I kid. Actually, it’s NPR’s “Best Superhero Graphic Novels of 2008.” Apparently the word “comic” is still a dirty word. But nonetheless, they did it, and here it is.
It’s kind of funny to me that on a list of superhero books, I’ve actually read two of them. And to quibble, only one of those two was an actual “graphic novel”–Azzarello and Bermejo’s Joker. Which was definitely one of the more memorable things I read this year, a terrifically nasty little story about evil, fear, and violence.
The other was Warren Ellis and Juan Jose Ryp’s Black Summer, which I also loved. It descended a bit too much in the middle into lovingly-drawn explosions, but on either end it was a thoughtful meditation on power, politics, and responsibility.
So, yeah. I wonder at the need to separate the superhero books from the others, and would half like to know if the writer believes that one is better than the other, and which one. Either way, thought I’d share.
December 19th, 2008 at 3:37 pm
I believe that the idea is that at the end of the year, most of these lists comprise of things Like Bottomless Belly Button that the average comic reader has never heard of, therefore they get lots of grumbling of I have never heard of that, so to quiet that roar down, do one list of the mainstream stuff fill it with big profile trades and a list creators so that the common person would be like okay with it.
December 19th, 2008 at 5:11 pm
So… The list is only 5 titles? Somehow, I thought we’d get a top 10. No matter… Maybe there really weren’t 10 great GNs/trades released this year. Pretty sad, when you consider this was the year of the Bat and Iron Man.
Then again, in 1989 (the previous “Year of the Bat”) DC actually capitalized on Batman’s popularity, put out a lot of great stories, and even launched an excellent new title that wasn’t bound by continuity. The DC of 2008 would rather “kill” the character off, and then replace him after a confusing, unsatisfying “event” that tied into yet another confusing, unsatisfying “event.” Not to mention canceling or putting on hiatus most of the Batman or Bat-related books.
I think the inmates are running the (Arkham) asylum.
Anyhow, Sarah, if you haven’t been reading Brubaker’s run on Captain America then you’re simply missing the best superhero monthly that’s out there. That’s probably been true for Bru’s entire run. It’s one of the few monthlies that I still regularly buy. It’s really nerdy of me to mention that Cap was killed in 2007, and it’s just that the trade was released in 2008, but that’s worth noting.
And I have no idea what Bottomless Belly Button is.
December 20th, 2008 at 9:48 am
I agree with you on the “graphic novel” point. I know the great Wikipedia says that a graphic novel can include trade paperbacks, which is what every other book on that list is besides JOKER. But, I believe graphic novels were originally stories unto themselves, not a collected trade. And then Hollywood adapted it because it sounded cooler than “comic book”. So, every time I see a “Best Graphic Novel” list, it’s usually full of trade paperbacks.