This Isn’t A Library: 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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SEP150086 GIRL CRAZY HC $17.99
This is kind of a weird week, with more than a few projects that seem like Christmas gifts that slid down the production schedule at their publisher and thus slightly out of Santa's grasp. I really enjoyed this Gilbert Hernandez series from almost 20 years ago when it was in serial form, and that's a beautiful cover. I want all of the Gilbert Hernandez comics.

SEP150038 BALTIMORE HC VOL 06 CULT OF THE RED KING $24.99
Your Mignola-verse selection of the week.

NOV150504 BITCH PLANET #6 (MR) $3.99
NOV150601 DARK CORRIDOR #6 (MR) $3.99
NOV150169 SWAMP THING #1 $2.99
OCT150736 A-FORCE #1 $3.99
OCT150860 AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #1.2 $3.99
NOV150871 DOCTOR STRANGE #4 $3.99
NOV150809 HOWARD THE DUCK #3 $4.99
NOV150751 SPIDER-MAN DEADPOOL #1 $3.99
OCT150769 UNCANNY X-MEN #1 $3.99
Not a ton in the serial comic-book comics realm this week would get me to a show to buy one were I not already there. A lot I'd look at, though. Bitch Planet is likely welcome given its roughly bi-monthly status. Those covers certainly pop against the backdrop of mainstream comic book. Rich Tommaso has another issue of his loopy Dark Corridor out, which is great considering a lot of his publishing dark corridors have had dead ends before this point. I hope it's a sustainable work for Tommaso, one of his generation's talented grinders. That Swamp Thing is a mini-series with writing by Len Wein; I think it's only a mini-series. The rest are random Marvel comics. The three #1s mean they're not done rolling out their work post-Secret Wars not-a-relaunch. The Doctor Strange comics I've found enjoyable and amusing, although thus far very narratively compressed. That's my comic to buy on the way to an airport right now. The one that #1.2 next to it I make note of because I never know what that means and at this point can't be bothered.

NOV151528 DUNGEON ZENITH SET VOL 1-3 $39.99
I love all of the Dungeon material and would be tempted to buy a big chunk of it in an upgrade in production quality.

AUG151694 ITS HARD TO BE A GIRL GN $26.99
AUG151695 PERFUME OF LILACS GN (MR) $25.99
These are mid-sized graphic novels translated from French and the Quebec comics scene rather than something on the European continent, and mark a stab a bit deeper into the field from publisher Soaring Penguin Press. I wonder if this price point will be tough, but a lot of that depends on the value of the production and I can't ever tell anything about that until I have them in my hands. It's this kind of project where I stumble across fully-formed talents that I've never heard of, which is a great, particular thrill of comics.

NOV151236 LEONARD STARRS MARY PERKINS ON STAGE TP VOL 02 $21.95
NOV151237 LEONARD STARRS MARY PERKINS ON STAGE TP VOL 03 $21.95
NOV151238 LEONARD STARRS MARY PERKINS ON STAGE TP VOL 04 $24.95
NOV151239 LEONARD STARRS MARY PERKINS ON STAGE TP VOL 05 $24.95
NOV151240 LEONARD STARRS MARY PERKINS ON STAGE TP VOL 06 $24.95
NOV151241 LEONARD STARRS MARY PERKINS ON STAGE TP VOL 07 $24.95
NOV151242 LEONARD STARRS MARY PERKINS ON STAGE TP VOL 08 $24.95
NOV151243 LEONARD STARRS MARY PERKINS ON STAGE TP VOL 09 $24.95
NOV151244 LEONARD STARRS MARY PERKINS ON STAGE TP VOL 10 $24.95
NOV151246 LEONARD STARRS MARY PERKINS ON STAGE TP VOL 12 $24.95
NOV151247 LEONARD STARRS MARY PERKINS ON STAGE TP VOL 13 $24.95
NOV151248 LEONARD STARRS MARY PERKINS ON STAGE TP VOL 14 $25.95
Don't know what's going on here, but I am pro- the late Leonard Starr and pro- his longtime soap opera strip Mary Perkins/On Stage. If you store has a full row of these because of this offer, you shop at one first-class store.

NOV151742 ONE PUNCH MAN GN VOL 04 $9.99
What little I've read of this comic is very entertaining, and the reviews from manga dabblers of the kind that maybe read a half dozen different series in a year seems to have been very positive. On a week like this one, I'd like try a copy -- heck, I'll look it up when I'm in my local store this Friday.

NOV151739 NARUTO 3IN1 TP VOL 13 $14.99
NOV151738 NARUTO GN BOX SET 3 VOLS 49-72 $185.99
NOV151741 NARUTO SEVENTH HOKAGE SCARLET SPRING GN $9.99
The series is over, the publishing phenomenon continues with a second trade serialization, a box set run, and I believe a narrative coda to the popular title. I always like this work when I see it... such thoughtful and though-through action sequences.

SEP151896 ALTER EGO #137 $8.95
That number is astonishing and so, I'm guessing, is the issues Jim Shooter interview. There's more of Shooter to come, as well.

OCT151878 ART OF PLOOG HC $49.00
OCT151879 ART OF PLOOG LTD S&N ED HC $175.00
I really enjoy the random pieces of Mike Ploog that I see in places like that Ralph Bakshi book from five to ten years ago. I could be talked into buying a whole book of material like that, and so I shall let it work its magic and see.

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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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