SOMETHING TO LOOK FORWARD TO: SUPERMAN TRADES FOR ’09

I believe I have mentioned in previous posts that I am one of the crazy few that collect and read Superman and Superman related comics both in their monthly form as well as in their hardcover or trade paperback editions.  I just can’t help myself.  I like having them on the shelf and as I have said many times in the past sometimes it is just easier to walk over to the bookshelf than it is to dig through boxes of comics, though this reasoning doesn’t hold up when you consider that less than two feet to my right sit the short boxes which contain my Superman comics.

I’m just weird that way when it comes to trades and hardcovers.  I’ve learned to live with it.

Thanks to Chris Marshall of the Collected Comics Library (both a podcast and a blog) I now have an idea where some of my money is going to end up in 2009.  Chris devoted a recent episode to the trades and hardcovers DC is going to release in the first quarter of 2009 and beyond so I can start making plans on how much blood to sell and what organs to put up on eBay.

Before I get into the list and my commentary I highly recommend Chris’s podcast.  He’s a good solo podcaster and if you are a fan of trades and such then this is definitely worth the thirty or so minutes a week it takes to listen to an episode. 

And here we go.

Superman: For Tomorrow: Absolute Edition ($99.99)

Superman finally gets an Absolute Edition.

And it had to be this one.

I was not a big fan of For Tomorrow.  Frankly I thought the story was boring and when you have an artist like Jim Lee the story should not feel boring.  Brian Azzarello wrote a long, protracted story that basically had six months of Superman talking to a priest and going over the same themes again and again and again to no real end outside of being kind of pretentious.  Of all the Superman stories to put into an Absolute Edition they pick one of the few I really don’t care for.

I’m going to pick it up.  I will probably go through an online dealer like In Stock Trades because they usually have some nice deals and free shipping if you order over fifty dollars worth of merchandise.

So I’ll buy it.  Doesn’t mean I have to pay full price.

Showcase Presents: Superman Family Volume 3

I like the reprints, so this is a lock.

Superman Chronicles Volume 6

It does my heart good that DC is continuing to publish this series.  Barring a sudden influx of crazy lottery winnings it is not likely that I will ever be able to afford the Golden Age Superman comics.  The production values are nice and the price can’t be beat.

All-Star Superman Vol. 2 -Hardcover

This collects All-Star Superman #s 7-12.  I still need to buy the first hardcover and while this is not strictly my cup of tea when it comes to Superman I still enjoy and respect what Morrison is doing with this series.

Superman: Atlas -Hardcover

The credits on this one list both James Robinson and Jack Kirby, so everyone is working under the assumption that this will include both James Robinson’s first arc on Superman but also the first appearance of Atlas from the pages of First Issue Special.  The story arc’s introductory chapter was good and it would be nice to have the first appearance as well.

Superman: Brainiac -Hardcover

The first chapter of this story blew me away and barring acts of God and the involvement of some minor level demons I can’t see this story getting anywhere near the suck. 

Superman: Kryptonite Nevermore -Hardcover

YES!

BOO YAH!

SWEET!

With my growing love and appreciation of the Bronze Age this book is coming out at just the right time.  One of the first Superman comics I read was Superman (Vol. 1) #233 (in the pages of Superman: From the Thirties to the Seventies) so this volume has a certain amount of nostalgic attraction.  I have most of this storyline in single issue form, but to have the whole thing in a hardcover will be all about some awesome.

Superman: Shadows Linger -Trade Paperback

Word on the street is that this is another collection of Kurt Busiek stories.  Further word is that it might contain the Insect Queen story, which while not my favorite storyline of the past year wasn’t all that bad.

Supergirl: Way of the World -Trade Paperback

I have yet to pick up any of the Supergirl trades, so I will more than likely buy the earlier ones before I buy this volume.  The series has really picked up over the past year, so it might be time to get caught up on the trades.

There are also some trades that I probably won’t buy but more than likely contain Superman, so if you are interested here they are.

• Showcase Presents: Justice League of America Volume 4
• Showcase Presents: Legion of Super-Heroes Volume 3
• Justice League of America Volume 4: Sanctuary -Hardcover
• Justice League Unlimited Volume 3 -Trade Paperback
• Justice Society of America: Kingdom Come Part 3 -Hardcover
• Justice Volume 3 -Trade Paperback
• Super Friends: For Justice -Trade Paperback

And there you go.  Of course all books are subject to being pushed back or not put out at all, so keep that in mind.  In any case there looks to be a good number of Superman trades coming out next year and some of them have me really excited.

More to follow…