To continue this week’s DC theme, here is the lineup of collected editions from DC Comics out this month – including their first round of Rebirth collections!
(Looking for Marvel’s January releases? I covered those previously.)
One of the biggest stumbling blocks that kept me from adding DC Comics guides to Crushing Krisis was a knowledge gap – and not just about the comics stories, themselves. I know all of Marvel’s formats by heart – Masterworks, Epic Collections, Complete Collections, and more.
As I work on my 52 DC Comics Guides, I find that I have to do a lot of getting acquainted with their collected editions to understand their major reprint lines outside of Rebirth and New 52. While DC is committed to keeping their biggest stories in evergreen print, they don’t share Marvel’s philosophy that just about every major series ought to be covered in reprinted editions – their 80 and 90s reprints are more sparse, and pre-Crisis 70s and 80s reprints are reserved only for the most acclaimed of runs!
Of course, I didn’t know anything about Marvel’s formats and strategies when I began the X-Men guides in 2010 – that was kind of the point of starting them. So, I’m not going to let that stop my exploration of DC! Plus, posts like this will help both you and I keep up with DC’s newest collections until I have guide pages to cover more of their heroes!
- January DC Rebirth Era Collections (2016 – present)
- January DC New 52 Era Collections (2011 – 2016)
- January DC Post-Crisis Collections (1986 – 2011)
- January DC Pre-Crisis Collections (1938 – 1986)
All of the links below are to Amazon. Note that Amazon (and other mass market retailers) receive books two weeks later than direct market sellers like comic shops. Still, I find Amazon convenient for their uniform format of displaying information like contents and ISBNs. If you purchase though an Amazon link on CK I receive a minor credit as your referrer; your purchase price remains the same.
Rebirth Era Collections (2016 – Present)
DC relaunched their comics line starting in July 2016 with a Rebirth one-shot for all of their major heroes and teams followed by news series. Many of their core heroes have books that ship twice a month, which means in just five months they’re ready for collection! For more information and a comprehensive list of Rebirth collections to come, visit the DC Comics Rebirth Guide.
Aquaman Vol. 1: The Drowning – Collects Aquaman: Rebirth and Aquaman (2016) #1-6
Batman Vol. 1: I Am Gotham – Collects Batman: Rebirth and Batman (2016) #1-6
Green Arrow Vol. 1: The Death and Life Of Oliver Queen – Collects Green Arrow Rebirth (which I loved!) and Green Arrow (2016) #1-5
Superman Vol. 1: Son Of Superman – Collects Superman: Rebirth and Superman (2016) #1-6
New 52 Era Collections (2011 – 2016)
Despite Rebirth launching in July of 2016, not all of DC’s New 52 era of titles ceased all at once. As a result, we’ll be seeing some trailing New 52 collections as far out as summer of 2017 – plus, new deluxe collections of the most popular New 52 material! For a comprehensive list of ever New 52 title, see the DC Comics New 52 Guide.
Batgirl Volume 2: Family Business – Collects Batgirl (2011)#41-45 & Annual 3, plus material from DC Sneak Peek: Batgirl (2015)
Batman, Volume 9: Bloom – Collects Batman (2011) #46-50 and Detective Comics (2011) #27
Grayson Volume 5: Spyral’s End – Collects #17-20 & Annual 3 of this relaunch of Nightwing as a spy book. Also Contains material from Nightwing: Rebirth (2016) #1
Injustice: Year Two The Complete Collection – Recollects the entire second year of Injustice stories by Tom Taylor, initially published digitally and then released as Injustice Year Two #1-12.
Martian Manhunter, Volume 2: The Red Rising – Collects Martian Manhunter (2016) #7-12
Metal Men: Full Metal Jacket – Collects Metal Men stories from Legends of Tomorrow #1-6
Metamorpho: Two Worlds, One Destiny – Collects Metamorpho stories from Legends of Tomorrow #1-6
Secret Six Volume 2: The Gauntlet – Collects Secret Six (2015) #7-14
Superman – Action Comics Volume 8: Truth – Collects Action Comics (2011) #41-47, Convergence Superboy (2015) #2, and material from DC Sneak Peek: Action Comics (2015)
Superman – Action Comics Volume 9: Last Rites (hardcover) – Collects Action Comics (2011) #48-52
Superman/Wonder Woman Volume 4: Dark Truth – Collects Superman/Wonder Woman (2013) #18-24 and material from DC Sneak Peek: Superman/Wonder Woman (2015)
Superman/Wonder Woman Vol. 5: A Savage End (hardcover) – Collects Superman/Wonder Woman (2013) #25-29 & previously unpublished issues #30-31
Post-Crisis Era (1986 – 2011)
52 Book 2 (reprint) – Collects 52 (2006) #27-52, the second half of the weekly series covering the aftermath of Infinite Crisis, when Batman, Superman, and Wonder Woman were missing in action for an entire year in Universe. Book 1 was released last summer.
Batman & Robin Adventures Vol. 1 – Collects issues #1-10 of this 1995 series, inspired by the animated series.
Birds of Prey Vol. 3: The Hunt for Oracle – Collects Birds of Prey (1999) #12-21 by Chuck Dixon and a crossover into Nightwing (1996) #45-46.
Catwoman Vol. 6: Final Jeopardy – Collects Catwoman (2002) #66-83 in the last of DC’s methodical recollections of the series (launched by Ed Brubaker, but written here by Will Pfeifer) in double-length TPBs.
The Dark Knight Returns: The Last Crusade – A hardcover of the Frank Miller OGN with Brian Azzarello and John Romita Jr. that acts as a prelude to his Miller’s infamous classic The Dark Knight Returns.
Green Arrow Vol. 7: Homecoming – Collects Green Arrow (1988) #51-62 by Mike Grell, co-starring Black Canary.
JLA Vol. 9 – Collects JLA (1997) #107-125 in a final Deluxe Edition TPB written by Kurt Busiek and Geoff Johns (among others), plus JLA Secret Files 2004. Want to start at the start? Pick up Vol. 1 by Grant Morrison.
Teen Titans: Year One – A recollection of Teen Titans: Year One (2008) #1-6. This is not in continuity – it’s based on the cartoon.
Suicide Squad Vol. 5: Apokolips Now – Collects Suicide Squad (1987) #31-39 by John Ostrander. Want to start at the beginning of this Ostrander run? Grab Volume 1.
Pre-Crisis Era (Golden Age through 1986)
The Flash: The Silver Age Omnibus Vol. 2 – Collects The Flash (1959) #133-163. Volume 1 is still available.
Justice League of America: The Silver Age Vol. 2 – Collects Justice League of America (1960) #9-19. Working on an oversized shelf? This run was collected in the Justice League of America Omnibus, Vol. 1
Superman: The Golden Age Omnibus Vol. 3 – Collects Action Comics (1938) #48-65, Superman (1939) #16-24, and World’s Finest Comics (1941) #6-10. Volume 1 and Volume 2 are still available.