Panel Picks: The Most Anticipated Comics of 5 December, 2012

Panels Picks is where I choose some of the hotly anticipated comic books for the upcoming week.

Happy December! The Minutemen’s adventures continue, and Invincible’s “The Death of Everyone” begins! Plus the Avengers join Marvel NOW! and more Hawkeye!

4. Before Watchmen Minutemen #5

Darwyn Cooke’s penultimate chapter to Watchmen’s heroes of yesteryear has arrived! Also another exciting chapter in the Crimson Corsair backup feature!

I haven’t been keeping tabs on all the Before Watchmen books. Frankly I was never too excited about the idea in the first place. However, the one series that piqued my interest was Darwyn Cooke’s Minutemen. General consensus has found this to be the star of the Before Watchmen books; plus it is always great to see more of Cooke’s spectacular artwork.

3. Invincible #98

The countdown to issue #100 begins here with “The Death of Everyone” part 1! Mark finally puts back on the goggles just in time to have the entire fate of humanity in his hands. But what will happen when everyone learns that all of this is Mark’s fault?

One of the best things about Robert Kirkman’s Invincible is the unpredictability. He has full creative control over everything. So unlike superhero comics from DC and Marvel, there is no status quo that must be kept. As such, no character in Invincible is safe, and “The Death of Everyone” could very well actually mean the death of everyone. I just hope that Allen the Alien makes it through this one okay.

2. Avengers #1

Big problems call for big solutions. So Marvel’s greatest team is expanding its roster to a global and even interplanetary level. You don’t want to miss out as Earth’s mightiest heroes join the ranks of Marvel NOW!

Marvel NOW! is still going strong, and Hickman’s Avengers is looking to be a worthy addition. Hickman has already proven he can do the ensemble cast stories with the Fantastic Four, but his Avengers is taking it to a whole new level. The roster here is filled with plenty of fan favorites alongside the essential trio of Cap, Thor, and Iron Man. Hopefully Avengers #1 will not spend all of its time assembling the team, something that has plagued the other Marvel NOW! team-up books.

1. Hawkeye #5

“Hawkeye’s been captured by ninjas. It’s all very stressful.” “The Tape” continues! Will Clint be able to free himself from his captors and recover the tape? Will Kate’s intervening prove to cause even more problems? The situation is looking dire for our two Hawkeyes.

Another issue already? Yes! No book currently being published fills me with as much excitement as each new issue of Matt Fraction’s Hawkeye. It really is one of the best books out there. You do not want to be missing this one. Be sure to check out our review for issue #4 and get caught up for this Wednesday!

What do you think? Leave a comment.