I'm on the fence with Copra. I like Fiffe's personality and sensibility, but I didn't find Rounds 1 & 2 all that fulfilling. Come to think of it, I haven't read superhero comics since I was a kid—and don't know a suicide squad from a cheerleading one—so what am I doing reading this? If anything, I suspect the series might be more fun to ingest as single issues.
Enter Round 7. The cover is just too beautiful and candy-colored to pass up. I guess I figured, I like the series enough I ought to own a piece of it, and this may as well be that piece. It consists of a smaller-than-usual 4-issue arc (#42-45, post-Ochizon Saga), supersized with holdovers like a key flashback issue (#25) and a limited 5-issue Copra Versus series, each section copiously explained by the artist. I gotta say: I like the production on this. The matte paper feels like a better choice than the ‘dry paper towel’ aesthetic of earlier volumes, offering slightly more vivid color and a smoother, more pleasant texture.
Is it OK to read this without having finished Rounds 1-6? I'll find out. My general observation is that it can take a *long* time to read each page in a Copra comic. So long, it gets fatiguing. It's counter-intuitive for an action series and not ideal for any genre. But as a collection, I'm inclined to give this high marks for variety and value. 300+ pages. Plus, we're being brought fully up to speed: Read this, and you're ready for the latest issue when it arrives in Fall 2023.
UPDATE: The new run (#42-45) actually reads faster than earlier volumes! As a series, Copra is grim in its worldview, dry and studied, violent: Superhero noir. Though I admire aspects, I'm not sure the genre is a good fit for me. But as I said, this volume offers a cornucopia, including autobiographical shorts, pin-ups, and tributes. All that, plus some nice storytelling twists, makes it my favorite so far.