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14. Deathstroke (DC Comics)
dc’s revival initiative was for the most part a very pleasant surprise across the board, but it’s been less about the new direction across the line and the general story of dc, and more about the fact that that books can have different voices again. there was a time in the darkest pits of the new 52 where everything was more or less… the same. now we have barry allen doing flashy stuff with carmine di giandomenico making it crackle; Otto Schmidt and Rafa Albuquerque make Green Arrow and Batgirl so much better than they need to be; tom king (who we’ll talk about later) opening batman, and pete tomasi and patrick gleason bringing superman back together.
deathstroke has been one of the best surprises because dc gave christopher priest space to work, and that work has been exceptional. the tone and pacing feel like the priest’s black panther, enough to make deathstroke feel like a tough comedic-type comfort food, like coming back to something you’ve loved for years. but slade is not t’challa: although they are both manipulative, slade is a sadistic bastard who has no qualms about using anyone, including family, to achieve his own goals. priest gives his art team (carlos pagulyan and even eight issues in i feel like “shit” is appropriate for larry hama) more to work with than panther’s artists, for various reasons, but it’s still a twisted process, complicated and cerebral. story that looks great and rewards attention.
You are reading: Best comic books of 2016
See Also: Inspector Wexford – Book Series In Order
if you’re not reading deathstroke, you’re missing out on one of the true gems of the renaissance reboot.
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13. Power Man and Iron Fist (Marvel Comics)
It’s a very rare thing for a major crossover event to actually improve the quality of its related comics. power man and iron fist is one big exception to that rule: it’s a book that found its voice the moment it was forced to deal with civil war 2.
See Also: L.E. Modesitt Jr – Book Series In Order
Before the crossover, pm/if was good, but not great. david walker’s scripts and dialogue were entertaining, sanford greene is a treasure, and flaviano is an inspired choice of art partner for walker and greene, but it wasn’t quite right – there were parts that felt wrong, like the characterization cut off just before luke or danny reached their heroic heights. but the moment they had to deal with the stupidity that was “predictive justice”, it’s like an extra dimension was added to each character: luke became an inspiration and a leader, and danny added empathy to the silliness that had before, and that’s when mighty man and iron fist went from being a light and fun book to a must read.
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12. 4001 A. D. (Valiant Comics)
Here’s the flip side of Marvel’s civil war 2: a crossover that seeds good stories into other books and feels like a natural culmination of a story. clayton crain and matt kindt had been working on 4001 for nearly two years in the pages of rai, the kind of unspectacular, consistent, high-quality long game that is the latest incarnation of valiant. has been featured in. it’s the kind of work that consistently pays off: his formula of posting a limited, cohesive line with a few lead vocals all pushing in the same direction and a lot of foresight means there really are no lags in the line, nor are there any crossovers. which is not worth reading.
See Also: Herbal & Natural Medicine : Free Download, Borrow, and Streaming : Internet Archive