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San Francisco, 8:50 PM
Fri Nov 20
26 posts in the last 24 hours

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  • posts about #mustread more →

    One Author's List Of Quite Possibly Essential Science Fiction Includes William Gibson — And Event Horizon

    10 Alan Moore Comics You Must Read! (Besides Watchmen)

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    Dsmvwl  Admin  Promote to frontpage Approve user Ban user ×
    Image of Perhaps Not Perhaps Not
    08/13/09

    In reply to 10 Alan Moore Comics You Must Read! (Besides Watchmen)
    You know, I know this post is several months old, and I know it's not cool to rag on the writers in the comments, but howzabout you remove the GIANT-ASS SPOILER from the end of the Promethea rec? Please? Some people haven't read the series and they don't KNOW how the story turns out.
     Reply
    Perhaps Not was starred Perhaps Not was unstarred
    Image of Kpibca Kpibca
    07/21/09

    In reply to Must Read: I Shall Destroy All The Civilized Planets
    Hello from the future, ancient article! I have come with a dire warning of the fate of Heroes!
     Reply
    Kpibca was starred Kpibca was unstarred
    Image of Evil Tortie's Mom: R.O.A.C.H. Evil Tortie's Mom: R.O.A.C.H.
    05/14/09

    In reply to One Author's List Of Quite Possibly Essential Science Fiction Includes William Gibson — And Event Horizon
    "Flatliners" and "Event Horizon"? Seriously?


    Delaney, Catigan, Gibson, sure. But "Flatliners"? If it weren't for Baby Kiefer, who'd care to watch?

     Reply
    Evil Tortie's Mom: R.O.A.C.H. was starred Evil Tortie's Mom: R.O.A.C.H. was unstarred
    Image of Grey_Area Grey_Area
    05/14/09

    In reply to One Author's List Of Quite Possibly Essential Science Fiction Includes William Gibson — And Event Horizon
    My friend thought Harrison was bonkers for this list. I like that he includes not just books and movies but comics, music, and video games. I think there are some breakfast foods and a species of fern on here. Interesting that Tom Waits makes both his SF and Fantasy lists.
     Reply
    Grey_Area was starred Grey_Area was unstarred
    Image of Hotscot Hotscot
    05/14/09

    In reply to One Author's List Of Quite Possibly Essential Science Fiction Includes William Gibson — And Event Horizon
    I wish there had been an "Event Horizon" sequel..
     Reply
    Hotscot was starred Hotscot was unstarred
    Image of Grey_Area Grey_Area
    05/14/09

    @Hotscot: Event Horizon II: It Turns Out We Did Need Eyes After All
     Reply
    Grey_Area was starred Grey_Area was unstarred
    Image of Quilt Quilt
    02/28/09

    In reply to 10 Alan Moore Comics You Must Read! (Besides Watchmen)
    There's a few in here that I haven't read yet. Nice list.
     Reply
    Quilt was starred Quilt was unstarred
    Image of Laura Eleanor Jefferson Laura Eleanor Jefferson
    02/28/09

    In reply to 10 Alan Moore Comics You Must Read! (Besides Watchmen)
    I really liked the first volume of _Promethea_ , its heroine and her life and her fine universe, and then I became progressively more bored with the exposition of ceremonial magic(K) and Kabbalah. I have nothing against occultists but I get fed up when WONDERFUL art and plot are put to the service of exposition of hidden knowledge I already know. The plot and characters I had cared about got blown into Cosmic catnip. Big whoop.


    I wouldn't sound so miffed if I hadn't been so hopeful.

     Reply
    Laura Eleanor Jefferson was starred Laura Eleanor Jefferson was unstarred
    Image of Charlie Jane Anders Charlie Jane Anders
    02/28/09

    @Laura Eleanor Jefferson: yeah... honestly the first 12 issues are my favorite comics ever, anywhere. And then.... you can pretty much skip straight to issue 29 and read the last couple issues, without missing anything in between.
     Reply
    Charlie Jane Anders was starred Charlie Jane Anders was unstarred
    Image of Grey_Area Grey_Area
    02/27/09

    In reply to 10 Alan Moore Comics You Must Read! (Besides Watchmen)
    Halo Jones for, as the kids say, the Win. Probably heavily influenced by Haldeman's Forever War in the third act, but hey, it really is a powerful piece.

    I feel that his tales of the Green Lantern Corps deserve an entry of their own on this list. but then again i never read 1963 and only have fuzzy memories of his run on Captain Britain. There can be only ten.
     Reply
    Grey_Area was starred Grey_Area was unstarred
    Image of Grey_Area Grey_Area
    02/27/09

    In reply to 10 Alan Moore Comics You Must Read! (Besides Watchmen)
    Excellent list, Charlie. I might quibble or play "What about...", but the rules of 10 Best Things clearly state there can only be ten. That's a rough field to hoe with so much Moore-y goodness to choose from.

    Let's hope movies get made out of every single one of them!


    heh heh heh

     Reply
    Grey_Area was starred Grey_Area was unstarred
    Image of Charlie Jane Anders Charlie Jane Anders
    02/27/09

    @Grey_Area: If we had 11 things on a top 10 list we would open a pocket dimension of sex magic and Melinda Gebbie would probably come tumbling out and follow us around. Wait, why is that bad?
     Reply
    Charlie Jane Anders was starred Charlie Jane Anders was unstarred
    Image of edosan edosan
    02/27/09

    @Grey_Area: Considering the track record of adaptations of Moore's comics, I'd prefer they stop making movies. The problem seems to be that he wrote most of these things as postmodern commentary and they try to make straight-up movies, missing the point.
     Reply
    edosan was starred edosan was unstarred
    Image of Grey_Area Grey_Area
    02/27/09

    @Charlie Jane Anders: Is no bad. I just wish Mr. Moore got to meet Krystine Kryttre, who I worshiped from afar. a truly kick-ass SF Underground Comix babe who was taken from us far too early.

    Also, I would have tried to include the Bojeffries Saga into the list. but whutev.
     Reply
    Grey_Area was starred Grey_Area was unstarred
    Image of Grey_Area Grey_Area
    02/27/09

    @edosan: Do I actually have to label certain comments w/ SARCASAM?

    Sheesh.
     Reply
    Grey_Area was starred Grey_Area was unstarred
    Image of Grey_Area Grey_Area
    02/27/09

    @Grey_Area: OR SPELL THINGS CORRECTLY?!?!?
     Reply
    Grey_Area was starred Grey_Area was unstarred
    Image of jbq jbq
    02/28/09

    @Grey_Area: SarcaSam sounds like a DC villain, though.. Maybe you're channeling something?
     Reply
    jbq was starred jbq was unstarred
    Image of Grey_Area Grey_Area
    02/28/09

    @jbq: SarcaSam is new character in the beginning upcoming Supermax film. He acts as the audience's point of view as he gets processed into the super-duper-ultra-mondo-mega-superprison.


    Warden: For you and the rest of these depraved freaks, this is your life. Some of my charges have threatened entire nations but there can be no escape from...Supermax.


    SarcaSam: *ppbt!* Uh, yeah. Whatever.

     Reply
    Grey_Area was starred Grey_Area was unstarred
    Image of faustmonkey faustmonkey
    02/27/09

    In reply to 10 Alan Moore Comics You Must Read! (Besides Watchmen)
    Sorry, Charlie. I admit to skimming -- I looked at the entries themselves. Having said that, you really should give Miracleman a read.
     Reply
    faustmonkey was starred faustmonkey was unstarred
    Image of Charlie Jane Anders Charlie Jane Anders
    02/27/09

    @faustmonkey: I actually plan to check it out soon, by means which I shall not specify here. Thanks, and no worries!
     Reply
    Charlie Jane Anders was starred Charlie Jane Anders was unstarred
    Image of faustmonkey faustmonkey
    02/27/09

    In reply to 10 Alan Moore Comics You Must Read! (Besides Watchmen)
    The Killing Joke is a less essential Alan Moore work than 1963? Captain Britain is better than Voice of the Fire? I'd recommend his brilliant scifi Culture Shocks collection over Captain Britain. I own pretty much everything Alan Moore owns, and even as a Moore diehard I'd admit Captain Britain a lesser work. If someone seeks out Captain Britain as a result of this article looking for something on the caliber of Watchmen, they're going to be sorely disappointed. Meanwhile, Miracleman, which IS on the caliber of Watchmen, is NOT on this list, and you haven't even read.


    This list seems like a struggle to even FIND ten items, because each series represents such an enormous body of work. It might have benefited from breaking up the individual series more, telling us WHICH of the six Swamp Thing volumes is the one to read -- you mention Top 10, for instance, but not the Forty-Niners, a brilliant companion novel that's arguably better than its source material. Saying "Go read League" doesn't account for the fact that the first volume is a fantastic page-turner, but that Black Dossier is impenetrable to a casual fan.

     Reply
    faustmonkey was starred faustmonkey was unstarred
    Image of Charlie Jane Anders Charlie Jane Anders
    02/27/09

    @faustmonkey: Hi there! You obviously skimmed my post and didn't read it properly, but I'll answer your objections anyway.


    Let's see... First of all, the list represents my favorites, and those of the other io9 writers I talked to. These are the works I feel happy about recommending, and the ones that I think represent the diversity of Moore's work in an interesting way.


    I do mention "The Killing Joke" and I recommend a volume that includes it. See above, re: the diversity of Moore's work. Also, see my comments below about why "The Killing Joke" has sunk in my estimation in recent years. (And in Moore's estimation as well, from what I've heard.)


    I've never read Miracleman because it's not in print and it's impossible to find. I'm not recommending it to our readers for the same reason.


    Also, I state clearly that my favorite Swamp Thing volume is the first. I mention the Forty Niners. And I mention that "The Black Dossier" is a bit of a letdown, after the first two volumes.


    Thanks for your input!

     Reply
    Charlie Jane Anders was starred Charlie Jane Anders was unstarred
    Image of Evil Tortie's Mom: R.O.A.C.H. Evil Tortie's Mom: R.O.A.C.H.
    02/27/09

    In reply to 10 Alan Moore Comics You Must Read! (Besides Watchmen)
    Where does one find these "comics torrents" I hear you young'uns talking about? For the out of print stuff only, of course, I would NEVER pirate something that's still available, oh no.


    1963 and Top 10 sound very entertaining to me.

     Reply
    Evil Tortie's Mom: R.O.A.C.H. was starred Evil Tortie's Mom: R.O.A.C.H. was unstarred
    Image of joneez wants the clunkers he paid for joneez wants the clunkers he paid for
    02/27/09

    @Evil Tortie's Mom: I use a file sharing program called Vuze (dl at [www.azureus.com]) and find my torrents on [www.isohunt.com.] check out the isohunt forums and [www.azureuswiki.com] to see if it's for you.
     Reply
    joneez wants the clunkers he paid for was starred joneez wants the clunkers he paid for was unstarred
    Image of Evil Tortie's Mom: R.O.A.C.H. Evil Tortie's Mom: R.O.A.C.H.
    02/27/09

    @joneez is enjoying a California 'winter': thanks much! and keep enjoying the non-snow.
     Reply
    Evil Tortie's Mom: R.O.A.C.H. was starred Evil Tortie's Mom: R.O.A.C.H. was unstarred
    Image of lightninglouie lightninglouie
    02/27/09

    In reply to 10 Alan Moore Comics You Must Read! (Besides Watchmen)
    "John Byrne's classic reboot..."


    If by "reboot" you mean "explosive, chunky vomiting."

     Reply
    lightninglouie was starred lightninglouie was unstarred
    Image of ColemanGiggles ColemanGiggles
    02/27/09

    In reply to 10 Alan Moore Comics You Must Read! (Besides Watchmen)
    I own every single issue of MiracleMan. It is one of the single best comic series ever created!
     Reply
    ColemanGiggles was starred ColemanGiggles was unstarred
    Image of Charlie Jane Anders Charlie Jane Anders
    02/27/09

    @ColemanGiggles: I'm going to come to your house and beat you senseless and steal your comics. Or maybe just steal your comics.
     Reply
    Charlie Jane Anders was starred Charlie Jane Anders was unstarred
    Image of Plague Plague
    02/27/09

    In reply to 10 Alan Moore Comics You Must Read! (Besides Watchmen)
    Promethea just may be Moore's craziest venture- at points it is so far away from a "superhero" comic book that your head might explode.


    At least until he puts out his magic grimoire in graphic novel form sometime in the next decade.

     Reply
    Plague was starred Plague was unstarred
    Image of braak: You are, as usual, completely correct. braak: You are, as usual, completely correct.
    02/28/09

    @Plague: Promethea IS his magic grimoire. It is an anagogue.
     Reply
    braak: You are, as usual, completely correct. was starred braak: You are, as usual, completely correct. was unstarred
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