EC Comics’ Outlaw Showdown #1 Review

 

EC Comics’ Outlaw Showdown #1 Review

Writers: John Arcudi, Tony Moore, Ann Nocenti, Christopher Cantwell & Harvey Kurtzman

Artist: Sebastián Cabrol, Tony Moore, David Lapham, Dan McDaid & Jack Davis

Colorist: Lee Loughridge, Rico Renzi, Nick Filardi, Michael Atiyeh, & Iñaki Azipiazu

Letterer: Richard Starkings & Tyler Smith

Cover Artists: Lee Bermejo, Tony Moore, Ladrönn, Shawn McManus with Michelle Madsen & Rian Hughes

Publisher: Oni Press

Price: $8.99

Release Date: October 22, 2025

 

Life was tough in 19th-century America. Before the United States became a nation, it was a group of rowdy states learning to get along. Then there were those roughhousing territories where people did as they pleased. What was life like back in those lawless days? Let's grab our six-shooters, leap into EC Comics' Outlaw Showdown #1, and see!
 

 

Cool, Cool Water

The sun beats down on Rand Keyes. Like every summer day in Oklahoma, it’s hot. But Rand is on the trail of train robbers, and he won't stop until he catches them. Sadly, once people start committing crimes, they lose their moral compass. When the robbers leave corpses in their wake, this only deepens the US Marshal's determination to find them. Rand's job gets tougher after finding someone in need of protection.

 

John Arcudi fills Cool, Cool Water with all the loneliness of the Old West. Yet he infuses it with the tensions that separated people amid a land big enough for all of them. Sebastián Cabrol ratchets up the tension and isolation with constantly changing camera angles to showcase Rand and his horse riding through this panorama.

 

Lee Loughridge shows the moods of the land. The habitable regions shine with yellows, greens, and browns. As grasslands turn to desert, the yellow, brown, and orange grow more luminous. A spark of yellow glows beneath a purple night sky. But Rand needs more than a campfire to ward off the Human and otherworldly dangers that haunt this new world in this first story in EC Comics’ Outlaw Showdown #1.

 

Fire In The Hole

Life in the Appalachian coal mines was hard. Each day, miners descended to dig their quota from the Earth. The story begins with Artie Hall looking after his friend Byron. He makes sure Byron doesn't lose his payment tokens. Then an explosion rips through the mine. Out of the working party, only Artie survives.

 

Tony Moore's story follows Artie's struggle to move on. His detailed art shows working conditions in the mines, the townspeople who remind him of his absent friends, and the wealth Artie amasses. Rico Renzi lends vibrant colors to this story about survivor's guilt and how panic can exacerbate a bad situation.

 

The Cure

Doc Boot’s black-and-gray finery suggests wealth and arcane knowledge. His tinctures and salves promise to cure diseases and relieve any ailment. Yet, as little May notes, he drives his horses harder than he needs to. May lives with Shen Li, who operates a Herbalist shop in Red Dirt, California. She and Shen Li know that their forefathers developed snake oil from snakes, while Doc Boot mixes his from a variety of ingredients. Ann Nocenti’s story reminds us of the cultures that coexisted in the Old West, even if they didn’t understand or respect each other.

 

In this first story in EC Comics’ Outlaw Showdown #1, David Lapham shows Doc's vanity and sense of superiority by how he treats his Native American assistant. As finely dressed townspeople welcome the man dressed like a magician, Little Bear dispenses bottles while Shen Li and May observe from afar. Nick Filardi lavishes a palette of bright and attractive colors on this story about a man who exploits others' hopes.

 

Pony Express

Matt Roundtree works for the Pony Express. Instead of sending letters by mail and waiting weeks or months for the wagons or trains to deliver them, Matt rides alone. He guarantees delivery of the letters secured in his saddle pouch. Like Genghis Khan’s Yam postal system, Matt’s life works by riding his horse hard to relay stations, where he gets fresh supplies and exchanges horses. Christopher Cantwell focuses on Matt’s sense of honor and fulfillment in his devotion to his sworn purpose.

 

While Matt muses on the issues that spark conflict in this vast territory and how his life may change in the future, Dan McDaid and Michael Atiyeh show Matt’s bond with his horses. They contribute beautiful landscapes, familiar villains and dangers, and reveal Matt as an indomitable force of nature: always the perennial visitor who can never stop.

 

Colt Single Action Army Revolver

This six-page tale, published in EC Comics’ Two-Fisted Tales #20, begins with Rufe loading his gun. Rufe waxes philosophical as he contemplates his power. But Harvey Kurtzman’s story isn’t about Rufe and his partner working a mine and getting rich. Instead, Jack Davis' art reveals the gun's power. Iñaki Azipiazu restores the 1952 coloring to this thoughtful, moral tale in EC Comics’ Outlaw Showdown #1.

 

Lettering

Richard Starkings and Tyler Smith fill white dialogue balloons and colored narrative boxes with black uppercase letters. Gunshots punctuate the day and night, explosions rock the air, and large, stylized letters introduce “Fire in the Hole.” Thanks to Oni Press for providing a review copy.

 

Final Thoughts

The first two stories in EC Comics’ Outlaw Showdown #1 showcase the horrors and mysteries in a land where the fantastic merges with reality. Then, the remaining three reveal the good, the bad, and the ugly side of life as adventurers transformed a wilderness into a nation.

 

Rating 9.6/10

 

For more cover art and a look inside "Fire in the Hole" see my preview of EC Comics’ Outlaw Showdown #1.

Rick and Morty vs the Universe #4 Review

 

Writer: Daniel Kibblesmith

Artist: Jarrett Williams

Colorist: Alessandro Santoro

Letterer: Crank!

Cover Artists: Dave Bardin, Troy Little, Flops, Tom Fowler with Bill Crabtree, Jarrett Williams with Alessandro Santoro & Phil Murphy

Publisher: Oni Press

Price: $4.99

Release Date: October 22, 2025

 

To escape his exile, Rick led his Rixpendables in an all-out assault on Bloodryck. His grandson faced worse odds. On Margin World, every hand was against Marty. But they were all different versions of Marty. Now, Rick and Morty are back together. And they’ve got pouches! How will they use all the weapons inside them? Let’s leap into Rick and Morty vs the Universe #4 and see!

 

Story

After starting amid a firefight at a funeral, the clock rewinds to Rick and Morty regrouping in a dead universe. As Rick tests out his weapons, he finds one that shoots pure meta energy, allowing him to overcome Parmesan's block on his ability to summon portals. Then the two travel to Prime Universe's funeral, where the shootout occurs.

 

Rick and Morty Vs the Universe #4 is a madcap romp. Daniel Kibblesmith's story features action, drama, and ethical discussions. At least, young Morty is interested in ethics. Rick strives to ground his grandson in the facts as he sees them. Morty ponders how things ought to be. The discussion grows uncomfortable as Rick gets a little too honest with Morty. But it’s a reminder that growing up is difficult, and family dynamics doubly so.

 

The protagonists have suffered from their separate journeys. Rick had to harden himself to the death of his other selves to reach the spaceship and reunite with his grandson. All the carnage young Morty witnessed affects him more. So Morty hesitates to end everything, even if his grandfather insists that they'll all return in Rick and Morty Vs the Universe #4.

 

Art

Rick and Morty meet a group of gods adorned in blue, purple, orange, and yellow. Alessandro Santoro lavishes these colors on the funeral shootout, where Jarrett Williams shows starry silhouettes with blue lines to define their limbs. Crank fills the pages of Rick and Morty vs the Universe #4 with black uppercase letters in white balloons and white letters in black balloons. Sound effects enhance the action amid Deaths at a Funeral. Music notes arise from the universe singing and playing a small electronic keyboard. Thanks to Oni Press for providing a review copy.

 

Now, here are other cover options:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Final Thoughts

Torn between his instincts and loyalty to his grandfather, Morty must make decisions that will affect billions of people. Rick and Morty vs the Universe #4 reminds us that each of us must decide how we live. We can either follow our elders or make our own decisions. But as Rick points out, we can't have it both ways.

 

Rating 9/10

Green Lantern #28 Preview

 

 

Hal Jordan helped the Lanterns defeat the Sun-Eaters. He protected everyone in the universe, even if it cost him his friend's life. Without Hal Jordan and the Lanterns, we would be more like machines than people. What threat could be more significant than preserving the emotions that make life worth living? 

Here's all the info from DC Connect:

 

Green Lantern #28

Writer: Jeremy Adams

Artist: V Ken Marion

Cover Artists: Xermánico, Rachta Lin, Davide Paratore & Doaly

Price: $4.99/$5.99 Card Stock

Issue length: 32 Pages

Publisher: DC Comics

Release Date: October 22, 2025

 

Hal Jordan…Savior or Destructor?

 

A new page is discovered in the Book of Oa that says only two words…”Hal Jordan.” Upon reading this page, the greatest Green Lantern is thrust into a new mystery with massive ramifications.

Now, let's take a look inside:

 

 

 Thanks to DC Comics for sharing this preview with us.

 

Speed Grapher Vol 3 Review

 

Writer, Artist, Letterer: Tomozo

Original Story: Gonzo

Character Design: Yusuke Kozaki

Translation: Motoko Tamamuro & Jonathan Clements

Layout, Lettering & Touch-Up: Bensidi Ayoub

Publisher: Titan Manga

Price: $12.99

Release Date: August 26, 2025

 

After Shinsen Tennozu’s husband died, Choji Suitengu courted her. Now he controls the vast resources of the Tennozu Group and manages their exclusive Rippongi Club. For a while, he also had Kagura. He kept Shinsen’s daughter drugged and used the young teen in secret ceremonies. Kagura’s kiss could unleash a person’s greatest desire, transforming them into Euphorias. That is, if the power she unleashed didn't kill them.

 

When photojournalist Tatsumi Saiga snuck into the club, her kiss granted him a shoot-to-kill ability. Then he grabbed Kagura and fled the club. So far, Saiga has used his ability to kill two of the club’s Euphorias. Can he protect her from Suitengu’s control? Or will Saiga’s girlfriend, Hibari Ginza, shoot him and Kagura for cheating on her? Let’s leap into Speed Grapher Vol 3 and see!

 

Story

The Rippongi Club’s Euphorias haven’t killed Tatsumi Saiga, but it’s not for a lack of trying. Hibari Ginza found Kagura after she escaped Suitengu’s henchmen. They returned to the Sumitani General Hospital in Shimoda, where Saiga suffered significant wounds while battling Dr Mizoguchi, a dentist with a Spider Euphoria. The authorities blame Saiga after a building collapsed amid his battle with the Diamond Euphoria, Madame Koganei. As she cannot take him to another hospital, Ginza takes Kagura and Saiga to her apartment. But Suitengu, his henchmen, and his Euphorias are hot on their trail. And while attending to Saiga, Ginza struggles with rage over how Kagura and Saiga care for each other.

 

Ginza loves Saiga but feels like she’s losing him. He has been so fixated on his work lately that he hasn’t called her. Now, he’s been looking after Kagura Tennozu, who is younger than Ginza and heir to the Tennozu family fortune. As she speaks with Kagura, Ginza realizes how the teen granted Saiga his Shoot To Kill Euphoria. When Shirogani, the Rubber Euphoria who loved Madame Koganei, attacks, Saiga can’t protect them. So Ginza kisses Kagura and achieves her greatest desire of sharing Saiga’s Euphoria abilities.

 

Amid the explosive action fueling Speed Grapher Vol 3, Tomozo devotes ample time to drama. While Saiga shows a surprising similarity to Choji Suitengu, the club’s manager proves far more villainous. And while Saiga can never achieve his desire to photograph Kagura as his camera has become a weapon, Suitengu reveals what led him to romance Kagura’s mother and manage the Rippongi Club.

 

Tatsumi Saiga remains our viewpoint character as this series winds to its conclusion. Yet Hibari Ginza shows her finer qualities in Speed Grapher Vol 3. All too often, Ginza has let her love for Saiga descend into jealousy. But to protect Saiga, Ginza must channel her love in a far more noble way than ever before.

 

Art

Tomozo shows why Kagura unleashes the passions of the Rippongi Club's male clientele and fuels Hibari Ginza's jealousy. Her mother and Suitengu have controlled her every movement. The young heiress has never left Tokyo, or even purchased anything for herself. As Kagura attends to Saiga, her love for the man who freed her shines through her eyes. Shirogane provides spectacle when his bands of rubber strip off her clothes (while covering her breasts and nether regions). The Rubber Euphoria wields the innocent youth as a shield before absorbing her into his body.

 

Ginza also draws your eyes with her rectangular glasses, sleek hair, and eye-catching outfit. Kanda, a priest with an Electric Euphoria, shoots streams of electricity through his mouth when his face turns into a metal mask. Like all the Euphorias, Saiga’s enhanced abilities lead to a physical transformation. Wounded, exhausted, and unprepared, he struggles to prevent the changes his body is undergoing.

 

Speed Grapher Vol 3 reads right to left, with easily readable dialogue in balloons of varying shapes and sizes. Thoughts inhabit starbursts to express the character's trauma. The letters enlarge for intonation and volume, and Bensidi Ayoub translates the Japanese sound effects accompanying the intense action. Thanks to Titan Manga for providing a review copy.

 

Now, let's take a look inside:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Final Thoughts

Often, our strongest desires are those we try the hardest to suppress. Thus, the Euphorias express traits that clash with their career choices. Over time, using this power corrupts their character. In a sense, the Rippongi Club's VIP members become Suitengu's slaves, as he forces them to become assassins to pay the exorbitant club dues. The pursuit of money and the economic systems that oppress the impoverished become a theme as Saiga protects Kagura from being Suitengu's puppet.

 

After a hurricane of action, drama, and thought-provoking social commentary, a collection of short parodies form enjoyable What Ifs that focus more on Ginza, Kagura, and Suitengu than Saiga as Speed Grapher Vol 3 draws to a close.

 

Rating 9.6/10

 

 

To see how this series began, check out my review of Speed Grapher Vol 1. 

 

To see the middle volume, check out my review of Speed Grapher Vol 2. 

The Department of Truth #0 Review

 

Writers: James Tynion IV

Artists: Martin Simmonds & Joshua Hixson

Colorists: Martin Simmonds & Jordie Bellaire

Letterer: Aditya Bidikar

Cover Artists: Martin Simmonds, Joshua Hixson, Tom Muller & Tyler Boss

Publisher: Image Comics

Price: $4.99

Release Date: September 24, 2025

 

Like Janie, Hunter’s got a gun. It's an impressive rifle. Still, Stevie prefers customers to order a large pepperoni rather than discharge a firearm inside Pizza Gogo. Hunter insinuates Stevie is doing something sinister. When the rifle-toting customer points to a door, Stevie wonders why he hasn't noticed it before. And when Steve opens it and hears children crying, why does it hurt to peer into the darkness? Let's grab a flashlight, leap into The Department of Truth #0, and see!

 

Story

While Hunter's story begins in 2016, time passes quickly in prison. Still, it's a surprise when the guard leaves Hunter with government spooks. A kid eating a candy bar waxes lyrical about his vision of America. Chuckie claims that Hunter is a hero and fits in with what he's trying to do for their country. But Chuckie is a teenager. Years ago, he could have been one of the kids Hunter intended to rescue from Pizza Gogo.

 

In The Department of Truth #0, Charity Sinclair realizes her colleague isn't connecting with Hunter. She explains how her government department faltered under poor leadership. Now, the administration shares Charity's vision. Like the door that Stevie had never seen before, Charity believes that Hunter can help make her vision of America a reality. Her department is on a recruiting drive, and she wants Hunter to be a part of it.

 

All this strange talk mystifies Hunter. And when he gets confused, he gets angry. Hunter cares about others. But he tries to see the world objectively. The government has given him time to reconsider his actions. How did his threatening and menacing crimes become heroism? James Tynion IV’s story is all about the truth we perceive, and the passion and work necessary to help others embrace your worldview.

 

Art

As Hunter points his rifle at Stevie, the restaurant mascot on the wall behind the bald, muscular man evokes Eddie Valiant's investigation for Roger Rabbit. Customers watch the standoff as the room skews around them. The stairs descending into darkness recall Bilbo sneaking into Smaug's domain. Martin Simmonds intersperses the action with frequent close-ups of Hunter and Stevie. Then the two men resemble figures at a crime scene, as a pistol-wielding woman in a black suit studies them.

 

Colors swirl, spin, and surround the characters in The Department of Truth #0. Martin Simmonds often adorns people and places with contrasting colors, such as red and green, to suggest texture, patterns, and energy. Red drifts from Hunter’s rifle to bathe Stevie. The same white speckles that hover around Hunter also surround the magical door. Outside Pizza Gogo, the restaurant lights and the roof lights on the patrol car and ambulance blur amid a white ground fog. Later, a greenish haze surrounds Chuckie, Charity, and Hunter, while a yellow-and-red children’s drawing portrays how Charity views her department liaison.

 

Suspicious Minds Pt 1: Story

Hank remembers how seeing Elvis Presley in a parade affected him. Now, he must assess the King's impact on national security. In Scott Snyder’s story, Hank has failed the bureau once. He feels out of his depth. But Hank has something to prove to his director and himself.

 

This short serial installment concerns how stories influence us. These may be the stories we tell. Or they may be stories that others create about us. Stories sustained Hank during his childhood. His time as an agent has taught him that some stories can hurt others. What Hank discovers when he enters Graceland confounds everything he knows about how “truth” and “fiction” change us.

 

Suspicious Minds Pt 1: Art

Joshua Hixson shows Hank walking through the throng lining the street. Beside him, his mother uses a handkerchief amid her distress. But she waves at people she admires. Unlike the celebrities perched atop the back seats of convertibles, the King reclines on the trunk of a car with a hard top. Elvis smiles and winks at Hank's stoicism.

 

Jordie Bellaire applies beige, red, and gray to Joshua Hixson’s precision drawings in The Department of Truth #0. Inking portrays darkness and shadows as Hank slows before the wrought iron gates in his big-bodied, OAPEC-defying sedan. People merge with symbols and mythological creatures as Hank ponders his discoveries and enters the colonial revival mansion.

 

Lettering

Aditya Bidikar adorns characters with white balloons featuring straight lines and sharp edges. Large black uppercase words reveal dialogue, while small lowercase letters in narrative boxes adorn art illustrating the characters' worldviews. Small uppercase letters fill rounded white balloons in Suspicious Minds Pt 1, while small lowercase typed letters in beige boxes convey Hank's thoughts. Thanks to Image Comics and Tiny Onion for providing a review copy.

 

Final Thoughts

Countries have gone to war to promote their version of the truth. Empires have crumbled because they lacked a unifying story. In The Department of Truth #0, people who believe in objective truth falter, while those who live the lie until it becomes truth gain momentum in their bid for power.

 

Rating 9/10

For more cover art see my review at Comic Book Dispatch.

Batman #2 Review

 

Writer: Matt Fraction

Artist: Jorge Jiménez

Colorist: Tomeu Morey

Letterer: Clayton Cowles

Cover Artists: Jorge Jiménez, Jim Lee, Totino Tedesco, Michael Allred & David Aja

Publisher: DC Comics

Price: $4.99/ $5.99 (Card Stock) / $7.99 (Foil)

Foil Variant by Jorge Jiménez:

Release Date: October 1, 2025

 

We all have a history, and the past informs our present. Now, Tim Drake is the competent crime fighter known as Robin. But once, he was a teenager who needed help passing his driving test. How did Tim learn to drive? And how will that experience help him survive in the dangerous streets of Gotham City? Let’s grab our DMV handbooks, leap into Batman #2, and see!

 

Story

Officer Eddie Vargas is angry that Commissioner Savage is bringing in an elite tactical squad. Eddie doesn’t just want to observe and report. He wants to play a vital role in his department. In Matt Fraction’s story, Eddie is anxious to demonstrate that Savage doesn’t need to bring in outsiders. He and his brothers in blue can handle the crime in Gotham. But as Eddie strives to assert his abilities, he goes too far. When Eddie uses his power to make a statement, he forgets the intention of the law by enforcing its letter. 

 

Robin is wounded. But in Batman #2, Officer Eddie Vargas sees an armed vigilante in need of a lesson. Batman’s loyalty to Robin puts him in harm’s way when he rushes to Robin’s aid. But while Batman risks his life for his friend, Robin’s confidence in the police takes a hit. Tim Drake realizes that more than master criminals break the law. Some just need a helping hand. Officer Eddie Vargas's callousness shocks him.

 

Matt Fraction weaves Tim’s memories of learning how to drive into the fast-paced action taking place in Gotham City. Bruce Wayne wants to help his apprentice. While Bruce understands how his son may feel displaced, Bruce disdains how Damian succumbs to envy. Matt Fraction draws an intriguing parallel between Damian Wayne's anger and Officer Eddie Vargas' desire to seize what he feels he deserves. And while he needs to protect others, Tim Drake confronts his childhood fears about measuring up in Batman #2.

 

Art

Damian scowls while washing an iconic version of the Batmobile. His hair flies up like Tim’s cape as he suds the hood. Smoke rises before a Bezna Transpo truck as two men motion for it to halt in the graffiti-adorned streets. Robin's bo staff arcs in a time lapse before shattering a villain's mask. Tim's high-flying antics evoke a former Robin's youth with the Flying Graysons. Jorge Jiménez brings style and flair to Robin’s fight for his life. Yet Tim loses his cool when Batman presents him with a challenge.

 

Sunlight streaks the blue sky and reflects off gold canopies amid the verdant garden surrounding Wayne Manor. A graffiti artist wears a red jacket that seems a match for Robin’s suit. Harsh lighting reduces two men to blue-streaked reverse silhouettes. Yet as Tomeu Morey lavishes a loaded palette on Batman #2, red speckles drift away from a red figure like bubbles on a gentle breeze.

 

Clayton Cowles fills dialogue balloons and narrative boxes with black uppercase letters. The letters grow bold for intonation and shrink for lowered voices. Shouts enlarge letters and deform balloons. Large and small white letters fill gray fields, identifying aspects of Robin’s technologically enhanced suit. Sound effects help us hear combat, gunfire, engines roaring, a vehicle racing through the night, and Damian’s shocking attack on his usurper. Thanks to DC Comics for providing a review copy.

 

 

Now, let's take a look inside:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Final Thoughts

Commissioner Savage rules his department with an iron fist. So, Savage levies draconian decrees when vandals fill The Slabs with Anarchy in the GC. As police officers take notes from Sandmen like Logan 5 and Francis 7, Robin battles long-held fears to protect his mentor in Batman #2.

 

Rating 9.6/10

Gran Familia Vol 1 Review

 

Writer & Artist: Kenji Hamada

Translation: Motoko Tamamuro & Jonathan Clements

Letterer: Skylar Rutan

Editor: Louis Yamani

Designer: Matt Bookman

Publisher: Titan Manga

Price: $12.99

Release Date: September 30, 2025

 

Leo is the manager of Goodfellas Bistro in Manhattan. Along with Zach and Rose, his head chef and waitress, he runs a thriving business in New York City. But Leo is a klutz. Despite his cheery demeanor, he keeps dropping the food and breaking plates. It’s gotten so bad that Zach and Rose have considered firing him. Yet the three stick together, even if they disappoint customers with delayed or ruined meals. What binds these three people together? And why does the Human population of New York City live in fear of their Demi neighbors? Let’s grab a cross and garlic, leap into Gran Familia Vol 1, and see!

 

Story

Demi-Humans are mutants. Although they have special abilities, they can be born to nonmutant parents. Humans fear what they don’t understand. But they also have a reason to fear Demi. Whether they take form as Werewolves, Vampires, or another creature from mythology, they wield tremendous power. History is replete with examples of their deadly abilities. When Rose and Zach tire of Leo’s clumsiness, he complains that he’ll end up on the streets if they fire him. And then, he could be the victim of a Demi attack.

 

As Gran Familia Vol 1 opens, Leo is playing with the local kids outside IBIS Greengrocer. When they get rough playing Monster with Leo, Lisa shoos them away. Lisa urges him not to let the boys cross the line. Leo laughs despite taking a pounding. He is amazed that Lisa still runs the grocery store since her parents' deaths. But her grandmother lives with her and keeps Lisa company.

 

In Kenji Hamada's story, a Demi Mafia family has been raiding nearby businesses. Lisa and her grandmother hope they're not next on the crime family's list. But after Leo leaves, Virgo and his thugs visit the women. The Don of the Bartolini family can wield fire. And with all the ways New York discriminates against the Demi, he wants to remind the Humans why they should fear their mutant kin.

 

In Gran Familia Vol 1, Leo rescues Lisa and her grandmother. He brings them to Goodfellas Bistro, where Rose and Zach give them a place to sleep. Then Leo drops his carefree façade. He announces that they are going to meet with Virgo. Rose and Zach don't question his decision as they follow him to the Bartolini Family residence.

 

Art

Zach is a bald, densely muscled man who rarely smiles. Rose has an attractive figure, long dark hair, and frequently smiles or giggles. Leo's smile and spiky hair suggest he’s one of life’s innocents. Kenji Hamada provides flashbacks that demonstrate how Leo has suffered. Yet he also shows glimpses of the event that robbed Lisa of her parents. The locket around her neck contains a photo of her as a child with her mother and father. Leo wears a signet ring on a necklace. He doesn't display it often, as people would recognize the insignia.

 

With his sleek dark hair, suit, and manner, Virgo could stand in for Loki in the MCU. But when he summons his power, flames erupt from his head and body. When she transforms into a Mandrake, Rose’s head sprouts leaves and a flower, and she wields thorny vines. Zach adopts reptilian features, and his skin hardens as he becomes a Golem. Leo becomes stylish and confident as he places the signet ring of the Gran Familia on his finger. Bats swarm around him, and he wears a gun on his hip.

 

Skylar Rutan fills dialogue balloons of varying shapes and sizes with uppercase text. Placards introduce major characters, while anti-mutant graffiti adorns streets, and a Humans Only sign adorns a bus stop. He celebrates the characters’ transformations with calligraphy. Sound effects accompany Leo, Rose, and Zach’s confrontation with the Virgo, and the other mutants and villains they encounter in Gran Familia Vol 1. Thanks to Titan Manga for providing a review copy.

 

Final Thoughts

The Demi represent a small percentage of New York City's population. Yet the fear they incite in the populace forces the NYPD to establish a Demi Crime Division. While Humans fear the atrocities that creatures like Vampires and Werewolves are capable of, they discriminate against their mutant kin. They force the mutants to disguise their appearance or risk losing their livelihoods. Leo, Zach, and Rose want to protect everyone they meet, regardless of their abilities or appearance. But they must do so while appearing Human in Gran Familia Vol 1.

 

Rating 9.8/10

To look inside see my preview of Gran Familia Vol 1.