Top Comics to Buy for April 2, 2025: Baseball, haunted houses, Green Lanterns, and more

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After three consecutive absurdly packed weeks, things slow down a bit for our Top Comics to Buy for April 2 list, but all that means is that we’ve gotten back to normal. I think there’s a scenario wherein the recently-packed weeks end up being the standard for 2025 (a good problem to have), given that what made those week’s so loaded was how much good stuff was starting. And, really, this week also has some great starts, particularly from DC Comics.

I go into my two favorite DC releases in brief below, but I’m also writing about them for this week’s DC Round-Up column, which will go live tomorrow. It’s been a very strong start to the year for DC, and that seems likely to continue for the next 9 months, too. But that’s a subject for tomorrow’s column, so make sure to check back for that. For now, you can find my five favorite comics this week below…along with the usual set of release lists — enjoy!

Top Comics to Buy for April 2, 2025

Absolute Green Lantern #1
Writer: Al Ewing
Artist: Jahnoy Lindsay
Letterer: Lucas Gattoni
Publisher: DC Comics
Without the Corps…without the ring…without the willpower, what’s left is the Absolute Green Lantern!
Why It’s Cool: With Absolute Green Lantern #1, we get the same art-forward experimental-minded comics making that has so far defined DC’s Absolute line — but this time we get it applied to Green Lantern and its tradition of high concept sci-fi. It’s a great combo, especially when written by Al Ewing and led boldly by Jahnoy Lindsay’s art. As noted above, this is a subject to explore more in tomorrow’s column, but another fun quality to this book is that of all the properties to get the absolute treatment so far, Green Lantern has the biggest cast of heroes to draw from, giving it an air of unpredictability.
Price: $4.99

Monkey Meat: The Summer Batch #2
Cartoonist: Juni Ba
Publisher: Image Comics
The company brings you new tales! A mad scientist revives her girlfriend, but has to do afterlife therapy first. And a broken warrior tries to guide cavemen to glory to make up for his mistakes. Tropical sunlight and regrets! Two of our fave flavors. We might even make them cereals…
Why It’s Cool: This title — which is now in its second volume — has created a storytelling ecosystem where almost anything Juni Ba wants to do feels at home. Short allegorical stories? Sure. Near-silent meditations on timely issues? Let’s do it. Faux ads? Little games? Graphic design silliness? It all works in Monkey Meat, and works quite well, making this title a shoe-in for this week’s Top Comics to Buy for April 2 as well as one of my favorite titles. Also, as if I haven’t written this enough (across various websites), Ba’s cartooning is just all kinds of amazing.
Price: $3.99

Past Time #1
Writer: Joe Harris
Artist: Russell Olson
Letterer: Carlos M. Mangual
Henry Hayes could have been the best baseball player anybody ever saw, if only his dark affliction didn’t prevent him from playing in the daylight. But when the barnstorming circuit introduces a new novelty to the game—night baseball under the bright lights—will his dreams of playing pro ball finally be realized, or will his bloody past catch up with him before he gets the chance? From the midwest fields of the 1920s to the big city lights of today, Past Time is a small town thriller on a National scale.
Why It’s Cool: I’m a long-time fan of artist Russell Olson (and his fantastic Patreon comic, Gateway City), who I think is among the best noir comics artists we have. Well, this Joe Harris penned baseball murder mystery is just a perfect it. And the first issue is a home run (sorry, I just had to do it).
Price: $4.99

Plague House #1
Writer: Michael Conrad
Artist/Letterer: Dave Chisholm
Publisher: Oni Press
Thirteen years ago, Orin McCabe was a family man living a privileged life in the suburbs. Today, he’s condemned to death row for murdering his entire family in an unexpected fit of hammer-wielding brutality. In the aftermath of his heinous crime, it’s fallen to a trio of eclectic, but dedicated, ghost hunters-Jacob, the holy man; Holland, the skeptic; and their leader, Del, a true believer in the occult and worlds beyond-to surveil the abandoned McCabe home in search of proof for the existence of the undead . . . and whatever supernatural source may have possibly fueled McCabe’s inhuman massacre. But this ill-matched and uneasy squad of investigators is about to discover something much more terrifying than any ordinary spirit. . . .
Why It’s Cool: This is a sort of ensemble cast, ghost-hunter squad haunted house story, and it’s brought to life by one of the most interesting artists in indie comics, Dave Chisholm (who you may remember from when his other current series, Spectrum appeared in this space at launch). One of the things I love about monthly comics is the regular deep dive into familiar genre trappings, which often results in finding something new and essential about why we like these stories. It’s just one issue, but to me Plague House seems poised to do just that.
Price: $4.99

Resurrection Man: Quantum Karma #1
Writer: Ram V.
Artist: Anand RK
Colorist: Mike Spicer
Letterer: Aditya Bidikar
Mitch Shelley, the Resurrection Man, has led thousands of lives–and with each unexpected death and resurrection comes a new superpower. But after living a life to its natural conclusion, Mitch Shelly is awoken by a new purpose and power…saving the universe. Follow the Resurrection Man through time as he fights against a monster of his own creation: Gashadokuro–a sadistic WWII internment-camp commander who has inherited a twisted version of Shelley’s powers. The lines of cosmic order will begin to blur as no good deed goes unpunished. And whatever the cause, whatever the consequence, this much is true…he’s dying to save you!
Why It’s Cool: So, this week from DC we get a big new swing with a familiar superhero character (Absolute Green Lantern) while elsewhere in the line we get a deep dive into a very weird character that lends itself to the literary Black Label treatment. I love that kind of variety from a Big 2 publisher, and even more so when the books are as well done as this one is.
Price: $4.99