Top 21 comics

Because trying to figure out a list of only 10 was driving me nuts. I've been reading comics for 38 years, so this is about as much fine tuning as I'd like.  I actually did create a Top 10 list though, but I wasn't happy with it. This one works better for me.  I hope you enjoy the list.  Are some of your favorite books on my list? Special thanks to Damon Bader AKA: BringerOfStorms for supplying the meme!  

MY TOP 21 FAVORITE COMIC BOOKS:



Each issue on my list is scanned from my own comic collection. I love all these comics, and many of them inspired me to make a career out of drawing. In the order of appearance on the meme:

-CONAN THE BARBARIAN #115.  I started reading Conan around 1978 or '79. The book was being drawn by John Buscema and inked by Ernie Chan. The run from #100-120 of CONAN THE BARBARIAN was the finest point in that comics history, IMO, with the double-sized issue #115 being the pinnacle of that time. The story featured Conan teaming up with Red Sonja, and Conan actually defeats Sonja in a sword fight, but the story wraps up Conan's sorry for his beloved Belit, who died in issue #100. It's a great story, and there's an awesome Conan pin-u and a Map of the Hyborian Age in the book. You could get pin-ups and maps in the magazine series, THE SAVAGE SWORD OF CONAN, but it was rare to see these things in CONAN THE BARBARIAN comic book. It is a real treat!

-DETECTIVE COMICS #526.  This was the 500th appearance of Batman in comics. It's a marvelous double-sized book drawn magnificently by Don Newton and inked by Alfredo Alcala. Virtually every important villain in the Batman universe appears in this issue--there's a double-page splash that features most of them together, in fact--but this particular issue is the finale of the original Killer Croc storyline. In the early '80s before CRISIS ON INFINITE EARTHS changed the DC Universe forever, Killer Croc was a powerhouse who was smart enough to become the top villain in Gotham. Even the Joker couldn't match him.  Over the course of many issues of BATMAN and DETECTIVE COMICS, Croc actually rattle the Dark Knight, and this was the finale show down. The book also featured the original Robin (Dick Grayson) and Batgirl (Barbara Gordon), Catwoman, and Talia. This was one of the best comics of the 1980s.  A pay-off that actually delivered the goods.

-BATMAN #251.  A classic from 1973. Written by Denny O'Neill and drawn by Neal Adams, this issue features one of the best BATMAN covers of all time.  The story inside is great too, but the Neal Adams artwork from this era of BATMAN is the main attraction. I had to make a tough decision with this one, because I also wanted to put BATMAN #244 on this list. That one features features BATMAN facing Ras Al Ghul in a sword fight. It also has some of Adams' best artwork, and one of the best BATMAN covers ever!  I actually flipped a coin to see which one I'd add to my list, and #251 won. In hindsight, maybe I should have just made this a "TOP 22" list, but you have to stop somewhere.  BATMAN #251 and #244 are both gems. They might just be my two most favorite BATMAN issues.

-IRON MAN #150. David Michelinie and Boy Layton plotted this issue, with John Romita Jr pencilling and Layton providing inks on this double-sized epic.  Iron Man and Doctor Doom get thrown backwards through time to the age of Camelot! Doctor Doom teams up with Morgan Le Fey to wage battle on King Arthur, and his knights. Iron Man becomes King Arthur's champion in battle against hords of undead soldiers resurrected by Morgan Le Fey. Iron Man and King Arthur versus Doctor Doom and a legion of sword-wielding walking dead!  This is the kind of yarn that makes comic books fun!

-FANTASTIC FOUR #48.  I first read this story in reprint, but I eventually found a nice copy of the original book. It's one of the gems in my collection. Stan "The Man" Lee. Jack "King" Kirby. Joe Sinnott. The first Galactus issue. The first Silver Surfer issue. The second appearance of the Watcher. This was one of the most celebrated comics to emerge from the 1960s, and it represents the classic FANTASTIC FOUR series at the height of it's popularity and majesty. If you're a superhero fan, and you haven't read this issue, duck your head in a mop bucket! Run--don't walk--to your local comic shop and pick up THE ESSENTIAL FANTASTIC FOUR, Volume 3 right now!  GOOOOOOOOOO! Heh.

-JUSTICE LEAGUE OF AMERICA.  Like several comics on my fave list, this a special super-sized issue. It features the classic roster of the JLA: The Martian Manhunter, Aquaman, Batman, Superman, Wonder Woman, The Barry Allen Flash , Hal Jordan Green Lantern, Green Arrow, Black Canary, Hawkman, Atom, Firestorm, and Elongated Man. It sported a nifty wrap-around cover in a time where they weren't often seen in comics too, but the main reason this book stands out in memory is the talents involved. Gerry Conway wrote it, but many of comicdom's best pencillers and inkers contributed pages to this particular issues. Jim Aparo, Terry Austin, Brian Bolland, Brett Breeding, Pat Broderick, Frank Giacoia, Dick Giordano, Carmine Infantino, Gil Kane, Joe Kubert and George Perez!!  The artwork in each chapter is outstanding!  Brian Bolland Batman vs Green Arrow & Black Canary chapter is mind-bogglingly!  I can't recommend this one enough!

-UNCANNY X-MEN 137.  I was 10 years old when I read this comic. I was on riding a school bus on a field trip in 1980. I had been buying the X-MEN comics for a little while, but I'd missed a few issues of what would later come to be known as "The Phoenix Saga".  I was really enjoying the comic.  At that time it wasn't a very well-known comic--at least not like BATMAN or AMAZING SPIDER-MAN, THE INCREDIBLE HULK or SUPERMAN. If you mentioned the "X-MEN", no one knew them.  Chris Claremont, John Byrne and Terry Austin made every month of the X-MEN spectacular, and issue 137 was the pinnacle point of their run.  Many fans like yours truly would even argue that this was the greatest moment in mutant history.  The X-Men fight to save they life of Jean Grey on the Blue Area of the Moon....and they lose! Jean Grey tearfully takes her own life on the Moon to end the menace of Dark Phoenix forever. It was a stunner, and I was floored. In 1980 it was very, very rare for characters in comics to die--especially the heroes--and if they died, they tended to stay dead.  Today, characters die and come back to life practically in the same issue, but it wasn't the case back then. This comic had true impact! It hurt. Jean died a hero's death on the Moon. A few years later, Marvel brought her back with X-FACTOR, and wrecked one of the most powerful stories of the 1980s. Nice goin', knuckleheads! LOL. Jean's still dead, as far as I'm concerned. She saved the Marvel Universe. You can retcon a storyline, but you can't retcon a memory. It's still an astoundingly good issue to read.

-THE SAVAGE SWORD OF CONAN #56.  I think this is the first issue of SAVAGE SWORD that I can remember owning. It was given to me by my best friend. Roy Thomas wrote a three-part story called "The Sword of Skelos" that spanned TSSOC #55-57.  The covers were brilliantly painted by Nestor Redondo, one of the best artists in the business. The interiors were pencilled by Big John Buscema, with the inking done masterfully by Tony DeZuniga.  Issue 56 is an artistic masterpiece, complete with an impressive pin-up gallery by DeZuniga in the back.  I think this is my favorite Conan stories outside of Robert E. Howard's original tales. Roy Thomas adapted the story from THE SWORD OF SKELOS by Andrew J. Offutt. It is reminiscent of a Robert E. Howard Conan yarn, with plenty of blood & guts action and adventure. Scheming wenches, backstabbing jackals, and high adventure in the deserts of Shem! I love everything about this issue. It's a must-own for CONAN fans!

-THE AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #50. This is a brilliant issue of Spider-Man. It also happens to be the first appearance of the Kingpin.  This is one of the best Stan Lee SPIDER-MAN stories of the John Romita era of the book. In a nutshell, Peter Parker tries to give up being Spider-Man and attempt to have a normal life. In Spidey's absence, crime reaches a new high under the Kingpin.  Naturally Peter Parker returns to his web-spinnin' ways, and makes a return as our favorite Webhead, but this story is great because Pete remembers why he became Spider-Man in the first place. John Romita Sr pencils this issue, and Mike Esposito slings the inks for one of Spider-Man's greatest stories. It also has one of the most memorable AMAZING SPIDER-MAN covers. 'Nuff said!

-UNCANNY X-MEN 173. When John Byrne left the X-MEN in 1980, I was losing interest in the book.  I enjoyed Dave Cockrum's return to the title, and there was a few outstanding issues, like #145, featuring Doctor Doom, and issue #150, which had a showdown with Magneto, but the X-MEN book seemed to have lost some of the edge it used to have. I was just about to stop buying issues of UNCANNY X-MEN. Then...enter Paul Smith as penciller for issue #165.  His art was different from Cockrum or Byrne's more realistic styles. Paul Smith kept the line work to a minimum, drawing clean figures.  It took me a few issues to decide if I liked the new direction of the art, but by issue #172, I was digging it. Bob Wiacek's inks meshed well with Smith's pencils, and the X-Men regained their spark in Japan in issue #172 and 173. I love both of these issues about the same, but I posted #173 because it features the villainous Rogue teaming up with Wolverine.  Wolverine has an epic fight with the Silver Samurai, that features some amazing panels from Paul Smith. Very cinematic stuff! Rogue turns over a new leaf, and this is a key Wolverine issue. Sadly, Paul Smith left the book after completing issue #175. A 10 issue run, but a spectacular 10 issues!

-INCREDIBLE HULK #122.  The cover says it all! Classic, Marvel action at it's best. After finding that the Hulk seems to have destroyed a train for no apparent reason, Bruce Banner hopes that Reed Richards of the Fantastic Four will assist him in finding a scientific solution that will rid Banner of the Hulk forever.  Naturally Banner becomes the Hulk before such a meeting can take place, and the issue becomes one of the great Hulk vs the FF battles! The Hulk and Thing battles are always legendary, and this is no exception. Herb Trimpe does a stellar job in this particular issue, pencilling and inking. Many people argue that the Trimpe era of the Hulk is the best era of the title, and it's certainly my favorite--particularly the issues where John Severin inks.  This is not a Severin-inked issue, but it's still magnificent, and it makes my list because it a great example of late 60s Marvel Comics.

-AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #121. Scripted by Gerry Conway, pencilled by Gil Kane, and by John Romita Sr and Tony Mortellaro. Marvel placed the title of this issue at the back of the book, because it would have spoiled the read.  "The Night Gwen Stacy Died" was a story that changed THE AMAZING SPIDER-MAN forever.  Norman Osborn's business is failing, and he finds his son, Harry, hospitalized after tripping on LSD. Regaining the memories that he is the Green Goblin, he also remembers that Peter Parker is Spider-Man, and Norman Osborn seeks revenge on his old foe. As the Green Goblin, Norman kidnaps Pete's girlfriend, Gwen, carrying her away to the Brooklyn Bridge. Spider-Man follows the Goblin and the two foes fight, but during the battle Gwen falls from the bridge. When Spidey tries to catch her with his webline, Gwen's neck snaps. The Green Goblin has finally had his revenge on Spider-Man. This is one of the epic stories of the early 1970s Marvel Comics. The book is legendary--and with good reason. Some fans say that this book should have been the finale of the Spider-Man comics. Others say that this issue is where the series "jumped the shark."  Whatever fan opinions might be, this is one of the stories that redefined THE AMAZING SPIDER-MAN magazine. Most of us who bought the book when Gwen was alive remember that it was she, not Mary Jane Watson, that was Pete's true love.

-WEIRD SCIENCE #16. The greatest era of comicdom, many would argue, is the EC era of the early 1950s. EC Comics produced horror titles like TALES FROM THE CRYPT, THE HAUNT OF FEAR, and VAULT OF HORROR, and great science-fiction comics like WEIRD SCIENCE, WEIRD FANTASY, WEIRD SCIENCE-FANTASY, and INCREDIBLE SCIENCE-FICTION.  Many of the greatest comic book illustrators emerged from the pages of EC Comics, including Jack Davis, John Severine, Al Williamson, Graham "Ghastly" Ingles,  Al Feldstein, Bernie Krigstein, Jack Kamen, Reed Crandall, Joe Orlando, Will Elder, Harvey Kurtzman, Basil Wolverton, Johnny Craig, and George Evans. Sometimes even Frank Frazetta and Roy G. Krenkel contributed to EC stories, and Frazetta produced one cover. One of the most celebrated artists working for EC Comics was Wallace Wood.  Wally Wood pencilled and inked some of the greatest science-ficition  and fantasy stories at EC. His work on the title WEIRD SCIENCE is considered to be epic. Wood often produced more than one interior story for WEIRD SCIENCE, and was often called upon to draw the cover. WEIRD SCIENCE #16 is a great example of Wally Wood's massive talent, as is the artwork he produced for the interior  eight-page story, "DOWN TO EARTH".  When Topps Cards designed the infamous MARS ATTACKS card set in 1962, they hired Wally Wood to design the Martians.  It was the cover to WEIRD SCIENCE #16 that inspired it all.  This is a great comic, and one that I'm proud to have in my collection.

VAMPIRELLA # 9.  One of the early issues of Vampirella, issue #9 featured an 8-page story written and illustrated by Wally Wood called "The Curse."  It is probably the best Wally Wood story he did for Warren Publishing, and one of his best stories of the 1960s. It has everything in it that Wood was known for--beautiful women, manly heroes, monsters, amazing storytelling, lush scenery--you name it. It is a tale that harkens back to the sort of stories he produced with EC Comics in the 1950s, and it is masterfully executed.  The cover features Wally Wood line art with a Boris Vallejo color inset. I happily include this particular issue on my list for this story alone.

THE MIGHTY THOR #337.  Enter Walt Simonson.  THE MIGHTY THOR had been running on fumes for many years. In issue #337, Walt Simonson took over the helm, and he shook things up--big time! Beta Ray Bill shows up, and takes the power of Thor from our hero. This begins Simonson's epic run on the comic--a run that is widely regarded by many fans as being the high point of the title. Not since the days of Jack Kirby had THOR been this interesting. Simonson gave THE MIGHTY THOR new life, and made the character popular again.  Not bad, Walt. Not bad at all.

(I will finish this, I swear!)