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Fantastic Four, death and the return of the polybag

Posted on December 23, 2010 by Walt

ffdeathpic I’ve noticed the last issue or two of Fantastic Four having a running countdown on the cover, apparently counting down to a “death” of one of the core/original Fantastic Four characters.

And I’ve been noticing some comments around the internet—just enough to be what I’d count as “buzz” over the impending death of one of the characters.

From what I understand, the story is called “Three” and in ads, it’s being proclaimed that “One Will Fall.”

And the latest ad that I’ve seen (see photo associated with this post) I even see a notice on the ad that “This historic double-sized issue will arrive in a special polybag.”

Questions:

1. What makes this historic? Are you spoiling the story that literally? Is this going to REALLY be on the same level as The Death of Superman, the Death of Captain America, or some such? Is this going to TRULY, PERMANENTLY, for at-least-a-decade-or-so be the end of the story for one of the core FF members, whoever it is that “falls” or “dies?”

2. So it’s double-sized. Is it going to be double-priced, too? Along that line…what IS the price, anyway? $5.99? $6.99? Or is it less, and part of that double-size comes from reprint material, sketchbooky material, or what? Is the actual, main-feature top-billed story itself actually double-length?

3. What makes the polybag special? Does it glitter? Is it resealable, so that one can take the comic out to (gasp! horror! shock!) READ it, withOUT “destroying” the comic (since “damaging” a polybag APPARENTLY is akin to the paper stock itself being dunked in turpentine)?

4. WHY a polybag? Is there bonus material being bagged with the issue? An obituary? Poster? Memorial armband? promo trading card? Is the cost of the bags, and the extra processing and such part of the cost? What extra value is brought to the comic by sealing it in a polybag?

4b. I’ve always wondered at an experiment: ship a comic with just a cover, and all blank interior pages, except for a pull-out coupon. If you have that coupon, you can send it in/trade it in for an ACTUAL issue with actual interiors…

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Collected volume pricing

Posted on December 12, 2010 by Walt

Disparate Pricing

marvelbooks20101211 While collected volumes of comics are priced based on their contents…I’m finding more and more lately that paper quality and format lend a different sort of visual perception to the mix.

Take The Heroic Age TPB. $24.99…yet, it’s about twice as thick as the $14.99 Deadpool: Secret Invasion volume. Twice the size, but $5 less than twice the price.

Compare that to Deadpool Classic vol. 1: The Heroic Age…roughly the same thickness is $24.99…yet Deadpool Classic is $29.99–$5 more.

hardvssoft Looking at Deadpool & Cable, there’s a similar thickness—a little more to it than the Classic volume, granted—but it’s $39.99…a $10 difference for not a lot of difference in size.

Those have different contents, though, by several issues at least. Bringing a hardcover into the mix…look at the Invincible Iron Man by Fraction and Larrocca vol. 1 OVERSIZED hardcover. 19 issues in this volume for $39.99…and 18 issues in Deadpool & Cable…which is a paperback, but also carrying that $39.99 price.

With all interests in characters/series (and consideration of quality) being equal…The Iron Man volume would seem to be a much better value for number of issues’ content and physical size/format for the price.

Of course, I do know there are reasons (which may not come to me off the top of my head or that I—in terms of simply purchasing books—don’t even care about) for the varying prices. Print runs, quality of paper, creator royalties, projected profits, and who knows what all.

While I lack a photo at present for the visual…another point of interest are the Vertigo $4.99 TPBs that collect the first issue of many of their popular series. (Additionally, Top Cow recently put out a $4.99 volume with the first issue of several of their soon-to-debut series). Of course, it’s a much different thing to have an “anthology” type volume with a single chapter from multiple series. These serve more as samplers, as opposed to a volume that collects an entire story.

Though Top Cow has recently hooked me with their bargain-priced premiere volumes of Witchblade, Witchblade: Redemption, and The Darkness, collecting an entire arc (5-6 issues) of each for only $4.99. That’s 4-5 “extra” issues compared to the $3.99 single-issue pricepoint of far too many comics out there these days.

Disparate Trade Dress/Editions

variededitions

On a much different note, but dealing with thick volumes and a little with pricing (getting more expensive through the years for successive reprints of the same content/volumes)…Knightfall, and Essentials.

I have all three Knightfall volumes…but each is a different printing. Vol. 1 is the original printing from the mid-1990s. Vol. 2 is from the later printing…maybe early 2000s or late-1990s. And the third volume is from the last few years, whenever it was reprinted after DC changed to their present version of the DC “star” and trade-dress.

The Essential Uncanny X-Men vol. 1 I bought the week before I went off to college, back in August 1999. After the Essentials’ trade dress was revamped, they continued reprinting those earliest X-men issues as Essential Classic X-Men, but numbered the volume as 2, picking up from Essential Uncanny. And finally, under the newest revamp of the trade dress (AND pricing), they put out a 3rd volume.

While the price that I paid was right—I got vols. 2 and 3 of both sets for at least half-off—I’m the sort of person who likes it when a series actually looks like it goes together…whether first editions, second prints, or 10th-print and beyond.

On The Shelf

dragonlanceshelfActually looking like a single series, my Weis/Hickman Dragonlance volumes sit together on a shelf. Ultimately, this is an ongoing series of core characters by these authors. The books all go together, and in this particular edition, they look like it.

Most of these books have seen numerous different editions in paperback with successive printings and even different publishers. Dragons of Autumn Twilight was originally published in the mid-1980s, while Dragons of the Dwarven Depths wasn’t published until about 20 years later.

I don’t collect books—or comics, or collected volumes/TPBs/graphic novels/whatever for value.

But I am very much a collector in wanting to read the stories (I prefer bookshelf editions to single issues these days, given choice and feasibility) and enjoying when the volumes that I get look good together, on the shelf.

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The obligatory ‘The Walking Dead’ post

Posted on November 1, 2010 by Walt

I watched the premiere of The Walking Dead on Halloween, at 10pm on AMC.

As did many, many others. And as far as I know, there was at least one encore presentation immediately following the conclusion of the premiere, and I’m reasonably certain there’s a 3rd showing going on right now.

I’ll maybe go into more detail later, I’m sure.

But for now, it’s enough to say that I was highly impressed, and greatly enjoyed this. One might even say that this show–the 6 episodes of this first season, at least–is (for me) the culmination of a four-year journey into the Zombie sub-genre of Horror.

I’m pretty sure it was November 2006 that I dove into the genre, kicked off by having thoroughly enjoyed Marvel’s Marvel Zombies project and deciding to check out the first (bargain-priced at $9.99!) volume of Kirkman’s The Walking Dead that I’d been hearing quite a bit of good about.

I also found myself watching quite a number of zombie flicks (and several non-zombie horror flicks in the Evil Dead series).

Shaun of the Dead, the 2004 Dawn of the Dead remake quickly emerged as my favorites of that bunch. Since then, I’ve added Diary of the Dead to the top of my list of favorite zombie flicks. I’ve also determined that I absolutely prefer the Romero-style zombies over the “smart” or “talking” zombies found in the Living Dead flicks.

Back to The Walking Dead…

I so thoroughly enjoyed the premiere that I was 17 or so minutes into the encore presentation before it even occurred to me to turn the tv off. I DVRed this here at home (though I watched it live) and though I thus have it for re-watchability…I’ve got every intention of picking up the inevitable DVD release to add to my zombie collection.

If you didn’t see it, and have any interest in zombies or a post-apocalyptic human drama, and have access to be able to…do yourself a favor and give the show a chance.

The first episode is even kinda like a movie in itself…ending in a way that COULD be a typical ending to a generic zombie-flick.

The beauty here is…the story’s gonna keep going.

The Walking Dead is the zombie flick that doesn’t end.

And we–as the viewers of the tv show and/or the readers of the comic series–are richer for it.

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She would have been 20 today

Posted on October 4, 2010 by Walt

When we got her, she came with “papers.” She was a “purebred” seal-point Himalayan. She was 15 months old, and her full registered name was “Miss Kayla Krystal.”

But we didn’t get her for show, or for breeding. She was our family pet. And while she started out as “the cat,” she quickly became a part of the family. She wasn’t JUST some cat. Not to us. Not to me.

And we were blessed to have her as part of this family for a little over 18 years. She was there when I went off to high school, when I moved out for college. She saw me go through grad school, and beyond.

And that little cat, who meant so much–whose loss still stings, and may always sting (18 years isn’t just some walk in the park)….

She would have been 20 today.

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A week of no comics

Posted on October 3, 2010 by Walt

I honestly don’t offhand recall the last time this happened.

Oh, there were new comics this week–except for that week last December that Diamond took a break, there’ve been new comics out every week as far back as I can recall while being aware of the direct market system.

But this past week (September 29, to be exact) the only comic I would’ve been picking up was the new issue of The Savage Dragon. And as I didn’t plan to review it for cxPulp.com (formerly comixtreme.com), and it’d be the only issue I’d be buying, and it’s a “rent paycheck week” where my budget’s rather tight…I decided to do something I haven’t done in ages.

I skipped the weekly comic shop trip.

It’s a bit easier, as the issue is on my pull list, so will be waiting for me next time I do go to the shop.

But what I also find interesting is that part of me is hoping the coming week will be another such week. Wondering if I have it in me to skip two weeks.

Part of it is made easier by the fact that over the past couple months, I’ve taken up miniatures painting, with a focus on WARMACHINE from Privateer Press. I don’t know how into the game itself I’m going to get, but after GenCon 2010, I made a pretty quick and hefty investment into paints, supplies, and so on, and got right into priming my miniatures, and then about a month ago and after a “practice” generic Reaper miniature (Death Knight), I began painting my first WARMACHINE miniature–a Khadoran Iron Fang Pikeman.

This weekend, I finished my 6th, 7th, and 8th Pikemen, which completes my first generic “unit” for a miniatures game.

I also–in essentially one sitting (with breaks for nature’s call, brunch, and a cat who decided he wanted to see what was holding so much of my attention) painted a character mini–the Butcher of Khardov.

Perhaps I’ll post some photos soon.

And depending on what’s shipping this week…maybe it’ll be worth going to the comic store?

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Chaos War [Checklist]

Posted on September 1, 2010 by Walt

OCTOBER:
Chaos War #1
Chaos War #2

NOVEMBER:
Chaos War #3
Chaos War: Alpha Flight #1
Chaos War: Chaos King #1
Chaos War: Dead Avengers #1
Chaos War: Thor #1

DECEMBER:
Chaos War #4
Chaos War: Aries #1
Chaos War: Dead Avengers #2
Chaos War: God Squad #1
Chaos War: Thor #2
Chaos War: X-Men #1
Incredible Hulks #618
Incredible Hulks #619

January:
Chaos War #5
Chaos War: Dead Avengers #3
Chaos War: X-Men #2
Incredible Hulks #620

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Pull lists

Posted on September 1, 2010 by Walt

For the first time since I was a teenager, I have started an actual pull list.

Back then, when I was heading off to college and knew I wouldn’t have regular access to a comic shop, it was Capp’s Comics, in Mentor, OH. I’d been going to the shop for over 7 years at that point, and it was a simple matter. Gave my list to the owner, and he pulled those titles for me, and periodically I would get a phone call telling me it was time to come in an pick up my books.

I had that pull list/box for several years…truthfully, I don’t remember now if I ever specifically pulled the plug, or if that one went out of existence during the 7 or so months from when I moved out on my own for the first time a few months after graduation and didn’t make it back in to visit the shop. (It was also during this time that I would occasionally mail-order some comics…which got me on an email list that led to my being a reviewer over at Comixtreme).

A few years back, I started a single-title pull list at my then-main LCS for The Thing. The title was struggling, and there was a push to support it, and I was convinced to try the book. By adding the title to one’s pull list, arguably, one was showing one’s support….the comic shop would know they’d have a “guaranteed sale” and order at least that many more copies, if not that “plus one” for the shelf. (Two months later, the book WAS cancelled, and with it, my pull list faded to nothingness).

A couple years ago, after growing ever more frustrated at only being able to get issues of Tales of the TMNT when I visited a friend in Michigan and went to his LCS or ordering online…it dawned on me. Just start a pull list for the TMNT books. My comic shop may not order the title for the shelf, but there was no problem with ordering a copy for a specific customer.

So for the last couple years, Tales of the TMNT and related TMNT books were ordered and kept for me, and all was good.

A couple months ago, I discovered that my LCS was only getting 1 copy of any given Boom! Kids title–the singles don’t sell well, though the collections do. So I re-opened my pull list for Darkwing Duck and Uncle Scrooge. Yet, at only two titles, and buying a number of other titles, I never truly considered that–nor the TMNT stuff–a real, actual pull list.

I’ve been planning for weeks now to throw in with this LCS I’ve been going to for nearly 3 years now. One reason or another kept putting me off as I procrastinated. I knew I was forgetting a title, and wanted to turn in a complete pull list. This, That, Whatever.

Even this afternoon, as I took an early lunch to make it to the LCS shortly after 1 while most of the comics would still be on the shelf…I realized how “old” it’s gotten, wondering if a book I was interested in would still be there. Calling across town to another shop if something was, and stopping in there, an added side-trip. Both possibly being out, and having to hope that yet another store in my OLD stomping grounds had something still in stock on Friday.

So today, after work, I swung by the comic shop for the 3rd time in 2 days (they’re closed on Tuesdays? I never GO on Tuesdays, so I did not recall that little factoid…and this afternoon I forgot my list when I took an early lunch and left my book with the list tucked into it on my desk at work).

The owner took a quick look at my list–possibly surprised at my organization (for good or ill, I’m not sure), and commented that yeah, he’d better start pulling these, as they’re books he orders pretty light on. As I left, he said he’d be pulling these for me moving forward, and I thanked him, and was on my way.

Excepting the obvious…the comics (and a magazine) that I’m getting are all now being pulled at this LCS…now officially–more than ever–my HOME comic shop. The pull list–full, actual, real–now renders any other comic shop that of “other” or “backup.”

And y’know what?

It’s kinda cool having a “home” comic shop once more.
—————————-

ARCHIE COMICS
– Life with Archie: The Married Life

BOOM STUDIOS
– Darkwing Duck
– Uncle Scrooge

DARK HORSE COMICS
– Doctor Solar, Man of the Atom
– Magnus, Robot Fighter
– Usagi Yojimbo

IDW COMICS
– GI Joe: A Real American Hero

IMAGE COMICS
– Invincible
– Savage Dragon

MARVEL COMICS
– Invincible Iron Man
– X-Men

PRIVATEER PRESS
– No Quarter Magazine

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The Duck Knight Returns

Posted on July 16, 2010 by Walt

This is a series that I’m all about getting the single issues, even if I then get suckered into a collected edition.

If you were ever a fan of Darkwing Duck, this series is the next best thing to getting new episodes of the actual tv show, and I highly recommend this in any format!

I can’t think of any better title to go with than The Duck Knight Returns. It’s a great homage to the Batman story The Dark Knight Returns…but speaks on a deeper level to the fact that it’s been so many years since there was a Darkwing Duck comic available, and nearly as long since the show was on the air.

I would love to be able to buy a poster–this image, or the image more directly in parody of the Batman story.

My local comic shop stocked only a single copy of the first issue–the single issues of Boom‘s kids’ line just haven’t been selling well enough for him to justify stocking more than just the one or two shelf copies of the single issues…though the collected volumes have been selling just fine.

The Duck Knight Returns

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LeBron James: Hero No More?

Posted on July 11, 2010 by Walt

If recent stuff were from a comic book, this could be the cover:

And I maintain: the backlash and intense venom on the issue is NOT the fact of his leaving…it’s the WAY he went about things. I talk more about my thoughts on the subject in a blog post over at comixtreme.com: Thoughts on the LeBron James thing.

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Brightest Day Checklist Part 2 [Checklist]

Posted on July 9, 2010 by Walt

JULY 2010
Brightest Day #5
Brightest Day #6
Justice League: Generation Lost #5
Justice League: Generation Lost #6
Green Lantern #56
Green Lantern Corps #50
The Flash #4
Justice League of America #47
Justice Society of America #41
Titans #25
Birds of Prey #3
Green Arrow #2

AUGUST 2010
Brightest Day #7
Brightest Day #8
Justice League: Generation Lost #7
Justice League: Generation Lost #8
Green Lantern #57
Green Lantern Corps #51
Green Lantern: Emerald Warriors #1
The Flash #5
Justice League of America #48
Justice Society of America #42
Titans #26
Birds of Prey #4
Green Arrow #3

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