On Episode 261 of the Capes and Tights Podcast, Justin Soderberg and comic book retailer Paul Eaton discussed their Comics of the Year 2025. For your convenience we have compiled the list in written format. This list includes 10 selections from Justin and 10 from Paul with a couple crossovers.
Only one rule…two issues must have been released in 2025. This can be the first two issue, or the last two issues of a series.
10. News from the Fallout // Justin Soderberg
Writer: Chris Condon
Artist: Jeffrey Alan Love
Publisher: Image Comics
Interrupting your regularly scheduled broadcast to deliver a terrifying sci-fi story that takes place in Nevada in 1962 after a nuclear bomb test goes horribly awry.
In 1962 Nevada’s “Atomic Alley,” a nuclear bomb test goes horribly awry at the secretive Gaines Army Base and unleashes a contaminate into the atmosphere that turns people rotten. Otis Fallows, a private in the U.S. Army who is present for the test and is the only known survivor, flees the secret army base in search of a safe haven —
but does such a place exist?
10. EC Catacomb of Torment // Paul Eaton
Writer: Various
Artist: Various
Publisher: Oni Press
For Her Royal Travesty of Pain’s first request: Master storytellers John Arcudi (B.P.R.D), Marguerite Bennett (Batwoman), Matt Bors (The Toxic Avenger), Evan Dorkin (Beasts of Burden), J. Holtham (The Horizon Experiment), Patricia A. Jackson (Star Wars: Tales from the New Republic), and Matt Kindt (BRZRKR), join artists Valeria Burzo (EC’s Epitaphs from the Abyss), Kano (EC’s Cruel Universe), Lukas Ketner (Count Crowley), David Lapham (Stray Bullets), Shawn Martinbrough (Thief of Thieves), Dan McDaid (Shazam!), Patrick Piazzalunga (Monsters Are My Business), Fabiana Mascolo (Cyberpunk 2077), Sami Kivelä (Abbott), Shawn McManus (Fables), and Christopher Mitten (The Autumn Kingdom) to turn the red-hot irons on all-new, blisteringly brutal tales of mayhem and malice in the undying EC tradition!
The critics are already saying, “This is literal torture” and “Please make it stop!” Pick up this fright-packed and fearful first volume — and we might just consider letting them go!
9. The Guy in the Chair // Justin Soderberg
Writer: Hannah Rose May, Utkarsh Ambudkar
Artist: Guillermo Sanna
Publisher: Dark Horse
In the blood-soaked world of assassins and spies, love has no place. Unfortunately for Abhi, a tactical analyst at a private military company, love is all he can think about. Against his employer’s strict policy, he’s fallen head over heels for Merlin, the field operative whose missions he supports as her “Guy in the Chair.”
When Merlin shows up at his apartment bloody, beaten, and pleading for help, Abhi is yanked from behind the safety of his computer screens, and now the two must prevent their former employer and a cabal of corporate overlords from a hostile global takeover that threatens all of humanity.
9. Bug Wars // Paul Eaton
Writer: Jason Aaron
Artist: Mahmud Asrar
Publisher: Image Comics
Honey, I Shrunk The Kids meets Conan The Barbarian in this epic tale of a kid from Alabama suddenly lost in a vicious world beyond his imagining, a world of marauding ant armies, spell-casting spider witches, and beetle-riding barbarians
The Old Slaymaker House; Neighbors whisper about it. Children dare each other to step foot in its overgrown lawn. Exterminators refuse to visit and shudder at the thought of what multi-limbed monsters may burrow in its earth. For Slade Slaymaker and his brother Sydney, it’s the last remnant of their father, a dedicated entomologist devoured by the very creatures he dedicated his life to understanding. Slade, too young to remember his death, continues his legacy with his own love of all things insect. Sydney, old enough to remember the gruesome scene, despises and seeks to annihilate any bug he sees.
When these two brothers’ opposing obsessions clash, Slade finds himself shrunk to the size of his diminutive subjects and thrust into the middle of a brutal Bug War, an earth-shattering struggle that will decide the fate of his family and, perhaps, uncover the secrets behind his father’s gruesome demise.
8. Out of Alcatraz // Justin Soderberg
Writer: Christopher Cantwell
Artist: Tyler Crook
Publisher: Oni Press
Born from one of the greatest unsolved mysteries of the 20th century, Eisner Award–nominated writer Christopher Cantwell (Plastic Man No More, Briar) and Eisner Award–nominated illustrator Tyler Crook (Harrow County, The Lonesome Hunters) present the year’s most taut and breathtaking graphic novel event…
Convicts Frank Morris and Clarence Anglin have washed ashore in San Francisco after surviving their infamous escape from Alcatraz Federal Penitentiary in June 1962. They soon meet their gruff and disappointed handler, a mysterious young woman who’s also running from something, and hope to quickly get their way north to the border — if they can even make it out of Modesto alive. As a dogged federal manhunt and chance encounters threaten the desperate convicts, everyone involved is about to discover the same bloodstained truth: Life on the run is an even more hellish prison than Alcatraz could have ever been…
8. Those Not Afraid // Paul Eaton
Writer: Kyle Starks
Artist: Patrick Piazzalunga
Publisher: Dark Horse
Two serial killers discover they are within reach of the state record for kills and enter a terrible competition to see who gets there first. Learn more about our awful killers Mark Christopher Ewing and Daniel Dodson and their grotesque activities as we enter a frightening game of cat-and-mouse between killers and police. A great graphic novel for fans of true crime and murder fiction.
7. Those Not Afraid // Justin Soderberg
Writer: Kyle Starks
Artist: Patrick Piazzalunga
Publisher: Dark Horse
Two serial killers discover they are within reach of the state record for kills and enter a terrible competition to see who gets there first. Learn more about our awful killers Mark Christopher Ewing and Daniel Dodson and their grotesque activities as we enter a frightening game of cat-and-mouse between killers and police. A great graphic novel for fans of true crime and murder fiction.
7. Batman: Dark Patterns // Paul Eaton
Writer: Dan Watters
Artist: Hayden Sherman
Publisher: DC Comics
Batman: Dark Patterns is a series of four self-contained, street-level mysteries that delve into the early days of Batman’s role in Gotham City and his healing presence within its streets.
This grounded, mystery-driven narrative evokes the rich tone and style of beloved classics such as Batman: Year One, Batman: The Long Halloween, and Batman: Hush. Penned by the talented Dan Watters and brought to life through the striking artistry of Hayden Sherman, each three-part story stands alone as a gripping detective case, shedding light on the trauma and resilience of Gotham’s citizens and its urban landscape.
The series masterfully underscores Batman’s dual identity as a methodical sleuth and a shadowy beacon of hope, skillfully steering clear of cosmic or supernatural distractions. This intentional focus reassures readers of a steadfast commitment to a more authentic, detective-driven experience, highlighting relatable mysteries that brilliantly showcase the Dark Knight as a healer cloaked in darkness.
6. Spectators // Justin Soderberg
Writer: Brian K. Vaughan
Artist: Niko Henrichon
Publisher: Image Comics
Putting the “graphic” back in graphic novel, this unconventional supernatural romance takes a hard look at sex and violence, and the very different ways we obsessively watch both.
Hundreds of years in the future, New York City is haunted by many ghosts, including a voyeuristic woman who died in our present day and a mysterious gun-toting man from the distant past. Normally solo travelers, these two specters meet each other just in time to observe what might be the end of the (living) world.
6. Escape // Paul Eaton
Writer: Rick Remender
Artist: Daniel Acuña
Publisher: Image Comics
Set in a brutal, fully painted world of anthropomorphic animals — equal parts Inglourious Basterds and Watership Down — Escape is a gritty, bullet-riddled journey through war’s scorched aftermath. It’s about the violence we inflict, the souls we try to save, and the courage it takes to crawl out of fire.
Milton Shaw is a battle-hardened bomber pilot, flying missions over a war-torn world ruled by a ruthless empire. But when his plane is shot out of the sky, Milton wakes up behind enemy lines — in the smoldering ruins of a city he helped burn. And in less than 24 hours, his own side is dropping the big one to finish the job.
Now, injured, unarmed, and being hunted through enemy streets, Milton’s only shot at escape comes from the unlikeliest place: a grieving father and his son — civilians shattered by the same fascist regime that rules this land with an iron claw. Enemies by blood. Allies by circumstance. Together, they’ll have to fight their way out before the bomb drops and erases everything… and everyone.
5. The Exorcism at 1600 Penn // Justin Soderberg
Writer: Hannah Rose May
Artist: Vanesa Del Rey
Publisher: IDW Publishing
Kelly Doyle has just been elected the first female president of the United States of America, and boiling political tension could spill over at any second. Having to balance being a mother to two teenagers and navigating the shifting media landscape, all while preventing World War III, has Kelly spread thin, but she could never predict that the nation’s hallowed halls would soon become a demonic battleground for good versus evil.
5. Transformers // Paul Eaton
Writer: Daniel Warren Johnson
Artist: Jorge Corona
Publisher: Image Comics
Megatron has returned to lead the Decepticons, and only Optimus Prime may be able to stop him.
The war between the Autobots and Decepticons has all been leading to the shocking conclusion that NO ONE will see coming!
4. Exquisite Corpses // Justin Soderberg
Writer: James Tynion IV, Michael Walsh, Pornsak Pichetshote
Artist: Michael Walsh, Marianna Ignazzi, Valentine De Landro
Publisher: Image Comics
Every five years on Halloween, the wealthiest families in America play a game. Twelve of the deadliest people in the world are dropped into a small town with just one goal: last killer standing wins. For the citizens of Oak Valley, Maine – this year’s unlucky arena – the goal is much simpler. They must survive the night.
4. Absolute Batman // Paul Eaton
Writer: Scott Snyder
Artist: Nick Dragotta
Publisher: DC Comics
An astonishing new version of DC’s iconic characters is here! In the Absolute Universe, familiar heroes have been reinvented from the ground up with origin stories that completely reshape both their abilities and their circumstances but maintain the core characteristics that fans have known and loved for decades!
Bruce Wayne comes from nothing. He’s not the scion of a wealthy empire in Gotham City, he’s the son of a public school teacher who he experienced the unimaginable horror of random gun violence as a child, changing the trajectory of his life forever. With no limitless resources, no billions to fund him, no mansion, and no butler to care for him, Bruce has shaped himself into an entirely different breed of Batman, one that is equal parts brain and brawn, who exists exclusively in the grittiest and most underserved parts of Gotham with no high society mask to fall back on.
3. Final Boss // Justin Soderberg
Writer: Tyler Kirkham
Artist: Tyler Kirkham
Publisher: Image Comics
Get ready for an over-the-top adventure that’s a high-octane nod to classic action stories. Trying to forge a new path, Tommy uses his newfound powers for various paid enforcer gigs and street fights, only to uncover a past far more complex than he ever imagined.
3. G.I. Joe // Paul Eaton
Writer: Joshua Williamson
Artist: Tom Reilly, Andrea Milana
Publisher: Image Comics
In the aftermath of the Autobots and Decepticons’ arrival on Earth, the mysterious organization known as Cobra begins their rise to power. Now, Conrad Hauser, Codename: Duke, must lead a special forces team known as G.I. JOE to take them down.
But what will the newly formed rag-tag group do when the enigmatic Cobra Commander unleashes the terrifying power of Energon on humanity?
2. Look Out // Justin Soderberg
Writer: Dan Baillie
Artist: Tim Bradstreet
Publisher: AWA Studios
When Oscar, recuperating from a divorce, takes a job as a fire lookout in a remote forest outpost, he unearths a mangled sheet of paper inscribed with a strange set of rules that promise to keep him safe during his watch. Oscar laughs it off as a prank— a bit of light hazing from the other fire lookouts in the area — but when night falls, he discovers that the rules, and the threat they protect against, are all too real.
2. Absolute Wonder Woman // Paul Eaton
Writer: Kelly Thompson
Artist: Hayden Sherman
Publisher: DC Comics
Without the island paradise, without the sisterhood that shaped her, without a mission of peace… she’s still the Absolute Amazon!
Spiraling out of the catastrophic events of Absolute Power, a new side of the DC Universe is born! In the Absolute Universe, familiar heroes have been reinvented from the ground up with origin stories that completely reshape both their abilities and their circumstances but maintain the core characteristics that fans have known and loved for decades!
In the “classic” DC universe, the Amazons have stood forever apart from Man’s World, forbidding all contact with the outside. But in this new re-imagining, they’ve had their hands in our history for millennia — preventing monster incursions from realms beyond our own, and protecting human society as it developed. But for young Diana, the daughter of the Amazons’ leader, Hippolyta, this isn’t enough. She was raised to be the finest warrior. When she defies both her mother and Zeus, she finds herself exiled from Themyscira and into Man’s World — without her divine powers, and carrying only a few “borrowed” weapons. Now she has something to prove. She’s going to do what the other Amazons refused to do: she isn’t just going to SAVE this world, she’s going to CHANGE it.
1. Beneath the Trees Where Nobody Sees: Rite of Spring // Justin Soderberg
Writer: Patrick Horvath
Artist: Patrick Horvath
Publisher: IDW Publishing
It’s been eight long years since a bloodlusting brown bear drove into the city, kidnapped a kind young duck, dissected his body, and buried the pieces in the woods. The duck’s family painstakingly sought justice… but this brown bear was smart… she covered her tracks… and in the ’80s, there simply wasn’t a way for the duck’s family to find answers.
But it’s not the ’80s anymore. Almost a decade after cuddly brown bear Samantha Strong solidified herself as the sole serial killer in Woodbrook, the world is entering a new era. As Samantha will soon find out, there are no secrets in the age of the internet. And those who lost loved ones to her massacre haven’t given up the flame of justice.
A reckoning is coming to Woodbrook. Join visionary writer and artist Patrick Horvath as he returns to the hit series that has taken the comic world by storm!
1. Exquisite Corpses // Paul Eaton
Writer: James Tynion IV, Michael Walsh, Pornsak Pichetshote
Artist: Michael Walsh, Marianna Ignazzi, Valentine De Landro
Publisher: Image Comics
Every five years on Halloween, the wealthiest families in America play a game. Twelve of the deadliest people in the world are dropped into a small town with just one goal: last killer standing wins. For the citizens of Oak Valley, Maine – this year’s unlucky arena – the goal is much simpler. They must survive the night.
