Dark Horse May Previews Review

Jim - Wow we are already seeing stuff for May. It seems like the three month out is too far away for me I would prefer if we were just getting April, but DC has released all their trade and hard cover information for the summer. Still it is always fun to look at what is to come.

Lee: Random Dark horse rant... Have you noticed that DH seems to have two main titles now? Manga in all its glorious forms and Star Wars? There isn't a whole lot of diversity there. I understand there are different types of manga but for an old (not as old as Jim) American collector... well... manga is manga. Which means DH has two offerings. Good if I read manga, great if I am into Star Wars but not so good otherwise. And, you can read my 6x9 rant 2 or 3 times in the comments below.

Jim: They also have a horror type line with Goon/Hellboy and some other stuff, but I know what you mean. Dark Horse is more limited then I remember them being before.

BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER OMNIBUS VOLUME 1
Lee: I'm sorry but I just don't care. I didn't watch Buffy. I don't read Buffy. And honestly, there is far to much Buffy-verse for me to bother with learning. That said, I'm sure Buffy fans everywhere are squealing their high pitched squeals of delight over this. UGH

Jim: I'm with Lee on this. I watched Buffy occasionally but never got into the series. So I can't imagine the comic being any better.

Aliens Omnibus Volume 1
Mark Verheiden (W), Mark A. Nelson (A), Den Beauvais (A), And Sam Kieth (A)Now, the first three Dark Horse Aliens series-Outbreak, Nightmare Asylum, and Female War-are collected in a value-priced, quality-format omnibus, featuring nearly four hundred story pages in full color. Aliens Omnibus Volume 1 contains 384 full-color, monster pages for only $24.95!
Lee: WOW. 384 pages in color for $25!!! Now that’s a bargain. And great art to boot. These original Aliens series were so good … BUT… The size is 6x9. WHAT? Why the heck would you do that??? It’s ridiculous. For example, Beauvais’s art is painted. Are you trying to convince me that it’s not going to lose any details at the 6x9 size? This could have been so good but will be such crap.

Jim: The Aliens stuff is so over for me and Lee is right the format destroys the art in this type of situation.

Scarlet Traces: The Great Game Ian Idginton (W) And D'Israeli (A)The blurb: The front line of the War of the Worlds has been taken to the red planet itself! After almost four decades of conflict, the British invasion of Mars has ground into a bloody stalemate. The nation is cracking at the seams, and liberties are being revoked as Prime Minister Spry struggles to maintain order at home while waging war another world away. What does Spry have up his nasty little sleeve? Robert Autumn, aged gentleman adventurer and hero of Scarlet Traces, is determined to find out!
Lee: This book falls under the usual “just don’t know”. The series sounds really, really interesting. It gets great reviews. D’Isreali is a good artist… BUT... 104 pgs for $15 isn’t the best deal.
Jim: Sounds good, but again (and this is getting a little boring) I agree with Lee.

Usagi Yojimbo Volume 21: TPB, 6" x 9", 184 pages $16Ltd. Ed. HC, 6" x 9", 184 pages. $60

Lee: So let me see if I get this right, the paperback is $16 but the HC is $60? Who thinks that is a bargain? Not me. I give DH credit because this is an ingenious way to screw the fanbase. And, to rant, since when is 6x9 the preferred size? This sucks! I would already have this entire series on my shelf if they would just publish it full size.

Jim: Never got into to this series and never will. I try to read a bunch of different stuff, but you can't read everything. These formats are certainly not enticements for me to even try the material.

Weta Originals Rayguns
The Rayguns: Dr. Grordbort's Infallible Aether Oscillators, is a line of 1:1 scale antique-styled sci-fi hand weapon
Lee: I cannot tell you how cool these things look. I wish I had one when I was 10. Did anyone notice the price tag? Six hundred ninety dollars… that’s right $690.00. HOLY CRAP! Who do they think is going to buy that? The really funny part… it’s a limited edition with quantities not known until time of order. No kidding? Really? THAT’S BECAUSE NO ONE CAN AFFORD IT!!!! And, even if I could afford it, how long before my 5 yr plays guns in the backyard with his little friends using the beauty? ‘Bout 10 minutes. How long before it’s broken? ‘Bout 2 minutes. I don’t think so. But they look really cool.

Jim: These are awesome I can't wait to tell Rusty that Lee ordered all of them. The only hope I ever have of owning one is if these things rot on retailers shelf's across the nation and they sell one for $50. Outside of people with more disposable income then sense I don't envision big sales for the $700 collector ray guns.

Jim: Now Dark Horse has Conan, some fun collector items and has done Archives of Gold Key material, Tarzan by Kubert and Nexus, but still Lee has a valid point. IDW, ONI and Boom seem to have more material in all sorts of genres and Dark Horse needs to expand their horizons.