Why Comic Books Are My New Favorite Escape

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Never have I ever read a comic book—until now. I can’t believe that for 22 years of my life, I deprived myself of experiencing such a wonderful thing, but on the 23rd year, all of that changed. Usually, I’d stick to fiction fantasy and romance novels, but one day wandering the library shelves, I came across the comic book and graphic novel section. Let’s just say, I quickly became obsessed. Books have always been visualized like TV shows and movies to me, I love imagining people, places, and things, with just words. It’s truly a beautiful, creative, and fascinating thing. But these books have the coolest graphics to bring you into their world, and everything’s so much fun!

Aliens, vampires, lesbians, supernatural chaos! Let’s explore a few of the comic books that I’ve read recently, so you can see why I’m obsessed.

As always, please review any content warnings before reading.

Abbott Series (2018-2024)

by Saladin Ahmed, Sami Kivelä, Jason Wordie, Mattia Iacono, Dan Jackson

Listen, if you take interest from any of the comics featured in this blog, let it be the Abbott series! I stumbled across ‘Abbott: 1973’ at the library and I couldn’t be more excited to dive into this thriller. My glimpse at the summary made me think of Misty Knight, so that combined with the gorgeous cover—I was already sold. But when I flipped through the pages and saw the #LESBIAN tea? Baby, I went to check out immediately. So fast in fact that I didn’t even check if it was the first book in the series, ha.

The Abbott series is set in Detroit, Michigan in the 70s, where racial tensions are high and a mysterious darkness seeks to escalate it. Elena Abbott, one of the top journalists in the city, encounters these shadows and discovers her powers of light. This book is badass, supernatural, sapphic, black as hell, and damn good. The story is captivating, and the graphics are INCREDIBLE, I literally had to stop myself from tearing pages and putting them up on my wall like little posters, lol. This is one of my favorite series that I’ve read, it’s so complex and all the little (and BIG) details make for an awesome read.

Killadelphia #35 (2024)

by Rodney Barnes, Jason Shawn Alexander, German Erramouspe, Lee Loughridge

Vampires, chaos, destruction… and family. That’s what I got from this small issue, and I need more! I spotted ‘Killadelphia’ while looking for Black stories at the comic shop, and since this is only one volume, I read it in a flash. This issue was the latest, so I started at the end—haha. This story integrates the supernatural with Black historical references of oppression, and that sometimes felt a bit unserious but also intriguing. Black vampires are definitely my favorite genre, and I can’t wait to delve deeper into Rodney Barnes’s books—that is, once my library adds more. I’m trying to keep this hobby as budget-friendly as possible so here’s to hoping my library grants my request!

Blacula: Return of the King (2024)

by Rodney Barnes, Jason Shawn Alexander

Update: My library accepted my request, hehe!

Picture this, an 18th century African prince given the name ‘Blacula’ has awaken from the dead in modern day Los Angelos with one mission: killing Count Dracula. After reading ‘Killadelphia’ I was itching for more Black vampire comics, and Rodney Barnes (Author) and Jason Shawn Alexander (Illustrator) delivered once again! The graphics are insanely stunning, and the story kept me on my toes the entire time. This book is going back to the library in a few weeks, but I need a copy of my own to read again, and again, and again. Brilliant! (So much for keeping this hobby budget-friendly heh)

Also, I had no idea about the movie Blacula (1972) which may be insane, but it’s definitely being added to my watchlist!

LOUD! (2021)

by Maria Llovet

This book is pretty much wordless, there’s very little dialogue but A LOT happening visually! The art style is dazzling, and I love how so many events unfold simultaneously, with glimpses of each in the backgrounds of one another’s stories. Major bonus points⁺⁺⁺ for how this novel begins: lesbian cunnilingus in the club bathroom. My first thought—AYYYY. My second thought—that bathroom dirty as hell… but also REAL?! Beyond the lesbians, there’s a colorful mix of characters, the moment I read the book’s summary, I was completely hooked.

SUMMARY
A latecomer stripper, a pissed waitress, a hitmen couple, a suspension bondage performer, a pregnant teenager, a clan of vampires, a pedophile, a lesbian junkie, a divorcing middle-aged woman, a sadistic dominatrix, and many other souls in search of love, drugs, and blood converge at the hottest club in town on a night that none will ever forget. If they survive.

Picture me at the library looking around, thinking, ‘I need to talk to someone about this!’ I checked it out fast and flew through it just as quickly. It was entertaining spotting each person described as I read— until it wasn’t. This book has piqued my interest in Maria Llovet, I’ll definitely be exploring more of her work! (I’m already seeing they’re very queer and sapphic, hehe)

DC Pride Vol 1 (2021)

by Andrew Wheeler, Steve Orlando, Vita Ayala, Mariko Tamaki, Elena Casagrande, Luciano Vecchio, Amancay Nahuelpan, Nic Klein

Glorious. ‘DC Pride 2021’ is a love letter to the LGBTQ+ community, filled with 9 new stories of canonically queer characters. Every time I read this comic, I have to read the foreword, that simply cannot be skipped! Pride is something I’ll never take for granted, and this book celebrates queerness and transness with so many stories, all of which I love. Action, thrill, adventure, romance, devastation, chaos—this comic has it all, AND it’s gay as hell. Out of all the riveting tales, my personal favorites are ‘Try the Girl’, ‘Another Word for Truck to Move Your Furniture’, ‘Crushed’, and ‘Love Your Life’!

I LOVE DC PRIDE 2021 ❤! Trust, I will get my hands on ’22 and ’23 very soon, hehe.

Wiper (2022)

by John Harris Dunning, Ricardo Cabral, Brad Simpson, Jim Campbell

Baby, the minute I saw this cover— SOLD! I’m a simple person, if there’s a Black woman, (especially one who looks like me) I’m here for it. This comic unfolds in a fascinating era, one where a nuclear war decimated the Western world, leading to the birth of a new civilization in space. The main character, Lula Nomi is a Wiper— a private detective that wipes their own memory after each case for confidentiality. I was immediately intrigued upon learning this, and the comic definitely takes you on one hell of a ride!

Crave (2023)

by Maria Llovet

If “SMASH—next question” was a book, it’d be this one. In this graphic novel, a mysterious app called ‘Crave’ takes over an elite university, promising to fulfill the desires of these college students. Straight A’s weren’t on their minds, instead: SEX. After many questionable hookups and PDA disasters, all hell breaks loose and it gets very dark, very quickly!

AH. Maria Llovet is definitely becoming a favorite of mine. Although I didn’t enjoy some aspects of this book (mainly physical altercation between sapphics), it was still an exciting read with the prettiest graphics to match!

Bad Girls (2018)

by Alex De Campi and Victor Santos

WOWZA. ‘Bad Girls’ depicts an infamous night set in Cuba on New Years Eve, in 1958. For those who don’t remember the specifics (me, aha), that was when Cuban dictator Fulgencio Batista fled the country and Fidel Castro stepped into power. I had no idea what was in store because I picked this book up just off the cover and name (Donna Summers, I love you!) but it was such a compelling read. Witnessing the different race and class dynamics was interesting, especially among the tourists as the ‘shift’ occurred. As someone who’s briefly learned Cuban history, but desires to know more, this book was definitely a happy surprise!

That’s it from me this week, let me know if you end up reading any of these books (or already have)! I’ll be back soon, sharing more comics that you’ll love. In the meantime, here are some photos I took in honor of this blog.

COMIC LOVING VAMPIRE

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