COMICS!!!!!

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COMICS!!!!!

(41 posts) (17 voices)

Started 3 months ago by The_Fresh_Pen
Latest reply from Ed Gamble

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The_Fresh_Pen
Member

Having had as cursory flick through the forum, I noticed that there was no dedicated comics thread.
Well, no more. Not in my name.
Here are some comics that I like. Feel utterly free to add some that you think I might like or that other might also like.
Also you can discuss any comics you have read recently.
Anyhoo, here are the comics that I'm currently reading/have read/intend to read.

Transmetropolitan
The Walking Dead
The Goon
Invincible
100 Bullets
Astonishing X-Men
Preacher
Girls

There's more but I don't want to look like a massive geek in front of all you massive geeks.

Discuss...

Posted 3 months ago #
A Predator
Member

Transmetropolitan is my favourite comic series of all time by a long long way, I love pretty much everything by Warren Ellis.

Others I really enjoy are Hellblazer, Merican Splendor, Spiderman though he has been butchered many times by many writers, including graphic novels Watchmen was great as was Ghost World.

Does Manga count too? Have more to add if so.

Posted 3 months ago #
AlbertTatlock
Member

Hold on, Warren Ellis, the guy from the Bad Seeds and Grinderman? He writes comics too?

Posted 3 months ago #
Ray Peacock
Administrator

I am currently undertaking the X-Men challenge, which is to read the complete Ultimate X-Men before Ed gets here at half one tomorrow.

For more recommendations then on the shelf behind me in my office right now (with my personal marks out of 10) are:

From Hell (10)
Powers (9)
The Walking Dead (8)
Y: The Last Man (8)
Preacher (8)
Marvel Noir: Spider-Man (10)
Marvel noir: DareDevil (10)
Black Hole (8)
Kick Ass (10)
The Killing Joke (9)
Joker (9)
Saga of the Swamp Thing (8)

Posted 3 months ago #
The_Fresh_Pen
Member

A Predator - Yeah I guess Manga counts as comics. I know nothing about it/them having only read 4 Oldboys and Scott Pilgrim, (which almost definitely doesn't count as actual manga). If you think you can broaden my horizons then do leave some recommendations.

Ray - Good list. Although Powers never hooked me in, I gave up after book 4 or 5. Same with Ultimate X-Men, I've got 16 of them but the only bit that sticks in my mind is the one shot by Bendis where a kid gets catastrophic powers and Wolverine has to go and sort him out. To my shame I haven't read much Alan Moore stuff, something I've been meaning to rectify for a while now.

If I could recommend only 2 funny books from my list then it'd have to be Transmetropolitan and The Goon. The Goon starts off a bit shaky and throwaway but has now developed into a wonderful and genuinely unique title. Transmet is just an incredible body of writing. Truly inspiring stuff.

Posted 3 months ago #
Flinto
Member

I only recently started reading comics, but Watchmen is one of the best things I've ever read.

Has anyone read any Priest? I saw a trailer for the film version last night and it looks ace, though I understand the two have very little in common other than featuring priests with crucifixes tattooed on their faces and demons and cowboys.

Can anyone give me a good idea of where to start with Marvel comics?

Posted 3 months ago #
The_Fresh_Pen
Member

Here's some Marvel stuff to start you off;

Joss Whedon's Astonishing X-Men
Daredevil (buy the stuff by Brian Michael Bendis)
Punisher Max (the Garth Ennis written stuff is pretty good)
Alias (nothing to do with the TV show from a whiles back)
Ultimates vol 1 and 2

Hope that helps.

Posted 3 months ago #
Ray Peacock
Administrator

Good call on that list The_Fresh_Pen...

It divides people but I would genuinely add Ultimate Spider-Man to that. Or Spider-Man: The Evil That Men Do (Kevin Smith written).

If you can only choose one then go with Daredevil by Bendis (and Brubaker has picked it up brilliantly after him)

Posted 3 months ago #
AlanMcEvoy
Member

Not a huge Comic book reader but have read Wanted and the Invincible series in the last few months. The film version of Wanted could have been ten times better if they were more faithful to the book. Would have loved to have seen Shithead on the big screen!

Posted 3 months ago #
The_Fresh_Pen
Member

I must admit I've lost my way with Marvel lately. Too many "events" for my liking. After Civil War they seemed to go a bit mental with event after event after event. I have neither the time nor money to keep up with it all.

I'm not against Ultimate Spider-man, it's just that there's such a wealth of it now that it's becoming an increasingly intimidating series to start.

My advice to Flinto is to find a group of writers that you like and follow that. Writers I tend to look out for include;

Warren Ellis (although he has a tendency to start something pretty decent then move onto something else which can be very frustrating, still waiting for Desolation Jones vol 2 a year or so on)

Garth Ennis (his best work is arguably Preacher but The Boys has been pretty good thus far)

Brian Azzarello (probably best known for 100 Bullets which started great but became so convoluted and labyrinthine that it was almost impossible to follow. Joker was effing smart though)

Robert Kirkman (some think that The Walking Dead is meandering somewhat but I still love 'em. Also check out Invincible if you're looking for something more superhero-ey)

Posted 3 months ago #
A Predator
Member

AlbertTatlock, no it's a different guy.

The_Fresh_Pen, good good, Scott Pilgrim is a strange case. As far as i can tell it's disqualified from manga status just because it isn't originally japanese, seems a bit harsh to me, either way it's an incredibly good series as is Oldboy, both made into films that shot satraight into my top 3 films of all time too. Other good manga would be Azumanga Daioh, Battle Royale, Death Note, Full Metal Alchemist and Parasyte.

Posted 3 months ago #
JimSterling
Member

I've always wanted to get into comics, but all I ever end up doing is getting Aliens ones.

Posted 3 months ago #
Flinto
Member

Good stuff one and all, thanks. Any thoughts on Iron Man?

Posted 3 months ago #
The_Fresh_Pen
Member

Think I've only read Iron Man - Extremis.
The artwork's amazing and, what d'ya know, it's only written by Warren Ellis.
Pretty certain you don't need to know much backstory other than who Iron Man is, which you probably do if you've watched either of the films.

Posted 3 months ago #
egogrenade
Member

A lot of my favourites have already been mentioned but I want to stress that Alan Moore's run on Swamp Thing is really worth a read, one of his top three works in my opinion. Just finished Marvel's Runaways and found it very enjoyable.

Also: All Star Superman 1&2 (not everything Morrison writes is like Arkham Asylum remember), Superman: Red Son, JLA: Earth 2, Batman Year One, the new-ish Captain Britain (not sure if its TPB or not), Straczynski's runs on Spiderman and Thor, Classic Deadpool (of course) and Animal Man.

That's all that comes to mind atm, as I said great things have been mentioned already in this thread.

Posted 3 months ago #
The_Fresh_Pen
Member

Yeah, I've been a bit unsure of Morrison since I read "The Filth" which I found almost incomprehensible.
I've been meaning to pick Arkham Asylum up for years.

Posted 3 months ago #
SamD
Member

Fresh-Pen: Completely agree with you on Marvel recently. Actually haven't bothered buying any for about four or five months now, have completely lost interest at the minute. They seem to be trying far too hard to make everything intertwining and complex, which just makes it difficult to keep up with everything going on. Can't be arsed with it.

As for what I have been reading lately, I stopped reading Batman stuff a couple of years ago because I was getting a bit bored of it, but about a month ago I got around to reading Batman R.I.P. and completely fell in love with it again. Thought the plot was slightly convoluted, but I really loved the artwork. Been trying to catch up with Batman and other related DC stuff since I read that, while also going back re-visiting some of my favourites (Killing Joke definitely taking pride of place).

Posted 3 months ago #
Karl_Pilkington
Member

Surprisingly overlooked on here is The Boys by Garth Ennis. Fantastic novels, with a really dark sense of humour.

Oh, and shame on you Ray for only giving Preacher 8/10. It is amazing.

Posted 3 months ago #
A Predator
Member

^ Shame on you for mentioning The Boys, useless series, don't know why Garth Ennis has gone so downhill, tis rather upsetting, he used to be great.

Posted 3 months ago #
The_Fresh_Pen
Member

I've only read the first 3 trades of The Boys but, I've got to say, I enjoyed what I read.
It does suffer from trying to be shocking for the sake of being shocking but I can forgive it that as it's a fun little read.

Posted 3 months ago #
Ray Peacock
Administrator

I will defend The Boys to the hilt - think it is a great one but I do get a little weary of Simon Pegg being "in" it.

The Marvel "Events" thing has been well tried and tested over the years but I agree that it has gotten silly at the moment, and with things like Civil War - which was spread over every title - you always feel like you're missing stuff unless you're a billionaire. I did very much like the events leading up to the ctr-alt-del of Spider-Man (or Brand New Day), but much as it pains me to say it, Amazing Spider-Man is definitely in a transitional phase at the moment. There is nothing left of the character to care about but I'll plough on with it for the time being...

And also, on the subject of Ultimate Spider-Man; The_Fresh_Pen mentioned there being so much of it, but it is eleven hardcovers with a story arc and is brilliant. I know 11 HC's is a relatively large amount, but it's not like starting from scratch with Spider-Man.

Posted 3 months ago #
Karl_Pilkington
Member

One more recommendation from me - Marvel:1602. A genuinely good idea, only spoilt by terrible sequels.

Posted 3 months ago #
Ray Peacock
Administrator

Seconded. Only read the first one but loved.

Posted 3 months ago #
tesoro007
Member

Ah ... would love to have the time (s'pose getting off the computer would help!) Used to read the Judge Dredd comics and Beano. MAD used to be good once upon a time but thought it jumped the shark in the early 1990s.

Posted 3 months ago #
Bitsy
Member

Gave up comics at the start of the year when the prices went up again, and I lost my second job.

Used to read pretty much anything X-Men.

Posted 3 months ago #
wgc sam
Member

i used to be a reader of x-men however when i started working in the bookshop i am still working in i made the transition to manga, and the 3 main series that i would recommend are 'Battle Royale' which is my favourite movie, manga and book, however is not for the feint hearted......as if there are any of on here ;) the 2nd series i would recommend would be 'Deathnote' which contains amazing storylines and is an excellent read, i dont know anyone who doesnt enjoy it, and the 3rd series i would recommend is the short but sweet 'Last Fantasy' its only 5 volumes in length but has humour, story lines and many inside jokes for anyone who is into such things as final fantasy e.t.c. all excellent reads

Posted 3 months ago #
chris
Member

Still waiting for the WATT comic by Raji. It's supposed to be about electrical devices or something, which sounds like a fresh idea and certainly better than all that american superhero shmonsense.

Posted 3 months ago #
Ed Gamble
Administrator

The Boys is awesome - doesn't have the class of Preacher but it still blows most other stuff out of the water. (8/10 for Preacher Ray...really mate...)

In terms of Ennis, can highly recommend Chronicles of Wormwood as a one off TPB (there is a very short sequel but that is not great.) The Pope is quite frankly one of my favourite characters in anything (he is Australian).

Also not sure anyone's mentioned Robert Kirkman's Invincible? That is great fun and I have thrown myself headlong into the collections of those.

Posted 3 months ago #
Ray Peacock
Administrator

Right 4/10 for Preacher now seeing as you're all going to be such pricks about it.

I have only read the first two hardbacks.

I am going to do a gig with Russell Howard now but it is a secret so mum's the word.

Posted 3 months ago #
A Predator
Member

^ Meh to you sir, the main reason i hate The Boys is it tries and fails miserably to recapture the awesomely wrong tone of Preacher. And while I'm feeling in the habit of announcing my hatred for universally loved comics, Sin City is a pile of shallow, overrated shit.

One I just picked up Yesterday and am really enjoying is volume one of Runaways, terrific so far.

Posted 3 months ago #