Image Comics collects Ice Cream Man in two genuinely different formats, and new readers often do not realize both exist until they are already comparing prices online. The standard trade paperback line has run since 2018, while the Sundae Edition hardcovers are a separate, deluxe track covering the same early issues.
Neither format is strictly better than the other; they are built for different kinds of readers with different budgets and shelf space. This guide compares what you actually get from each so you can decide which one fits how you read.
It also covers what to do if a particular story hooks you enough that you want to track down the single issue it came from.
For issues #1 through #24, a reader genuinely has a choice: buy the standard trade paperbacks covering that range across six volumes, or buy the first two Sundae Edition hardcovers covering the same stories in a bigger format with extra material. Everything after issue #24 is currently only available in standard trade paperback form, since no further Sundae Edition volumes have been announced as of this guide's publication.
That makes the comparison most relevant to readers just starting the series, since it is really a decision about how to experience the first two years of the book rather than an ongoing choice across the whole run.
Each standard trade paperback collects four issues in a regular-sized softcover, typically running around 130 to 140 pages and priced close to $16.99. They are easy to shelve next to other comic trades and the cheapest way into the series issue by issue.
The tradeoff is that you need three trades to match the content in a single Sundae Edition volume, which adds up in both price and shelf space if you are buying the whole run this way.
Sundae Edition Volume 1 collects issues #1-12 in an oversized 400-page hardcover, while Volume 2 expands to issues #13-24 plus the HAHA #6 crossover issue and the Ice Cream Man Presents: Quarantine Comix Special, running 456 pages. Both carry a list price around $44.99.
The larger trim size lets Morazzo's art and some of the series' formal page-layout gimmicks breathe more than the standard trade size allows, which matters more for Ice Cream Man than for a typical dialogue-driven comic.
Buying issues #1-12 as three standard trades runs roughly $51 total before tax, compared to about $45 for the same twelve issues in Sundae Edition Volume 1. The hardcover is actually the better value on a per-issue basis once you account for the bonus material it includes, not just a premium upgrade.
Volume 2's math is closer, since matching its #13-24 range plus the bonus content would mean buying three standard trades and separately tracking down the uncollected HAHA crossover and the Quarantine Comix Special, which are otherwise hard to find on their own.
The standard trades only ever collect the four core issues in their range, with no extra material. The Sundae Edition volumes add material that is not reprinted anywhere else in collected form, most notably the Quarantine Comix Special and the HAHA #6 crossover issue bundled into Volume 2.
If completeness matters to you, the Sundae Edition is the only way to get that bonus content without hunting down individual back issues or specials separately.
Budget-conscious readers who want to sample the series a volume at a time, or who prefer a shelf of standard-sized trades, are better served by the regular paperback line. Readers who want the biggest physical object, the most complete package for the early issues, and do not mind the higher upfront cost should go straight to the Sundae Edition.
Readers starting past issue #24 do not currently have this choice at all, since the standard trade paperback is the only collected option for later issues.
Some readers buy the Sundae Edition for the shelf and still pick up new single issues monthly rather than waiting for the next trade. If that describes you, modern Ice Cream Man issues use standard current comic sizing.
A Current Age comic bag paired with a Current Age backer board keeps those loose issues in good condition until you decide whether to keep or resell them.
No, only two volumes exist so far, covering issues #1-24; everything after that is standard trade paperback only.
For Volume 1's range, yes on a per-issue basis once the bonus material is factored in; Volume 2 is closer depending on how much you value the exclusive bonus content.
Volume 2 includes the HAHA #6 crossover issue and the Ice Cream Man Presents: Quarantine Comix Special, neither reprinted elsewhere.
Either works, but budget-conscious readers typically start with the standard trades, while completeness-focused readers go straight to Sundae Edition Volume 1.
None has been announced as of this guide's publication.
There is no wrong answer between the standard trades and the Sundae Edition hardcovers, since both get you the same stories in different physical packages. Decide based on budget, shelf space, and whether the exclusive bonus material in Volume 2 actually matters to you.
If you end up collecting new single issues alongside either format, our Comic Bags and Boards Guide covers how to size the protection correctly.
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