comics highlights for 2007

time.com put out a list of top 10 graphic novels for 2007 and its a stupid list. they could have made it 'top 10 comics of 2007' and i wouldn't be so pissed. but no, they themselves said it would be a top 10 graphic novels list.

well there's two entries on the list for webcomics. the author even states in the achewood entry, that it may not qualify as a graphic novel by any definition. i'd say that neither it nor 'erfworld' are graphic novels, by any stretch. they aren't bad comics, just serial webcomics that haven't been collected in print.

the problem here is, by this definition of graphic novel, i could "publish" a "graphic novel" merely by doing a daily strip on the web for a year or however long, provided i archive the strips on my site (and im not even sure if that last bit is required). guys, that's not a graphic novel. can't be.

nevermind that another spot on the list, is just the collected edition of 'all star superman' floppies. im ignoring this stupid shit, TIME can't get me down about comics, because 2007 has been my return-to-comics year, and i couldn't have picked a better time.

here's my top ten list, of comics that inspired me this year. note i said COMICS, not graphic novels. kramer's ergot is awesome but its not a graphic novel. why don't we just call it all comics? then you can include everything whilst keeping your definitions sound and not pissing me off. anyways. one last disclaimer: some of this stuff may not even be 07 material--i know the frank book certainly isn't. but it got to me in 07. so fuck off.

10. the quotidian- a great weird digest-size mini i ordered from optical sloth, the quotidian is by paul allusio (i think its paul? might be pat) and, while its rough around the edges, its also wonderfully weird and organic. i don't want to piss on his drawing skills when i say that this mini encourages me to think that anyone can make interesting comics--that i don't need to be jim lee or j scott campbell; i dont even have to try for that. the quotidian has a lot of heart.

09. clumsy- the book by jeffrey brown. i havent finished a lot of it yet, but i love jeff's tone and his simplified drawing style. i like how he captures day-to-day stuff and i know, its autobio so its SUPPOSED TO feel personal and intimate and real. but damned if he doesn't do just a great job of that.

08. king-cat comics- i recieved my first issue of king-cat (by john porcellino) this year. im kicking my ass constantly that this series has been going on under my nose, pretty much as long as ive been able to read, and i just found out about it this year. i think all of the king-cat material that ive seen so far, is a great lesson in design. this is also auto-bio that feels really genuine.

07. aranzi machine gun- aranzi aronzo is, apparently, two guys from japan who like sewing, comics, cuteness, nonsense, and terriers. aranzi machine gun defies definition: part comics, part cross-stitch patterns, heavy on photos of plush dolls and short gag strips. i get a strong 'hello kitty, but not' vibe out of aranzi machine gun. did i mention they like nonsense?

06. exit wounds- this graphic novel by rutu modan is going to make a lot of top ten lists in 07. its rendered in the clear line style you may know from tin-tin, with eye-popping colors and ambitiously detailed, immaculate backgrounds. the story is grounded in the ambiguities of modern living in tel aviv. i hate using words over and over again but the book is simply immaculate, artful and elegant.

05. sounds of your name- this collection of nate powell material really wows me visually, i'm in love with his art style. i haven't really penetrated the storytelling yet, and i don't think that aspect is quite as strong for him. but man do these pages look striking. nate has awesome style in spades.

04. tekkon kinkreet- originally published in the US as 'black and white', and i had book one of that but not two (both are quite rare), so this complete edition is a dream come true. Taiyō Matsumoto is a great example of how japanese art styles are much more varied than one might think from the manga we get to see in the US--his moebius-influenced linework stands out instantly from the crowd. the pages in this edition are much much larger than the 'black and white' collected editions- the wonderful art has space to breath here. what a great book.

03. maggots- brian chippendale's maggots was apparently held up in publishing limbo for A DECADE. this work is strongly associated with the 'fort thunder' phenomenon going on in alt-comics. i like maggots (and a lot of the new stuff im reading) because of how different it is, from anything else in comics ever up to this point. the whole thing was inked over a japanese book catalog. brian pummels those pages with a legion of tiny obsessive lines and marks, until you can barely see the kanji detritus that remains under the panels. oh, the panels. jillions of tiny panels on each page, detailing twitchy moment-to-moment changes and animation cycles. god is maggots dense, and weird, and hard to penetrate. and oh yeah, superb.

02. kramers ergot #6- i'll try and not go on and on about this book because i already have elsewhere on the blog. there's tons of variety here, most of it in brain-busting full-on acid-rainbow colors, none of it too straightforward. there's paper rad in there, matthew thurber (my favorite stuff in the issue), dan zettwoch, even reprints of some japanese war-propaganda comics. a very interesting book that i'll be reading, and finding new stuff in, probably forever.

01. the frank book- like i said, its been out awhile, but until this year i had not read any frank stories. this collects nearly everything that jim woodring has done with his 'frank' character (that i've been aware, but ignorant of, since like middleschool), and in a handsome, hardcover, coffee-table edition. frank comics are beyond weird, they are hypnotic. a common reaction to frank is tepid at first, and then it just grows on you, and begins to haunt your dreams and shit like that. the frank book is nothing short of a religious experience.