I don’t read comics anymore, they just don’t interest me.
The only mangas I’ve ever read, incidentally, are Neon Genesis Evangelion: Angelic Days, since I liked the anime so much; and Ranma 1/2, cos my girlfriend made me read them (although I like them now :P).
I used to read a lot of comics; unfortunately, I came into the game in the 1990s, when everything related back to some obscure issue in the 1970s, and story arcs were impossible to follow because they spanned so many different series, issues, and limited specials. Since then, it’s gradually gone downhill, and I’ve lost much of my interest in current comics.
The only series I still read is Punisher War Journal. I used to read Garth Ennis’s take on the character during the Marvel Knights years, but haven’t been able to hunt down the MAX comics (and the few I’ve read made me a little upset, especially when they re-killed Microchip.) It’s the one series where rampant violence and bloodshed makes sense, and there’s been a great deal of maturity with the title, the kind that hasn’t been portrayed in most other comics today.
The only exception was that whole “new Hate-Monger” story. Man, what a waste of paper. It could have been great, but they squandered the chance and churned out a below-average series of issues. He was a C-class villain back in the 60s, and he hasn’t aged very well since then. And don’t get me started on the “Captain Punisher” costume.
My chem teacher returned my copy of Watchmen today that he borrowed, said that he didn’t really like it.
“Watchmen” is hardly representative of the typical superhero comic, in fact it was an intentional deconstruction; I doubt most people without the right background would appreciate it. I don’t expect the movie to be a hit, either.
I told him that, he still grabbed it when he saw me walking around with it >_>
And oh god, the movie costumes. Ozymandias looks so weird.
nowawadays almost all arcs are released in either trade paperbacks (for basically the same or less cost as the individual issues) or in a fancier hardcover format. You should look into some of them.
Any particular titles you would recommend?
I like The Sandman.
Also, Shattered Visage was a great little four parter for anyone that liked The Prisoner.
I’ve gone off the mainstream X-Men, Batman, etc. lately. I’ve read Bone, The Way of the Rat, Top Ten, Meridian, Y the Last Man.
Bone is a fantasy genre about these guys who were kicked out of Boneville; a place where everyone is a characature (sp?). They stumble into a valley filled with talking animals, humans, giant insects, dragons and a whole mess of other things.
The Way of the Rat is a martial arts genre set in ancient China. Magic rings bestow mastery in a martial skill and the main character has to learn about himself and fulfill his destiny.
Top Ten is a cop genre set in the future. Everyone has powers and a ‘superhero’ name, whether they’re born with it or use machines to attain it.
Meridian is a fantasy series where the world is divided into those who live in the sky on giant floating islands and those below. Power is given to select individuals by some god ( I forget the reason why). One of them threatens to dominate the world while his niece tries to stop him. So far I haven’t seen the other people with power.
Y the Last Man is post-apocalyptic. All the males on the earth die spontaneously at the same time for some reason except for one man, Yorrick, and his untrained helper monkey.
Anyone know a good way of getting some of the older classics? Any good compilations of older comics that you liked?
For Marvel, the Essential books are great- buttloads of famous comics for relatively cheap prices.
As for DC…they tend to have paper/hardback releases of old story arcs like Crisis on Infinite Earths, but I think they’re a bit more expensive.
Just check the graphic novel section of places like Border’s- they are usually stocked with comics reprints. (In fact the reprints seem to be selling better than the regular comics- I guess they’re just more practical to read.)