Best Writer of 2015: BRIAN K. VAUGHAN "SAGA" "THE PRIVATE EYE" "WE STAND ON GUARD" "PAPER GIRLS" "BARRIER"

Even though Saga seemed a little lost and We Stand on Guard was just okay, Brian K. Vaughan was still the best writer in comics in 2015. All it takes to realize this is to read the first five pages of Paper Girls #1 and you realize that his writing is bizarre, beautiful, hilarious, wild, energetic, and hugely entertaining. Saga may not be as good as it was in the beginning, but it's still a highlight in the comic book world every month (and the letters page is always awesome). The Private Eye concluded in dramatic, action-packed fashion. We Stand on Guard was at least truly sadistic and weird. Paper Girls was even weirder and one of the best books of the year. And he capped off the year by releasing the first issue of Barrier, a strange, compelling book involving illegal aliens and space aliens. Vaughan is great at writing dialogue, creating off-the-wall moments and plots,and introducing memorably flawed but interesting characters. His books always surprise and shock but also make you feel something. They're alive in the best way, and it's really a treat that we got five books written by him this year. Keep 'em coming.

Best Issue of 2015: DESCENDER #1

Writer Jeff Lemire and artist Dustin Nguyen created one of the best comic books of the year with Descender, and issue #1 was a masterpiece. The basic premise is similar to the film A.I. in that the main character is a robot boy who loves his family and ends up going on a journey. The twist here is that all of a sudden a horde of giant robots came out of nowhere to destroy most of humanity and then vanish. Years later a few humans learn that a robot boy, stranded on a forgotten planet, has the same technology as those mysterious killer robots. Sent to find the robot boy are some humans. Also sent to find the robot boy is a group of monstrous bounty hunters. This is, without a doubt, an awesome premise. And issue #1 reveals it all while setting the stage for a grand, intergalactic adventure. Add this with the gorgeous, water-colored art and this was an outstanding, memorable beginning to a great series.

Best Art of 2015: MIKE DEL MUNDO (pencils/colors) & MARCO D'ALFONSO (colors) "WEIRDWORLD"

Best Cover of 2015: WEIRDWORLD #5

The Best of 2015: BEST PAGES & PANELS

TREES #8

SAVAGE DRAGON #208

I HATE FAIRYLAND #1























SOUTHERN BASTARDS #11


























DESCENDER #7

























PAPER GIRLS #1












SPAWN #259

THE DARK KNIGHT III: THE MASTER RACE

If anyone asks how Batman morphed from the candy-colored, oh-so silly 60's TV show to the dark-infused, noir-based, nihilistic Christopher Nolan films, look at Frank Miller's mid-80's mini-series, The Dark Knight Returns. It was revolutionary at the time, and so well-regarded that it's still producing sequels thirty years later. The first sequel, The Dark Knight Strikes Again, was mostly a misfire, and I think even DC realized that Frank Miller is not the same Frank Miller, so for this third time around they've brought on a co-artist, Andy Kubert, and a co-writer, Brian Azzarello. Miller is still here, but only co-writing, drawing the back-story, and drawing a few variant covers. The story is a continuation but it's a new world; a new, female police commissioner, thugs that text in txt speak, a female Robin who takes over as Batman while admitting that, "Bruce Wayne is dead." There's also Wonder Woman and her daughter, who wants to break open a bottled world of Kandor, a still-dead, frozen Superman up in Antarctica, and a really bad, really weird back-story with The Atom, a guy who can shrink. Granted, it's only book one, and perhaps it will eventually reveal an epic tale worthy of publication, but for now it feels tired, stale, same-old. DC should have just let Miller write and draw the whole thing, as it's his world and creation. Azzarello is not the best writer, as he often tries too hard to tap into what's "cool" about street life (he just comes across as an old man yelling at kids to get off his lawn). Kubert does a good job, though, and his art is a lot better than Miller's these days. This feels a lot like Before Watchmen. When Dan Didio took over at DC he went bold. He made every book a new #1 then brought back Sandman and Watchmen and now The Dark Knight. But Watchmen was a mistake without Alan Moore. And this, even with Miller, feels like a mistake. What was fresh and new in 1986 is not fresh and new now. It's not an awful book, and maybe in the end it will at least just be entertaining fluff, but what was once a shot of adrenaline to a character now just feels like a cash-grab.
**

THE GODDAMNED #1

Jason Aaron and R.M. Guerra's Scalped was one of the best books to come out in the last decade. They're back with a new book loosely based on characters in the "Genesis" section of The Bible. If this were a film or TV show or regular fiction book I think it'd be getting a ton of press because it's controversial. But, alas, it's a comic book. Who cares (Airboy #2's controversy over the "tranny" bar scene in July was pretty much known to only those that frequent comic book news sites and transgender-rights blogs)? Which is a shame, because it's a book worthy of talking about. The art is the star, but the story is interesting enough to cause debate. Cain, son of Adam and Eve, is the main star. In this version he's a gorgeous, un-killable hunk wandering the wastelands of Earth. The villain is Noah. Yep. There's not much else in this first issue but a set-up, and so far it's not even half as good as Scalped or Aaron's other Image book, Southern Bastards, but it does has potential to be a wild, intriguing ride. The art here is gloriously gritty. The cavemen-like people remind me of the infected characters in Crossed. The world is a dirty, nasty hell-hole. It's certainly a violent, rough book. I'm not sure if Aaron is trying to say anything about religion or if he's just out to entertain and write a good story. With art this good, does it matter? **1/2