Comics UK

Hi all,

Not sure have this has been covered, but, I view them as a brother to the world of comics, does anyone read 'Graphic Novels'? I tend to go for the non-Marvel / DC ones, for some reason they have never appealed to me.

I'd love to hear from anyone who has read the likes of;

* Maus
* V for Vendetta
* Scott Pilgrim (and the authors very recent 'Seconds')
* Persopolis
* Adele Blanc-Sec

At the time of writing this I am in the midst of a lull of a night shift and my mind is a little blank, I'm sure there's other's that I have read but can't recall at this time.

I'll admit that not all of the above are UK comics but still utterly fantastic (particually Adele Blanc-Sec from France and turned into an utterly amazing film called which was relesed with English subtitles).

Mostly when I visit comics shops such as "Travelling Man" in Manchester or the likes of Forbidden Planet, I love delving into the "Independent" section away from Marvel and DC as there is always a host of amazingly illustrated, if ever so slightly expensive, graphic novels.

Cheers,

Adam

Yes indeed, I read g.n.'s. V for Vendetta is superb and should be required reading, not only for comic fans. ABS is a creation of Jacques Tardi, a master of the comic form and I still remember the thrill of reading the first book all those years ago, after finding it in a Parisian comic shop. His adaptations of Leo Malet's Nestor Burmah detective stories are excellent.
As a fair amont of g.n.'s are compilations of episodes which appeared in comics or magazines - V for example, then I suppose the Dan Dare books should count in this discussion. I go back to them often. They are simply quality.
If I can suggest The Scorpion by Desberg and Marini? I think anyone would find them cracking entertainment.
I haven't read Maus or Persepolis. Haven't worked up the courage to face these testing stories.
For anyone who wants to expand their reading a wee bit, local libraries should have a selection of g.n.'s with, hopefully, some non-Marvel or DC entries. Ours has some French/Belgian books and a fair sprinkling of British collections.

I'm a fan of most of the Graphic Novels mentioned...the trouble is I've always hated the term 'Graphic Novel'!

I know it's gained almost universal acceptance by now, and that my objections have long since been discarded by the world at large, but I still tend to agree with Alan Moore that the term is just too highfalutin and pretentious for books that are basically nothing more nor less than 'Big Comics'!

philcom55 wrote:I'm a fan of most of the Graphic Novels mentioned...the trouble is I've always hated the term 'Graphic Novel'!

I know it's gained almost universal acceptance by now, and that my objections have long since been discarded by the world at large, but I still tend to agree with Alan Moore that the term is just too highfalutin and pretentious for books that are basically nothing more nor less than 'Big Comics'!

Agreed. It's a term broadsheet reviewers use to make themselves feel comfortable when reviewing 'big comics.'

booksandcomics wrote:Hi all,
Not sure have this has been covered, but, I view them as a brother to the world of comics, does anyone read 'Graphic Novels'?

Does anyone on this forum breath air or eat food or sleep at night. Apols for the sarcasm Adam, it just made me smile this morning. Love the question really

Excalibur Special Edition (1987) is one of my favs with Alan Davies' lovely linear work.
I'll mention Watchmen again, though it was a 12-issue run originally. I also read lots of the Titan 2000ad collected works back in the late '80s. Days of Future Past is another classic of course. Plus Batman the Killing Joke.

I ve started to read more graphic novels (GN) recently mostly just "mainstream" collections though. I would recommend for light reading (UK creators) Paul Grists Jack Staff and Mudman collections and Carl Critchlows Thrudd the Barbarian

To be honest I find a lot of GNs try to be a bit too worthy bordering on stuck up and some not very good (which I suppose is the same for most things) ) but the goods ones are excellent::

The Poor b****** by Joe Matt -
Pete Bagges "Buddy" books always funny
Ghost World Daniel Clowes (and imho a great wee film as well)
Blankets by Craig Thompson
Stray Bullets by David Lapham
Hernandez Brothers - various collections
Bone - Jeff Smith
Jaques Tardi - agree with Paw Broons comments above)
Usagi Yojimbo - Stan Saki ( a Samurai Rabbit but good strong storytelling and nice art!!)

There as some good DC/Marvel etc superhero collections I wouldn't miss out on titles like Astro City, 100 bullets, Marvels, 200ad collections etc

booksandcomics wrote:Hi all,

Not sure have this has been covered, but, I view them as a brother to the world of comics, does anyone read 'Graphic Novels'? I tend to go for the non-Marvel / DC ones, for some reason they have never appealed to me.

I'd love to hear from anyone who has read the likes of;

* Maus
* V for Vendetta
* Scott Pilgrim (and the authors very recent 'Seconds')
* Persopolis
* Adele Blanc-Sec

I've read all of these except the last one (Tardi's artwork has always put me off for some reason). Scott Pligrim was a bit so-so for me but I loved the others. I read more comics for adults (usually American and "independent", i.e. not the big 2) than any other kind of comics nowadays. if you want to discuss any particular non-UK comic, there's always the "World Comics" subforum.

Mr McScotty wrote: Pete Bagges "Buddy" books always funny
Ghost World Daniel Clowes (and imho a great wee film as well)
Hernandez Brothers - various collections

All faves of mine,

I tend to agree with the opinion of the term, "Graphic Novel". But many of them, especially Franco/Belgian books are indeed, novels told in a comics format, and if we look at it the other way round, a number of "Graphic Novels" are serious, well written/well drawn, thought provoking works, so the comics and magazines from which they are collected, e.g. V, Watchmen, a number of manga, Charley's War, Corto Maltese could be considered quality fiction. Just a thought
Yes, Jack Staff is a winner, as, imo, is the first Miracleman story arc from Warrior with lovely art from Leach then Alan Davis.
A couple of non-British "big comics" I have enjoyed and still read now and then; Batman Year One and A Contract with God by Will Eisner - in fact many of his books and, digressing a bit, for sheer reading delights, The Spirit;

Shame on me I forgot to mention Wil Eisners work (and Charley's War )- I agree the Spirit is a total joy to read the artwork alone still holds up today as top notch - not a big fan of Watchmen although it was a "game changer" now "Batman year one" that is good .

I love Camelot 3000 and Captain Britain. I have read Maus and am gobsmacked that this is not required reading in Israel, but it is in Australia and may be considered for the Scottish curriculum.

I have also read Watchmen, Suffragette and have From Hell sitting beside my computer waiting for me to pick it up. Others I have read are We3, The Originals, The Tale of One Bad Rat and the Preacher GNs.

I always think of GNs as cousins to the comic. GNs are usually a full story in one hit, but with no page limit to stop it from going over the top size-wise.

I would love to get The Trigan Empire collection, but at that price, it is a distant pipe dream.

All in all, there are many GNs worthy of adding to your collection if for no other reason than enjoying the art.

And I have just added Phantom Patrol and Arena from Bear Alley Books to my collection.

Some of my favourite graphic novels include Cursed Pirate Girl by Jeremy A. Bastian, Fun Home by Alison Bechdel, and the Possessions series by Ray Fawkes, although I still haven't got volume 3 The Better House Trap. I also can't recommend highly enough Genshiken by Kio Shimoku.

I do have possibly the first graphic novel ever published. A couple of decades before the term was coined It Rhymes with Lust by Arnold Drake and Leslie Waller, and art by Matt Baker was published. Dark Horse reprinted it in 2007 and it's still available. It's very noir.

Marionette wrote:I do have possibly the first graphic novel ever published. A couple of decades before the term was coined It Rhymes with Lust by Arnold Drake and Leslie Waller, and art by Matt Baker was published. Dark Horse reprinted it in 2007 and it's still available. It's very noir.

Is that one older than He Done Her Wrong by Milt Gross? Published in 1930, a novel without words - hence, "graphic novel".

I'll agree with the disagreement to the term "graphic novel" though, always feels a bit pinchy, that does. I love Maus and Bone and anything by Jim Woodring, and have read maybe a dozen others over the years... The first one I ever read though, and also my favourite, is The Cartoon History of the Universe by Larry Gonick.

The compilation of the Dan Dare strips could I suppose be counted as a graphic novel and is a great read with many memorable characters.The Trigan Empire , although it has impressive artwork I don't think is quite as good.I collected three comic books in the Russell the hippie series which are both funny and have great artwork similar in style to R.Crumb.Also like the Moebius books and the ogri annuals by Paul Sample.

Love anything by Paul Sample, but those Ogri books are more like compilations than graphic novels, not dissimilar to the Giles annuals or the Far Side Galleries.