[The WCPE crew is excited to welcome Hillary Lewis on as a contributor to our website and podcast. Hillary was our very first guest on the show back in October (listen here and remember that we were still working out the kinks). Hillary is an amazing cosplayer and costume designer but is also a serious comic book fan as you can see from her write-ups below. We consider ourselves very lucky to have Hillary as a friend of the site and a friend of ours. Make her feel at home!]

It may be April Fool’s Day tomorrow but these new comic books are no joke! Seriously though, lame jokes aside, there is some pretty awesome stuff coming out this Wednesday, including several new promising first issues and the start of a major comic event! This week, the guys at the Worst. Comic. Podcast. EVER! were nice enough to let me share my four picks for NCBD with you. I have to say choosing only four was not an easy task, but I think I picked some pretty good ones, let me know if you agree or disagree in the comments!

IX Generation #3 (3.99, Top Cow): The first two issues of this new spin off series introduced us to a new apocalyptic dystopia based in the Top Cow Universe. Veteran Top Cow writer, Matt Hawkins, does a phenomenal job of blending the futuristic aspects of the Aphrodite IX series with the more supernatural aspects of Artifacts, while still making it accessible to new readers. The story just started to get really interesting at the end of issue #2 when we learned that Hades had partnered with the Darkness who seems hellbent on destroying the other members of the IXth Gen. I think this week’s issue will be the best one yet as we finally get to meet the new bearer of the Darkness and discover what his plan is for Aphrodite IX and the others. Even if the story of Generation IX doesn’t interest you, I would suggest picking it up just to admire Stjepan Sejic’s art as the way he captures the motions and expressions of his characters is unparalleled. Also if you like variants, I would suggest picking up the seriously adorable St. Patrick’s Day cover done by his wife, Linda Sejic.

Convergence #0 (4.99, DC Comics): The huge two month DC event finally begins! The solicit for this issue says: “literally every DC story ever told – and it all begins here.” The big bad in this event will be Brainiac, who now calls himself Telos after merging with a world of the same name. Brainiac or “Telos” has collected heroes and villains from every era, including but not limited to those from the Red Son, Kingdom Come, and pre-Flashpoint eras. Brainiac plans to pit the characters from various different eras against each other and the only thing we can be sure of is that chaos will ensue! Combining all these different eras and characters may lead one to think that this DC event, like many others, will become overly complicated especially to those without extensive knowledge of the DC Universe. To combat this, DC has hired TV writer Jeff King, who makes his comic writing debut with this #0 issue, to make sure this story is accessible to all fans. Either way, whether complicated or accessible, good or bad, this event will bring some big changes to the DC Universe, so make sure not to miss it!

Shahrazad #1 (2.99, Aspen Comics): Writers Kim Hutchison & Kari Castor and artist Mike Krome bring a creative and interesting new title to Big Dog Ink ( which is now an imprint of Aspen Comics). Okay, so this comic isn’t exactly new but this remastered and re-released first issue provides new readers a jumping on point for this promising series. This comic is named after its heroine, Shahrazad, and as the solicit states, “[she] was known for her amazing stories of 1001 Arabian Nights, but now it is time to tell her story!” I love the way this comic takes a well-known character and features her in new and unpredictable adventures that span generations and genres. Hutchison and Castor’s writing really is the highlight of this issue and from the beginning, she does a great job of fleshing out Shahrazad’s character and making her strong and BA but still relatable and compassionate. Even if you were lucky enough to pick up this issue the first time it was released, Aspen Comics has given us several reasons to pick it up again including several beautiful new covers, behind the scenes looks, and creator commentary.

EDITOR’S NOTE – Our first draft of this column failed to credit Kari Castor of co-writing credits on Shahrazad. We are so sorry about the omission, and will do our best to make things right in the future!

UFOlogy #1 (3.99, BOOM! Studios): Do you like the X-Files, Twin Peaks, or E.T.? Then you will definitely want to pick up this new comic by writer James Tynion IV and artist Matt Fox! UFOlogy will revolve around a high school student named Becky Finch who uncovers an old family mystery that involves, you guessed it…aliens! I’m personally really excited for this one because I am a huge fan of sci-fi conspiracy theories and James Tynion IV has proven he can create innovative and interesting story lines and well-rounded characters with his series, The Woods. Oh, and the best part is you can get your comic signed by the talented Matt Fox at Elite Comics when you pick it up on Wednesday.

As always, WCPE is so happy to be publishing #FCIW with the support of Elite Comics in Overland Park, KS. William and the Elite Crew run a friendly, clean, and safe comic shop which is welcoming to all and supportive of many local and national non-profits including The Hero Initiative. Stop in, pick up these four books, and let the gang at Elite Comics know that the Worst. Comic. Podcast. EVER! sent you over.

Categories: Four Comics I Want for NCBD

Tags: Convergence, FCIW, Four Comics I Want, Hillary Lewis, IX Generation, Shahrazad, UFOlogy