With The Untold Legend of the Batman tabloid hitting shops, we imagine the possibilities…
By ROB KELLY
Fans of the “treasury edition” format have been thoroughly enjoying DC’s treasury-size Facsimile Editions over the last year, eagerly awaiting each new book. But with this week’s stealth release of The Untold Legend of the Batman as a treasury edition — essentially DC Comics’ first “new” tabloid in over two decades, not counting 2020’s hardcover Famous First Edition: New Fun Comics #1 — we have now entered new territory.
So if DC might be up for any of their back catalogue being reissued as a treasury, may we make these 13 suggestions?
(NOTE: “Treasury edition” has become the accepted generic term, even though DC in the ’70s usually used “Limited Collectors’ Edition” and in the case of the new Untold Legend of the Batman, “Limited Edition.”)
In alphabetical order (mostly):
—
Action Comics #500. OK, let’s start at the beginning. Not only is James Gunn’s Superman movie just a few months away, but this book was originally planned as a treasury edition, only later to be published as part of the regular Action title. Let’s finally see this at the size it was intended!
—
Action Comics #252. Going back a few decades, let’s give the Maid of Might some treasury love, too! Her iconic first appearance would make for a great treasury edition.
—
Batman/Captain America. The treasuries were where DC and Marvel originally went to do their cross-company team-ups, because they knew the format exemplified “event.” This single-issue story was a lot of fun, and it’d be great to see it in a size truly befitting the meeting of these two legendary heroes.
—
Justice League of America #200. OK, I admit, I’m playing favorites here. JLA #200 is my all-time favorite comic book, ever, but dang is this thing great. Written by the legendary Gerry Conway and drawn by one of the greatest collection of comic book artists ever assembled between two covers, this giant battle between JLA members old and new would be an amazing addition to the treasury line.
—
Metamorpho #1. Speaking of the Superman movie, with Metamorpho about to become a big screen movie star (I can’t believe I just typed that), now would be the perfect time to reissue his debut appearance in the treasury format, accompanied by gorgeous Ramona Fradon art. (NOTE From Dan: Hell, I’ll settle for just a regular-size Facsimile Edition.)
—
Nathaniel Dusk. OK, this one’s a stretch. In the middle of the 1980s, DC decided to release a decidedly non-commercial, film noir detective story, written by Don McGregor and drawn by the legendary Gene Colan. It was successful enough to spawn a sequel but, other than that, Dusk pretty much disappeared into the dark corners of the DCU. Let’s bring him back out at the treasury size.
—
The New Teen Titans #1. Do I really need to make an argument for this?
—
Showcase #100. This is just fun. Featuring every character who ever appeared in the title to that point, it’s a massive cosmic adventure told with high style. A classic that deserves a big-size retelling. Written by our pal Paul Kupperberg!
—
Superman #400. DC should use the upcoming movie to help the Man of Steel reclaim his former pop culture prominence. This double-size anniversary issue is full of interesting takes on the Superman legend and features a who’s who of great artists.
—
Swamp Thing #1. Who wouldn’t want to see Bernie Wrightson’s breathtaking work at this size?
—
The Uncanny X-Men and The New Teen Titans #1. This was technically published by Marvel, but come on! This book should have been a treasury when it was first published in 1982 — the Simonson art, the Claremont story, the characters cry out for it! Let’s finally rectify this grave publishing injustice.
—
Weird War Tales #93. Let’s strike while the bloody, Nazi-killing iron is hot! The first appearance of the Creature Commandos in Weird War Tales would look great at a giant size. Check out that Joe Kubert cover!
—
Wonder Woman #1. The legendary George Perez brought his prodigious talents to bear on the Amazing Amazon, giving the character a timeliness and excitement she had been missing for a long time. Let’s celebrate where it all started.
—
As they were in their 1970s heyday, the treasuries are a great way to present DC Comics’ storied history. As the host of the TreasuryCast podcast, I’ve loved celebrating this beautiful, lush format, and I’m thrilled that it seems that the story of the treasuries isn’t over!
—
MORE
— UNTOLD LEGEND OF THE BATMAN Reprint Is a TREASURY EDITION. Click here.
— 13 New FAMOUS FIRST EDITION Treasuries We Want to See. Click here.
—
ROB KELLY is a writer, illustrator, podcaster, and film commentator. His work can be found at robkellycreative.com.
January 29, 2025
You are definitely more excited about giant expensive reprints than I am. Treasury editions are the 8-Tracks of comics.
January 29, 2025
OK.
January 30, 2025
We are excited about reprint Treasury editions because even when they first came out, they were very limited , and now are getting harder and harder to find in decent condition without paying a high price. If you think these reprint facsimiles are expensive, just do a quick search on eBay for the originals. I guessing you didn’t see these when you were younger. They evoke a strong sense of nostalgia for us that might have been lucky enough to get one in the 70’s. This is also our second chance to get the ones we never got! These aren’t the “ 8 tracks” of comics. I’d say they are more like the classic vinyl of comics, that are making a big comeback.
January 30, 2025
Re: Nathaniel Dusk — YES!!! (most emphatically). Though I would prefer the hardcover treatment as a Deluxe Edition or Absolute to truly show off Gene Colan’s beautiful artwork. Don McGregor had ideas for a third mini as well. Wouldn’t Tom Mandrake be a worthy successor to Gene Colan?
I like most of these ideas. Several of these could be combined into one volume as “Famous First Appearances” or “1st Issue Special” as “Secret Origins” doesn’t strictly apply. The Batman/Captain America and X-Men/Teen Titans are great suggestions. I’d add World’s Finest #271, “To Kill a Legend” from Detective #500 (or all of Detective #500), and JLA #183-185 (JLA/JSA/New Gods crossover) to the list.
January 30, 2025
DC seems to be reserving the Absolute Editions for mostly post Bronze Age material. It’s always been a pet peeve with me.
But if DC is going to use Treasury Editions to release Gold/Silver/Bronze Age material in an enlarged format, then I will buy every one of them.
January 30, 2025
I never paid attention to Nathanial Dusk! I’d grab that one up in a minute! And I somehow didn’t know that Cap and Bats had teamed up!
January 30, 2025
Some of my wishes…
-Mademoiselle Marie
-Enemy Ace
-Earth-2 Batman stories from “The Brave and the Bold”
-Superman 146
-Steve Englehart/Marshall Rogers Detective stories…particularly “The Laughing Fish” and “Sign of the Joker”
BTW…if anyone from DC is reading this…IF you keep making Treasury Editions, I will keep buying them
January 30, 2025
I’m a sucker for DC treasury editions and have practically all of the 70s releases but regardless haven’t been able to resist picking up the recent facsimiles. I didn’t plan on getting this week’s Untold Legend collection because I have the originals but when I saw that treasury-sized comic on the shelf, it was an instant sale. I would love to see DC revisit them but with new collections of stories.
New treasuries I’d like to see are Brave and the Bold, Secret Origins, Legion of Super-heroes (the Great Darkness Saga), JLA/JSA team-ups, and a holiday collection like the LCE Christmas with the Super-heroes.
January 30, 2025
JLA 200 and New Teen Titans/X-Men HAVE to be given the treasury facsimile “glow-up”! The former has so many amazing art pieces, that it would benefit the oversized treatment. (And this is from someone that owns 3 copies of the book!) And NTT/UXM? Walt Simonson art in Treasury format? That’s just simply a no-brainer.
January 30, 2025
I like Rob’s list as a starting point. Given the typical 72-or-so-page count, not all of these could stand alone as treasuries but it would be great if DC were to introduce anthologies like the original LCEs.
It’s such early days that we really don’t know what to expect. This could end up being just a one-off, though I doubt it. The response to our stories alone — and the resurgence of treasuries themselves — has been so enthusiastic, I expect strong sales, which means more should come. But only time will tell.
For my own part: My No. 1 choice — far and away — would be Englehart’s 8-issue Detective Comics run with Rogers (and Simonson/Milgrom’s first two chapters). It could be done in two volumes. But that’s not the typical treasury approach. Then again, this is a new world, with new possibilities. (DC is also allergic to reprinting these stories, so there is that.)
12 other selections (without repeating Rob’s) to total 13:
— World of Krypton: Comics’ first miniseries, originally planned as three issues of Showcase before it was cancelled. Its success led to Untold Legend, and with Gunn’s Superman coming out, it’s the perfect follow-up. Written by our pal Paul Kupperberg!
— JLA # 210-212, Conway and Buckler’s story that was originally supposed to be a treasury.
— The second Best of DC treasury that was never published: The Brave and the Bold #42; All-Star Western #11; Superman #247; and Green Lantern #75.
— An O’Neil/Adams Best of GL/GA
— JLA #21-22 and #29-30, the first JLA/JSA crossover and the second one, which introduced Earth-Three and the Crime Syndicate
— Best of Aparo Brave and the Bold
— JLA #195-97, Conway and Perez’s JLA and JSA vs the Secret Society of Super-Villains.
— Byrne’s Man of Steel (though, again, might have to be two volumes)
— Detective Comics #526. Batman’s 500th appearance in Detective, it features Jason Todd in costume for the first time (that groovy version he should have kept using, not the regular Robin costume) and virtually every Bat-villain. By Gerry Conway and Don Newton.
— Best of Adams’ Deadman
— New Teen Titans: Judas Contract (or the original Trigon saga)
— Simonson’s Manhunter
February 2, 2025
Thank you for doing correct calculations, Detective 526 was Batman’s 500th appearance in Detective Comics not #527 as the mathematically mistaken DC promotional department printed
January 30, 2025
Somebody was asking on a different article if there’s a list of ALL the facsimile editions. Here you go. (These are the recent year releases and doesn’t include Dollar Comics or Millennium Editions back in 2000 or whatever else.)
Action Comics #1
All-American Comics #16
All-Star Comics #3
Adventure Comics #260
Batman #1
Batman #5
Batman #181
Batman #232
Batman #237
Batman #251
Batman #357
Batman #404
Batman #405
Batman #406
Batman #407
Batman #608
Batman #609
Batman #610
Batman #611
Batman #612
Batman #613
Batman #614
Batman #615
Batman #616
Batman #617
Batman #618
Batman #619
Batman Adventures #12
Batman: The Long Halloween #1
Batman Vengeance of Bane #1
Batman Beyond #1
Brave & The Bold #28
Brave & The Bold #29
Brave & The Bold #30
Brave & The Bold #54
Brave & The Bold #60
Crisis on Infinite Earths #1
Crisis on Infinite Earths #2
Crisis on Infinite Earths #3
Crisis on Infinite Earths #4
Crisis on Infinite Earths #5
Crisis on Infinite Earths #6
Crisis on Infinite Earths #7
Crisis on Infinite Earths #8
Crisis on Infinite Earths #9
Crisis on Infinite Earths #10
Crisis on Infinite Earths #11
Crisis on Infinite Earths #12
DC Comics Presents #26 Facsimile Edition
DC Super Stars #17
Detective Comics #27
Detective Comics #31
Detective Comics #38
Detective Comics #58
Detective Comics #140
Detective Comics #359
Detective Comics #400
Detective Comics #411
Detective Comics #475
Doom Patrol #99
Flash Comics #1 Facsimile Edition
Flash #105
Flash #123
Gotham by Gaslight
Green Lantern #1
Green Lantern #59 Facsimile Edition
Green Lantern #85
Green Lantern #87
Hawkman #4
House of Secrets #92
Justice League of America #1
Limited Collector’s Edition C-37: Batman Special All-Villain Issue
Limited Collector’s Edition C-48: Superman vs. Flash
Limited Collector’s Edition C-51: Batman vs. Ra’s Al Ghul
Limited Collector’s Edition C-54: Superman vs. Wonder Woman
All-New Collectors Edition C-56: Superman vs. Muhammad Ali
Limited Collector’s Edition C-59: Batman’s Strangest Cases
Mad Magazine #1
Marvel Family #1
Military Comics #1
More Fun Comics #73
My Greatest Adventure #80
Mystery in Space #75
New Teen Titans #1
Omega Men #3
Our Army at War #81
Saga of the Swamp Thing #37
Sandman #1
Sandman #8
Showcase #22
Superman #1
Superman #233
Tales of the Teen Titans #44
Untold Legend of the Batman
Whiz Comics #2
Wonder Woman #1 (1942)
Wonder Woman #204
Wonder Woman #1 (1987)
Young Romance #125
January 30, 2025
I’m not sure if the War of the Gods #1-4 reprints from last year count. Their formatting felt a little different. Somebody correct me if I’m wrong.
January 30, 2025
Adam, this is a great list! Did you compile it?
January 30, 2025
Oh, yeah. I have a nerdy inventory of all my facsimile books. Maybe next time I’ll post my Marvel list.
January 31, 2025
Please do!
January 31, 2025
Dan,
Here you go. (This includes the FF and X-Men issues expected for the rest of this year.)
All-New Marvel Now Point One #1
Alpha Flight #1
Amazing Fantasy #15
Amazing Spider-Man #1
Amazing Spider-Man #101
Amazing Spider-Man #121
Amazing Spider-Man #122
Amazing Spider-Man #129
Amazing Spider-Man #238
Amazing Spider-Man #252-263
Amazing Spider-Man #347
Amazing Spider-Man Annual #1
Avengers #8
Avengers #9
Avengers #57
Avengers Annual #10
Black Knight #1
Captain America #117
Captain America #354
Conan the Barbarian #1
Daredevil #1
Daredevil #181
Daredevil #183
Dazzler #1
Deadpool #1
Deadpool Kills the Marvel Universe #1
Defenders #1
Edge of Spider-Verse #2
Eternals #1
Fantastic Four #1-12
Fantastic Four #52
Fantastic Four Annual #6
Giant-Size Defenders #3
Giant-Size Super-Stars #1
Godzilla #1
Howard the Duck #1
Incredible Hulk #1
Incredible Hulk #180-182
Incredible Hulk #347
Iron Man #1
Marvel Fanfare #10
Marvel Fanfare #15
Marvel Presents #3
Marvel Super Heroes Secret Wars #1-12
Micronauts #1
Moon Knight #1
New Mutants #98
ROM #1
Savage She-Hulk #1
Silver Surfer #14
Spectacular Spider-Man #1
Son of Satan Marvel Spotlight #12
Spider-Man #1
Spider-Woman #1
Star Wars #1
Star Wars #50
Strange Tales #178
Tales of Suspense #39
Tales of Suspense #57
Thor #229
Tomb of Dracula #1
Tomb of Dracula #10
Ultimate Comics Fallout #1
Ultimate Comics Spider-Man #1
Venom #3
Web of Spider-Man #32 Facsimile Edition
Werewolf by Night #32
Werewolf by Night #33
Wolverine #1
Wolverine #88
X-23 #1
X-Factor #87
X-Men #1
X-Men #4
Giant-Size X-Men #1
X-Men #101
X-Men #129-141
Uncanny X-Men #142
Uncanny X-Men #244
Uncanny X-Men #266
Uncanny X-Men #268
Uncanny X-Men #274
X-Men (1991) #1
February 1, 2025
Wow! Thanks!
January 30, 2025
I would love to see X-Men/Teen Titans done in Treasury format! As an added suggestion, how about Batman #400? The blockbuster-ness of it just screams to be a larger size.
January 30, 2025
Rob,
I enjoyed the article.
Dan,
Thanks for checking with your LCS and confirming that Untold Legend of the Batman is, indeed, a treasury.
Treasuries I would like to see:
Englehart and Roger’s Batman
Wein & Wrightson Swamp Thing
Wein & Aparo Phantom Stranger
The DC Horror/Mystery books, spotlighting specific artists : Adams, Aparo, Redondo, etc.
Superman 296-299, the Mr. Xavier story. I think it was only reprinted one time, and that was in 1982
Another volume of the Batman’s Villains treasury, as well as similar editions for Superman and the Flash. Maybe ever treasuries spotlighting specific villains
More Secret Origins Super Villains (I remember DC left out the “of”)
New Teen Titans : Judas Contract
A Flash treasury from Infantino’s run in the Silver Age
Something with Jim Aparo’s early Batman work, maybe Bat-Murderer or assorted Brave & The Bolds
The first four issues of DC Comics Presents by Jose Luis Garcia Lopez
The Batman, Superman, Flash and Wonder Woman Super Spectaculars from DC Special Series
Pretty much anything Batman from the early to mid 70s…or Wein and Novick’s excellent run.
Batman’s Strangest Cases 2 Treasury, spotlighting some of the tales mentioned in the text piece of the first volume.
I know there isn’t a chance in **** of it happening, but I would love to see Nestor Redondo’s Rima the Jungle Girl at treasury size.
So, So, many others, but those are a start.
If I may, a couple of Marvels:
Jim Steranko’s Captain America
The Master Planner Trilogy from Amazing Spider-Man 31-33. How awesome would it be to see Ditko’s splash page of Spider-Man chunking the machinery at treasury size?
January 30, 2025
DC Special #28 “The Untold Origin of the Justice Society” or Adventure Comics #461-462/DC Super Stars #17/Brave and the Bold #197 “The Death of Batman”/”From Each Ending a Beginning”/” The Autobiography of Bruce Wayne”
January 30, 2025
I would personally love a treasury that compiles DC Super Stars #17 (Huntress story), Adventure Comics #461-462 (JSA story), and The Brave and the Bold #197 into one edition.
January 30, 2025
The 80s ”artist jams”—JLA 200, Superman 400, Batman 400, WF 300, Legion 300, WW 300 or some of the oversized Anniversaries BB 200, Flash 300, Detective 527, 572 and DC specials Secret Origin of JSA, Earth Shaking Disasters etc are all great choices.
Would love a Sgt Rock and Jonah Hex Treasury too.
January 31, 2025
I’d personally I’d like to suggest Jonah Hex spectacular. One of the character’s greatest stories
January 31, 2025
Love the idea of Action Comics #252 but Action Comics #285, the reveal of Supergirl to the world, is a full-length SG story and a huge deal in her history so I’ll add that.
I would love to see the all the Bronze Age Black Orchid story (the Adventure stories and the Phantom Stranger backups) or all of Chaykin’s Ironwolf stories in Treasury format!
January 31, 2025
What about Goodwin/Simonson’s Manhunter stories? Too many pages?
January 31, 2025
Great suggestions for future treasury editions! I’d add a request for a little holiday cheer next Christmas with one or two Rudolph facsimile editions for the kid in all of us!
February 2, 2025
I would love to see some of the King’s creations in treasury/tabloid/ size esp some of Kamandi, OMAC, Mister Miracle, New Gods, and more. Jack Kirby’s full stories deserve to be viewed in a larger format. I’d also be remiss if I did not suggest some of Sergio Aragones’ work. There are hundreds of jokes in the background of almost every page. It would be wonderful not to need a magnifying glass to see them.