My October comics will arrive a little bit late, so in the meantime I thought it would be a good idea to share with you the selection process that allows me to choose the most promising titles each month. First of all, everything begins with the monthly solicitations.
I check each and every one of them, and I make a quick list of those titles that immediately capture my attention. So let’s start in alphabetical order:
AVATAR PRESS - I’m picking up Providence # 5 (the only difficult part here is choosing which one of the 6 variant covers I like the most). If I had a bigger budget I would definitely include Mercury Heat and Crossed + 100 Hundred.
BOOM! STUDIOS - I’m adding Strange Fruit #3 to my list. I would really like to check out Rowans Ruin #1 and Fiction Squad TP.
DARK HORSE COMICS - I love anthologies so Creepy Comics and Dark Horse Presents would be on my list. If I had some extra money I would buy Osamu Tezuka's Astro Boy Omnibus, The EC Archives: Weird Science Volume 1 HC and Nexus: Into the Past and Other Stories TP. I would also give Barb Wire, Past Aways, Power Cube and Fight Club a try.
DC COMICS - I’m interested in Vertigo’s new series, such as The Twilight Children #1 and especially Art Ops #1. I would also consider buying the following comics: Midnighter #5, All-Star Section Eight #5 and Astro City #28. If I had a larger budget, then I would get my hands on Luthor TP, Batman Illustrated By Neal Adams Omnibus HC, The League Of Extraordinary Gentlemen: Kevin O’Neill Gallery Edition HC and Swamp Thing: Darker Genesis TP.
DYNAMITE ENTERTAINMENT - The Spirit looks interesting. Again, if I had a bigger budget perhaps I would include A Train Called Love.
IDW PUBLISHING - D4VE2 #2 looks good, and if I had some extra dollars I’d get League of Extraordinary Gentlemen: Nemo Trilogy Slipcase Edition.
IMAGE COMICS - I’m definitely buying We Stand On Guard #4 and Paper Girls #1. I might check out Axcend and Black Magic. Things I would get if I had a larger budget: Injection, Vol. 1 TP, Island Magazine #4, Sex Criminals #15, CBLDF Presents Liberty Annual 2015, Phonogram: The Immaterial Girl #3 and Tokyo Ghost #2.
MARVEL COMICS - I’m getting two comics for sure: Doctor Strange #1 and Miracleman By Gaiman & Buckingham #3. If I had some extra money I would get these as well: Marvel Masterworks: Daredevil Vol. 10 HC, Marvel Masterworks: The Champions Vol. 1 HC, The Uncanny X-Men Omnibus Vol. 3 HC, Moon Knight Epic Collection: Shadows Of The Moon TPB and Silver Surfer Epic Collection: Freedom TPB.
Of course, at some point I actually have to sit down and do all the math. And the numbers don’t add up. I mean, they would, if I had more money in my account. So out of the 15 trade paperbacks and hardcover editions I mentioned I end up getting 0, and out of the 31 issues I talked about I end up with the staggering amount of 6 issues. Go figure. Story of my life.
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Last month, when I was checking Marvel’s solicitations I stumbled upon a big surprise: Marvel Universe By John Byrne Omnibus HC. “Enjoy Byrne's definitive takes on icons like Captain America, the Hulk, the Avengers, Wolverine and the Silver Surfer, as well as Black Widow and her fellow Champions! Plus: Watch as Byrne helps build the legend of Star-Lord, unite Luke Cage and Iron Fist, and introduce an astonishing new Ant-Man! Collecting CHAMPIONS #11-15, MARVEL PREVIEW #11, AVENGERS (1963) #164-166 and #181-191, POWER MAN #48-50, MARVEL PREMIERE #47-48, CAPTAIN AMERICA (1968) #247-255, SILVER SURFER (1982) #1, INCREDIBLE HULK (1968) #314-319, WOLVERINE (1988) #17-23, and material from MARVEL FANFARE (1982) #29”.
I immediately looked online for all the issues that would be reprinted in this massive hardcover. I looked for the cheapest editions available. The Avengers issues range from $1.35 to $21.50; Captain America issues range from $1.35 to $6; Champions issues go from $2.80 to $8.60; The Incredible Hulk issues don’t go over $2.80; however, the 2 issues of Marvel Premiere sell for about $70 in total; the situation is even worse with Marvel Preview, that goes for at least $50; Marvel Fanfare is only $1.35, though; Power Man issues range from $35 to $45; Silver Surfer is only $3; and finally Wolverine issues go from $1.35 to $2.60. So if I were to buy all the original issues I would have to pay $407.71. That’s a huge amount of money. But guess what? The Marvel Omnibus has a cover price of only $125. That means that for a fraction of what I would spend elsewhere I get to enjoy all those hidden John Byrne stories that I’ve never had the chance to read. So I’m seriously considering getting this omnibus, it will be the first one in my collection. Will it fit into my shelves? Will it be too heavy to hold it in my hands while I read it?
So now my final question is… how do you make your budget work? How do you decide which comics to buy?
I check each and every one of them, and I make a quick list of those titles that immediately capture my attention. So let’s start in alphabetical order:
AVATAR PRESS - I’m picking up Providence # 5 (the only difficult part here is choosing which one of the 6 variant covers I like the most). If I had a bigger budget I would definitely include Mercury Heat and Crossed + 100 Hundred.
BOOM! STUDIOS - I’m adding Strange Fruit #3 to my list. I would really like to check out Rowans Ruin #1 and Fiction Squad TP.
DARK HORSE COMICS - I love anthologies so Creepy Comics and Dark Horse Presents would be on my list. If I had some extra money I would buy Osamu Tezuka's Astro Boy Omnibus, The EC Archives: Weird Science Volume 1 HC and Nexus: Into the Past and Other Stories TP. I would also give Barb Wire, Past Aways, Power Cube and Fight Club a try.
DC COMICS - I’m interested in Vertigo’s new series, such as The Twilight Children #1 and especially Art Ops #1. I would also consider buying the following comics: Midnighter #5, All-Star Section Eight #5 and Astro City #28. If I had a larger budget, then I would get my hands on Luthor TP, Batman Illustrated By Neal Adams Omnibus HC, The League Of Extraordinary Gentlemen: Kevin O’Neill Gallery Edition HC and Swamp Thing: Darker Genesis TP.
DYNAMITE ENTERTAINMENT - The Spirit looks interesting. Again, if I had a bigger budget perhaps I would include A Train Called Love.
IDW PUBLISHING - D4VE2 #2 looks good, and if I had some extra dollars I’d get League of Extraordinary Gentlemen: Nemo Trilogy Slipcase Edition.
IMAGE COMICS - I’m definitely buying We Stand On Guard #4 and Paper Girls #1. I might check out Axcend and Black Magic. Things I would get if I had a larger budget: Injection, Vol. 1 TP, Island Magazine #4, Sex Criminals #15, CBLDF Presents Liberty Annual 2015, Phonogram: The Immaterial Girl #3 and Tokyo Ghost #2.
MARVEL COMICS - I’m getting two comics for sure: Doctor Strange #1 and Miracleman By Gaiman & Buckingham #3. If I had some extra money I would get these as well: Marvel Masterworks: Daredevil Vol. 10 HC, Marvel Masterworks: The Champions Vol. 1 HC, The Uncanny X-Men Omnibus Vol. 3 HC, Moon Knight Epic Collection: Shadows Of The Moon TPB and Silver Surfer Epic Collection: Freedom TPB.
Of course, at some point I actually have to sit down and do all the math. And the numbers don’t add up. I mean, they would, if I had more money in my account. So out of the 15 trade paperbacks and hardcover editions I mentioned I end up getting 0, and out of the 31 issues I talked about I end up with the staggering amount of 6 issues. Go figure. Story of my life.
Last month, when I was checking Marvel’s solicitations I stumbled upon a big surprise: Marvel Universe By John Byrne Omnibus HC. “Enjoy Byrne's definitive takes on icons like Captain America, the Hulk, the Avengers, Wolverine and the Silver Surfer, as well as Black Widow and her fellow Champions! Plus: Watch as Byrne helps build the legend of Star-Lord, unite Luke Cage and Iron Fist, and introduce an astonishing new Ant-Man! Collecting CHAMPIONS #11-15, MARVEL PREVIEW #11, AVENGERS (1963) #164-166 and #181-191, POWER MAN #48-50, MARVEL PREMIERE #47-48, CAPTAIN AMERICA (1968) #247-255, SILVER SURFER (1982) #1, INCREDIBLE HULK (1968) #314-319, WOLVERINE (1988) #17-23, and material from MARVEL FANFARE (1982) #29”.
I immediately looked online for all the issues that would be reprinted in this massive hardcover. I looked for the cheapest editions available. The Avengers issues range from $1.35 to $21.50; Captain America issues range from $1.35 to $6; Champions issues go from $2.80 to $8.60; The Incredible Hulk issues don’t go over $2.80; however, the 2 issues of Marvel Premiere sell for about $70 in total; the situation is even worse with Marvel Preview, that goes for at least $50; Marvel Fanfare is only $1.35, though; Power Man issues range from $35 to $45; Silver Surfer is only $3; and finally Wolverine issues go from $1.35 to $2.60. So if I were to buy all the original issues I would have to pay $407.71. That’s a huge amount of money. But guess what? The Marvel Omnibus has a cover price of only $125. That means that for a fraction of what I would spend elsewhere I get to enjoy all those hidden John Byrne stories that I’ve never had the chance to read. So I’m seriously considering getting this omnibus, it will be the first one in my collection. Will it fit into my shelves? Will it be too heavy to hold it in my hands while I read it?
So now my final question is… how do you make your budget work? How do you decide which comics to buy?