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Yep new year new hobby type thread and this time its about comics! Be they purely the digital online sort all the way to your physical comics for reading and for you who collect and keep them in pristine condition on the shelf (or in a box). Whatever your angle and way in is or if you're just looking for some new reads or to get started - here's the thread for all the general chatter, new releases, kickstarters, new purchases and all!




Myself I've recently shifted gear into buying some more physical comics and not just getting comics digitally. Don't get me wrong I still enjoy digital comics and for some of the big, long running series the humble bundles/groupees and comixoligy sales have been fantastic to get together big chunks of long running comics at a more affordable price for the newbie. That said I've encountered some that are just not "as" easily read; sometimes the scan and pdf quality isn't as good as it could be; sometimes they just have odd angles -- and sometimes the artwork is just outstanding and I really just want to own a physical copy purely for the art alone.

I've been starting with steadily collecting some awesome stories in Izuna, Legend of the Scarlet Blades and the Book of Fudo 1 (book 1 is out and book 2 is out later this year). These are all set in the same mythical setting and are published by Humanoids and I have to say the publishing quality in them is really top rate. Not just good binding and printing, but the layout is superb in that they put each page of panels into a bordered page. No two page spreads with half the image lost in the middle; no edges of every page vanishing into the middle; no terrifying opening of the book just a bit wider and risking the spine cracking - nope its clear and easy to read. It's a style I wish far more publishers would adopt.

That said the stories are good and the artwork is really great (ok I might be repeating myself there); its got a very "Princess Mononoke" edge to it with a human world and a spirit world settled just alongside with bits of magic seeping over.

After that I've very recently (this week) started gathering up Witchblade books too, having recently discovered that they are printing the series anew in hardback volumes along with The Darkness - both being funded with short term kickstarters. First volume of both is done (Witchblade on sale; Darkness on sale this coming week) and the second of Witchblade is done with the KS but is still able to get involved through the pledge manager. Print quality is great, binding is good and whilst Witchblade 1 thick, its readable. Slight issue with a little bit of the hardback cover being a fraction short on one end - a niggle really but I hope its something that is a simple one time error. This is a neat comic and one of the early ones that I got into when I started with comics (though that was only what 5 years ago? So its not a long time back). I enjoy the overall story and style, though the artwork style varies a lot through the series, some is really nice and some is a bit plain/serviceable. Story is engaging and neat with twists and turns.


I've also been tempted by finding out that there's also a recent hardback binding of Berserk the Manga in print (up to around 8 volumes and probably close to 16 in total to get up to where it is now). This is one of those massive series though and the kind that I would normally (and might still end up) wait to see if it appears in a bundle (I've a feeling it has in the past and I've missed out at some stage).

So that's a little bit of my interest - what's yours????



Few interesting links! If you find interesting stuff, say below and I can add it to the list

General links:
Comixoligy
https://www.comixology.co.uk
Massive online digital comic site, works well on tablets as well as PC and sells a huge roster of comics from a whole range of major and minor publishers.

Dark Horse Comics
https://www.darkhorse.com
Home of the likes of Hellboy, Alien, Predator and many more

2000AD
https://2000ad.com
A landmark comic series that's been running for decades. Short story comics collected in each issue. Home of Judge Dredd

Humanoids
https://www.humanoids.com
Home of Meta Barons, Izuna,

Image Comics
https://imagecomics.com
Home of Saga (seriously recommend this, don't let the style of art or characters put you off - read it!); East of West;



Time Limited Links - kickstarters, Humble Bundles and the like:

Witchblade 2 pledge manager [no fixed end date but they estimate delivery in May this year, so its not going to last forever]
https://app.crowdox.com/projects/topcow/witchblade-hardcover-vol-2
Note one of the additional items is a 1/2 exclusive comic set in the more modern/current witchblade era

MERAKI issue 4 Kickstarter - Ends March 3rd. Includes both comics (hard and digital) and accessories/bling/stuff.
https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/444916870/meraki-4-a-futuristic-odyssey-adventure-story/comments

Humble Bundle Humanoids Comics [ends at beginning of March] Note if you took part in earlier Humanoids Bundles you won't need to get the top tier on this one as its repeats. Meanwhile lower tiers have a good few new comics to bundles.
https://www.humblebundle.com/books/comics-bundle-moebius-more-presented-humanoids-books

marvel to tell people the current Deadpool book was cancelled (as expected of a KSD book) and Future State is meh.

Ah I hate cancellations - or the even worse long silence where the creator or publisher never says a thing. Sometimes its because the project is just stuck in limbo and there's nothing to say save that its not over. Sometimes things take a long long long time.

I believe Death Vigil 2 is being worked on steadily which is great news; but at the same time something like Uber series 2 is stuck in a wall of silence and Requiem Vampire Knight is apparently stuck for another year or two (update in January on the FB at least ^^).

They forgot to tell people which I find funny but expected with how these companies run these days.

Yeah more than a few seem to dislike passing on product news when its negative and will often just go silent for ages. It can be very frustrating.


Moving onto more positive things just managed to get 5 of the Chronicles of Conan remastered by Dark horse comics (11-15) from the USA. Got a bit of a wait for them to arrive but I'm pleased to get hold of them. Just another 19 odd to go eventually till the whole 30+set (and even then I'd only have 11+ in physical). A shame that licences shift around at times and works like that can wind up the grey or the dark and never (or have limited chance) to see the light of day again.

Y’all read Invincible? You should read Invincible. It’s fairly long, 27 volumes iirc, but one continuous story arc. Anyways, they’re making an animated series for it.

Just paid for another annual subscription to 2000ad.

Last issue was pretty rad, though I’m still not entirely sold on Hershey. I think it’s a combination of the art style (little colour, everything a shade of beige) and not really knowing what happened to end her tenure as Chief Judge.

I'm hoping that one day 2000AD does a humble bundle of say the first 1K of comics for something affordable It's one I'd like to get into but with over 2K comics now its an insane backlog

 AduroT wrote:
Y’all read Invincible? You should read Invincible. It’s fairly long, 27 volumes iirc, but one continuous story arc. Anyways, they’re making an animated series for it.

Oh. I forgot about this. I think I read this back when they were running. Wasn't it some other publisher's attempt to launch their own comic universe and they tried to differentiate themselves from DC and Marvel by committing to a single continuous narrative rather than 'runs'? I remember it being pretty good.

I only read it after it was finished. There’s some crossover stuff, like Savage Dragon and a couple others I recognized had scenes in it when things were at their worst, but nothing really on the level of the big Marvel/DC crossover extravaganzas.

Oh. And Viz.

You can’t not indulge in Viz.

No, not that one. The proper one with fart and knob gags aplenty.

Annoying news for me is the postage for Witchblade 2 is $65 for shipping to the UK. This is apparently a flat rate and the best they've got. Sadly I'm not going to spend more on shipping than on the book at that price. Thankfully its not limited to KS alone so I'll just have to wait around until it hits retail shelves.

Kind of surprised that they don't have a more sane affordable option for UK/EU shipping considering that they clearly can get parcels over to the UK for distribution at a saner price. I guess the issue is that those parcels come over in big batches for distributors/retailers and they don't have a UK office or store paired with them willing to take a single big order of books and then parcel them out individually

Heroes Reborn v2 looks terrible

Next delivery of the 2000AD Ultimate Collection should be arriving fairly soon.

Fiends of the Eastern Front (Vampires in WW1) and Greysuit.

Both are new to me, though I have a passing knowledge of the former. Quote looking forward to it!

Dawn of x trades continue to be the best compilation of multiple connected ongoing series I have ever seen. I am looking forward to picking up the 100.00 retail hard cover of X of Swords (over 24 issues in the one book with extras) when it comes out and then cracking into the new Reign of X.

Updated the first post with a new issue for Meraki kickstarter and a new Humanoids Humble Bundle which includes new comics to bundle in the lower tiers whilst the top most is great stuff, but repeated from earlier ones. So if you've already been in one of their KS chances are you might not need to go all in on this one. Do check what you do and don't have.

Much of the humanoids I've read and would heartily recommend you get hold of - it also has the outstanding Scarlet Blades and Izuna comics.