My dear people, I have discovered the most perfect idea to come out of the comics industry in ages.

THE BACKLOG COLLECTION!

I am not omniscient. THERE, I’ve said it! I admit my faults and I have faith that we can all grow from here.

But seriously, I don’t eat, sleep & breathe comics. I love the art-form but I’ve never even read many characters and books.

So things like Marvel’s comic collection offering is sold under the name Essentials and has introduced me to the corniness of old-school Incredible Hulk (written by Stan Lee, of course). Which is fantastic!

I haven’t personally checked out DC’s offering which they call Archive Editions yet but I look forward to that as well.

I mean, it’s about the perfect way to catch up on stories you might have missed, right?

Always wondered how the new X-Men started? Go check out Volume One of the X-Men Essentials! Want to see just how cheesy the Metal Men were back in their heyday? GO CHECK IT! There’s no color in the Essentials collections but the line-art and text is exactly the same and the price is lower than the Archive Editions which update and preserve the original coloring and full effect of the artwork.

A classic DC/Marvel conundrum, I tells ya.

Just be sure to give these lovely gems a once-over the next time you’re in your local shop, you never know what arcs you’ll be able to re-read or enjoy for the very first time…like a virgin.

-windiebird SMASH!