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New Old Books: Kingdom Come and Hellblazer

Posted on May 20, 2016 by Walt

Considering I just placed the order on Friday, receiving books on Tuesday is excellent service from InStockTrades! I’ve been keeping up with the new Hellblazer editions–here we have vol. 13–which catches the series up to about where I first came into the series back in 2001 with Azarello‘s run…and off the top of my head, I believe this now gives me a complete run of the entire 300-issue Hellblazer series in paperback volumes! (From here, it’s just a matter of swapping out the old editions for the new on a rolling basis, I think!)

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While I don’t like the cover nearly as much as I liked the image on the original paperback, that had much more of the “feel” of the story…this seems to be what DC is sticking with for now, taking the cover they’ve used for roughly 8 years over the one they used for about a decade or so…or over one of the original covers or even a celebratory new cover image.

That said, I quite like the 20th Anniversary Deluxe Edition of Kingdom Come, and for a very rare thing, part of that is the extras the book contains.

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I don’t care much for sketch material or pencils-only stuff–I’m just not a “primarily-for-the-art” kinda guy when it comes to comics. And I prefer to write about, talk about comics more than any true interest in actually writing comics, so even seeing script pages doesn’t tend to do much for me (though I tend to prefer those more). But there’s plenty of text with the sketches and whatnot, and lots of images reproduced in full color, some even full-page, and this is a volume, a story, a creative team, a singular truly special isolated thing that (to me) actually deserves “extras” and such be thrown in.

But the quality of the extras, their relevance and insight, the smile I found myself with, grinning as I flipped through them–some of the pages bringing back memories, others a bit of wonder, some just pleasant, collected excitement seeing stuff I haven’t seen in years or am simply curious about and look forward to reading in-depth. And this is without even getting to the core of the book, the story itself, to get to re-read in this format.

I have the original single issues; the original paperback collection, the 2008 paperback with this new green cover, as well as the hardback original edition of the novelization (bought from a local comic shop at initial release), and even bought the mass-market paperback edition of that for a friend shortly into college. I do not have the Absolute Edition and don’t truly expect I ever will unless it’s reprinted and the timing and finances are just right. But for this not being the Absolute Edition, I really dig this one.

Thanks to the online order, but including shipping, I think I functionally paid about $22 for this, which at the price of a mere 5 single Marvel comics and some shipping, I find to be an extremely reasonable price and very much worthwhile for this.

I also find myself feeling a bit old, that I now own a 20th-Anniversary edition of something I remember buying the original first issue of, new, when it first came out. Time flies…

Filed under: 2016 Non-Review posts, 2016 posts, NON-REVIEW CONTENT, QUASI-REVIEW CONTENT | Tagged: , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment »

The Weekly Haul – Week of May 18, 2016

Posted on May 19, 2016 by Walt

For being a really small week with only one pull-list book and going in planning on one off-the-shelf book…this turned into a huge week of new-to-me comics!

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Been following–and quite enjoying–the Final Days of Superman story, if only for the fact of it being a multi-part story spanning four titles with a new chapter coming out each week, wherein I’m following the story itself and not so concerned about what title any given chapter falls in. Then there’s also Spawn, added to my pulls to support the high-numbering that’s been maintained through an age of renumbering/reboots/etc, as well as holding to the $2.99 price point amidst a sea of $3.99+ books. And I have yet to talk myself out of Power Man and Iron Fist, which I’ve thus far been enjoying overall.

And I’m definitely a fan of some of the Wizard specials…the Zero Hour book wound up costing me a whopping 20 cents this week!

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For $1 each–or all four of these for the price of a single Marvel–snagged these classic “digest” editions. No real rhyme or reason, just that they were there, lotta Batman on the cover, and they’re those classic digest editions!

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Getting into the bargain bins–freshly stocked, and I thought 25-cents-each (but turned out for the shop’s 29th-Anniversary-Sale, discounted to 20-cents-each), got a couple “shiny” dupes for the heckuvit. Then there’s The Longbow Hunters…I thought I was grabbing “all 3” issues but got home and realized that in my haste to delve into the fresh treasures of the expanded bargain bins, I only wound up with two distinct issues and a dupe-on-the-spot. Win some, lose some, I guess!

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First seven issues of The Power of Shazam!–dupes, all, but I recall several of my prior editions having some sticky residue or such, so worst-case, I have some dupes to choose between when I get to the sorting phase with my collection and that initial-pass to weed out dupes.

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Several one-off gems: a silver edition of The Strangers #1 as well as the mail-away The Solution #0. “Limited,” “hot” books around 1993/1994…25 cents here today! I’m kinda kicking myself for not snagging the bunch, but there were a number of The Brave and the Bold issues. My personal focus being Superman, though, I restrained myself from picking more up just because they were there. They weren’t in great condition, but for the novelty, I grabbed #150…thicker anniversary issue, and something just seemed really familiar to me–triggering nostalgia–with the cover. And then, even though it’s a bit wrinkly–probably water-damaged–DC Comics Presents #85, the “infamous” Swamp Thing issue I’ve been wanting to read or re-read or otherwise have…but couldn’t remember if another copy is truly hiding amidst my longboxes or not. For 25 cents (or as it turned out, 20 cents) absolutely a great purchase.

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Quasi-spoiling the find, I was unable to locate the fourth/final issue, but along with Underworld Unleashed #s 1-3, scored three special tie-in issues that I don’t think I’d ever consciously known existed…or sure didn’t remember, anyway.

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And then totally throwing my budget for the week out the window, nearly 50 issues of Wonder Woman. #s 89-136, and Annual #4. I’m truly curious now to “discover” what I actually own of this series…I have a bunch of early issues from a lot Dad bought for me years ago, and think I recall getting another run of issues somewhere in the 60-80 range, now this. Definitely a good way toward having the entire run, and at the very least, this purchase in itself gives me a four-year run of the title!

All in all…bought 75 or so comics, when I went in planning on 2. SOMEDAY I’ll get around to reading everything…

Filed under: 2016 Non-Review posts, 2016 posts, NON-REVIEW CONTENT, The Weekly Haul | Tagged: , , , , , , , | Leave a comment »

Blast From the (TMNT) Past: Krang’s Android Body

Posted on May 18, 2016 by Walt

While I included in a post back in September 2014 about Krang and the Kraang, I didn’t focus much on Krang’s Android Body there in any singular fashion, and what I was able to focus on was the toy itself.

Little did I realize that a couple years later, I would come across the original box it came in while cleaning out the attic at my parents’ house!

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Unfortunately, the pink brain-part–Krang himself, the character, is a “new” 2014 edition, part of the Classic Collection series of re-issued TMNT figures. But he still fits, still “completes” the otherwise genuinely-vintage piece!

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This is one of the few “accessories” or “vehicles” that I felt was truly worthwhile and fitting…and given what I recall of my obsession with the figures themselves (to the exclusion of vehicles/etc), that’s definitely saying something. And particularly with the new live-action/CGI film about to hit, it’s kinda fitting to find this “original” given how much “more” recognizable this piece becomes.

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Here’s the front of the box…”typical” from the line, and its time, with exaggerated art, ridiculous interpretations of the turtles, and just a small image of the actual product (since this was not a window-box). While this body was an “accessory” piece, it did have the “bonus” of the pink brain part of the figure (minus the walking contraption of the “standard figure” release) to make for a fully complete toy in and of itself.

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Not much new from the top you don’t get from the front, but it certainly helped cover the bases, making sure that whatever part of the box you looked at, you certainly know what it is!

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Same for the side–and they certainly don’t want you to miss that it included Krang himself, rather than you having to purchase the body and then go buy a separate additional figure just to play with it.

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Given this “figure”‘s size, the back sticks with that motif rather than showing off a bunch of other smaller figures (or even vehicles). More on that below…

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A closer look at the back, and the amazing alliteration that totally fits my present-day sensibility and is something I appreciate far more at present than I ever did as a kid!

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Interesting copy-text to “sell” one on the piece…

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And it points out various “features” of the thing, only about half of which I found important or relevant at the time back when I first got this, and the sentiments hold true in 2016.

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I’d mostly forgotten about them, but along with the “regular” figures and vehicles, Playmates had at one point had a line of $20 figures that stood about a foot tall–these oversized giant editions of the basic figures. $20 for one figure?!? What ridiculous nonsense! (Nowadays with $14 3.75″ figures, these would probably be $60+ apiece!)

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Then there were those Pizza Point things you could clip and save. I don’t think I ever learned what/where/how one could “redeem” them, or if I did, I don’t recall deeming anything “worthwhile” enough to be bothered to do anything about it. So hey, I still have at least 4 of the points available to me. Anything good still available?

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The box even has the remnants of the original price sticker, and confirming that I got this from Hills (and not Children’s Palace or Toys R Us or Kmart) (This was pre-Walmart/pre-Target!) (At least for me)

What an expensive thing then, and what a bargain that price would be, now, for such a figure/accessory of this significance and such.

And what novelty to find this original box after all these years, something that it never would’ve occurred to me that I’d saved for any reason! Truly a blast from the past, and a weird sort of “link” to the past, a tangible piece of ephemera in a world of stark contrasts these days–you either find something “mint in box” for HUNDREDS of dollars, or something “loose” for mixed pricing. And here I have originals of the opened box and the loose figure(s).

Filed under: 2016 Non-Review posts, 2016 posts, NON-REVIEW CONTENT, The Toy Chronicles | Tagged: , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment »

Thoughts on Digital Sales…Particularly Pricing

Posted on May 16, 2016 by Walt

I came across an article on Bleeding Cool–The Digital Drop – Print Sales are Up eBook Sales Are Down–and it made me think on several points.

Number one: It’s Bleeding Cool, which while I frequent the sight for what can be gleaned, I also take with a grain of salt and a definite recognition of perpetration of click-bait headlines and “articles” and such.

Number two: Publishers don’t actually disclose numbers for there to be any concrete thing. And when small percentages are cited, it’s not like there’s been some catastrophic, cataclysmic shift all at once or anything.

Number three: I am not personally surprised in the slightest if “digital sales” (“sales” as in “transactions,” not as in “discounts”) are down on comics. The article seemed to indicate that this is more a books-in-general thing (or that’s how I took it) more than comics-specifically.

But sticking just to comics: at this point, I would think that the “novelty” of “digital comics” has worn off. We’ve had nearly 5 years (HALF of an entire DECADE) of “day and date” from DC (I believe that begin with the launch of the New 52). I don’t remember if Marvel beat them to the punch (that factor is irrelevant here). Being able to buy this week’s newest comics digitally simultaneous with being able to go out to a local shop and buy the print edition is no longer a new thing–it just IS. And I would guess that it now being such a common/accepted/routine kinda thing might mean that those who may have initially been excited no longer find excitement in it, and aren’t going to be chomping at the bit to get that newest issue at 6am digitally that they could get in print a few hours later.

Along with the newness having worn off, I’d imagine that pricing has set in. Since it’s not a new/novel thing now, paying the “premium” to have ’em right away probably is no longer a “thing.” That “premium” being the fact that buying digitally has no print component, and yet for those initial sales, one is paying the same price for digital-only that one would pay for a print edition.

With DC that’s not so much an issue at this point–I believe they stopped doing the bagged $1-more-expensive-but-comes-with-a-digital-code editions at least a year ago. But for Marvel stuff, I will flat-out refuse to buy anything digital at $3.99 because for that same $3.99 I can buy the print edition, peel the little sticker and redeem the code for the “free” digital edition. Even if I intend to READ the thing digitally, I’ll buy the print edition for the code–that way I can read digitally if I prefer, but still have the tangible print edition to help “justify” that $3.99.

When you’re dealing with established comic fans who buy print editions anyway…I would think it’s possible that any novelty or “experimentation” with the digital format may have trailed off for any of a number of reasons.

Then there’s me, personally: I have not bought any digital comics in over two years now, thanks to Comixology and their ill-handled Amazon transition to not allowing in-app purchases on Apple devices. While I’m sure I’m in an extreme minority, it would not surprise me if the format has simply lost favor with people the same as any sort of comics format or publisher.

To the side of that: any initial “rush” to the format, for people to buy a bunch of “old” comics now available digitally (again speaking for myself, there was some great satisfaction several years ago at finally being able to “own” Batman: A Death in the Family in single issues, as well as several other “key” issues). Once long-time collectors/buyers/readers have “acquired” access to those issues and whatever others, they don’t’ need to re-buy them; the issues are just “there.” (Whereas with print editions, one could always continue buying additional copies, with OR without even realizing they’re buying duplicate copies).

It also would not surprise me if some of those pulled “into” comics via digital purchasing would make the “jump” to print…whatever the motivations behind it.

While I would not be “surprised” to see most print comics go away–I do believe the ridiculous and sometimes seemingly unpredictable pricing schemes are entirely unsustainable long-term–I cannot see “print” totally giving way to digital–comics OR books.

On the books side–while I might in some cases prefer the ebook (especially to read on the tablet where it can be propped and I don’t have to break the book’s spine or get fancy attempting to force it to stay open) there are times that I’m far more likely to want the print edition, whether it’s more expensive or not–because a $10-$15 “paper” book getting damaged/lost is far, far preferable to a much more expensive tablet!

I tried going “digital only” for books a couple years back and yet have since found myself “back to” buying hardbacks in print–for only a few dollars more than the digital price.

Which is all a relatively stream-of-conscious way of saying “I’m not surprised” even while I don’t much care. I don’t specifically want to see one format or the other fail; but once you get past the shiny/new/trendy/fad stuff, things will tend to stand on their own or not.

Filed under: 2016 Non-Review posts, 2016 posts, NON-REVIEW CONTENT | Tagged: , , , , , , | Leave a comment »

Half-Price Books Haul May 13, 2016

Posted on May 13, 2016 by Walt

It’s been at least a couple weeks since I’d been to the one Half-Price Books a bit further away, but since I was functionally going right past, stopped off tonight to see if they had anything new/good for a great price…got more than I’d intended!

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The primary treasure of tonight is the Giant-Size X-Men hardcover. $40 cover price..got it for $16. I figured part of the thing being marked a bit more than half off was that it’s not shrink-wrapped, and being sold to HPB, surely the original owner must’ve redeemed the digital copy. But, for kicks ‘n giggles, once in for the night, I logged into my Marvel account to try the code…and it worked! So…not a bad price at all!

And having just last weekend bought Criminal vol. 1 (Image edition), spotting vol. 2 for half price was a no-brainer: why pass on it tonight when within a week or so I’m just gonna be chomping at the bit to acquire it anyway?

Then, in the clearance section, found nice, clean, un-battered/etc copies of Grisham‘s The Testament and Brown‘s Inferno in hardback…both books for the price of a single Marvel comic? Very much worthwhile!

The drawback to the experience for the night is that this particular HPB recently moved their graphic novels to a more closed-in aisle space closer to the front registers. I had been standing there less than 30 seconds when someone came up edging me in, then stepped to another aisle for maybe 10 seconds, then back in…then someone was called to the buy counter for their offer and he left, so I figured it was just someone trying to look "real quick"…but less than 30 seconds after that he was back again crowding up against me, and two more people crammed into the aisle…so I cut my browsing short to get outta there.

So much for personal space and/or patience. If I was trying to flip through a bunch of books, or stand there (or sit on the floor against the shelves to read cover to cover right there) I would hope people wouldn’t stand for my crap. But to crowd into my personal space, when I wasn’t even allowed 3 minutes to quickly-ish scan spines on the shelves, not even an "excuse me" or "hey, Man, mind if I squeeze in here?" or such… it’s exactly the sort of thing that keeps HPB from being an entirely positive experience, and diminishes my "faith" in "humanity." (Considering I would have hung back, once I made sure someone knew I was there (as in "don’t stand there and read a book cover to cover) but allowed them time to look, and probably have wandered to a nearby aisle to allow them some time/space.

Such is life, I guess…

Filed under: 2016 Non-Review posts, 2016 posts, NON-REVIEW CONTENT, The Weekly Haul | Tagged: , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment »

The Weekly Haul – Week of May 11th Bargain-Stuff

Posted on May 12, 2016 by Walt

I managed to miss the pull-list stuff this week–store owner was busy with another customer, I forgot to ask, and I had a mix of stuff, so taking responsibility for myself…going back to the comic shop Friday to fix my error. Also stopped at the other local-ish shop to check on Captain America: Fighting Chance TPBs…alas, only had one, so zero temptation to splurge. Did get a handful of things from the quarter bins there. Between both shops, spent a whopping $4.50 on 18 25-cent books (and several extra Free Comic Book Day ‘free’ issues)!

(I say ‘free’ because the shops still have to purchase them…they’re just then expected to turn around and not charge customers for ’em. I know that, and appreciate that, so don’t truly consider them actually free.)

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Scored the first couple issues of ElfQuest…neat little find. A Hawkman special that I may already have but don’t consciously remember. A “UPC variant” of HardCase #1 for the heckuvit. A couple issues of a Milestone series I don’t think I knew existed (or had forgotten, anyway). The first issue of Starlin‘s Dreadstar ‘cuz hey…Dreadstar. And because I know I’d lost my original sometime through the years, I continue to–on occasions like this that I come across it–snag the initial publication that helped lead to the Earth X mega-saga.

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Several general-ish Marvel issues–the X-Men issue where we found out who Onslaught really is; a Marvel Comics Presents issue with the Falcon on the cover (‘cuz hey, I love the Anthony Mackie‘s MCU character!), and a couple issues–including the first–of Nomad (‘cuz hey…”Bucky”!) Snagged the first issue of MASK for quasi-nostalgic feelings; ditto the American Flagg! Special.

And then the Ash issue I actually opened up to check, and found the words “Vol 1. No. 1, November, 1994″…so I believe this is the first Event Comics issue…by Quesada and Palmiotti, several years before they were brought on with Marvel for the Marvel Knights project. As I recall, a relatively “hot” issue 20-ish years ago. 25-cents for me, now.

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Also grabbed a couple of shiny duplicates in Turok and Thunder Strike #1s, as well as X #25. And then the several Free Comic Book Day issues from the FCBD leftovers.

All of these for “only” $4.50…a far superior value to most contemporary single-issues, and more interesting and such to me than pretty much anything that Marvel is putting out right now for $3.99 apiece!

Still, I did buy several DCs, with a couple other comics to pick up Friday that keep the “bargain books” very firmly a small minority of my weekly purchase.

All the more with planning to give the first few weeks of Rebirth a shot, if only to show “support” for the $2.99 price-point.

Filed under: 2016 Non-Review posts, 2016 posts, NON-REVIEW CONTENT, The Weekly Haul | Tagged: , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments »

Deadpool on DVD (and Blu-Ray, and Digital, and postcards…)

Posted on May 11, 2016 by Walt

So, Deadpool hit home media this week.

No, I do not count the “early” release digital-only from a few weeks back.

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And after looking online to see if there were any fun exclusives, I went with Target. They have bonus postcards…and this edition was “on sale” to match the “regular get it at whatever retailer with no exclusives” edition’s pricing.

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Plenty of extras, too, so I didn’t even bother to consider/look at the DVD-only edition (especially for the First Week On Sale pricing being so similar!).

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As far as I can tell, outside of the “bonus” postcards, the only difference in Target‘s edition is the red plastic case instead of blue. And I’m totally ok with that!

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The postcards included seem genuine/usable…and I’m actually half considering putting some to use.

…Or they might just stay in the case and be forgotten about. But since I paid the same for this ad I would have for one without ’em…not a big deal either way.

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Still…very glad for the “combo edition” that certain publishers seem wholly opposed to anymore…especially for the price, if not principle.

Next step is actually sitting down and (re)watching the film…and certainly the extras!

Filed under: 2016 Non-Review posts, 2016 posts, NON-REVIEW CONTENT | Tagged: , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment »

Captain America Hot Wheels, Books on the Shelf, and Priest’s Black Panther

Posted on May 10, 2016 by Walt

I’m not a cars guy. Not “into” them, I don’t care about horsepower, the type of engine, special tires, speed, etc. They’re utilitarian, mine gets me from point A to point B (mostly, work) and the fanciest thing is that I have a license plate with the Superman S-shield printed right on it.

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So last Friday when I was wandering through a Walmart half hoping to find the Pop! Vinyl Black Panther (which they apparently did not stock or were sold out of) I did happen across several bins of Hot Wheels cars…and the Captain America #100 and Captain America & Bucky ones caught my attention.

I noticed they were numbered, indicating there were 8 cars total in the “set.” Me being me, the OCD kicked in and I “had to” see firstly if they had all 8 to begin with, secondly what they all looked like, and thirdly after completing a set in my cart, for the price, I failed to talk myself out of them. In an age where Target charges $13+ for a 3.75″ figure in minimal packaging and $20.59 for 6″ figures I remember getting for $5.99-$7.99 12 years ago…I was enthralled at the notion of buying a full set of 8 toys for less than $1 apiece (sure, 3 cents under, but still!).

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Also over the weekend I was able to get the new editions of the Death of Superman volumes shelved, officially “replacing” the original editions in the “main” shelf. As original editions and several of my earliest collected volumes from when such things were overall quite rare to exist, they’ll always have a place in my collection.

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And where I’ve been meaning to since last summer when I first checked out the Marvel Unlimited thing, I finally dove into Priest‘s Black Panther run again, reading the first 9 issues over the weekend (and more since saving the cover images, and by the time this post goes live, I’ll be even further into the run).

For ME, Priest‘s Black Panther is THE definitive take on the character, and the first 50 or so issues are the definitive run and a definite favorite piece of my entire collection of single issues, if only for the nostalgia of the covers. It’s rather scary to realize that it’s been nearly 18 years since this run originally began, and it ended about 13 years ago!

captain_america_hot_wheels_bStill…it’s great to have a film (Captain America: Civil War) inspire me to want to read something like this, spurring me into action…rather than leave me cold on something and end any particular enthusiasm toward “related material” the way a certain other film this year did.

While I really highly enjoyed the film and plan to see it again while it’s in theaters (something even Avengers: Age of Ultron failed to do last year), I do not know if I’ll get around to covering it here the way I did the aforementioned “certain other film this year.”

Seeing the new Cap film was a fun experience, the film itself was very good, and I really appreciated the way it ended with the story progressed, pieces set for Events Still To Come and yet it provided a sort of resolution that left me more satisfied than not with things.

And a re-increased interest in Captain America. Even while it also made me feel rather old, having realized that Chris Evans, Scarlet Johansson, and Elizabeth Olsen are all younger than me (to say nothing of a handful of other key Marvel Cinematic Universe actor/actresses.

Filed under: 2016 Non-Review posts, 2016 posts, NON-REVIEW CONTENT | Tagged: , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment »

Free Comic Book Day Haul 2016

Posted on May 9, 2016 by Walt

Free Comic Book Day is no fun alone.

Suffice it to say, I went to one shop that was nearby for the weekend, picked several issues, bought a collected volume I’ve been intending to purchase for a couple weeks now, and got out.

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Free Comic Book Day’s good for when schedules work with friends–a group thing, a social thing.

Of the books, really the only one I “went in looking for,” or was particularly aware of ahead of time, was the ROM #0 issue. But I’d actually already “accounted for” that so it was not going to be a problem.

It just seemed a shame to NOT go out for FCBD, as I don’t think I’ve actually missed any of ’em yet.

Filed under: 2016 Non-Review posts, 2016 posts, NON-REVIEW CONTENT, The Weekly Haul | Tagged: , , , , , , , | Leave a comment »

New Death of Superman Editions

Posted on May 6, 2016 by Walt

death_of_superman_new_editions_03Back in late 1992, possibly early 1993–VERY shortly after Superman #75 was published–a collected volume was rushed out, collecting the six Superman issues and the Justice League issue that made up the Doomsday! (now simply The Death of Superman) arc.

I have always considered it something that was rushed because on the back where they gave a cover gallery, several of the issues were obviously-marked (Roman Numerals) later printings…whoever had been tasked with designing the back cover did not even themselves have access (or care) to all first-print editions (and I say this assuming there were no digital images floating around back then to simply access and use).

And over 1993 we then got the Funeral for a Friend story collected as World Without a Superman, and then eventually a massive (even by contemporary standards!) The Return of Superman (my copy, bought at the time, was a whopping $14.95 or so..!).

Over the years, those volumes have remained in-print…with the only major difference that I have noticed being that the Death of Superman volume eventually was switched to the iconic Superman #75 cover image of the tattered cape amidst the wreckage of Doomsday’s rampage.

The volumes originated in a time where any such collected volume was a real rarity/novelty, and it was only the particularly “special” or truly “sold-out” major storylines that would get collected into a single-volume edition…and each was largely its own thing, existing as an isolated item. “Simple” as the spines were back then, my original editions, at least, look ok together, but do not match many “surrounding” volumes on the bookshelves…and other than “knowing” the three volumes belong together, there’s no real indicator of them, nor the order to read them in. I take such knowledge totally for granted, but especially in this day and age of constant deaths and resurrections and timey-wimey stuff and multiverses and pre-Flashpoints and New 52s…’nuff said.

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We now get five volumes–each more manageable than the Death and Return of Superman Omnibus, and admittedly higher prices…but also more content in the volumes–for example, the Death of Superman volume now contains the Newstime magazine that was published during all this; the Funeral for a Friend volume has the Legacy of Superman and the Supergirl/Team Luthor special; while what was formerly the single-volume The Return of Superman has been split in two–with the addition of the four ongoing titles’ Bloodlines annuals (each issue starring one of the Four Supermen) as well as the entirety of issues that had only had several pages reprinted.

And while it does not fit the “set” or “series” quite the same way, we have the inclusion of the Doomsday volume, giving us the Doomsday: Year One annual as well as the complete Superman/Doomsday: Hunter/Prey along with Superman: The Doomsday Wars.

I believe podcaster and fellow blogger Michael Bailey said it on Facebook (and I wholeheartedly agree!) that probably a better fit for this volume would have been the early-2000s mini-series Superman: Day of Doom in place of The Doomsday Wars.

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Still, all in all, I love the new trade dress–the black bar with red logo/title text contrasts nicely with the images, and really make them look like part of the same series of books.

While I kinda question the wisdom of numbering the volumes (wondering if a 2 or 3 or 4 or 5 on the spine would put someone off from buying an isolated volume), I absolutely love that with the full set, part of the spines makes up a black box with the iconic (extremely so to me!) “bleeding S” that denotes the death of the Man of Steel.

This set gives me at least my 5th edition of the Death of Superman volume, and I have many of the issues in this set multiple times over. Yet, given what the saga means to me, on learning of these new editions’ existence and the inclusion of the specials and particularly the annuals…I was immediately interested. That the spines do what they do put me over the fence.

However, I did wait until these were available from InStockTrades, as I certainly was not going to buy all 5 at once at anything remotely approaching cover price, and even this was a hefty one-time amount to lay out. For saving 45%, though, I’m extremely pleased with the purchase, and having these volumes!

Filed under: 2016 Non-Review posts, 2016 posts, NON-REVIEW CONTENT, QUASI-REVIEW CONTENT, The Weekly Haul | Tagged: , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments »

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