Remember that one time when Gotham was a really dangerous place to live?
Okay, we'll be more specific.
Remember 1999? Gotham City had been leveled by a devastating earthquake in "Cataclysm" and "Aftershock." The criminal element surfaced like a fistful of worms in the wake of a storm. Things got so bad, the government cut Gotham off from transport in or out, collapsing bridges and declaring the place a "no man's land."
This new reality served as the chaotic foundation of every bat book in publication. Writers like Greg Rucka, Chuck Dixon, Larry Hamma, and Paul Dini scripted some 80+ stories with art from Alex Maleev, Dale Eaglesham, Dan Jurgens, and many more, all set in a city left for dead. Previously, you could dig around for all of those issues, or pick up around half of the material in a series of trade paperbacks.
But this week we stumbled on a new collection slated for the Fall, and though details are still a bit vague, the prospects are promising. Amazon lists a Batman: No Man's Land Volume One scheduled for November. The new edition is listed as a paperback of 544 pages. They don't list a retail price, just a single $29.99 figure. Is this the first in a series of omnibus sized paperback collections encompassing all 80 issues of the "No Man's Land" story? It's possible. Either way, if you don't own the single issues or the incomplete trade collection, $30 aint bad for 500+ pages of comics.
We'll be keeping an eye on this one.
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Sweet. I read NML in its entirety when it came out, but I’ve only ever owned vol. 5 (my favorite). Will definitely add this to my evergrowing trade wish list.
i’ll definitely have to get that if that pricepoint/page ratio is like you’re guessing. I hope they update some of those logos…looks like vinyl graphics on a pickup truck.
Balling. always wanted to read this whole thing. I’ve read probably half of it
I love Rucka’s novelization.
@wallythegreenmonster It’s not a guess. Just reporting what Amazon’s listed. It could be inaccurate, but it’s more than possible.
(You best believe I pre-ordered)
When I came back to comics, this is one of the first things I tried to read, but I couldn’t make heads or tails of what was collected where and when to read what. This new set is much more promising; I will be there.
Cool. I never got the opportunity to read it, so this may be for me.
That’s some damn good news. At $30 you’d be a fool not to get it.
i knew this would eventually get the omnibus treatment. cant wait for this, this has been on my list to buy for a while since josh flannigan is allways hypeing it up. 30 bucks aint to shabby.
The opening chapters of it were awesome, with amazing art by Maleev, but I remember it becoming less impressive the longer it continued.
$30 is an incredible bargain for all that story though! 🙂
Lets not forget that this series introduced Holly Quinn to the DCU proper (prior she only appeared in the Timmverse)
Ha! I always said they should do this. Obviously important people listen to what I say. Seriously though, that’s a lot cheaper than I thought it would go for.
my goodness $30 is a pretty good bargain for that much comics, maybe it’s black and white lol
so if they can turn a profit on 500+ pages for $30 bucks…it makes you wonder about pricing of other collected editions…
I have the oringal trades but I never had the Cataclysm one, so I hope they put an oversized one out.
It’s a great story. One of the few Batman stories I’ve enjoyed.
I’m in.
@wallythegreenmonster You make a good point, but have yet to see what other variables are/aren’t offered. What type of paper, is it color or b/w, what is coming with it, also take into consideration age and availability, and, of course, demand.
I am not saying you are wrong, but to reduce it to price point vs. page count is probably oversimplifying things.
Yes, I’ve been wanting to red this event for sometime.
Boom. Pre-ordered. Thanks, Paul!
I actually do own the incomplete trades, but I may get rid of them for this. The story did kind of sag in the middle, but there are enough high points to make me recommend this. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: BATMAN: LEGENDS OF THE DARK KNIGHT #125 is my favorite Greg Rucka Batman story. It’s near the end of this storyline, but here’s hoping it makes it back to print.
@JeffR am i right to assume from your post that Legends of the dark knight 125 didn’t make the original trades?
@MisterJ –oh trust me i know. I buy and price printing for design and book projects all the time, which is what raised that flag for me. Paper is a huge variable, but its not that big. It looks and sounds like a showcase edition type thing, but i hope its color. If they can pull it off in full color, then it really raises a lot of questions for me, mainly why don’t they do it more often?
@wangman31888 It’s actually in the fourth NO MAN’S LAND trade, which is currently out of print. Too bad.
Terrific news. I’ve read bits of NML and loved it so I’m really looking forward to these very nicely priced omniboo.
The hope the adhesive used is better than what was used on the War Games collection. 2 of 3 are falling apart on me after 2 reads.
‘I’ hope
I don’t remember the prices, but there is also a Teen Titans by Geoff Johns omnibus, a League of extraordinary gentlemen omnibus, a Hawkman omnibus (which collects issues from the 203 series, by Geoff Johns), a Irredeamable omnibus, and an All-Star Superman paperback collecting all twelve issues. I am very happy with DC for starting to get with the program to compete with Marvel in the collections market.
It’s the 2002 series, my bad.
@wallythegreenmonster I really do not know how they could put this out in b/w. So much of it, at least in my memory, was real dark. So, either a lot of gray or lose the mood entirely.
Without full sales figures we can never get a full answer, anyway.
Depending on the price point, I’m in. I got several of the TPBs years ago, but they stopped reprinting them before I could finish the series. I was really digging it.
FYI for my fellow countrymen, right now the Amazon.ca preorder price for Canadians is further discounted to $21.42 with free shipping. Beat that!
I never finished reading all of No Man’s Land so I think I might be down for this. Time will tell!
I remember this event. I remember thinking it was a great series, but realistically the United States would never abandon one of its own cities devastated by natural disaster. It would never cut off bridges, deny services, evacuate vital personnel, fail to provide aid. Then came August of 2005.
Thats going to be gigantic.
they’ve recently finished collecting Gotham Central in HCs, now this. it’s clear their strategy is to collect iFanboy’s favorite Batman stories in nice editions.
Augh! I just got the last two paperbacks I needed for NML last week… still it’d be nice to have a more complete collection.
500+ pages for $30 is a GREAT deal. I’m down for it.
That said, I tend to regard NML as a bit overrated. Granted, I never finished reading it, but this is when my interest in the Bat-books wanted. Maybe it was just because I had been reading them all throughout the 90s, so I was bound to get bored anyway? I like the creative teams on these books, but I don’t think this was near any of their best work. Maybe reading the whole thing in a nice collection will change my opinion? I’m happy to give it a try.
^Oops, I meant “waned” not “wanted”. NML is where my Bat-interest “waned”.
Great story, amazing price, and you have me sold.
More omnibus’s should be that price cause I’d buy them if they were that cheap. Maybe have an entire paperback omnibus of Gotham Central as well in the future?
@TheNextChampion the HCs of Gotham Central are only $16.49, and collected over 5 volumes. I believe that they started releasing the story in paperback as well, but I’m not sure if that’s going to be collected over 5 volumes.
@Rocket: Well either way this would be a great way for people to jump right into a long running, and amazing, series. Why not collect old issues of Batman, Superman, and the lot like this? I’d buy a $30 omnibus of the first 50 issues of BATMAN if they gave the chance.
@MutantSentry – This is also where Cassandra Cain/Batgirl first donned the tights, for those of you interested in that sort of thing.
I’ve always thought that this was a really bold, ambitious and well-executed event. It severely changed the status quo of one of DC’s most profitable lines in a way that was not easily undone (until, of course, it was). I read bits and pieces of it (mostly in Nightwing), and some parts were better than others, but I’ve always admired the balls it took to do this and stick with it.
@RocketRacoon: Gotham Central is released in just 4 volumes in the new editions from this year and last, both in hardcover and paperback. Hardcover’s are pricepointed and 29.99 and tpb at 19.99, but instock trades and amazon are offering them all under 20 dollars a piece…volume 2 is longer and encompasses some of the earlier run’s volume 3 as is volume 4, doing away with a seperate volume (and it is all 40 issues).
Interesting development. According to my Amazon pre-order, the price is now listed at $19.79. Still with the 544 page count. Fishy.
This collection shall be mine!!!!