There is a veritable flood of new comics every week: new issues, variant covers, new #1s, and fresh-faced miniseries. Fewer – but still bountiful – are the dozens of bookshelf editions landing in your local comic shops (and attainable by your local indie bookshops, as well!). From fresh original graphic novels, long-awaited archive editions, and collections of recent comics for all you trade-waiters, there are plenty of trade paperbacks and hardcovers to fill your shelves.
After reviewing hundreds of these sorts of books for AIPT over the years, I’ve come to appreciate what makes a collection truly special. Here at Tradewatch, I pick five books releasing in the coming week that seem the most exciting to me. Here are my picks for the week of April 1st, 2026.
Avengers Epic Collection Vol. 14: Absolute Vision
Marvel Comics, TPB – $49.99 (Buy Now)
First, Starfox connects the Vision to Titan’s supercomputer giving our favorite android nearly unlimited power! Next, the team battles Morgan Le Fey in a struggle to save Spider-Woman’s soul. Meanwhile, Hawkeye introduces his new bride Mockingbird to the Avengers just in time to get whisked away to Battleworld and Secret Wars, leaving Vision behind to assemble an all-new Avengers!
The blurb above fully captures just how manic and all over the place the Avengers of the 1980s were; writer Roger Stern wove in and out of plotlines spotlighting each member of the team — and some characters who weren’t on the team — in a way that deepened the Marvel Universe in weird, unexpected ways. This volume also contains, get this, an issue featuring classic Late Night host David Letterman. Talk about building out the universe.
Batman: Dark Patterns
DC Comics, TPB – $29.99 – (Buy Now)
This grounded, mystery-driven narrative evokes the rich tone and style of beloved classics such as Batman: Year One , Batman: The Long Halloween , and Batman: Hush . Penned by the talented Dan Watters and brought to life through the striking artistry of Hayden Sherman, each three-part story stands alone as a gripping detective case, shedding light on
Dark Patterns was just one of the many Batman books from the last couple of years that set the comics press abuzz. In his review of the last issue, our own David Brooke called it “one of the most visually inventive and emotionally resonant Batman tales in years.” It arrives in both a standard TPB and HC edition this week, bringing together all twelve issues; I’d been sitting on the sidelines but I guess this is the time to dive in.
The Girl Who Draws on Whales
Dark Horse Comics, TPB – $17.99 (Buy Now)
From Ariela Kristantina, artist of the Eisner Award-nominated graphic novel Adora and the Distance, The Girl Who Draws on Whales is a testimony to the power of stories — their uncanny ability to entertain, educate and, ultimately, unite us. Reminiscent of stories like Moana, Princess Mononoke, The Never-Ending Story, Frozen, and Snow Angels, The Girl Who Draws on Whales is an epic YA graphic novel adventure about two siblings struggling for survival, who must use their art to save their world.
Originally released on Comixology, The Girl Who Draws on Whales lands a physical release this week. The artwork looks incredible, and the story seems majestic and sweeping. Set in a flooded, post-apocalyptic world, in a small and isolated group of survivors, a girl communes with whales. One day the whales return, wounded and covered in markings that speak to some other, unknown group of survivors. At least, that’s the story I get from reading the solicit texts; it sounds like a lovely YA journey.
The Lights of Niteroi
Fantagraphics, TPB – $29.99 (Buy Now)
In 1950s Brazil, somewhere by the beach, not far from Rio, Hélcio, a young and promising soccer player, and his friend Noël, spot someone fishing with dynamite. They decide to take a boat and steal some of the dead fish to make some money. The boat trip turns into a perilous journey as the two thieves embark on an adventure that will challenge their friendship. Inspired by the life of Marcello Quintanilha’s father, Hélcio Quintanilha, this graphic novel is both a suspenseful thriller and a breathtaking story about friendship.
Fantagraphics imports a new Brazillian graphic novel, The Lights of Niteroi. Lushly illustrated and historically set, the book looks to tell a gripping story of a Brazil unfamiliar to the rest of the world. Soccer, fishing, and coming-of-age vibes seem to permeate the book. Leave it to Fantagraphics to find the excellent, multicultural work, and continue their ongoing curation of great cartooning.
The Smurfs Tales Vol. 15: The Smurfs and the White Storm
Papercutz, TPB – $14.99 (Buy Now)
Brainy, Jokey and Handy Smurf head out of Smurf Village to try out their brand new sled, but when a dangerous snowstorm strikes , will they discover a new friend or an old enemy in the old shelter they seek refuge in? And what happens when Papa Smurf and the rest of the village are trapped in an even bigger snowstorm? All this, PLUS Johan and Peewit and Benny Breakiron stories.
I will always go to bat for original-style Smurf comics; I worry that people who aren’t in the know are missing out on just how perfectly crafted and wildly deep these stories can be. The world is far more inventive and expressive than the 1980s cartoons ever dared to be, and though Smurfs and the White Storm might not be an original by the cartoonist Peyo (produced instead by the studio he founded way back in the 1960s), it seems to be packed with adventure and all that classic-style cartooning.
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