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 first do a two-fisted grab of this summer’s big event series Flashpoint #2 (DC, $3.99) and Fear Itself #3 (Marvel,$3.99). It’s required reading if you’re writing about comics like I am, and as a reader I’m intrigued by both. Two questions come out of this: 1. I wonder which one jiggered their release dates to come out the same week as the other event book, and 2. I guess DC will have to take off its “Holding The Line at $2.99” logo, or at least add some fine print. Next up would be Uncanny X-Force #11 (Marvel, $3.99); Rick Remender and the artists here have made this the best x-book on stands, hitting me right between the eyes by revisiting older storylines and characters and giving them a modern spin. Lastly, I would get Turf #5 (Image, $2.99), because I’m one of the biggest Tommy Lee Edwards fans out there.
If I had $30, I’d triple-down with three #1s– S.H.I.E.L.D. Vol. 2 #1 (Marvel, $3.99) Criminal: Last of the Innocent #1 (Marvel/Icon, $3.50) and Flashpoint: Batman: Knight of Vengeance #1 (DC, $2.99). After that I’d get Who Is Jake Ellis? #4 (Image, $2.99) and Astonishing X-Men #39 (Marvel, $3.99). On the latter, I was sad to see Jason Pearson go, but drafting Nick Bradshaw to fill in is an inspired choice.
For splurging, I’d go all out on the Dark Horse collection of Citizen Rex (Dark Horse, $19.99). Trying to amp up my Hernandez Bros. reading, and this is part of that.
Chris Mautner
If I had $15:
I'd probably just stick to The Boys #55 ($3.99), cause there's little else in that price range that excites me this week.
If I had $30:
Now we're talkin'. I'd actually have to choose between two books: the sixth volume of Moomin ($19.95), which features work by Lars Jansson, who took over from his sister Tove on the strip. Word is the transition is seamless. And Citizen Rex ($19.99), the new hardcover collection of a sci-fi mini-series by Gilbert and Mario Hernandez. I didn't hear much about this when Dark Horse was initially releasing it, but it seems to harken back to the early days of Love and Rockets, when everything was spaceships and funky haircuts. It's Beto, though, so I know I'll be getting it at some point. It's just a question of when.
Splurge:
I wasn't too impressed with Paul Hornscheimer's Life With Mr. Dangerous ($22) when it was originally serialized in Mome, but perhaps it reads better collected. I'll at least give it a flip-through. I'm also curious to check out The Tooth ($24.99), a superhero homage/parody by Cullen Bunn, Shawn Lee and Matt Kindt. That's an interesting line-up.
Graeme McMillan
I'm in the mood for some full-scale superhero action this week, so my $15 would go toward the latest installments of Flashpoint (#2, DC, $3.99) and Fear Itself (#3, Marvel, $3.99), although the latter might end up being the final time I'll pick it up after a flat second issue. I'll also be grabbing the debut of Flashpoint: Secret Seven (DC, $2.99), because I'm curious to see what Peter Milligan will get up to with an alternate Shade The Changing Man -- although seeing George Perez not even manage a full issue is going to be somewhat of a disappointment, I must admit -- and the Static Shock Special (DC, $2.99), because not only am I eager to see a tribute to the late Dwayne McDuffie, but I've also been a fan of Static for years, and long to see him get the comic he's deserved since Milestone ended.
If I had $30, I might feel curious enough to pick up a couple more Flashpoint spin-offs. Both Flashpoint: Abin Sur, The Green Lantern (DC, $2.99) and The World of Flashpoint (DC, $2.99) have potential for me, although I have little-to-no interest in Brian Azzarello and Eduardo Risso's Batman: Knight of Vengeance -- and, on Marvel's side, Fear Itself: The Deep #1 ($2.99) might be worth a look based on Cullen Bunn's involvement and it being a Defenders title in all but name. That same curiosity might be enough to get me to pick up the second issue of Brian Michael Bendis' and Alex Maleev's Moon Knight (Marvel, $3.99), as well... Mind you, that might just be me being a glutton for punishment after the disappointing opener last month.
Splurgewise, it's entirely nostalgic for me, but if I had the money, Marvel's Captain Britain: Birth of A Legend collection ($39.99) would definitely be mine. I remember those stories the, uh, second time around (I was given a reprint when I was a kid, and kind of hated it. But oddly enough, I really, really want to re-read it anyway).
Michael May
If I had $15, I'd check out some new series that are starting this week. Reed Gunther #1 ($2.99) is about a cowboy who rides a bear, 50 Girls 50 #1 ($2.99) is a space pulp by Frank Cho, and Foster Broussard: Demons of the Gold Rush #1 ($3.50) is a steampunk Weird Western from Red 5. In addition to those I'd also grab Betty #192 ($2.99) since it wraps up the groovy spy story from last month's Veronica.
If I had $30, I'd add Fabien Vehlmann and Jason's Isle of 100,000 Graves ($14.99). It's not on Diamond's website list, but it's on my comic shop's invoice, so I'm hopeful that I'll finally get to read this pirate story and forget my disappointment about On Stranger Tides.
My splurge item this week is the same as Mautner's. Tooth ($24.99) is expensive, but the chance to see Cullen Bunn and Matt Kindt collaborating on a monster-fighting molar is irresistible. Of course, there's also Walt Disney's Mickey Mouse, Volume 1: Race to Death Valley ($29.99) featuring early stories of Mickey as a two-fisted adventurer. That sounds impossible to pass up as well, so I'm hoping for some super extra splurge money this week.
JK Parkin
If I had $15, I'd start with Flashpoint #2 and Fear Itself, for the reasons Chris outlines above. I'd also grab Criminal:Last of the Innocent #1 and the new SHIELD series, which would put me close to my limit.
With $30, I'd add Fear Itself: The Deep #1 ($2.99), because I can't resist a Defenders tale by Cullen Bunn. Of the Flashpoint minis, I'm most tempted by Secret Seven, but I'd likely flip through all of them before heading to the counter to see which ones I was really interested in. So let's round it out with a few ongoings I've been digging lately: Secret Six #34 ($2.99), Batman Beyond #6 ($2.99), Herc #4 ($2.99) and Irredeemable #26 ($3.99).
And for my splurging this week, I'll take a page from Michael's playbook and go "off Diamond" with Isle of 100,000 Graves ($14.99), the new Jason/Fabien Vehlmann collaboration, and Celluloid, the new erotic book from Dave McKean ($35). I'd also grab the Osborn: Evil Incarcerated trade ($16.99) from Marvel. And there's not much chance I'd pass on Bunn and Kindt's collaboration The Tooth ($24.99), so let's hope that extra splurge money can cover all four.