As much as there is to go
over, I want to start by exploring the numbers. My Dark Horse Digital Bookshelf
had 61 titles.
That number alone doesn't
that much. With some titles I had one issue, which usually had between 23 and 26
pages. Some issues had more pages (Dark Horse Presents #1 had 71), but also some had more books. I purchased 12 issues of Orchid for a class. The Hellboy bundle I
bought had 77 issues of varying lengths.
There could also be some
confusion over titles for different runs. There were separate Conan titles (King Conan, Conan, and Conan the Barbarian), four
different Star Wars comics, and Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel and Faith are stored
as different titles, though one is Season 8 and one is Season 9, which does
seem kind of connected.
Based on that, "61
titles" doesn't explain much about quantity, but I think it can be useful
to point out that there were 14 titles I definitely want to read, 13 I possibly
want to read, and 24 unlikely.
(For the 10 "Others",
that includes thee series and a standalone book that I loved, two that I liked
pretty well, one I did not care for as much, and three compilations.)
Obviously your level of
satisfaction may vary, depending on where you are looking, but those are pretty
good odds that seem about right. Read a good variety, and maybe you will love a
quarter of them, and then like another quarter.
It happens on different
levels. Sometimes there is an aesthetic that is gorgeous, and you just love to
look at it, but also sometimes there is a harsh look that you wouldn't really
like, except that it fits the story, and the story resonates with you. I tend
to not like a lot of empty fights and explosions, but sometimes they don't feel
empty.
Even then... Okay, The Victories was one of my least favorite titles, because
it was really ugly and that only partially means the drawing style. It was
always going to go on the "Unlikely" list. And yet, there is one
thing the villain says in his monologue about the hero that is kind of true,
and could play out in interesting ways. I don't think I want to know enough to
read it, but I can't rule out that I will. Something down the road could remind
me of it, and make it a more pressing question. (Or maybe after reading
everything on "Definitely" and "Possibly", I will just
decide to go for it.)
It can be hard to
predict. I should be the target audience for Star Wars comics,
based on how the original trilogy influenced me. I did not like The Clone Wars, or Legacy, or Empire. I did end up reading more of Star Wars: Darth Vader, because I thought it was going somewhere
interesting. The library had the trade, and I read it, and then I didn't really
like it. That doesn't mean I wouldn't at least try something focused on Poe
Dameron.
I have never regularly
watched any of the Joss Whedon shows, but Dollhouse and Angel & Faith are Definitely, and Serenity and Buffy the Vampire Slayer are probably.
That is a reason to be
open to new things, and to take advantage of giveaways. Go to the stores on
Free Comic Book Day. I have bought many comics, but when Dark Horse or
Comixology have some special for getting free first issues, I take that. I
recommend that. There are worse things than being on their mailing lists.
If there are creators
whose previous work you love, it makes sense to check out their new work. I do
love Hellboy, and will definitely be reading more on The Visitor, BPRD, Baltimore, and Abe Sapien. Therefore,
if Mike Mignola were to announce a new project, it would only be reasonable to
check it out. That is a good reason to take note of who is writing and drawing
your comics.
Otherwise, titles on the
Definitely list that have not been mentioned already consist of Ghost, Number 13, Mind MGMT,
Colder, Usagi Yojimbo, and Alabaster.
Also, I mentioned the
Conan comics, but not really anything about them. I will Definitely read Conan the Barbarian and Possibly read Conan and I am not
surprised that these interesting titles involve Becky Cloonan and Kurt Busiek,
respectively.
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