First Friday 5: Treading New Ground

As we get ready to begin a new year, many of us will find ourselves treading new, unfamiliar ground. What will the new year bring? Who will we meet? And who will we lose? The characters in these five comics explore entirely new worlds—sometimes together, sometimes alone—and find themselves forever shaping their new environments.

The Divided Earth (The Nameless City)

Written and illustrated by Faith Erin Hicks

Finally we have the third and final installment in the series! The Nameless City is at war, with factions from all sides trying to take control. But where does that leave the people of the city—the "Named"—who are caught in the middle? Rat and Kai must work together to unearth an ancient weapon of mass destruction before the wrong people can use it to destroy everything the city holds dear.

Queen of the Sea
Written and illustrated by Dylan Meconis

When her sister seizes the throne, Queen Eleanor of Albion is banished to a tiny island off the coast to live with a cloister of nuns and Margaret, a mysterious young orphan who has spent her whole life on the island. As Margaret and Eleanor grow closer, Margaret begins to learn the island's true purpose and what her role is in the kingdom, as well as in the larger war that's brewing between Eleanor and her sister.

A Sea of Love
Written by Wilfrid Lupano and illustrated by Gregory Panaccione

A completely wordless story about love and faith. Every morning a man heads out to sea, leaving his doting wife behind to fish. When he doesn’t come home one day, his wife sets out on a journey to find him, convinced her husband is still alive. Separately he two embark on entire journeys to find each other and once again reunite.

Tiger vs. Nightmare
Written and illustrated by Emily Tetri

Tiger has a monster living under her bed, but not the kind you’d think. Tiger’s monster helps fight off nightmares, and the two of them are best friends. But one night a nightmare arrives that even the monster is scared of, so it’s up to Tiger and her monster to fight off the nightmare together. Both characters find themselves taking on new challenges together to fight off evil.

Woman World
Written and illustrated by Aminder Dhaliwal

When a birth defect wipes out the planet’s entire population of men, Woman World rises out of the ashes, and, unsurprisingly, it's pretty darn funny. Originally a serialized Instagram comic, Woman World  follows a set group of women as they work to rebuild their lives and find love in this new world.

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