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Nocturnal Comics
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05-08-2009 6:28am#1
So we have threads dedicated to music and film here, but what of the comic books? I suspect that a lot of nightly denizens are quite the comic nerds, so lets strike up some conversation. What are you reading at the moment? What got you into comics in the first place? Is your bowel disruptor set to watery? Is it Alan Moore, Neil Gaiman or Art Spiegelman for you?
Come on and tell all.
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Havent been keeping up on my comics for the last while. Last good read I had was Barracuda (the Punisher spin-off)
Pretty mad stuff considering this (NSFW) is teh opening panel.
I read most of Ennis' stuff back in when I was in college but I've fallen behind in the last year or two. Although judging by what the Punisher is getting up to these days maybe I'm kind of glad...
I also used to read the IDW Transformers comics religiously, but they sell out to quickly so I kept missing issues and then eventually gave up. I only got to read the first issue or two of All Hail Megatron (basically what happens to us after the Decepticons win), but it seemed pretty damn cool:
Picked up Spotlight Cliffjumper recently, but it was disappointing (nobody transformed in it, WTF?)
I hear they're doing an ongoing comic soon, but I've missed so much I think I'd be in over my head.0 -
Currently working my way through the Fables series.
And after that I'll probably try finishing the Promethea series.
Not buying monthly comics like I used to when I was younger. Generally just pick up the collected books.
Have only recently started venturing into the DC universe, as I used to only read Marvel titles.If you can read this, you're too close!
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I've been meaning to give Promethea a look actually.
Alan Moore is a hero of mine. You should try and watch the interview with him (The Mindscapes of Alan Moore url=http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Mindscape_of_Alan_Moore]wiki article[/url). Watchmen and V are just too damn good - I sometimes think it's a shame the films were so awful and then the elitist in me says "no, if people are too moronic to not want to read and experience the full impact of these amazing sotries, then frak 'em!"
Sandman is a massive favourite of mine (Dream is my avatar after all
). Changed the way I thought about literature and story telling, not to mention how I look at the universe in general. The Dave McKean covers too were amazing pieces of art in their own right. My mate Killo has just finished a degree in Fine Art in NCAD and was telling me all about Dave McKean when he discovered him 2 years ago. I said "stay there a second" and went into my room (we used to share a flat) and produced my Sandman books and he squeed 
I also got one of the re-issues of the Sandman Tarot deck that came out last year - amazing stuff. Definitely one of the most Nocturnal comics you'll find too 
I'm also a big fan of Frank Miller. First read the Dark Knight Returns after a gal I used to work with gave me a lend of it. That was a big eye opener for me - I knew there were comics for adults out there but this was way more than I expected and that's what turned me into a comic fan for sure. I recommend everyone tries to get a hold of it and DK2 (the follow ups) and Also Batman: Year One which the first of the Christian Bale films took a lot of it's inspiration from. After a while, I went for the Sin City books and bought a load of them, but have no idea where they ended up after lending them to some friends. The ones that made it into the film were favourites of mine which was cool 0 -
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Yeah my mate is big into his art and he highly recommended Sandman, along with something called Preacher I think. I remember I complained to him about the cost of comics and he went on a rant to me about how "you're not just paying for a story, you're paying for art too!" :P :pac:
Lol well i can agree with what he's saying in a way although it was a friend who lent it to me so i didnt buy it infact i didnt even hear of it until while ago, but i would recommend, i read it with an open mind that it wouldnt be like anything id read before, and couldnt put it down till i finished it
And yes its called Preacher and its my next read!0 -
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Preacher is awesome indeed, I haven't read it in ages, I think it'll have to go for another run this week The characters are awesome - Cassidy's a great laugh, Arseface is a legend and where else will you get a character like Jesus De Sade saying things like "Ah, Demi - I do hope I'll have the pleasure of urinating into your cleavage later?" 0
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Daddy's home.
Now everyone here is going to talk about your Sandmans and your Transmetropolitans but I reckon Starman is probably the best comic book to curl up of a night reading.
It shares several commonalities with Sandman. It's a story built upon recreating a golden age ('50s) legacy character for the modern age. It's creator driven- there's no Sandman without Gaiman, and likewise James Robinson for Starman- and it's also well thought out and finite, just like Sandman.
Starman at heart has 2 running themes. One is family- it is the story of a superhero's estranged son joining the family business, and his slow but steady embracing of his father and understanding of the (not always correct) choices he made.
Another running theme is a love of the past. Reading Starman can sometimes be like a lesson in DC history. Just like Sandman, legacy characters pop up everywhere- but there's a real, genuine warmth in the way Jack Knight regards them. This theme of looking to the past is also reflected in the art, which is wonderfully rendered in a shadowy art deco style:
(Thats the original Sandman next to Jack there in the second picture, interestingly enough.)
Jack Knight is an amazingly fleshed out character. He starts out as a likeable dick who just about tolerates being a super hero (refusing point blank to wear a costume long before that was a trend) but slowly becomes one of if not the most well rounded person in comic books. By the end of the series, you'll want to have a few pints with him!
Anyway. Starman. A comic book effortlessly worth spending the long nights with.0 -
Next up we have Alias (Pardon me if some of this is a little off as I am still working my way through this one).
Not only is Alias just a great read- and it is a great read- but it also challenges you without ever being preachy. It is Bendis' writing at the absolute height of his power. Alias redefines the role women can play in comic books, by just being honest about people.
Alias tells the story of a fallen superheroine who finds solace in both alcohol and the arms of several lovers as she comes to terms with the traumatic ending of her super hero careerthe story allows you to think she has been raped for the longest time- even though this is not the case- i a deliberate attempt to make us realise when something bad happens these days to a woman in a comic, we automatically assume that... which is horrid. Alias is a tale of a woman coming out of a dark hole (and almost as an aside, making a living as a PI at the time). Jessica Jones' is completely uncomfortable with her sexuality at the beginning of the series and refuses to dress pretty- the antithesis of your average comic book female, and all the more human for it.
The art is moody and gritty as befits the story. I personally found the shifts between the superhero panels and Jessica's modern life almost disturbing. It really shows how she has fallen.
You are also really rooting for her to pull through.
This is no ordinary comic and, like the legendary Watchmen, I would recommend this to anyone who say comic books are for kids. This comic is more poignant than 95% of television.0 -
Ok... something a bit darker and perhaps more obviously Nocturnal.
Transformers: The Dark Ages Volume 2.
Ok, so it might not be immediately obvious, but Transformers has had plenty of dark and magical moments. This particular trade paper back has them in spades.
It's also pretty relevant right now as it features the first appearance of none other than the Fallen.
Steeped in the mythology of Transformers, The Dark Ages tells the tale of the Cybertronian populace trying to survive without the guiding force of either Megatron or Optimus.
At this particularly weak point, the Fallen, a mythical being and avatar of the Transformers ultimate evil, returns to destroy the literal soul of Cybertron. Tempting some of the Decepticons by offering them evil magics beyond their ken, the shattered armies of Primus have to band together in order to halt the Fallen.
Reuniting legendary Transformers creators Simon Furman and Andy Wildman, the Dark Ages is one of the darker of the recent Transformers works (another being the extremely violent Megatron: Origins).0 -
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Karl Hungus wrote: »
Currently I've started reading Lucifer. It's a spin-off from Sandman, and so far it's exceptional.
Oh, and for fans of Hellboy & BPRD, this is just chock full of win:
The little I've read of Lucifer was top quality stuff.0 -
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The lucifier series is great stuff.
The Books of Magic series is also another good read, at least from what I've read of it so far.Taken from Wikipedia.
The Books of Magic is the title of a four-issue English-language comic book mini-series written by Neil Gaiman, and later an ongoing series, published by the DC Comics imprint Vertigo. Since its original publication, the mini-series has also been published in a single-volume collection with an introduction by author Roger Zelazny. It tells the story of a young boy who has the potential to become the world's greatest magician.
If you can read this, you're too close!
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Doctor DooM wrote: »Reuniting legendary Transformers creators Simon Furman and Andy Wildman, the Dark Ages is one of the darker of the recent Transformers works (another being the extremely violent Megatron: Origins).
The Dark Ages is mixed for me. It was a good read at the time, but with DreamWave going bankrupt there is far too much left unanswered (why is Blitzwing so bloody special?!?!?!).
That said I really liked how they gave characterization to Trypticon (a massive Decepticon WMD).
Megatron Origins was great. It has to be the most violent Transformers story since Generation 2.
It was interesting to see Megatron being portrayed in a sympathetic light (think Gladiator, but with robots). Plus we get to see how he originally met many of the more familiar characters (Soundwave is a shady arms dealer, Starscream becomes his personal bodyguardthere is a genius bit where it looks like Starscream has sold out Megatron, only to turn on those he was supposed to be selling him out to - classic Starscream but with a twist.There are some nice cameos too. You see 'Optimus' at one point before he became a Prime. Sunstreaker can be seen in the arena. And even Clench (a obscure Generation2 character) who starts out as Megatron's mentor.
Also, the mystery of what is under Megs' helmet (which is actually a souvenir from his daysworking in the mines) is finally revealed:
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lankysexybeast wrote: »started drawing alot of charecters actually
opinions would be nice (in the form of thumbs up, no need to reply)
Hey Lanky,
Why don't you repost those images here and I'll do a critical dissection of them. 0 -
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