Watch me as I talk through my buying habbits...

[JewishHobbit]

I get 10% off of new comics. It helps but it isn't enough to warrent some of these buys.

 

[JewishHobbit]

Update

Man, it was fun reading through this old thread of mine during a time when I had to get my buying under control... but it's sad because I've found myself back in this boat yet again and need to get some more cuts going. I've been working on it for the past two months give or take but I keep going back and forth on so much and finally I've decided to just plot it out. I found that it was easier to stick to things after plotting it here because I felt like I had a community of friends helping me stay on track... aka, mocking me when I backtrack on something.

Details on the Titles and Costs to come soon.

 

[JewishHobbit]

Okay, let's start with an update of where I was at the end of 2009 to where I am now.

Of the cut list here are the titles that I cut and kept cut:

Astonishing X-Men
Batman
Fall of Hulks: Red Hulk (mini)
Marvels Project (mini)
Psylocke (mini)
Spider-Woman

I did go back and read most of Spider-Woman and loved it, but it ended after only 9 issues I think. Likely the best Marvel work Bendis had done since Daredevil. Never actually bought the comic though... I wouldn't mind getting ahold of it at some point.

These are the titles I did drop but was able to come back to:
X-Factor
Hulk
Incredible Hulk
Fall of Hulks: Alpha (oneshot)
Fall of Hulks: Gamma (oneshot)[/quote]

X-Factor I cut for a good long while but eventually got caught back up, then dropped again, then got caught back up again. I quit the Hulk books for a few months but ended up getting pulled back into them a few issues into Fall of the Hulks. I ended up enjoying that story and the World War Hulks and I was able to officially drop Hulk once that plot finished. I eventually got Alpha and Gamma in back issue. I currently only collect Incredible Hulks.

I never dropped:

Batman & Robin
X-Nation: X-Factor (oneshot)

I just enjoyed B&R too much and the X-Factor oneshot came out on a slow week if I remember so I got it too. No biggie here.

So all in all I only complete backtracked on B&R, and the others that I came back to I did drop long enough to make a difference and got caught back up through Half Priced Books or on slower weeks. So this cutting time did make a difference though it didn't stick and I got out of control again within maybe 7 months.

So now, where are I? More to come....

 

[JewishHobbit]

Here is the list of the current things I buy monthly (or that I'm less than 2 issues behind on) seperated by company and genre:

Marvel Ongoings:

Avenger Titles
Avengers ($4)
Avengers Academy
Avengers: Children’s Crusade ($4) (Not really an ongoing but close enough)
New Avengers ($4)
Secret Avengers ($4)
Thunderbolts

X-Men Titles
Generation Hope
New Mutants
Uncanny X-Force ($4)
Daken: Dark Wolverine
Uncanny X-Men ($4)
X-Factor
X-Men ($4)
X-Men Legacy
X-23

Other Titles
Amazing Spider-Man ($8)
Daredevil: Reborn ($4) (mini but just a mid part of two ongoing titles)
Heroes for Hire
Incredible Hulks ($6)
Secret Warriors
Venom

Marvel Minis (including upcoming)
Age of X: Universe ($4) (2 issues left)
Annihilators ($5) (3 issues left)
Fear Itself ($4) (7 issues left)
Power-Man & Iron Fist (2 issues left)
Silver Surfer (2 issues left)
Skaar: King of the Savage Land (5 issues left)
Wolverine & Jubilee (1 issue left)
X-Men: Prelude (4 issues left)


DC Ongoings

Brightest Day ($6)
Batman Incorporated
Batman & Robin
Batgirl
Green Arrow
Green Lantern
Green Lantern Corps
Green Lantern: Emerald Warriors
Justice League of America
Titans

Other Ongoings
Echo ($3.50) (2 issues left)


So if I'm doing my math right I'm sitting at $143.50 a month. This is bad because this is .50 more than where I started at last time... and I've not even included oneshots or the random comic that ships twice a month (other than Hulks, Spidey, or Brightest Day).

So first I'm going to deal with ongoing titles but then I'm going to break down the buying and wants of Minis and Onshots and knock some of those out too. I want to start with ongoings though because I feel those are the bane of my buying. If I cut those down then the Minis and Oneshots aren't as big of a deal, since they're limited.

My goal is to get back down to about $100 a month or lower to allow for new things or 2 issues a month.

 

[JewishHobbit]

Okay, before I get too picky I'll start with the easy things.

Thunderbolts - I'm actually a few issues behind on. It was a hard cut and I've still gone back and forth on coming back to it with Juggernaut revealed to be a big part of the upcoming Fear Itself event but I find that if I don't consider that tie-in, I don't even miss the book now. So it looks like this one is definately cut.

Green Arrow - I fell about 2 issues behind on this one and it was dragging out so long and going in a direction that I didn't want that it's kind of a relief to not worry about it. Despite my wanting to support DC's price drops, this is a definate easy drop, perhaps the easiest.

Brightest Day - I did an experimental drop on this about 2 to 3 issues ago to see if I'd miss it. The story mostly bored me though it had great moments and I know I did't have long left and put so much money into it already but I've found I don't miss it at all. I've been perfectly content to just skim each issue at the shop and put it back on the shelf. The only thing I care about is finding out who the mysterious hero is who will wield the White Ring and Battery and I can find that out easily enough by skimming or reading Hype reviews.


So there's 3 drops easily enough, 4 if you count Brightest Day twice. It's a start.

 

[Dread]

On the plus side, SECRET WARRIORS is ending soon, so you won't have to cut it.

It all comes down to personal taste and what comics you can bare to part company from.

Although for all $4 comics, you should ask yourself if it REALLY kicks 33% more ass than $3 comics you read. If not, and there is no sign of a change in creative team (as there is with SECRET AVENGERS), it may be time to part company from it. I stepped away from INVINCIBLE IRON MAN and THOR and don't regret either.

 

[JewishHobbit]

Now, getting into the Avenger titles I'm a bit more cautious.

Secret Avengers - This book has been a colossal let down. The team is amazing but Brubaker doesn't utilize them, failing to reach the book's potential. I feel that it might get better with Nick Spencer in a few issues and then an unnamed writer following him post-Fear Itself, but I don't think I care to wait that long. I have to cut things and I can't wait out 6 or 7 month to test titles anymore. I'm keeping the first 4 issues to bind with my Cosmic books but the rest are gone I think.

Avengers Academy - I enjoy this comic but feel underwhelmed by it oftentimes. I only like maybe half the characters and the plots haven't realy been my favorites, with the exception of an issue or two. This is one book that I can safely drop but may eventually come back to (in current or back issue form) if funds free up. I think it's one of those "wait and see how it goes for a while" types of books. If I miss it too much I'll come back.

Avengers - This is the hard one for me. I don't know if I even WANT to cut it. I'm keeping New Avengers because I love the team itself and I feel Bendis does a better job at it, but I do often like Avengers as well. This was a definate drop until I started reading through it again and I realized that I disliked Romita's art moreso than Bendis's story and that was taking me out of it more than I realized. Plus, I like having the two Avengers books playing off of each other here and there.

For now I'm going to keep this book but I may decide to put a cap in it's posterior at a later point. I'm at least finishing out the current Infinity Gems arc since there's only one issue left.


I'm definatley keeping New Avengers and Avengers: The Children's Crusade. They're easily my favorite Avenger books at the moment.


Cuts So Far
Avengers Academy
Brightest Day ($6)
Green Arrow
Secret Avengers ($4)
Thunderbolts

Not a bad start at all.

 

[JewishHobbit]

On the plus side, SECRET WARRIORS is ending soon, so you won't have to cut it.

Yeah, I've been keeping track of that. Black Terror just ended so that was a cut made for me. Secret Warriors has only 3 issues left and Echo has only 2. I'm already considering those cuts though I'm not listing them just yet. I'm glad because while I like both titles I feel they've run their course and need to call it a day. It's a good time for them all to end and I'm glad I can complete them and not worry with whether or not I have to cut them.

It all comes down to personal taste and what comics you can bare to part company from.

My problem is that I enjoy them all enough that I don't really WANT to part with any save one or two. And with having to cut around $50 a month that's a LOT of cuts that I just absolutely DON'T want to cut but they just have to happen. That's why it's better for me to talk it out like this than just try and wing it... otherwise I'd never actually drop anything.

Although for all $4 comics, you should ask yourself if it REALLY kicks 33% more ass than $3 comics you read. If not, and there is no sign of a change in creative team (as there is with SECRET AVENGERS), it may be time to part company from it. I stepped away from INVINCIBLE IRON MAN and THOR and don't regret either.

The price tag is a BIG factor in my decision making. It's the core factor of dropping Brightest Day since it's out twice a month, freeing up $6. Other books are also on the block for that or for being $4 plus.

 

[JewishHobbit]

All I'll say about the X-Men section is that X-23 and Daken are on a trial run. X-23 I've been on for about 4 issues and it's just above mediocre for me, but I like the character. I had no intention of picking up Daken but I got the new issue today and really liked it. I'll continue it for the next two issues for the X-23 crossover and decide at that point whether or not to continue or not. Other than that, the rest are staying for now.

I'll also add this... during my initial fidgetings above Franklin made a great point about sticking with the book that is special and work around it. While that would technically be Uncanny X-Men, I find my "anchor" has always been the X-World entirely. Due to this I've recently wanting to pick up Wolverine and Astonishing X-Men again and just enjoy that whole section of the Marvel Universe. I will only do this if I can afford it after all the cuts, but the Gillen issues of Astonishing really has me curious. The jury is out on those two books for the moment and we'll see where I'm at once I'm finished with the cutting phase.

 

[venom892]

I dropped Iron Man recently and haven't regretted either.I bought that book way longer than I should have. I try very hard to avoid $4 books unless they are really good like Wolverine, Captain America and X-force. I'm lucky Deadpool Team up is ending and Deadpool Max is a maxi-series.What really sucks though is Marvel releasing 2 of each title in June.That really throws me off.

 

[JewishHobbit]

Now for the "Other" Marvel titles:

Daredevil - I loved Bendis's and Brubaker's Runs. I felt that Diggle's wasn't as good but still enjoyable leading to Shadowland. Shadowland itself wasn't perfect but I didn't think it was as bad as people played it up to be. I feel the oneshot following Shadowland, "After the Fall" I think it was called was a fantastic ending note for that portion of Daredevil's life. I was excited for Reborn but have been so drastically let down by it that I find it difficult to even WANT to bye them. That's a bad mentality to have but I knew a new series would start right after and I needed that holdover to complete the story.

As it turns out, the new series by Waid has been announced and I've read up on it. It definately sounds good (and I like the idea of Martin being one of the artists on it after reading his Amazing Spider-Man work recently) but it seems to be lightening the mood of the book, and I LIKED the darkness of the book. Coming in with Bendis that's all I really know of the character. I actually DO want to continue the book but Shadowland is such a great bookend to that decade of the character, and I HAVE to cut books, so I think this is going to be one of those tough cuts for me. If Waid's run gets fantastic reviews I may come back to it if I can afford it but for now it's cut.

Incredible Hulks - This is another tough cut for me. I loved this book from Skaar's ongoing into Incredible Hulk. I read most of Loeb's stuff and inbetween minis and books tying into Pak's run and I've mostly enjoyed it. For me though, it peaked at the Skaar/Hulk fight at the end of the World War Hulks. I enjoyed Dark Son and the Chaos War tie-ins, but after that it's kinda lost something. It's still great, but it's getting away from the Hulk family and I miss it. Looking ahead it seems to focus mostly on Red She-Hulk and not the rest and then Pak is leaving with a final arc coming up and I don't think I can wait another 10 issues (I'm guessing... maybe more) to see his run completed to decide if I like where he was taking it. I have the book up to current but I think I'm going to officially call the end of Dark Son the point of cutting for me, since it's a great ending plot to everything that was building through the years. I'll hold on to the issues after that in case I decide to come back to it and complete Pak's run, but for now they're just taking up space. If Pak's run ends and I'm not amazing but reviews or skimmings I'll likely sell everything post-Dark Son to Half Priced Books.


That Leaves:
Amazing Spider-Man
Heroes for Hire
Secret Warriors
Venom

As Dread said, Secret Warriors is ending in 3 issues so no need to cut that one. I enjoy it but it is getting a bit old. It's wrapping up though so I'll finish it out. Keeping it on my "to buy" list allows me to plan for that $3 each month and I can replace it later with another ongoing or mini that I'm bound to want.

Venom is new and could be an easy drop but I like Remender, I like Venom, and I'm intrigued by Flash being the host. It doesn't read like the Flash I remember from my Spider-Man days but nothing Spider-Man reminds me of my Spider-Man days. I'll hang onto this book for at least another couple issues to decide what I'm doing with it. For now it's a keeper.

Amazing Spider-Man is another one on the fence. I obviously LOVE the character but despite how much I try to put OMD through OMIT behind me, this still doesn't read like the Spider-Man I've grown to love. It feels like an alternate reality like the Ultimate Universe and I find it hard to care about what's going on. I enjoy the stories but if I don't care about what's going on IN those stories because they don't feel real... then I'm kind of at a crossroads. This was going to be a definate cut being that it's $4 twice a month until I read the death issue, #655. That was likely one of the best comics I've read in a very long time and I think it's given this title a stay of execution... for now. If my feelings for the book doesn't improve within the next two or three months it'll likely be cut. I just have too much nostalgia for the character to cut him again. I cut him after OMD and I've missed him horribly, even if this book reminds me nothing of the character I loved. The sad reality is that dropping a book on principal when it's already a high seller does nothing and the creative teams just mock you for your opinions. (Yeah, Marvel's approach to anti-OMD fans makes me not want to support the book either but a fat lot of good that does me when it sells so well anyway).

Lastly, Heroes For Hire. I'm torn on this one. I love Abnett and Lanning and I do enjoy the comic but I kinda think it's getting old. The only plot I find I'm interested in is Danny and Misty. I like Paladin but not enough to carry the book. If they wrap up the Danny/Misty Baby Phantom thing as well as the Puppet Master plot next issue then I may drop it after that. If either of those two plots continue I may continue the book.

It all depends on how the next issue or two plays out. This will likely be a drop sooner than any of the other previous ones I've mentioned in this post.


Cuts So Far
Avengers Academy
Brightest Day ($6)
Daredevil ($4)
Green Arrow
Incredible Hulks ($6)
Secret Avengers ($4)
Thunderbolts

 

[JewishHobbit]

I dropped Iron Man recently and haven't regretted either.I bought that book way longer than I should have. I try very hard to avoid $4 books unless they are really good like Wolverine, Captain America and X-force. I'm lucky Deadpool Team up is ending and Deadpool Max is a maxi-series.What really sucks though is Marvel releasing 2 of each title in June.That really throws me off.

Yeah, that's getting under my skin. It's part of why I've dropped Avengers Academy now as well is the two issues this month (or last month, whatever it was). I had too much on a bigger week and one of the issues fell on that week so I put it off and found I didn't miss it.

In June I have to account for around $14 or so on twice a month issues not including Spider-Man or Hulks (before dropping Hulks) and that's a lot over in a single month for me. That's why I'm trying to get it below $100 a month to allow for those types of things.

 

[JewishHobbit]

Now for DC Ongoings:

I've already cut Brightest Day and Green Arrow, and for now that's all the cutting I'll do at this stage.

The Green Lantern books have lost steam since Blackest Night but I'm at least giving them until the end of War of the Green Lanterns, which started this week. Green Lantern's been decent up to this point but Green Lantern Corps and especially Emerald Knights have been mediocre at best since BN. If my enjoyment of the books don't increase by the end of this crossover I may drop all 3 titles and not bother with the upcoming Red Lanterns ongoing.

The two Batman books I buy are pretty safe at the moment. I've enjoyed them both, though the past two issues of Batman Incorporated have kinda sucked. I liked all of Morrison's Batman & Robin though so I'm willing to give it a while. Tomasi's Batman & Robin is only two issues in but I'm liking it so far. It's safe for now as well.

Batgirl is probably my favorite DC book so it's as good as gold.

Titans is the closest potential of being cut in this batch but I'm still debating on it. I like all the characters and the plots but I don't know if I like it enough to save it during a tough cut period. I at least want to see what happens with the current plot of Arsenal and Chesire turing on Deathstrike. I'm sad that Tatoo Man is gone, as he's my favorite character in the book, but future solicits show him coming back so I'll hold on for now.

Edit: Forgot about Justice League of America. This is on a trial period for me. I've only picked up the past two issues but the first was an introduction to Eclipso and the second dealt more with the Doomsday crossover going on. I want to give this Eclipso arc a few issues before deciding if I'm dropping this title. One or two more should do it. If I'm not overly impressed by then then I'll drop it... or if I don't drop enough by the end of this list. This would be an easier cut in that scenerio.

 

[JewishHobbit]

And lastly... Marvel Minis:

Skaar: King of the Savage Land - Since I'm cutting Incredible Hulks I'll go ahead and cut this as well. The solicits for it doesn't seem quite as good to me and the character himself isn't as interesting since they resolved the hate he had for his father. I still like him but I don't know if it's enough to sustain a potentially mediocre mini. And if I did drop Hulks but pick up Skaar it'd be harder for me to stay away from Hulks, so it's best to just cut it all entirely.

Silver Surfer - I LOVED the cosmic genre but this mini is doing nothing for me. I just don't care about the Silver Surfer outside the cliched storyline of being a herald. He's still a herald here but it's a solo story outside of that and I only found the first issue mediocre and the second issue, which came out this week, was horrid (in my opinion). The idea of buying two more issues of this hurts me so I think I'm just going to stop this mini and allow Annihilators to fill my cosmic lust. I'll consider this a cut but if the next two issues fall on VERY light weeks I'll consider them... otherwise it's gone and I'll count it gone for now.


That leaves:
Wolverine & Jubilee (1 issue left)
Power-Man & Iron Fist (2 issues left)
Age of X: Universe ($4) (2 issues left)
Annihilators ($5) (3 issues left)
X-Men: Prelude (4 issues left)
Fear Itself ($4) (7 issues left)

Wolverine & Jubilee, Power Man & Iron Fist, and Age of X: Universe are all nearly finished with 2 issues or less left so those will go quickly. Annihilators only has 3 issues left but that $5 price tag is killing me. It's worth it for two complete issues in one book but still... I'm eager to see that one end. X-Men Prelude doesn't start until May so it'll techincally take Wolverine & Jubilee's spot. P&IF and AoX:U should finish just in time to be replaced by maybe Youth in Revolt and the Iron Man 2.0 tie-in to Fear Itself. I don't know for sure but I like where this puts me in regards to minis for now.

 

[JewishHobbit]

Okay, so the update on my buy list is:


Marvel Ongoings:

Avenger Titles
Avengers ($4)
Avengers: Children’s Crusade ($4) (Not really an ongoing but close enough)
New Avengers ($4)

X-Men Titles
Generation Hope
New Mutants
Uncanny X-Force ($4)
Daken: Dark Wolverine
Uncanny X-Men ($4)
X-Factor
X-Men ($4)
X-Men Legacy
X-23

Other Titles
Amazing Spider-Man ($8)
Heroes for Hire
Secret Warriors
Venom


Marvel Minis (including upcoming)
Wolverine & Jubilee (1 issue left)
Power-Man & Iron Fist (2 issues left)
Age of X: Universe ($4) (2 issues left)
Annihilators ($5) (3 issues left)
X-Men: Prelude (4 issues left)
Fear Itself ($4) (7 issues left)


DC Ongoings
Batman Incorporated
Batman & Robin
Batgirl
Green Lantern
Green Lantern Corps
Green Lantern: Emerald Warriors
Justice League of America
Titans

Other Ongoings
Echo ($3.50) (2 issues left)

Total Cost: $108.50


Cut So Far:
Avengers Academy
Brightest Day ($6)
Daredevil ($4)
Green Arrow
Incredible Hulks ($6)
Secret Avengers ($4)
Skaar: King of the Savage Land (mini)
Silver Surfer (mini)
Thunderbolts


That's pretty good actually. Better than I initially thought anyhow. Sadly, it's not under $100 for the month yet so more needs cut asap. Between Echo, Secret Warriors, Wolerine & Jubilee, Age of X: Universe, and Power Man & Iron Fist... there's enough ending to compensate for new titles or unexpected Twice a Month titles... but it's still too close a budget for my tastes.

I need to make a few more cuts... I'll have to ponder this a while longer. First, I'm going to go month-by-month including all ongoings (looking for twice a months here), minis, AND oneshots, which I've not yet taken into account.

I may wait until morning to mess with that though. I'm tired.

 

[hippie_hunter]

Why drop Brightest Day when there are only 2 issues left?

 

[JewishHobbit]

Why drop Brightest Day when there are only 2 issues left?

Because I'm about 3 issues behind (I'm estimating... I'm not sure exactly), I don't miss it and don't want to pay the money to get caught up... and in the long run I'm saving myself about $15 over the next month or two. Plus overall I've just not enjoyed the title. I like things here and there but more often than not I regretted even starting the book and only made it this far because I've already spent so much on it. I decided to just stop.

 

[WalkingDeadMike]

I'd drop Bendis' ****** Avengers books. I already have and I haven't missed reading them one bit.

 

[JewishHobbit]

Avengers is back and forth on the fence. It may still get cut but I don't know yet. It comes down to what I enjoy less of what's left after I factor in oneshots and Twice a Month comics and all that. I don't mind the story... it's the art that's killing me! The current arc has been pretty good with the Hood's quest for the Infinity Gems and all three Avenger teams trying to stop him. Not to mention everyone finally learning about the Illuminati.

I enjoy New Avengers though

 

[JewishHobbit]

Well, Good morning America, Canada, Britain, and anywhere else that may sneak in here for a peak.

After making the list above I was thinking it over and I think I'm okay wih what I've cut save Daredevil. Reborn has kinda stunk but I was thinking back on the rest of it and I do love the book. I started skimming the last couple issues of Shadowland's crossover (namely the Daredevil issue leading into the After the Fall issue) and those two issues as a concluding plot are fantastic, but it also made me realize how much I do love he world of Matt Murdock. And while it'll be lighter than of late, Waid is a fantastic writer and it's still keeping the noir feeling... just not the "I want to shoot myself in the face out of depression" feeling. I'd hate to miss Waid's next "Fantastic Four" level of goodness run because Reborn was painfully crap.

So, for now, I'm adding Daredevil BACK on my buy list while I figure out the monthlies and see where I'm at. I may cut it again later but for now I want to keep it on my buy list.

 

[JewishHobbit]

So here's the layout (according to the Marvel, DC, and Abstract Studios websites) for every comic I plan to buy and where they fall in the month. I know those sites aren't the most reliable toward when things are being released but at least it gives me an idea of where I'm at monthly.

I've listed the comics that I'm interested in buying without including them in the cost because those are ONLY if I can afford them eventually. I just wanted to list them round abouts where they'd fall so I have an idea for the month. I also noted that Fear Itself #2 isn't listed in May so I may have to take a closer look at what else could be missing from the list.

I'd like to have seen June's numbers as well but Marvel hasn't divied those up into weeks yet beyond the first week. A good note for me regarding DC though is that it falls that none come out on that first week and two issues fall every week following, making every week in June from Week 2 on $6. I may just talley up the June Marvel books through the solicitations to get a roundabout number but we'll start with April and May. I've also included this coming week just because.


March 30, 2011: $17.50
Avengers #11 ($4)
X-23 #8
Green Lantern: Emerald Warriors #8
Echo #29 ($3.50)

Age of X: Universe #1 ($4)

Wolverine #7 ($4) (Would like to get but am not counting yet)


April - $123.50

April 6, 2011: $24.00
Avengers: The Children’s Crusade #5 ($4)
Heroes For Hire #5

Annihilators #2 ($5)
Fear Itself #1 ($4)
Uncanny X-Men #534.1
Superman/Batman Annual 5 ($5)

April 13, 2011: $33.00
Daken: Dark Wolverine #8
New Avengers #11 ($4)
Secret Warriors #26
Uncanny X-Force #7 ($4)
Uncanny X-Men #535 ($4)
X-Men Legacy #247
Batgirl #6
Batman & Robin #22
Superboy #6
Titans #34

April 20, 2011: $29.00
Avengers #12 ($4)
Generation Hope #6
Uncanny X-Force #8 ($4)
X-Factor #218
Batman Incorporated #5
Green Lantern #65
Green Lantern Corps #59
Justice League of America #56

Wolverine & Jubilee #4

Wolverine ($4) (Would like to get but am not counting yet)

April 27, 2011: $37.50
Amazing Spider-Man #569 ($4)
New Mutants #24
Uncanny X-Men #536 ($4)
Venom #2
X-23 #9
X-Men #10 ($4)
Green Lantern: Emerald Warriors #9
Echo #30 ($3.50)

Age of X: Universe #2 ($4)
Avengers #12.1
Power Man & Iron Fist #4

Astonishing X-Men #37 ($4) (Would like to get but am not counting yet)
FF #2 (Would like to get but am not counting yet)


May - $108.00
Missing - Fear Itself #2, Daken .1, and X-Men #11 but added them into cost of the month.

May 4, 2011: $18.00
Heroes for Hire #6 (If Phantom Baby/Puppet Master stories aren’t resolved in #5)
Batman Incorporated #6

Annihilators #3 ($5)
Daredevil Reborn #4 ($4)
X-Men: Prelude #1

Fear Itself: Youth in Revolt #1 (Would like to get but am not counting yet)
Fear Itself: The Home Front #1 ($4) (Would like to get but am not counting yet)

May 11, 2011: $23.00
Amazing Spider-Man #660 ($4)
Daken: Dark Wolverine #9
New Avengers #12 ($4)
Batgirl #21
Batman & Robin #23
Green Lantern #66
Titans #35

FF #3 (Would like to get but am not counting yet)

May 18, 2011: $34.00
Amazing Spider-Man #661 ($4)
Avengers #13 ($4)
Heroes for Hire #7 (If Shadow Pregnancy/Puppet Master is not resolved in #5)
Iron Man 2.0 #5
X-23 #10
X-Factor #219
Green Lantern Corps #60
Justice League of America #57

X-Men: Giant Size #1 ($5)
X-Men: Prelude #2

Astonishing X-Men #38 ($4) (Gillen) (Would like to get but am not counting yet)

May 25, 2011: $22.00
Amazing Spider-Man #662 ($4)
Secret Warriors #27
Venom #3
Action Comics 901
Batman Incorporated #7
Green Lantern: Emerald Warriors #10

Power Man & Iron Fist #5

FF #4 (Would like to get but am not counting yet)
Wolverine #9 (Would like to get but am not counting yet)

 

[JewishHobbit]

As you can see in red, April's number is way up and needs cut down, but May's number is actually right on target, an issue shy of the $100 mark. This struck me as odd but I can think of a few things that helped in this.

1. I've been reading the Doomsday storyline in DC and there's a couple comics (Superboy, Batman/Superman Annual) there that I hadn't thought about in April (and one in May) and one of those is $5.

2. April is the "on" month for Avengers: Children's Crusade while none appear in May

3. April is the last issue of Wolverine & Jubilee, so that's one less comic in May

4. Two issues of Uncanny X-Men and Uncanny X-Force

5. There's two .1 issues in April and none in May

6. The final issue of Echo is the last week of April.

So that totals up to $32.50 in extra funds for April than May. I just noticed also that there's only one issue of Amazing Spider-Man in April.



Now, May has a couple things going on that April doesn't.

1. Two issues of Batman Incorporated.

2. Two issues of Heroes for Hire.

3. Three issues of Amazing Spider-Man

4. Action Comics 901 is there, the conclusion of the Doomsday crossover.

5. Two issues of X-Men Prelude whereas April has none.

6. The Iron Man 2.0 Fear Itself tie-in starts, which I don't commonly buy.

7. Not listed (I just realized) are Uncanny X-Men, Uncanny X-Force, X-Men, X-Men Legacy, Generation Hope, Daken .1, and New Mutants. What the heck, Marvel?! Get my freakin' hopes up and leave off half my list!

Huh... looking into the May solicitations on Newsaram and only Daken .1 and X-Men #11 are listed. There's two issues of UXM and UXF in April so maybe that has something to do with it... wierd. I'll just add $7 to May's total for Daken and X-Men and we'll role with it... strange.

So... that means there's $29.00 in May that's not in April but we're also missing $17 of X-Books.... This is confusing!

 

[JewishHobbit]

Okay... so I'm overlooking my previous post... it's just too difficult to figure out the weeklies with all these twice-amonths and none-a-months. What it DOES tell me though is that I'm still overshooting my budget. I was talking with my wife about it and she thinks this is an acceptable number taking it an average of about $5 over a week and she's okay with that but I don't think I am. I know me and there are things I'd like to try out or times when minis are in greater quantity, and with my interest in Astonishing, FF, and Wolverine... along with Fear Itself coming... I'd rather have more wiggle room for things like that. So I need to make some more cuts so I feel comfortable.

Justice League of America - This is in the trial period but I honestly am more interested in other books I'm NOT buying than this so I'd rather run a test trial on something like FF or Wolverine. I'd rather cut and run on this book 2 issues in than beyond that so I'll consider it gone.

Reign of Doomsday - This crossover isn't much, only 3 more issues left, but it cuts $8 out of April and $3 out of June so it's something.

Heroes for Hire - The solicits are showing no sign of Iron Fist or Puppet Master beyond #5, the conclusion of the first arc... so I think I'm just going to call this series done after #5. That saves me $6 in May due to the twice-a-month so that's good.

 

[JewishHobbit]

Okay, so the update on my buy list is:

Cuts: $37.00
Avengers Academy
Brightest Day ($6)
Green Arrow
Heroes for Hire (in April)
Incredible Hulks ($6)
Justice League of America
Secret Avengers ($4)
Skaar: King of the Savage Land (mini)
Silver Surfer (mini)
Thunderbolts



My Buy List:


Marvel Ongoings:

Avenger Titles
Avengers ($4)
New Avengers ($4)
Avengers: Children’s Crusade ($4)

X-Men Titles
Generation Hope
New Mutants
Uncanny X-Force ($4)
Daken: Dark Wolverine
Uncanny X-Men ($4)
X-Factor
X-Men ($4)
X-Men Legacy
X-23

Other Titles
Amazing Spider-Man ($8)
Daredevil ($4)
Secret Warriors
Venom


Marvel Minis (including upcoming)
Wolverine & Jubilee (1 issue left)
Power-Man & Iron Fist (2 issues left)
Age of X: Universe ($4) (2 issues left)
Annihilators ($5) (3 issues left)
X-Men: Prelude (4 issues left)
Fear Itself ($4) (7 issues left)


DC Ongoings
Batman Incorporated
Batman & Robin
Batgirl
Green Lantern
Green Lantern Corps
Green Lantern: Emerald Warriors
Titans

Other Ongoings
Echo ($3.50) (2 issues left)

Total Cost: $106.50


Echo finishes in April.

Wolverine & Jubilee and Age of X: Universe both end in May.

Power Man & Iron Fist, Annihilators, and Secret Warriors all end in June.

Hmm... you know, I'm not unhappy with this.

There are certain titles that I'm interested in picking up (Astonishing X-Men, Wolverine, and FF) and some upcoming titles that I'm interested in (Batwoman and Red Lanterns)... and there's some Fear Itself minis I'm interested in (Youth in Revolt). That's a lot of potential "testing" comics and it adds up far too quickly. I'd feel more comfortable with one or two more cuts to make room for this type of thing but I'm not sure what I'd cut at this point.

Next Level of Potential Cuts:
Amazing Spider-Man ($8 a month! $12 in May!)
Avengers
Daredevil
Venom
Titans

I'll have to give more thought to these.

 

[JewishHobbit]

The more thought I give into these titles the more I think this is going to be a more drawn out deal.

Despite my annoyances I do enjoy Amazing Spider-Man too much to drop it at this time. Venom is a nice connection to that and I'm intrigued by Flash as Venom.

Daredevil sucks right now but Waid is coming and I have a feeling he'll be more on the quality level of Bendis or Brubaker than Diggle. I'm going to wait and see how the first few issues of his run plays out before deciding whether or not to drop it.

Avengers I've enjoyed to a smaller extent to enough to not want to drop it yet. I AM tired of the constant mash ups regarding rosters though between Bendis's books and I'm eager for a set lineup for a long run. Now there's rumor of another switch up during Fear Itself and that annoys me but we'll see. So for this, and likely New Avengers, I want to see how everything in Fear Itself plays out before dropping officially.

That leaves Titans... and while most don't seem to like it I've been enjoying it greatly. However, the more I think about it I might be more interested in FF than this. My fear though is that I'd drop this for FF, lose interest after 6 issues, and then end up being behind on Titans and too far to get caught back up. However, with more thought I don't think I'll miss Titans like I originally thought I would so Titans is now officially dropped.

I'll give FF a shot it Titan's place. So the monthly cost isn't changing over the next two months (since FF is $3 from issue 2 on) but I've made room for a new series that I'm curious about.