Top 10 List!

I like top 10 lists. They are easy to digest and compare your own picks with. They can say a lot while only saying a little. So I decided to write up a quick top 10 list of my own.

Below you will find my top 10 ongoing series. I picked them by looking at my pull list as though I had to drop all of my ongoing titles except for 10. If that were to happen, these are the books that would make the cut. The top few spots were hard to assign and in a few months they could easily shift around. But as of now, this is what I would pick.

Honorable Mention: Stuff of Legend – it can’t be on the list because it’s a series of miniseries and not an ongoing title. But I enjoy it so much that I felt it needed a mention and if I was dropping all of my books but 10 and a book had to be cut from this top ten list to keep this one I would probably make that sacrifice.

10. Batwoman – I admit it, this is a cheat. This book isn’t even out yet. But I have such high hopes for it that it still sneaks in at the number 10 spot on the list. When I actually have the book in my hands it could jump to an even higher spot, especially if the previous run in Detective Comics is any indication, but the new creative team has to prove themselves a little before that can happen.

9. Darkwing Duck – What can I say, I’m a sucker for nostalgia. The comic will never be as good as the cartoon (and the cartoon will probably never be as good as my memories of the cartoon) but it’s the only way I’m going to get new stories with these characters. And Darkwing, like Batman, has a great rogues gallery (and Batman doesn’t have a Negaduck!) and a fun family of relationships to explore.

8. Zatanna – I love magic. I always have. And really, who doesn’t love the very idea of magic? We all wish we could be magic, or at the very least, wish we could watch someone else being magic. This book is doing a nice job of treading into the magical side of the DCU that has been more or less ignored lately. Here our normal world and the magical world collide and it’s up to Zee to make sure that things don’t get too messy.

7. The Sixth Gun – I really like the weird west setting. Every time they give me another tidbit about the universe I am itching for more. The villains are scary and the heroes are maybe not so heroic. It’s a muddled environment without the clearest sense of who you can trust and who you should believe. And that helps to make it great. I saw someone describe this series as a western horror series but I don’t feel that really fits. It’s a western with fantasy elements (some of which, admittedly are scary). I look forward to seeing where this one will take me.

6. Batgirl – This book had so much to prove. It fought a hard battle to prove that it was a good book with an interesting character who deserved her place in the DCU. I have to say that I think the writer has a great sense of voice as the first year was full of Bat family guest stars and they were all portrayed believably. The stories have been great and the stakes have been high. This book doesn’t have to prove itself anymore, and now it can simply focus on being awesome.

5. Red Robin – Tim Drake is a great character. I HATED the idea of him being Red Robin, but the past year has really made it fit for the character. The book has a lot of great things going for it right now with some serious long term plotting going on. I hope the creative team can stick around for a long time to come because when Tim Drake is written well he is amazingly interesting and fun to read about.

4. iZombie – I figured I’d like this story because I like zombies, but this book is full of concepts that just really click with me. I love that one of the main characters is a were-terrier. When they sat down and laid out how vampires and ghosts and zombies and mummies exist in the world I really liked the explanation behind it all. With such iconic monsters it’s easy to just hand wave their existence as some sort of magic that doesn’t need explaining. But this book lays out easy to understand rules and shows a lot of forethought on the part of the writer. Also the art is fantastic. There are a lot of places this book can go and I look forward to being along for the ride.

3. Unwritten – This book continues to surprise me, and every surprise makes me excited to read the next volume. The characters are well developed and the threat they face is interesting and mysterious. And it has an adorable flying cat that I demand a plushie of immediately if not sooner. The pacing in this book is really solid and its one of the first things I read every month without fail.

2. Morning Glories – I’ve only read five issues so far, but the first one alone was enough to get me hooked and more than enough to earn the number 2 spot. This one could go down the list if it can’t keep up the insanely high standards it has set for itself, but it’s just starting out and with a long form mystery like this it’s an exciting time to be reading. The characters are fun and different and have great personalities that play off of each other in entertaining ways. The pacing of these issues has been fantastic with each issue ending in a way that makes me disappointed that there are no more pages that month and excited to see how things turn out as soon as the next volume is in my hands.

1. Tiny Titans – There is nothing better than this book. I feel like I gush about it all the time and if so it’s only because that’s how much I am enjoying this book. If they had an entire Tiny universe of books I would buy every single one of them and they would all probably be on this list. No matter what happens I know this comic will be fun. It will make me laugh. It will charm me with its whimsy. If I am feeling sad it makes me feel happy and if I’m already happy it makes me happier. Any book that can do that deserves the number 1 spot.


I’m honestly surprised by how many of these series are new (6 of the 10 haven’t even reached issue 10 yet, so in a way this list doubles as my best of 2010 list). I suppose the longer a series runs the more likely it is to lose readers for whatever reason. It doesn’t surprise me that half the books on here are independent titles. More DCU books would probably be on here if I could depend on the creative team sticking around for more than a year. But when I think about comics I want to read for a long time it’s too easy to assume that the writer I like will go away and be replaced by someone who doesn’t know what they are doing. Or that some big DCU event is going to come along and change everything potentially derailing stories that have been building for a while.

I noticed that I didn't talk too much about what these different series were actually about, so I've included links where I could to other places on my blog where I gush about the series in question.
Share your top 10 list with me! If you could only read 10 ongoings what would they be? Do you have less than 10? Share that too!

Fan Ramblings – Aw Yeah, Kid’s Comics! UPDATE!

Well, well, well, it seems as though looks can be deceiving. According to the coverage of the DC Kids line at Comic Con, the Billy Batson and Batman titles aren’t being canceled after all! And they didn’t get uncanceled due to fan backlash or anything, they were never going anywhere in the first place. This seems to be the end of the current chapter for the books but they will keep right on coming with a new chapter.

According to the Newsarama coverage, these books will continue under new editorial leadership. Basically, it seems like an excuse to generate new #1 issues. And this may in fact be the only time that I can understand, and possibly support, the idea of a (more or less arbitrary) new #1 issue. The point was brought up during the panel that high numbers seem a little contrary for a kid’s comic. “Keeping them lower makes them seem younger for the kids,” Didio said. To me, this really makes sense. Kids can see a comic and they can feel the potential to have all the issues. They won’t be scared away by a high number that could seem intimidating to young readers (and the parents! I’m sure some mothers might worry about picking up issue #378 for their kid thinking, “How many of these things am I going to have to buy?” A number like 10 is much friendlier). The kid’s are young and the books for them should echo that youthful feeling. If the numbers get too high, it’s not just meant for them anymore. When you are trying to hook kids on the idea of comics, it makes sense to aim for something that feels uniquely theirs. Having said this, I rather hope that they don’t renumber Tiny Titans. I’d like that to be the exception to the rule, to really show how far kid’s comics can go. Plus I want Geoff Johns to draw a cover for issue #100.

On top of that a new kid’s comic was announced: “Young Justice.” Now many of us expected to see something for this upcoming cartoon series since DC seems to legitimately be trying to tie their TV properties back into the comics, but the best news of all was that it was hinted that the same team working on Billy Batson will be doing the Young Justice book! That means yet another kid’s title from the extremely talented Art Baltazar and Franco! I could not be happier with this news and will be picking up this title without fail.

Also of note, The Barenaked Ladies, at Comic Con for The Big Bang theory which they sing the amazing theme song for, apparently bought Tiny Titans books and gave the creators tickets and backstage passes to their show. The band was already swimming in cool points, but this breaks the flood gates on cool in my opinion.

Didio said more plans for kid’s books are in the works and that they plan to put out 6-8 kid’s books each month. I am curious if this is 6-8 books total including Looney Tunes and Scooby and the Cartoon Network stuff, or if this is 6-8 books involving DC characters and then those other books too. I’m assuming the former, but really hoping for the later. I’m actually very excited for the future of the DC Kids line right now.

The other bit of news that excited me was that DC addressed a few factors that might help these books sell to children! DC is looking into a potential $1 price point for an all-ages book so that KIDS CAN AFFORD COMICS! The issue of trying to get comics into other stores was mentioned too! And apparently the Tiny Titans/Little Archies crossover may be the best thing to happen to the comic. From the article Didio said:

“The Archie people have this amazing ability to get into areas that sometimes are harder to get into. So, as they put together the material with the Tiny Titans, you'll be seeing them out in grocery stores and department stores. There is a lot of regulation and stuff behind this. It's a lot of red tape but we will get them out there through the Archie folks”

YAY!!!

But my point from the last post still remains. At the same panel Dan Didio said, “If the demand is there, we want to do as many of these books for the kids as we can.” So they still need your help and support and I still strongly encourage you to go pick up some books for kids you know the next time you visit your comic shop.

Fan Ramblings - Kid's Comics

I was rather sad when I looked at DC’s solicitations for October. Not one, but two of the comics in the Johnny DC line will see their final issue that month, “Billy Batson and the Magic of Shazam” and “Batman: the Brave and the Bold.” This is not too long after the cancelation of the “Super Friends” comic in the same line. The only surviving kid’s title with DC characters is the amazing “Tiny Titans” (which was mysteriously absent from the October solicits for some reason). We’re left with “Looney Tunes,” “Cartoon Network Action Pack” and “Scooby Doo, where are you?” This is really sad to me.

This does absolutely nothing to detract from the idea that comics aren’t for kids anymore. And really, if the industry wants to keep going in the future, they need to tap into that market. They need to make comics that kids enjoy. I refuse to believe that these characters are simply not marketable to that demographic. Kids love superheroes. They watch them on TV; they dress up as them for Halloween; they buy their action figures. So why do the kid’s comics sell so badly?

Not every kid has a parent who reads comics. And as it stands right now, the only place to find comics, kid’s or otherwise, is in a comic book store. There are online options too, but they seem less feasible to the 7-12 demographic I assume we’re aiming for. They may all have cell phones these days, but I still think credit cards are beyond most of their means. The problem isn’t that kids don’t read comics, it’s that they often don’t have the opportunity to buy them or even have them bought for them.

Most comics are never going to make it back onto the magazine racks at grocery stores. But I think it could benefit sales if some of the all ages books could. I mean, who could see a cover of ANY issue of “Tiny Titans” and not think, wow, my kids would love this! I’m sure many parents are scared of comics and think they are all full of sex and violence. And that’s part of the problem too. Parents need to be able to see these kid friendly comics and know at a glance that this is something intended for their kids. We talk about judging a book by its cover, but most parents are going to do just that. They are going to glance at the cover and make a snap judgment about if the book would be okay for their little angels. I’m not saying that all of these books need to watered down or sport adorable crayon like covers like “Tiny Titans” but something needs to be done to really scream to parents “I’m okay for your kids to read!” And a small logo may not do the trick.

Comic companies always seem to throw out the line about really caring about their kid’s books, but the reality often seems to suggest differently. Kid’s comics cannot be handled the same way as mainstream comic books if they want to be successful. Marketing and distribution needs to be suited to the unique challenges faced at targeting kids.

But none of that gives us a solution, and I don’t like complaining about things without suggesting something that could be done to help if possible. So I propose this. Next time you are out shopping for comics, take a look at the kid’s comics. Pick up a few that you think should continue and give them to kids that you know. Tell their parents where you got them, so if the kids enjoy them they know where they can find more. Perhaps offer to go with them and show them the kinds of books to be looking for or even offer to pick up a few during your normal comic book runs. Talk to teachers you know or local librarians. If your shop doesn’t have kid’s comics ask why. Try to stir up a market for these comics and increase the sales, if only by a few units.

Why do I want to support kid’s comics so much? I don’t have kids of my own, but to me the matter is simple. Kid’s comics are fun to read. I read “Tiny Titans” every month and it puts a smile on my face. I have a couple of Marvel Adventures titles over here to use as prizes for my students. I read them when I’m having a bad day. A few have even had to move from the prize pile into my keep pile because I enjoyed them so much. I like drama and action and maturity in my comics too. But not all my comics. Some days you just want to read something that is fun. And that is what well written kid’s comics offer. Don’t get me wrong, not every kid targeted comic is going to be a good comic. Not all are going to make you laugh and some are just going to be stupid. But when there are good ones out there we need to support them or they will go away. And the more support we give to them the more we can hope that the companies will invest in them talent wise. And more good comics is good news for everyone. Don’t be scared off by an all ages label.

Waiting for Trade? – Tiny Titans Volumes 1-4

Creative Team: Art Baltazar and Franco Aureliani Price: $12.99 each
Volumes 1, 2, 3: Available now, Volume 4: Available September 1st

If you are a fan of any incarnation of the Teen Titans/Titans franchise you really need to check this book out. And I mean any. If you liked the recent cartoon incarnation, if you like the old Teen Titans from the 80s, if you like the New Teen Titans there is something in this book that you will love. And if you have children and want them to get hooked on characters you know and love, or comics in general, look no further than this book.

At the same time, if you know nothing about the Titans it won’t hold you back. They sneak in continuity references here and there, but they are just Easter eggs. Everything you need to understand this comic is in this comic.

The premise is simple. All your favorite Titans characters are attending Sidekick Elementary School and get into various adventures. If you follow current DC continuity, there are cute references to things happening inside the main DCU (such as when Darksaid, who is the school janitor, becomes principal for a day and demands that all the students take their finals without having studied! It was a Finals Crisis!). Battle for the Cowl, Blackest Night, as well as others have been parodied, but if you’re not following the main DCU I don’t think it will be distracting. It will just seem like quirky fun. Which is what it is. Make no mistake, these stories stand all on their own and will be just as easy to read and follow in ten years as they are now.

“Tiny Titans” is a joy to read. In a time when so many comics seem to be pulled down into this dark, depressing place it’s really nice to have one title that is just fun to read. This is the only comic book series I am reading that I can say with certainty that not a single issue has ever let me down. I never finish “Tiny Titans” and think, “meh that could have been better.” Instead I always think, “Aw yeah! That was great! I can’t wait for the next one!” How can you not love Beast Boy turning into a puppy?!

The book is part of the Johnny DC Kids line and the stories are very simple. Sometimes they take up a whole issue. Sometimes all of the short stories in the issue revolve around a theme. Sometimes it’s just a bunch of short cute stories. The art is simple but clean and fun. The colors are bright and the characters are adorable. And the single issues contain bonus pinups and puzzles for the kiddies. I’m not sure if these extras have been included in the collections or not.

Excitingly the Tiny Titan’s franchise has expanded into short chapter books (recommended for ages 4-8), one for the science fair and one for a camping trip!

If awards impress you, it won an Eisner last year for Best Comic for Kids (and it has shown up on a bookshelf in the comic) and is a New York Times Best Seller. Every interview I have seen with the creators shows that they are having a great time with this book. And you can tell from the finished product. If you have kids who enjoy superheroes or are a kid at heart yourself this is definitely worth a look.  And you can take a look here on the DC kids website and preview the first issue and here for a sample from this years DC kids Mega Sampler from Free Comic Book day!  Also, check out this video to see the guys in person.  I was amazed at how tall they both are!