Your Favorite Things of the Year! (Est. 2017)

[Rob Staeger (Grodd Mod)]

In previous years, this was a memory box so we didn't miss any good nominations for the Cappies. With the Cappies hypertimed away, that doesn't mean we have to discontinue these threads. I've always liked going back at the end of the year and seeing the books and stories and moments that people really champion -- including plenty of stuff that I've forgotten about come Christmastime. 

So have at it, Legionnaires! It's a bold new year! What in 2017 has knocked you out?

[Jeff of Earth-J]

Ships tomorrow:

A premiere collection of the best stories of EC Comics, curated in a deluxe hardcover, just in time to celebrate the legendary publisher's 75th anniversary! Collects material from Crime SuspenStories issues 1, 17, 18; Frontline Combat issues 1, 3, 4, 8; Haunt of Fear issues 4, 10, 11, 15, 17, 19, 22; Impact issue 1, Shock SuspenStories issues 1, 4, 6, 7, 9; Tales from the Crypt issues 22, 25, 32-36, 38, 45, 46; Two-Fisted Tales 19, 23, 25; Vault of Horror issues 13, 14, 19, 20, 28, 31-33, 35; Weird Fantasy issues 9, 15, 17 (1951), 17 (1952), 18, 21; Weird Science issues 6, 9, 18, 20; and Weird Science-Fantasy issues 23-25.
* Featuring legendary creators Al Feldstein, Harvey Kurtzman, Johnny Craig, Jack Davis, Wally Wood, and more!
* Reprinted in full color!

[Richard Willis]

I was a huge fan of the Silver Age Doom Patrol and only recently read the Bronze Age (Paul Kupperberg) Doom Patrol run after our late friend Robin Olsen recommended it. Similar to the comments on the Justice League Detroit thread, all or most of the new characters were massacred so that Grant Morrison could take it over with issue #19 and give it his personal spin.

Jeff of Earth-J said:

THE BRONZE AGE DOOM PATROL OMNIBUS:

Following the end of their original series in 1968, the World's Strangest Heroes made their return in 1977 in a series of tales that jumped across titles and featured appearances by Supergirl, Superman, the Suicide Squad and more! Collects SHOWCASE #94-96, DC COMICS PRESENTS #52, DARING NEW ADVENTURES OF SUPERGIRL #7-9, DOOM PATROL #1-18, DOOM PATROL AND SUICIDE SQUAD SPECIAL #1, SUPERMAN #20, DOOM PATROL ANNUAL #1 and stories from SECRET ORIGINS ANNUAL #1 and SUPERMAN FAMILY #191-193, NEW TEEN TITANS #13-15, and TEEN TITGHTENS SPOTLIGHT #9 almost none of which have been collected before! SUPERMAN SILVER AGE SUNDAYS v2 – 1963-1966:

[doc photo]

Just received shipping notice - my copy is on the way!

Jeff of Earth-J said:

Ships tomorrow:

A premiere collection of the best stories of EC Comics, curated in a deluxe hardcover, just in time to celebrate the legendary publisher's 75th anniversary! Collects material from Crime SuspenStories issues 1, 17, 18; Frontline Combat issues 1, 3, 4, 8; Haunt of Fear issues 4, 10, 11, 15, 17, 19, 22; Impact issue 1, Shock SuspenStories issues 1, 4, 6, 7, 9; Tales from the Crypt issues 22, 25, 32-36, 38, 45, 46; Two-Fisted Tales 19, 23, 25; Vault of Horror issues 13, 14, 19, 20, 28, 31-33, 35; Weird Fantasy issues 9, 15, 17 (1951), 17 (1952), 18, 21; Weird Science issues 6, 9, 18, 20; and Weird Science-Fantasy issues 23-25.
* Featuring legendary creators Al Feldstein, Harvey Kurtzman, Johnny Craig, Jack Davis, Wally Wood, and more!
* Reprinted in full color!

[Luke Blanchard]

Of the stories in that Doom Patrol collection

-Showcase #94-#96: the 1977 introduction of the new Doom Patrol. The stories were by Paul Kupperberg and Joe Staton. I've never read these.

-Superman Family #191-#193: the Supergirl/new Doom Patrol team-up from those issues, intended for the defunct Super-Team Family. By Gerry Conway, Arvell Jones and Scott Edelman (as he scripted the final part). This was 1970s mediocre awful.

-New Teen Titans #13-#15: The quest for the killers of the Doom Patrol, featuring Robotman. The storyline started as a subplot in #10, where Robotman was shown as having been given back his former robot form. (He asked Changeling to thank Dayton's lab boys, and said if he had to be stuck in a robot form he preferred it to be that one.) The introduction of the New Brotherhood of Evil and the nation of Zambia. Surprisingly affecting at its conclusion. Marv Wolfman and George Perez.

-DC Comics Presents #52: Very jokey story that introduced Ambush Bug (as a villain) and also makes fun of Jimmy Olsen. Negative Woman, who had not worn bandages previously, wound up in them here. By Kupperberg and Keith Giffen. Amusing, but not as funny as the Levitz/Giffen Legion of Substitute Heroes story in #59.

-Daring New Adventures of Supergirl #7-#9: Supergirl/new Doom Patrol team-up by Kupperberg and Carmine Infantino. I haven't read this.

-Kupperberg also wrote the opening issues of the following Doom Patrol ongoing, drawn by Steve Lightle, but I haven't read those either.

[Richard Mantle]

Have I mentioned the current Hawkman series?

Interesting, well paced, respectful to continuity but with twists and wonderful art.! Contender to series-of-the-year in my book!

[Jeff of Earth-J]

2020 BEGINS HERE

Both of these ship this week:

In cooperation with DC Comics, TwoMorrows compiles a tempestuous trio of never-seen 1970s Kirby projects! These are the final complete, unpublished Jack Kirby stories in existence, presented here for the first time! Included are: Two unused Dingbats of Danger Street tales, Kirby's final "Kid Gang" group, inked by Mike Royer and D. Bruce Berry, and newly colored for this book! True-Life Divorce, the abandoned newsstand magazine that was too hot for its time (reproduced from Jack's pencil art - and as a bonus, we've commissioned Mike Royer to ink one of the stories! And Soul Love, the unseen '70s romance book so funky, even a jive turkey will dig the unretouched inks by Vince Colletta and Tony DeZuniga.

Back in the 1950s, during the Cold War, every day beckoned with the possibility of the end of the world. Kids grew up in the shadow of bomb shelters and were treated to daily lessons at school on what to do in the event of a nuclear attack. Americans were besieged by constant reminders to police our borders, to carefully watch out for "foreigners" who might be spies, and to be ever vigilant in preparing to combat the "red" menace of communism. Comic books of this era played on these fears with stories of atomic war and World War III. This volume reprints the complete runs of Atomic War! (#1-4, November, 1952-April, 1953) and World War III (#1-2, March, 1952 and May, 1953) and can be read merely as great action/adventure stories, classic "war" comics or as an eerie, unanticipated commentary on today's tribulations.

[Travis Herrick (Modular Mod)]

This came out I think the tail end of 2019, and I didn't pick it up until January:

This graphic novel uses the letter, writer Joseph Sieracki, as the framework for the story. It mainly focuses on Leonard and all he goes through during World War II. He wrote the letter near the end of the war, and there was a lot less censorship going on. It also goes back shows how Jo is dealing with life while Leonard is at war, and constantly worrying about him.

The art was really good, and I'm glad the decided to not go too dark. Apparently, heavier use of blacks was considered. I also liked  that some actual pictures were included that artist Kelly Williams used as reference.

It was great. To paraphrase the back cover it is both a love story and war memoir.

[Jeff of Earth-J]

Both of these shipped this week:

Take a journey into the dark minds of DC's most dangerous super-villains in these tales starring The Joker, the Mist, Captain Cold, Signalman, the Puppeteer, Clock King, Mr. Who and many more. Collects WANTED: THE WORLD'S MOST DANGEROUS VILLAINS #1-9 from 1972, which reprinted stories from ACTION COMICS #57 and 69; BATMAN #25, 84 and 112; WORLD'S FINEST COMICS #6 and 111; THE FLASH #114 and 121; ADVENTURE COMICS #72 and 77; GREEN LANTERN #1 and 33; WONDER WOMAN #36; SENSATION COMICS #66 and 71; MORE FUN COMICS #65, 73 and 76; FLASH COMICS #86, 90 and 100; ALL-AMERICAN COMICS #61; KID ETERNITY #15; and DOLL MAN QUARTERLY #15.

The cool thing about this is that it not only collects issue#1-9, but it also provides a mock-up of what an all-female #10 might have looked like.

In the aftermath of Jack Kirby's epic run on Mister Miracle, writers Steve Englehart and Steve Gerber cemented Mister Miracle's lore in the DC Universe forever! Mister Miracle returns after a three-year absence, but so do the villains of Apokolips, and Scott Free attempts to escape something no one has been able to: death. Collects Mister Miracle #19-25, The Brave and The Bold #112, #128 and #138, and DC Comics Presents #12.

[Travis Herrick (Modular Mod)]

A small thing, but I thought it was pretty cool. In the back of the first issue of Mike Allred's X-Ray Robot there were two pages of old school 3-D art. I just happen to have a pair of 3-D glasses handy, so I got to check them out. 

[Jeff of Earth-J]

I really like the first issue of X-Ray Robot. I have a pair of 3-D glasses around somewhere, but I didn't dig them out to appreciate the pin-ups.

[Travis Herrick (Modular Mod)]

The only reason I have a pair handy is because when I moved into my last apartment the owner of my LCS gave me a Denis Kitchen print. It is 3-D and came with glasses. I framed it, and I keep the glasses handy for visitors if they want to see it.

Jeff of Earth-J said:

I really like the first issue of X-Ray Robot. I have a pair of 3-D glasses around somewhere, but I didn't dig them out to appreciate the pin-ups.

[Travis Herrick (Modular Mod)]

The other day I finished Gene Luen Yang's latest graphic novel, Dragon Hoops from First Second. It was just absolutely terrific. It chronicles the Bishop O'Dowd Catholic School Men's Basketball team's attempt to finally win that state championship. Gene was teaching there at the time so it also depicts him trying to balance his family life, teaching, and working on this comic at the same time. There some good spotlights on the players and the head coach. He also sprinkles the history of basketball throughout the book as well.

I think it is almost impossible to depict sports in an entertaining way in comics. Gene's pacing is excellent and I loved. There a good number of notes in back, and he does explain that some the moments showed in the game did happen, but not always when he drew. Just to make it a better story, and I appreciated his honesty there. Or what he had the announcers say wasn't always what they said.

I also enjoyed seeing his enthusiasm for the team grow as the year went on, especially since he isn't a sports fan.

Highly recommended.