DC Trade Solicitations for July 2014 - Forever Evil and Justice League tie-ins, Blight, Absolute Batman, Inc. Flash Omnibus, Katana, Captain Carrot
The collections schema isn't going to please everyone here, but when Forever Evil #7 is a month late and a dollar more expensive, trade-waiting looks more and more attractive ...
• Forever Evil HC
• Justice League Vol. 5: Forever Heroes HC
• Justice League of America Vol. 2: Survivors of Evil HC
The Justice League Vol. 5 collection includes issues #24-29, which is the entirety of the title's Forever Evil tie-in; issue #30 begins the team's new status quo. Ditto the Justice League of America trade collects that title's entire Forever Evil tie-in, issues #8-13, plus the book's final issue (before Justice League Unlimited), issue #14.
How many different variations of "forever" and "evil" can they use in trade names? Don't know if that's "better" or "worse" than just calling each trade Title: Forever Evil, a la "Death of the Family" ...
• Justice League Dark Vol. 4: The Rebirth of Evil TP
Justice League Dark is still on volume 4 while Justice League has moved on to volume 5 (blame some short Justice League collections and some long Justice League Dark ones), but the good news is that this collection includes both the Trinity War and the Forever Evil tie-in issues, so the Justice League and Dark collections are essentially in the same place. One piece of bad news is that this collection comes out a month before the Forever Evil collection, which might make for some out-of-order reading; the other bad news is that this book contains parts 1, 2, 6, 10, 14, and 18 of the "Forever Evil: Blight" storyline. Someone who's reading it can tell me if you can read the Dark issues on their own, but for Trinity War you couldn't.
• Constantine Vol. 2: Blight TP
Here, too, we have parts 4, 8, 12, and 16 of "Forever Evil: Blight"; up in the air whether this is going to be readable or not.
• Absolute Batman, Incorporated HC
Collects the entire Batman, Incorporated saga, including the first and second series, Leviathan Rises, and the finale special. Someone asked a good question on Dan DiDio's Facebook page the other day that given that we have an Absolute Batman & Robin and an Absolute Batman, Inc., isn't the first half of the story also due for an Absolute? At least Batman and Son and Batman RIP, right?
Hopefully there will be some scans of the new Chris Burnham art online, with comparison shots of the original pages. I'm curious.
• DC Comics Presents: Batman Adventures #1
Collected Batman Adventures #2 and #27, Batman: Gotham Adventures #2 and #4, and a story from Adventures in the DC Universe #3. These are, respectively, a Catwoman story, one where Batman investigates his doppelganger, a Two-Face story, another Catwoman story, and a Poison Ivy story. The solicits says Joker is in there, too (but you have to provide your own Mark Hamill voice); your guess is as good as mine.
• Flash Omnibus Vol. 1 HC
For the Flash fans out there, this collects Showcase #4 and #8 and Flash #105-132 (when the new Flash series took up the numbering from the Golden Age comic), from the 1950s-1960s. A collection of the Mark Waid era would be more my "speed," but to each their own.
• Green Lantern: New Guardians Vol. 4: Gods and Monsters TP
Admittedly I've looked away from DC's Green Lantern titles after Geoff Johns's run ended; matter of fact, I read all the parts of "Rise of the Third Army," but I had to remind myself just now whether I read all of "Wrath of the First Lantern" or just the Green Lantern parts, and the answer is just the Green Lantern parts. Probably in a couple months you'll see a bunch of Green Lantern title reviews here as I catch up and then catch up again with the new teams. This is the first post-"Wrath" Green Lantern: New Guardians trade, issues #21-27, but no rest for the weary because issue #24 here is part of the "Lights Out" crossover, and also included is the finale of that crossover, the Green Lantern Annual #2.
• Katana Vol. 1: Soultaker TP
Resolicted finally is the Katana: Soultaker collection, now including issues #1-10 (instead of #1-6) and the Justice League Dark: Creeper Villains Month issue. I'm up for this one mainly because of the ties to Jeff Lemire's Green Arrow series.
• Showcase Presents: Captain Carrot and His Amazing Zoo Crew TP
Captain Carrot really isn't my thing, but as long as they were printing a big collection, it's probably a shame the newest miniseries wasn't in here, too. Think a Captain Carrot Omnibus would sell?
If I'm recalling right, this is the last of the once-solicited-and-cancelled Showcase Presents to finally make it out, aside from Secret Society of Super-Villains that got a color printing, and Suicide Squad. Y'know, I'm still optimistic about Suicide Squad, what with the recent collections of John Ostrander's Martian Manhunter and Spectre. Maybe next season?
• Superman/Wonder Woman Vol. 1: Power Couple HC
Even as I have mixed feelings about the Superman/Wonder Woman relationship -- when it ends, it's going to end badly, and I fear that bad ending won't be written to reflect well on either character -- I'm eager for this book if only to see how it brings together the rather disparate continuity from the Superman, Wonder Woman, and Justice League titles together.
I'm down for the "evil" in July -- what's on your pick list?
Ahh, once again my timing is terrible. Last year I bought (and read) the Flash Chronicles volumes 1-4. I even overpaid for volume 1 I think which was out of print. Now the omnibus is coming out and it collects all that plus what may have comprised a volume 5.
ReplyDeleteDo you think the Chronicles series will ever continue for The Flash? Should I wait, or should I just sell those and grab the Omnibus? I was enjoying the Flash stories in the Chronicles more than I have some other older stuff I've read.
Also highly debating with myself about getting that Batman Inc Absolute. I am a big fan of the Morrison run and feel a bit too tempted, even though I'm not sure what it will have in terms of extras. If it has any words from Morrison I think I may definitely buy it. The extras in the Absolute Batman & Robin are really great.
i think a recent JLA Chronicles was canceled before making way for the recent JLA Omnibus.
DeleteAs "that guy who always asks about the Archives," I would rather see more of those volumes come out, as it seems the Silver Age stuff (which I love) is reprinted to death, but we're never getting to the Bronze Era stuff because of the format changes and the starting all over.
I think the SA Flash stories were some of the best of the era. Definitely better than JLA or Legion stories in Adventure.
@Joseph, you would define Bronze Era as stuff like the early New Teen Titans? Would love to see more of that collected, too. That's why the black and white Showcase Presents bugs me; I'd like to see color collections of things like Batman and the Outsiders, plus more Infinity Inc. collections, etc.
DeleteStrictly for my own purposes, I count the Bronze era as ending with COIE, because of the reboots to Superman and Wonder Woman that happened afterwards. So, the early NTT material would qualify, IMO.
DeleteI'd love to see all of the material reprinted from the Showcase volumes in color. The All-Star Squadron run is really a great series of comics, with fantastic art. Ditto the Amethyst collection, BATO, and even the SA material like Sea Devils (Russ Heath art) and the mystery titles, many of which had art by guys like Toth, Wrightson, etc.
The fact that DC didn't release the second Infinity, Inc volume makes me wonder if the market is just too small for some of these titles. The truth, however, is that these were, for the most part, very good comics, and new readers are really missing out.
On that note, though, I'm not sure how the rather awful SSOSV got two volumes. Nice to see it in print, but much of the material was pretty substandard.
SSOSV? BATO? I am very interested in your thoughts about this stuff but may be preemptively assuming these are universally known acronyms...? What are these?
DeleteAnyway, I have been slowly, slowly, slowly making it through DC stuff prior to Crisis on Infinite Earths. Stuff from the 40s, but mostly a lot of 70s and early 80s. When I finally cross that border to post Crisis, I will be so relieved.
Comics shorthand! :) That's Secret Society of Super-Villains and Batman and the Outsiders; also we referenced New Teen Titans above. All "Bronze Age" (pre-Crisis on Infinite Earths) series we might like to see reprinted in one format or another.
DeleteI would totally LOVE to see more Bronze Age stuff collected... more Marv/GP Titans, Legion (even the 5-year after series) and yep, even classic Barr/Aparo BATO.... and hell, they STARTED Infinity Inc. and then chicken-shitted out of it.... DC sucks at collecting anything that isn't Batsy or Super-related.....
DeleteHello CE
ReplyDeleteSince is my first comment here I want to thank you, I owe a big part of my collection to your reviews.
I also read single issues so my comments are:
- Superman / wonder womanis much better than it looks.For me is worth having it in paperback. Nice caracter work,pretty art, not as good as azzarello's wonder woman, much better than lobdell's superman IMO.
- Blight for me is unreadable in any form...While I respect all the creators involved, It was so bloated and boring that made me drop both JLD and Constantine. Normally I wold say that it should be collected in 2 volumes with the chapter in the right order, but since it was moving so slow in circles,it will probably be even better collected separately. If you keep expectations low
You ll have the story separated by caracter,an you can appreciate better each caracter viewpoint and evolution.
Sorry for my english,hope the comment is readable..
Appreciate your comment and thanks for supporting the blog. I appreciate the good word about the Superman/Wonder Woman series; I am curious about this one.
DeleteMarvel: http://www.comicbookresources.com/?page=article&id=52338
ReplyDelete*Marvel Masterworks: Ms. Marvel Vol. 1 HC—Much of Kelly Sue DeConnick’s Captain Marvel can be traced directly back to Carol Danvers’ first title, which also features some of Chris Claremont’s early work. This will hopefully lead the way to trades of the material.
*All-New Invaders Vol. 1: Gods and Monsters TPB—I’ve been eagerly awaiting this series and it’s going to trade form faster than I would have thought. It seems like Robinson isn’t setting this up as “Marvel’s JSA” but instead going in a new, cosmic direction.
*Loki Agent of Asgard: Trust Me TPB—Otherwise known as “Tom Hiddleston, The Comic”. Okay, that’s unfair; Loki was going to get aged back up whether his cinematic portrayal was a hit or not, and the creators sound like they have a good plan on what to do with him.
*The Superior Foes of Spider-Man Vol. 2 TPB—While Thunderbolts has gone off on its own tangent, this book channels the Busiek and Parker eras of the title (and even share some of the same characters). Hopefully these revived villains will have a place in the post-Superior Spider-Man era.
*Captain America Epic Collection: Society of Serpents TPB—More of Gruenwald’s Cap run in trade form! This includes the era when he was dating Diamondback of the Serpent Society and, unfortunately, some Secret Wars II crossovers.
Dark Horse: http://www.comicbookresources.com/?page=article&id=52221
*Leaving Megalopolis HC—Gail Simone and Jim Calafiore? Sold. The concept also sounds neat, with a zombie/rage virus twist applied to superheroes.
*The Complete Silencers TP—I’m looking into this on the strength of Fred Van Lente as a writer. It does sound a bit like The Losers… but I liked that book too.
Didn't realize Leaving Megalopolis had been picked up by a publisher. Will definitely try to pick that up at some point.
DeleteIDW: http://www.comicbookresources.com/?page=article&id=52331
ReplyDelete*Ragnarok #1—Not a trade, but it’s Walter Simonson writing Thor. If you don’t support this book, you’re actively contributing to the decline of comics… okay, maybe it’s not that dramatic, but even if you’re a wait-for-trader, get this, you won’t be sorry.
*GI Joe Vol. 3: Siren’s Song—IDW’s attempt to replicate the success of MTMTE and RID didn’t really work out as Joe fans aren’t as accepting of a “silly” book as Transformers fans were. This book sadly has nothing to do with an animated series episode involving the actual Sirens.
*Marvel Covers: Artists’ Edition HC—I’m really keen to see which covers they picked. I’m a little disappointed to see Simonson and John Byrne not directly listed, but they’re probably covered under “and more”.
*Ripley’s Believe It or Not HC—Okay, this is really cool. I’ve never really seen the cartoons that launched Robert Ripley into a massive oddity-cataloguing franchise. On the other hand, I get the feeling that some of them won’t exactly be racially sensitive…
Image: http://www.comicbookresources.com/?page=article&id=52314
*Bad Dog Vol. 1 TPB—The solicits leaves a lot vague, but it sounds like a riff on From Dusk Till Dawn with werewolves. The main draw for me is Joe Kelly.
*Elephantmen Mammoth Vol. 1 TPB—It doesn’t say if this in shrunken-down form like the Dark Horse and IDW omnibuses. In either case, while I own the first trade, I’d be willing to double-dip if these are going to go in “official” order.
Dynamite: http://www.comicvine.com/articles/dynamite-entertainment-july-2014-covers-and-solicitations/1100-148583/
*There are no trades listed for July, but I do like how they’re developing their own Valiant-style relaunch of the Gold Key properties. Even the cover designs are similar! It would be cool to have the companies do a crossover, especially since the current management teams are much smarter than the ones behind Deathmate.
Valiant: http://www.newsarama.com/20910-valiant-entertainment-july-2014-solicitations.html
*Unity Vol. 2: Trapped By Webnet TPB—I wasn’t sure Valiant’s team book could really work past the first arc, but they’re using this one to introduce Ninjak’s old villains in a creepy hive mind story that’s currently ongoing. I’m not sure why they’re reprinting that X-O Manowar issue; pretty much everyone reading Unity already has the second trade.
I've been on a Valiant binge lately, so I'll probably pick up Vol. 1 & 2 of Unity (which I've heard is good-Matt Kindt, not bad Matt Kindt) at some point.
DeleteI'm also thinking about reading Harbinger. Doug, have you read it and, if so, would you recommend it?
Lyta's got a series? Is that because of her appearances on Arrow? :-)
DeleteHarbinger's appearing on Arrow?! If they're willing to go into territory that obscure, maybe Stargirl and Atom Smasher appearing on the show isn't out of the question after all...
DeleteAs for Valiant's Harbinger, I haven't read it yet. Next on my backtracking list is Bloodshot since I really enjoyed the crossover with A&A and he'll be joining Unity. I have heard that Harbinger is a bit of a hard sell since the protagonist is unlikable, but also that it improves as it goes on. Considering how cheap the trades are, it's probably worth a look.
In another good example of Arrow mixing and mashing well, Lyta, codename Harbinger, is an agent of ARGUS with ties to John Diggle. But Geoff Johns got Vibe on there, so maybe Stargirl isn't out of the question ...
DeleteI will get Forever Evil, Justice league Dark v4, JLA v2, not sure about Constantine v2. After reading some issues of each of the Lantern titles post Geoff Johns I want nothing to do w/ them! Definitely going to get All New Invaders, Loki: Agent of Asgard & more Mark Gruenwald Captain America! Also Leaving Megalopolis, yeah!
ReplyDeleteAnd in more exciting news, this just became available:
ReplyDelete1.- Fantastic Four by Jonathan Hickman Omnibus Volume 2
2.- Captain America: The Trial of Captain America Omnibus (AKA: Captain America by Ed Brubaker Omnibus Vo. 4)
3.- Young Avengers by Kieron Gillen & Jamie McKelvie Omnibus