Rick And Morty Vs The Universe: Summer Of Love #1 Cover Preview

 

COVER A BY DAVE BARDIN

This is a wacky treat with fun, imaginative art! If you've never watched Rick And Morty, this one-shot welcomes first time readers into their storytelling universe. The story's tone is similar to The Simpsons and South Park. And while the story takes the humor to the extreme, Daniel Kibblesmith and Jody Houser urge us to celebrate our uniqueness. Here's all the info from Oni Press:

 

RICK AND MORTY VS. THE UNIVERSE: SUMMER OF LOVE #1 (ONE-SHOT)

WRITTEN BY DANIEL KIBBLESMITH & JODY HOUSER ART BY PHIL MURPHY COVER A BY DAVE BARDIN COVER B BY PHIL MURPHY INTERLOCKING VARIANT (1:10) BY FLOPS EVENT VARIANT (1:20) BY TOM FOWLER PRIME VARIANT (1:50) BY TROY LITTLE A RICK AND MORTY VS. THE UNIVERSE TIE-IN EXTRAVAGANZA! Get your tiny tiara on, because universal destructors Daniel Kibblesmith (Loki) & Jody Houser (Stranger Things) are teaming up with artist Phil Murphy (Star Trek vs. Transformers) to send Summer rocketing into a Smith family crisis with cosmic implications! Rick and Morty are doing their bachelor party thing with Prime Universe, so Summer decides to throw her own bachelorette shindig for Parmesan! No naughty gummies or pennysaver strippers here—Summer will throw a bachelorette party to remember, complete with debauchery, violence, and destruction! Hey, gurl, hey, this will end well! (News flash: It won’t.) ON SALE AUGUST 6th, 2025 | $4.99 | 32 PGS. | FC   Here are other cover options:   COVER B BY PHIL MURPHY           INTERLOCKING VARIANT (1:10) BY FLOPS

PRIME VARIANT (1:50) BY TROY LITTLE

 

EVENT VARIANT (1:20) BY TOM FOWLER

Thanks to Oni Press and Superfan Promotions for sharing this cover preview with us.

Doctor Who: Doom’s Day #1 Review

 

Writer: Jody Houser

Artist: Roberta Ingranata

Colorist: Warnia K. Sahadewa

Letterer: Richard Starkings & Comicraft’s Jimmy Betancourt

Cover Artists: Pasquale Qualano;

Publisher: Titan Comics

Price: $3.99

Release Date: July 5, 2023

 

Wearing a cloak, a monocle, and a Cat Eye mask, Doom attends a 19th Century ball. Missy, the female incarnation of the Master, also crashed the party. She introduces herself to guests as Doctor Who. Is the assassin after Missy or someone else? Let's activate our vortex manipulators, travel into Doctor Who: Doom’s Day #1, and find out!

 

Story

Doom, the time-traveling assassin, received orders from Terri at the Lesser Order of Oberon. Her target is The Thief. In the webcast, "Meet Doom: The Universe's Greatest Assassin," Doom says that Death stalks her. She only has 24 hours to live unless she can find the Doctor. Somehow, she knows that Missy isn’t the Doctor. We later learn that The Thief she hunts is a couple. Amid the costumes, the aliens fit right in.

 

Later, Doom visits the Stormcage Containment Facility, the sometimes home of River Song. Doom tells the administrator she's here to quash a danger threatening the 52^nd Century prison's reputation. Missy tracks the trail left by Doom's vortex manipulator and follows her there.

 

Doctor Who: Doom’s Day #1 sparkles with humor. While most stem from Missy's banter, Jody Houser suggests allusions to the Third Doctor story "The Sea Devils." It's difficult to know how to feel about Doom or worry that an assassin we don't know might die. But at least she protects the administrator's job and saves the universe from her targets' villainy.

 

 

Art

Some guests in the grand ballroom wear fanciful masks like Doom’s. A few wear costumes. Most dress like Missy, in attire suitable for high-society functions in the late 19^th Century. Wood-paneled walls rise to decorated ceilings. Guests stride past turned banisters lining the upper-story landings. Lord and Lady Pretty Paw bring to mind the Sisters Of Plenitude from the Tenth Doctor story "New Earth." A cloak sheathes Doom's clothes. Missy saunters along in her purple coat and skirt. A green stripe and “12” placard adorn her purple tophat.

 

With bar-lined cells occupying several levels, Stormcage brings to mind the original Master’s visit to Stangmoor Prison in the Third Doctor story, "The Mind Of Evil." Yet another cell, holding a green-skinned alien, uses laser beams for metal bars. With his green skin, pointy ears, and purple hair, Administrator Cire looks nothing like Colonel Trenchard, the prison warden in "The Sea Devils," or Raymond Westwell, the Prison Governor in "The Mind Of Evil." But he's got a pleasant view as a blue-tinged transparent ceiling reveals stars glowing and ribbons of cloud circling a gas giant.

 

A rich spectrum of soft colors makes Doctor Who: Doom’s Day #1 an appealing comic. Sometimes shadows ground characters, and shading adds depth to interiors. Panels glow with radiance. Missy's purple tophat, coat, and skirt link her with the purple-haired administrator and Doom, who wears a purple waistcoat. The vortex manipulator on Doom’s arm also features purple. While our monocled assassin doesn't wear green, the green stripe on Missy's hat blends well with the administrator's skin and that of one of Doom's targets at Stormcage. My only question is why Missy's travel through time makes the "12" placard shrink when she reaches Stormcage.

 

Uppercase black letters inhabit white dialogue balloons, making Doctor Who: Doom’s Day #1 an easy read. Yellow narrative boxes relate targets from Terri at the Lesser Order Of Oberon. Sound effects help us hear Doom's vortex manipulator activate and feel the anguish of her targets.

 

Final Thoughts

Doctor Who: Doom’s Day #1 is a diverting romp from 19^th Century New York to 52^nd Century’s Stormcage. Seasoned with humor and peppered with allusions to the original Master and River Song, the story satisfies as Missy constantly fights her instincts to be oh-so-bad.

 

Rating 8.4/10

 

To preview interior art see my review at Comic Book Dispatch.

Star Wars Yoda #6 Review

 

Writer: Jody Houser

Artist: Luke Ross

Colorist: Nolan Woodard

Letterer: VC’s Joe Caramagna

Cover Artists: Phil Noto; Lee Garbett with Marte Gracia; Takashi Okazaki;

Publisher: Marvel

Price: $3.99

Release Date: April 19, 2023

 

The Force showed Wookie Padawan Krrsish visions of Trandoshans attacking Wookies. One was Gheyr, his fellow initiate. Master Dooku interpreted these as a warning. On a padawan field trip to Corvair II, the Wookie takes the Trandoshan aside. Their conversation becomes an argument. They exchange blows. Krrsish draws his lightsaber and attacks. Will visions from the Force lead to tragedy? Let's leap into Star Wars Yoda #6 and find out!

 

Story

Gheyr insists she would never attack him, let alone turn to the Dark Side. Krrsish refuses to listen. When Jak’zin, the Tiger-like Togorian, intervenes, the Wookie attacks him too. While Yoda arrives in time to end the fight, this doesn't resolve the conflict.

 

The conflict between Krrsish and Gheyr in Star Wars Yoda #6 explores the rift opening within the Jedi Order. Yoda’s concern for his former padawan Dooku—who works in the murky world of politics and worries unduly about the future--prompted him to reassign Dooku to the Jedi Academy in issue #4. Yoda and Dooku taught Krrsishl. Yet the Wookie relied on Dooku’s advice. From a certain point of view, Krrsish and Gheyr pay the price for Yoda trying to save his friend.

 

 

In the absence of overt signs, I assumed this three-issue story arc transpired over a brief amount of time. Yet after Yoda brings the younglings back to Coruscant, he claims he spoke years ago with Krrsish about this matter and thought the Wookie had put it behind him. Is Yoda referring to the conversation in issue #5, in which Krrsish didn't tell Yoda about his visions? Or another conversation years before events in Yoda #4 that took place before the Force showed Krrsish these dark visions?

 

In any case, the duel has tragic results for the participants. Dooku and Yoda's reactions also resonate. Yoda’s takeaway reminds me that, while anyone can instruct, the best teachers care about their students and never stop learning.

 

Art

Luke Ross' first page of Star Wars Yoda #6 reveals the planet's tranquil beauty, the students honing their control of the Force, Krrsish’s rage, and Yoda’s realization that something on Corvair II is very wrong. After this impressive start, the art falters. Faces remain highly detailed. Minimal penciling suggests grass, plants, and backgrounds. Direction lines imply movement. Often background scenery fades away, and silhouettes stand in for characters. Nor does Ross reveal Jak’zin’s injury. The Togorian covers it immediately. Krrsish’s lightsaber sliced through a tree! Yet on Coruscant, clothing covers Jak'zin's arm, or he holds it. It seems the Force is strong with this one's arm.

 

Nolan Woodard paints Corvair II in purples and pinks. He shades and highlights clothing without delving unduly into gray. Blank backgrounds receive eye-catching colors. Yet some panels—such as when he paints Gheyr’s body and clothing green, or Krrsish entirely blue—resembled initial color holds. After the highly detailed tropical beauty of Alaris Prime in issue #5, I expected more from the Jedi students' field trip. While the Coruscant imagery returns to near-past efforts, the minimal foregrounds and backgrounds of Corvair II robbed me of willing disbelief in these fantasy worlds. That probably explains why Gheyr and Yoda didn’t quite seem to inhabit the practice yard by the yellow-striped tree at the Jedi Academy. 

 

 

 

No blue block letters locate scenes in space and time in Star Wars Yoda #6. Thankfully, uppercase letters in spherical dialogue balloons still make for easy reading. Krrsish’s growls and roars burst from white balloons like exploding TIE Fighters. Lightsabers hiss like Gheyr, hum like Aunt Beru’s blender, and whoosh like Luke Skywalker’s speeder. On the final page, blue letters in white balloons lacking arrows suggest someone shares Yoda’s thoughts and wishes to speak with him.

 

Final Thoughts

A battle between students highlights a growing rift in the Jedi Order. Star Wars Yoda #6 reveals the legendary Jedi Master's concern for others, how hard he works for the institution he loves, and how harshly he judges himself.

 

Rating 7.4/10  

To preview interior art see my review at Comic Book Dispatch.

Star Wars Yoda #5 Review

 

Star Wars Yoda #5 Review

Writer: Jody Houser

Artist: Luke Ross

Colorist: Nolan Woodard

Letterer: VC’s Joe Caramagna

Cover Artists: Phil Noto; David Lopez; David Messina & Alex Sinclair; and Peach Momoko

Publisher: Marvel

Price: $3.99

Release Date: March 15, 2023

 

The Force showed Wookie Padawan Krrsish a vision. Concerned, he told guest instructor Dooku about it. Dooku told him he was special but advised the Wookie to keep it a secret as most Jedi distrust visions. Will Dooku’s advice get Krrsish into trouble? Let's leap into Star Wars Yoda #5 and find out!

 

Story

Years ago, Yoda visited Alaris Prime, a moon of Kashyyyk. Wookie and Trandoshan corpses littered a grassy field. The surviving Wookies gave him a Trandoshan child. Yoda took the child to the Jedi Temple on Coruscant. The Trandoshan child Gheyr is now one of Krrsish’s closest friends. But neither knows Gheyr’s history. The vision Krrsish saw showed a battle between Trandoshans and Wookies. This—and Dooku’s advice—prompts Krrsish to distance himself from his friend.

 

This story reminds us how Luke failed to learn from Yoda in The Empire Strikes Back. It also reminds us of how Anakin's dark visions led him astray. In Jody Houser’s story, Yoda believes Dooku dwells upon the past. Like his friend Sifo-Dyas, Dooku places too much stock on his visions and worries about the future. Will Krrsish make a similar mistake?

 

 

 

Art

Luke Ross transports us back to Coruscant in Star Wars Yoda #5. Initiates wear the familiar padawan garments, and rooms remind us of the Jedi Temple in the Star Wars prequels. Among Krrsish and Gheyr’s fellow students, we see a Dathomirian Zabrak like Darth Maul, a yellow and red Rodian reminiscent of Greedo, and a Tiger-like Togorian that reminded me of Larry Niven’s Kzinti. Outside the temple stands a magnificent twisting tree with snake-like limbs. Like the white tree of Gondor and the Whomping Willow outside Hogwards, it symbolizes the Jedi Temple's vitality.

 

Nolan Woodard downplays the carnage of the battle on Alaris Prime. Instead, the moon seems a calming place, a paradise enlivened by swaying palms and vibrant flowers. The baby Trandoshan glows in the Wookie leader's hairy arms. He shades and highlights Ross' highly detailed characters. The way light and shadow course through Yoda's robes symbolizes how both sides of the Force—the good and the dark side—constantly battle for supremacy. Temple interiors range from yellow and orange to beige. These harmonize with Krrsish and the Togorian. Yoda and the Trandoshan stand out here. Young Gheyr shines so brightly in Star Wars Yoda #5 that we wonder how Krrsish can believe she’ll ever attack him. 

 

 

 

Large blue block letters locate scenes in space and time. Uppercase letters in spherical dialogue balloons make for easy reading. Krrsish’s responses pop those balloons as black expressive sound effects. His utterances compare favorably with Joe Caramagna's green sound effects that help us hear the clash of sizzling lightsabers. 

 

 

 

 

Final Thoughts

Jody Houser steals much mystery by revealing the truth behind the dark vision Krrsish fears. Still, I like how her story suggests that anxiety transformed heroes into villains that transformed the Republic into an Empire. Rich, vibrant art conveys the battle for Krrsish’s soul in Star Wars Yoda #5. Like some Jedi who came before him, let's hope the Wookie’s story doesn’t end in tragedy.

 

Rating 9/10 

 

To preview the interior art see my review at Comic Book Dispatch.

Assassin's Apprentice #4 Review

 

Assassin’s Apprentice #4 Review

Writers: Robin Hobb & Jody Houser

Artist: Ryan Kelly

Colorist: Jordie Bellaire

Letterer: Hassan Otsmane-Elhaou

Cover Artist: Anna Steinbauer

Publisher: Dark Horse

Price: $3.99

Release Date: March 8, 2023

 

A man awakens a boy in the middle of the night. His face is a map of wrinkles. He offers to teach him if the boy wishes to be a loyal servant to the king. The boy agrees without knowing what the man will teach him. What happens next? Let's delve into Assassin's Apprentice #4 and find out!

 

Story

Young Fitz lives in King Shrewd’s castle. He works for Burrich, the stablemaster. Fitz wears the royal seal, but the bastard wields no power. Old Chade offers to teach Fitz his trade. One proviso: Fitz must keep their lessons secret. Fitz has learned to keep his thoughts and feelings to himself. Chade expects the boy to question and make his own choices in life. But Fitz doesn't like the idea of killing people, and his growing penchant for questioning authority could get him into trouble.

 

Half of Robin Hobb's novel has passed in Assassin's Apprentice #4. While Jody Houser packs more narrative and dialogue into this issue than in her usual less-is-more scripts, I wish she had prefaced this issue with all that's occurred up to this point. A new reader has to piece this together on the fly and misses much, such as Fitz's journey to the castle and his magical talent.

 

Art

Ryan Kelly's detailed drawing breathes Robin Hobb’s 1990 Fantasy novel to life. We follow Fitz through a medieval castle filled with the royal family and their servants. While the occasional close-up may obscure background details, he lavishes backgrounds with wood and stone architecture and dresses rooms with tools and furniture. Aristocrats dressed in their finery stand before windows or canopy beds. Like Howl's Moving Castle, Chade's quarters need a good cleaning. When Burrich mentions Fitz’s father, Ryan brings the stablemaster’s thoughts to life within a stable filled with horses, hay, tools, lanterns, and saddles. Because of his efforts, we believe that Fitz is a young boy wishing to prove himself, who honors authority and values loyalty.

 

In Assassin’s Apprentice #4, Jordie Bellaire colors Ryan Kelly's page borders a smoky gray and individual panel edges beige. Her subdued color palette reminds us that light can be scarce in a castle or stable, particularly at night. She paints people and rooms blue in low lighting and adds purple for shading. Fires fill rooms with yellow and orange radiance (but they don't talk to Fitz, unlike Howl's fire demon Calcifer). When a character refers to someone not physically present, she employs a single color. There is magic in this world. Although writer Jody Houser doesn't explain it, Jordie shows it as intricate streaks of yellow. Thus, she enhances this comic's classic Prince Valiant vibe.

 

Letterer Hassan Otsmane-Elhaou relays the narrative with typewriter-style lettering on scraps of torn beige parchment. He presents dialogue in easy-to-read uppercase lettering classic dialogue balloons. He may not go as Old School to reveal thoughts as puffy clouds, but his pleasing font grows bold to express intonation.

 

Final Thoughts

It's been ten-to-fifteen years since I read Robin Hobb’s classic novel. Thanks to The Assassin’s Apprentice #4, I soon got a pleasant sense of Déjà (Thoris) Vu. It also reminded me of Steven Brust’s novels about Vlad Taltos, an assassin and crime lord who one day decides to change his life for the better. While I’ve read all his Taltos books several times, I've never returned to The Assassin's Apprentice or read Robin Hobb's eight follow-ups. Perhaps that time has finally come.

 

With its emphasis on learning and character, The Assassin's Apprentice #4 transports us to a Fantasy world populated by fully-rounded characters who wield magic as readily as swords. Avoid those who would mock you or heap scorn upon comic book adaptations. The wise reader will benefit from reading this issue. I may not be an assassin, but that's my creed.

 

Rating: 9.2/10

 

To view the gorgeous preview art see my review at Comic Book Dispatch