Comic Book Writers and Artists to Follow on Twitter

Since February, I’ve been lucky enough to work for MakeUseOf, a techie site full of interesting articles about the Internet, iOS, Winodws, social media, future tech – and loads more. Okay, so what has that got to do with Marvel? Well, naturally, I extend my fandom to other writing projects. So I present to you a few articles that might be of interest…

10 Interesting Comic Book Writers Your Should Follow on Twitter!

Plenty of Marvel writers here, most notably the head honcho, Stan Lee. I’ve got some good feedback from this one, and I’m really pleased that it’s been tweeted over 800 times!

10 Talented Comic Book Artists You Should Follow on Twitter!

A bit of a wider range here, but still more than enough for the Marvel fans. This includes classics like Walt Simonson and newer names like Lee Garbett (who I met at the Bristol Comic Expo; really nice guy, very down-to-earth and approachable, with fantastic talent).

Now Playing: 5 “Astonishing” Websites for X-Men Fans

Something a little different here: a list of some of the best X-Men sites on the web. A very simple idea, but one which I think works quite well, particularly after the release of the astounding X-Men: Day of Future Past movie.

Anyway, I hope you enjoy the articles. This blog is done in my spare time, whereas I make my living through work for places like MakeUseOf and the Doctor Who website, Kasterborous. Frankly, I wouldn’t be able to run Make Mine A Marvel Omnibus without them, so I really appreciate your support – whether that be simply reading them, or sharing them, or even commenting and giving me feedback, good or bad. Thank you.

40% Off Wolverine and the X-Men – But Be Quick!

Perhaps due to the Christmas confusion, Forbidden Planet International still has its 40% off Wolverine and the X-Men Omnibus offer, which was supposed to go offline on 1st January!

So get there quickly – as in today, I’d advise! – bring its £75 RRP down to just £45.

Here’s the synopsis:

Blockbuster writer Jason Aaron’s incredible, hilarious and touching Wolverine & The X-Men run is collected in one oversized volume! Wolverine returns to Westchester to start over with a new school, a new student body and a lot of surprises! But can Logan — and a staff including Beast, Iceman, Rachel Grey, Kitty Pryde, Storm, Husk and Doop — really lead the Children of the Atom into the future? Only if they survive the newHellfire Club, Krakoa, Sabretooth, an army of mischievous Bamfs, war with the Avengers, the Phoenix Five and more! 

 

 

As new students join the school, including the time-displaced original X-Men, new threats emerge from Frankenstein’s Murder Circus, Wolverine’s half-brother Dog Logan, Mystique, the Hellfire Academy…and S.H.I.E.L.D.! Welcome to the Jean Grey School, Wolverine — hope you survive the experience! Collecting Wolverine And The X-Men #1-35, #38-42 and Annual #1; written by Jason Aaron; pencilled by Chris Bachalo, Nick Bradshaw, Jorge Molina, Mike Allred, Steven Sanders, David Lopez, Ramon Perez and Pepe Larraz, with cover artwork by Nick Bradshaw.

 

The 928-page book is will be released in June 2014.

X-Force, X-Men and Spider-Man Coming in 2014!

Several omnibuses have been confirmed for release in 2014, including fan-favourite runs like Remender’s Uncanny X-Force and a second Claremont Uncanny X-Men.

It even looks like the omnibus range will expand faster than expected, with at least three being published in April alone…

(Please note that I haven’t listed all the upcoming omnibuses yet, but I will soon!)

MARCH 2014

• The Muppets By Roger Langridge.

1296 pages. Expected Publication Date: 18th March 2014.

Collecting The Muppet Show (2009) issues #1 to 4, The Muppet Show Comic Book: The Treasure Of Peg-Leg Wilson #1 to 4, The Muppet Show Comic Book #0 through 11 and The Muppets (2012) #1 to 4.

• Uncanny X-Force By Rick Remender

928 pages. Expected Publication Date: 18th March 2014.

Collecting Uncanny X-Force (2010) issues #1 through to35, #5.1 and #19.1; plus material from Wolverine: Road To Hell #1.

APRIL 2014

• Spider-Man By Roger Stern.

1248 pages. Expected Publication Date: 8th April 2014.

Collecting The Spectacular Spider-Man (1976) #43-61, 85, The Amazing Spider-Man (1963) 203, 224-252 & Annual (1964) 16-17 and material from Amazing Spider-Man Annual #15, Spectaular Spider-Man Annual #3, Web Of Spider-Man Annual #3 and What If…? #34.

• Age of Apocalypse Companion.

992 pages. Expected Publication Date: 15th April 2014.

Collecting X-Men Chronicles #1-2, Tales From The Age Of Apocalypse #1-2, X-Man #-1 and #53-54, Blink #1-4, X-Universe #1-2, Exiles (2001) #60-61, X-Men: Age Of Apocalypse #1-6 and One-Shot, What If? (1989) #77 and #81, and What If? X-Men: Age Of Apocalypse — plus material from Hulk: Broken Worlds #2, X-Men Prime, X-Man Annual ’96, X-Men: Endangered Species, Exiles: Days Of Then & Now and Official Handbook Of The Marvel Universe: Age Of Apocalypse.

• The Uncanny X-Men: Volume 2.

912 pages. Expected Publication Date: 29th April 2014.

Collecting X-Men (1963) #132-141, Annual (1970) #4-5; The Uncanny X-Men (1981) #142-153; Avengers Annual (1967) #10; Marvel Fanfare (1982) #1-4; Marvel Treasury Edition (1974) #26-27; Marvel Team-Up (1972) #100; Bizarre Adventures (1981) #27; Phoenix: The Untold Story (1984) #1.

MAY 2014 – UNKNOWN

JUNE 2014

• Punisher MAX By Jason Aaron.

Expected Publication Date: 17th June 2014.

Contents Unknown as yet, but likely PunisherMAX #1- 22, and possibly 2009’s PunisherMAX X-Mas Special: “And on Earth Peace, Good Will Toward Men.”

Spider-Man Reprint Price Increase: A Taste of Things To Come?

A few days ago, I bought you news of the latest batch of Marvel Omnibus Reprints being reduced in price by Amazon UK to just £46.50. The first of these reprint, Amazing Spider-Man: Volume One, was released yesterday, and Amazon has put the price up…

… To £75.

Of course, this might just be a brief mistake and the price might drop down again. Or it could be a taste of things to come. At the moment, other reprints – including Daredevil by Frank Miller, Uncanny X-Men: Volume 1 and Fantastic Four: Volume 1 and 2 – are still up for pre-order for £46.50.

But will those prices increase when they’re released?

We have to wait until 17th September, when the Uncanny X-Men goes on sale, to find out.

Also of note: despite being a brand-new book, this Spider-Man omnibus is only dispatched within 1 to 3 working weeks. Seems a bit lax, don’t you think?! Are they just covering themselves – and if so, why this product specifically?

Otherwise, head to Forbidden Planet.co.uk, which lists this book at £50.25.

UPDATE: Thanks for everyone who either commented – here’s looking at you, Eamon – or emailed me to let me know that, thankfully Amazon UK has dropped the price back down to £46.50. My copy (from Forbidden Planet.co.uk) was delivered a few days ago – and I love it. Let me know if you’ll be buying this beaut of a book!

Amazon UK’s August Savings: Fantastic Four, Deadpool & Reprints!

Thanks to Peter Hardy for letting me know about these amazing Amazon UK deals…

Jonathon Hickman’s Fantastic Four (due out in October) has a massive 54% off the RRP, bring the £75 label down to just £34.71. The 800-page book collects Dark Reign: Fantastic Four #1-5, Dark Reign: The Cabal, Fantastic Four #570-588, and
FF #1-5.

And January’s Deadpool By Joe Kelly 1160-page omnibus is just £50.74!

And perhaps most importantly for those desperate to read those long-since out-of-print books, Amazon have them on pre-order for £46.50 each. These are: Amazing Spider-Man: Volume One; Uncanny X-Men: Volume One; Daredevil By Frank Miller; Fantastic Four: Volume One and Fantastic Four: Volume Two.

Once again, big thanks to Peter Hardy – and if you spot any deals I should know about, please email me!

AvX Omnibus Shipping!

The limited print run of the Avengers vs. X-Men Companion omnibus is in stores nationwide now – and I’ve received my copy from Forbidden Planet International, as you can see…

It’s encased in a special box to keep it looking beautiful, wonderfully illustrated with art by Jimmy Cheung.

I won’t lie: it’s a pain to open, particularly for someone who obsesses over condition. That strip of cardboard has to be ripped off, I’m afraid. But once you do, you’re greeted with a lovely sight.

And don’t worry; the box has a ‘crumple zone’ at the top and bottom to protect the actual omnibus.

Regardless of whether the crossover was a success or not, the book is brilliantly presented, a true triumph. Here’s the hardcover, with the sleeve separated:

Yes, the cover is a stunning close-up of the Phoenix.

So have you picked up the Avengers vs. X-Men Companion omnibus, which includes all the crossover content from last year’s Summer event? Give me your opinions in the comments below!

“Old Man Logan”: 40% Off Wolverine!

You’ve got until tomorrow to pre-order the Wolverine By Mark Millar omnibus at a discounted price of £33.59.

The 576-page book is due for release in July 2013, and features the ever-popular Enemy of the State and Old Man Logan storylines, written by Millar (The Ultimates; Kick-Ass), with art by John Romita Jr. (The Amazing Spider-man; Black Panther) and Steve McNiven (Superior; Guardians of the Galaxy).

Simply get over to Forbidden Planet International, and receive the omnibus at a 40% discount from its RRP of £55.99.

After this event, I expect the website to have the omnibus for sale at about £38.00.

In other Wolverine-related news…

• There will be a special Adamantium Collection, which is set to combine some fan-favourite stories featuring Wolverine (though not, I might add, tales included in the Mark Millar omnibus). It’s set to hit shelves in June, just before the film, The Wolverine, will be shown at cinemas worldwide. You can read more about it here. I’ll be taking a closer look at this release soon.

• The Adamantium Collection is currently for sale from Forbidden Planet International for £100.50. Obviously this is a massive price for an over-sized book, but it’s still a 33% discount of its UK RRP of £150.00.

• Amazon UK, meanwhile, just about undercut FPInternational with the Wolverine By Jason Aaron omnibus available for £48.00.

• Hearing how a plethora of X-Men stars will be reunited in the next movie, Days of Future Past is massively exciting. James McAvoy! Michael Fassbender! Hugh Jackman! Patrick Stewart! Sir Ian McKellan! Ellen Page! Anna Paquin! Jennifer Lawrence! Plus: Sentinels! This is bound to be incredible, right?!

News Round-up: January 2013, featuring Thor, Wolverine – and Rare Omnibuses!

A second Mighty Thor omnibus is due for release in August, carrying on from where the first volume left off.

Many thanks to Rubèn, who found this in the Marvel May to August Preview.

The first omnibus, released in January 2011, collected together Journey Into Mystery #83-120 and Annual #1; this second will continue from Journey Into Mystery #121, relaying the foundations of Thor, Loki, the Warriors Three and the rest of Asgard to readers before the release of the movie sequel, Thor: The Dark World, due out in October in the UK.

The Wolverine is also set to hit cinema screens this year (in July, to be precise), and to coincide, Marvel will release Wolverine by Mark Millar Omnibus, which I will personally be lapping up. With art by John Romita Jr (Thor; X-Men), Steve McNiven (Captain America; The Amazing Spider-man) and Kaare Andrews (Spider-man: Reign; Incredible Hulk), the 576-page book will include the popular Enemy of the State and Old Man Logan storylines. Here’s the official blurb:

He’s the best there is at what he does. And when writer Mark Millar (The Ultimates; Kick-Ass) gets his hands on Wolverine, what he does isn’t very pretty! When the Hand brainwashes Wolverine, he slices and dices his way through friends and foes alike — carving a swath of terror through the Marvel Universe that ultimately results in an X-Man’s death! Finally captured and deprogrammed, Wolverine swears vengeance against his tormentors — and the vengeance of Wolverine is a wonder to behold. Then: Nobody knows what happened the night the heroes fell, but the villains have been calling the shots ever since. Wolverine’s fate is the biggest mystery of all. No one has heard from him for fifty years, and in his place stands an old man called Logan.

Collecting Wolverine (2003) #20- 32, #66- 72 and Wolverine: Old Man Logan Giant-Size #1.

With an RRP of $75, expect to pay about £50 when it’s released in July.

And finally… Amazon UK has an influx of older omnibus titles back on sale. The Incredible Hulk Volume 1, collecting Hulk #1-6, Tales to Astonish #59-101, and Incredible Hulk #102, is priced £63.75. Though they’re temporarily out-of-stock, they’re taking orders for The X-Men Omnibus Volume 1 (again, £63.75) and Brubaker’s Captain America Volume 1, for sale at just £47.59. The Avengers Omnibus, meanwhile, is just £48.

Get over there quickly – I’m sure they’ll sell out pretty fast!

MarvelNOW! Omnibus…?

Marvel will reportedly publish an omnibus next year collecting the first issue of all their new MarvelNOW! titles.

The book, supposedly 688 pages long, will print such comics as Uncanny Avengers #01; Fantastic Four #01; Thor #01; Nova #01 and All-New X-Men #01, featuring writers like Rick Remender, Brian Michael Bendis and Matt Fraction, and artists like Mike Allred, Stuart Immonen and Esad Ribic.

The HC is rumoured to have a cover by Joe Quesada.

MarvelNOW! is a relaunch of their core titles, shaking up the creative teams. Brian Michael Bendis, for instance, has been on the Avengers titles since c. 2005’s Disassembled – but is now working on All-New X-Men.

I have a few titles on standing order, including Captain America – just knowing John Romita Jr is on the book is enough to guarantee its inclusion in my pull list! – X-Men: Legacy (writer, Si Spurrier, is at the top of his game), and FF (with art that I initially disliked… but now I absolutely love). My surprise purchase, though, is Journey Into Mystery. I can’t even describe how good it is. Just pick it up.

It’ll be a new direction for the omnibus line, but a step which isn’t unheard of for comic fans: DC published a similar collection, with all the first issues of their ‘52’ titles.

The MarvelNOW! Omnibus is expected in June 2013.

“A Vision of Things To Come”: 40% Off Avengers Vs X-Men!

It may not be classed as an omnibus, but the Avengers Vs. X-Men Companion is both the size and price of a normal Marvel omnibus… so I guess you kind folks will be interested, right?

Released in May 2013, the HC is a huge 1088 pages long, featuring every Avengers Vs. X-Men tie-in! Naturally, a large RRP comes alongside the large page count: £75.

But if you pre-order it today (Tuesday 4^th December 2012), you can claim 40% off, bringing the price down to just £45! All you need to do it get over to Forbidden Planet International.

It looks to be an amazing book. Here’s the blurb and contents:

Every AvX tie-in, collected in one massive volume! When Captain America declares war on the X-Men, how will Generation Hope and the Avengers Academy react to their mentors’ actions? As the Secret Avengers battle the Phoenix Force in space, Iron Fist discovers the connection between K’un Lun and Hope Summers! And when the Avengers try to secure the Jean Grey School, Wolverine must decide where his loyalties lie! But as the Phoenix Force arrives, tipping the scales of battle, the Avengers and X-Men realize the stakes are higher than they knew — and the that fate of the Earth is in their hands.

Collecting Avengers Academy #29-33, Secret Avengers (2010) #26-28, Avengers (2010) #25-30, New Avengers (2010) #24-30, X-Men Legacy (2008) #266-270, Wolverine & The X-Men #9-16 And #18, AvX: Consequences #1-5, Uncanny X-Men (2012) #11-20, and A-Babies Vs. X-Babies #1, written by Christos Gage, Rick Remender, Brian Michael Bendis, Jason Aaron, Kieron Gillen & Skottie Young, pencilled by Tom Grummett, Renato Guedes, Walter Simonson, Mike Deodato Jr., Rafa Sandoval, David Baldeon, Chris Bachalo, Nick Bradshaw, Jorge Molina, Greg Land, Daniel Acuna, Ron Garney, Gurihiru & others, with cover art by Jim Cheung.

The book os the perfect partner of last month’s Avengers Vs. X-Men hardcover, with an RRP of £55.99. (FPInternational has it for £37.51, though!)