The Comic Book Thread

[HeartlessNinny]

Oh yes, and Scott Pilgrim is fucking fantastic. It's an example of hipster dialogue done right, and it's probably one of the most charming comics I've ever read (it's funny, too).

 

[aria]

Stop reading it right now. If you don't like it now, you'll probably positively hate it by the end (the story holes widen — big time).

Y is easily the most overrated comic of all time. It's good, sure, but there are dozens of critics who say it's their favourite comic ever, and that's just crazy talk.

The story is compelling (I think so at least), but the shit that seems to be bothering you doesn't get any better, and the characterization is pretty piss poor — it's an obviously plot-driven story, and Vaugh will fucking hammer his characters into place to suit it.

Dammit, I bought the first two books together (at least I had a discount). I guess I'll give book two a chance, and see if it'll grow on me.

 

[genjiglove]

I finally got to go to the comic shop Sunday for the first time in probably two months. Let me just say, Blackest Night and Green Lantern have been filled with so many nerdgasm moments I can barely take it. So awesome.

 

[poodude]

Does anyone read anything a little less mainstream? I could never really get into the DC or Marvel superhero type comics; maybe because I didn't grow up with them. I tend to like the comics you'd find in Heavy Metal magazine, or from smaller publishers.

Johnny the homicidal Maniac/Squee/Lenore
American Splendor
Valerian
anything by Moebius

 

[BryLmoo]

is anyone else here reading tony dainel's current batman arc? i'm loving the artwork... the story isn't half bad either.

 

[SouthtownKid]

Does anyone read anything a little less mainstream?

Yeah, a lot of us. There's talk of other stuff sprinkled in this thread.

Quick recap of a few of my favorite comics; stuff I like more than anything Marvel or DC have ever published:

Love & Rockets
Hugo Pratt's Corto Maltese
Richard Corben's Den
Like a Velvet Glove Cast in Iron by Dan Clowes
Tokyo Pu- by Sugimura Shinichi

 

[genjiglove]

Like a Velvet Glove Cast in Iron by Dan Clowes

I finally got around to reading that last year. I enjoyed it, but I think I need to read it again a couple times to really get it.

 

[SouthtownKid]

I finally got around to reading that last year. I enjoyed it, but I think I need to read it again a couple times to really get it.

It helps if you are into David Lynch movies.

 

[genjiglove]

It helps if you are into David Lynch movies.

Yeah, I like them but I wouldn't call myself a major fan of anything aside from Lost Highway.

 

[HeartlessNinny]

Dammit, I bought the first two books together (at least I had a discount). I guess I'll give book two a chance, and see if it'll grow on me.

Well you may as well read it. But I'd be surprised if you like it any more than the first one. Perhaps now that you know what to expect you'll be less disappointed?

 

[SouthtownKid]

I read a little Y and wasn't too impressed. Definitely not the life-changing book I was told about. Still, the concept was cool.

 

[Late]

This week, I've mostly been reading:

 

[SouthtownKid]

I just re-read Bilal's Nikopol trilogy a few weeks ago after recently renting the dvd of his own movie (loose) adaptation.

The movie was actually more enjoyable than I was expecting, although the CG characters were not the slightest bit convincing. Still cool he directed it himself.

edit: fuck, I just went to go look through the book again right now and can't remember where I left it.

 

[aria]

Well you may as well read it. But I'd be surprised if you like it any more than the first one. Perhaps now that you know what to expect you'll be less disappointed?

I read a little Y and wasn't too impressed. Definitely not the life-changing book I was told about. Still, the concept was cool.

Yup, I barreled through the second volume (since I already had it) and realized this is just too flawed to warrant any further interest.

Here's one of the main issues: the protagonist is simply too dumb, infantile and smug to feel any empathy for. There's a moment in volume 2 where [Minor Spoiler] he finds that a woman he's falling and her town that saved him are all former prisoners, then he starts railing like a madman in the very next scene[/minor scene]. I can't tell if it was supposed to be funny or something the expect the audience to relate to, but it just didn't work.[/spoiler]

People react as though the cataclysm years, not just several weeks.

Also, I know a lot about international relations, its a hobby for me, and something I read up on a frequently (doesn't hurt that it was my degree and a focus in law school). While I'm always willing to forgive a comic writer for not portraying a realistic scenario (i.e. a US-China nuclear conflict or something nonsensical), as long as they make some effort I don't mind. The writers of Y come off almost like Roland Emmerich: someone who reads a factoid somewhere, comes up with something with an interesting concept, and then fouls it ho-hum writing. Now, its not quite as stupid as an Emmerich film, but close enough that I'm no longer interested in finishing the story. This story is sort of post-apocalyptic,

It also doesn't help that the last thing I read was World War Z, which did a much better job of portraying a post-apocalyptic scenario and guessing how the real world would cope.

Sigh.

So anyone have any recommendations for a rebound? I enjoy post-apocalyptic stuff, and it can range (in other mediums) to things like Children of Men, The Road, World War Z --to an extent even Nausicaa.

 

[HeartlessNinny]

So anyone have any recommendations for a rebound? I enjoy post-apocalyptic stuff, and it can range (in other mediums) to things like Children of Men, The Road, World War Z --to an extent even Nausicaa.

Sorry man, I can't think of any good post-apocalyptic comics off the top of my head besides Punisher: The End (which you were unfairly critical of, if I recall ). Hopefully STK will save the day.

I totally agree with you about Y, by the way. Yorick is an infuriating dumbass, to say the least, and he never really got more sympathetic to me. And man, you should have seen the nonsense Vaughn spewed about the cause of the genercide... Oy. That was tough to swallow.

On top of that, and no slight against women (who I'm sure would get by well enough without us — better than we would without them) , but I'm pretty sure more of the world would fall apart if all the males of every species died. The ecosystem would collapse, for fuck's sake... That's not something you bounce back from in 2 years.

EDIT: You know, I'm thinking of echoing Taiso's suggestion — buy Scott Pilgrim — just since it would be a good palate cleanser. You have all the pretense of a hipster kid, but it makes fun of itself rather than being deadly serious, and the references are pretty funny (Scott's band is called Sex Bob-omb). Read the first 8-10 pages in the store, and if you like that, I say go for it. It'll perk ya right up (does for me, every time).

 

[SouthtownKid]

I dunno. I'm not a big post-apocalyptic kind of guy. I think I've seen too much of it for it to still hold a lot of interest for me. Nausica was great, but was kind of a unique case. Miyazaki really built a cohesive and fleshed out world. Most people just put one fresh coat of paint over Road Warrior and call it a day.

 

[Taiso]

The Walking Dead.

Unless you're specifically asking for a story about a world putting the pieces back together after said apocalypse.

Then, um...I don't know.

If you haven't read Top Ten, that's worth a look. Not post apocalyptic, but very good.

And SCOTT PILGRIM!

 

[aria]

I dunno. I'm not a big post-apocalyptic kind of guy. I think I've seen too much of it for it to still hold a lot of interest for me. Nausica was great, but was kind of a unique case. Miyazaki really built a cohesive and fleshed out world. Most people just put one fresh coat of paint over Road Warrior and call it a day.

Yeah, I was thinking about Nausicaa and how it was amazing, but didn't really feel like post-apocalyptic stories.

Those two movies based on books were excellent in shaking things up. Actually, now that I think of it, Children of Men has stuff in common with Y, but its pulled off a lot better.

 

[Hikaru Ichijyo]

Here's my pull/haul for the week of Feb 24 2010....

Blackest Night #7
Gotham City Sirens #9
Image United #0
Justice Society of America #36
Wonder Woman #41 (yeah I read WW! )
Superman #697
Flash: Rebirth #6
Blackest Night: JSA #3
Batman and Robin #9
Green Arrow #30 (Blackest Night Tie-In)

Dropped by a Half-Price Books after dinner and found a couple of comics there as well...

Action Comics #775
B.P.R.D. Night Train (written by Geoff Johns, art by Scott Kolins)

I have no idea how to tell if the Action is a first or second printing. I've heard from several people it's a fantastic story. I also had no idea Johns did an issue of B.P.R.D.

Most of my pulls every week are very DC heavy and have been for years. The last couple of Marvel books I picked up every month were New Avengers and Ms. Marvel and I dropped both of those at issue #'s 50 and 25 respectively. I was on board for events like House of M and Civil War but couldn't be arsed to pick up anything for Secret Invasion or Dark Reign. I am getting Siege, though just the main mini since it's only 4 issues and I MIGHT get the new Avengers book after this is all said and done.

Back over to DC, Blackest Night has been enjoyable and entertaining. Outside of the gore-porn that occasionally pops up, I am seldom disappointed by John's work. I've not experienced "event fatigue" from Blackest Night thankfully and while it doesn't fully feel "epic" to me like the original CoIE was, it's head and shoulders above the convoluted mess known as Final Crisis that Morrison shat out last year.

Overall, a lot of the DC stuff has been very enjoyable and satisfying. Action, Adventure, Superman, Green Lantern & Green Lantern Corps, Gotham City Sirens, Batman: Streets of Gotham, and occasionally Detective have all been very good.

 

[genjiglove]

I didn't know a new Blackest Night came out today, I will be up there tomorrow to buy it. I'm obsessed with this book right now.

 

[HeartlessNinny]

I didn't know a new Blackest Night came out today, I will be up there tomorrow to buy it. I'm obsessed with this book right now.

All I'll say is that you won't be disappointed with this one. It's probably the best 'big event' book I've ever read. My only real beef is how much important shit happens in tie-ins, but I read those anyway (normally I wouldn't, but they're all be fantastic creative teams this time round — Flash BN and Wonder Woman BN were pretty great, and Starman 81 was awesome).

Back to Bobak's request: Taiso is right, Walking Dead is pretty solid and it's a good portrayal of a world gone down the tubes. I love a good post-apocalyptic story, and I found that Y didn't really give it to me. So if you want to see some fucked up shit, give Walking Dead a try. It's actually more of a post-apocalypse story than a zombie story, I'd say.

But be warned: some people sing its praises endlessly, but there are some significant flaws. For one, the characters can be a little wooden at times, and Kirkman has the occasional tin ear for dialogue. The pacing really slows to a crawl about 25 or 30 issues in, if you hang in there. But overall it's a great book and worth reading.

Give the first trade a go. It's at a discounted price to entice you.

 

[HeartlessNinny]

post

Man, Detective has occasionally been good..!? What are you, nuts? The Rucka/Williams Batwoman has been absolutely stellar. You're selling it short, my friend.

And as for that pull list... Man. How can someone with otherwise good taste also get Image United? That's shit on a page if I ever saw it. Ugh. (I get all the stuff on your list too, except that and Green Arrow. Good comics, all.)

 

[SouthtownKid]

Rucka/JHW3 Detective starring Batwoman is the best thing DC is currently publishing, barring NOTHING. I haven't read the fill-in issue by Jock yet, but all the issues Williams 3 drew (#854-860) were fucking phenomenal. Great story, extremely well-told, great characters, and amazing art, the style of which shifts with the different eras of Kate's life. The amount of thought Williams 3 puts into each page of art -- not just the draftmanship, but the design work -- is staggering.

To anyone who still has the slightest interest in any kind of super-hero story at all, I highly recommend Detective Comics #854-860.

 

[HeartlessNinny]

Rucka/JHW3 Detective starring Batwoman is the best thing DC is currently publishing, barring NOTHING. I haven't read the fill-in issue by Jock yet, but all the issues Williams 3 drew (#854-860) were fucking phenomenal. Great story, extremely well-told, great characters, and amazing art, the style of which shifts with the different eras of Kate's life. The amount of thought Williams 3 puts into each page of art -- not just the draftmanship, but the design work -- is staggering.

To anyone who still has the slightest interest in any kind of super-hero story at all, I highly recommend Detective Comics #854-860.

Couldn't agree more. The only thing I'd add is that the Jock fill-in was really solid.

I'm annoyed that the team is taking a two issue hiatus, but I can deal with it if JH needs more time to draw those gorgeous pages. Both members of that creative team are doing the best work of their careers, and it's not like they've been putting out a lot of junk until now.

 

[Taiso]

The layouts for the Rucka/Williams run on Detective are unlike anything I've seen since Matt Wagner's Grendel: Devil By The Deed. There's some standard sequential stuff but there are some beautiful spreads that look like nothing so much as stained glass art.

The writing's been pretty good, too. Defiinitely a great read.