Ollie's Comic Book Lot Review!!

Ollie's Has Comic Books/Graphic Novel's Guys!

Ok, so after Comic Bento went under I was very sad about not having a means of obtaining graphic novels at a cheaper price (we all know that graphic novels are a premium product). I have never been in an Ollie's (Not a Sponsor) but wanted to try them out and see what all the fuss was about. I went to get some products for my niece for Christmas and lo and behold I see a decent sized section dedicated to comic books and graphic novels! I was happy once again and now we will get into the review of the comics entailed in this lot. But first, a peek into why I got into graphic novels in the first place...It all started when I was a child and I read the likes of the Mad Magazine, Archie comics and gaming magazines. I really never knew about graphic novels until I came across one by the name of C.S.I. which was based off my favorite series CSI Las Vegas! This is the very 1st graphic novel I purchased and have been intrigued with graphic novels ever since!

The look of the lot before opening

Ok, so this is how the lot looks when you pick it up off the shelf. It appears to have come from NDC located in Pittsburgh. I assume that they sell these lots as well. You can check out their site at www.ndcomics.com. Again, not a sponsor. Let's move on to the meat and potatoes of this blog post shall we! Below, I will give a short synopsis of each comic in the lot and attempt to keep them spoiler free as I'm sure there's still some people who may not have not read these comics yet, like me!!!

The first comic we come to is House of M Sketchbook by Marvel. This is a 14 page comic book that is full of sketches. It is a rather thin comic with art and character designs from X-Men, Iron Man, Hulk, Fantastic Four, Black Panther, Spider-Man and a montage of the whole crew of super heroes. You may be able to color some of these sketches but overall, I feel it's not much different from a concept art book. Price ranges from $.01 to $15.00 online. *I wouldn't really classify this as a comic moreso an art book of sorts. Nothing to read, just sketches so I really can't give an opinion on this one.

The next comic we have is Batman Earth One Special Preview Edition by DC Comics. Now this comic is listed as Free on the cover as you see here. I'm assuming this may have been a Free Comic Book Day item at some point? But it is a teaser to the graphic novel. It is a very colorful glossy comic with quite a few ads in between the story. The story itself tells the tale of Mr. Thomas Wayne running for Governor, calling upon Alfred to assist with security after he is elected and going out as a family to the movies with his wife Martha and son Bruce. We all know what happens next so I"m not going to go into detail. This comic ranges from $1.70 to $5.00 online. *Yes, this is kinda like beating a dead horse because we all know the story of Batman and how he became who he is. The artwork is nice though and the story is well-written.

Next we have X Men Unlimited by Marvel Comics. This is a thicker comic with shiny pages that also resemble old skool comic book look. The story begins with Storm and Forge having an intimate conversation about spending more time together, then Jubilee (in her own room) being awoken by L'Deroh with an urgent request of Charles Xavier and his X-Men to accompany them back to Hala for a ceremony. All hell breaks loose at the ceremony but the X-Men save the day! Professor Xavier struggles with romance and Jubilee is made aware of the resistance. A power struggle ensues and hard decisions must be made. What will be the fate of the Imperium ? Price from what I can tell, $3.00 online. *This was a good read, I would pick up and read the remainder in the series.

Next we have Shaman's Tears by Image Comics. This is a rather thin comic which makes for a quick read. Art style is standard (from what I'm used to reading) with glossy colorful pages. I like that there is a nice thick cover seemingly card-stock and not like the original thin covers of regular comics. This comic starts off with a tv anchor reporting of a Soviet Union cosmonaut stranded in space for 8 months and the tearing down of the Berlin Wall. Things happen to the cosmonaut and a "clean-up" crew is sent to assess the situation and find a slew of logs and data about all types of experiments; Bio-mechanical, Invitro Fertalization, Embryo Chambers, etc. For some reason there is a page torn from this book...bummer. So I'm sure you all know that there is a secret place where these experiments have taken stronghold despite not being government sanctioned, yeah! In the midst of this, an Irish-Indian struggles with fitting in with his Indian family and he to faces his own struggles. This is seemingly an introduction or short story of sorts because it's not long at all and leaves you with a cliff-hanger waiting for the next part. Price ranges from $2.45 to $15.00 online. *I like this one, kinda reminded me of an Alien's type comic. It's always the darn scientists screwing things up and causing mass hysteria...

Next we have Gamora by Marvel. This to is a rather standard comic with glossy colorful pages. Oh wow! So this comic starts with a jaw dropper for me, Gamora is of course a woman of her kind but every year, there is a battle royale of sorts to kill all the women of her kind and only leave the men to survive. What kind of mess is that? Well, daddy is on his deathbed and wants his daughter to take over the throne, which the others gasp in astonishment! It's clear in this comic that the women are mere worthless beings. Quite frankly, it's pissing me off... Let's just say that Thanos isn't playing around. Wow, I'd hate to have him as a dad that's for sure. So, the just of this story is that Gamora finds that she has unfinished business elsewhere and therefore embarks on an important journey. Price range for this title is anywhere from $3.50 to $4.oo. *Out of all the comics I've read from this lot, this has to be the one that stood out to me. It kinda reminds me of the women today and how we are treated both in the gaming community and everyday life. We are less than human in some cultures and even worse in others. We are laughed at in the gaming community and seen as inferior there and in the workforce as well. At least, that is what I got out of this comic, you may have a totally different meaning as we have not walked in the same shoes...

Next we have The Shadow Green Hornet Dark Nights by Dynamite. Another standard comic with glossy colorful pages. Ok, so this one is more of an espionage story and to be honest, not to interesting TO ME. Not saying that you all would not like it, heck you may love it but to me, not that great of a story and so far, the most boring out of the comics I've read thus far TO ME. Starts out with Colonel Kent Allard (AKA The Dark Eagle, AKA The Shadow) visiting the President with some Top Secret information then fast track about 18 years to a round-table of sorts (a meeting of the minds) to discuss the Nazi threat and fortify plans to wage war. So basically, spies and espionage...Price range from $2.40 to $4.00. *Nothing much more to say on this one. I think I've basically said my piece on this comic.

Next we have Infinity Inc by DC Comics. This is a standard comic that has that rough feeling paper and graphics just feels old skool (I know I mispelled school but it's coo). Ok, so Green Lantern is supposed to be dead but apparently is still alive as he attempted to kill several super heroes (members of the Justice Society) with some sort of large crank press. They are freed by other members but apparently all the big leagues including Batman are deceased. I'm a bit confused but this is part 6 of the generations saga. I guess I've missed some crucial parts to this story. So there are some unanswered questions here such as what's happened to the super heroes? Why are the good guys bad? etc. What will become of the Justice Society? You'll have to read on for yourself to find out! Price for this comic $6.69 online. *Since this is not the 1st iteration of this comic, I'm lost. So like, how did the superheroes get to where they are in reference to dead but not dead, turning on innocent people, for what reason? This is why I do not like to read comics/graphic novels out of order. But still a decent read.

Next we have Steed And Mrs Peel by Eclipse Books & Acme Press. This comic has a card-stock cover with glossy colorful pages. This is book 2 based on the show The Avengers. I prefer to read the story from book 1 but find that there's enough of a backstory to pick up on what's going on if you read out of order. So, this comic starts out with Mr. Steed joining a secret organization riddled with chance games and riddles that must be solved in order to make it in (for what reason, I have no idea). But apparently Mr. Steed is a great gamesman who has luck on his side. He befalls an "arch enemy" of sorts and is thrust into their deadly game in which he must play to stay alive! Price range from $2.60 to $3.30 online. *There seem to be several comics within this series and I'm glad that you can pick this up and still pretty much know what is going on. I enjoyed this comic and wouldn't mind reading the rest.

The next comic is called Static The Shocking Origin! by DC Comics. This comic is an old skool comic with odd old school printing. So this comic starts out with a young man by the name of Virgil conversing with his friend, Frieda about his attitude towards himself (self-hate in my opinion). Cut to a "flashback" of him in high school being bullied and his first time meeting Frieda. He seems like the typical out of place smart kid that nobody takes seriously and takes advantage of. This was a good story that kept me reading and wanting more. Price unavailable online as I could not find the comic listed. *This reminded me of all the gangster movies of the 80's. Well, mostly all of them...there's an outcast who don't really fit in. He/she befriends someone who is cool and could be considered an outcast themselves. There are bullies, homies, guns, thugs, cops, tear gas, gunfire, etc. But what isn't made clear is how this young man became who he is and obtained the powers he has...hmm

And finally, we have Ian Fleming's 007 James Bond by Eclipse Comics. This comic has a nice card stock cover with nice glossy artwork. The back cover has scratches and peeling in parts. So, again I have to stress that espionage type comics are not my forte but I will still read them. So, here's the synopsis of this comic: Ok, so if you've seen one Bond movie, you've basically got the just of how this comic goes down. Bond has a job to do, protect the damsel-deliver her someplace. Things happen and the operation is called off or goes bad. Bad guys formulate a plan for revenge/destruction and it goes awry and foiled by Bond...that about sums it up, lol. Oh, forgot...Bond also getting his groove on with the ladies...Oh brother! But yeah, I think that about sums this comic up. Unable to find a price on this one either. *Yep, this is a done deal...lol

And there you have it ladies and gents! My synopsis of the lot of comics that I received from Ollie's. Would I purchase another lot? Maybe. After all, one comic had literally a page torn out of it and another's back cover look like it was attacked by an animal. I feel these comics were overstock that the distributor/store owner wanted to liquidate. They are a great price and aside from the mishaps and some comics being labeled as "free", I'd say it's worth a buy. Afterall, it's only $5.99 plus tax. Hope you have enjoyed my first blog post in a few years and if you're also a gamer, do check out my YouTube channel and Subscribe if you like the content! Thank you all for reading and clicking the links. Take care!

Lynn