Marvel Comics #1000 and 28 other comics to watch out for this August

Every month, SYFY WIRE brings you the best new comics you should watch out for at your local shop, and this August is another busy one. Whether you're looking for superhero crossover events or creator-owned genre fare, we've got you covered.

Over in the Big Two, it's a month of major debuts, including a new Batman/Superman team-up series at DC and the launch of the Absolute Carnage event over at Marvel, plus the debut of the massive, talent-packed Marvel Comics #1000. Over at Image Comics, Spawn is celebrating its 300th issue with quite a bit of fanfare, and several new creator-owned books are launching, including Chip Zdarsky's fantasy epic The White Trees. Plus, Dark Horse brings us Berserker Unbound, Gail Simone takes on a 'Devil, Tommy Gun Wizards starts blasting, and Kieron Gillen and Dan Mora bring us the much-anticipated Once & Future. 

Check out these and many more books previewed below, and let us know what you're planning to pick up this month. 

(via Previews)

Marvel Comics

In 1939, the company then-known as Timely Comics published Marvel Comics #1. Now, 80 years later, a massive roster of talented writers and artists from throughout that eight-decade history has assembled to produce a massive anniversary issue featuring a saga that will unfold a brand-new mystery in the Marvel Universe.

Marvel Comics #1000, in stores August 28, features a vast array of variant covers and includes talent ranging from Jason Aaron and Al Ewing to Roy Thomas and Walt Simonson, and countless talents in between. Each of the creators will add their own threads to the massive tapestry of the issue, all serving a tale of a strange artifact called The Eternity Mask. If you want to see one of the most ambitious Marvel team-ups ever, don’t miss this 96-page one-shot.

DC’s ambitious Year of the Villain event, in which Lex Luthor forms a supervillain team unlike any other and equips the biggest and baddest of the DC Universe with power unlike anything we’ve seen before, continues in August, and in addition to all the tie-ins from the regular monthly comics we’ve got a pair of new stories to add to the epic. In Black Mask: Year of the Villain #1 (in stores August 14), writer Tom Taylor and artist Cully Hamner reveal Black Mask’s new plan to take his operation corporate with Lex’s helped, while in Sinestro: Year of the Villain #1 (in stores August 7), writer Mark Russell and artist Brandon Peterson show us the legendary villainous Lantern’s attempts to use his new ultraviolet powers to take down cosmic gods at Luthor’s request.

Image Comics

It’s been building for months, and now it’s finally here. Todd McFarlane’s Spawn reaches its 300th issue (in stores August 28) and, in the process, becomes the longest-running independent comic book series of all time. To celebrate, McFarlane himself is returning for a special 72-page anniversary story as both writer and artist on the series, and he’s teaming up with guest writer Scott Snyder and artists Greg Capullo (who rose to fame on Spawn), J. Scott Campbell, Jason Shawn Alexander, and Jerome Opena. Throw in a hefty number of variant covers and the promise of more record-breaking storytelling with the upcoming issue #301, and this is a can’t-miss for Spawn superfans.

BOOM! Studios

It’s a busy year for writer Kieron Gillen. In the past few months alone he’s launched a hit new creator-owned series with DIE and the conclusion of his epic The Wicked + The Divine is fast approaching, but Gillen’s not done with big stories in 2019 yet. In Once & Future #1 (in stores August 14) Gillen and artist Dan Mora will bring us a modern take on the Arthurian Legend involving Nationalists resurrecting an old villain to gain power, a retired monster hunter returning to the fight, and her grandson getting drawn into it all.

Dark Horse Comics

If you love fantasy mash-up stories, you’ll definitely want to check out Tommy Gun Wizards (in stores August 28) from writer Christian Ward and artist Sami Kivela. It’s the Prohibition Era in America, and Eliot Ness and his band of Untouchables are on the hunt for Al Capone and his mob cronies, who brazenly break the law in 1930s Chicago. The twist? As you may have guessed from the title, what’s prohibited in this world isn’t booze; it’s magic. How’s that for a hook?

Image Comics

Thanks to his independent work like Sex Criminals and Kaptara and his Marvel work like Daredevil and Invaders, Chip Zdarsky is one of the hottest writers and artists working in comics right now, and he keeps coming up with new ways to show off his talents. This time it’s The White Trees (in stores August 14), a new two-part miniseries from Zdarsky and artist Kris Anka, set in the fantasy world of Blacksand. The series follows a trio of warriors nearly two decades after the war that ravaged their land has ended. Now, their children are missing, and they will have to overcome their intertwined pasts to get them back.

Dynamite Entertainment

Gail Simone is a writer we can always count on when it comes to superhero fun, and this month she’s taking her talents to a brand-new story over at Dynamite. The Death-Defying ‘Devil #1 (in stores August 7) stars the titular hero as he attempts to protect the people of Winslow House from from the criminals that torment the surrounding neighborhood. Of course, things take a bad turn when the ‘Devil winds up in the care of the same people he was hoping to protect. It’s got all the makings of a wild new superhero adventure with perhaps a wink and a nod thrown in the direction of a certain Marvel Man Without Fear.

Valiant Entertainment

Valiant Comics continues its reinvention of classic ‘90s characters this month with a new take on Doctor Mirage, and a different character in the title role. Writer Magdalene Visaggio and artist Nick Robles launch Doctor Mirage #1 August 28, and will ask the intriguing question: “How do you solve the case of your own death?” Doctor Shan Fong Mirage, a paranormal expert, has the strange ability to communicate with the dead. Or at least, she had that ability. Now it’s gone, and she has to find out why before it’s too late. The supernatural superhero mystery will start here and span five issues.

Vault Comics

All across America, malls are disappearing, but what if they weren’t? What if instead the mall became the site of a terrifying new order of things, in which tribes vie for superiority under the banner of brand names? That’s the conceptual hook at the heart of Mall, a new series from writers Michael Moreci and Gary Dauberman and artist Zak Hartong. Check out the post-apocalyptic retail fun when Mall #1 lands August 28.

DC Comics

As July ended, so too did the epic Batman Who Laughs miniseries from Scott Snyder and Jock. Now, spinning out of the events of that series, we get an epic new team-up book in the form of Batman/Superman #1 from writer Joshua Williamson and artist David Marquez. The superstar team will take the Man of Steel and the Dark Knight into the darkest parts of Gotham City, where their greatest enemy might turn out to be each other. That hits stores August 14. But that’s not all the new Batman fun we have to look forward to in August. The legendary Neal Adams is returning with a new story that pits his version of the Caped Crusader against the foe Adams and longtime collaborator Denny O’Neil made into a legend. In Batman vs. Ra’s al Ghul #1 (in stores August 21), Gotham City will be under siege, and Ra’s al Ghul will volunteer his own loyal army of men to aid the city, while hiding his own plans to finally destroy Batman for good.

Marvel Comics

If you’re a fan of Marvel’s classic Maximum Carnage event, and you’ve been following Donny Cates and Ryan Stegman’s run on Venom lately, you know that they’ve been building toward something big. Now, that something is here in the form of Absolute Carnage. Cletus Kasady, the terrifying Symbiote wielder, is making his return to New York City, and he’s after everyone who’s ever played host to a Symbiote. The event kicks off with Absolute Carnage #1 on August 7, and continues with issue #2 on August 28. Plus, the carnage will continue all month long with the first issues of several tie-in miniseries, including Absolute Carnage: Lethal Protectors, Absolute Carnage: Miles Morales, Absolute Carnage vs. Deadpool, Absolute Carnage: Scream, and Absolute Carnage: Separation Anxiety.

Marvel Comics

Now that the Fantastic Four have been reassembled on Earth for a little while, it’s time for Marvel Comics to begin expanding the universe that surrounds them once again. That effort picks up a lot of steam this month thanks to the launch of three new stories, the most prominent of which is the new Future Foundation #1 (in stores August 7) from writer Jeremy Whitley and artist Will Robson. The series will follow the titular group of the brightest young minds in the universe as they journey through time and space on a quest to reassemble the Molecule Man with the help of their new friend Yondu.

But that’s not all you can expect in the FF family this August. Marvel’s also launching a new series of stories that expands on the Fantastic Four’s world now that they’re back on Earth, and that kicks off with 4 Yancy Street #1 (in stores August 28), in which The Thing investigates vandalism on his home street, and not everyone is happy about the Fantastic Four’s new headquarters. Plus if you want more cosmic fun, the story of Fantastic Four: The Prodigal Sun continues this month with Silver Surfer: The Prodigal Sun #1 (in stores August 14).

Marvel Comics

The hero originally known as Spider-Gwen has been around for a while now, and she’s become one of Marvel’s most popular 21st century creations. Now that her level of popularity has spiked to new heights thanks to Into the Spider-Verse, it’s time for this incarnation of Gwen Stacy to head to Earth 616. Ghost-Spider #1 (in stores August 21), from writer Seanan McGuire and artist Takeshi Miyazawa, will give us Gwen Stacy’s first adventures in a new world she’s only just starting to know, and reveal what happens when Gwen enrolls in Empire State University, where a villain has already begun following her new life.

Image Comics

If you’re on the hunt for a brand-new creator-owned series outside the realm of superhero stories, you might want to check out Coffin Bound #1 (in stores August), the new Image series from writer Dan Watters and artist Dani. The series stars Izzy Tyburn, a woman burning rubber (often literally) through her past as she’s chased by a killer in her present. If she’s headed for a coffin anyway, Izzy is determined to leave no trace of herself for the world, and God help anyone who gets in her way.

Image Comics

If you’re into superheroes, but you’d like to read a book that breaks the formula a little bit, check out Pretty Violent, the new mature readers creator-owned book from writer/artist Derek Hunter and writer Jason Young. This series follows Gamma Rae, who dreams of being a superhero, despite a family history of siblings who turned villain and left a trail of murdered heroes in their wake. Can Gamma rise above that lineage to become the hero she dreamed of being? Find out in this new superhero comedy, in stores August 21.

Dark Horse Comics

Speaking of superstar creators who just keep churning out fascinating projects, there’s Jeff Lemire, who’s launching a new fantasy miniseries this August that fans of Conan the Barbarian will want to check out. Berserker Unbound #1 (in stores August 7) pairs Lemire up once again with artist Mike Deodato Jr. for a story about a warrior straight from the pages of sword and sorcery epics who is transported to a modern-day city, where his battle against a dark wizard rages on.

IDW Publishing

This year marks the 35th anniversary of Transformers comics, and to celebrate IDW is launching a special prequel story to 1984’s Transformers #1. In Transformers '84 #0 (in stores August 21), writer Simon Furman and artist Guido Guidi present the story of Optimus Prime and his loyal Autobots attempting to save Cybertron from an asteroid belt disaster, even as war consumes the planet. But what does all of this have to do with Earth? Pick up the issue to find a thrilling new piece in the Transformers mythos.

IDW Publishing

As we wait for the return of Star Trek: Discovery for its third season, you can fill in the gaps of Season 2 with this all-new story from writers Kirsten Beyer and Mike Johnson and artist Tony Shasteen. In Star Trek: Discovery: Aftermath #1 (in stores this August), Spock begins to unlock the secrets of Red Angel as he digs through Michael Burnham’s personal log. But as he confronts Burnham’s journey from orphan to Starfleet, he’ll also have to contend with his own past.

BOOM! Studios

Now that the Buffyverse has been successfully rebooted over at BOOM! Studios through the launch of new Buffy and Angel series, it’s time to expand the mythology a bit with an all-new anthology of stories featuring Slayers from throughout history. Featuring the talents of Mairghread Scott, Celia Lownethal and more, Chosen Ones (in stores August 28) brings us tales of all the Slayers who came before, and sheds new light on what it means to be Chosen.

Archie Comics

Ten years ago, Archie Comics showed us two alternate futures for Archie Andrews, one in which he married Betty Cooper and one in which he married Veronica Lodge. Now, a decade later, “Archie Wedding” writer Michael Uslan returns to show us what life is like for Archie in each of those alternate timelines a decade after the original stories. Fans of the original wedding stories, as well as Archie completists and even curious Riverdale fans, will want to check out where this six-issue miniseries goes. Archie: The Married Life - 10th Anniversary #1 is in stores August 7.