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26 comics to look out for this December
Every month, SYFY WIRE likes to let you know which new comics to look out for as you head to your local shop, and this December is a big one in terms of new stories, epic conclusions, and big connecting events.
As we come to the end of the year, the Big Two publishers are looking ahead to what's in store for their respective universes in 2020 while also wrapping up some big 2019 storytelling. At Marvel, that takes the form of things like Incoming and the much-anticipated conclusion of Jason Aaron's Thor run, while over at DC they're wrapping up Year of the Villain, closing the book on a major Batman chapter, and finally dropping the final issue of Doomsday Clock.
If you're looking for stories outside the realms of Marvel and DC, there's plenty to enjoy there too. This month will give us a massive crossover between the Power Rangers and the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, launch James Bond into a new comic book era, and deliver an all-new clash between the Aliens and the Predators, but it doesn't stop there. We've also got plenty of amazing new original stories from top creators, including the near-future adventure 20XX, the next chapter of The Old Guard, a monster hunting romp starring the Duke of Wellington, and an all-new Klaus special just in time for Christmas.
Check out our top picks for the month in comics below, and start updating your pull lists.
Year of the Villain's Conclusion
DC Comics' massive event Year of the Villain has been sowing the seeds of chaos in the DC Universe throughout 2019, and now it's all about to begin winding down. In addtion to a new Year of the Villain one-shot starring Ocean Master (in stores December 11) and the new Harley Quinn: Villain of the Year one-shot (also arriving December 11), this month will see the launch of the concluding miniseries for the entire event. Year of the Villain: Hell Arisen from writer James Tynion IV and artist Steve Epting kicks off a pivotal battle between Lex Luthor and the Batman Who Laughs on December 18. It's all come down to this.
Two epic Thor stories
It's a good month to be a Thor fan, because some of the best creators to ever work on the God of Thunder's adventures are bringing their best to Marvel Comics. It begins on December 4 with Thor: The Worthy, a trio of new stories uniting some of the greatest Thor talent ever for new stories focusing on Thor and Beta Ray Bill, Thunderstrike, and Lady Sif. Then, on December 18, the years-in-the-making conclusion to Jason Aaron's epic Thor run comes to a close with the fourth and final issue of King Thor. Aaron and a team of superstar artists will show us the final stand of All-Father Thor as he faces Gorr, the God of God-Butchers, one last time.
The Power Rangers meet the TMNT
One of the great joys of licensed comics right now is the occasional opportunities creators have to united various childhood favorites for new adventures, and this month to of the biggest are getting the crossover treatment. Mighty Morphin Power Rangers/Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles #1, from writer Ryan Parrott and artist Simone Di Meo, shows what happens when the Rangers head to New York City to find an old friend and end up crossing paths with the half-shelled heroes we all know and love. How could we possibly resist a team-up like that? The first issue drops December 4.
James Bond returns
Next year we get to see a brand-new James Bond adventure on the big-screen, but we don't have to wait any longer for the next 007 epic on the comics page. On December 4 Dynamite Entertainment is launching an all-new James Bond ongoing series from writers Vita Ayala and Danny Lore and artist Eric Gapstur, featuring Bond diving deep into the world of international art forgery. If you've got a Bond craving and you just can't wait for a new movie, you might want to go ahead and get your fix right here. The first issue lands December 4.
Klaus and the Life and Times of Joe Christmas
The release of a new Klaus one-shot adventure from writer Grant Morrison and artist Dan Mora has become a holiday tradition in recent years, and this year the creative team is kicking things up a notch with their most ambitious tale yet. As the title suggests, the new Klaus issue will tell the story of Joe Christmas, who was taken in by Klaus and helped him out in a number of ways over the years. In a tale told in the "widescreen" style Morrison previously used on New X-Men, we'll get not one, but 25 different peeks into Joe Christmas' life, as Morrison and Mora take an advent calendar approach to Klaus stories. The issue arrives just in time for Christmas, on December 18.
A big month for Star Wars comics
It's a big month for Star Wars fans, but not just because a new movie's hitting theaters on December 20. We've also got three new Marvel Comics Star Wars events to look out for, and all it kicks of on December 4 with Star Wars Saga, a special attempt to sum up the Star Wars ongoing series so far as it heads into a new era. And speaking of that new era, the Empire Strikes Back leg of the Marvel Comics journey also begins this month with Star Wars: Empire Ascendant #1, arriving December 18. Now that the Star Wars ongoing is over, get ready for what happens next as Luke, Leia, and the gang head for Hoth. If you're after something more in line with The Rise of Skywalker, though, Marvel has that too. The Rise of Kylo Ren, a new miniseries from writer Charles Soule and artist Will Sliney, kicks off December 18 as well, and promises to show us how the troubled young Ben Solo first set foot on the path to being the Supreme Leader of the First Order.
Dark Knight Returns: The Golden Child
It's been three years since Dark Knight III: The Master Race, and in some ways it's hard to believe that The Dark Knight Returns stood for years as a single four-issue story. Frank Miller has since greatly expanded his strange alternate future for Batman and his family, and now he's returning to that universe again for this special story uniting Lara, Carrie Kelley, and the titular "golden child," Jonathan Kent. Featuring art by the legendary, Rafael Grampa, The Golden Child arrives December 11.
Wellington
If you love secret histories, historical drama, and the intertwining of fact and supernatural fiction, then Wellington might be exactly what you're looking for. The new miniseries from Lore creator Aaron Mahnke, featuring art by Piotr Kowalski, promises to explore the secret adventures of the Duke of Wellington, England's great military hero who also happened to be one of England's greatest monster hunters. That's a hook that's hard to pass up. The first issue drops December 18.
The Visitor
In the years since its stellar revival, Valiant Entertainment has proved over and over again that it can crank out intriguing new superhero series with top-tier talent with dazzling regularity. This December is no different in that regard, because we're getting The Visitor, a new series from legendary writer Paul Levitz and artist M.J. Kim which promises to tell the story of the unstoppable titular character whose very existence makes the most powerful people in the world terrified. We'll find out why when the series launches December 18.
20XX
If you're looking for something outside the realm of standard superhero stories that still packs plenty of supernatural flavor, you might want to check out 20XX. From creators Jonathan Luna and Lauren Keely, the series presents a near-future world divided among "norms" and "syms," people with telekinetic abilities. The syms have formed a subculture of their own, made up of gangs that help them to survive while surrounded by norms, but as Mer and Nuon are about to find out, the gangs are sometimes only there to divide the world even more. The first issue drops December 4.
Incoming
Marvel spent much of 2019 celebrating its 80th anniversary as a comics publisher with everything from special variant covers to one-shots with major implications for the future of the Marvel Universe. Now, we get to see how all of that groundwork leads into what's next with Incoming, a new mystery that will united the heroes of Marvel. Featuring an all-star team including creators like Al Ewing, Jim Cheung, Saladin Ahmed, Jason Aaron, Joe Bennett, Donny Cates and many more, Incoming arrives to chart the course of Marvel's future on Christmas Day.
Two epic DC Comics finales
In 2016, writer Tom King set out with epic plans for a 100-issue Batman story. In 2017, writer Geoff Johns and artist Gary Frank set out with epic plans for a crossover event that would unit the DC Universe and the Watchmen universe. This month, both of those ambitious stories reach an apex. On December 18, with Batman #85, King's mammoth run with the Dark Knight will close a pivotal chapter with the conclusion to the "City of Bane" saga that's run through Batman for the last several month. King's story will continue next year in a new series uniting Batman and Catwoman, but this is still a pivotal moment.
For Doomsday Clock, though, this is at long last the final hour. More than two years after the first issue of the mammoth series was published, Johns and Frank will finally conclude their story with Doomsday Clock #12 on December 18.
Dying is Easy
You'd think Joe Hill would be busy enough right now thanks to his DC Comics "Hill House" imprint, his TV work, and his new prose releases, but he's still got time to drop new stories, and this month brings the latest with Dying is Easy. With some help from artist Martin Simmonds, Hill's new story will united the worlds of murder and stand-up comedy for a story of an ex-cop turned comic, a joke stealer, and a contract for murder. The first issue lands December 11.
Conan: Serpent War
It's been a while now since Conan the Barbarian rejoined the Marvel Comics universe, and he seems to be fitting in just fine. He's had adventures in his own timeline, adventures with the Avengers, and now he's in for a bit of both. Serpent War will unite Conan with Solomon Kane, Moon Knight, and Dark Agnes for a four-issue epic spanning all of time and space. Writer Jim Zub and artist Scot Eaton bring the first massive chapter to you on December 4.
Wonder Woman: Dead Earth
Next year we'll get a brand-new Wonder Woman movie, but before that happens Diana of Themyscira will have to fight her way through a nuclear wasteland. That's the hook at the heart of Dead Earth, a new four-issue DC Black Label miniseries from writer and artist Daniel Warren Johnson. In his DC Comics debut, Johnson presents us with a version of Diana who wakes from centuries of sleep to find a fallen world that only she can protect. She'll have to fight to survive, but she'll also be fighting to simply figure out what went wrong. The first issue arrives December 18.
Aliens vs. Predator: Thicker than Blood
One of the great joys of the Alien and the Predator franchises is their ability to be transplanted into just about any scenario. Pick a time, pick a place, throw these interstellar monsters into the mix, and there's a good chance you'll have a good time. For their latest Dark Horse Comics adventure, the Aliens and the Predators will be transported — courtesy of writer Jeremy Barlow and artist Doug Wheatly — onto a luxury space cruise. That seems like a recipe for some enjoyable chaos, and we'll find out just how much chaos there is when the first issue drops on December 11.
Dr. Strange
Mark Waid is a writer who's been around long enough and worked with enough characters that he can almost always find an intriguing way in to launch a new series, and he's done it again with Doctor Stephen Strange. In Dr. Strange #1, Strange's life is drastically altered when his hands are at long last healed. He's still the Sorcerer Supreme, but now he also has the chance to be a brilliant surgeon once more. But how will he balance both paths, and what will happen when the cost of trying to do both comes back to haunt him. Featuring art by Kev Walker, Dr. Strange #1 arrives December 25.
The Old Guard: Force Multiplied
The Old Guard, the story of a group of mercenaries who keep fighting throughout 6,000 years of human history, has one of the best hooks of any comic in recent years, which helps explain why it's on its way to the big screen soon. Before that happens, though, writer Greg Ruck and artist Leandro Fernandez are back to tell the second chapter in the epic saga of The Old Guard, and it would appear the past is ready to come back to haunt Andromache and her soldiers. The first issue of Force Multiplied drops December 18.
Suicide Squad
This month, ahead of the releasing of Birds of Prey in early 2020, DC Comics' Suicide Squad will get a relaunch with a new lineup and a new creative team led by writer Tom Taylor and artist Bruno Redondo. The key selling point? In an echo of Squad comics of old, Taylor's promising that we shouldn't get too attached to this antiheroes. In fact, half the team could be dead by the end of the first issue. We'll find out who when Suicide Squad #1 drops December 18.
The Red Mother
If you're looking for a new horror comic to check out this December, you might not need to look any further than The Red Mother, the new series from writer Jeremy Haun and artist Danny Luckert. The series follows Daisy, a young woman who lost both an eye and a man she loved over the course of a single horrifying mugging. Now, as she tries to recover from the trauma, Daisy finds she's seeing things through her prosthetic replacement eye...and a force known as The Red Mother seems to see her as well. We'll find out exactly what that enticing hook is all about when the first issue arrives December 11.
