Marvel calls it an Omnibus. D.C. appears to call it “Absolute.” Dynamite seems to call it “Definitive.” By any name, it’s a hardcover, comprehensive collection of reprints on high-quality paper that’s a little bit bigger than the average comic book, so it has room to breathe. You hold it in your hands, it’s art. I’ve got editions of Garth Ennis’ “The Boys” and “Punisher,” as well as JMS’ Squadron Supreme relaunch, the second Bendis/Maleev Daredevil Omnibus, Brubaker’s Death of Cap Omnibus, and a few others, and they make a handsome addition to any bookshelf. But why aren’t there more? Why can’t we get comprehensive reprints of some of the other series that found a niche audience who will spring open their wallets for the extra bucks it takes to put these works out in volumes that will last forever, rather than grinding out the paperback editions?

And even if we don’t the oversized edition, how about big “stuff ‘em all in” volumes, like the first Walking Dead compendium that was printed as a thick softcover and included the first 48 issues? I mean, I appreciate Marvel’s “Essential” editions, but they’re black and white–and really intended as pulp fodder for new writers who take on a series. (Hickman read ‘em all before taking over Fantastic 4.)

CHECK THE BREAK…….

Here’s the top ten series that deserve the full McGillicuty, from 10 (least) to 1 (most wanted)–please note that the absence of indie books here is probably because most of the great ones already have anthologies.

10. The Fantastic Four #232-293 by John Byrne. Yeah, it’s been reprinted in a Masterworks series, but this brilliantly written and drawn work is the seminal Fantastic Four run, and deserves the Omnibus treatment.  For the doubters, recall: The sideways issue.  Naked She Hulk.  Reed Richards on trial not for murder, but for saving a life–the life of Galactus.  Issue after issue, Byrne was (excuse the pun) on fire.  John Byrne Runner Up: His work on Man of Steel/Superman.  How is it possible that that’s never been Absolute-ized?

9.  Michael T. Gilbert’s Mr. Monster (Eclipse). He’s jumped from publisher to publisher, but to my knowledge the Eclipse run was the best one–and it’s never been reprinted.  Monster Runner Up: The Complete Appearances of Fin Fang Foom.


8.  Marv Wolfman and George Perez’s “The New Teen Titans” (D.C.) Perhaps the greatest team in D.C. history, Wolfman/Perez took a lame concept and turned it into pure brilliance.  Created in response to Claremont and Byrne’s X-Men run, The “New” Teen Titans was less of a relaunch than a complete reboot.  Who doesn’t want to see a “big paper” version of Starfire fighting with her (incredibly hot) sister?  My teen hormones never looked forward to a comic book more than this one.  There have been a few “archive” volumes, but no definitive reprint of these books–and one is richly deserved.  Sadly, since Wolfman left DC on very bad terms, it seems unlikely to happen.  Long-running D.C. Big Group Runner Up: Justice League (International). For sixty issues back in the 1980s, Keith Giffen, J.M. DeMatteis, and (mostly) Kevin MacGuire reinvented C-listers like the female Dr. Light, B-listers like Blue Beetle and Mister Miracle, as well as A-listers like Martian Manhunter and Batman, in a book that proved you can mix an ongoing conspiracy-laden story with fun and funny shorter adventures.  This series has been reprinted only in low-quality pulp-paper volumes.  Shame on you, D.C.  This is one of the most influential–and best–examples of D.C. work from the 1980s.

7.  Garth Ennis’ Hitman (D.C.). The Boys – [cursing and pornography] + [(PunisherMax-criminal element) x 50% Gore Factor]=Garth Ennis’ best mainstream comics work.  Throw in the amazing artwork by John McCrea, and you’ve clearly got Absolute version justification.  Other than Lobo, D.C.’s most anarchic work.  Misogynistic D.C.-ish Runner Up: The Vertigo title, Y The Last Man. There are several “Deluxe” editions, but these collect only 12 issues each.  Give us the big picture treatment for what may be the best long-running story in comic book history. 

6.  Iron Man by Dave Michelinie, Bob Layton, and John Romita, Jr. (Marvel). It’s sad that he and Michelinie’s run on Iron Man is only really remembered for “Demon in a Bottle” (#120-128).  Yeah, that was a peak in comic book history and a great story, but it was just the beginning of the ride.  The crew stayed on the book until #157, and every issue was a masterpiece.  They returned later to tell tales of the Jim Rhodes Iron Man and the famous “Iron Wars” storyline, and those are good, too, but my omnibus would be just as complete without them.  I also note that the team of JR Jr. and Bob Layton is probably one of my favorite art teams of all time.

5.  ‘Mazing Man (D.C.). In the days before there were a lot of quirky little indie books about “normal” people, Bob Rozakis and Stephen DeStefano somehow managed to convince D.C. to publish this book about a harmless mental patient and his best friend Denton, a talking dog.  It was one of the most charming, adult-and-kid-friendly books I’ve ever read, even if it struggled for an audience.  (Pictured on the top of this page.)  Quirky D.C. Runner Up: The Collected Appearances of Ambush Bug.  Who wouldn’t pay for that?

4.  The Avengers by Roger Stern (Marvel). Roger Stern might not be the man who presided over the most famous story arcs, but on his watch the book was consistently strong, entertaining, superheroics–the kind of book The Avengers was meant to be.  He led Henry Pym through his traitorous downfall, formed The West Coast Avengers, created Captain Marvel (Monica Rambeau, later of Nextwave) and brought a host of other females on to the team including Mockingbird, She-Hulk, and Tigra.  Avengers Runner Ups: (1) The Jim Shooter Years. This, too, is a shocker: Marvel never fully reprinted this former editor-in-chief’s run, which included major events like Jacosta’s story “Bride of Ultron,” “The Count Nefaria Trilogy,” and “The Korvac Saga.”  (2)  John Byrne’s Avengers. His brief but terrific art on Avengers #181-191 (with the wonderful David Michelinie doing the words–see Iron Man, above) could be combined with his West Coast Avengers retcon of The Vision’s origin for a nice, 30-or-so-odd comic book collection.

3.  The Amazing Spider-Man by Roger Stern and John Romita, Jr. (Marvel). It’s a Goddamn sin that these issues have never been reprinted in color.  They include the classic two-part Spider-Man vs. Juggernaut story, the Hobgoblin, and end with the black costume.  Come on.  Come the hell on.  I’d buy an omnibus of these issues in a heartbeat.  It’s probably my favorite run of any comic book, anytime, and certainly fills many of my childhood memories.  I just did a whole feature on Amazing Spider-Man, so I won’t ramble on.  Completely unrelated runner up:  Warren Ellis’ Thunderbolts.  Just a year’s worth of stories, and the first arc is out of print.  T-Bolts has been running off of the fumes from this engine ever since.

2.  Twisted Tales 1-10 (Pacific/Eclipse). Bruce Jones edited what must be the greatest horror series of all time–I have every issue (there were only 10), and the series was awesome from start to finish, with contributions from all the greats–Brett “creator of Bozz Chronicles” Blevins, Bernie “creator of Swamp Thing” Wrightson, Val “creator of Howard the Duck” Mayerik, Richard “Just about every great horror series ever” Corben . . . Even Butch Guice!  Pacific/Eclipse Comics runner up: The not-quite-as-cool Pacific/Eclipse Comics, also Bruce Jones edited, Alien Worlds anthology series.

1.  Gotham Central (D.C.). With Ed Brubaker and Greg Rucka on the typewriter and folks like Michael Lark and Kano providing the art, this is a no-brainer.  In my view, this “no Batman” Batbook rates as high as any tale of the Caped Crusader himself–truly.  It’s as good as The Dark Knight, The Long Halloween, Knightfall–any of them.  It’s also the best attempt to make cape-readers buy a “crime” book.  Absolutely brilliant, and well-deserving of a compendium.  Ed Brubaker Runner Up: Point Blank and Sleeper (Vertigo).  The full story arc for Brubaker and Phillips’ incredible story about a bad guy turned good turned bad again turned lone wolf.