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General Chat => Books & Comics => Topic started by: rogue69 on 18 July, 2015, 12:44:54 AM

Title: DC Comics Graphic Novel Collection!
Post by: rogue69 on 18 July, 2015, 12:44:54 AM

At LFCC Eaglemoss were showing off issue 1 of their new partwork "DC Comics Graphic Novel Collection!" Batman Hush pt1 which is due to launch in the next few weeks. It's the usual format hardcover with a few extras at the back. They also recon that volumes will come out in numerical order instead of the usual part 5 being volume 34 their issue 5 will be volume 5 etc.

Issue 1 is £2:99, issue 2 is £6:99, then it's £9:99 every 2 weeks, but for an extra £1:00 an issue you can get 3 extra novels of Geoff John's Green Lantern saga

Issue1 is Batman hush pt 1 issue 2 is Batman Hush pt 2, 3 is Superman: Last Son Of Krypton 4 is Justice League: Tower Of Babel 5 is Superman Batman: Public Enemies
http://www.eaglemoss.com/en-gb/comic-heroes/dc-comic-books/
Title: Re: DC Comics Graphic Novel Collection!
Post by: Mattofthespurs on 18 July, 2015, 07:23:33 AM
I subbed to this on it's trial run.
Never had any money taken but they did send me issue 1 with a letter explaining about the 're-launch'.
Title: Re: DC Comics Graphic Novel Collection!
Post by: Mattofthespurs on 05 August, 2015, 08:15:58 AM
Now launching nationwide on the 19th of August.
Title: Re: DC Comics Graphic Novel Collection!
Post by: Professor Bear on 05 August, 2015, 10:45:05 AM
Jesus, those are some pretty bad comics with which to be trying to launch a partwork!
DC has some great stories on its books - a lot more than Marvel, IMO, and objectively classic stuff that could tie into upcoming movies (like Batman vs Superman) such as that Moore/Gibbons annual or Dark Knight Returns - so I have no idea why they're starting with flash-in-the-pan horseshit from a decade ago like Hush, or Public Enemies, a book not only mired in larger DC continuity of the time, but on its own merits, one of the worst comics I have ever read.
Title: Re: DC Comics Graphic Novel Collection!
Post by: JamesC on 05 August, 2015, 12:45:04 PM
If they were printing truly classic stuff which, for some reason or other, hasn't been served well by reprints elsewhere I'd be all over it. Some 70's Superman, Grant/Breyfogle Batman, silver age Flash for example.
Can't say I'm bothered about the line-up as it is though.
Title: Re: DC Comics Graphic Novel Collection!
Post by: Fungus on 05 August, 2015, 01:51:45 PM
Yup.
Hush does/did feature on a recent DC page ad, pimping their "greatest" GNs. They seem to rate it, anyway. Always looked like mediocre tosh to me.
Title: Re: DC Comics Graphic Novel Collection!
Post by: Professor Bear on 05 August, 2015, 02:08:26 PM
Hush is absolutely terrible and has only two things going for it:
#1 Jim Lee gets to draw all of Batman's villains, and
#2 a decent cliffhanger where it turned out Jason Todd was the baddie behind everything, only it turned out in the next issue this was a fake-out to mess with Batman's head.
The problem with #1 is that if you don't like Jim Lee - and plenty don't - this is not actually something for the plus column, and the problem with #2 is that it's lifted entirely from Alan Grant and Norm Breyfogle's Batman run from the early 1990s, which was not an obscure time in Batman's publishing history, it was when he was a cultural phenomenon again after the release of the first Burton film and his comics were selling a million copies each month in North America alone, and were reprinted in multiple territories including the UK.  Even by DC's standards of recycling old glories, that one is pretty shameful as it entailed not reprinting the Grant/Breyfogle run so as not to devalue the impact of what they were then pushing as a significant title in DC's roster, but it's worth noting that once Norm Breyfogle was back in the news for his health problems, they couldn't cash in on that publicity fast enough with a reprint of his stories.
Title: Re: DC Comics Graphic Novel Collection!
Post by: Link Prime on 05 August, 2015, 02:15:43 PM
I do enjoy Jim lee's work, and don't mind the story itself, but agree Hush isn't a great choice to kick-off this part-works.
Title: Re: DC Comics Graphic Novel Collection!
Post by: JamesC on 05 August, 2015, 02:30:30 PM
Hush is okay - nothing special.
I imagine the Jim Lee art and the fact that it includes a shit load of Bat villains is the main reason for publishing it.
This collection seems to be aimed pretty squarely at people who are just getting into comics.
If it was for people more familiar with the industry you'd think they'd concentrate more on the big name creators and their seminal works - Morrisons Animal Man and Doom Patrol, possibly even Millar's Authority (Wildstorm but ultimately owned by DC), Moore's stuff, even Kirby's Fourth World.
Title: Re: DC Comics Graphic Novel Collection!
Post by: Professor Bear on 05 August, 2015, 04:41:25 PM
Superman: Man Of Steel, Arkham Asylum, the Sandman Presents: Death spinoff gns (beloved of emos everywhere), Moore's Swamp Thing, Waid/Morrison/Millar's The Flash, Morrison's Animal Man, Starlin's Batman run from the early 1980s, Simonson/Bogdanove's Steel, David's Supergirl, David's Young Justice, the issues of Hitman that featured superhero appearances (including what was widely considered the best Superman comic in years at the time), Morrison's Action Comics, Morrison's JLA, Waid's Impulse... these are all high-quality or have appeal based on current adaptations of the characters in other media, and are also entry-level comics - and I don't even include the Vertigo stuff that kept entering best-seller lists.
To read stuff like Hush or Public Enemies again I would need to be doing a professional review for a website or print journal or something, so they would literally have to pay me to read those comics, and not the other way around.
Title: Re: DC Comics Graphic Novel Collection!
Post by: Jimmy Baker's Assistant on 05 August, 2015, 05:04:47 PM
The problem is DC have been creatively bankrupt for several decades, this collection is merely going to reflect a publisher that doesn't care about quality.

Quote from: Fungus on 05 August, 2015, 01:51:45 PM
Hush does/did feature on a recent DC page ad, pimping their "greatest" GNs. They seem to rate it, anyway. Always looked like mediocre tosh to me.

Very perceptive, that's exactly right.
Title: Re: DC Comics Graphic Novel Collection!
Post by: Professor Bear on 05 August, 2015, 07:54:34 PM
Quote from: Jimmy Baker's Assistant on 05 August, 2015, 05:04:47 PM
The problem is DC have been creatively bankrupt for several decades, this collection is merely going to reflect a publisher that doesn't care about quality.

"Decades" is a little unfair, as DC were still making some good comics as late as 2001.
Title: Re: DC Comics Graphic Novel Collection!
Post by: Bat King on 23 August, 2015, 09:02:05 PM
Well I enjoyed Hush part 1. Never read it before and I found it fine. Interestingly this will be around the time I really started to pull back from Marvel & DC I think...

My review (https://judgetutorsemple.wordpress.com/2015/08/23/11218/).
Title: Re: DC Comics Graphic Novel Collection!
Post by: Mattofthespurs on 24 August, 2015, 08:05:31 AM
Anyone who buys part 1, it comes with a promotional blurb as usual, but they do have a picture with a list of all of the titles in the run.
Title: Re: DC Comics Graphic Novel Collection!
Post by: NapalmKev on 30 August, 2015, 08:03:27 AM
I bought Hush for a laugh as I haven't read it before. Even at the low price of £2.99 I still feel I've overpaid. The story isn't engaging at all, and I can't help but wonder what goes on at DC Comics. Did the "powers that be" really consider this as a good launching story for a Collection?

Probably won't get part 2 or anything else for that matter.

Cheers
Title: Re: DC Comics Graphic Novel Collection!
Post by: Neo Yahtzee on 21 October, 2015, 03:13:21 PM
They reckon that the fans are so loyal they'll buy any old tosh with the DC logo.
Title: Re: DC Comics Graphic Novel Collection!
Post by: Professor Bear on 21 October, 2015, 04:49:05 PM
Perhaps, but it's official now that the company is losing millions on its monthly print line despite the fact THEY OWN SUPERMAN AND BATMAN.
Title: Re: DC Comics Graphic Novel Collection!
Post by: Mattofthespurs on 21 October, 2015, 05:49:35 PM
Wow!
I would have thought that the implications of the owners of Superman and Batman losing money and, possibly, going under would have been a bad thing.

Personally I'm a big Supes and Bats fan so the thought of any comic producer, especially as a comic fan in general, is a horrific prospect to consider.

'Any old tosh'? Different strokes for different folks I guess.

I want comics to prosper, and I think Marvel, DC, and Rebellion are doing a great job.

I imagine, by the sounds of things, I stand alone.

Which makes me sad for me and for the industry.

As long as it's fun, is my mantra. And 'Hush', for my money, is fun enough.
Title: Re: DC Comics Graphic Novel Collection!
Post by: Dandontdare on 21 October, 2015, 05:53:56 PM
I don't think I was alone in using the "new 52" reboot as a convenient jumping OFF point - all "my" stories are finished and consigned to history, I wasn't interested in starting all over again with new continuity. Haven't bought a single DC item since.

If "all new all different" Marvel has the same effect, I'll save a fortune (and probably  read a lot more diverse and interesting comics!)
Title: Re: DC Comics Graphic Novel Collection!
Post by: Mattofthespurs on 21 October, 2015, 06:02:21 PM
This is a shame, in my opinion.
Some of the 'New 52' stuff (and not all, by no means) is superb.
Too many Batman titles is a problem, and the quality if 50% is questionable.
I still despair at comic fans *almost* pleased that a company or a title is failing though.
This goes against the grain as far as I'm concerned.
The more, the more diverse, the merrier.
Title: Re: DC Comics Graphic Novel Collection!
Post by: Dark Jimbo on 21 October, 2015, 06:14:32 PM
Quote from: Mattofthespurs on 21 October, 2015, 06:02:21 PM
The more, the more diverse, the merrier.

Isn't that the whole point? That the stranglehold of the capes and tights brigade have reduced comics to a shadow of their former glories,a trough it's only recently beginning to climb back out of with the reinvigoration of the indies and the long-overdue decline of DC and Marvel?
Title: Re: DC Comics Graphic Novel Collection!
Post by: Hawkmumbler on 21 October, 2015, 06:15:05 PM
Their isn't a thing the big two are doing that the small press isn't doing better though.
Title: Re: DC Comics Graphic Novel Collection!
Post by: Professor Bear on 21 October, 2015, 06:33:54 PM
DC make their money from licencing.  Their print losses might be an industry joke, but hardly a silver bullet.

Quote from: Dandontdare on 21 October, 2015, 05:53:56 PM
I don't think I was alone in using the "new 52" reboot as a convenient jumping OFF point - all "my" stories are finished and consigned to history

This may be the one thing that DC have actually taken note of, as there's a new Superman book out - Superman: Lois and Clark - that features the post-Crisis/pre-New 52 Superman and Lois Lane in current DC continuity alongside their younger New 52 counterparts.
Title: Re: DC Comics Graphic Novel Collection!
Post by: The Legendary Shark on 27 January, 2017, 11:51:24 AM
It's just gone up by a quid an issue, which is just the excuse (coupled with the terrible recent Green Arrow two-parter - arrows with boxing gloves on the ends? Seriously? Jovus crept...) I've been looking for to ditch this collection. I've found most of the stories to be dull, boring, childish, impenetrable and/or downright silly with very few exceptions.

I'll be trying the new Star Trek collection instead, the first two volumes of which I have enjoyed a heck of a lot more than the majority of this piffle.
Title: Re: DC Comics Graphic Novel Collection!
Post by: karlos on 08 December, 2017, 02:19:40 PM
Have you cats seen this:

https://www.eaglemoss.com/en-gb/comic-heroes/dc-comics-the-legend-of-batman-1/

Title: Re: DC Comics Graphic Novel Collection!
Post by: Colin YNWA on 08 December, 2017, 07:40:53 PM
Some one has

http://forums.2000ad.com/index.php?topic=44951.0;topicseen (http://forums.2000ad.com/index.php?topic=44951.0;topicseen)
Title: Re: DC Comics Graphic Novel Collection!
Post by: Smith on 19 January, 2018, 10:41:41 AM
Quote from: Professor Bear on 05 August, 2015, 02:08:26 PM
Hush is absolutely terrible and has only two things going for it:
#1 Jim Lee gets to draw all of Batman's villains, and
#2 a decent cliffhanger where it turned out Jason Todd was the baddie behind everything, only it turned out in the next issue this was a fake-out to mess with Batman's head.
The problem with #1 is that if you don't like Jim Lee - and plenty don't - this is not actually something for the plus column, and the problem with #2 is that it's lifted entirely from Alan Grant and Norm Breyfogle's Batman run from the early 1990s, which was not an obscure time in Batman's publishing history, it was when he was a cultural phenomenon again after the release of the first Burton film and his comics were selling a million copies each month in North America alone, and were reprinted in multiple territories including the UK.  Even by DC's standards of recycling old glories, that one is pretty shameful as it entailed not reprinting the Grant/Breyfogle run so as not to devalue the impact of what they were then pushing as a significant title in DC's roster, but it's worth noting that once Norm Breyfogle was back in the news for his health problems, they couldn't cash in on that publicity fast enough with a reprint of his stories.
Actually,Hush was almost a remake of Long Halloween.Loab was stealing from himself,really.
Still I like the story,but there are those who dont.
Hush himself got better once Paul Dini took him in.Thats something of a trend.And btw,Dinis run on Detective and Streets of Gotham is awesome,and sadly unappreciated.
Title: Re: DC Comics Graphic Novel Collection!
Post by: Smith on 19 January, 2018, 10:44:14 AM
Quote from: Professor Bear on 21 October, 2015, 04:49:05 PM
Perhaps, but it's official now that the company is losing millions on its monthly print line despite the fact THEY OWN SUPERMAN AND BATMAN.
Not what the sales numbers say.2017 has been a GREAT year for DC Comics,in almost every way.
Title: Re: DC Comics Graphic Novel Collection!
Post by: Professor Bear on 19 January, 2018, 09:28:56 PM
You're quoting a post from 2015.

I don't doubt DC are doing better these days as the post New 52 butthurt subsides and the fanboys come crawling back for their fix, but retail sales figures for North America are pretty much arbitrary, so good luck finding concrete proof that either DC or Marvel are just breaking even.  Axel Alonso only just got the boot as Marvel CEO for a series of events that were, apparently,  successes.
Title: Re: DC Comics Graphic Novel Collection!
Post by: Colin YNWA on 20 January, 2018, 09:21:49 AM
Quote from: Professor Bear on 19 January, 2018, 09:28:56 PM
You're quoting a post from 2015.

Yes when what you said, by all available evidence, was still poppycock.

Quote from: Professor Bear on 19 January, 2018, 09:28:56 PM
...so good luck finding concrete proof that either DC or Marvel are just breaking even. 

Yet neither are any of the points you make supported by evidence, yet you seem to assert them with such certainty when they, from all I can see, based on very little.

DC are making some horrendous decisions in my opinion, not from a business sense but from other perspectives, but I suspect they are doing quite nicely financially.

Should say that I have no comment to make on the quality of their books, as at the moment aside from Mark Russell's Hanna Barbera stuff I've not read anything by them for a year or more now I don't think. Such a shame as I was such a fanboy for so long, but we move on... well some of us do...
Title: Re: DC Comics Graphic Novel Collection!
Post by: JamesC on 20 January, 2018, 10:20:52 AM
DC are putting out some pretty good stuff at the moment Superman has more of a buzz than it's had in years, Dan Annett's Aquaman is great fun and Tom King's Batman is supposed to be good.
As ever, the worst thing about the DC Universe is the obsession over what is/isn't 'canon' and how everything they've published ever fits together. This obsession with continuity is a cancer that infects both Marvel and DC and I hope one day they just forget about it.
Title: Re: DC Comics Graphic Novel Collection!
Post by: Professor Bear on 20 January, 2018, 01:56:47 PM
DC and Marvel encourage continuity fetishism, though - Action Comics, for instance, will soon be celebrating its 1000th issue by bringing back Superman's red underpants, despite Action Comics publishing its "first" issue a few years ago.  DC have bolted older versions of characters onto fresher versions - Hal Jordan, Superman, Barry Allen, etc.  Publishers know their audience is driven partly by nostalgia and appeal to that, but it doesn't mean that they or their audience don't mind starting over now and then.

Quote from: Colin YNWA on 20 January, 2018, 09:21:49 AM
Quote from: Professor Bear on 19 January, 2018, 09:28:56 PM
You're quoting a post from 2015.
Yes when what you said, by all available evidence, was still poppycock.

Which still stings, apparently.
The economics of North American comics is well-documented elsewhere, from the amount of sales necessary to break even to actual month-to-month sales, to the retail pre-order system that means that comics sales are known three months in advance (which recently allowed IDW to cancel Scarlet's Strike Force before its first issue had even gone on sale), but yeah, I've conjured this all up out of nowhere just to make fun of poor old DC.
Title: Re: DC Comics Graphic Novel Collection!
Post by: Smith on 20 January, 2018, 02:28:36 PM
Which is not that different from prog #2000,for example.
Maybe you have some better info then me,but according to Diamond and Comichron,market share and dollar share favoured DC in recent times.That,and Didio likes to point out they sell a crapton of hardcovers/absolute/deluxe editions.Which seems pretty plausible.
Title: Re: DC Comics Graphic Novel Collection!
Post by: Professor Bear on 20 January, 2018, 04:07:12 PM
Likely as one of the reasons DC were technically losing money was because for many years Titan were publishing their trade collections, rather than DC doing it themselves like Marvel did.

Quote from: Smith on 20 January, 2018, 02:28:36 PMMaybe you have some better info then me,but according to Diamond and Comichron,market share and dollar share favoured DC in recent times.

I don't have any inside info, I just follow comics pros on Twitter, and they mostly talk about how North American comics distribution is utterly fucked, lettering, and Kieron Gillen's bad puns.  This is literally all there is to comics Twitter, and if I'm honest they don't actually talk about comics distribution that much.

Although if you want to keep abreast of comics economics talk, Rob Liefeld, Erik Larson, and Aubrey Sitterson are a good place to start, as for various reasons they're past giving a fuck.  Liefeld's stories about being called by a crying Mike Carlin who begged him to come back to write/draw Hawkman again were quite funny.
Title: Re: DC Comics Graphic Novel Collection!
Post by: Mattofthespurs on 20 January, 2018, 04:53:23 PM
I like comics.
I like DC's output at the moment.
I subscribe to various titles, all DC (except the tooth and the meg obvs).

Jesus. Who cares? It's their business and there are always going to be people who are not happy.
That's their job and their sales figures.

I won't buy a title when it becomes boring.

And Liefeld's stories are just that. I don't care for his art at all. So I stopped buying anything he drew.

And that's cool.