posted
I'll come back and fill my reasonings in a bit more later, hopefully:
10: Doug Monech's Spectre: I really have a soft spot for those early issues. It went to pot after the cast expanded, but I thought there was such great subtext and exploration of Corrigan/Spectre
9: From Hell: Still breathtaking in scope and vision.
8: John's JSA: It was a great, fun revival of a great team. This is what Superhero comics should be.
7: Batman and the Outsiders (1st series): I include just about everything up until bats left. I was surprised to find how much I liked these characters, not just Batman. Of course, I couldn't get the Baxter series where I lived, so this run ended too soon for me.
6: Aparo's Brave and the Bold: The only entry here solely for the art. When I think of my childhood reading comics, Aparo is where it all starts and ends.
5: Sandman - 'nuff said
4: Ostrander's Suicide Squad - I always had trouble waiting for the next issue, this series was like crack.
3: Levitz's LSH run from Annual# through the end of Tales. Words fail me.
2: Shade the Changing Man - already talked about in this thread.
1: Moore's Swamp Thing: Still THE seminal comic series in my mind. Just beautiful literature and completely transformative in my pre-teen and teenaged years.
From: Moncton, New Brunswick, Canada | Registered: Sep 2004
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posted
Y'know, Sandman would probably be number 11 or 12 on my list--just on the outside looking in. Why didn't it make it? I guess it just came down to it just not feeling as personal to me than the ones that made it. Does that make any sense?
Let me try to explain. Sandman wasn't necessarily so much about Morpheus as it was about the people whose lives he touched or affected. Oh, there were definitely some beauts like Matthew, Hob Gadling (I'd buy a Gaiman-written series about him!), Nuala and countless others. But Morpheus himself wasn't all that interesting to me. I understand that that's how he was supposed to be as a being having no dreams of his own, and I know he wasn't completely without character development. But ultimately, it's the characters featured in a comic every month that make the biggest impression on me and endear me to the series, so that's what made Sandman fall a little short for me. Every comic I listed had main characters that connected with me in some way.
Again, Sandman is an outstanding body of work that I will always treasure. The stories are almost second to none. But I've learned that it's character that I connect to above all else, and those ten satisfied that need for me moreso.
quote:Originally posted by cleome: I'm telling you, Lard Lad, that what this board needs is our own version of Dylan Horrocks' library from his Hicksville graphic novel. One of you old-timers could pick a central locale for it, designate a librarian (or the board could elect one) and then the rest of us poor deprived saps could pay some kind of minor fee to make pilgrimages there once a year;Or more, time permitting.
I'd love if we could have an ocean and a lighthouse, too;Just like in the original. But deep down I don't care if it's just off some highway in Indiana with nothing but abandoned strip malls and rusted autos. I'd still show up.
Not familiar with Horrocks, but it sounds trippy, Clee! I vote for our resident librarian, Rockhopper Lad, to make it so!
-------------------- "Suck it, depressos!"--M. Lash
From: The Underbelly of Society | Registered: Jul 2003
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quote:Originally posted by DrakeB3004: Favorite runs: 1) ZOT! - McCloud
Y'know, Drake, I've heard ZOT! mentioned a lot but have never had any idea what it was all about. Wanna save me a Wikipedia entry and gimme a capsule of ZOT!-ness?
-------------------- "Suck it, depressos!"--M. Lash
From: The Underbelly of Society | Registered: Jul 2003
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cleome46
or you can do the confusion 'til your head falls off
posted
I dunno', Lardy. Even in prosperous times, could we really afford to pay Rockhopper what he's worth ? And what if the penguins don't want to relocate ?
Hicksville is a fictional town in New Zealand that's a sort of mecca for those who make comics and those who love them. A local guy named Kupe runs the lighthouse, fishes and maintains a library that has every never-published dream sequential project done by Kurtzman, Kirby, and even Picasso/Lorca ! Everyone in town loves comics and collects them, and at parties you'll find burly fishermen arguing over whether Herriman is cooler than Argones, etc. (In the way that at most parties, everyone is arguing about sports.)
Needless to say, I own both the original comics and the collection, and I adore them. I'm not really in a position to make up a Top Ten list, but all of the source comic for the novel: Pickle, would have to be part of it.
-------------------- Hey, Kids! My "Cranky and Kitschy" collage art is now viewable on flickr. Drop by and tell me that I sent you.
From: Vanity, OR | Registered: Dec 2008
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quote:Originally posted by Stealth: What keeps me from nominating the entire Levitz run is Keith Giffen. It's well known at Legion World that I hate Keith Giffen. His artistic sensibilities, his sense of humor, his philosophy, everything about him is off-putting to me. The only Levitz/Giffen arcs I like are The Great Darkness Saga and The Legion of Super-Villains Saga; the former is lightning in a bottle, and the latter benefits immensely from Steve Lightle pencilling more than half the story over Giffen's breakdowns, and even then there's "Giffen-isms" that make me cringe, like the graphic intensity of the violence inflicted on Karate Kid, and the scene where one of the villains burns a servant girl to death. It's interesting that Lardy's cutoff point is the end of the Conspiracy arc. At one time, I would have felt the same, but IMO Conspiracy gets worse with each re-reading, and not just because Giffen drew the conclusion; however, I think if Greg LaRocque had drawn the entire arc, it might have risen above its flaws, the way that I believe the Lightning Lad/Luck Lords story rose above its flaws thanks to LaRocque (and, credit where credit is due, some of the flashback-drawing guest artists, especially Grell, Swan, and Shaffenberger.)
I included up to 50 because I thought it really rescued "Conspiracy" with some "wow" factor! I mean Time Trapper v. Infinite Man? Gnarly! Yeah, the buildup was murky at best, but I liked that ending...a lot!
On the other hand, there was very little to like at all about 51-63. "Magic Wars" has to be my least favorite Legion story of all time! And everything leading up to it was basically unreadable.
quote:Rather than going on another anti-Giffen rant, I'll offer a constructive comparison: TMK is to Legion as Harras/Epting is to Avengers -- both dark and edgy re-imaginings of venerable superhero teams, both controversial, both weak sellers, and both with passionate defenders who have earned these runs cult followings. So I can see where Lardy's coming from, even though I hate TMK and love Harras/Epting.
That's a nice, even way to put it. I've found recently that a lot of 5YL detractors have softened on their verbiage a lot in recent years, and it's appreciated.
Harras's Avengers was dark? That's intriguing!
quote: It's taken me a very long time to appreciate Starman. When it first came out, I was immediately put off by the slow pace, the stylized art, and the attitude of the lead character, who seemed to embody everything I hated about my own generation, so I stopped reading it almost immediately. Had I known that Jack would undergo such an evolution over the course of the series, I would have given it another chance. It truly is richly detailed, heart-felt, ground-breaking stuff. That said, I still have some problems with it, chiefly the way Robinson idealizes my grandparents' generation, but then, I was never close to any of my grandparents, so my viewpoint is a bit skewed.
True, there has been a lot of idealizing of "the greatest generation" in all media. I think Robinson mixed some counterpoint in there, though, with the Ragdoll atory and elsewhere. I think he humanized Ted Knight pretty well.
Jack definitely evolved over the series and got more and more likeable.
quote: Claremont, IMO, really shined on the self-contained stories, the annuals, specials, and one-shots, but as the writer of an ongoing series he left a lot to be desired in terms of month-in-month out consistency. I should add that I came to the X-Men just as Claremont had one foot out the door, so I missed out on the "in-the-moment" thrills that might have made me more forgiving of his flaws. Lardy, have you read the apogee of the post-Claremont X-Men, The X-Cutioner's Song? Because I think that was brilliant, and should have been the start of a new age of glory for the X-Men, instead of the lightning in a bottle that it proved to be in the long run.
I definitely read X-Cutioner's Song as I was still a regular X-patron at the time. It must not have made any kind of impression on me as I can recall no real details of it. Didn't it involve the Stryfe/Cable thing? It's possible I was too burned out on crossovers by that time that I didn't give it a fair chance. Care to share some thoughts about what made it so great for you?
quote:I agree heartily with almost everything Lardy says about Simonson's Thor, and although I like Kirby better than him, I think Simonson achieved the near-impossible feat of actually improving on the Lee/Kirby Thor! That may sound like sacrilege, but that's what I believe! And there's no question that Simonson's run has proven an impossible act to follow, much as I believe the Lee/Kirby Fantastic Four may be an impossible act to follow (the one who came closest to equalling them of FF was IMO none other than Simonson.)
I haven't read Lee/Kirby Thor, but I can't imagine I'd like it more than what Simonson did. I really miss Walt being an active creator...
(LOVED Simonson's FF, too, btw!)
-------------------- "Suck it, depressos!"--M. Lash
From: The Underbelly of Society | Registered: Jul 2003
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quote:Originally posted by dedman: 1) ROM Spaceknight #1-52 - My favorite series of all time and this run is the vast majority of the series. After this point its "Total War" and ROM main enemy are eliminated. The series meandered along for another 2 years but without the Evil Dire Wraiths around it just wasn't the same
ROM--kewlest book no one ever talks about? I've never read a page of it except, I think, the last issue which was a Secret Wars II crossover. Who wrote ROM? Was it one writer sticking with it thru that whole run? I remember hearing some whispers back in the day about it being good. Could you share a little more?
quote:3)Astro City: Family Album - I've really liked all the Astro City trades I've read, but this one really sticks out for me as to what it is like to be a hero and yet try to raise a family
The entirety of AC made my master list. My favorite individual arc was the Steeljacket arc, but I've always loved the AC world, Busiek's writing on it (easily his best work) and Brent Anderson's terrific art. I think the erratic publishing probably hurt it making the Top Ten.
quote:4)LSH (Levitz run) - Ok I'm going to qualify this by adding that its up to giffens return with his puffy lip and 200 pockets and pouchs style. That art style just didn't look good with this version of the legion. This run contains many of my favorite story arcs and is what made it my favorite comic (next to ROM).
How can it be second-fave if it's number 4, pal?
quote:5) The Authority (Under New Management) - A superhero team that didn't give a rat's @$$ about what anyone thought as long as they got the job done...and KNEW they had the power to do it. Although many Authority stories have fallen flat for me, this one was firing on all cylinders, great story all around.
Is this the Millar/Quitely run or the Morrison/Hitch run? Some other run? I haven't read any Authority, so I'm a little curious.
quote:6) Marshal Law (Fear and Loathing) - Its crass, vulgar, ultra violent and yet a hilarious take on superheroes. Even all these years later I'm not sure if it was meant to be a spoof of "serious" comics (though there are characters who are obvious send-ups).
"Crass"? "Vulgar"? "Ultra-violent"? Sounds like fun!
quote:7) ok i only have 6 for the list.
Aw!
-------------------- "Suck it, depressos!"--M. Lash
From: The Underbelly of Society | Registered: Jul 2003
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quote:Originally posted by rouge: 8: John's JSA: It was a great, fun revival of a great team. This is what Superhero comics should be.
7: Batman and the Outsiders (1st series): I include just about everything up until bats left. I was surprised to find how much I liked these characters, not just Batman. Of course, I couldn't get the Baxter series where I lived, so this run ended too soon for me.
6: Aparo's Brave and the Bold: The only entry here solely for the art. When I think of my childhood reading comics, Aparo is where it all starts and ends.
4: Ostrander's Suicide Squad - I always had trouble waiting for the next issue, this series was like crack.
1: Moore's Swamp Thing: Still THE seminal comic series in my mind. Just beautiful literature and completely transformative in my pre-teen and teenaged years.
These are all somewhere in my Top 50. I'll have to give more thought to why they missed the Top Ten.
quote:Originally posted by LardLad: Harras's Avengers was dark? That's intriguing!
Shameless Plug alert! Now might be a good time to re-read Pages 8 through 10 of the All Avengers Thread, where I reviewed the Harras era in detail. End Shameless Plug
Even though the only issues collected are those which tie into Operation: Galactic Storm (two volumes, absolute must-haves), the rest of the issues are cheap and well worth acquiring -- the only ones to skip are the fill-ins: # 340, 352-354, and 370-371.
quote:Originally posted by LardLad: True, there has been a lot of idealizing of "the greatest generation" in all media. I think Robinson mixed some counterpoint in there, though, with the Ragdoll atory and elsewhere. I think he humanized Ted Knight pretty well.
Ted was definitely a fully-rounded character. But the Ragdoll story felt to me like an isolated incident; even though I think Watchmen is overrated, I do feel that Moore did a far better job than Robinson at showing both the best and worst of that generation.
quote:Originally posted by LardLad: I definitely read X-Cutioner's Song as I was still a regular X-patron at the time. It must not have made any kind of impression on me as I can recall no real details of it. Didn't it involve the Stryfe/Cable thing? It's possible I was too burned out on crossovers by that time that I didn't give it a fair chance. Care to share some thoughts about what made it so great for you?
To me, it was a sizzling good action tale which also communicated the rage of my then-teenage generation far better than any lame grunge anthem ever did. It was beautifully structured and all the beats were perfectly timed, thanks to Nicieza being in the drivers' seat instead of Liefeld & Lee & Portacio, none of whom could plot their way out of a paper bag. And even though it was overflowing with characters, they all served a purpose and they all acted like themselves. Best of all, the odious Cable died...*cough*...well, temporarily, at least. I think of The X-Cutioner's Song as the Anti-Maximum Carnage -- the former stands the test of time, the latter was lame even back in the day.
quote:Originally posted by rouge: 10: Doug Monech's Spectre: I really have a soft spot for those early issues. It went to pot after the cast expanded, but I thought there was such great subtext and exploration of Corrigan/Spectre
I remember taking long looks at the covers to that series but never picked it up. What issues comprised Moench's run? As one of the more under-the-radar titles mentioned here, I'd appreciate it if you told us a little about it.
quote:9: From Hell: Still breathtaking in scope and vision.
Never read it, though I've heard it's an essential Moore work. Was this originally published as a GN, series or miniseries?
quote:8: John's JSA: It was a great, fun revival of a great team. This is what Superhero comics should be.
Yes, very enjoyable. I'm not sure it'll ever be in my Top Ten or Top Twenty though. As consistently entertaining as it was, maybe it's just that there weren't enough "big" moments. For instance, I always thought Atom Smasher should've died at the end of Dark Reign. When I turned the page and found out Albert actually hadn't died, it felt like a cop-out. I have nothing against the character, but his dying there felt so "right" in the story's context. I dunno. I do love me some Johns JSA, though.
quote:7: Batman and the Outsiders (1st series): I include just about everything up until bats left. I was surprised to find how much I liked these characters, not just Batman. Of course, I couldn't get the Baxter series where I lived, so this run ended too soon for me.
Never read BatO. Did you eventually, later, pick up the back issues to see what happened next?
quote:6: Aparo's Brave and the Bold: The only entry here solely for the art. When I think of my childhood reading comics, Aparo is where it all starts and ends.
I'd never choose one just for the art, but as I recall, there were some pretty great stories interspersed in there. As a kid, I loved B&B and DC Comics Presents and how they gave me the opportunity to meet lots and lots of characters, month in and month out. And of course, these titles embodied the art of the done-in-one story that was the norm back then.
quote:4: Ostrander's Suicide Squad - I always had trouble waiting for the next issue, this series was like crack.
Wonderful, wonderful crack! *shlkurp*
I actually forgot about this one when compiling my possibles. Wouldn't have made my Top Ten anyway, but that series is definitely held in high regard for me. Boomerbutt, the Wall, etc. are all much missed in that great mix.
quote:1: Moore's Swamp Thing: Still THE seminal comic series in my mind. Just beautiful literature and completely transformative in my pre-teen and teenaged years.
This is definitely on my list of runs to buy in trade form. I've read the first 20 or so issues as B&W reprints, and they are beyond excellent. I look forward to reading the whole thing.
-------------------- "Suck it, depressos!"--M. Lash
From: The Underbelly of Society | Registered: Jul 2003
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I’m having trouble coming up with my top 10. For instance, I love Avengers runs by Harris/Epting (essentially my ‘welcome to the modern age of comics, Cobie’), by Roger Stern (arguably the best written in its history) and Steve Englehart (which just has an ‘oomph’ that might make it my fave), but I certainly can’t include all three in my top ten. Not when there are so many other great runs that stand so firmly in my mind. I’m having even more trouble with Spider-Man—Ditko and Romita Sr.’s runs must be on my list. But it’ll be hard not having Stern/Romita Jr. on there, which probably won’t make the cut.
Starman – I do think an important thing Robinson did was a ‘duel’ revelatory commentary on the two generations he spent the most time on. Jack Knight begins as the typical member of Lardy/Stealth/my generation (even if I’m a little younger, it sure still felt like my generation), and as the series goes on, he evolves into a mature, heroic and good human being, albeit very unique, with different points of view and perspectives but still quite heroic in his own way. Ted Knight also begins slightly ‘flat’ in character, the typical Golden Age hero with an immensely iconic heroic status yet without as much real depth—and Robinson evolves him too throughout the series. But this isn’t in a bad way, and in fact, what Robinson does is quite brilliant, using what I like to call the ‘Tolstoy formula’. He takes the idea of the ‘Greatest Generation / Greatest Age of Heroes’ and strips it down to make it much more real and honest, to really show what it was all about, including the flaws, bad things, and real human elements. And through that, he is able to provide some very real and true glimpses into heroism, and even super-heroism. Lardy’s mentioning of Ragdoll is a good one (though I believe it happens in 1980?); particularly because its where Starman (Ted) asks for help from his peers rather than try to defeat Ragdoll himself. The iconic Golden Ager, whose status has developed quite unrealistically over the decades, would simply have rushed in there and beat the bad guy; here, Starman is much more human and realizes if he really wants to be a smart hero, he needs to realize he needs help. It was subtle and well done.
Avengers – Lardy, you MUST check out the Bob Harras/Steve Epting run. I’ve had so much fun talking to Stealth about it these last few years, as it also holds such a place in my heart. It’s the first ‘modern’ comic I read off the stands, rather than read old back-issues of the Silver Age Marvel, which is what I basically did the first several years I read comics. I wrote Bob Harass a letter when I was like 12-13.
Thor – Simonsin’s run really was something, wasn’t it? I just reread most of it this past summer. When I was 16, I read the entire Thor run from his first appearance to his then most recent (the Deodato run). But still, I think the Kirby Thor run is probably the best ever on the comic, and probably Kirby’s best work outside of his Fantastic Four run. Actually, its not really fair to compare both—they are both excellent and Simonsin was doing the impossible: creating a run of equal quality to Kirby without rehashing his old plots (which Marvel basically did all the years in between, and which they have done all the years since to both creator’s runs).
Legion – I would also put the Conspiracy storyline as the last great Levitz run. I also dislike Magic Wars quite a lot.
ROM – like Lardy, I need to check it out!
Zot! – like Lardy, I need to check it out—and also know nothing about it!
From: If you don't want my peaches, honey... | Registered: Sep 2003
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cleome46
or you can do the confusion 'til your head falls off
posted
quote:Zot! – like Lardy, I need to check it out—and also know nothing about it!
It starts out, in the color run, as very much an old-school "quirky" superhero book in the tradition of C.C. Beck and the like. There are a lot of Euro and Manga influences as well, if you know where to look. But essentially he's a rip-snortin' kid superhero from an elegantly-drawn Utopia who battles Evil-- of various types.
Zot aka Zachary comes to our Earth through a dimensional portal, looking for a mysterious key that a bunch of bad guys are also after. He meets Jenny, a normal human girl, from our Earth. Sparks fly, hijinks ensue, Doug Adams-like jokes are made. There's a whole lot of other stuff in there, too: Ruminations on mortality and the nature of art and technology. Parental expectations of various kinds. The pull between the human urge to hope and the urge to give in to disillusionment.
When the book returned as a black-and-white, it morphed steadily into a different animal. There was still Zot, the superhero, his larger-than-life-villains, his pals and the girl who loved him. But the majority of the book took place on our Earth, amongst Jenny and her friends and family. The superhero and fantasy stuff was as much a "meta" (did people say "meta" then ?) theme as it was story. How visions of escapism affected the various characters became more important than the escapist plots themselves. Oh, and there's sex and romance, too. But nothing graphic or freaky.
Sometimes the art can look rushed, and some of the issues between Zot's Earth and Jenny's (our) Earth were never resolved. Doesn't matter. If you can own it, you oughta'.
Thanks. And remember to tip your servers.
-------------------- Hey, Kids! My "Cranky and Kitschy" collage art is now viewable on flickr. Drop by and tell me that I sent you.
From: Vanity, OR | Registered: Dec 2008
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quote:Originally posted by Cobalt Kid: I’m having trouble coming up with my top 10.
Wussy! Everybody else is doin' it!
quote:For instance, I love Avengers runs by Harris/Epting (essentially my ‘welcome to the modern age of comics, Cobie’), by Roger Stern (arguably the best written in its history) and Steve Englehart (which just has an ‘oomph’ that might make it my fave), but I certainly can’t include all three in my top ten. Not when there are so many other great runs that stand so firmly in my mind. I’m having even more trouble with Spider-Man—Ditko and Romita Sr.’s runs must be on my list. But it’ll be hard not having Stern/Romita Jr. on there, which probably won’t make the cut.
I struggled with issues like that (particularly with some Spider-man runs), but I figured if one creative team wasn't clearly superior to the other, then maybe neither run really belonged on my list.
Incidentally, I very nearly put Amazing Spider-man 1-40 on my list, despite wanting to limit my runs to ones I'd bought as they happened. Yeah, it mixed Ditko and Romita, but that's exactly the sequence I read them reprinted in Marvel Tales before it stopped reprinting Amazing. I'm not the most Silver Agey guy, but I'd put Amazing 1-40 and Legions run on Adventure as my number one and two very favorites.
quote:Starman – I do think an important thing Robinson did was a ‘duel’ revelatory commentary on the two generations he spent the most time on. Jack Knight begins as the typical member of Lardy/Stealth/my generation (even if I’m a little younger, it sure still felt like my generation), and as the series goes on, he evolves into a mature, heroic and good human being, albeit very unique, with different points of view and perspectives but still quite heroic in his own way. Ted Knight also begins slightly ‘flat’ in character, the typical Golden Age hero with an immensely iconic heroic status yet without as much real depth—and Robinson evolves him too throughout the series. But this isn’t in a bad way, and in fact, what Robinson does is quite brilliant, using what I like to call the ‘Tolstoy formula’. He takes the idea of the ‘Greatest Generation / Greatest Age of Heroes’ and strips it down to make it much more real and honest, to really show what it was all about, including the flaws, bad things, and real human elements. And through that, he is able to provide some very real and true glimpses into heroism, and even super-heroism. Lardy’s mentioning of Ragdoll is a good one (though I believe it happens in 1980?); particularly because its where Starman (Ted) asks for help from his peers rather than try to defeat Ragdoll himself. The iconic Golden Ager, whose status has developed quite unrealistically over the decades, would simply have rushed in there and beat the bad guy; here, Starman is much more human and realizes if he really wants to be a smart hero, he needs to realize he needs help. It was subtle and well done.
Good observations on Ted. I loved Robinson's Ted Knight. He reminds me of my own grandfather who served in WWII and is still going in his '80s.
quote:Avengers – Lardy, you MUST check out the Bob Harras/Steve Epting run. I’ve had so much fun talking to Stealth about it these last few years, as it also holds such a place in my heart. It’s the first ‘modern’ comic I read off the stands, rather than read old back-issues of the Silver Age Marvel, which is what I basically did the first several years I read comics. I wrote Bob Harass a letter when I was like 12-13.
Okay, okay already...go ahead and ship me the whole run at your own expense, and I promise to read it ASAP. And I'm sure I'll eventually send it back!
Truly, what I remember most about that run as a non-reader was that Harras was trying to "X-Men-ize" the Avengers. Was this a fair description at all? Knowing he was the X-Men editor, it made sense at the time. Plus, I thought, "editor's-turned-writers? Two words: Howard Mackie! " (This being before The Waid and The Tomasi)
quote:Thor – Simonsin’s run really was something, wasn’t it? I just reread most of it this past summer. When I was 16, I read the entire Thor run from his first appearance to his then most recent (the Deodato run). But still, I think the Kirby Thor run is probably the best ever on the comic, and probably Kirby’s best work outside of his Fantastic Four run. Actually, its not really fair to compare both—they are both excellent and Simonsin was doing the impossible: creating a run of equal quality to Kirby without rehashing his old plots (which Marvel basically did all the years in between, and which they have done all the years since to both creator’s runs).
Again, not being a Silver Agey guy, I suspect I'd still prefer Simonson. The two items I mentioned above are the only two Silvers that were even in the conversation for me. Don't hate!
quote:Legion – I would also put the Conspiracy storyline as the last great Levitz run. I also dislike Magic Wars quite a lot.
Gawd, how many "death by keyhole" rants have I been on as a MB poster, I wonder...
-------------------- "Suck it, depressos!"--M. Lash
From: The Underbelly of Society | Registered: Jul 2003
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posted
Zot! sounded pretty good, Clee. You almost had me until....
quote:Originally posted by cleome: Oh, and there's sex and romance, too. But nothing graphic or freaky.
Buzz-Kill!
Seriously, it sounds pretty neat-o. Reading between the lines, you liked the original/color run better? It sounds more interesting when the two Earths were both prominent from what you say.
quote:Thanks. And remember to tip your servers.
Hey! Getcher OWN spot!
-------------------- "Suck it, depressos!"--M. Lash
From: The Underbelly of Society | Registered: Jul 2003
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cleome46
or you can do the confusion 'til your head falls off
posted
quote:Originally posted by LardLad: Zot! sounded pretty good, Clee. You almost had me until....
quote:Originally posted by cleome: Oh, and there's sex and romance, too. But nothing graphic or freaky.
Buzz-Kill!
I don't want to say too much, because you should read it w/o my spoilers. But there are both straight and gay characters, and issues of sexuality are more in the foreground in the later issues than in the earlier ones.
quote: Seriously, it sounds pretty neat-o. Reading between the lines, you liked the original/color run better? It sounds more interesting when the two Earths were both prominent from what you say.
Well, I prefer McCloud's work IN color, but that's just me. In Understanding Comics, he talks at length about what color conveys best versus what B&W conveys best. So my biases aren't his;In no way would I call the second run an "also-ran." Which you like better depends on whether you like action to dominate (color) or introspection to dominate (b&w). They both have something to offer, and neither is "pure" action or "pure" talking heads.
quote:...Hey! Getcher OWN spot!
Boy, I just can't please anyone this week, can I ?
-------------------- Hey, Kids! My "Cranky and Kitschy" collage art is now viewable on flickr. Drop by and tell me that I sent you.
From: Vanity, OR | Registered: Dec 2008
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posted
I'm quite sure I'm forgetting something, but I wanna give it a shot nonetheless...
1) Sandman 2) Legion 5YL - probably the run I read most often 3) Legion Levitz - most of it anyway 4) Fables - thus far. Hope they will keep up the good work. 5) John Byrnes Next Men - really loved that one, still hoping for a sequel 15 years later 6) Watchmen - maybe even better than 6th rank, but it's been years that I read it... 7) Busiek/Perez on Avengers, perfect Superhero entertainment 8) The classic Squadron Supreme ##1-12 - excellent! 9) Crossgen: Sojourn - an unfortunately unfinished fantasy masterwork 10) X-Men: Age of Apocalypse - have to confess that I'm still very fond of it, even though the ending was not as good as the beginning
There are lots of other runs I really like, like Alan Moores Wildcats, Straczynskis Supreme Power or Rising Stars but all of those started out great, but went nowhere in the end. Same goes for many X-Men or Teen Titans storylines, many of them good, most of them followed by less good ones.
Lesser known mini-series like Perez' "Sachs & Violence", Waids "Empire" or the obscure "Captain Confederacy" deserve mentioning, but didn't make the cut
From: Bamberg, Germany | Registered: Feb 2007
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It's possible I was too burned out on crossovers by that time that I didn't give it a fair chance. Care to share some thoughts about what made it so great for you?![[Frown]](frown.gif)
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" (This being before The Waid and The Tomasi)![[Hmmm?]](graemlins/hmmm.gif)
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