40. Flocks

Writer/Artist: L. Nichols

Publisher: Secret Acres

Flocks is a graphic memoir about how those around us impact who we are and more importantly how we feel-both the good and the bad. Shows the constant struggle of discovering the person you are goes beyond the confines of your original flock. L. Nichols, a trans man, artist, engineer, and father of two, was born in rural Louisiana, assigned female and raised by conservative Christians. Coming from a religious family did not make things easy, however, L. Nichols also shows there are benefits to being part of that flock as well.  

39. A Jew Jerusalem

Writer/Artist: Benjamin Dickson

Publisher: New Internationalist

We now live in a time and place where we recognize post-traumatic stress disorder and all its dangers. That was not always the case as A Jew Jerusalem shows what life was like for some soldiers when they return home from World War II.  While the narrative is center mostly on Eleven-year-old Ralph and his family the thematic scope is much larger. Benjamin Dickson is looking all the grander wounds World War II left on Britain that are still healing today.

38. A Study in Emerald

Writer: Neil Gaiman, Rafael Scavone

Artist:  Rafael Albuquerque

Publisher: Dark Horse

In order for a meal to work, you need to have the right ingredients. The same thing goes for comics. You could not ask for better ingredients. Neil Gaiman is, of course, a legend and his storytelling sensibility fits great with an artist like Rafael Albuquerque. Then you get a story that combines Sherlock Holmes and Lovecraft’s Cthulhu Mythos and everything fits perfectly into place.

37. East of West

Writer: Jonathan Hickman

Artist: Nick Dragotta

Publisher: Image Comics

There is no one who can build worlds quite like Jonathan Hickman. The man is a thread maker as he throws out a wide net filled with great characters. Each of those characters has an arc worthy of its own solo comic. Considering that East of West does at times come off as a series that is in a massive hurry but ultimately does not go anywhere. When you take a step back and look at it from a broader perspective you can see just how much has changed in the overall narrative.

36. Venom

Writer: Donny Cates

Artist: Ryan Stegman, Iban Coello

Publisher: Marvel Comics

I am a strong believer that there is no such thing as a bad character. Any character can work under the right hands. Case and point Venom. Even those who absolutely hate the character would be able to enjoy Donny Cates and Ryan Stegman’s recent run on the character. It has sought not only to reimagine everything we know about the symbiote and Eddie Brock it is also reshaping the Marvel universe as a whole. Donny Cates has the ability to make his comics feel larger than life and it works well with a character like Venom.

35. Isola

Writer: Brenden Fletcher

Artist: Karl Kerschl

Publisher: Image Comics

When I first opened Isola I literally did not believe the art that was on the page. The lines were so crisp and colors so pristine it was like a major animated film was frozen in time. Reading the comic is like watching a Hayao Miyazaki film. Like Miyazaki  Brenden Fletcher and Karl Kerschl drop you into this magical world with zero exposition. You learn through osmosis as the story progresses the details begin to emerge and characters develop. It is refreshing to read a comic that trusts the audience as Isola does.

34. Rx

Writer/Artist: Rachel Lindsay

Publisher: Grand Central Publishing

Imagine for a second if you worked for your addiction. That was the case with Rachel Lindsay and she tells her story in her graphic memoir Rx. She took a job in advertising in order to secure healthcare coverage for her treatment. She soon finds herself developing ads for an antidepressant drug that are directed at someone like herself. By opening up her own life for us all Rachel Lindsay touches on so many key issues that are majorly impacting our society. Mental illness, drug addiction, health care, and the way we treat those who need our help the most.

33. Illegal

Writer: Eoin Colfer, Andrew Donkin

Artist: Giovanni Rigano

Publisher: Hodder Children’s Books

Illegal is a fictional true to life tale about two young brothers in Africa fighting for their lives in hopes of making it to Europe for a new chance on life. It is a journey across the Sahara Desert to the dangerous streets of Tripoli, and finally out to the merciless sea.  Tackling the biggest crisis of today it seeks to break the forced barriers we place on our humanity to justify the cognitive dissonance of this vital issue.

32. Doctor Star and the Kingdom of the Lost Tomorrow

Writer: Jeff Lemire

Artist: Max Fiumara

Publisher: Dark Horse

After the first issue of Doctor Star and the Kingdom of the Lost Tomorrow I knew it was going to be one of my favorites of the year. The emotional impact it held is still with me this day. Set in the world of Black Hammer this too is a deconstruction of superhero norms. This thought is focused on a single man and what his drive cost him. Personally, I am a sucker for a good father and son story and this one is one of the best I have rad in some time.

31. The Dead Eye and the Deep Blue Sea: The World of Slavery at Sea-A Graphic Memoir

By: by  Vannak Anan Prum, Ben Pederick (With) Jocelyn Pederick (Text)

Publisher: Seven Stories Press

Slavery is something we tend to think of as something that happened in the past. After reading The Dead Eye and the Deep Blue Sea: The World of Slavery at Sea-A Graphic Memoir that thought is clearly a privilege. Vannak Anan Prum was just trying to find work to provide for his pregnant wife, and instead became a hostage on a vessel for four years of hard labor. He was able to escape and now he is telling his story using his own illustrations. Very little is known about what happens to the men and boys who end up working on fishing boats in Asia, and these images are some of the first records.

30. Batman: White Knight

Writer/Artist: Sean Murphy

Publisher: DC Comics

Sean Murphy was born to draw Batman especially in the world of Gotham. I find myself just sitting back absorbing his art. Especially love how he draws vehicles and this series to provide a major abundance of cars depict. If you are a fan of the Batmobile chases are your favorite one is represented here in a major way. For the majority of this series, Murphy approached Batman in a slightly more unhinged manner. Making it seem like he was setting up a complete 180-degree switch from the normal Batman mythos. As it has progressed it has evolved to be something a tad more subtle picking apart the problematic nature of a character like Batman but also underlying the benefit.

29. Fearscape

Writer: Ryan O’Sullivan

Artist: Andrea Mutti

Publisher: Vault Comics

Fearscape is something else. It is this fantastical tale about a struggling writer finding himself in another dimension tasked with coming up with the ultimate story to save us.  It operates as this meta-study of the creative mind as it deconstructs the art of comic book storytelling by trying to craft the ultimate story inside and outside its pages. It is more than just a look at comics as Ryan O’Sullivan and Andrea Mutti take aim at several literary concepts and break them apart only to build them anew.

28. Mech Cadet Yu

Writer: Greg Pak

Artist: Takeshi Miyazawa

Publisher: Boom Comics

Comics are better with the series of Mech Cadet Yu in it, which sadly is no longer the case as the series has luckily. At least we now have it to go back to time and time again. What Greg Pak and Takeshi Miyazawa have done with this series is something special. Building this story that is suitable for all ages and full of characters that have nuance and levels of development you want not normally expect for a story about giant robots fighting alien monsters.

27. Thanos

Writer: Donny Cates

Artist: Geoff Shaw

Publisher: Marvel Comics

With ‘Thanos Wins’ storyline Donny Cates and Geoff Shaw announced their presence to the comic book world. Many were already well aware of their greatness as they came together previously for the series God Country. It is as if Cates approaches each story line as if it will be his last. Packing in as many major ideas as possible to make each issue feel massively important. Geoff Shaw art also has a level of gravitas to it, which is what you need when you are writing god like characters. Also, this story line gave us one of this year’s biggest breakout characters with Cosmic Ghost Rider. There is so much that should not work, but it just does.

26. A Walk Through Hell

Writer: Garth Ennis
Artist: Goran Sudzuka

Publisher: Aftershock

I have watched and read my fair share of horror but I do not believe I have seen a more haunting scene that on that occurs in A Walk Through Hell. Without ruining the scene it occurs when a person simply cannot stop doing one specific act over and over again. No one is surprised that Garth Enis can do a great horror story and while that scene is the first thing I associated with this series the entire series has a dominating haunting atmosphere that makes you uncomfortable in the best of ways.

25. X-Men: Grand Design

Writer/Artist: Ed Piskor

Publisher: Marvel Comics

There is so much to appreciate with Ed Piskor’s X-Men: Grand Design. For one the sheer amount of research Piskor did was rather incredible. He is basically retelling the entire history of the X-Men in a very compressed manner, yet somehow it makes sense on its own. As the title suggest everything about it is impeccably designed. When you give a talented and creative creator like Ed Piskor the room to create their own thing you can get a gem like this. As an X-Men fan, I am grateful as you can now just hand someone this series to explain what makes the Children of the Atom so special.

24. Idle Days

Writer: Thomas Desaulniers-Brousseau

Artist: Simon Leclerc

Publisher: First Second Books

In Idle Days a man hides out in rural Canada after deserting the Army during WWII. Living with his Uncle he begins to notice stranger and stranger things occurring. As the book suggests, his troubles are only beginning. A strange dread fills the woods, and rumors of murders and ghosts cast his refuge in a sinister light. With its isolating atmosphere and surreal imagery that gradually builds to a boil felt like a more subtle version of the Shining. It is a story about grief and overcoming loss.

23. The Mighty Thor

Writer: Jason Aaron

Artist:  Russell Dauterman

Publisher: Marvel Comics

Jason Aaron’s run on Thor has been a gift for years now. Dan from Baltimore  As The Mighty Thor storyline came to a close the tragedy that has occurred in the life of Jane Foster. How she was an innocent victim of events that led to the deaths of some of her more cherished loved ones. Death in comics tends not to mean anything. I do not doubt Jane Foster will pop up again sometime in the future. Why it works has nothing to do with continuity. It works due to what it was saying from a story perspective.  Jane was making the choice. She was not going to let someone else make it for her. Not again. She was not going to let cancer dictate what she can and cannot do. Her actions are her own and she was not going to allow tragedy to be placed on her. Instead, she looked death straight in the face and said, “You are not ready for me” as she went in head first knowing her actions would save the lives of others. Even if some of those people she saved maybe didn’t deserve it.

22. Skyward

Writer: Joe Henderson

Artist: Lee Garbett

Publisher: Image Comics

The foundation of a great concept is typically forged by asking a poignant but simple question that opens up opportunities to be explored. For Skyward that question comes down to, “What would the Earth be like if gravity suddenly stopped working?”. Sure there is an element of ludicrousness to that idea, but what better place to explore that lunacy than the medium of comics where there are no limits. So far Joe Henderson and Lee Garbett have molded that concept to create a series with an infectious adventurous spirit that fittingly has a limitless potential. At the same time, as issue eight also shows, it is the characters that fill that world that has cemented Skyward as one of this year’s best new series.

21. Exit Stage Left: The Snagglepuss Chronicles

Writer: Mark Russell

Artist: Mike Feehan

Publisher: DC Comics

What made Exit Stage Left: The Snagglepuss Chronicles work so well as a series is that it never takes a second to reflect on the fact it is a book about a giant pink cat who wears no pants. It takes itself seriously which would normally be a detriment to a series like this but when you are as smartly written you can get away with it. For those who enjoyed The Flintstones series if you are not reading this book as well, you need to correct it. It may not be as humorous but find the overall narrative actually deeper as Snagglepuss has morphed into this rather complex character. One specific piece of dialogue that stood out in this issue was when Snagglepuss indicated the difference between actors and stars. How stars show us who we want to be while actors show us who we are. To my recollection have not seen it plainly stated like that but there is a lot of truth to that sentiment as this series demonstrated.

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