pastels_badge ([info]pastels_badge) wrote,
@ 2007-01-17 17:27:00
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humble requests
Request #1: Can I get some comics recommendations? Mostly I'm thinking about mainstream-y superhero type stuff. When it comes to that whole mainstream-ish non-superhero kind, like I have a good idea of what I want to check out, and once I check out more of that stuff I hope I'll have an idea of where to go from there. When it comes to indie comics, well, I haven't seen anything new from that quarter that's excited me as much as the old Julie Doucet books I have on my bookshelf or the Chester Brown I read in high school and so forth, or when I have it's been new stuff from someone who's been working since those mid-to-late-90s salad days, but if there's something cool I'm missing, I would definitely like to know. But mostly I have superhero stuff in mind here, because that's an area where I don't have much of a frame of reference.

Lately I've been reading this Daredevil story, the one that starts with "Underboss." I like it pretty well but it's not grabbing me as much as I had hoped. In between Daredevil books I read the New Mutants "Demon Bear Saga" and I got a bit more into that. I really liked the style of the art on that one, plus I'm a sucker for the whole angsty teenager angle. And this whole effort to get more into this area of comics started in large part because I read the Dark Phoenix cycle and I really enjoyed that. So maybe that's some kind of indication of what I'm likely to go for, though it's not that much to go on. I've read a smattering of other stuff, I just didn't get that into any of it. Anyways, for now I'm thinking about reading some more of the New Mutants stuff from around the Demon Bear period...and I'm always on the hunt for those Wonder Woman issues that Samuel Delany wrote, because I love him...and I'm sort of interested in the whole Secret Wars period in the Marvel universe, but other than that I don't know. Oh, and I've been reading The Astonishing X-Men as an extension of my Joss Whedon obsession, and I'll probably keep doing that even though it has been kind of dumb lately.

Request #2: I'm planning a trip to NYC in March (like from the 9th or the 10th through...I forget the date but the Wednesday that SXSW starts) and I was wondering if any of you New York folks would like to hang out while I'm there. I'll be meeting up with Emma (aka [info]lostpositive), who'll be on a visit from Cardiff, so interested parties can meet her too. I'm mostly just checking to see who'd like to get an overpriced drink, or eat pierogies, or go record-shopping or whatever. But, also, if anybody has room for one or two nice, clean, quiet girls to crash for one or more nights, that would also be helpful. I'm putting out the call to old friends and may not end up being in the market for a place to stay, but putting out some extra feelers never hurt. But if you'd like to hang out but don't know yet if you would invite me into your house, please don't be deterred! I won't be hurt. I'm also interested in hearing about any interesting shows or movie screenings or other doings that might be happening around that time.

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[info]phylomath
2007-01-18 12:34 am UTC (link)
You can borrow my big heavy copy of Lost Girls, though that's not quite what you're looking for...unless you're searching for superhero-level sexual depravity.

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[info]pastels_badge
2007-01-18 01:40 am UTC (link)
I saw some original issues from the beginning of Lost Girls at Austin Books a while back and thought of you. I actually should borrow it from you sometime, I've been meaning to check it out.

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[info]phylomath
2007-01-19 02:25 pm UTC (link)
I can give it to you the next time we see each other. We should plan on that, as it's been way too long since we've hung out and I'm feeling like a cad for not calling you or anything lately. You up to anything tonight (Friday)?

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[info]hangingfire
2007-01-18 12:37 am UTC (link)
Wow, I suck at the superhero comics recs. That being said, have you checked out Powers, by Brian Michael Bendis and Michael Avon Oeming? It's film noir police procedural meets superheroes, and very, very good.

And I can't remember if I've rec'd Alan Moore's superhero reinvention books (for lack of a better name) before -- Promethea, Tom Strong, Top Ten, etc.

I'll see if I can come up with anything else.

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[info]pastels_badge
2007-01-18 01:38 am UTC (link)
The thing is, I know I need to read Alan Moore. I've just been procrastinating about it, in part because I haven't had that much reading time and reading an issue of Astonishing X-Men or an old paperback of the New Mutants isn't nearly the same kind of time commitment (away from my studies) as, say, Watchmen would be. But that's a whole area I know I need to get into.

I should probably give indie comics more of another chance again, too. It's just that I haven't found anything in that area that has really excited me in a while. If you have any recommendations from that quarter I'd be interested in them too.

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[info]minimalrobot
2007-01-18 03:35 am UTC (link)
Yes for Top Ten! Although it might not be quite the type of superhero comic you're looking for.

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[info]pastels_badge
2007-01-18 04:40 am UTC (link)
I'm definitely interested in it, even if it's not exactly the category I had in mind just now. And you know I respect the Bruce seal of approval.

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[info]hangingfire
2007-01-18 04:36 pm UTC (link)
If you want some Alan Moore that's lighter going than Watchmen, you should definitely try out Tom Strong or Top Ten. They're both very good, but they don't require nearly as much heavy lifting. Top Ten is especially satisfying, because who doesn't love police procedurals? And it also has the exceptional richness of Gene Ha's artwork, which is probably some of the best stuff going out there.

I have not been terribly excited about indie comics myself over the last few years, because I'm just about done with indie emo-boy wankery. That being said, I can definitely recommend Eddie Campbell's books -- he's been doing the black-and-white autobio stuff for ages, and has the advantage of being very wry and Scottish. They do need to be read in order: The King Canute Crowd, Three Piece Suit, How to Be an Artist, After the Snooter, and The Fate of the Artist.

I also recommend Jason Lutes's Berlin, albeit with the cautionary note that the trade collecting 1-8 will totally suck you in, and that subsequent issues have come out on average once per year, and I'm going absolutely nuts as a result.

Am also a big fan of Joe Sacco, whose Palestine and Safe Area Gorazde are must-reads. And I really like Donna Barr's The Desert Peach, although there's been something strange going on in the more recent issues. But if you can scare up the trades, it's well worth it -- they're terrific.

Have I recommended Gillen & McKelvie's Phonogram to you? Well worth checking out -- it's a little love letter to Britpop and also a weird sort of urban fantasy thing.

Will let you know if I come up with more.

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[info]pot80
2007-01-18 12:52 am UTC (link)
Stick with the Bendis/Maleev Daredevil -- it goes to some really satisfying places following a major change that comes in the book immediately after Underboss, and except for a couple detours, it's pretty great straight through the run by Ed Brubaker that begins right after an even bigger change that concludes the B/M run.

Let's see...

I highly recommend Brian K Vaughan and Adrian Alphona's Runaways. It's very sharp, has a great concept and wonderful characters, and Joss Whedon will begin writing a run on that book starting in April. You can get all the issues in little digests that cost $7 each, and there are six currently in print, with the seventh still being published as single issues. Basically, it's about a bunch of kids who find out that their parents were secretly a group of supervillains, and they have to go on the run. Given your love of Joss Whedon and your taste for the golden days of the New Mutants, I think it's kind of a home run for you. I'm not sure if you're familiar with Vaughan's other work, but I also highly recommend his Y The Last Man series for Vertigo, which is all in trades. Also recommended, but with a bit less enthusiasm, is his Ex Machina series.

I quite like the Mark Waid/Barry Kitson version of the Legion of Super Heroes that's been going for about two years now. They basically rebooted the thing, so if you bought the first trade of that ("Teenage Revolution"), you'd be starting at the VERY BEGINNING. Sometimes I wonder if the fact that I've always had a thing for the Legion makes me enjoy it more than I should, but I do know that a lot of people who'd never read any Legion before like it a lot. Basically, Waid flipped the concept around -- in this version, the Legion are a youth movement in the 31st century inspired by the super heroes of the 21st century, and they are rebelling against the corrupt, complacent, and dull adults who keep them down.

Peter David's current run on X-Factor is quite good, and probably the best X-comic on the market, with apologies to Whedon and Cassaday, whose run is only occasionally awesome, and suffers from bloated plots. If you haven't read Grant Morrison's New X-Men, you really ought to -- Astonishing X-Men is for all intents and purposes New X-Men Season 4. Morrison's story is fantastic, even if it has some major problems in terms of pacing in the second and third years.

Oh oh oh oh oh oh, the first volume of Grant Morrison and Frank Quitely's All Star Superman will be out in a couple months, and you really can't go wrong with that, it's pretty much the best Superman stuff in years and years and years, and the art is pretty much perfect. Speaking of Superman, the first volume of Showcase: Superman is $10 for over 500 pages of gleefully absurd Silver Age Superman comics, and will likely bring you a great deal of joy if you're into that sort of thing.

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[info]pastels_badge
2007-01-18 01:57 am UTC (link)
I'm already through most of the Bendis/Maleev run of Daredevil. I think there are two or three more "volumes" before it ends. I have been enjoying it, but I just don't seem to be getting as much out of it as other people I've talked to about it. And since I'm still just starting to get into this stuff I sometimes wonder if I'm not that into it because this whole type of comics just isn't for me. But I know I've gotten really into other stuff in the past, so it's not that. Anyways, I'm glad I've read the Daredevil stuff and I'll probably keep going to the end of it but I don't think it's going to end up being a big favorite of mine.

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[info]pot80
2007-01-18 12:59 am UTC (link)
Really, if you haven't read much Grant Morrison, there's a wealth of fantastic work in his bibliography, and most of it is in print.

His Doom Patrol series from the late 80s/early 90s is currently in print from Vertigo -- it's surreal and touching and brilliant, and I read it all when it first came out as a pre-pubescent kid, and it pretty much changed my life. I love it to bits, though one thing to keep in mind is that though it's pretty cool from the start, it doesn't really hit its stride til around the halfway point, and the very best stuff comes at the end.

His Invisibles books have a similar "this changed my life" effect for lots of other people, and though I like it, it doesn't do as much for me.

His We3 book with Frank Quitely is very pretty and highly acclaimed, but similarly, I admire it more than love it. You might love it, most people do. I think it's only $10, so it's not much of a risk.

Oh, and if you haven't read Bryan Lee O'Malley's Scott Pilgrim books, seriously stop everything and go get them and love them forever.

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[info]pastels_badge
2007-01-18 01:32 am UTC (link)
Thanks for all the recommendations! I'm going to have to print this out and take it with me to the comic shop...

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[info]pot80
2007-01-18 02:12 am UTC (link)
Cool. You should maybe look around I Love Comics -- there's a lot of interesting threads about a range of comics, and unlike the other ILX boards, everyone is friendly, and the pace is slow and manageable.

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[info]secondperiod
2007-01-18 01:36 am UTC (link)
Have you read Astro City? Especially the first series. I think it's still available as a Trade Paperback collection. It's a good one. Also, New Frontiers is good, I've heard, but I ain't read that one. Ask Patrick.

I'm pretty obsessed with mid-to-late 80s Marvel too, but it really wasn't great, was it?

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[info]pastels_badge
2007-01-18 01:49 am UTC (link)
I have to admit, even when I really like that late 80s Marvel stuff I feel a little silly about it. It can be so goofy. But there's something about the goofiness I sort of enjoy. And the art on that New Mutants stuff is so great. Sometimes Bill Sienkewicz's stuff reminds me of the illustrations Ralph Steadman did for Hunter S. Thompson's books, in a nice way.

I'll have to put that other stuff on my list, too.

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[info]pot80
2007-01-18 10:43 pm UTC (link)
Surely if you're going to buy old Claremont stuff, you ought to just get the Essential volumes! They are thorough, and you get more bang for your buck.

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[info]automatic_girl
2007-01-18 07:15 pm UTC (link)
unfortunately i don't do superhero comix! though i echo the above rec of megan kelso...she is one of my most favorites.

and...i'm here in nyc and would love to hang out with you! unfortunately my apt is on the tiny side so i won't be able to host...but i'm down for overpriced drinks. we can do a yarn store tour if you like!

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[info]pastels_badge
2007-01-19 06:38 am UTC (link)
I would love to have overpriced drinks and/or yarn-shopping with you, sweetcakes.

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[info]automatic_girl
2007-01-19 11:26 pm UTC (link)
hooray...we will discuss closer to your visit.

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[info]bp1101
2007-01-18 10:18 pm UTC (link)
david and i actually are traveling to austin on that same wednesday...and have a layover at jfk. so maybe we'll actually see each other...maybe we'll actually be on the same plane....that would be funny.

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[info]pastels_badge
2007-01-19 06:38 am UTC (link)
I don't know for sure about the dates yet since I haven't bought my ticket yet, but who knows, maybe we'll be leaving at the same time or even on the same flight. That would be insane.

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[info]phylomath
2007-01-19 02:28 pm UTC (link)
Oh hey, you'll be in Austin? Let me know if you guys want to go out for food with McKee and I or whatnot...or if you need a place to stay!

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[info]brooklynnotes
2007-01-19 07:23 pm UTC (link)
hello, we don't know each other, but i found you through a samuel delany search. I had no idea he had written a run of Wonder Woman. Do you know which ones?

also, I am adding you, hope you don't mind.

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[info]pastels_badge
2007-01-20 08:53 am UTC (link)
Sure, add away!

Delany only wrote two issues of Wonder Woman, #202 and #203. "During a controversial period in the publication's history when the lead character abandoned her superpowers and became a secret agent," wikipedia says. Maybe that's the reason why I can never find those issues anyplace? Because people hate the secret agent issues? I really don't know if those issues will turn out to be all that interesting, but I'm too curious not to keep looking out for them.

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