Welcome to the April 2020 Previews catalog. If you have been paying any attention to the news, then you are aware that the direct market is currently struggling. Diamond has stopped shipping to stores, and DC is looking to bypass Diamond to get comics out sometime in early May. Sadly, you can expect to see a lot of local comic shops close over the next couple of months. If having a local comic shop is important to you, then one of the first things you should do once your "stay in place" order has dropped, is make a trip to your LCS. You need to drop some money with them (maybe some of that stimulus check you may have received). And I am not talking about dropping money on stuff the shop is clearing out, but rather on some back issues or items that they are selling at full retail. Chances are, your shop really needs the cash flow. OK, enough about that, on with the catalog.
This catalog felt a little light to me, with regards to books worth recommending, so if there is a #comic book you feel I should have recommended, I would love to hear about it in the comments section.
DC
1- DCeased: Dead Planet 1. It feels like DC is having more success with their non-continuity stories than they are with those that are in continuity.
4 – Batman Three Jokers. This was revealed to Batman in the Moebius chair, that there are actually three Jokers. We now get the story. This was originally from the Justice League New 52 run.
48 - The Question: The Deaths of Vic Sage 4, which is the final issue of the series has a terrific variant cover by Andrea Sorrentino.
Marvel
2 – Non-stop Spiderman 1, because we do not have enough Spider-man titles already. Does not say it is a limited series, but it almost certainly is. Might be some new villains introduced here.
5 - Darkhold Alpha 1. So, apparently Steve Orlando has never done work at Marvel before. So, this will be his first-time writing Marvel characters.
6 – Shang-Chi gets a new limited series. This should be an ongoing instead to start building up to the movie.
8 to 26 - Empyre if anyone cares.
38 -39: Some new True Believers books include the first Mr. Sinister, Wild Child, Empath, and Cypher
51 – Infinite Destinies teaser for the next event coming to the Marvel Universe. Looks like it will be an annual crossover like we used to get in the 90s.
57 – Black Widow 3 – White Widow, great, now I have Billy Idol stuck in my head.
85 – Ta-Nehisi Coates’ ends his run on Black Panther. This has been a great series. This also makes me wonder how much longer he will be on Captain America, another series I have been enjoying.
101 – I usually don’t mention the statues, but I am digging the Taskmaster Marvel Comic Gallery PVC Diorama. I just wish it did not have the bullet ricochets, or that they were removable.
Side One
28 – Get your copy of the Previews catalog. Marvel and DC catalogs are free online. More important with Campus Comics going pull only for at least the next couple of months.
32 – In case you missed it, Free Comic Book Day has been postponed
42 – Chu 1 , from the creators of Chew, his sister, who is not as nice as Chew as a slightly different ability, but still based on taste.
58 – FirePower 1 and 2 is solicited from Image with writing by Kirkman and art by Chris Samnee. Despite being a very derivative story (which a lot of Kirkman’s work is), it is really good.
78 – Die 12 - This is one of my favorite books out right now. If you were a Saturday morning DungeonS & Dragons cartoon watcher, then this is a grown up version of the story.
94 – You look Like Death: Tales from the Umbrella Academy. New series for fans.
134 – Snake Eyes Deadgame 1, written and drawn by Liefield. Surprisingly, Snake-Eyes has feet in many of the promo shots.
136 - A facsimile edition of GI Joe 21, the silent issue is being released. If you have never "read" this issue, you should check it out.
304 – I have no special knowledge here, but I think Dynamic Forces may be in trouble. Some shops have stopped ordering because they tend to not deliver their products in a timely manner.
316 – New Overstreet price guide.
362 – Blade Runner 2019 9, the concluding arc of the series, but it is ongoing? So, it looks like this series will end at issue 12, but it does not say that explicitly.
Side Two
109 – Star Wars Outer Rim Board Game – I really enjoy this game. Supports 1 to 4 players. So if you are a fan of the smuggler, gangster, bounty hunter side of the Star wars Universe, you should pick it up.
115 – Pandemic, which has been out for over 10 years, is offered again in the catalog. If you look at the catalog, there are a lot of games from Fantasy Workshop. They may be clearing their warehouses, because there have been some layoffs at the game maker.
Blank Covers
Non-Stop Spiderman 1
Land that time forgot 1
Savage 1
DCeased Dead Planet 1