Stories from Collected Editions
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Review: Flash: The Road to Flashpoint hardcover/paperback (DC Comics)
Collected Editions &bull Dec 13, 2011
If it's possible for a book to be exceptional and significantly disappointing at the same time, Flash: The Road to Flashpoint is that book. The story is action-packed and emotionally complex, and beautiful, to boot; however, it fails as the next volume in the Flash series, if not also as a lead in to the Flashpoint crossover. Knowledgeable readers won't find what they're looking for here, and the casual reader is likely to be confused.[Contains spoilers] A word, first, about the art of Francis Manapul. His airy pencils will always be synonymous for me with his depiction of rural Smallville… Full Story »
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Review: Doctor 13: Architecture and Mortality trade paperback (DC Comics)
Collected Editions &bull Dec 5, 2011
In the wake of Doctor 13 and his daughter Traci's role in Flashpoint: The World of Flashpoint (an event which I followed in single issues, because the way it was to be collected hadn't been made clear then), and with Brian Azzarello and Cliff Chiang reuniting on Wonder Woman in the New 52, I knew all I needed to know before adding Doctor 13: Architecture and Mortality to the list for my weekly visit to my LCS. With the DCnU now upon us, the book is strikingly relevant when it explores characters left behind, but for a book that's all… Full Story »
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Review: Showcase Presents: Booster Gold paperback (DC Comics)
Collected Editions &bull Dec 1, 2011
The compulsions of the father are visited on the son, at least in Booster Gold's original iteration. In the twenty-five issues of the character's original series collected in Showcase Presents: Booster Gold, writer and creator Dan Jurgens never comes out and says so, but that Booster has inherited his father's gambling addiction is implicit in the beginning, and in the end. Over the course of the book, Booster would seem to gain some insight into the pitfalls of his relentless pursuit of fortune, but not enough for him to mend the error of his ways; he is wiser, but not… Full Story »
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Review: Justice League: Generation Lost Vol. 2 hardcover/paperback (DC Comics)
Collected Editions &bull Nov 28, 2011
We now know that the first collection of Judd Winick's DC New 52 Catwoman series will arrive in May 2012, and I'm very curious to read the first arc in one book. We know from Winick's Green Arrow and especially from his Outsiders that Winick is not someone who writes without consciousness or thought, and I would like to see if I can find some semblance of that in Catwoman outside of mere pruriency (my outside guess right now is that Winick's Catwoman is a twisted exploration of cosplay culture -- just a guess). I'm all the more interested in… Full Story »
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Review: The Torch hardcover/paperback (Marvel/Dynamite)
Collected Editions &bull Nov 24, 2011
I am always a little leery of series produced by two publishers. Too often, they can lead to a muddied product that doesn't stand out as belonging in either company's catalog, but The Torch, this joint venture of Dynamite and Marvel, is really quite well done. I'm not sure when Alex Ross became the go-to guy for all Golden Age characters, but since he has that role, it makes sense that he's responsible for plotting and character design in this trade. Mike Carey's character-based scripting really brings this story to life.[Contains spoilers] Contrary to what you'd expect, the lead characters… Full Story »
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Review: Superman/Batman: Worship trade paperback (DC Comics)
Collected Editions &bull Nov 21, 2011
I have been wary of these Superman/Batman books of late. With no ties intentionally to continuity and a mission just to "tell stories," the individual issues have tended to be hit or miss -- there's some gems among Mike Johnson and Michael Green's Superman/Batman: Night and Day, but Joe Kelly's Big Noise overall disappointed. Continuity is not the be-all and end-all, of course, but at times this title seems aimless.Superman/Batman: Worship gave me special pause not only because it seemed to be one of these disconnected stories (this turns out not to be the case), but also because former DC… Full Story »
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Trade Perspectives: Here Come the New 52 Collections, Same as the Old 52 Collections ...
Collected Editions &bull Nov 17, 2011
I'm doubly excited to start reading DC Comics's New 52 collections ever since they released the details last week. And now that DC's plans are more clear -- the Flashpoint books in March, and then the New 52 staggered about seven per month for the rest of the year -- 2012 is shaping up to be a very exciting year. That said, when I sit back and look at it all, I find myself a bit ... Where are the deluxe editions with flashing lights and moving covers? Where are the hardcovers? Seriously -- where are the hardcovers? Just over… Full Story »
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DC Trade Solicits for February 2012: Flashpoint details, Absolute Final Crisis, Batman Incorporated, New Teen Titans Omnibus Vol. 2
Collected Editions &bull Nov 16, 2011
DC Trade Solicits for February 2012: Flashpoint details, Absolute Final Crisis, Batman Incorporated, New Teen Titans Omnibus Vol. Still enjoying DC Comics's new habit of teasing out their solicitations all day on the Source blog -- you get single-issue appetizers throughout the day, and then a big helping of trade collections at 5 pm. It's a good day -- and an interesting set of collected comics this month. Here's what caught my eye:* Absolute Final Crisis Some will be disappointed that this book does not include the Batman tie-in issues; I am not one of those people. Different than Superman… Full Story »
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Review: Birds of Prey: The Death of Oracle hardcover/paperback (DC Comics)
Collected Editions &bull Nov 14, 2011
Birds of Prey: The Death of Oracle marks the beginning of the end of the DC Universe as we know it. If memory isn't failing me, this is the first book reviewed here that presents the final issues of a title before the Flashpoint/DC New 52 relaunch (a variety of cancellations notwithstanding). There's still a ways to go before we reach the New 52, with the final collections of certain pre-Flashpoint titles arriving even as late as May of next year, but this Birds of Prey trade marks the beginning of the old DC Universe putting the chairs up on… Full Story »
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New 52 hardcovers solicited on DC Comics Source blog
Collected Editions &bull Nov 9, 2011
As just announced on the DC Source blog, the 52 new DC Comics series will be released as collections between May and November 2012. Missing on the list (thanks Yonatan) is Wonder Woman. I have to guess that this is an oversight or details on Wonder Woman are just forthcoming, and not that DC is not publishing a collection of this series. Most of the $22.99 books are hardcover, except Blue Beetle, where you'll pay $22.99 for seven issues of Blue Beetle in paperback but only $14.99 for seven issues of another "Young Justice" title, Teen Titans, also in paperback.… Full Story »
