From Green Lantern to Legion: 21 comics to look out for this November

Every month SYFY WIRE likes to let you know what new comics to look out for, and this November is set to be a wild one. We've got everything from new superhero events to high-concept creator-owned epics to a legendary rock band set to battle the undead.

If it's Big Two superhero comics you're after, we've got you covered with things like the return of Marvel's 2099 line and a new Annihilation story, plus the launch of the new Legion of Super-Heroes ongoing and a pair of intriguing Green Lantern-centric stories over at DC. If it's creator-owned, non-superhero stuff you're after, there's plenty to watch for there, too, from a new collaboration between Charles Soule and Scott Snyder to a new Jeff Lemire book at Image to a sci-fi adventure about stealing an entire planet.

Plus, KISS faces zombies, an Umbrella Academy spinoff, a new era for The Magicians, and a Christmas special or two. Check out our roundup of November comics to watch for below.

(Via Previews)

Marvel Comics

It remains a very exciting time to be an X-Men fan. After the paradigm-shifting summer that brought us House of X and Powers of X, the Dawn of X line of stories expanded last month with ongoing series including X-Men, Marauders, and Excalibur. In November it all expands again with three new series. First up on November 6 is New Mutants from writers Jonathan Hickman and Ed Brisson and artist Rod Reis, which brings the classic title team lineup together with a couple of new friends. Then there's X-Force from writer Benjamin Percy and artist Joshua Cassara, which promises to give us the "CIA of the mutant world" with its November 6 first issue. On November 13, writer Bryan Hill and artist Szymon Kudranski will debut Fallen Angels, a new Psylocke-centered series that follows what happens when certain mutants still wrestle with their own darkness amid a bright new world for most of mutantkind. Each of these three new series will get two issues this month, so if you like the launches be on the lookout for more.

DC Comics

Last year, Grant Morrison brought his unique perspective on the DC Universe to the Green Lantern corner of things with The Green Lantern, one of the most exciting books of the last 12 months. Now, with help from artist Xermanico, he's about to do it again with Green Lantern: Blackstars, a big event spinning directly out of The Green Lantern that finds The Green Lantern Corps light has gone out of the galaxy. In their place are the Blackstars, and a new chapter in the cosmic history of the DCU. Blackstars #1 is out November 6. 

That's not the only major new Green Lantern story out this month, though. We've also got The Far Sector, which marks the comics writing debut of fantasy novelist N.K. Jemisin (The Inheritance Trilogy). Jemisin teams with artist Jamal Campbell (Naomi) for the story of Sojourner "Jo" Mullein, a Green Lantern assigned to a massive metropolis in a sector far from where murder doesn't happen. That's about to change, and a Green Lantern murder mystery in a giant city of 20 billion people will unfold when The Far Sector #1 arrives November 13.

Image Comics

It's always exciting when powerhouse superhero creators turn some of their energy to creator-owned, high-concept genre works, and Undiscovered Country sounds like a doozy. From the writing team of Charles Soule and Scott Snyder and the art team of Giuseppe Camuncoli and Daniele Orlandini comes this story set in a near future in which the United States of America functionally no longer exists on the world stage after it walled itself off from contact with the outside world. No one knows what America is like now, but a group of scientists in search of a cure for a pandemic affecting the rest of the world is about to find out. Issue #1 of the series, featuring one of the most intriguing hooks of the year, lands November 6. 

Dark Horse Comics

Now that Umbrella Academy is set to continue its run on Netflix with a second season, the comic book side of the story is set to expand with its first-ever spinoff. Hazel and Cha Cha Save Christmas comes from writers Gerard Way and Scott Allie and artist Tommy Lee Edwards, and centers on the assassins who stole scene after scene in both the comic and the Netflix series. This time around, they're tracking down a target when they just happen to uncover something that threatens Christmas. This holiday cheer, Umbrella Academy-style, drops November 20.

BOOM! Studios

You've gotten to know the characters from Lev Grossman's Magicians Trilogy of novels thanks to the books themselves and the SYFY series, but now it's time to meet the new class. Grossman has teamed up with writer Lilah Sturges and artist Pius Bak for an all-new series set years after Quentin Coldwater left Brakebills. It's time for Dean Fogg to usher in the next class, which includes a historic new set of entrants: Hedge magicians, long kept out because of their tendency toward "unsanctioned magic." What happens next will change the Magicians universe forever. Issue #1 arrives November 6.

Marvel Comics

Back in the 2000s, while the Earthbound heroes of the Marvel Universe were dealing with things like Civil War, the cosmic characters were facing something much bigger: An all-out invasion from the Negative Zone. Annihilation and its follow-ups remain among the most influential Marvel event epics, and now we're setting for more with Annihilation - Scourge, the next chapter in Marvel's Negative Zone wars. The event proper will kick of in December, but on November 20 you can catch a preview of what's to come with this Annihilation: Scourge Alpha from writer Matthew Rosenberg and artist Juanan Ramirez. 

DC Comics

Brian Michael Bendis' turn toward a new era for the Legion of Super-Heroes is one of the most exciting developments at DC Comics this year, and thanks to the Millennium miniseries we've gotten to see the setup. Now, Bendis and artist Ryan Sook will take us into the new era proper when the new first issue of Legion of Super-Heroes arrives, promising an era of optimism and "reader-friendly" stories, on November 6. The publisher has billed this as "one of the most ambitious mainstream comic books ever created," so strap in. 

Dark Horse Comics

The grizzled old warrior heading out for one last ride is a trope that never gets old if the tale is told well, and Crone looks like it could be the next great version of the story. From writer Dennis Culver (SYFY WIRE's own) and artist Justin Greenwood comes this tale of a legendary warrior named Bloody Bills, who was once a great champion and has since become a crone. One last adventure is calling, though, and we'll find out what happens next in this saga that's being billed as Unforgiven meets Xena. Issue #1 drops November 6.

Image Comics

Jeff Lemire has a way with strange concepts, and what starts as a wild hook becomes a deeply engrossing story. Lemire's latest effort on that front is Family Tree, a team-up with artist Phil Hester which follows a young girl whose family turns desperate when she starts to change into a literal tree. The girl's mother, brother, and grandfather set out across America to find a cure for her condition, only to find dark forces of all kinds are also hoping to connect with the tree-girl. The first issue of this very intriguing new saga arrives November 13.

Marvel Comics

Annihilation's not the only classic Marvel story set for a comeback of sorts this month. In the pages of Amazing Spider-Man, something has been building in the year 2099, and that something has set up a return to one of Marvel's most popular imprints: The future-set 2099 line. The event kicks off on November 20 with 2099 Alpha from writer Nick Spencer and artist Viktor Bogdanovic, then spins out into several books including Conan 2099 (November 27), Fantastic Four 2099 (November 20), and Punisher 2099 (November 27), with more to follow in December.

DC Comics

Jeff Lemire launched an exciting DC Black Label project with Joker: Killer Smile last month, and he's at it again this month with a new look at The Question. The Deaths of Vic Sage teams Lemire with legendary artist Bill Sienkiewicz for a story of Vic Sage digging into a conspiracy so vast that it just might cost him his life while also granting him a new one. In a life of black and white, The Question might finally have entered a gray area. Sienkiewicz's art alone is worth the price of admission, but the premise doesn't hurt either. Issue #1 drops November 20.

Valiant Entertainment

Valiant Entertainment just keeps breaking out exciting new takes on its classic character. The cyborg samurai from the future known as Rai got his own revamp with a series launch in 2014, but now he's getting yet another one thanks to writer Dan Abnett and artist Juan Jose Ryp. This incarnation of Rai will once again take us to the 41st century, but we're also promised "new worlds, new characters, new adventures." It all kicks off with the first issue on November 20.

Titan Publishing

For some fans, it's not the Christmas season without a Doctor Who special to look forward to. Unfortunately, there won't be one on television this year, but that doesn't mean we can't celebrate the season with our favorite Time Lord. Writer Jody Houser and artist Roberta Ingranata have crafted an all-new holiday special in two parts, with the first part arriving November 13. It's time for The Thirteenth Doctor to save Christmas once again.

Marvel Comics

In 2000, with the story "Welcome Back, Frank," Garth Ennis began what has for many fans become the definitive take on The Punisher. Now, Ennis is back for a new six-issue series with art by Jacen Burrows. Frank Castle has come across the corpses of a dozen Russian mobsters, but this time he wasn't the one who killed them. Someone else is stalking New York City, punishing the Russian mob, and that means that at some point Frank is going to end up meeting them. Punisher: Soviet #1 arrives November 13.

DC Comics

One He-Man is good. Multiple He-Men are better. That's the hook at the heart of this new six-issue miniseries from writer Tim Seeley and artists Dan Fraga and Richard Friend. An enemy known as Anti-Eternia is spreading destruction across dimensions, taking out every version of Eternia he comes across. The only chance to save the multiverse is to unite a group of surviving He-Men, and the key to their plan is to recruit Prince Keldor, better known to us as Skeletor. If this series doesn't have the power, nothing will. He-Man and the Masters of the Multiverse #1 arrives November 20.

Vault Comics

If you've ever read Bandette, you know that writer Paul Tobin can craft a fun heist story, and this time he's doing it in space. Heist, Tobin's collaboration with artist Arjuna Susini, is the name of both a comic book series and a planet which happens to host a population made up of the worst of the worst. It's a planet so bad even the government doesn't want a piece, which also makes it a perfect target for a group of thieves to steal. Billed as "Ocean's Eleven in space," Heist #1 drops November 6.

Dynamite Entertainment

You wanted the best, you got the best. Fresh off their recent battles with the Army of Darkness, KISS is back and this time they're taking on a zombie apocalypse. Set in the city of New Detroit, at a time when the undead hordes are so prevalent that music has been banned for fear that it will lure them, a group of teens are fed up. They want to save the world, and in the process remind us all of the greatest band ever, so they set out to find KISS. From writer Ethan Sacks and artist Rodney Buchemi, Kiss: Zombies #1 arrives November 6.

Marvel Comics

It's been a while since Morbius the Living Vampire had his own ongoing series, but the character has a feature film coming out next year thanks to Sony's shared Spider-Man supporting characters universe, so it's time for new readers to have an exciting jumping-on point. That point arrives November 13 with Morbius, a new ongoing series from writer Vita Ayala and artist Marcelo Ferreira, following the title character's quest to track down what he believes will cure his vampirism once and for all.