The book arrived in pretty good condition. Unfortunately, because it was shipped in just a bag, the spine at the top and bottom is a bit bent and already slightly cracked. The pages are around a centimeter or two smaller than the original comics, and the colorful artwork is printed on normal, non-glossy paper. Because of this, the art doesn’t pop nearly as much as it did on the glossy pages of the original issues, which is a bit disappointing.
Additionally, the book doesn’t open very flat. If you try to fully open it, the spine starts to flex, which can cause more damage to the back of the book. I feel like a bit more thoughtful design could have gone into this, because it can be a bit of a pain to read at times.
That being said, I’m very thankful there’s a volume collecting the first 12 issues. It’s very nice to have. This is one of my favorite series, with absolutely gorgeous art and colorful characters, and I’m glad to own this edition. Still, it’s disappointing that the only collected volume of this series is presented in such a lackluster manner.
