BOOM! Studios – Secret Society Comics

Spec Deck: November 2019

Welcome to the first installment of Secret Society Comics’ Spec Deck! My name is Frank, and I will be your local resident comic book speculator. I’ve been collecting for 25 years and seen quite a few ups and downs in the secondary market. I love the story more than anything, but who doesn’t also like to know something they own holds value?

So with that in mind, take a gander at the official first five selections of Spec Deck.

Breathers #1

I really like simple but effective art, like what I am seeing here. I always feel like books with this style are bound to become cult classics.

I really dislike almost all comics that claim to take place in a dystopian world though. We get it, pretty much all possibilities at this point are bleak!

What gives this title a bit of an edge, though, is the extremely unique character dynamics that seem to be in play. Reading this description you truly get a feel for what you are about to be dropped in to.

I have a really good feeling about this comic. It will sell out and it will command between $20-$30 on the secondary market.

Folklords #1

Full disclosure, I went all in on Once & Future and Something is Killing the Children. (Like almost unhealthy amounts of effort were put in to getting every single last printing of the first issues.)

So you may be surprised to hear that I don’t see Folklords being the same kind of surprise hit as ‘Once’ and ‘Children’ were. Main reason being that we are all prepared for it this time.

BOOM! Studios: your local comic shop and every collector out there knows what just happened with ‘Once’ and ‘Children’ and no one wants to be caught with their pants down again.

I will be picking this book up for sure; it sounds like a fun read. But don’t look for it to spike in price at all any time soon. Additionally, even if it were to be optioned some day, there are going to be a lot of speculators picking it up to re-sell. If there ever is option news, the market will be saturated.

This will be an easy book to obtain for years to come.

Crone #1

This book is the hardest for me to gauge. I want to say it could be a breakout hit, but at the same time… that is how I felt about Unearth and Sea of Stars at one point.

Some books just look too good to be true. Almost designed to stimulate certain aspects of the brain at first glance. This one feels like a book that is going to be overordered.

I also don’t love any catchline that is “equal parts this and that.” I think this is a solid pass for me and honestly it looks like future dollar bin fodder.

I cannot stress enough though: if you think the story sounds cool, BUY IT! That is what comics are for. Speculating is just a fun side note.

Crow Hark the Herald #1

I love Tim Seeley, I love Hack/Slash, I LOVE The Crow and loved Crow Hack/Slash.

This book will not sell out and it will not go for any more than cover price any time soon. However, I cannot imagine a future world where The Crow isn’t resurrected as a successful franchise. There will be a day when The Crow merch, collectibles, and comics are a commodity.

I’m getting this book because I literally love everything about it. I don’t expect for it to ever be worth a fortune, but I do expect for it to hold its value or increase slightly in value over time, which is much more than most comics can say.

Rising Sun #1

Last but certainly not least is what could easily be the leader of the pack. You always have to watch out for slick Japanese inspired art, it sells copies without a doubt.

The description is short and sweet. I’m left wanting to know more. Sometimes you want to read an entire review of a comic or movie before jumping in to it. However with something like a kung fu flick or a horror movie, you just want the very basic plot without anyone else’s interpretation of it.

“Many monsters who are ravaging the country!”

You don’t need to over explain something like that, I am sold and I think alot of other people will be as well. This is a book to watch out for, I can definitely see it selling out and going for anywhere between $6-$12 on the secondary market.

Obviously long term potential is all about staying power.

Review: Something is Killing the Children #1

Nine kids have died, and dozens are missing in Archer’s Peak, Wisconsin. With Something is Killing the Children #1, BOOM! Studios brings us the best horror comic I’ve read all year. In every page, the paranoia is palpable, and each character feels a sense of isolation and doubt.

James, the protagonist, finally made the kind of friends you’d have sleepovers with. On the night of one of those sleepovers, they all die in the woods — moments after he tells them a true (?) story about a monster that resembles the thing that killed them. When James describes the events of that night to the police, he reveals that the story he told his friends during Truth or Dare was made up.

He’s also lying to the cops, and says that he didn’t see anything that night. That he only heard the massacre. Writer James Tynion IV has given us an unreliable narrator to convey this horrific story, and I’m skeptical of everything he says — even though I empathize with him.

Part of the reason I have a complex relationship with this protagonist is because of Werther Dell’Edera’s humanizing art, and Miquel Muerto’s consistently immersive colors. The story is interspersed with extreme closeups that convey anguish, confusion, and sorrow. Distinct hatching adds weight to these facial expressions, and creates shadows that support the mood and atmosphere.

Together, these two artists have created a unique interior style that is unlike anything I’ve gazed upon in recent memory. Particularly, they use two consecutive double-page spreads to show every gory detail of what really happened that night in the woods. (I’ll save that experience for when you pick up the book, but here’s a similar spread below.)

Supporting the gestural brushstrokes and muted watercolors of blue, green, purple, and yellow are Andworld Design’s letters. In a scene where one of James’ classmates accuses him of murdering his friends because he’s gay and was experiencing unrequited love, James says “Shut up” in gray letters that are slightly smaller than the others on the page. Further down that page, he screams in frustration, “SHUT THE FUCK UP!” Without this contrast, that raw moment of would have lost its effect.

There was only one flaw I noticed in the whole pilot to this gripping series. Earlier in the book, we learn that James’ three dead friends are named Karl, Robbie, and Noah. At the end of the book, when we see the flashback of the massacre, James calls Robbie Tyler. I reread the issue three times to sort this, and still have no answers. I’m assuming it’s a mistake, but will confirm it as I continue to invest myself in this horror tale.

This isn’t just a horror story, though. It’s an analog for how school shootings have damaged our national conscience, how the news ineffectually covers the epidemic, and how police are ill-equipped to combat the problem.

Throughout the debut issue, Tynion’s dialogue resonates with a nation grappling with the reality that children are killing each other, with more and more frequency, more audacity. Here’s a quote from the comic that sums it up: “…the world makes a lot less sense than it used to. And every day that feeling gets a little worse.”

6 Comics to Pick up this Week (08/14/19)

POWERS OF X #2 (of 6)

Marvel Comics
(Wr) Jonathan Hickman (A/CA) R. B. Silva

While I left POWERS OF X #1 slightly perplexed, I feel committed to this series and am confident in Hickman’s storytelling.

I know I’ve said it before, but coming into this series being a neutral observer of previous X-Men stories, this one managed to hook me in and is holding tight. That being said, these comics are FILLED with information and can feel very dense while reading, but part of the challenge that came with reading these comics is what has made me even MORE invested into the story.

(Reece’s overview in “Everything You Need to know about House of X” definitely helped me understand the foundation of the story.)

GWENPOOL STRIKES BACK #1 (of 5)

Marvel Comics
(Wr) Leah Williams (A) David Baldeon (CA) Terry Dodson

Gwenpool is BACK IN ACTION! This fantastically funny, fourth-wall-breaking female wants to secure herself a permanent role in the Marvel Universe and attempts this by kidnapping none other than our favorite web-slinger! (?)

This issue seems like a light, fun comic that might be a good palate cleanser after the heaviness of Powers of X #2.

WHITE TREES #1 (OF 2) (MR)

Image Comics
(Wr) Chip Zdarsky (A/CA) Kris Anka

This two-part mini series of high fantasy is about a group of three “unbending” warriors coming together for one last adventure after 20 years apart.

Zdarsky promises to highlight character dynamics and depth. Anka’s cover and interior artwork is reminiscent of Fiona Staple’s work in SAGA, and the cover of the first issue is pulling me in.

This comic is going to be very close to the top of my comics to read this week.

ONCE & FUTURE #1 (of 6)

BOOM! STUDIOS
(Wr) Kieron Gillen (A/CA) Dan Mora

Indiana Jones meets Helsing meets Merlin? That is what I’m getting out of the synopsis of this first issue: a group of Nationalists use an ancient artifact to bring a villain back from Arthurian myth. Ex-monster hunter, Bridgette McGuire, recruits her unsuspecting grandson (a museum curator) to help her defeat this mystical threat.

This sounds like a magical roller-coaster that I am VERY excited to read!

DETECTIVE COMICS #1009 YOTV DARK GIFTS

DC Comics
(Wr) Peter J. Tomasi (A) Christian Duce (CA) Doug Mahnke

“Take Your Shot” begins! Have you been looking to dive into a DC title, but are intimidated by all of the high issue numbers? This week we have NOT ONE, but TWO new story arcs starting in DC (Check out Flash #76 below in our weekly picks list!)

Deadshot, aka Flloyd Lawton, has come back to Gotham after a long stint with the Suicide Squad, but without Amanda Waller to monitor the newly returned sharpshooter, Batman fears that Floyd will go back to his old ways…Add Mr. Freeze into the mix, and we have one heck of an action-packed comic!

FLASH #76 YOTV DARK GIFTS

DC Comics
(Wr) Joshua Williamson (A) Rafa Sandoval, Jordi Tarragona (CA) Howard Porter & Various

New DC Story Arc Alert! “Death of the Speed Force” begins!

Flash is back with a new mission, a new outlook, and a brand-new speedster HQ — sounds like an amazing and uplifting fresh start for our favorite speeders! Sound too good to be true? Well, the Fastest Man Alive is slowing down-and there’s only one explanation: the Speed Force is dying.