DC Finest is a line of full-color trade paperbacks from DC Comics. Announced at 2024's ComicsPRO Comics Conference, [1] their stated intention is to be "affordably priced, large-size paperback collections" providing "a new line of comprehensive collections of the most in-demand periods, genres, and characters from across DC history". [2]
This is similar to Marvel's Epic Collection, which launched in 2013.
As well as covering DC's major heroes, and offering a line devoted to company-wide events, the books will allow fans to "curate collections of their favorite tales from specific genres, which may include science fiction, romance, war, westerns, horror, and other genres; many of these volumes will feature material reprinted for the first time." [3]
Ten books were announced for release in November and December of 2024, with a further 18 for the first six months of 2025.
Subtitle | Years covered | Issues collected | Writers | Artists | Pages | Pub. date | ISBN |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
King of Atlantis | 1956–1962 | Aquaman stories from:
| Jack Miller, Robert Bernstein | Ramona Fradon, Nick Cardy | 624 | 7 Jan 2025 | 978-1779529893 |
Subtitle | Years covered | Issues collected | Writers | Artists | Pages | Pub. date | ISBN |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Nobody Dies Tonight | 2000–2002 |
| Kelley Puckett, Joe Kelly | Damion Scott | 552 | 8 Apr 2025 | 978-1799501046 |
Subtitle | Years covered | Issues collected | Writers | Artists | Pages | Pub. date | ISBN |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Year One & Two | 1986–1987 |
| Frank Miller, Mike Barr | David Mazzucchelli, Alan Davis | 592 | 5 Nov 2024 | 978-1779528353 |
The Killing Joke and Other Stories | 1987–1988 |
| Alan Moore, Mike Barr | Brian Bolland | 600 | 20 May 2025 | 978-1799501459 |
Subtitle | Years covered | Issues collected | Writers | Artists | Pages | Pub. date | ISBN |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Life Lines | 1988–1994 |
| Mindy Newell, Jo Duffy | J.J. Birch, Jim Balent | 600 | 17 Dec 2024 | 978-1779528469 |
Vengeance and Vindication | 1994–1996 |
| Doug Moench, Chuck Dixon, Jo Duffy | Jim Balent | 624 | 10 Jun 2025 | 978-1799501756 |
Subtitle | Years covered | Issues collected | Writers | Artists | Pages | Pub. date | ISBN |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
The World's Strangest Heroes | 1963–1966 |
| Arnold Drake | Bruno Premiani, Bob Brown | 624 | 11 Feb 2025 | 978-1799500353 |
Subtitle | Years covered | Issues collected | Writers | Artists | Pages | Pub. date | ISBN |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Zero Hour: Part One | 1994 | Zero Hour: Crisis in Time #4–3, and more
| Dan Jurgens | Jerry Ordway | 496 | 10 Dec 2024 | 978-1779528506 |
Zero Hour: Part Two | 1994 | Zero Hour: Crisis in Time #2–0, and more
| 558 | 6 May 2025 | 978-1799501305 |
Subtitle | Years covered | Issues collected | Writers | Artists | Pages | Pub. date | ISBN |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
The Human Thunderbolt | 1956–1961 |
| Robert Kanigher, John Broome | Carmine Infantino, Joe Kubert | 632 | 26 Nov 2024 | 978-1779528360 |
Subtitle | Years covered | Issues collected | Writers | Artists | Pages | Pub. date | ISBN |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
The Longbow Hunters | 1987–1988 |
| Mike Grell | Ed Hannigan, Dick Giordano | 544 | 21 Jan 2025 | 978-1779529916 |
Subtitle | Years covered | Issues collected | Writers | Artists | Pages | Pub. date | ISBN |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
The Defeat of Green Lantern | 1963–1965 |
| John Broome, Gardner Fox | Gil Kane, Joe Giella | 600 | 3 Dec 2024 | 978-1779528483 |
Subtitle | Years covered | Issues collected | Writers | Artists | Pages | Pub. date | ISBN |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Birth of the Mirth | 1993–2001 | Harley Quinn (vol. 1) #1–8, and more
| Paul Dini, Karl Kesel | Bruce Timm | 624 | 18 Feb 2025 | 978-1799500483 |
Subtitle | Years covered | Issues collected | Writers | Artists | Pages | Pub. date | ISBN |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
The Bridge Between Earths | 1966–1969 |
| Gardner Fox | Mike Sekowsky, Sid Greene, Dick Dillin | 616 | 19 Nov 2024 | 978-1779528377 |
Subtitle | Years covered | Issues collected | Writers | Artists | Pages | Pub. date | ISBN |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
For America and Democracy | 1940–1942 |
| Gardner Fox | Sheldon Mayer, Jack Burnley | 632 | 3 Dec 2024 | 978-1779528476 |
The Plunder of the Psycho-Pirate | 1942–1945 |
| Joe Gallagher, Stan Aschmeier | 600 | 8 Jul 2025 | 978-1799502074 |
Subtitle | Years covered | Issues collected | Writers | Artists | Pages | Pub. date | ISBN |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Zap Goes the Legion | 1968–1974 |
| Jim Shooter, Cary Bates | Win Mortimer, Dave Cockrum | 584 | 10 Dec 2024 | 978-1779528490 |
Subtitle | Years covered | Issues collected | Writers | Artists | Pages | Pub. date | ISBN |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
The Element Man | 1965–1972 |
| Bob Haney | Ramona Fradon, Sal Trapani, Joe Orlando, Mike Sekowsky, Jim Aparo | 600 | 17 Jun 2025 | 978-1799501848 |
Subtitle | Years covered | Issues collected | Writers | Artists | Pages | Pub. date | ISBN |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Kill For Peace | 1966–1993 | The Peacemaker (Charlton Comics) #1–5, and more
| Joe Gill, Paul Kupperberg | Pat Boyette | 640 | 1 Apr 2025 | 978-1799500988 |
Subtitle | Years covered | Issues collected | Writers | Artists | Pages | Pub. date | ISBN |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
The Origin of Plastic Man | 1941–1944 |
| Jack Cole | Jack Cole | 584 | 4 Mar 2025 | 978-1799500650 |
Subtitle | Years covered | Issues collected | Writers | Artists | Pages | Pub. date | ISBN |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
The Gorilla World | 1953–1954 | Gorilla-themed stories from:
| John Broome, Gardner Fox | Murphy Anderson | 632 | 15 Jul 2025 | 978-1799502159 |
Subtitle | Years covered | Issues collected | Writers | Artists | Pages | Pub. date | ISBN |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Trial by Fire | 1986–1988 |
| John Ostrander, Len Wein | Luke McDonnell | 560 | 11 Mar 2025 | 978-1799500759 |
Subtitle | Years covered | Issues collected | Writers | Artists | Pages | Pub. date | ISBN |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
The Super-Dog from Krypton | 1954–1955 |
| Otto Binder | John Sikela, Curt Swan | 600 | 13 May 2025 | 978-1799501367 |
Subtitle | Years covered | Issues collected | Writers | Artists | Pages | Pub. date | ISBN |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
The Girl of Steel | 1959–1962 | Supergirl stories from:
| Otto Binder, Jerry Siegel | Jim Mooney | 600 | 14 Jan 2025 | 978-1779529909 |
Subtitle | Years covered | Issues collected | Writers | Artists | Pages | Pub. date | ISBN |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
The First Superhero | 1938–1940 |
| Jerry Siegel | Joe Shuster | 584 | 5 Nov 2024 | 978-1779528339 |
Kryptonite Nevermore | 1970–1971 |
| Dennis O'Neil | Curt Swan, Murphy Anderson | 572 | 3 Jun 2025 | 978-1799501657 |
Subtitle | Years covered | Issues collected | Writers | Artists | Pages | Pub. date | ISBN |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
The Giant Turtle Man | 1960–1961 |
| Robert Bernstein, Jerry Siegel | Curt Swan, Kurt Schaffenberger | 664 | 15 Apr 2025 | 978-1799501107 |
Subtitle | Years covered | Issues collected | Writers | Artists | Pages | Pub. date | ISBN |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Chase to the End of Time | 1978–1979 |
| Bob Haney, Martin Pasko | Jim Aparo | 560 | 18 Mar 2025 | 978-1799500827 |
Subtitle | Years covered | Issues collected | Writers | Artists | Pages | Pub. date | ISBN |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
The Judas Contract | 1983–1984 |
| Marv Wolfman | George Pérez | 560 | 4 Feb 2025 | 978-1799500254 |
Subtitle | Years covered | Issues collected | Writers | Artists | Pages | Pub. date | ISBN |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
The Legend of Wonder Woman | 1983–1986 |
| Dan Mishkin, Kurt Busiek | Don Heck, Trina Robbins | 632 | 1 Jul 2025 | 978-1799502012 |
Origins & Omens | 2007–2009 |
| Gail Simone | Terry Dodson, Aaron Lopresti, Bernard Chang | 584 | 12 Nov 2024 | 978-1779528346 |
DC Comics, Inc. is an American comic book publisher and the flagship unit of DC Entertainment, a subsidiary of Warner Bros. Discovery. DC is an initialism for "Detective Comics", an American comic book series first published in 1937.
Cross Generation Comics or CrossGen was an American comic book publisher and entertainment company that operated from 1998 to 2004. The company's assets were acquired by The Walt Disney Company in 2004, and designated to Disney Publishing Worldwide. In July 2010, Disney re-established the brand through Marvel Comics, who announced plans to revive CrossGen titles.
The Modern Age of Comic Books is a period in the history of American superhero comic books which began in 1985 and continues through the present day. During approximately the first 15 years of this period, many comic book characters were redesigned, creators gained prominence in the industry, independent comics flourished, and larger publishing houses became more commercialized.
Alien Legion is an American science fiction comic-book series, with several associated titles, created by Carl Potts, Alan Zelenetz, and Frank Cirocco for Marvel Comics' Epic Comics imprint in 1983. It features a military unit, Force Nomad, similar to the French Foreign Legion.
In comics in the United States, a trade paperback is a collection of stories originally published in comic books, reprinted in book format, usually presenting either a complete miniseries, a story arc from a single title, or a series of stories with an arc or common theme.
DC Archive Editions is a line of hardcovers that was published from 1989–2014, reprinting early, often rare comic book series, titles, and stories. They include more than 160 Golden Age and Silver Age comic properties currently owned by DC Comics, regardless of whether DC Comics was the original publisher. The series first published Superman Archives Vol. 1 in 1989. Most of the restoration work to make the pages suitable for quality printing has been done by Rick Keene, who has restored more than 2,500 pages.
DC vs. Marvel is a comic book miniseries intercompany crossover published by DC Comics and Marvel Comics from February to May 1996. Each company would publish two issues of the miniseries, thus the title difference between issues #1 and 4 as DC vs. Marvel Comics from DC and issues #2–3 from Marvel as Marvel Comics vs. DC. The miniseries was written by Ron Marz and Peter David, with art by Dan Jurgens and Claudio Castellini.
Dan Slott is an American comic book writer, known for his work on Marvel Comics books such as The Amazing Spider-Man, as well as She-Hulk, Silver Surfer, The Superior Spider-Man, Tony Stark: Iron Man, The Mighty Avengers, and Fantastic Four. His work for DC Comics includes the books Arkham Asylum: Living Hell and Batman Adventures.
Marvel Masterworks is an American collection of hardcover and trade paperback comic book reprints published by Marvel Comics, with the main goal of republishing classic Marvel Comics storylines in a hardcover, premium edition, often with restored artwork and better graphical quality when compared to other Marvel collected editions. The collection started in 1987, with volumes reprinting the issues of The Amazing Spider-Man, The Fantastic Four, The X-Men, and The Avengers. The Masterworks line has expanded from such reprints of the 1960s period that fans and historians call the Silver Age of Comic Books to include the 1930s–1940s Golden Age; comics of Marvel's 1950s pre-Code forerunner, Atlas Comics; and even some reprints from the 1970s period called the Bronze Age of Comic Books.
Essential Marvel was a line published by Marvel Comics from 1996–2013 that reprinted vintage comic book material in paperback format. Each black-and-white volume reprints approximately 20–30 issues of a classic Marvel title. Each Essential contains between 450 and 650 pages, printed on coarse, matte-quality paper.
The "DC Explosion" and "DC Implosion" were two events in 1978 – the first an official marketing campaign, the second a sardonic reference to it – in which American comics company DC Comics expanded their roster of publications, then abruptly cut it back. The DC Explosion was part of an ongoing initiative at DC to regain market share by increasing the number of titles they published, while also increasing page counts and cover prices. The so-called "DC Implosion" was the result of the publisher experiencing losses that year due to a confluence of factors, and cancelling a large number of ongoing and planned series in response. The cancellations included long-running series such as Our Fighting Forces, Showcase, and House of Secrets; new series introduced as part of the expansion such as Firestorm and Steel: The Indestructible Man; and announced series such as The Vixen which would have been the company's first title starring an African American woman. Former flagship series Detective Comics was also considered for cancellation. Some of the material already produced for these cancelled series was used in other publications. Several of the completed stories were "published" in small quantities as two issues of Cancelled Comics Cavalcade, whose title was a reference to DC's Golden-Age Comic Cavalcade series.
An omnibus edition or omnibus is a book containing multiple creative works by the same or, more rarely, different authors. Commonly two or more of the works have been previously published as books, but a collection of shorter works, or shorter works collected with one previous book, may also be known as an omnibus.
Marvel Omnibus is a line of large format, high quality, full color, hardcover graphic novel omnibuses published by Marvel Comics. They often contain complete runs, either by collecting multiple consecutive issues, or by focusing on the works of a particular writer or artist.
The Epic Collection is an ongoing line of color trade paperbacks that republish Marvel comics in a uniform trade dress. Announced in April 2013, their stated intention was to collect entire runs of characters or titles as "big fat collections with the best price we can maintain", in similar manner to the discontinued black-and-white Essential Marvel.
Marvel Premiere Classic was a series of hardcover comic book collected editions, that reproduced Marvel Comics storylines.
DC Compact Comics is a line of full-color paperbacks from DC Comics. Announced in November 2023, ahead of a June 2024 launch, they were described as "perfect for readers of prose and manga looking to pick up a new-reader-friendly storyline in a self-contained full color graphic novel".
Marvel Complete Collections, Marvel Ultimate Collections, and Marvel Complete Epics are large full-color trade paperback collections of previously published Marvel comics, typically containing 300–500 pages.
The Marvel Comics character Daredevil first appeared in 1964 in Daredevil #1, written by Stan Lee and drawn by Bill Everett.
Marvel Premier Collection is a line of full-color paperbacks, produced by Marvel Comics, that was announced at the 2024 New York Comic Con.
The Marvel Comics oversized hardcover format launched in 2002, reproducing full-colour comics in books approximately 11in x 7.5in in size. This was roughly an inch taller and wider than the original comic book.