# Is "Black Orchid" by Neil Gaiman & Dave McKean a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of Black Orchid by Neil Gaiman & Dave McKean (DC Comics, 1988) is identified by: Three-issue prestige-format squarebound series with full-color painted covers and interior art by Dave McKean, running Book One (dated 1988) through Book Three (dated 1989), each carrying a cover price of 3.50. Gaiman's first sustained work for DC; the true first is the prestige-format Book One / #1 (1988).

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- Three-issue prestige-format squarebound series with full-color painted covers and interior art by Dave McKean, running Book One (dated 1988) through Book Three (dated 1989), each carrying a cover price of 3.50
- Book One / #1
- is the true first appearance
- Collected as a trade edition in 1991
- Correct publisher/imprint: DC Comics

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Neil Gaiman & Dave McKean |
| Publisher | DC Comics |
| Year | 1988 |
| True first | world edition |
| Format | Comic / graphic novel |
| Key point | Three-issue prestige-format squarebound series with full-color painted covers and interior art by Dave McKean, running Book One (dated… |
| Book-club edition exists? | No |

## Points of issue
Three-issue prestige-format squarebound series with full-color painted covers and interior art by Dave McKean, running Book One (dated 1988) through Book Three (dated 1989), each carrying a cover price of 3.50. Book One / #1 (1988) is the true first appearance. Collected as a trade edition in 1991.

## Is this the true first?
Gaiman's first sustained work for DC; the true first is the prestige-format Book One / #1 (1988). The 1991 collected edition is a later first-thus, not the first appearance.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
No book-club issue applies to the original comics. Later collected printings and the Deluxe Edition are reprints of the 1991 collection rather than the original three-issue series; identify the individual 1988 Book One for the true first.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *Black Orchid* by Neil Gaiman & Dave McKean a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/black-orchid
CC BY 4.0. Part of the Canonical First-Edition Points of Issue dataset (https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/api/first-edition-titles.json). Last reviewed 2026-07-04.