The first issue of Archie vs. The Terminator starts off with a plausible premise that could happen in any Archie book. A cool new guy shows up, the girls are interested in him, the other guys like him, but Archie gets jealous and makes a fool of himself. However, readers know all about John and Sarah Connor and the Terminators, so there’s a lowkey sense of foreboding throughout the issue.  

The first issue of Hammer Head drops several hooks into the water. It teases what Hammer Head did in the past, it hints at something big that Jules participated in, and makes it clear that the facility staff is up to something beyond treatment or incarceration.

Written by Sarah Gailey with artwork by Alessio Avallone, this issue takes us inside the tortured existence of Elliot Spencer, the man who became the Hell Priest. Trapped in Middle Hell, he’s subjected to something far worse than physical torture.

Created by writer-artist-editor Carl Potts, Alien Legion is the continuing story of Nomad Squadron, a unit in the TOPHAN Galactica Union’s multi-species military. It is essentially modeled after the French Foreign Legion, but instead of humans with different nationalities it is populated with a wide array of species – mostly, but not exclusively humanoids – who come with an equally wide array of financial, social, political, and criminal backgrounds from the Union’s member planets.

Written by Tini Howard with artwork by Jenna Cha, the story brings back the Priestess of Pain, who finds herself at odds with the Engineer after he attempts to rebuild her. Rather than accepting her place, she takes a path that leads deeper into the horrifying world of Hell and the brutal process of becoming a Cenobite.

On any list of distinctive, game-changing works comic book works from the 1980s must be Dean Motter’s Mister X, a brilliant blend of crisp design sensibilities, early German cinema, the art deco movement, and the concept of “retro futurism” and mysteries wrapped in further mysteries.

Detective Amy Sun is in a tough spot. She’s investigating the death of Bella Rhinebeck, a young woman who narrowly escaped being murdered by a serial killer only to have the leader of the police’s tactical team who saved her become a bit of a stalker. Now she’s dead and police officer Keith Connolly is the number one suspect. But, Amy will quickly learn that something else much more sinister is also at play.

It’s Halloween night in Greendale and all Sabrina Spellman wants to do is go to a Halloween party. Instead, she is confronted again and again that she is no longer a regular teenage girl – now she’s a teenage witch.

Peter Parker, the Wall Crawler, the Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man has reached his 1,000th issue. It is a milestone reached by very few comic books, and the plucky hero celebrates Amazing Spider-Man #1000 with style.

More than anything, New Wounds #1 feels like an invitation into the next chapter of Hellraiser. It establishes the tone, introduces some very questionable people, brings the Puzzle Box back into play, and leaves you wondering what this new series is going to build from here.

In 1982, when writer-artist Jim Starlin put together a coda to his association with Marvel’s first Captain Marvel, it was billed as a special event. It received special treatment as the debut of the company’s graphic novel line – larger format, great paper stock, beautiful coloring from Steve Oliff, and a healthy bit of promotion. The adoption of the European graphic album format was billed as – and indeed was – a significant event in the American comic book world. 

Harlan Ellison was a guest writer on this issue of Detective Comics, and he delivered a story with more humor than the average issue starring the brooding Batman. Over and over again, he tries to be the hero only to find his services are not needed. As the night wears on, Batman gets more and more frustrated, which is humorously depicted in the art by Gene Colan and Bob Smith.