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Are Comic Books Finally Great Again?

2019 is the year of the comic.

By Shaun PondPublished 5 years ago 6 min read
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Comic books have had a rough go of it in recent years. Despite the booming big screen business that has seen Marvel, and to a lesser extent DC, dominate the box office, the printed counterparts to these cinematic capers have struggled to make the same connection with the modern audience.

With all too regular reboots and infuriating character arcs, things have felt creatively stagnant for a while now. However, that is no longer the case. 2019 has proven to be the year of the comic book as talented writers are at the fore and being given the room needed to craft masterpieces with astounding regularity. Here is why this has been the best year for comic fans in a long time.

Let’s start with a look at what DC has done to make this such a fertile ground for comic book excellence. They are, arguably, the guiding light when it comes to the superheroes on the printed page. The shortcomings found in most of their more recent movies are nowhere to be seen in their books, where rich and thoughtful storytelling is paired with exquisite artwork to create something that truly cannot be missed. Take, for instance, the highly successful Batman Who Laughs mini-series.

This Scott-Snyder-penned marvel span out of the equally celebrated Dark Nights: Metal saga as the nightmarish Batman Who Laughs squared off with a similarly corrupted Batman from the main universe. This series explored not just what makes the main Batman who he is, and what makes him ultimately stronger than his Jokerised counterpart, but it also gave an overdue look at Jim Gordon’s son, James Jr. This ability to focus on side stories, and have them feel important rather than distracting is one of Snyder’s many strengths, and it makes for a richer experience for the reader as threads can intertwine and mislead to keep people guessing up until the epic conclusion. It is not just this that makes this such an important series to look at though as it also did something that DC has been tremendous at ever since the Rebirth event; it planted seeds for future stories.

It is here that the true reason for DC’s stellar year can be found. Each major title leads into another whilst also successfully telling its own contained story. You need not necessarily pick up any other books to get the full picture, but if you do, then you’re going to see a continuation of familiar themes, and be able to get into the book much quicker than you might be able to if it was entirely self-contained. The Year of the Villain is an event unlike any other in its scope, and it has provided readers with a reason to pick up every main title available, without punishing them for not doing so. It is clear which are the most important books for the story, but the tie-ins enrich that story for those willing to pick them up. You could just read the exemplary Justice League series, which is also led by Snyder, as it is where the war between the Justice League and the Legion of Doom was birthed, and is covered in the most detail, or you could pick up books such as Batgirl as well to see how certain villains and heroes fit into the story in the grander scheme.

Marvel has also learned this lesson to a point as they have made their event stories a little more contained too. War of the Realms featured plenty of spin-offs, but you could simply read the main series, and you would know exactly what the story was. It no longer felt like such a cash grab, and instead the focus was more on the quality of the writing and ensuring that each issue was worth the price tag. The same ethos has been applied to the simply magnificent House of X and Powers of X mini-series’. The stories between the two books interlink, but there are no random tie-in titles that muddy the waters and demand more money from readers. This seems to have resulted in what has, thus far, been one of the most compelling stories told within the X-Men universe in years. And that leads on to a very important point…

Fan favourite characters are finally being treated with respect again.

It was not long ago that the X-Men were being all but ignored in favour of the Inhumans, or that Thor was cast aside in favour of a fairly cynical, politically-motivated gender switch. Now though, the characters that drew people to these stories in the first place are front and centre once more; something that is driving sales back up, even if only slightly.

Whilst representation is important and should be celebrated in comics, people by and large weren’t happy that pre-existing characters were being sacrificed to do it. Lady Thor was a prime example of this as she was actually a very good, multi-layered character that received backlash solely because her inclusion was seen as transparent, and deprived readers of the original Thor. The same thing didn’t happen with Miles Morales because he did not replace Spider-Man, but instead became a worthy hero in his own right. The problem has never been the social justice aspect of things, although undoubtedly some people will be angry over representation, but it is more about the way in which this happens. It is something that has been rectified in 2019 and now readers still have a diverse range of characters from different ethnicities, sexualities, and orientations, but they are original and do not feel forced.

There is still room for experimentation too as The Immortal Hulk has offered an entirely new, horror-inspired look at the Jade Giant. All manner of Spider-Man offshoots are out there and, surprisingly, they’re all strong in their own ways. And the Vertigo imprint are spooning out a dose of the bizarre with such gems as The Dreaming and Lucifer. There is truly something for everyone no matter what genre you prefer.

It is not just the big two companies that are raising the bar either as Valiant is bringing out a Bloodshot movie that is sure to be a hit, and to draw more eyes to their simply brilliant line of comics. For anyone wondering what to check out from them beyond Bloodshot, you can’t go wrong with Divinity and X-O Manowar. Image has just made comic book history with the awesomely gruesome Spawn #300, and they are showing no signs of slowing down when it comes to that historic franchise, which also has a movie on the way.

With the Year of the Villain continuing to push the envelope, and reach new, dizzyingly great heights at DC, as well as Absolute Carnage offering a dark slice of joy over at Marvel, it is clear that the good times are going to continue to roll. This is an exciting time to be a comic book fan, and the quality has rarely been higher.

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About the Creator

Shaun Pond

I am a third year Journalism and Screenwriting student at The University of Worcester with a particular interest in gaming and all things geek. Seeking representation and writing opportunities, please contact [email protected].

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