Gamblor187

Very big week for me....

The Corinthian: Death In Venice #3 (of3) - The last issue was pretty disappointing, but I figured that I may as well finish up this miniseries.

JLA #61 - Joe Kelly's first issue. Never read anything by him before, so I'm not sure what to expect.

The Flash #181

Hellblazer #169

Rose #3 - Well, it's about friggin' time!

Glory #0 - Well, I've finally given up on Promethea. There is a good story in there somewhere, but it's hidden by all the pretentious, mystical, magical, mumbo-jumbo which fills 90% of each issue. So, I drop one Alan Moore title, and give this new one a try (though my hopes aren't very high for this one).

I Feel Sick #1 - Who am I to resist Jhonen Vasquez??? Sick, twisted, and often pretty darn funny.

Electropolis #3 - The delays are maddening, but I can forgive them when a book is this good.

Now would seem like a good time to list of the best that comics had to offer this year. I've supplied a couple of categories (and may add more) as well as my picks. Let's hear from everyone else.


Best Writer:
Warren Elliss - "Ministry of Space" and "Stranger Kisses" may be disappointing, but "Transmetropolitan" and "Planetary" more than make up for it.

Brian Azzarello - "100 Bullets" alone would be enough for him to make my list. Revitalizing "Hellblazer" isn't too shabby, either,

Geoff Johns - His love for comic history shines in the underrated "JSA", and he has done the impossible by making the Flash a must-read book (and building up a very impressive Rogues Gallery for the speedster). Perhaps his biggest strength lies in character development....something sorely missing from most monthly titles.

Peter Milligan - After years of being a Vertigo also-ran, he's finally come into his own with the year's most surprising and successful revamp, "X-Force".

Best Artist:
John Cassady - Just gets better with each issue of "Planetary"

Brian Hitch - After a far too short run on "JLA", he actually has me looking forward to the upcoming Avengers revamp.

Scott Kolins - The artist most deserving of more attention. Wonderfully detailed and completely original work.

Darrick Robertson - Continues his excellent work on "Transmetroplitan" and makes the "Fury" miniseries worth picking up.

Best Inker:
Rodney Ramos - the perfect maych for Robertson on Transmetropolitan.

Paul Neary - Fine work throughout all the changes on the "JLA"

Best Colorist:
Laura Allred - Wonderfully vibrant colors. No one works as well with Mike Allred. You really miss her when she's not there.

"Promethea" - I don't recall who suppiles the colors for this title, but it's a difficult task done extremely well.

Best Letterer:
Todd Klein - Because it's always Todd Klein

Best Series (Monthly)
100 Bullets
Transmetroplitan
JSA
X-Force
The Flash

Best Series (Non-Monthly):
I figure that there should be a different category for books that don't come out every month. Some are very deserving of acclaim, but may be overlooked because of the smaller number of issues.

Planetary - Perhaps the best book of the year. Ellis and Cassady are compliment each others work better than any other team out there.
Bone
Electropolis
Eightball

Best Miniseries and One-Shots:
Murder Me Dead - Comicbook noir at its best. I'll take it over "Sin City" any day.
The Secret Society of Superheroes - Virtually ignored, this should have been this year's "Kingdom Come". A smart, cynical superhero book. Forget "The Dark Knight Strikes Again". Give this a try.
The Flash: Iron Heights - Geoff Johns reinvents the Flash's Rogues Gallery.

Biggest Comebacks:
Bone/Jeff Smith - The humor and fantasy elements of this book finally reach a perfect balance...something that had been missing for the past year or two.

David Lapham - Taking a break from "Stray Bullets" was a wise decision as he used this time to produce "Murder Me Dead", his best work to date.

Dean Motter - Abandoned by Vertigo after the than stellar sales of the excellent "Terminal City", Motter moves to Image and produces "Electropolis"....another pitch-perfect mix of retro and sci-fi....This is future noir!


Biggest Disappointments:
"From Hell" (the movie) - A superb graphic novel drained of intelligence and replaced with nauseating MTV-style direction and poor casting. A travesty!

"Deadman" - One of my all-time favorite characters returns! Unfortunately, he returned in this hack job.

"Strangers In Paradise"- Finally finding its way back to its humble beginnings, but it may be too late.

"The Atomics" final issue - A mediocre rush job ends what was an incredibly fun comic.

Best Comics-Related Products/Films/DVDs/etc.:
DC Direct Figures - Detailed figures with lots of articulation (except those awful Planetary figures) are perfect for those of us who can't afford the pricey statues and busts. Bonus points for focusing on lesser-known and Golden/Silver Age characters.

Ghost World (the film) - Not so much an adaptation as it is an expansion on the graphic novel. A few minor flaws, but a worthy companion piece to the source material


Now let's hear your picks........

Liquid Death

I ordered Ruse #3, Inferno #1, and Out There #7...I caught up on some comics from the last few weeks:

PP Spider-Man #38 - A pretty decent 'nuff said issue, though some parts of the story weren't as clear as I'd have liked (like the whole "kevin" the cheese thing).

Sojourn #5 & #6 - #6 wraps up the first storyarc so I would imagine a TPB is just around the corner - anyone interested in fantasy really should give the book a try.

I also picked up Meridian and Mystic TPBs and I'll report on those later on when I read 'em.

Best Writer:

I'll have to 2nd Warren Elliss & Brian Azzarello and nominate:
J. Michael Straczynski (Amaz. Spider-Man, Midnight Nation, Rising Stars) and Brian M. Bendis (Powers, Ult. Spider-Man, Elektra).
As much as I love Garth Ennis, his work this past year really hasn't impressed me all that much (Adv. in the Rifle Brigade & Punisher). Greg Rucka & Paul Jenkins both take home honorary mentions

Best Artist:
Greg Land (Sojourn) - some of the best art I've ever seen.
John Romita Jr. (Amaz. Spider-Man, Hulk) - his artwork seems to get better and better over the years.

Best Inker:
Jimmy Palmotti

Best Colorist:
Caesar Rodriguez (Sojourn)

Best Letterer:
Chris Elliopolous (Savage Dragon)

Best Series (Monthly):

Sojourn
100 Bullets
Transmetropolitan
X-Force
Amaz. Spider-Man

Best Series (Non-Monthly):

Queen & Country
Violent Messiahs

Best Miniseries and One-Shots:

Startling Stories: Banner

The Flash: Iron Heights - Never bought a Flash comic before, but I gave this one a shot and loved it.

And though they aren't finished, Origin and DK2 are both great so far

Biggest Comebacks:

Savage Dragon - I really didn't like the "Savage World" at all in the beginning, but Larsen has really turned it around lately making SD one of my favorite books again.

Amaz. Spider-Man - Though Spider-Man will always be my favorite Super-Hero, I just couldn't bring myself to read any Spider-Man comics after the clone/death of Aunt May/death of his parents arcs back in the mid 90s. And when I heard about MJ dying in the new books, that only cemented my position. But when it was announced JMS would be taking over the book with #30, I figured I'd give the character a shot again - it hasn't disappointed since.

Biggest Disappointments:

Spyboy #17 - not the issue itself, but this was the final issue of the series, as it was cancelled.

Marvel Max Line - While Alias has managed to slightly pique my interest, both War Machine and Fury turned me off.

Best Comics-Related Products/Films/DVDs/etc.:

The new Spider-Man toys (w/ 30 pts of articulation)

Jay & Silent Bob Strike Back

Unbreakable DVD - though I didn't care for the film, the extras were great, including interviews with Frank Miller! And the included Alex Ross art card was neat as well.

realsandman420

The Antipodean

Best Ongoing Series
Ultimate Spider-Man Bendis has proved "reimagining" a character doesn't mean destroying his spirit. I'm having more fun reading this comic than any in a long time, and best of all they didn't have to kill off the "real" Spidey comics to do this.

Runners-up:
[B]JSA
Amazing Spider-Man
Black Panther

Best New Series
(tie)Greyshirt: Indigo Sunset and Alias

Best Writer
Tough call, but I'd say Brian Bendis was the most consistent of all this year. Writing "Powers," "Alias," "Ultimate Spider-Man," "Ultimate Marvel Team-Up" and "Daredevil," and barely a bad comic amongst them - impressive work.

Best Artist
John Romita, Jr. just gets better and better - while I thought the concept and writing of the World Trade Center issue of ASM were really flawed, his art alone almost saved the book for me.

Best Comeback
Spider-Man is readable again - hurray! With the excellent "Ultimate" and both main Spidey books returning to glory, plus the enjoyably eclectic "Ultimate Marvel Team-Up," I have to say this is the best time to be reading Spidey since 1983 or so (the Stern/Romita years on ASM are my favorite other than the Lee/Ditko run). I worried during the "clone" years and Byrne's awful year one that my favorite superhero would never recover, but he has in style. Plus, next year we've got the movie to look forward to, even if the Green Goblin costume looks ridiculous I'll be first in line.

Biggest Disappointment
Mark Waid's "JLA." From the guy who did "Kingdom Come," I expected much better. While Grant Morrison's run had its flaws, Waid's was just all over the place – some good ideas (the team splitting into public/private identities, the Martians return) marred by terrible execution and a laugh-out-loud oh-my-god, what drugs was he on? conclusion to the "Terra Incognita" storyline. The only storyline that really worked during his run was the "Batman: Traitor" arc at the very start. Plus, the artist's roundtable really harmed the book. I'm really close to dropping this series I've long enjoyed, but I'll give Joe Kelly 5-6 issues first before I do.

Lampei

I've got to say that if you're considering best artists and writers for 2001 without checking out the British comics, 2000AD or Judge Dredd the Megazine, you might want to give them a look. Glen Fabry, Kevin Walker, Carlos Ezquerra, Alan Grant, Alan Moore, Grant Morrison to name a few of the great writers/artists. 2000AD is weekly and JD:M is monthly, and both are great comics. Anyway, just MHO.

Sessa17

Just got back from vacation, so I haven't been able to post in this weekly thread the past couple of weeks. Going to pick my books for this week up tomorrow, but here'a a run down on what my "best of. . "s were.

Best Writer - To me there is a definite difference b/w the "best" writer of the year & your "favorite" wrtier of the year. Gablor wrote Cassaday as one of the Best artists of the year. Now Cassaday is flat out my favorite current penciler in all of comics, but I think it is ridiculous to say he is even one of the best artists of the year being that Planetary came out only 3 maybe 4 times all year.

That being said I have to say that Brian Azzarello by far is the best writer of 2001. One reason, no monthly comic being published today is more consistant & perhaps as complex as 100 bullets. Doesn't hurt either that the guy tries writing something completely different w/ a main stream super-hero comicm & it's one of the best mini-series all year.

Best Artist

Damion Scott - This is a choice you'll never see in a magazine or online review, but I really think his work on Batgirl is the most underrated work in all of comics. So many books have fill-in artist every other issue, & month after month Scott is on time, never letting down, & working on a comic where the main character doesnt talk, so his pictures do the talking.

Best Colorist:

Laura DePuy - Right now I don't think there is anyone better in the business. With constant changes on the art, the colors in JLA always remain fluid & distinct. Need further proof you can be amazed by her work on Ruse.

Best Monthly:

100 Bullets - Read it. How can you argue it. The book just never let's down & is flat our impossible to predict.

Best Mini-Series(tie)

U.S. Warmachine - I enjoyed the hell out of this series. Story wise it was the mini-series I loved the most all year however the art was just horrid on it so I can't declare it the best of the year on it's own.

Murder Me Dead - I'm with Gamblor all the way on this one. Wanted to have a shot of whiskey after each issue. Gritty noir at it's best.


Best New Title (tie)

Doom Patrol, Queen & Country - I just can't decide. Only 4 issues in & Doom Patrol is one of the most fun & fresh comics of the past several years. I absolutely garaunty Tan Ung Hut (sp?) is a HUGE name in comics in a couple of years. Queen & Country although not a monthly is just brilliant. The best work of Rucka's comic book career.

Biggest Dissapointments

There were quite a few & many I can't think of right now.

Uncanny X-men - for me the biggest of the year. I actually assumed this would be a huge let down b/c of the no talent hacks behind it, but the characters were so good & those 2 idiots in every interview they had claimed how they would blow the readers away where their innovations gave us nothing.

D.C. Crossovers - WHAT THE F!!!!! Our Worls At War was one of the worst comics I have ever read. It went into almost every friggin D.C. title for i believe 3 or 4 straight months & interupted each monthlies continutiation. And then what does DC decide to follow it up with. Another crappy crossover with Jokers Last Laugh. Thanks to these crossovers I dropped, Green Lantern, Nioghtwing, Action Comics, Detective Comics, Batman, Young Justice, & JLA just so DC doesn't get my money.

Elektra - The art was horrid, & the accumulation of Bendis's 312 monthly titles he writes finally shows on this title.

Gamblor187

You're right. There's definitely a difference between "best" and "favorite" (although the two often overlap), and Cassady falls into both categores for me. I don't think that there's anything ridiculous with calling him one of the best artists of the year. Yes, we may only get 3 or 4 issues of "Planetary" each year, but the art is amazing and well worth noting on a list like this. I'd rather have 3 issues darwn by Cassady than 12 or more drawn by most other popular artists. It's quality over quantity.

And now a few comments on the books I picked up. I haven't finished them all, and I still haven't picked up this week's books.

JLA #61 - Just awful. The writing is horrendous and the art is mediocre. I'll try to stay with it for a few more issues and give it a chance, but if it doesn't get better than this, I'll have to drop the title.

Glory #0 - I've come to believe that there are three Alan Moore. The first one is one of the greatest writers in comics history (Watchmen, From Hell, Miracleman, etc.) The second is possibly as brilliant as the first, but spends too much time rambling on about magical mumbo-jumbo to keep me interested (Promethea, Snakes & Ladders). The final one sporadically releases stuff that's just plain awful (ie, the Violator miniseries for Image). Apparently, "Glory #0" was written by the last one.

Rose #3 - It's a bit hard to keep track of a story when it's been delayed as much as this one has, but when the outcome is so satisfying, I'm willing to deal with the delays.

Hellblazer #169 - Like I said last month, single issues stories have always been the weakest in this title. This one was no exception. I'm looking forward to the 5 issue story arc starting next month.

I Feel Sick #1 - Without a doubt, the funniest comic I read all year. Highly recommended.

jim

Sessa17

I definitely see your point, like I said Cassaday is flat out my favorite artist today. I've met & had some beers w/ him. He did a huge Union Jack skecth for me & elijah snow sketch. And I've never read Captain America in my life, but I can't wait to pick it up when he takes over. However, comic books are for the most part a monthly medium. And when artist are cranking 10+ books a year, plus mini-series & their own projects. I can't justify say Cassaday who penciled 3, maybe 4(yes brilliant) comics a month the best of the year. But it's cool, that's just how I feel.

Anyway pickeup up my books for the last 2 weeks today. Haven't really read anything except New X-men yet but here's some thoughts on the titles.

Doom Patrol #4 - Books like these just make me realize how much I love comics. I'm amazed that w/ only 4 comics done in his entire early career, that Tan Eng Huat is one of the most talented artists today.

Legion #3 - By far the most underrated comic being published. Everything a team book should be. If I had to receommend only 1 comic book to somebody this would be it. CHECK IT OUT!

Daredevil: Yellow #6 - For anyone who didn't like Miller's take on Daredevil's origin I highly recommend this book. A very light hearted & emotional take on the man without fear. Typical Loeb/ Sale work.

Alias #5 - I'm really enjoying this series so far.

Elektra #6 - I'm really glad this 'Nuff said crap is over.

New X-men #121 - By far the best silent issue of the month.

Inferno: Hellbound - Haven't read it yet but I've always been a fan of Silvestri's pencils, & it it's good to see hime working again.

Out There #7 - I did read this one, & like Sojourn I'm pretty much buy this book for the art.

JLA #61 - Also read this & I completley agree with Gamblor. This book is just a mess, I officially drop this title.

Ruse #3

X-treme X-men 2001 Annual

Trade:

Powers: Roleplaying - Bendis absolutely puts out the best trades on the market. Love the new cover.

Gamblor187

I've heard a lot of praise about the art in this book, but nothing about the writing. How is it? Also, is this more of a straightforward superhero book or is it similar to what Grant Morrison did with the title under the Vertigo banner?

jim

Sessa17

I've really enjoyed the writing so far but I would honestly say that it is nothing special or groundbreaking. Just good solid fun stories. The stories itself have not been anything great, but Arcudi is doing a very good job with the characters. Bringing some interesting new characters in & doing a great job establishing Robotman as the classic, veteran character that he is. The book is still very much new, just establishing the team so far. Writing is extremely important to me however I do by several comics just for the art, & this is Huat's very first comic book ever & if anything it's fun reading each issue & actually watch Huat develop as an artist. There is no doubt he will be huge.

It's definitely more of a straight forward superhero book but not in the sense that JLA or X-men are & definitely not at all like Morrison's Doom Patrol. We agree that the new JLA is awful & we both fans of Cassaday so I would definitely say see if you could track down the first couple of issues.

Gamblor187

Well, I had a chance to pick up last week's comics and even got a chance to read them all. There's not much point to making a new post since new comics come out in 2 more days, so I'll post my comments here.

Alias #5 - I guess I'm the only one here that doesn't care for this book. I'd like to give Bendis another chance and stick around for the next story arc, but I was so disappointed by this one that I don't think I can bring myself to buy it. I felt that this was the worst issue so far of what has turned out to be, in my opnion, a very mediocre series. The conclusion was anticlimactic and the motivations of the bad guy just seemed silly to me.

Tom Strong #15 - Finally a full issue story with no back-up stories. The best issue in quite a while.

Batman: The 10 Cent Adventure - You get what you pay for. Yet another retelling of Batman's origin and motivations all for the purpose of trying to hook people on to the big Batman crossover starting this month.

The Ultimate Spider-Man #17 - I'm still not a fan of Mark Bagley's art, and I'm not sure that I care much for the new version of Gwen Stacy, but this is still a consistently entertaining read.

The Flash #181 - Another perfect issue. Geoff Johns really knows how to build the suspense and this issues new plot twist really caught me off guard.

I also picked up "Son Of Superman", written by Howard Chaykin and David Tischman with art by J.H. Williams III and Mick Gray. I was so impressed by "The Secret Society Of Superheroes" that I wanted to try some more of Chaykin's superhero work. Also, Williams is a fine artist and one to watch over the next few years.

jim

TheBang

Just a few awards of my own:

Most Improved:

The Flash - Geoff Johns has completely reinvigorated this title. Waid's writing had stagnated over the years, and when he left I was ready to drop the title. But Geoff came in with a bang, and slowly but surely over the past year he has built The Flash into something incredible. I look forward to this title every month. It looks like the Rogues' story is coming to a head in a couple months, and I can't wait. And the art is great too. Very unique and refreshing.

Best New Title:

X-Force - It's like a whole new title, isn't it? I had never bought an X-title before, but Milligan and Allred have me hooked on this one.

Best Comeback:

G.I. Joe - My favorite series from childhood. Although Larry Hama isn't writing it, I have to give Josh Blaylock credit; he knows his stuff. Maybe a little to fanboy-ish, but it's good to see the Real American Heroes back in action.

Most Overlooked:

Star Wars: Tag and Bink Are Dead - In the spirit of Rosencrantz and Guildestern are Dead, Kevin Rubio (of Troops fame) crafted a hilarious gem with tons of in-jokes and gags for Star Wars fans.