Randall J. Paske

Also: A Lit Fuse: The Provocative Life of Harlan Ellison was added as a new title beginning with "A" instead of "L".

Jeez, they're not helping. I know the CB editors like to go with the indicia, but sometimes even the indicia contains errors. And I'd call this an error, as the name of the product is clearly "Milk-Bone" and not "Milk & Bone."

It's called Superman: A Friendship Unleashed, though I'm not sure what it says in the indicia. If you search for that title on eBay, you'll get quite a few results. It came packaged with Milk-Bone dog biscuits.

Also, it looks like there was an effort to move poster books out of the Comics category and into the Books category. Makes sense, except that I can verify that the title 20 Nude Dancers 20 Year One Poster Book consists almost entirely of comics and should be returned to the Comics category. "Poster Book" is a bit of a misnomer in its case, referring mainly to the larger size of the pages. Most if not all of the contents originally saw print in Comics Buyer's Guide when it was in the newspaper format. They are single-page strips--comics--not poster images of the Hulk or whatever. Also, these two titles were added to the Comics category: The Roman Stars The Trust Book One- Silent Scream "The" should come at the end of those titles (Roman Stars, The).

Another new comic title was added for Fantastic Four 1234. The series already exists in the database as Fantastic Four: 1 2 3 4. The new title was apparently added because the collected version is being republished. There are already Bk entries under the existing title, and I am not sure how the new version will fit in--whether it's technically considered a new printing or a new edition, whether it's hardcover or paperback. But it doesn't make sense as a new title.

Also in Books: * The Art of Carla Cohen was added as a new title when Art of Carla Cohen, The already exists. * The Avenger: Roaring Heart Of The Crucible was added as a new title when Avenger, The: Roaring Heart of the Crucible already exists. * The Avenger: The Sun King was added as a new title when Avenger, The: The Sun King already exists. The three new duplicates are alphabetized by "The," as well, rather than by "Art" or "Avenger." And, under Comic Books: * American Honda Presents Supergirl was added as a new title, when the issue listed is already in the database as Supergirl (2nd Series) #DOT 1. It is not easy to find there, which is why I previously submitted American Honda Presents Supergirl as an item title for Supergirl (2nd Series) #DOT 1 and #DOT 2. My submission was apparently either rejected or overwritten. That another person has now added American Honda Presents Supergirl as an actual title proves my point, though--if these giveaway issues are to remain in the database as Supergirl (2nd Series) #DOT 1 and #DOT 2, as they have probably been designated for many years, then an item title of American Honda Presents Supergirl would help people find them and prevent further duplicate submissions. * Mercy Sparz: Sweet 16: Issue 0-1 was added as a new title. The construction of this title is very weird and doesn't look right, but I don't know anything about it. It's probably supposed to be Mercy Sparx, though, not Sparz. The database has quite a few other Mercy Sparx titles. * PS Artbooks Softee: Police Comics would probably be better listed as Police Comics (PS Artbooks). PS Artbooks reprints are listed several different ways in the database, though. It doesn't help that they are solicited using titles that aren't apparent from the actual books, and the books typically don't have new indicia to help settle debates. But I don't think of "PS Artbooks Softee" as part of the title, because many of their books are offered in multiple formats, "Softee" being only one of them. It's just their term for "softcover" or "paperback." Look at the title Cave Girl (PS Artbooks), for example: there's a "softee" (#1), a hardcover (#1/HC), and a slipcase edition (#1/DLX). Should they decide to publish hardcover or slipcase versions of the Police Comics series, it wouldn't make sense to put them under the PS Artbooks Softee title, even though they would essentially be the same books. Listing as Police Comics (PS Artbooks) sidesteps this problem.

One problem is that many times (more often than not?), second and subsequent printings of an issue have new covers that don't correspond to any of the first-printing variants. The first example from your list, Angel (Boom!) #1-2, has no corresponding cover art among the #1 first-printing variants. By that token, it's not really a second printing of any specific variant. Changing it to #1/A-2 would eliminate one problem--that #1-2 has no "regular" #1 to correspond to--but it would introduce another problem by implying that it's a new printing of #1/A, which it isn't. There's precedent for different printings having different covers, of course--plenty of numbered "regular" issues (#1) have different covers for later printings (#1-2, etc.). So it should be OK to have #1/A and #1/A-2 with different covers, per your suggestion. The Item Description field could help with this, too. But I do think the insertion of the variant letter introduces some ambiguity because of how ComicBase item numbers are constructed. As I see it, ComicBase lists variants and printings in its item numbers backwards. The ComicBase hierarchy goes Issue Number /Variant─Printing, implying that specific variants might go through multiple printings. In reality, the typical hierarchy is Issue Number─Printing/Variant. If ComicBase item numbers went 1-2/A, 1-2/B, etc., instead of 1/A-2, 1/B-2, etc., then they would line up more nicely in the grid, and we'd no longer have the implication that specific variants go through multiple printings. That is, now we have this as the default order in the grids: #1 #1-2 #1-3 #1/A #1/A-2 #1/A-3 #1/B #1/B-2 But this would make more sense to me: #1 #1/A #1/B #1-2 #1-2/A #1-2/B #1-3 #1-3/A It would be less of a jumble, the variants from each printing would be kept together, and it wouldn't imply that a specific variant is being reprinted. But I don't know if this is changeable, and of course I may only be making sense to myself. I do that sometimes.

Also: Dimensions Behind the Twilight Zone was added as a comic book. It belongs in the Books category. Superman: Kansas Sighting was added as a new comic book title. This is already in the database under the correct title, Superman: The Kansas Sighting.

New Yorker Book of Teacher Cartoons, The was added to the Books category, but it sounds like it would contain comics (even if they are mostly single-panel cartoons). Art of PONCHO Sampler, The was added to the Comic Books category, but it sounds like it contains illustrations and artwork rather than comics. Also, Poncho should not be in all caps. Art of Rudy Nebres, The was also added to the Comic Books category, but it sounds like an art book with illustrations rather than comics. Grimm Fairy Tales: 20th Anniversary Cover Gallery might not really have comics in it if it's just a cover gallery, but it was added to the Comic Books category. Harley Quinn: Wild a Heart: DD Compact Comics Edition should be Harley Quinn: Wild at Heart: DC Compact Comics Edition.

Also, the new book title Batman Minature Game Rulebook should say Miniature instead.

I wrestled with what to do there, within the limits of the available ComicBase variations and types. I didn't think of what you suggested, which sounds fine to me. I did think about having separate title entries for Clyde Fans, Clyde Fans Part 1, and Clyde Fans Book 1, but that seemed messier than what I ultimately submitted.

OK, I just submitted updates for Clyde Fans. The publication history is even more tangled than I realized, so I had to make some changes and additions. I changed Palookaville CS 1 (actually titled Clyde Fans, Part 1) to Clyde Fans 1. Palookaville CS 2, it turns out, was never published (there is no book titled Clyde Fans, Part 2). I changed Palookaville Bk 2/HC (actually titled Clyde Fans, Book 1) to Clyde Fans Bk 1/HC. There was at least one further printing of this edition, and possibly more. I added Clyde Fans Bk 1/HC-2 for the second printing, but more may need to be added if found in the future. (History repeated itself, and there is no book titled Clyde Fans, Book 2.) In 2019, the complete story (more than what was in Book 1, which was itself more than what was in Part 1) was printed in one hardcover volume simply titled Clyde Fans. I didn't find this in ComicBase. I added it as Clyde Fans Bk 1/A. In 2021, the 2019 hardcover was given a paperback edition. I didn't find this in ComicBase. I added it as Clyde Fans Bk 1/B. The solicited 2025 edition is, as far as I can tell, a new printing of the 2021 paperback. I changed it from Clyde Fans 1 to Clyde Fans Bk 1/B-2. It does not seem that the hardcover is getting a new printing. If these changes are accepted, then Palookaville CS 1 and Bk 2/HC need to be removed to prevent duplication. CS 2 needs to be removed no matter what, having never actually been published.

The 2/20 update also adds a new edition of Clyde Fans by Seth under that title. Previous editions of Clyde Fans are listed, correctly or incorrectly, under Palookaville as Bk 2/HC, CS 1, and CS 2, because the material was originally serialized in issues of that title. For consistency, either those earlier versions of Clyde Fans should be moved to the new title, or the new edition should go under Palookaville with the others. For now, I've submitted item titles for the books listed under Palookaville, because they aren't really labeled as Palookaville and it's not obvious that they would be listed there.

The following new titles were added in the Comic Books category, but they probably belong in the Books category instead: Farscape: Script Book Naughty Faeries Stripper Book NFSA WSPT Artbook Scream Queens Sketchbook Still Ill Calendar

You mean they should not be added, right?