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2007’s best of comics – Metro US

2007’s best of comics

You asked for it, and now you’ve got it.

Readers of this column regularly ask me what I’m currently reading and what I’d recommend, so here it all is with a nice festive bow: Metro’s best comic books of 2007:

Best original graphic novel: The League Of Extraordinary Gentlemen: Black Dossier by Alan Moore and Kevin O’Neill (America’s Best Comics)

Well the wait was long — over 18 months from its originally scheduled publication date — but the Black Dossier finally arrived in November and boy was it worth it. Writer Alan Moore and artist Kevin O’Neill truly outdid themselves with a wild and imaginative League tale set in a post-Orwellian 1950s full of odd and alluring tangents into the past and hinting at a tempestuous future to come. Oh, just one bit of bad news: Due to copyright concerns, the Dossier was never published in Canada. If you want a copy you’ll have to head online instead to your local comic book shop.

Finalists: The Goon: Chinatown And The Mystery Of Mr. Wicker by Eric Powell (Dark Horse Books); Sentences: The Life Of M.F. Grimm by Percy Carey and Ronald Wimberly (Vertigo); Exit Wounds by Rutu Modan (Drawn & Quarterly).

Best ongoing series: The Spirit by Darwyn Cooke and J. Bone (DC Comics)

It took some major stones to take on the adventures of a character created by a pioneer like the late Will Eisner, but Darwyn Cooke definitely proved he has ’em. Seamlessly mixing action, drama and comedy, along with some truly breathtaking visuals, this Canadian creator took what might have been a decent little revival project for this masked crime-fighter and turned it into the book of the year.

Finalists: All-Star Superman (DC); Buffy The Vampire Slayer: Season 8 (Dark Horse); Daredevil (Marvel Comics); Invincible (Image Comics); Irredeemable Ant-Man (Marvel); Nextwave: Agents Of H.A.T.E. (Marvel).

Best new series: Buffy The Vampire Slayer: Season 8 by Joss Whedon, Brian K. Vaughan, Georges Jeanty and Andy Owens (Dark Horse Comics)

It was a dream come true for Buffy The Vampire Slayer fans when word spread that series creator Joss Whedon was going to continue the character’s canonical adventures in a new comic book series. And it’s been everything we could have hoped for so far, with the same fun characters, quick and clever dialogue and fast and furious slaying action.

Finalists: Scalped (Vertigo); The Mice Templar (Image); The Sword (Image).

Best miniseries: Shazam: The Monster Society Of Evil by Jeff Smith (DC Comics)

After the raging success that was Bone, Jeff Smith had set himself a rather lofty standard. Luckily, his next project, Shazam: The Monster Society Of Evil was of comparable quality.

This sweet and sincere re-imagining of Captain Marvel’s origin is one of those rare few books that you could hand to anyone from age five to 95 and they’d be sure to enjoy it.

Finalists: World War Hulk (Marvel); The Nightly News (Image); The Umbrella Academy: Apocalypse Suite (Dark Horse).

Best single issue: Satan’s Sodomy Baby by Eric Powell (Dark Horse Comics)

Packed with filthy jokes, violence and completely extraneous and gratuitous nudity, Satan’s Sodomy Baby is one of the most wonderfully offensive comic books ever released.

Finalists: Pieces For Mom: A Tale Of The Undead (Image); Wonderlost #1 (Image).

jonathan.kuehlein@metronews.ca