D-Rog is a regular on the forum and in the comments on the main site. Please welcome him as he puts up his first full-fledged CHU article.

Poyo usually puts out an FOC list, but it usually comes out Sunday night, or Monday. I don’t know about you, but my LCS closes Sunday evening, and is not open Mondays. And several times I have commented on Poyo’s FOC list on his threads adding what I feel he missed and he’s gets all “If you don’t like it, why don’t you just do your own?!” And I’m like “Maybe I will!” And he’s like “Good!” .

Now, I’m not saying I can do better (yet). But what I can do is offer another perspective. So what is that perspective?

Ok, first what I want talk about:

• Open order books. No Ratio Variants, unless there’s a sure fire hit (And likely limit it to 1). The vast majority will fall to a fraction of ratio soon enough if you wait the. Let’s not waste our time/money otherwise.
• Books that might be difficult to find upon release, whether they are flying under the radar and could heat up after FOC, or your shop doesn’t stock variants/later printings. Basically books you may want to not wait on and hope to grab off the shelf.
• Mainly talk about the big 2. I’ll sprinkle an Indy book here or there. But I’m not that into Indy’s so best to stick to what I know best. Reader feel free to add in follow up posts if there are Indy’s I may have missed.

Alright, now that we’re grounded a bit, let’s kick this off.

 

Judge These Books by Their Cover (Art):

Batman the Adventures Continue Season Three #6 – Cover C (Guillem March Variant): Who doesn’t like a good Joker Fish cover?

 

Superman #5 Cover G (Lee Bermejo Variant): I can take or leave Bermejo. None of his Sups covers have caught my eye, until this one.

 

Danny Ketch Ghost Rider #2 (Cover A): I have not read the first issue yet. I’m waiting to see if a better 2nd print comes out. But this looks to be the first cover of the Broker (a character there is some buzz about). So I’ll eventually grab issue 1, but must have this cover of issue 2.

 

Something Epic #2: I have not picked up issue 1, but the homages have caught my eye. I don’t expect these to catch fire, but they may interest those who love 80s nostalgia.

• Cover B (Back to the Future Homage)
• Cover C (GI Joe Action Figure Homage)

 

Star Wars Bounty Hunters #35: Severals nice covers for this issue, but I’m going to highlight the two I find stick out from the rest:

• Alex Maleev Variant: sure there are a lot of Boba Fett covers out here, but this is pretty sweet.
• Inhyuk Lee Durge Variant: For those Durge fans out there.

 

What CHU Spec’n At?

A Titan is murdered! Will the new era for the Titans end almost as soon as it’s begun? After one of their own is found dead, the remaining Titans must look for answers before more blood spills. Can they outrun the horrible fate they’ve been dealt? Plus, a new Brother Blood rises as the team begins to fall apart!

• Titans #2 Cover B – (Jen Bartel Variant)
• Titans #2 Cover C (Clay Mann Variant)

Not a book I’m picking up, but a death and first appearance could create some hype for a book that’s likely not heavily ordered. I like the Bartel cover too. There is a cover C whose art has not yet been revealed that I can tell. So maybe keep an eye out for when that gets released.

 

Wonder WomanWonder Woman #800 – Cover K (Daniel Sampere Trinity Variant)

Daniel Sampere announced on Twitter the creation of a new daughter for Wonder Woman. By his description it’s a short story taking place in the future (so no baby spec here, presumably). We know her name is Trinity. We don’t know yet is who the Father is. But given Trinity is also what the trio of Batman, Superman and Wonder Woman is referred to….well, it could get weird.

Either way, she’s on the cover of Cover K. And if you’re going to spec on a first, then go for first appearance with cover.

There’s also a cool “swimsuit” cover variant which actually has some variations of Wonder Woman though the years at the beach with surfboards, tastefully done. Something to consider for those collecting cool WW covers.

Wonder Woman #800 -Cover G (Swimsuit Variant)

 

Venom 21 – Cover A

An excerpt of the synopsis is below. Can this scream “first appearance plus first cover” any louder?

Eddie’s always been his own most brutal critic, though, and this titanic beatdown will be no exception – and something NEW will be waiting on the other side! (Hint: it’s that GIANT RED DUDE WITH FOUR ARMS RIGHT ABOVE THIS TEXT!)

 

Did You Happen to Notice…?

Nightwing #105 – Cover A

This one just sounds interesting and maybe at least worth flipping through. The solicitation promises fans to be Nightwing for a day in an oversized story which features Nightwing from his point of view, allowing readers to use his escrima sticks and leap through BludHaven. “There’ll be other surprises along the way, including who’ll show up beside you!”

There are a few covers, but I think A is cool.

 

Incentive Variant of The Week

Miles Morales Spider-Man #7 – Cover D (1:10 Vincentini Design Variant)

Cletus got an upgrade – why can’t Miles?!

And if Peter gets an Iron Spider suit, so will Miles! It’s pretty much inevitable.

Rarely should you spec on someone clothes changing, but this is Miles/Spider-Man. And this suit does have a following in the Peter-Verse, so it might just resonate with some fans. And it’s only a 1:10 incentive, so it doesn’t break the bank. if you can find it for ratio (I’m still looking, thus not link where to order), it’s likely worth a pick-up/gamble. Or just buy it because you like it!

And if you don’t want to pay above cover, then there’s Option B, The Taurin Clarke Connecting Variant.

 

FOC Pick of the Week (Gotta Have It)

Edge Of Spider-Verse #3 – Cover B (Humberto Ramos Variant)

You knew this was coming. But this isn’t a book you’re going to make some quick money. It’s an origin story, and when is the last time an origin story separate from a first appearance has taken off? But it’s a great cover that is Slab Worthy. Maybe there’s some spec value if you can find copies that will fetch 9.8’s, but otherwise grab one or two just on the off chance it gets some FOMO love.

Honorable mention goes out to the Casanovas Connecting Variant if you’re a completist and want all Spider-Boy “keys” with cover appearances.

 

FOC Drek of the Week (Don’t FOMO It)

All incentive ratios for Edge of Spider-Verse #3

At least don’t be paying at or above ratio. If you’re paying at/above ratio because you think you’re going to make money…well, I think I’d rather take my chances at casino. It’s possible there may be some initial FOMO, but long term I don’t see it. These books will not be in short supply, even the 1:200 can likely be had below ratio if you wait it out. Buy it for the PC if that’s your thing, but otherwise proceed with caution here.

I have spoken.

 

Anything Else Worth Mentioning?

There’s a facsimile edition (2nd Printing, to be exact) of Incredible Hulk 181 that’s getting a foil. I believe FOC is next week, but apparently shops may not be aware that the distributor is charging them full cover price ($3.99) and not a discount. So look for deals out there, but just be careful if you’re bundling this with this weeks’ orders as it doesn’t hit the shelf until July 12th. I’m sure we’ll be talking about this book more in the coming week as shops figure this out and try to back peddle orders or swindle people with various prices above cover.

Hope you enjoyed this article. It was fun putting together and I hope to keep this up each week.

Now I need to go back through my list and figure out which books I’m picking up before FOC closes!