Marvel, DC, and Calvin & Hobbes creator: the big new comics of fall 2023

It’s been a strong year for comics so far in 2023, albeit not always from the usual players. If the Big Two of Marvel and DC sometimes seem to be stuck in a holding pattern for their next Big Event Series, the graphic novel baton has been more than capably picked up by any number of players from across the medium: from graphic novelists like Deena Mohamed to bonkers “dudes rock” cartoonists like Daniel Warren Johnson and beyond.

That the comics field has plenty of gas left in its tank became all the more obvious once a twin labor strike of Hollywood writers and actors meant comics could unexpectedly take center stage at this year’s San Diego Comic-Con. And if that event left observers with one big takeaway, it’s that some of the year’s best, brightest, and most innovative comic works are still ahead. These are some of the highlights you won’t want to miss.

Wyn does some cool magic stuff on the cover of GODS #1 (2023).

Jonathan Hickman & Valerio Schiti

Jonathan Hickman is one of the few mainstream comic book writers who are able to sell books just by their names. Hickman revitalized the Fantastic Four a decade ago and put the Avengers through a universe-rebooting catastrophe that remains a high point for the franchise, but he’s been keeping a lower profile since departing his gangbuster reinvention of the X-Men franchise in 2019. Now, he’s taking another big Marvel swing by introducing a whole new clique of characters, mysteriously called the GODS.

Details have so far been sparse, save for the fact that these appear to be Kirby-esque semi-divine superbeings, with a cryptic and ubiquitous presence that’s been seeded in a host of Marvel titles this summer. Readers can look forward to learning more (including, we can hope, just what that acronym stands for) when the GODS formally make their entrance this fall, designed and drawn by Hickman’s erstwhile Inferno co-conspirator Valerio Schiti.

Wonder Woman runs with her lasso on a background of red stars on the cover of Wonder Woman #1 (2023).

Tom King and Daniel Sampere

Tom King, the superhero writer’s licorice. Since making his mainstream debut with Marvel Comics’ Vision in 2015, he’s raised hackles among readers just as often as he’s won their hearts. That’s because he’s always willing to take big swings with high-profile characters, whether it’s attempting to arrange the marriage of Batman and Catwoman during his run on BatmanExplore the psychological trauma caused by superhumans Heroes of Crisis, or going to town with forgotten ’70s heroes in Danger Street. In September, the DC Universe will be relaunched with him at the helm. Wonder Woman alongside artist Daniel Sampere. The prospect of an all-male creative team on DC’s premiere superheroine is likely to raise eyebrows, but King proved more than capable in last year’s excellent Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow, and there’s no question Sampere is one of the sharpest artists in the DC stable. It’s worth reading whether you love it or dislike it.

Black Label Batmans

Batman crouches like a gargoyle on the cover of Batman: Gargoyle of Gotham.

DC’s Black Label hasn’t exactly been the Vertigo replacement some observers might have hoped for when it premiered at the publisher in 2018, but there’s little doubt that it’s lived up to its mission to give top-line (and sometimes unexpected) creators a chance to play in the DC superhero sandbox without the restrictions of continuity or canon.

The line has seen a number of talented writers, but this fall is all about Batman. First up in September is Brazilian cartoonist Rafael Grampá (Dark Knight Returns: The Golden ChildThe Bats are back with another psychological mystery. Batman: Gargoyle Of Gotham. Then, the following month, there’s fan-favorite artist Christian Ward with his writer/artist debut on Batman: City of Madness. Both books are sure to benefit enormously from Black Label’s gloriously oversized, square-bound format, which might as well exist purely for the benefit of series like these. You could just as easily forget about words when Batman is drawn so large and beautifully.

A thick-set man in a broad hat and small glasses that reflect the light in a spooky way, holds a blood-stained glass of... something red on the cover of Rare Flavours.

Ram V & Filipe Andrade

Ram V, Filipe Andrade and their writer/artist team impressed readers with “The Two Years” two years prior (and won an Eisner Award) Laila’s Many DeathsThis lyrical story draws from Hindu mythology in order to examine the concepts of life, mortality, and divine. This autumn, the team returns for Rare FlavorsThe series is based on the same mythical backdrop, but with a focus on fine food. The book is a liminal, unsettling horror series that chronicles the adventures of a fictitious Anthony Bourdain, who gets sucked into a world of mysticism and exotic cuisine. Andrade’s art is delicate and gorgeous, and Ram V is among the very best new writers that mainstream comics has produced in recent years, which makes this indie title necessary reading.

A pig-tailed girl in a fashionable dress, wide tie, and matching umbrella poses on the cover of Neighborhood Story.

Ai Yazawa

Viz launches a brand new work by one of Japan’s most highly respected mangakas. Neighborhood StoryThe fall is here. Ai Yazawa wrote the Ai Yazawa story which was first adapted as a fan favorite anime. The story tells about two friends at an art school in Tokyo whose friendship grows old and is challenged by a specter of sexual awakening, community gossip and personal jealousy. There will be romantic entanglements and personal tragedies.

Three portraits of young adults in NYC on the cover of Roaming.

Jillian Tamaki & Mariko Tamaki

It’s been almost a decade since we’ve seen a team-up between the writer-artist cousin team of Jillian Tamaki and Mariko Tamaki. These award-winning comic book artists made their name with a collection of graphic novels that were marketed to young adults, but which are as well-crafted and vibrant as other books. With this fall’s TravellingThey make their first attempt at full-blown adult graphic novels, telling the tale of three friends who experience tension, love and self-discovery on a trip to New York City in summer. The queer romance is a sweet slice of life story that promises to be bittersweet and full-color.

By Daniel Clowes

Daniel Clowes’ career has taken him through three decades of comics. The independent darling behind anthology series Eightball Stories like these Ghost World The following are some examples of how to get started: Art School Confidential Originally, he was regarded as a prime example of jaded Gen X-style cartooning. But as the years have passed, his outlook has mellowed, his style has been refined, and he’s become more driven to experiment in each of his graphic novels. MonicaThis is probably his most complicated project: an intricate web of fictional narratives that paint a collective biographical picture of the title character. Clowes’ work is compelling even when it doesn’t fully succeed, and a new book by this artist is always worth the price of discovery.

A person in peasant garb looks apprehensively at something unseen, with a spooky forest and a thached-roof building behind them on the cover of The Mysteries.

Bill Watterson & John Kascht

There are few sentences more capable of stirring the soul of comic readers than this: “Bill Watterson is back.” It’s putting it lightly to say the cartoonist behind the brilliant and beloved Calvin and Hobbes has been reclusive: Since ending his syndicated strip three decades ago, Watterson’s aversion to interviews and publicity, his dearth of new publications, and his vaunted unwillingness to see his creations licensed or adapted in any form have reached Salinger-esque proportions. He returns this year to comics in collaboration with John Kascht. The Mysteries, a self-styled “fable for grown-ups.”

The book will be composed of Kascht’s lushly illustrated full-page art with Watterson’s prose, for an effect that turns a children’s picture book into an unsettling social allegory. Watterson, the most towering comic book figure ever created, is always a treat to see.

A jumble of bi-colored panels shows many images, a few of the same young woman with swoopy hair drawing and lifting weights.

Harkness, M.S. Harkness

M.S. Harkness, a young cartoonist who has a great reputation, is an incredibly talented artist. The Columbus-based cartoonist has been making waves in the underground comics scene since he first appeared. His work is full of rough edges, bombastic images, and expertly-crafted art. Love and RocketsCaptured 40 years ago. And if Harkness lacks some of Los Bros Hernandez’s gleeful genre-hopping, she adds an autobiographical honesty and subtly refined sense of story structure that suggest a fully formed talent. Time under Tension looks to be a major leap forward for this cartoonist that’s likely to establish her as a known quantity in the comics scene.

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