Posts Tagged ‘ Collecting the Publishers ’

Collecting the Publishers: American Comics Group

April 24, 2009
By

If you caught my last podcast, then you knew that I was on vacation celebrating my 10th anniversary for the past week. It was nice to get away from everyday life, but we were in a constant state of,”…wonder how the kids are” and, “…what did we forget to tell grandma”. But of course all turned out OK. I did a little reading on the trip including Queen and Country The Definitive Edition Volume 3 and The Essential Nova (I’ll expand more on these in the next podcast). Both were very good, but I guess I expected a little more from Nova.

But for now let’s get on with the Friday feature:
Today we come to American Comics Group (ACG). Formed in 1943 it was one of the major publishers giving companies like DC and Marvel a run for their money. ACG had numerous titles throughout the years and had top talent, too boot. Their most famous character creation was that of Herbie aka The Fat Fury. ACG ended in 1967, but some of their most famous runs are now being reprinted by Dark Horse:

  • Herbie Archives Volumes 1-3 collects Herbie #1-23
  • Magicman Archives Volume 1 collects Forbidden Worlds #125-141
  • Nemesis Archives Volume 1 collects Adventures into the Unknown #154-#170

Collecting the Publishers: America’s Best Comics

April 17, 2009
By

America’s Best Comics (aka ABC) is the former Wildstorm and later DC Comics imprint headed by Alan Moore. Founded in 1999, it is best known for publishing The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen. Nearly everything that ABC has put out has been collected in some way or another. Here are a few:

  • The Official America’s Best Comics website has merged with the Wildstorm site.
  • The League Of Extraordinary Gentlemen The Absolute Edition Slipcased Hardcover Volume 1, 2 and The Black Dossier.
  • Absolute Promethea Vol. 1 Slipcased Hardcover collects Promethea #1-12, due in stores September 30, 2009.
  • America’s Best Comics TPB A Who’s Who of fantastic comics creators comes together for this handsome volume collecting the America’s Best Comics Special, The Abc Sketchbook, And The Many Worlds Of Tesla Strong.
  • Tom Strong
    • Books 1-6 In both Hardcover and Softcover. Collects the entire 36 issue run and Tom Strong’s Terrific Tales Volumes 1-2 collects the 12 issues series.
  • Top 10
    • Top 10: Book One (issues 1-7), Top 10: Book Two (issues 8-12), Smax, which was set directly after the series’ conclusion (issues 1-5), Top 10: The Forty-Niners and Top 10: Beyond the Farthest Precinct (issues 1-5).

Collecting the Publishers: AC Comics

April 10, 2009
By

AC Comics goes back to 1969 when Bill Black founded Paragon Publications. Paragon did a name change in 1982 to Americomics, but in 1984 it became AC, where it has stayed. Publishing out of Longwood, Florida, the publisher is best known for Femforce, a team of superhero women. The characters themselves are a mix of public domain and original creations. AC Comics has also reprinted many classic Western and Golden Age comic books (that have fallen into the public domain) into collected editions.

  • Official AC Comics website
  • There are several Femforce Graphic Novels and Trade Paperbacks that appear to be a complete collection of the series, one-shots and specials.
  • Best of the West (Volumes 1-40) are anthologies that reprint many classic Western stories featuring such characters as Redmask, The Durango Kid and The Haunted Horseman as done by such greats as Dick Giordano and Dick Ayers.
  • The Golden Age Men of Mystery (Volumes 1-78) anthologies reprint the great characters from yesteryear including The Black Terror, Phantom Lady, Fighting Yank, Spy Smasher, Bulletman and many, many more.
  • Thrilling Science Fiction (Volume 1-2) reprints hard to find stories from the 1950’s as done by Joe Orlando, Reed Crandall, Steve Ditko, Mike Sekowsky, Bernard Sachs, Bernie Krigstein and Wally Wood.

Collecting the Publishers: Abstract Studio

April 3, 2009
By

Abstract Studio is the home of Terry Moore’s own imprint and is best known for the long running Strangers In Paradise. However Moore has also started another series, Echo, in 2008.

Strangers in Paradise initially started out at Antarctic Press and ran for only three issues in 1993 (Volume 1). Moore then founded Abstract Studio and thus began a thirteen issue run (Volume 2). For Volume 3, Moore moved the property to Homage Comics (which he help found), an imprint of Image, where it stayed for only 8 issues. He then brought it back to Abstract Studio where it stayed until the titles’ conclusion with issue #90.

  • The entire Strangers In Paradise series has been collected in several different forms including:
    • 19 Trade Paperbacks (softcovers)
    • 10 Hardcovers
    • 6 Pocket Books Collections
    • There are also three companion books: Lyrics and Poems, Strangers in Paradise Source Book, and Strangers in Paradise Treasury Edition.
  • As far as Echo goes, a trade paperback of issues #1-5 was released in 2008 with the title Echo: Moon Lake.

Collecting the Publishers: Aardvark-Vanaheim

March 27, 2009
By

I stated on the podcast a few weeks back that I received the excellent Slings and Arrows Comic Guide 2nd Edition as a gift. Unlike the Overstreet Guide it does not list comic books by monetary value, but does provide reviews of the entire run and it also tells the reader if a certain run has been published in collected edition form – something that is rather handy as it pertains to this blog. Now then, I wanted to add a little something extra to the CCL and to give out some interesting information that you may not otherwise find at other websites. That’s why, starting today, and continuing on a weekly basis, I’m going to take a publisher (big or small) and list some of their comics books that are available as a collected edition. It won’t be a Top 10 list per se, nor will I (or can I) list everything from, say Marvel, but I’ll give out recommendations. Please feel free to comment and send me suggestions you may have.

I’m going to do my best to do this in alphabetical order, so let’s start with: Aardvark-Vanaheim, which is best know for publishing Dave Sim’s Cerebus.

  • Cerebus has been collected into 16 editions covering all 300 issues.
  • There’s also the Dave Sim’s Collected Letters Volume 1 (January-May 2004) and Volume 2 (June-July.2004).
  • Flaming Carrot Comics is a surrealist comic book by Bob Burden. In February 2009, Bob Burden Studios released the Flaming Carrot Collected Edition Volume 1 HC. This book collects the out-of-print Flaming Carrot comics that were originally published by Dark Horse. I do not know if the early Flaming Carrot has ever been collected.
  • Journey: The Adventures of Wolverine MacAlistaire was an independent comic book created by William Messner-Loebs about Michigan frontier life in the 19th century. In 2008, IDW published a trade paperback collecting the first 16 issues.
  • Ms. Tree a creation of author Max Allan Collins has moved around from publisher to publisher including Renegade and DC Comics. The 3 issue run by Aardvark-Vanaheim (“Runaway” 1985, Ms. Tree #16-17; “Muerta Means Death” Part 1 1985, Ms. Tree #18) has been collected in Ms. Tree (1988, small paperback collection, it reprints Ms. Tree #16-23).
  • normalman is a limited series created by Jim Valentino. The recent Collected normalman TPB published by Image Comics collects every single normalman appearance.
  • The Puma Blues written by Stephen Murphy and drawn by Michael Zulli. Mirage Studios has collected the first two story arcs (Issues #1-12 – Book One: Watch That Man and Issues #13-19 – Book Two: Sense of Doubt) into trade paperbacks.