Fables. Fables is teh awesome.

And, this goes without saying, The Sandman.

Vigilante which is on 4 of a 6 book series and Desolation Jones which is a monthly.

Neil Gaiman is the man.

Anything written by Alan Moore.

I used to be a big X-Men reader. Around the Fatal Attractions and Age of Apocalypse story arcs.

I recently started reading some X-Men comics again in Joss Whedon's Astonishing X-Men book. I am far from a Joss freak (dig the Firefly stuff, but besides that, meh), but these books are great.

I do want to find a few books (even *gasp* branching away from the convoluted web of X-books!) that I enjoy reading regularly. The problem with me and comic books is that I always *hate* jumping into something that's halfway in. It was nice with Astonishing X-Men in that I could go start at #1 and catch up to the present, being only #12.

That's kinda what happened to me. Like I said, I jumped in around the 2099 series, which had some cool stories and fairly bland artwork, and when almost all of them got cancelled, I just didn't really have any interest in checking out new stuff.

Is that different from Infinity Crisis (with the gauntlet and everything) and Crisis on Infinite Earths? Does DC just really like those two words?

To unntrlaffinity: Sorry, I know that can be frustrating. I have pretty diverse tastes, so the question was more of a "what do you think is a good comic?" I prefer good plot and writing to good art, especially if the art gets so busy, gothic, or just downright bad that it distracts from what's going on in the plot. I like plotlines that leave you guessing, and not just with cliffhangers. Quirky or different art/drawing styles draw my eye (I'm really looking forward to Bone, with everything that was said about it).

I do have to say, even though I've only picked up the first paperback in the Powers series, I liked it. Maybe that means I'll shell out the money for the rest when I get a chance. I can't remember the name right now, but I picked up another one at the same time, called Confessions or something like that. It was about a kid (no powers) becoming a superhero, under a guy called The Confessor I think. I liked the fact that it focused on the kid, and the huge, worldshaking battles going on were all background and just mentioned in passing until they intrude directly on his life.

I hope that helps?

Jolly, I love Bone. Irrationally so. (Oh wow, that's going to make someone's Out of Context Theater Day )

Anyway, Bone singlehandedly got me into comics. Best goddamn series there is, in my opinion .

I also used to read some Planetary, Spiderman, and as I mentioned, Fables, but since the comics shop near my apartment shut down, I haven't read as much as I'd like.

On the topic of Allan Moore, I'd like to temper the general euphorism for Watchmen. It is still a Moore comic, and therefore almost automatically by far superior to most other pieces of literature, on any medium. That nonwithstanding, it's in my opinion one of his weaker works, with a comparably weak ending.

Personally, I'd greatly suggest V for Vendetta. It is a bit slimmer with a few less protagonists, which I found nice, and stays sharp all the way through. Also, the art style appealed more to me.

Transmetropolitan is freaking brilliant. Pick that up in trades and you will be hooked.

You know, Mix, I tried the first trade of Transmetropolitan and it didn't do a thing for me. Since it seems to get rave reviews, should I assume that it gets better?

I mentioned this in the DS thread, but I have gotten back into comics in a big way in the last year, but I only read Trade Paperbacks. So nice not to "collect" and worry about maintaining comics in bags and boards, etc, but rather to read them like a book and stick them on a shelf. And I believe that trades are cheaper than individual issues, as well. Certainly if those issues are selling at a premium.

One thing I haven't seen anyone mention (other than by implication re: Alan Moore), but figure out whose writing you like and go with that. I got back into comics via Y: The Last Man, and I have liked everything else that I've read by Brian K. Vaughn, which includes Ex Machina and The Hood. 100 Bullets is a great crime/conspiracy noir book. I personally love Exiles as a fun, free-standing X-Men spinoff book. I just started a series called Rising Stars from the creator of Babylon 5, and it rocks so far.

After hearing other people's suggestions, I think I may check out DMZ and The Walking Dead.

btw Jolly, the Infinity Gauntlet is Marvel, whereas Crisis on Infinite Earths and Infinite Crisis are DC.

It's a bit hard to get a feel for Transmetropolitan just from Back on the Street, it must be said. I'd suggest giving the next one a go as well, before giving up on it. Possibly the third as well if you're still on the fence after that one, because that's when the main storyline starts kicking in.

Speaking of Warren Ellis, Fell is f*cking brilliant. Every issue is set to be a self-contained story, so there's no problem if you miss an issue, and it only 2$. Admittedly, the page count is lower, but they're 16 dense pages, so you still get a fair chunk of story. You can read the first issue of this filthy little detective yarn for free here, albeit sans back-matter pages and at a rather sh*tty resolution.

DMZ is something I've been eyeing lustily. I loved Channel Zero, and this seems like it can only be better. But since it seems I'm pretty much stuck with khepri.com if I want to pick up single issues, I need to wait unitl the first five-issue arc is finished before I start throwing money at it.

I just finished reading that other thread, and I realized that I neglected to mention that _Preacher_ is one of the best things I've ever read, and possibly the best comic work I've ever read, period. I read all 10 trade paperbacks in a week.

Plus, you know, it's written by a Scotsman who apparently realizes that Texas is the shizz. I LOVE it when people from other places maintain our mythological status for us!

Someone on that other thread also mentioned that Amazon.com sells trades, usually for a discount. I have ordered from them a couple of times, and the discounts can be significant. Sometimes the books come a little scuffed up, though. I'm in the process of having them replace New X-Men vol. 7 right now, so we'll see how that goes.

EDIT: TheWalt mentioned Preacher while I was typing. I was this close to having Jesse Custer as my new avatar, but I wanted something that was more fun.

EDIT #2 @ NemesisZero - stay on target! Preacher is fantastic. You won't regret reading the rest.

I would love to, although another thread with a Spoiler tag would be better suited, I think. To be very general, I found Watchmen to be paced better - a slow pace, to be sure, but I thought it was very appropriate. The dialogue is heavy without being bogged down, which I felt V suffered from; instead, we are allowed to explore a range of characters rather then limited number found in V. They tell very different stories, and I love them both. Also, the conclusion to Watchmen was excellent - although I don't want to say more about it then that

You dirty dog! Don't you have to change your location to "Gone to Texas" now? Kind of appropriate, really.

JB, someone else mentioned Wanted by Mark Millar on that other thread. It's collected in one trade and it's fantastic.

Watchmen is like Bone, there's no "The". Just a heads-up so the comic store guy won't scoff at you.

Well, even Alan Moore is willing to admit that Watchmen is his best work, and I'd think he'd know better than all of us.

Watchmen is held so high not only because it's a masterpiece of storytelling, but because of the effect it had on the industry. It essentially single-handedly revived comics, and reminded people what the medium could be used for. The only real flaw with any part of the comic is the sheer amount of supplemental information between actual pieces of the current story, which can bog down a reader on his/her first time through. The characters are unique and detailed, they present the heroes as human in a way few comics have ever been able to equal and many have tried to mimic. The layout and artwork give it a very cinematic feel, and this is before Frank Miller took to the page penning his Sin City comics. Along with Miller's Dark Knight Returns, it proved that comics were entertainment suitable for more than just little kids. Dave Gibbon's style in Watchmen is perfect for the type of story told, and packed with details, which makes David Lloyd's artwork in Vendetta seem basic by comparison. Vendetta's story is also basic by comparison, probably because Alan Moore's work kept getting more and more complex, leading into things like "Big Numbers", which would have undoubtedly been a masterpiece but which he only ever completed 2 out of a proposed 12 issues. The proposed scope alone is mind boggling. As for the ending, the ending is perfect. It's brilliant, it's wonderful, it's a rabbit punch in the kidney and a hacking, choking, cough/laugh reeking of spoiled tobacco in the face right as you inhale. It's multi-layered; there's no quick-fixing going on that so many mainstream titles indulge in (deus ex machina is alive and well in the DC and Marvel universes), the characters behave realistically and true to their personalities, right until the end. How many stories can you say that about? The only slow parts would be the Doctor Manhattan portions, and even that makes sense because the character is out of touch with the concept of time to normal humans, and his pages twist the pacing of the story to his own point of view and wrench you away from the others.

So yeah. I think Watchmen is so hyped up, praised, and fawned over because it deserves it. The impact it had, and still has, and the obvious quality of the craft of the storytelling within is undeniable, and while some of his work may be easier to read, or, as he leans more and more towards his longtime obssession with all things new age, harder to read, none are even in the same league as Watchmen, and must be content to sit at the little kids table sipping watered down purple kool-aid, while the real men sit at the bar drinking, occassionally stopping to wring out their beards to produce just one more swig, a dedication to economy that is likely to never be replicated again.

Runaways started out good, it had potential. For awhile it was doing a good job of being "hip", and almost pulling it off while at the same time balancing teenie-bopper elements like jealous lovers, but as soon as the first crossover occurs, and you find out how they plan to resolve this crossover, (I wish I could forget how hamfisted hacks that call themselves writers can use this device and not shoot themselves in the morning - see: 24) it becomes obvious it's going to trade its chance to do something special, even aimed at a younger crowd, for settling with being just another formulaic pre-teen mini-soap. I think I actually gave away all the issues I had purchased up to that point I was so disappointed in where the story was headed.