Fan favorite series West Coast Avengers will conclude in April with issue number ten. I’m here to help ease the sting of cancellation with suggestions for your further reading enjoyment.
Hawkeye
by Kelly Thompson and Leonardo Romero (three volumes/sixteen issues)
Hawkeye was West Coast Avengers team leader Kate Bishop’s first solo series. Like WCA it was cancelled too soon. Back when it was still being published it was one of my most anticipated monthly titles. I’d make a point to read it first whenever I came home from the comic book store.
A lot of Kate’s family related plot points in WCA are carried over from her Hawkeye series.
Ironheart
by Eve Ewing and Luciano Vecchio (issue number four available March 27th, the first five issues are to be collected in July)
Despite being fond of Riri Williams since her debut in Invincible Iron Man, I didn’t make it through volume two of the series. Sure, it was fun for awhile, to learn about Riri’s origins and to watch her train with A.I. resemblant of Tony Stark. The search for Tony Stark became long and drawn out to the point where it became clear that Invincible Iron Man wasn’t going to be Riri’s story. That’s about where I lost interest.
Now that Riri finally has her own series, she’s better than ever! Ironheart is Writer Eve Ewing’s first comic book series and she is killing it. Eve is a celebrated academic who also writes poetry, prose, and journalism. The understanding she has for her Main Character shines brightly. Both are native Chicagoans.
The Magnificent Ms. Marvel
by Saladin Ahmed and Minkyu Jung (issue number one available March 13th)
Original Creator G. Willow Wilson has taken Ms. Marvel through five years (more than fifty issues) of wild adventures. Both of Wilson’s series benefitted from longer runs than a current series, especially one from Marvel or DC, receive. Kamala’s first series went to issue number nineteen, and the sequel series ended in February on number thirty-eight.
Wilson’s work deserves all of the hype and more! If you haven’t read it yet, do know that it’s definitely worth the time to get caught up. If that kind of time isn’t something you have? Start with Ahmed and Jung’s series. It’s being marketed as a “new phase,” which means that it will serve as a Magnificent jumping on point!
The Unstoppable Wasp
by Jeremy Whitley and Girihiru (issue number six available in April, volume one available in May)
This series is a delight, another one at the top of my list each month. You do not have to be familiar with the first eight issue series (also by Whitley) to understand this one.
Nadia is the daughter Hank Pym never knew he had. She grew up in the red room, until she was able to escape it with the help of a Pym Particle.
After becoming a U.S. citizen Nadia is determined to grow her nerd herd, so she establishes G.I.R.L.: Genius In action Research Labs. Nadia and the other members of G.I.R.L. are some of the most brilliant minds in science and technology. Their stories are different from those of a more typical superhero comic.
The single issues all feature an interview with a woman working in STEAM.
Not sold on any of these Marvel series? Here are some more recommendations: Black Badge (Boom! Studios), Outpost Zero (Image comics), and Doom Patrol (DC’s Young Animal imprint) are more self contained, indie titles that could fill the hole left on your pull list by West Coast Avengers.
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