Essentials.....what am I missing?

rychehitman · 05-27-2005, 11:12 PM

I have a question for all of the Essential readers out there. Whats the appeal? Black and White Reprints? I dont get it. I have tried to warm up to the idea, even thumbed through the new Essential Thor Volume II, but couldnt bring myself to buy it.

What am I missing, what do you suggest? If I decide to jump in and buy a few, wheres the best place to buy? I would be mostly interested in the Thor and Avengers, but I just cant bring myself to get them.

marvelboi77 · 05-28-2005, 12:01 AM

I have one Avengers and all of the X-Men ones starting with the new team. I can't get into the old old comics. The X-Men ones to me are pretty good because I can get over 500 pages for $15. In December the Spider-Woman is coming out with Marvel Spotlight 32, Marvel Two in One 30-33, and Spider-Woman 1-15. See this will be great so I never have to pull out my old comics again I can read them whenever. Yeah the black in white can take some time to get used to, but if it was colored it would be 4 times the price.

Babytoxie · 05-28-2005, 12:55 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rychehitman

I have a question for all of the Essential readers out there. Whats the appeal? Black and White Reprints? I dont get it. I have tried to warm up to the idea, even thumbed through the new Essential Thor Volume II, but couldnt bring myself to buy it.

Yeah, I know they aren't for everyone, but man, I love 'em. I've been reading comics since the early early '70s, and over time, so many of my comics were lost, trashed, stolen, sold, or left to other numerous fates. To be able to get 25 issues for $16... that's just a steal. Sure, they're in black and white, but when I can experience the birth of the Marvel Universe so cheaply, lack of color is no hassle for me. I find that the black and white really emphasizes the artwork, and seeing Wally Wood's or Gene Colan's art in B&W is heaven for me. Plus, I already know what color Thor's cape is.

Quote:

Originally Posted by rychehitman

What am I missing, what do you suggest? If I decide to jump in and buy a few, wheres the best place to buy? I would be mostly interested in the Thor and Avengers, but I just cant bring myself to get them.

I'd say Amazon, where they go for just over $10 apiece.

Captain Late · 05-28-2005, 01:12 PM

BT is right on with Amazon, if you can get the free shipping it's a great deal. I would check ou the 'bay too, sometimes I search for trades I want cheap over there and get lucky especially if I'm not sure I'll dig it...
I dig the Essentials myself and don't mind the B & W, they're best when the obscure stuff comes out (Tomb of D, Iron Fist, etc...) Some of the older stories are a tough read tho'...

grendelscott · 05-28-2005, 01:21 PM

I looked at one of the Dracula ones, and it actually looks better to me in the black and white...

Teague · 06-01-2005, 11:57 PM

I dunno...I used to have them all, but recently sold them. I just didn't read them. I guess I'd rather have an incomplete (but growing!) collection of the originals than to have black and white repros. I found the black and white tough to read too, just visually speaking.

Some love them, though. More power to 'em! My biggest hope for the Essentials is that they bring new readers into the fold by introducing them to the great works of the past. Still, if I was really trying to sell someone on the Marvel classics? Masterworks is still the way to go.