DC Trade Solicitations for July 2019 - Bronze Age All-Star Comics and Justice League of America, DeConnick Aquaman, Batman: Black and White Omnibus, Wonder Woman by Rucka Vol. 3, Hitman's Greatest Hits
What else? The Rebirth Suicide Squad and Curse of Brimstone and Sideways all take a bow. We've got the first volume of Kelly Sue DeConnick's new run on Aquaman, and then various reprints — Wonder Woman by Greg Rucka Vol. 3, which I know many of you are glad to see; the second paperback Orion cutdown from the omnibus; and a Hitman piecemeal collection that I can't really understand (versus an omnibus or etc.). So not a whole lot happening in these listings, DC taking a summer break of sorts ...
Let's take a look at the full list.
• Absolute Death New Edition HC
Collects Death: The High Cost of Living and Death: The Time of Your Life, plus Sandman #8 ("The Sound of Her Wings") and #20 ("Facade"), "Death and Venice" from Sandman: Endless Nights, and the never-collected stories "Winter's Tale" and "The Wheel." Introduction by Amanda Palmer.
• All-Star Comics: Only Legends Live Forever TP
Though most of this has already been collected, this is a nice nod to the Justice Society at a time when they're relatively absent from the DC Universe. This is All-Star Comics #58-74, the 1970s revival of All-Star, picking up the numbering from the 1950s when the Justice Society was sidelined and the book became All-Star Western. Issue #74 marks the book's end with the DC Implosion, but Adventure Comics #461-466 is a set of follow-up stories, plus an origin story from DC Special #29. Previously collected in two full-color Justice Society volumes in the early 2000s and a Showcase Presents black-and-white volume, it's now all in one book. Features the debut of Power Girl and Huntress and the death of the Earth-2 Batman.
• Aquaman Vol. 1: Unspoken Water TP
The first collection of the new Kelly Sue DeConnick run, issues #43-47 in paperback.
• Batman: Black and White Omnibus HC
Stories from Batman: Black and White #1-4, Batman: Black and White Vol. 2, Gotham Knights #17-49, and Batman: Black and White (2013) #1-6.
• Batman: Death of the Family Saga TP
Previously billed as an Essential Edition, I think, this is the Batman issues plus tie-ins: Batman #13-17, Batgirl #14-16, Nightwing #15-16, Batman and Robin #15-16, and pages from Batgirl #13, Nightwing #14, Red Hood and Outlaws #14-15, and Teen Titans #16.
• Batman: Kings of Fear HC
The new six-issue miniseries drawn by Kelley Jones and written by Scott Peterson.
• Batman: Nightwalker: The Graphic Novel TP
Graphic novel by Marie Lu and Christian Wildgoose, based on Lu's YA novel. I really, really enjoyed Wildgoose's art on Hope Larson's Batgirl and I'm sure he'll be excellent here.
• Batman/Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles II TP
Issues #1-7 from DC and IDW. Given all the different iterations of these characters, seems James Tynion and Freddie Williams could do this forever; surely Batman Beyond and the Justice League are overdue to get in on the action.
• The Curse of Brimstone Vol. 2: Ashes TP
Issues #7-12 and the Annual #1, the end of the Justin Jordan series.
• The Flash by Geoff Johns Book Six TP
This goes farther than the original Flash by Geoff Johns Omnibus hardcovers, being now Johns' Barry instead of his Wally. This should contain Flash: Rebirth #1-6, Blackest Night: The Flash #1-3, and Flash #1-6. Johns still has Flash #8-12 and Flashpoint, likely for a seventh and final volume.
• Harley &Amp; Ivy Meet Betty &Amp; Veronica TP
Six-issue miniseries by Paul Dini, Marc Andreyko, Laura Braga, and Adriana Melo, with covers by Amanda Conner.
• Hitman's Greatest Hits TP
Given that Hitman is already fully collected, I'd think what fans would want is an omnibus or Absolute edition, not necessarily a "greatest hits," but this is Demon Annual #2; Hitman #4-7, #13-14, and #34, and JLA/Hitman #1-2, by Garth Ennis and John McCrea.
• Justice League of America: The Last Survivors of Earth! TP
These stories have already been collected as part of the Justice League of America: The Bronze Age omnibuses, and were set to be re-released in paperback as Justice League of America: The Bronze Age Vol. 1. I've been taking a wait-and-see approach with rumors that DC is drastically changing their collections policies, as for instance that Bronze Age volume is cancelled, but is now being released as a "titled" volume, Justice League of America: The Last Survivors of Earth!. Possibly this is a backstop against low sales; if a "collections series" can't continue, at least this no longer has "Volume 1," "Volume 2," etc. on it.
This was the start of the "Satellite Era," and includes appearances by Snapper Carr and Red Tornado.
• Justice: The Deluxe Edition HC
Deluxe-size hardcover of the 12-issue miniseries by Alex Ross, Jim Krueger, and Doug Braithwaite. With bonus material; now seems as good a time as any to release a Legion of Doom tale.
• The Kitchen New Edition TP
New collection of the eight-issue 2014 Vertigo miniseries series by Ollie Masters and Ming Doyle, ahead of the new movie.
• Orion by Walter Simonson Book Two TP
Issues #12-25 of the Walt Simonson series; should be with the back-up stories and other extras. Includes a Joker: Last Laugh tie-in and a Captain Marvel/Shazam! appearance.
• Powers Vol. 6 New Edition TP
Issues #1-11 of the third iteration of Powers, by Brian Michael Bendis and Michael Avon Oeming.
• The Sandman Vol. 11: Endless Nights 30th Anniversary Edition TP
Newly branded as volume 11, this was one of Neil Gaiman's graphic novel follow-ups to the series.
• Scooby-Doo Team-Up: Doomed! TP
Supergirl, Swamp Thing, and Metamorpho. Sholly Fisch is a national treasure.
• The Secret Spiral of Swamp Kid TP
Kirk Scoggs' DC Zoom graphic novel about a kid Swamp Thing. It'd be great if this kid was not actually Swamp Thing, but rather could meet Swamp Thing in the course of his adventures.
• Sideways Vol. 2: Rifts and Revelations TP
Issues #7-13 and the annual, the final issues of the series. With guest-writing by Grant Morrison and appearances by the Seven Soldiers and other significant multiversal characters.
• Suicide Squad Vol. 8: Constriction TP
The final collection of Rob Williams' Rebirth Suicide Squad, collecting issues #41-44, #47-50, and the Annual #1. That's skipping the "Sink Atlantis" crossover with Aquaman, collected on its own.
• Swamp Thing by Nancy A. Collins Omnibus HC
First ever collection of novelist Nancy Collins run on Swamp Thing, issues #110-139, Annuals #6-7, Black Orchid #5, and a story from Vertigo Jam #1. Following this would be Grant Morrison's and Mark Millar's runs, before the iteration of the title that included the Alan Moore run would be brought to a close.
• Tales of the Batman: Gerry Conway Vol. 3 HC
Batman #349-359 and Detective Comics #515-526. This means the book includes the fourth part of the story that first introduced Killer Croc, Detective #526, which was missing from the Batman: Arkham: Killer Croc trade, plus the first pre-Crisis appearance of Jason Todd.
• Watchmen: International Edition New Edition HC
"Features a new lenticular cover," it says. Do you think there's someone out there who's such a fan that they own every single different printing of Watchmen?
• The Wild Storm Vol. 4 TP
Issues #19-24, the final trade of the series.
• Wonder Woman by Greg Rucka Vol. 3 TP
Again, your patience has paid off (and then some), because here's Wonder Woman #218-226, completing this re-collection series, plus Blackest Night: Wonder Woman #1-3.
• Wonder Woman Year One Deluxe Edition HC
A deluxe edition of just the past-set issues of Greg Rucka's Rebirth Wonder Woman run, with art by Nicola Scott in deluxe hardcover format. They should follow this with a collection of the sequentially ordered parts of the other half of the story in the same format. Issues #2, 4, 6, 8, 10, 12, and 14, plus a story from the Wonder Woman Annual #1.
• Wonder Woman: The Golden Age Vol. 3 TP
The contents of this have shifted since the catalog solicitation and you all will have to tell me what makes more sense. It used to be Sensation Comics #49-71 and Wonder Woman #16-23; now it's Sensation Comics #25-36 and Wonder Woman #8-11, and Comic Cavalcade #6-8.
What's a must-buy for you here? Anything I overlooked? Chime in and sound off in the comments.
Flash by Johns, WW by Rucka and Sideways are all I'm interested in here. I think I'll wait on The Wild Storm until it's in a different format (or just track it all down much later) - I'm not positive I own any Ellis runs in anything other than omnibus.
ReplyDeleteKind of interesting that Flash and WW are getting their Blackest Night tie-ins collected at the same time. Batman (by Tomasi) seems like the only other Blackest Night tie-in that *could* appear in a "continuous run" collection - although I think of Tomasi as "very good" and not "great," I could definitely see him getting a Batman by Tomasi type run to collect his various fill-in runs with the character between his B&R run and current 'Tec run.
Peter Tomasi and Patrick Gleason's Green Lantern Corps was *great,* and certainly an oft-overlooked gem amidst the Geoff Johns era. Green Lantern Corps by Peter Tomasi and Patrick Gleason would also be a cool omnibus; I hate to drop Gleason but then it could go into Tomasi's Emerald Warriors with Fernando Pasarin.
DeleteTomasi's GLC run was great. I think of him as one of those baseball players (say Jeff Bagwell) who's just consistently good, has a couple great seasons, then you look back and say "Oh, he's a Hall of Famer!"
DeleteI don't think of Tomasi in the same breath with Rucka, Simone, Morrison, or some of the other recent great writers, but when I think back - Super Sons was fun, GLC was fantastic, I really enjoyed Final Days of Superman (or whatever the end of the New 52 was), his Nightwing run was pretty good (and probably the last really good Nightwing run, sadly), 'Tec's just ramping up, and B&R was pretty good with some really great arcs, etc.
All-Star has been "mostly collected" before or "entirely collected" before? I have the two smaller Tpbs and this seems to duplicate them. Although the newer paper is much better I can't afford to be double dipping. Maybe if it included the Powergirl story that was seperate, then I could get rid of the PG book that also has some modern stuff I'm not fond of. Also Iirc one of the stories had a panel referring to a JLA issue, that was altered to refer to "Crisis on Multiple Earths Vol 5" which is oop and pricy. They may as well alter it again, telling you to go buy that big Crisis box set. I've done my dues as far as buying my beloved Earth-Two and can only hope they move onto unreprinted stories.
ReplyDeleteAccording to the May 2019 issue of DC PREVIEWS, this is a hardcover collection. You're right, though, it would be very nice if they included the three-issue Power Girl story from SHOWCASE.
DeleteAccording to the solicitation copy, The Flash by Geoff Johns Book Six will actually collect The Flash: Rebirth #1-6, Blackest Night: The Flash #1-3 and Final Crisis: Rogues' Revenge #1-3. That's good news, since Rogues Revenge is a relevant story where Johns and Kolins fix some of the mess Countdown to Final Crisis did to the Rogues, although the Flash is barely in it. Also, that means the next volume should be able to include The Flash Secret Files 2010 in its proper cronological place before The Flash v3 #1.
ReplyDeleteI'm happy about this change (I'm sure that if we go back to the Edelweiss post when this was first leaked, I was hoping for Rogue's Revenge to pop up). The only thing that *might* be troubling is whether or not Flashpoint is included in V7. It surely would have been when issues 7-12 were the only ones uncollected in this format.
Delete"Winter's Tale" and "The Wheel" were actually included in the 2009 edition of ABSOLUTE DEATH. That's the first time they were collected. I think DC just copied the original solicitation info.
ReplyDeleteI agree that HITMAN'S GREATEST HITS is the collection nobody asked for, but I'm not sure if an omnibus or absolute edition is possible. The IMPULSE OMNIBUS was cancelled when they discovered the files from that era (mid-90s) looked pretty bad when blown-up. If that is the problem, I'd settle for a series of thick standard size HCs on good paper.