LORD OF THE RINGS: The Rings Of Power ⬤ The One Rules All

“Fixed upon the light that guides her,
whispering of grander things than darkness ever knew.” -Finrod


The excellence of the LORD OF THE RINGS television series is on a new level so high that everything else seems like a school play. Everything.

The acclaimed RINGS books inspired all of modern Fantasy, the ultimate standard that others strive to reach. The ambitious new series exceeds all others with unmatchable scope and craft redefining that standard with what hasn't been done before. It challenges fandom, viewers, and the medium to include, amend, and expand.

Explore the worldbuilding, political heart, and fine art influences that propel the one show that rules above all others.


C H A P T E R  L I N K S :

• 1- Worldbuilder
• 2- Fellowship
• 3- Vistas, with Art!
• 4- Legendarium

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1

W O R L D B U I L D E R

J.R.R. Tolkien is the original architect of worldbuilding.

The Oxford philologist forged cosmologies, histories, genealogies, languages, lore, and maps for his Middle Earth stories, mined from deep research into European myths and tongues. Just as Shakespeare had sieved the past for his alchemical body of work, Professor Tolkien’s scholarship turned speculative fiction into literature.

Throughout human history, fable has always created literature. Our need to project ourselves as avatars in larger adventures with a moral point helps us process our experience as a people as much as as a person. It is the weaving suture which threads "The Epic Of Gilgamesh" (Mesopotamia), "The Panchatantra" (India), Homer's "The Odyssey" and "The Iliad" (Greece), "Beowolf" (England), "Arabian Knights" (Middle East), and "Le Morte d'Arthur" (England), and meshes into the tapestry of Campbell's overview of all myths/stories, "The Hero With A Thousand Faces" (1949). Tolkien essentially took the roots of European fables and created a new "Odyssey" which could branch out in new expressions.

Without his inestimably influential books “The Hobbit” (1937) and “The Lord Of The Rings” trilogy (LOTR, 1953), modern speculative storytelling wouldn’t exist, nor have the global credibility and popularity it enjoys.

In a creative relay, the intricacy of his worldbuilding charted the course for examples as wide-ranging as DC’s Multiverse (1961), Moorcock’s “Elric” (1961), Herbert’s “Dune” (1965), 'Star Trek' (1966), the “Dungeons And Dragons” roleplaying game (1974), STAR WARS (1977), the “Warcraft” video game (1994), Martin’s “Game Of Thrones” books (1996), Rowling’s “Harry Potter” books (1997), and the MCU films (2008), among myriad. And the convergence of his passionate and articulate readers helped establish fandoms (and cosplay, fans-to-pros, and conventions) as we now know them. While sports fans have stats, creative fiction fans have worlds or omniverses.

His voluminous notes, poems, myths, short stories, essays, and personal letters of supplementary material were compiled posthumously by his son Christopher into multiple addendum books. It’s here where the rich backstory of the fabled eras before the Third Age of the books was revealed.

“I must follow the passage. The other direction.” -Arondir

After Amazon Studios won the rights to adapt a new LOTR TV series, they chose to explore that unexplored history to distinguish the new show, with deference, from Peter Jackson’s Oscar-winning film versions of the original books. Showrunners J.D. Payne and Patrick McKay had the unenviable challenge of crafting a narrative story out of the myth miscellanea that could not only imitate Tolkien’s tomes but match him. They have done so spectacularly.

'The Lord Of The Rings: The Rings Of Power' not only equals the caliber of the Jackson films, it betters them by amplifying his production craft, while expanding outward with fresh possibilities and casting.


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2

F E L L O W S H I P

“A dog may bark at the moon. But he cannot bring it down.” -Durin IV

Most value progression, but some do not.

Tolkien’s underlying mantra was that education opens truth and understanding. The charm of the original book, “The Hobbit” (1937), comes from bringing the insular (suburban) Bilbo Baggins out into the wider world by exponential degrees. The more he explores, the deeper he becomes.

In this spirit, the majority of fans, viewers, and reviewers have embraced the advances of the new series as inspired and liberating. The sidelong exceptions basically break down into two groups: text purists, who are actual fans; and hostile trolls, who are not. The distinction is important.

As loyalists who care about the works, the purists have some merit when they chafe at the time abbreviation taken with the material. The TV series conflates separate events from across many years in the Second Age as happening together. But, since the cost of adapting the whole history of Middle Earth to screen in separate arcs is impractical and the compression done here is so successful, even a staunch literalist could admit these concerns are quibbles.

“…where the shadows lie.”

But then there’s the online troll, who is just a bigot taking issue with the inclusive casting. Bigotry, as the general media continually misunderstands, is not valid as an opinion or as public discourse; it is hate, the spiritual violence that erodes civilization. Trolls are the voice (or the bot) of the oppressor who’s afraid of losing grip. They are never true fans of the creative media they firebomb, but simply outside saboteurs of any advance for progress or quality or truth. When the media fails to distinguish these assassins from actual fans (or activists), the obfuscation validates the haters’ abuse. ▶

“It darkens the heart to call dark deeds “good”. It gives place for evil to thrive inside us.”
-Galadriel

Tolkien had no love for wars of hate. Traumatized by his service in World War I, he directly wrote “The Lord Of The Rings” (1953) as an eternal damnation of Hitler and all forms of Fascism. He had no tolerance for the tyrant, the zealot, or the mad (Sauron, Saruman, Denethor) who oppress, or for the thrall, traitor, or thug (Nazgul, Gollum, Orcs and Trolls) who follows them. His credo was that the forces of negativity will always lose to the organized positive.

➤ "On the time J.R.R. Tolkien refused to work with Nazi-leaning publishers”

Galdriel; Arwen; Eowyn; Tauriel;
Lake-town citizens

And the trolls have already lost. The precedent for inclusive casting has been set in Tolkien screen versions across two decades. Peter Jackson and his co-writers Fran Walsh and Philippa Boyens took a progressive approach to the books in his film adaptations: positioning powerful and complicated women -Galadriel, Arwen, Eowyn, and Tauriel- front and center; and, in the river nexus town of the second HOBBIT film, by bringing in other complexions from the wider world outside The Shire.

“There’s common sense and nonsense. And if you’re all out of the first, then you can borrow some of mine.” -Poppy

In the time since, inclusive casting became standard in Fantasy productions as a given, such as in THOR, ‘Doctor Who’, ‘Game Of Thrones’, STAR WARS, ‘Steven Universe’, A WRINKLE IN TIME, ‘His Dark Materials’, ‘The Wheel Of Time’, ETERNALS, ’Arcane’, ‘The Sandman’, and ’Willow’. The real world in all its rich diversity is the weaver of our fantasies, and Fantasy is bettered by reflecting our real world.

Diversity has actually always been the point. It would be a novice mistake to dismiss Tolkien’s work as ‘European’, as if this generic shorthand signified a simplistically guilty monoculture. But, like everywhere, Europe is a general region made up of many radically different and complex nations, populations, histories, and languages. It was those very differences that led to World Wars I and II. As a philologist, Tolkien translated the archetypal legends of these nations into personified species (elf, hobbit, dwarf, human, etc.), each distinct but all guided by soul. Underneath this effort, it’s as if he is trying to reconcile the real world conflicts by reminding the nations where they came from, how much unique good each has to offer, and how their unity can solve any upset. A fellowship, ringed.

“Haven’t you ever wondered, what else is out there?… I can’t help but feel there are wonders in this world.” -Nori

Advancing through awareness of the big picture has also been a driving theme in his work. The same way in which we evolved from flat local maps to making globes, so did Middle Earth in its literal form. In the backstory, Tolkien’s world started out as a flat plain with a central continent illumed by artificial light, but was later transformed into a spherical world of varied land masses, with a sun and a moon in outer space. By linking the evolution of our actual geographical understanding to an imagined metaphysical transformation, Tolkien implied that this world would continually expand beyond myths and transform with new knowledge, just as we have grown through awareness of new continents, outer space, or other dimensions. There is always more than an illusory middle.

In the final rebuke against all isolationism, Tolkien’s delineation of the very different European cultures set the example for other worldbuilding creators to explore their own national mythologies and manifold depths. Beyond heirs from Le Guin to Martin, his example is now magnified in mythos-building Fantasy works from Africa, China, Latin America, and the Middle East. One string to spool them all.

"Everyone, each of us, needs to decide who we shall be." -Queen Regent Míriel

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3

V I S T A S

'The Rings Of Power' is sublime murals in an era that only understands billboards.

There are many exemplary films and series currently honed on a cinematic level. What distinguishes this one so clearly is its drive to not simply match its own legacy but expand it. This imperitive, to satisfy not just expectations but the unexplored potential, tries harder and achieves more. There is nothing on any screen as astonishingly vast, divinely composed, visonary in its revision, and poetically literate. (And it's able to do so because of Smaug's budget.)* It engages the eye, heart, and mind with the highest art and goals.

Some of the resistance to 'The Rings Of Power' comes from spectacle fatigue. What was stunning in the LORD OF THE RINGS films (2001-’03) has become devalued through endless repetitions or knockoffs: the CG artistry of infinite vistas, behemothic architectures, and impossible creatures is now push-button and all-pervasive in creative media. The best becomes devalued by too much of the least. Even the grand cinema screen, which once singularly embodied impact and importance, has had its eminence diluted by universal screens on TVs, desktops, laptops, smart phones, watches, lobby monitors, street ads, and app snaps. The biggest becomes devaluated by too much of the small. There are also screen adaptations of every variety of Fantasy franchise ever inked, streaming ad infinitum. At this strobed-out point, who can tell the great from the grift?

But all of this quantity can’t overrule Quality. A great story will always eviscerate imitations, excellent craft supersedes flashy clutter, and innovation fillets cliches. Quality is timeless, and lack turns to dust.

The first season of 'The Rings Of Power' is 8 IMAX films that happen to be on TV. The only real flaw hindering the series is that it is too vast for any personal screen, and every episode should have debuted on the cinema screen to be properly appreciated, like Jackson’s films had the benefit of. TV inherently reduces a scope it’s not equipped to contain, unless your TV screen is the size of a semi.

What immediately separates the series from the latest blockbuster is that its visual craft is based out of fine art. While many spectaculars seem the same because they overuse the same visual gimmicks as combat video-games, the show takes its cue from Tolkien and mines classical forms instead: classic paintings, Golden Age illustrations, tableaus, tapestries, historical textiles, architecture, and arthouse cinema.


“(Galadriel) was then of Amazon disposition and bound up her hair as a crown when taking part in athletic feats.” - 1973 letter by J.R.R. Tolkien

"Joan of Arc" (1865), John Everett Millais
"Joan Of Arc" (1903), Charles-Amable Lenoir

Taking the cue from Tolkien, the young Galadriel of the Second Age is a warrior, the last of the Elves keeping vigilance against the rise of Sauron. She is Joan and Lancelot, armored form and steely resolve.

Morfydd Clark’s nuanced portrayal advances the character from a graceful regent on the sidelines (LOTR) to the central force of the story, ending outmoded gender conventions and advancing the breadth of what can be told and who can do it. Like Tolkien, the creators channel the lessons of history itself, such as the Norse myths of Valkyries or the varied legends of global amazons, and from the actual Agoji in West Africa.

"The Little Mermaid Watches" (1930), Helen Stratton

The heroes in the LOTR books traversed the continent by foot and horse, but 'The Rings Of Power' introduces us to the wide oceans beyond, with mercantile fleets and fledgling rafts, doldrums and tempests, deepwater leviathans and suspect castaways.

"Wreck of a Transport Ship" (c. 1810),
Joseph Mallord William Turner

With an impeccable design crew and deep budget, the ocean scenes are among the most convincing and gripping yet done for a Fantasy series.

“The Crimson Fairy Book” (1903), Henry Justice Ford

Elves are essentially the guardian angels of Middle Earth, the closest children of the gods. Immortal, stewards to the land while destined for starlight, their beyondness makes them revered and despised by mortals.

"Allegory of Victory" (c. 1912), Jules Joseph Lefebvre
"The Girl with the Golden Wreath" (undated),
Léon François Comerre

As seen here, Galadriel wears bucolic gentility like a formality, but her fiery spirit cannot be quelled. She advances the potential seen in previous book characters like Arwen and Eowyn into a maturation and agency that contemporary audiences find more truth in.

"The Consummation of the Empire" (1836), Thomas Cole

If the Third Age was ruins in the wake of Sauron’s first rise, the Second Age is all of the civilizations at their height before that toll. 'The Rings Of Power' debuts the legendary island nation of Numenor, a paradise once hewn together by elves and mortals, and now distended by human hubris.

Ramsey Avery’s design department combined their piling Babylon with Minoan and Roman influences to evoke history and portent. It is a cosmopolitan oasis at the brink of overreach.

"Work" (c. 1850s), Ford Madox Brown

Trading ports are the intersection of humanity. Just as Tangiers, Macau, New York City, and San Francisco became international zones through trade and migration, so too have Lake-town (the second HOBBIT film) and Numenor become nexus hubs for all from anywhere.

The series shows us the widest range of mortals yet revealed in Tolkien’s world, reflecting the rich diversity of the human race. Purists or bigots aside, the precedent for this has always been in our history: from the intersecting national commerce of the Mediterranean or the Silk Road to China in the ancient world; to the Africans, Arabs, Bengals, and Sri Lankans (genericized as ‘Moors’) common throughout Medieval Europe. ▶

The actual history of the region known as England is one of continuous incomers from all of the nations around it, from Africa and the Nordic and Eastern Europe and beyond. If the argument is that the diversity of the outside nations couldn't exist in Tolkien's world because it wasn't present in the European nations he based it on, then it is uninformed and incorrect. ▶ ▶

"Spring" (1894), Lawrence Alma-Tadema

Tolkien once compared Numenor to Venice, which the artisans reflect here in flowing canals and waterfalls. The mariner nation is essentially a human Olympus in the protean Atlantic Ocean, heraldic while swaying into the imperious.

"The Baths of Caracalla" (1881),
Virgilio Mattoni de la Fuente;
"Richard III, Act I, scene ii" (1896),
Edwin Austin Abbey

With this quasi-imperial state, the series amplifies the inherent sociopolitical subtext of Tolkien’s works.

His kingdoms were allegories critiquing the proud nationalism which devolves into separatist hate and war, a blind folly that also hastens the collapse of the natural world. His themes were consistently ecological, antifascist, and egalitarian. His stories are cautionary tales for solving human abuses, from war to greed to zealotry to hatred. As such, his work and this series are more timely than ever.

(This also makes it the target of all those who are guilty of those abuses.)

"Zenobia's Last Look on Palmyra" (1888),
Herbert Schmalz

"Tetes Byzantines: Brunette" (1897), Alphonse Mucha

"Brunnhilde From The Rhinegold And The Valkyrie" (1910),
Arthur Rackham

While Galadriel is a soldier and not a ruler, Queen Miriel (Cynthia Addai-Robinson) is the highest monarch of the mortals. The Kings of the later Third Age have been shown as despondent or mad, but by contrast she is a strongly moral leader with an iron will, tempered by enough conscience to take heed of change or peril. This is a welcome antidote to those later regents, exemplifying a brighter age that believes in possibility.

"La Trappistine" (1897), Alphonse Mucha

But Miriel also senses that prosperity isn’t a continuous given, or a bulwark against downfall. She’s aware of the wider world, and how solidarity helps protect everyone.

"The Lady in Gold, Adele Bloch-Bauer" (1907),
Gustav Klimt

If Elves tend the land, Dwarves foster the stone. In this earlier time we discover them anew as sculptors following the inner folds of the mountains with a spiritual respect. Later, they will lose course, hollowing out the mounts making empty cathedrals to themselves. Tolkien’s kingdoms are at their finest when selfless and honorable, but many will lose their way when they go selfish, bordered, and vainglorious.

Dwarf women have only been alluded to before, and the debut of Disa (Sophia Nomvete) refines all perception of them. She stands nobly with her partner Durin as an ally, conscience, and wry foil as dark times are augured.

"Robin Hood" (1932), Frank Godwin

We’re familiar with the Hobbits in the Third Age, comfortable in their suburban burrows. How did they get there? Here we meet one of their ancestors for the first time, the Harfoots, a nomadic tribe maneuvering a hostile world with crafty pluck.

True to Tolkien, they are the warm heart of the story.

"Hansel And Gretel" (1911), Charles Robinson

For all of his academic discipline, Tolkien instead grounded his stories in the common people, earnest and giving, naive and heartfelt, rowdy and loyal. The Hobbits were the writer at his most homey, funky, boisterous, and playful.

If the Elves are parents to nature, the Harfoots are its children. The series dresses the Harfoots braided in hay and clover, swaddled in sackcloth and berry dye, scented in river and air. They are radiant in rich saturation, dappled in sunray impressionism, nestled in hearth glows.

Harfoots are akin to the Romani, living widely and loose, fluid, fertile. They are nature mobile. While wary of the world, their adaptive durability makes them clever, mindful, and gracious.

"The Lantern Bearers" (1908), Maxfield Parrish

"The Harfoots were browner of skin, smaller, and shorter, and they were beardless and bootless..."
-J.R.R. Tolkien

Listening to the source himself, the series honored the material with expansive casting. Harfoots are brought to light for the first time in a refreshing global approach which includes Brit/Jamaican, Australian, Sri Lankan, Sierra Leone/Carribean, and Canadian actors. This breadth, robustly exercised in all of the series' casting, is the best advance that ever happened to Tolkien's material.

(The hobbit Sam, from LOTR, is also described as "brown" a few times.)

"Idylls of the King" (1913), Eleanor Fortescue-Brickdale
"Rip Van Winkle" (1905), Arthur Rackham

We’ve seen how the guileless Bilbo and Frodo provided a home and solace for a certain errant wizard. But now in the Harfoots we see what we hadn’t before with the Hobbits: women, from mentor to neophyte; a wider range of faces; some mysticism; the drive to explore (albeit, out of necessity); and their organic creativity.

The Stranger who falls from the heavens like a wayward lodestar, roused to a world he doesn’t recognize, couldn’t have found better refuge than the delightful Nori and Poppi. (And if you don’t love folks named Nori Brandyfoot and Poppy Proudfellow, you’re a pod from outer space.)

"Triptych of Temptation of St Anthony" (detail, 1506), Hieronymus Bosch;
from “The Boy Who Knew What The Birds Said” (1920),
illustrated by Dugald Steward Walker

Let’s talk about trolls.

Tolkien fanned the array of humanity’s primal aspects across his peoples; the creative gods, the poetic Elves, the industrious Dwarves, the equivocal humans, the folksy Hobbits. But he also overlaid the array of our inhumanity across his villains: the despotic conquerors, the insane leaders, the kapo traitors, the covetous dragons, the violent orcs, the stupid trolls.

Trolls were created by the Lucifers of the story, Morgoth and his successor Sauron. They are soulless, cruel, and stupid. Drones for the evil mighty, shock troops for violence, thugs without redemption. They are the demonic in the selfish actions of humanity. They meet compassion with foolish hate, torment the decent, and toil for their manipulators.

This is why online thugs are called ‘trolls’. When a kneejerk troll bashes on "The Lord Of The Rings", actual fans must burst out laughing from the irony.

"War" (1929), Otto Dix

Cinema has always taken its visual vocabulary from the arts and photography. The Elves are lyrical art nouveau, the Harfoots are vivid impressionism, Numenor is pre-Raphaelite soft-lit majesty.

Orc carnage is brusk expressionism with its burnt ruins, slavery-hewn trenches, and strewn corpses. Scars, lashes, shards.

IVAN’S CHILDHOOD (1962),
directed by Andrei Tarkovsky

Cinema also reflects the visual vocabulary of itself. Imagery may have become commonplace, but iconic imagery never loses its power or meaning. In repeating an approach, success comes from bringing something more to the idea, a new feeling, another way of seeing, an unexpected meaning.

“Dreaming; or, October" (1928), Maxfield Parrish

Parrish’s paintings were called Neo-Classical, for using classical subject matter in a modern light. His work seems composed of light itself, with carefully layered vibrant glazes that evoke the sun gleaming through stained glass. The balance between open space and solid figures feels as poignant as a parable.

The mythical dryads (wood-elves) were intwined with trees. Tolkien’s elves are balanced between nature and eternity.

"Daybreak" (1922), Maxfield Parrish

Much of the palpable feeling of reality in 'The Rings Of Power' comes from it being literal instead of digital. Practical sets were built on an expansive scale for nearly every sequence, or shot in panoramic locations with elaborate sets laced into them. From the fully functional Numinor sea port to the entire Southlands village to the grand terrace of Lindon with the White Tree, Tolkien's world lives in actuality.

Obviously, this has been standard practice in screencraft, but not on this scale: because of its seemingly limitless budget and the pedigree it has to match, the series has done so tenfold. It's seen and felt in every frame, not simply heightened spectacle but peerless craft. Nothing seems partial, looks backlot, feels synthetic. Like Tolkien's lands, every little and large thing seems sculpted, carved, scribed, embroidered, smelted, hammered, brewed, hoisted, or seeded by artisans' hands. A world, built.


The series’ boldest strength comes from taking us where we haven’t been before, and doing what many had always wished could be done.


Back to CHAPTER LIST ▲

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4

L E G E N D A R I U M

“I call on you to finish the task undone.”
-Galadriel


Be bold, explore, grow.

Every time Tolkien’s works have been announced for adaptation, fans have been wary. ‘The work’s too complex,’ yelled some naysayers from the back, ‘and the screen’s too limited!’ Each screen version made, even when mostly lauded, was met with some quibbles from the loud crowd. The animated TV special 'The Hobbit' [1977] was pelted with cries of ‘Too many songs!’ The animated film THE LORD OF THE RINGS [1979] with ‘Where’s the other half?’ The animated TV special 'The Return Of The King' [1980] with ‘Songs again?’ A more grateful response would have been to appreciate that the four books were adapted at all, and so well.

Even Peter Jackson’s brilliant and universally acclaimed live-action THE FELLOWSHIP OF THE RING [2001] got ‘Where’s Tom Bombadil?’ from gripers. The answer is, the side guy wasn’t relevant enough to the main story. Jackson had a time factor of three hours, and he solved it by making visual poems of the text, a supercut of every dynamic moment and resonant line flowing clear and beautifully to fruition. Most everyone loved the film trilogy, and even more with the longer Director’s Cuts. Still, his later HOBBIT trilogy got catcalls of ‘Too many songs! Too hyper-sharp! No girls allowed!’ (Note the quick slide from quibbling into bias.) On the real side, the prequel film trilogy expanded Tolkien’s world in new ways that were only beneficial.

Jackson didn't just do what should be done, but what else could, advancing branches for new expressions.

“In the end, this shadow is but a small and passing thing. There is light and high beauty forever beyond its reach.” -Bronwyn

'The Lord Of The Rings: The Rings Of Power' has clearly learned all of the right moves from Jackson’s films: honor the text, respect the audience, positive core, focused pace, balanced emotional tones, go Shakespearian, base it in realism, exquisite craft, heartrending score, breathtaking cinematography. Most importantly, they’ve also taken his cue to expand the material for the potential, the medium, and the times.

Crucially, they’re able to do what he didn't have the luxury of, to expand time literally. With a general episode span of 70 minutes, they have breathing room for more scenes with greater depth. Concerns about pace evaporate next to the subtlety and intricacy that has been gained in the new medium.

Tolkien’ book and Jackson’s films are beloved globally for decades. Across all that time come fans from all places and perspectives. The new series is canny to represent not only the fuller range of humanity in its cast, but the full range of fans who now see themselves reflected in the creative world they love. They now have avatars to participate in a shared epic with an ethical heart. (And the only voices who could hate that can’t be counted as actual fans. Tolkien wouldn’t.)

“Hope is never mere… even when it is meager. When all other senses sleep, the eye of hope is first to waken, last to shut.”
- High King Gil-galad

The books were always political at their base, written by a war survivor who was processing his trauma through allegories. Even the gentler prelude, "The Hobbit", culminates in the Battle Of The Five Armies. In truth, Tolkien's work is more akin to Remarque's "All Quiet On The Western Front" (1929) and Kubrick's PATHS OF GLORY (1957) than to the Narnia books by his friend and parallel, C.S. Lewis. True to form, the series bears the torch for the professor’s timeless concerns: oppose dictators, rout the corrupt, beware nationalism and separatists, stir from complacency, unite in solidarity, defeat the thug, protect the natural world, enjoy life. This must always be said and clearly.

'The Lord Of The Rings: The Rings Of Power' has met all expectations and then exceeded them. It succeeds because of the hard work and dedication of its creators, diverse talents unified by a noble vision.:
Writers J.D. Payne and Patrick McKay, Gennifer Hutchinson, Jason Cahill, Justin Doble, Stephany Folsom, and Nicholas Adams; costume designer Kate Hawley; cinematographers Oscar Faura, Aaron Morton, and Alex Disenhof; concept artists John Howe and Alan Leed; Weta’s special effects; composer Bear McCreary; editors Bernat Vilaplana, Jaume Martí, Stefan Grube, Cheryl Potter, and Jochen FitzHerbert; and directors J.A. Bayona, Wayne Che Yip, and Charlotte Brändström.

In reflecting on Tolkien and Jackson’s approaches, their success comes from bringing more potential to the ideas, a new context, another way of showing, an unexpected liberation.

Embrace a fuller world.

Back to CHAPTER LIST ▲

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See also:
THE FELLOWSHIP OF THE RING (2001)
THE TWO TOWERS (2002)
THE RETURN OF THE KING (2003).

TOLKIEN (2019)


✶ This article advocates a production
created by Amazon Studios,
but does not support the parent company
Amazon’s business practices.

© Tym Stevens

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M I R A C L E M A N

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Graphic by Tym Stevens

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B E S T
C O M I C S :
2 0 2 2

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I M A G E

• Saga,
by Brian K. Vaughan and Fiona Staples _______ ⇧
The best returns.

"Saga" is the universally acclaimed Space Fantasy that challenges the conventions of both forms, with maturity and wit. After a three-and-a-half year break, it soars again. Fans of STAR WARS, adult Fantasy, 'Black Mirror', and surrealism should get on board.

• Kaya,
by Wes Craig _______ ⇧
There may never have been a better time to be a Fantasy fan, with fresh takes now in all creative media. Like those, this fun series benefits from all the deconstruction, inclusion, wider mythos, and genre-bending which are enriching the field.

• Monstress,
by Marjorie Liu and Sana Takeda _______ ⇧
The bestselling author and the Goth Nouveau Manga artist continue to spellbind us with their complex Fantasy epic.

• Public Domain, (Image)
by Chip Zdarsky _______ ⇧
Chip Zdarsky has a fine track record, from his art on the satiric indie "Sex Criminals", to writing "Howard The Duck", "Daredevil", and "Batman" for the 2 majors.

Typically perversely, this 5-issue series takes on the hypocrisy and greed of the comics industry, a fun place to visit but a hard place to live from. It follows a fictional analogue to every creator ever screwed over by the machine,* and his family's attempts to rectify compensation and credit. Ultimately, comics are made by creators -not lawyers, accountants, or corporations- and we should remember and honor this above all.

*(see also: Siegel and Shuster; Bill Finger; Jack Kirby; Steve Gerber; Mike Ploog; Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons; Prince; ...)


• Adventureman,
by Matt Fraction and Terry Dodson _______ ⇧
More than an homage to Pulp era adventurers, this smart series updates and inverts those classic codes for the 21st century.

• The Six Sidekicks Of Trigger Keaton,
by Kyle Starks and Chris Schweizer _______
An acidic spoof of mysteries and films, where a pompous and loathed action movie star is murdered and everybody could be guilty.

• 20th Century Man,
by Deniz Camp and S. Morian _______
A political satire that roasts supersoldiers, machoism, the Cold War, and many of the expectations that go with them.

• Eight Billion Genies,
by Charles Soul and Ryan Browne _______ ⇩
Every person gets a genie and one wish. Things go ballistic, and that's for starters.

• Astro City: That Was Then,
by Kurt Busiek and Brent Anderson _______ (Special) ⇧
Before "Top 10", "Umbrella Academy", and "Black Hammer", there was "Astro City" (1995).

Picking up the pen from Alan Moore, Kurt Busiek ("Marvels") literally wrote the book on deconstructing the Silver Age, and this special issue warms things up for the new story arc to come.

• Bolero,
by Wyatt Kennedy and Luana Vecchio _______ ⇧
This 5-issue mini series will please fans of EVERYTHING EVERYWHERE ALL AT ONCE and Marvel's "What If?" show, with a young woman touring all her multiversal selves.

• Department Of Truth,
by James Tynion IV and Alison Sampson _______ ⇧
The adult conspiracy thriller reached its conclusion with issue #22.

Cover art by Alex Ross

Facsimile editions:

Image Comics reprinted first issue facsimiles for $1 each!

• Astro City #1 (1995),
by Kurt Busiek and Brent Anderson _______ ⇧
The Silver Age, postmodernized.

• Little Bird #1 (2019),
by Darcy Van Poelgeest and Ian Bertram _______
An edgy and symbolist Fantasy that ran as an acclaimed mini-series.

• Department Of Truth #1 (2020),
by James Tynion IV and Alison Sampson _______
The beginning of the uncovering.

---

M A R V E L

Cover art by Mark Buckingham

• Miracleman: The Silver Age,
by Neil Gaiman and Mark Buckingham _______ ⇧
Cross your fingers. We might actually get the future this time.

The semi-short version: Alan Moore created postmodern, adult superheroes with the British hero, "Marvelman" (1982); in the USA, this climaxed in the unmatchable 'Book 3' of the renamed "Miracleman" (1988); Moore's chosen successor, Neil Gaiman, got halfway through his intended three follow-up arcs, when the publisher went bankrupt (1993); after decades of legal wrangling, Marvel is letting Gaiman finish. This second arc of the three, with entirely revamped art by Buckingham, is at last in your grasp.

Don't miss out this time. Miracles don't happen every day.




• Black Panther,
by John Ridley and Juan Cabal _______
Taking over from bestselling author Ta-Nehisi Coates, film director John Ridley (12 YEARS A SLAVE) rethinks Wakanda.

• Shang Chi,
by Gene Luen Yang and Marcus To _______ ⇩
Gene Luen Yang, creator of the "American Born Chinese" (2006) graphic novel, brings new cultural and mythological perspective to this reboot of the philosophical martial arts master.

• Captain Carter,
by Jamie McKelvie and Marika Cresta _______ ⇩
The animated series "What If?" imagined an alternate outcome where Peggy Carter became Captain America. Now this inspired hero has become canon, in a certain live-action film and here in this 5-issue mini-series.

• Captain Marvel,
by Kelly Thompson and Sergio Davila + _______
All the success of Carol Danvers, from page to screen, comes from the work of writer Kelly Thompson, who has defined and guided her evolution since the beginning.

• Daredevil,
by Chip Zdarsky and Marco Checchetto _______
"Daredevil" is having another golden run, thanks to writer Chip Zdarsky (who is simultaneously writing his DC rival, "Batman"!).

• Daredevil, Woman Without Fear,
by Chip Zdarsky and Rafael De Latorre _______ ⇧
The most inspired event in "Daredevil" since Elektra... is Elektra becoming Daredevil. Oh, you better run.

• Spider-Gwen Gwenverse,
by Tim Seeley and Jodi Nishijima _______ ⇧
Why should Peter and Miles get all the fun? Gwen Stacy finds out that her multiversal selves also became each of The Avengers.

• Spider-Punk,
by Cody Ziglar, Justin Mason, Jim Charalampidis, and Travis Lanham _______
"Kick out the jams, $&%$&!" The alternate universe Spidey, Hobart Brown, fights fascism with his punk rock friends, Riotheart, Captain Anarchy, Ms. Marvel, and more.


_______________
S T A R
W A R S

Cover art by Paulina Ganucheau

Marvel is doing a splendid job making movies between the movies.


• Star Wars, Vol. 2
by Charles Soule, and Marco Castiello, Guiseppe Camuncoli, Andres Genolet, and Ramon Rosanas _______ ⇧
For 75 issues, Volume I of this series did excellent arcs filling in the mysteries between A NEW HOPE and THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK.
Now it has relaunched from #1, unveiling dream movies between THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK and RETURN OF THE JEDI.

• Darth Vader, Vol. 2
by Greg Pak and Raffaele Ienco, Marco Castiello, Luke Ross _______
In complete parallel with these new stories of the rebels is a relaunch telling the Dark Lord's side of the same events, and how they overlap.

• Doctor Aphra, Vol. 2
by Alyssa Wong and Minkyu Jung, _______ ⇧
The misadventures of everyone's favorite anti-Indiana Jones (a fan-favorite spin-off from the "Darth Vader" series above) continue during the period between A NEW HOPE and THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK.

---

D C

Forget the corporation, support the creators.>

"Human Target" art by Greg Smallwood

• DC PRIDE 2022,
by Multiple Creators _______ ⇩
A 100-page anthology Special clebrating the range of LGBTQ+ heroes, including Superman/Jon, Batwoman, Nubia, Green Lantern/Jo, Robin/Tim, Aquaman/Jackson, and more.

• The Swamp Thing,
by Ram V, Mike Perkins, and Aditya Bidikar _______ ⇩
Ram V's extolled run about a new earth elemental comes to conclusion with #16.

• The Human Target,
by Tom King and Greg Smallwood _______ ⇧
Christopher Chance poses as a hit to lure out assassins. King's writing is typically sharp, and Smallwood's art -all pencil lines and pop graphics- is an innovative masterclass.

• Aquaman: Andromeda,
by Ram V and Christian Ward _______
A 3-issue mini-series by the ubiquitary Ram V, a light gloss on THE ABYSS or "Wake", with brain-bending psychedelic underwater art by Christian Ward ("Ody-C").

• Catwoman: Lonely City,
by Cliff Chiang _______
Cliff Chiang (artist of "Wonder Woman", "Paper Girls") brings the full package -writing, illustrating, coloring, and lettering- to an elseworlds epic which reimagines Frank Miller's Batman sagas into a whole new conclusion. Excellent.

• Supergirl: Woman Of Tomorrow,
by Tom King and Bilquis Evely _______
Tom King ("The Vision", "Mister Miracle") applies his trademark sardonic acuity to rethinking Kara, in a cosmic verison of TRUE GRIT that changes the journiers.
(This series will be adapted as a DCU feature film.)

• New Champion Of Shazam!,
by Josie Campbell and Evan 'Doc' Shaner _______ ⇧
A while back, Cap. Jr took over the mantle of the original Captain Marvel. Now, at last, it is the wonderful Mary Marvel's turn in the sun. (Except that, sigh, we can't use their real names anymore.) A crackling story by Campbell, with lovely naturalistic/clean-line art by Shaner.

• Nubia, Queen Of The Amazons,
by Stephanie Williams (w), and Alitha Martinez and Mark Morales (a) _______
Now successor for Queen Hippolyta, Nubia stars in her third mini-series in a year. All hail!

Facsimile Editions:

DC reprinted facsimile editions of classic comics issues, many related to current screen and comics events.

• Action Comics #1 (1938),
by Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster _______ ⇧
The ultimate classic comic of all, the debut of Superman, with all 64 pages of the anthology comic's stories.

• Detective Comics #27 (1939),
by Bob Kane and Bill Finger + _______
The other ultimate classic comic of all, the debut of Batman, with all 64 pages of the anthology comic's stories.

• Superman #1 (1939),
by Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster _______
And then of course the One himself, stepping into his own.

• Marvel Family Comics #1 (1945),
by Otto Binder and C.C. Beck _______ ⇧
The debut of the original Captain Marvel's family comic, featuring the debut of Black Adam.


• The Brave And The Bold #28 (1960),
by Gardner Fox (w), and Mike Sekowsky and Bernard Sachs (a) _______
The anthology comic featured the debut of the Justice League of America, a smash success that ensured their own title.

• The Flash #123 (1961),
by Gardner Fox (w), and Carmine Infantino and Joe Giella (a) _______ ⇧
DC invented the Multiverse, and defined it for decades, long before Marvel, SPIDERVERSE, EVERYTHING EVERYWHERE ALL AT ONCE, etc.

It begins here, where "Flash of Two Worlds" reveals the parallel Earth-2.

• Wonder Woman #204 (1973),
by Robert Kanigher (w) and Don Heck and Dick Giordano (a) _______ ⇧
The debut of Nubia, fraternal sister of Wonder Woman and future Queen.

---

D A R K
H O R S E

• Black Hammer Reborn,
by Jeff Lemire and Rich Tommaso (w), and Malachi Ward (a) _______ ⇩
Lemire's ongoing "Black Hammer" series deconstucts the Silver Age; this is the wind-up of the latest 12-issue spin-off series.



Karen Berger
----- Berger Books -----
Karen Berger helmed the original Vertigo Comics, the standard which all current Indie companies are imitating, and now she has her own imprint of creator-owned titles.

• Shifting Earth,
by Cecil Castellucci and Flavia Biondi _______ ⇩
Two women from parallel earths compare lost chances and make hard choices.

• Salamandre,
by I.N.J. Culbard _______
Writer/artist Culbard (co-creator of Berger Books' “Everything”) pits art revolutionaries against an oppressive regime, in clean-line style.

---

I D W

P H O T O

• Star Trek: Lower Decks,
by Ryan North and Chris Fenoglio _______
As if the 'Lower Decks' animated series wasn't funny enough, the notoriously loopy Ryan North ("Squirrel Girl") grabs the controls.

Black Hammer Reborn; Shifting Earth;
All New Firefly; Hecate's Will

---

B O O M

P H O T O

• All New Firefly,
by David M. Bocher and Jordi Perez _______ ⇧
A new team helmed a relaunch of 10 issues expanding on the cult TV series, reaching fruition with the “All New Firefly Big Damn Finale” special.

---

A H O Y

• Billionaire Island: Cult Of Dogs,
by Mark Russell and Steve Pugh _______
Mark Russell may be comics' most subversive and funniet satirist. This sequel series of three issues continues his smiling assualt on the rich, the bullying, and the stupid.
(see also: TRIANGLE OF SADNESS)

• My Bad,
by Mark Russell and Bryce Ingman _______
Everyone's rethinking the Silver Age, so why not Russell? A Special before a purported new line of hero comics.

---

B L A C K
M A S K

• Hecate’s Will,
by Iolanda Zandfardino _______ ⇧
Following last year's "Alice In Leatherland", Zandfardino's new tale examines the pressures on a retiring Graffiti artist, whose coded murals set off a scavernger hunt sensation across NYC.


Back to CHAPTER LIST ▲

---

---

---

★
A L L - A G E S
C O M I C S :
2 0 2 2

"Hey, Kids! Comics!"
From the '30s to the '80s, comics unified all of the kids in the world.

Comics spinner racks were omnipresent in every grocery, newstand, and drugstore, a world of dreams in color for small change. But after 50 years, this changed.

As the fans grew older, comics grew more mature (and gradually more expensive). In the early-'80s, comics disappeared from common spaces to be sold only in individual comic stores. This was the best and worst thing that could have happened: the select stores became a lab for the medium to grow up with adult fans, but this Comics Renaissance left all the kids behind with no entry point. Now that three decades have passed, the young have moved on to games and streaming, seeing superheroes nowadays only in films that are meant for those longtime adult readers.

Roy Thomas once said, "The Golden Age of Comics is 8."

Comics should still be a fun spark for kids. Now, with the spectacular success of Raina Telgemeier's books, various publishers are finally figuring this out. A wide movement to provide more All-Ages comics has risen. From single comics to trade paperbacks, there are many new entry points for young readers to join in and open up their imaginations.

E a r l y  R e a d e r s :
5 - 7

★ G R A P H I C
N O V E L S : 5 - 7 ★

R A N D O M
H O U S E

The publishing giant partnered with DC Comics for the Step Into Reading series, with entry level books for new readers.

• DC Super Friends: We Are Heroes!,
by Christy Webster (w), and Fabio Laguna and Marco Lesko (a) _______

• DC Super Friends: Super-Pets!,
by Billy Wreck and Ethen Beavers _______ ⇩

• DC Super Hero Valentine’s Day!,
by Kurt Estes and Red Central LTD _______


• Star Knights, (Random House Graphic)
by Kay Davault _______ ⇩
A frog longs to be a knight and goes on a heroic adventure with new friends.

A B R A M S /
A P P L E S E E D

Abrams publishes entry level books about Marvel Comics heroes for starting readers.

• Black Panther: A My Mighty Marvel First Book,
by John Buscema _______
An overview of the hero, using classic comics art.

• Captain Marvel: A My Mighty Marvel First Book,
by Jim Mooney, John Buscema, Dave Cockrum, Keith Pollard and Carmine Infantino _______ ⇧
An overview of the hero, using classic comics art.

• Mighty Thor: A My Mighty Marvel First Book,
by Jack Kirby _______
An overview of the hero, using classic comics art.



S T O N E
A R C H
B O O K S

Stone Arch is partnering with DC Comics to create "BATMAN and Scooby-Doo" mystery books for young readers.

• Batman And Scooby-Doo Mysteries:
The Cruise Of Doom,
by Michael Anthony Steele and Dario Brizuela _______ ⇧
In 1972, Batman and Robin made a surprise appearance on the Saturday morning cartoon show, ’Scooby-Doo’. This was so iconic that it has become a recurring match-up in comics and cartoons ever since.

• Batman And Scooby-Doo Mysteries:
The Frenzied Feline Mystery,
by Michael Anthony Steele and Dario Brizuela _______

• Batman And Scooby-Doo Mysteries:
The Curse Of Creepy Crypt,
by Michael Anthony Steele and Dario Brizuela _______

• Batman And Scooby-Doo Mysteries:
Trapped In Clown Castle,
by Michael Anthony Steele and Dario Brizuela _______



Other
Publishers:

• Black Panther: Shuri Is Brave, (Golden Books)
by Frank Berrios _______ ⇧
A Little Golden Book starring the smart scientist who became the new Black Panther in the films.

• Black Panther: Shuri, Defender Of Wakanda, (DK Reader)
by Pamela Afram _______ ⇧
Part of DK Publishing’s “Learn To Read” series, starring Shuri.



• Two-Headed Chicken, (Waller Books)
by Tom Angleberger _______
A funny story of a two-headed chicken outwitting a chasing moose.

• Sir Ladybug #2, #3, (Balzer+Bray/ HarperCollins)
by Corey R. Tabor _______ ⇩
The brave ladybug knight and his friends go on adventures.

• Sparks! The Future Purrfect #3, (Scholastic Graphix)
by Ian Boothby and Nina Matsumoto _______
The two cats operating a dog-disguise vehicle explore the mysterious island.

• InvestiGators: Heist And Seek, (First Second)
by John Patrick Green _______ ⇩
The two alligators in a giant robot headquarters solve crimes.

• Fitz And Cleo Get Creative, (Henry Holt And Co.)
by Jonathan Stutzman and Heather Fox _______ ⇧
Two ghost siblings live it up in twelve funny stories.

• Red Panda and Moon Bear (Book Two):
The Curse Of The Evil Eye, (Top Shelf)
by Jarod Rosello _______
The Cuban-American siblings solve mysteries, stop monsters, and have fun with friends.

• Max And The MidKnights:
The Tower Of Time, (Crown Books)
by Lincoln C. Peirce _______ ⇧
Will Max become a knight like she dreams? These books will become a Nickelodeon cartoon series in 2023.

• Poiko:
Quests And Stuff, (Wonderbound)
by Brian Middleton _______
Furry Poiko is a courier who makes wild deliveries to far-out creatures.

Back to CHAPTER LIST ▲

Y o u n g  R e a d e r s :
7 - 12

★ C O M I C S : ★

O N I

Oni prints traditional monthly comics for middle school readers.

• Action Journalism,
by Eric Skillman (w), and Miklos Felvideki and Ramon K. Perez (a) _______ ⇧
Kate the reporter uncovers whacky happenings with invading aliens, floating scientists, fantasy kingdoms, and more.

• Another Castle,
by Andrew Wheeler and Paulina Ganucheau _______ ⇧
Princess Misty decides to make her own station and fate in her adventures.

• Jonna And The Unstoppable Monsters,
by Chris Samnee and Laura Samnee (w) and Chris Samnee (a) _______
A Fantasy adventure with two young sisters searching for their dad while outwitting the monsters.

★ G R A P H I C
N O V E L S ★

P E A N U T S

The classic paperback reprints of “Peanuts” comic strips are being reprinted themselves.

• It’s A Dog’s Life, Charlie Brown, (Titan Comics)
by Charles Schulz _______ ⇧
This 6x9 paperback collects timeless strips from 1960-’62.

• Snoopy Cannonball, (Andrews McMeel)
by Charles Schulz _______ ⇧
Snoopy swims, plays sports, writes!

• Peanuts: The Classic Peanuts Collection Box Set, (Titan Comics)
by Charles Schulz _______
This box set includes the books “Peanuts”, “More Peanuts”, and “Good Ol’ Charlie Brown”.



S C H O L A S T I C

• Squidding Around, (Scholastic Graphix)
by Kevin Sherry _______
Can the funny squid Squizzard win the school prank contest?

• Leon The Extraordinary: A Graphic Novel [Leon #1], (Scholastic Graphix)
by Jamar Nicholas _______ ⇧
In Leon's city, everyone is a superhero but him. When they are turned into zombies, Leon uses his science smarts to save the day.

• Spider-Ham: Hollywood May-Ham, (Scholastic)
by Steve Foxe and Shadia Amin _______
Peter Porker, the amazing Spider-Pig, gets whiff of a movie studio mystery.

• Marvel-Verse: Moon Girl, (Marvel)
by Brandon Montclare (w) and Gustavo Duarte (a) + _______ ⇧
The science girl and her companion dinosaur come to the rescue.


R A N D O M  H O U S E

• Encanto: The Graphic Novel, (Random House Disney)
_______
The loved animated musical is told with film stills in comics style.

• Maybe An Artist: A Graphic Memoir, (Random House Studio)
by Liz Montague _______
Liz became a New Yorker cartoonist at 22. Here, her story could become yours.


Random House also publishs Screen Comix, books which combine film stills with word balloons to make comic adaptations of entire films. (8-12)

• Star Wars: The Mandalorian, The Rescue
_______
The second book based on the popular Disney+ TV series.



F L Y I N G
E Y E
B O O K S

• Hilda:
The Trolberg Stories,
by Luke Pearson ____ ⇧
In synch with the hit Netflix cartoon adaption, a reprint of the HILDA books, "Hilda And The Bird Parade!" and "Hilda And The Black Hound!", in one volume.


A M P  C O M I C S

• Big Nate: Beware Of The Low-Flying Corn Muffins,
by Lincoln Pierce _______ ⇧

The goofy troublemaker is the star of ongoing books and an animated series on Paramount+ and Nickelodeon.

• Big Nate: Destined For Awesomeness,
by Lincoln Pierce _______

• Big Nate: Release The Hounds,
by Lincoln Pierce _______


N O B R O W

• The Adventures of Team Pom #2: The Last Dodo, (Nobrow Press)
by Isabel Roxas _______
The sleuth kids inspect the mystery at the Natural History Museum.

• Skip, (Nobrow)
by Molly Mendoza _______
Bloom and Gloopy travel dimensions, dicovering that there's no place like home.


F I R S T  S E C O N D

• The Fifth Quarter: Hard Court, (First Second)
by Mike Dawson _______ ⇩
In the second book, the basketball player faces change at school and in her home life.

• Nico Brazo And The Trial Of Vulcan, (First Second)
by Mike Cavallaro _______ ⇩
In his third book, Nico and friends brave another adventure.

Other Publishers:

• Peach And The Isle Of Monsters, (Action Lab)
by Franco and Agnes Garbowska _______ ⇧
A young girl seeks to prove herself braving an island of monsters, pirates, and witches.

• The Tale Of Princess Kaguya, (Viz Media)
by Isao Takahata _______ ⇧
The classic Studio Ghibli animated film (2013), with its traditional brush paintings, is reproduced as a comics tale.

• A Day In The Life Of A Caveman, A Queen, And Everything In Between: History As You’ve Never Seen It Before, (Buster Books)
by Mike Barfield and Jess Bradley _______
A funny trip through history in breezy terms.

Back to CHAPTER LIST ▲

Y o u n g  A d u l t :
13 - 18

D C
YOUNG ADULT

DC has a pocket-book sized line called DC Graphic Novels for Young Adults.

• Galaxy: The Prettiest Star, (DC)
by Jadzia Axelrod and Jess Taylor _______ ⇩
The Galactic princess is in hiding as a boy on Earth, but her new friend gives her the courage to come out.

• Teen Titans Go! / DC Super Hero Girls Exchange Students (DC),
by Amy Wolfram and Agnes Gargowska _______
The two cartoon series from alternate universes meet.

• My Buddy Killer Croc, (DC)
by Sara Farizan and Nicoletta Baldari _______
Andy knows he could do well at his new school, if he could get advice from the notorious wrestler, Batman's foe.

• Mister Miracle: The Great Escape, (DC)
by Varian Johnson and Daniel Isles _______ ⇩
Young Scott Free, aspiring escape artist, falls for the girl sent to catch him, Big Barda.

• Zatanna: The Jewel of Gravesend, (DC)
by Alys Arden _______
The mystic working at the Coney Island boardwalk has a greater magic legacy than she knows.

S C H O L A S T I C

Scholastic has partnered with Marvel Comics to create Young Adult books as entry points for some of their young modern heroes.

• Miles Morales: Stranger Tides,
by Justin A. Reynolds and Pablo Leon _______ ⇧
Spider-Man is at a popular video game launch, when everyone gets frozen by a supervillain.

• Into The Heartlands: A Black Panther Graphic Novel,
by Roseanne A. Brown (w), and Dika Araújo, Natacha Bustos, Claudia Aguirre, and Geoffo (a) _______
Shuri is feuding with her annoying brother T'challa, but can they work together to save the kingdom from a spreading curse?

• Shuri: Symbiosis, (Scholastic Press)
by Nic Stone and Eric Wilkerson _______
The third prose novel from YA author Nic Stone, following the previous, “Shuri” (2020) and “Shuri: The Vanished” (2021).


• The Aquanaut, (Scholastic Press)
by Dan Santat _______
The young girl working at a marine park teams up with a diving suit full of fish to plumb the mystery.

• Heartstopper: Volume Four, Scholastic Graphix)
by Alice Oseman _______ ⇧
The celebrated teen love webcomic, turned graphic novel, turned popular Netflix TV series.

• Baby-Sitters Club #11, #12, (Scholastic Press)
by Ann M. Martin and Chan Chau _______
The ongoing adventures of the circle of small-town friends.

RAINA TELGEMEIER

The popular Raina Telgemeier’s books have some new printings from Scholastic.

• Sisters, (2014)
by Raina Telgemeier _______ ⇧
Two young sisters have to learn to live together, and then with their baby brother.

• Ghosts, (2016)
by Raina Telgemeier _______ ⇧
Two young sisters brave the haunts of a California coastal town.


F I R S T
S E C O N D

• Shuna’s Journey, (First Second,
by Hayao Miyazaki _______
A translated reprint of a manga story by Miyazaki, known as the leader of the Studio Ghibli animation studio.

• Ride On, (First Second)
by Faith Erin Hicks _______ ⇩
Well known for her crafty YA Fantasy books, Hicks comes closer to home; an early teen girl weaves around rivalties at a horse-training stable.

• Button Pusher, (First Second)
by Tyler Page _______
Page's memoir reveals his rambuncious youth, and how he came to grips with a diagnosis of ADHD.

• Science Comics: Birds Of Prey, (First Second)
by Joe Flood _______ ⇩
This volume of the ongoing Science Comics stands out with its fleet history facts and striking art.

• History Comics: Rosa Parks and Claudette Colvin, (First Second)
by Tracey Baptiste and Shauna Grant _______ ⇩
The two heroes of the Civil Rights Movement, a woman and a teen, who took a stand that lifted everyone up.

• History Comics: The Stonewall Riots, (First Second)
by Archie Bongiovanni and A. Andrews _______
The rise of the Gay Liberation movement, which called on the world to be honest and fair.

LITTLE
B R O W N
and C o .
• Anne Of West Philly, (Little Brown And Co.)
by Ivy Noelle Weir and Myisha Haynes _______
A reimagining of “Anne Of Green Gables” in modern urban Philadelphia.

• Numb To This: Memoir Of A Mass Shooting, (Little Brown And Co.)
by Kindra Neely _______ ⇧
Kindra Neely survived a real mass school shooting in 2015. Here, she processes that trauma in a story that everyone can learn from.


Q U I L L
T R E E
B O O K S

• Speak Up!, (Quill Tree Books)
by Rebecca Burgess _______ ⇩
The autistic girl and her unbridled friend become a online music sensation under a pseudonym.

• Wingbearer, (Quill Tree Books)
by Marjorie Liu and Teny Issakhanian _______ ⇩
Bestselling Fantasy author Marjorie Liu pens a YA tale of a young girl and her owl companion on a magical quest.

• Squire, (Quill Tree Books)
by Sara Alfageeh _______
The young girl from the lower classes tricks her way into the Knight school, but now has to figure out what the right cause is.

H A R P E R  A L L E Y

• Girl On Fire, (HarperAlley)
by Alicia Keys with Andrew Weiner (w), Brittney Williams (a) _______ ⇧
Famed pop star Alicia Keys co-creates a Metropolitan parable of a young telekenetic girl figuring how to protect her community from bad forces.

• Swan Lake: Search For The Kingdoms, (HarperAlley)
by Rey Terciero and Megan Kearney _______ ⇧
Two rival princesses become unlikely friends and face off threats to both kingdoms.


S P A R K N O T E S

The “No Fear Shakespeare” series matches the Bard’s words to comics panels (ages 12-15).

➤ SparkNotes site



Other Publishers:

• Star Wars Adventures: The Weapon Of A Jedi, (IDW)
by Alex Worley and Ruairi Coleman _______
A tale of responsibility and compassion about Luke Skywalker, with connections to Rey in the future.


• The Subtle Knife: The Graphic Novel [His Dark Materials #2], (Knopf Books)
by Stephane Melchior and Thomas Gilbert _______
The second book of Pullman's 'His Dark Materials' trilogy is adapted as a graphic novel.

• Phenomena: The Golden City Of Eyes, (Abrams Comics Arts)
by Brian Michael Bendis and Andrew Lima Araujo _______ ⇩
Bendis, an influential comics writer, stretches into new Fantasy territory with impressive Moebius-esque art by Araujo.

• Tristan Strong Punches A Hole In The Sky, (Rick Riordan Presents)
by Robert Venditti and Olivia Stephens _______
Kwame Mbalia's book, part of Rick Riordan's (the 'Percy Jackson' books) publishing imprint for diverse Fantasy authors, is adapted to comics.

• Breath Of The Giant, (Fairsquare Comics)
by Tom Aurielle _______
Two sisters journey to the land of giants looking for the power of life resurrection.

• 5 Worlds, Book 5: The Emerald Gate, (Random House)
by Mark Siegel and Alexis Siegel (w), and Xantha Bouma, Matt Rockefeller, and Boya Sun (a) _______
The finale of the SF/Fantasy, with five friends seeking the beacon that saves their worlds.


• Nowhere Girl, (Nobrow Press)
by Magali Le Huche _______ ⇧
A Parisian tween deals with the setbacks in her life by listening to The Beatles.

• My Aunt Is A Monster, (Image)
by Reimena Yee _______
A sightless girl longing for adventure is opened to wider dimensions by her Aunt Whimsy.

• All My Friends, (Farrar, Straus, And Giroux)
by Hope Larson _______ ⇧
Larson rounds out her middle-school books "All Summer Long" and "All Together Now" with this upbeat finale.


• Arden High, (Disney/Hyperion)
by Molly Booth and Stephanie Kate Strohm _______
Vi loves Orsino who loves Olivia who loves Vi. Love is love.

• Isla To Island, (Simon And Shuster)
by Alexis Castellanos _______ ⇧
Marisol escapes danger in Cuba moving to Brooklyn, but can she escape culture shock and loneliness?

• Flavor Girls #1, #2, #3, (Boom)
by Loic Locatelli-Kournwsky _______
The author of "Persphone" chronicles a Magic Girl group adventure across 3 comics issues at 56 pages each.


• Sophie’s World:
A Graphic Novel About The History Of Philosophy, Vol.1:
From Socrates To Galileo, (SelfMadehero)
by Vincent Zabus and Nicoby _______ ⇧
This adaptation of Jostein Gaarder's 1991 book follows Sophie in her search for meaning and enlightenment. Feed your head.



Resources:
• Comic Shop Locator
• BookShop.org

• Kidscomics.com
• School Library Journal: Good Comics For Kids
• 50 Best Comics + Graphic Novels For Kids
• The Big Blog Of Kids' Comics!
• European Comics For Children
• 13 Great Webcomics For Kids and Teens

Back to CHAPTER LIST ▲

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B E S T
G R A P H I C
N O V E L S :
2 0 2 2

• Fantastic Four: Full Circle, (Marvel/Abrams Books),
by Alex Ross _______ ⇧
Lee and Kirby's "Fantastic Four" remapped the scope of possibility with comics, from the macrocosmic to the microscopic.

Premiere illustrator Alex Ross ("Marvels", "Kingdom Come") reignites the torch, writing and illustrating a lavish expansion on a Lee/Kirby storyline, reminding us where we come from and what more is possible.





• Time Zone, (Drawn And Quarterly)
by Julie Doucet _______
Julie's indie confessional comix in the '90s and '00s were a shocking sensation, but she burned out on the unpaid grind of it all. She returns chronicling a love affair in all its turns.

• A Diary Of A Plague Year:
An Illustrated Chronicle of 2020, (Metropolitan Books)
by Elise Engler _______
Engler had challenged herself to interpret a headline a day in 2020, but then the whole world went insane.

• Unretouchable, (Graphics Universe)
by Sofia Szamosi _______
Working in the fashion industry photoshopping out glamour shot flaws, she realizes that all of the enforced social norms are toxic.

• Iranian Love Stories, (Graphic Mundi)
by ‘Jane Deuxard’ and Deloupy _______ ⇩
Iranian citizens risk their lives revealing their real private liasons to a pseudonymous reporter duo.

• Flung Out In Space:
Inspired By The Indecent Adventures Of Patricia Highsmith, (Surely Books)
by Grace Ellis and Hannah Templer _______
Highsmith is revered now for books adapted into THE TALENTED MR. RIPLEY and CAROL. But this bio reveals how she lived a tortured life hiding her sexuality while doubting her chances at writing success.

• The Third Person, (Drawn And Quarterly)
by Emma Grove _______
Groves' memoir navigates a transition in gender and the compassionate therapy that helped get there.

• Fine: A Comic About Gender, (Liveright Publishing Corporation)
by Rhea Ewing _______ ⇧
In the quest to define their own gender, Ewing interviewed everyone about their gender experiences, creating this holistic overview.

• The Good Asian, (Image)
by Pornsak Pichetshote and Alexandre Tefenkgi _______
A Chinese-American detective in 1936 Chinatown is crosscut by enemies, bias, and doubt.

• Best We Could Do:
An Illustrated Memoir, (Abrams ComicArts)
by Thi Bui _______ ⇧
A second printing of Bui's 2018 memoir, detailing her family's escape from the fall of Saigon, and the trials of adapting to a new life in America.

• Messy Roots: A Graphic memoir Of A Wuhanese-American, (Balzer+Bray)
by Laura Gao _______ ⇧
A comedy, in which a Chinese immigrant teen already reeling from moving to Texas (during Covid, and Wuhan-phobes) is also sorting out her sexuality.


• Mamo, (Boom! Box)
by Sass Milledge _______ ⇩
A fun tale about a succession between witches couches an allegory of reconciling your dreams and your heritage.

• Amazona, (Graphic Universe)
by Canizales _______ ⇩
A political thriller, where a bereaved Columbian activist strives to expose an exploitative mining operation.

• It Won't Always Be Like This, (Ten Speed Press)
by Malaka Gharib _______
The follow-up to “I Was Their American Dream”, where the American teen girl adjusts to her new Egyptian step-family.

• Quaco:
My Life In Slavery, (Book Palace)
by Ineke Mok and Eric Huevel _______
The true story of a captured youth enduring the whole gamut of the slave trade, from Africa to America.

• All Rise:
Resistance And Rebellion In South Africa, (Catalyst Press)
by Richard Conyngham, and Tumi Mambolo (+ 5 more) _______ ⇧
Six stories of average people suffering under Apartheid who each found ways of making a step toward progress and freedom.

• No Surrender, (SelfMadeHero)
by Sophie Rickard and Scarlett Rickard _______
Constance Maud's pivotal 1911 Suffrage book helped propel the revolution, now adapted here as a graphic novel.

• Rosa Parks, (NBM)
by Mariapaola Pesce and Matteo Mancini _______ ⇧
The life of the priceless Civil Rights leader, who questioned a country's soul and conscience.


• Fists Raised:
10 Stories Of Sports Star Activists, (NBM)
by Chloé Célérien and Karim Nedjari _______ ⇧
From Muhammad Ali to Megan Rapinoe, conscious athletes who risked their sports careers to stand up to injustice.

• Smahtguy:
The Life And Times of Barney Frank, (Metropolitan Books)
by Eric Orner _______
The proudly working class Congressor who fought for Gay rights, finance reform, and honesty in government.

• Radical:
My Year With A Socialist Senator, (IDW)
by Sophia Warren _______ ⇩
Illustrated journalism from a year of observing every hope, obstacle, and push by a new state senator to do right by the people.

• Policing The City:
An Ethno-Graphic, (Other Press)
by Didier Fassin and Frederic Debomy _______ ⇧
Didier Fassin's 2006 investigative essay "Enforcing Order", exposing how bigotry and violence are deliberately baked into police units, gets an illustrated and timely adaptation.

• Petrogad, (Oni Press)
by Phil Gelatt and Tyler Cooke _______
A 2011 reissue (by the writer of the film EUROPA REPORT [2013]) susses out the solution to who planned the assassination of Rasputin.

• Putin’s Russia:
The Rise Of A Dictator, (Drawn And Quarterly)
by Darryl Cunningham _______ ⇧
A markedly timely history of the thug and his criminal arc.

• I’m Still Alive, (Archaia Studios)
by Roberto Saviano and Asaf Hanuuka _______ ⇧
Journalist Roberto Saviano exposed the Italian Mafia with his book, “Gomorrah” (2006), and has lived in police protection ever since. Defiant still, he recounts that journey in detail.

• Brave New World, (HarperCollins)
by Aldous Huxley, adapted by Fred Fordham _______ ⇧
Orwell's parable "1984" (1949) predicted humans would undo themselves through oppressive fascism. Huxley's book "Brave New World" (1932) predicted that humans would willingly oppress themselves through comfort and shiny consumerism.
They were both right.

• How To Take Over The World:
Practical Schemes and Scientific Solutions For The Aspiring Supervillain, (Riverhead Books)
by Ryan North _______
The outrageously whacky and smart Ryan North (the computer programmer who wrote the "Squirrel Girl" comics) spoofs supervillain schemes on an epic level, while sneaking in positive solutions for real life.

• The Five Lives Of Hilma af Klint, (David Zwirner Books)
by Julia Voss and Philipp Deines _______ ⇧
Only recently rediscovered, the Swedish artist pioneered abstract painting, overcoming immense hardships in her pursuit.

• Alice Guy, First Lady Of Film, (SelfMadehero)
by Jose-Louis Bocquet _______ ⇧
In the Silent Film era, female directors, writers, and editors were everywhere, but then got pushed out as film studios became money mints.> Alice Guy was the first female director, in 1896, ushering in many progressive techniques and inclusive casting. She's the root for every branch today.>

• Georgia O’Keefe, (SelfMadehero)
by Maria Herreros _______
A bio of the painter, who broke from current styles for an enigmatic appraisal of naturalism.

• Diego Rivera, (SelfMadeHero)
by Francisco de la Mora and Jose Luis Pescador _______
The proud Mexican muralist took on the capitalist system, fighting censorship and class injustice.

➤ SelfMadeHero publishes graphic novels about important creators.

• Django, Hand On Fire:
The Great Django Reinhardt, (NBM)
by Salva Ra and Efa _______
Even with his hand ruined by fire, the gypsy may have been the greatest guitarist in the world.

• Enter The Blue, (Z2 Comics)
by Dave Chishom _______
When her Jazz mentor goes into a coma, Choi discovers another vibrational continuum, where history lives and music thrives.

• High Desert: Black. Punk. Nowhere., (Mariner Books)
by James Spooner _______ ⇧
A memoir of Spooner's 1989 youth, embracing Punk in a place where he is ostracized for his skin and outlook.

• Chuck D Presents Apocalypse 91:
Revolution Never Sleeps, (Z2)
by Evan Narcisse, Che Grayson, Regine Sawyer, Troy-Jeffery Allen, and Chuck D (w); art by Koi Turnbull, Butch Mapa, Carlos Oliveares, and Chuck D _______ ⇧
This anthology of Cyberfunk tales is a new sequel to Public Enemy's 1991 album, "Apocalypse 91: The Empire Strikes Black."



• Hen Kai Pan, (Titan Comics)
by Eldo Yoshimizu _______
Five ancient gods want to save the Earth from the ravages of humans, but one of them wants to burn everything down.

• The Forest, (Fantagraphics)
by Thomas Ott _______ ⇩
25 scratchboard illustrations without text, following a young boy's journey into an eerie forest. Cryptic, unnerving, surprising.

• Alliances: Orphans, (Dynamite)
by Stan Lee, Luke Lieberman, and Ryan Silbert (w), and Bill Sienkiewicz (a) _______ ⇧
Stan Lee left us one more cosmic odyssey, spectaculary illustrated by the great Bill Sienkiewicz.

• Cowboy Bebop, (Titan Comics)
by Dan Watters and Lamar Mathurin _______
A tie-in with the live-action Netflix series, which was canceled too fast by fools, with new adventures.

• Chivalry, (Dark Horse)
by Neil Gaiman and Colleen Doran _______
The bestselling author teams with the great illustrator for an epic and touching Fantasy tale.

• The Night Eaters: She Eats The Night, (Abrams ComicArts)
by Marjorie Liu and Sana Takeda _______
The same creators as the intricate "Monstress" somehow have time for another series; this time, the first book in a supernatural mystery trilogy.

Back to CHAPTER LIST ▲

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B E S T
C O L L E C T I O N S + R E I S S U E S :
2 0 2 2

• EC ARCHIVES:

The remastered Hardcover reprints of EC Comics are winding up, printing the final titles of the line.

Terror Illustrated, Vol. 1
Crime Patrol, Vol. 1
by Multiple Creators
(Dark Horse) _______
EC Comics invented comics for adults in the early-'50s, and were crucified for it.>
After the government censorship kicked in, EC bowed out with these final comics titles, but would retrench with the smash success of Mad Magazine.
Stories by Feldstein, Crandell, Krigstein, Davis, Orlando, Kamen, Craig, and more.

Art by Wallace Wood


Meanwhile, the remastered EC Comics Hardcovers are now being re-released as affordable Softcover editions, proceeding in order.

The Haunt Of Fear, Vol. 2
Tales From The Crypt, Vol. 2
Shock SuspenStories, Vol. 2
The Vault Of Horror, Vol. 2,
Incredible Science Fiction, Vol. 1
by Multiple Creators
(Dark Horse) _______ ⇧

These early-'50s comics redefined maturity in the medium, launched great writers and artists, electrified readers, and terrified conservatives. Essential.
➤ see also: "The Ten Cent Plague"


• ‘Best Of EC Stories’ Artisan Edition #1, (IDW)
by Wood, Williamson, Toth, Orlando, Kurtzman, Krigstein, and Davis. _______ ⇧
The photographed original line art for 25 stories.

• Code Of Honor and Other Stories, (Fantagraphics)
by Gardner Fox, John Severin, Will Elder, Gene Colan, and Ann Brewster + _______
A compilation focusing on John Severin's work.

• Dearly Beloved And Other Stories, (Fantagraphics)
by Al Feldstein, Gardner Fox, and Harry Harrison. Art by Johnny Craig, Sheldon Moldoff, and Jules Feiffer _______
A compilation focusing on Johnny Craig's crime and horror work.

• Home To Stay!:
The Complete Ray Bradbury EC Stories, (Fantagraphics)
by Craig, Crandall, Davis, Elder, Evans, Frazetta, Ingels, Kamen, Krenkel, Krigstein, Orlando, Severin, Torres, Williamson, and Wood. _______
When EC swiped a Bradbury story, he diplomatically reminded them they 'forgot' to pay him. Thus started a beautiful friendship.

• The Complete Little Nemo, (Taschen)
by Winsor McCay _______ ⇧
Literally everything in one book: 11.3" x 14.4", all 549 color Sunday pages, a 704-page book with a 140-page illustrated essay.

• The George Herriman Library:
Krazy And Ignatz 1922-1924, (Fantagraphics)
by George Herriman _______
What Chaplin was to film, what Joyce was to literature, Herriman was to comics.

• Walt Disney Film Archives,
The Animated Movies 1921-1968, (Taschen)
Edited by Daniel Kothenschulte _______ ⇩
A comprehensive overview of Disney's classic animated films: 13" x 9.5", 620 pages, full color, with rare concept sketches and storyboards.

• Terry And The Pirates,
The Master Collection Vol. 2:
1936, The Burma Blues, (Clover Press)
by Milton Caniff _______

• Terry And The Pirates,
The Master Collection Vol. 3:
1937, The Return Of Normandie Drake, (Clover Press)
by Milton Caniff _______
In the '30s, comic strips grew up beyond slapstick funnies with adventure series that brought in adult maturity, serious themes, and illustrative flair.
(see also: "Prince Valiant", "Flash Gordon").

• Planet Comics #47-20, 1947, (PS Artbooks)
by Lily Renee, Murphy Anderson, George Evans, Fran Hopper + _______ ⇧
"Planet Comics" was the cutting edge in SciFi comics, channeling the Pulp mags while showcasing rising writers and artists. Its publisher, Fiction House, was notably forward by showcasing empowered female heroes.

• Pre-Code Comics: Tor, (PS ArtBooks)
by Norman Maurer and Joe Kubert, with Mort Meskin _______
Because Joe Kubert. He was such a master of the illustration form that he literally taught the masterclass, opening the Joe Kubert School of Cartoon and Graphic Art.


• Walt Disney’s Donald Duck “Duck Luck”:
The Complete Carl Barks Disney Library Library, Vol. 27, (Fantagraphics) (early-‘60s)
by Carl Barks _______ ⇧
Fantagraphics is closing in on their planned 30 volumes of Barks' celebrated Duck stories.

• Pogo,
The Complete Syndicated Comic Strips:
Vol. 8, Hijinks From The Horn Of Plenty, (Fantagraphics) (1963-’64)
by Walt Kelly _______ ⇩
Come for the beguiling art and wordplay, stay for the nimble social commentary.

• Marvel Comics Library:
Fantastic Four, Vol.1 1961-’63, (Taschen)
by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby _______ ⇧
A deluxe remastering of the first 20 stories, printed in hardcover (with a slipcase) at 11" x 15.6", across 700 pages.

• Mighty Marvel Masterworks:
Doctor Strange, Vol. 1, (Marvel) (1964-’65)
by Stan Lee and Steve Ditko _______
When Marvel went cosmic, and ushered in psychedelia.

• John Buscema ‘Silver Surfer’ Artisan Edition #1, (IDW) (1968)
by Stan Lee and John Buscema _______
The photographed line art pages of the original stories that defined comics' most philosophical and progressive alien.


• Maverix And Lunatix:
Icons Of Underground Comix, (Fantagraphics)
by Drew Friedman _______ ⇩
Full-page portraits of each great creator in the Underground Comix movement, painted by Friedman.

• The Book Of Mr. Natural, (Fantagraphics) (1967-‘90s)
by Robert Crumb _______
All of the Mr. Natural stories, including the infamous Devil Girl arcs at the end.

• Fourth World By Jack Kirby Box Set, (DC) (1971-’72)
by Jack Kirby _______ ⇧
Kirby's magnum opus, which redefined the cosmic scope of DC and introduced Darkseid, collected together in 4 softcover volumes.

• Kamandi, The Last Boy On Earth #1, (1972-’74)
by Jack Kirby _______
A collection of the first 20 issues of the post-apocalyptic youth.

• Absolute Swamp Thing (DC), (1972-’73)
by Len Wein and Bernie Wrightson _______
The entire run of Wein and Wrightson's historic series, remastered and printed at 9.5" x 13" across 336 pages.



• Gil Kane’s ‘The Amazing Spider-Man’ Artisan Edition #1 (Marvel), (1971-’73)
by Gil Kane _______ ⇩
The photographed line art pages for Kane's ephochal art run, including the seismic Amazing Spider-Man #122, "The Death of Gwen Stacy".

• Marvel Masterworks: The Tomb Of Dracula, Vol. 2 (Marvel), (1973-’74)
by Marv Wolfman, Gene Colan, and Tom Palmer _______
This series made Horror comics cool again, paired the great Colan and Palmer art team, and introduced Blade the Vampire Killer.

• Lone Sloane Box Set, (Titan Comics) (1966-’76)
by Philippe Druillet _______
This set collects the books “The 6 Voyages of Lone Sloane”, “Lone Sloane: Delirius”, and “Lone Sloane: Gail”.

• Vuzz, (Titan Books) (1974)
by Philippe Druillet _______
Druillet and Moebius co-founded "Metal Hurlant" magazine, an adult SciFi/Fantasy anthology which advanced comics, movies, books, and the genres.

• Alex Toth ‘Bravo For Adventure’ Artist’s Edition, (IDW) (1975)
by Alex Toth _______
A 2nd edition (2016) reprint of Toth's personal project, a love letter to the adventure films, book, mags, and strips of his youth.

• Breakdowns, (Pantheon Books) (1978)
by Art Spiegelman _______ ⇧
A new reprinting of Spiegelman's early works, which led to the radical Raw Magazine.

• The Collected Toppi #7: Sharaz De!, (Lion Forge) (1979)
by Sergio Toppi _______ ⇧

• The Collected Toppi #8: The Collector, (Lion Forge) (1980s)
by Sergio Toppi _______
Toppi was one of the finest illustrators and graphic artists of the 20th century. Every page startles and enlightens.



• Prince Valiant, Vol. 25, (Fantagraphics) (1985-’86)
by Hal Foster, John Cullen Murphy, and Cullen Murphy _______
• Prince Valiant, Vol. 26, (Fantagraphics) (1987-’88)
by Hal Foster, John Cullen Murphy, and Cullen Murphy _______
Hal Foster's "Prince Valiant" comic strip brought literacy and illustration into the comics medium, resetting the bar. The Murphys continued Foster's legacy from 1970 to 2004.

• The Incal: Black And White Edition, (Humanoids, Inc.) (1980-’88)
by Alejandro Jodorowsky and Moebius _______
The entire epic, presented in the original line art.

• The Jodorowsky Library (Book Two): Son Of The Gun / Pietrolino, (Humanoids, Inc.) (2001 / 2013)
by Alejandro Jodorowsky (w), and George Bess / Olivier Boiscommun (a) _______
Jodorowsky, tha insurgent film director (EL TOPO, HOLY MONTAIN), wrote many mind-films for the page, where budget and audience were no constriction.

• The Complete Aztec Ace, (Dark Horse) (1984-’85) ⇧
by Doug Moench and Dan Day _______ ⇧
After his pensive decade run on the classic "Shang Chi", Moench crafted a new masterpiece for the indie company Eclipse that everyone slept on; a Mesoamerican Rock'n'Roller time traveler and his wiseass Flapper companion correcting time distortions ('doxyglitches'). Dan Day continued the innovative graphic layout experiments of his late brother, Gene.

It was as important as other hailed milestones in the '80s Comic Renaissance, like "Love And Rockets", "American Flagg", and "The Rocketeer", but... out of print, out of mind. Finally, all 15 issues of the severely underrated series are collected here.

• Absolute Swamp Thing #3, (DC) (1986-’87)
by Alan Moore, Stephen R. Bissette and Totleben, (+ Rick Veitch) _______
The final 15 issues of Alam Moore's run, in a deluxe 9.5" x 12" hardcover at 424 pages.

• Miracleman: Omnibus, (Marvel) (1982-1988)
by (Alan Moore), Garry Leach, Alan Davis, and John Totleben + _______ ⇧
All of Alan Moore's run, 'Books One, Two, and Three', which invented the postmodern/deconstructed superhero.



• Madman:
The Madmaniverse Library #2, #3, (Dark Horse) (1990s-’00s)
by Mike Allred _______
Collecting all of the "Madman" issues, specials, and crossovers together.

• Astro City Metrobook, Vol's 1 and 3, (Image) (1995-'10)
by Kurt Busiek and Brent Anderson _______
Two omnibus editions (with the third in 2023) collecting all of the lauded "Astro City" series together.

• Sentient, (TKO Studios) (2018)
by Jeff Lemire and Gabriel Walta _______
A trade of the 2018 miniseries, where a spaceship's computer has to protect and raise orphaned babies.

• Decorum, (Image) (2020)
by Jonathan Hickman and Mike Huddleston _______
The collected miniseries, about the most polite space assassin in the game.

• Karmen, (Image) (2021)
by Guillem March _______ ⇧
After her demise, a woman goes on a revelatory journey with a mischievous death angel. Some amazing art, and a very touching story.

• Primordial, (Image) (2021)
by Jeff Lemire and Andrea Sorrentino _______ ⇧
Like a cross between "2001: A SPACE ODYSSEY" and Morrison's "We3".

Shown: issue #6 cover by J.H. Wlliams III
• Echolands, (Image) (2021)
by J.H. Wlliams III and Haden Blackman _______ ⇧
J.H. Wlliams III ("Promethea", "Batwoman", "The Sandman") is the most propulsive, versatile, and inventive artist in comics. This series, in which all genres in all art styles collide and collude at once, is the new standard.

• The Many Deaths Of Laila Starr, (Image) (2021)
by Ram V and Filipe Andrade _______
Death gets fired and is reborn as a woman in Mumbai. You'll laugh, you'll cry, you'll care.

• Groo Meets Tarzan, (Dark Horse) (2021)
by Mark Evanier and Sergio Aragones (w), and Sergio Aragones and Tom Yeates (a) _______
Who doesn't love an unlikely crossover? Here's a great one: Aragones' signature cartoon barbarian mixed seamlessly with Yeates' best channeling of the Foster/Hogarth "Tarzan" tradition.

• The Art Of Star Wars:
The Mandalorian (Season 2), (Abrams Books)
by Phil Szostak _______
The behind-the-scenes concept art and design works for the popular series.

• Marvel Classic Black Light Collectible Posters #2, (Abrams ComicArts) (1971)
by Jack Kirby, John Romita Sr, Gil Kane _______ ⇧
Marvel appealed to the early-'70s psychedelic black light poster craze with these neon eye-friers. 12 Posters at 20" x 29".

• DC Poster Portfolio: Brian Bolland, (DC) (1980s-)
by Brian Bolland _______
20 removable posters of DC's premier front cover artist.

• DC Poster Portfolio: J.H. Williams III, (DC) (1990s-)
by J.H. Williams III _______
20 removable posters of comics' most chameleonic artist.

Back to CHAPTER LIST ▲

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WHERE WE
COME FROM,
Dept.

• Fortunino Matania Portfolio, (Book Palace)
by text Peter Richardson _______ ⇩
Study the great painting and illustration masters before all, such as Matania's figures, compositions, and impact.

• Joaquin Sorolla, Painter Of Light, (Skira Editore)
Edited by Micol Forti and Consuelo Luca de tena _______ ⇩
Study Sorolla's sophisticated capturing of the play of light and color.

• Women Artists And The Surrealist Movement, (Thames + Hudson)
by Whitney Chadwick _______
A reissue of the art historian's 1985 book, expanding understanding and appreciation.

• Jewish Comics And Graphic Narratives: A Critical Guide, (Bloomsbury Publishing)
by Matt Reingold _______
Comics owe incalculable credit to Jewish creators, from Siegel + Shuster and Finger, to Eisner and Lee + Kirby, to Spiegelman and Bendis. These academic essays trace the themes, impact, and works which indicate what 'Jewish Graphic Narrative' can mean.



• Gladys Parker:
A Life In Comics, And A Passion For Fashion, (Hermes Books)
by Trina Robbins _______
Parker was the symbiotic force behind the late-'30s comic strip "Mopsy" and her own upscale fashion line.

• Pulp Power:
The Shadow, Doc Savage, and the Art of the Street + Smith Universe, (Abrams Books)
by Neil McGuinness, with Dan DiDio _______ ⇩
A comprehensive exam of cover artists George Rozen ("The Shadow") and Walter M. Baumhofer ("Doc Savage"), and their impact on culture.

• Dark Avenger:
The Strange Saga Of The Shadow, (Odyssey)
by Will Murray _______
The whole history of The Shadow's creation, from a radio show with Orson Welles, to Pulp avenger hero, to film and comics.

• Holding her Own:
The Exceptional Life Of Jackie Ormes, (Orchard Books)
by Traci N Todd and Shannon Wright _______
A new biography of the first female African American cartoonist.

• James Warren, Empire Of Monsters:
The Man Behind Creepy, Vampirella, and Famous Monsters, (Fantagraphics)
by Bill Schelly _______
A reissue of the 2018 book, about the indie publisher whose magazines raised the adult level of comics, brought Filipino artisans into American comics, and relaunched Will Eisner's "The Spirit".

• The Art Of Luis Garcia, (Dynamite) (1970s)
by David Roach _______ ⇧
Along with Jose Gonazales, Garcia's astounding illustrations for Warren ("Vampirella") get proper spotlight.

• The Life and Art Of Dave Cockrum, (TwoMorrows)
by Gle Cadigan _______
Cockrum's sleek futurism, in the mode of Manning's "Magnus", defined all of the cosmic cool of the "Legion Of Super-Heroes" (1973) and "The All-New X-Men" (1975).

• See You In San Diego:
An Oral History Of Comic-Con, Fandom, And The Triumph Of Geek Culture, (Fantagraphics)
by Mathew Klickstein _______
The history and evolution of the ultimate comic convention.

• ”Voice Of The Fire”, (Top Shelf)
by Alan Moore _______
A 25th anniversary edition of Moore's first prose novel.

• “Illuminations: Stories”, (Bloomsbury Publishing)
by Alan Moore _______
The new collection of short stories, including the controversial novella, "What We Can Know About Thunderman".

• Alan Moore: Storytelling, (BBC Maestro)
by Alan Moore _______ ⇧
A BBC Maestro video course, in which Moore teaches the fundamentals of writing strong and challenging stories.


Back to CHAPTER LIST ▲

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MAGAZINES

• ALTER EGO
(TwoMorrows) _______ ⇩
The original '60s comics fanzine that pioneered all of modern fandom, with deep stories on the Golden and Silver Age creators, is an ongoing mag still edited by Roy Thomas.
➤ Alter Ego

• BACK ISSUE!
(TwoMorrows) _______
Dedicated to the '70s and '80s comics renaissance.
➤ Back Issue

• ILLUSTRATION
(The Illustrated Press) _______ ⇩
The best illustrators celebrated by the smartest illustration mag.
➤ Illustration

• CDQ: Character Design Quarterly
(3dtotal Publishing) _______ ⇩
The state-of-the-art in character design for screen and games.
➤ Back Issue

• COMICS REVUE PRESENTS
(Manuscript Press) _______
Ongoing reprints of classic comic strips.
➤ Comics Revue

• RETROFAN
(TwoMorrows) _______
Everything pop cultural from the '60s through the '80s.
➤ Retrofan

• THE COMICS JOURNAL
(Fantagraphics) _______
The premiere scholastic graphic arts forum, now printed in an annual volume.
➤ The Comics Journal

• STAR TREK Explorer
(Titan) _______
"These are the voyages..."
➤ Star Trek Explorer

• STAR WARS INSIDER
(Titan) _______ ⇧
"An energy field created by all living things..."
➤ Star Wars Insider

Back to CHAPTER LIST ▲

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B E S T
M O V I E S

• THE BATMAN

• DOCTOR STRANGE And The Multiverse Of Madness

• BLACK PANTHER: Wakanda Forever


➤ BEST MOVIES + TV: 2022

Back to CHAPTER LIST ▲

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B E S T
W E B C O M I C S :

• ACES WEEKLY,
by Various Creators _______ ⇧
David Lloyd ("V For Vendetta") presents a digital comics subscription service for multiple independent series, such as the Eisner-nominated "Why Don't You Love Me?" strip.

• SARA'S SCRIBBLES,
by Sara Andersen _______
Absurdist doodles in four panels with brainy zing.

• TOM TOMORROW,
by Tom Tomorrow _______
A kind of digital love-child of Trudeau and Breathed, this long-running satire of political insanity is a panacea.

• NANCY,
by Olympia Jaimes _______
Under a pseudonym, someone is upgrading the classic strip's mindtricks for the digital age.

• PRINCE VALIANT,
by Mark Schultz and Thomas Yeates _______
Schultz ("Xenozoic Tales") and Yeates ("Timespirits") are doing excellent work continuing Hal Foster's masterwork into the 21st century.

• Gemma Correll _______
Cleverly outwitting anxiety and cultural nonsense.

"Calvin And Hobbes", by Bill Watterson
• GoComics,
by Various Creators _______ ⇧
GoComics is the absolute go-to for comic strips. They have a wide variety of current, ongoing strips, as well the classic comic strips that everything comes from, including "Alley Oop", "Bloom County", "Calvin And Hobbes", "Doonesbury", "The Far Side", "Little Nemo", "Lil' Abner", "Mutt And Jeff", "Nancy" (original and new), and "Peanuts".

• The Nib _______
RESIST!
The best of contemporary editorial satire, from an array of talents.

Back to CHAPTER LIST ▲

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R E S T
I N
P O W E R

From you, we exist.
Because of you, we persist.

The Batman (1973),
by Neal Adams


• Ron Goulart
• Jean-Claude Mézières
• Tom Veitch
• Garry Leach


• Justin Green
• Neal Adams
• George Perez
• Tim Sale

George Perez; Lily Renée;
Kim Jung Gi; Kevin O’Neill

• R.C. Harvey
• Tom Palmer
• Lily Renée
• Diane Noomin


• Kim Jung Gi
• Kevin O’Neill
• Aline Kominsky-Crumb



Back to CHAPTER LIST ▲

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Nuff said, pilgrim. Excelsior!


© Tym Stevens

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See also:


• BEST MOVIES + TV: 2024
• BEST MUSIC: 2024
• BEST COMICS: 2024

· BEST MOVIES + TV: 2023
• BEST MUSIC: 2023
• BEST COMICS: 2023

• BEST MOVIES + TV: 2022
• BEST MUSIC: 2022

• BEST MOVIES + TV: 2021
• BEST MUSIC: 2021
• BEST COMICS: 2021

• BEST MOVIES + TV: 2020
• BEST MUSIC: 2020
• BEST COMICS: 2020

• BEST MOVIES + TV: 2019
• BEST MUSIC: 2019
• BEST COMICS: 2019

• BEST MOVIES + TV: 2018
• BEST MUSIC: 2018
• BEST COMICS: 2018

• BEST MOVIES + TV: 2017
• BEST MUSIC: 2017
• BEST COMICS: 2017

• BEST MOVIES + TV: 2016
• BEST MUSIC: 2016
• BEST COMICS: 2016

• BEST MOVIES + TV: 2015
• BEST MUSIC: 2015
• BEST COMICS: 2015

• BEST MOVIES + TV: 2014
• BEST MUSIC: 2014
• BEST COMICS: 2014

• BEST MOVIES + TV: 2013
• BEST MUSIC: 2013
• BEST COMICS: 2013

• BEST MOVIES + TV: 2012
• BEST MUSIC: 2012
• BEST COMICS: 2012

• BEST MOVIES + TV: 2011
• BEST MUSIC: 2011
• BEST COMICS: 2011

• BEST MOVIES + TV: 2000-2010
• BEST MUSIC: 2000-2010
• BEST COMICS: 2000-2010

_______________

• How STAR WARS Is Changing Everything!

• 2001: A SPACE ODYSSEY - Its Transcendent Influence on all Pop Culture, with Music Player!

• How SPAGHETTI WESTERNS Revolutionized Rock Music!, with 3 Music Players!

• TWIN PEAKS: Its Influence on 30 Years of Film, TV, and Music!, with 5 Music Players!


• The Real History of ROCK AND SOUL!: The Music Player Checklist


_______________

• THE CANON 1: 50 Books That Created Modern Culture, with Music Player

• THE CANON 2: 50 More Books That Created Modern Pop Culture, with Music Player

• THE CANON 3: 50 Recent Books That Created Modern Culture, with Music Player

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