Let’s face it: Comic books are the reason we do this sort of thing. Had it not been for the many astonishing new adaptations and franchises to hit both TV and Film in the past few years, who knows who would care about any sort of “Geek” list anyway?
Of course, everyone oversees and undermines the artform, the raw technique of structuring stories to fit 22-pages and having others sketch it all up, ink it, color it and add the jazzy lettering to tidy ’em all up. But GHG doesn’t. We offer a pair of dynamic comic book features every week — Fistful of Comics and The Sunday Stash — and this year-end wrap-up is our culmination of all of that.
So, who had better comics between the Big 2? Who faired better during their (yet another) relaunch? Star Wars vs. Secret Wars? Find out below, and feel free to click on the respective bible scores to read our full reviews.
@radio_adventure
1. Darth Vader (Marvel) – “This title translates well from the screen to the page; extending effortlessly like the Dark Lord’s red saber, hell bent on subduing you into worship.” – 5/5
2. Star Wars (Marvel) – 4.5/5
3. Deadpool (Marvel) – 4/5
4. Guardians of the Galaxy (Marvel) – “The GOTG are back for their first post-not-quite-post-Secret Wars romp and fortunately for readers, Brian Michael Bendis is back.” – 4/5
5. Doctor Strange (Marvel) – “If there was one character in the Marvel Universe that deserved an ongoing series, it was Doctor Strange.” – 3.75/5
Honorable mention: Venom Spaceknight, Convergence: Nightwing & Oracle, Groot, Superman: American Alien.
@DarthHistory
1. Mrs. Deadpool and the Howling Commandos (Marvel) – 4.75/5
2. Harley Quinn (DC) – “[Harley’s] Road Trip has all of the hallmark elements of the series: wacky adventures, tons of wisecracking, and a hallucination or two just for fun.” – 4.5/5
3. Deadpool’s Secret Secret Wars (Marvel) – 4.5/5
4. X-Men 92 (Marvel) – 4/5
5. Star Wars (Marvel) – 4/5
Honorable mention: Darth Vader, Lando, Princess Leia, Chewbacca, Kanan: The Last Padawan, Journey To Star Wars: The Force Awakens: Shattered Empire.
1. Detective Comics (DC) – 4.5/5
2. Action Comics (DC) – 4.25/5
3. The Dark Knight III: The Master Race (DC) – 4.25/5
4. Howard the Duck (Marvel) – 4/5
5. Ms. Marvel (Marvel) – 4/5
Honorable mention: M.O.D.O.K. Assassin, Amazing Spider-Man, Spider-Gwen, Convergence: Action Comics, Secret Wars 2099, Secret Wars.
@HostDoiceJohn
1. Secret Wars (Marvel) – “While Esad Ribic does a masterful job giving the characters depth and realism, Jonathan Hickman’s execution is just as lovely.” – 4.5/5
2. Secret Wars: X-Tinction Agenda (Marvel) – 4.25/5
3. Fury: 50th Anniversary of S.H.I.E.L.D. (Marvel) – “Lee Ferguson’s art made the characters feel realistic in their depictions– true to what I would imagine them to look like.” – 4/5
Honorable mention: Injustice: Year 4.
@eggrollko
1. Secret Wars (Marvel) – “For fans of Dr. Doom, this story is up there with Triumph & Torment and Fantastic Four: Unthinkable in the pantheon of greatest Doom stories of all time.” – 5/5
2. Guardians of Infinity (Marvel) – 4.5/5
3. Prez (DC) – 4.5/5
4. Action Comics (DC) – 4.5/5
5. Captain Britain and the Mighty Defenders – 4.5/5
Honorable mention: Convergence: Shazam, Daredevil, Spider-Gwen (Vol. 1), Batman, Gotham Academy.
@TaffetaDarlin
1. Howard the Duck (Marvel) – “Chip Zdarsky is, as expected, perfectly suitable for this title. He captures and delivers Howard’s trademark sarcasm and snark which left me cracking up at every swipe of the page.” – 4.5/5
2. Thors (Marvel) – 4.5/5
3. Convergence: Booster Gold (DC) – “As president of the Booster Gold fan club, I was all too happy to get another Booster shot.” – 4.5/5
4. Doctor Strange (Marvel) – 4.5/5
5. Star-Lord & Kitty Pryde (Marvel) – 4.25/5
Honorable mention: A-Force, All-New Hawkeye, DC Bombshells, Squirrel Girl, Moon Girl & Devil Dinosaur, We Are Robin.
@Lance_Paul
1. Old Man Logan (Marvel) – 4.5/5
2. Prez (DC) – 4.25/5
3. Secret Wars (Marvel) “Esad Ribic handles this massive event and huge cast with conceptional aspects and facial delivery that should place him on the top of Marvel’s roster.” – 4/5
4. Darth Vader (Marvel) – 3.75/5
5. Batman (DC) – “[Greg Capullo] always had the ability to make action scenes flow like effortless dance choreography; but never has there been more proof than — somehow — making a ‘bat-bunny’ work in action.” – 3.75/5
Honorable mention: Extraordinary X-Men, Chewbacca, Deathstroke, Age of Apocalypse, Silk, Thors, S.H.I.E.L.D.
1. Secret Wars (Marvel) – 4.75/5
2. Star Wars (Marvel) – 4.5/5
3. Secret Wars: Civil War (Marvel) – 4.25/5
4. Batman (DC) – 4.25/5
5. Old Man Logan (Marvel) – 4/5
Honorable mention: Extraordinary X-Men, Batman/Superman, Deathstroke, Karnak.
@bendsteelnhands
1. The Multiversity (DC) – “Everything about [Ultra Comics #1] bows down to Morrison, that prick, and his ideas.” – 5/5
2. All-New Hawkeye (Marvel) – “Many books have the words driving the story. Here, the balance is skewed to the art. The book should be read on that basis alone. – 4.5/5
3. Action Comics (DC) – “This isn’t John Byrne’s deputized Superman of 1986; he’s a man on the run; identity exposed; powers diminished; and, he’s still doing the right thing–charging into danger without a thought of himself, but while thinking about everyone else.” – 4.5/5
@TheBelser
1. Deathlok (Marvel) – 5/5
2. Justice League (DC) – “The Darkseid War just ups [Geoff Johns’] already impeccable resume.” – 4.5/5
3. The Flash (DC) – 4/5
4. Cyborg (DC) – 3.5/5
5. Nova (Marvel) – 3/5
Honorable mention: Green Lantern Corps.
1. Extraordinary X-Men (Marvel) – “In any case, thematic layers of family, alienation, political instability and nostalgia, blend together brilliantly to make this the perfect wheel gun for a story of epic proportions.” – 4.25/5
2. Weirdworld (Marvel) – “Aside from the sheer beauty of [Mike del Mundo’s] artwork, the stylization fits together flawlessly with the story like a puzzle piece coated in WD-40.” – 4.25/5
3. The Dark Tower – The Drawing of the Three: House of Cards (Marvel) – “Just a millimeter away from a bullseye.” – 4/5
@RobBex2
1. Star Wars (Marvel) – 5/5
2. Darth Vader (Marvel) – “Salvador Larroca’s artwork has been just as nice as the story, considering the challenge of capturing the likeness of characters everyone knows and loves.” – 4.75/5
3. Extraordinary X-Men (Marvel) – 4.75/5
4. The Punisher (Marvel) – 4.5/5
5. Justice League (DC) – “In 20-years we’ll be putting this one up in the ‘Top 10 DC Comics Arcs of All Time’.” – 4/5
Honorable mention: Daredevil, Doctor Strange, Rocket Raccoon, Inhumans: Attilan Rising, Amazing Spider-Man.
@hatandwand
1. Star Wars (Marvel) – “From the nostalgic opening crawl, to the last page, this IS Star Wars.” – 4.5/5
2. The Dark Knight III: The Master Race (DC) – “Breath easy, classic [Frank] Miller is back. And he’s brought some friends with him, most notably, Brian Azzarello — whose voice provides a fresh take on Miller’s well-established world.” – 4.5/5
3.Convergence: The Adventures of Superman (DC) – “The legendary Marv Wolfman captures the character of Supergirl like the champion he is.” – 4.5/5
4. Captain America: White (Marvel) – 4/5
5. Grayson – 4/5
Honorable mention: Ms. Marvel, Convergence: Wonder Woman.
@Jackie_Henley
1. Captain Marvel & The Carol Corps (Marvel) – “A double-fisted, power word punching combo, from writers Kelly Sue DeConnick and Kelly Thompson, galvanizes gauntlet girl greatness in this brilliant book of butt-kicking Betties!” – 5/5
2. Secret Wars (Marvel) – “The artwork from Ribic and Svorcina is the perfect aid to such a large story with so many character lines, and hones focus well on what otherwise would be too scattered to keep track in a lesser-quality comic.” – 4.5/5
3. Uncanny Avengers (Marvel) – “Remender’s story initially gorges on a mouthful of flesh; but passes enough meat along the tongue and tonsils to cause the reader to savor the flavor, and ask for more.” – 4/5
1. Batman (DC) – “I’m still sweating my bed sheets at night.” – 5/5
2. Bat-Mite (DC) – “Absolutely adorable comic fun.” – 4.75/5
3. Magneto (Marvel) – “Cullen Bunn creates a world that is upside down: Cats and dogs are living together; Magneto is in the air, draining Earth’s energy to do what he needs to do, and then BAM!” – 4.5/5
Honorable mention: Wolverines.
@travmoody
1. Darth Vader (Marvel) – 4.75/5
2. Action Comics (DC) – 4.5/5
3. Secret Wars (Marvel) – 4.5/5
4. Invincible Iron Man (Marvel) – “Seeing how one of Marvel’s elite has served as a creative consultant on Iron Man 3, it was only a matter of time before Bendis stepped into the shell of Tony Stark.” – 4.25/5
5. Batman (DC) – 4/5
Honorable mention: Star Wars, Justice League, Weirdworld, Journey to Star Wars: The Force Awakens – Shattered Empire, Old Man Logan, Thor/Thors, Ms. Marvel, Deathstroke, Convergence: Batman & The Outsiders, M.O.D.O.K. Assassin.
@GodHatesGeeks
***GHG’s Marvel/DC Comics of the Year***
1. Secret Wars (THREE 1st place votes; TWO 2nd place votes; ONE 3-5’s).
2. Star Wars (TWO 1st place votes; TWO 2nd place votes; ONE 3-5’s).
3. Darth Vader (TWO 1st place votes; ONE 2nd place votes; ONE 3-5’s).
4. Action Comics (ZERO 1st place votes; TWO 2nd place votes; TWO 3-5’s).
5. Batman (ONE 1st place votes; ZERO 2nd place votes; THREE 3-5’s).
***GHG’s Honorable mention***
–Extraordinary X-Men, Howard the Duck, Old Man Logan, The Dark Knight III: The Master Race, Prez, Justice League, Doctor Strange, Ms. Marvel.
Stay tuned for our Best Indy Comics of 2015 feature, for a listing of Image/Dark Horse/IDW/Dynamite/BOOM!/Valiant/Oni Press/etc. comics!!!