The best comic books, for me, are ones that have great stories and great artwork. These are to a greater or lesser degree, creatively controlled by the writers and/or artists.

I think it's a given that anything by Frank Miller possesses unquestionable storytelling of rare quality. From the Wolverine Graphic Novel, The Dark Knight Returns, Ronin, Sin City, and 300, Frank Miller literally changed the face of the comic book genre with his twisted, oppressive stories and dark, complex characters.

I remember being a fan of the artwork of Arthur Adams. Mr. Adams illustrated many of the X-Men annuals, the New Mutants Special edition, and notably, the Longshot limited series. Longshot was a particular favorite character of mine. I remember thinking at the time that only Arthur Adams should be allowed to draw Longshot, as other artists' portrayals of the character seemed to fall flat... at least for me. I remember admiring Mr. Adams' work enough to want to become an illustration major at NIU in the early-mid '90's.

Sergio Aragones and Groo the Wanderer was another of my favorite title and artist combinations. "Now Groo does what Groo does best!" is a classic line in comics. Groo was a humorous read and every issue was fantastically drawn. Sergio Aragones had this "Where's Waldo" like style that was uniquely all his own. Sergio owned full creative control over his work. As I have said, I tended to gravitate towards the work of such creative people in the comic book genre.

I believe many have already mentioned Neil Gaiman's Sandman in this topic. When a comic book wins the coveted World Fantasy Award and they change the rules so that no comic can ever win that category again, I think that speaks for itself.

Elfquest by Wendi and Richard Pini was a favorite title of mine for a long time. Another story completely creatively-controlled by the authors, this proved to be a controversial work due mainly to sexual content. I found the book hard to put down, and the characters, hard not to fall in love with.

Though Bill Watterson's Calvin and Hobbes isn't really considered a "comic book", I always tend to include it in my list of favorites. Syndicated strips were also a major influence on me to want to become an artist. There are few better cartoons to emulate than Calvin and Hobbes.

Finally, I believe the best comic book, for me, was Dave Sim's Cerebus. While I personally think that this book fell flat towards the end of its run, High Society, Church and State 1 and 2, and Jaka's Story are, without question, some of the best comic book stories ever written, as far as mature-intellectual-themed content and complex humor. Gerhard's illustrative backgrounds are simply amazing.

Those are my picks for best comic books.

Learn more about this author, Scott Johnson.
Click here to send this author comments or questions.

---

Add your voice

Know something about Best comic books?
We want to hear your view. Write now!