Buying comics can be an expensive hobby. A lot of fans simply can’t afford everything they’re interested in, due to rising prices and the over-saturation of the market with superhero titles.
That’s why we’re here. Every week, the Multiversity staff is asked “What would you buy this week if you couldn’t go over $20?” and shares their reasons why, in order to help others who might have similar tastes make their own decisions in buying comics on a budget. Be sure to leave your own picks in the comments!
Mark’s Picks:
The House of Lost Horizons: A Sarah Jewell Mystery #1 ($3.99) – Back in our review for the “Hellboy: Winter Special 2019”, Brian speculated that the Sarah Jewell short story felt like a teaser for a series led by the character. Turns out he was right. This is a series I’ve wanted for a very long time now, so seeing it come to fruition is very gratifying. Leila del Duca’s art is such a great match for the material. I’m not only looking forward to this issue and the rest of the miniseries, but many more stories to come. I even wrote a Hell Notes about Sarah Jewell to vent some of enthusiasm.
Black Hammer: Visions #4 ($3.99) – The blurb and cover for this one are just vague enough to intrigue without really telling me anything. I’ve no idea what to expect going into this issue, but I feel like I’m in good hands with Mariko Tamaki and Diego Olortegui—especially in the case of Tamaki, as she was one the major reasons I was excited for this anthology series.
The Silver Coin #2 ($3.99) – Another anthology, this time with each issue connected by the titular silver coin. In this case there’s no one creator that stands out as the draw for me, because each would be a major draw on their own. Michael Walsh, Chip Zdarsky, Kelly Thompson, Ed Brisson, and Jeff Lemire. . . Yep, I am sold on this title.
Time Before Time #1 ($3.99) – I’m a sucker for time travel stories, even if few ever meet my standards, but this one from Rory McConville, Declan Shalvey, and Joe Palmer has an extra draw―a Kickstarter. The team has put together a forty-eight-page “Time Before Time” Process Edition for the comic, and as someone that loves the process, it looks like an awesome book. It’d be kind of silly to back the Process Edition on Kickstarter then not buy the actual comic.
Proctor Valley Road #3 ($3.99) – Like the previous two issues, I just have to pick it up because I enjoy Naomi Franquiz’s work so much. Her character work is such a joy to read.
Total: $19.95. Also there’s the “Hellboy and the B.P.R.D.: 1952–1954” omnibus coming out, so there’s no hope for my wallet this week.
Luke’s Picks:
Hank Howard, Pizza Detective in Caligula’s Safe #1 ($1.00) – This is a comic you’ll come for the novelty of it not being sold beyond this Wednesday (it’s exclusive to Bad Idea retailers, I should add) and stay for the creative team. By Robert Venditti (“The Surrogates”) and David Lapham (“Stray Bullets”), this noir one-shot is sure to deliver the goods in its 16 pages and be an absolute steal at just one dollar.
Time Before Time #1 ($3.99) – The premise of two employees of the criminal organization called the Syndicate going rogue and using their time machines for their own benefit has me really intrigued.
Black Cat #6 ($3.99) – I’ve been pleasantly surprised by “Black Cat” so far, with the last issue having a really good blend of heart and supernatural tangled up in its heist.
X-Corp #1 ($4.99) – “X-Corp” looks set to chronicle the ongoing business interactions of Krakoa with the wider world, with those involved swapping their costumes for suits. I can’t help but give it a go. Plus, that David Aja cover looks great.
Total: $13.97
Kate’s Picks:
The House of Lost Horizons: A Sarah Jewell Mystery #1 ($3.99): Well, after reading our latest Hell Notes on who Sarah Jewell is, I’m sold. This has flavors of Showtime’s dearly departed Penny Dreadful with its gothic setting and troubled protagonist – – is Eva Green free for the eventual film or TV series?
Continued belowDoctor Who Missy #2 ($3.99): Let’s see if the second issue keeps up the momentum of the debut.
Time Before Time #1 ($3.99): Now this sounds a bit like a darker Doctor Who knockoff (particularly with the stealing of the time machine), but I do love Chris O’Halloran’s colorwork, so I’ll pick up the first issue and give it a shot.
Total: $11.97
Johnny’s Picks:
X-Corp #1 ($4.99) – If you know about Joe Casey and Dustin Nguyen’s run on WildC.A.T.s (volume 3.0, to be exact), then you know. That was a great run that took the wild concept of “corporations as superheroes” and kinda ran wild with it, in a fashion that was all Casey’s own (and made Nguyen a name for himself). Tini Howard and Alberto Foche seem to be working along those same lines here, with X-members Angel and Monet running an all-mutant company, and I can only hope for similar results. The “Reign of X” books have stalled out for me as of late, so I’m hoping this is the carrot that keeps the cart moving.
Black Hammer: Visions #4 ($3.99) – Checking the preview pages for this issue, I think Markio Tamaki is the secret ingredient in this pot luck anthology that has, for my tastes, hewed too closely to the source material to truly be an intriguing miniseries. Fingers crossed I finally get the interesting meta-take on the interesting meta-take that is the Black Hammer-verse I had envisioned when I first heard about the book.
Firefly – Brand New ‘Verse #3 ($4.99) – Honestly didn’t even know this story set 20 years into the “future” of Firefly was a thing! I was a huge Browncoat (read: fan of Firefly) back in the day, and keeping up with the continuity post-film has been mostly unrewarding (and in the case of Whedon himself, downright disgusting). With Whedon’s mitts off these characters that I do indeed still enjoy, I am hopeful that a fast-forward can take Serenity and her crew in fascinating new directions. I’ll be picking this one up, and probably issues 1 and 2 as well!
Total: $13.97. Well, $23.95 if you count those back issues of “Firefly” I mentioned!
