Recommendations...

[plastikman]

I've recently been reborn into the joys of comic books (see earlier post) - just finished reading "Top Ten Book 1", what can I say - it's fantastic - really knocks spots off anything I've read in 2000ad or the meg recently (except for Hellboy - oh the irony!). I reckon there ain't a soul alive who wouldn't enjoy a piece o' Top Ten.

Can anyone recommend anything else? Be sure to let me know why it's indespinisible to my collection and briefly what it's about - remember if I buy it and don't like it I'll hold you responsible!!!

On a similar note - which meisterwerks should I avoid pissing on even if they're on fire?

- I'll start you off on that one
- Oh thanks
- Don't touch any of the Alien books - owch - get round continuity problems by changing Newts name (but she has the same history as Newt - but it can't be her cos she's dead see? but then forget to change some of the references to Newt - confused you will be!)
- OK thanks I'll avoid them like S.T.O.R.M.S.
 

[plastikman]

damn..."indispensable"

[Art]

Definitely try all the other Alan Moore Windstorm stuff, though Tomorrow Stories and Tom Strong may seem a little twee, and Promethea can be hard to follow. League Of Extraordinary Gentlemen is probably your best bet, though I don't know if its in softcover yet.

If you want to avoid Science-Fantasy/Superheros and read something really weighty then check out From Hell. Though its the size of a breeze block and a little difficult to get into once you're hooked you'll read it till the very last footnote.

(Please ignore shit movie of the same name)

If you like Top-Ten you may also like Planetary, by Warren Ellis and John Cassady the first two books of which are available as graphic novels. People may try and persuade you to buy the TPBs of Authority instead, but that's just dumb fun whereas Planetary is the real deal.

[Wood]

Thoughtful and powerful things to read:

The Dormant Beast, by Enki Bilal (available as a GN from Humanoids. It's in Previews. Run, do not walk to your local branch of the Android's Dungeon and buy it). It is the best sci-fi comic I have ever read, with the possible exception of Bilal's Nikopol Trilogy, which is also now available again in English, in a huge Hardback album. Buy the Dormant Beast (it's not overly expensive). If you like it, shell out for the Nikopol Trilogy.

Jimmy Corrigan, Boy Genius. Words cannot describe how brilliant this is.

OK. That's the 'intelligent' stuff. Now for Big Space Opera: read the Metabarons. The first two books are out as GNs. It's excellent.

And for wild stupid this-reminds-me-a-bit-of-Nemesis-Book-I thrills, read Pat Mills' Redeemer, which is published by *cough*Black Library. Seriously, don't let that put you off. It's got no Space Marines in it and is Pat Mills sans preaching (one of the advantages of writing for twelve-year-olds), just the wild overthetop humour. Like the way the Redeemer decides to get information from his undead prisoner...

"If I can _halt_ the rampant decay within Voor's dead flesh... I can bring him back to life... and _then_ torture him!"

[Tex Hex]

ALL of Akira.

Movie shmovie.

[Art]

As you read it not the bigness and fatness of its volumes, and wish that 2000ad reprints came in tomes as voluptuous as these.

Sorry. Deeply off topic. Continue the recommendations!

[Tex Hex]

And note how your mind bends as Otomo explains the whole metaphysics behind the "stream"! Ahhhhh, just thinking about it hurts!

[plastikman]

Thanks for this guys, so far my list is as follows...
(Probably shouldn't post this on a 2000ad site - sorry!)

League of E.G. (if in cheapo SC)
Planetary
The Dormant Beast
Jimmy Corrigan, Boy Genius
The Metabarons
Redeemer (I love Nemesis from my first time round with 2000ad)

Blimey how skint will I be?

Whilst I'm at Androids Dungeon - I'll dig out a copy of Radioactive Man num-ber 1 and Bleeding Gums Murphy's latest "Sax on the beech"

Earlier today I bought "V for Vendetta" and "100 bullets: Hang up on the hang low" - which I was hoping everyone would rush to recommmed!!

I'll let you know how I get on - keep those recommendations coming...(I'll square it with the bank later!)

[Dean]

Scojo's movie scripts, thats all you need. By the way Sooshi & Scojo have gone quiet again, always spooky when that happens.

[Wood]

Did I call Jimmy Corrigan a Boy Genius?

No, the actual title of the book is Jimmy Corrigan, Smartest Kid on Earth.

Although that reminds me, Barry Ween, Boy Genius is very, very funny.

[davidbishop]

Obviously, if you're on a Moore kick, then The Complete Halo Jones and D.R. & Quinch.

I heartily recommend Stray Bullets by David Lapham, Whiteout by Rucka & Leiber, Queen & Country by Rucka & various artists.

At the interesting edge of the tights and capes brigade has to be Elektra: Assassin by Miller &  Bill unspellable last name without going to look it up and I can't be bothered right now.

If you enjoyed Top 10 (great, wasn't it?), get the first Powers book, Who Killed Retro Girl?

davidbishop

[kertap]

I haven't read 100 bullets but I've heard great things about it. Personally I have to recommend The Sandman and Death. I've only read a couple of the GN's but I was told reading all of them back to back was mind blowing. And while were on Manga, get Ghost in the Shell. You'll have to read it about three times to follow it but it gets better everytime you do.

[Mudcrab]

I'd agree with Sandman. It's really damn good, despite a bit of a bashing from cretin, sorry certain folk. Just the first one is fantastic, as it stands pretty well on it's own, but also grows from there.

As far as my reccomendations go, Preacher is(was) brilliant, if a bit coarse for some tastes. As far as 'God searching Preacher with a power equal to Gods' comic books go, I reckon it's the best. Disgusting, hilarious and damn well done.

The Invisibles (Grant Morrison) would be on a par with Preacher, but in different ways. Loads of conspiracies, other-dimensional beings controlling humans in a bit of an early Slaine kind of way, and a pretty cool group of misfits. Oh yeah, and I believe it inspired The Matrix somewhat, although in a very behind-the-scenes metaphorical kinda way. Still, I always thought Morpheus was a rip of King Mob.

That's the main comics (GNs) that I've read over the last quite a few years, apart from the essentials such as Watchmen, V, Sin City (oooooh, very noir!:-) etc.

One GN I got was (don't shout at me) a Boba Fett one. Why? you ask, well it was written by Wagner and drawn by Gibson and Ezquerra. Excellent stuff, although left me thinking it was no surprise. Hmm, Wagner/Ezquerra doing a bounty hunter? Where's that happened before?

[JTurner]

Lone Wolf and Cub is good, though I don't think I'll bother buying past book 4, but you'll have no problem fitting them on your bookshelf!
I'll second From Hell and Halo Jones, and if you don't have Watchmen then you don't know how good comics can get.
Everyone here seems to thing that Preacher is overrated, but I think it's great. Wit, sickness, romance, sickness, emotion, sickness, violence, sickness. Check out the piss take of Neil Gaiman and the whole goth and vampire culture in the 'Dixie Fried' collection.
Sandman I also recommend, and also the original Crow.
Finally check out The Invisibles.
Oh and Sin City.
Erm, I think that's my graphic novel collection taken care of.
Oh yes, Transmetropolitan, and Lazarus Churchyard.
And the Japanese translation of Akira (somehow more authentic), and Transformers. And Arkham Asylum, for the only good Batman story outside of the Dredd crossovers.

[The Love Doctor]

Preacher i sindeed one hell of a good read, although some of the characters really do take a gut wrenching pasting just a bit too often (Cassidy being the prime example). Some of it made me cringe but even so the story kept me hooked.
THe mid-early Spawns kick ass, around issues 20-50 or so. All available in GN format (the brit versions have more episodes per book, but the yank ones have pretty new pictures 'pon  the covers.) Highly recommended to anyone, anywhere, anyhow. As with preacher though, the main character gets hammered a lot ( and manages to walk around with no lungs quite often, despite needing to breathe oxygen. And as for walking around with most of his spine missing too, it's a bit dodgy on some of the continuity.)
Apart from that, the doc has nowt more to say.
Cheers.