1. GREEN LANTERN #0
After the shocking events of
Green Lantern Annual #1, how could this be anything other than THE most essential purchase of the week? Whether or not we will discover the fate of Hal Jordan and Sinestro remains unclear, but we do know that we'll see what happens to their rings after they merged and went off to hunt down a new ring bearer for Sector 2814. Of course, we already know that that will be 'Baz', a Muslim Arab-American. Various pieces of artwork from upcoming DC comic books have shown him battling the Justice League, so where his allegiances will eventually lie is another mystery. However, we DO know that he will be a member of next year's Justice League of America.
2. HAWKEYE #2
Last month, I awarded the first issue of Matt Fraction (
Invincible Iron Man) and David Aja's (
Immortal Iron Fist)
Hawkeye #1 a 5* rating (you can read that review by clicking
HERE). Will the second issue be as good? Well, one would certainly hope so, and the addition of a new supporting character in the form of Kate Bishop promises to really shake things up. Who is she? Well, as you should hopefully already know, that's the Young Avengers' 'Hawkeye'. Since the team disbanded at the conclusion of
Avengers: The Children's Crusade, none of the characters have played a prominent role in the Marvel Universe, so this comic should definitely prove to be a must-read for many a fan.
3 & 4. ANIMAL MAN #0 And SWAMP THING #0
Easily two of DC's best titles, the #0 issues of
Animal Man and
Swamp Thing look set to continue exploring the history of the Red, Green and Rot. Previews have shown that they will both feature flashbacks to earlier confrontations with Anton Arcane. The titles have crossed over with one another during the course of their first year, and after last month's prologue issues (which saw the two characters finally meet), this October will see "Rotworld" finally begin. These issues will undoubtedly continue to expand the universe created by Scott Snyder and Jeff Lemire, so any fans of the series would be a fool to miss out on them!
5. AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #693
The last issue of
Amazing Spider-Man introduced us to 'Alpha', a kid who has an awful lot of power and absolutely no responsibility. It's fallen to Peter Parker to take Andrew Maguire (seriously!) under his wing, but it hasn't exactly been an easy job for the superhero so far. As December's #700 gets nearer, writer Dan Slott has teased that all of these issues are laying the groundwork for the landmark instalment which the writer believes will result in him having to hide from fans! Some are speculating that it will feature Spider-Man having to KILL Alpha, but that's little more than rampant speculation at this point. Either way, this is one series which should always be on your pull list!
THE BEST OF THE REST...
6. WORLD’S FINEST #0
7. PHANTOM STRANGER #0
8. AVENGERS ACADEMY #36
9. ACTION COMICS #0
10. BEFORE WATCHMEN: SILK SPECTRE #3