Thanks a lot guys. i think i am gonna purchase my comics exclusively in oversized HC format now, except for the comics that I think are not going to get the oversized treatment from marvel.
btw on another note.. whats up with DC these days.. are they exclusively putting out HCs now or what? i havent seen a prevoiusly collected HC solicitated as a TPB in quite some time now, the worst example of this is green lantern! just a thought.

The only exception to this that I have seen so far is the Agents of Atlas Premiere hardcover- no oversized version, but the premiere version is huge, with about half of it being extras. It’s a weird exception that I would definitely pick up (and did!).

anyways, i have a question for you guys. Last week i lucked out and bought “New x-men Omnibus” by grant morrison. i am amazed with the printing quality and overall look and feel of the book.
now i have never read other Marvel collected HCs you know, like daredevil vol1 HC , or to take from this post “Punisher vol 3 HC”. i have alwayd read in trades. Now after having purchased the omnibus, i was thinking about whether i am missing out on something??

are ALL the HCs (runaways, daredevil, punisher, ultimate titles etc) by marvel of same quality as the omnibus, such as similar thick glossy paper, oversized format ( that really makes art shine btw)..?

As Nick says above, I’d recommend steering clear of the “premiere” hardcovers unless you just can’t wait or really want hardcover format, because those are the same size as trades and feature little to no extras.

The oversized hardcovers, however, are often quite good. Not all of them are created equal, though, and none of them are as impressive as the stuffed-to-the-gills Omnibuses (Omnibi?) They don’t have original letter columns, etc. However, there are a couple I’d definitely recommend:

Runaways Vol 1-3 HC - Great stuff, and while the first is the best (has Vaughan’s original pitch plus design sketches and such), all of them are worth it to see the art in oversized format rather than digest. There are great sketches and cover designs in volumes two and three by the ridiculously talented Alphona and the guest artists like Takeshi Miyazawa and Mike Norton, too.

Spider-Man Loves Mary Jane - Again, worth it just to see Takeshi Miyazawa’s art at full-size rather than digest size, but Miyazawa’s a guy who does a lot of cover layouts, which means the minimal extras are pretty cool.

I’m also a big fan of the oversized Avengers Assemble hardcovers, collecting Busiek’s ’80s-influenced run on the book, as well as the Punisher MAX hardcovers, especially “From First to Last” which collects some of the best Punisher stories ever done with art by the legendary John Severin and Richard Corben.

glad that most of the trades that i ordered last month make it to the list. This must mean my taste is improving!!
anyways, i have a question for you guys. Last week i lucked out and bought “New x-men Omnibus” by grant morrison. i am amazed with the printing quality and overall look and feel of the book.
now i have never read other Marvel collected HCs you know, like daredevil vol1 HC , or to take from this post “Punisher vol 3 HC”. i have alwayd read in trades. Now after having purchased the omnibus, i was thinking about whether i am missing out on something??

are ALL the HCs (runaways, daredevil, punisher, ultimate titles etc) by marvel of same quality as the omnibus, such as similar thick glossy paper, oversized format ( that really makes art shine btw)..

i order online and live outside USA, so i cant visit a Comic store to see for myself, but i trust you guys. can you answer this?

In all honesty, Mayank, having never bought an Omnibus book from Marvel myself, I’m going to give you a yes and no answer. Yes, all hardcovers have the swanky, slick paper stock that is so popular…But no, not all HC come with the illustrious oversized trim that like you said, makes the art shine. To my knowledge, and honestly I don’t know why Marvel has made it so difficult, there are three types of hardcovers: Premiere, Oversized and Omnibus. The Premiere is the same size as the regular trade just in hardcover format while the Oversized and the Omnibus are larger and in my opinion, better.

The only difference…With the Oversized compared to the Omnibus, you save about 20 bucks. Hope that rather complicated paragraph helps rather than confuses you more.

are ALL the HCs (runaways, daredevil, punisher, ultimate titles etc) by marvel of same quality as the omnibus, such as similar thick glossy paper, oversized format ( that really makes art shine btw)..

i order online and live outside USA, so i cant visit a Comic store to see for myself, but i trust you guys. can you answer this?

I’m hoping and waiting for the eventual Captain America Volume 1 from Brubaker and crew.

You know, I had thought that I’d mentioned that but looking back I didn’t clarify that another artist had done the work. Lee Weeks was responsible and he did a great job capturing the intensity and the mood of the piece while at the same time providing some really entertaining action scenes. It was his art meshed with Brubaker’s multi-layered story that really made me like this more than any of the other issues in the collection.

Totally agree with you there. D3 mentioned in the review that Mike Perkins should be a lead artist on a title, I think Lee Weeks falls into this category also. His work in the recent World War Hulk prologue was fantastic too

Actually Lee Weeks & Stefano Gaudiano were responsible for the art in the Winter Soldier one shot included in the Cap Civil War collection

You know, I had thought that I’d mentioned that but looking back I didn’t clarify that another artist had done the work. Lee Weeks was responsible and he did a great job capturing the intensity and the mood of the piece while at the same time providing some really entertaining action scenes. It was his art meshed with Brubaker’s multi-layered story that really made me like this more than any of the other issues in the collection.

Mike Perkins is the co-lead artist on Captain America and has been for about a year now I think. The original idea was for him and Epting to rotate arcs but on the new arc they seem to sharing the art duties. Hopefully this will give him the exposure he deserves

Already bought, read, and loved Criminal and (especially) Mouse Guard. Many of the others are currently on my wish list. The Cap trade doesn’t include #25, right? (not that that’ll affect my plans to buy it)

Nope, it has 22-24 and the Winter Soldier one shot.

Like they said, the preacher issue is worth the price of the trade, and even three weeks after its release, I was still talking about it. Simply amazing writing. Madrox is now my favorite mutant (even if he isn’t exactly one by current definition) by a country mile, and its all from the way David writes him. In a way, he’s the “everyman” that Peter Parker used to be.

Don’t make the mistake of classifying this as an X-book. Its so much better (although X-Men has been pretty good lately).

PS. Couldn’t agree more on Runaways, Criminal, and Captain America either. Fell sounds interesting as well, and I might have to check it out once I pay off the grand I spent fixing my car and catch up on the three weeks of comics I’ve missed (including the new Criminal!).

I own all the single issues of Fell would you say their is any real benefit to get the trade?

The essays at the back of each issue are not included in that trade, which was something that made me very sad. That said, I picked up the trade anyway, because I like reading stories in whole chunks and it’s just a different experience reading 8 issues in a row. If you are looking for extras, well, there’s none of those in the trade either. So, really, if you have the issues, just pick up tha trade if you are like me and want that more seamless reading experience.