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Jonny Quest, Space Ghost and Birdman collide and more in this week's top comics

It was a weird week for comic book news.

Over at DC Comics, it was announced that chief creative officer Geoff Johns has moved into a stronger role with the film side of things. In a role many have compared to Marvel's Kevin Feige, fans are hoping Johns will lift things up a bit in the upcoming DC films.

Also, major plot points from DC Universe Rebirth have leaked. Oh no! Don't worry, you can catch a full review from us next week. But trust us, it's big. Really big.

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On Marvel's side of the fence, its casting directors have been hard at work making some announcements. Actors Jeff Goldblum, Cate Blanchett, Karl Urban and Mark Ruffalo have been officially confirmed for Thor: Ragnarok, and Michael Keaton looks to be back in talks to play The Vulture in Spider-Man: Homecoming. Also, Captain America: Civil War has crossed $1 billion at the box office. Wow.

News Roundups

Catch up on the day's news you need to know.

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No matter which side you're on, here are some must-reads for this week.

Future Quest #1

If you had told me that a comic book crossover between a handful of 1960s television shows was going to be good, well, I probably wouldn't have believed you. As the first of many reboots by DC's updated Hannah Barbara line, Future Quest brings together characters from the obscure, but beloved Jonny Quest, Birdman and Space Ghost universes.

It's not at all laughable either, opting instead for setting the story in present day and making us truly believe these characters could exist among us. Heck, it's not too far to say this could easily mesh with DC's main continuity. But either way, this is a crossover we're more than happy to keep reading. This first issue is a solid introduction, and with more HB properties set to join the fold soon, we're eager to see what's in store.

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Superman: American Alien #7

And so ends the story of Max Landis' Superman, or does it? With this seven issue mini series, Landis has cracked open a whole new universe, one this issue serves as a great primer to. Though this is the planned finale, we wouldn't be surprised to see another handful of issues sometime in the near future. What's Bruce doing? How about Lex? Or heck, this is the best we've seen Lobo written is a really, really long time.

And that's where this issue succeeds, showing us in a blatant sense just how far Superman is willing to go to protect Earth and its people. He doesn't explicitly kill anyone, though it may be implied. But with it, it's not seen as menacing, but hopeful. American Alien is the clearest and brightest Superman since All-Star Superman, and I'm sad to see him go for now.

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Invincible #128

While last issue left us with a pretty clear cliffhanger, it was nice to see this issue ties those plot points up rather quick, after all, it looks like another full scale Viltrumite invasion of Earth is on its way again.

This issue covered a lot, showing us how Mark is adjusting to missing five years of his family's lives. He's made up with Eve, who had a hard time telling him she had been with someone else. He also spent some time with Terra, who can now read and draw and continues to surprise Mark at every turn. This issue wasn't a good time for Allen, though, who almost died.

His council plotted an assassination, which he seemingly survived, all the while Thragg and his new Viltrumite legion are headed to Earth. This series just continues to up the ante, doesn't it?

Civil War II #0

While many of the seeds have been sewn for Civil War II for months now, Marvel has finally got the ball rolling on the main series with this zero issue. Set before the events of the Free Comic Book Day preview issue, here we're shown a first-person account from She Hulk and Captain Marvel on where they will stand when the inevitable war breaks out.

She Hulk has just lost a case defending a man who has served his time in jail. Her defense is that he should not be punished for a crime he has not yet committed, but he is sentence to more time essentially on the hunch that he's likely to commit a crime again. This, at its core, is the theme of Civil War II. A new Inhuman, Ulysses, who we're also introduced here, can tell the future.

Captain Marvel goes off on her inability to stop things from happening before they happen, and with that we see how things will shape up. There's a lot going on in this issue, but it's great setup.

Spider-Man #4

If anything, Miles Morales' introduction into the main Marvel Universe has proven to be a great vehicle for telling societally-relevant stories. In this issue, Miles' best friend Ganke is having a hard time coming to terms with one of his superhero idols, the former X-Man Goldballs, enrolling at his school. He's nervous to talk with him because, well, he's "chubby and Asian" and popular, something Ganke says he strives to be.

This has Miles retort with how it's hard to be black (and Hispanic) in America, and the two bicker back and forth over whose plight is harder, ultimately resulting in Ganke telling Goldballs who miles really is.

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Damn, Ganke, that's harsh, but this scene was very tense. If this series continues to tell contained, strong stories, then we're still sold. Keep us interested, Bendis, because Miles is still one of the best characters Marvel has got.