Comic book best picks of the week: 11/17/21

Another week, another round of comics have hit the stands in comic shops and book stores around the world.

From a planet kryptonite sun to Gotham City to a realm outside of our known universe in the vast infinity of time and space, what were some of the best comic books to be released this week?

Best comic book releases this week:

Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow #5

Written by Tom King, Art by Bilquis Evely, Colors by Mat Lopes

Every issue of this series has been utterly phenomenal. There’s no other way to really say it. Five issues in and it’s as close to perfect as pretty much any series can get. A brilliantly dark series that never feels weighed down by how dark it is because of one simple thing, it understands the character of Supergirl. Just like her cousin, even amongst the darkness, she exudes a sense of light and hope that acts as a guiding force, both as narrative device and character development device, which is how she is used in this issue.

This issue focuses almost solely on Kara and Ruthye simply trying to survive on a planet with a Kryptonite sun. It sounds simple, and it is plot-wise, but character-wise, it’s harrowing and emotionally impactful in such incredible ways. Every piece of dialogue and narration. Every single panel of artwork. Every part of this issue just works perfectly in tandem with each other. It’s just so good.

Primordial #3

Written by Jeff Lemire, Art by Andrea Sorrentino, Colors by Dave Stewart

Primordial is such a weird book in the best possible ways. It’s hard to pinpoint exactly what it’s doing or where it’s going, but that’s kind of the beauty of the book. The mystery, wonder, and confusion is part of the experience of reading this book which is part of why it’s great.

The biggest reason why it’s great is the art though. Every issue has been fantastic in the art department (as Sorrentino’s other book on the shelves right now, Batman: The Imposter), but this issue takes everything that was great about the previous issues and ramps it up to eleven. There’s a double-page splash in here that made me audibly (something I never do when reading) say out loud, “Holy s***.” It’s breathtaking and the artistic build-up to it is absolutely incredible as it doesn’t just come out of nowhere. The issue organically builds to that moment and the payoff is so incredible. Honestly, even if you don’t like the story, this is absolutely worth reading just for the art.

Batman #117

Written by James Tynion IV, Art by Jorge Jimenez, Colors by Tomeu Morey; Back-Up written by Becky Cloonan & Michael W. Conrad, Art by Jorge Corona, Colors by Sarah Stern

“Fear State” has come to its conclusion and well, it’s another Batman event for sure and because of that, your mileage will probably vary. However, for what it is, it’s a pretty solid final issue for this story (well, semi-final, there’s still Fear State: Omega). There are a bunch of great moments for a bunch of different characters spread out throughout the issue and the art is once again fantastic. Jorge Jimenez and Tomey Morey have really been the stars of this storyline.

The best part of the issue, as with the previous two issues, comes in the Batgirls back-up. Nothing really happens as Steph and Cass are hiding from the Magistrate in a hotel room, but that’s where most of the fun comes into play. Seeing them slowly unravel brings out a bunch of great humorous moments for the duo, while also continuously building the relationship that the two have with one another in meaningful ways. Both characters are written so well and it’s exciting that they’ll have their own book once again in a couple of weeks.

Moon Knight #5

Written by Jed MacKay, Art by Alessandro Cappuccio, Colors by Rachelle Rosenberg

Moon Knight has always been a different type of character within the mythos of the Marvel universe. He’s always been darker than almost every other character in the universe and, often, much weirder as well. Kind of comes with the territory of a superhero with dissociative identity disorder. And, so far, this new series has done a great job with all of those things while maintaining a grounded feeling.

This issue in particular does a great job exploring the mental state of Moon Knight in various ways that are quite different from any other character within Marvel. The way it’s handled is excellent and compelling to read the entire time, while mixed in with some solid superhero action as well.

Have you been reading any good comic book stories lately? Tell us your best comic book picks below!