Welcome to Food or Comics?, where every week we talk about what comics we’d buy at our local comic shop based on certain spending limits — $15 and $30 — as well as what we’d get if we had extra money or a gift card to spend on a splurge item.

Check out Diamond’s release list or ComicList, and tell us what you’re getting in our comments field.



Chris Arrant

If I had $15, I’d line up to get the this year’s CBLDF Liberty Annual #5 (Image, $4.99). I’m an anthology junkie, and this hits that perfectly while also benefiting a good cause. The creator list is amazing – even without knowing who’s working with whom. After that, I’d get Happy #2 (Image, $2.99). This book’s first issue hit me harder than I expected; I was buying it for Grant Morrison to wow me with his writing, but it was Darick Robertson’s artwork that hit me square between the eyes. I’ve read all the issues of Transmetropolitan and most of The Boys, but his art here has graduated up a level and I’m almost salivating at thinking of this second issue. Third this week would be Wolverine and the X-Men #19 (Marvel, $3.99), quietly usurping Uncanny X-Force as my favorite Marvel book on the stands. Last issue’s Doop-centric theme was great for me, but I’m excited to see star pupil Nick Bradshaw back on pencils for this issue.

If I had $30, I’d double back and get Higher Earth, Vol. 1 (Boom!, $14.99) Canceled or not, this series looks interesting despite my bailing after Issue 1. It’s a complicated concept (from what I gleaned from the first issue), but I’m looking to let Humphries school me on this.

If I could splurge, I’d snatch up EC: Wally Wood - Came the Dawn and Other Stories (Fantagraphics, $28.99). I’ve been aware of Wally Wood for a almost two decades now, but I tend to go through periods of simply floating around before I consume and learn more about him in short but voracious periods. Last time it was in the bloom of Fear Agent, and seeing this in Previews a few months back got me jonesing to do it again.



Chris Mautner

I already picked it up at the Small Press Expo, but if I hadn't, rest assured that my first pick would be the third issue of Ethan Rilly's Pope Hats, an utterly charming series about a young, somewhat aspiring law clerk at a frenzied legal firm, and her roommate, a freewheeling actress. Rilly's got some fine artistic chops and he captures the stress of the workaday world really well. Go check it out.

If I had $30, I'd choose between one of two Fantagraphics books out this week: either Heads or Tails, a nice-looking collection of short stories by up-and-comer Lilli Carré (The Lagoon), most of which ran in the Mome anthology; or Blacklung, Chris Wright's oversize debut graphic novel, a bloody seafaring tale about a man determined to do what it takes to meet his dead wife in hell. Wright's first book, the short story collection Inkweed, was a helluva thing and I'm really anxious to see how he handles a longer, more sustained narrative.

Splurge: Gotta go with Humanoids once again and its release of Metabarons: The Ultimate Collection, a spinoff of writer Alejandro Jodorowsky's famous Incal series, featuring some pretty stellar art by Juan Gimenez. Trippy epic sci-fi, what more could you want?



Michael May

If I had $15, I'd first grab Rocketeer: Cargo of Doom #3 ($3.99), because Mark Waid and Chris Samnee revealed in the second issue that this isn't just a Rocketeer story; it's a Rocketeer/King Kong story. As if that's not enough for the week, I'd keep spending money and get Creator-Owned Heroes #6 ($3.99). I'm especially excited to see where Steve Niles and Andrew Ritchie's "Black Sparrow" goes, but I was also really pleased by Jimmy Palmiotti, Justin Gray, and Jerry Lando's "Killswitch" last issue. Looking forward to more of that. I'd finish off the pile with The New Deadwardians #8 ($2.99), which concludes that excellent miniseries, and Captain Marvel #6 ($2.99).

With $30, I'd add a few more single-issues. X-Men Legacy #275 ($2.99) wraps up the Rogue era of this series, before Marvel NOW reboots it as a Legion series. (Seriously?) Then I'd get Phantom Lady #3 ($2.99) and Steve Niles' new miniseries Lot 13 #1 ($2.99). I'd top off that stack with Steed and Mrs. Peel #2 ($3.99).

There's a lot of great stuff to splurge on this week (Abelard and August Moon look especially good), but I'm going to copy Mautner and get Blacklung ($24.99). That's been on my radar since Graeme first picked it for a What Looks Good column.



Graeme McMillan

If I had $15 this week, I'd spend more than half of it immediately on Ghosts #1 (DC/Vertigo, $7.99), the latest anthology of shorts repurposing an old DC title. This time around, though, there's a great line-up of talent, including Paul Pope and David Lapham collaborating on a story, Geoff Johns and Jeff Lemire getting their spook on, and -- most excitingly for me -- Al Ewing and Rufus Dayglo doing a story together. I genuinely can't wait for this one. I'd also pick up the new CBLDF Liberty Annual (Image Comics, $4.99), speaking of all-star line-ups: Brandon Graham, Chris Roberson and Roger Langridge, Kieron Gillen and Nate Bellegarde and the debut of the James Robinson/J. Bone collaboration that they'll continue in a new series next year? Yes, very much sold.

If I had $30, I'd likely grab A+X #1 (Marvel, $3.99) because I'm a sucker for team-up books, as well as second issue of IDW's new Doctor Who series ($3.99), because I'm a sucker for well-done Time Lord stories, and Andy Diggle and Mark Buckingham offered up a really great first issue.

If I was going to splurge this week, I'd find myself triple-dipping with the Absolute Final Crisis hardcover from DC ($99.99), and it's all because of the brand new pages that have been added to this edition. I loved the series the first and second times I bought it, so the temptation to go for the trifecta really is worryingly strong.