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July 7, 2026 11:34 pm

Marvel Swimsuit Special: Brand New Beach Day (Review)

Neil Raymundo July 7, 2026 No Comments

Marvel Comics, 2026Writers: Daniel Kibblesmith, Rainbow Rowell, Anthony Oliviera, Dan Schkade, Cody ZiglarArtists: Alessandro Miracolo, Phil Noto, Pablo Collar, Rachelle Rosenberg, David Baldeon The original Marvel Swimsuit Special was very much a product of its time. During the early 1990s, American pop culture was saturated with beach-centric entertainment, from Baywatch and MTV Beach House to the immense popularity of Sports Illustrated’s Swimsuit Issue. Marvel, sensing an opportunity to capitalize on the trend, launched its own equivalent through the Marvel Swimsuit Special, an anthology composed primarily of pin-ups featuring superheroes in beach attire. It was a novelty concept more than anything else, and one that occasionally veered into the absurd (the 1993 Swimsuit Special featuring The Punisher in a skull-shaped thong is apex parody). The series eventually sank in 2015, only to be revived in 2025 alongside Marvel Rivals, bringing with it a significant change in format by incorporating short narrative

Heaven (Review)

Neil Raymundo July 6, 2026 No Comments

Creator: Katie Skelly Fantagraphics, July 2026 Katie Skelly’s Heaven, published by Fantagraphics, is the kind of horror graphic novel that appears poised to employ a familiar trick: adopting a minimalist, almost childlike visual language before gradually revealing something far more sinister beneath the surface. (We saw that concept delivered with startling, horrifying effect in Patrick Horvath’s chilling Beneath the Trees, a title we intend to review soon.) Heaven however has little misdirection by faux-innocence. The cover alone presents a strip club atmosphere in all its excesses, populated by scantily clad dancers, alcohol, and showering cash. The opening pages are equally direct, introducing readers to an unsettling ritualistic scene involving cloaked women, violence, and murder. Ms Skelly wastes no time establishing that, despite its clean visuals, this is very much a mature horror story. Here is Fantagraphics’ promotional blurb: Out past the edge of town, there exists a strip club called