5. Samurai Jack #1 By Jim Zub And Andy Suriano (IDW)
Samurai Jack is back! After being flung into the future by the evil Aku, Jack is on a mission to travel back in time and undo the dystopian future he's found himself in. To do this, Jack must collect several time strands that are dotted about this strange land - except monsters oppose him at every turn. Time for some sword-slicing action, Cartoon Network style! Jim Zub does a great job capturing the spirit of the Samurai Jack TV show for this comic. The issue feels heavily Star Wars oriented with a pit scene reminiscent of the Rancor fight in Jabba's palace from Jedi and a Jabba-like sleazy alien mob boss running the show. Like Luke and his lightsaber, Jack and his sword make short work of the monsters in a series of imaginative and colourful fight sequences. Andy Suriano's artwork is really lovely. Strong lines are an indicator of a confident and talented artist, and Suriano is nothing if not all that and a bag of chips. The Soule Seer scene was really well laid out and the action is choreographed really well. The style is visually very similar to the TV show like a panel where Jack deflects bullets with his sword looking exactly like a scene from TV. Samurai Jack #1 is a really fun comic that gets the series off to a good start - fans of the show have definitely got to give this one a look!