People can't say that 2011 hasn't been a good year for comicbook fans. With companies relaunching entire lines and others replacing old books with new ones, we have all been spoiled for choice. So to celebrate this landmark year I have compiled a list of my favourite comics from this year in no particular order.
Batman - Scott Synder and Greg Capullo - DC
When DC relaunched all its books earlier this year it was a very bold move, of course the books were going to sell well but every fan of DC wanted to know how much material would retconned or changed, lucky enough it turned out to be ok and many good book have come out of the "52" but the one book that has caught everyones eye is Scott Synder's Batman. In the last few years Synder has risen to fame writing in various Batman books but in this book he excels plus the art from Greg Capullo on this book works perfectly with the tone of the story. If you are a DC fan or Batman fan you should be reading this, it is by far one of the best things to come out of the DC reboot, it isn't just about Batman but also about Gotham and how the city evolves over time.
Daredevil - Mark Waid, Paolo Rivera and Marcos Martin - Marvel
Here's a fact. Daredevil isn't the luckiest guy in the world. Virtually every story since the 1980's have dealt Matt Murdock with one crushing blow after another. He has had his girlfriends killed, been stripped of his job and had a mental breakdown. But in Waid's title Murdock has a less sad and more optimistic view on life. He makes a few wisecracks (not to the extent of spider man though - which is a good thing) and the stories are more light hearted. The story doesn't ignore previous events in Daredevils life but glazes over them to be able to create new stories not in the events shadow. The art by both Marcos Martin and Paolo Rivera is exceptional and visually stunning. Fans of Daredevil or Mark Waid should be checking out this book.
Criminal:last of the innocent - Ed Brubaker and Sean Philips - Marvel/Icon
Reading a title like criminal is a completely different experiance, the story is so powerful that you, as the reader, start to percieve these events as if they were real. As you read on it becomes increasingly obvious that these characters are based on American comicbook icons, something that tells us about the deception of nostalgia. There is nothing to say but read this, even if you don't like it you will atleast appreciate it.
Ultimate comics: Spider-man - Brian Bendis and Sara Pichelli - Marvel
Brian Bendis isn't afraid to take risks, this was no more apparant than the infamous "death of spider man" story. Killing off the Peter Parker that introduced a new generation to spider man comics was never going to go down well among fans but with the help of old artist and fan favourite Mark Bagely he managed to give Peter a send off to remember. Bendis created a new character in Miles Morales who is similar enough to Peter Parker to become the new spider man but different enough to become his own character. In short spider man fans have loved this, well some anyway...
Thanks for reading about my favourite series this year, have a happy new year and I will see you guys on the other side!