The Invisible Hand

Well, it seems that the cruel, skeletal hand of Adam Smith has helped me do what I could not do myself: namely, cull my pull list.

I've been looking to chop some books for awhile now. But I'm sure you are all well aware how incredibly difficult that is. Fortunately (and unfortunately in some ways) the market has taken care of this for me. As of April, three books I currently buy are cancelled.

The first book is one that I will admit I'll miss. Firestorm is being cancelled with issue thirty-five, and I'll say I've been expecting it. Not because the books is bad, mind you. Far from it. I think it had one of the most sucessful OYL turnovers. But that wasn't enough for some fans. If it's not the original Firestorm, they don't want it. Luckily, Jason Rusch isn't going anywhere: Dan DiDio says he'll be joining a team sometime later this year.

A book that had considerably less success in the OYL turnover is Hawkgirl. I'm disappointed that the book is going out the way it is. Not because I've been enjoying Hawkgirl all that much. Quite the opposite: it's been the foremost on my "cut" list for awhile. No, I'm disappointed that the book took such a nosedive after the Crisis. The book was on fire for awhile there during the Gray/Palmiotti/Bennett era when it was still Hawkman. That was some good comics.

But the biggest disappointment is, of course, Manhunter. One of the best books on the stands bar none, and it just couldn't find the audience. Still, fans were able to save the book once. So we did get a bit more time that we would've had otherwise. Thirty issues is pretty respectable in today's marketplace, after all. But it's still a damn shame.

So, come April I'll no longer be buying Firestorm, Hawkgirl, or Manhunter. And I'm going to try to not replace them. But I'm not Green Lantern...