Nicholson-ish, but it works for the shirt, since the artwork really makes them look like people, rather than just cartoons or comic book characters. It's a deliciously creepy shirt. I also like how it sums up their relationship. Harley Quinn fawning all over the Joker, while the Joker shallowly returns her affections even though his real concern is getting the rest of the world's attention. A bigger version to give you a better idea (though my shirt has better resolution)...

http://media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/73...95bdb5ef59.jpg

Like it or lump it it's Jack Nicholson!

You're just jealous.

Of what?

Of my awesome shirt, duh.

Speaking of the Joker, I was curious just how many people he's killed, and apparently his body count has its own page on the DC Wikia. How ****ing cool is that?

Joker's Body Count - DC Comics Database

168?

But do you add, replace or what the 140 from the DCnU? Still, 168 would make him easily the most prolific serial killer in history. And those are just the official ones. I'm sure they're leaving out all the pizza delivery boys who gave him a pizza with the wrong toppings.

And "The Joker's Body Count" would make a hell of a band name.

The Iceman bro he was prolific.

Dudes Documentary gave me chills at times.

This exactly. I get them too, he was a cold motha****a. ...

Used some birthday money to splurge at the comic store.


http://thumbs.newschoolers.com/index...&size=400x1000

http://images.wikia.com/marvel_dc/im...al_Ghul_TP.jpg

http://www.zaslike.com/files/5d3ticqyvau4nycgnqye.jpg




http://stream1.gifsoup.com/view2/375...off-prep-o.gif

Arkham Asylum is one of my favorites ....

Well now that I've discovered I can look at comic books on the net I'm overloading. I've also discovered that apparently Hawkeye has one of the best series out right now. No idea how that happened but I'm about seven issues in and it's pretty fantastic. It's kind of hard to describe the vibe. It's low key stuff, no world threatening Great Foogles (I think that's the term used for those arbitrary uber-bosses that show up at the end of an rpg that have absolutely nothing to do with the overarching plot but somehow end being the focal point of the game, like the final boss in Chrono Trigger), no big super-powered baddies, and for the most part no Avengers, though he does have help from a young, female Hawkeye named Kate from the Young Avengers who gives him a charmingly hard time. For the most part it's just them going up against everything from crime bosses to douchey landlords. He even has a tough battle with his entertainment system at one point.

He's a fun character too, vaguely depressed, but without being broody. He kicks ass at times but others he's kind of a schlub of a superhero. The series certainly takes characterization seriously, but it's also playful. During one issue it mocks the idea of his endless series of trick arrows ("Boomerang arrow, Kate -- it comes back to you in the end. Boomerang. Respect it." "Why the hell do you need an arrow that comes back to you after you shoot it, Clint?" "Because... boomerangs.") while also showing him using them to awesome effect throughout the story.

But the most obvious star of the series is it's art. It kind of reminds me of the noir style of Batman's The Long Halloween with it's muted and deceptively simple-looking color palette, but without being as dark. I don't know why, but it also gives me a vague kind of Calvin and Hobbes feel too. Makes it just gritty enough to look serious and non-campy, but fun and stylish at the same time. Combined with the clever layout of the panels it's one of the most visually unique and impressive comics I've ever seen. And the covers are just fantastic. I'm definitely going to be keeping up with this title and looking out for it in trade paperbacks. If I'm gonna be jacking comics off the net I gotta make sure to keep supporting the local comic shops at the same time after all.


http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-LZFfyXkcQU...207055-000.jpg

http://comicsmedia.ign.com/comics/im...208614-000.jpg

http://comicbookrealm.com/cover-scan...ye-issue-9.jpg

i love the artwork on those Hawkeye covers....hows the story?

also how was that Green Lantern?

currently reading a few collections including
http://x.annihil.us/u/prod/marvel/i/...background.jpg

http://pixhst.com/avaxhome/c8/79/002e79c8_medium.jpeg

http://x.annihil.us/u/prod/marvel/i/...incredible.jpg

and re-reading this amazing Frank Miller book :)
http://forbiddenplanet.co.uk/blog/wp...ienkiewicz.jpg

Amazing. Like I said, great characterization. The characters are strong and you get a real sense of their personalities, while at the same time they're written subtlely and realistically enough that 19 issues in I'm still learning new things about them. For the most part the series is about Hawkeye and his quasi-sidekick Kate, also called Hawkeye BTW, but even side characters are strong and feel real. It's really as much of a compelling drama as it is a comic book. I seriously could not have given a crap about Hawkeye before, but now he's become a new fav. I was reading Loki's new series a few hours ago and he popped in for a cameo in the first issue and I actually smiled at seeing him. I'm also planning on getting into Young Avengers at some point which includes Kate/Hawkeye because of how much I loved her character. She could easily be a Joss Whedon character as she's written with a great quirky humor, but her relationship with Hawkeye fleshes her out and makes her as strong a character as him.

Oh yeah, as for the story it's just as strong as the art and the characters. It tends to switch between secret agent kinds of storylines, with Hawkeye as a sort of lovable loser version of James Bond, to street level stuff like a recurring storyline about Hawkeye's apartment building and all of the tenants that he sees day to day. The storytelling itself is pretty interesting too. At times it switches from past to future to present without much warning, making you wonder why that just happened, only to come back later in the issue, or even several issues later to finally let you know the context of this or that. It could be easily confusing, but it's cleverly done enough that it draws you in and makes every reveal, even seemingly innocuous ones, into fun "Aha!" moments that make you want to pay attention to every little detail that doesn't immediately make sense. They never make it impenetrable or anything, but they keeping you guessing. It's by far one of the most mature and well-written comic books I've ever read. Something I'd recommend to people who don't even like comics.

Haven't finished it yet. I'm starting to collect a stack of comics that I need to read, sort of like my book collection, and I sense that I'm going to end up falling behind on some of them. But it's pretty fantastic so far. Really trippy and surreal, almost Yellow Submarine-esque (as in the movie). There's a two page shot of a really bizarre city in the first few pages that's just stunning. Really need to get off my ass and pick that back up.

SOLD

on the Hawkeye

Getting into The New 52: Batman Detective Series, and I love it! Tbh, this is the only DC comic I have ever followed.

https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-G...AM-610x319.png

I'm mostly into my Cable/Deadpool tho.

there is something to be said about that artwork :)

I'm getting lucky as **** with the comics I'm reading. Almost done with the current issues of Thor: God of Thunder and it's another series totally worth the hype. The first eleven issues are just comic book mana from heaven. It switches between three different a young Thor who hasn't even gotten his hammer from 893 AD, the current day Thor, and an old Thor from many millenia in the future who is now king of Asgard. The story telling really adds to the character who isn't exactly the most three dimensional superhero, by showing different sides to his personality: the brash, arrogance of Thor's youth, the selfless hero of the modern era, and the wise but cantankerous Thor who has basically become his father.

Even more important is the slowly unfolding storyline that is told over the course of thousands of years from each of their perspectives to form an engrossing mystery. It's a fairly simple concept, but it's executed beautifully. And the evolution of the narrative keeps gives enough satisfying payoffs while asking even more questions that you're always been drawn further in. The villain is pretty awesome too, being suitably badass and horrifying yet surprisingly relatable and tragic.

And the artwork again elevates the material to the level of almost perfection. I was hoping for epicness from a comic about the Norse god of thunder, but I was not prepared for just how epic the art style itself would be. Every panel looks almost like the kind of detailed battle painting one might find in a museum, with slightly muted, faded-looking colors that give the impression of an ancient epic brought to life. Combined with the story it really feels like high fantasy, with dashes of sci fi thrown in for good measure.



After the first brilliant story arc there's a bit of a dip in quality, though it's still highly enjoyable. The original artist was replaced, and the vibe changed from high concept fantasy to a more light-hearted, dungeons and dragons kind of pulp fantasy. Still a lot of fun, but a definite step down. Thankfully five issues later the original artist returns and the series seems to pick up where it left off thematically, and is so far as amazing as ever. Old King Thor engaging in an epic battle with Galactus is certainly one of the high points of the series.




Edit: @ .bob - And apparently the same guy who wrote Thanos Rising, Jason Aaron, is also the writer for Thor: God of Thunder, if that means anything.

I obsessively collect Deadpool comics, but don't actually read them. Got about fifty. I did read the Sin City series before the movie came out though because a friend was into it.

Wellp, I've said all I can about comics. As you were.

But there are sooo many good graphic novels...

Graphic Novels:For when you want people to think you actually read. ;)

WTF? Angela from Spawn is now a Marvel character. Apparently she was co-created by Neil Gaiman, and after a years long legal battle that Gaiman just won, he sold her rights to Marvel. I'm amused and stoked at the same time.

say what

Gaiman Returns to Marvel, Brings "Spawn's" Angela - Comic Book Resources

I don't want to give anything away to anyone who might actually read it, but she's about to drop a bomb on the Thor universe.

http://cdn.blogosfere.it/pianetafume...l%20giants.jpg

I'm really not a fan of action/super heroes so I never really bothered with comics, after I was recommended I Kill Giants I began to take the medium a little more seriously. It's not at all what you'd expect, the story follows a social outcast with a highly overactive imagination. It does have it's share of teen angst as you'd expect but as the pieces come together the story becomes increasingly tragic.

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedi...ook_cover).jpg

Perhaps the best graphic novel I've read is Dave Mckean's cages, it's about a painter who moves into an apartment next to a Jazz performer and a retired author. It critically examines creativity and the arts and for some reason, religion. Apart from the surreal story and characters perhaps the most interesting aspect of novel is the visuals, whose style changes dramatically throughout the novel from highly detailed paintings to photography to chaotic line drawings, a technique used to portray a night out with the dialogue becoming harder and harder to decipher and the lines becoming more erratic, bleeding into the surrounding panels. Definitely something to pick up if you're interested in the arts.

So there's a good chance we'll see a Spawn feature in one of the Marvel comics you reckon?

I doubt it. From how it sounds, Gaiman and MacFarlane are not at all on good terms. MacFarlane tried to take a few of the characters that Gaiman came up with (including Angela) and not pay him for them. Then there was a big legal battle and now Gaiman finally has full control over her, so I don't imagine there is any talk between either of them about anything, let alone a crossover. And I think Marvel is... uh, can you retcon a character from another company? Anyways, it looks like they're retconning her so that she'll fit in with Thor's universe.

It's not the first time characters have jumped around from publisher-to-publisher, I mean Leonard the Duck was suppose to be the original Howard the Duck but in hiding from an evil corporation he escaped, they even did a crossover with Erik Larson's Savage Dragon and Spider-Man.

It's kind of funny how that legal battle began because the early Image Comics guys really sucked at writing legal contracts, but I suppose having been dicked around by Marvel and DC with character rights for so long, it only makes sense to go in the exact opposite direction. This is also when McFarlene unwittingly showed everyone he had far more interest in merchandising Spawn then he did actually writing it.

Yeah, but like I said, this isn't a crossover. She's gonna be straight up Marvel and I imagine have no connection to Image and Spawn anymore. She's owned 100% by Marvel and has no legal connection to Todd MacFarlane. If anything this is more like Captain Marvel (DC) or Green Arrow being put into DC after having their original companies bought out. And I can't think of any thing like that since the forties or fifties or whenever that happened.

From what I've gathered it's actually MacFarlane who sounds like he was trying to screw over Gaiman. He commissioned him to create/co-create (not entirely sure) a few characters, and then claimed sole ownership so he could not pay Gaiman any royalties (or whatever the equivalent in comics are).

And I can believe that MacFarlane doesn't really care about the comic anymore. Now that I'm older I see the artwork and concept of Spawn as being fun and cool, but kind of gimmicky in it's supposed grittiness. Not that I'm taking away from the character elements of the series. Spawn's relationship with his wife and his general isolation from the world is easily one of the most compelling stories in comics. I listened to the audio-commentary on the old Spawn HBO cartoon and he definitely talks about getting away from the more "comic book" elements as time went on. He sounds like he basically wanted to turn Spawn into an urban legend kind of Batman character. You might notice that you saw a lot less of his costume from the second season on, mostly just his cape. Even the white part of his mask was generally covered in shadows. And more and more of the enemies tended to be humans with human motivations and goals and not necessarily with any kinds of powers.

I get the feeling he's actually kind of embarrassed by the comic bookiness of his earlier work. Although, given how the second season of Spawn was easily the best I can't fault his instincts.

Anyone interested in Angela's introduction into Marvel should check out the current "Thor and Loki: The Tenth Realm" series. She showed up I think in the last issue of the Age of Ultron series, but apparently more as a teaser than anything else. This series is definitely her real introduction.

**** me. I've been going here and there around Marvel and DC, but now I'm going straight into heavy stuff like Superman, Wonder Woman, and Justice League. The different series seem to be made so they can be read independently, so aside from crossovers I don't really need to worry about what's going on in the other series when I'm reading one, but as a soap opera loving cheeseball I'm waiting to get into Superman/Wonder Woman, so obviously I'm going to need to stay up with at least three different titles, all of which are up to thirty issues. This feels like commitment.

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedi...onaStaples.jpg

Saga

Written by Brian K. Vaughan and Illustrated by Fiona Staples

I've heard a lot of good buzz on this relatively new comic series and I've been getting a little burnt out on superhero comics lately so I figured I'd give it a go. It is definitely worthy of the praise it gets, weaving an intriguing tale of politics, war, race, religion, and multiple other social issues in an intelligent and thought-provoking way. I've usually never been the biggest fan of sci-fi and fantasy mixed together, but I really gotta give it to this series for making me rethink some preconceived notions.

I've heard some really good things about that series too. It's definitely on the list whenever I get in a Vertigo mood.

As I said before Sage gets two thumbs up from me :)

Just out of curiosity I'm wondering if anyone might be interested in something like a comic book club around here? I'm pretty sure book clubs have died on this forum, but I'm just throwing it out there.

Do it!

**** it, why not. I guess I'll make up a new thread for it.

Warner Bros. is making a Suicide Squad movie - Batman News

Cautiously stoked. I'm dubious about introducing Harley Quinn without her first being in a movie as the Joker's minion, but I certainly won't turn my nose up at the best chance yet to see her in live-action. And if they go ahead and make it full R-rated so we get to see King Shark eating mothe****ers then I'm so there.

Questionable Content: New comics every Monday through Friday

So I've been following this comic for almost 3 years now.

Report: Margot Robbie to play Harley Quinn in 'Suicide Squad' - Batman News

Jared Leto wanted for The Joker in 'Suicide Squad' - Batman News


Alright, I was hearing things about how they weren't going to put Harley Quinn in the new Suicide Squad movie, so this just made my day. And whether or not the guy they "want" to play the Joker is actually going to play the Joker, this still means there's gonna be a ****ing Joker! I am getting more and more stoked for this movie every day. Summer 2016 needs to hurry the **** up.

And yes, I do troll through batman-news.com on a regular basis. What about it?