The Extraordinary Adventures of Adèle Blanc-Sec Vol 1 Review

 

The Extraordinary Adventures of Adèle Blanc-Sec Vol 1 Review

Writer & Artist: Tardi

Publisher: Fantagraphics

Price: $29.99

Book Length: 196 Pages (Full Color)

Book Size: 8” x 10.75”

Release Date: July 14, 2026

ISBN: 9798875002380

 

At 11:45 pm on November 4, 1911, a pterodactyl egg cracked inside the Museum of Natural History in Paris. While the police attributed early sightings of a pterodactyl to alcohol consumption, reports spread in Parisian newspapers. As mauled victims and corpses mounted, French newspaper criers shouted the latest attacks from every street corner.

 

Eventually, President Armand Fallièrs realized this wasn’t the opposition’s latest attempt to destroy his government, but a prehistoric threat to modern life in the Third Republic. How did France react to the pterodactyl’s reign of terror? And what other dangers threatened France during this Belle Époque? Let’s leap into The Extraordinary Adventures of Adèle Blanc-Sec Vol 1 and see!

 

Story

After a pterodactyl flew past his office window, the President ordered the police to free Paris from this nuisance. Yet the idea of a prehistoric reptile flying through the city seemed too nonsensical to be believed. So, the case eventually landed on Léonce Caponi’s desk. Believing that this was his big break, the Inspector vowed to solve the petro-dactyl case.

 

While the police assign their least capable detective to the Pterodactyl Pterror, a young writer attempts to capitalize on the mania in The Extraordinary Adventures of Adèle Blanc-Sec Vol 1. Adèle writes novels serialized in the newspaper, and she researches her stories thoroughly. She sees through popular conceptions and waves of pop culture. And as a woman of strong beliefs, when she sees a wrong, she attempts to right it. Unfortunately, she goes too far, leading her to employ henchmen and abduct a young woman to secure an inventor’s help.

 

Tardi’s story follows Adèle’s adventures in Paris during the early 1910s. It’s a glittering era that celebrates the greatness of past civilizations while producing modern marvels. Scientists investigate prehistoric animals and prehuman species while spiritualists pursue the mysteries of life after death. Adèle remains as skeptical of people’s wild theories and romantic views of the past as she is of the government’s ability to serve its people.

 

As she plunks away at her typewriter and gets embroiled in one caper after another, Adèle sees ample evidence that societal progress only sweeps our primitive urges under the rug. And while Léonce Caponi may not be the shining star of the Parisian Police, Adèle’s suspicions that the little separates coppers from criminals are justified in The Extraordinary Adventures of Adèle Blanc-Sec Vol 1.

 

Art

As Tardi reveals the buildings, monuments, and statues of Paris, skeletal reconstructions from the past fill the museum. When a pterodactyl breaks out of its egg, it shatters its glass display case. As it crashes through the glass-paneled ceiling, a man in a book-filled study laughs and dances as he flaps his arms. Amid the grand architecture and lavish interior design of homes and offices, trains rumble into stations, and early automobiles fill the streets. Gentlemen wear suits, flat caps, and bowler hats while carrying pistols in their pockets. Ladies like Adèle wear long dresses, jackets, frilly blouses, and top their bundled-up hair with wide-brimmed hats.

 

Amid the detailed art, Tardi limits the colors in each panel to a handful in The Extraordinary Adventures of Adèle Blanc-Sec Vol 1. When she first appears, her maroon attire links her with the pterodactyl and the blood it spills. A green train, automobiles, and crocodiles link Adèle with an ancient demon who lurks in the French underground. Unlike those who plot mass deaths in Paris, neither Adèle nor the man who admires her is a fervent nationalist. Yet while he sleeps in blue-and-white pajamas beneath a blue blanket, he dreams of spotting Adèle amid more red pterodactyls.

 

Tardi fills colored narrative boxes and white dialogue balloons with lowercase letters. The font enlarges or shrinks according to the available space in each panel. Or, given the musical nature of French, these changes may reflect the author’s enthusiasm or distaste for the characters. Large, bold capital letters denote shouts, while a gray Poof enhances the flash powder as a student attempts a late-night photo with an early camera on a tripod. Extracts from newspapers fill panels, elaborating on current events, as Adèle smokes cigarettes, ponders not getting involved, and then ventures out to face danger once again. Thanks to Fantagraphics for providing a physical review copy.

 

Final thoughts

The Extraordinary Adventures of Adèle Blanc-Sec Vol 1 contains Tardi's first four Bandes Dessinées following the intrepid antihero. An introduction by Cynthia Rose reveals the author's fascination with the feuilletons, or early newspapers, that merged fact and fiction in the 1910s.

 

Tardi puts his own spin on history. Paris rises as the center of civilization, at the forefront of scientific research, while revering the glories of the past. Yet like everything precious, this golden era teeters on a knife's edge as Humanity's inherent unwillingness to get along emerges on the horizon.

 

Rating 9.8/10

 

For more, see my spotlight on The Extraordinary Adventures of Adèle Blanc-Sec Vol 1. 

Heaven Review

 

Heaven Review

Writer, Artist, Colorist & Letterer: Katie Skelly

Publisher: Fantagraphics

Book Length: 100 Pages

ISBN: 9798875002243

Hardcover Price: $19.99

Release Date: July 7, 2026

 

Once, her world seemed bright. But now, Dolores is struggling. Faced with a Creative Writing assignment, Dolores writes about how she sees the future. Sadly, her teacher doesn't understand. Then, some classmates offer her a ride home. Could these girls help Dolores feel less alone? And can she find the strength to pull herself out of the hole she has fallen into? Let's leap into Heaven and see!

 

Story

When Jenny calls out to her, Dolores walks over and climbs into the back seat. She recognizes Sheila from gym class and Alex from Chemistry. Although they have drifted apart, Jenny lives down the street from her. Dolores suggests that Alex drop her off with Jenny, and she can walk from there. Instead, Jenny, Alex, and Sheila invite Dolores to join them at their local hangout.

 

While relaxing over drinks, the girls mention a strip club outside town. They’re intrigued by the reviews they see online. But while they’re curious, they’re not old enough to get in. Having recently turned 18, Dolores can enter the mysterious premises. But only if she offers the manager a convincing reason for doing so.

 

In Heaven, Dolores seeks an escape from her misery. Her parents have broken up. Her mother is navigating her own roadmap of grief. Finances have forced Dolores to give up the gymnastics she loved. While she cannot face her bleak existence, Dolores can focus on something new. Even if the strip club is another hole she can get sucked into, it’s new. And perhaps it will give her a sense of purpose again.

 

Yet in Katie Skelly’s story, once Dolores immerses herself in her new career, Jenny, Sheila, and Alex begin to worry. While they were intrigued by the online chatter, they suspect that the strip club holds greater dangers than 1-star reviews. As Dolores discovers meaning and belonging and gains a sense of empowerment, the girls feel guilty for getting Dolores into trouble. And they look for ways to help their new friend as she drifts toward ruination in Heaven.

 

Art

After school, Dolores clutches her backpack as she stands beside the bus stop bench. When Jenny calls out to her from the front seat, and Sheila smiles at her from the back seat, Dolores climbs in the back of Alex’s hatchback. Sheila wears her dark hair in Mickey Mouse-style buns. Alex uses a hair clip to part her long red hair on one side. In the driver's seat, Alex rests her Alien Eyes sunglasses atop her blonde hair. Yet inside the restaurant, Alex wears her sunglasses as she sits in the booth.

 

While Dolores’ black hair links her with Sheila, her strand of blonde hair links her with Alex. Dolores' pink cellphone presages her visit to the nightclub, while the pink building's red accents link with Jenny's hair. Before approaching the door, Dolores borrows Sheila's black boots and Jenny's black jacket to disguise her appearance. But before Dolores can get into Heaven, she must choose from among a colorful array of outfits.

 

Katie Skelly divides her 100-page story into 5 acts. Handwritten uppercase black letters fill white dialogue balloons. Jenny’s thoughts fill white clouds. Inside Heaven, brown storm clouds with lightning bolt arrows address her. Although she never liked “Dolly,” Dolores grows more comfortable with her old nickname as she embarks on this new venture. Sound effects reveal the mechanical health of Alex’s hatchback, while giant letters fill the background when an applicant begins her audition. Yet a teacher's red grades and remarks bookend this story about teen struggles and growth. Thanks to Fantagraphics for providing a review copy.

 

Final Thoughts

The High School years can be traumatic enough on their own. But Dolores’ family is falling apart. The school she attends offers more condemnation than comfort. So, when Dolores finds a place where the manager believes in her abilities and thinks she is special, Dolores leaps in with both feet. Heaven tackles the terrors of growing up, battles with depression, and the power of friendship in a world that holds more wonders than we often suspect.

 

Rating 9/10

 

Read the opening scene and/or purchase Heaven on Amazon. 

 

Discover what other reviewers have to say and/or purchase Heaven on Fantagraphics. 

The Extraordinary Adventures of Adèle Blanc-Sec Vol 1 Spotlight

 

 

Sci-Fi fans know Luc Besson as the director of movies like The Fifth Element, Lucy, Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets, and last year's Dracula. While making The Fifth Element, Luc enlisted Valerian artist Jean-Claude Mézièrs to help with production design. When Luc kept enthusing about Valerian comics on The Fifth Element set, Jean-Claude said, "Why don't you film it?"

In Valerian: The Complete Collection Vol 1 from Cinebook, Luc Besson talks about his childhood love of Valerian comics in an introductory interview. Luc also discusses the difficulties of converting a comic series into a film. "You can read a graphic novel in half an hour, whereas a film is usually between one-and-a-half and two hours long. So there comes a point where I have to 'blow up' the story in order to develop the book's themes another way."

Many Americans may not be aware of it, but Luc Besson also adopted another comic series from his childhood to the big screen. While he filmed The Extraordinary Adventures of Adèle Blanc-Sec in French, the DVD and Blu-ray releases allow you to hear the dialogue in English. Luc Besson crafted an all-together delightful adaptation of Adèle's adventures, filled with quirky characters, humor, and sci-fi fun. But how did Luc Besson explode Tardi's story to entertain French cinemagoers? And as with the Valerian comic series, how much of Tardi's story never found its way to the silver screen?

Here's all the info from Fantagraphics:

 

The Extraordinary Adventures of Adèle Blanc-Sec Vol 1

Writer & Artist: Tardi

Publisher: Fantagraphics

Hardcover Price: $29.99

Book Length: 196 Pages (Full Color)

Book Size: 8" × 10.75" 

Release Date: July 14, 2026 

ISBN: 9798875002380 

 

This iconic adventure series from the ’70s stars the bold heroine Adéle, who must contend with supernatural monsters wreaking havoc in Belle Époque Paris.

Paris, 1911. One gloomy night at the Museum of Natural History, a pterodactyl escapes from its display and wreaks havoc upon the city. Enter journalist extraordinaire Adèle Blanc-Sec, who must use her wits and firepower to get to the bottom of this bizarre mystery. An enchanting antihero, Adèle is fearless, brash, and thoroughly ill-tempered, smoking and cursing her way through the case—always barely escaping peril to tell her tale.

Masterful French cartoonist Jacques Tardi created his iconic The Extraordinary Adventures of Adèle Blanc-Sec series in the 1970s. Set in the atmospheric Belle Époque Paris, the series features supernatural monsters, mad science, steampunk aesthetic, murder, humor, and delightful derring-do. This new collection of classic Adèle stories includes four episodes (previously published in two earlier volumes): “Pterror Over Paris,” “The Demon of the Eiffel Tower,” “The Mad Scientist,” and “Mummies on Parade.”

In celebration of Adele's 50th anniversary, Fantagrpahics is thrilled to re-issue these classic stories in luxuriously redesigned hardcover editions. While Fantagraphics published the first four Adele adventures 15 years ago, this new series will bring the complete 10 episode run of the series into English for the very first time. With an introduction by British journalist and comics historian Cynthia Rose.

 

To preorder this new deluxe hardcover, find The Extraordinary Adventures of Adèle Blanc-Sec Vol 1 at the Fantagraphics website.

 

Thanks to Fantagraphics for providing a copy for review.

 

You can find Valerian: The Complete Collection Vol 1 at Amazon or order it from the Cinebook website.

The Marvel Creator Collection No.1: Back to the Savage Land Preview

 

In his afterward to The Chronicles of Conan Volume One: Tower of the Elephant and Other Stories from Dark Horse Books, Roy Thomas mentions that Barry Windsor-Smith wasn't his or Stan Lee's first choice for the penciling duties on Conan The Barbarian. Still, Roy had teamed with Barry on several titles when the UK artist briefly worked in the United States. 

"In fact," Roy confides, "Barry and I had done one story starring a Conan prototype we called Starr the Slayer in one of Marvel's 'mystery' titles, and it hadn't gone badly." Even though Barry had since returned to England, Roy decided to entrust the British artist with his new Sword and Sorcery series. 

What series did Barry Windsor-Smith draw before he teamed up with Roy Thomas to bring Conan the Cimmerian to comics? And what heroes and villains did Barry help create? 

Here's all the info from Fantagraphics:

 

Rediscover Legendary Artist Barry Windsor-Smith’s Early Masterworks with The Marvel Creator Collection No. 1: "Back to the Savage Land" Barry Windsor-Smith at Marvel Vol. 1 

Fantagraphics and Marvel Join Forces to Collect Windsor-Smith’s Long Out of Print Comics

A master of sword and sorcery, science fiction, psychedelia, super heroics, and comedic parody — Barry Windsor-Smith has done it all. Between his groundbreaking, character-defining work on Marvel’s Conan The Barbarian and Weapon-X and his critically acclaimed 2021 graphic novel Monsters, the artist has earned his reputation as an adventurous, boundary-pushing creator. Now, Fantagraphics is partnering with Marvel to release The Marvel Creator Collection: Barry Windsor-Smith at Marvel, a three-volume series collecting the artist’s trailblazing Marvel comics. Due out on April 29, 2026, The Marvel Creator Collection No. 1: “Back to the Savage Land” will feature early pre-Conan work on X-Men, The Avengers, Doctor Strange, and Iron Man, as well as his amazing run on “Ka-Zar” in Astonishing Tales, and much more! 

“I have literally been following Barry Windsor-Smith’s career since 1969 when he debuted at Marvel Comics and immediately became my 2nd favorite artist (after Jack Kirby),” says Fantagraphics Publisher and Co-Founder Gary Groth. “So, it is a distinct pleasure to have the privilege of finally presenting all the work he did for Marvel (with the exception of Conan) in a gorgeously produced 3-volume hardcover series.”

From the moment Marvel brought him to the U.S. in 1969, Windsor-Smith was a creative force to be reckoned with. A passionate devotee of Jack Kirby, Windsor-Smith’s earliest drawing at Marvel reflected that influence, but he quickly developed his own unique, eye-opening style,combining intricately detailed realism with the dreamlike lushness of art nouveau to the classicism of the Pre-Raphaelites.

This volume focuses on the earliest of his work, including memorable storylines on The Avengers, Iron Man, Doctor Strange, and individual stories for Chamber of Darkness, Tower of Shadows, and Nick Fury, Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D. All new benchmarks of comics art, culminating in what may be the highlight of this period: Windsor-Smith’s creatively fecund, Conan-esque epic tale of civil war in Ka-Zar’s Savage Land.. Future volumes will trace Windsor-Smith’s career through such milestones as Machine Man and Weapon X.

 

Now, let's take a look inside:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Marvel Creator Collection No. 1: "Back to the Savage Land" is due out on April 29, 2026 from Fantagraphics. For updates Fans can follow Fantagraphics on X, Instagram, Facebook, Blue Sky, and YouTube.

 

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

 

About Fantagraphics:

For over 45 years, Fantagraphics has published the very best comics and graphic novels that the medium has to offer. Our mission is to celebrate great cartooning in all of its incarnations, from the form’s early luminaries to contemporary artists currently forging the future of visual storytelling. Not content to rest on our laurels and extensive roster of talented artists, we constantly seek out fresh voices from across the globe. Thus, we honor the rich history of comics while providing a platform for bold new stories, styles, and perspectives that push the boundaries of the medium. Fantagraphics remains peerless in our commitment to be the publisher of the world's greatest cartoonists.

 

Lost Marvels Vol 3: Savage Tales of the 1980s Preview

 

Fantagraphics has done a terrific job with their Lost Marvels line, and the third volume in this series is no exception. While the 1970s Savage Tales is best remembered as a testing ground for Sword and Sorcery tales, Larry Hama oversaw the 1985 relaunch. The scribe behind Iron Fist and G.I. Joe wanted a magazine that would reach out and grab comic readers. 

Larry Hama sought out long time creators such as Incredible Hulk icon Herb Trimpe and John Severin, who had worked for EC Comics' Two-Fisted Tales. Larry Hama commissioned ten scripts from newbie writer Chuck Dixon, who would go on to helm the writing reins of Eclipse Comics' 50+ issue Airboy series. Hama also printed three stories from WWII chronicler Sam Glanzman. 

The stories in this volume span numerous genres, but the concentration is on action and fun. Some of the storytelling will clash with today's sensibilities. But remember, this was a magazine like Marvel's Savage Sword of Conan, intended to push past the Comics Code and grab your attention. Can you handle this motherlode of the Black & White machismo? And how will the stories included in this 550+ page collection delight and enthrall you?

Here's all the info from Fantagraphics:

 

Marvel and Fantagraphics Collect Savage Tales of the 1980s in Lost Marvels No. 3

The latest volume in Fantagraphics’ Lost Marvels series collects all eight issues of the long-out-of-print, tough-minded 1980s run of Savage Tales

For 13 months in the mid-1980s, editor Larry Hama assembled some of Marvel’s strongest artists and writers to tell gritty, harrowing, and blackly humorous adventure stories ranging from gangster noir to historical battlefields to the deadly old West to post-apocalyptic futures in Savage Tales. The magazine-sized anthology series was unlike anything on shelves and gave legendary artists like John Severin, John Buscema, Herb Trimpe and many more a chance to work on exciting, unique material alongside a new generation of creators. Now, Marvel and Fantagraphics are continuing their celebrated Lost Marvels line with Lost Marvels No. 3: Savage Tales of the 1980s, which reprints all 8 issues of the magazine’s run, the first time they have seen print since 1986. 

Unseen for nearly 40 years, Lost Marvels No. 3: Savage Tales of the 1980 features some of the most shocking work of artists John Severin, John Buscema, Sam Glanzman, Val Mayerik, Ron Wagner, Gray Morrow, Wayne Vansant, Herb Trimpe, Michael Golden, Joe Jusko, Mary Wilshire, Arthur Suydam, Will Jungkuntz, Vincent Waller, and Ken Steacy, and writers Chuck Dixon, Bill Wray, Don Kraar, Robert Kanigher, Denny O’Neil, Doug Murray, and Archie Goodwin. Stories include Severin and Dixon’s “By Rail to Vladivostock,” Murray and Golden’s “The Nam, 1967,” Glanzman’s “Of War and Peace: The Trinity,” Jungkuntz’s Blood & Gutz series, and Trimpe’s Skywarriors series. With a remembrance by Savage Tales editor Larry Hama. 

Here’s what critics are saying about Lost Marvels No. 1: Tower of Shadows 

“Old-school Marvel fans will eagerly add this to their shelf and look forward to forthcoming volumes.” 

— PUBLISHERS WEEKLY 

“A worthy addition to Fantagraphics’ growing library of archival collections, a peek into a forgotten era. It’s an exciting beginning to a series with at least two more installments planned, surely to be as faithful to the originals as this one. By avoiding the modern contrivance of recoloring or cleaning up the pages, the volume feels more distinctly of its time, more genuine an artifact.” — AIPT COMICS

“Lost Marvels No.1: Tower of Shadows is another great collection by Fantagraphics. From cover to cover, it’s filled with excitement… A must have for fans of the horror-comic genre.”

 — CINEMA SENTRIES

“If you are a fan of horror, this is a must get! It’s Fantastic” — GRAPHIC POLICY

Here’s what critics are saying about Lost Marvels No. 2: Howard Chaykin Vol. 1 

“Lavish” — IGN

“If you like your comics with blood, bile, and jetpacks, and your jokes hard-boiled, you know what to do.” — BOING BOING 

“This new Howard Chaykin-centered volume is bursting at the seams with smartly imaginative scripts and beautifully designed art featuring Dominic Fortune, Monark Starstalker, and Phantom Eagle!” 

— GEEK VIBES NATION

“The book is a gorgeous oversized hardcover printed on premium paper, so it looks and feels outstanding! … these are a must-have for any Marvel fan or anyone who just loves seeing comic book legends at work.”

 — Mike Spring, LIVE FOR FILM and COMIC WATCH

The Lost Marvels series is dedicated to introducing remarkable stories to a new generation of readers and restoring them to their rightful place in comics history. Lost Marvels No. 1: Tower of Shadows and Lost Marvels No. 2: Howard Chaykin Vol. 1 are available now from Fantagraphics, and Lost Marvels No. 3: Savage Tales will be published on February, 17, 2026. For updates Fans can follow Fantagraphics on X, Instagram, Facebook, Blue Sky, and YouTube.

 

 

Now, let's take a look inside:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

  

For my thoughts on Chuck Dixon's Airboy series, see my post: Chuck Dixon: A Precursor to 9/11. 

For a sample of Sam Glanzman's war stories, see my preview of Sam Glanzman Combat Collection: D-Day. (Sadly, due to the publisher's untimely death, I'm unsure if this collection was ever published).

For more, find Lost Marvels Vol 3 at the Fantagraphics website. 

Thanks to Fantagraphics for sharing this preview with us.

 

About Fantagraphics:

For 50 years, Fantagraphics has published the very best comics and graphic novels that the medium has to offer. Our mission is to celebrate great cartooning in all of its incarnations, from the form’s early luminaries to contemporary artists currently forging the future of visual storytelling. Not content to rest on our laurels and extensive roster of talented artists, we constantly seek out fresh voices from across the globe. Thus, we honor the rich history of comics while providing a platform for bold new stories, styles, and perspectives that push the boundaries of the medium. Fantagraphics remains peerless in our commitment to be the publisher of the world's greatest cartoonists.

 

Discover Wandering Cat's Cage from Takumigraphics

 

 

Fantagraphics brings you quality comics and graphic novels. But did you realize that they also public great manga titles? To mark their 15th anniversary of publishing manga, and ahead of the company's 60th birthday, Fantagraphics is introducing a new imprint. Plus, they want to highlight some forthcoming titles. 

Here's all the info concerning their future with manga:

 

Ever since Fantagraphics was founded in 1976, we’ve sought out graphic works that are imaginative, daring, and aesthetically compelling. For the first 30 years, our focus was primarily on English language cartoonists, with forays into definitive translations of exceptional European and South American works. 2010 marked our first serious entry into literary manga with the publication of A Drunken Dream and Other Stories by the pioneering shojo manga creator Moto Hagio. Since then, we have continued to publish groundbreaking manga by Atsushi Kaneko, Kago, Inio Asano, Susumu Higa, Gengoroh Tagame and others. Fantagraphics has continued to broaden the scope of our publishing throughout the 21st century, living up to our brash claim made decades ago — publishers of the world’s greatest cartoonists.

As part of our 50th Anniversary in 2026, we are proud to announce an imprint devoted exclusively to East Asian comics (encompassing comics, manga, manhwa and more from Japanese, Korean, Chinese, and other countries): Takumigraphics.

We chose Takumi from the Japanese because it’s double-bottomed meaning encapsulates the imprint’s editorial goals: it refers to “excellence,” skillfulness,” “adroitness,” “ingeniousness” — as well as a person who embodies those qualities. It’s a term we feel exemplifies the aesthetic caliber of the books that will comprise this imprint — works of mastery and vision.

While the initial focus of Takumigraphics will be on Japanese comics, future titles will include comics by authors from Korea, China, Singapore, Taiwan, the Philippines, and other Asian countries. While this represents a wide range of nuanced cultures and backgrounds, comics from these countries often share an aesthetic and visual language that we believe readers will recognize and appreciate. We couldn't be more excited about this new chapter at Fantagraphics!

 

Now, here's all the info about their upcoming title, Wandering Cat's Cage:

 

Akane Torakai, Deb Aoki, Andrew Woodrow Butcher, Christopher Butcher, Translator: Jocelyne Allen 

On sale date: May 26, 2026

An elegiac manga about gender, community, family, control, class, love, and what makes life worth living at the end of the world.

In Akane Torikai’s Wandering Cat’s Cage, it is the near future. Only a few women are still able to menstruate, and even fewer men will be born to them. Reproduction is limited to medical intervention controlled from on high, and the structures and lives of the past hold no weight: they are only hinted at through the remaining scraps of a world that no longer exists. Life can be good, though, if you fall in line, and the women of The City live bright, happy, tightly controlled lives. But complete obedience isn’t for everyone. For the women across the river, who live in a rundown shantytown, viewing the opulence of the city from afar each night, life is different. It is humble, and often dangerous, but it is free. It is here that Sanada, a young acupuncturist, lives with the mysterious Reiho, the only male she’s ever met, and who sells himself to the rich women who sneak across the river for something they’ve never experienced …The two form a small “family,” taking in other young women ousted from the city. But a real, living, breathing male might be too precious to leave to the shabby streets. When Reiho is kidnapped at gunpoint and taken to the breeding program in the city, Sanada must join with the other outcasts to try and rescue him, and learn the difficult truths of love, self-actualization, society, community, safety, and the future itself.

Master manga-ka Akane Torikai (Sensei’s Pious Lie) has produced a stunning work of relational SF through a gender-bent looking glass. Torikai pulls no punches examining the deeply messy subjects of our day — sexuality, gender dynamics, romantic love, familial trauma, freedom, and control, through immaculately realized settings and character-rich, emotive body language.

 

Here's a look inside:

 

 

 

Thanks to Takumigraphics for sharing this announcement and advance preview with us.

 

 

 

 

Lost Marvels Vol 2: Howard Chaykin Vol. 1: Dominic Fortune, Monark Starstalker, and Phantom Eagle

 

The second volume in the Lost Marvels series features a different style cover. And while writer and artist Wally Wood dominated the latter issues of the Tower Of Shadows series, this volume celebrates Howard Chaykin's contributions to comics. After the friend who took me to see Star Wars mentioned that Luke, Han, and Leia's adventures continued in comics, the first issue I plucked off the spinner rack was Howard Chaykin's Star Wars #9. So I look forward to this new collection, and seeing more of Howard Chaykin's work.

Here's all the info: 

 

Marvel and Fantagraphics Team Up to Collect 

Legendary Cartoonist Howard Chaykin’s Lost Marvels

 

Featuring Never-Before Re-printed Comics Dominic Fortune, Monark Starstalker, and War Is Hell: The First Flight of the Phantom Eagle

 

Iconoclastic cartoonist Howard Chaykin has championed free speech and great comics for over 50 years. Between his work as the artist on the first 10 issues of Marvel’s 1977 Star Wars series, his scathing political satire American Flagg, and his controversial x-rated Black Kiss, Howard Chaykin has spent his career pushing the boundaries of comic book storytelling with unforgettable postmodern takes on pulp heroes and science fiction. Now, Marvel and Fantagraphics are teaming up to publish Lost Marvels No. 2: Howard Chaykin Vol. 1: Dominic Fortune, Monark Starstalker, and Phantom Eagle, a celebration of Chaykin’s work that collects some of his earliest Marvel comics and his jaw-dropping collaboration with The Boys and Preacher writer Garth Ennis.

 

In his introduction to the collection, comics scholar Brandon Costello writes, "Bringing together stories from Howard Chaykin’s early and later Marvel Comics days, Lost Marvels: Howard Chaykin showcases essential work from the career of a groundbreaking artist acclaimed for his formal innovations and narrative sophistication.”

 

Due out in August, Lost Marvels No. 2: Howard Chaykin Vol. 1 follows the success of Marvel and Fantagraphics’s Lost Marvels No. 1: Tower of Shadows, which reproduced all nine issues of the never-before-collected horror anthology. The two celebrated publishers are continuing the ambitious line of hardcover releases with two more hardcover volumes in the Lost Marvels series this year, with more releases to follow in the coming years.

 

    In August, Fantagraphics will publish Lost Marvels No. 2: Howard Chaykin Vol. 1: Dominic Fortune, Monark Starstalker, and Phantom Eagle. When Howard Chaykin broke into comics in the 1970s, there was nothing quite like him. His original characters Dominic Fortune and Monark Starstalker took classic pulp heroes and ran them through a postmodern blender. This new volume collects some of the most exciting, sought-after work by Chaykin from 1975 to 2008, including retro-science-fiction bounty hunter Monark Starstalker’s debut appearance and all the Dominic Fortune stories, including the character’s unexpurgated Max series, published a generation later. Completing the package is the collision between pulp heroism and the devastating, bloody realities of World War I in Chaykin’s 111-page collaboration with The Boys writer Garth Ennis on War Is Hell: The First Flight of the Phantom Eagle. As the artist behind Marvel’s comic adaptation of the first Star Wars movie and the creator of iconic, influential series like the sci-fi satire American Flagg! and the adults only vampire saga Black Kiss, Howard Chaykin has earned his reputation as a prolific and essential cartoonist.

 

 

    In November, Fantagraphics will publish Lost Marvels No. 3: Savage Tales of the 1980s. For 13 months in the mid-1980s, Marvel assembled some of its strongest artists and writers to tell gritty, harrowing, and blackly humorous adventure stories ranging from gangster noir to historical battlefields to the deadly old West to post-apocalyptic futures. Unseen for nearly 40 years, here is some of the most shocking work of artists John Severin, John Buscema, Sam Glanzman, Val Mayerik, Ron Wagner, Grey Morrow, Wayne Vansant, Herb Trimpe, Michael Golden, Joe Jusko, Mary Wilshire, Arthur Suydam, Will Jungkuntz, Vincent Waller, and Ken Steacy, and writers Chuck Dixon, Bill Wray, Don Kraar, Robert Kanigher, Denny O’Neil, Doug Murray, and Archie Goodwin. Stories include Severin and Dixon’s “By Rail to Vladivostock,” Murray and Golden’s “The Nam, 1967,” Glanzman’s “Of War and Peace: The Trinity,” Jungkuntz’ Blood & Gutz series, and Trimpe’s Skywarriors series. Savage Tales of the 1980s reprints all 8 issues of the magazine’s run, the first time they have seen print since 1986. They are reproduced in facsimile format, including color covers.

 

 

 

Here’s what critics are saying about Lost Marvels No. 1: Tower of Shadows

 

“Old-school Marvel fans will eagerly add this to their shelf and look forward to forthcoming volumes.” — PUBLISHERS WEEKLY

 

 

"A veritable who’s-who of groundbreaking classic Marvel talent crafts the shorts presented here” — AIPT COMICS

 

 

“A worthy addition to Fantagraphics’ growing library of archival collections, a peek into a forgotten era. It’s an exciting beginning to a series with at least two more installments planned, surely to be as faithful to the originals as this one. By avoiding the modern contrivance of recoloring or cleaning up the pages, the volume feels more distinctly of its time, more genuine an artifact.” — AIPT COMICS

 

 

“Lost Marvels No.1: Tower of Shadows is another great collection by Fantagraphics. From cover to cover, it’s filled with excitement… A must have for fans of the horror-comic genre.” — CINEMA SENTRIES

 

 

“If you are a fan of horror, this is a must get! It’s Fantastic” — GRAPHIC POLICY

 

Now, let's take a look inside:

 

 

 

 

 

The Lost Marvels series is dedicated to introducing remarkable stories to a new generation of readers and restoring them to their rightful place in comics history. Lost Marvels No. 1: Tower of Shadows is available now from Fantagraphics; Lost Marvels No. 2: Howard Chaykin Vol. 1 will be available on August 12, 2025; and Lost Marvels No. 3: Savage Tales will be published on November 18, 2025. For updates Fans can follow Fantagraphics on X, Instagram, Facebook, Blue Sky, and YouTube.

 

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

 

For more on the first volume in the series, see my review of Lost Marvels Vol 1: Tower Of Shadows.