Tilted Forum Project Discussion Community - View Single Post

levite · 01-24-2010, 12:00 PM

It kind of depends on what you're looking for. Different tastes lean toward different genres of comic, and different titles and characters.

I can tell you, from my perspective, I am a person who never had much taste in non-superhero comics, no matter how critically acclaimed they might be. So if that's something you think you'd be into, you should take advice from someone else. Ditto with manga. Never had more than zero interest in those, so if they catch your eye, ask someone else.

Now, in terms of what I do like, I have always been a Marvel person, rather than a DC person. Don't get me wrong, I've followed Batman on and off pretty regularly, and every now and then I'll get a taste for Green Lantern or Flash or Superman, but for the most part, DC tends to leave me wanting more. I tend to think of them as the Chinese food of comics: fun while you're reading them, and then half an hour later, you want more comics. But Marvel can really kick some ass.

I fell in love with X-Men from the beginning. I loved the ebb and flow of the team. I loved the idea of superheroes who were outcasts and rejected by regular society. I loved that the characters were strong, memorable characters who did what they did because it was a way to make their otherwise miserable lives meaningful. X-Men has consistently been well-written, complex, and exciting. I know I find it a great comic because I can read an issue, and be left thinking about it, re-examining in my mind the nuances that are social and philosophical commentary.

I've always loved Spider-Man, for similar reasons. I love that Peter Parker is a regular joe, with regular problems, on top of which he's got the worries of a superhero. I love that he makes mistakes, and wrestles with huge guilt, and is terrified for the people he loves, and yet he loves being Spider-Man, and has immense fun doing it, and he never loses his sense of humor.

I have enjoyed the Avengers in their various phases, but probably never more than in their current incarnation. Great team, great stories, great artwork. Just intensely excellent comics all around.

I've never been a die-hard Fantastic Four fan, but I like them a lot, and have read them on and off for years. Same with Wolverine: I love the character, but independent from X-Men I only really read him on and off. Ditto for Doctor Strange, and Iron Man, and Daredevil: great characters, I love running into them, and I enjoy reading their titles. But for whatever reasons-- often just financial-- I've never been one of their regulars. Nonetheless, they are terrific, and any one of them or all of them are worth following.

01-24-2010, 12:00 PM	#3 (permalink)
levite Minion of Joss Location: The Windy City	It kind of depends on what you're looking for. Different tastes lean toward different genres of comic, and different titles and characters. I can tell you, from my perspective, I am a person who never had much taste in non-superhero comics, no matter how critically acclaimed they might be. So if that's something you think you'd be into, you should take advice from someone else. Ditto with manga. Never had more than zero interest in those, so if they catch your eye, ask someone else. Now, in terms of what I do like, I have always been a Marvel person, rather than a DC person. Don't get me wrong, I've followed Batman on and off pretty regularly, and every now and then I'll get a taste for Green Lantern or Flash or Superman, but for the most part, DC tends to leave me wanting more. I tend to think of them as the Chinese food of comics: fun while you're reading them, and then half an hour later, you want more comics. But Marvel can really kick some ass. I fell in love with X-Men from the beginning. I loved the ebb and flow of the team. I loved the idea of superheroes who were outcasts and rejected by regular society. I loved that the characters were strong, memorable characters who did what they did because it was a way to make their otherwise miserable lives meaningful. X-Men has consistently been well-written, complex, and exciting. I know I find it a great comic because I can read an issue, and be left thinking about it, re-examining in my mind the nuances that are social and philosophical commentary. I've always loved Spider-Man, for similar reasons. I love that Peter Parker is a regular joe, with regular problems, on top of which he's got the worries of a superhero. I love that he makes mistakes, and wrestles with huge guilt, and is terrified for the people he loves, and yet he loves being Spider-Man, and has immense fun doing it, and he never loses his sense of humor. I have enjoyed the Avengers in their various phases, but probably never more than in their current incarnation. Great team, great stories, great artwork. Just intensely excellent comics all around. I've never been a die-hard Fantastic Four fan, but I like them a lot, and have read them on and off for years. Same with Wolverine: I love the character, but independent from X-Men I only really read him on and off. Ditto for Doctor Strange, and Iron Man, and Daredevil: great characters, I love running into them, and I enjoy reading their titles. But for whatever reasons-- often just financial-- I've never been one of their regulars. Nonetheless, they are terrific, and any one of them or all of them are worth following. __________________ Dull sublunary lovers love, Whose soul is sense, cannot admit Absence, because it doth remove That thing which elemented it. (From "A Valediction: Forbidding Mourning" by John Donne)