The Longbox Short-List - Week of May 17, 2016

Welcome back to Critical Blast’s weekly look at what new comics you should check out each week.   Just a warning, I make these picks pretty much a week BEFORE I actually get to read any of these comics, so if something is a stinker, I take no blame on that.  Let's get to it!

Comics shipping this week

MAE #1 - Gene Ha's Kickstarter-funded graphic novel has found new life as an ongoing series at Dark Horse. As soon as I saw the solicit, it seemed like something I would really enjoy: "When she was just a girl, Abbie discovered a portal to a fantasy world and for the last couple of years has been having great adventures there: defeating horrible monsters, power-mad scientists, and evil nobles. She was a celebrated action hero! But when she turned twenty-one it all came apart and she decided to return home. Her sister, Mae, has had no idea what happened to Abbie all this time. Her tales are too hard to believe; that is, until the monsters and other terrible creatures start to cross over to our world . . . " Definitely a breath of fresh air in the "event-heavy" comic industry.

ROBIN SON OF BATMAN #12, SINESTRO #23 and TITANS HUNT #8 - Pretty sad to see these series end. I see a lot of exciting things coming in DC Rebirth, but I can't help but complain that most of DC's most unique titles will be coming to an end. But I do plan on enjoying them for as long as I can.

DEADPOOL LAST DAYS OF MAGIC #1 - I am such a glutton for punishment. I have been enjoying the LAST DAYS OF MAGIC, but this crossover is just a bizarre attempt to cash in on Deadpool's success. I really can't imagine many Deadpool fans care about Dr Strange...and this is the second expensive special we've gotten for LAST DAYS OF MAGIC in the last few weeks. I will probably end up picking this up, but I don't have any real reason for that...

CIVIL WAR II #0 - Ah, Marvel's next big crossover. Right on the heels of Avengers Standoff. Civil War II seems like it could be based on a cool premise...but so did the original and that ended up being a real train wreck. And I am a little weirded out that Thanos seems to be a big part of this story. That seems like a hell of way to muddle up what will already likely be a real muddled crossover.

KARNAK #4 - I'm glad that they finally got this book back on schedule. I usually am not big on Inhumans, but I love Warren Ellis, and this book has not let me down. A real unique book!

CITIZEN JACK #6 - As we get closer and closer to election day, the idea of demons manipulating the political process seems less funny to me. I have to admit, it would explain a lot about this inexplicable election season...Just saying...

BLACK-EYED KIDS #2 - The first issue of this new Aftershock series was pretty damn creepy. I love a good horror story, and Black-Eyed Kids is shaping up to be pretty bad ass. Definitely worth checking out!

SABRINA #5 - I can't lie, I honestly don't remember the last time I saw an issue of Sabrina. I love this series, but the horrible release schedule (issue 1 came out in October 2014) makes it real hard for me to follow this book. But it's still an awesome comic, and ALMOST worth the annoyance.

X-O MANOWAR ANNUAL 2016 - X-O is one of my favorite books from any comic company. I don't usually like Annuals, but Valiant has actually done a fun job with their annuals and specials, so I will likely grab this one, even with the $6 cover price.