In which I learn the obvious: Classic comic book series are classic for a reason.

[Satan's Onion]

So several weeks ago I went on down to my local comic book shop and general nerd emporium for to buy me a trade paperback of Atomic Robo. The guy who runs the place recommended me one of his favorite series, which I'd heard a little about but never actually tried--Transmetropolitan. He included a "money-back guarantee if [I] didn't like it", which turned out to be entirely unnecessary, as Transmetropolitan (or The Adventures of Hunter S. Thompson Of The Future!) is genuinely a pretty great series (I'm up to the fifth volume or so--the new President's cracked down on Spider Jerusalem's column, oh no :ohdear: ).

The last time I was there the proprietor (same dude) threw in free a copy of the first chapter from Y: The Last Man, which I'll probably also end up getting into. Do any of you nerds have any other recommendations of good series along these lines? I'm open to a lot, although I must confess I'm a touch intimidated by what looks like the vast, ingrown continuity and storytelling of traditional superhero narratives. Even so, I can be persuaded if you make a good case!

[Meister]

If you'd never read Transmetropolitan before I assume you've never read any Warren Ellis, in which case you owe it to yourself to read Planetary. A cursory knowledge of mainstream superheroes will enhance that reading but is by no means mandatory.

Some books of his that touch a little on the "consequences of being a superhero" are the pretty dark Black Summer and No Hero, although that one's not so much dark as... you know what, don't read No Hero just now. Some things you can't be eased into.

Doktor Sleepless is pretty good, too, but unfinished at the moment and has a bit to go. Still, great first volume.

[Mr.Bookworm]

You have a pretty great comic store guy there.

If you like Y: The Last Man (which I'm guessing you will), you might want to check out Ex Machina by the same guy. About a superhero (the only one in the world) who becomes the Mayor of New York in the wake of 9/11. It manages to handle political issues pretty damn well (Vaughan is pretty clearly a liberal, but he's never outright insulting to anyone in the comic and manages to present it all very nicely).

If you'd never read Transmetropolitan before I assume you've never read any Warren Ellis, in which case you owe it to yourself to read Planetary. A cursory knowledge of mainstream superheroes will enhance that reading but is by no means mandatory.

Thiiiiiiis.

Some books of his that touch a little on the "consequences of being a superhero" are the pretty dark Black Summer and No Hero, although that one's not so much dark as... you know what, don't read No Hero just now. Some things you can't be eased into.There's also Supergod, which is part of the same series (in theme, not plot). All of those are pretty great, but all of them are pretty dark, yeah (No Hero especially). Note that Avatar Press (the guys who print almost all of his stuff nowadays) doesn't do any sort of creative control, so it tends to be a bit, uh, unfiltered. Everything I've read by him since then is good, though.

You also might want to check out FreakAngels (http://www.freakangels.com/?p=23), which is completely free.

[Odjn]

What have you read, Satan's? Also these gentlemen are classy and should be listened to.

[Betty Elms]

If you like Y: The Last Man (which I'm guessing you will), you might want to check out Ex Machina by the same guy. About a superhero (the only one in the world) who becomes the Mayor of New York in the wake of 9/11. It manages to handle political issues pretty damn well (Vaughan is pretty clearly a liberal, but he's never outright insulting to anyone in the comic and manages to present it all very nicely).
Yeah, this. It's not quite as lovely as Y, but at least Vaughan gets over his embarrassing infatuation with cheap shitty cliffhangers.

Bone is a terrific comic, the effortless way it combines and weaves between charming comedic material and entirely sincere high fantasy is delightful. It's like eating a cake full of serotonin releasers and then J.R.R. Tolkien pops out and starts telling you funny jokes.

From Hell is good if you're in the mood for Alan Moore waving his dick in front of you for like 600 pages while going "HEY DO YOU WANT TO SEE HOW SMART I AM?" And I am always in the mood for that, because the answer is "very smart." It's a hugely ambitious exploration of the Jack the Ripper murders as a means of exploring the occult history of London, Victorian culture, the patriarchy, and a whole bunch of things that you wouldn't think could be examined so thoroughly without the end product becoming a big mess. Which it isn't, it's only a little bit of a mess, but it's one of those brilliant messes and you probably won't notice it behind all the glorious dick waving.

The last one isn't a series but I'm going to recommend it at you anyway because I feel like it should be required reading for anybody who's remotely interested in the capabilities of the medium. Asterios Polyp is perhaps the most effective merging of form and content that I've yet seen in comics, pretty much every page there's some fantastically innovative way Mazzucchelli manages to convey the ideas of the text through the artwork. Any writer who doesn't know how to really communicate concepts visually has no business writing comics, and that's because they can never make something this great and should quit wasting everybody's time with their bullshit.

[A Zarkin' Frood]

Names not to run from:
Alan Moore (Watchmen, Swamp Thing, Promethea)
Neil Gaiman (Sandman and the Death spinoff)
Warren Ellis (Transmetropolitan, Planetary... for the shiggles Nextwave)
Grant Morrison (Arkham Asylum, His Batman Run, The Invisibles)

Well, arguably you should run from Alan Moore and Warren Ellis (especially if you read his short bio in the back of the Planetary books which, as Meister pointed out, are pretty fantastic) and Grant Morrison is not everyone's cup of tea, but yeah, those are the authors I read the most.


Also, here's a link to Warren Ellis' FreakAngels (http://www.freakangels.com/?p=23), because the person who mentioned it first didn't
EDIT: Okay, there was a link, now you have two.

[The Sevenshot Kid]

I've read a tiny bit of Transmetropolitan and I'm pretty sure if you like it, then you'll like Preacher. Seriously, if you've not read it then you need to because it's one of the greatest comics of all time.

[Satan's Onion]

So a couple of days ago I got more Transmetropolitan. One other great thing about this series: Spider's assistants are pretty good characters in themselves, and not a harem for the hero or props to make him look badass. They're also not Catty Btches Who Bitch At Each Other Cattily--god, how I despise that trope. They're proper characters, treated halfway decently, and I like that.

I also got myself the first volume of Bone. It's like high fantasy and the Looney Toons cartoons I loved from childhood had a baby who, in turn, had a completely happy and well-adjusted upbringing and decided get into the business of storytelling.

...
From Hell is good if you're in the mood for Alan Moore waving his dick in front of you for like 600 pages while going "HEY DO YOU WANT TO SEE HOW SMART I AM?" And I am always in the mood for that, because the answer is "very smart." It's a hugely ambitious exploration of the Jack the Ripper murders as a means of exploring the occult history of London, Victorian culture, the patriarchy, and a whole bunch of things that you wouldn't think could be examined so thoroughly without the end product becoming a big mess. Which it isn't, it's only a little bit of a mess, but it's one of those brilliant messes and you probably won't notice it behind all the glorious dick waving.
...

One of the very small number of graphic novels I've read before I started buying my own was League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, volumes I and II, and Watchmen, all of which I borrowed from my library. (Their website says they have the Black Dossier, but they totally don't, the jerks.) Watching Alan Moore and the glorious undulations of his member (of intellectual might) is actually pretty high on my list of fun things to do. Although before I started shopping at my local comic book shop, those books constituted pretty much the entirety of my exposure to the genre.

Looked for Planetary but he didn't have volume 1; I'll look for the rest of these next time I'm in (note to self: make a list of titles).

[Doc ock rokc]

Alan Moore (Watchmen, Swamp Thing, Promethea)

You get points for mentioning Moore but how can you forget The Killing Joke (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/TheKillingJoke), and For The Man Who Has Everything (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/ForTheManWhoHasEverything)
Heck he wasn't a big name during these so it didn't have the Wave dick thing going on.

[The Sevenshot Kid]

You get points for mentioning Moore but how can you forget The Killing Joke (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/TheKillingJoke), and For The Man Who Has Everything (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/ForTheManWhoHasEverything)
Heck he wasn't a big name during these so it didn't have the Wave dick thing going on.

Personally, I hate The Killing Joke but that mostly comes down to my hatred of the attempt at an origin story for the Joker and my general distaste for the art. Minus the origin, there's a really interesting look at the Joker and Batman's relationship that has greatly effected their characterization since it's publication for the better.

For The Man Who Has Everything and Whatever Happened to the Man of Tomorrow are legitimately great.

[A Zarkin' Frood]

Those were great yes, I have not yet read the latter though, I have to admit. Haven't read any comics in a few months even though I have a huge list of things to work through.
From Hell is basically really just him waving his monstrous dick and nothing else, though. Nice to read once I guess. I haven't yet tried to read it a second time. It's a phone book sized comic after all but it's size barely manages to convey the proportions of Alan Moore's artistic and intellectual dick(s?). Well, the contents do. the exterior doesn't. It's one of those dicks that's bigger on the inside than the outside. I hope that doesn't make sense.

Another, a little more obscure, thing that springs to mind is Umbrella Academy. Not from any big name writers, but a really fun comic with interesting characters and crazy plots that could not exist outside of comics. So far there are two volumes out and the third one will be released once it's done.

[Magus]

Your comic book store guy is way better than my comic book store guy, who pushed me into buying a copy of Batman: The Dark Knight the first time I was there. What a tool! I enjoyed the copy of Batman Beyond I also bought far more.

Not sure what you've read, all the suggestions here are more original series, although I concur with the Batman graphic novels and will add a mention of Gotham Central, which I hope is available as some kind of omnibus since it's about forty issues. But just a stellar, stellar story set in Gotham, but not starring Batman (although he's in it), but instead the detectives of the MCU, such as Renee Montoya and Harvey Bullock. The series is interesting in that the story shifts back and forth between the day shift and the night shift, and it works a lot like a crime procedural despite their having to deal with Batman's rogues gallery quite a bit, as well as crooked cops in their own department. Basically it's like the Wire meets Batman, and is excellent. Knowledge of the greater DC universe is not required to a great extent, other than that a concurrent plotline in the main Batman comic makes them antagonistic towards Batman about 2/3rds through, where their relationship changes suddenly within the span of one comic. But the ending of the series is easily one of the best things I've ever read in comics.

Batman graphic novels I'd recommend besides The Killing Joke: Batman Year One, The Long Halloween, Dark Victory, The Man Who Falls, The Man Who Laughs, Arkham Asylum: A Serious House On Serious Earth, Joker: The Dark Knight, Catwoman: When in Rome, and I dunno, Two-Face Strikes Twice for a little fun?

[Fifthfiend]

Darwyn Cooke seems like he'd maybe be up your alley, try New Frontier and The Spirit. New Frontier is like, Superman and Wonder Woman and suchlike but instead of a bunch of hassles about continuity you just have like, 1950s political intrigue and Wonder Woman beating up Vietnamese slavers and such. The Spirit is like, basically just rad as hell pulp detective/adventure stories.

Immortal Iron Fist was hells good, if you like comics about kung-fu billionaires and the seven secret immortal cities that love them then this could be the comic for you? It's IN-CONTINUITY but not in any way that matters, you certainly won't know the difference between the stuff that's actually from an existing Marvel comic somewhere and the mountain of stuff that the writers are making up on the spot. I've seen it described as the Marvel Universe's idea of Exalted.

Marvel's Annihilation is basically just this fantastically grandiose space opera epic saga in space. It is insanely, insanely continuilicious like I don't think there's a thing in it that doesn't have 40 years of backstory connected to it. I personally didn't know hardly any of that backstory before I picked it up and I enjoyed it pretty good but I have a pretty high tolerance for that kind of thing. If Immortal is Marvel's version of Exalted then this is Marvel's version of 40K.

[Fifthfiend]

Oh, OH, if you haven't read it, a pretty standard recommendation for anyone who enjoys Atomic Robo: Hellboy, aka "Atomic Robo is pretty much just this comic except Scott Wegener traced uglier lines on top of it and then Brian Clevinger scrawled his own garbagewriting into all of the word bubbles".

The first volume of the series is actually a bit rough, so maybe grab two or three and start there and then go read the first one after you're into the storyline already, if that's the sort of thing that works for you (The first volume is co-written by Mike Mignola and Chris Claremont, the later volumes are written by Mike Mignola solely and his personal writing style really suits the series more).

[Mr.Bookworm]

Two one-shot comics that I just got done reading that I would recommend are Joker and Luthor (you might find it as Lex Luthor: Man of Steel, but the most recent edition is just titled Luthor). Both are by Brian Azzarello, who also did 100 Bullets which is pretty great (okay make that three recommendations). They both take place from the viewpoint of the villains and neither is in continuity, so you don't really need to know anything beyond the bare basics of Superman and Batman.

Joker is about the Joker getting out of Arkham and wreaking havoc, takes place in a really noir-ish Gotham City, and has Batman show up for about five pages and completely steal the show while only speaking three words in the entire comic.

Luthor is about Luthor being a pretty nice and noble guy on the surface while doing some absolutely monstrous things in his crusade against Superman. Also has Superman (who always shows up from Luthor's point of view as a scowling monster with glowing red eyes) turn up pretty rarely, he only gets a single line, and he does pretty much steal the show.

EDIT: Oh yeah, Hellboy. Hellboy is fantastic. And great. BUY IT.

Like, if you are just starting out in comic books, you pretty much have a couple of years worth of non-stop great reading material ahead of you.

[Meister]

I've read a tiny bit of Transmetropolitan and I'm pretty sure if you like it, then you'll like Preacher. Seriously, if you've not read it then you need to because it's one of the greatest comics of all time.
Iiiiiiii dunno, I don't see much of a resemblance. I mean Preacher's good and all but in a whole different way than Transmet and only under a specific set of premises. Basically every time the choice comes to have the next storyarc feature incredible violence, machismo and freakshows or consistent characters and thoughtful moments, Preacher always goes straight for the violence, and if you're okay with that, you'll enjoy it a lot. Also if you ever wanted to know what having that disorder feels like where you can't tell people apart by their faces.

[The Sevenshot Kid]

Iiiiiiii dunno, I don't see much of a resemblance. I mean Preacher's good and all but in a whole different way than Transmet and only under a specific set of premises. Basically every time the choice comes to have the next storyarc feature incredible violence, machismo and freakshows or consistent characters and thoughtful moments, Preacher always goes straight for the violence, and if you're okay with that, you'll enjoy it a lot. Also if you ever wanted to know what having that disorder feels like where you can't tell people apart by their faces.

I've never heard anyone complain about inconsistent characterization in Preacher. If anything, I heard the opposite where friends I lent the trades out to were frustrated by the characters not really learning anything or changing in meaningful ways until the very end of the series. But the art thing I get. Steve Dillon's art ain't pretty by any stretch of the imagination but it's an acquired taste that I picked up immediately.

I know this series is relatively new but Chew is just great. If you're down for a totally bizarre alt. universe with art that refuses to obey the rules of anatomy, it's a great read. The basic set-up is that it's about a cop with the ability to know everything about something by taking a bite and chewing it. It got noticed pretty early in it's run and Showtime is looking at making a pilot based on the series.

I'm seconding the Immortal Iron Fist recommendation and also motioning the Bendis' run on Daredevil. I bought one of three omnibus type collections of his run, burned through it in a day, and am now waiting for the second one to arrive in my mail. It's great storytelling accompanied by great art the whole way through that makes me want to read all the way through this and Brubaker's run. As my first dip into the Daredevil pool outside of the movie (which I think had a great director's cut), it's a great intro to the character that makes you want to go back and read Miller's old stuff.

So far I've read Born Again and the first couple of Stan Lee issues but I suggest skipping the early years and getting right into the Frank Miller era. I think Miller did his own take on the origin at some point so that seems like a good place to start. Also, the new relaunch written by Mark Waid is fantastic. After the overwhelming darkness of Miller and Bendis, this series is just fun and enjoyable. Great place to start if you don't feel like digging through the archives.

Superman: Secret Identity is a great Elseworld's book by Kurt Busiek that is one of the few examples of a flawless work of art in the comic book world. It's an amazing character piece that demands a read at least once a year so you can see how your understanding of it has changed as you grow older.

V for Vendetta is superior to Watchmen.

The 2009-2011 Batgirl will be a classic one day thanks to it's amazing sense of fun and great cast of characters.

And Robert Kirkman's Invincible is great. I suggest buying as much of the series as you can before reading it because it's really cohesive with every little thing sticking together and callbacks that reward the reader's love of the series. What makes it truly outstanding is the lead character. His evolution into a real hero is amazing and you really feel for him the whole way through, sharing his highs and lows. At 84 issues, I don't think this series is going to live past 100 thanks to Kirkman's workload and the tone that the series has been taking lately. It's a great run with very few weakpoints.

Ultimate Spider-Man. All of it. For much of the same reasons as Invincible. If you know a kid around nine years old or so, give him this comic and watch how greatly it effects him.

[Satan's Onion]

Just finished Freakangels. Dammit, why are you all making such excellent suggestions, you jerkfaces :argh:

[DarkDrgon]

I can't shout enough that the new DareDevil is fantastic. I'm hoping they don't start throwing DD down the "Happy-shitty event-downward spiral-I'ma pull through" storyline that they've been rehashing since born again. Robo and DD are the only reasons I go to my comic shop anymore, if something else catches my eye, great, but without those 2 I wouldn't even bother with new comics

[Fifthfiend]

I extra-double-specially need to make a list.

BKV
Y: The Last Man
Ex Machina

ELLIS
Transmetropolitan
Planetary
Black Summer
No Hero READ AT OWN RISK
Doktor Sleepless
Supergod

MOORE
The Killing Joke
For The Man Who Has Everything
Whatever Happened to the Man of Tomorrow
From Hell
V for Vendetta

DARWYN COOKE
New Frontier
The Spirit

I'M NOT OKAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAY
Umbrella Academy

GRANT FOOKING "I'M GRANT FOOKING MORRISON" MORRISON
Arkham Asylum
The Invisibles
The Filth

MIKE MIGNOLA
Hellboy
BPRD

KURT BUSIEK
Superman: Secret Identity

ROBERT KIRKMAN
Invincible

GARTH ENNIS SAYS DON'T MESS WITH TEXAS
Preacher

SICK, SHAMEFUL CONTINUITY
Immortal Iron Fist - Ed Brubaker/Matt Fraction/David Aja
Annihilation - Keith Giffen
Gotham Central - Fuck I should know this one
Impulse - Mark Waid, William Messner-Loebs, some other guys
Deadpool - Joe Kelly
Wonder Woman - Greg Rucka (I think he was the same guy who wrote Gotham Central)

[The Sevenshot Kid]

BKV
Y: The Last Man
Ex Machina

MOORE
The Killing Joke
For The Man Who Has Everything
Whatever Happened to the Man of Tomorrow
From Hell
V for Vendetta

DARWYN COOKE
New Frontier
The Spirit

I'M NOT OKAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAY
Umbrella Academy

KURT BUSIEK
Superman: Secret Identity

ROBERT KIRKMAN
Invincible

GARTH ENNIS SAYS DON'T MESS WITH TEXAS
Preacher

SICK, SHAMEFUL CONTINUITY
Immortal Iron Fist
Annihilation
Gotham Central

I love you man.

[Mr.Bookworm]

Just finished Freakangels. Dammit, why are you all making such excellent suggestions, you jerkfaces :argh:

Because we HATE YOU and want you to suffocate to death in a pile of excellent comic books.

I've never heard anyone complain about inconsistent characterization in Preacher. If anything, I heard the opposite where friends I lent the trades out to were frustrated by the characters not really learning anything or changing in meaningful ways until the very end of the series. But the art thing I get. Steve Dillon's art ain't pretty by any stretch of the imagination but it's an acquired taste that I picked up immediately.

I'm going to have to mostly agree with Meister on this one. Ellis and Ennis don't have that much in common.

I would give Preacher a hesitant recommendation to at least check it out, but Ennis is not for everyone (he is probably the best Punisher writer ever, though).

Other things for Satan Onion's HATEPILE:

Superman: Red Son is a pretty good Elsewheres one-shot. About Superman crashlanding in the Ukraine as a baby instead of in Kansas, and being raised as a loyal Communist. Also features the sexiest Bathat ever.

Gotham by Gaslight is the first Elsewheres ever, and it's steampunk Batman written by Mike Mignola. I don't know how to arrange a better combination of words than that.

IG mentioned it earlier, but Sandman is Sandman. Read it.

It also has a spin-off Lucifer, which is similarly excellent. About the devil after he gets tired of Hell and leaves, opening up a nightclub in Los Angeles.

Marvel 1602 is pretty great (really, just grab every single thing you can find that has Neil Gaiman's name on it, it's pretty much all good). It's, uh, the Marvel universe as envisioned in 1602. There's enough nerdage of both comics and history to satisfy anyone.

Gotham Central - Fuck I should know this one
Wonder Woman - Greg Rucka (I think he was the same guy who wrote Gotham Central)

Yeah, Rucka did Gotham Central too.

[Satan's Onion]

...
SICK, SHAMEFUL CONTINUITY


Is not! It's just a phase that a lot of graphic narratives go through at a certain age, which is perfectly healthy and even fulfilling when indulged in moderation. It's just awfully intimidating without, say, a messageboard full o' comics nerds to steer me towards the good shit and away from the stupid/creepy/rapetastical/generally shitawful stuff. It's like you guys have tried all that horrible stuff so I don't have to! Like those things, y'know, um...animals, that have stuff done to them, um...I think they're furry? Maybe?

[Fifthfiend]

Is not! It's just a phase that a lot of graphic narratives go through at a certain age, which is perfectly healthy and even fulfilling when indulged in moderation. It's just awfully intimidating without, say, a messageboard full o' comics nerds to steer me towards the good shit and away from the stupid/creepy/rapetastical/generally shitawful stuff. It's like you guys have tried all that horrible stuff so I don't have to! Like those things, y'know, um...animals, that have stuff done to them, um...I think they're furry? Maybe?

Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha

[The Sevenshot Kid]

Oh, that reminds me! Animal Man is the shit. Read everything from Grant Morrison and the relaunch.

[Amake]

I'm so happy that a thread like this doesn't need me. As a comics enthusiast, there's not much more fun than seeing the struggling medium gaining popularity.

I'll just add: Powers, Jinx, Scarlet and everything else by Brian Michael Bendis. A fine ear for dialogue has Mister Bendis, and a merciless taste for realism in character psychology and the randomness of things.

And Kabuki by David Mack, an intensely personal lengthy character study of a walking stereotype; the ice cold secret government killer woman trained from birth. Also it looks like an explosion in an art school.

And Battle Angel Alita by Yukito Kishiro. I know, manga, it's crazy, you have to flip the books turn-ways and read from the right, but it's worth it if you're at all into brutal robot fights. Well, that and various philosophical explorations of themes including sympathy, love, contest, guilt, loneliness, power and responsibility. Soon to be made into a movie series by James Cameron.

Also Fables by Bill Willingham, if you like the old fables. It's centered on such public domain characters as Snow White and Prince Charming, the Big Bad Wolf, Pinocchio, Mowgli, King Cole, The Prince What Was Turned Into A Frog and Little Boy Blue, and if you've ever wondered what those guys would do when exiled into our world and struggling to reconcile their human nature and their fable nature which drives them to act as they do in their stories, it's a must read.

[A Zarkin' Frood]

IG mentioned it earlier, but Sandman is Sandman. Read it.

It also has a spin-off Lucifer, which is similarly excellent. About the devil after he gets tired of Hell and leaves, opening up a nightclub in Los Angeles.

. and . to both of those. Sandman is pretty much material for a literature classic and Lucifer is not exactly in the same vein but absolutely excellent in a different way.
Also, I have mentioned it earlier, if you like Sandman you'll also have to read the Death spin-offs, also written by Gaiman.




Also Fables by Bill Willingham, if you like the old fables. It's centered on such public domain characters as Snow White and Prince Charming, the Big Bad Wolf, Pinocchio, Mowgli, King Cole, The Prince What Was Turned Into A Frog and Little Boy Blue, and if you've ever wondered what those guys would do when exiled into our world and struggling to reconcile their human nature and their fable nature which drives them to act as they do in their stories, it's a must read.
Yes.


I'M NOT OKAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAY
Umbrella Academy

GRANT FOOKING "I'M GRANT FOOKING MORRISON" MORRISON
Arkham Asylum
The Invisibles
The Filth

And all of those.

[tacticslion]

Also Fables by Bill Willingham, if you like the old fables. It's centered on such public domain characters as Snow White and Prince Charming, the Big Bad Wolf, Pinocchio, Mowgli, King Cole, The Prince What Was Turned Into A Frog and Little Boy Blue, and if you've ever wondered what those guys would do when exiled into our world and struggling to reconcile their human nature and their fable nature which drives them to act as they do in their stories, it's a must read.

My wife and I cannot second Fables enough. Pretty much all of it.

Also, although its still coming out, I'm personally enjoying Unwritten. It's a look at what happens if stories are part of the fundamental laws of the universe and can have a real, tangible effect on the world. It's incredibly clever. One of the fascinating things is that each of the three graphic novels that I've gotten (so far) has had a different literary style. The first two are, like, super-depressing and awful, but it's good enough that I didn't care. I can't promise it'll stay great, just that it is right now.

[Odjn]

Sin City is actually decent. In fact I would rate it as A++ if there were only stories with Marv in them but sadly sometimes you get a Dwight.

[Amake]

True, Frank Miller is good in small doses, before WHORESWHORESWHORESWHORESWHORESWHORESWHORESWH become evident. I recommend his early Batman and Daredevil stories, and if you can find it an old three-part original comic called Hard Boiled just for the sheer mind-boggling amounts of sex and violence. . .wait, I already described that one once (http://www.nuklearforums.com/showthread.php?t=35731).

[Satan's Onion]

Purchased From Hell a few days ago. Finished it the same day.

My god. I...I just--it...

My god.