Essentials for March 2007

Sad news coming from Marvel : there'll be no new Essentials published in March 2007. Marvel is going with two new printings of old books for that month. Considering the amount of work the trade department is putting into the line month after month, we'll give them a break. It also seems new printings are as long and hard to put together as all new volumes.

ESSENTIAL FANTASTIC FOUR VOL. 3 TPB (NEW PRINTING)
Written by STAN LEE
Pencils & Cover by JACK KIRBY
This volume collects perhaps the greatest of the legendary Fantastic Four stories - including the first-ever appearances of the Black Panther, the Inhumans, the Negative Zone, and the Silver Surfer and Galactus. Collecting FANTASTIC FOUR #41-63 and ANNUAL #3-4.
520 PGS./All Ages …$16.99
ISBN: 0-7851-2625-2

I think there's no content change here. The previous printing also had FF #41-63 and Annual #3-4. Guess it just ran out of print...

ESSENTIAL X-MEN VOL. 5 TPB (NEW PRINTING)
Written by CHRIS CLAREMONT
Penciled by JOHN ROMITA JR., BARRY WINDSOR-SMITH, MICHAEL GOLDEN, BRET BLEVINS & STEVE LEIALOHA
Cover by JOHN ROMITA JR.
NOW INCLUDES THE EPIC X-MEN/ALPHA FLIGHT LIMITED SERIES! The X-Men face off with some of their greatest foes in this all-new edition - including the Juggernaut, Doctor Doom and the Hellfire Club's newest recruits, the Hellions - and team up with the Avengers, Spider-Man, Power Pack and more! Featuring the first appearances of Forge and Nimrod, and a chapter from the legendary SECRET WARS II crossover! Plus: Parts I and II of Claremont and Windsor-Smith's unforgettable epic, "Lifedeath." Collects UNCANNY X-MEN #180-198, X-MEN ANNUAL #8 and X-MEN/ALPHA FLIGHT #1-2.
632 PGS./ Rated T+…$16.99
ISBN: 0-7851-2692-9

Since Annual #7 is in the 2nd printing of volume 4, they took out it out from this volume to replace it with the X-Men/Alpha Flight mini series. Probably not worth getting if you already have the previous printing, but a nice addition for those who don't.

On Sale This Week (13/06)

ESSENTIAL OFFICIAL HANDBOOK OF THE MARVEL UNIVERSE - UPDATE 89 VOL. 1
Origins and updates of the eighties’ elite in one easy installment! Trace major revisions to major characters such as Archangel and Vision, the Red Skull and S.H.I.E.L.D., the Hulk and Hobgoblin – and who knows who else! Featuring the debut stats of Apocalypse, Sinister, Venom and more! Plus: Marvel’s first go-round of profiles for herodom’s best supporting casts! Collects OFFICAL HANDBOOK OF THE MARVEL UNVIERSE - UPDATE ‘89 #1-8.
496 PGS./Rated A ...$16.99

Linking

Every once in a while, the guys at Bookgasm.com review comic books and trade paperbacks. Last week, they did a pretty interesting, if rather short, review of Essential Marvel Horror Vol.1. This week, they're tackling Showcase Presents Unknown Soldier Vol.1. Enjoy !

Showcase Presents for April 2007

SHOWCASE PRESENTS: LEGION OF SUPER-HEROES VOL. 1 TP
Written by Jerry Siegel, Otto Binder, Edmond Hamilton and various
Art by Curt Swan, George Papp, John Forte and various
Cover by Swan & Stan Kaye
A massive black-and-white volume collecting classic tales of the Legionnaires, from ADVENTURE COMICS #247, 267, 282, 290, 293, and 300-328, ACTION COMICS #267, 276, 287 and 289, SUPERBOY #86, 89, 98 and 117, SUPERMAN 147, SUPERMAN ANNUAL #4, and SUPERMAN'S PAL, JIMMY OLSEN#72 and 76!
Advance-solicited; on sale April 4 o 552 pg, B&W, $16.99 US

Great, great news ! I honestly can't wait to get this. I hope it'll be as fun and as goofy as Superman ! Speaking of which...


SHOWCASE PRESENTS: SUPERMAN VOL. 3 TP
Written by Jerry Siegel and others
Art by Curt Swan and others
Cover by Swan
The third volume collecting early Superman adventures in black-and-white at a value price! This amazing collection includes appearances by Supergirl and Krypto and a retelling of Superman's origin, plus threats from Lex Luthor, Brainiac, the Legion of Super-Villains and the Fifth Dimensional imp known as Mr. Mxyzptlk!
Advance-solicited; on sale April 18 o 560 pg, B&W, $16.99 US

My all-time favorite Showcase series gets a third volume ! Marvel should take notice of the speed at which DC is publishing B&W reprints of their big guns...

Rumor Mill : Essential Spider-Man Vol.8

It looks like it's that time of the month when Amazon updates Marvel's publishing schedule. Earlier this week, I reported that a Rampaging Hulk book was in the works for May 2007. With the third Spidey movie coming up in theaters May 4th, it's really no surprise to see which is the second Essential planned for that month...

Essential Spider-Man Vol.8
Spider-Man is as amazing as ever against adversarial alumni like the Lizard and the Kingpin, as well as up-and-coming enemies such as Stegron and Jigsaw - with the lesser-known larcenies of the Big Wheel and the Spider-Squad to fill his spare time! Featuring the first appearances of Rocket Racer and Will O'the Wisp! Forgotten chapters from the Green Goblin legacy and the Clone Saga! Spider-Man's origin and Peter Parker's college graduation! And J. Jonah Jameson at his best and worst! Guest-starring the Punisher, Nova the Human Rocket, the Human Torch and the X-Men! Collects Amazing Spider-Man #161-185 & Annual #11, Giant-Size Spider-Man #6 and Nova #12.

Paperback : 512 pages
Publisher : Marvel Comics (May 9, 2007)

Showcase Presents Superman Vol.1 Reviews

Before going on with the reviews, let me explain a little something. I always tought I hated silver age super-heroes comics. I tried many times to read my Essential Fantastic Four Vol.1 but couldn't get past the extra-heavy dialogue. Same thing with my Essential Uncanny X-Men Vol.1 . I probably shouldn't write this but, reading these books was really a drag. Considering my problems with silver age, I wasn't planning on buying any super-hero Showcase Presents. Thanks God, my grandmother thought otherwise and gave me Superman's first Showcase as a gift for my birthday. I now love her even more than before...

Content
Action Comics 241-257 (June 1958-October 1959)
Superman #122-#134 (July 1958-November 1959)
560 pages
$9.99 US/$13.50 CAN

Writers
Jerry Siegel
Jerry Coleman
Otto Binder
Bill Finger

Artists
Curt Swan
Wayne Boring
Al Plastino
Kurt Schaffenberger

*********************************************
The Super-Key to Fort Superman
Originally from : Action Comics #241
Writer : Jerry Coleman
Pencils : Wayne Boring
Oh my gosh. Just...wow. That's got to be the funniest story I read all year ! To say that this story caught me by surprise is a gross understatement. I expected something somewhat boring and dialogue heavy, but I got a story crazy, wacky and oh so funny ! There was way too many cool moments to list them all here but here are some of the high points :

• The Fortress of Solitude's giant door key...and its giant key holder.
• Superman having a room dedicated for each of his friends in the Fortress, including one for Clark Kent to preserve his secret identity.
• Each room containing gifts for them in case he was ever destroyed, including a hand-made sports car for Jimmy Olsen.
• Superman painting a martian landscape with a giant brush. Yep, you read it right, Superman PAINTING !
• Supes' interplanetary zoo full of "pets from another world". Inside the Fortress
• Tricking the trickster, Superman style !

From beginning to end, a very entertaining story. I'm just hoping the rest of the book is as fun as this !
Grade : A+

*********************************************
The Man No Prison Could Hold

Originally from : Action Comics #248
Writer : Bill Finger
Artist : Wayne Boring

While "soaring in the ionosphere", Superman finds a strange little satellite. Our hero follows the thing's radio waves transmissions back to a small uncharted island where he discovers a Nazi scientist, Von Kamp, working on the top secret "Project X". Not one to shy away from a mystery, Supes makes up a plan to investigate on Von Kamp's whereabouts -- he's going to become one of his slaves ! A walk in the park, at least until good old Jimmy Olsen messes everything up...

All in all, this is another great tale featuring some pretty nifty ideas from Bill Finger like

• Superman throwing his costume in the atmosphere so that it falls back down exactly three hours later. Just enough time to become a slave and investigate.
• After having pulled one of his Superman kinda moves, our big guy hollows a ball-and-chain with his finger so that he isn't unmasked.
• Superman making an invisible glass boomerang out of sand to hook an escaping Jimmy Olsen and pull him back to the island.
• Jimmy actually thinking it was the wind that blew him back.
• Supes making a kaleidoscope out of sand and putting it in front of Project X's camera lens so that Von Kamp thinks his invention doesn't work and give up on the whole thing.
• And, best of all, the fact that this trick actually works!

Once again, a great read from Showcase Superman. If you don't already own it, get $10, run to your LCS and buy it. Forget the fact you don't like Superman. This is 560 pages of pure comics goodness.
Grade : A+

cover source : www.comicsvf.com

Rumor Mill : Essential Rampaging Hulk Vol.1

A new listing has appeared on amazon.com for Essential Rampaging Hulk Vol.1. Here's the solicitation copy :

Not a hoax, not a dream, not an imaginary story... so what is it? Judge for yourself as the gamma-powered gargantua's long-lost black-and-white adventures are reprinted for the first time! Rarely seen moments of Hulk history featuring aliens, magic, horror and wonder - the full gamut for Marvel's great green giant! Guest-starring the Avengers, the X-Men and more! Collects Rampaging Hulk #1-9, The Hulk! #10-15 and Incredible Hulk #269.

As far as I know, Rampaging Hulk was a black and white magazine published in the late 70's by Marvel to cash in on the success of the Hulk TV show. The series changed its name to The Hulk! and went to colors with issue 10.

So far, they are aiming for a May 16th 2007 publication date. Remember that this solicitation is to be taken with a grain of salt...

Sources : amazon.com and comics.org

Essential Peter Parker Spectacular Spider-Man Vol.3 Content Update

I found this bit of info on the Marvel Masterworks Massage Board, courtesy of Beast :

The Essential Peter Parker Spectacular Spider-Man Vol. 3 TP (DEC062387D, $16.99; FOC 02/01/07) will contain Spectacular Spider-Man #54-#74 and Annual #3, not #32-#61 and Annual #1-#3 as mis-solicited in Previews.

The new content makes much more sense since Vol.2 stopped at issue #53.

Source : Beast on the Marvel Masterworks Message Board.

On Sale This Week (12/06)

Pretty good week with the puclication of a much requested second Defenders collection and the first Shazam Showcase !

SHOWCASE PRESENTS: SHAZAM VOL. 1
Written by Dennis O'Neill, E. Nelson Bridwell and Elliott Maggin; Art by C.C. Beck, Kurt Schaffenberger, Dave Cockrum, Dick Giordano and others; Cover by Bob Oksne

This edition collects all of the new stories from SHAZAM! #1-35 (1973-1978)! The Big Red Cheese is joined by the members of the Marvel Family including Mary Marvel and Capt. Marvel Junior, as they battle the menaces of Black Adam, Dr. Sivana and the Monster Society of Evil!

DC Universe | 560pg. | B&W | Softcover | $16.99 US

On Sale December 6, 2006


ESSENTIAL DEFENDERS VOL.2
There’s nothing the non-team can’t handle when mutants, gods, demons and miscreants of the 1950s all get their crack at the sensational super heroes of the seventies! With Luke Cage! The Guardians of the Galaxy! The Son of Satan vs. the Sons of the Serpent! Brain transplants, foreign intrigue and the tumultuous terror of Tapping Tommy! Daredevil, Yellowjacket, Bambi! And introducing...an Elf!? Featuring the first appearance of the ever-reliable Wrecking Crew! Collects DEFENDERS #15-39 and
GIANT-SIZE DEFENDERS #1-5.
616 PGS./Rated T+ ...$16.99

First Look : Showcase Presents Unknown Soldier Vol.1

First off, I am the only one finding that the quality of the paper has gone down since the start of the Showcase line ? I remember being VERY impressed by the whiteness of the pages of the first few books, but now the stock's grayish and thinner. In fact, it's very similar to the one Marvel's using for its Essentials. I know I shouldn't expect much at $17 for 500 pages, but DC spoiled me with the amazing production quality of Jonah Hex and Superman Vol.1... Anyway, I was eagerly awaiting this book ever since it was solicited way back this summer. I've always preferred the off-center showcases to the mainstream ones and I've been itching to read some other war stories between Haunted Tank's more repetitive tales.

Artwise the book looks great. Sure, Joe Kubert's the main draw, but let's not forget the other pencillers who also do a pretty nifty job on the art. Something I also noticed while glancing through the book was the cool format of many issues' introduction page. On each of these, a quick text explaining the setting of the story and a small drawing of a scene overlaps a collage of actual war photos. The use of photographs makes one realize that as entertaining as the fiction stories of the Unknown Soldier are, they came from a very real human tragedy. That is never to be forgotten...

I can't wait to read a couple of these stories to see if they live up to my hopes. I'll be back in a couple of days with some reviews.