Blog Archives
Jason Shayer’s Top Fives Of 2012
Top Five Comic Books of 2012:
- Daredevil (Mark Waid and Paolo Rivera) – Mark Waid pushed aside the grim and gritty tone that has been with Daredevil since the 1980s and went back to the swashbuckling fun of the original character concept. Rivera’s smooth art, which is very reminiscent of David Mazzucchelli, compliments Waid’s efforts and really puts this book on everyone’s To Read pile.
- Saga (Brian K. Vaughan and Fiona Staples) – I picked up this comic because it looked like something different and that’s exactly what I got. It’s one of those fun comic book experiences in that it goes beyond the mainstream and does something totally off-the-wall. I tried to describe it to my friend and fell short, coming up with something like it’s a “sci-fi fantasy with elements of Romeo & Juliet”.
- Batman (Scott Snyder and Greg Capullo) – To me, Snyder’s Batman is the big book that drove the new DC 52. His take captures everything you want in a Batman book and delivers a smart, emotional, and respectful story for such an iconic character. I was also impressed by Capullo’s efforts on this book, as I had always seen him more as a cartoonist, but he’s definitely taken his work to a higher level on this book.
- Wonder Woman (Brian Azzarello and Cliff Chiang) – Azzarello, who I normally find difficult to “get”, has done a great job on the reboot of this classic character along with artist Cliff Chiang. And what impressed me the most with Chiang’s art was the subtlety that he could communicate with what seemed to be such a simple art style. A fun super hero book with its roots in mythology that isn’t afraid of shaking things up a bit to tell a damn good story.
- Aquaman (Geoff John and Ivan Reis) - I’m just as surprised as you that Aquaman made it onto my Top Five list. While there’s a lot of attention for DC’s flagship book, Justice League, Geoff Johns has done incredible things with the King of the Seven Seas. He’s given Aquaman a solid background, grounding him a bit more in his humanity, a great expanded secondary cast, and along with Ivan Reis has produced one of the finest ongoing comic books of the year. Read the rest of this entry
The Scene Of The Crime Is Right Here On The Wednesday Run – November 14, 2012
I tell ‘ya, there’s always something interesting to pick up at your local comic book shop on a Wednesday.
Action. Adventure. Mystery. Horror. Drama: super-powered heroes with masks, capes and spandex tights; regular sorts of people making their way in the world, falling in love and then out of it; espionage and the political machinations between government states; speculative, futurist fiction that educates us on today’s prevalent issues; gun-toting schemers and the people charged in bringing them to justice.
Yep. The local comic book shop has them all on a Wednesday.
For some people, that might mean picking up The Boys #72, Garth Ennis and Darick Robertson’s final issue of their treatise on superheroes, celebrity and debauchery!
For others, that could mean hurriedly picking up Batman #14 and finding out what writer Scott Snyder, artist Greg Capullo – and the insanely evil Joker – have really done to Alfred!
For me, Wednesday, November 14 means racing to the local shop and grabbing the critically acclaimed 1999 crime series, Scene of the Crime.
31 Days of Horror – The Tomb of Dracula
Marvel Comics’ The Tomb of Dracula, by writer Marv Wolfman, artist Gene Colan and inker Tom Palmer, was one of the more underrated, but still perhaps one of the best comic book series of the 1970s. Its mark in comics history goes far beyond an adaptation of everyone’s favorite king of the vampires, as it may have been a turning point for the industry itself when comes to horror, paving the way for the horror comics of today like The Walking Dead. Find out more after the jump.
Tales from the Longbox – Daredevil #208 (1984)
Every other week, Jason Shayer will highlight an issue or a run of issues pulled from the horde of comic book long boxes that occupy more room in his house than his wife can tolerate. Each of these reviews will delve into what made that issue or run significant as well as discuss the creative personalities behind the work. “Long Box” refers to the lengthy, white cardboard boxes most comics find themselves stored within – bagged, alphabetized and numerically ordered.
Daredevil #208 – “The Deadliest Night Of My Life”
July 1984
Writers: Harlan Ellison/Arthur Byron Cover
Penciler: David Mazzucchelli
Inker: Danny Bulanadi
Daredevil #208 stands as one of those comic books I’ve read far too many times. I still have the issue I bought off the shelves of the local convenience store. It’s beat-up and its spine is worn, but its all signs that it was a comic book I loved, and still love. Find out why after the jump.
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David Mazzucchelli’s Daredevil: Born Again Artist’s Edition On The Wednesday Run – June 27, 2012
One of the most well respected artists working in sequential art forum on one of the most beloved comic book character story arcs to ever see print.
If there was only one reason to run to your local comic book shop today, this is it: David Mazzucchelli and Daredevil: Born Again Artist’s Edition.
Please, allow me to gush throughout my explanation.
Daredevil: Born Again Artist’s Edition
Written by: Frank Miller
Illustrated by: David Mazzucchelli
Published by: IDW Publishing
I can still remember the summer of my thirteenth year. I was part of a group of close friends that bought and read comic books. We weren’t collectors, necessarily. Well, maybe some of us were. What we did do, as I’m sure many kids did, was trade comics with each other. We’d trade ones that we had already flipped through for ones that we really wanted to read. We’d sit on our porches, huddled over our piles of monthly periodicals: Fantastic Four, Batman, Team America, Scalphunter, talk about movies hockey players and offer a random comic book issue for another that enticed.
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