The 'Kingdom Come' Absolute is one of my favourite books ever. Anything by Alex Ross needs to be bought in this format tbh. Still waiting for a reprint, however, of the 'Arkham Asylum' Absolute. That thing escaped me at the time and it needs to come back.
Bro, same here. Do you know if Omar has connections with people who work at DC comics? So he can ask for reprints? Similar to how he does with David Gabriel at marvel?
@@diegobelaunde4965 I don't know mate. It's massively annoying how these classics go out of print when they are clearly popular. Don't know why it happens.
Hush is still my first and only Absolute Edition, and I was lucky enough to have it signed by Jeph Loeb at a con last year. It was one of my first comics and that art is just gorgeous in large format.
Absolute Editions are my favorite format. As soon as I first saw the Absolute Line years ago, I thought "Imagine if they collected all of Kirby's New Gods stuff like that..."
Thank you Omar for giving J.H. Williams III the recognition he deserves on Promethea! I have been waiting for DC Comics to do a new printing of his Absolute volumes (along with the Immateria Edition) I hope to see that come to fruition in the near future! I also hope DC decides to publish the Absolute Cover Run art of Adam Hughes, another book long overdue.
I got mine last month. It stank the room as soon as I flipped through those pages. Objectively, it's not a good smell, but as a book enthusiast, I kind of love it.
I only have two myself... Kingdom Come and Justice (major props to my friend that went to one of Alex Ross' museum showings and got Justice signed for me). Mark Waid is doing a con in Austin I am going to so I will get KC signed there. I thought about getting Swamp Thing and Wonder Woman, but I already have the omni's for those.
I only have 10 absolutes, and 6 of them are in your list! Of the four that aren't, the one I'd lobby for the most is Batman Year One. Not just because of the significance of the story and art, but because of the 2-volume presentation - providing the opportunity to experience it both as the original readers did, and then as it has been reprinted ever since. Combined with all the pages of original script and layouts, it's a fascinating document for comic book creators.
Hey, thanks for your thoughts and sharing some of your collection. I've got a few of those, but my favourite you didn't show is the Absolute Top Ten. Gene Ha's artwork benefits immeasurably from being seen in the Absolute size. I can spend hours scouring those pages for all the little details and Easter eggs. Just a note. Unfortunately Absolutes do not fit in Ikea's Kallax shelving. You can stack them on top, but they won't fit in the shelves. Cheers
I managed to get my Absolute Watchmen signed by Alan Moore which made my year! Love the New Frontier and All Star Superman Absolutes and super glad I waited for them to appear on that format.
Im from Northampton originally and grew up a few streets away from him, so would bump into him now and then and this amazingly elevated to a few stop and chats when I saw him! The signing was at the local comic shop and in aid of a community project he was supporting. ‘No DC stuff’ was the friendly advice from the shop owner but I chanced it with a Promethea vol 1 TPB to soften the approach and then my copy of Absolute Watchmen! 🙏
1. COIE - no brainer best absolute 2. Final Crisis - Unlike the over-stuffed omnibus it includes the Beyond issues in 3-D which is integral to the plot.
Great video as always Omar. I hope you and the family have a great Vacation. So I dont have 12 so I will give you my six. 1) Kingdom Come 2) Hush 3) The Killing Joke 4) Superman for Tomorrow 5) Superman/Batman 1 6) Superman/Batman 2 I will say to answer one of your questions. My Hush is a sixth printing and it still comes with the slip cover. All others are 1St so I also have the mistake on my Kingdom. Future purchases would Love to get Swamp Thing and The Preacher. Thanks again for the daily videos.
I wish DC gave us an Absolute Superman Red Son Funny enough, my first DC comic was Daytripper. Read it in college for an assignment and highly enjoyed it.
I love this format for comics. It's the best for comics. Anything Alex Ross is ideal for this style. The Swamp Thing books are awesome. There's many that I love, but the Preacher books mean a lot to me personally. It changed my perspective of comics at the time. And they made the Absolute editions look smart and not without a little wink of irony. I'd love to see, though I know it's highly unlikely, is Absolute Hitman. I'd take an omnibus if anything. But to me, it would be gorgeous in Absolute format. John McCrea's art in that series is some of his best, he's a great visual storyteller, and the way it was inked and colored just made it pop. He does action, comedy, and emotion very well. And that's before even getting into the story which is hilarious, pulse pounding, and moving. I feel that Hitman is a woefully underrated book that I feel like DC didn't want to work or succeed at times, but Garth still told the story he wanted to tell. I love that series and would love to see it get proper recognition. Other companies have gotten behind the Absolute format. I have the Walking Dead series in this size as well as most of the Boys and Hellboy. They did a print of a small story that I loved in this size as well, Midnight Nation. Now, I love the hardcover editions of the works of Ed Brubaker and Sean Phillips, but to get an Absolute sized version of their book would be amazing. It'd be too good. It'd be Criminal.
Marvel had a line of slipcased gigantic books that were larger than DC Absolutes but were ahead of their time. I still hope they realize that the current market could support Adamantium/Platinum editions already.
I love the DC Absolute line! But tend to avoid the multi-volume sets like Sandman, Preacher, Swamp Thing, etc and get the omnis instead. I wish Marvel had an Absolute equivalent. And no I don't count the Gallery Editions. Stuff like DD Born Again, Dark Phoenix Saga, Marvels would make phenomenal Marvel "Absolute" editions.
Absolute Planetary would be top of my list along with Joker/Luthor by Bermejo, Black Mirror, Green Lantern/Green Arrow, and Killing Joke swapping out some of your picks. Hoping the new upcoming Absolute Superman for All Seasons is done well...RIP Tim Sale.
Ditto on Planetary and Supes for all Seasons. Really glad that Marvel is getting us a gallery edition of Spidey Blue and DD Yellow… wish Tim was still around to see it happen.
Tossing up between the absolute of Planetary or the omnibus. Heard the binding for the new absolute doesn’t have that much of an eye leaving a bit of gutter loss. Omni is also half the price. Thoughts?
@sandynelson526 I think it just comes down to your size preference...Cassaday's art is really on display in the Absolute, but it's massive and quite heavy; the omnibus is much more manageable in size and cost and still one of the best DC has made.
I only buy absolutes when I "absolutely" love the story. I"m like Omar in that I don't sell them. I got my sandman volume 2 for $20 over 10 years ago because the top of the slip case has a tear in it. I have no idea how somebody tore that heavy cardboard that way but the book is fine. the slipcase is fine too. I've read it a several times.
I love absolute editions. I also have absolute Watchmen, swamp thing, kingdom come and preacher. I don't have many but I'm making it my mission to get as many as I can
Currently only own 4 absolute editions. Batman Hush, V For Vendetta, JLA Avengers and Crisis On Infinite Earths. But I would love to add New Frontier, Watchmen and All Star Superman.
Absolute edition Kingdom Come is a personally favorite. It’s in my top five favorite CB of all time a masterpiece(a term I don’t use lightly) of storytelling from Waid and Ross. It’s a comic that came out to showcase all the edgy, dark stuff of the 90s that traditional superhero stories could work. Also the Superman costume here still is my favorite with the black S. As for another favorite absolute, V for Vendetta. Also in my top five list.
Thanks Omar, I’ve really been looking forward to this video! Would definitely enjoy a follow up of best Absolutes for new readers/collectors. I have Kingdom Come and All Star Superman, with Batman Court of Owls on preorder. I’m thinking of getting Wonder Woman by George Perez as well. The New Frontier book looked gorgeous.
Hey omar, i just got my first Absolute edition. Absolute Kingdom Come, it’s a REALLY beautiful edition. I always said that Alex Ross HAS to be read in that format.
Excellent and entertaining list. Your list looks a lot like mine. I'll probably never get the JLA / Avengers Absolute, so I would sub the Crisis on Infinity Earth Absolute. I have the three Promethea Absolutes, all of which I got on sale, but I prefer the first two League of Extraordinary Gentlemen Absolutes as my favorite Alan Moore from that period. (However, the third volume was not as good and overpriced for what you get.) I treasure my older edition of The New Frontier Absolute as it is signed by Darwyn Cooke with a way past cool sketch of the Green Lantern which he did in ten seconds.
I own most of these (including JLA/Avengers), but I'm really bad at ranking things. As the resident Jack Kirby stan, I'll just say that the two volumes of Absolute Fourth World are some of my favorite books in my collection.
Omar, always wanted to ask if you keep the outer cardboard fitted boxes these come in? I have the first few, but I quit keeping them after a while. Would come in handy when moving. Peace!
Hey Omar! I was wondering if you could do a video on well known printing issues/errors in collected editions. Would really help many of us since you read alot of books that are about to come out ahead of time
Top 10 absolutes for new readers sounds great! I wish they re print jla avengers. I've never read it, n reading it in absolute format for the first time would be the dream.
Crisis on Infinite Earths deserves to be on here as well as LoEG because of the additional books Top 10 is great for including all the series written by Moore
I love neil gaiman! I’ve read almost every single book he has made, but I couldn’t finished sandman. I wanted to love it so hard but I just couldn’t. I simply don’t know why it hits so many people like that. I did love the tv show, though!
I was lucky enough to snag the JLA/Avengers Absolute when it first came out. Being a huge Perez fan, no way I was gonna miss out on some of his best work in an over-size format.
I really hope we get Tom King's Mister Miracle in Absolute Edition. Such an incredible story that hit me hard. I dont own too many Abosultes but thats one I would get day one.
Hmmm ... a top 12 of Absolutes is hard. I'd have all 7 ( Death being one ) volumes of Sandman in the mix which only leaves space for 5 more. Don't think I can do it !
I would add Arkham Asylum in there. That art is insane I wish I could get JLA/Avengers and Promethea. DC is reprinting lots of absolutes upcoming months/year so 🤞🏼
I'm upset my Absolute Watchmen doesn't have a ribbon bookmark, lol. I kinda want to get an Absolute copy of Kingdom Come. I'm not the biggest fan of the story (I have it all in trades), but I guess I'd like to have it just for the collection (I have the Before Watchmen omnibus, too. I still need to read that). I bought Absolute Preacher vols 2&3 but had to settle on getting all the material from vol 1 digitally. I loved that story. Can't wait for the vol 1 Absolute reprint. I _still_ waffle on wanting to spend money on Absolute Kingdom Come. I had a trade for it sometime in the early 90s and thought it was a fantastic story. Maybe one day...
Hey, near mint condition, I am reading the sandman book 1. But often than not, I can not see the words. So I have to use the flashlight to be able to see them. What else should I do to be able to see the words?
I love my Absolute Black Mirror and Sandman Vol.1 (that I "checked out" at the library but never returned heh heh Absolute Watchmen, Kiling Joke and Arkham Asylum I've also held and enjoyed ... JLA/Avengers an all time grail
surprised marvel hasn't caught on to the printing their own absolute editions, unless if it's a copyright issue if that's case (if true) then that's stupid
Immateria will never happen unfortunately I have all single issues of Promethea including the variant #1 & last covers issue that was signed by both Moore & JH3, all the HCs & won a piece of OA from #2 by combining the pages from the tarot issue into a circle. Now if Jim lee were to draw the cover then there might be a slim chance... 🙄
Great List, but where's the George Perez Wonder Woman! Also Personally I'd have some other Bat-books before Hush - Long Halloween, Court of Owls. And think I'd try to find room for Green Lantern/Green Arrow by O'Neil and Adams. And when V for Vendetta Absolute gets here that makes my list! Finally going forward I hope the Titans DC push makes someone think of a Wolfman/Perez Titans Absolute volumes.
All star superman isn't in print anymore right? it sold out. I let it slip when it first came out, seeing i have those little hardcovers of that book, but i'm hitting myself over the head that i missed both print runs, i love that story, i need it in it's best format possible. i am lucky enough to have everything else super hero related in your list as well. Love that Hush and For Tomorrow were titles that happened because Lee was dared to try a monthly title again after beeing so long out of the game, to see if he was still able to do it, that is hilarious, because he hit it out of the park woth those two Superman and Batman titles. Lee's classic superman is so much better than what he did with new 52 and rebirth, i just quit out the series, couldn't see that suit, glad to be back on action since issue 1000. listen, i'm going to stop here, because i could write a book. have a great week omnie!
I contacted my comic guy, this afternoon, asked him if he could still order the absolute all star superman xD i'm getting it next week you guys xD i'm busting a gut laughing, after all these years missing out on this edition, i'm getting it for cover price. thanks pusher NMC, keeping my original 2 little hard covers though, because that set next to the two hush hardcovers are to good. glad to get it in oversized format of course.
Not a fan of recolored editions. I do believe that colorists are also artists and this change disrespects their contribution. I think recolored editions, "noir" editions and so on are great when the original material has been published in deluxe or omni format in its original form, yet this have not been the case for Swamp Thing. That said, there's a hardcover version with old paper and original colors of Swamp Thing published more than a decade ago that still can be found online but it's rather pricey nowadays for those of you interested. Hopefully we can have one day an omnibus with original coloring of this masterpiece by Alan Moore.
Honestly everyone loves Watchmen but I found it the hardest one to read personally. I just found it just so dull and I just took ages to finish it because I couldn't enjoy it. I don't understand the love for it. Anyone tell me what they love about it. Let me know because I just don't see it.
Id understand if youre too young or not alive to remember the cold war. Personally i think living that era kinda helped me understand it. I read it just before the movie came out and i read it 1 issue a day so that i could really remember what happened. I enjoyed the story and thought it was good but i wasnt blown away like zomg best comic ever. To me i didnt feel i knew all the characters well enough to have a big attachment where the big reveals really hit me.
@@NearMintCondition Irony, yes! Ironing, no! But for the record, I love this kind of videos: lists and tops. One more thing, you got me into omnis, don't put me in the Absolute race... 😅
