The month is almost over, so here's one more of these to send us off. THE THEME: You read the title. You know the drill. Today's selection of five female-led comics are all published under the Berger Books imprint, which is a part of Dark Horse Comics. Berger Books is overseen by none other than Karen Berger, a longtime veteran of the industry whose editorial contributions in DC Comics led to the creation of Vertigo, the mature content-focused DC imprint that produced such legendary titles as The Sandman, Hellblazer, and more. Needless to say, Karen Berger is a pretty important figure in comics. I thought having the Berger Books imprint be the connecting thread for my picks made for a fitting end for what I had in mind this month. March is Women's History Month, and I challenged myself to exclusively read comics with female protagonists. While I'm certain I achieved that goal here, I wanted to also try and show that there are just as plenty real-life women writing and drawing these very comics that I enjoy reading. Highlighting Berger Books, which was created and is overseen by a woman who has made a significant mark on the comics industry, is perhaps the best way I can illustrate that. THE COMICS: ![]() THE GIRL IN THE BAY #1 Publisher: Berger Books Writer: J.M. DeMatteis Artist: Corin Howell In 1969, Kathy Sartori was stabbed, and her body fell into Sheepshead Bay. Turns out, she survived.... or did she? Once she recovered, she finds that it's 50 years in the future, and that she's got a doppelganger who's lived out that entire 50 years in her stead. It's an intriguing, possibly otherworldly mystery, and I'm interested to see where the story leads. ![]() INVISIBLE KINGDOM #1 Publisher: Berger Books Writer: G. Willow Wilson Artist: Christian Ward Invisible Kingdom is set in a sci-fi universe and follows the stories of two women: Grix, a freighter pilot for Lux (which is like Amazon, but for aliens, I guess), and Vess, a pilgrim who joins the Sisters of Severity, which are pretty much an order of space nuns. Both women stumble upon a shocking secret tied to their callings that calls everything they know into question, and it seems their paths are destined to cross because of it. I was quite fascinated by this conspiracy angle, and I'm particularly interested to see how it affects Vess, since she seems to be quite devout and the revelation is going to be a crisis of faith. ![]() LAGUARDIA #1 Publisher: Berger Books Writer: Nnedi Okorafor Artist: Tana Ford Set in a future where aliens have immigrated to Earth, LaGuardia is about a Nigerian-American doctor named Future who returns to New York. On her way, she smuggles in an alien plant, but what for? And what else is she back in the US for? All interesting questions, but what stood out to me more was how this book directly tackles issues of xenophobia, racism, bigotry surrounding immigrants (all problems the alien visitors face on their way to Earth), and the very real-life scenario of people of African descent facing discrimination at the airport (an experience the writer of this comic has dealt with firsthand). ![]() RUBY FALLS #1 Publisher: Berger Books Writer: Ann Nocenti Artist: Flavia Blondi Lana lives in the quiet town of Ruby Falls, and between hanging out with her friend Blair and catching up with her parents (who are not on speaking terms), she visits her grandmother, who is being taken care of in a nursing home for her dementia. One day, Lana's grandmother recalls a possible murder that happened long ago, and Lana becomes determined to uncover the truth. I must say I'm quite interested in reading a murder mystery that may or may not involve three generations of Lana's family. ![]() SHE COULD FLY #1 Publisher: Berger Books Writer: Christopher Cantwell Artist: Martin Morazzo Luna is a 15-year-old with OCD, which means she deals with highly disturbing intrusive thoughts on a regular basis. Her only solace is a mysterious flying woman she sees often on the news, and she dreams of flying just like her. All that goes to hell, however, when that flying woman apparently explodes in midair. The mystery of the flying woman is fascinating, sure (the comic plants some seeds that may connect to the truth), but the thing that I found most remarkable is how this comic depicts OCD, and how it's all based on the writer's personal experiences. I hope I've done a sufficient job this month showing that women (be it characters, or the writers/artists/editors that bring them to life) are prominent in comics, more so than some would think. Believe me, there's a lot more of these comics where they came from, and I'll definitely be busting out this theme several more times in the future. PANEL(s) OF THE WEEK: - end -
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