The Independent/"Adult" Comics Thread

[soberman]

IamBatman, in that case may I suggest "Love Fights" by the aforementioned Andi Watson. It's an indie comic (Oni Press) that deals with a superhero's romantic life.

Also, I forgot to mention EAGLE: The Making of an Asian American President by Kaiji Kawaguchi in my manga selections. A deft weaving of 80% political thriller with 20% soap opera thrown in for an element of human interest and plot advancement. The most political comic ever.
_____________________________
now playing Concrete Blonde on http://www.wyep.org

[IAmBatman]

Cool. Lots of interesting looking recommendations on here that I'll have to check out as time and money allow!

[jaques]

Here's a funny short story by Alex Robinson.

I highly recommend Alex's Box Office Poison and Tricked.

Box Office Poison in particular is a must-read for anyone who likes slice-of-life comics and has a nostalgia for the old days of super-hero comics.

[Ted_Danson]

I just Read Kick-A$$ by Mark Millar and John Romita JR.

AWESOME! So I figured I'd stop by here, read some of the titles on this topic, and add a few of my own.

Wanted
Soon to be a major motion picture that is nothing like the comic, this book is full of crime wickedness and insanity. Also written by Mark Millar. He really has a gift. I read a ton of his Marvel books, and they never cease to amaze me. His best run to date, not including Kick-Ass, was his Marvel Knights run on Wolverine: Enemy of the State. 12 action packed issues that hold a great story about Wolvie being turned into a bad guy.

The Invisibles
Grant Morrison really broke the mold with this insane "team" book. It is the source material for the Matrix movies, only completely different, and 3,000,000 times better. If you want to feel like you are taking drugs without ever having to do so, these 7 Graphic Novels will take you there and back. The only let down was the last book, being the last book, it didn't really carry the feel of the entire series to a nice complete stop.

Fables
If you like fairy tales, but wish all of the characters lived in the same continuity, in New York, and were filled with sex and murder, then this is the book for you. The Big Bad Wolf is a private detective!

I read a ton of comics, but it is titles like the ones I have mentioned, along with tons that have been mentioned on here so far, that maintain my wife's hate for my weekly addiction. I hop title to title, begging to be blown away, and more often than not, I totally am.

Read comics forever! I'm already training my 2 year old how to handle comics, and buying him 2 or 3 a month.

[Hex_Enduction_Hour]

I checked out Pride of Baghdad from my local public library.
Got around to reading it last night.
Pride is a decent read. Loved the concept and the events that were the inspiration for the story.

Book Description
In the award-winning series Y: THE LAST MAN and EX MACHINA (one of Entertainment Weeklys 2005 Ten Best Fiction titles), writer Brian K. Vaughan demonstrates an understanding of the cost of survival and the political nuances of the modern world. In this provocative, acclaimed graphic novelavailable for the first time in trade paperbackVaughan examines life on the streets of war-torn Iraq.In the spring of 2003, a pride of lions escaped from the Baghdad Zoo during an American bombing raid.Lost and confused, hungry but free, the four lions roamed the decimated streets of Baghdad in a desperate struggle to survive.In documenting the plight of the lions, PRIDE OF BAGHDAD raises questions about the true meaning of liberationcan it be given, or is it earned only through self-determination and sacrifice?And in the end, is it truly better to die free than to live life in captivity?Based on a true story, Vaughan and artist Niko Henrichon open a unique and heartbreaking window on the nature of life during wartime, illuminating this struggle as only the graphic novel can.

Up to par artwork by Niko Henrichon.


Well worth checking this book out!

[DarkBladeCB]

So... I just read through this really fast and nobody mentioned BLACK HOLE yet. It's Charles Burns' classic that I think Neil Gaiman is scripting the film for. Go read it before it becomes popular and you, too, can be pretentious and tell your friends to read the graphic novel that they've never heard of!

[ewabbie]

I just reserved Blankets at the library. Looking forward to reading it.

[netherspirit]

Not a graphic novel, but I read the first mini-series of The Damned by Cullen Dunn and Brian Hurtt today. It's really good.

Originally Posted by The Damned Synopois

During the prohibition era, gangsters grew rich on vices of the people, and rivalries between criminal organizations resulted in open war. But unknown to the masses, a more sinister power controlled the crime cartels, using greed, gluttony, lust, and other sins to fuel a much more lucrative trade: mortal souls. Three demon families—the Aligheris, the Roarkes, and the Verlochin—control soul-trafficking within the city, capitalizing on “the rackets” to lead unfortunates into their grasp and poor Eddie is caught in the middle…

A graphic novel that I just read is called Borrowed Time by Neal Shaffer and Joe Infurnari. Its pretty interesting too, I'm looking forward to the next one coming out as its going to be 6 books.

Originally Posted by Borrowed Time Synopsis

So, you've pretty much got it all. A great girlfriend, a nice apartment, a job you love that sends you all over the world. Life doesn't get much better. Taylor Devlin thought as much. But when this journalist returns home from an assignment in the Bermuda Triangle, he discovers his old life isn't there anymore and the world has changed rather dramatically.
That's the basic premise of "Borrowed Time," a series of six graphic novels by writer Neal Shaffer and artist Joe Infunari, the first of which saw publication last year from Oni Press.

Just thought I would add some of the ongoing series that I am reading:

• The Sword
• Invincible
• Dynamo 5
• Fear Agent
• Astounding Wolf-Man
• The Walking Dead
• Ex-Machina
• Star Wars Legacy
• Star Wars Dark Times

[ninthdoc]

I'd highly recommend almost anything that Red 5 Comics puts out. They are a fairly new company being headed by Paul Enns (the guy behind TheForce.net). Their titles are as follows:

Atomic Robo - Very much like Hellboy, but with a more innocent main character.

Neozoic - An alternate history for Earth finds that dinosaurs never went extinct and humans have to find a way to co-exist with them.

Afterburn - An asteroid causes the Eastern Hemisphere of the Earth to become a radioactive wasteland. Mercenaries are conscripted to travel to these parts of the Earth to collect the treasures left there. Meanwhile the Mercs find the mutations and radiation sickened populace there.

Abyss - A parody of all things in the comic book world. I'm not much of a humor reader, but this is very well written.

The only one of their titles that I don't care for is called MidKnight. It reminded me very much of The Incredibles, but The Incredibles did not suck and MidKnight does. I just didn't like it at all.

When it comes to quality, Red 5 Comics does not screw around. Their comics are printed on heavier paper and with stunning colors. The books themselves are better quality than both Marvel and DC and they cost the exact same amount.

If you can find Red 5 comics, buy them up. They are 110% pure awesome.

[Fallen Templar]

I don't know if this is the right place to talk about this comic specifically but I've really gotten into the DMZ Comic Series from Vertigo imprints. I've read the first 4 Trade Paperback Volumes{On the Ground, Body of a Journalist, Public Works, and Friendly Fire) I'm hooked and impatiently waiting for Volume 5: The Hidden War. I'm really ticked I missed this series when they were publishing them. This is one of the best comics I've ever read

[netherspirit]

Originally Posted by Fallen Templar

I don't know if this is the right place to talk about this comic specifically but I've really gotten into the DMZ Comic Series from Vertigo imprints. I've read the first 4 Trade Paperback Volumes{On the Ground, Body of a Journalist, Public Works, and Friendly Fire) I'm hooked and impatiently waiting for Volume 5: The Hidden War. I'm really ticked I missed this series when they were publishing them. This is one of the best comics I've ever read

I've been meaning to get around to reading those. Maybe I'll move them to the top of my reading list now.

[ewabbie]

Just finished Blankets and loved it. This was my first graphic novel to read and must thank Heroscapers with getting me interested in reading it from all of your reviews.

You may want to check out Craig Thompson's blog page, it has some good rough drawings from the book and others.