DC Hardcover Collected Editions Part 3

[DragonPiece]

Yeah I know. That's why I'm saying that vol 1 and vol 2 (Jurgens and Perez) aren't that bad but that vol 3-5 (by Lobdell) is pretty bad.

Not to derail the thread, but I honestly liked Lobdell's run the most so far well out of all of the writers on Superman so far. He actually brought in continuity,had intruging plots and did stories that felt like they mattered and could actually impact Superman's life instead of one shot tales. But yeah, his dialogue did still suck.

[Batmil]

Hello, I'm kind of new to the Superman comics, but I want to start reading with the New 52. I made a reading-order list for myself for the hardcovers. I was wondering if this is correct or do I miss something?

And is it necessary to buy vol. 5 of Superman and vol. 6 of Action comics? Because it seams like a lot of double dip to me.

Superman:
vol.1 What price tomorrow? 1-6
vol.2 Secrets and lies 7-12
vol.3 Fury at world's end 13-17
vol.4 Psi-war 18-24
Krypton returns 25
vol.5 Under fire 25-31
Doomed 30-31 (and Actioncomics 31-35+ Annual 3 and Superman/Wonderwoman 8-12+ Annual 1)
Vol.6 32-39


Action comics
vol.1 Superman and the men of steel 1-8
vol.2 Bulletproof 9-12
vol.3 At the end of days 13-17
vol.4 Hybrid 18-24
Krypton returns Annual 2
vol.5 What lies beneath 25-29
Superdoom 30-35


Superman/Wonder Woman
vol.1 Powercouple 1-7
vol2 War and Peace 8-12

You should pick up the Superman Unchained hc, its the best superman story in the n52 in my opinion.

[Raffi Ol D'Arcy]

I find the DC Omnibus spines very pleasing to the eye with the exception of the SA Green Lantern Omnibuses which are quite bland and the Death & Return Superman Omnibus which has a little bit too much of an "in your face" design.

[Captain Planet]

You should pick up the Superman Unchained hc, its the best superman story in the n52 in my opinion.

Just came on to talk about this. I just finished that book and while the story was a little loose it was by far the best Superman I've read in a long while and one of the best in continuity Superman stories I've read. Keep in mind I've only read 6 or so in continuity Superman stories but I always appreciated it when someone can create a good SM story without having to resort to it being in another universe.

I will say though that Lee's art is is pretty meh. The details and line work is still good but the panels and overall design are pretty mediocre.

[jjsheridan1001]

Anyone here pick up Tales of the Batman: Len Wein?

I'm really tempted, especially since it's a writer-focused volume, and less likely to skip issues like all of the artist-centric ones tend to...

I did, but it hasn't arrived yet (I was late ordering last week). If anyone hasn't by the time I get mine, I will post pics.

[jjsheridan1001]

Hello, I'm kind of new to the Superman comics, but I want to start reading with the New 52. I made a reading-order list for myself for the hardcovers. I was wondering if this is correct or do I miss something?

And is it necessary to buy vol. 5 of Superman and vol. 6 of Action comics? Because it seams like a lot of double dip to me.

I've been a fan of Superman all my life, and I'm one of those people that will find some enjoyment in even a second-rate Superman tale. The New 52 Superman definitely didn't get rebooted with the TLC that Batman was given, and a comic book-reading friend and I were discussing both Unchained and the Johns/Romita Jr. run and we ended up laughing because I pointed out that those were examples of the fourth and sixth reboots the books have been given, trying to give us a N52 "definitive" Superman. Not exactly a solid gold record.

That being said, I will try and give you opinions on everything and hope it will be a sort of guide.

Action Comics volumes 1-4: Morrison's run starts out very strong; his conception of a "people's hero" Superman is both different and timely, and he manages to build a very distinct Metropolis that's different than what came before (and yet familiar). As we enter the second half of his run, it's still compelling stuff, but Morrison takes it to the extreme weird, in a story that spans multiple dimensions and almost fully leaves behind the grounded realism of the first half of the run for something that's more akin to his dimension hopping in All-Star (without the epic feel or scope of that book). I still liked it, but I really questioned if we needed to end the run in a patented Morrison "mindf--k." An example of when simple is better.

Action Comics volume 5 - Diggle's first two issues are solid gold; he was firing on all cylinders and it was some strong work, with fantastic art by Tony Daniel. The rest of the run, written solo by Daniel after DC editorial interference persuaded Diggle to leave quickly, shows you the promise of Diggle's story but without the finesse he had brought to the first issues. The Psi-War storyline that comes after features some great art by Tyler Kirkham but was more a B- story which goes on for way too long.

Superman volumes 1 and 2 feature classic creators being held down by editorial mandate. There are some genuinely good moments, especially in the Jurgens-drawn issues 7-12, but the whole thing forms one big storyline that peters out into basically nothing (when you realize the annual that's tacked onto the second Superman volume is the conclusion of the story, you may fly into rage that that's all it really came to).

Superman volumes 3 and 4 and H'el On Earth are solid B-grade comic book storytelling. H'el On Earth goes on for wayyyyyy too long and features a villain that is barely worthy of B-grade status, and Psi War is, as mentioned before, more like a C+ - and it also goes on for too long.

Superman/Wonder Woman is fantastic stuff, at least while Soule and Daniel is on board. Highly recommended.

The first volume of Superman/Batman is fantastic, classic stuff. The second volume is decent (the first story is strong but overlong, and I hated the landscape style art, the second story is stronger in the Batman/Superman portions, featuring horrible art in the World's Finest ones). Both are worth a look.

Superman Unchained is not the definitely word on New 52 Superman, but it is strong, epic work by Snyder and Lee and probably the overall best Superman story (start to finish) that's been told in the New 52.

I would read Supergirl from start to finish just because it is a damn good comic book - overall stronger than most of the Superman runs have been.

[SJNeal]

I did, but it hasn't arrived yet (I was late ordering last week). If anyone hasn't by the time I get mine, I will post pics.

That would be awesome, thank you in advance!

[TomSlick]

I'm somewhat surprised at all the love for Superman Unchained. I thought it was average at best. But, each to their own.

I gave Superman a shot under Perez but wasn't impressed. Same with Pak's Batman and Superman.

I read Morrison's Action and agree with another poster who said the first half was pretty good but then it deteriorated. I've since come to the realization that I'm not reading any more Morrison until he gets and editor with some balls to tell him "No."

I suspect Superman/WW is great because I haven't read anything that Soule that was bad. I hope they collect run in an OHC.

I'd also be willing to give the Geoff Johns SM title a chance.

Just my two cents on the Man of Steel.

[Yggdrasil]

I read Morrison's Action and agree with another poster who said the first half was pretty good but then it deteriorated. I've since come to the realization that I'm not reading any more Morrison until he gets and editor with some balls to tell him "No."

I second that. I bought All star Superman from Morrison which apparently is a must-read, to realize Morrison is really not my cup of tea. There was too much silver age weirdness for me to be able to love it. I enjoyed the first few issues though, and it is definitely one of the best books I've read from Morrison (but again not a fan of his mindf#&k style of writing)

[Balakin]

I'm not reading any more Morrison until he gets and editor with some balls to tell him "No."

And that's the day I quit reading his work. But to each his own, I prefer his mindf#&@ style. I understand why people don't like that but that's his style and it's not necessarily something that needs to be fixed.

[Legion564]

And that's the day I quit reading his work. But to each his own, I prefer his mindf#&@ style. I understand why people don't like that but that's his style and it's not necessarily something that needs to be fixed.

I dont mind it I just wish it came with a disclaimer or summary at the end.

[Balakin]

I dont mind it I just wish it came with a disclaimer or summary at the end.

Lot of his works has annotations by him, or at least some comments (Action comics, Absolute ASS, New X-men, B&R, etc). Of course, some people don't like if the story needs to be explained and that is absolutely understandable.

[Yggdrasil]

Lot of his works has annotations by him, or at least some comments (Action comics, Absolute ASS, New X-men, B&R, etc). Of course, some people don't like if the story needs to be explained and that is absolutely understandable.

I do not dislike his writing because I do not understand it. I actually like authors who delve into the surreal and conceptual, leave a lot to the reader to understand, or go into weird stuff like Mieville's novels for instance, but there is something which rubs me the wrong way with Morrison. To me, there is a kind of intellectual complaisance with his crazy electric mind-bending ideas: he loves to show off his intellectual prowess, even if it does not really serve the story or the characters. Anyway, he is certainly an intelligent writer, and even though I disliked his Batman run and was lukewarm about his superman, I will be the first to admit that he had grand ideas for these titles. The execution is not to my taste, but to each his own.

[ReedRichards77]

I do not dislike his writing because I do not understand it. I actually like authors who delve into the surreal and conceptual, leave a lot to the reader to understand, or go into weird stuff like Mieville's novels for instance, but there is something which rubs me the wrong way with Morrison. To me, there is a kind of intellectual complaisance with his crazy electric mind-bending ideas: he loves to show off his intellectual prowess, even if it does not really serve the story or the characters. Anyway, he is certainly an intelligent writer, and even though I disliked his Batman run and was lukewarm about his superman, I will be the first to admit that he had grand ideas for these titles. The execution is not to my taste, but to each his own.

Time to time i try a Morrison story. Maybe i chose badly, but it's pain to read. I stopped reading the 7 soldiers 20 pages before the end. I couldn't force myself to read those few pages. Last time i read the final crisis, and omg it was garbage (for me). I can't understand why would be he an intelligent writer? (Story is boring, incoherent, hard to understand, i can't find any intelligence in it.)
(His New X-Men was ok, and now i read his batman and most of it is ok.)

[frogger]

I've just spotted a new printing of Batman Cataclysm on Amazon.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Batman-Catac...P3YCF4FQXWQA5T