My Comic Book Picks for 2007
I'd love to hear from other comic book fans on their picks for the past year. I can't claim to have read everything out there, and some of my picks will be based on impact and general perusing, rather than reading. At $3 a pop, how can anyone expect to read everything?
Writer of the Year: Matt Fraction
Fraction currently writes Casanova, The Order, Punisher War Journal, and co-writes The Immortal Iron Fist. His work is fun, witty, and sophisticated. There is a depth to his work that will keep the reader coming back for more, and the metafictional references are fun to spot.
Others who have stood out: Geoff Johns, Ed Brubaker, Grant Morrison, and Warren Ellis
Artist of the Year: Daniel Aja
Aja is the artist on The Immortal Iron Fist. His work is perfect for the book and is absolutely beautiful to behold. He is a strong storyteller, and one to watch in the future. I want to see what his next project will be.
Others who have stood out: Ivan Reis, Ethan Van Sciver, Gabriel Ba, Renato Guedes
Inker of the Year: Jamie Grant
Grant does standout work on All-Star Superman. His ink is a perfect compliment to Frank Quitely's pencil work.
Others who have stood out: Drew Garaci, Mark Morales
Colorist of the Year: W. Moose Baumann
In Green Lantern, where color plays an integral part of the story, Baumann's work is outstanding.
I'm not that familiar with many colorists, so no others come to mind right now.
Superhero Book of the Year: All-Star Superman, by Grant Morrison and Frank Quitely
This book continues to thrill me as Morrison tells modern Superman stories with a Silver Age feel. I can't rave enough about this book. More than any other this year, it has given me that feeling of wonder that I used to get out of reading comics.
Others worth mentioning: Captain America, Green Lantern, Green Lantern Corps, The Order, The Immortal Iron Fist, Justice Society of America
Non-Superhero Book of the Year: Casanova, by Matt Fraction, Gabriel Ba, and Fabio Moon
This book about a dimension hopping rogue is incredible. There is so much packed in each page that you forget that there are only 16 pages of story. This book is worth every bit of your $1.99.
Others worth mentioning: Jonah Hex, The Lone Ranger
Event/Crossover of the Year: The Sinestro Corps War in Green Lantern and Green Lantern Corps
This was the story that crept up on the readers and kicked them in their collective butts. A local comics shop manager told me that sales of Green Lantern had tripled and those of Green Lantern Corps had doubled during this story. Solid writing and art combined for a bang up story with emotional content and payoff. Basically, Geoff Johns took the kernel of an Alan Moore prophesy story told in a Tales of the Green Lantern Corps Annual as the set up and added the elements to tell the story that he wanted to tell. The Green Lantern mythos has never felt as big or as important as it does right now. As a long time Green Lantern fan, that is one hell of a statement for me to make, but I stand by it.
Fond Farewell (creator): Mike Wieringo
Fond farewell (book): Terry Moore's Strangers in Paradise
Bad Move: Ending the Spider-man marriage and redoing the Spider-man universe. To me, this is as bad, if not worse than the Clone Saga. It is turning back the clock on a book that was growing well. This shows a lack of imagination, in my opinion, and is a move that may just come back to bite Marvel in the ass. If I wanted this story, I'd read Ultimate Spider-man or Spider-man Loves Mary Jane.
Rant: I hear complaints about readers downloading comics illegally. I understand, and support anything that will give creators their just royalties. However, I think that it is imperative that Marvel and DC realize that, while crossovers may be fun and great, shelling out hundreds of bucks to get a complete story is not something the average fan can do. They are forcing many fans to download because they just flat out can't afford to buy the whole story. Smaller, practically self-contained events(such as the Green Lantern event) are much more practical and will ultimately, I believe, prove more profitable and be better received. Until the publishers realize this, expect rampant downloading to continue.