Dawn of X, Young Justice and Other FOC You Shouldn't Miss this Week!

2 Big and 4 Mini Highlights from this Week's FOC

WHAT SHOULDN'T YOU MISS THIS WEEK?

Greetings goblins, ghouls and graphic-novel gremlins! Welcome to the spooky season!

As I am writing this newsletter, I am still shocked that we are entering the last months of the year. Days are getting shorter; the weather is getting colder in our part of the planet, but one thing remains – the endless march of new comics to get!

I love this season, and it’s not just because of all the spooky you can have in your days. It’s because this is the perfect time to sit in a comfy armchair with a warm cup of tea or cocoa, enjoy the rain gently rapping at your window while you struggle holding a ginormous tome of delicate comic book art in your lap.

But don’t let me wax poetic too long – let’s dive into what’s on FOC this week!

X-Men: Age Of Krakoa – Dawn Of X Omnibus Vol. 2

While the first volume of Dawn of X is slowly making its way to my humble abode, I am very excited to recommend the second volume to you all. Age of Krakoa has been quite a stepping stone for X-Men titles, and if you have been reading our Beyond the Panels blog, then you already know how much I have been yapping about Marvel’s Merry Mutants. Now that Krakoa is over, we were dreading how (and when and if) it will be collected, and Marvel has actually done a great job this time to dissuade our fears.

For those who are somehow not in the known, Age of Krakoa spans a few years of X-Men comics where they created their own nation on the island of Krakoa, living there in (relative) peace – just kidding, it’s the X-Men, there is never peace for them! Different series ran at different times, exploring Mutant culture, secret service, teenagers, outcasts and so much more.

Mind you, this is not your “event” omnibus (or a series of them, by the rate we’re going and if we’re lucky). Instead, these omnis will be collecting all (or almost all – since Marvel Voices stories seem to have been forgotten) X-Men stories from this era – and they are doing them in the suggested reading order! 

This means that the running titles (X-Men, X-Force, New Mutants, Marauders and Excalibur) are all present, along with minis and shorter runs – Dawn of X Volume 1 collected all of Fallen Angels, while this book is collecting minis like X-Men/Fantastic Four, the rest of Giant-Size X-Men issues, and starting on the rest of the ongoing stories (X-Factor and Hellions were my favorite ones at the time). It was probably the best X-Men have been in quite some years – Dawn of X stories were a blast to read at the time, and revisiting them will be even better.

X-Men: Age Of Krakoa - Dawn Of X Omnibus Vol. 2 HC *PRE-ORDER*

€112,99 €150,00

Completing the epic first chapter of mutantkind’s Krakoan age!The New Mutants are back from space, and they’ve brought intergalactic trouble for the X-Men! Meanwhile, the sea-faring Marauders reel from a devastating loss, X-Force discovers a growing problem that threatens to… read more

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X-Men: Age Of Krakoa - Dawn Of X Omnibus Vol. 2 Ben Oliver Cover HC [DM Only] *PRE-ORDER*

€112,99 €150,00

Completing the epic first chapter of mutantkind's Krakoan age! The New Mutants are back from space, and they've brought intergalactic trouble for the X-Men! Meanwhile, the seafaring Marauders reel from a devastating loss, X-Force discovers a growing problem that threatens… read more

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Young Justice Omnibus Vol. 2

I think this is the season of volume 2-s galore! But man oh man was I excited when I saw this book announced, and I cannot believe that in only a few months it will be in my hands! The first volume of Peter David and Todd Nauck’s seminal run on the Young Justice team has been sitting alone on my shelf since 2023, and finally it will be completed in January.

A couple of times before I have been asked what the difference is between Young Justice and Teen Titans. Furthermore, friends who grew up on the 00s Teen Titans show, interested in getting into comics would always be confused about where to start reading about the team. This. Book. Is. It. (well, volume one, but you know what I mean).

Young Justice follows the adventures of Robin (the best one: Tim Drake), Superboy (the best one: Conner Kent) and Impulse (the best one? Bart Allen) as they team up to fight crime and have fun along the way. They are soon joined by Wonder Girl (Cassie Sandsmark), Secret (Greta Hayes) and Arrowette (Cissie King-Jones), with Red Tornado serving as their mentor.

The book is full of Peter David’s signature charming writing, wonderful characters with memorable interactions and intricate relationships. After all, where would a group of teenage superheroes be without drama and infighting coming in the way of actually fighting bad guys. This book also served as a template for the Teen Titans show (but weirdly, not the Young Justice show) in a sense of character dynamics and the tone. This should be your first (well, second) Teen Titans book before moving onto other runs!

Young Justice Omnibus Vol. 2 HC *PRE-ORDER*

€94,99 €125,00

Read the thrilling conclusion of the Young Justice saga, as DC’s teen heroes face new battles—and their own futures—in this omnibus collection! Headlined by Robin, Superboy, Impulse, and Wonder Girl, Young Justice was the teen team of the late ‘90s… read more

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Quick-fire Round of Honorable Mentions

Green Lantern: Rebirth Compendium

If you are like me and have struggled for a long time on where to start reading Green Lantern, then we’re both in luck – the compendiums are here.

Green Lantern by Geoff Johns has been a long standing omnibus recommendation to me, but seeing the literal piles of books always seemed a bit intimidating, especially having to go back and forth from Green Lantern to Tomasi’s Green Lantern Corps. Just like the X-Men omni, this book solves the issue by collecting everything you need (and more – even the stuff that’s not in the omnis) in one place. There will be a series of compendiums coming out, but Rebirth is where we can start our journey together.

Batman: White Knight: Absolute Edition

While I have been patiently waiting for some sort of omnibus edition for all White Knight stories, this might actually break me and make me buy into it. This book gives us a negative image of Gotham – where Joker protects it as the White Knight, and it’s Batman who’s the menace looming over everyone. Sean Murphy’s art is bonkers amazing, and it deserves this premier format.

Invincible Universe Battle Beast TP Vol 01

Robert Kirkman and Ryan Ottley made a triumphant return to the Invincible universe with Battle Beast, showing us once again why they are one of the most fun team ups in comics. The first volume of the book collects the first story arc, somehow humanizing Battle Beast even more and giving us background into this spectacular murder machine.

• Invincible Universe Battle Beast TP Vol 01 Ryan Ottley & Annalisa Leoni Cover
• Invincible Universe Battle Beast TP Vol 01 Direct Market Exclusive Ryan Ottley & Annalisa Leoni Cover

Transformers TP Vol 04

One thing starts, another thing ends (and is again taken over by Kirkman, but that’s just a weird coincidence). Daniel Warren Johnson and Jorge Corona take a bow with Transformers #24, and this trade collects their last six issues on the title. In a touching finale, we see Optimus and Megatron finally battle it out, but there are still some shocking twists in the story that took me by surprise.

• Transformers TP Vol 04 Conquer And Control Daniel Warren Johnson & Mike Spicer Cover
• Transformers TP Vol 04 Conquer And Control Direct Market Exclusive Daniel Warren Johnson & Mike Spicer Sword Cover 

All books on FOC today

...can be found here! Wednesday is the official deadline for low pre-order prices (but we never change prices before Friday... shhhh it's a secret!)

All single issues on FOC are to be found here. Because singles are affected by a lot of last minute changes and cover additions, they have a later deadline at Saturday, 4 pm. If you need any instruction how our single issue subscription service works, watch this video and contact Heiko if you still have questions. 

Later, pumpkins!

Petar