Buy This! - November 2nd 2011

Every Monday Seth picks out three items from Previews that are due to ship on Wednesday and directs you toward your best bets for a quality purchase. Some times it's a single issue of a comic, other times a massive omnibus edition of a beloved series, and occasionally a figure our shiny bauble that caught his eye. Read on to find the three items you shouldn't leave your comic shop without this week.




Batman: Noel deluxe hardcover

If you've been reading any of the new 52 then you've probably seen the preview pages for this title in the back of DC comics for the last month. It's gorgeously illustrated by Lee Bermejo who previously tackled characters like Lex Luthor and the Joker in Brian Azzarello-penned mini series'. This time he's handling the writing chores as well, and while DC has a lousy track record with writer/artists lately, (Dark Knight anyone?) the early reviews for this as well as the 6 page preview indicate that this book might be as well written as it is gorgeously illustrated.

You can pick up the hardcover now or wait a few months and get the trade paperback. Since the hardcover is deluxe sized and the trade likely will not be I'd suggest ponying up for the former if only to see Bermejo's art in the largest format possible.




Joe the Barbarian hardcover

Written by Grant Morrison and drawn by Sean Murphy this was a title I've been aching to own in hardcover edition. I only read the first issue of this miniseries but that was enough to pique my interest in adding it to my library-like hardcover collection. The art by Murphy is packed with detail and the story by Morrison (concerning a young boy fighting a war with the aid of his toys in a fever-dream fantasy world) is typically fascinating stuff.

I've been waiting for this book for well over a year and can't wait to get my hands on it.

Uncanny X-Men #1: Regenesis

Kieron Gillen is an excellent writer and while I haven't followed the X-Men franchise as closely as I was a year ago I'm really interested in the current goings on of the series. The team has split into two factions, one lead by Wolverine, the other Cyclops. Both this title and the Wolverine and the X-Men one have fantastic creative teams. This one features Carlos Pacheco on art. Pacheco is one of my personal favorites and though I haven't been blown away by any of his Marvel work, I'll still read anything he draws.

Will I buy this in single issues? Long term, probably not. I'm a wait-for-the-trade guy with Marvel for the most part. I'll definitely be picking up the first few issues of this though. Not only is it written by Gillen and drawn by Pacheco but it features the return of Mr Sinister. My favorite X-Men villain!