I recall reading some pretty intense comics about a child who could "die" by passing through a door in an old mansion, and journey about in a spiritual form. Whenever he wanted to turn to life he just passed through the door the opposite side. Really intense stuff though, definitely not for the faint of heart. I just can't remember the blasted name, though if I do I'll let you know.
Any of the Green Lanterns written by Geoff Johns.
If you like Spider-Man, track down the Ultimate Spider-Man volume #1 great stuff. Actually, any of the early Ultimate line is great. Heck, Ultimates made Captain America cool.
So those are my picks, in that order actually.
There's always *shutter* manga.
I have seen them and they are monochrome. (not that monochrome is a bad thing, but it is hard to see the action)
Comics you really must read;
Sandman (Neil Gaiman)
Watchmen (Alan Moore)
Marvel: 1602 (Neil Gaiman). This one might require knowing the Marvel setting, at least in passing.
Blankets (Craig Thompson). This is one of the best things I've ever read. A very good piece of work.
As far as series go, there are the big ones (Batman, Spiderman, X-men etc...). The Ultimate Universe (Marvel) is pretty darn good, as is the Civil War mini-series (again, Marvel. But this one is built of a backstory of characters the readers already know). Series I really like;
Powers (Image). I really liked the first issue I read, and I'm really impressed with how they approached the super hero genre.
Conan (Darkhorse). Alot of Conan comics have sucked, I like Darkhorse's current series, and I think it's pretty faithful to Robert E. Howard.
Buffy (Darkhorse). I'm a big Whedon fan, so this isn't a surprise. I liked Angel, the show, alot more than Buffy, the show, but the reverse is true for the comics (at least for Season 8. Alot of the Buffy comic one offs blow).
The Goon (Darkhorse). If you like pulp, the 30's, the mafia, and B-movie horror, this one is for you.
If you like the idea of a bad-ass, beautiful woman weilding a magic gauntlet that heals, generates energy blasts, and forms blades and body armor; i'd say give one of the trade paperbacks a try. You don't get all the great cover art and individual comics, but you get many comics put together in one book.
It was a reimagining of a superhero, though, so maybe it fits. ;)
Depending on what genre's you're interested in, I would suggest the Runaways comic, Ultimate X-Men, or for independent stuff Nodwick or PS238.
Though not superhero per se, I always recommend Neil Gaiman's The Sandman.
It was a reimagining of a superhero, though, so maybe it fits. ;)
I saw Neil Gaiman on the History channel talking about sandman. Apparently it won a literature award, and the committe changed the rules the very next day so a comic book could never again win the award.
Gaiman compared it to closing the barn door after your horse gets out and wins the Kentucky derby.
Buffy (Darkhorse). I'm a big Whedon fan, so this isn't a surprise. I liked Angel, the show, alot more than Buffy, the show, but the reverse is true for the comics (at least for Season 8. Alot of the Buffy comic one offs blow).
Whoo! Another Buffy/Angel fan. :D My only difference is that I'm the opposite of you: Liked Buffy better (TV), but like Angel (comic) better then it's counter part.
I thought Sandman started off as a horror comic? Either way, it moved away from it's tentative connections to the DC universe pretty early in it's run.
Depending on what genre's you're interested in, I would suggest the Runaways comic, Ultimate X-Men, or for independent stuff Nodwick or PS238.
The begining of Ultimate X-Men were really good, but it's crap now. I only buy them to give myself a false hope that they will improve, but deep down inside I know they will suck till cancelled.
I suggest Fables. They are for a more mature audience (language and adult themes), but they have been very good so far.
Oh, and Y: the Last Man. Also very mature themes (the premise is gendercide, after all), but so far I've found it done extremely well.
Also Ultimate Spiderman is really good. It's nice because it's not so far that you can't start from the begining.
.Ultimate X-Men also started off good, but at some point (
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When they brought Beast back to life
That is my favorite part about the Ultimate lines. You don't jump in and feel like you need to write a research report on the character histories to understand the significance of events. Even when they try to do mostly self contained stories (Like the first few volumes of the Astonishing X-Men, during which Joss Wedon was one of the writers) they still end up dropping references to other events that make you stop and go 'huh?' if you hadn't read them or at least read about them.
I agree. I really liked the Ultimate Avengers (and the movies too!), though the Ultimate Iron Man was
As for Marvel my fav are the Infinity Gauntlet books, starting with the Thanos Quest graphic novels. This is great stuff if your into the universe spanning epic that brings in all the heavy hitters.
I never really managed to get a good run myself but there are some really good Silver Surfer books throughout the early to mid 90s.
For some cool newer books if you like the Hulk the World War Hulk books are very interesting, especially all the books set on the crazy Arena Planet, not being the collector I once was I've only managed to pic up a few of them but its good stuff.
The Ultimates was pretty good... or at least, started out good. I've only gotten as far as the end of Ultimates 2 (what's with the weird numbering scheme, anyway?). The characters were a bit difficult to get interested in, as most of them were fairly unlikeable, but it was a very different take on super heroes, and I liked it.
Ultimate X-Men also started off good, but at some point (ShowWhen they brought Beast back to life
Also you should look into Secret Six, it is one of the most messed up yet entertaining comics in existence.
And who can forget, Knights of the Dinner Table, a standard for all gamers:D
She ROCKS
