This Isn’t A Library: New, Notable Releases Into Comics’ Direct Market



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Here are the books that make an impression on me staring at this week's no-doubt largely accurate list of books shipping from Diamond Comic Distributors, Inc. to comic book and hobby shops across North America.

I might not buy all of the works listed here. I might not buy any. You never know. I'd sure look at the following, though.

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AUG191929 REINCARNATION STORIES HC KIM DEITCH $29.99
Books from the great Kim Deitch usually end up in my personal top five any year they're released, and this one looks like a better-than-usual offering in the cartoonist's reliably consistent later-period career. It's certainly the book for which I feel the greatest force of anticipation.

JUL190589 MAD MAGAZINE #10 $5.99
Not sure where this is placed in the extended phase out or even a potential return, but there is sure to be one or two pieces in here of interest and one wishes the forces involved having it go away weren't powerful ones.

AUG190459 SUPERMAN SMASHES THE KLAN #1 (OF 3) $7.99
AUG190558 SUPERMANS PAL JIMMY OLSEN #4 (OF 12) $3.99
AUG190846 X-MEN #1 ARTGERM VAR DX $4.99
The first book is Gene Luen Yang's interpretation of a Superman adventure when the character was more about general social justice than a neutered, "heroic" personality making as many people as possible feel good. The second book is the latest Fraction/Lieber effort with the oddball Jimmy Olsen character. I'm not sure the series has hit its full stride yet, but I like its tone and flavor, this kind of break with straight-face seriousness in comics being seen as this dismaying thing. The third is a variation-cover comic for the relaunch of the X-Men comic after a summer spent moving the pieces around changing emphases in a long-overdue sense. I'll look in for a while, sure.

AUG191587 BABY BLUES COLLECTION TP SURVIVING GREAT INDOORS $18.99
I'm a fan of the successful; newspaper strip model for publishing: these gigantic books combined with smaller ones. They very much seem to suit what writer Jerry Scott is up to with his various efforts.

AUG191932 BRAIN BATS OF VENUS BASIL WOLVERTON HC VOL 02 $44.99
AUG192430 DRIFTING CLASSROOM HC VOL 01 PERFECT ED UMEZZ $34.99
The first is the second volume of the Sadowski biography, the second is I don't know which version of that story. I know you probably won't both in a weighty comics connection of any kind. Wolverton is so fun to look at, my goodness.

JUN191844 UNPLUGGED AND UNPOPULAR GN $12.99
JUN191845 UNPLUGGED AND UNPOPULAR HC GN $19.99
This stands in for the books that are high-concept pieces executed in an almost house style by an all-ages publisher. I don't hold out much for the idiosyncrasy of its execution, but I'm one of those that think this kind of work is the new mainstream so pay attention to it I shall.

MAR191802 FRANK THORNE GHITA EROTIC TREASURY ARCHIVAL PX ED VOL 02 (MR $150.00
I have no interest in the debatable erotic qualities of Frank Thorne's artwork, but I love to look at it as inky, abstract shapes and find much of it beautiful. I will always look at a new book.

JUL191794 RAINA TELGEMEIER MINI POSTERS $12.99
JUL191795 RAINA TELGEMEIER MY SMILE DIARY $14.99
There's not a lot of Raina-related material, so this stroke my eye. One of the cartoonists of right now.

JUL191907 COMICS JOURNAL #304 $14.99
Always happy to see the Journal, even if I can't score backstage passes at this point. It's a good interview, with an interesting cartoonist.

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The full list of this week's releases, including some titles with multiple cover variations and a long, impressive list of toys and other stuff that isn't comics, can be found here. Despite this official list there's no guarantee a comic will show up in the stores as promised, or in all of the stores as opposed to just a few. Also, stores choose what they carry and don't carry so your shop may not carry a specific publication. There are a lot of comics out there.

To find your local comic book store, check this list; and for one I can personally recommend because I've shopped there, albeit a while back, try this.

The above titles are listed with their Diamond order code in the first field, which may assist you in finding comics at your shop or having them order something for you they don't have in-stock. Ordering through a direct market shop can be a frustrating experience, so if you have a direct line to something -- you know another shop has it, you know a bookstore has it -- I'd urge you to consider all of your options.

If I failed to list your comic, that's because I hate you.

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