Griffin’s Picks for the week of 4/1/2026

1: Simpsons Comics Colossal Compendium TP Vol 1

            The Simpsons are the premiere cartoon family and while this might not be the first printing of this collection (it first came out in 2013 actually), these have been out of print for quite some time so get it while you can! 

            It’ll be very easy to tell if this is something that you’re interested in right off the bat. Do you like The Simpsons? Does the idea of spending more time with them in comic format sound like a fun time to you? Perfect! My favorite story in this collection is definitely the Ralph Wiggum focussed one, in which we get to see a little bit further into the mind of Springfield’s dumbest child. 

            When I was younger, my library had a comic section that had single issues that somebody had laminated the covers of to prevent damage. So almost every week I’d go out of my way to find whatever unknown laminated Simpsons that I could find. Suffice to say, I loved these comics when I was a kid, so I’m a bit nostalgic for them even if I’d prefer to just watch the show (the first 10 seasons anyways) but they’re so hard to find now and have been unavailable from any distributor that if you have even a fleeting interest this collection is worth picking up.

2: Daredevil #1 - Marvel

            The wait for more Daredevil is over! This new series written by Stephanie Phillips (Grim, Endeavor, Phoenix) with art by Lee Garbett brings the Man Without Fear back in a new way.

            Matt Murdock is now a law professor at Empire State University, despite the fact that he’s no longer an attorney while his life as Daredevil remains relatively unchanged. That is until a dead body appears on the subway with the eyes missing and taken as trophies and a mysterious new villain named Omen appears in Matt Murdock’s apartment. Luckily for Matt’s secret identity, he discovers Omen while dressed as Daredevil and is able to maintain his anonymity during their confrontation. Why is Omen after Matt? I guess you’ll have to keep reading to find out. 

            I’d been looking forward to this issue for a while. Phillips is a talented writer and Lee Garbett is an artist that I was unfamiliar with prior to this issue but his art is definitely serviceable and for me, an improvement on the current Marvel house style. The combination of a well-designed villain and Matt evolving as a character by becoming a law professor are enough to keep me reading by themselves and everything else is just a bonus.

3: Batman #8 - DC

            Matt Fraction continues his run on the Caped Crusader and it continues to satisfy because this series has made my picks list almost every time a new issue releases. This time with art by Ryan Sook, this might be my favorite issue so far. 

            Most of this issue is Fraction jumping between three different conversations. One between Mayor Pamela Isley (Poison Ivy of course) and Commissioner Vandal Savage as he tries to persuade Gotham’s new mayor to allow him to attempt to capture Batman using any means necessary. The other is  between Batman and Alan Scott (the original Green Lantern for the uninitiated) as Bruce tries to pick his brain as to what separates Vandal Savage from other villains in order to bring him down. The third is between a Gotham youth and an older man as they discuss the nature of human behavior and how living in Gotham might sway your perspective on that philosophical topic. 

            Somehow this was simultaneously the least action packed issue of the new Batman series so far and for me, one of the most exciting. Fraction’s goal is for each issue to be self-contained and he’s definitely been achieving that. It might make reading this series back to back feel a little disjointed but I appreciate that he’s writing for the single issues rather than writing for the trade paperback at the very least.