Ten Iconic Comics Pt. 2

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Bone
An epic story to partner Lord of the Rings or War and Peace with the deceptively innocent humor of modern adult cartoons, BONE is a wonderful adventure. BONE is not only an epic tale, it is an epic book. At over 1,300 pages long, BONE is a book which a reader would gladly resign to their entire weekend. While technically a High Fantasy, BONE is full of slapstick humor, petty human squabbles and humanized stories of people (creatures) trying to just live their life in an, at times, less than hospitable world. It is akin to Battlestar Galactica, where the fantastic fictional world and universe is only the backdrop to the stories of people, and all the drama and comedy which unfolds. BONE is a monumental story and setting, but what we truly care about, as readers, is the silly little Bone family. There are books one reads because they tell a great story, intriguing characters or have a unique and precise writing style; BONE is a story which takes the reader on a wonderful adventure into the world of Fone Bone and his cousins and beckons you to come back.

Marvel vs. DC
The two biggest names in the comic book industry are Marvel and DC. Marvel is responsible for Iron Man, Spider-Man, and Captain America. While DC covers the adventures of Batman, Superman and the Flash. Every comic book reader has asked: what would happen if Batman fought Captain America; The Hulk went after Superman; Aquaman fought Namor the Mariner? The resulting brainstorm and fan speculation lead to Marvel vs. DC and the Amalgam comics of 1996. The limited comic book series follows two brothers, one Marvel and one DC, who engage in the fan favorite, "Who would win?" scenario and in this case the losing universe will cease to exist. Marvel and DC collaborated on the project pitting comic legends in a series of battles, with the fans deciding the winner of five of the contests. Competition between Marvel and DC is a good thing, as Joe Quesada, Editor-in-Chief at Marvel explains in an interview with io9 (about 2/3 down the page) it keeps the comic book industry strong and vibrant, but there are times when authors do "fan-service" where they halt current production and create something wholly unrelated to the story just to please the fans. Be it a day at the beach issue of X-Men (bikinis) or a Batman/Wolverine series (Dark Claw), this is a rare chance to see pure collaborative effort between friendly rivals in a cut-throat industry.

Age of Apocalypse
Another example of the "What if" speculation is the Age of Apocalypse story-line. A limited series following an alternaitve history of the X-Men where Professor X dies before creating the Xavier Institute and his friend, Eric Lehnsherr (Magneto) forms the team. Jump ahead several years and instead of the X-Men fighting for mutant rights and trying to save mankind, the tyrant and social Darwinist Apocalypse has finally conquered the world and now the X-Men fight to stop him from killing every last human on Earth. The "What If" series of comics typically follow after a major story arc has come to a close, a one shot where the authors explore what would happen if the hero died or someone else pushed the button. The Age of Apocalypse is a rare chance to explore the darker sides of the well know X-Men and what would happen if they were raised in a hellish landscape. Would Cyclops still become the boy scout leader of the X-Men? Will Wolverine and Jean finally become a couple? And how will Magneto cope with his new title as Leader of the X-Men and Savior of Mankind?

The Sandman
Written by Neil Gaiman, best known for Stardust and Coraline, The Sandman is considered to be one of the best books written in the ladder part of the 20th century (#46). The Sandman is the story of Morpheus, the Lord of Dreams. After being imprisoned for several years, he escapes to find his kingdom in ruin and sets on a quest to reclaim what was once his, but he faces the choice: to change his ways for the better or fall back on old habits. Expertly written and tightly drawn, The Sandman is a classic tragic hero's story, with elements of dark horror, fantasy and mythology all wrapped together in a skillfully craft modern world where reality, immortal god-like creatures and human drama come together.

Understanding Comics

Comics are a form of entertainment. A picture of a fantastic universe where anything and everything is possible. Comics can also be used to teach. Understanding Comics, written by Scott McCloud, is a comic book about comic books. A unique glimps into the inner workings of comic books and how it is exactly comics and graphic narrative works. McCloud, a comic writer and artist himself, takes a trip through the history of story telling and pictograph, beginning with the roots of comic books in cave paintings and hieroglyphs, transgressing all the way to modern times. Understanding Comics, along with the two sequels, Reinventing Comics and Making Comics, is the best resource for exploring and discovering comics. From explanations on the gutter between comic frames, the illusion of movement and the balance between text and graphic, Understanding Comics is like the owners manual for a car, once you understand what is happeneing under the hood, you gain a stronger appreciate for the experience.