Welcome back True Believers to our weekly series where we run down the top five comics we are enjoying with our coffee. Each week we will share the comic book stories we are enjoying with the weeks featured coffee roast. Of course we love our community and are always interested in what you are reading and what Coffee 'n' Capes coffee you are drinking so drop us a line at supers@coffeencapes.com. Let's get into it.
FEATURED COFFEE:
This weeks featured roast is our brand new limited edition Asgardian Amber in celebration of the new Thor: Love & Thunder movie from Marvel coming out in a week. Asgardian Amber is about as close as we can get to what we imagine mead is like (without the alcohol and added in coffee) in the halls of Valhalla. This coffee is a single origin from Central America using an El Salvador Peaberry bean.
We take this amazing bean and roast it to medium perfection. The result is notes of blueberry, raspberry, honey (mead), and a little milk chocolate. The combo definitely brings the thunder to your taste buds and might have you slamming your mug down with a hearty "MORE" echoing out of your body. Of course be careful not to break your favorite coffee mug in doing so.
On to our top five reads of the week:
TOP 5 WEEK OF JUNE 27th:
5. Moon Knight #3 (2016) 
Written by Jeff Lemire and art by Greg Smallwood this is the third book in the epic run by this team. Colors are brilliant thanks to Jordie Bellaire really bringing the book to life.
This run is an amazing dive into Marc Spector's insanity. Fooled into believing he is in a mental hospital by Ammut who serves the God Seth where he is regularly abused, he is told over and over again Moon Knight is a delusion. If this sounds familiar it is because it is the basis for what we saw in the latter episodes of season one of the Moon Knight show on Disney+ (go watch it now).
Marc manages to escape in this issue with Gena and Marlene but as they reach the subway mummies start deboarding the subway train. There is chaos, action, and insanity all through the issue, and the series run. This issue specifically though is key in the series and worth reading.
4. Harley Quinn #1 (2000) 
Written by Karl Kesel and with art by Terry Dodson & Craig Rousseau this was the first issue of our beloved Harley Quinn's much deserved solo series, and it is perfect.
Issue one sees our favorite leading lady still fooled by her long time beau, The Joker, into thinking he loves her. Enough so that she risks her life to break him out, and then cares for him while he recovers (even though he is secretly fine) and continues to try to make him happy, even at her own expense. Thank goodness for Poison Ivy.
Eventually Joker tries to hurt Harley again and this time is the last as Harley has had enough. This pivotal moment in Harley's arc as a character, not to mention the final pages where she and Ivy have kind of a foreshadowing moment, are key to us getting the incredible evolution of the one and only Harley Quinn.
3. Marauders #21 (2019) 
Written by Gerry Duggan, art by Matteo Lolli and beautiful color work by Edgar Delgado this is a fun story that kicks off the first ever Hellfire Gala held on the mutant island of Krakoa.
If we are being honest I love the Marauders story probably more than any of the X-Men comics that came out during this time. Not that I didn't like the rest of them, I really did for the most part, but something about the Marauders hooked me early. With Kitty, sorry Kate Pryde taking control as captain and what felt like a real seafaring adventure it is just a ton of fun. This book really nailed that feel too as Krakoa finally opened itself up to the rest of the world for the gala. We get to see Capt. America having a "casual" conversation with Dr. Doom that is written exactly how you would imagine it taking place. This is when comics for me are always the most fun with lots of heroes in awkward situations and where we get to see just how different they all are from one another, despite all considering themselves heroes. Just can't recommend this one enough.
Also the Hellfire Gala covers are incredible!
2. Thor God of Thunder #2 (2012) 
Written superbly by Jason Aaron, with incredible art by Esad Ribic and colors by Ive Svorcina this is a must read book in a must read arc.
Jason Aaron deftly floats back and forth in the Thor God of Thunder arc between young Thor, God Thor, and Thor All-Father. There are some incredible moments in this arc but the introduction of Gorr the God Butcher and the Necrosword have got to be one of the pivotal pieces of storytelling in the Thor mythos. It crossed into The Mighty Thor where Gorr faces off against Jane Foster and leads to Thor believing he is unworthy after Gorr whispers in his ear.
This book is a must read if you are a Thor fan or looking to understand a little about what we will see in Thor: Love & Thunder. Not to mention the artwork by Ribic and Svorcina is beautifully done almost to the point of looking like paintings within each panel that deserve a place in the Louvre alongside great masterpieces of our time.
1. Stray Dogs #5 (2021) 
Written by Tony Fleecs and with incredible art by Trish Forstner and great colors by Brad Simpson this was one of those that we had been curious about for awhile. Its the book people whisper about the story and how it is something you won't fully grasp until you read it.
The covers were all homage's to various horror movies which makes you wonder since the dogs all look like Disney dogs or something from All Dogs Go to Heaven. It is a bizarre combination, but wow does it work. This is the final book in the first run and it is heartbreaking in so many ways. Especially if you are dog person (which at least my wife and I are).
Titled "Bad Dog" the book starts out with Earl, kind of the lead dog in a house of rescued dogs (rescued by a serial killer who murdered all their owners that is) finally remembering how he got there. Earl turns on the Master who is actually the one who is killing people and then rescuing their dogs to bring home. We don't want to spoil anymore as this chapter is full of emotion and should be read after you read the first four. We can't recommend this one enough.