If you know what you are doing, you don't actually have to pay full cover price for an issue. Most comic shops will give you a pretty significant discount if you have a pull list. I don't have a local comic shop in my city so I order online, and the place I order from gives a 30-35% discount for having a pull list.

The big problem I have with trade paperbacks, and the reason I will never switch to that format, is the gutter loss that is 100% unavoidable. The nature of the binding is always going to give you gutter loss. With modern comics that have art filling up an entire page with no borders at the edges and even worse with two-page spreads, gutter loss is extremely distracting to me. Something like Batwoman or Flash where the artists use a lot of beautiful two-page spreads, I would imagine the experience is greatly diminished by reading it in trade format.

Comixology is having a Superman sale, which includes the first 8 issues of Action, the first 6 of Superman and the first 6 of Justice League, all new 52, for 99c each (there are a ton of other titles including Kingdom Come, Birthright, the Jim Lee Superman run, Red Son, etc., but those are the new 52 titles).

Hey! You asked how I read comic book stories on a monthly basis! I told you I go to the comic book store and buy comics as they are published. No reason to get defensive about it!

Apparently DC is losing money on these lenticular covers (and other things from the DC roadshow):
http://readcomicbooks.net/home/the-d...oadshow-report

Apparently DC is losing money on these lenticular covers (and other things from the DC roadshow):
http://readcomicbooks.net/home/the-d...oadshow-report

How do people feel about Batman: Earth One and Superman: Earth One? Worth picking up?

I ask because it was listed by DC in a list of 25 essential trades alongside stuff like Watchmen, Batman Year One, Dark Knight Returns, Kingdom Come, Identity Crisis, Sandman, etc.

Both were rather disappointing.

the big red flag there is "listed by DC"

I know, that's why I asked. A lot of the stuff it was listed alongside is generally considered required comics reading, so I just wanted to make sure I wasn't missing something with those.

Tanga is having a sale on 8 or so of the main DC title subscriptions for $15 each. I'm tempted. Courtesy of NJGs.

https://www.tanga.com/deals/summer-c...&layout=mobile

Anyone still reading Earth 2 or Worlds Finest? I finally went through the first HC of Earth 2. The total reversal of the JSA in terms of their ages and newness isn't really sitting well with me, but the art is ok and at least this is a real alternate universe... does it get any better? World's Finest has a double whammy of characters I like and a decent creative team.

I've rather enjoyed World's Finest, but found Earth 2 boring after a few issues.

DC changed their digital distribution discount policy sometime last month... it used to be that all titles were discounted by a buck on comixology after 30 days. That's now shifted to 60 days. This makes me think that they may eventually go the Marvel route, where titles don't get discounted automatically (but at least Marvel has sales). I was about to get all the discounted World's Finest and Batgirl issues, but now I may just wait.

They aren't intended for long-time comic book readers. They are graphic novels about superheroes for people that don't regularly read comics. Consider them blueprints for Hollywood screenplays.

So I know I periodically ramble on about my comic history and future in various threads here the last few years; huge DC fan from the early 70s to the mid 90s, then largely cold turkey, with yearly flirtations.

But now I'm firmly back, and while I'll buy stuff from all companies, DC will always be my first love and most re-readings. I'm not sold on the new 52 and sort of hope it becomes a dream.

But in any case, I need to help on a reading order to catch me up on everything I've missed the last 15 or so years. I'll go back and re-read my beloved Crisis on Infinite Earths, but then want to read all the main 'big events' and core stories since then. I have many of the trades and floppies already, thanks to my yearly buying spurts with little reading. I know I'll read Final Crisis, Infinite Crisis, Day of Vengeance, Flashpoint and Blackest/Brightest Day. What else do I need in my largely didn't really didn't happen history lesson?

This is probably the wrong thread to ask this, but ah well.

People will say that Identity Crisis did a lot of things to kill the classic DC universe, but it's probably required reading anyway for just the ramifications of what happened.

Countdown to Infinite Crisis (NOT Countdown to final crisis, which is addressed below) is a single issue that is pretty much required reading before Infinite Crisis. The other lead ins (Rann Tanagar War, OMAC project, Day of Vengeance) IMHO, aren't required. Villains United and the sequel series, Secret Six, are worth reading on it's own.

52, the weekly series that "flashed back" to chronicle the missing year after Infinite Crisis, is worth a read, IMHO. If you're going to read that, you should probably also read World War III.

Skip Countdown to Final Crisis and Death of the New Gods, since they directly contradict Final Crisis.

The Return of Bruce Wayne plays into the end of Final Crisis.

Justice League: Cry for Justice included a plot point that changed Arsenal and Green Arrow, but it was written by "bad" James Robinson (the same one that wrote the following Justice League series, as opposed to the "good" one that wrote Starman) and I can't really recommend it.

Superman went through a phase where a bunch of Kryptonians started living on Earth called World of Krypton. Though I thought this had some interesting stories (and some duds), it was swept under the rug pretty quickly.

Non crossover/event stuff that is probably worth reading:

Morrison's Batman run, which leads into the Batman arc of Final Crisis (and later, his run on a Dick Grayson Batman and Robin. Also when you read Final Crisis, there's a Superman mini series that is pretty essential to trying to understand what the heck is going on.

Geoff John's entire Green Lantern run, especially from Sinestro Corp War, if only because that will help explain some of Blackest Night.

Also Geoff John's Flash Rebirth is worth reading, and also explains how Barry Allen came back.

You'd think that the "ongoing" Flash series after Blackest Night would be worth reading because of Flashpoint, but it's really not. I don't even think Flashpoint is worth reading. It reeks to me of an AoA type event that was changed after the fact to alter the DC universe to the new 52.

^ Yeah, I almost started a new thread or searched for an older DC thread, but I figured we're slow enough lately that most of us who read this subforum probably read every thread in it.

And thanks for the info! I've stayed slightly up on events over the years, and know that much of it will make me cringe, but I'm just giving in to the inevitable and getting back to my DC completism.

Tonight I open up my Absolute (?) Crisis on Infinite Earths for the first time. I'm excited.

I should also say that I don't know how long exactly you were out of DC, but what should be at the top of the list if you've never gotten to it:

James Robinson's Starman series. Available in Omnibus format now.

Geoff Johns/Goyer/Robinson on the revamped JSA (i think it got renumbered once too). Great, great stuff. Went somewhat downhill around the time Johns left and they split it into two titles (JSA All Stars)

All Star Superman. Doesn't tie into anything, really, continuity-wise, but that just frees Morrison up to go crazy with it.

Teen Titans by Geoff Johns, also available in Omnibus form. I'll say this... I loved Peter David's Young Justice (which is also recommended) and I hated that they broke that up (especially in that horrid Graduation Day crossover). But "graduating" Superboy, Tim Drake, and Cassie to the Teen Titans, complete with mentors, was a great idea and well executed.

^ Thanks again!

Yeah, I was just getting out of my $200 a month habit when Starman and JSA were getting great, iirc, but kept up a bit on those floppies and trades over the years. Need to start over and read them from scratch again, but that'll be after these 'DC continuity' readathon.

FWIW, part of the cementing of this history lesson decision I made today was the result of watching some DC animation recently. The Justice League: Crisis on Earth One and Green Lantern: Emerald Knights features were both better than I expected; and the special features on the latter were particularly enthralling to this one-time continuity geek.

If you really want some good Flash stuff, try Geoff Johns' original run on Flash, from Flash #164 - 225. Amazing stuff.

Which is also available in omnibus format. Highly recommended for Wally's fans.


Trevor, this is the site you'll want to refer to again and again in your quest, the DC Trade Paperback Timeline:

http://collectededitions.blogspot.co...eline-tpb.html

It is basically the authoritative answer to the question you posed.

I dunno, I got all three of the omnibus for this, and it wasn't as awesome as I remembered. I think part of it was the art, part of it was the ridiculous price of the volumes, and part of it was that I probably couldn't separate my distaste for this same author years later pushing aside Wally because he wanted to recreate the Silver Age. I guess I have a hard time following the intricate details of the expansive supporting cast Johns put in the book when I know they're all irrelevant (and hey, the new 52 made pretty much every previous era irrelevant in terms of continuity, besides GL and Batman books). I'm more of a fan of Waid's run, especially the 'Ringo years.

Actually Batman's pre-New 52 continuity is pretty heavily retconned as well. The whole thing about Batman's history being unaltered was marketing hype from DC. It has been proven to be very false. Batman has been hit hard by the retcon-hammer just like everyone else.

Not even Miller's Year One is canon anymore. Snyder is currently writing Zero Year which is the new canon Batman origin. Also last year, all the Robins got brand new spanking origins as well during the zero issue month. Damian is the only Robin whose origin wasn't drastically changed.

Also don't forget that fan-favorite Bat-characters like Cassandra Cain and Stephanie Brown no longer exist.

Cassandra's Batgirl is probably my favorite character. I'm actually re-reading her run right now.

DC hid that pretty well when they started the new 52. Batman got changed almost as much as Superman, they simply misled people into believing everything would remain the same.

Marvel and DC have to increasingly rely on gimmicks to pump up sales every other year or so. I still don't think the new 52 will be the sole DC continuity in five years. As sales wane, I possibly see a separate, older continuity brought back in its own line of books. DC didn't want to admit it at the time, but the new 52 will end up as DC's version of the Ultimate universe.