In many ways I have trouble starting this type of article because I can never figure a proper opening for a reflective piece. I always end up teary-eyed or nostalgic for what had happened in the year. As i choke up right now, pouring my thoughts and heart out onto paper but editing it down to the nitty-gritty of what's important and what isn't, I cant help but reminisce on what all went down this year. I did better in school, I made new friends, I developed stronger relationships with old ones, and I opened myself up more-so than the introverted me of the past would ever have. In a lot of ways 2011 changed my life significantly. I developed a taste for pop-culture and writing and I began a sort of pseudo-career as an internet writer. I'd been reading comics, watching movies, and listening to music for many years previous but 2011 was the first year where I could culminate my thoughts into extravagant pieces that only improved after harsh criticism from fellow peers and friends. So, I sit here now on my laptop while the television plays another generic rom-com on Comedy Central while I spew pop-culture look-backs and criticism at all of you readers.
As I said earlier, this last year I developed a taste for writing about culture after being an on-and-off music reviewer on the website Sputnikmusic.com. I finally found a source for all of my thoughts and frustrations with what was going on, and it was glorious. In the first half of 2011 I took a music theory class in order to expand my palette and writing chops. I started writing at Potholesinmyblog.com, where I started writing in short format and that job ended in June as the site owner, a Mr. David Reyneke, refused to e-mail me back and compensate me for my work. This ended with me starting and (unsuccessfully) working for blogs that amounted to nowhere. At the same time I had been browsing this website under the name Coopkiller, until I was unceremoniously banned for no reason. I had written a few editorials but nothing of huge value that anybody else had done before. Basically, that semester of my life ended in frustration, and then Summer came, and I decided to pull my act together.
I started a new account here under my current name, Weedbeater, and I decided to make my voice be heard. While this was primarily a movie site about comic-based movies, I had found an outlet for my new task; reviewing and writing about comics. With the Summer ending, my thoughts gathered, and the new 52 coming, I struck at a golden opportunity. Granted, I read comics a lot before the relaunch but I didn't know how to write about them, so it became a process of trial-and-error. I spent months browsing the internet, trying to emulate the styles of the guys at Comic Book Resources and Weekly Comic book Review. I myself believe I gradually got better. My fellow reviewer Comiccritic and I collaborated a few times even.
Now that I'm done with the partial autobiography, let me take you to what I thought about comics in 2011. 2011 was a simultaneous destruction and rebirth of the comics industry and the storytelling medium of comics as a whole. Artists got better, talented writers were found, and stories got better on a grander scale. Discoveries were made of (who I believe to be anyways) comic geniuses, guys whose visions and stories were almost as big or bigger than anything before. On the writer spectrum we got horror-and-suspense master Scott Snyder, Canadian-bred, Family-baked folkie Jeff Lemire, and (although not new) Geoff John's huge event-based ideas which culminated into gigantic epics. On the artist end we got the brilliance of J.H. Williams III, whose panels and tales move with fluidity and grace while juxtaposing the old breed with the new, and guys like Travel Foreman and Mikel Janin, who blended surrealistic styles with photo-realistic measures. Many more were discovered, and 2011 was generally a good year to be in the comics industry. The biggest event (and the happiest/saddest) was the DC reboot/relaunch, which was bigger than anything before.
As DC relaunched their line, I felt a sense of hope and joy along with feelings of sadness, sentimentality and nostalgia. I was happy and hopeful that new readers were getting into comics and that new ideas could be told without being boggled down by years of continuity, yet I couldn't help but be sad that many of my favorite stories and characters and arcs were now made practically non-existent. It made me go back and reread everything I had picked up from the past few years and re-experience everything I ever loved and hated. When the sentimentality was done and over with, I looked at the relaunch with new eyes. These were eyes that said, there is hope for the future of comics. This is the new breed, and you're an old shell that's adapting.
Adapt I did, for I found myself pouring over every minute detail, interview and piece of artwork from the relaunch I could get my hands on. I absorbed the information at an alarming rate, and spread it to my friends. I even got a few people I know who regularly dismissed comics as childish into these new books. I even have regular discussions with them now on these new-ish stories. Basically, I prepared myself for this relaunch like a superhero prepares for war. I was ready to go into battle, and I came out on top. It felt extremely good.
The best stories this year came from the relaunch and some of Marvel's less mainstream works, like Venom. Indie comics from Vertigo, Image and Dynamite even kicked things up a notch. Chew,Sweet Tooth, and Turf were the breakout hits of the year while Kick-Ass 2 further solidified Mark Millar's indie success story. It was a fantastic for indie creators, who kicked things up a notch to compete with the Big 2, who had always dominated. And I tell you, these indie hits are leading to a revolution in comics for 2012.
Overall, comics were a great thing this year. The industry was saved, and I fell in love with the culture all over again. Hell, even the rumors for the movies were exciting. Green Lantern ended up being garbage while X-men was praised after reverse predictions beforehand, and all of the crazy casting rumors and story predictions for the Avengers and The Dark Knight Rises were all in good fun. Comics won this year in culture, with film and music coming in at a second place tie.
So here I sit, on my laptop, writing this grand masterpiece to close out 2011 for good, and officially usher in the new year. It's been a good year friends and folks, and I look forward to spending it with you guys just like I did last year.
~Julien Loeper, pretentious sap extraordinaire