Every comic you've read in 2014

[Dan]

The Comic Book History of Comics (2012): This was a lot of fun. Fred Van Lente and Ryan Dunleavy (Action Philosphers) cover as much of the history of the medium as they can in roughly 300 pages, focusing primarily on the Golden and Silver Ages. Naturally, this means a lot of stuff is barely covered (manga only merits a handful of pages, most of which are devoted to Osamu Tezuka), but what's there is surprisingly well-covered. The creators are not afraid to pick sides when dealing with controversial issues, but still manage to not turn anyone into villains (Kirby's difficulties with Marvel in his later years are portrayed as being with the company itself and to a lesser extent with Martin Goodman, rather than with Stan Lee, as fans tend to simplify it, although make no mistake, they are more than happy to call Lee out for his glibness; Siegel/Shuster vs. Warner Bros. is laid out quickly and cleanly in a couple of pages, showing the very real merits of both sides' arguments; and even Wertham is treated fairly even-handedly while noting that his theories were batshit and his research methods haphazard at best and fraudulent at worst). It's not going to answer all questions, but as a primer it does a phenomenal job.

[Dread]

The Best of Pantha: The Warren Years-Dynamite puts together a gorgeous hardcover. I'll review it proper in an upcoming DM.

Cheval Noir #1-7-I used ot adore these as a young teen, but I now find them ponderous. I have the whole run but only got through the first 7 before putting it down. Can't do it. It's boring by Euro comics standards. I guess it was new when I first read it.

Trades: 11

Comics: 169

Omnibus: 4

Graphic Novels: 9

[Dread]

Doctor Solar Man of the Atom #1-8 and FCBD issue: this is the recent reboot at Dark Horse by Jim Shooter (not the most recent reboot coming out from Dynamite). It has it's good and bad. The artists switch around a lot. They're all good, but there's very little coherence. There's a lack in the writing too. Not great.

Lot 13 #1-5: Great! Steve Niles and Glenn Fabry doing a nasty ghost story. Typical set-up of family moving to a new place and then they're beset upon by vengeful spirits. Very 80s. The look is gruesome too.

Eva Medusa TPB: The classic tpb collection of the three Eva Medusa graphic novels. Essentially a great voodoo story that fatale MUST be influenced by.

Trades: 11

Comics: 183

Omnibus: 4

Graphic Novels: 10

[Dread]

Foolkiller: White Angels #1-5-A really great little miniseries about ANOTHER Foolkiller who decides to take down a gang of white supremacists in his neighbor who happens to run into, and team up with, the Punisher. Good shit. Azaceta is a great artist and is PERFECT for a Max series.

Bedlam Volume 2-Great like the first. Review forthcoming on DM.

Trades: 12

Comics: 188

Omnibus: 4

Graphic Novels: 10

[Dread]

Zombie War Complete: Complete shit is more like it! Boom!

Trades: 13

Comics: 188

Omnibus: 4

Graphic Novels: 10

[Koete]

Roasted!

[Dread]

Magnus, Robot Fighter #1-4: This is the Dark Horse reboot. Like the Dr. Solar reboot, it is written by Jim Shooter, but unlike that reboot, it has one artist throughout. Bill Reinhold does a great job of retaining a classic look, but still having the modern storytelling chops. The story is remarkably similar to the original Russ Manning stuff which is a nice change from Solar.

Trades: 13

Comics: 192

Omnibus: 4

Graphic Novels: 10

[SkylerQ91]

I don't really have much to say about these since this is actually every comic I've read so far this very which means they are not as fresh in my mind as I'd like but this was everything so far.

Hawkeye, Vol. 1 Hardcover (collecting Hawkeye 1-11 and Young Avengers Presents 6)

Superman and Batman vs. Vampires and Werewolves (1-6 Trade)

Superior Spider-Man, Vol. 1: My Own Worst Enemy (1-5 Trade)

Green Lantern: Mosaic #9 (Dec 1992 with a cover date of Feb 1993) - This was one of the most depressing Christmas books I've ever picked up. I read this around the first week of the year so it was still pretty fresh in the holiday time period but the whole issue is just a downer. John has a bit of a crisis of faith, not in the same way that say, Edith Bunker, had in the past but more in the holidays themselves. He feels that he can't enjoy them because there is not really peace on Earth as is suggested. How could he when war is going on all over the galaxy, people fight over petty things, kids fight over toys and bringing religion into it, the massacre of the innocents that King Herod instigated? The comic abruptly ends with John basically saying "Whatever, Christmas is fun!" and telling the aliens a mix of religious and secular holiday stories into one. I understand what they were trying to do but it just did not work. If they wanted to they could easily do a story about John not wanting to celebrate because of the horrors he has seen but it segues into it badly after a little kitchy Christmas fun and has no REAL segue out of it. It's just a mess. Well meaning but a mess.

Nightwing #24 - #29 (and Annual #1) I always loved Dick Grayson so Nightwing ending in an issue...again will hurt but Kyle Higgins really gets him and it's sad that issue 30 will not have him writing it.

Afterlife With Archie #2 - #4 This book is so amazing and wonderful but that last issue broke me. I'd never cried before reading a comic. I can't wait to see where it is going... Although the Cheryl Blossom story crosses a major line I never thought I'd see in an Archie book.

Forever Evil #3 - #6

Disney Kingdoms: Seekers Of The Weird #1-3 This book is a bit of fun that sort of reminds me of Spy Kids although spies have nothing to do with it. This book based on the art for an unmade Disney Park Attraction (that eventually became the Haunted Mansion) but it feels poorly paced. I do hope that it ends well and that the upcoming Figment book is as well too. This would be great for kids however and may be one of the many comics that read better in one go as a trade later on.

Superman Unchained #4 -#6

Green Arrow #24- #26

Adventures of Superman #5 - #10 There have been some stories I didn't like, and one I nearly hated but the majority of this book is just so much fun, I hope everyone goes out and gets it. It can be modern, retro, fun, dark and everything. This anthology is one of my favourite books.

Regular Show #3-5

Superman Adventures #41 (March 2000) This was the famous 22 stories in 22 pages final issue of Mark Millar's run on the book. Damn fine issue.

Superman: Lois Lane #1 I used this as a palate cleanser after that Afterlife with Archie broke me but I don't know if I could focus enough on it or if it really was simply pleasant. I didn't hate it and I didn't love it, it was just nice. I wish Lois (and Jimmy for that matter) had more to do in the New 52 though... Modern Superman Family title maybe?

Wednesday Comics #4 (July 29th 2009)

Superboy #6-11 (Superboy: Smallville Attacks trade second half) I love Lemire. I love that he had a fight in Windsor/Detroit. I loved most this book even though it took me a while to finish it. I don't like is that the issue with Doomsday is part of another large crossover but couldn't be left out of this because of some pages that move forward the plot of Superboy rather than just the unrelated stuff. I did feel the climax wrapped up too quickly but that's not his fault so much as the New 52's.

Rocky & Bullwinkle #1 - Just like the show but with some updated references.

-Skyler

[Dread]

Mighty Samson #1-4: This was another Gold Key revival that Jim Shooter brought to Dark Horse. The futuristic barbarian aspect is rote but cool. I love Olliffe's art. VEEEEERRRRRYYYY much aping Erik Larsen, but that's okay to me.

Trades: 13

Comics: 196

Omnibus: 4

Graphic Novels: 10

[Koete]

Gotham Central Books One and Two by Ed Brubaker, Greg Rucka, Michael Lark, Stefano Gaudiano, Greg Scott, and Brian Hurtt -

After a couple years off, I decided to get back into comics and figured I'd start by reading a series I'd heard a lot of praise for but never read. And wow, this comic is incredible. These two trades collect the first 22 issues, so over half the run, and it's impressive what Brubaker and Rucka cover in that time. The first two arcs ("In the Line of Duty" and "Motive") take the premise of Gotham from the perspective of the Major Crimes Unit and delve into it immediately. As there's a day shift and night shift, the series has a large cast, but Brubaker and Lark make each member distinct. While Marcus Driver, Renee Montoya, Crispus Allen, and Romy Chandler are sort of the main cast, pretty much everyone in the Unit gets screen time over the course of the arcs, with "Daydreams and Believers" and "Life is Full of Disappointments" fleshing out the more recurring characters. Batman makes appearances in the series, but sparingly and only saying a sentence at most, an urban legend to the public at large. In addition to introducing the cast, the first two arcs deal with the immediate questions raised: how do ordinary cops deal with super villains and how do they feel about inevitably needing Batman 9.5 times out of 10?

"Half a Life" is the arc most people have probably heard of, as it's where Renee Montoya is outed as a lesbian. I wasn't sure how it would hold up over a decade later, but I think it's really well done, in the various reactions and how Renee deals with being outed. "Soft Targets" is the greatest Joker story you've never heard of. I don't think there's ever been a story that conveys the sheer terror of The Joker being loose and killing as well as this one does. The fourth part is both brutal and contains the funniest joke The Joker's ever made. I'm sure this isn't talked about much because it's in Gotham Central and not a main Bat book, which is a shame because this is as great as any classic Joker story, maybe even better. "Unresolved" features the return of the disgraced Harvey Bullock when a case that he couldn't solve, and still haunts him, gets new evidence. The wounds left by Harvey's exit came up a number of times before the arc, which not only delves into them deeper, but shows Harvey at his lowest point.

The plots are strong, but what really makes this book amazing is the characterization. From joking with each other to dealing with bureaucracy to tragedy in the line of duty, you can feel the personalities and powerful bonds in the department and the more intimate partnerships. Crowe and Sarge might be my favorite characters, for the style of their recurring arguments and the one issue focusing mainly on them. Just as important to the book is the art. Like Sean Philips, Michael Lark creates perfect crime art: high contrast of light and dark, expressive faces, and gritty crime scenes. Lee Loughridge's colors both ground the book and make Lark's art stand out, such as when his characters are positioned against blocks of color. Credit is due to Gaudiano's inks, Scott, and Hurtt's styles with Loughridge's colors in keeping a consistent tone during fill-ins, though Lark on both pencils and inks is when the book looks the best. I can't wait to get the last two trades, but I'll be sad when I finish them. This is already one of my all-time favorite series.

Collected Editions: 2

[Dread]

Shadow/Green Hornet: Dark Nights-It pains me to say a miniseries featuring Green Hornet and Kato teaming up with The Shadow, FDR and Nikola Tesla to stop a Chinese mystic from winning the war for Hitler before America even enters it is less than awesome. This is less than awesome. I just found it kind of boring.

Metal Hurlant #1-14-ups and downs like any anthology, but I appreciated how they melded western and traditional European comics by shuffling creative teams. Kurt Busiek and Joe Casey, among others with Jodorowsky and Moebius in the mix. Pretty good overall.

Peter Cannon: Thunderbolt #1-10-Kind of like if Ozymandias was a Buddhist. Pretty great, actually.

Project Superpowers: Meet the Bad Guys #1-4:Ugh. A set of poorly conceived oneshots highlighting the villains of a few of the PS heroes.

Vampirella/Dracula The Centennial-I've read this several times and I always expect it to be good. It never is. Perhaps I'm insane, or perhaps the inflated importance of Warren Ellis and Alan Moore still pervades my perception of comics.

Trades: 14

Comics: 225

Omnibus: 4

Graphic Novels: 10

[Dan]

Marvel Fanfare (1982) #1-13: An anthology title overseen by Al Milgrom, and one of Marvel's first titles created specifically for the direct market, with no ads, cover-quality paper for the pages, no Code seal, and a then-obscene $1.25/$1.50 cover price.

LIke all anthologies, it's a mixed bag. Some of what's in here is clearly back inventory getting cleared out (many stories have a blurb indicating that they take place months before whatever is going on in the pages of the character's own book to explain continuity problems), but there's an impressive array of talent on display, some from people who would become bigger names later. There's a Claremont/Cockrum X-Men story in the Savage Land early on which is Angel-centric, and is hideously overwritten but really nice to look at. Another story I quite enjoyed was the Hulk facing off against the Blob and Unus the Untouchable, which focused on the friendship between the antagonists, as well as a multi-issue adaptation of the Jungle Book by Gil Kane and a Peter Gillis/George Perez Black Widow three-parter.

On the other end, though, they had a real hard-on for Doctor Strange stories where he dispatches his villains with no effort whatsoever; I counted three of them (although one was drawn by Charles Vess, so if nothing else it looked pretty). But the real headscratcher here was a Bill Mantlo-penned Daredevil story, where Daredevil scours the city for the lost seeing-eye dog of a blind kid he rescued from traffic, but he is unable to get there before the dog is found by animal control, taken to the shelter, and euthanized. On panel. Because that's real life, man.

[Koete]

Satellite Sam Volume One: The Lonesome Death of Satellite Sam by Matt Fraction and Howard Chaykin - It's 1951 in New York and the star of the children's television show Satellite Sam, Carlyle White, has been found dead in a crummy hotel room. Before that hook and driving force for the series, Fraction and Chaykin spend the first issue during the live airing of an episode of Satellite Sam, introducing the cast and setting the tone of television in the 1950s. From the ending, the series follow two plot lines. In the first, Carlyle's alcoholic son Michael, with boxes of women in lingerie as his only clues, attempts to find out about his father's secret life and who killed him. The deeper he gets, the more becomes his father rather than learning from his mistakes. Maybe it was inevitable from the start. The second deals with the president of the LeMonde network trying to keep it afloat, which includes deals with the commissioner of the FCC. This opens up the politics of not only television through his dealings and the other people working on the Satellite Sam TV show, but also politics of the time such as the fear of communism.

This comic is drawn by Howard Chaykin and that is significant because Chaykin is the driving force of this comic. Fraction has expressed his admiration for Chaykin's work many times and the feeling of this comic is that he wanted to play to his strengths to the greatest extent he could. As a result, there is very little of Fraction here. This is a dirty and sleazy comic, which comes from its confrontation with the nostalgia for and mythologizing of the Leave it to Beaver image of 1950s America through a grimy lens behind the scenes of television and, let's be honest, Howard Chaykin's sensibilities. It's helped most of the time by being tongue in cheek, especially in #5 where a bit repeated so much it had to on purpose. There was a couple points where I thought it went too far and was unnecessarily problematic, but even then I can understand what they were doing with the scenes' counterpoints.

The art is off in some places, such as when the AD Libby is running to find Carlyle and on some faces, but overall this is the best I've seen of Chaykin's modern work. Part of it is the 1950s setting; he perfectly captures it from the TV set to the clothing to the city of New York itself. Another reason for it is that it's in black and white. I think the "Cabbage Patch" effect the forum has noted is partially from the modern coloring. Here most of that look is gone (though I don't think it's completely inescapable when it comes to his bravado smiles) and Chaykin's art just feels right this way. There are some amazing sequences in here, such as the network president's conversation with his wife in a darkened limo on the way to Carlyle's funeral and a number of scenes with Michael. I wasn't bowled over, but the period setting and behind the scenes are right up my alley, I'm interested to see how much like his father Michael becomes, and there's a lot for them to explore on the political side. I'm in for the next volume.

Collected Editions: 3

[Molly]

Wrong thread, ignore me.

[Koete]

Hawkeye Volume 1 HC by Matt Fraction, David Aja, Javier Pulido, Steve Lieber, Jesse Hamm, Annie Wu, Francesco Francavilla, and Alan Davis - There are times reading this, such as The Ringmaster's Caligari inspired circus and Clint referencing the hallway sequence from Point Blank, that it feels like it was written especially for me. That said, I'm not as enamored with the comic as other people, though I still think it's very good. I like what Fraction's doing with Clint, making him this easygoing guy that tries to do the right thing, like buying his apartment building to protect its tenants from the Tracksuit Mafia, but screws up again and again, as emphasized by issue nine's focus on the women in his life. Possibly even better than what Fraction is doing with Clint is what he's doing with Kate Bishop. She's not a sidekick, she's an equal to Clint, willing to take the same risks and just as capable with a bow and arrow. She calls Clint on his bullshit just as much as she offers support. The banter between the two is often the highlight of the writing in a given issue. Storywise, it seems like every issue is another genre: slice of life, heist, car chase, spy, romance, it goes on. This comic has one of the strongest authorial voices I've seen in a Big Two comic from the past few years.

My problem with the series comes, not exactly as a result of the book itself, but with comic book publishing. Every issue of this series should be by Fraction/Aja/Hollingsworth, but because American comics are expected to come out monthly (or if you're Marvel, twice a month as often as possible), that's not possible. It should come out when it comes out under that team because Aja is doing incredible things with this book. Everyone points to the Pizza Dog issue, but issue 2 is what I think of first. The page where a series of Kate Bishop faces, each speaking a letter in a sentence, are placed above and below a sequence of panels of Clint preparing to fire arrows in order to convey speed is next level comic book storytelling. The page at the end where something like 20 panels depict a phone conversation between Clint and Kate, over top a split splash page of the two, is not as inventive but nevertheless another example of Aja's craft. And it's not just the layouts; the way the characters and city are drawn is distinctly Hawkeye. This isn't another Avengers spin-off, this is a very specific take on Hawkeye and Aja is crucial to its DNA. And by the same token, Matt Hollinsworth's coloring. His minimalist color palette perfectly complements Aja's art and contributes to the uniqueness of the comic.

It's clear that, in addition to tackling whatever genre strikes his fancy, Fraction is telling a series long story about Hawkeye and the Tracksuit Mafia. It shows in the stories that are told, who is drawing them. The first issue establishes Fraction's take on Hawkeye, the Tracksuit Mafia, and the apartment building, the second issue delves into the partnership of Clint and Kate, and the third introduces "Penny" and her mysterious ties to the Tracksuit Mafia. All three drawn by Aja. Then we get a break in the narrative for the two part trip to Madripoor with "The Tape." There's good stuff, such as the banter between Clint and Kate, the Point Blank reference, and the extent of Clint trying to do good, but in the end it's just there. Pulido's a decent artist, but his style is nothing close to Aja's and has nowhere near the quality that elevates Hawkeye. Issues 6, 8, and 9, feature a day in the life of Clint where tensions escalate, the return of "Penny," and a focus on Clint's love life, all drawn by Aja. While I like the story with Grills and Lieber comes the closest to Aja's style, issue 7 is ultimately a throwaway. Even issue 10, drawn by Francavilla and giving the origin of The Clown, feels like it's just biding time until the next Aja issue. And I think Francavilla is not only one of the best artists but best colorists in the industry today, but even his art doesn't feel like Hawkeye. This is driven home when he tries to repeat the Kate and Clint sequence from issue 2. Then there's the Pizza Dog issue everyone's probably heard of, which is certainly one of Aja's most eye catching pieces of storytelling, but I was most impressed by Fraction unfolding two major plot points in what could have been a gimmick. When Aja is drawing the book, it lives up to the hype and is doing something special in mainstream superhero comics. When he isn't drawing it, it's good most of the time, but there's a lingering feeling that it could be so much better if Marvel were willing to let it come out on its own schedule.

Collected Editions: 4

[Dread]

Fury: My War Gone By #1-13: This was pretty great. Not the end-all be-all that a lot of people are saying, but it's certainly the only good thing Ennis can add to his resume from the last better half of a decade. Parlov's art makes it. So purty looking. Some really great moments, especially those involving Barracuda and Punisher.

Project Superpowers Digital Omnibus: Quite an undertaking and I enjoyed it for the most part. Unfortunately, I feel like they kind of wasted what they were doing. They very well could have built a universe with these Golden Age characters and let them have some room to breathe instead of creating and dumping them into this huge event comic. I get that that was probably the point, but I like the characters so much, I wish I could see them in a way where they weren't trying to stop the end of the universe on every page.

Spawn & WildCATS #1-4: Woof. Boy, Alan Moore REALLY loved money in the mid 90s, didn't he? Yikes.

Trades: 14

Comics: 242

Omnibus: 5

Graphic Novels: 10

[Dread]

Turok, Son of Stone #1-4: This is also the Shooter/Dark Horse reboot from a couple years back. The story distinguishes it from the Valiant run almost immediately, which is great. It harkens back to the original 50s run and adds a modern flavour. The artist on the first two issues makes it look like a fucking Bakshi cartoon, which is amazing. The last two are a more Sean Murphy/Mike Mignola looking guy, which is good too but not as fun.

Vampirella #27-38: The last third of the recent run rushes toward an end. The first several issues took a long and slow pace but it really feels that it gets faster and faster, and not in a good way. Still, the art is great and the premise is pretty cool. I've read a lot of comics lately that completely invalidate the comic I used to be trying to put together.

Trades: 14

Comics: 258

Omnibus: 5

Graphic Novels: 10

[Venneh]

Elektra: The Redeemer: Rucka and Amano collaboration that I had no clue existed till I went to my friends last night. More of an illustrated novel, but pretty interesting regardless.

batman: ego and other tales: Another Cooke collection Id never read before today, love it, especially the two but stores - Ego and Selena's Big Score

[Dread]

Caligular #1-6-Time to give some recent Avatar stuff some attention. This is insane. A crazy horror series that I'm not sure I like or not. Weird. Lapham is kind of a sick fuck. I like him.

Trades: 14

Comics: 264

Omnibus: 5

Graphic Novels: 10

[Dread]

The Avatar train keeps rolling:

Crossed #0-9-Yeah, I revisited it. But, I would still have probably given up after two issues if I didn't already have them right there. It's profane and nasty, but the charm remains solely in the hands of Jacen Burrows, whose art I have loved since the first time I saw it. There isn't a decent moment of writing until the 5th issue, but it's a fucking doozy and the story carries on pretty solidly through to the ninth issue except for one. It's about a 50% on storytelling. The art is great though.

Fevre Dream #1,2: Uff...this one I gave up on after two issues. Not a good start to Avatar's George RR Martin's adaptations...

Trades: 14

Comics: 276

Omnibus: 5

Graphic Novels: 10

[Venneh]

Rat Queens 1 + 2: Go get the trade now, best group of foul mouthed lady mercenaries ever. Worth it if only for this.

[Dread]

I've got the first volume already and am excited to check it out.

[Dread]

The Incredible Hulk #1-15: The Jason Aaron run. An all-star artist run. Silvestri, Portacio, Raney and others make this worthwhile. It's a little too crazy to hang together nicely for me.

Mythopolis #1: I have no idea what I just read.

Sheena: Trail of the Mapinguari: a Devil's Due oneshot with stunning art.

Fantastic Four Road Trip: The main Fraction book during this time is pretty lame. The FF are on a mission that looks and feels like every other mission they've ever been on. And Bagley's art is just not good.

FF Family Freakout: This book, on the other hand, is brilliant and fun and sweet. I adore Adolf Impossible, the son of the Impossible Man who is entrusted to the FF because he is just too possible. So amazing.

Trades: 16

Comics: 293

Omnibus: 5

Graphic Novels: 10

[Dread]

Wonder Woman #28-30-easily the best mainstream comic right now. Fuck, man. So good.

Trades: 16

Comics: 296

Omnibus: 5

Graphic Novels: 10

[Venneh]

Future's End 0: What in the actual fuck did I just read. For your own amusement, go look at my Twitter for a livetweet of said comic. How in the fuck is this new reader friendly?