Mahmud Asrar

The Holidays are upon as, and the year is basically gone. And as you know by now, that mean that here at ComicsAlliance, we're looking back at the best that comics had to offer in 2016. So here, to give you warm feeling as you head into your holiday weekend, are the best Archie Comics covers of the year.

As of Guardians of the Galaxy #15, by Brian Michael Bendis and Valerio Schiti, the titular team officially no longer exists. Their ship has blown up, they're all stuck on Earth, and they've gone their separate ways. So naturally Ben Grimm is spending time in the city of his birth, but Manhattan isn't the same without his family, the Fantastic Four, living in it.

Before Ms. Marvel was a superhero, she was a fan. A superhero fan specifically, writing fanfic for the internet's consumption about the Avengers and other heroes. That's a big reason she was so excited to become a hero, and even more excited when she was asked to join the Avengers at the beginning of All-New All-Different Avengers. Now readers of that series get to dive into that world with her in All-New All-Different Avengers Annual #1. The book features "fan fiction" stories of the Marvel universe written by G. Willow Wilson, Mark Waid, Natasha Allegri, Faith Erin Hicks, Scott Kurtz, and Zac Gorman, and features art by Allegri, Hicks, Kurtz, Mahmud Asrar, Chip Zdarsky, and Jay Fosgitt. It seems like just the relief we all need from the grimness of Civil War II, and it goes on sale August 10.

It might seem hard to believe, but there was once a time when Archie Comics was the only publisher that didn't do variant covers. If memory serves --- and I might be wrong about this --- it took until 2010 for them to do their first one ever on Jughead #200. Now, though, with the high profile relaunches that we've seen over the past year, it looks like they're making up for lost time. When Betty & Veronica #1 hits shelves on July 20, it's coming with twenty-five different covers, including covers from Colleen Coover, Bilquis Evely, Chip Zdarsky, Veronica Fish and many more. Check out the entire roster!

The new Wasp is at the center of All-New All-Different Avengers #9, which launches a new storyline called "Family Business." Until her debut on Free Comic Book Day, we don't know who this knew Wasp really is. Her face is revealed on one of the unlettered preview pages below, but all that really tells us is that she wears her hair in roughly the same style as Hope Van Dyne, the soon-to-be-Wasp played by Evangeline Lily in the Ant-Man movie.

This week the fans of DC's TV shows finally get to see the live-action comic book crossover that we've all been waiting for, as Melissa Benoist's Supergirl on CBS gets a visit from a new friend from another reality when The CW's The Flash, played by Grant Gustin, makes his first appearance on her show. We're beyond excited to see what happens when these two DC heroes team-up on the screen, because it looks like the story could capture all the joy of superheroics that sometimes gets lost in other adaptations of the genre. To mark the occasion, we've put together a list of some of Supergirl's best team-up stories in comics, featuring Egyptian queens, unrequited loves, and many, many Draculas.

Kamala Khan is an Avenger now, and that's pretty great. Miles Morales is also an Avenger now, and that's great too. And, of course, Jane Foster is Thor, and Sam Wilson is Captain America, and Vision is Vision, and Sam Alexander is Nova, and... well, Tony Stark is still Iron Man, I think. But I'd be happy if they replaced that guy too, because replacing those other heroes has honestly made this one of the most exciting and vibrant Avengers line-ups in years! Let's replace Tony Stark with America Chavez! But even with boring ol' Tony sticking around, I am on board for this team, and hopefully you are too. But in case you need convincing, here's an unlettered preview of All-New All-Different Avengers #1 by Mark Waid and Mahmud Asrar!

Marvel is releasing "Hip-Hop Variant” covers for its books in October, paying tribute to classic rap album covers using the heroes of the Marvel Universe. Mark Brooks takes on Notorious B.I.G.’s classic Ready to Die for his Ant-Man cover, while Mike Del Mundo pays tribute to both Wu-Tang Clan's Enter the Wu-Tang: 36 Chambers for Squadron Supreme #1, and A Tribe Called Quest’s Midnight Marauders for Amazing Spider-Man #1.

Popular comics and entertainment news site The Wall Street Journal offered the exclusive confirmation this morning on the new post-Secret Wars Avengers roster and creative team, already outlined but not formally confirmed by one of the Marvel Free Comic Book Day offerings earlier this year. As expected, the book will be written by Mark Waid with art by Mahmud Asrar, with the addition of artist Adam Kubert on alternating arcs. The team members are exactly as outlined in the FCBD comic, with no surprises; Captain America, Iron Man, Thor, Vision, Spider-Man, Ms Marvel and Nova.

The Advocate has published leaked pages from All-New X-Men #40, on sale tomorrow, which reveal that one of the characters is secretly gay. It's a big moment, and one that could potentially increase gay visibility in the Marvel Universe in a significant way, but there are complications to the story that make it hard to read as an unambiguous victory for LGBTQ representation. Read on if you don't mind having the issue spoiled.