January 2015 New Graphic Novel Recommends

	Slightly belatedly, here’s our top picks of graphic novels published in January!
	We’ve trawled through the fantastical and the speculative, the superheroic and antiheroic, the futuristic, the historic and the contemporary, the literary, the pulp, the mainstream, the cult, the pop and the downright weird to bring you the best sequential art of the month!

As so much is published we look more to standalone and volume ones than the latest in a long sequence of superhero ongoings; but then if we particularly like something…

Anyway here it is, more monthly graphic greatness coming very soon – Enjoy!

 

*	TITLE	CREATORS		ISBN	BIND	RRP	PUB.
	SLAINE BRUTANIA CHRONICLES VOL. 1	Pat Mills, Simon Davis		978-1781083352	HB	16.99	2000 AD
	Brand New Slaine!
	Ancient Albion. Celtic barbarian warrior Sláine united the tribes of the Earth Goddess and became the first High King of Ireland. After ruling for seven years, he fought for the Goddess in other eras before returning to save his people from the Fomorian sea devils. Now, he’s crossed over onto the isle of Monadh in an attempt to rescue Sinead from the evil clutches of the Drune Lords…
	This brand-new chapter in the life of Sláine is the perfect jumping on point for new readers as writer Pat Mills (Marshal Law) transports the Celtic warrior to the ancient world of Albion. This book also introduces the fully-painted art style of Simon Davis (Ampney Crucis) to the strip for the first time.
	STRONTIUM DOG: DOGS OF WAR (LIFE AND DEATH OF JONNY ALPHA 2)	John Wagner, Carlos Ezquerra		978-1781083369	TPB	14.99	2000 AD
	Alpha Engaged!
	Late 22nd century. After the Atomic Wars, many survivors were warped by the Strontium 90 fallout. These ‘mutants’ became a victimised underclass, and the only job open to them was bounty hunting. One such Search/Destroy agent, or STRONTIUM DOG, is Johnny Alpha, who was thought killed. But he has been resurrected and is now leading mutantkind in a revolution against the Norms…
	Written by Strontium Dog co-creator John Wagner (A History of Violence) with art by his co-creator Carlos Ezquerra (Judge Dredd) Johnny Alpha’s explosive return from beyond concludes in this action-packed finale.
	DISENCHANTED VOL.2	Simon Spurrier, German Erramousepe		978-1592912452	PB	£14.99	Avatar Press
	Violence, crime, drug use, and racism rule on the streets of Vermintown.  SIMON SPURRIER has created a fascinating city of angry fairy folk that have become far too much like the human race that no longer believes in them.
	The smash-hit web comic takes you into a metropolis of vices that unflinchingly shows us what happened to the fairy folk of yesteryear.  Now this living and breathing city holds a darkness that has rotted it to the core.  Vermintown is where magic went to die.  And in its streets the worst evils in us are now poisoning the last remaining magics in the world.   Disenchanted will change the way you look at fairy tales forever.
	This volume collects the complete second arc of the weekly web series www.disenchantedcomic.com.
	GOD IS DEAD VOL. 3	Jonathan Hickman, Mike Costa, Omar Francia, Omar Francia, Jillian Frigeri		978-1592912445	PB	£14.99	Avatar Press
	Mankind prayed for salvation.  As the gods of mythology fought and destroyed around them, they hoped and spoke in hushed tones of the return of the Christian God.  Now Jesus Christ has risen and once again walks among mortals.
	But thousands of years of recounting the stories of the Bible won’t prepare people for the truth about the All Powerful.  They believed that Jesus was the savior of the human race and that he would return to do so again.  Now the Son of God has come back but his salvation comes as the most horrific of prices. The most audacious arc of God Is Dead has arrived as MIKE COSTA delivers the intensity and darkness in a world of divine wrath.
	God is Dead Vol 3 TP collects issues #13 – 18 of the ongoing comic book series.
	DEATHMATCH VOL. 3	Paul Jenkins, Carlos Magno		978-1608863549	PB	£10.99	Boom!
	The world’s greatest superheroes are dying off left and right as a mysterious supervillain forces them to fight to the death in an other-worldly prison until there is but one victor. Written by industry legend Paul Jenkins (SENTRY, INHUMANS) and drawn by comics superstar Carlos Magno (PLANET OF THE APES, TRANSFORMERS), DEATHMATCH is a dark, psychological deconstruction of the superhero genre!
	SIX GUN GORILLA	Simon Spurrier, Jeff Stokely		978-1608863907	PB	£14.99	Boom!
	Written by Simon Spurrier (Marvels X-MEN LEGACY, CROSSED WISH YOU WHERE HERE), drawn by hot new talent Jeff Stokely (FRAGGLE ROCK, THE REASON FOR DRAGONS), and featuring a cover by Eisner Award-winning artist Ramón Pérez (A TALE OF SAND, WOLVERINE & THE X-MEN), SIX-GUN GORILLA is a pulpy mash-up of Western weirdness and lo-fi science fiction unlike anything else!
	SUICIDE RISK VOL. 3	Mike Carey, Elena Casagrande		978-1608863990	PB	£10.99	Boom!
	With the last vestiges of hope fully extinguished, Leo Winters returns home…but does home want him? Is he even anyone they can recognize any more? And just how far will the cop turned superhero go to protect his family… and his sanity. The ongoing series by award-winning author Mike Carey (X-MEN, THE UNWRITTEN) and fan-favorite artist Elena Casagrande (HULK, HACK/SLASH) continues here!
	B.P.R.D.: PLAGUE OF FROGS VOLUME 2	Mike Mignola, John Arcudi, Guy Davis, Dave Stewart		978-1595826763	PB	£18.99	Dark Horse
	In 2001, Hellboy quit the BPRD, leaving Abe Sapien, Liz Sherman, and a bizarre roster of special agents to defend the world from the growing menace of the frog army. While Abe dives deeper into his origins, Liz and the BPRD fight against two of their greatest villains yet with their newest recruit, Daimio!
	Collects B.P.R.D.: The Dead, B.P.R.D.: The Black Flame, and B.P.R.D.: War on Frogs.
	DEATHBLOW: THE DELUXE EDITION TP	Jim Lee, Tim Sale, Brandon Choi		978-1401251307	PB	£14.99	DC Comics
	As an élite mercenary working in the shadowy realm of special operations, Michael Cray was a one-man arsenal and one of the world’s deadliest killers. But that was before the cancer began to eat away at his brain — and remorse began to eat away at his soul.
	To those with faith, redemption is always possible. Cray never had a lot of faith, but the agents of Hell sent to recruit him are about to adjust his attitude. As he sinks deeper and deeper into an ancient conspiracy poised to unleash Armageddon on the world, the man known as Deathblow will discover that his special skills can finally be put to good use — and if he sacrifices everything, he may be able to save himself along with the world.
	Crafted by legendary comics talents Jim Lee, Brandon Choi, and Tim Sale, Deathblow: The Deluxe Edition collects the first twelve issues of the classic WildStorm title together with the never-before-collected issue #0. Also features a special gallery of bonus art from Lee and Sale.
	DOCTOR SPEKTOR: MASTER OF THE OCCULT VOLUME 1	Mark Waid, Neil Edwards		978-1606905616	PB	£12.99	Dynamite
	TV legend. Wall Street wolf. Internet mogul. Tabloid bad boy. Master metaphysicist. Spiritualist. Monster hunter. Doctor Adam Spektor is all of these things… and less.
	For fifteen years, Spektor has traveled the globe to smoke out and defeat werewolves, vampires, ghosts, and everything else that goes bump in the night… and yet, his success has brought him no peace. Some part of him is missing, something he needs but can’t name. But he’s about to find what’s missing in an unlikely place.
	A supernatural thriller that shatters all realities, courtesy of award-winning author Mark Waid (Kingdom Come, Daredevil, Indestructible Hulk)!
	“This project is a blast. It plays into all the non-superhero things that interest me — magic, performance, celebrity culture, and the pressures one feels under the public spotlight. Doctor Spektor is a pop-culture illusionist who’s half Criss Angel, half Van Helsing — a demon hunter who has turned vampire-and-werewolf-and-zombie killing into a reality show. Now he’s finally found something that scares even him — and the world watches him crumble when he tries to confront it. Can he redeem himself in the public eye, and in his own?”
	Includes the complete story arc from issues #1-4 of the Doctor Spektor comic book series, a complete cover gallery (featuring dozens of pin-ups), plus the complete Mark Waid script of the first chapter.
	LEGENDERRY: A STEAMPUNK ADVENTURE	Bill Willingham, Sergio Davilla		978-1606905944	PB	£18.99	Dynamite
	A mysterious woman named Magna Spadarossa searches the many kingdoms of her Steampunk world to find her missing sister, Sonja… but she’s pursued by strange and dastardly villains. Thankfully, each glamorous airship, clockwork city, and primordial jungle hosts a brave hero to aid in her quest!
	Bill Willingham, the bestselling author of DC/Vertigo’s Fables, reimagines the most iconic characters in the Dynamite stable in a self-contained Steampunk universe! Featuring Red Sonja, Vampirella, Green Hornet, Kato, Flash Gordon, The Phantom, Silver Star, Captain Victory, The Six Million Dollar Man, and Zorro… as you’ve never seen them before!
	THE MANHATTAN PROJECTS VOLUME 5: THE COLD WAR TP	Jonathan Hickman, Nick Pitarra		978-1632151841	PB	£10.99	Image Comics
	It’s the fifth volume of the world’s greatest secret science history, The Manhattan Projects. “The Cold War” reveals the dark days of the ‘real’ Cuban Missile Crisis, the assassination of an American President, and the end of the Manhattan Projects-Star City alliance.  Collects The Manhattan Projects #21-25.
	OUTCAST	Robert Kirkman, Paul Azaceta		978-1632150530	PB	£7.50	Image Comics
	NEW HORROR SERIES FROM THE WALKING DEAD CREATOR, ROBERT KIRKMAN! Kyle Barnes has been plagued by demonic possession all his life and now he needs answers. Unfortunately, what he uncovers along the way could bring about the end of life on Earth as we know it! Collects Outcast by Kirkman & Azaceta #1-6.
	DEATH OF WOLVERINE	Soule, Charles & McNiven, Steve		978-0785193517	HB	£18.99	Marvel
	DEATH OF WOLVERINE	PANINI		978-1846536397	PB	£10.99	Panini UK Ltd
	All roads must end somewhere, and every hero’s story eventually comes to a close. For Wolverine, that time is now. The loss of his healing factor and the traumatic events of ‘Three Months To Die’ have all led to the single most important X-Men event of the decade. Over the years, Logan has been a warrior, a hero, a renegade, a savage, a samurai, a teacher – and so much more. Now, the greatest X-Men hero will play a role he’s never played before in this solemn special event. Collecting: Death of Wolverine 1-4.
	X-FORCE VOLUME 2: HIDE/FEAR	Spurrier, Simon & Kim, Rock-He		978-0785190271	PB	£13.50	Marvel
	X-Force barely survived the superhuman arms dealer Volga – and with their secrets brought to light, they’re barely surviving each other. How will Cable’s team keep it together to carry out their mission?
	While pursuing the foe who killed one of their own, X-Force runs afoul of the UK’s superhuman operatives: Pete Wisdom and MI13! Can X-Force out-spy the best spy there is? As the two factions come to blows, a third player secretly threatens to wipe them all off the board!
	Collecting X-Force 7-10, X-Men Legacy 300
	MARVEL MASTERWORKS: WARLOCK VOLUME 1	Thomas, Roy; Friedrich Mike; Kane, Gil; Conway, Gerry		978-0785188582	PB	£18.99	Marvel
	In 1972, Marvel Comics marched into a new era, an era where super heroes increasingly reflected the world’s turmoil and social unrest. And the hero for that era was the newly christened Adam Warlock! Mixing action and allegory, Roy Thomas and Gil Kane armed the character Stan and Jack called ‘Him’ with the soul gem and launched him on a wild ride across the cosmos to Counter-Earth. Collecting: Marvel Premiere (1972) 1-2, Warlock (1972) 1-8, Incredible Hulk (1968) 176-178.
	THE SECRET SERVICE – KINGSMAN [MOVIE TIE-IN COVER]	Mark Millar, Dave Gibbons		978-1783293360	PB	9.99	Titan Books
	Gary’s life is going nowhere. He lives in public housing with his mother and spends his nights carousing with his friends. But Gary’s Uncle Jack has taken a different path of glamour, danger and mystery. When Jack has to get his nephew out of trouble, their lives are going to intersect in a way neither of them could have foreseen. This book comes from Mark Millar (Kick-Ass) and Dave Gibbons (Watchmen).
	KINGDOM OF THE WICKED	Ian Edginton, D’Israeli		978-1782760566	HB	14.99	Titan Comics
	The twenty-first century’s greatest living children’s author – Christopher Grahame – is drawn back into Castrovalva, the world of his childhood imagination, when the stress of his fame starts to weigh on him. But Castrovalva has gone to hell in his absence – devastated by war, famine and loss. And now Christopher can’t wake up. Has he lost his mind…or his innocence?
	ALIEN LEGION : UNCIVIL WAR	Chuck Dixon, Larry Stroman, Carl Potts		978-1782760733	HB	14.99	Titan Comics
	Alien Legion: Uncivil War is the first new story in this classic franchise in over 20 years. The film rights have been optioned by legendary producer Jerry Bruckheimer and The Walt Disney Company! They are the scum of the galaxy; the worst of the worst – criminal, killers, the lost, the angry, the desperate. They are the misfits and monsters of Alien Legion! Now a straightforward peacekeeping mission is a battle for survival!