comics
Writer: Ray Fawkes
Artist: Andrea Frittella
It’s time to party! While celebrating is the last thing grief-stricken introvert Michaela wants to do, her friends drag her out for the night and end up trapping her in a hellish curse: a party that never ends, with no way to escape…not even by dying!
Now she must navigate the labyrinth of the legendary Banquet Hideous all on her own and learn its terrible secrets before she is consumed forever!
This horrifying new 48-page Prestige Format One Shock by acclaimed writer Ray Fawkes (Constantine, Gotham by Midnight, Jackpot!) and sensational artist Andrea Frittella (Borgata Gordiani) will rock you to your core…eternally!
Spy Superb #1
Release Date: January 11
Publisher: Dark Horse Comics
Writer: Matt Kindt
Artist: Matt Kindt
From New York Times bestselling and Harvey award-winning graphic novelist Matt Kindt (BRZRKR) comes the latest Flux House humorous espionage adventure.
It’s John Wick meets Wes Anderson in this mystery-thriller about a secret organization that’s developed the perfect spy. Who is the perfect spy? A spy who doesn’t even realize they are a spy. AKA the “useful idiot.” This particular useful idiot is named Jay. Jay is sent on missions without even realizing he’s on a mission.
Until he picks up the wrong phone with the wrong secret intel and now Russian hit-squads and elite assassins are after him. But Jay believes he was a sleeper agent-and really is the “spy superb”. His complete obliviousness and lack of survival skills may be the only thing that saves him in this globe-trotting espionage tale… where nothing is what it seems… but also… kind of actually is what it seems.
Spawn: Unwanted Violence #1
Release Date: January 11
Publisher: Image Comics
Writer: Todd McFarlane
Artist: Mike Del Mundo
Information can be one of the most valuable resources in the world. It can also be one of the most difficult to obtain. Luckily for Spawn, he has the freak. The Freak is a master of getting what he needs out of a subject. But as the Freak works at extracting the whereabouts of “File F,” Al witnesses an act of senseless violence-one that he can’t ignore.
The writing of Todd McFarlane (Spawn, Amazing Spider-Man) meets the incredible art of Mike Del Mundo (Carnage, Thor) in Spawn: Unwanted Violence, a two-part miniseries that forces Spawn to confront the very nature of good and evil!
Black Cloak #1
Release Date: January 11
Publisher: Image Comics
Writer: Kelly Thompson
Artist: Meredith McClaren
Eisner Award-winning writer Kelly Thompson heads to Image for the first time with Black Cloak, an all-new series with artist Meredith McClaren! Blade Runner style mixes with Saga-esque drama in a delectable fantasy/sci-fi blend as two Black Cloaks try to solve the murder of a beloved prince in Kiros, the last city in the known world, before his murder tips the city into war.
Immortal Sergeant #1
Release Date: January 18
Publisher: Image Comics
Writer: Joe Kelly
Artist: Ken Niimura
Award-winning I Kill Giants storytellers Joe Kelly (Deadpool, Savage Spider-Man) and Ken Niimura (Umami) return to yank on your heartstrings with Immortal Sergeant!
On the eve of his unwelcome retirement, Jim Sargent (aka “Sarge”) a grizzled, old-school detective, catches a break on a murder case that’s haunted him for decades. Unfortunately, Sarge must drag his anxiety-riddled adult son, Michael, along for the ride or risk losing the lead forever. Can this dysfunctional duo overcome their own hang-ups, blindspots, and secrets to catch a killer?
Hush Ronin #1
Release Date: January 18
Publisher: Band of Bards
Writer: Jeremiah Schiek
Artist: Jeremiah Schiek
Orphaned by the increasingly violent clan wars that have been instigated by the treacherous and mysterious Red Lady, young Minagawa Shoji flees home, lost and alone, into the mountains above his scorched village. There he finds and befriends a teacher; a mysterious old man who teaches him to speak with the Voice of the Mountains.
Years later, returning from his voluntary exile, Shoji finds his world more war torn than ever. After happening upon the aftermath of a decisive battle at Akagahara, Shoji finds himself the unwitting custodian of the legendary Mugendai Blade, and its companion Scorpion Stone. Will he use these relics to turn the tide against the malevolent Red Lady? Or will he further withdraw from these troubles, and retreat back into the mountains?
TMNT: The Last Ronin – The Lost Years #1
Release Date: January 25
Publisher: IDW Publishing
Writer: Kevin Eastman, Tom Waltz
Artist: Ben Bishop, SL Gallant
In the smash-hit miniseries TMNT: The Last Ronin, readers witnessed the final gut-wrenching days of the Heroes in a Half Shell. For Michelangelo in particular, the march to his heartbreaking last battle was long and dangerous, taking him from New York City, to Japan, across Asia and Europe, and then back home again to administer final justice against those guilty of killing his family. But what happened during those fateful years when he had only the need for vengeance and Master Splinter’s journal to guide him? What battles did he fight? What hard lessons did he learn?
The time has come to find out as original miniseries writers Kevin Eastman and Tom Waltz join artist Ben Bishop to reveal what adventures the Last Ronin experienced during his vengeful journey. While in the present, a new master, Casey Marie Jones, prepares her young terrapin students to be the next generation of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles!
