Comics this year were spectacular. Not Marvel and DC, which I have pretty much abandoned. Sure, Marvel/Icon has Criminal to boast of, but that is it. The only other floppies I can think of off the top of my head that are worth my time and money are Buffy and Godland, from Dark Horse and Image respectively. Is Fell ever going to see another issue? If so, add that to the list. Hellboy I wait for the trade on, and man, as far as regularly-issued titles from corporate and near-corporate comics publishers go, that's it for me these days. No wonder I don't write much about floppies anymore.
Lotta great graphic novels this year, though, as my attention turned almost exclusively to complete stories with a spine. Here's a look at some of the very, very best of them, along with handy Amazon links to help you buy them if you haven't yet. And yes, using these purchase links benefits (slightly!) this site and its ability to buy more graphic novels for me to talk about. See how it all comes back on itself like a vacation on Castrovalva?
[GRAPHIC NOVEL OF THE YEAR]
The Education of Hopey Glass by Jaime Hernandez
[Fantagraphics Books]
Every Love and Rockets collection is a wonder and a joy. This one had even more nuance and humanity in its pages than you'd usually expect, and there was no better graphic novel released this year. Read my full review. Buy The Education of Hopey Glass from Amazon.com.
[STORY OF THE YEAR]
Superior Showcase #3 ("Freaks" by Laura Park) [Adhouse Books]
This story stayed with me long after I read it. I bought up every copy I could find, so I could give them away to deserving readers ignorant of the wonders within. If "Freaks" isn't in next year's Best American Comics volume, I will buy a gun and shoot it. The book, I mean. Read my full review.
[MANGA OF THE YEAR]
Good-Bye by Yoshihiro Tatsumi [Drawn and Quarterly]
No cartoonist I've ever read has better captured the soul-deadening brutality and unfairness life sometimes delivers. Tatsumi is one of the all-time greats, and his autobiographical 2009 release is the comic I am most looking forward to in the year ahead. Read my full review. Buy Good-Bye from Amazon.com.
[DEBUT OF THE YEAR]
Abandoned Cars by Tim Lane [Fantagraphics Books]
Dirty, greasy and impossible to put down, Lane's hardcover debut was the perfectly-timed summing-up of The American Dream in all its power and tail-finned delusion. Read my full review. Buy Abandoned Cars by Tim Lane from Amazon.com
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[REISSUE OF THE YEAR]
Ghost World: The Special Edition by Daniel Clowes [Fantagraphics Books]
One of the best graphic novels ever gets a deluxe, obsessive overhaul that includes pretty much everything but the DVD. Hey, Eric, I have an idea... Read my full review. Buy Ghost World: The Special Edition from Amazon.com.
[ADVENTURE COMIC OF THE YEAR]
The Amazing Remarkable Monsieur Leotard by Eddie Campbell and Dan Best [First Second]
Whimsical, dramatic, exciting and humane. Eddie Campbell might hate the term graphic novel, but he created one of the best of the the year, a rollicking good time that everyone should lose themselves in at least once. Read my full review. Buy The Amazing Remarkable Monsieur Leotard from Amazon.com.
[COMIC ART BOOK OF THE YEAR - TIE!]
Strange and Stranger: The World of Steve Ditko by Blake Bell [Fantagraphics Books]
Blake Bell does the impossible and explains Steve Ditko. I feel bad that Ditko might not be pleased, but someone would have done this book. No one would have done it better than Bell. except Ditko himself. Which would be fine by me. Read my full review. Buy Strange and Stranger: The World of Steve Ditko from Amazon.com.
[COMIC ART BOOK OF THE YEAR - TIE!]
Kirby: King of Comics by Mark Evanier [Harry N. Abrams]
This, too, had to be done. And no one could have done it better, in this case not even the subject of the book. Thank you Mark Evanier. Job well done. Read my full review. Buy Kirby: King of Comics from Amazon.com.
[SURPRISE OF THE YEAR]
Swallow Me Whole by Nate Powell [Top Shelf]
A surprise only in the fact that it's taken comics this long to give Powell the format he has so long deserved. The fact that he had this great a work within him, frankly, was no surprise at all. Read my full review. Buy Swallow Me Whole from Amazon.com.
[FLOPPY OF THE YEAR]
Look Out!! Monsters by Geoff Grogan [LOM]
Grogan uses an undead monster to prove there's still some life left in floppy comics. Read my full review.
[OTHER 2008 TITLES OF NOTE]
All of these are worthy of your attention, and more of mine than I have the time to give them at the moment:
Alan's War by Emmanuel Guibert and Alan Cope [First Second]
Criminal by Ed Brubaker and Sean Phillips [Marvel/Icon]
What It Is by Lynda Barry [Drawn and Quarterly]
All-Star Superman by Grant Morrison and Frank Quitely [DC Comics]
Breakdowns by Art Spiegelman [Pantheon]
Bottomless Belly Button by Dash Shaw [Fantagraphics Books]
Mome edited by Eric Reynolds and Gary Groth [Fantagraphics Books]
The Complete Peanuts by Charles M. Schulz [Fantagraphics Books]
Where Demented Wented: The Art and Comics of Rory Hayes edited by Dan Nadel [Fantagraphics Books]
Burma Chronicles by Guy Delisle [Drawn and Quarterly]
ACME Novelty Library #19 by Chris Ware [Drawn and Quarterly]
That's the comics and graphic novels that rocked my world in 2008. Feel free to name your own best-ofs in the comments, I'd love to know what you think of this year's releases.
