Enemy Ace: War in Heaven


Garth Ennis - 2003
    Now it's World War II, and blood rains from the skies once again! Von Hammer, the finest pilot Germany has ever known, is now a 46-year-old man with plenty of enemies in the Nazi regime. This edition also includes a classic World War One Enemy Ace tale by creators Robert Kanigher and Joe Kubert reprinted from STAR-SPANGLED WAR STORIES #139!

Deadman, Book One


Neal Adams - 1968
    A mysterious deity called Rama Kushna gives Boston Brand the chance to revisit the land of the living as Deadman, with the mission of finding his murderer.DEADMAN features spectacular, bravura artwork by Neal Adams, then leading the field with an amazing, hyper-realistic style and trompe-l’oeil unlike anything seen in comics before or since.

The Spectre: Crimes and Punishments


John Ostrander - 1993
    Retold and redefined in this volume is the origin of the Spectre, the most powerful being in the universe. As the Wrath of God bonded on a human soul, the Spectre roams the Earth in order to confront evil and avenge the unavenged dead as a form of penance. Paying for his earthly sins, the Spectre must not only oppose evil but also understand why men commit it. Once this metaphysical journey is completed, his mortal soul will be freed and another will be called upon on this holy mission of redemption.

It Was the War of the Trenches


Jacques Tardi - 1993
    (His very first—rejected—comics story dealt with the subject, as does his most recent work, the two-volume Putain de Guerre.) But It Was the War of the Trenches is Tardi’s defining, masterful statement on the subject, a graphic novel that can stand shoulder to shoulder with Erich Maria Remarque’s All Quiet on the Western Front and Ernest Hemingway’s A Farewell to Arms.Tardi is not interested in the national politics, the strategies, or the battles. Like Remarque, he focuses on the day to day of the grunts in the trenches, and, with icy, controlled fury and disgust, with sardonic yet deeply sympathetic narration, he brings that existence alive as no one has before or since. Yet he also delves deeply into the underlying causes of the war, the madness, the cynical political exploitation of patriotism. And in a final, heartbreaking coda, Tardi grimly itemizes the ghastly human cost of the war, and lays out the future 20th century conflicts, all of which seem to spring from this global burst of insanity.Trenches features some of Tardi’s most stunning artwork. Rendered in an inhabitually lush illustrative style, inspired both by abundant photographic documentation and classic American war comics, augmented by a sophisticated, gorgeous use of Craftint tones, trenches is somehow simultaneously atypical and a perfect encapsulation of Tardi’s mature style. It is the indisputable centerpiece of Tardi’s oeuvre.It Was the War of the Trenches has been an object of fascination for North American publishers: RAW published a chapter in the early 1980s, and Drawn and Quarterly magazine serialized a few more in the 1990s. But only a small fraction of Trenches has ever been made available to the English speaking public (in now out of print publications); the Fantagraphics edition, the third in an ongoing collection of the works of this great master, finally remedies this situation.

Absolute DC: The New Frontier


Darwyn Cooke - 2006
    Stalwarts such as Batman, Superman and Wonder Woman continued to fight for truth and justice, but as the world hurtled toward an uncertain future, it would take a new breed of hero to define the American Way. DC: The New Frontier takes readers on an epic journey from the end of the Golden Age of heroes to the beginnings of the legendary Justice League of America. Darwyn Cooke's most ambitious project yet features the stunning color art of Dave Stewart, an introduction by DC's President and Publisher Paul Levitz, and an afterword by Cooke.

Blazing Combat


Archie GoodwinGene Colan - 2009
    Written and edited by Archie Goodwin, with artwork by such industry notables as Gene Colan, Frank Frazetta, John Severin, Alex Toth, Al Williamson, Russ Heath, Reed Crandall, and Wally Wood, it featured war stories in both contemporary and period settings, unified by a humanistic theme of the personal costs of war, rather than by traditional men's adventure motifs. As one letter-writer in the third issue put it, “Do you seriously expect to make money with a war magazine that publishes nothing but anti-war stories?”While most stories took place during World War II, they ranged in settings from the 18th century to the present-day. Some dealt with historical figures, such as Revolutionary War general Benedict Arnold and his pre-traitorous victory at the battle of Saratoga, while “Foragers” focused on a fictional soldier in General William T. Sherman’s devastating March to the Sea during the American Civil War. “Holding Action,” set on the last day of the Korean War, ended with a gung-ho young soldier, unwilling to quit, being escorted over his protests into a medical vehicle.What proved to be the most controversial were stories set during the then-contemporary Vietnam War, particularly the classic short “Landscape,” which follows the thoughts of a Vietnamese peasant rice-farmer devoid of ideology, who nonetheless pays the ultimate price simply for living where he does. While writer Goodwin evenhandedly portrays the North Vietnamese Army’s brutal summary executions of village officials, and a well-meaning U.S. Army fatally bludgeoning its way through the village in a counterattack, the story caused key distributors to stop selling the title.Fantagraphics is proud to present a deluxe, hardcover edition, magnificently printed and bound, of these stories, superbly reproduced from the original printer's film negatives.Nominated for a 2010 Will Eisner Comic Industry Award: (Best Archival Collection/Project: Comic Books).

Epicurus: The Sage


William Messner-Loebs - 1991
    When Epicurus travels to Athens to open his own school of philosophy, he is quickly chastised because of his liberal beliefs. Engaging Aristotle, Plato, and Socrates in public debates, Epicurus effortlessly exposes the absurdity of their arguments but still walks away humiliated. However when a goddess appears and taxes Epicurus and his companion, a young Alexander the Great, to save her daughter from the Underworld, the revolutionary sage uses his powers of logic and meditation to fulfill his impossible task.

Green Arrow: Year One #1


Andy Diggle
    But when he’s double-crossed and marooned on a desert island, he quickly learns he needs to care about one thing: survival! The origin tale of the Emerald Archer begins here!

Hawkman: Wings of Fury


Geoff JohnsBill Oakley - 2005
    As the mystic Highwayman comes to St. Roch, seeking to claim Hawkmans tortured soul, its a deadly battle for survival. But first, the Winged Wonders must survive a revenge-seeking Thanagarian Hawkwoman and then a confrontation with the powerful Black Adam.Collecting: Hawkman 15-22

Tales of the Batman: Gene Colan Vol. 1


Gene Colan - 2011
    Known for his moody, shadowy illustrations, Colan was a natural fit as artist on Batman when he came to DC in the 1980s. His run of stories in the pages of both BATMAN and DETECTIVE COMICS included appearances by some of Batman’s greatest foes, including Man-Bat, The Monk, Rupert Thorne and more.

300


Frank Miller - 1999
    Standing between Greece and this tidal wave of destruction are a tiny detachment of but three hundred warriors. Frank Miller's epic retelling of history's supreme moment of battlefield valor is finally collected in a glorious hardcover volume in its intended format -- each two-page spread from the original comics is presented as a single undivided page.Collects: 300 #1-5

Batman: The Greatest Stories Ever Told


Bill Finger - 2005
    Collected within is Batmans origin, some of his classic battles with rogues such as the Joker and Catwoman and other stories that define why Batman is the hero he is today. Featuring an introduction by author Les Daniels.

The Joker: The Clown Prince of Crime


Dennis O'Neil - 2013
    In these adventures from his 9-issue 1970s solo series, The Joker faces villains including Two-Face, Lex Luthor, the Scarecrow and Catwoman, and battles heroes like The Creeper and Green Arrow.

Superman: The Greatest Stories Ever Told, Vol. 1


Jerry SiegelAl Plastino - 2004
    SUPERMAN: THE GREATEST STORIES EVER TOLD features the first and greatest super hero the world has ever known: Superman Witness the events that have made The Man of Steel one of the most recognizable icons on the planet, captivating audiences and sparking imaginations

Sgt. Rock: Between Hell and a Hard Place


Brian Azzarello - 2003
    In the midst of a covert World War II mission, Sgt. Rock discovers that four of his prisoners were brutally murdered during the night. With the fifth and only surviving prisoner on the run, the Sergeant must determine if the cold blooded murderer is a member of Easy Company or the German escapee. A moralistic murder mystery set against the backdrop of war, this book examines the fine line between being a heroic soldier and a sadistic killer. SUGGESTED FOR MATURE READERS.