The first week of December has come to a close and I know you’ve thinking about your holiday gift lists and holiday gift guides.
Personally, I started working on mine back in January of this year. As the weeks and months progressed, I compiled a list of what was being published, and of those publications, what I’d like to read. As in previous years, I attributed those same suggestions – in groups of least expensive to moderately expensive to very expensive – as gifts to family and friends during the upcoming holiday season.
It’s a great, and every-growing list of comic book collections.
As part one of three columns over the next few weeks, here are some of the less expensive 2018 comic books and graphic novels that you could pick up as gifts for your pop culture pals. Or even yourself!
The Monstrous Collection of Steve Niles and Bernie Wrightson
Legendary artist, Bernie Wrightson, will be a mainstay in these lists this year. And well he should be. I can’t think of a greater master of the visual comic book macabre than Wrightson, and his passing in March of last year was an incredibly sorrowful moment for the entire industry.
If you know that man’s work, you know what I’m talking about. If you don’t, what a treat it’ll be for you to discover his art!
Published by IDW, The Monstrous Collection of Steve Niles and Bernie Wrightson is a 200-page trade paperback collection of some of the master’s greatest, most horrifying work! Here, you’ll find complete collections of the stories Dead She Said, The Ghouland Doc Macabre that Wrightson created alongside horror writer Steve Niles.
This book is a great gift for any fan of the horror genre or lover of gothic, dark, art and you can find it at better book or comic book stores or on Amazon for under $18!
Gideon Falls Vol. 1: The Black Barn
Reading Gideon Falls on a monthly basis has been an absolute (freaky) delight! The comic book made a few of our “must read” lists this year, including The Wednesday Run column on March 7 and the Heroes & Villains column on October 17 of this year. No small praise!
Written and illustrated by the acclaimed team of Jeff Lemire and Andrea Sorrentino, the story of Gideon Falls centers on two seemingly disparate characters: a damaged small town Priest and a psychologically unstable urban drifter. Both are looking for answers to the mysteries in their lives, and both are drawn to the same furtive and dark place: the ethereal and legendary Black Barn.
If you or a friend is a fan of horror, mystery, and television shows like Twin Peaks, Gideon Falls is what you should be reading! This first paperback volume collects the first six issues of the series and it’ll keep you on the edge of both your nerves and your seat throughout the entire read.
You can find Gideon Falls Vol. 1: The Black Barnat your local comic book shop, bookstore or on Amazon for around $10.
I’ve Got Something to Say
This book might not fit into your normal “comic book” gift guide list (although there is indie art and a short comic book contained inside), but it will scratch the itch of any indie comic book fan or rock music, pop music, or pop culture lover in your life.
Written by musician, writer, podcaster, and spinner of discs, Danko Jones, I’ve Got Something to Say is a 176-page is a collection of the man’s thoughts and musings on music, the industry, touring and good ‘ol rock and roll. With a bit of a punk edge, naturally.
Published by Feral House and released this past summer, I’ve Got Something To Say includes an introduction by Guns ‘N Roses bass guitar main man, Duff McKagan – a fitting prelude to everything that comes after in this book.
You can find the book at better book stores that tend to carry music biographies and music magazines. Or you can grab it on Amazon for under $18.
Rock on!
The Wild Storm Vol. 2
Writer Warren Ellis and artist Jon Davis-Hunt have been crafting a can’t miss tale of espionage, aliens, super powers, evil and heroics on a monthly basis in their reboot of the Wildstorm universe. This particular version, a very twenty-first reimagining of characters and events from the original Wildstorm titles before DC Comics bought them up over a decade ago, looks primed for an eventual screen adaptation. It’s full of all the best things that comic books – and stories – can offer and you should be reading it!
The first volume of this series, collecting the fist six issues of the monthly title came out late last year. This new collection, The Wild Storm Vol. 2, collects the second arc of the series, which was always planned to be a twenty-four issue long title. That mean this new paperback collection will get you to the halfway point of the story.
And boy, does that story really open up here! If there’s someone in your life who loves action, science fiction, super heroes and global – nay – universal conspiracies, this is the book for them!
You can find The Wild Storm Vol. 2 at better comic book stores or book shops, or you can pick it up on Amazon for close to $12.
Anthony Bourdain’s Hungry Ghosts
Biff Bam Pop! wrote about Anthony Bourdain’s Hungry Ghosts mini series on its weekly Wednesday Run column, which you can catch right here. This is the hardcover collection of that series, available to lovers of story, ghost tales, and foodies everywhere!
Written by the now sadly deceased punk rock chef, Bourdain, and Joel Rose, the collection is made up of a number of stories, each illustrated by a different artist. The premise is simple: at the dare of a Russian Oligarch, chefs recount stories of terror , demons and unspeakable beings.
The hardcover also boasts all-new and original recipes prepared by Bourdain – and a guide to the ghostly legendary spirits behind the stories.
You’re going to love this book – as will the loved one you gift it to. At a reasonable price of under $10 for a 128-page beautiful hardcover collection, you can’t go wrong! You’ll be able to find Anthony Bourdain’s Hungry Ghosts at better comic book shops and book stores (and maybe even cooking utensil stores) as well as at Amazon, of course!
Check back with Biff Bam Pop! later this week for part two of our Holiday Gift Guide to comic book collections!
