Comic and Graphic Novel Recs: Part 1
If you follow me on twitter you may have noticed that for the past week or two I’ve had a real bee in my bonnet regarding men’s attitudes towards criticism of the way female characters are portrayed in superhero comics. This is a good article on the subject, and the comments are filled with excellent examples of what has been enraging me.
So after hearing one too many times guys insisting that girls and women don’t read comics at all, I thought I would do a couple of rec posts on the subject. Today I am generally going to be touching on horror/supernatural comics, and then later I’ll jump into the big world of superheroes.
YA Horror and Supernatural
A fan of ghosts, fairies and/or things that creep around in the dark? Then take a look at these.
Anya’s Ghost: When Anya finds a ghost at the bottom of a well, she thinks she’s found a best friend. But it seems Anya has found a whole heap of trouble instead.
Coraline: The graphic novel of the book, Coraline Jones discovers a little door that leads to an Other Mother, an Other Father… and danger.
Courtney Crumrin and the Night Things: When Courtney and her parents move in with Uncle Aloysius, Courtney discovers that she can do magic and there are creatures that live in the dark.
The Good Neighbors: As Rue is about to discover, things – like murder and families – are never simple when the fae are involved.
Adult Horror and Supernatural
Creepy things that may not be suitable for younger readers. May contain graphic violence, sexual content/nudity, and content might make you need your brown pants/sleep with the light on.
Locke and Key: After their father’s murder, the Locke kids and their mother move to Keyhouse, a house with a voice in the well and a number of keys that do more than just open doors.
American Vampire: Witness the birth of a new species of vampire, following first American Vampire Skinner Sweet, an outlaw, and his progeny, struggling silent film actress Pearl Jones.
The Walking Dead: In the series that inspired the TV show, Rick Grimes wakes from a coma after being shot while on duty to find that the zombie apocalypse has arrived.
Sandman: After being imprisoned for 70 years, Dream sets out on a quest to recover his lost objects of power.
Madame Xanadu: Follow the ageless fortuneteller Madame Xanadu throughout the ages, from the time of King Arthur to the court of Kublai Khan to Marie Antoinette’s side and more.
The Unknown: A renowned private detective with only six months left to live, Catherine Allingham is determined to solve the greatest mystery of all: what awaits us after we die?
You’ve Watched the Cartoon, Now Read the Comic
The comics that inspired the cartoon and the comics that continue the cartoons.
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: In the original series that inspired the shows/movies, four infant turtles are transformed by a mysterious ooze and trained by a rat to become… well, you know.
Static Shock: In the original comic that inspired the cartoon series, Virgil Hawkins develops superpowers after being doused with a chemical during a gang war and becomes the hero Static.
Gargoyles: A continuation of the Disney cartoon, Gargoyles follows a clan of some of the last surviving gargoyles – creatures who are stone by day and warriors by night.
Young Justice: Based on the Cartoon Network series, Young Justice follows a group of sidekicks who have now formed their own superteam to perform missions on behalf of the Justice League.
Oooo, thanks for the recs!
I’ve read and enjoyed Locke & Key, American Vampire, Madame Xanadu, and the Unknown. All random finds at the library. There was another random find that seems like it would fit well on this list, but for the life of me I can’t remember the name, and the online catalog is far too vast to hope to find it by browsing. It vexes me.
At any rate, I find that these days I’m drawn to increasingly less conventional titles, having long given up on capes and superpowers. Granted it has as much to do with poor writing and convoluted massive crossover story arcs as it does being fed up with micro-spandex covered 12-packs and gravity defying Triple-Ds, but they certainly play a part.