Top Comics to Buy for November 12, 2025: Savagery, serial killers, and ghost stories

4 weeks ago 11

This week’s Top Comics to Buy for November 12 felt like one of those that was specifically aimed at my tastes, including as it does a great new Hellboy adventure along with some gritty, oddball crime comic art from David Lapham, and the conclusion of my favorite Batman comic in some time. So yeah, I’m a happy reader that week, and it was fun to write about my favorites.

You can find all five of my recommendations below, along with the usual set of release lists … enjoy!

Top Comics to Buy for November 12

American Caper #1
Creator & Writer: Dan Houser
Producer & Additional Writing: Lazlow
Layouts & Pencils: David Lapham
Colorist: Lee Loughridge
Finishes: Chris Anderson
Letterer: Nate Piekos
Publisher: Dark Horse Comics
A tale of two totally normal, completely damaged families in a world of corrupt businesses, inept local politicians, bungling criminals, and unfortunate leisurewear. We follow the fortunes of two neighbors on the point of collapse: a Mormon hit man and a gambling-addict lawyer, both intertwined in a real-estate deal gone wrong. Mix in a Mexican beauty queen on the run from her past, two escaped convicts in love, a Wall Street billionaire who has become a cowboy, and a maniac hell-bent on revenge. American culture has become a war about real estate, violence, and snake oil.
Why It’s Cool: This feels from the start like a big swing of a comic, one that is going to lean into the medium and also try to deliver a treatise on what’s ailing America these days. The writing is cheeky, the art gritty and interesting, and the scope of the thing feels like it might just take on the entire damn country. Oh, and not a single person in these pages is likable, and that might be the whole point.
Price: $4.99

Batman: Dark Patterns #12
Writer: Dan Watters
Artist: Hayden Sherman
Colorist: Triona Farrel
Letterer: Frank Cvetkovic
Publisher: DC Comics
Can the Dark Knight Detective quell the hungry flames threatening to erase Gotham before the city is no more, or will the Child of Fire’s inferno devour it all?
Why It’s Cool: I’ve recommended nearly every issue in this series within the space of this column, and I’m not going to stop at this week’s finale. My only pang of sadness here is that this phenomenal Batman comic has to come to an end. Here’s hoping DC Comics finds more space (mainline, Black Label, or Elseworlds) for this creative team to return to Gotham City soon.
Price: $4.99

Beneath the Trees Where Nobody Sees: Rite of Spring #4
Writer/Artist: Patrick Horvath
Letterer: Hassan Otsmane-Elhaou
Publisher: IDW Publishing
Why It’s Cool: This series has been a worthy follow-up to the breakout hit original book, introducing as it has a formidable opponent for its serial killer main character. In this most recent issue, things continue to get more and more tense as the threads that were so expertly lain out in the opening issue develop further. Simply put, at this point Beneath the Trees is an essential must-read.
Price: $4.99

Die Loaded #1
Writer: Kieron Gillen
Artist: Stephanie Hans
Letterer: Clayton Cowles
Publisher: Image Comics
A year after their return from the hellish game world, the players gather for Chuck’s wake. They’ve finished with the game. The game isn’t finished with them. The three-time Hugo Award-nominated series is back in November. Get ready to roll initiative. Who’s going to DIE this time?
Why It’s Cool: I absolutely lived Die’s first run of comics, combining as it did writer Kieron Gillen’s obsessions with TTRPGs and artist Stephanie Hans absolutely gorgeous painted art. For a book based on gaming, Die has always been willing to go to very dark places with its character. This new series is picking up right where the original left off. This one was an easy choice for this week’s Top Comics to Buy for November 12.
Price: $3.99

Hellboy and the B.P.R.D.: The Ghost Ships of Labrador #1
Writers: Mike Mignola and Rob Williams
Artist: Laurence Campbell
Colorist: Lee Loughridge
Letterer: Clem Robins
Publisher: Dark Horse Comics
A town overrun by ghosts would be enough of a problem, but Hellboy has an even bigger problem on his hands when a fellow B.P.R.D. agent disappears amongst the paranormal chaos.
Why It’s Cool: Artist Laurence Campbell drew one of my favorite stretches in the Hellboy/BRPD main narrative, a suspenseful and dark stretch of that apocalyptic arc, replete with gigantic set pieces. This new story sees Campbell making a very welcomed return to the pages of Hellboy, to tell a story with a slightly smaller scope, yet with imagery that feels equally as grandiose. Also, on writing duties Mike Mignola is joined by Rob Williams, who is telling another haunting at sea tale via comics right now in the pages of 2000AD. What results is a great first half of a two-part Hellboy ghost story.
Price: $4.99