Trading Pages: New Releases February 2025
From psycho killers in stylish boots, to do-gooders turning into monsters, February 2025 was a great month for comic book trade paperback and hardcover releases. Check out which titles are worth your time in this month’s Trading Pages.
While numerical scores are not provided, these collected editions are graded on a scale of: Must Read, Consider It, or Maybe Pass.
LAWFUL Vol. 1
Lawful Vol. 1 crafts a unique fantasy world and presents readers with insightful considerations on morals and how they are determined and enforced.
Sung is one of the few people who has had a pious life compared to his community, as evident by his lack of monster body parts. In this world, anyone who breaks the law slowly transforms into different types of creatures—creating semi-hybrid people at every turn. But Sung’s goodness may not stay for long as he is presented with the task of turning against those close to him.
This comic is multi-layered and rewards readers who take time to experience it multiple times. While the core characters are still developing in their character arcs in this volume, the world and the many different people give a poignant look at how humans can sometimes be viewed.
Combined with its rich and earthy art and color tones, it’s easy to be sucked into the story. The use of people “turning” presents interesting questions for readers to consider as there are old people with little change and children who are almost completely transformed. Lawful gently presents these small moments in front of the reader that encourage thoughtful reflections.
Lawful Vol. 1 is an unexpectedly relevant comic that urges readers to recognize the beauty of rejecting conformity—especially against oppressive regimes. Beautiful illustrated and wonderfully written, this fantasy story easily made the “Must Read” list of February comic book releases.
Verdict: Must Read
By Greg Pak (Author), Diego Galindo (Illustrator) Irma Kniivila (Colorist), and Simon Bowland (Letterer).
Published by BOOM! Studios.
MUGSHOTS
Mugshots is a crime story that leans too heavily on its stylized art to make up for the so-so script.
John Bannan is a con-man and has no problem screwing anyone over to get ahead—even friends. When he finds out his niece goes missing, he is forced to go back into the criminal underbelly from his old town.
While this comic had a lot of potential, it never goes beyond familiar tropes from crime shows/films involving human trafficking and mob bosses. There are a few twists and turns, but so much effort is spent making John look cool that it forgets to make readers care about the motivation of finding John’s niece Grace in the first place.
The plot has some interesting twists, but this comic never offers any character development, resulting in a story that is overly complicated and unfulfilling. It’s a shame really, as the art style fits the tone and makes the read more enjoyable—even if it has support the lackluster story.
Verdict: Maybe Pass
By Jordan Thomas (Author), Chris Matthews (Illustrator & Colorist), and Lucas Gattoni (Letterer).
Published by Mad Cave Studios.
Soma
Soma is an energetic and funny take on alien invasion stories.
Maya is a comic book artist who smokes too much and has become a serial procrastinator. On a fateful day, an alien crash lands in her apartment and warning of an alien invasion. The only way to save the planet? Maya must work with her be guest to survive and and save the day.
Fans of Scott Pilgrim vs The World will appreciate the art style from Carles Dalmau and the visuals create plenty of funny and outrageous moments for readers. The script from Fernando Llor is relatively small-scale, despite the world ending plot, but this serves the experience well as it allows readers to dive into an exciting and colorful world and swim among the different action set pieces.
I typically don’t like to include price, but for about $20 USD, this comic is 288 pages in its entirety—offering a nice full experience that rewards those who give it multiple reads. (There are lots of fun small details in the background).
Maya and her silent-but-sassy companion are such a joy to go on a ride with and in a world of heavy and dark stories, it’s nice to have palette cleansers like Soma as they give readers a fun break.
Verdict: Must Read
By Fernando Llor (Author) and Carles Dalmau (Illustrator & Colorist)
Published by Oni Press.
Beyond the pale
Set against the backdrop of the Vietnam War, Beyond the Pale follows journalist Hetta Sawyer as she investigates the rising death of Black American soldiers.
This multi-layered comic contains themes of redemption, supernatural horror, and discussions of racism by the US Government. While the story and pacing balance the various topics, readers may find themselves wishing one track would’ve been the focus.
Some minor spoilers: As a historical fiction comic, there are liberties taken with actual events about the death of a prominent leader in the Black Panther Party. Personally, I did not like the change as it takes away from the tragedy of what actually happened, but miles may vary depending the reader.
Part of where this comic shines is in the gritty art and earth-toned color palettes in the panels as readers follow Hetta traversing jungles and military outposts.
The story has an interesting angle, and I enjoyed the symbolism of how the supernatural elements derived from the violence being perpetuated by invading forces. However, the story could’ve benefitted from purely focusing on unknown horrors rather than Hetta’s backstory.
Despite my criticism, I would not say this is a bad comic. I personally enjoyed the mystery and as a fan of stories focused on photojournalists, it was refreshing to see this topic on comic book stands. It’s not a must read, but interesting enough for a one-off experience.
Verdict: Consider It
By Christofer Emgard (Author), Tomas Aria (Illustrator & Colorist), and Mauro Mantella (Letterer).
Published by Dark Horse Comics.
CROCODILE BLACK
Crocodile Black is a raw and visceral title that takes readers on a tense and dark ride into the mind of an obsessed wannabe tough guy.
Danny is a young delivery driver full of angst who is unmotivated and jealous of those who command power. When he drops off groceries at the home of Leo Black, he discovers a captivating pair of crocodile skin boots on the body of the dead customer. Rather than Danny reporting the death, he decides to take the boots and emulate the facade of what he thinks a violent man should be.
This is not the kind of comic where the reader should expect to root for the main character—in fact, he is completely despicable. However, this pseudo villain origin story is so damn interesting and enticing that readers will easily lock into the narrative from Phillip Kennedy Johnson.
The art from SOM and colors by Patricio Delpeche also craft this semi-realistic design that is full of bright visuals that creatively present internal feelings and dialogue within Danny.
Crocodile Black is a symphony of violence that comes to a dramatic and bloody crescendo leaving readers uneasy and tense. The analogy of prey to predator combined with stunning imagery easily makes this a top crime comic to read.
Verdict: must read
By Phillip Kennedy Johnson (Author), SOM (Illustrator) Patricio Delpeche (Colorist), Becca Carey (Letterer).
Published by BOOM! Studios.
SPECTREGRAPH
Prepare for a twisted tale full of terror, wonderfully illustrated blood and guts, and dementedly slick writing as the hardcover edition of Spectregraph is now on stands.
Trapped inside of Hall Mansion is an unorganized real estate agent named Janie, and Vesper, a member of a secret cult. Lurking in the halls and mechanisms of this empty house is something neither of them are prepared for, but must escape. Whether they survive the nights remains to be seen.
This refreshing take on supernatural locales is the product of powerhouse talent, and readers benefit from every page in this series from DSTLRY. Helming the script is James Tynion IV, and while the story is interesting and full of twists, the moments it provides Christian Ward to illustrate are what shine.
The feeling of dread and tension of what’s around every corner is felt throughout the story with the rich color green and red color palettes. Combined with the lettering from Aditya Bidikar, it’s easy to pause from the story and just take in the page. It’s wonderfully ironic how something so horrifying could be so beautiful, but that’s what happens when some of the best creative minds craft an experience unlike any other.
Spectregraph revitalizes the haunted house genre with its imaginative take on gothic horror. Carefully not to read this comic at night, those bumps you heard might just be real.
Verdict: Must Read
By James Tynion IV (Author),Christian Ward (Illustrator & Colorist), and Aditya Bidikar (Letterer).
Published by DSTLRY.