DC, in addition to collecting the books it publishes, goes into its back archives on a regular basis to turn up books of interest that can be hard to find. So what’s it got coming up in its Collected Editions line? Everything from Nightwing to Shazam; here’s what’s coming and when you can get it.
The softcover version of these digital comics arrives, and honestly, if you haven’t picked these up already they’ll be worth a read, especially the hilarious story riffing on the alternate skins you can get in the game.
The Flash is one of the better books of the New 52, with Francis Manapul and Brian Buccellato clearly enjoying themselves and managing to do right by a difficult legacy character, Barry Allen. So it’s good we’ll be able to get a chance to catch u-, er… get up to spee-uh…, read the first arc in one place.
This actually goes way back, to the ’80s with Marv Wolfman on writing duties and Erik Larsen, Tom Mandrake, and other artists drawing Grayson. Collecting the back-up stories in Action Comics, this features Nightwing and Speedy teaming up to go after Cheshire. Fans already know the twist in this story, but it’s hard to hunt down, and this will fill a gap in a lot of Nightwing collections.
Despite the title, the Silence of The Lambs riff featuring Vandal Savage isn’t the only story in this book: You’ll also find stories of Kid Flash, Hawk and Dove, and the sorely missed O.M.A.C., among others, in this collection.
This collects John Stewart’s early stories as he beats up Hal, faces down Eclipso, and generally reminds us why he was such a bad-ass in the Justice League cartoon. Plus, it’s always fun to see work from guys like Steve Englehart and Len Wein.
This wrap-up volume collects the remaining issues of J.T. Krul and Freddie Williams II’s work on this New 52 launch title, and answers a few pressing questions about just why a man would subject himself to such a risky experiment.
Collecting the Legion end of a wide-ranging crossover, let’s just say The Culling is not something that the lost Legionnaires particularly enjoy. Tom DeFalco writing a Legion book, on the other hand, is always welcome, even if it’s not in the 31st century.
This not only collects DC’s reboot of the odd ’80s fantasy book Amethyst, but also the back-up stories as well, featuring Beowulf and Stalker and making this book well worth picking up; no matter what your taste in fantasy, you’ll probably find something you like.
This collects all of the Kirby series in all of its glory. Being as it’s a Jack Kirby comic, and that it comes from DC in the ’70s, and Kirby was supposedly just finishing out his DC contract, the result is actually a rather bizarre series that anticipated the ’80s cyberpunk movement in science fiction in a few ways, not least in its rather pointed themes of the little guy profoundly alienated by working for a large corporation. If you’re not familiar with it, there’s a reason it’s been a cult series ever since: It’s well worth a read.
This book follows a rogue assassin from the Court of Owls as he tries to live a normal life and/or bump off what’s left of the Court of Owls so he can actually live a normal life. It also fleshes out the Court of Owls a bit, giving us more of a look at just how nasty they really are. And yes, it’s worse than you think!
Collecting all the GL books contained in this arc, it’s a solid piece anchored by Geoff Johns and supported quite well by writers like Peter Tomasi, Peter Milligan, and Tony Bedard. Also, it finally confirms what we knew all along: Never, ever trust a Smurf with god-like power.
Jim Aparo was a revolutionary artist in comics, with a focus on a more realistic design and presentation in the ’70s and ’80s defining and inspiring artists for decades, and largely defining Batman in the ’70s. So getting a chance to enjoy that art again is great news. This collects team-ups Aparo worked on in The Brave and The Bold, from issues #123-145 and #147-151, and features his takes on Wonder Woman, Aquaman, Deadman, Hawkman, and more.
What, you haven’t been reading our rants about Brian Azzarello and Cliff Chiang’s amazing run on this book? We’ll spare you more of them: Go buy this book.
Collects issues #12-#17, and #0, as Batwoman deals with Wondy, the DEO, the Religion of Crime, and dating Maggie Sawyer. The Religion of Crime in particular is a cheesy concept handled in a clever way by J.H. Williams and W. Haden Blackman, and if you haven’t been following this book, it’ll be worth picking up.
Collecting the arc from Justice League and Aquaman, this is pretty much the climax of Geoff Johns’ campaign for us to take Aquaman seriously. And it’s a fairly effective invasion story that gives Aquaman a harder edge.
Collecting the ongoing backup series written by Johns and with art by Gary Frank, honestly it’s just going to be good to have all these stories compiled into one place for easy reading!
Get Batman #1-#7, and terrify your friends with your very own Court of Owls mask. Apparently this convention item was so popular, DC’s bringing it to those of us who don’t get to Comic-Con that often.
Collecting Batman #13-#17, and featuring the complete Death of the Family arc in hardcover. As you might remember, we’re huge fans of Scott Snyder and Greg Capullo’s run around here, so this comes highly recommended.
Of particular note is the fact that the cover you see is a first-run printing only with the die-cut Joker face. Underneath it is… well… let’s say you probably don’t want to give this to a small child.
