Top 100 Runs: First Look - 100-97

There were 12 runs mentioned (due to a few ties) in the opening of the discussions about the Top 100 best comic book runs. Please see my June 1st post for details.

I'll be looking at six of the 12. Here they are:

• 100 (tie). Chris Ware’s Acme Novelty Library
• 100 (tie). Doug Moench’s Master of Kung Fu
• 100 (tie). Jack Cole’s Plastic Man
• 99. Terry Moore’s Strangers in Paradise
• 97 (tie). Matt Wagner’s Grendel
• 97 (tie). Stan Sakai’s Usagi Yojimbo

Out of these, I have only read two: Master of Kung Fu and Grendel....so I'll limit my thoughts to them. As for the others, I must admit to a certain amount of closed mindedness, as I have little to no interest in reading any of them. A good friend of mine tried to get me to take the plunge on Strangers in Paradise, but I have yet to buy into that.

Now on to the ones that I have read.

Master Of Kung Fu: I came late to this title. I did not collect it as a kid, and only came across it because there was a near complete run in some quarter boxes at a shop that was moving to another location. Right time, right price.

I have long enjoyed Doug Moench's work - especially on Batman. He was the writer of record for most of the 80s and helped to define the character at that time. His work was overshadowed by such books as The Dark Knight and The Killing Joke, but I felt that his work stood up quite well.

Especially his run from about Batman 340-365, which crossed over to Detective 507-532. Don't quote me on that...I think they match.

Fun fact - in the 80s, the Batman tales were woven together between Batman and Detective, with the stories continued in each book and vice versa. So you could get two chapters at the same time, assuming shipping schedules matched up.

But this is supposed to be about MOKF. Okay - it was good...I liked what I read. And I felt that the issues that were produced after Jim Shooter was EIC were much better than the ones that preceded him. But, as I said, it was not something I collected when it was coming out. It was good...but it didn't become an instant classic in my mind.

Grendel: It amazes me to see this here. This was an amazing book, full of great stories and some intriguing artists. I wasn't wild about the Pander Brothers, but the story was excellent. Matt Wagner always seems to deliver quality work, and this was no exception.

This must have been caught in the pre-Image independent marketplace (it was published by Comico), where if it wasn't Marvel or DC...very few people read it. I was one of them. That same friend who tried to get me to read Strangers in Paradise succeded in getting me to read this. I am grateful that he did. You should try it as well.

If you like Matt Wagner's work in the 2K era, you'll love it in the mid-80s era as well. I can't recommend this title highly enough. I feel that it should be way higher on this list. I'd probably put it in the Top 50 at least. Give it a try - you'll see.

Top 100 Comic Book Runs?

Yes, a poll was conducted (starting back in March) and votes were counted (I found this on comicbookresources.com) to list the top 100 all-time runs. Then writer Brian Cronin counted them down and offered intelligent commentary about each of the runs.

I am normally opposed to making lists of this sort no matter the topic, and I was especially dubious about this one. I just knew that it would be littered with what I would consider second-rate runs. I was right on that count, but it didn't matter once I got reading.

The main thing, I realized, was that people were writing about comics in a non-condescending way. Some contributors expressed genuine interest in comics in one of two ways: (1) They'd read the comics mentioned some time ago and they were now reminiscing about that; (2) They'd either heard of this run and never got to reading it...or they liked what they read here and now had an interest in seeking the comics out.

I personally can say that I have a good number of comics that I've bought over the years that I never got to read. While this is something to look forward to, it's unfortunate that this would be the case. I'm sure I'm missing some great books that are a stone's throw away from me.

Anyway - while the disagreement came quickly, I still could get a sense that this was simply fellow comic book fans talking about what they liked. And that's cool. After all, like in an election...how much could I really complain? After all, I didn't vote.

One of the things I'd hoped to do with this blog was to just talk about comics. What I liked, what I didn't like. I think I got a bit too focused on what I didn't like...or worse, what I did like. Either way, I think I missed out on the enjoyment associated with this great hobby.

I think I will try to use this list as a forum to zero in on great comics and offer some of my own fanboy insight. If I have a strong negative opinion, I'll try to tone it down. You can get an idea from the list at the right of this blog what sort of comic runs would be of interest to me. But I expect as I go through this list, I'll remember a good run that I'd forgotten about.

Or...even better...maybe I'll read something about a run I'd never considered...and the opinions expressed will make me want to seek that run out. Of course, that would increase the problem of "comics that I've bought over the years that I never got to read" -- but, what the heck...as long as it's a good comic, right?