Flavors of Ash (Ghost Pepper #1)

Set in a future wasteland of deserts, warlords, and manga-styled robot throwdowns, this inventive series launch from Lullabi (the Transformers series) and Lucas (the Destro series) finds an entrepreneurial spirit starting a food truck. Between lanes of Fury-Road chaos, chef Loloi peddles noodles spiced with an impossibly hot pepper only she can make palatable. Lullabi’s storytelling bridges the everyday business of food service—sourcing peppers; getting hauled into town for repairs; competing with a rival purveyor of provisions—and an epic backstory of a godlike hero turned ruler punching a world-threatening monster into the moon. Mysterious warrior Ash returns from parts unknown to contest that legend, stirring alarm from the powers that be. In a classic samurai story turn, Ash just wants to slurp a bowl of Loloi’s soup but instead must stomp enemy after enemy in a succession of strikingly composed battles. The art is influenced equally by anime and bande desinée, and an episodic stolen-valor plot involving Ash’s old warrior cohort ends up feeling generic. It’s the food-truck thread that steals the show, and serves to humanize Ash. Fans of cozy postapocalyptic fare will want to sample this first course. (Feb.)