Top Five Fridays 3/30/07
Some of you may have noticed on the sidebar, we have our “Top Five of the Moment” listed. These are the five books that are most clicking with each Pants writer. It may or may not represent the best books we’ve read all month, year, or just what we’re digging that week. We generally try to update it with books from that week, but there are no hard and fast rules. Inspired by an email from one of our readers, we’re going to post every Friday with the most recent Top Five from each member of the Panteon, and hope for your comments on our lists, or maybe even your own “Top Five of the Moment.”
Also, just as the Wednesday Number Ones feature is generally our spot for folks to talk about the comics of the week, we hope that Top Five Fridays is where you’ll come to talk about what’s going on in comics in general. News in the comics world, thoughts on comics you’ve recently read, talk about comic-related movies that release this weekend and more are welcome in the comments thread for Top Five Fridays.
This week, the Top Five Books of the Moment are:
Nick Budd
- Spider-Man Loves Mary Jane Vol. 1 (HC)
- The Spirit
- Daredevil
- Fantastic Four
- Transformers: Escalation
Dave Farabee
- The Spirit
- Daredevil
- Phoenix Vol. 10
- Transformers: Escalation
- Spider-Man Loves Mary Jane Vol. 1 (HC)
Dan Grendell
- Firestorm
- Fantastic Four
- Spider-Man Loves Mary Jane HC V.1
- Grendel: Devil By the Deed HC
- Batman: Snow TP
Randy Lander
- Fantastic Four
- Daredevil
- DMZ
- Usagi Yojimbo
- Superman Confidential
David Martindale (D3)
- Fantastic Four
- Superman Confidential
- Daredevil
- DMZ
- Spider-Man Loves Mary Jane Vol. 1 (HC)
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Defend your tastes, me!
1. The Spirit - Holdover from last week. I’m just cruisin’ on good vibes from this book, which continues to hold as DC’s best non-Vertigo monthly in my esteem.
2. Daredevil - I *would* like for Brubaker to work with some original antagonists at some point, but good stuff so far with Melvin Potter - aka The Gladiator. Lark’s also at the top of his game, especially with that image early on of Daredevil swan diving off a building. Only beef: Potter doesn’t look giant enough.
3. Phoenix Vol. 10 - Only from the fevered imagination of the God of Manga, Osamu Tezuka, could you get a story about a wolf-headed man butting heads with the rising tide of Buddhism in 7th century Japan…then seemingly being reincarnated as a 21st century mercenary. Always an amazing and pure cartooning experience.
4. Transformers: Escalation - Still continuing to impress, and this issue brings the slow-burn to fruition as Optimus Prime and Megatron final go toe-to-toe. A surprisingly smart take.
5. Spider-Man Loves Mary Jane Vol. 1 (HC) - Gorgeous presentation of a series of stories I already like.
30 Mar 2007 at 9:57 am
QuoteI’ve never heard of this book — it sounds great! Wolf-headed man?! Japanese Setting?! Mercenary?! If it has ninja and/or samurai in it this could possibly be the coolest comic book ever.
30 Mar 2007 at 10:16 am
QuoteTezuka’s stuff is simultaneously strange and astounding. Tezuka, if you’re not familiar with him, is sort of Japan’s Kirby and Disney rolled into one - the guy who was instrumental in the founding of both their comics AND animation industry. His best known creation in America is Astro Boy, but in Japan, that just scratches the surface. His style always retained its cartooniness and the influence of Disney, but he can also render intense realism in the same stories. He’s done tons of action/adventure stuff, but also a manga biography of Adolf Hitler, a multi-volume telling of the life of Buddha, and the spiritual/existential series of graphic novels that I named this week - Phoenix. Here’s a page from one that showcases both his realism and his cartooniness at once:
http://www.narbonic.com/phoenix_dawn.jpg
Now. While Tezuka’s intents and results can be quite lofty, part of the appeal for me IS the stuff you talked about: the sheer number of wacked-out elements he brings together, and the strange synergy of telling serious stories through artwork that invokes a childlike friendliness. It’s truly bizarre. That wolf-head guy I was talking about? He’s a prisoner of war whose face is skinned off and a severed wolf head is sewn on over it. Horrific, right? Now imagine it drawn with a cartoony touch. Yet steeped in humanity.
That’s Tezuka.
He is well worth checking out.
30 Mar 2007 at 11:18 am
QuoteWait, Phoenix is still going on? For some reason I thought it was long over. I’ve just started Buddha. At the rate I read (with long breaks in between volumes), it’ll be 2015 before I take up Phoenix, but so far so good with Tezuka.
Can someone please explain the Fantastic Four love here?
30 Mar 2007 at 12:20 pm
QuoteIt’s a Dwayne McDuffie thing. I’ve realized I’m not quite as big on his stuff as my cohorts, who may form The Cult of McDuffie at any given moment, but I’m also partially distanced from the current FF simply because it’s a product of Civil War. In any case, his writing’s definitely superior on the book. It’s probably a good time for FF fence-sitters to give the book some consideration.
30 Mar 2007 at 1:18 pm
QuoteI believe it’s on the final story, but it’s a big ‘un, so they split it into two volumes and there’s still one more forthcoming. Pretty amazing to consider that Tezuka began formulating in the series in 1954 and was working on it all the way up to his death in ‘89.
I read a perhaps apocryphal story somewhere that as Tezuka lay dying, his final words had him begging for them to give him his pens so he could continue drawing. True or not, it certainly exemplifies his work ethic and creative zeal.
30 Mar 2007 at 1:22 pm
QuoteI’m definitely gonna check out Osamu Tezuka’s work; its great discovering “new” stuff like this.
30 Mar 2007 at 9:15 pm
Quote1. Daredevil-The creative team continues to knock home runs out of the park.
2.Fantastic Four-It feels great to be on this book again. First issue of it I’ve picked up since Waid’s great run ended. It’s off to a great start. Now if only they can get JMS off Amazing Spider-Man…
3. Fables-Two issues in the last couple of weeks? What did we do to deserve this? It’s pure bliss. I enjoyed this issue a great deal. Reminds me alot of the 1,001 Nights HC with the multiple types of art work.
4. Spider-Man Loves Mary Jane Volume 1 Hardcover-How wonderful it is to have this HC format. Bless you Marvel for doing something I never thought you’d have the balls to do. This collection is beautiful.
5. Superman Confidential- Not much to say here. I’ve enjoyed this story. It’s not groundbreaking but just a good story. It only makes the cut because everything else I got was so lackluster this week.
30 Mar 2007 at 11:19 pm
QuoteExhilerating Tezuka animated short from the 80s:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=45_8ejTGAw8
31 Mar 2007 at 4:58 am
Quote1= Daredevil - Continued greatness from Brubaker, Lark & Gaudiano. Great cover by Marko Djurdjevic too. This book has been my favourite for a number of years now and will continue to be on this form.
1= Superman Confidential - This ties with DD this week. A great take on Superman showing a human side to him that isn’t seen enough really. Cooke is at the top of his game right now and more amazing artwork from Sale. Great last page too
3. Fantastic Four - Jumped on with the last issue thanks to the Cult of McDuffie’s (hey, Dave Farabee coined it!) continued recommendations. Good issue with nice art, promising storyline and great interplay between all of the main characters. I’ll be back next month
4. Spirit - Hold over from last week. Re-read issue 4 and it’s the best issue so far in my opinion.
5. Amazing Spider-Man - Was talking to a non comic reading friend of mine about Spider-Man 3 and I mentioned that the black costume was returning to the comics. Now, my friend is a fan of the previous 2 movies so he asked me to pick up a copy of the issue in which the costume returns. He loved and has asked me to get him more, so that reason alone it makes it in this week. Personally, I thought it was ok.
31 Mar 2007 at 2:41 pm
Quote1. 30 Days of Night TBP - yeah, maybe I’m a couple of years late on this, but I’m really loving Templesmith’s work right now, so it gets first place here. A comic book has never scared me, but the eerie art is probably as close as it will be for me.
2. King City - got my monthly shipping for March yesterday, and this book is awesome. More, more!
3. Desolation Jones TBP - yep, another ’so last week’ book. Having not bought many new comics the past 2 weeks or so, I picked this up and it’s some of the strongest Ellis stuff I’ve read, not to mention Williams’ artwork is always a delight.
4. Watchmen TBP - what’s this? another oldie? from over 20 years ago?! Yeah, I’ve been calling myself a comic reader for about 7 years and I’m just now getting around to Alan Moore. Only read the first two issues/chapters, which is why it’s number 4. Really liking it so far.
5. Powers vol 1 - Just because Bendis is a hack these days (just read Might Avengers 1…wow, worse than I thought. Much worse) doesn’t mean I can’t revisit his good stuff. And Image Powers really rocks. Also funny to note, in the acknowledgements, he mentions Don and Randy. I find that humorous, seeing that Randy supposedly can’t bring himself to finish an issue of Bendis’ current work.
Also got Spider-man Loves Mary Jane HC in the mail, but haven’t gotten around to it yet. Expect to see it next Friday on this list.
Oh, and Dan - how is the Batman: Snow story? Saw it at the shop, had a cool cover, but I’ve never heard of it. Good stuff, eh?
31 Mar 2007 at 6:48 pm
QuoteI dug the story in Batman: Snow, a re-telling of Mr. Freeze’s origin that has all the classic bits in it and that also introduces Batman’s first failed attempt at helpers in a group of specialists he gathers from all walks of life, but what really drew me to the story and sold me on it was Seth Fisher. I’m a fan of his art, and his cool but wacky sensibilities. It’s a shame he died so young last year, but it’s cool of DC to make sure most of what he was able to produce is available in trade. For what I think are his best works, track down the Marvel trade Fantastic Four/Iron Man: Big in Japan and the uncollected Vertigo series Vertigo Pop: Tokyo. Other bits of coolness include Green Lantern: Willworld and Flash: Time Flies.
Guy was a genius artist in the making, and I’m sorry I’ll never get to see him develop further.
01 Apr 2007 at 1:28 am
QuoteAh, ok, I did enjoy FF/Iron Man, but I didn’t realize that was the same artist. Might check it out.
01 Apr 2007 at 8:16 am
QuoteI dig reading the site, so I thought I’d thow in a list for this week:
1-Brave and the Bold #2: Man, this is what I read superheo comics for.
2-Transformers:Escalation #5- Prime and Megatron whooping on each other. ON a a very base level, you can’t beat that. This kinda thing is why I squeall to write the Joe/TF crossovers.
3-Shazam:MSoE-I’m not sure what I think of the story yet, but the art makes me swoon.
4-Godland #17- Fun. Weird. Kirbyish.
5-Chronicles of Wormwood #1- Missed it the first time aorund. What a nice lil’ book.
TIM SEELEY!
http://www.timseeley.com
01 Apr 2007 at 10:17 am
QuoteMy top 5 that I picked up last week:
1: GØDLAND - You can’t beat a Kirbyesque book where people call each other dicks.
2: Fables - I can’t say I had a burning desire to get the answers to most of the questions in this issue, but some of them were fun nonetheless.
3: Star Wars: Legacy - Currently fulfilling my need for a Star Wars fix.
4: PS238 - A light, fun all ages book.
5: Kurosagi Corpse Delivery Service - I’m a little late to the game on this one. I’m not normally a huge manga guy, but this title really caught my interest.
01 Apr 2007 at 2:02 pm
QuoteI have only been back into comics for a little while now, but I thought I would leave my top 5 as well. It’s not necessarily for the past week, but for my fave ongoing series and/or trade. So, in no particular order:
1. Star Wars: Legacy: Hellhound obviously has good taste. This series continues to impress me even when the story in the last issue mainly delt with secondary characters. I look foward to the next issue eagerly.
2. Irredemable Ant Man: I hope I spelled that right. GO BUY THIS BOOK!!! Even the synopsis and letter pages are worth reading. If you enjoy anything else by Kirkman you will love this. If you haven’t read anything Kirkman start with Invincible then read this.
3. Annihilation: Actually I know this series is over, but it’s just so good I had to mention it. I actually haven’t even read the acutal “annihilation” series yet, just all the silver surfer and super skrull prologue stuff. This series is way better than all that civil war nastiness that was going on, and I hope that Annihilation:Conquest is just as good. Also, for Randy, if they make an Annihilation:Conquest:Deathkill series I will prob read that too.
4. Marvel Zombies vs. Army of Darkness: One word, groovy. Actually that’s three but you get my drift. As good as this series is it makes me kind of sad that the best Avengers storyline is in this book (unlike say, “The Avengers” book). Still, zombie goodness meets boomstick makes me all warm and fuzzy.
5.Shazaam:MSoE: Alligator men in trenchcoats. Nuff said!!!
Thats enough comic love for now.
01 Apr 2007 at 9:30 pm
QuoteThat’s a pretty cool rationale. Out of curiosity, was there a particular element that won your friend over? Just the drama of the changes going on or something else?
02 Apr 2007 at 1:41 am
QuoteDamn, I need to catch back up on this book, like, yesterday.
02 Apr 2007 at 1:45 am
QuoteHere are the 5 books I’m enjoying the most. I don’t really buy enough floppies to support a top-5 anymore, so this is a mix (in no order).
1. The Brave and the Bold- Never been a big fan of DC heroes, but this is the way I like them: iconic, out of continuity, bursting with big ideas, colorful art, and whip-smart adventure writing.
2. The Spirit- This is, more or less, the way monthly comics should be done.
3. The Essential Hulk #1- I’ve never read these original Lee & Ditko/Kirby/Romita issues before, and I’m quite enjoying them. They’re not nearly as primitive as say, the old X-Men or Avengers issues read. It’s basically a great serial.
4. Aya- This biographical Drawn & Quarterly book set in the Ivory Coast started slow and won me over by the end, thanks mainly to its beautiful color pallette and vibrant art.
5. Hellblazer- Diggle’s first issue is a textbook example on how to hook a reader with just one issue. He may have stolen the crown from BKV at being the best in the biz at this.
02 Apr 2007 at 9:31 am
QuoteGlen Newman Said:
It was was the whole package really but he enjoyed the art especially. He was a bit confused about certain elements, such as why Peter’s identity is known to the world but I filled him in on the details. He loved the black costume too and thought that the movie should’ve used it’s design. My God, he’s a fanboy already!
Normally, when friends of mine are curious about comics I give them the 1st Runaways digest (Hooked two other friends this way) but I think this friend will be a super hero guy to be begin with. When I told him about Civil War, his response was: “I HAVE to read that!!!”. Guess we all have to start somewhere I suppose!
Coincidently, what books do other readers here give to their friends when they want to take a look at comics?
02 Apr 2007 at 2:23 pm
QuoteGarth Ennis’ works have really struck a chord with some of my friends, starting with Punisher and moving on to Preacher. His dark humor is a big hit with them. One of them also really enjoyed his Ghost Rider mini, even with that ugly Crain artwork (which he really loved).
300 and Sin City, in my mind, their actual quality aside, have been some of the most successful comic movies ever, because they got my friends very interested in the comics. But then…I gave them Dark Knight Returns, and they didn’t care for it too much (and neither do I, for that matter).
One of my friends is a fan of Neil Gaiman’s novels, so I let him borrow 1602 and Sandman, both of which he really enjoyed.
My brother, having been a big Iron Man fan back in the early nineties, really enjoyed Ellis’ Extremis and the first Ultimates HC. Not really one for superheroes anymore, Millar’s take was definitely something he liked.
02 Apr 2007 at 5:38 pm
QuoteTim Seeley said:
Yep, that’s exactly how I feel too.
Been hearing some good buzz on this… I think I might have to check out the trade.
Chris Jones said:
Oh, I’ll read Annihilation: Conquest: Deathkill too.
Of course, I still haven’t gotten around to reading the first Annihilation. Missed out on the issues, and now I’m waiting for the third hardcover. But I dug what I read previously.
Bob said:
Don’t remember hearing about this one, but I’m intrigued… got any links to preview art online or anything?
Folks have already talked up everything on my Top Five this week, except for DMZ (this last arc was really good, although it’s best read all at once and I can’t wait to re-read it in trade) and Usagi Yojimbo (not a great issue, but a good one with some dire omens for Usagi’s future). And I am a proud member of the Cult of McDuffie. In fact, as the member of the group who owns all the Milestone stuff, all of Deathlok, his short run on X-O Manowar and even once hired the man as a columnist for a website, I think I might claim credit as cult leader.
Does this mean I’m going to need to get a giant boa constrictor to wear around, or a gold Rolls Royce maybe?
02 Apr 2007 at 8:20 pm
QuoteAya samples can be found if you scroll down to it here:
http://www.drawnandquarterly.com/shopCatalogFeatured.php
As usual with D&Q pdfs don’t really do it justice as it’s such a beautifully packaged book on high-quality paper stock, but it should give you a sense of what to expect.
02 Apr 2007 at 10:58 pm
QuoteCool, thanks for the link! It reminds me in some ways (not in terms of style, but maybe in terms of mood?) of Aaron Renier (Top Shelf’s Spiral Bound), which I quite liked.
03 Apr 2007 at 12:36 am
QuoteI took a risk and ordered Aya from the Previews solicitation, and didn’t regret it. Just a quiet slice-of-life with engaging characters and lively art. The sort of book that meandered through my head for a few days after I read it.
03 Apr 2007 at 3:20 pm
QuoteA bit of Sean McKeever news for all you Spider-Man Loves Mary-Jane lovers- announced in today’s DC Nation column, he will be taking over for Gail Simone on Birds of Prey. I hate to see Gail go, as I have loved every issue of her run on that title, but McKeever is as good a replacement as I can think of, and I have to wonder if this is to free her up for Wonder Woman possibly? She did let slip at Emerald City Comic-Con that she would be writing one of DC’s top female heroes soon.
04 Apr 2007 at 12:25 pm
QuoteGail…Simone… leaving…
NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
04 Apr 2007 at 11:37 pm
QuoteSeeley: PLEASE tell me Escalation is better than Infiltration, because that last mini was a tragic snoozefest. I never thought I’d live in a world where I was more jazzed about Simon Furman doing Ronan than I was about him doing Optimus Prime, but to my eternal horror…
Seriously, though, Ronan was a good book. Good, I tell you! GOOD!
04 Apr 2007 at 11:44 pm
QuoteI think you’re in the minority on this one, Dan. I only read the first few issues of Infiltration (I’ve got little Transformers love), but I dug what I read, and I’m pretty sure Dave F. and Nick and some our other Transformers fans dug that one and Escalation too.
Seems to me like IDW (and Furman) have done a pretty good job giving the Transformers franchise a reboot.
But then, I thought Ronan #1 was dull as hell… so we may just be on different wavelengths.
05 Apr 2007 at 12:00 pm
QuoteWell, I also think J.M. Dematteis WITHOUT Keith Giffen is still funny, something many people have a problem understanding.
I am enjoying Transformers: Movie Prequel, though IDW’s colorist really screwed things up.
05 Apr 2007 at 1:56 pm
Quote