Sketch Reviews (August 18 2011)

As you can imagine, one of the last things I really feel like doing this week is writing about more comics. But, I love the stupid things. And CBR pays me to write about comics. Anyway, the Blogathon was fun and the window for sponsoring me/donating to the Hero Initiative is open until 9am Tuesday morning (not that you can't donate after that...). I've even sweetened the pot a but by promising the return of Random Thoughts if the total tops $500. Considering the number when I made that promise was $350, the heavy lifting has been done by the generous donators that did it before the Blogathon itself ended. Now, onto new comics...

Avengers #16: Steve Rogers is James Kirk... also, Captain America is the Spirit of America. A weak tie-in that felt forced and like Bendis was trying to address Bucky dying without stepping on Brubaker's toes. Whatever. [**]

Butcher, Baker, Candlestickmaker #2: This issue held together better than the first until Butcher got himself tossed out of the marines. That felt rushed and almost like a means to an end. The battle scene was just well done on all fronts. [***1/4]

Captain America #2: Okay, this shit got fucking goofy. And that's pretty awesome. Everything else surrounding this comic felt tedious, but the weird dream world that a little boy can access and the Allies were using as a way to sneak up on Nazis? I can dig that. And, damn, that's some 'all over the map' inking. [***]

Flashpoint: The Outsider #3: Man, you know the Martian Manhunter is a badass, because he wears a leather jacket and leather pants. That's... that's actually pretty fucking weird. I did enjoy how this was basically a story about how the world fucks you up and makes you worse than you would have been otherwise. I'd be surprised if the Outsider doesn't show up in the regular DCU. [***1/2]

Journey into Mystery #626: You know how you know Loki is fucking awesome at what he does? Everyone tells him that they know he's a liar and they won't trust him... and, then, they go ahead and make a deal with him and trust him anyway. He's that damn good. [***3/4]

X-Men: Schism #3: My favourite part: "I don't understand... why are they smiling?" Best line of the whole comic. I do dig a methodical takedown of the bad guys, especially when it's teased with a big hero comeback via Emma. Also, this felt like a more natural cause of the beginning of a Logan/Scott rift than we've seen yet. I'm digging this. I'm not sold on picking up any of the relaunched books yet -- we'll see how the final two issues of this play out. [***1/2]

Also, I picked up Hellblazer: Bloody Carnations, 'Breed II: The Book of Ecclesiastes, and the WE3 hardcover (the new pages suckered me in). Because they all had to come out today, of course...

Later

Sketch Reviews (July 21 2011)

Holy fuck is it hot. And, right now, the story that I'm most excited about the CM Punk saga over in the WWE. The latest development was him crashing the WWE panel at San Diego to ask a few questions of Triple H and Rey Mysterio. Nothing comics is doing right now has me as excited. I watched Money in the Bank at a movie theatre on Sunday night and, then, pre-ordered the DVD on Monday. That's how good it was -- and I want to reward that quality.

Actually, I'm not 'not excited' by comics. I've been pretty excited this week as I've begun planning for this year's Blogathon. I have a date, a concept, and a charity chosen. I'm just finalising the final list of comics/topics/whatever by consulting with a couple of smart people. I should announce that on Monday.

Today, I picked up an Amazon.ca package from UPS that they tried to deliver on Tuesday (I was out in nature with the girlfriend...). It contained Supergods and Grant Morrison: Talking with Gods. Haven't begun the book yet (comics came first), but Michelle and I watched the documentary. I liked it. Learned a few things, but a lot of it was known to me already. Michelle, on the other hand, had no experience with Grant Morrison beyond knowing that he's a writer I like. So, all of his weird craziness that most of us slowly learned over the years in bits and pieces, she gets dropped on her all at once. Kind of fun to see it in that light...

Avengers #15: Chris Bachalo's art is a lot of fun and crazy here. Bendis's writing left me oddly cold. [***1/4]

The Boys: Butcher, Baker, Candlestickmaker #1: Huh. I don't know why, but I pictured Butcher having a father he loved and respected. And, yet, this doesn't surprise me completely. A fine first issue, but I'm curious about the whole picture. Nice to see Robertson back drawing the character (besides covers). [***1/2]

Daredevil #1: A rather good first issue. Fun, exciting, inventive in the art... none of it blew my mind completely unfortunately. I'm the sort of negative person who wonders how long Matt can keep up this "I'm not Daredevil" thing and how long it will be before his kooky, over-the-top personality becomes annoying instead of charming. I like this take, but it's easy to see the problems that will be coming if Waid and company aren't careful. I guess there's also the problem of: how long can we sympathise with him denying he's Daredevil when he is? How long before this is just another "Superman is a lying bastard" sort of book? Or is it one already? Gorgeous, gorgeous art. [****]

Flashpoint: The Outsider #2: I like this character, but also find him a bit dull at times. Like he's still too new to be truly entertaining. Also, I wish Kevin Nowlan were drawing the book. [***1/4]

T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agents #9: If this comic returns, I don't think I'll be buying it. This arc has been a big disappointment and I'm done after next issue. [*1/2]

Ultimate Fallout #2: Even Aunt May thinks Captain America is a jerk. Bryan Hitch's bit was nice. I was waiting to see how this series went before adding any of the new Ultimate titles to my pull list, but I think I'll get the Hickman titles. Yeah. Definitely. [***1/4]

Later

CBR Review: Flashpoint: The Outsider #1

I recently reviewed Flashpoint: The Outsider #1 for CBR and, in the process, wrote the following sentences: "Of all the Flashpoint tie-in minis, the one that’s stood out as the biggest mystery book is The Outsider. Who is the Outsider? Is he Alfred Pennyworth, an altered Lex Luthor, a White Martian, or something else entirely? James Robinson doesn’t shy away from that question by answering it right away in this issue, revealing the character to be brand new and looking like the likeliest candidate to be the ‘Nate Grey’ of Flashpoint. And, judging by this issue, he’d make a nice addition to the criminal landscape of the DCU if they went that route."

You can read the rest HERE!

CBR Review: Justice League of America #57

I recently reviewed Justice League of America #57 for CBR and, in the process, wrote the following sentences: "The contrast between the heroes and the villain in Justice League of America #57 makes for an interesting dynamic. As the Justice League regroup and plan to take on Eclipso on the moon, the villain advances his schemes in a big way by setting his eyes on his successor as the Vengeance of God, the Spectre. The heroes regrouping and strategizing gives the issue a down, transitory feeling that’s balanced out by Eclipso taking on the Spectre. Conceptually, it works quite well. The execution is where the issue falters."

You can read the rest HERE!

Pre-Joe Casey Comics: Cable #50

[The third post in my look at Joe Casey's Cable run and the last post of James Robinson's tenure on the book. New posts Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday.]

James Robinson left Cable with this "double-sized" (short four pages of story to really be double-size) fiftieth issue and leaves on a high note. This issue has Cable and Irene travel to London where Sebastian Shaw and Donald Pierce are attempting to open some capsule left by Apocalypse that we saw contains some altered man from Victorian London. To go with this is some flashback sequences to 1915 where Union Jack foils the attempt of the Hellfire Club of that time to open the capsule. In the end, it's opened and the Harbinger of Apocalypse emerges, while Shaw, Pierce and a man called Ch'vayre escape. The Harbinger manages to defeat Cable and also escape. Later, Cable tracks him down and the two talk, with Cable emploring him to diregard Apocalypse's programming--to create chaos and separate the strong from the weak--but to no avail.

As this is the fiftieth issue, Robinson references Cable's past a bit with the issue beginning at Xavier's and Cable visiting an injured Scott. Later, Madelyne Prior shows up for no reason I can see other than to have Cable's biological mom show up. Ch'vayre is actually a follower of the Askani faith and only helps Shaw and Pierce because it will put Cable on the proper path--and also namechecks Sanctity (aka Rachael Summers). Apocalypse makes an appearance in a flashback and this issue actually begins the whole push to the millenium when Cable was supposed to have his final confrontation with Apocalypse.

Ladronn's work here is damn good, but there is an odd moment during the fight near the end where he has a small panel of the ground and Cable's foot above it. It's so odd that the editor includes a note for it saying that no one knows why Ladronn included that panel, but it's so wacky that they kept it.

Ths issue is a little strange because it's really the halfway mark of "The Hellfire Hunt," but actually feels like a conclusion to the story as the bad guys got away (as they often do), but their scheme foiled. The Harbinger flies away, setting up a future threat. Maybe Robinson set the story up this way because he knew he would be leaving the book, so wanted to leave on a conclusive note, while recognising that there's a larger story.

An interesting parallel is the use of Union Jack's journal as the key to knowing what Shaw and Pierce are up to at the same time that Cable has taken on Irene as his chronicler, highlighting the importance of someone recording these events.

On Thursday, Joe Casey's first Marvel comic... something that annoyed my 14-year-old self to no end when it came out. Oh, how young I was.

Pre-Joe Casey Comics: Cable #49

[The second in my series of posts looking at Joe Casey's run on Cable. Since Casey took over the title midstoryline, I've begun by looking at the three issues James Robinson wrote before Casey came aboard. New posts Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday.]

So I'm sitting here, writing this post and I look over at the cover of this issue and notice artist signature. There's the combined one by Ladronn and Juan Vlasco, but then there's also the "LIQUID!" (or is it "LICQUID!"?) bit added by the colouring studio. They used to do that on every fucking cover they coloured and it was such a marker of that late '90s Marvel era. Whatever happened to those guys?

"The Hellfire Hunt" continues with Irene Merryweather learning a little bit about Cable--actually all she learns is that he's a mutant from the future. Ah, that mysterious Cable! We learn that Pierce is the one behind the "Tomorrow Agenda" and it relates to him wanting to take revenge on Cable for something or other. Cable tricks Pierce into thinking he's in Algeria, so he can raid Pierce's house with as little resistence as possible. No such luck as Cable winds up having to blow shit up, fuck people up and almost dies while inside the head of one of Pierce's flunkies. In the end, he knows what they're trying to do: kill Apocalypse and harness his power for their own purposes, and have been trying to kill Cable because they figure he'd try to stop them. And they figured right.

A decent enough issue that advances the story a little with the introduction of the main characters (Cable and Pierce) and makes the actual problem clear. Really, this is the first act of the story, issue 48 more a prologue. It has Cable in his element: fighting a shadowy conspiracy featuring many faceless flunkies and relating to Apocalypse.

This issue also hints at a few elements of Cable's mythology that will get played up. First, Irene as his chronicler, suggesting his messiah-like role. Second, a group called "the Believers" who work with Cable to further his goals, again pushing his messiah role. Casey will use these elements further, but Robinson lays the groundwork here.

Ladronn's art continues to amaze as he manages to fill most pages with five or more panels without it ever looking cluttered or confusing.

Robinson's main problem here is that he doesn't seem to know what sort of story he is telling. He uses three different types of narration, tries to get into the heads of three different characters, but, as a result, winds up giving us very little information. He introduced Irene as a POV character, but doesn't use her as such here--or, at least, not enough. The entire sequence with Pierce and the third-person omniscient narrator distracts from the story and Irene's narration.

On Tuesday, I'll look at issue 50, which is also Robinson's last issue on the book. And, then, on Thursday, we get Joe Casey's first comic work for Marvel (maybe his first comic work period, but I remember hearing about a book he did for Calibre that could have been around before this).

Pre-Joe Casey Comics: Cable #48

[The first in a series of posts looking at Joe Casey's run on Cable. Since Casey took over the title mid-story, today, we begin with the first part of that story, issue 48, which was written by James Robinson.]

The first part of "The Hellfire Hunt" barely contains Cable at all. The majority of the issue focuses on Irene Merryweather, a reporter for some third-rate scandal sheet with dreams of working for The Daily Bugle. She's assigned to find out about some redhead on the arm of some rich guy named Sebastian Shaw. She does some digging and gets the impression that most of the people who say they don't know anything really do. That is until one guy tells her about working a dinner party Shaw was at--and talking to a guy named Pierce about "hitting Cable." Next thing she knows, that guy is dead and the entire staff of her paper have been slaughtered, the offices trashed. She's attacked by Hellfire Club men and is saved by Cable.

Not a whole lot actually happens here, but the introduction of Irene Merryweather is a big thing because she plays a large role in Casey's run on the book. Despite Robinson's best efforts she comes off like a stock character here. The intrepid reporter working at a tabloid until she can land her dream job at a real paper.

The real draw of this issue (no pun intended) is Ladronn's art. This wasn't the first issue of Cable he'd drawn as he drew issue -1, but it sets the tone of Casey's run. Ladronn has a weird manga/Kirby mash-up style that is very kinetic, but also weirdly detailed. As well, a lot of the story is told through his art as facial expressions and body language sell it.

This issue is little more than set-up, but also had me excited when it first came out. I had subscribed to Cable since "The Age of Apocalypse" with the last couple of issues of X-Man, really enjoyed Jeph Loeb's work on the book (I've yet to go back and read that stuff again, though), and then the book sort of floated with no direction and went through a slew of guest writers. James Robinson's arrival on the book had me thinking of Warren Ellis' arrival on Thor: a book I was reading that wasn't the greatest, but here comes a well-respected writer whose work I wasn't all that familiar with and the promise of a new direction. Now, Robinson didn't deliver like Ellis had done, but this issue still had my 14-year-old self excited.

Next issue will have some meat to it, I believe.

Five Most Influential Writers From 1990(ish) To The Present - A Group Project

gThis is our first "group project" and it's each of us picking who we think are the most influential writers in mainstream comics from the period of 1990(ish) to the present. We each were able to choose up to five writers. We're focussing on the mainstream because that's where trends and patterns are more easy to see. If you look outside of the mainstream, there are trends and patterns, but not nearly as many, or as easy to see. Also, for each person, they are listed alphabetically, as we want to avoid the whole "top five" aspect and just pick writers who we think have had a large influence.

Erin Clark

Chris Claremont
Yeah, yeah, I know. He's unreadable now, but he used to be good. Hell, his run on the Uncanny X-Men, with its emphasis on characters, their relationships, and an abundance of on-going plot arcs, went a long way in changing the sort of story that was written in American comics. Good or bad, a lot of the stuff on the superhero shelves wouldn't be there without Claremont.

Neil Gaiman
His Sandman was intelligent, low-key, and adult without being needlessly 'dark', 'gritty' or pornographic. He writes books that appeal to *everyone*, not just the die-hard comic fans.

Alan Moore
The master. The greatest comics writer, well, *ever*. There's really not much else to say.

Grant Morrison
His books have a sense of fun, and the great, mad ideas more often seen in European comics. A great antidote to the rampant cynicism of the 80s. He attempts to merge clever stuff with the giant blockbuster, sometimes not always successfully.

Steve Higgins

Daniel Clowes
If you ask most indie creators which artists they follow, who inspires them the most, Daniel Clowes will top the list for most of them. Since the end of the '80s, Clowes has been giving the world a window into his madness with a comic known as Eightball. Clowes has used this comic to experiment as its stories have ranged from surreal to mundane, from dark comedy to human drama, from short stories to serials to long-form comics. In Eightball Clowes has done it all, and it has all been both innovative and brilliant.

Neil Gaiman
Neil Gaiman created Sandman. Sandman helped comics to gain acceptance amongst mainstream readers, and it broke comics into the bookstores for the first time. Sandman got writers thinking about writing their comics in a new way, writing with a bigger picture in mind. At its very worst, that meant that creators began to write their stories for the trade paperback collection, but at its best it inspired other creators to take their time to develop characters, to tell epic stories that were larger than life, to mix genres such as horror, fantasy, superhero and more into something completely new. Every writer working in the era since Sandman's debut has had to live in the legacy of that marvelous comic, and it is a legacy that can only inspire other writers to greatness.

Otomo Katsuhiro
It is relatively simple to see why Otomo Katsuhiro is one of the most influential creators of the modern era, especially to the Western world. In the late '80s, he adapted his long-running manga series Akira into an animated feature, and when it hit US shores in 1988, it created a sensation. Sure, people had heard of manga before Akira, but Akira is what made manga cool. Without Akira, manga would not have gained the foothold it has on our comics industry today, and thus with that one project, Otomo Katsuhiro changed the face of comics publishing forever.

Frank Miller
Some would argue that by the modern era Miller's most influential works were behind him. His work on Batman and Daredevil redefined comics in the 1980s, but what has he done since then that is worthy of note? The answer boils down to two words: Sin City. Artistically Sin City is a masterpiece which redefined the ideas people had about what was possible with black and white comics, and Miller is most often given praise for his art on the book first and foremost. But to ignore the writing of Sin City is to do him a disservice, for in it he takes the fractured heroes of his earlier mainstream work and gives them a twist. His characters are a bit darker than what we’re used to seeing in comics, for they live in an even darker world. His characters are on display so that the purest of heroes and meanest of bastards seem to all live not in a black and white world but in between, in the gray areas of morality.

Alan Moore
A list of influential comic creators cannot be complete without Alan Moore. Like Miller, he is most known for his earlier works in which he deconstructed the genre of superheroes, including the seminal Watchmen; however, his works in recent times have been about reconstruction. Supreme, Top 10, 1963, Tom Strong—these works rebuilt superhero comics from the ground up, distilling those elements that really made these stories shine and shoving them to the forefront again. If you liked the wild ideas of Morrison's JLA or the widescreen action of Ellis's Authority, you owe Moore a debt of gratitude.

Won Kim

Brian Azzarello
For his work on 100 Bullets, taking cinematic neo-noir (as seen in films like John Dahl's The Last Seduction and Red Rock West, McQuarrie's Way of the Gun), mixing some conspiracy theory into the broth, and "pushing it" into Hip Hop turf.

To the best of my knowledge, few (outside indies, like David Lapham's work on Stray Bullets, or Europeans, like Jodoworsky and Bess in the recently translated Son of the Gun trade collections) mines the same turf. Assuming Hip Hop remains a viable cultural movement, I predict we will see more of this kind of hip hop noir popping up in urban-set mainstream titles, likely those featuring urban vigilantes, like Batgirl, Manhunter, Luke Cage, Daredevil, etc.

Ed Brubaker & Greg Rucka and Brian Michael Bendis
I very much like the work Greg Rucka, Ed Brubaker and BM Bendis have done in titles like Gotham Central, Catwoman (a great, great revival) and Daredevil, but I cannot help but think that their crime noir work is still overshadowed to a large degree by Denny O'Neil, Max Allen Collin's and Frank Miller's take on the Batman from the 70's- and 80's, which opened the doors for their grittier take on vigilante genre.

It's largely forgotten these days, but Brubaker wrote a truncated (originally planned for 25 issues, cut down to 16 due to low sales) sci fi book that featured Quadrophrenia inspired punk teenagers struggling to survive in very Blade Runner-esque dystopian urban future, on the verge of environmental collapase, titled Dead Enders. I see echos of this frank approach to youthful amorality in titles like the sadly cut short The Monolith, NYX and survivors like X-23 and even Runaways. (Credit is also due here however to a great 80's phenomenon of the B&W revolution: Los Bros Hernandez' Love and Rockets and the revival of punk-mod by the creators of Tank Girl) These titles attest to a welcome trend to a minutely more realistic look at teenagers in titles like The Teen Titans and the new "twenty-something" Outsiders.

Chris Claremont
Criminally under-rated today (likely because of the writers seeming descent into a mind of mental menopause) is the great Chris Claremont. In truth, I find his X-books almost impossible to read today, his purple prose and dialogue defining the furthest extreme limit one can take Stan Lee's hyperbole and alliteration today, and still be palatable, but we must not forget his contribution to Marvel in the 80's and 90's. Len Wein and Dave Cockrum deserve the credit for reviving the Xmen in the late seventies, but it was Chris Claremont (and to a lesser extant) John Bryne, that turned the most dismal of Stan and Jack's sixties creations into the powerhouse franchise it is today. Marvel owes it's economic survival through the latter 90's in large part to Claremont's redefinition of the spandex superhero team book, and exploration of it's absurd limits, in painfully contrived crossover after crossover. In a way, the superhero genre likely owes some of it's survival through some financially rocky times to the viability of his Xbooks. So when people ask what is Claremont still doing writing X-books, all I can say is, however painful that stuff is to read today, at one time, Claremont was the fresh air the team book needed, and he's earned his permanent place at Marvel. (Would Jack Kirby have fared as well.)

Warren Ellis
Ellis really came into his own, becoming a "brand name" in the US mainstream market in the 90's, particularly during the latter half of the decade with his work for the faltering Wildstorm Brand. His Stormwatch and The Authority tapped into transatlantic youth culture concerns over the globalization of world markets and deep seated distrust of government, and made the pioneering ideas of 70's (80's?) writers like Mark Gruenwald (Squadron Supreme) viable again - so much so that he's inspired the revival the Squadron (in Marvel's Supreme Power and critics like Joe Kelly, into imitators (JLA Elite), as well as opened the door for the experiments of Palmiotti and Gray in 21 Down and Peter Milligan and Mike Allred in X-Force/X-statix.

Potentially more influential will be Ellis particular take on the pulpo fiction roots of the comics: characters like the Walter Gibson's Shadow, Fu Manchu, the Lone Ranger, Tarzan, "the Man of Bronze" are major figure prominently in the secret history of the world unearthed by his Elijah Snow and Co. in Planetary, as they war on the Four (a group patterned on Marvel's FF) representing the new comics of the Marvel Revolution, which buried the old icons for a time. The interest in
Planetary has already opened doors to more ambitious projects like Morrison's Seven Soldiers and has lent a patina of intellectual respectibility to Robinson, Geoff Johns and Mark Waid's ongoing (and often unappreciated) efforts to creatively revive formerly hopeless characters like Flash, Hawkman, The Legionand the old JSA crew.

Pete Mortensen

Neil Gaiman
It's hard to calculate the importance of Sandman, both for its broad, crossover audience in bookstores and as a touchstone for a complete reinvention of an existing concept. Few revamps have ever worked out as well, but many, many have tried, and that's the definition of influence. Additionally, Gaiman's work in other media, particularly prose, has given all of his works a heft rarely seen in the direct market.

Peter Milligan
The quietest revolutionary in comics. Milligan writes dialogue no one has ever spoken from characters no one has ever seen. His power stems largely from his ability to reinvent himself, and it's only been in his attempts to go home again (such as the ongoing Human Target series and his non X-Statix/Force Marvel work) that he has failed to feel fresh. He's often over-looked, but his back catalog stands with anyone on this list, though his low points are perhaps lower than the rest. His introduction of complex themes of identity to comics will be his lasting legacy.

Alan Moore
The early '90s was all about further exploration of grim, realistic exploration of the superhero. Moore, for better or worse, kicked all of that off with Miracleman and cemented it in Watchmen and Swamp Thing. Additionally, he explored avenues many other mainstream writers tried after he had some success with it, including self-publishing and wholly creator-owned works. Though he himself owes a debt to Dave Sim and Kevin Eastman on that point. Moore's most lasting impact, however, will likely be on the scripting of comics. His style,written in extraordinarily detailed fashion with included thumbnails, is the gold standard. Many young writers are under the impression that his is the only way to compose a script, by writing 200 pages of script for 22 pages of comics. Moore is a polarizing figure, but no one can ignore his impact.

Grant Morrison
Perhaps the most ambitious comics writer of all time. Can't possibly live up to his own expectations of his work, but the fact he almost always gets at least 75 percent of the way there makes his writing essential. For most of his career, he has been saddled with adequate or poor art, which has meant some of his finest work can be a struggle to get through. However, his particular mix of straight-up superheros produced at the same time as uncompromised original work is somewhat unique and has again been imitated quite often. He is in many ways the evil twin of Alan Moore, though they won't have anything to do with one another. Morrison is also a comic writer's comic writer, drawing the collective library of everything that has gone before in his work. He should not be underestimated.

James Robinson
He reinvented the nostalgia comic, which would be something to be embarassed about were his own work in the genre not so uniformly excellent. The Golden Age and Starman never had enormous audiences, but their impact is obvious in the New Frontier, JSA, Flash and many comics not written by Geoff Johns. But Robinson made it all sing. He is hugely missed.

Chad Nevett

Brian Michael Bendis
One word: decompression. I think that says it all.

Kurt Busiek
This guy made mainstream superhero stories about superheroes who were heroes readable again in the 90s. Not only that, but he also added a human perspective on them in the process. These things were around before, but in Marvels and Astro City, Busiek brought them back. Not only that, but along with writers like Mark Waid, Alan Moore and James Robinson, he helped put current comics into a historical perspective. He would go back and reference history. He would bring back old villains. He would bring back old heroes. As far as mainstream superhero comics themselves go, I think Kurt Busiek helped shape them more than he'll ever get credit for.

Warren Ellis
I don't think anyone in the mainstream emphasised putting the creator first more than Ellis. He was the bastardly ass who would rant on about fixing comics and would look outside of the regular fanboy shit to do so. He helped push for more creator rights and creator-owned (or creator-shared properties). He's the "free agent" of the mainstream. He does work wherever he wants and moves on when it's over. Hell, The Authority helped kick off that whole "widescreen" style that's finally going out of style. He has written extensively on the form of comics and various attempts to try new things within it.

Neil Gaiman
Where would Vertigo be without Neil Gaiman? No, seriously. Where? No book started the move to trades more than The Sandman. It helped create the bookstore market for graphic novels. He also injected a certain literary sense to writing comics, building on what Alan Moore had done previously. The influence can still be seen today--especially at Vertigo and Wildstorm.

Grant Morrison
You may not like everything Morrison does, but damn, he's always trying new things. Look at the books he did in the 90s and 2000s and there's no real pattern to it. It just seems like pure randomness. Doom Patrol, Flex Mentallo, JLA, Marvel Boy, The Invisibles, New X-Men, The Filth, Kill Your Boyfriend (which should be handed out at high schools if you want teenagers reading comics), The Mystery Play, Seaguy, WE3 and now Seven Soldiers. Like Ellis, Morrison is always thinking forward. This means he falls on his face from time to time, but he tries new things. He also does a nice variety of projects to try and appeal to as many fans as possible. With Ellis, he helped kick off the widescreen phase in JLA. He was one of the first, after Gaiman, to try his hand at a long-form graphic novel at Vertigo with The Invisibles. His work is full of big ideas and is often written in a style that doesn't talk down to the readers.

And that's what we think. Obviously, we welcome any feedback regarding our choices. Feel free to disagree as much as you want--as you can see, none of us totally agreed.