Help Me Get Fired Up Again
Eric_C
Posts: 263
It is simple. I feel a little like I am getting burnt out by comics. I am not reading that much and I really don't want to lose comics in my life. Any ideas on books that will fire me up or advice on the situation?
Comments
1. Read something you have only heard about, no matter how old it may be.
2. If you mainly read DC or a Marvel, switch. The characters you love will always be there waiting for you when you come back to them.
3. If you like a certain kind of story, time-travel, horror, sword & sorcery etc, read a book that has that kind of story.
4. Re-read something you loved. Remember why you started loving comics to begin with.
5. Do the opposite of #3. Read a book you've heard good things about but never thought you'd be interested in.
6. Act like an 8 year old. Pick a book that just looks cool and forget about issue numbers, and continuity and being lost. The truth is we're smarter than we give ourselves credit for and are usually able to figure out whats going on after an issue or 3. If you're enjoying it, guess what? you now have a whole backlog of stories to read.
7. Take a break. Keep up with the news and community and when something sounds like it might be for you jump on it. The second half of #2 applies here too.
2) You can read comics for free on the web. When you find one you really enjoy - support it. Buy it in book form. Buy a t-shirt. Go to conventions and commission the artist or just tell them you love what they do.
3) Get out of your comfort zone. Born and raised on American comics? Go get some manga or bede and who knows - you might find you like it! Only read superhero books? Pick up a mystery or horror book.
4) As mentioned, the beautiful thing about a book is that they really don't disappear - they just get shelved somewhere else. I was never a huge Legion of Super-Heroes reader until this past year or so - I have about four decades or more of material just waiting for me to devour it.
5) The library is your friend when it comes to trying stuff out.
Manga. I've never been a Manga reader, but there have been a few gems that I have really made me happy I'm a comics fan. Manga people can tell you more but these are what I have enjoyed.
Dragonball - I like the VizBig editions as the format. The story focuses on young Goku and his goofy zany adventures of tracking the Dragonballs. It's not a serious read but it is fun.
Pluto - this is a more serious reimagining of Astroboy, It's a mystery sorrounding the deaths of the 7 Great Robots (sounds corny but is really good). Pluto is a pretty great book, but they are getting a little more difficult to find so someone on the boards can probably point you to an equally interesting series in this vein.
Akira - I'm 3 books in and this pretty much lives up to the hype. If you enjoyed the movie you would probably like this. If you've never had the chance to watch Akira and were interested really pick this up; the geeks did a book of the month over it a few years ago.
I've also started trying Bede, these are french comics that are like an oversized squarebound paperback (around 80 pages).
XIII - This is the basis for the Bourne books and is pretty awesome. You can order them for a few bucks off amazon
Lucky Luke - It's about the adventures of the levelheaded sharpshooting cowboy in the american west (it reminds me of a great Tex Avery cartoon). It doesn't matter which volume you read, but they are little stories. also pretty easy to get on amazon.
I've loved the IDW Ghostbusters series; it captures the fun of the original movies very well. It also has fun cameos of famous dead people all over the place. It's pretty cool, and you can get the trades cheap.
Topshelf has put out some great books that I have finally gotten around to reading.
The King - A great story about hope and Elvis. I was not sure if I would like it when I picked it up, but it was amazing. It's always on sale over at topshelf.
League of Extraordinary Gentlemen Topshelf has been producing the new League books and they are excellent. I would also reccomend the old League books which you can get affordably in an omnibus from dcbservice.
Archaia always has something fun.
Old City Bules - is a gem I think most of us skipped over. It's part bladerunner, part Pluto, part Akira, part Ghost in the Shell and it's a book that is all ages. Giannis Milonogiannis sci-fi influences are at the forefront, but it's really well done and pretty cool.
Tale of Sand - Jim Henson wrote an insane spy movie that was turned into an acid trip of awesome comic.
Here's my last suggestion that has remided me comics are awesome
Buffalo Speedway - A story about Pizza delivery boys turning into men on June 17, 1994 in Houston Tx. It was by Yehudi Mercado (also did a Pantalones Tx). You have to order it through his site. My description doesn't do it justice, check out his site.
If you don't like Saga(which I can't imagine) it could get really annoying hearing everyone rave about it.
I think my point is maybe avoiding ALL podcasts, MBs, and news sites might be the way to go. Don't allow anyone to influence what you pick up and go into each new book knowing absolutely nothing about how it's being received on the net. Experiment on your own and let the fun of finding those diamonds in the rough help get you fired up again.
So I think I am gonna dial back on the big 2, just read the books I love coming from them, but also try to branch out a bit. I think I want to try old west books or mystery books. Are their any suggestions on that front?
Also any more advice on the original topic would be greatly appreciated
For mystery, the current Sherlock Holmes series of mini-series aren't bad. Moriarty was a pretty good recent series, though it was more adventure than mystery much of the time. Stumptown is pretty good as well—didn’t like the second series as much as the first, but it’s still better than most. But it’s hard to top Mark Waid’s Ruse. The recent Marvel revival didn’t quite capture the magic of the original series, but it came close.
Rio - is also pretty good.
Then there is Richard Starks Parker - they are not really mystery but they are really great crime books based on an awesome series of books.
There is also XIII - I mentioned this above, but it is spy mystery involving a conspiracy and the assassination of a president. It is really good.
You should also wtill be able to get the Batlash and Jonah Hex Showcases. The art in Batlash is amazing. I didnot like Marvel's Rawhide Kid Essential. Also Vertigo is getting ready to release new collections of thier Jonah Hex series.
I have not read Sixth Gun or Desperados (IDW has an Omnibus) you can get both from instocktrades.
Edited: I forgot the previous Jonah Hex series by DC (pre-new52) was one the best comics published. Also the series Scalped is an incredible modern western.