50 Best Comics of the Decade (2010-2015) Thus Far: Part 1 (#50-46)

Because everybody loves lists! This was supposed to be a Top 100 of my favourite comics of all time but I crumbled under such a daunting task. Mostly, it had to do with me not actually having finished all of the long running comic series that I love so much (for example, the Stan Lee/Steve Ditko/John Romita run on Amazing Spider-Man is one of my all-time favourite comics, but I've still only read half of those 100 issues). Perhaps I'll take a crack at that All-Time list another day. But for now, here's a something a little easier. My 50 favourite comics from 2010 to now. I didn't get into buying and reading comics via single issue until the end of 2011, and I probably didn't have a decent-to-large pull list until 2013 or so, so the list will be geared more-so towards the last couple years, this I admit. And there's still dozens of comics on my imaginary Must Read list that were published this decade. Some of this decade's noteworthy comics that I haven't read but would/will probably love: Daredevil, Young Avengers, Lazarus, Mind MGMT, Rachel Rising. I haven't read East of West or Southern Bastards, either. My bad.

I'll be posting 5 entries daily over the next 10 days. Let's get started.

Vertigo

 

50. Trillium (Vertigo, 2013-2014)

Writer, artist, colourist- Jeff Lemire
Colourist- Jose Villarrubia
Letters- Carlos M. Mangual

Jeff Lemire's Science Fiction Romance tells the story of two lovers separated through time. A story of duality, it is occupied with the loneliness of its protagonists, the isolation of the self, the struggles of the long distance relationship. Lemire is no stranger to writing romantic relationships (he excels at it in Animal Man) but Trillum still feels like he is treading into new territory with a greater emphases on romantic love than previously seen in his work. He draws the book as well, and really, there aren't enough Jeff Lemire-drawn comics in this world; he has one the most unique drawing styles of anybody today. His pencil strokes appear effortless, making the world's wannabe drawers really jealous of his talent (or is that just me?) Villunubia's colours add the appropriate amount of detail, blurring the line between rough sketch work and diluted watercolour painting. The comic in one instance even becomes a flipbook, the stories of the two protagonists divided horizontally across the page, requiring the reader to frequently flip or turn the book upside down and downside up a few times to get the full story, which is an interesting formal application of the book's themes.

BOOM! Studios

49. Lumberjanes (BOOM! Box, 2014-ongoing)

Writers - Noelle Stevenson, Grace Ellis, Shannon Watters
Illustrators - Brooke Allen, Carolyn Nowak
Colourist - Maarta Laiho
Letters - Aubrey Aiese

Conceived as an 8 issue miniseries, Lumberjanes took the comic book world by storm in 2014, and was quickly promoted to ongoing (#18 was just solicited for September 2015). Noteworthy for being a comic created entirely by women with an almost all-female cast and targeted towards young girls, Lumberjanes deserves special recognition simply for existing. But it's on this list, and on many, many other Best Comics of 2014 and 2015 lists, because of how good it is. The love put forth by its creators is present on every page. In a world full of dreary superheroes and dingy science fiction dystopias (some of which populate this very list), it's refreshing to see a comic that's so life affirming and brimming with positivity. That it centers around a group of best friends at an all girls summer camp who beat up on Scooby Doo-esque bad guys doesn't hurt, either.

BOOM! Studios

48. Bee and Puppycat (kaboom!, 2014-ongoing)

Created by Natasha Allegri
(too many creators to list)

The second - and not last - all-ages comic from Boom! Studios on this countdown, Bee and Puppycat is based off the hit YouTube webseries created by former Adventure Time writer (and creator of the Fionna and Cake characters) Natasha Allegri. Given how much downtime that series has, the comic adaptation has become my active Bee and Puppycat fix. A slacker girl and her magical sorta-cat sorta-puppy companion go on occasional temp job adventures for rewards ...but mostly they just laze around their house and eat. Never before or since has a comic understood me so well, and appealed to my less-than-productive sensibilities. Allegri created the first few issues, but it has since become an anthology series, with a handful of mini comics per issue, done mostly by various webcomic creators. Bee and Puppycat are the superheroes that procrastinators the world around (myself included) have been waiting a lifetime for.

Dynamite

47. Red Sonja (Dynamite, 2013-ongoing)

Writer - Gail Simone
Illustrator - Walter Geovani
Colourist - Adriano Lucas
Letterer - Simon Bowland

This here is my introduction to the She-Devil herself, Red Sonja, and having read the first two trade collections, I'm not sure I need anybody else to write this character. I'm sure after Simone's series finishes up, I'll eventually go back and read the older Red Sonja books, but I'm afraid of how other writers (particularly men) would direct the adventures of the scantily clad warrior. Simone and Geovani avoid the pratfalls. Sonja is depicted as powerful and comfortable in her body without the panels ever resorting to dreaded male gaze. She is funny, admirable, strong, but with her vices and flaws, as all people have, and the comic knows how to address her weaknesses. The "Strong Female Character" archetype needs to go away forever and this run on Red Sonja so delicately avoids everything I loathe about Sucker Punch Syndrome (women whose ability to kick ass supplements any and all character depth). Shout-out to Jenny Frison's incredible covers, by the way. They're some of the most stunning to come out on a monthly schedule.

DC Comics

46. Batman (DC, 2011-2012, #1-12)

Writer - Scott Snyder
Illustrator - Greg Capullo
Colourist - FCO Plascencia
Inker - Jonathan Glapion
Letterer - Richard Starkings

Now for something a little different. This list will not necessarily be a countdown of full comic runs/series. Sometimes a comic will have a story arc (or succession of story arcs) I love, and then do something to lose its grace with me. I have my problems with the New 52 Batman series as a whole but that doesn't take away my love of "The Court of Owls", an instant Batman classic if there ever was one. Taking what he learned from writing the Batman: Gates of Gotham miniseries, Scott Snyder donned the title of architect in writing this 12 issue opus. Stories have been written before about Gotham City, but perhaps none feel as dense as "Owls", a game-changing status quo demolisher and brilliant way to kick off a new universe with New 52. "Nothing will ever be the same" gets tossed around a lot by the Marvel and DC press machines, but in this story, it's true. Gotham has always been a little scary, but "Owls" turns it into a labyrinth, from which anything can be unearthed. We would later learn that this run on Batman would tell only huge game changing stories, which sadly loses it spark over time. That said, I will always hold onto my memories of reading "The Court of Owls" in single issue back in 2011-2012, when it was just about my most anticipated read, when I thought endlessly about where this story could possibly go, and how I always failed to predict what Snyder had up his sleeve. I can't finish this piece without mentioning Greg Capullo, of course, who's arguably the greatest Batman artist to ever live (he continues to improve, with "Zero Year" and "Endgame" having his most expertly drawn illustrations). Capullo's modern yet familiar depictions of the Bat characters would define not just Batman but all the New 52 Batfamily/Gotham comics (outside of Batwoman) for the years to follow.