Scott and Dan pick the comics they’re most looking forward to…
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Dan Greenfield, editor, 13th Dimension
Batman & Robin: Year One #12, DC. I stumped for this series for years and now it’s coming to an end. I would love a follow-up by Mark Waid and Chris Samnee where the Dynamic Duo have been working together for a few years, then one where Robin’s college age. A Golden/Silver/Bronze Age trilogy, if you will. Why not be greedy sometimes? Oh, and check out a SNEAK PEEK of this issue — featuring a bona fide BAT-CLIMB!
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Batman: The Long Halloween — The Last Halloween #10, DC. Another maxiseries finale. I have to admit I forget what happens in every issue about five minutes after I finish it. Not that I’ve disliked it, mind you. It’s just that the story hasn’t stuck. The rotation of artists paying tribute to Tim Sale has been cool, however. (This ish is Matteo Scalera.)
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Betty and Veronica #40 Facsimile Edition, Archie. Released in late ’58, it features a famous Harry Lucey cheesecake cover, but it also has at least a couple Christmas stories.
Plus, you also get two Dan DeCarlo retro pinup variant covers to choose from. (I’m not choosing, actually: I’m getting both.) Neither are from B&V #40, not that it matters.
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Godzilla vs. America: Kansas City One-Shot, IDW. My wife is from Kansas City. I think I’ll surprise her by picking this up for her.
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Scott Tipton, contributor-at-large, 13th Dimension
House of Mystery: The Bronze Age Omnibus Vol. 1, DC. Celebrate the spooky season with this mammoth collection of DC horror tales from the 1960s and ’70s! Featuring work by a legendary lineup of creatives: Len Wein, Alex Toth, Gerry Conway, Bernie Wrightson, Marv Wolfman, Jack Kirby, Gil Kane, Neal Adams, Wally Wood, Al Williamson, Sergio Aragonés, and many more! (New printing.)
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Jonah Hex: All-Star Western Omnibus, DC. Jimmy Palmiotti and Justin Gray’s run on Jonah Hex a few years back was solidly satisfying and well deserving of the deluxe hardcover treatment.
Dan adds: The only Western I’ve ever read with any regularity. Collects the first-rate New 52 run, but the previous series was even better.
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Battleworld #2, Marvel. Looks like a return of my favorite supervillain couple, the Absorbing Man and Titania!
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Marvel Tales by J. Michael Straczynski, Marvel. These wild and wacky JMS-penned team-up tales were some of my favorite comics this year.
October 27, 2025
>> I stumped for this series for years and…
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I’m glad I took that advice. Thoroughly enjoyed the take!
October 27, 2025
Im going to miss Year One! I have the current Batman relaunch and Second Knight to hold me but this series really did hit a certain spot.
October 27, 2025
I’m going to have to reread THE LAST HALLOWEEN in full after the final issue just to see if I can get a comprehensive understanding of the story. So far, like you, I tend to forget what happened immediately after I read it.
The original LONG HALLOWEEN and its first sequel both worked by having a central, singular mystery and also very specifically playing with the month-by-month format. I can’t tell that the current TLH is really doing it–I *think* it’s supposed to be progressing in real time, but it’s not doing a great job of advertising it. And yes, the shifting art every issue isn’t helping. I wish they’d found a singular artist who would have complimented the late Tim Sale’s style instead of ten different artists who each have a unique voice.
My other gripe: I realize we’ve had multiple continuities since I was a kid, but man, I would love it if these multiple early days Batman stories had a consistent continuity. I have no idea if B&R Year One is consistent with the current DC timeline or if it’s more akin to early post-Crisis or what. THE LONG HALLOWEEN and DARK VICTORY had similar problems in that they intentionally spun out of YEAR ONE, but then also rode directly over YEAR THREE, as well as the 1995 Robin Annual and LEGENDS OF THE DARK KNIGHT #100 (and so we had like four versions of Robin’s origin in a decade, some very close together).