Continuing to beat a deservedly dead horse, I present what I promise is the final installment in my series on the comics of the 1990's. If you missed any of the previous parts, you might want to check out parts one, two, or three before continuing. (or not)
First off, I'd like to thank everyone who commented on the series, especially part one, which is the most commented on post I've done on this or any of my previous blogs. One comment on that post, concerning the definition of the term "mini-comic" may possibly lead to a post attempting to sort that out sometime in the future.
For now, I wrap up the series with a list of addenda, apologies and self-justifications.
Here in the age of Web 2.0, re-writing and revising are pretty much things of the past. Bloggers like myself usually just whip out a couple of hundred words and hit "publish." Perhaps if I'd allowed myself some time to polish the posts, I wouldn't have omitted some comics that I should have mentioned.
For now, I wrap up the series with a list of addenda, apologies and self-justifications.
Here in the age of Web 2.0, re-writing and revising are pretty much things of the past. Bloggers like myself usually just whip out a couple of hundred words and hit "publish." Perhaps if I'd allowed myself some time to polish the posts, I wouldn't have omitted some comics that I should have mentioned.
For example, as soon as I finished the first part, I immediately realized that I had failed to mention Rich Watson's Rat, even though I've felt since I first saw it that this is one of the best comics I've ever read. Here's a link to a review of the comic which will give you some idea of why I feel that way (it's one of several books reviewed in the column so you'll have to scroll down a bit).
Responding to my post on independent and self-published comics on the Sunday Comix e-mail group, Max Ink suggested a list of additions that included Mark Oakey's Thieves and Kings, Scott Roberts' Patty Cake, Seth's Palookaville, Chris Ware's Acme Novelty Library, and Alex Robinson's Box Office Poison. I haven't read the first three comics he mentioned, and you may call me a Philistine if you wish, but the work of Chris Ware, genius though he may be, just doesn't do anything for me. Box Office Poison, however, I have read and definitely should have mentioned. Perhaps it's because I didn't read it until the trade paperback collection was published in 2001 that I failed to include it among the comics of the 1990's.
In my post on DC's 90's output, I gushed on and on about Grant Morrison, yet I failed to mention the Doom Force special. Morrison and a cadre of artists including Keith Giffen, Richard Case, Walt Simonson, Steve Pugh, Ken Steacy and others, serve up a dead-on and wickedly funny parody of the "hot" comics of the early 90's, particularly Rob Liefeld's X-Force.
Also on Sunday Comix e-mail group, my friend Russell Merritt suggests that my list of good Marvel comics of the 90s should have begun and ended with Marvels. I admit that I went out of my way to give Marvel the benefit of quite a few doubts and some of my choices may be a little questionable, such as, for example, Kevin Smith's Daredevil run. I mean, I liked it, but then again, I like Mallrats. In fact, if pressed, there's only one comic I mentioned among the Marvels that I'd really be willing to go to bat for--to wave in front of someone's face and shout, "Dude! For Pity's Sake, just READ IT!"--and that's Alan Davis' Clan Destine. Of the twelve issues published, Davis wrote and drew the first eight, and those issues truly do deserve to be mentioned with the 90's best super-hero comics.
Russell also mentions that Groo The Wanderer technically wasn't a Marvel comic, since Marvel didn't own it and it would move before the end of the decade to Dark Horse and eventually to Image. However, Groo was a good comic and was being published in the 90s, which were the only two criteria for making the survey, and I included it with the Marvels because it began the decade at Marvel/Epic, and it had slipped my mind until Michael Neno mentioned it when I solicited suggestions from the Sunday Comix group prior to writing the Marvel installment.
And that, I believe, is that; the end, at last of my week long look back at the comics of the final decade of the 20th Century. I hope you enjoyed it.
Another wonderfully talented small press creator I should have mentioned is Pam Bliss.
In my post on DC's 90's output, I gushed on and on about Grant Morrison, yet I failed to mention the Doom Force special. Morrison and a cadre of artists including Keith Giffen, Richard Case, Walt Simonson, Steve Pugh, Ken Steacy and others, serve up a dead-on and wickedly funny parody of the "hot" comics of the early 90's, particularly Rob Liefeld's X-Force.
Also on Sunday Comix e-mail group, my friend Russell Merritt suggests that my list of good Marvel comics of the 90s should have begun and ended with Marvels. I admit that I went out of my way to give Marvel the benefit of quite a few doubts and some of my choices may be a little questionable, such as, for example, Kevin Smith's Daredevil run. I mean, I liked it, but then again, I like Mallrats. In fact, if pressed, there's only one comic I mentioned among the Marvels that I'd really be willing to go to bat for--to wave in front of someone's face and shout, "Dude! For Pity's Sake, just READ IT!"--and that's Alan Davis' Clan Destine. Of the twelve issues published, Davis wrote and drew the first eight, and those issues truly do deserve to be mentioned with the 90's best super-hero comics.
Russell also mentions that Groo The Wanderer technically wasn't a Marvel comic, since Marvel didn't own it and it would move before the end of the decade to Dark Horse and eventually to Image. However, Groo was a good comic and was being published in the 90s, which were the only two criteria for making the survey, and I included it with the Marvels because it began the decade at Marvel/Epic, and it had slipped my mind until Michael Neno mentioned it when I solicited suggestions from the Sunday Comix group prior to writing the Marvel installment.
And that, I believe, is that; the end, at last of my week long look back at the comics of the final decade of the 20th Century. I hope you enjoyed it.
No comments:
Post a Comment