Tuesday, December 28, 2010

Best in 2010 cuz i said so.......

by christian: assistant to the director of special projects

the "author" aged 8

BEST ONGOING SERIES
-Scalped (w/Jason Aaron a/r.m. Guerra)
still going,still awesome.still totally heart wrenching and effed up.this series also did two of the best single issues of the year back to back!bam.
-Sweet tooth (w/a Jeff Lemire)
the book so consistently good its almost pointless to speak of.if yer reading it you know what im saying.if not READ IT NOW!treat yo self.one of my pet peeves in comics is improperly drawn guns and Jeff cant drawn a realistic gun to save his life....but i don't care!this book is good it doesnt matter and the impact and weight of the violence is still intense and gripping reading.
-Sixth Gun (w/Cullen Bunn a/Brian Hurtt)
This one snuck up on me like my wife throwing me a surprise party.it has so many of my favorite things(well maybe just a few:horror,cowboys,awesome/mythical guns and no shittyness.terrible is totally absent from THIS production.)and i had no idea it was coming and would be so darn rad. The first issue was actually a free giveaway for free comic book day last year and it knocked my socks on my ass.plot is....good for nothing gunslinger/paranormal investigator has to stop a resurrected civil war general from getting six magic guns that will allow him to rule the world,good for nothings gotta get it together and save the day.read it if you dig awesome.

BEST GRAPHIC NOVEL.....or trade,or whatever.im including reissues as well,so there.
(holy crap by the way.so many great collections came out this year it was a little crazy.my wallet is aching!!!!)

-Acme Novelty library vol.20 (w/a Chris ware)
its acme and it came out in 2010,so its one of the best.lets move on.
-Parker:The Outfit (w/a Darwyn Cooke)
its no secret that Curtis loves street level heroes and i love slightly despicable protagonists that i cant help but root for.Mr.Cooke's best work since the previous Parker adaptation.
-Scott Pilgrim vol.6 (w/a Bryan Lee O'Malley)
Great end to a phenomenal and hilarious series. there's a whole lot more substance to the Scott Pilgrim series than i initially thought. memories are strange and maybe Scott isn't the plucky and aloof wunderkid he thinks himself to be........

BEST MINI SERIES
-Bulletproof Coffin. strange in all the best ways possible
- Strange Tales 2. awesome "indie" talents running amok in the Marvel universe.MORE!
-Strange Science Fantasy (w/a scott morse)
Awe inspiring single issue stories combining all the greatest elements of pop culture into characters and then unleashing them against each other.wars of gear heads!space shoguns!answers to all mysteries!?fully painted by mr.morse with one page back ups by Paul Pope!

BEST SINGLE ISSUE
-Strange Science Fantasy #6 (w/a scott morse)the answers to everything.seriously
-Scalped #35 (w/jason aaron a/Danijel Zezelj)Scalped takes a much appreciated breather from the taught noose that is life on the "rez" and treats us to an emotional tour of an elderly couples love for each other.
-Detective Comics #859 (w/greg rucka a/j.h. williams) "the origin issue" This is an incredibly tight story! Why is Katy Kane batwoman?Why does her father help her even though she was discharged from the military? what part does "dont ask,dont tell" (but still be a complete a hole)play into her origin??? great stuff, strong characters,and j.h. has like 4 different styles he uses to showcase all the different facets of batwomans persona.my eyes are still reeling and this came out in december....of last year.

LARGEST DISSAPPOINTMENT/REALIZATION
-Kick Ass 2.so silly and sensationalized it made me realize the first series is stupid and the movie a piece of shit.
-Myself,for still reading the Walking Dead.every month for 80 months.
-Planetary finally concluding and with that,the realization that there will be no more Planetary. :(
- no volume of league of extraordinary gentlemen: century in 2010? balls.

Sunday, December 26, 2010

Liz in 2010!

At the behest of the powers that be, I have compiled a handful of appreciated titles from this past year.  Do these all fit into the categories that their listed in?  Probably not.

Best GN

  • h day (Renee French/Picturebox Publishing)
  • X'd Out (Charles Burns/Random House)
  • Guerillas (Brahm Revel/Image Comics) - I can already hear you judging me.  Liz, you say, this was a serialized comic book and we all know that when serials are collected, they are a trade paperback, not a graphic novel.  But wait!  What happens when the series gets canceled without finishing in singles?  And then!  It gets released as one complete story, in one complete graphic novel?  Huh?  What about that?  Yeah.

Best New Series

  • Chi's Sweet Home (Kanata Konami/Random House)
  • IZombie (W-Chris Roberson A-Mike Allred/DC Comics)
  • Meta 4 (Ted McKeever/Image Comics)

Best Single Issue

  • Scalped #35 (W-Jason Aaron A-Danijel Zezelj/DC Comics)

Best Mini Series

  • Demo II (W-Brian Wood A-Becky Cloonan/DC Comics)
  • Bulletproof Coffin (W-David Hine A-Shaky Kane/Image Comics)
  • Sky Doll (Various writers and artists in the newest incarnation of Barbucci and Canepa's creation/Soleil via Marvel Comics)

Best Ongoing

  • Sweet Tooth (Jeff Lemire/DC Comics)
  • Chew (W-John Layman A-Rob Guillory/Image Comics)
  • Walking Dead (W-Robert Kirkman A-Charlie Adlard/Image Comics) - I feel obligated to insert a little addendum here for the Walking Dead.  I have been consistently reading this title since its release, on a monthly basis.  For me, its become something like that girl you just can't help calling at 3am when you're drunk, because you know she'll always answer.  Or, like a manageable heroin addiction.  Just a dose here and there.  You don't love it, but you have to do it.  You might feel a little dirty or ashamed when it's over, but it's just something that has to happen.  I can't get away from the Walking Dead.  So, while it's listed in my 'Best Ongoing' category, I may not think it's the best, exactly, but I am reading it every month and usually having a conversation about it afterward.

Nick's 2010 List

I'm glad we started up with the comic blogging again. I hope any of you out there reading this stuff enjoyed and were possibly informed by our bullshitting and ranting over the past few months. We'll try and keep it up, and, now that the holiday season is winding down, there should be more posts, more regularly. Probably.

Here are some of my favorite books of 2010. Here, also, are some other books that were released in 2010. Similar lists from different nerds will be popping up on this blog shortly.

Do all of these make sense? Were they released in 2010? Were they just released partly in 2010? Shut up, who cares:

Best Ongoing Series
  • Irredeemable (w/Mark Waid, a/Peter Krause)
  • Sweet Tooth (Jeff Lemire)
  • Rasl(Jeff Smith)
Best Graphic Novel
  • Acme Novelty (Chris Ware)
  • Revolver (Matt Kindt)
  • Pang, The Wandering Shaolin Monk (Ben Costa)
Best New Series
  • Biomega (Tsutomu Nihei)
  • Thor, The Mighty Avenger (w/Roger Langridge, a/Chris Samnee)
  • Sixth Gun(w/Cullen Brunn, a/Brian Hurtt)
Best Single Issue
  • Sweet Tooth #11: "Gonna Kill Everyone..." (Jeff Lemire)
Best Mini Series
  • Stumptown (w/Greg Rucka, a/Matthew Southworth)
  • Abe Sapien: The Abyssal Plain (w/Mignola, Arcudi, a/Peter Snejbjerg)
  • Scott Pilgrim (Brian Lee O'Malley)
Things I Was Really Looking Forward To That Ended Up Kind of Sucking
  • Incognito: Bad Influences (Ed Brubaker, what's happened to your work? Are you okay? I still believe in you.)
  • Superboy (I still don't believe Jeff Lemire actually wrote this.)
  • Daytripper (Stick to drawing, Moon/Ba.)
Books I Sincerely Meant To Read This Year But Didn't, For Whatever Reason
  • King City (Can a brother get a first issue?)
  • Joe the Barbarian
  • Morning Glories (so much hype!)
Biggest "Aw, Shit" Disappointment of 2010
  • Unknown Solider Getting Canceled by DC/Vertigo
Biggest "Aw, SHIT!!!!!" Awesomeness of 2010
  • Planetary #27 and the Conclusion of One of the Best Series of All Time




Sunday, December 12, 2010

Acme Novelty Library #20

















Written and Drawn and Everything'd by Chris Ware

There's almost no point in reviewing some books. Every month we have the same conversation about some titles, some authors. It goes something like:

Counter Boy #1: (monotone, eyelids half closed) Hey, dude. Did you read the new Sweet Tooth?

Counter Boy #2: (yawning, shoulders drooped) Yeah, it was amazing. Like usual. Who gives a shit.

Counter Boy #1: I agree. It pretty much changed my life. What a fucking shocker.

This probably is a troubling indicator of how jaded and broken we are as human beings, but it does raise a valid(ish) point. Some creators are so good, some titles are so consistently fantastic, that reviewing them either casually or via blog is almost a redundant, needless exercise.

Chris Ware is ABSOLUTELY one of those creators. A new Acme Novelty Library is an Event for me and my peers. So, all that being said, here are my bullet point, redundant, needless-yet-still-true thoughts on the new piece of brilliance from Chris Ware, in no particular order:
  • Anyone who reads Chris Ware should contact three friends before hand to let them know. They should check on you periodically for the next week to fifteen days to make sure you're okay.
  • Amazing. Best yet? Maybe maybe maybe.
  • Main character not a sad sack, pathetic loser: he's a blow hard pathetic loser. What a difference! Seriously!
  • Panels are UNBELIEVABLY well done. Even for Chris Ware. Expresses birth and coming to consciousness as a human in a way that could only be done in a comic book. Shit.
  • This is part of a larger work. When can I read the whole thing? From start to finish? WHEN?!?
  • The binding and printing of this book is gorgeous. BUT, it's been pointed out to me: you can't roll a joint on this book. Cloth inlay.
  • This is a comic book!
  • I didn't cry. I swear I didn't cry. I didn't.
Sixteen out of Sixteen painful moments of self-realization while reading Acme Novelty Library #20.

Thursday, December 9, 2010

TRON:Betrayal



TRON: Betrayal
w - Jai Nitz a - Jeff Matsuda & Andie Tong
Yeesh! I'm in the middle of a full blown TRON flip out and this book ain't helping me break out of it!This book is the bridge between the original 1982 film and the upcoming sequel TRON: legacy (have you heard of this? yeah! there's a TRON sequel on the way!) WAIT! if you have not seen the original TRON then put TRON in the old dvd player, take of yer thinkin cap,but on your eyeglasses of visual awe and get ready for a great ride.The story explains some events that are only hinted at in the trailer so i'll try not to spoil it.......too much. Kevin Flynn (jeff "the Dude"bridges) has a baby on the way and is the new CEO of software mega-corp, Encom and has a little to many responsiblities on his plate. In addition, he is making major breakthroughs in the development of his world/society within the computer called "the grid."To maintain productivity in all areas of his life and be a good family man, Flynn attempts the impossible.......to make a perfect replica of himself within the computer to oversee "the grid." When this is a success and the replica,dubbed CLU begins to think for himself things get a little dire.
I thought this comic was pretty sweet.its hard for me to set aside my over enthusiasm for TRON and assess the comics strengths and weaknesses but it provided awesome answers to some burning questions i had for the sequel.The art makes the grid look cool as hell and thats mostly what i want from all things TRON. I dont need great characters are strong plot,i just want the world in the computer to look as awesome as possible and with as many light cycles as the frame can hold.Will the TRON:legacy be rad? i dunno.......im sure the acting will be blah,the plot dismissable but the grid will look effin' amazing!!!!! Check it out if wanna be totally in the know when TRON:Legacy drops in theateres Dec.17th.

3.5 out of 5 phenomenal and genre re-difining films released in 1982 there were overlooked and are now classics!!!! (Blade Runner,Conan the Barbarian,John Carpenter's The Thing,and....... Megaforce)

7 Billion Needles

by Nobuaki Tadano





















An anti-social high school girl on a field trip gets decimated by the brightest light she's ever seen, like she really gets destroyed.  That's her skeleton on the cover there.  Flash forward.  She's back in school with her headphones on staring out the window, bored to death (no pun here) in class.  A voice inside her head tells her that she is now a host (unwilling, to say the least) to an alien life form, and that it is here to save the world from another of it's kind.  She eventually accepts her destiny and seeks out the bad guy.  Sweet battles ensue and she loses a few body parts.  Luckily, she can just pop them back into place.  Thanks alien life form!  I'm curious to see how the story progresses.  The art is great and the story is good enough to keep me interested.  This comic is loosely based on the novel 'Needle' by Hal Clement from 1950.

7 (billion) out of 10 needles.