Ten graphic novels for the starting superhero reader

This entry marks the 100th post to this blog, and as a result, I thought I’d do something a little special. Most of you who read this are already dedicated comic book readers, but I do get a fair bit of traffic from random google searches and blog browsing services. Some of these readers may be getting into comics for the first time, or returning after a long hiatus. And so, I thought I’d run down my personal choices for the top ten collections to introduce a person to superheroes.

As always, my lists are arbitrary, based on nothing more than my own personal likes and dislikes. And also, as always, I feel the need to explain a bit about my criteria. To begin with, these aren’t necessarily my ten favorite graphic novels – just the ones I think provide the best introduction to superhero comics. I also limited myself to superheroes (or darn close to them in some cases). There is some amazing stuff going on in comics that has nothing to do with superheroes, including my all-time favorite graphic novel, Maus, but that’s outside the realm of this blog. This list also isn’t meant to be in order of importance – most of these are equally excellent as each other, and I honestly don’t know that I could rank one above the other. Therefore, I listed them alphabetically.

Astro City: Life in the Big City (Kurt Busiek)

Busiek created something remarkable with Astro City – a comic world that feels like it has the same depth and richness of the DCU or Marvel Universe, with characters that seem familiar even as we meet them for the first time. Just as remarkably, the characters he created are evocative of characters we remember from other publishers and fifty years of comic history, but remain unique and interesting in their own right. Samaritan reminds of Superman without ripping him off. Winged Victory bears a striking similarity to Wonder Woman, but has her own fascinating story, and the same can be said of Jack-In-The-Box, Crackerjack, The Confessor, the Silver Agent and others.

What makes Astro City even better is the fact that it doesn’t have the same focus that we see in most superhero comics. Astro City, as often as not, is about the normal people who inhabit the same world as the heroes. And when it is about the heroes, it isn’t about their heroic exploits, so much as it is about their daily lives. Life in the Big City starts off with the best Superman story that isn’t about Superman ever written, as we see what a typical day is like for the World’s Greatest Hero.

Batman: The Dark Knight Returns (Frank Miller)

Many people have projected the superheroes of the late twentieth century into their near future, imagining what life would be for the superheroes of yore in a new generation, but none have done it as well as Frank Miller did with The Dark Knight Returns.

The transformation of Bruce Wayne into a recluse, and then back into Batman remains gripping, engaging, and visually brilliant. Miller gives us a dark vision of the future, and one that is firmly mired in the politics of the late 1980’s, but that doesn’t take away from the power of this story.

Without The Dark Knight Returns, it’s difficult to imagine Batman Beyond or Kingdom Come ever having been written. The power of this story can even be seen in how elements from this story have worked themselves into modern continuity – Green Arrow’s sacrifice (or not) of his arm, and Luthor as world leader. This comic really marked the beginning of the transformation of Batman from being one of many vigilante detective/martial artists into the driven, darker persona we are all now familiar with.

Batman: Year One (Frank Miller)

Not content to just write the end of the Batman story, Frank Miller went ahead and re-wrote the beginning of it too with Batman: Year One.

Wisely, this comic focuses as much on Detective Jim Gordon as it does on Bruce Wayne. As a reader, we can be thrilled with the exploits of the superhuman, but we can’t ever really understand them. What we can understand are the reactions of the ordinary humans around them.

Additionally, Year One is one of the most beautiful comics ever put together. Year One’s impact can be seen elsewhere in the recent Batman Begins, where Gary Oldman portrayed not Commissioner Gordon, but instead Detective Gordon.

Marvel Superheroes: Secret Wars (Jim Shooter)

The first major twelve-part mini-series that crossed into all aspects of that universe’s comics, the first Secret Wars comic is such a perfect slice of comics in the eighties that it can’t be ignored.

Featuring the best, and most well known heroes and villains of Marvel at the time, it was the first time we got to see Captain America and the Avengers fighting alongside Spider-Man and the Fantastic Four and the X-Men. And they were fighting against the best in Marvel’s supervillains as well (with a few notable exceptions, such as the Red Skull).

Secret Wars reverberated throughout all of Marvel, and its aftershocks are still felt today. Remember that it was in Secret Wars that the alien costume that would eventually become Venom was introduced. It spawned a (far less interesting) sequel, and when Marvel was looking for a mini-series to introduce opposite Infinite Crisis, they even used the Secret War name again.

Beyond all of this, it’s also just a good fun read – and the kind of comic we rarely see anymore.

Starman: Sins of the Father (James Robinson)

Jack Knight was exactly what I wanted from my 90’s superheroes. At least, of the ones who identified themselves as such. You know, the whole “we’re not going to wear tights, because that’s ridiculous” movement.

The reason he stood head and shoulders above the rest is that he was unquestioningly a superhero (to the reader at least, he questioned it himself a lot). Sins of the Father did something that we almost never see in a comic – it killed Starman in the first issue of his comic.

Sins of the Father was a great example of how to tell a “darker” storyline without going into the “grim n’ gritty” movement, where sometimes it’s hard to tell who we’re supposed to consider the hero. And it spawned a great series that only got better as it went on. I regret the fact that Jack retired as Starman, and passed his cosmic rod onto Stargirl, but as a father myself, I understand and applaud his choice. You'll want to read the whole thing, once you get through this volume.

Superman: The Man of Steel (John Byrne)

Before Crisis on Infinite Earths, Superman had become truly ludicrous in power. He could fly nearly at the speed of light, was able to push planets around with his bare hands, and nothing that wasn’t magical or made of kryptonite could so much as scratch him.

The list of his secondary powers went on and on – not just heat vision, x-ray vision, microscopic hearing, ultrasonic hearing and super-breath, but also super-mesmerism and whatever other odd power the authors felt he needed. (The cellophane “S” from Superman II is almost understandable in this context.)

In the aftermath of Crisis, the editors at DC wisely decided to tone Superman down a bit, and they gave that job to John Byrne.

The Man of Steel isn’t the most elegant comic ever written, it has a lot of re-introductions to take care of. But it does so in a fairly admirable and entertaining way. And a lot of what we now think of as “cannon” for Superman and company originates in these pages. Byrne gave us Lois, the daughter of an army general and a very competent investigative reporter. He gave us Lex Luthor as a wealthy industrialist – both of which have been incorporated into every incarnation of Superman created since; the animated series, Smallville, Lois and Clark, and Superman Returns. The Man of Steel redefined Superman for a generation, and therefore is really a must read.

Supreme: The Story of the Year (Alan Moore)

I mentioned this is my Top Ten Superman Pastiches list, but it merits being mentioned again. Supreme: The Story of the Year is a loving deconstruction of the Superman mythos – complete with touching on how heroes get re-invented every generation, and all the trappings of the Silver Age.

But Moore doesn’t do this as a scathing commentary on the era, nor does he do it to make fun of the characters or genre. While I think that Astro City Vol. 1, Issue 1 is the best single issue of a Superman comic that isn’t actually about Superman, I think that this is my favorite Superman graphic novel without actually being about Superman.

It also does the best job of explaining why comic continuity can be such a mess to the novice reader that I’ve ever seen. On top of that, it’s illustrated wonderfully – very evocative of the style of Marvel and DC in the 1980’s, but on the higher quality paper and coloring techniques of the modern era.

X-Men: The Dark Phoenix Saga (John Byrne & Chris Claremont)

Jean Grey’s tragic tale is as big a part of comic book history, and as important of a single event as the shooting of Bruce Wayne’s parents, or the rocketing of baby Kal-El to Earth, or the bite of a spider on Peter Parker’s young hand. It has become, unfortunately, muddled with ret-con after ret-con, new incarnations of the Phoenix-force, and the three thousand, four hundred and eighty-three resurrections of Jean Grey.

But that doesn’t change the fact that the original tale is about as good of a story as you’ll find anywhere. The battle in the Hellfire Club is a great warm-up battle for the X-Men (and one that would have future impact on the X-Men, especially Wolverine), and the battle on the dark side of the moon against the Shi’ar Imperial Guard is a superpowered slugfest that has rarely been matched.

Just as significant, this story was the one that really cemented the strength of the bond between Jean Grey and Scott Summers – the best romance in comics in my opinion.

Ultimately, I wish that they had left Jean dead at the end of the Phoenix Saga. Her rebirth, again, opened the floodgates wide for superheroes returning from the grave. The great truisms of superhero death, Bucky and Captain Mar-Vel, have even now been violated. Fortunately, you can read this comic without worrying about the future resurrection after resurrection.

Ultimate Spider-Man, Vol. 1 (Brian Michael Bendis)
By the early years of this millennium, Spider-Man’s life and continuity had become, frankly, a mess. Somewhere between Carnage and clones, I swore off Spider-Man comics. The continuity was ugly, and I felt like I no longer knew these characters.

I still occasionally saw Spidey in other titles I picked up, and vaguely missed him, but he was out of my life. I had been abused one-too-many times, and it was time for me to move on. But then Marvel created Ultimate Spider-Man. Written by a (then) up-and-coming writer by the name of Brian Michael Bendis, Ultimate Spider-Man featured a sixteen-year old Peter Parker in the modern era, facing re-imaginations of Spider-Man’s classic foes. The Green Goblin no longer relied on gadgets – Norman Osborn transformed into a giant green creature capable of throwing fire from his hands. The early romances of Peter Parker’s life were largely ignored in favor of immediately focusing on MJ. And Nick Fury looked like Samuel L. Jackson instead of Clint Eastwood

“A publicity stunt,” people said. “It’ll never last.” “It won’t be any good.”

Were they ever wrong. The rest of the Ultimate continuity has gotten a little messy, and I can’t say I fully approve of all the changes they’ve made, but Ultimate Spider-Man has remained one of the best comics on the market. Even my favorite titles tend to have ups and downs, but there hasn’t been a single issue of USM that I haven’t enjoyed reading.

Watchmen (Alan Moore)

No list of great comic book graphic novels would be complete without including Watchmen. Alan Moore’s masterpiece has been analyzed more than any other comic collection, and sparked more debate and discussion as well.

Superhero comics changed forever after the publication of Watchmen, as people began looking at their heroes as beings who had feets of clay. Finding true heroism in Watchmen takes a lot of digging, and for the most part, the heroes fail. But they make the world a better place – at a price.

It was also the first time we saw our heroes behaving in ways that were really ugly. The Comedian rapes the Silk Spectre, Rorshach is a certifiable sociopath, and Nite-Owl has let himself go and now has a beer-gut.

Oddly enough, I don’t really like Watchmen. I consider it important to comics, and well-written, but I blame it for much of what I now find unpleasant in superhero comics. Still, if you’re going to read modern comics, then Watchmen is an important thing to read. The trends in modern comics originate here.

That's my list, and I hope you enjoyed it. So, what do you think I missed? (Other than Crisis on Infinite Earths). Let me know, and thanks for sticking with me through the last hundred posts. Here's looking to another hundred!

Top ten non-superpowered superheroes

A short-time ago we discussed the various pastiches of Superman overthe years. And while I stand by the statement I made there, that in many universes the World’s Greatest Superhero (tm) is a flying strongman in a cape, what is almost as interesting is that the second place character is usually a person with no superpowers at all.

Below you’ll find my take on the top ten non-superpowered superheroes. But before we get into this list deeply, there are going to be some notable absences, so let me explain them off the bat.

1) I didn’t include any sidekicks/spin-off heroes, no matter how noteworthy they are in their own right (though Nightwing really almost forced me to break this rule). This means we won’t see Robin, Speedy or Bucky on this list.

2) I also didn’t include superheroes who have superpowers, even if they proved themselves as heroes without their powers. So, despite the fact that Dinah Lance is just as competent a hero as Green Arrow, Huntress or Oracle without her sonic scream, she didn’t make the list. Neither did Storm.

3) “Borderline” superpowered heroes didn’t make the list either, even when it pained me to leave them off. As a result, you won’t see Hawkeye (who has superhumanly good eyesight), Moon Knight (who sometimes is written as having supernatural power due toKhonshu), or Wildcat (with his mystical nine lives) despite the fact that these characters are usually considered non-powered.

4) I didn’t include any primarily gun-wielding heroes. While many of the folks on this list do stretch my definition of a superhero in that they have killed, guns really serve no purpose other than “Make the other person dead.” I also think of soldiers and super-spies as a different breed than cape & mask heroes, so Nick Fury, the Punisher and any of the Old West supers didn’t make the cut for this list.

5) Finally, while most “normal human” superheroes do use high-tech gadgets of some sort, if they are entirely (or even mostly) dependent on a gadget for their superheroic acts, they didn’t make the list. WhileTony Stark and Hal Jordan may be ordinary humans, their equipment disqualifies them from this list. Sometimes this was a hard choice to make, and several of my favorite “normal human” heroes got cut as aresult (I’m looking at you, Blue Beetle and Night Thrasher).

But enough with the rules, let’s bring on the heroes!

10) Nighthawk (Supreme Power, Marvel Comics)
Kyle Richmond watched his parents be cut down as a result of a racial-inspired hate crime. Using his father’s investments to build a successful corporation, Richmond has trained himself in martial arts and investigation to hunt down those who commit crimes against African-Americans as Nighthawk.

Why he made the cut: The original version of Nighthawk was little more than a copy of DC’s Batman, but the Supreme Power version of the character has enough differences to make him notable in his own right. Nighthawk has all the paranoia about superhumans that Batman does, but adds in a healthy issue of race-relation paranoia.

Why he’s number 10: As interesting as they’ve made him in Supreme Power, it’s hard to ignore the fact that he is really an almost direct copy of someone much higher on this list.

9) The Confessor II (Astro City, Wildstorm Comics)
Wearing an all black costume with a large white cross on his chest, the Confessor protects Astro City by night. The Confessor focuses on“ordinary” crime – and is the one stopping the city from being looted while Samaritan fights off the alien invasion.

Why he made the cut: The original Confessor was a Roman-Catholic priest turned vampire, whose costume was made in part to harm him enough thathe would avoid the temptation of drinking blood. He later recruited a sidekick – Altar Boy, who became the Confessor after the original gave his life fighting off an alien invasion. Altar Boy had no superpowers of his own, which makes the present Confessor more like the characters he emulated. Astro City features a number of other non-superpowered heroes, including the ever-lovable Crackerjack, but the Confessor has a more prominent position in the universe.

Why he’s number 9: As good as the former Altar Boy’s story is, the Confessor was far more interesting as a vampire. As a normal human, the new Confessor has a neat look, but really has little terribly original about him.

8) Yeoman (Wild Cards novels)

Daniel Brennan was a US Army Captain who made the enmity of a high-ranking traitor in the Army of the Republic of Vietnam. Framed for murder, Brennan fled the country. While in exile he studied Zen Archery and martial arts. He returned to the United States to track down his foe, ending up in New York City, the haven for Aces and Jokers. Having no superhuman powers, he nevertheless became well known as the Ace ofSpades killer and battled many superpowered Aces and Jokers, even helping end the Swarm invasion.

Why he made the cut: Yeoman is nearly unique in the Wild Cards universe in being a vigilante who wasn’t touched by the Wild Card virus. TheWild Cards novels are a deadlier place than most comics, making Brennan’s life that much harder.

Why he’s number 8: Firstly, Brennan is a killer – something he doesn’t hide from. It’s also impossible not to look at him and see a mesh of the Punisher and Green Arrow. As fascinating as I find him, he is more unique due to his setting than anything noteworthy about the character himself.

7) Citizen V/Baron Helmut Zemo (Thunderbolts, Marvel Comics)

The original leader of the Thunderbolts, Baron Zemo masqueraded as Citizen V. Using high technology, martial arts, sword-fighting skills, and a natural sense of leadership, Citizen V was the perfect disguise– invoking the memory of Captain America without copying him.

Why he made the cut: It took him longer than the rest of the Thunderbolts, but Zemo did eventually evolve into a hero. His look was astounding, and fit well with the idea of a normal human leading a team of superheroes – something which was the case with most teams of Avengers. What was even more interesting, to my way of thinking, was that it took banishment from earth for Zemo to begin to be a hero. Since then, he has ruled the world, given up god-like power, been betrayed, and allowed all of it to happen. Zemo’s evolution remains fascinating, and I can’t wait to see what happens next to Helmut.

Why he’s number 7: Zemo pushes against most of the rules of this list, honestly. While he may be one of my favorites, and I might even have made a Citizen V costume one summer, he is a former villain, and may in fact still be one now. He has killed, and will probably do so again. He also was the possessor of not one, but two Moonstones, pushing him in the "had superpowers" category. They didn’t define him, the way that Iron Man’s armor or Green Lantern’s power ring do, but it pushed the borders of how I defined this list. So, despite my intense love of the character, I really couldn't justify putting him any higher on the list.

6) The Spirit (Will Eisner, now DC Comics)
Denny Colt, with the blessing of the police commissioner (an old friend), fights crime as the masked hero – the Spirit. The Spirit’s adventures ranged from noir detective work, to horror stories, to comedy– sometimes more than once in a single issue. With no superhuman powers, the Spirit is nonetheless a competent hand-to-hand fighter and detective.

Why he made the cut: The Spirit paved the way for the non-powered detective/martial artist we’ve come to see so often in comic books. On top of that, he was created by Wil Eisner – which in and of itself makes him notable.

Why he’s number 6: Despite the legacy the Spirit can claim, it doesn’t change the fact that to the layperson, he’s barely known. It hurt to put characters whose origins can be traced directly to him higher on the list, but the Spirit just isn’t well-enough known to the public to justify putting him higher. With a movie coming out, and a regular series of comics through DC, that may change, but for now, he leads the back of the pack.

5) The Question (DC Comics)
Charles Victor Szasz was trained by Richard Dragon, the greatest martial artist in the DCU in martial arts and philosophy. An investigative reporter by day, he uses his identity as the Question to resolve problems that “Vic Sage” can’t touch. After Vic succumbed to cancer, former Gotham Detective Renee Montoya takes up the mantle of the Question.

Why he/she made the cut: There are a few reasons that the Question stands out among the detective/martial artists who inhabit comics. One is their distinct look – there is something massively unsettling about the appearance of a person with no face. The Vic Sage Question also had a rather memorable run on Justice League: Unlimited, which has helped bring the character to the mind of many. He was always a favorite of mine, but the JLU appearance did a lot to strengthen that. And being voiced by Jeffery Combs did nothing to hurt either. Their appearances in 52 and Countdown have also brought the Questions to the forefront of the DCU. The Question is also the basis for Rorschach from Watchmen, who is one of the most endearing sociopathic heroes in all of comics.

Why they’re number 5: The Question is one of my all-time favorite heroes, but even with the recent surge of attention, they are still second or third-tier characters. That might change a bit with Renee Montoya, especially with her relationship with Batwoman, but at the moment the Question remains in the middle of the pack.

4) The Green Hornet (Various)

Newspaper publisher Britt Reid, grand-nephew to the Lone Ranger, masquerades as the Green Hornet – a vigilante who is considered a crime boss by police and criminals alike. This deception allows Reid to discover much about his enemies. Armed with this knowledge, his loyal companion Kato, and the amazing Black Beauty, the Green Hornet is a threat to criminals everywhere.

Why he made the cut: The Green Hornet loaned so much of his mythology to future heroes that it really is remarkable. But what is even more amazing is how much remains unique to him – not the least of which being his status as crime boss. (Marvel’s Shroud doesn’t do it half as well.) His gadgets are second to none, and he even has a memorable bit of theme music – even if it was written by Rimsky-Korsakov.

Why he’s number 4: It is absolutely no knock against the Hornet himself that he only made it to number four on the list. It really comes down to the fact that the three people ahead of him on the list are just that much more notable. Starting with one who has stolen his color…

3) Green Arrow (DC Comics)

Millionaire playboy Olliver Queen was stranded on a desert island by a crime boss. His own survival instinct plus a lifelong fascination with archery saved him from a grisly fate, and when he returned to civilization, he decided to use his new identity to protect the “little guy” as the Emerald Archer, Green Arrow.

Why he made the cut: Green Arrow is one of the more notable “normal human” heroes in comics today, and his fame is only growing. In addition to comics and cartoons, Green Arrow has also been included in the Smallville mythology, and is even going to have a movie made about him (probably). Though he started as a Batman knock-off, he has grown to be a champion of liberal causes, and has started the legacy for numerous other heroes, including the current Speedy, Mia Derden and the former Speedy, RoyHarper, who is now a member of the Justice League as Red Arrow. He has also developed a rivalry with Deathstroke – the single deadliest assassin in the DCU. And on top of all that, he just proposed to theBlack Canary, Dinah Lance.

Why he’s number 3: As amazing as Ollie is, and how rapid his ascent has been, he still remains just out of reach of the top-tier of superheroes. To comic fans, few characters are as beloved as Olliver Queen is today, but he still lacks the name recognition of Spider-Man, Superman or the top two spots on this list.

2) Batman (DC Comics)

His parents gunned down at a young age, Bruce Wayne swore that he would never allow what happened to him to happen to anyone else. Heir to a vast empire of wealth, Bruce travelled across the world, honing his mind and body to become the ultimate weapon against crime. Already a brilliant detective, martial artist, tactician and scientist, Bruce crafted a disguise to strike terror into the hearts of criminals. He has had many allies in this war against crime, but deep inside, Bruce remains a loner. Still, no hero is as feared as the Batman is.

Why he made the cut: Because he’s the Batman, that’s why. Few superheroes have the recognition as an icon that he does. Bruce Wayne represents the ultimate in what a human can strive for, and is one ofthe “Big Three” of the DCU. Batman has out fought everyone, and has contingency plan after contingency plan for future battles. He has trained several Robins, one of whom, Dick Grayson. has become such an important hero in DC Comics that he honestly deserves a place on this list himself. He has inspired numerous other heroes, including the Huntress and two different Batgirls. His arsenal is nearly as well known as his origin story, and he has been the subject of more movies and television shows than any other superhero. No list of “human” superheroes would be complete without him.

Why he’s number 2: This will be probably the most contentious placement on this list, because for many Batman is what people think of as the non-powered superhero. I struggled between placing him in the number one or number two slot, and ultimately went with who I chose as the winner because of what that character represents. Batman is, at heart, a story about vengeance. Bruce’s mission has grown beyond that, but that’s where its’ roots are. Batman also inspires fear above anything else, and I wanted the number one position to belong to a hero who inspires hope in all those around him, even after his death.

1) Captain America (Marvel Comics)
Despite being a patriot, Steve Rogers was deemed unfit for duty during the Second World War due to his scrawny physique. Offered an opportunity to take part in a secret Super-Soldier program, Steve Rogers was transformed to the peak of human ability and trained by the army. Armed with an unbreakable shield, and possessing unmatched leadership and tactical skills, Steve became Captain America. Frozen in ice for years and released in the modern day, Captain America is still regarded by nearly all in the Marvel Universe as the ultimate expression of what a hero should be, even as he struggles to find his place in modern-day America.

Why he made the cut: In the Marvel Universe, no one is a greater hero than Cap. Cap has led several incarnations of the Avengers, leading gods, mutants, aliens and robots despite having no powers of his own. He has stood toe-to-toe with the likes of the Hulk, Thanos and Ultron, and come out on top. His sidekicks have become potent heroes in their own right, and other nations have champions who are clearly inspired by Captain America, such as Union Jack and the Red Guardian.

Why he’s number 1: Cap isn’t just an unpowered superhero, he is a leader of superheroes. Cap inspires hope and loyalty in those around him and is one of the few who are worthy of wielding Thor’s enchanted hammer, Mjolnir. No matter how jaded or bitter a hero is, when they work alongside Cap, even the likes of Wolverine, Spider-Man and Luke Cage find ways to be members of a team. When Captain America opposed the Registration Act, he gave legitimacy to the cause. Without Cap, those who refused to register would have been despised by all. But with Captain America leading the resistance, it made people think about why heroes might oppose the law, even in the wake of Stamford. After being assassinated, Steve Rogers has continued to inspire heroism in his memory. He may not be as well known as Batman, and may have even lost to him in Marvel vs. DC several years ago, but Captain America is the single largest symbol of hope to the Marvel Universe, and for that reason, he is my pick for number one.

So, what do you think? Who do you think deserves a place on this list but didn’t get one? Where would you have moved people around on the list? I’d love to hear.