DC Hardcover Collected Editions Part 3

[Vilynne]

Hey folks, I'm looking for some help. A friend missed out on the OOP and now expensive Absolute Blackest Night. With his birthday rapidly approaching, I'm attempt to locate one. I ran into this the other day:

http://www.midtowncomics.com/store/dp.asp?PRID=1237040

however I can't find it anywhere else using the diamond code or ISBN as they all come back to the 2013 print. There are two listings on Midtown; one for 2013 & one for 2017. Can anyone help me find out if this is getting reprinted or if I need to hunt down an original copy?

I cannot find anything about a reprinting for Blackest Night. If I see any in my comic shops, I'll let you know. I've found a few OOP trades, but can't promise anything.

[NeathBlue]

Hey folks, I'm looking for some help. A friend missed out on the OOP and now expensive Absolute Blackest Night. With his birthday rapidly approaching, I'm attempt to locate one. I ran into this the other day:

http://www.midtowncomics.com/store/dp.asp?PRID=1237040

however I can't find it anywhere else using the diamond code or ISBN as they all come back to the 2013 print. There are two listings on Midtown; one for 2013 & one for 2017. Can anyone help me find out if this is getting reprinted or if I need to hunt down an original copy?

Not sure their listing is correct, there's been nothing said about it being reprinted and also the price quoted on this is $99.99 whereas it originally came out at $125.
I think picking one up from eBay is your best bet, I got lucky a few weeks ago in getting one for £35 which included postage.
Don't bother buying one from the dealers on amazon as their prices are ridiculously high.

[brameosaurusrex]

I cannot find anything about a reprinting for Blackest Night. If I see any in my comic shops, I'll let you know. I've found a few OOP trades, but can't promise anything.

Not sure their listing is correct, there's been nothing said about it being reprinted and also the price quoted on this is $99.99 whereas it originally came out at $125.
I think picking one up from eBay is your best bet, I got lucky a few weeks ago in getting one for £35 which included postage.
Don't bother buying one from the dealers on amazon as their prices are ridiculously high.

Thank you, both. I was on the same mindset, I just wanted different views on the situation.
Vilynne, if you happen to see it and its around cover, please let me know. Don't put yourself out looking, I have back up plans.
NeathBlue, glad you were able to grab it a reasonable rate. I'm sure getting OOP material in Europe and the UK gets even pricer than here in the states even with the online shopping options. Shipping must kill your budgets.

[AJpyro]

I managed to find a starman trade that is oop. Go foe it?

[The Flicker Fade]

I don't get why all publishers don't abandon standard size hardcovers at this point. Release them in standard trim paperbacks and oversized hardcovers and be done with it. I don't think I've ever heard anybody say "I'm waiting for the standard size hardcover or I won't buy this unless it's published in a standard size hardcover."

Yup. So stupid. There is absolutely no reason this book shouldn't just be a (much cheaper) tpb. And anyone passing on this to wait for a tpb, don't hold your breath. DC never released tpbs of Infinity Inc, Legion Lost, Justice League Generation Lost, etc. They're also much less likely to finish collecting the series if they do these hardcovers because it won't sell as well as it would if it were a tpb, especially at that price point, and may even get remaindered when a tpb wouldn't have (see: Secret Society of Supervillains HCs vs. tpb). So dumb. So very, very, very dumb.

This is a pass for me too. I've never really liked the Outsiders, and the Batman link is really shallow. If it were a $20/$25 tpb? That would have been a sale.

[vark]

I have finally get the time to browse through my Batman Absolute Year One, and I really, really don't understand some of the editorial choices (sorry if it has been probably already discussed here).

There are two books. Book one features the entire story "re-scanned from the original board". I don't fully understand what that means but the reproduction quality is ace. The coloring is overall very similar to the 2012 Deluxe edition, although colors are slightly darkened here (thing is the Deluxe edition was printed on glossy paper, and here it is printed on mat paper). In fact the coloring for this absolute edition is closer to the one used for the original floppies, but not exactly the same.
The extra section for book one is almost identical to what can be find in the 2012 deluxe edition.

Main issue I have with this edition is that 90 pages of the second book are quite useless in my opinion. They are scans from the floppy comics, i.e. hi res scans from a very low quality source.
In addition, the second book proposes the scripts and layouts for the entire story, but most of the layouts are printed in a smaller form that was is partially proposed in the Deluxe edition.

Many pictures to illustrate these topics here: http://myabsolutecollection.blogspot...e-edition.html

[The Flicker Fade]

I have finally get the time to browse through my Batman Absolute Year One, and I really, really don't understand some of the editorial choices (sorry if it has been probably already discussed here).

There are two books. Book one features the entire story "re-scanned from the original board". I don't fully understand what that means but the reproduction quality is ace. The coloring is overall very similar to the 2012 Deluxe edition, although colors are slightly darkened here (thing is the Deluxe edition was printed on glossy paper, and here it is printed on mat paper). In fact the coloring for this absolute edition is closer to the one used for the original floppies, but not exactly the same.
The extra section for book one is almost identical to what can be find in the 2012 deluxe edition.

Main issue I have with this edition is that 90 pages of the second book are quite useless in my opinion. They are scans from the floppy comics, i.e. hi res scans from a very low quality source.
In addition, the second book proposes the scripts and layouts for the entire story, but most of the layouts are printed in a smaller form that was is partially proposed in the Deluxe edition.

Many pictures to illustrate these topics here: http://myabsolutecollection.blogspot...e-edition.html

And it only cost $125!


Yeah, we think the whole thing is a rip-off. Most people swore they wouldn't buy it, but who knows what they did in the privacy of their own homes. I own every other Batman Absolute, and I passed.

[vark]

And it only cost $125!


Yeah, we think the whole thing is a rip-off. Most people swore they wouldn't buy it, but who knows what they did in the privacy of their own homes. I own every other Batman Absolute, and I passed.

I have bought this one, the collector's editions of Watchmen, Batman Dark Knight and DK III, and I obviously think that DC needs to step up their game (and that I have to stop preordering things too many months in advance).

[TomSlick]

And it only cost $125!


Yeah, we think the whole thing is a rip-off. Most people swore they wouldn't buy it, but who knows what they did in the privacy of their own homes. I own every other Batman Absolute, and I passed.

I was one who took the oath and didn't buy it. I think I would get it at the right price but after hearing some of the complaints I'm not even sure what that price would be.

[PLEDGE]

Out of curiosity, which version do you guys prefer of Year One? The newly touched up version in Absolute book 1, or the original colouring from the scans in book 2?

[Raffi Ol D'Arcy]

I have finally get the time to browse through my Batman Absolute Year One, and I really, really don't understand some of the editorial choices (sorry if it has been probably already discussed here).

There are two books. Book one features the entire story "re-scanned from the original board". I don't fully understand what that means but the reproduction quality is ace. The coloring is overall very similar to the 2012 Deluxe edition, although colors are slightly darkened here (thing is the Deluxe edition was printed on glossy paper, and here it is printed on mat paper). In fact the coloring for this absolute edition is closer to the one used for the original floppies, but not exactly the same.
The extra section for book one is almost identical to what can be find in the 2012 deluxe edition.

Main issue I have with this edition is that 90 pages of the second book are quite useless in my opinion. They are scans from the floppy comics, i.e. hi res scans from a very low quality source.
In addition, the second book proposes the scripts and layouts for the entire story, but most of the layouts are printed in a smaller form that was is partially proposed in the Deluxe edition.

Many pictures to illustrate these topics here: http://myabsolutecollection.blogspot...e-edition.html

Thanks Vark for that fantastic review and all those pics. I will still be picking it up if I can locate it at a "decent" price.

[pud333]

Someone correct me if I'm wrong but isn't the second book supposed to be like a floppy but in absolute size? Hence the lower quality paper? I thought it was a gimic. Anyway, I was going to pick this up today but now that there is another Deluxe on the way, I'm not so sure.

[vark]

Someone correct me if I'm wrong but isn't the second book supposed to be like a floppy but in absolute size? Hence the lower quality paper? I thought it was a gimic. Anyway, I was going to pick this up today but now that there is another Deluxe on the way, I'm not so sure.

Nope it is an hardcover book with lower quality paper, even for the scripts and layouts section.

[pud333]

Nope it is an hardcover book with lower quality paper, even for the scripts and layouts section.

That makes absolutely no sense then. If it was to just replicate the floppy then I understand the second book but not if it's just to print on lower quality paper. I'm so confused. I'm gonna have to hold off until the new deluxe. I have the most recent deluxe but I don't like the glossy paper. Maybe the new deluxe will just be like book 1 of the absolute.

[vark]

Out of curiosity, which version do you guys prefer of Year One? The newly touched up version in Absolute book 1, or the original colouring from the scans in book 2?

To help respond to this question here is an example where the differences are more blatant:

Attachment 45146

Attachment 45147

If I understand correctly the version in the absolute book was not newly touched up in term of the coloring as it dated back to 1988, although different from the 1987 version. Does that mean that the printing process used for the collected edition in 1988 has altered the re-coloring?

Another thing I have never noticed before is the fact that since 1988, the collected edition shows more of Mazzucchelli's art in the bottom of some pages:

Attachment 45148