DC’s Compact Comics Line Is the Smartest Thing It’s Done in Years

DC has released an advertisement for its caller Compact Comics line, a scope of immoderate of the company’s most popular titles, scaled to a portable 5.5″ x 8.5″ and going for conscionable $9.99 each. Have a look:

See, look astatine that? I emotion however the advertisement suggests spending a cozy camping travel speechmaking Batman: Hush by lantern light. Look however overmuch amusive they’re having together, speechmaking and laughing to the communicative of Bruce Wayne’s jealous puerility person becoming a vengeful serial killer. “Relationship goals,” indeed!

But seriously, this is simply a fantastic idea. Just 1 inch taller than the mean manga volume, the caller enactment eschews the unwieldiness of  accepted graphic novels, which are typically printed astir the size of a insubstantial mag you cannot fold. Better still, these tiny books incorporate the entirety of their communicative arcs, alternatively of the multi-volume format of commercialized paperbacks oregon adjacent the mean manga series. Also dissimilar astir manga, each measurement volition stay successful afloat color, but printed connected a insubstantial banal somewhat little glossy than the mean $20+ graphic novel.

At the reduced size, you tin easy transportation each 12 issues of Alan Moore’s Watchmen with you everyplace you go, giving you the quality to notation Rorschach and Dr. Manhattan’s misanthropic monologues successful immoderate societal mounting you please. A time astatine the beach? “I abandoned my disguise and became myself, escaped from fearfulness oregon weakness oregon lust!” Sunday religion with the family? “They assertion their labors are to physique a heaven, yet their eden is populated with horrors!” You’ll beryllium truthful popular.

These are the 4 titles presently available, followed by the line’s upcoming slate:

• Watchmen by Alan Moore, Dave Gibbons
• Batman: The Court of Owls by Scott Snyder, Greg Capullo
• All-Star Superman by Grant Morrison, Frank Quitely
• Far Sector by N.K. Jemisin, Jamal Campbell

Coming soon:

• Wonder Woman: Earth One  by Grant Morrison, Yanick Paquette – August 6
• Batman: Hush by Jeph Loeb, Jim Lee – August 6
• Joker by Brian Azzarello, Lee Bermejo – September 3
• Harley Quinn & the Gotham City Sirens by Paul Dini, Peter Calloway, Tony Bedard, Guillem March, Andres Guinaldo – September 3
• American Vampire Book One by Scott Snyder, Stephen King, Rafael Albuquerque – October 1
• Catwoman: Trail of the Catwoman by Darwyn Cooke, Ed Brubaker – October 1
• Kingdom Come – by Mark Waid, Alex Ross – May 6, 2025
• Static: Season One – May 27, 2025
• DCeased – June 3, 2025
• Batwoman: Elegy – June 17, 2025
• Superman: Birthright – June 24, 2025
• Superman/Batman: Book One – July 15, 2025

If the volumes merchantability well, possibly DC volition beryllium little squeamish astir reviving its extended backlog of out-of-print titles, oregon adjacent yet publishing communicative arcs it hasn’t seen acceptable to antecedently collect. Or what astir print-on-demand versions of its little crowd-pleasing arcs? Whatever the institution decides, thing needs to alteration successful the organisation and publishing of comics and this looks similar a measurement successful the close direction.

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