Like a malign spirit, All Hallows Eve looms in the season finale, as Rob finds the self-administered noose that is his rekindled relationship with Sylvia ever-tightening. Eyes wide open and with no exit strategy in mind, dark forces and the specter of death converge on Sylvia's band's Halloween gig.

An old flame rekindled.

Post-divorce Rob continues struggles both romantic and careerist, divvying up time between dating an Ayn Rand-worshipping, Goth wannabe standup comedian, depicting curious sagacious mutant crustaceans, and landing in the not-so-healthy but all-too-familiar embrace of his ex. Can so many bad decisions lead to enlightenment? Featured in New York Magazine's Approval Matrix and Entertainment Weekly's Must List! Collects MINIMUM WAGE: SO MANY BAD DECISIONS #1-6.

Odd what a mysterious roll of undeveloped film can inspire. In previous chapters we've seen snippets of Rob's dreamscape, but this fourth installment dives head-first into a full-length sequence. Lovecraftian rites, anthropomorphic pets, and girlfriends of past, present, and possibly future all vie for Rob's attention before the alarm clock tolls.

The first chapter of the new sixissue arc of BOB FINGERMAN's so-real-it-hurts series. What do sex dungeons, sleepy-time heart-to-hearts with mutant horseshoe crabs, and feelings of frustration have in common? Rob's first postdivorce birthday, of course. Season with a soupon of Dream Sylvia and Real Sheila and bon appŽtit!

"Bela Legosi is dead," as the song said, but Rob is alive and well. Well, maybe not well, but decked out in gloomy Goth resplendence courtesy of his interim fling, Bekka. Maybe it's time for Rob to rethink the trajectory his love life has taken?

During its run in the mid-'90s, Minimum Wage racked up critical accolades and a devoted following, numbering among its fans Patton Oswalt, Marc Maron, Dana Gould, Scott Aukerman, Margaret Cho, Janeane Garofalo, David Cross, and more. Why? Because each page boasted sticky, uncomfortable truths drenched in bleakly familiar humor. It was "cringe comedy" before the phrase had been coined, presaging squirmy shows like Louie and Girls. Set in a New York so real you can practically smell it (so claimed Mike Mignola), Minimum Wage is the workaday saga of cartoonist Rob Hoffman and his firebrand girlfriend, Sylvia. He churns out strips for smut rags and off-brand MAD knockoffs and she languishes managing a hair salon. With their colorful crew of friends, they forge ahead against the brutal indifference of their hometown. This definitive edition includes the original 72-page "pilot" episode (Minimum Wage Book One) and the revised "director's cut" of the main storyline. Plus, a bonus color section featuring original cover paintings and guest pin-ups by Mike Mignola, Kevin Nowlan, Dave Johnson, Jill Thompson, Dave Cooper, Glenn Barr, and others. Now featuring an introduction from Walking Dead creator Robert Kirkman!

"Contains material originally published as Minimum wage #1-6 by Image Comics"--Title page verso

A sobering account of a disenfranchised American working class and important policy solutions to the nation’s economic inequalities One of the country’s leading scholars on economics and social policy, Isabel Sawhill addresses the enormous divisions in American society—economic, cultural, and political—and what might be done to bridge them. Widening inequality and the loss of jobs to trade and technology has left a significant portion of the American workforce disenfranchised and skeptical of governments and corporations alike. And yet both have a role to play in improving the country for all. Sawhill argues for a policy agenda based on mainstream values, such as family, education, and work. While many have lost faith in government programs designed to help them, there are still trusted institutions on both the local and federal level that can deliver better job opportunities and higher wages to those who have been left behind. At the same time, the private sector needs to reexamine how it trains and rewards employees. This book provides a clear-headed and middle-way path to a better-functioning society in which personal responsibility is honored and inclusive capitalism and more broadly shared growth are once more the norm.

The real-life Nickel and Dimed—the author of the wildly popular “Poverty Thoughts” essay tells what it’s like to be working poor in America. ONE OF THE FIVE MOST IMPORTANT BOOKS OF THE YEAR--Esquire “DEVASTATINGLY SMART AND FUNNY. I am the author of Nickel and Dimed, which tells the story of my own brief attempt, as a semi-undercover journalist, to survive on low-wage retail and service jobs. TIRADO IS THE REAL THING.”—Barbara Ehrenreich, from the Foreword As the haves and have-nots grow more separate and unequal in America, the working poor don’t get heard from much. Now they have a voice—and it’s forthright, funny, and just a little bit furious. Here, Linda Tirado tells what it’s like, day after day, to work, eat, shop, raise kids, and keep a roof over your head without enough money. She also answers questions often asked about those who live on or near minimum wage: Why don’t they get better jobs? Why don’t they make better choices? Why do they smoke cigarettes and have ugly lawns? Why don’t they borrow from their parents? Enlightening and entertaining, Hand to Mouth opens up a new and much-needed dialogue between the people who just don’t have it and the people who just don’t get it.