The Quarter Bin

Check out this week’s must-have digital comic downloads for the iPad, iPhone, Android, and PSP.

10 – $1.99 (Available on Comics+ App)

I had never even heard of this book until seeing it on the “New Releases” portion of the Comics+ App, but I’m definitely interested in checking it out. Written by Keith Giffen, one of the most respected and enjoyable writers working today, and drawn by a personal favorite of mine, Andy Kuhn, 10 is a story in the vein of Battle Royale and the earliest 100 Bullets tales. Ten people are each given a gun with ten bullets. They’ve got to hunt down the other nine people in order to survive. Sure, it’s been done before, but not by this creative team. It’s a single-serving issue, so you really can’t go wrong for the price either.

Back to Brooklyn #1-2 – $1.99 each (Available on ComiXology and Image Comics Apps)

Garth Ennis and Jimmy Palmiotti team to tell the story of two brothers who go to war with one another. It’s violent. It’s explicit. It’s everything you want from a crime comic by Ennis and Palmiotti. The trade has been out of print for ages, so this is the perfect chance to get your hands on another great comic from these two writers.

Neil Gaiman and Jim Lee CBLDF “100 Words” – $0.99 (Available on ComiXology and DC Comics Apps)

Now this entire comic is not for sale (and why not CBLDF? Get Liberty Comics on the digital stores!), but the portion contributed by Neil Gaiman and Jim Lee is. It’s a short work, told in a poetic style, and it’s a nice piece. Truthfully though, the reason you should be downloading this is so that some of the proceeds will go to the Comic Book Legal Defense Fund, which is an important industry institution that protects the rights of retailers and creators alike.

Nextwave: Agents of HATE #7-12 – $1.99 each (Available on ComiXology App)

I’ve written about how awesome this comic is in the past, so instead of going off on another long diatribe, I’ll let Warren Ellis himself sell you on the book.

I took The Authority and I stripped out all the plots, logic, character and sanity… It’s an absolute distillation of the superhero genre. No plot lines, characters, emotions, nothing whatsoever. It’s people posing in the street for no good reason. It is people getting kicked, and then exploding. It is a pure comic book, and I will fight anyone who says otherwise. And afterwards, they will explode.

Each of the issues more than stands on its own, but reading all of them together is really your best bet. Artist Stuart Immonen really sets a new bar for what can be accomplished in a comic, and teamed with Ellis, you know the results are going to be worth it.

Viz Manga Volume 1′s – $0.99 each (Available on Viz Manga App)

All month long, every first volume of all mangas on Viz’s app are going to be available for just $0.99. That means you can pick up the tremendous first collection of Bakuman, Death Note, Claymore, and more for less than a dollar. I highly recommend Bakuman, as not only is it a great story, but the insight it provides into the inner workings of the Japanese manga industry is amazing. There’s bound to be something you’ll dig from all the choices available. I just hope you actually take the time to check some of these great books out.

That’s all for this week. Check back again next weekend for more digital picks.