TPB Recommendations? Anyone?

BGPhilbin

Hey, CGS Community!

So, I'm a little eager for us to get to the Best of 2017 awards and I was hoping folks could give me a few recommendations for trades from the past, say, 6 years.

The search function on this forum has regularly thwarted me while attempting to find the previous "Best of" listings and - that said - I'd really love to hear from the community at large for recommendations.

So - if there are those who're willing, here's some ideas of what I'm seeking (but feel free to suggest outside of these parameters):

1) Period: I'd like to hear about stuff from the last 6-9 years as, 6 years ago, I had to drop my collecting habit, among other things, to an almost non-existent level in order to keep my home, so there might be collections of stuff that I just didn't have time for just prior. I've been back into things for about 1½-2 years, but I'm not all that caught up.

2) Primary Interests: in super-hero stuff and fun stuff. I've already begun Saga. I love The Unbeatable Squirrel Girl and The Unstoppable Wasp, I also loved Great Lakes Avengers & Howard the Duck's resurgence and anything by Chris Eliopoulis & Marc Sumerak or Art Baltazar & Franco Aureliani. My very favorite comics, though, are Invincible & Astro City (been with them both since their first issues & just now caught up). I'm also probably odd in that I'm not a fan of The Walking Dead or the new Archie series. I'm a Legion of Super-Heroes fan, but didn't warm to the "Threeboot" version & haven't touched anything since right around the New 52. For that matter, I've read very little of New 52, save for Earth-2 and can't say I've been very enticed.

3) Format: I'd prefer stuff that's collected, as I received a gift certificate to In Stock Trades for Christmas! ;--)

4) Already Listed: In case I ever find all the "Best of" lists from years past, if you can suggest stuff that's not already there, I'd be grateful.

Further, I've been a comics reader/fan for about 50 years now, so my tastes do run all over the place with a hefty nostalgia for DC's Bronze Age (check out my site, MetropolisPlus.com, and you'll see what I mean) & the Independent Golden age in the 80s (and, yes, I do have all of Big Bang Comics).

*Whew*! That's longer than I'd intended. Like I said, feel free to suggest something outside of these ideas - I'm just trying to give you an idea of what I like.

Thanks in advance!

Pax, harmonia,

Brian G. Philbin
Webmaster, MetropolisPlus.com

nweathington

Hi, Brian. Here are a few of my suggestions:

Black Hammer: As a fan of Astro City and Invincible, this should be right up your alley.
Paper Girls: If you like Saga, you'll almost certainly like this—same writer. Similar to Stranger Things in its ’80s vibe, but instead of horror, it’s pure time-travelling sci-fi.
Bandette: It’s every bit as fun as Squirrel Girl, but without the superheroics. If you like the Pink Panther movies (the originals) along with the other things you listed, you'll love this book. It's a webcomic, but it gets a collected after each story.
Silver Surfer: The series by Dan Slott and Mike Allred just finished up, and it’s got the superhero angle, plus the romance of Saga, and the fun of Squirrel Girl (though slightly less emphasis on the humor). You'll laugh, you’ll cry...
Hawkeye: Matt Fraction and David Aja’s run on the book is a modern-day classic. Great, inventive storytelling, both dramatic and fun.

I've got plenty more, but I don't want to hog all the picks. ;)

Torchsong

Hi Brian, here's a few I can recommend based on what you wrote:

Unbelievable Gwenpool If you dug Squirrel Girl and Howard, this is a great book in that vein that really took me by surprise. What I thought was a gimmick (and to be honest probably was/is) turned out to be a spiritual successor to DC's Ambush Bug books. A character who knows she's in a comic book?

It's a great time to be a DC fan. The current Wonder Woman series has me falling in love with the character all over again. I'm also really enjoying the current runs on Suicide Squad and Batman.

Sex Criminals is another fun book out of the Image camp. I believe the Howard the Duck writer is also the writer on this one. Almost always top of the stack for me because I just can't wait to see where they plan to take it next.

nweathington

Torchsong said:

I believe the Howard the Duck writer is also the writer on this one.

Chip Zdarsky is the writer of Howard the Duck, but the artist of Sex Criminals, which is written by the aforementioned Matt Fraction. It’s a good book, which I also recommend as long as you don't mind a little sex and vulgar language in your comics.

BGPhilbin

Thanks for the recommendations!

I'm definitely going to check out Black Hammer, as it's been all over CGS and sounds right up my alley. Bandette also looks pretty good. I know that Allred has done the Surfer for awhile, so I imagine it's a few trades?

Unbelievable Gwenpool also seems like it's intended to be in the same vein as Wasp & Squirrel Girl (I'm still pretty unhappy that they canceled Unstoppable Wasp, it was one of the freshest books out there, and what a great book for girls, too!).

Torchsong, are you alluding to the recent Robinson run on Wonder Woman?

Nweathington, you can suggest all you like. For me, the more ideas, the better. Even if they're not my cuppa, they might spur other ideas!

Thanks, again, to you both!!

Pax,

BGP

luke52

I’d also throw in the Valiant universe. It started up back in 2012 and most series have been great. I’d particularly highly recommend Bloodshot Reborn by Jeff Lemire and Matt Kindts run on Ninjak. But you could go right to the start with the X-O Manowar, Harbinger, and Bloodshot. All great.

Torchsong

BGPhilbin said:

Torchsong, are you alluding to the recent Robinson run on Wonder Woman?

Both Rucka and then Robinson. It amazes me how many times they can re-tell Diana's origin story and still make it fun and engaging. This one was particularly well done.

The New52 run by Azarello and Chiang was also really good if a bit different.

LeeNova

I would definitely recommend anything by Tom King coming out these days (Batman, Mister Miracle). But in terms of runs he has completed, I suggest picking up Omega Men (fascinating look at war and terrorism in a comic book universe) and/or The Vision (a wonderful comic book world meditation on the American Family and Dream) in trade. The structure that he brings to his stories is incredible, and he has been matched with very talented illustrators.

BGPhilbin

@LeeNova I only had the first issue of The Vision, so I just ordered the trade and I'm currently picking up Mister Miracle issue by issue.

@Torchsong - thanks for the clarification! Gonna check it out!

@luke52 - Thank you for the suggestion. I did pick up Bloodshot, which is (in this incarnation) a better take than the original. I actually picked up every Valiant title when they began publishing back in 1992 starting with Harbinger #1. And I absolutely loved the Eternal Warrior, Archer & Armstrong and Time Walker back in the day. Still great concepts!

@nweathington - I just received my order of Black Hammer - grabbed me in the first couple of pages. Thanks!

BGP

nweathington

Awesome!