Last time on Continuity Nerds, we took a timely look into the chronology of Star Trek in commemoration of JJ Abrams’ latest entry into the series’ increasingly forked timeline. Now, in light of Disney’s much ballyhooed acquisition of Star Wars, as well as today’s announcement of the upcoming Star Wars: Rebels television series, let us take a moment to honor those who have devoted such painstaking efforts to codifying the history of a universe inexplicably set in the distant past despite its status as a science fiction mainstay: that of George Lucas’s Star Wars, and particularly its surrounding Expanded Universe.

For many years, Nathan P. Butler’s Star Wars Timeline Gold has been the authority on chronology within the Star Wars Galaxy. While the movies we all know and love or tolerate only cover a span of about twenty years, the rich collaborative history lent to it by novels, video games, and, yes, comics books (hopefully the TRO editorial board will have more on that soon) have taken the scope far beyond that: from the Old Republic Era of five thousand years before the battle of Yavin as depicted in the original film (which you may be familiar with from BioWare’s Old Republic video game series) to Dark Horse’s Legacy comics set over a hundred years after the Rebels [spoiler!] defeat the evil galactic empire in Return of the Jedi, and everything in between.

If you look hard enough, the timeline even features some interesting theories on how “long ago” the events of that galaxy far, far away actually are. (Hint: Star Wars‘ sister franchise Indiana Jones is involved.)

Would you believe that this singular project has cultivated its own devoted community? SWTG features a podcast, reviews, and even its own radio station. And with Disney expanding the franchise to fill the gap between the prequel and original trilogies, and extend it even further beyond, this mainstay of sci-fi nerddom will have its hands full for quite a while. May the obsessive compulsive data sorting be with you!

Comment!

I can’t believe it’s been a month, my fellow readers! Last month massive flooding hit my town, the worst we’ve seen in over 100 years I’m told, and as roads were shut down and people evacuated I couldn’t help but think, “I can’t wait to get the time to get back online and check up with my favorite four color medium.” And when everyone was safe and everything was clean that’s exactly what I did.

It also made me very happy to see that I’ve gotten some positive response to this little column, or article, or what-have-you that I do and I want to thank everyone who reads, everyone who comments and everyone involved with the site for giving me the opportunity to do this. All right, enough of that mush! Say it with me: “Disclaimer Time”!! All titles are paperback unless otherwise noted and the suggested retail price is just that: suggested. All of the dates are approximate and subject to change so you should always check with your local comic shop before planning your purchase.

Without further ado and absolutely no fanfare we begin!

MARVEL

WOLVERINE: THE BEST THERE IS – THE COMPLETE SERIES

OK, this sounds interesting. A crazy virologist wants to try and kill the unkillable Logan by eliminating his healing ability and taking him out. He uses vampires and demigods (WTF?) to try and push Logan to his limits and find out what he’s capable of. I like the idea of a guy who’s all about viruses trying to come up with one that will over ride Logan’s healing ability. Of course the X-Men help him get revenge and apparently some space pirates as well (again WTF?). If you can get past some of those oddities this might be a wild and original ride for fans of the Wolverine!

SRP: 29.99
Contains: Wolverine The Best There Is #1-12
Indigo, Amazon: May 14
TFAW, MCS: May 1

Cable And X-Force Vol. 1: Wanted

The Wild Man of Borneo is back! And he’s not off to the greatest start with his new X-Force. He gets branded a terrorist and has to fight his foster daughter, Hope. And they have to track down Colossus and figure out why his powers are on the fritz. Sounds like a crappy job, but if anyone can handle all of that and come out looking awesome it’s Cable! Sounds like a few one-off stories collected together to give you a taste of what’s to come from this new X-Force. Oh, there’s also something about them handling the jobs no one can know about, whatever that nonsense means.

SRP: 17.99
Contains: Cable And X-Force #1-5 and material from Marvel Now Point One #1
Indigo, Amazon: May 14
TFAW, MCS: May 1

The Avengers: Complete Collection by Geoff Johns

Do you like Geoff Johns? Do you like the Avengers? Well, have I got the book for you! Mr. DC cheats on his first love and gives us his take on Marvel’s flagship franchise with 3 different stories featuring Earth’s mightiest heroes. First – Thor takes the throne in Asgard and Iron Man tries to keep the Thunder God in line; second – every capital city on Earth vanishes and the remaining mortals look to the Avengers for guidance, and last but not least – Vision loses his memories and seeks help from his creator to reclaim them. Good stuff. Should be fun.

SRP: 29.99
Contains: Avengers (3rd series) #57-63, Vision #1-4, Thor (2nd series) #58 and Iron Man (3rd series) #63
Indigo, Amazon: June 11
TFAW, MCS: May 29

Superior Spider-Man Vol. 1
OK, so I was going to mention this book just so I could write something along the lines of ‘first he was amazing, then he was spectacular, but now he’s superior’, but then I read the plot and my jaw hit the floor. Apparently Spider-Man has been taken over by Dr. Octopus?! I swore I wouldn’t do this again this month, but, I have to give a firm and resounding ‘WTF?’ for this one! I’ll admit I’m not very up to date on my Marvel Universe and maybe I’m missing something, but how is this a good idea? It’s frackin’ nuts! Oh well, maybe somebody’s into it – issue 12 hits the news stand soon.

SRP: 17.99
Contains: Superior Spider-Man #1-5
Indigo, Amazon: June 11
TFAW, MCS: May 29

DC

Superman – Action Comics: Superman and The Men of Steel

DC’s been doing something kind of cool lately: the aforementioned book is making its paperback debut this month and, for those of us who don’t like to wait, Vol. 2 is making its hardcover debut in the same month. Not a bad idea, especially if you don’t care about keeping your collection uniform and you just want the story. They’re also doing this with two volumes of Aquaman. Written by Grant Morrison and featuring art by Rags Morales and Andy Kubert the book pretty much sells itself, but if you need added incentive, the book has something to do with the people of Earth turning against Superman, which I swear has happened before, but probably wasn’t written as well and it’s all been given the new 52 sheen.

SRP: 16.99
Contains: Action Comics #1-8
Indigo, Amazon: May 7
TFAW, MCS: May 1

New Teen Titans Omnibus Vol. 3 (HC)

Collecting the rest of the 1st series of New Teen Titans and the beginning of the 2nd series of New Teen Titans this omnibus will surely please fans of the world’s most famous team of sidekicks. The last omnibus included the best arcs the Titans ever had (Terra Incognito and New Judas Contract respectively), so this omnibus just won’t be able to live up to that amazingness. But, it’s still one of the best ways to get full color reprints of classic Titan action. And with over sized pages it’s also easier on the eyes, making sure you can stay up late in to the night devouring all the angsty fun.

SRP: 75.00 (can be found cheaper)
Contains: NTT (1st series) #38, 45-61, 66-67; NTT (2nd series) #1-6; Secret Origins Annual (2nd series) #3
Indigo, Amazon: June 4
TFAW, MCS: May 29

Top 10 – Absolute Edition (HC)

For anyone who’s unfamiliar with Alan Moore’s Eisner Award-winning Top 10 this is the first and only place you need to look. Including Vol. 1 and 2, plus the Forty-Niners original graphic novel and the Smax spin-off it is definitely the Absolute Edition. Precinct 10 is a city full of super powered humans and the men and women of Top 10 are the police force that keep order…or at least try to. This is a joint release between DC and America’s Best Comics and a better use of DC’s resources then re-releasing Watchmen for the hundreth time (seriously, deluxe hardcover edition this month, but who needs it?). It does cost a lot of money, but hopefully it will at least drum up interest in an under read book.

SRP: 99.99
Contains: Top Ten #1-12, Top Ten: Forty-Niners OGN, Smax #1-5
Indigo, Amazon: June 4
TFAW, MCS: May 29

Legion Of Super-Heroes: The Dominators

Anyone familiar with the Legion knows that the Dominators usually mean business. And anyone who’s unfamiliar, well, just look at the name. I like the Legion; they’re usually solid, sometimes a little ridiculous, (but, really, what comic book isn’t?) and always entertaining. There’s really not much to say. Fans will enjoy it. Anyone who’s curious might want to start with Volume 1 of their New 52 adventures or check out some Supergirl and The Legion books. Good stuff.

SRP: 16.99
Contains: Legion of Super-Heroes #8-14, #0
Indigo, Amazon: May 14
TFAW, MCS: May 8

Indies

Spawn Origins Vol. 18
I don’t know how this can be called ‘Origins’ when you hit Vol. 18, but, I guess it’s more enticing then ‘Spawn Re-Prints’ which is essentially what this is. I can’t find what happens in the 5 or 6 issues printed here, but I was able to find some hype that lets me know these volumes have exclusive bonus content, including black and white art, cover gallery and…classic quotes? I don’t know if the last one is necessary, but Spawn as a character is pretty sweet and these collections are fairly wallet friendly so that’s all good stuff. Side note: these are also released in hardcover editions with two trades in one hardcover at about twice the price.

Publisher: Image
SRP: 14.99
Contains: Spawn #105-110
Indigo, Amazon: May 28
TFAW, MCS: May 15

Rocketeer Adventures: Treasury Edition

This is a collection of…wait for it…Rocketeer Adventures (who’da thunk?). Written and drawn by various people, including Mark Waid and Darwyn Cooke, this is sort of a “best of” from the IDW vaults and includes Dave Stevens’, the creator, first Rocketeer story in 20 years. If you bought volume 1 or 2 of IDW’s take on the Rocketeer you might want to pass on this as it reprints material from those books, but, if you’re curious to see what the character’s like in print this is a good starting point. And then watch the old movie again because it’s actually pretty cool.

Publisher: IDW
SRP: 9.99
Contains: Various stories from IDW’s Rocketeer books
Indigo, Amazon: can’t find a listing for this on either site…odd….
TFAW, MCS: May 8

Prophecy

I’ll admit I only added this one because there wasn’t much exciting me this month in the indie trades, but upon further research this actually sounds kind of intriguing. It’s one of those big cross over books where the publisher takes a whole whack of their characters and forces them to come together to stop some evil. In this case the evil is the Mayan Doomsday Prophecy. OK, I’m not sure how that’ll play out exactly, but with Red Sonja, Dracula and Vampirella, Pantha and Athena, Dr. Herbert West, Ash, Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson and even Alan Quatermain trying to figure it out I’m sure it’ll all end for the best.

Publisher: Dynamite
SRP: 19.99
Contains: #1-7
Indigo, Amazon: May 21
TFAW, MCS: May 8

Freaks’ Amour

Much like Prophecy, I’m not sure what this is, but it sounds really weird and I like weird so what the heck? Apparently this is a comic book sequel to a cult favorite novel written by Tom DeHaven. There’s been a nuclear explosion and the survivor’s are trying to raise money for surgery…I would assume to fix physical ailments. Again, I’m not familiar with this story, but it’s got grotesque sex shows and, this is what caught my eye, ‘drug-mutant goldfish eggs’. Not sure how any of that will lead to raising money, but, I’m definitely intrigued.

Publisher: Dark Horse
SRP: 17.99
Contains: Freaks Amour #1-3 and a prose sequel by DeHaven
Indigo, Amazon: May 21
TFAW, MCS: May 15

Comment!

Would you, dear readers, consider yourselves a highly methodical and meticulous people? Particularly, in the pursuit of absorbing niche areas of culture often deemed by the public eye as the purview of “nerds”? Wait, why am I even asking? That’s the entire dang point of this website.

Fortunately, the best thing about the Internet is that whenever we’re feeling like total weirdos, there’s about a million websites out there for people who think just like us to aid in our unlikely hobbies. We at TRO exist to help you sort out comic book continuity by way of trade paperback collection, but if you’re like me, you’d like to bring the same level of organization to all nerdly endeavors.

Fortunately, the Internet can once again accommodate: and in our new “Continuity Nerds” feature, we will highlight the places and projects which do just that.

We begin with that old grand dame of American science fiction television, Star Trek. As we are now well into the Hollywood hype cycle for Star Trek into Darkness, J.J. Abrams’ second blockbuster motion picture entry into his alternate timeline-placed saga, perhaps you’d care enough to boldly go and seek out new entertainment within the series’ traditional continuity.

Well, folks, the Star Trek Chronology Project has you covered. Spanning five television series from the original, far ahead of its time Gene Roddenbery-penned adventures of Captain Kirk to the prequel adventures of (the perhaps superior Quantum Leap’s) Scott Bakula as Captain Archer, and all three series and ten movies in between.

Old hands at sci fi chronology know well that placing the ten pre-Abrams Star Trek films within a canonically sensible order is no easy task. Nor is the division of the later seasons of Star Trek: The Next Generation, and its sequel/spin-offs Deep Space Nine and Voyager, which are all set more or less concurrently. However, the brave heroes at STCP have been hard at work with their captain’s log decoders, and the fruits of their labor are truly glorious.

A brief caveat: notably absent from the Star Trek Chronology Project are the novelizations, comic books, and animated series, all of questionable canonicity: this project exists only to codify the central live action canon, which standing alone paints a more than complete enough picture of this rich and engaging universe of the distant future.

I recommend taking advantage of the site’s detailed and intriguing look behind the curtain, revealing every aspect of their ordering methodology — a truly fascinating read by all accounts. Engage!

3 Comments

Hello TROglodyte’s and welcome to Vol. 3 of Lee’s Pull List! The all-sensational, super fantastic guide to the overwhelmingly crowded world of comic book publishing. Disclaimer time! All titles are paperback unless otherwise noted and the suggested retail price is just that: suggested. All of the dates are approximate and subject to change so you should always check with your local comic shop before planning your purchase. Side effects may include, but are not limited to: giddiness, blissful joy and anxiety over which awesome books to buy and which to sleep on.

Without further ado and absolutely no fan fare we begin!

MARVEL

Uncanny X-Force Vol. 6: Final Execution Vol. 1

Ok, first things first: I generally write this column to highlight books that look cool, but, I’m going to use this time to gripe a little. Do we really need two volumes in the title? I realize the Vol. 6 is not necessarily in the official title, but, it still makes for a slightly redundant mouthful. My Comic Shop has taken it upon themselves to remove the second Vol. from the title and call it Part 1, Amazon and Indigo have called it Book 1 and Things From Another World is rocking the Vol. still. As for the book itself things are sounding a little ‘been there, done that’. It might be the end of the team, (how come teams are always on the verge of ending?), a new Brotherhood of Evil Mutants is deadlier-than-ever, (how can they always be deadlier than the last time? when are they just a regular, old threat?) and apparently their new attacks have been designed to hurt each member personally. Oh ya, the head of the Evil Mutants also knows all their weaknesses which doesn’t surprise me at all. Hopefully the actual writing is better then the plot.

SRP: 19.99
Contains: Uncanny X-Force #25-29
Indigo, Amazon – April 23
My Comic Shop, Things From Another World – April 10

Road To Oz (HC)

Delivering Vol. 5 in a series of adaptations of the classic Oz books Marvel once again enlists Eric Shanower and Skottie Young to take the fanciful words and ideas of L. Frank Baum and give them life in four color panels. Anyone who’s read the first four and enjoyed them will surely jump on board for another outing. And for anyone who’s just curious, this is as good a place to start as any since we’re all pretty familiar with the story of Dorothy and Toto by now.

SRP: 24.99
Contains: Road To Oz #1-6
Indigo, Amazon – April 23
TFAW, MCS – April 10

Marvel’s Iron Man 3: Prelude

There’s not one, not two, not even three, but, seven books coming out this month with Tony Stark’s affluent paws all over them, including a prose adaptation of Warren Ellis’ Iron Man: Extremis and, randomly, Iron Man 2020. Do you think they’re trying to capitalize on a new movie coming out? Maybe just a little. As you’d expect this is a quickly thrown together book that includes a two part adaptation of Iron Man 2 and a prelude to Iron Man 3. If you absolutely have to have everything featuring the metal-suited avenger then you’ll be getting this. The rest of us probably don’t need to bother and our money would be much better spent on the aforementioned Extremis, which is making it’s trade debut the same day as the prose novel.

SRP: 14.99
Contains: Iron Man 2 #1-2, Iron Man 3 Prelude #1-2
Indigo, Amazon – April 9
TFAW, MCS – April 11

Marvel Masterworks: The Incredible Hulk Vol. 7 (HC)

Sifting through countless X titles, Avengers books and a multitude of Iron Man titles I was hard pressed to find a fourth feature. Then I saw this little beauty. Just over 250 pages of classic, Hulk-smashing action featured in a classy hardcover volume. Sure beats random one-offs from Spider-Man or reading about Venom being a hero, (what?!!). There’s really not much that needs to be said – this one sells itself. Also check out, Marvel Masterworks: The Mighty Thor Vol. 4 coming out in paperback on the 24th for a more wallet friendly $25.

SRP: 69.99
Contains: Incredible Hulk (1st series) #135-144, Avengers (1st series) #88, Marvel Super Heroes (1st series) #16
Indigo, Amazon – April 30 (you can save almost $30 by waiting)
TFAW, MCS – April 17

DC

Punk Rock Jesus

I agonized on whether or not to include this, but, in the end I had to. Just read the title, look at the cover art! How could I not? Putting forth what sounds like a highly blasphemous mini-series DC decided to give Vertigo the honors publishing it under their banner , which makes a lot of sense. Apparently an American-Idol style show is used to decide who the mother of the new messiah will be and apparently he grows up to be an angsty teenager who captivates the nation with his punk rock antics. Does this sound f*&^%d? Absolutely! Does it also sound entertaining as hell? Sweet Jesus yes! Can I get an Amen, brothers and sisters?!

SRP: 16.99
Contains: Punk Rock Jesus #1-6 and 10 new pages of story
Indigo, Amazon – April 9
TFAW, MCS – April 3

DC Universe by Alan Moore

This is basically an expanded re-release of the awesome DC Universe: The Stories of Alan Moore. Anyone who hasn’t read that yet, (whoever that could possibly be), needs to jump on this. Anyone who has read it may want to think about replacing their, I’m assuming, worn out copy. In addition to everything in the first version there is a Voodoo mini-series he wrote for Image in the mid 90‘s and a Deathblow mini-series from ‘99. I’m seriously considering getting this even though my bank account wishes I wouldn’t.

SRP: 24.99
Contains: 464 pages of 80‘s and 90‘s awesomeness from one of the greats.
Indigo, Amazon – April 9
TFAW, MCS – April 3

Worlds’ Finest Vol. 1: The Lost Daughters Of Earth 2

Featuring Power Girl and Huntress, (the titular daughters of Earth 2), this New 52 title shows how they came to be stranded on our Earth through flashback while showing them working together in the present to stop the Irradiated Man. Featuring art by George Perez and Kevin Maguire and words by Paul Levitz it’s definitely got some star power behind it. Let’s hope it all adds up to something awesome cause a book with Power Girl and Huntress, on paper, doesn’t sound like it’ll work, but, I’m still intrigued enough to add it to my pull list.

SRP: 14.99
Contains: Worlds Finest (3rd series) #0-5
Indigo, Amazon – April 16
TFAW, MCS – April 3

The Flash Chronicles Vol. 4

Collecting old Flash adventures in chronological order this is essentially a fancier version of Showcase Presents. For the uninitiated Showcase Presents is budge re-prints of Gold and Silver age adventures featuring some of DC’s biggest names. They are a cheap way to collect massive amounts of back issues with each book being roughly 500 pages. The chronicles are basically the same thing, but, they have the issues in full color, which, for some of us, is a big deal and can add to the over all enjoyment. Both the Showcase books and the Chronicle books are roughly the same price so it’s really personal preference as owning both books would be redundant.

SRP: 14.99
Contains: Flash (1st series) #119-124
Indigo, Amazon – April 16
TFAW, MCS – April 10

INDIES

Army Of Darkness Omnibus Vol. 3 (HC)

Tales of Heroism gone absolutely wrong is how Dynamite chooses to describe this third Omnibus and considering the source material that sounds absolutely correct. For those of us who couldn’t get enough of the Sam Raimi classic Dynamite has been nursing our wounds since 2004, so, by this point, they probably know what they’re doing. Like the previous volumes this one also includes a beautifully gory cover gallery for further pervasive delight.

Publisher: Dynamite
SRP: 29.99
Contains: Army of Darkness (3rd series) #13-27
Indigo, Amazon – May 7
TFAW, MCS – April 24

Fanboys Vs. Zombies Vol. 2

Similar to Punk Rock Jesus this one got me from the title and begged me to find out more. It sounds like fairly routine zombie territory: plague of the undead trapping a group of survivors somewhere, in this case the somewhere is the San Diego Comic-Con and the group of survivors are, well, nerds. Sounds like it’ll be full of meta-rific jokes, puns and one-liners backed with enough gore to fill a dump truck.  Maybe I should be more sophisticated or discerning in my choices but I chuckled at the cover, a take on a classic Walking Dead issue.  This seems to be a continuation to what was laid down in Vol. 1 so you might want to start there.

Publisher: Boom! Studios
SRP: 14.99
Contains: Fanboys Vs. Zombies #5-8
Indigo, Amazon – May 7
TFAW, MCS – April 24

Aliens: Inhuman Condition (HC)

I know I shouldn’t like this or even care, but, I can’t help myself. Anything with even the slightest hint of a link to the 20th Century Fox property and I’m instantly intrigued. This one also has art by Sam Keith and the story by Chew author, John Layman, so I’m extra curious. The plot has something to do with androids being manufactured in secret and sent out to be tested against a hive of Xeno’s while their maker begins to wonder who’s more brutal – man or Xenomorph. Sounds…well, it sounds kind of lame to be honest, but, I don’t care. I want it. It seems to include 5 issues but only equals about 60 pages so I’m assuming this story was printed about 10-12 pages at a time as a second feature. Either way, I can’t wait to see what Sam Keith does with Xenomorphs.

Publisher: Dark Horse
SRP: 10.99
Contains: Material from Dark Horse Presents #12-17
Indigo, Amazon – May 7
TFAW, MCS – April 10

Mars Attacks IDW

At first I thought this was just a typo, of sorts, but, upon further research it’s exactly what the title says. The martians from Mars Attacks invade different properties from IDW. Goofy? Yes. But, that’s what we’ve come to expect from Mars Attacks and if it isn’t then apparentely I’ve completely missed the point. If you want to see what the martians do when they’re faced with Popeye, Kiss, Real Ghostbusters, Transformers and Zombies Vs. Robots then this is the book for you. Everyone else need not apply.

Publisher: IDW
SRP: 19.99
Contains: 162 pages of attack-tion
Indigo, Amazon – April 30
TFAW, MCS – April 17

2 Comments

Hello faithful TRO-ites! Welcome to another edition, or Vol. 2 as I affectionately call it, of Lee’s Pull List (not to be confused with my tug list, which, as I’m sure you can imagine, is something else entirely and not suitable for print on this, or any other, website). Since nobody had anything to say about last months column I can only assume I knocked it out of the park in a stunning display of wit, knowledge and know how. Also, all titles are paperback unless otherwise noted and the suggested retail price is just that: suggested. And, the same as last months column, all of the dates are approximate and subject to change so you should always check with your local comic shop before assuming I don’t know what I’m talking about, (all though, in some cases, you would be right in assuming that).

Without further adieu and absolutely no fan fare we begin!

MARVEL

Marvel Zombies Destroy!

This is the 11th, yes 11th, volume in a series that has now included a Christmas Special, (what the what?!), a crossover with another property and a collection of just covers. I initially assumed MZ would run it’s course after a few collections and a few laughs. Apparently I don’t know squirt. Or zombies are just that danged popular. Insert the obvious jokes about the Marvel Zombies never dying, or being undead if you will, and I think that about wraps up my write up.

SRP: 19.99
Contains: Marvel Zombies: Destory #1-5
Indigo, Amazon – March 19th
Things From Another World, My Comic Shop – March 6th

Kick-Ass 2

Coming to paperback a few months before the movie hits theaters so all the fan boys who couldn’t, or wouldn’t, buy the hardcover can claim they know more then everyone else. Apparently this was written after the first movie was successful so the sequel would have a superior product to butcher. I kid, I kid. Or do I? I guess we’ll just have to find out. The first book and movie were both quite….awesome, (you thought I was going to say kick ass didn’t you? don’t lie, I know you did), so, hopefully this one is as well. On a side note, there’s a prelude book coming out for Hit Girl as well. Not sure if that will tie in to the upcoming movie or not.

SRP: 19.99
Contains: Kick-Ass 2 #1-7
Indigo, Amazon – April 9th
TFAW, MCS – March 27th

Invincible Iron Man Vol. 10: Long Way Down

When I bought issue one of Matt Fraction’s fantastic run on Iron Man I did it mostly for the kinda cool, kinda stupid, photo cover featuring Robert Downey Jr. I knew very little about Iron Man and had just finished watching the movie for the first of many times. Fraction wowed me with his ability to take a movie universe and breath life in to it after the celluloid ran out, something I can only assume is not easy to do. Somewhere along the way I lost touch of what was going on with Fraction’s Iron Man but I’m glad to see he’s still pumping them out. I doubt this would the best place to start if you’re curious about what he’s doing as it sounds like he’s got quite an involved story going, but, if you want to read some Iron Man adventures you could do a lot worse than Matt Fraction’s take. Side note, there’s a Vol. 3 of Fraction’s version of Thor coming out this month as well.

SRP: 16.99
Contains: Invincible Iron Man #516-520 (a few trades ago they jumped out of sequence and started numbering them from 500 onward, not sure why)
Indigo, Amazon – April 2nd
TFAW, MCS – March 20th

(not the final image)

Avengers vs. X-Men

Roll call: Jason Aaron, Brian Michael Bendis, Matt Fraction, Ed Brubaker, John Romita Jr., Ed McGuiness, Adam Kubert and more. If that list of names alone doesn’t make your mouth water with the possibilities then there is very little I can do for you and chances are you’re on the wrong website. It’s an all out brawl between some of Marvel’s top tier characters: Iron Man vs. Magneto; Captain America vs. Gambit; Spider-Man vs. Colossus etc. etc. Very cool. I can’t really seem to find out what the story is about per se because most write-ups are filled with a lot of buzz phrases like ‘landmark event’, ‘ultimate showdown’, ‘world changing epic’, ‘pop-culture wet dream’…ok, that last one was me. But, I mean, who cares really? We just want to see the fights!

SRP: 34.99
Contains: Avengers vs. X-Men (2012) #0-12 and some material from Point One (2011)
Indigo, Amazon – April 16th
TFAW, MCS – March 27th

DC

The Sleeper Omnibus (HC)

Ed Brubaker and Sean Phillips have become synonymous with hard-boiled, pitch-black crime fiction in the comic book world and for anyone enamored with Criminal this omnibus is sure to be another treasured edition. It’s very hard to talk about the book or the plot without fear of giving away some crucial twist. It is set in the Wildstorm universe and there is a few super-heroes flying around, but they are by no means the crux of the story. If you’re looking for an antidote to capes, tights and cowls then this might be the place for you to start.

SRP: 75.00
Contains: Point Blank #1-5, Sleeper: Season 1 #1-12, Sleeper: Season 2 #1-12, Coup Detat and Coup Detat Afterword
Indigo, Amazon – March 5th
TFAW, MCS – Feb. 27th

Superman: The Death And Return Omnibus (HC)

Continuing with their expanded re-pressings of landmark DC events (see: Knightfall re-release), we are now graced with over 1000 pages collecting, arguably, one of the biggest events in comic book history. For anyone who hasn’t read it or wants to experience the earth-shattering carnage of Doomsday all over again this is the perfect way to do it. And for anyone who can’t get enough Doomsday/Supes action the Reign Of Doomsday story line is coming to paperback at the beginning of the month. You’re all ready spending 100 dollars, so, what’s 15 more?

SRP: 99.99
Contains: The Death Of.., World Without A.. and The Return Of.. trades plus “bonus material”
Indigo, Amazon – March 26th
TFAW, MCS – March 20th

Day Of Judgment

Finally! OMG, yes! Now I can retire my single issues and get the beautiful trade that my collection sorely deserves. Back before Geoff Johns was Mr. DC he was just a guy writing good stories, and this was one of his first. Working with Scott Beaty and featuring the Hal Jordan version of the Spectre in a key roll this is a story that sounded hokey on paper, (something about hell fire and demons and tortured souls), but was awesome in execution and gave us a hint of what GJ was capable of. If you’re a fan of Geoff Johns or epics starring the Justice League then you’ll all ready want this. If you’re not then I’m not sure why you’re still reading this.

SRP: 14.99
Contains: Day of Judgment #1-5 and Day of Judgment Secret Files
Indigo, Amazon – April 2nd
TFAW, MCS – March 27th

Batwing Vol. 2: In The Shadows Of The Ancients

In response to Uncle Gorby’s essay this month, and for my unabashed love of all things Bat, I’ve decided to include the second volume of Batwing. Spawning from Batman Inc. and kept alive by the overwhelming popularity of the Bat this second volume features material that ties in to The Court Of Owls with Batwing coming to Gotham. Written by Judd Winnick, (love him!) and featuring awesomely slick art by Dustin Nguyen this volume should be a winner and will, hopefully, let Batwing’s run continue because apparently he’s part of a quickly dying breed.

SRP: 14.99
Contains: Batwing #0, #7-12
Indigo, Amazon – April 2nd
TFAW, MCS – March 27th

INDIES

Chew Omnivore Edition Vol. 3 (HC)

For those of us who like to take big mouthfuls of story comes Vol. 3 of the Chew Omnibus, or “Omnivore Editions” as they have so cleverly called it. If you’re looking for Vol. 3 chances are you’re all ready familiar with the story of cibopathic detective Tony Chu. Essentially, he’s a man who runs around munching on dead people to find out who killed them. This may leave a bad taste in the mouth for some, but, for other’s it’s a sweet treat. If you’re the latter, grab Vol. 1 and enjoy one of the most bizzare detective stories ever told in sequential format.  Also, see the review for Vol. 1 of the trades for more information on whether this is the right meal for you.  I think I’ve just about had my fill of eating related puns, so, that’s my cue to move on.

Publisher: Image
SRP: 34.99
Indigo, Amazon – March 26th
TFAW, MCS – March 13th

Vampire Hunter D Vol. 19: Mercenary Road

When did Dark Horse start pumping out so much manga? About half of their output this month is related or inspired by anime/manga products. I mean, if it works for them, have at it. I was just surprised to see it. As for the story, it’s something to do with bank robbers, bounty hunters and an army. Looks like somebody will need D to help them clean up the mess. Not sure if there’s any actual vampire hunting per se, but, if you’re looking to buy Vol. 19 I’d say you’re probably invested in the story and characters either way.

Publisher: Dark Horse
SRP: 11.99
Contains: 160 pages of b&w Japanese fury
Indigo, Amazon – March 19th
TFAW, MCS – March 6th

Jennifer Blood Vol. 3: Neither Tarnished Nor Afraid

Now that we’re all done drooling over the beautiful cover by Tim Bradstreet, may I continue?  Thank you.  I love Garth Ennis. I may not have read all his stuff, but what I have read has been unique, emotional and over the top: equal parts fun and frustration, but, always entertaining and original. Now, apparently Ennis only wrote the first two volumes on this comic which feels like a riff on the Punisher with a female perspective, but, the man himself says his replacement, Al Ewing, is more than up to the task having penned the second volume with him. Since it’s the beginning of a new arc with a new writer this could be a good starting point for anyone curious, but, let’s face it – if you’re going to read this you might as well get the first two volumes written by such a unique talent. And for those who scoff at Ennis leaving the book and letting someone else take the reigns – get over it.  Everybody deserves a shot.

Publisher: Dynamite
SRP: 19.99
Contains: Jennifer Blood #13-18
Indigo, Amazon – March 26th
TFAW, MCS – March 13th

Ghostbusters Vol. 4: Who Ya Gonna Call?!

When I first saw the title of the fourth story by Erik Burnham I thought, “Well, that seems a little obvious” and then I read the plot outline and it’s actually kind of clever. Apparently, there’s a new group of supernatural investigation and elimination specialists setting up shop in the Big Apple and they’re stealing all of the ‘Busters work! But all is not as it seems, (when is it ever?), and Egon begins to worry that these new specialists haven’t thought everything through. Can the Ghostbusters talk some sense in to them? Or is it going to be an all out brawl? By the looks of it these are self-contained stories and not issues that form arcs re-printed. So, if you’re curious as to what’s going on in the comic book world of the Ghostbusters this is as good a place as any to start.

Publisher: IDW
SRP: 17.99
Contains: 104 pages of four color, Ghostbusting action.
Indigo, Amazon – March 26th
TFAW, MCS – March 13th

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