Vault Comics has had an impressive first year, publishing a wide variety of titles with strong concepts, smart designs, and creators that embrace the huge scope of comic books’ storytelling potential. Vault has been steadily releasing new titles with each month, and The A.V. Club has a first look at two new titles debuting later this year: August’s Spiritus, a sci-fi thriller from writer Tim Daniel and artist Michael Kennedy, and September’s Deuce Of Hearts, a comedy from writer Ricardo Mo, artist Tony Gregori, and colorist Claudia Aguirre that offers a fantastic twist on dating apps.
These exclusive Spiritus preview pages offer an intriguing introduction to Daniel and Kennedy’s story, which follows a champion fighter whose consciousness is transferred into a robotic body after she’s convicted of murder. Kennedy’s artwork is intricately detailed and heavily stylized (especially the vibrant coloring), and Daniel quickly sets up the book’s concept while establishing Kinju Dayal’s resilient spirit. The covers for the first two issues of Deuce Of Hearts showcase Gregori’s bold character designs, and if the interior contents have the same imagination and energy as those covers, it should be a very fun ride. Spiritus goes on sale August 2, and readers can check out Deuce Of Hearts on September 13.
In addition to these new titles, we also have an exclusive preview of August Heathen #5, the first issue to feature brand-new content (the series was originally released digitally through ComiXology). Natasha Alterici’s tale of a queer Viking warrior on a mission to take down the god-king Odin is the standout book of Vault’s lineup, offering a thrilling, emotional exploration of Norse mythology from a feminist perspective with striking artwork. You can read this Big Issues to learn more about the series, and the excerpt below highlights Alterici’s knowledge of the legends she’s building on as well as the expressive quality of her artwork. The splash page does excellent work reinforcing Aydis’ isolation as she embarks on the next leg of her quest, which will take her off land and onto the sea to meet mermaids and pirates. Heathen #5 hits stands on August 9, and readers that want to check out the first story arc can pick up the first collection on July 26.