I’m happy to report that the digital library of Peanuts books offered at Humble Bundle to mark Fantagraphics’ 50th birthday was extended.
Click on that link now — as long as it’s not yet 2 p.m. ET on April 23rd, 2026. I’ll be here when you get back. [Update #1: The campaign seems to have a rolling deadline, although that could easily change.] [Update #2: It has closed.]
I heard about this incredible deal a few weeks ago but neglected my note to self until
it was nearly too late. The sale had been set to run through yesterday. However, at this writing, you can still pay $25 or more and receive downloadable PDFs of a virtual passel of Peanuts tomes including all 26 volumes of Fantagraphics’ expertly designed The Complete ’Peanuts’, its 10 recolored ‘Peanuts’ Every Sunday editions, and various themed collections, which have a total listed retail value of $1,041. Smaller bundles of
4 or 8 items start at only $5.
Charles Schulz was quietly philanthropic and, per the Humble Bundle way, a little bit
of each purchase goes to a charity he supported, Canine Companions. Even if you own all these books in physical form — or simply all the ones you care to — I’m guessing you won’t have to think hard to imagine somebody you love who’d appreciate being gifted the whole bunch, and it’s fine if that somebody is you.
The other day, I spied a lone DVD combo pack of Angel Seasons 1 & 2 at Target
for $19.99, which suggests that if the retail geography is kind either still or again you should be able to pick up the first four seasons of the series for less than ten bucks apiece like I did last year; Season 5 will have to be purchased singly.
Meanwhile, The Vampire Diaries kicked off its summer repeats this week with Season 2’s premiere, and if you haven’t hit your exsanguination saturation point on the genre with the Great Buffy Rewatch — or you want to play a fun game of compare/
contrast in terms of approach between Diaries and either its predecessor Buffy or its contemporary rivals Twilight and True Blood — I highly recommend grabbing DVDs of Season 1 while recording Season 2 of this sudsy, escapist treat; I’m sorry that I didn’t get to warn you before it aired, because you really want to watch the series in full from the start and Season 2 won’t be out on home video until the fall.
Related: My Buffy Summer • Vampire Weekend • We Got a
Live One Here • Red Letter • The Vampire Slayer Diaries
Free Comic-Book Day marks its first decade on May 7th. This, as the name
suggests, is a day on which comic books are given out for free at comic-book shops throughout North America and possibly beyond. It’s held each year on the first Saturday in May; the inaugural event was tied to the release of the first Spider-Man film, and many of the issues offered tie in to well-known media properties — ones that originated in comic books most definitely included, like the Green Lantern and Captain America / Thor issues available this year. Publishers are encouraged if not required to have officially-branded FCBD material be suitable for all ages.
The FCBD website, hosted by Diamond Comic Distributors, includes a link to a store locator, a list of frequently asked questions about the day, and a showcase of issues being released this year, from Archie and Disney material to Ape’s Kung-Fu Panda to Bongo’s Simpsons / Futurama collection to more adult fare from Dark Horse to the aforementioned DC and Marvel superhero spotlights.
I don’t think that Free Comic-Book Day on the whole brings in new readers, and thus potential customers, the way its supporters initially hoped. But many shops do host a nice community event, perhaps including a sale on non-FCBD items; at worst, dedicated fans get exposure to material they might not otherwise sample at no cost.
Warner Bros.’ 2007 Superman Ultimate Collector’s Edition DVD set is now
on sale at Amazon for an astounding $24.99. List price is $99.98 (per Amazon, a little higher or lower at other sites). You’ll still be a penny shy of free shipping, which is surely intentional.
As there were problems with the release of an almost identical set in 2006, when this Ultimate Collector’s Edition came out in 2007 I waited until it had a clean bill of health in online reports and then splurged the moment Borders held one of its very occasional 40%-off sales on DVD sets — knowing that if the set sold out we might not get another such package until there was another Superman movie to promote. I’ve still yet to watch everything in the set but no fan of the character or any part of the compilation should pass up this opportunity.
On 14 discs, packaged with a lenticular hologram of the Man of Steel in flight inside a tin case sporting both the 1978 and 2006 film versions of the big S, you get...
