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Comic Block has relaunched and in a brand-new format.
Gone is the small box with three comics and several other items. The new box is much larger (and carries a higher price tag) with the intention that there will be more higher value comic related items inside, as well as the customary comics and exclusive T-Shirt.
The new pricing for Comic Block puts it on the same level as the other main boxes in the Nerd Block family.
That means that the standard pricing, including shipping from Canada to the UK, of $33 USD (around £24 GBP).
As a continuing subscriber from the old box, I currently have my subscription running at the previous rates, which are a few dollars cheaper. I will use $33 USD as the value that I’d expect to see inside the box though.
I didn’t notice much in the way of spoilers for this month, although a focus on Batman Vs Superman was fairly inevitable.
The box arrived in the UK in early April 2016 (having left Canada in late March 2016), with several changes to the box design included to make it clear that this was the new relaunched Comic Block. The box also contained a useful information card.
Box Contents
Superman T-Shirt (Exclusive)
This is a very clever design, with Superman displayed on a traditional Batman style logo.
Batman Vs Superman is a theme reflected in several of the Comic Block items this time and this T-Shirt certainly covers that.
This T-Shirt certainly works for me (Comic Block does tend to have some of the best geek T-Shirts in any mystery subscription boxes).
I value this at the T-Shirt standard of $10 USD.
Superman Funko POP! Vinyl
The information card states that you would either receive Batman or Superman in the box. I got Superman.
This is a new release, as it’s the Superman version from the Batman Vs Superman movie. This is a clever Funko POP! Vinyl as it depicts Superman in flight.
You can see the Superman Funko POP! Vinyl on Amazon.com. The typical selling price is $10 USD.
This is one of the nicest POP!s that I’ve received for a while.
Batman Vs Superman Decal
This is another item to tie in with Batman Vs Superman. There are plenty of Batman and Superman decals available on Amazon.com, although I can’t see this exact one.
This is also billed as glowing.
This isn’t an item that I have much use for, but thankfully it also doesn’t take up much space.
Based on the pricing of the other decals, I’ll value this at $4 USD.
Batman Print (Exclusive)
There are a lot of prints of this type included in the Nerd Block family of boxes. This is one of the coolest and would look good framed.
Unusually, no artist is listed and this print isn’t signed.
I’ll value this at the standard I use of $2 USD.
April Fool’s Kit
This is billed as a bonus item and it consists of a Whoopee Cushion, as well as fake ice cubes that look like they have flies inside.
This same item was included in the Nerd Block for March 2015, so I presume that this is left over from last year.
As a bonus item of this type, I’ll assign a nominal value of $2 USD.
Wolverine Dorbz
It’s great to have two collectible figures in the same block, both made by Funko. This Dorbz reflects Wolverine as a happy cartoon character.
The Wolverine Dorbz can be seen on Amazon.com. The typical selling price is $9 USD.
Another high value item that I’m happy to have received here.
Superman Comic #50
This is the first of three DC comics included in Comic Block and is also clearly the main comic of the month. Like all of the comics this month, this came bagged and boarded (and packaged in such a way that the bags are not sealed and so can be reused, which is a big plus).
I believe that this issue of Superman intended to be a seminal issue in the ongoing story, so it’s a good one to have included (although I haven’t been following this series).
It certainly looks like an interesting read. The cover price is $4.99 USD.
Batman: The Dark Knight Returns Comic From DC Comics Essentials
This is a rather different comic to those that have been previously found in Comic Block.
Just under half this comic is the first few pages from the Batman: The Dark Knight Returns graphic novel, which is available on Amazon.com and was first published around 30 years ago.
Flip the book over and about half the book is made up of descriptions of other DC graphic novels.
You may have noticed that that doesn’t yet add up to a whole book. That’s because there are another 10 pages of adverts to pad out the middle.
The cover price for this is $1 USD. In many ways, I’m surprised that this isn’t just being given away as a purely promotional item. I’ve no idea if you can actually buy this anywhere.
Batman And Robin Comic From DC Comics Essentials
This other DC Essentials series comic also carries a very similar story and also has the cover price of $1 USD.
This is the start of the Batman And Robin: Born To Kill Graphic Novel, which was a 2013 release and collects together previous comics. You can also buy the full graphic novel on Amazon.com.
Based on that, I’m guessing that the comic portion of the book is the same as Batman and Robin (Vol 2) #1, part of “The New 52” storylines. This dates back to November 2011. The cover is certainly the same as that earlier book.
The rest of the Essentials comic is made up of the same extended advertising as Batman: The Dark Knight Returns, including the graphic novel recommendations.
Based on all of this, I’m not too sure what to make of the comics in this Comic Block.
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Box Review
An excellent relaunch Comic Block.
The box contained $44 USD of value, which is suitably above the box purchase price, but not as high as I would have expected when compared with other blocks in the family.
The two Funko items in the box were the clear winners, but almost all of the items carry some interest and I’m willing to think of the joke bag (which arrived in the UK after April Fool’s Day) as just a bonus item.
Where the box is clearly lacking is with the choice of comics. There are no exclusives and two of them are clearly just there for promotional reasons.
All of the comics are from DC and rather mainstream as well. Marvel didn’t really play much of a part in this box, outside of the Dorbz. A good point is that all the comics were properly bagged and boarded this time, which doesn’t always happen with Comic Block.
I guess that a lot of this is just part of the box looking to go more mainstream. I did always enjoy finding comics that I might not otherwise have known about it the box, so I hope that feature can be restored.
Overall, I would bill this as a box for fans of comics, cartoons and superheroes. If you fall into the audience, you’ll likely enjoy Comic Block.
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