This Isn’t A Library: Notable Releases To The Comics Direct Market



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.

*****

APR130380 FELDSTEIN MAD LIFE & FANTASTIC ART OF HC $49.99
I'm glad that folks have started to come around on the art and writing and editing of Al Feldstein, whose most significant crime in some circles seems that he wasn't any of the other monstrously-talented craftsmen working in close proximity to EC Comics and MAD. I know very little about him that wasn't covered in the Comics Journal interview, so I look forward to pawing my way through this very large book.

JUN131315 OVER THE WALL GN $14.95I quite liked this fantasy comic from Uncivilized Books, current darling of the boutique arts comix publishers. I enjoyed the pacing, and I thought it had a tinge of darkness to it of a kind that I find very appealing in this sort of story. That's a cartoonist with whom I am completely unfamiliar, as well.

MAR130075 FAGIN THE JEW 10TH ANNIVERSARY HC $19.99
APR130449 DISTANT SOIL TP VOL 01 THE GATHERING [DIG] $16.99
JUN131138 NO STRAIGHT LINES QUEER COMICS TP $35.00
JUN131163 AMULET SC VOL 03 CLOUD SEARCHERS NEW PTG $12.99
This is a big week for re-releases, which used to not mean a whole lot to me in my buy only absolutely new everything days. As an old man with a bad memory and without weekly access to a comic book store, seeing books show up again on the shelves is a key part of my comics buying. If I'm not buying the actual re-release or edition or effort, the new volume puts that work squarely back in mind, and sometimes even sets me off on an attempt to buy an older version. The Fagin book is Will Eisner's re-telling of the Fagin story in a way that seeks to poke at anti-Semitic stereotypes in any number of classic pieces of literature, including Dickens'. Colleen Doran's primary affiliated work continues its steady push back onto shelves; Doran's process posts about everything involved in getting the work back out there have been super-informative and appreciated. The No Straight Lines I imagine would have to be the softcover version of Justin Hall's well-received anthology. I don't keep a lot of anthologies of this type -- by which I mean a sampling across a theme or group of cartoonists -- as I prefer to collect individual-author efforts. I thought that one was well-selected, though, and I'm hanging onto my hardcover version. The Amulet series is one of those hidden comics -- hidden from DM markets and discussion of same -- that sold like 18 billion copies in a bunch of different channels, including comics shops.

APR130078 LONE WOLF & CUB OMNIBUS TP VOL 02 $19.99
Much like that last group of books, I think just about any comics library will want a little of this work unless its themes, content or basic aesthetics are offensive to the collection owner. It's on my list of books to kind of put together at one point, in one form or another, so I'll be very interested to see what this particular version looks like.

JUN130420 TORPEDO TP VOL 04 [DIG] $17.99
This might be a re-release, too, but I can guarantee it's super-good looking and probably cool, too. I own the first couple of volumes and again, not exactly my main area of collecting interest, but a total keeper.

JUN130028 ABE SAPIEN #5 $3.50
JUN130038 CATALYST COMIX #2 (MR) $2.99
MAY130553 FATALE #16 (MR) [DIG] $3.50
APR130567 PROPHET #38 [DIG] $3.99
MAY138256 SATELLITE SAM #1 2ND PTG (MR) $3.50
JUN130558 SATELLITE SAM #2 (MR) [DIG] $3.50
MAY138319 HAWKEYE #11 2ND AJA PTG VAR $2.99
Serial comics is sort of weird this week. As has been the case for several years now, it is totally dominated by genre work and superheroes. The Abe Sapien is this week's Mike Mignola-spawned effort. Those tend to be solid; I know people for whom that is their sole serial-comic interest. Catalyst Comix is the Joe Casey-spearheaded superhero effort, using the briefly flourishing Dark Horse line of such comics as its source material. Casey is in a very prolific and super-odd place right now and I read everything he does. The Fatale is probably the big, dependable performer of the week if it's not the Prophet -- the Saga I just read would be, but I don't think it's out in shops until next week. Finally, there are three comic books featuring work from the writer Matt Fraction, extra-notable for his collaboration with two very fun comics artists: Howard Chaykin on the early TV industry-set Satellite Sam and David Aja on a re-release of that super well-liked Hawkeye comic. You know the one.

JUN130808 ALAN MOORE FASHION BEAST HC (MR) $32.99
JUN130807 ALAN MOORE FASHION BEAST TP (MR) $24.99
This is one of those Avatar comics derived from an author's work that's not originally comics, in this case worth noting because the work in question is one of writer Alan Moore's more famous outside gigs: a screenplay set in the world of fashion written with Malcolm McLaren. That it's a screenplay should make for some intriguing comics although in general I haven't really taken to any of the releases of this type.

MAY131321 BAKUMAN TP VOL 20 $9.99
It's always good to note the best series with a volume out on any given new comics Wednesday; this is a concluding volume, too.

APR131261 JOE KUBERT TRIBUTE TO THE CREATOR & MENTOR SC $17.95
So I guess that the second planned issue of Jon B. Cooke's new comics-related magazine has transformed into this, more of a book-length tribute to the late Joe Kubert. Cooke does this kind of thing very well, and I can't recall seeing something along these line in a major way for the late Kubert, who at the time of his passing was -- I think -- the greatest living mainstream comic book creator.

FEB130220 IN THE DAYS OF THE MOB HC $39.99
I'm super-curious about this material: an actual hard-to-find magazine project helmed by Jack Kirby in the 1970s when getting on the magazine stands seemed like the greatest idea in the world -- or a necessity, if the periodicals market for comics was as screwed up as anecdotal evidence suggests it was. This should have material that wasn't included in the actual, initial publication. It's rare to get a Kirby book of (mostly) little-seen material, so this is sort of a big deal. I'd go and look at this sucker in the shop, that's for sure.

*****

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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