By Zack Quaintance — Oh yeah, it’s another one of those good weeks where there’s no real throughline between the best comiXology sales. We’ve got a couple of Black History Month picks from DC Comics, a couple of books that have sequel series arriving, and — for good measure — Grant Morrison. Check it all out below on this week’s picks!

Enjoy!

Best comiXology Sales: Hey kids, a variety of comics!

The American Way
Writer: John Ridley
Artist: Georges Jeanty
Publisher: DC Comics - Vertigo
In 1962 Jason Fisher was given astonishing powers by the United States government—powers he used to defend the nation as the New American. He and his teammates in the Civil Defense Corps were real-life superheroes.
Except that it was all a fraud. A conspiracy. And now, 10 years after the CDC was torn apart by racism, infighting and murder, the Corps’ surviving members find themselves pulled in very different directions. Missy Devereaux—a.k.a. Ole Miss—is transitioning from the First Lady of Mississippi into a candidate for governor and defender of a vanishing and hateful way of life. Amber Eaton—formerly known as Amber Waves—has become a domestic terrorist, using her powers to infiltrate and destroy the country’s centers of power.
Somewhere in the middle stands Jason Fisher, who has remained a crime-fighter even as evidence mounts that he is accomplishing nothing besides propping up a system that’s rigged against him as a black man in America.
In a nation being torn apart, what does it mean to fight for the American way?
Why It’s Cool: John Ridley is all over comics, writing everything from I Am Batman to Black Panther, but the American Way was (as far as I know) his first work in the medium, and it remains a great read today, telling the story of a Black man with superpowers who fights crime within a system that is rigged against him.
Price: $4.49
Buy It Here: The American Way

Happy! Deluxe Edition
Writer: Grant Morrison
Artist: Darick Robertson
Publisher: Image Comics
Meet Nick Sax: a corrupt, intoxicated ex-cop turned hitman, adrift in a stinking twilight world of casual murder, soulless sex, eczema, and betrayal. With a hit gone wrong, a bullet in his side, the cops and the mob on his tail, and a monstrous child killer in a Santa suit on the loose, Nick and his world will be changed forever this Christmas by a tiny blue horse called Happy…. This deluxe edition of HAPPY! includes 10 extra pages of story by creators GRANT MORRISON and DARICK ROBERTSON. Collects HAPPY! #1-4
Why It’s Cool: The creators are both among my absolute favorites in comics, and the book is an interesting one. This deluxe edition may have cover art that features a photo from the television adaptation, but hey, this is digital so that’s less of a big deal. You can just flip right past it and still enjoy the comics.
Price: $5.39
Buy It Here: Happy! Deluxe Edition

Manor Black
Writer: Cullen Bunn and Brian Hurtt
Artist: Tyler Crook
Publisher: Dark Horse Comics
Roman Black is the moribund patriarch of a family of powerful sorcerers. As his wicked and corrupt children fight over who will take the reins of Manor Black and become representative of the black arts, Roman adopts a young mage whom he gifts his powers to with the hope that someone good will take his place against the evil forces out to bring down his family and legacy. Collects Manor Black issues #1–#4 and features a sketchbook section and pinup art by Jill Thompson, Dan Brereton, Erica Henderson, and Greg Smallwood.
Why It’s Cool: This week we had a perfect 10 review of the sequel to this one, Manor Black - Fire in Blood #1. It’s a great start to the new series, and as luck would have it, it’s also a good time to catch up on the original with this sale.
Price: $5.49
Buy It Here: Manor Black

I Hate Fairyland
Writer/Artist: Skottie Young
Publisher: Image Comics
From superstar writer and artist SKOTTIE YOUNG (Rocket Raccoon, Wizard of Oz, Fortunately, The Milk), comes the first volume of an allnew series of adventure and mayhem. An Adventure Time/Alice in Wonderland-style epic that smashes its cute little face against grown-up Tank Girl/ Deadpool-esque violent madness. Follow Gert, a forty-year-old woman in a sixyear- old's body, who has been stuck in the magical world of Fairyland for nearly thirty years. Join her and her giant battleaxe on a delightfully bloodsoaked journey to see who will survive the girl who HATES FAIRYLAND.
Why It’s Cool: I Hate Fairyland is getting ready to make a return, so why not try out the original? This book (which I thought was excellent) is the type of read where you will know almost from the first chapter whether it’s for you. It’s over-the-top, madcap, and hilarious, if you’re interested in that sort of thing. I recommend it.
Price: $3.59
Buy It Here: I Hate Fairyland, Vol. 1

The Other History of the DC Universe
Writer: John Ridley
Artists: Various
Publisher: DC Comics - Black Label
Academy Award-winning screenwriter John Ridley (12 Years a Slave, Let It Fall) examines the mythology of the DC Universe in this compelling new miniseries that reframes iconic moments of DC history and charts a previously unexplored sociopolitical thread as seen through the prism of DC Super Heroes who come from traditionally disenfranchised groups. This unique new series presents its story as prose by Ridley married with beautifully realized color illustrations from a selection of exciting illustrators and comics artists. Extensively researched and masterfully executed, THE OTHER HISTORY OF THE DC UNIVERSE promises to be an experience unlike any other. You may think you know the history of the DC Universe...but the truth is far more complex. THE OTHER HISTORY OF THE DC UNIVERSE isn't about saving the world—it's about having the strength to simply be who you are.
Why It’s Cool: Another John Ridley written-book, this one takes a look backwards through DC Comics history at characters within that have been traditional underserved and marginalized, doing a really great job of focusing in on reframing events and stories readers thought they knew. I’m not sure I’ve ever read something from the Big 2 quite like this, and all five issues of the book are now on sale.
Price: $1.79 each or $8.95 for the whole series
Buy Them Here: The Other History of the DC Universe #1; The Other History of the DC Universe #2; The Other History of the DC Universe #3; The Other History of the DC Universe #4; and The Other History of the DC Universe #5

Zack Quaintance is a tech reporter by day and freelance writer by night/weekend. He Tweets compulsively about storytelling and comics as Comics Bookcase.