A while back, DC announced a new line of reprints, called DC Finest, that packages about 500 pages of comics from various eras into a $40 softcover. From all appearances, it looks to be an attempt to mimic Marvel's successful Epic Collections line, in which complete runs of their books are reprinted in similar paperbacks, but often out of order. So you might get Fantastic Four volume 3 (The Coming of Galactus) before volume 1 (the early stuff), but the volumes have all been mapped out, and gaps get filled in as time goes on.
DC announced a bunch of collections, ranging from the Golden Age (All-Star Comics, Superman) to the 2000s (Wonder Woman), with plenty in between. In October's solicitations, they've finally nailed down the contents for most of the announced books. Here's what's been announced so far.
DC FINEST: WONDER WOMAN: ORIGINS & OMENS
ON SALE 10/8/24
DC Finest: Wonder Woman: Origins & Omens collects these Wonder Woman issues from October 2007 to 2009: Wonder Woman (vol. 3) #14-35, Outsiders: Five of a Kind – Wonder Woman/Grace #1, and The Brave and the Bold #7.
DC FINEST: SUPERMAN: THE FIRST SUPERHERO
ON SALE 11/5/24
The First Superhero covers Summer 1938 to Fall 1940 and reprints classic stories from Action Comics #1-25, Superman #1-5, and New York World’s Fair #1.
DC FINEST: BATMAN: BATMAN: YEAR ONE & TWO
$39.99 US | 592 pages | 6 5/8″ x 10 3/16″ | Softcover | ISBN: 978-1-77952-835-3
ON SALE 11/5/24
Collects Batman #404#401-414, Batman Annual #11, and Detective Comics #571- #568-581.
DC FINEST: CATWOMAN: LIFE LINES
ON SALE 12/17/24
Collects Catwoman (vol. 1) #1-4, Catwoman (vol. 2) #1-12, Catwoman Annual #1, Batman/Catwoman: Defiant #1, and stories from Action Comics Weekly #611-614 and Showcase ’93 #1-4.
DC FINEST: JUSTICE LEAGUE OF AMERICA: THE BRIDGE BETWEEN EARTHS
ON SALE 11/19/24
Collects Justice League of America #45-72 from July 1966 to June 1969.
DC FINEST: GREEN LANTERN: THE DEFEAT OF GREEN LANTERN
ON SALE 12/3/24
Featuring works from revered comics writers and artists such as John Broome, Gardner Fox, and Gil Kane, this volume collects classic stories from Green Lantern #19-39, The Flash #143, and The Brave and the Bold #59.
DC FINEST: EVENTS: ZERO HOUR PART ONE
ON SALE 12/10/24
This first of two collections features Superman #93, The Flash #94, L.E.G.I.O.N. #70, Green Lantern #55, Super-man: The Man of Steel #37, Team Titans #24, The Darkstars #24, Valor #23, Batman #511, Batman: Shadow of the Bat #31, Detective Comics #678, Legionnaires #18, Hawkman #13, Showcase ‘94 #8-9, Steel #8, Superboy #8, Outsiders #11, and Zero Hour: Crisis in Time #3-4.
DC FINEST: LEGION OF SUPER-HEROES: ZAP GOES THE LEGION
ON SALE 12/10/24
This first collection starring the greatest heroes of the 30th century features stories pulled from the pages of Action Comics #378-387 and #389-392, Adventure Comics #374-380 and #403, and Superboy #172-173, #176, #183-184, #188, #190-191, #193, #195, and #197-203.
DC FINEST: THE FLASH: THE HUMAN THUNDERBOLT
ON SALE 11/26/24
Collects Showcase #4, #8, and #13-14, and The Flash #105-123.
DC FINEST: JUSTICE SOCIETY OF AMERICA: FOR AMERICA AND DEMOCRACY
ON SALE 12/3/24
Collects All-Star Comics #3-12.
DC has also announced three more for January, although the exact contents aren’t announced yet:
DC Finest: Green Arrow: The Longbow Hunters – 21st of January, 2025
The most iconic stories starring Green Arrow! (From the cover, it looks like it’s the start of the Grell run, starting with The Longbow Hunters miniseries.)
DC Finest: Supergirl: The Girl of Steel – 14th of January, 2025
The earliest stories starring Supergirl! (Looks like Supergirl, from the beginning.)
DC Finest: Aquaman: The King of Atlantis – 7th of January, 2025
The earliest stories starring the King of the Seas: Aquaman! (Silver Age Aquaman, with Jack Miller, Robert Bernstein, and Ramona Fradon listed as creators.)
So for the purposes of discussion... which ones of these interest you the most? And looking forward, where would you go for the second volumes of these titles?
Replies
Yep, it's not until the 80s that they really start being page-turners from issue to issue! That's why I'm enjoying some of the modern ones so much... I'm in a six-part Batman/Catwoman/Nocturna story now, as the red skies of Crisis loom! And the 80s Wonder Woman volume was a surprising treat! A real blast for as long as Dan Mishkin was writing it (although the last few issues go off the rails as Mindy Newell and then Gerry Conway come in to wrap everything up).
In the genres, Horror is fun too -- the freer 70s style is such a refreshing change from DC's mid-50s layouts!
Someone just found this cover on the Penguin site. No other details yet (and so far I haven't spotted any other DCF cover finds), but it looks like the Peter David /Leonard Kirk run of Supergirl is getting its second volume sometime in 2026. This was a fun run; the first volume is on my maybe list, and having a sequel makes it more likely.
I've now seen some details on this (though I'm not sure where they come from -- perhaps an Edelweiss listing?):
DC Finest: Supergirl: Die and Let Live
The same Facebook poster has posted a screenshot of an Edelweiss listing of the 50s DC Finest Superman: The Last Days of Superman as cancelled. It was also scheduled for May 26, and he suggests this Supergirl book is replacing it on the schedule. (I think it'll come back eventually, but maybe sometime after the contents are collected in an omnibus.)
I've made some progress in the various DC Finest volumes I've been reading -- The Spectre, Horror, and Batman: Red Skies -- but I don't have another purchase planned until February, so I've been taking more time.* However, I just read Spectre #8 from his 1968 series, and in my opinion, it's the best of the bunch. Written by Steve Skeates, with art by Jerry Grandinetti and Murphy Anderson, I'll happily put it above even any of the Neal Adams issues -- even the one with the gorgeous double-page spread of a dinosaur. It's SO way out, it's undeniable.
The fact is, a large part of the reason it's so great are the colors (by some anonymous genius) and the lettering (by Milt Snappin). It's like reading one of those Marvel black light posters from the 60s -- unapoligetically psychedelic, an acid trip through and through. A few centuries ago, an apprentice sorcerer kills his mentor as he's working on a scroll of ultimate power. He reads most of the scroll, and gets more power than his body can contain. He has to return to earth 200 years later to find the rest of the parchment and read it before his body gives out.
This puts him at odds with the Spectre, who's just returned to earth from a mission, and is tired and cranky. He needs to restore his power in Jim Corrigan's body, but Corrigan is in a jam, and refuses to let him in unless Spectre helps him. He does, reluctantly, lashing out and almost killing the crooks. Then Spectre has a dream that he's acted rashly, and the Voice will give him a new weakness at random times that he must overcome to fight evil.
Now Spectre is face to face with the sorcerer, and as they start to throw down, Spectre is struck blind. The weakness has taken hold! He fights the sorcerer blindly, and eventually defeats him.. But the parchment is still on earth, and he can't find it... but he thinks, "if only I were in his shoes, I could -- HIS SHOES! THAT'S IT!" And the Spectre steals the man's shoes, and is able to detect the parchment. It was never completed, but he sets it on fire, then gathers the smoke and sends it into space, ending the threat forever. It's dream logic, rather than coherent superhero action, and I love it. It's nonsense that feels more magical than the other stories with more direct cause-and-effect rationality.
The DC Finest volume has different colors than the DCUI version online -- sometimes remarkably different. They're more volcanic, more willing to use hot pinks and greens where the DCUI version uses yellows. I'll put up some comparisons when I have the chance.
*I still have War and Super Friends on deck, though, so I can't slack off entirely.
If you're interested in reading them, I posted my thoughts on these early issues five years ago HERE.
And Randy Jackson and Captain Comics both reviewed Showcase Presents: The Spectre!
Nice! I'll check them all out!
... and doing a quick skim, I found that one man's zenith is another man's nadir, as Spectre 8 is where things fall completely apart for you, Cap! Which isn't really a surprise -- I'm definitely more a fan of nonsense dream logic than you are, and that story is chock full of it. Plus, it's Jerry Grandinetti art, which isn't to most people's taste even though I've started to dig it more and more these past few years. And by reading the Showcase edition, my favorite part -- the psychedelic coloring -- is missing entirely. Milt Snappin's great lettering is there, though -- so much more expressive than in most DC books, with some dialogue actually appearing in a character's wide-open mouth!
I'm adopting "Mr. Nadir" as my new code name.
Ha! So long as you don't go by Ralph!
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