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Omnibus Report 11/12/2017: The Clone Saga!


Up first this week in the world of Omnibuses comes Spider-Man: Clone Saga Omnibus Vol. 2 written by J.M. DeMatteis,‎ Todd Dezago, David Michelinie, Terry Kavanagh, ‎ with art by Mark Bagley, Darick Robertson, Angel Medina, and Dave Hoover. Weighing in at 1,288 pages this volume collects a huge amount of all the Spider-Man titles of the 1990s.  

Spider-Man faces off against his clone in the Clone Saga!
This volume follows a little more than a year after Spider-Man: Clone Saga Omnibus Vol. 1, released October 18, 2016 which, itself, weighed in at 1,240 pages! The Clone Saga is infamous for going on so long to the extent the many long-time Spider-Man fans eventually dropped out. But does that make it bad?
Picking up on some threads from the original 1973 Clone Saga, 1994's Clone Saga begins, eventually driving some fans away.

My understanding, and I forget where I heard or read this, but originally what became the Clone Saga was supposed to be a fairly limited 8-10 month event but somehow spiraled out of control and ended up running for two years.

There is a whole giant spoiler-filled Wiki page that I glanced at but I was getting too many spoilers and  I quite reading it.

My prediction for my own personal reading of this massive, sprawling epic in the Omnibus format: I think I'll end up loving it. Since so many titles are involved  I may feel some aspects don't jibe with me as well, like in Age of Apocalypse where some parts of the story don't quite tie together but I have the feeling that a lot of the bad rap this era of Spider-Man is overblown.

Of course, this was Marvel in the 1990s so it is possible I will agree with the critics but it is an era I have been anxious to understand so I am looking forward to having both volumes plus getting the original Clone Saga from 1973 at a some point.
The hardcover edition of Knightfall 2: Knightquest promises to be more complete than the 2012 trade.

Also out this week  Batman: Knightfall Omnibus Vol. 2: Knightquest hardcover by Chuck Dixon with art by Kelley Jones and Jim Aparo which at 976 pages is close to double the size of the 2012 trade paperback. While I'm not sure if it accounts for all of the extra pages, it looks like the new hardcover contains more of the Shadow of the Bat storyline that explains how Bruce Wayne got his broken back healed.
Batman and Robin explores Damien's pre-Robin days in the League of Assassins

And finally, Batman & Robin by Peter J. Tomasi & Patrick Gleason Omnibus is 1,248 pages and collects Batman & Robin 20-22, The New 52 run Batman & Robin 0-40, Batman & Robin Annual 1-3, Robin Rises: Omega 1, Robin Rises: Alpha 1, and a story from Secret Origins 4.

All of these volumes are scheduled to be released Tuesday November 14, 2017. Are any of these on your wish list? Did the 1990s Clone Saga drive you out of comics? What do you think about Batman Knightquest finally including the Bruce Wayne story? What are you most excited to add to your comic collection?

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