You know what would make a pretty cool series of trade collections?

This month's release of Superman Blue Vol. 1 included the 1997 "Pulp Heroes"-themed Superman annual, which reminded me of these annuals' existence. And made me want to check out more of them.

This was was, of course, back when annuals were published on a regular basis. Like, once a year. You know, annually. And ongoing comic books were a lot more stable. Like, it's hard to imagine seeing another tenth annual of a modern Big Two super-comic, let alone a twenty-first annual. Anyway, the theme is probably pretty obvious, but basically they were in-continuity stories featuring there heroes in the sorts of genre stories that pre-dated superhero comics in pulp magazines: Horror, western, crime and detective fiction,  and so on. You'll notice that there are some DC Comics phrases attached, too, like "My Greatest Adventure" and "Weird Western Tales."

I'm not quite sure what the appetite might be for such an endeavor in the market, beyond, you know, me, but I read a handful of them. I remember the Aquaman, Batman: Legends of The Dark Knight, Green Lantern, and, especially, the Hitman annual all being particularly great. Robin had some fun moments, and I know I read both the Batman and the JLA ones, although I have no memory of either--save for the back-up in the JLA annual, which introduced a minor Kingdom Come villain into the DCU (and I don't think we ever saw him/them again, did we?).

The fully-painted covers were, of course, particularly great, and there are a few of those I wouldn't mind hanging in a frame on my wall (Like that Aquaman one; wow). Additionally, each is a completely-complete story featuring the World's Greatest Heroes...and also some other heroes (like, Tommy Monaghan, Azrael, Dan Jurgen's Teen Titans, Confusing Post-Crisis Supergirl. And I guess Superman and Aquaman bear their late-'90s signifiers, which might make them less marketable now).

Of course, because they are annuals, they are extra-long, and so I doubt you could fit all 18 into a single collection comfortably. I suppose DC could did it in three or so collections, though, and like their recent Zero Hour collections, they could be grouped into families. For example, there are four Superman annuals, plus one for Supergirl and Superboy. There are four Batman annuals, and Azrael, Catwoman, Robin and Nightwing all had annuals. There was a JLA annual and Leaguers Aquaman, Flash, Green Lantern and Wonder Woman all had annuals of their own. That leaves just Hitman, Teen Titans, Impulse and Starman to stick in somewhere. Or they could just spread them out differently, so that, like, each collection had a Batman and Superman annual, or whatever.

Reviewing the credits of who did what on them, there are a lot of the people you would expect to have their names attached to DC comics in 1997, like Dan Jurgens, Chuck Dixon, Devin K. Grayson, and so on. Those of perhaps particular interest to modern readers include Jim Aparo, Eduardo Barreto, John Byrne, John Cassaday, Peter David, Dale Eaglesham, Garth Ennis, Russ Heath, James Robinson and J.H. Williams III.

Marvel's October previews reviewed

DOMINO #7
GAIL SIMONE (W)
DAVID BALDEON (A)
Cover by GANG HYUK LIM
After the explosive events of “Killer Instinct” and DOMINO ANNUAL #1, Neena Thurman has a new mission…
Don’t miss the surprise hit series critics are calling:
“Everything a comic should be.” – Ross Hutchinson, ComicWatch
“A must-have purchase.” – Rollin Bishop, comicbook.com
“If you haven’t been reading this series, you should correct that mistake immediately.” – Matt Morrison, Kabooooom
32 PGS./Parental Advisory …$3.99

Well, I don't think Domino's friends are properly dressed for this weather at all...


HULK: THE DOGS OF WAR HC
Written by PAUL JENKINS, SEAN MCKEEVER, FABIAN NICIEZA, PRIEST, ERIK LARSEN, TERRY KAVANAGH, GARTH ENNIS & BRIAN AZZARELLO
Penciled by RON GARNEY, MIKE MCKONE, KYLE HOTZ, JOHN ROMITA JR., JOE BENNETT,
JON BOGDANOVE, MARK TEXEIRA, JORGE LUCAS, PAUL LEE, BILL SIENKIEWICZ, JOHN MCCREA & RICHARD CORBEN
Cover by JOHN ROMITA JR.
Paul Jenkins, one of the most cerebral writers in comics, gets deep into the head of Bruce Banner — and finds the monster within! But you’ve never seen a Hulk more hellish than the one dwelling deep inside the grief-stricken and guilt-ridden Banner. Afflicted and unbalanced, the Hulk is hounded worse than ever before when General Ryker lets slip his gamma-powered Dogs of War — their bite is every bit as bad as their bark! The Hulk’s tortured soul is pushed even further toward its limits when a person dearest to him is killed by one of his oldest and deadliest foes! Plus: Hulk smashes in startling stories from Garth Ennis, Brian Azzarello and more incredible creators! Collecting INCREDIBLE HULK (2000) #12-33 and ANNUAL 2000-2001, SENTRY/HULK #1, HULK (1999) #1/2, HULK SMASH #1-2 and STARTLING STORIES: BANNER #1-4.
832 PGS./Rated T+ …$75.00
ISBN: 978-1-302-91594-0
Trim size: Oversized

Well, this is an interesting assortment of comics. These all seem to originate from around the turn of the century, and I read a handful of them, including the Incredible Hulk issues by McKeever (who was based in Columbus, as was I, at the time), Hulk Smash by the Hitman creative team of Garth Ennis and John McCrea, and the Richard Corben-drawn Banner because, well, Richard Corben. I don't have particularly strong memories of any of these at this point, I'm afraid, but this was right around the time I started reading Marvel comics, in large part because the publisher was doing things like publishing new reader-friendly comics (for example, two of those I mentioned were completely self-contained miniseries) and hiring a lot of creators I knew from DC Comics, especially from their Vertigo imprint.

Anyway, that's a pretty solid line-up of creators, although I'm curious what, other than the timing, unites these particular stories. One imagines there has to be some rationale since they were all included in a single 800+-page collection, after all.


INFINITY GAUNTLET: DELUXE EDITION HC
Written by JIM STARLIN
Penciled by GEORGE PEREZ & RON LIM
Cover by GEORGE PEREZ
For the Dark Titan, Thanos, the Infinity Gauntlet was the Holy Grail — the ultimate prize to be coveted above all else. With it came omnipotence: the absolute control of all aspects of time, space, power, reality, mind and soul. But his gaining of supreme might meant the beginning of a black nightmare for the entire universe. Now, on the edge of Armageddon and led by the mysterious Adam Warlock, Earth’s super heroes join in a desperate attempt to thwart this nihilistic god’s insane plunge into galactic self-destruction. Should the heroes fail, the astral gods of the universe wait to step into the fray. But in such an awesome cosmic conflict, will anyone prevail? Will anyone survive? The original Infinity epic is collected alongside a Gauntlet-full collection of behind-the-scenes extras! Collecting INFINITY GAUNTLET (1991) #1-6.
304 PGS./Rated T …$34.99
ISBN: 978-1-302-91595-7
Trim size: Oversized

Oh now they're releasing a collection of the Infinity Gauntlet storyline that the Avengers: Infinity War movie was based on? Because earlier this spring, the versions available in trade were...less than ideal. Maybe they were afraid if viewers were too familiar with the comic story, it would spoil the ending of the film? And offer to big a clue on how the conflict might be resolved in the sequel? Regardless, I guess it's good that this storyline will be more readily available for would-be readers around the time the DVD comes out...

INFINITY WARS: SOLDIER SUPREME
#2 (of 2)
GERRY DUGGAN (W)
ADAM KUBERT (A)
Cover by GIUSEPPE CAMUNCOLI
Trapped outside time in the Dark Dimension since the days of World War II, the Soldier Supreme returns, a mage out of time, to find a world unlike any he has ever known!
32 PGS./Rated T+ …$3.99

So if Soldier Supreme is a "warped" version of Captain America and Doctor Strange, who is that big, head behind him? Baron MORDOK? Is he...a Mystical Organism Designed Only for Killing?

When images of these warped characters started coming out, I assumed they were just some kinda variant cover scheme, along the lines of the covers that mashed-up various Marvel characters with Gwen Stacy a few years ago. I didn't realize that they were actually part of the next big Marvel crossover event series (I'm almost done reading all the Civil War II tie-ins, which is about where I am when it comes to keeping up with Marvel events). I have to admit that I find them pretty appealing, in the same bonkers sense that the Amalgam characters were, and really, amalgamating Marvel characters with other Marvel characters rather than DC ones seems to be the whole idea with these.

I do hope I'll be able to make sense of the event, in terms of which books to read and in which order, when it's all collected in trades. It seems to me like various previews to this series have been going on since...Secret Wars, maybe...? So I find this one particularly daunting. And it doesn't help that Marvel seems to have used "Infinity" in more comics than DC has used the word "Crisis" in over the decades...


JESSICA JONES: BLIND SPOT MPGN TPB
Written by KELLY THOMPSON
Penciled by MATTIA DE IULIS
Cover by MARTIN SIMMONDS
Jessica has just faced her greatest fears — her most dangerous enemy — and won! Surely everything is smooth sailing from here? Nope! Instead she finds a corpse in her office — the body of a woman who came to Jessica for help years ago with a case Jessica failed to solve. And now she’s being framed for the woman’s murder! As Jessica reopens her investigation in hopes of bringing Dia Sloane’s killer to justice, she finds herself caught in the web of a serial killer intent on murdering women with powers. Can Jessica figure out how all the pieces connect before the killer claims their next victim? The Sorcerer Supreme, Doctor Strange, is not being helpful — shocker. But how is monster hunter extraordinaire Elsa Bloodstone tied up in this whole mess?
136 PGS./Parental Advisory …$19.99
ISBN: 978-1-302-91292-5
Don’t miss season 2 of Marvel’s Jessica Jones, now streaming on NETFLIX!

As I said on Twitter, Kelly Thompson on Jessica Jones was both the most obvious and the best choice for the gig, which made the recent-ish announcement of the move the comic book announcement I was simultaneously least surprised and most excited by (My other choice for the book would have been Chelsea Cain; my choice of artist, GURIHIRU, probably wasn't even in consideration, but it's nice to see they are going to be on a monthly book this fall anyway).

I...don't understand this publishing model at all--or even what the "P" in "MPGN" stands for--but as I would be reading this in trade anyway, that's fine by me.

MARVEL SUPER HERO ADVENTURES: CAPTAIN MARVEL – HALLOWEEN SPOOKTACULAR #1
Jacob Chabot &Jeff Loveness (W)
Jacob Chabot & OTHERS (A)
Cover by Jacob Chabot
EARTH’S MIGHTIEST HERO AND YOUR FRIENDLY NEIGHBORHOOD SPIDER-MAN GET SPOOKED!
It’s October, and you know what that means! HALLOWEEN! And with Halloween, come tricks and treats alike. But while Captain Marvel and Spidey are trying to get their sugar fix, the rambunctious rogues of the Marvel Universe will be spying and scheming from afar…
32 PGS./All Ages …$3.99

Be careful wearing that costume, Hulk; there's a pretty good chance you're gonna get swept up in a Spider-Geddon crossover wearing that get-up this fall!

If an artist is going to heavily rely on photoreference in their art, to the point that they are basically just scanning or downloading it right into their layouts, I much prefer they do so like Natacha Bustos does here, so that it looks like a straight up style choice, rather than adjusting the filters and and coloring and what-not so it looks like they're trying to disguise what they are doing. The contrast between her figures and teh background is dramatic, but it also looks fun and intentional. I suppose it helps that she's not drawing the characters in such a way that they look photorealistic too, though.


OLD MAN LOGAN #50
ED BRISSON (W)
IBRAIM ROBERSON (A)
Cover by ANDREA SORRENTINO
variant cover by GERARDO ZAFFINO
final issue variant by MIKE DEODATO JR.
Logan came into this world the same way he’s leaving it: IN PAIN!
Don’t miss the end of an era as Old Man Logan’s golden years are cut short!
40 PGS./Parental Advisory …$4.99

So it would seem that Marvel is killing off Old Man Logan, the version of Wolverine from an alternate future who is basically just Wolverine with a different hair color, just as their bringing Logan backing to life. Is there some kind of Law of Conservation of Logans in the Marvel Universe, stating that no new Wolverines can be created or destroyed, but their number must remain constant...?

Also, I am genuinely shocked that this series lasted 50 issues. I suppose I shouldn't be, given that no matter what color hair this Wolverine has, he's still Wolverine, but the book seemed to have an incredibly flimsy presence to support a 50-issue run.

Hey, that's not a dog!

That's a pretty great cover for October's issue of Runaways by artist Kris Anka.

SHURI #1
NNEDI OKORAFOR (W)
LEONARDO ROMERO (A)
Cover by SAM SPRATT
...
FOLLOWING IN THE FOOTSTEPS OF THE BLACK PANTHER!
The world fell in love with her in the movie. Now, the Black Panther’s techno-genius sister launches her own adventures — written by best-selling Afrofuturist author Nnedi Okorafor and drawn by Eisner-nominated artist Leonardo Romero!
The Black Panther has disappeared, lost on a mission in space. And in his absence, everyone’s looking at the next in line for the throne. But Shuri is happiest in a lab, surrounded by gadgets of her own creation. She’d rather be testing gauntlets than throwing them. But a nation without a leader is a vulnerable one — and Shuri may have to choose between Wakanda’s welfare and her own.
32 PGS./Rated T …$3.99

It was interesting to see how immediately so many people seemed to fall in love with Letitia Wright's Shuri character in this February's Black Panther movie, and, at the time I remember thinking that once again Marvel Studios seemed to be casting with an eye toward the future, as in the comics Shuri of course replaced her brother as the Black Panther for a while.

Chadwick Boseman will turn 41 in November (Holy shit that dude is my age?), while Wright will be turning 25 this October. That means they can squeeze a trilogy or so out of Boseman before handing over the mantle, if they are so inclined, for a second Black Panther trilogy.

Of course, I then went back and read all the Black Panther comics I could find in trade, and I noticed pretty immediately that Comic Book Shuri is pretty much nothing at all like Movie Shuri; like, one of the main points of differentiation between the T'Challa Panther and the Shuri Panther was that the latter wasn't as cerebral and, like, a theoretical super-physicist and engineer and suchlike, but instead resulted on her fists and claws to solver her problems.

So it will be interesting to see how they move Comic Book Shuri in the direction of Movie Shuri, which seems to be what they are going for here ("...but Shuri is happiest in the lab, surrounded by gadgets of her own creation"). 

SUPERIOR OCTOPUS #1
CHRISTOS GAGE (W)
MIKE HAWTHORNE(A)
Cover by TRAVIS CHAREST
...
DOC OCK-TOBER STARTS HERE IN THIS SPIDER-GEDDON TIE IN!
Doc Ock has set up shop as San Francisco’s protector, but you won’t believe his methods.
Some of Otto Octavius’s new super hero strategies may make Spider-Man regret letting him free, but the good doctor swears that he’s the SUPERIOR OCTOPUS!
Chistos Gage (AMAZING SPIDER-MAN) and Mike Hawthorne (Deadpool) will change the way you look at super hero comics.
48 PGS./ONE-SHOT/Rated T+ …$4.99

I'm pretty sure I saw this guy in the pages of Secret Empire, but now I don't remember--does he go by "The Octopus" now or is he still "Doctor Octopus"...? If the latter, then this book should probably be entitled The Superior Doctor Octopus, shouldn't it...? Regardless, dude looks so goddam Spider-y now. If you're not trying to pull of a scam by impersonating your arch-enemy whose body you have come into possession of, why on Earth would you want to dress so much like the person you hate so badly...?

THE UNSTOPPABLE WASP #1 (OF 5)
JEREMY WHITLEY(W)
GURIHIRU (A/C)
...
BACK BY POPULAR DEMAND!
Nadia Van Dyne, A.K.A. the UNSTOPPABLE WASP, and her team of girl scientists are back! With the backing of the original Wasp, Janet Van Dyne, there’s no problem the Agents of G.I.R.L. can’t solve!
But they’re not the only acronym-toting science organization out there, and when A.I.M. strikes, Nadia and the ladies of Genius In action Research Labs answer the call.
But who is A.I.M.’s new super-powered lieutenant, and how do they know Nadia? And what does A.I.M.’s plan have to do with Nadia’s father, Hank Pym?
32 PGS./Rated T+ …$3.99

Huh. I read and loved the first volume of the Jeremy Whitley-written Unstoppable Wasp ongoing, but right around the time I was reading that it was announced the book was cancelled, and I never got around to the second and final collection. And now, like Iceman, it's back already! It's almost as if books created for the book store market shouldn't be judged by their performance in the direct market, which is notoriously insular and a poor reflection of what might sell in places that aren't comic book shops!

Whitley is returning without artist Elsa Charretier, but I'm pretty sure everything is going to be okay, as now he's teamed with GURIHIRU, who draw the cutest goddam characters in the world.

VAULT OF SPIDERS #1 (of 2)
CULLEN BUNN, JED MACKAY AND MORE! (W)
JAVIER PULIDO, SHELDON VELLA AND MORE! (A)
Cover by GIUSEPPE CAMUNCOLI
Variant Cover by MARCOS MARTIN
A SPIDER-GEDDON TIE IN!
Only a Spider-Army can stop the end of the Multiverse!
Meet Web-Slinger, the Spider-Man from the Wild West, in an unforgettable story by CULLEN BUNN (X-MEN BLUE) and JAVIER PULIDO (SHE-HULK).
He is the Emissary from Hell, he is SUPAIDAMAN! The Spider-Man from the live-action SPIDER-MAN show that aired in Japan in the 1970s is back in comics form in an insane story by JED MACKAY (EDGE OF SPIDER-GEDDON) and SHELDON VELLA (DEADPOOL, SPIDER-VERSE).
And that’s just a glimpse into the VAULT OF SPIDERS!
40 PGS./Rated T …$4.99

The Spider-Geddon storyline seems so big and unwieldy and spread across so many books, it looks like one that is going to be particularly hard to follow, unless they do some gigantic complete collection. That said, some of these alternate Spider-Men sound pretty cool, like Supaidaman and this western version of Spidey. I hope his horse can run up and down flat, vertical surfaces...

WEAPON H #8
GREG PAK (W)
Guiu Vilanova (A)
Cover by PHILIP TAN
MARVEL BATTLE LINES VARIANT COVER BY SUJIN JO
Roxxon built a portal to harness the unlimited energy in this magical realm. But in the process they unleashed a horde of monsters — and they’ve set their sights on Earth’s unlimited supply of flesh!
Weapon H has no choice: To protect his family, he must go to war.
But one familiar figure has already beat him there: Fans of PLANET HULK and Marvel Studios’ Thor: Ragnarok, rejoice for the return of the stone man Korg!
32 PGS./Rated T+ …$3.99

Er, I can't imagine what the Venn Diagram of Fans of Marvel Studos' Thor: Ragnarok and People Who Just Like The Idea of a Stone Man Named Korg looks like, but I suspect that whoever wrote this solicit was being a little over optimistic about how much the two circles overlap. I mean, yes, there is technically an alien named Korg with rock-like skin in Thor: Ragnarok, but he's not exactly the same Korg from the comics. (Like, I thought the Jessica Jones TV show was watchable and I think Patsy Walker, AKA Hellcat is a brilliant comic book, but I wouldn't suggest that someone who thought Jessica Jones season two was the greatest would enjoy Patsy Walker just because it has the comic book version of that character in it, you know?)

WHAT IF? SPIDER-MAN #1
GERRY CONWAY (W)
Diego Olortegui (A)
Cover by PATCH ZIRCHER
...
What if Peter Parker wasn’t the one bitten by the radioactive spider?
What if the person who got bit was someone who didn’t live by the mantra of “with great power comes great responsibility”?
What if that person was an egotistical bully who was only interested in taking care of himself?
What if…FLASH THOMPSON became Spider-Man?
32 PGS./ONE SHOT/Rated T+ …$3.99

This round of What If? one-shots include some pretty heady but also vague concepts that I didn't quite understand after a read-through of the solicits or two; in that regard, they seem a lot more like old DC Elseworlds books rather than a What If...?. Like, you should be able to phrase your What If...? story in the form of a question. For example this one, and the one below, both work because doing so is so easy: "What If...Flash Thompson Became Spider-Man?" There. Done.

WHAT IF? THE PUNISHER #1
CARL POTTS (W)
JUANAN RAMIREZ (A)
Cover by CHRISTOPHER STEVENS
...
WITH GREAT POWER…
When Peter Parker’s Uncle Ben is ruthlessly killed by a burglar Peter let escape, he vows to never let the same fate befall another innocent bystander. From then on, he stands as a figure of cold retribution. Criminals beware – the guilty caught in this spider’s web will be PUNISHED.
But will Parker stand triumphant…or shattered by this twist of fate?
The friendly neighborhood takes a different turn in this WHAT IF? adventure, positing a very different sense of responsibility for the man who will be known as THE PUNISHER, as his battles against villains like the GREEN GOBLIN take a new path!
32 PGS./ONE SHOT/Rated T+ …$3.99

Hmm, would this be more compelling if it was Frank Castle who got bit by a radioactive spider, as opposed to Peter Parker deciding to use a rather ridiculous trigger method for his wrist mounted guns...? In any case, I think the skull on The Punishpider should be smaller and have eight tiny legs coming out of it...

DC's October previews reviewed

ACTION COMICS #1004
written by BRIAN MICHAEL BENDIS
art by RYAN SOOK
enhanced foil cover by STEVE RUDE
...
Superman confronts Lois Lane and wants answers: Where is Jon Kent? What happened during Lois’ trip into space with Jor-El? Why didn’t she contact the Man of Steel when she returned? And most importantly, does she still love him? Or is the world-famous reporter looking to let Clark Kent down easy? Lois and Clark’s relationship gets redefined in this issue illustrated by acclaimed artist Ryan Sook!
ON SALE 10.24.18
$3.99 US | 32 PAGES
FC | RATED T

That's a really rather lovely cover by Steve Rude as it appears here, but I'm not entirely sure what it might look like in person, as it is one of these "enhanced foil" covers. I know what the words "enchanced," "foil" and "covers" mean individually, but I'm not entirely sure what they mean altogether in that particular order, and what exactly they refer to in terms of a finished project. I am imagining something akin to the recent Dark Nights: Metal covers, but I could be way off.

Oh, and I guess something is going on with Superman and Lois Lane in this issue. Hopefully it's just a reaffirmation of their current relationship, because if Bendisbroke them up this far into his run after heavily teasing a major shift at the very beginning of his run (DC Nation #0,Man of Steel, etc) it will seem like a particularly naked manipulative move.


AQUAMAN: THE SEARCH FOR MERA DELUXE EDITION HC
written by STEVE SKEATES
art by JIM APARO
cover by NICK CARDY
Writer Steve Skeates and artist Jim Aparo began their acclaimed Aquaman run with the epic tale of
Mera’s disappearance and Aquaman’s quest to to get her back, now collected in this Deluxe Edition. While Aquaman desperately searches for his missing wife and queen, Mera, Atlantis plunges into the grips of a new enemy, a politician named Narkran, who plans to rule the underwater kingdom with an iron fist! Aquaman’s quest takes him to depths high and low as he battles all who stand in his way, including his archnemesis Black Manta. Collects Aquaman #40-48 (1968).
ON SALE 11.28.18
$34.99 US | 216 PAGES
FC | 7.0625” x 10.875”
ISBN: 978-1-4012-8522-7

I'm not a big fan of Mera, which I suspect has as much to do with the fact that I first encountered the character during the time in which he was estranged from Mera as the fact that I think her powers are weird and dumb and I always hated her weird costume with the frog-feet, but I am very interested in seeing hundreds of pages of Jim Aparo drawing these characters.

BATMAN BLANK COMIC #1
Celebrate “24-Hour Comics Day” with the BATMAN BLANK COMIC! You can write and draw your very own adventure of the Dark Knight in this 16-page comic, which features uncoated 80-pound paper (the same stock used on DC’s blank variant covers) that’s ideal for drawing on!
ON SALE 10.03.18

I do hope that the $2.99 price tag on the cover is there just to make this blank comic--there are also Superman and Wonder Woman blank comics available--look more like a regular comic book, and that DC Comics is not actually charging the same price it would have for an issue of Batman--and Superman and Wonder Woman--a few months ago for a shorter comic with nothing at all on its pages.

Batman: The Kings of Fear provides an unnecessary but still welcome reminder that Kelley Jones is indeed awesome.

BATMAN: THE HUSH SAGA OMNIBUS HC
written by JEPH LOEB, PAUL DINI, A.J. LIEBERMAN and others
art by JIM LEE, DUSTIN NGUYEN, AL BARRIONUEVO and others
cover by JIM LEE and SCOTT WILLIAMS
The saga of Hush, a.k.a. Thomas Elliott, is collected in a single, massive Omnibus edition! This title includes his introduction in the legendary “Hush” storyline by writer Jeph Loeb and artist Jim Lee, his conflicts with the Dark Knight and encounters with Gotham City’s greatest villains, including Two-Face, Poison Ivy and many others! Collects BATMAN #608-619 and 685, BATMAN: GOTHAM KNIGHTS #50-55, 60-71 and 73-74, DETECTIVE COMICS #846-850 and 852, BATMAN: STREETS OF GOTHAM #1-4, 14 and 16-21, plus stories from BATMAN VILLAINS SECRET FILES #1 and Wizard #0.
ON SALE 03.13.19
$125.00 US | 1,240 PAGES
FC | ISBN: 978-1-4012-9060-3

I know the original "Hush" story arc from Batman was quite popular as it was being published--and given the fact that writer Jeph Loeb basically just provided artist Jim Lee with an opportunity to do a greatest hits spin through the Batman character catalog, that fact wasn't terribly surprising--and that it remains a decent evergreen seller, which goes a long way towards explaining why it so often pops up in slightly different iterations in DC's solicitations. This $125, 1,240-page omnibus is, in fact, just further evidence of the continuing demand for "Hush" in the market.

That said, even if we dismiss the fact that "Hush" doesn't age well at all--like, even by the time the last chapters were shipping, they sort of rendered everything that preceded it nonsensical plotting gobbledygook that made Long Halloween seem like Shakespeare--I think it's rather widely agreed upon that it was the only really good Hush story, and all of those that followed were basically garbage. Like, that A.J. Lieberman story was just terrible, terrible comics, and that was one of the low-points in what may have been the single worst run of any writer on a Batman comic (Er, that I've read, anyway). Even the stories by usually reliable writers like Paul Dini were pretty dumb, like that one where Hush removed Catwoman's heart but kept her alive through...comic book medicine, I guess...?

But then, given the price point, I imagine this isn't exactly targeted towards a terribly wide audience.

On the positive side, I do like the idea of a collection so massive it includes the vast majority of a particular Batman villain's appearances--like, I'd buy a 1,000+-page collection featuring Catman, Calendar Man, Anarky or maybe even Killer Moth--and the one think I've always liked about the Hush character was that he was, essentially, an evil plastic surgeon, a combination of words I've always personally found slightly hilarious.


BATMAN SECRET FILES #1
written by TOM KING, JORDIE BELLAIRE, RAM V., CHERYL LYNN EATON and TOM TAYLOR
art by MIKEL JANIN, JORGE FORNES, ELENA CASAGRANDE, BRAD WALKER and others
enhanced foil cover by MIKEL JANIN
Delve into Batman’s case histories and discover brand-new stories by some of comics’ most exciting talents. The BATMAN team of Tom King and Mikel Janin provides a framing sequence, setting up our hand-picked teams of creators to take a look at Bat-mysteries past and present. Featuring a bevy of Batman villains, including a look at how the Scarecrow’s fear toxin affects the common man, and a special story written by Tom Taylor with art by Brad Walker that teams the Dark Knight Detective with Detective Chimp.
ONE SHOT
ON SALE 10.31.18
$4.99 US | 48 PAGES
FC | RATED T

The title of this is interesting, as in the mid-to-late 1990s DC rather regularly published specials called Secret Files and Origins that functioned as something of a hybrid of their old Who's Who In The DC Universe entries (that is, pin-up with some stats and relevant histories of various characters relevant to the franchise or story) and Secret Origins.

As for the contents of this, while the titles suggests a modern update to the Secret Files and Origins format, the solicitation text makes it sound like the files of the title are Batman's own case files. But then, it's only 48 pages long, so how many cases can really get covered in any depth while still allowing for the stories mentioned...?

THE BRAVE AND THE BOLD: BATMAN AND WONDER WOMAN HC
written by LIAM SHARP
art and cover by LIAM SHARP
When a Celtic god’s murder leads to a war between the fairy folk and a possible breach between worlds, Wonder Woman must find the murderer and keep the peace while Batman investigates strange occurrences in Gotham City. As Diana must turn to the World’s Greatest Detective for help, the two heroes quickly learn their cases may be connected. Collects the entire six-issue miniseries.
ON SALE 11.14.18
$24.99 US | 152 PAGES
FC | ISBN: 978-1-4012-8343-8

I'm looking forward to this one. I read the first issue of the miniseries to try it out, and then decided to trade-wait it. I'm still not crazy about the title, which seems like it was chosen simply for legal reasons, but I think I've figured out how to retroactively make it make sense: Sharp simply needs to follow this miniseries up with more six-issue miniseries pairing various DC characters together. You know, The Brave and The Bold: Superman and Mister Miracle, The Brave and The Bold: Shazam and Plastic Man, The Brave and The Bold: Martian Manhunter and Swamp Thing and so on...

CURSED COMICS CAVALCADE #1
written by JAMES TYNION IV, BECKY CLOONAN, BRYAN HILL, TIM SEELEY, RILEY ROSSMO GARY DAUBERMAN and others
art by MARK BUCKINGHAM, BECKY CLOONAN, RILEY ROSSMO, RICCARDO FEDERICI and others
cover by DOUG MAHNKE
Horror! Death! Uh…Face-punching! Witness ten all-new stories that promise to be the most terrifying, most shocking and most horrific comic that DC Comics has ever published! (Hyperbole much?) Batman, Wonder Woman, Guy Gardner, Swamp Thing, Zatanna and more of your favorite heroes face unspeakable horrors from the streets of Gotham City to the darkest sectors of the universe.
PRESTIGE FORMAT
ON SALE 10.10.18
$9.99 US | 80 PAGES
FC | RATED T+

Clever title, there.

The skyrocketing price of comics has made these over-sized anthologies almost prohibitively expensive--$9.99 is the price point for the first volume of many Image Comics trade paperback collections, for example--and there's something inherently disposable about the anthology one-short format by nature. For example, not only does this solicit not list all of the writers, artists or characters involved ("and others", "and more of your favorite heroes"), but no matter who the readers in question is, there are going to be creators and characters that they do not care for as much as the others. That's just the nature of the best. Or monster, perhaps I should say.

DC has added a spine to one-shots of this length (note the "PRESTIGE FORMAT") which makes the high price tag a little more tolerable, but also has the weird effect of making these something of a hybrid between a comic book and a trade paperback.

All told, it's a weird format in this current period of comics publishing. Regardless, I will almost certainly get this, as DC's anthology holiday one-shots are the books they publish that are perhaps most up my alley.


GREEN ARROW #45
written by JULIE BENSON and SHAWNA BENSON
art by JAVIER FERNANDEZ
enhanced foil cover by ALEX MALEEV
...
In this Heroes in Crisis tie-in, Oliver Queen is forced to take a hard look at himself and evaluate his methods after he fails one too many times trying to do the right thing. It’s a dark, depressing stroll down memory lane for the Emerald Archer, as Oliver must come to grips with how he’s hurt the people around him. This issue guest-stars members of the Justice League and the Titans, but are they there to console Ollie…or condemn him?
ON SALE 10.03.18
$3.99 US | 32 PAGES
FC | RATED T+

Wow, dark and depressing...? Sign me up for that!

Weirdly, the solicit for this tie-in not only does a poor job of selling this particular issue, it also makes the Heroes In Crisis comic sound infinitely less appealing...

DEATHSTROKE/YOGI BEAR SPECIAL #1
written by FRANK TIERI
art by MARK TEXEIRA
backup story written by J.M. DeMATTEIS
backup story art by TOM MANDRAKE
cover by TYLER KIRKHAM
...
In Yellowstone Park, legends speak of a spirit bear referred to as “the Yogi,” which few if any have actually encountered. Real or not, when a bear seems to have graduated from stealing picnic baskets to kidnapping actual campers, Ranger Smith decides it’s time to stop this menace—so he calls on the services of Slade Wilson—a.k.a. Deathstroke—to get the job done. Plus, part one of a Secret Squirrel backup story written by J.M. DeMatteis.
ONE-SHOT
ON SALE 10.31.18
$4.99 US | 48 PAGES
FC | RATED T

The central joke of these weird-ass crossovers, which are generally worth a perusal if only to see in which particular ways they are weird, generally comes from the very idea of doing dark, grim, gritty versions of cartoon characters from your dad's childhood. This particular one seems to tell that joke absolutely perfectly in its title and cover. That is, if Yogi Bear were in a Deathstroke comic, what might that be like? Why, he would be a rampaging grizzly bear...but wearing a tie. Of course, because the cover tells that joke, it sort of seems as if the rest of the comic would therefore be redundant. I'm not really sure making Yogi a spirit bear or whatever actually lends itself to a compelling story, but I guess we'll see.

Of this year's second round of crossovers, this seems like the most interesting, which means they are still leaving an Enemy Ace/Dastardly and Muttley in Their Flying Machines and All-Star Squadron/All-Star Laff-a-Lympics on the table.

I am also slightly curious about the back-ups. I've never been at all interested in Secret Squirrel, a character I cannot even imagine drawn in Tom Mandrake's style, which actually makes me eager to see what that might look lik.

HEROES IN CRISIS #2
written by TOM KING
art and cover by CLAY MANN
...
Suspected of murder, [REDACTED] and [REDACTED] find themselves on the run from the super-hospital called Sanctuary —with each thinking the other one is the real killer! It’s up to Batman to solve this heinous crime, but suspicion falls on him when Superman and Wonder Woman ponder just how much Sanctuary’s A.I. is telling them. Meanwhile, [REDACTED] tries to make a shady deal to hide from the Trinity, while [REDACTED] searches out an old friend to help him out of this mess—and only gets deeper in trouble.
ON SALE 10.24.18
$3.99 US | 32 PAGES
FC | 2 of 7 | RATED T+

Well that's a weird way to sell a comic book. It features four different characters who aren't Superman, Wonder Woman, Batman and, one imagines, Harley Quinn. Unless they are big surprises that no one would see coming--Doctor Manhattan! Dream of The Endless! The guy in the Guy Fawkes mask from V For Vendetta! Scooby-Doo!--then I can't imagine why they are bothering referring to the characters as "[REDACTED]".

A comic book series about Jonah Hex's wives seems like a strange premise for an ongoing comic book series, but then, I guess there have been stranger premises in the past. If this book is not about Jonah Hex's wives, please don't tell me and ruin it for me.

Readers and retailers are going to be so pissed if this is another bait-and-switch and Killer Croc and Orca, The Whale Woman don't actually get married in this issue.


JUSTICE LEAGUE #9
written by SCOTT SNYDER
art cover by JORGE JIMENEZ
variant cover by JIM LEE and SCOTT WILLIAMS
...
THE ROAD TO “DROWNED EARTH”! Superman and Batman can’t agree on how to put back the moon—you know, the one that went missing in issue #1. On the other hand, Wonder Woman and Aquaman have faith in each other, working together on a new addition to the Hall of Justice. Martian Manhunter takes Hawkgirl under his wing to test out the limits of her recently broken wing, and Flash and Green Lantern get up to some hijinks in the Hall’s cafeteria. Can you say super food fight?!
ON SALE 10.03.18
$3.99 US | 32 PAGES
FC | RATED T+

I kinda like the idea of an issue devoted to various Leaguers' relationship, premised along a series of team-ups/hang-outs like this. I used to ship Aquaman and Wonder Woman during the early JLA era, before I knew what the word "ship" meant. I think it was mostly derived from that cool little team-up Christopher Priest wrote in 1998's JLA 80-Page Giant #1 wherein Aquaman got tangled in Wonder Woman's lasso, the one that the Justice League movie cribbed from. That, and it served as an explanation for why on earth the then super-moody, perpetually-grumpy Aquaman would consent to joining the League and, well, the pair of them just had so much in common with one another versus to any of the other Leaguers (Like during Mark Waid's run, when secret identities were an issue, and they both passed because they were the only of the then eight-person League who didn't have secret identities, for example).

Huh. It looks like the whole current line-up all has someone to hang out with except Cyborg. I guess that means they should add Plastic Man or Steel or Mister Miracle or Captain Marvel Shazam to the League so Cyborg can have a friend too.

I really dig this Francis Manapul cover as it is, this is apparently an "enhanced foil cover," so who knows what it will look like in person.

LEGENDS OF THE DARK KNIGHT: NORM BREYFOGLE VOL. 2 HC
written by ALAN GRANT
art by NORM BREYFOGLE and others
cover by NORM BREYFOGLE
It’s another volume of Batman tales illustrated by top comics artist Norm Breyfogle, featuring the Dark Knight’s conflicts with Anarky, The Joker and the Scarecrow and the seeming death of the Penguin. This volume collects DETECTIVE COMICS #608-621, BATMAN #448-459 and more.
ON SALE 11.21.18
$49.99 US | 456 PAGES
FC | ISBN: 978-1-4012-8512-8

Woo-hoo! I've been waiting for this so long I was beginning to worry they weren't going to publish a second volume.

NEW CHALLENGERS #6
written by SCOTT SNYDER and AARON GILLESPIE
art and cover by V KEN MARION and SANDU FLOREA
Final issue! Now that they’ve uncovered the face of their true enemy, the New Challengers must band together to stop the unstoppable—a reawakened space god with unlimited power, weaponized to tear reality apart! Their borrowed time is just about up—will our team of heroes be able to save the very fabric of reality as we know it?
ON SALE 10.17.18
$2.99 US | 6 of 6 |32 PAGES
FC | RATED T

This was the last of the "New Age" books I expected to see end, but then I guess it's a miniseries rather than an ongoing. I just checked the solicitation for the first issue, and I guess it was always meant to be a six-issue miniseries, which is...odd.

Reminder: Scooby-Doo Team-Up is the best place to see all your favorite DC Comics superheroes.


SUPERMAN/TOP CAT SPECIAL #1
written by DAN DiDIO
art and cover by SHANE DAVIS
backup story written by J.M. DeMATTEIS
backup story art by TOM MANDRAKE
variant cover by EMANUELA LUPACCHINO
It’s Superman versus super food with Top Cat caught in the middle. While searching for his missing friend Bennie, TC uncovers a dietary danger that threatens the healthier portions of mankind, and it’s up to the Man of Steel to stop the probiotic menace of Kalien! In the salad bar, no one can hear you scream. Plus, part four of a Secret Squirrel backup story written by J.M. DeMatteis.
ONE-SHOT | ON SALE 10.31.18
$4.99 US | 48 PAGES
FC | RATED T

Nobody's favorite writer and apparent Top Cat super-fan Dan DiDio is responsible for one-fourth of the next round of DC/Hanna-Barbera crossovers which, remember, means he assigned himself the book. Yes, Dan DiDio, co-publisher of one of the biggest mainstream comic book periodical publishers, the one that is responsible for maintaining the continuing adventures of many of the world's greatest superheroes, looked around at all of the possible people in the world who might consent to write a fairly lucrative one-shot comic, and decided that he, himself is totally the best choice for the job!

Luckily, this is drawn by an artist whose work I don't really like, and features a Hanna-Barbera character I am not really interested in, so it's not like I'm missing anything. I just think DiDio's continuing to take pretty good writing gigs that could go to anyone else in the world is weird as hell.

Superman's origin vs. Superman's origin

The first page of 2006's All-Star Superman #1, by Grant Morrison, Frank Quitely, Jamie Grant and Phil Balsman

The first page of 2018's Superman #1, by Brian Michael Bendis, Ivan Reis, Joe Prado, Alex Sinclair and Josh Reed.

The first page of Bendis' first issue of the newly relaunched Superman title--following his contributions to Action Comics #1,000, DC Nation #0 and his six-issue Man of Steel story, includes a recap of Superman's origin and the relevant events leading up to the current story, and I found it revealing just how different it was from Morrison and Quitely's famously succinct retelling of Superman's origin in their All-Star Superman (which one could probably argue was still eight words more than needed).

Only the first half of the first narration box on this first page covers the exact same ground that Morrison and Quitely did, but it takes about 25 words. And that's followed by four more narration boxes. I wanted to draw the comparison not to suggest that Morrison's strategy was superior to that of Bendis', but simply to compare the two, which couldn't be more different, despite telling the same story about the same character at the same point in their respective runs on a Superman book.

Certainly, both are very emblematic of the creators involved--Morrison doing something weird and leaving a lot up to the imagination of the reader, Bendis using a lot of words, so many that they threaten to overwhelm the artwork--but both are equally valid. What was compelling about Morrison's origin at the time was that it was basically unnecessary; he knew that everyone knew Superman's origin, and thus he didn't even really need to tell it at all. I said it was eight words too long because, if you removed Morrison's captions, I think that page reads just about the same, and a reader gets all the necessary information. But maybe even the art is superfluous, because surely anyone reading a comic book, anyone who has ever heard of Superman, knows those basic points of the character.

What I find interesting about Bendis' strategy is the idea that there is no assumption of a reader's familiarity with the character, even on the most basic level, or that a reader might have been aware of recent Superman history (that Jor-El is alive, that Superman has a son), or the story Bendis just got done telling the previous week in Man of Steel.

DC, and/or Bendis himself, seem to think that Bendis' presence on the book will be drawing all kinds of readers who are completely new to the character, perhaps new to comics, which seems to me to be vastly overestimating Bendis' pull. Bendis is, of course, a pretty big deal in comics, and I'm sure that all sorts of people will be reading this issue of Superman who weren't reading the previous few issues, but it's hard to imagine Bendis' arrival bringing in large numbers of people who weren't already reading mainstream, Big Two super-comics that they purchased on a Wednesdayly basis from their local comic shop.

In other words, the audience Bendis is likely to draw is one that is already in the direct market, they just might have been reading Iron Man, Spider-Man, X-Men and New Avengers instead of Superman and Action. In that regard, I think the arrival of Gene Luen Yang to the Superman franchise a few years ago was a much, much bigger deal, and one that was much more likely to attract new readers to Superman, to DC and to the direct market that Bendis moving from Big Company A to Big Company B, but Yang's arrival wasn't treated as so much of an occasion, likely because how notoriously difficult it is for DC (and Marvel) to see comics and their place in the medium and industry from the outside.

Regardless, here are two different ways to kick off Superman runs from two of the more popular and more divergent writing talents in the modern direct market.