Comics!

[bear]

My very first comic was Daredevil #223, but I don't read a ton of superhero comics. I've dabbled in some of Joe Kelly's Deadpool runs, and I also quite enjoy the first two series of The Umbrella Academy (not the awful Netflix adaptation...). The jury's still out on UA: Hotel Oblivion, while the art was gorgeous the story didn't grab me the way Apocalypse Suite and Dallas did. I think my opinion of the arc will hinge on whether or not it comes to a satisfying conclusion.

Speaking of satisfying conclusions! I'm holding out hope for Snotgirl to actually be good, but while volume 1 & 2 have been entertaining, I again think my opinion of the series will depend on its ending.

I read a lot of indie comics, which is evident looking at my bookshelf, so if I listed every book I enjoy I'd be here forever. I'm excited to get my hands on Putty Pygmalion by Lonnie Garcia soon-- my partner bought it for me for the holidays. Garcia blends clay sculpture into the art of the comic, reminiscent of some pages in Pinky & Pepper Forever that I'm fond of. I can't wait to read it

I am more into manga thanks to my weeb 12yo self, and since i am italian i also read a lot of italian comics...

Right now i'm reading an italian comicbook called Cybersix that's insanely intentionally filthy ... and to think i had a few volumes of it in the bathroom when i was a kid! Unfortunatley it's very obscure and has no english translation but if i discover a way to scan comicbooks without ripping the seams it might exist in the future :omg:k:

What manga are you into? That's still comics !

It's so cool to hear someone else mention Cybersix! Did you ever watch the cartoon? I saw a bit of it on youtube as a teen, but I was never able to find a version of the comics I could read.

I'm a controversial cartoonist in that I reject most well-regarded comics of the canon- Watchmen, Maus, A Contract With God, The Killing Joke, etc. I find virtually nothing appealing about them, when compared to the raw hedonistic fun an EC Comic drawn by Jack Davis or Wally Wood offers up. I believe that the Old Witch, Crypt Keeper, and Vault Keeper are some of the greatest characters comics have ever produced, and all too often never get the clout they deserve.

Sounds like you're a fan of pre-comics code authority stuff, haha! As for newspaper comics, do you like Little Nemo? I think the visuals are outstanding.

[Memory]

The first comic series I ever got into was the Fleetway Sonic the Comic, and the Archie Sonic Comic - both inferior (IMO) to the IDW Sonic Comic series currently running. I then started reading 2000AD for a long time. 

One of my favorite comic book series ever, is The Maxx by Sam Keith. I have fond memories of reading each issue as a kid and fawning over the wonderful art and amazing story... I also loved the MTV 'Liquid Television' mini series that ran in the '90s which was basically a watered down version of the first season of the comic book series.

I have all the originals and the IDW reprints that were reinked and colored digitally and look more HD (tho I do prefer the originals for their depth and grungy appearance. The newer prints as lovely as they are, are just too crisp and polished).

I've also read a BUNCH of Ghostbusters, TMNT, Thundercats and Adventure Time comics over the years. With a smattering of other things here and there that I never truly committed to.

I have a bunch of horror comics and various other one shots and stuff.

I wouldn't say I'm an avid comic reader these days, I still keep up with certain series but I don't have anything on standing order anymore or frequent comic book stores like I did 20 years ago.

I really do recommend The Maxx to anyone who hasn't either read the comics or seen the one shot series... it's so utterly good it blows most other comic books out of the proverbial water!

[foxmosis]

Outside of the Archie Sonic comics I really wasn't into comics that much until I went to college... for a degree in comics.  Which is fair!  And I always thought they were neat but in general I just wasn't reading that much... until I had to read in college, but it was fun!  And now I like reading again.  I think my preference are comics that are autobios like Ducks by Kate Beaton or The House by Paco Roca.  In that same vein I'm also into things that while fictionalized seem to be pulling from real life experiences like Roaming by Mariko Tamaki & Jillian Tamaki.  I guess more grounded things, I find a lot of value in reading work like that.

But I'm also into One Piece and Chainsaw Man, so ya'know, it's not an exclusive club.  I've also been super curious about reading those Donald Duck comics!  I have a few copies laying around, maybe I'll dust them off today.

[_ghost_]

I haven't spent a lot of time reading comics since I only got into the hobby recently and don't have a lot of time, but when I do, I read mostly DC. Recently I've been reading Mike Grell's Green Arrow and Mark Waid's Flash, and before that I was reading New Teen Titans by Wolfman and Perez. I stick to older stuff, typically, just because I feel like I can get a better view of what's actually worth my time; people have had years to review it and I can literally just look up what stories have stayed relevant. I don't read as much Marvel, but I've read bits and pieces of silver age Spider-man and Fantastic Four, and I absolutely love Gwenpool and Ms. Marvel.

I've also read the Scott Pilgrim graphic novels and really enjoyed those. Really goofy, an easy read with a lot of interesting satire. I've been meaning to watch the Netflix adaption because I keep hearing it's a really good update and twist on the story but I haven't gotten around to it.

[Memory]

i guess this might be able to go into a seperate topic, as it's on manga and not Western comics. but manga is also a form of comics, so...

i liked manga zines, i used to try making some. i might try making more again, but my creativity for scenarios is really pitiful, except my own experiences are usually interesting enough for a small short manga.

i did like the Cells at Work! manga, but i still have the two last ones to go!! aaah
but i do have 1-4, and they've simply been on my shelf for several months now...

i've wanted to get Lucky Star's manga, several of ZUN's Touhou manga, and the Pokemon manga too. mostly aiming for the PG-13 ones, not mature ones.


on the topic of Western comics, i'm not the biggest fan of them (;^_^) i guess i just don't like how they feel a little over the top 24/7 and not like, only for stupid gags? and i don't really like superhero-type stuff, i more just like slice-of-life, mild yaoi (boys' love) or yuri, and some action. maybe some mecha too? i'd be down for a mecha anime or manga if i got the chance to.
though i did read a bit of Scott Pilgrim! on the Internet Archive, though i dunno. though that Newgrounds or indie-style Western humour has a place in my heart; i grew up with that, so seeing Scott go "what's the URL??" and his roommate go "amazonDOTca?" and Scott literally just types it in at sonic speed kinda makes me giggle way too much, lol

edit: back to Western comics. i don't really seem to get into very many of them? it's really diverse i know (MANY genres and franchises, all that), but at the same time i just... in general, i can't really seem to get into many? lol (hopefully that cleared some bits up!  )
though i did like Scott Pilgrim (as i already said?) and also some webcomics - like Rain, which is about a trans girl.

[_ghost_]

on the topic of Western comics, i'm not the biggest fan of them (;^_^) i guess i just don't like how they feel a little over the top 24/7 and not like, only for stupid gags? and i don't really like superhero-type stuff,

This is a huge generalization of Western comics. Superheroes are the most popular genre for traditionally published comics in the US but very much are not the entirety of the industry, and there's even more variety in indie and self-pub. And the idea that every western comic is "over the top 24/7" is also really strange... most of the comics I read are dealing with a lot of serious topics; I can't personally give you any recommendations, as I do primarily read superhero stuff and you've said you aren't interested in that, but there are a ton of romance, slice of life, science fiction, horror, etc. comics out there. Western comics are going to have some stylistic and writing differences due to cultural difference but they don't start being, like, a completely different thing that has nothing in common with manga and can only tell one kind of story. It's like saying you don't like movies but the only movies you've seen are Avengers movies.

You also mentioned Scott Pilgrim as an example of Western comics and I feel like it's important to point out that it's a satirical depiction of a specific kind of person and that the "over the top" nature of it is part of the satire, not just "Western humor." I find the humor in Scott Pilgrim kind of grating at times even though I love the series.



It just feels odd to me to write off an entire medium because of things that aren't universally true.

[Eunice]

When I was a wee lass, my mother was worried that my sister wasn't learning to read. Mum was told to let my sister read anything, "even" comics. So we were given a pile of them every week. We had a batch of UK girls' comics, like Bunty, Judy, June & School Friend. And we were allowed to buy DC and Marvel comics from the local newsagents. So I grew up with the XMen, Superman, Supergirl, Batman, Spiderman...loads of them!

When I got older I started reading 2000AD and Starlord, two SF anthology comics published in the UK. Starlord ended but 2000AD is still going on, and we buy it every week. Atually, we have a subscription! I also read UK anthology comics like Crisis and Warrior, which included the original "V For Vendetta" story. I still have a collection of them.

There is a new UK anthology comic, Quantum, which I've been reading lately.

[Junebug]

I really like the comics medium and I think it can be exceptionally good if it's executed well. But I'm also really picky and don't read comics at a particularly high rate, so I don't think I've read a lot. My preferred way to read comics is in print too, since I find the experience more enjoyable, but if I want to read something that isn't popular in the US I have to compromise a bit. Lately I've been reading Corto Maltese and having a grand old time. It's a much more thoughtful and atmospheric story than I expected, since being an adventure story I had certain expectations about how it'd play out. I wish it had nice editions in English where I lived, but we can't have everything.

[94673]

 a while ago I bought a bunch of Dutch translations of X-Men comics, combined under the names 'X-Mannen Special', translated by the well-known comic book translator Ger Apeldoorn. They include a lot of sent-in letters by dutch readers, with sarcastic answers by Ger himself. I mostly bought these because I'm a big fan of translating/translated things (which feels like it's becoming more and more of a lost art, what with google translate and such) but the comics are pretty good, too. They're translations of the 1991 run with Chris Claremont etc. I quite like the x-men and how messy they are.

[Kalka]

Currently trying to wrap my head around the Venom (post "King in Black") storyline. The fact that Panini Comics France published Venom War #1 BEFORE "Symbiosis Necrosis" is ultra confusing. When I went back home I checked the books I already had and it turns out that "Veno" book 1 to 6 contains Venom (2021) #1-30, then you read "Symbiosis Necrosis" that contains Venom (2021) #31-34 & Carnage '2024) #5-8 and then you can finally read Venom War book 1 and 2.

Publishing Symbiosis Necrosis in the middle of Venom War is a total mess. Panini says they're delaying publishing six months or so with USA to avoid confusion but they"re not doing better. I just hope no one tried to start Venom recently because they would be a bit lost.

Can't wait for the thrid book to see how everything ends up because there's too many symbiotes around now