Vampire: The Masquerade: Wake In Hate #1 Review

 

Cover B: Seth Adams

Vampire: The Masquerade: Wake In Hate #1 Review

Writer: John Lees

Artist: Tom Mandrake

Colorist: Walt Barna

Letterer: Andworld Design

Cover Artists: Andrea Sorrentino; Seth Adams; Tom Mandrake & Justin Prokowich; Andrea Olimpieri 

Editor: Louis Yamani

Designer: Matt Bookman

Publisher: Titan Comics

Price: $4.99 US

Release Date: November 11, 2026

 

The police enforce the rule of law. Still, sometimes they go too far. When allegations of police brutality spark protests across the United States, three friends join the call for change. Yet the evening doesn't go as planned. Battered and confused after a night of unexpected violence, Ronnie, Chloe, and Kyle try to find their way home. Can the students escape the police squads sweeping the area? And as police search for destructive protesters, who else views the back streets and alleys of the Capitol Hill district as their hunting ground? Let’s grab some garlic, leap into Vampire: The Masquerade: Wake In Hate #1, and see!

 

Story

When the authorities restrict civil liberties during the COVID-19 pandemic, and excessive police violence enflames the Black Lives Matter movement, protests sweep across the United States. The police close ranks to protect themselves from an angry public. So, when 7000 protestors rally outside Seattle's Capitol Hill Precinct Building, police greet the public with truncheons and gas grenades.

 

In Vampire: The Masquerade: Wake In Hate #1, Ronnie, Chloe, and Kyle introduce the threat facing Seattle's Human and Kindred communities. They also represent the tension between idealism and conformity to the status quo. Just as Kyle bemoans the police response to their End Police Violence protest, the Ventrue clan seeks to soothe tensions to maintain their influence with Human leaders. But instead of tackling the problem directly, they approach Simeon “Silky” Ladock, a Brujah idealist who runs the Dutchman bar.

 

In John Lees's story, protesters likewise close ranks following the confrontation. The CHOP, also known as the Capitol Hill Occupied Protest, becomes a police-free zone where people frightened by society's direction can find solace and healing. Idealists gather to inspire the citizenry and care for their makeshift community. But the Ventrue suspects that Kindred malefactors have infiltrated the CHOP.

 

The Ventrue and Brujah may be ideologically opposed. Centuries of conflict may separate the clans. Yet, if Kindred malefactors heighten Humanity's fears by terrorizing the occupied zone, no one wins in Vampire: The Masquerade: Wake In Hate #1.

 

Art

As outraged Humans frown and shout, they hoist signs demanding societal change. Some of the protestors wear protective masks. The police wear armor, helmets with face shields, and carry riot shields. When teens walk down a dark alley, they meet three police officers in bulkier armor. Standing before glaring headlights, the visors hide their features. As they load the teens into their van, clothing covers every inch of the officers’ bodies.

 

Walt Barna adorns Tom Mandrake’s detailed art with a loaded palette in Vampire: The Masquerade: Wake In Hate #1. While a crimson stain strikes terror into the young protesters, a red couch becomes Silky’s seat of power. Neon lights outside The Dutchman drench the building, pavement, and misty air in blood. Ryong Choi's gray business suit links with Silky’s biker attire. Yet when chaos threatens to destroy everything he has built, the Brujah Primogen reaches for a small red book.

 

While Andworld Design fills white dialogue balloons with black uppercase letters, white narrative boxes root the reader in time and place. Narrative boxes also convey offscreen dialogue. Letters shrink for lowered voices, grow bold for intonation, and swell as voices rise in volume. Sound effects accompany clashes with the police and within the Police-free zone, incidents that shake Silky's resolve, and actions that threaten the future of the Kindred's co-existence with Humanity. Thanks to Titan Comics for providing a review copy.

 

Final Thoughts

With his bushy mustache, muscular, tattooed arms, and a leather vest covering his bare chest, Simeon “Silky” Ladock radiates the outlaw energy and societal rejection of biker culture. Yet when a deadly outbreak, police crackdowns, societal shutdowns, racism, and conspiracy theories rock the civil establishment, the philosophical Brujah Primogen may be Seattle’s only hope for survival in Vampire: The Masquerade: Wake In Hate #1.

 

Rating 9.8/10

 

To look inside see Vampire: The Masquerade: Wake In Hate #1 Preview. 

The Toxic Avenger Vs The Noxious Offender #2 Preview

 

Cover A: Matt Bors

Everything seems against Melvin and Yvonne. But while an uncertain future frightens Toxie, Yvonne remains optimistic. She and Toxie can handle anything life throws at them if they stick together! Yet Melvin Junko’s parents didn’t stick together. And after a toxic spill sent him to the hospital, Melvin’s mother refused to let his absentee father reconnect with her son. 

 

 

His father has a coffee mug bearing Melvin’s face. He runs the Toxic Avenger official store. But can Toxie trust his biological dad? And who is the lookalike who made Grosser ‘N Grocer even grosser?  

 

Here's all the info from Ahoy Comics:

The Toxic Avenger Vs The Noxious Offender #2 Preview

Writer: Matt Bors

Artist: Felipe Sobreiro

Colorist: Lee Loughridge

Letterer: Rob Steen

Flash Fiction Writers: Margaret Beeler & Mark Russell

Flash Fiction Illustrators: Rob Steen & Ryan Kelly

Cover Artists: Matt Bors & Felipe Sobreiro

Also Available: Troma Photo Cover

Publisher: Ahoy Comics

Price: $4.99 US

Release Date: November 11, 2026

 

 

 

 A Case of Mistaken Identity

 

Continuing the wildest Toxic Avenger story yet! With Toxie gone, his evil other-dimensional double—the Noxious Offender—cuts a violent swath through the town of Tromaville and the Avenger’s own family! Even worse: Toxie’s long-lost creep of a father is cool with it!  

 

 

Now, let's take a look inside:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Here are more collectible covers:

 

Cover B: Felipe Sobreiro

 

 

Cover C: Troma Photo Cover

 

Thanks to Ahoy Comics and Superfan Promotions for sharing this preview with us.

 

For how this series began, see The Toxic Avenger Vs The Noxious Offender #1 Review. 

 

Artists from the Abyss: Charlie Adlard #1 Review

 

Artists from the Abyss: Charlie Adlard #1 Review

Writers: Chris Condon & Tim Seeley

Artist: Charlie Adlard

Publisher: Oni Press

Issue Description: 32 Pages, Full Color

Price: $5.99 US

Release Date: November 11, 2026

 

Words can calm. Or they can kill. But the most dangerous of all are the words we want to hear. Morris Graves knows all about that. As a lobbyist, he spends his life calming people's fears. He believes he helps improve their lives. But when he gives them what they want, people die. And the longer they listen to him, the worse the world gets.

 

Morris enjoys a comfortable lifestyle by helping people prosper. But what price might he pay for steering society in an unhealthy direction? And who else will this special issue introduce us to? Let’s leap into Artists from the Abyss: Charlie Adlard #1 and see!

 

Story

Morris Graves has spent his life explaining how life works. So when an interviewer talks about society's dreamers, Morris shuts her down in "Just Another Memory." Humanity’s essential need drives them to consume. It’s hard enough to secure the life you want and get through each day. In Chris Condon’s story, Morris wants to make things easy for everyone. But even if Humanity won’t strive for greatness, life has a way of surprising us.

 

In “A Crossroads Repetition,” Professor Ben Richmond lectures about the nature of Hell. As he delves into historical literature and mythology, Chris Condon ponders who created Hell and the Devil. Yet, our lives are made up of choices. And choices are powerful things. They can change the world around us. In Artists from the Abyss: Charlie Adlard #1, our choices reshape reality, often in unpredictable ways.

 

Ezra Hallum dreamed of becoming a storyteller. Yet after his first novel, repeating his literary successes grew increasingly difficult. In "Writer's Block," Tim Seeley shows how creativity's enormous demands have drained Ezra's creative juices. So, Ezra draws on his genre's tropes to create his next literary masterpiece.

 

After tackling society's contemporary problems, Artists from the Abyss: Charlie Adlard #1 looks back to an earlier era. "Death And Pickaxes" recalls an age when Humanity shared the Earth with other intelligent species. Instead of technology, magic shaped people's lives. Yet people still needed others to help them. And as Chris Condon points out, caring for others takes a toll on your emotional health.

 

Art

Straight lines and rectangles define Morris Graves’s world in “Just Another Memory.” Morris smiles as the interviewer leans toward him and glares. Yet despite the comforts of his ordered existence, his modern house and furnishings cannot protect him from the natural world's unpredictability.

 

While Morris greets the world in a suit, unbuttoned shirt, and gold chain necklace, Ben Richards wears a suit and tie as he faces his audience in the darkened auditorium. Saul Henry watches the images Ben conjures on his glowing screen. In "A Crossroads Repetition," a piece of wrapped candy symbolizes one man's moment of contemplation. When a photograph of a smiling man recalls memories, a diagram reveals the intersections between our lives.

 

Tattoos adorn his arms. Cover art from his novels hangs on Ezra’s walls. As he types away on his laptop, he uses a hammer to construct his next story in Artists from the Abyss: Charlie Adlard #1. As in “A Crossroad Repetition,” a loaded palette enriches Ezra’s world. Yet like Saul Henry’s contemplations, a limited palette adorns Ezra’s furious search for inspiration in “Writer’s Block.”

 

Vibrant pastels adorn “Death And Pickaxes.” As a dwarf regards the princess’s smile, he frowns when he studies the world around him. No matter how green and idyllic, life aboveground hasn't delivered what he desired. So, as red once again seeks to right the scales, blue clothing emphasizes the dwarf's mood.

 

Amid this quartet of tragedy, uppercase letters fill dialogue balloons. Thoughts, off-camera dialogue, and the narrator’s words fill colored narrative boxes. Sound effects accompany protagonists’ attempts to retake control of their lives and the world’s response to their efforts. Yet music notes also help a protagonist see the world from a new angle. Thanks to Oni Press and EC Comics for providing a review copy.

 

Final Thoughts

Life rarely goes our way when we take the easy path. As a new story leads this band of reprints toward uncertain futures, the characters wrestle with their responsibility to others while striving for the lives they desire. Mythology, fantasy, urban legends, and ecological concerns haunt the pages of Artists from the Abyss: Charlie Adlard #1.

 

Rating 9.8/10

 

For another collectible cover, see Artists from the Abyss: Charlie Adlard #1 Cover Preview. 

The Savage Sword of Conan #17 Preview

 

Cover A: Alex Horley

The sisterhood calls her the Holy Child. As the daughter of the All-Mother, Râ Morgana enjoys an exalted place within their stone citadel. So, when Té Kortinëa finds her in a man’s arms, she drags Râ up the narrow, winding stairs and hurls her at her mother’s feet. Despite her privileged status, Râ wishes to abandon the sisterhood and spend her life traveling with the man she loves.

 

Will Râ find fulfillment outside her holy order? And how will the All-Mother’s story about the Cimmerian who once aided her influence Râ’s life?

 

Here's all the info from Titan Comics:

 

 

The Savage Sword of Conan #17 Preview

Writer: Christy Marx, Zack Davisson & Frank Tieri

Artist: Geoff Isherwood, Ben Dewey & Adam Gorham

Pin-Ups: James Harren & Aaron Lopresti

Letterers: Richard Starkings & Tyler Smith

Cover Artists: Alex Horley & Nick Marinkovich

Publisher: Titan Comics

Issue Description: 64 Pages, Black-and-White 

Price: $6.99 US

Release Date: November 11, 2026

 

 

 

 

It’s a Conan tale extravaganza! 

 

 

 

The Savage Sword of Conan #17 boasts not one, not two, but three thrilling tales starring the Cimmerian!  

 

 

Featuring the sequel to the classic “Child of Cimmeria” from returning writer Christy Marx with artist Geof Isherwood, a siege-set story of hungry crocs and lost jewels from writer Frank Tieri and artist Adam Gorham, and a creeping tale of ferocious felines and their keeper from writer Zack Davisson and artist Ben Dewey. Augmented with incredible pin-ups and killer covers, Savage Sword Of Conan #17 delivers Cimmerian savagery one tale at a time!

 

Now, let's take a look inside:

 

 

 

 

Here are more collectible covers:

 

 

 

Cover B: Nick Marinkovich

 

Also Available:

 

 

Cover C: Alex Horley Virgin Cardstock 

Cover D: Nick Marinkovich Virgin Cardstock  

 

 

Available from local comic shops. For UK & Europe visit Forbidden Planet. For more details, visit Titan Comics.

 

 

Thanks to Titan Comics & Heroic Signatures for sharing this preview with us.

 

For last issue's triple-threat from Cimmerian chronicler Jim Zub, see The Savage Sword of Conan #16 Review.

 

Mind Mgmt: New & Improved #5 Review

 

Mind Mgmt: New & Improved #5 Review

Writer, Artist, Colorist & Letterer: Matt Kindt

Cover Artists: Matt Kindt & Mike del Mundo

Editors: Sierra Hahn & Joelena Despard

Designer: Winston Gambro

Production: Melanie Ujimori

Flux House Production: Ella Kindt

Publisher: Oni Press

Issue Description: 32 Pages, Full Color

Price: $4.99 US

Release Date: November 4, 2026

 

The future has never looked bleaker. Every day brings new opportunities for society to go off the rails. To stave off Humanity’s extinction, Mind Mgmt agents work to prevent bad actors from igniting the spark that will detonate the world.

 

The secret government agency trained Jon Swon to see with his nose. By mixing custom scents, he can focus witnesses’ memories or pacify criminals. His partner, Gemini Delphi, has mastered the world’s most lethal martial arts. Yet she’d rather employ her abilities to calm suspects. After arresting the world’s luckiest assassin, what case will the existential detectives tackle next? And why doesn’t Jon’s boss want him to remember more of his past? Let’s leap into Mind Mgmt: New & Improved #5 and see!

 

Story

The Mind Mgmt Agency used to train its agents to work in pairs. By organizing agents into small cells, the leaders believed they could insulate their organization against corruption. But after a shakeup, one woman runs the government agency. Eraser tests her people until they break. She mixes truth with lies until they crack. Then she congratulates herself on finding weaknesses in her organization.

 

As Mind Mgmt: New & Improved #5, another agent seeks to escape from Eraser's manipulation. He tells a police detective about his experiences. Under questioning, the man repeats his story and explains how his superiors controlled him. He wonders what happened to the other agents he trained with.

 

After apprehending Ayush, Jon Swon and Gemini Delphi began another investigation. But rather than picking up where the previous issue left off, Matt Kindt rewinds the clock to reveal how and why their quarry went missing. The story follows different characters as Gemini Delphi's mission statement changes.

 

Once again, Jon and Gemini's lives circle back to their boss's insatiable need to test her agents. The world may constantly perch on the edge of disaster. Yet, like the Duplo Brothers' Sleep Deep podcast, the truth is whatever Eraser needs to manipulate her agents in Mind Mgmt: New & Improved #5.

 

Art

Like literature's greatest consulting detective, when Jon tried to remember elusive facts, smoking multiple cigarettes aided his cognitive abilities. Now, the man in the interview room smokes multiple cigarettes simultaneously. Outside the room, a police officer at a desk watches rows of monitors as a man walks behind him. Taking a seat, the visitor watches over the officer’s shoulder. He recreates what he sees inside pre-drawn panel outlines. When the artist leaves the police station, a blond man with hunched shoulders follows. A lightbulb becomes a symbol of enlightenment, while layers of secreted equipment reveal the science of perception.

 

A blue tint covers the questioning as cigarette smoke surrounds the frightened agent’s head like a calming collar. Pink accompanies the people privy to secret knowledge who prevent the world from falling apart. The man with hunched shoulders wears a yellow jacket, but the moisture trickling down his face isn’t from a recent storm. Most of the watercolors on the white and tan pages follow the agency’s reporting format. One black-outlined page, adorned with another medium, reveals scenes from a non-agent's perspective. Yet blue and pink converge in a location that bridges a frightened man's past and future in Mind Mgmt: New & Improved #5.

 

The frightened agent’s confession fills white boxes with typed letters. Dialogue appears in white, beige, and blue-tinged balloons. Off-camera dialogue and characters’ thoughts fill colored and black narrative boxes. Yet despite all the action and violence in a seemingly tranquil city, sound effects accompany a book that captures what paper, cameras, and microphones never can. Thanks to Oni Press and Superfan Promotions for providing a review copy.

 

Final Thoughts

While Jon Swon helps Gemini Delphi search for another rogue agent, he sees more examples of Eraser’s mismanagement. The Human costs of training agents may seem unnecessary to Jon. But as the government agency charged with maintaining world peace goes to war against itself, Jon glimpses more memories Eraser doesn’t want him to remember in Mind Mgmt: New & Improved #5.

 

Rating 9/10

 

For all the collectible covers see Mind Mgmt: New & Improved #5 Cover Preview. 

 

For how Agent Ayush killed an Immortal, see Mind Mgmt: New & Improved #4 Review. 

For how Agents Swon and Delphi escape a death cult in Arizona, see Mind Mgmt: New & Improved #3 Review. 

 

Vampire Survivors #3 Cover Preview

 

Cover A: Alex Shibao

Imelda's disappearance filled Antonio with fear. When his sister returned, believing she was cursed, Antonio returned to the Mad Forest to request his former teacher's aid. While awaiting his return, Gennaro and Imelda sought answers in the Inlaid Library. But the cloaked figure only she can see reappeared to menace her brother.

 

Will Antonio return with a strategy for safeguarding his sister? Or must the Belpaese siblings seek help from their family's rivals to escape the sorcerer haunting Imelda's every footstep?

 

Here's all the info from Titan Comics:

 

 

Vampire Survivors #3 Cover Preview

Writer: David Hazan

Artist: Jimmy Kucaj

Colorist: Jão Canola

Letterer: Chas Pangburn

Cover Artists: Alex Shibao & Nacho Lazaro

Publisher: Titan Comics

Issue Description: 32 Pages, Full Color

Series Length: 4 Issues 

Price: $4.99 US

Release Date: November 11, 2026

 

 

 

Based on the Bafta-Winning 

Indie Hit video game! 

 

 

 

No rest for the whacky! Despite the Trickster’s machinations affecting the Belpaese family, they still have a job to do. Gennaro and Imelda are tasked with helping out at the Dairy Plant, a milk factory overrun with monsters! With overwhelming numbers against the siblings, they are forced to turn to an unlikely friend. Someone with a penchant for fighting fire with fire…

 

Here's another collectible cover:

 

 

 

Cover B: Nacho Lazaro

 

Also Available:

 

Cover C: Alex Shibao Virgin Cardstock 

 

 

Thanks to Titan Comics for sharing this cover preview with us.

 

For Antonio's reunion with Maestro Poe, see Vampire Survivors #2 Review. 

 

For all the chaos in the chapel, see Vampire Survivors #1 Review.