This week marks the release of Guardians Of The Galaxy Volume 3, and while that means that this blog is about to be filled with all things Guardians, there’s one thing we’ve got to talk about first – this week’s new Marvel Comic releases!

Single Issues:

CARNAGE VS. MILES MORALES!
CLETUS KASADY IS BACK and badder than ever. With his soul trapped within the Extrembiote Armor created by Tony Stark during KING IN BLACK, Cletus has the means to level an untold amount of chaos and, well, carnage on New York City and the entire Marvel Universe. But like any good Tony Stark invention, the Extremis coursing through Cletus’ symbiotic veins needs POWER, and that means Cletus is HUNGRY. Good thing Brooklyn’s very own SPIDER-MAN is there to stand in his way! If he survives their first encounter, that is.

I’d be sure to be caught up with King In Black, Carnage (2023, also by Alex Paknadel) and Miles Morales (character profile coming soon) at the very least before reading this new crossover.

DEATH AND DESTRUCTION RETURN HOME!
Liz Allen is the mother of Normie Osborn, who she is blissfully unaware is the all-new and all-deadly RED GOBLIN! But what Liz DOES know is that the Red Goblin has been active and has been seen VERY close to her home. And after her late husband’s father, NORMAN OSBORN (maybe you’ve heard of him?), gets pulled into the chaos and violence swirling around Normie, Liz has no choice but to use the resources at her disposal as the head of ALCHEMAX to take matters into her own hands and become something the Marvel Universe has NEVER SEEN BEFORE!

Also, part of the crossover event mentioned above, both of which are celebrating the 30th anniversary of the Maximum Carnage run. For this specific issue, I’d recommend being a) up to date with Carnage, b) reading Reigns Alpha at the same time, and c) be up to date with Normie Osborn and Liz Allen.

The yokai are at war, and Mariko Yashida, descendent of the Oni King, has to choose a side. The fates of the spirit world and the human world hang in the balance. But things just got complicated thanks to the appearance of a mysterious yokaii with incredible power. This Yokai has a scheme of her own, and she wants to paint the world?scarlet. You can’t afford to miss the cataclysmic conclusion of Peach Momoko’s epic DEMON WARS saga!

The conclusion of the Demon Wars saga by Peach Momoko, so if you haven’t read any of it yet, I’d get caught up ASAP!

INTO THE OTHER EDGE OF THE SPIDER-VERSE!
SPIDER-REX returns and faces the VENOMSAURUS! PLUS – WHO IS THE SPIDER-KILLER?! Zander Cannon introduces the world to the scariest Spider-Character EVER CREATED!!! Bringing your favorite breakout characters back, as well as introducing brand new Spiders who will blow your mind!

For this, I’d recommend being caught up with the Spider-Verse, if not just for some context for some of the returning characters.

MONSTER, HERO, GUARDIAN…GROOT!
Before he was a Guardian of the Galaxy… before the Grootfall… young Groot lived a life of tranquillity on his serene home world. But when monstrous invaders attack his planet, Groot must accept his heroic destiny! Will this destiny lead him to come to blows with a young Kree soldier by the name of Mar-Vell?
Join writer Dan Abnett (GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY) and artist Damian Couceiro (THE AMAZING SPIDER-MAN 2099, X-FORCE) as they reveal never-before-seen moments of Groot’s origin and first adventure through the galaxy!

I’d say you can dive into this one without much more than basic Groot knowledge. As for that mention of Grootfall, that’s an event unfolding as we speak in the Marvel Comic Universe, so expect a reading guide when it’s all finished!

FROM THE SHADOW OF EXODUS… COMES THE DARK GENESIS! MIGUEL O’HARA, THE FUTURISTIC SPIDER-MAN OF 2099, MUST FACE A SINISTER CARNAGE LIKE NEVER BEFORE!
As society begins to crumble, SPIDER-MAN 2099 will need all the help he can get – but does the public even want his help? Or do they all just want to watch this world burn? STEVE ORLANDO (SCARLET WITCH, SPIDER-MAN 2099: EXODUS) continues his journey through the future world of 2099, this time paired with bombastic artist JUSTIN MASON (SPIDER-PUNK) – get ready for the debut of the NEW HEROES and VILLAINS that populate the future!

You’ll want to be up to date with Spider-Man 2099 by Steve Orlando first.

A BATTLE OF THE TITANS OF THE X-UNIVERSE!
A man of innumerable personalities and powers vs. the most powerful artificial intelligence in this universe: Legion vs. Nimrod! With Nightcrawler in Orchis’ clutches, David Haller and his allies will have to confront the mastermind who destroyed Warlock and nearly took Krakoa with him. But Nightcrawler is not himself… and Legion’s allies aren’t all they seem to be either. Mutant monsters roam the Earth… Banshee, broken once again, dreams of lost vengeance… Mother Righteous, her role in SINS OF SINISTER unrevealed, takes another stab at universal control…
Si Spurrier and Phil Noto usher in new status quos for some of your favorite X-Men in this can’t-miss one-shot!

As I always say with the X-Men comics, you’ll need to have read the entire Krakoan era before reading this, or it won’t make much sense at all.

Bind Ups:

The reaper and the robot! When two of the greatest foes ever faced by Earth’s Mightiest Heroes join forces, it spells doom for the West Coast Avengers! If the team can somehow triumph over the deadly duo of the Grim Reaper and Ultron, who will be left in a revamped roster? And will there be any room for the U.S.Agent? Not if Hawkeye has his way! Then, Julia “Spider-Woman” Carpenter and the Living Lightning join the fight against the diabolical Doctor Demonicus and the Pacific Overlords! The WCA and the Fantastic Four are caught in a cross-dimensional struggle, while Doctor Strange lends a mystical hand when the Night Shift raises hell! But what will the cosmic civil war known as Operation: Galactic Storm mean for the Whackos?

The 6th volume in the Avengers West Coast Epic Collection, the first five are called: How The West Was Won, Lost In Space-Time, Tales To Astonish, Vision Quest and Darker Than Scarlet. Shockingly, all of these are actually available to buy/read, so you won’t have to worry about huge jumps in the storyline as you go.

The worlds of Spider-Man and the X-Men collide! Marvel’s two most famous and famously wronged clones – Chasm (Ben Reilly) and the Goblin Queen (Madelyne Pryor) – are back, they’ve had enough of being second best and they’re going to claim what’s rightfully theirs! The sun is setting, and it’s going to be a long night for Spidey and the X-Men. But what role does the volatile Venom play in the clones’ vengeful plot? And what will become of the young hero Ms. Marvel when she ends up trapped in Limbo?! The dark web that Madelyne and Ben will spin over Manhattan is going to change the NYC skyline forever!

The bind up of the Dark Web event, but I’d still say that you should have knowledge of Ben Reilly, Madelyne Pryor and Venom before reading this. I’ll have a guide up for Ben at the very least in time for Across The Spider-Verse’s release.

With super-sized conflict within the team and colossal menaces without, Stan Lee and Don Heck made AVENGERS a nail-biting, edge-of-your-seat extravaganza! The classic stories collected in this volume include battles against Kang the Conqueror, Doctor Doom, Power Man, the Enchantress and the Atlantean warlord Attuma! And while the action will keep your pulse up, twists like the departure of Captain America will deliver drama at its deepest level. Plus: Thrill to the return of Giant-Man and the Wasp – and Hank Pym’s transformation into Goliath! With first appearances of the Collector, the Swordsman and the Sons of the Serpent – not to mention the Black Widow’s entrance into the Avengers’ world – there’s no questioning that this volume is a Marvel Masterworks!

The third volume in this series, the first two being: The Coming Of The Avengers and The Old Order Changeth.

On Earth-65, the radioactive spider didn’t bite Peter Parker – it bit Gwen Stacy! Now, Gwen fights crime as Spider-Woman – just don’t tell her father, the police chief! In the wake of SPIDER-VERSE, Gwen splits her time between school, heroism and playing in her band, the Mary Janes, while dodging NYPD Lieutenant Frank Castle! But what really happened the night her world’s Peter Parker died, and how does it connect to a new reptilian rampage? Gwen’s troubles pile up as her world’s Osborns debut and she finds herself on S.H.I.E.L.D.’s most wanted list! Can a team-up between Gwen, Silk and Jessica Drew – the Spider-Woman of the prime Marvel Universe – help Gwen learn lessons about power and responsibility?

The first in the Spider-Gwen Epic Collection – if you own the Jason Latour Spider-Gwen run, then a fair amount of this will be familiar, but if you haven’t then I’d give this a go, especially before Across The Spider-Verse comes out next month.

Spider-Man makes history! In 1962’s AMAZING FANTASY #15, teenage Peter Parker was bitten by a radioactive spider and became the amazing Spider-Man! Sixty years have passed in the real world since that event – so what would have happened if the same amount of time had passed for Peter? In celebration of an icon, Chip Zdarsky and legendary artist Mark Bagley spin a unique Spidey tale – telling the entire life story of Spider-Man from beginning to end, set against the key events of the decades through which he lived! From the Vietnam War to Secret Wars and Civil War, all the way through to what just might be a 72-year-old Spider-Man’s final mission! Plus: Watch the saga unfold through the jaded eyes of jolly J. Jonah Jameson!

I’d recommend knowing about Peter Parker, Secret Wars and Civil War first, but otherwise dive in!

The Thunderbolts have been divided between two worlds! Can they find their way back onto the road to redemption? Trapped on the ravaged Counter-Earth, Baron Zemo and his team of semi-reformed villains must choose between returning home or becoming the planet’s unlikely champions! Meanwhile, Hawkeye and Songbird assemble a new crew to face the Masters of Evil! But will the Thunderbolts reunite only to fall apart? An encounter with the Avengers changes everything for the T-Bolts, and a new day will dawn – but not if Baron Strucker, the Purple Man and the Squadron Sinister have anything to say about it! Plus: The superhuman Civil War throws the team’s heroic hopes into disarray! And when the cosmic Grandmaster strikes, can Zemo rise to the occasion – or is he forever tainted by his legacy of evil? 

Previous volumes are just numbered 1 and 2.

At the mercy of Bedlam! With Dylan Brock’s life hanging in the balance, where is his father, Eddie, the original Venom? Or more accurately: when?! After the Venom symbiote’s Hail Mary decision, Dylan is about to see sides of symbiosis, the Klyntar and perhaps even his own father that he never imagined! And forced to watch his son suffer from across the timestream, Eddie finds himself surrounded by enemies – alone and with no one to trust, until an unexpected ally intervenes. Suddenly, Eddie is caught in a dark web spun by Chasm and the Goblin Queen – with all his deepest fears realized! Meanwhile, Bedlam is determined to kill Dylan and Venom once and for all – unless an old friend can lend a crimson-clad hand.

Previous volumes are called Deviation and Recursion.

And that’s everything coming out this week! What’s going on your pull list? I’m looking at Groot, Sons Of X and Dark Web!