Good DC TPB recommendations? [Archive]

LeaLu

04/15/2004, 21:53

I used to read comics a few years back, DC exclusively, and a small group of titles, mostly Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, and JLA-related stuff. I started with the Death of Superman, and ended around the beginning of the Our Worlds At War stuff. I'm trying to gingerly get back into comic-book reading, but as I don't generally like going into local comic book stores for a number of reasons, I'm pretty much limited to a Waldenbooks or Barnes & Noble type selection, which includes a lot of trade paperbacks. Can anyone recommend any good DC ones, particularly featuring the Justice League? I'm also a big fan of Power Girl, so anything that includes her is a plus...

LeaLu

04/16/2004, 11:09

Anyone? I read Rock of Ages and Tower of Babel (?) when they came out, but if anyone else has some recommendations, I'd love to hear them...

rouge2

04/16/2004, 11:16

Well, if you like Power Girl, JSA is the obvious place to start. Most of the JSA is collected or about to be collected, and is highly regarded (PG doesn't show up until after Black Canary leaves, but the early issues are still really good).

IronManI

04/16/2004, 11:20

Darkness falls is a good JSA TPB. It has the BEST Wildcat solo story ever! Five words, Wildcat Vs. the Injustice Society.

batfink

04/16/2004, 11:33

I've heard "Whatever Happened to the Man of Tommorrow?" was excellent.

LeaLu

04/16/2004, 12:10

Hmm... might have to start diving into JSA ones as they come out. I like Black Canary too, so a PG-less JSA is still fine by me :)

batfink- I assume that's a Superman one? What's it about?

Funky Flashman

04/16/2004, 12:26

I highly recommend anything JSA. Also, it may not be straight super-hero stuff, but excellent reading can be found in Fables, League of Extraordinary Gentlemen (Vol 2. TPB is out, I believe), and Watchmen. Watchmen is canon for me. I buy copies of it to give as gifts to my friends. The 'Hush' (from Batman) series of comics is either out or coming out soon as TPBs. That's all that I can think of right now. :tired:

LeaLu

04/16/2004, 23:37

I bought Watchmen a few years back (Kingdom Come too, for that matter) and I've heard nothing but good about Hush. The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen movie kind of soured me on that, but I suppose it's worth at least a look. I thumbed through "Fables" at fye a couple of weeks ago, and it looks like it might be worth picking up, but I really want to read some stories with my favorite characters first :) Thanks for the recommendations though, all, looks like I've got plenty of reading material ahead of me!

weston

04/17/2004, 06:58

i usually dont go on here, so if u reply i wont see it, but pm me if u want.

Teen Titans are the best. it is like a teenage justice league.

Robin
Kid Flash (impulse)
Raven
Wonder girl
Super oy (clone of superman and lex luther)
beast boy
Cyborg
and Starfire.

check it out. 1-7 are availible in a single thick book, 10 bucks, and there are only 10 out so far, so the whole series will run u about 18 bucks.

Check it out.
- Weston

LeaLu

04/17/2004, 08:53

Hmm... I thought Superboy was a clone of Superman and whatshisname, the old head of S.T.A.R. labs... but nonetheless also probably worth checking out :) Which Robin is in Teen Titans?

Frontman

04/17/2004, 09:29

LeaLu,

Superboy is a clone of Superman, and the very last guy you'd expect. Since it's revealed in issue one of Teen Titans, PM me if you'd like to know who it is.

Robin is Tim Drake currently in Titans. As far as in the near future, with Tim stepping aside, I don't know who will take his place in the Titans, if they change at all.

There are a lot of great TPB to get, some might not be at your local Borders, so ask them to order them if interested.

Crisis on Infinite Earths (A must)
JSA/JLA Virtue and Vice (GREAT READ)
All of the JSA collections (start with Liberty and Justice, I believe)
JLA are all great collections, especially (American Dreams, World War III, Rock of Ages, Tower of Babel[awesome] New World Order [where it all begins] and Justice for All)

For good Batman TPB's
Knightsfall
Knightsquest
Batman Year One
Dark Knight Returns (but not 2. Meh)
Hush if you are a fan of Jim Lee's (if you are looking for a great story, nah, it isn't there.

The Power of Shazam!

Hmmm. Think I need to get to the mall today myself and buy another TPB as well!

PEACE!!!!

The Frontman

skywarp

04/17/2004, 09:50

don't listen to frontman, dk2 is awesome. batman is the ultimate punk rocker fighting a corrupt government. and plastic man is in it. so i recommend both dark knight books, if they have them there, the killing joke and death in the family. kingdom come is also awesome. and batman: year 2 is great also.

haraggan

04/17/2004, 09:57

I'd suggest Earth2, a JLA stand-alone graphic novel by Grant Morrison. Altho, I'm not sure if it was released in paper?

Frontman

04/17/2004, 14:35

Originally posted by skywarp
don't listen to frontman, dk2 is awesome. batman is the ultimate punk rocker fighting a corrupt government. and plastic man is in it. so i recommend both dark knight books, if they have them there, the killing joke and death in the family. kingdom come is also awesome. and batman: year 2 is great also.

Well, if you read the first Dark Knight series, don't expect much other than what Skywarp pointed out. Batman fighting the government and plasticman are the ONLY good points to it.

Otherwise, it was not Miller's best work.

Same with "Hush." The art was great, storywise, well, it wasn't Loeb's best work either.

The Frontman

Novus1517

04/17/2004, 14:53

All of the previous recomendations are great, especially JSA. I would also recommend Outsiders which features former Titans Nightwing and Arsenal as well as Jade and some new characters. The first tradepaperback as been out about a month and I think it is on issue #10 or 11 right now.

I am a huge Hawkman fan. His new book written by Geoff Johns (same writer of JSA and Teen Titans) is really good. There are two trade paperbacks, "Endless Flight" and "Enemis and Allies", available that collect the first 12 or 14 issues I think. Johns ended his run on issue 25, but the new creative team of Jimmy Palmiotti and Justin Gray should be really good.

I would also recomend Flash, also by writer Geoff Johns. There are two trade paperbacks of his run out right now and another one that is coming in another month or so.

Also, the Superman titles are about to get a revamp in the next month or so. Starting with Superman #204 which features art by Jim Lee (the same guy that drew Batman "Hush") and Adventures of Superman #624 I think which features Greg Rucka as the writer. Both of these two titles should be really good.

I would also recommend Superman/Batman which is on issue #9 coming out this week. Jeph Loeb is the writer of this series and Ed McGuiness drew the first arc and Michael Turner is drawing the second arc. I think the first trade paperback is out or is due out soon.

One last DC title that I have been enjoying is The Monolith, it is only on issue #3 right now but you can check out dccomics.com to learn more about it.

Novus

LeaLu

04/17/2004, 16:57

Geoff Johns is a name I've been hearing a lot lately, and always in a good context. Looks like the various JSA stuff should be at the top of my list. Off to Barnes & Noble with me!

impulse1121

04/17/2004, 17:17

JLA YEARONE, GREAT BOOKJ, AND GREEN LANTERN EMERALD DAWN,GREEN LANTERN EMERALD TWIGHLIGHT, THE BRAVE AND THE BOLD, BATMAN CATACLYSM, FORMERLY KNOWN AS THE JUSTICE LEAGUE, AND JUSTICE LEAGUE INTERNATIONAL A NEW BEGINING.........TO ONLY NAME A FEW!

Frontman

04/19/2004, 04:04

Originally posted by IronManI
Darkness falls is a good JSA TPB. It has the BEST Wildcat solo story ever! Five words, Wildcat Vs. the Injustice Society.

I picked this up today, man, great read! You forgot 3 words to add to "Wildcat Vs. the Injustice Society," though.

"in a bathtowel!"

:)

Wickedly good story. I've heard JSA is the best team book in recent years, and I've got to say, between "Darkness falls" and "Justice be Done," (the first story arch) I'm going to be out there buying up the TPB's to get caught up. Awesome stuff.

skyounkin

04/19/2004, 04:21

Originally posted by skywarp
don't listen to frontman, dk2 is awesome. batman is the ultimate punk rocker fighting a corrupt government. and plastic man is in it.

BUT Plastic man and all the others who Batman frees don't do a darn thing!!!!! Loved DK2 until issue 3 when it was just a 64 pg "bang you're dead" story.....litterally everyone he saves has zero impact on the ending....

it stank, it stank bad

It stank soooooo bad DC actually let retailers SEND THE UNSOLD ISSUES BACK TO THEM FOR REFUND!!!!

And then they were subsequently burned and frank miller was forced to eat the carrpy ashes......:devious:

dudemaestro

04/19/2004, 04:56

The Death of Superman
Knightfall
Knightquest: the crusade (bout the first 10 issues from all the bat books than John Paul Valley just gets too nutz)
The First Batman vs. Predator books (a good breif read)
The Dark Night Returns
The First JLA books by Moorison
Kindom Come (Must read for a DC fanboy)
If you can find it I would suggest Marvels as well though it is not a DC book.
Watchmen
And all the other books mentioned by other members

DreadDormammu

04/19/2004, 05:31

Geoff Johns is good but not outstanding IMO. He writes stories with lots of love for traditional characters and their histories. His plots are good. But his scripting is not stellar... the dialogue and such is not outstanding. That said, I like his JSA:

New World Order (this one is bad, pre-Johns)
Darkness Falls (good but not great)
Return of Hawkman, Fair Play and Stealing Thunder are where Johns really hits his stride. These are the best of the run.

His two Hawkman trades are good. The storyline between Hawkman and Hawkgirl is great, the adventures are corny though.

Grant Morrison's JLA is crazy, but great. This is an inventive writer with snappy dialogue and insane storylines. Sometimes he misfires, but overall he has a good run:

New World Order, American Dreams, Rock of Ages, Strength in Numbers, World War III, Justice for All

Finally I will recommend the Batgirl trades. These are very graphic (since Batgirl rarely speaks) and are quick to read. To me they are halfway between traditional superhero comics and DC's animated series style. There are four trades that reprint (most of) the first 30+ issues of the series:

Silent Running, A Knight Alone, Death Wish, Fists of Fury

Macho Man

04/19/2004, 05:35

Hush(batman)

skyounkin

04/19/2004, 05:41

Originally posted by DreadDormammu
New World Order (this one is bad, pre-Johns)

Grant Morrison's JLA is crazy, but great. This is an inventive writer with snappy dialogue and insane storylines. Sometimes he misfires, but overall he has a good run:

New World Order, American Dreams, Rock of Ages, Strength in Numbers, World War III, Justice for All

NWO is in there twice......Which one did you mean that was bad pre-johns....

rouge2

04/19/2004, 08:29

Originally posted by LeaLu
The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen movie kind of soured me on that, but I suppose it's worth at least a look.

Other than some of the character names, there's nothing the same between the League of Extraordinary Gentlemen books and movies. The books are astronomically good, and should be given a look. The movie should be flushed. Hard. (If you disliked the movie before reading the book, you'll hate it ten times more after when you realise what they could have done).

Poor Alan Moore, first they destroy "From Hell", now "League". I hope they never make a Watchmen movie. I just couldn't bear it.

StormCrawler

04/19/2004, 08:38

Originally posted by rouge2
Other than some of the character names, there's nothing the same between the League of Extraordinary Gentlemen books and movies. The books are astronomically good, and should be given a look. The movie should be flushed. Hard. (If you disliked the movie before reading the book, you'll hate it ten times more after when you realise what they could have done).

Poor Alan Moore, first they destroy "From Hell", now "League". I hope they never make a Watchmen movie. I just couldn't bear it.

I'm not saying it's a high quality movie, but I quite enjoyed the League of XO Gentleman movie. I really hope there'll be a sequel.

And at your advice I might try the comic.

StormCrawler

Salakk

08/23/2004, 10:21

a good dc read ive always like was the nail great silver ageish dc story for the jla

Big Trouble

08/23/2004, 17:37

OK, this thread had been dormant a long time, but I've got to add a few titles...

1. Fables. DC's Vertigo is way better than I expected. I got hooked on the Animal Farm TPB (2nd I think), now I pick it up monthly.

2. Y: The Last Man. Another Vertigo title that is now a monthly pick. Can't miss it. Try it from the beginning with Unmanned TPB.

You have also mentioned some great JLA TPBs, but don't forget JLA: A League of One (featuring WW) or JLA/JSA: Virtue and Vice. And while I'll probably get shot for recommending this on a DC board...I think my favorite trade(s) are both Rising Stars books.

Natt the Hat

08/23/2004, 21:36

Geoff Johns is descent but overrated IMO. His plots are not great. His peak was probably his JSA days when Goyer was plotting. Goyer wrote or plotted Blade II if I'm not mistaken. His ret-conning is actually good and his strongest ability. Of course, the editors have something to do with this. No longer must we suffer that barrage of Roy Thomas taking mediocre characters and making them terrible. Johns major flaw is that he is so progressive that it makes him predictable. DC editors also deserve props for keeping his anti-millitary views to minumum.

LeaLu:

If you want to go into the world of Vertigo, try Preacher. All 66 issues are collected in TPB. For the DCU, try Starman. I'm pretty sure that all 84 issues are in TPB. It took me a while to acquire a taste for the art but after that I enjoyed the series very much.

Hungrywolf

08/23/2004, 23:31

Recently I've read several good DC trades.

Batman: Year One
Batgirl: Year One
Batman: A Lonely Place of Dying
Titans/Young Justice: Graduation Day
Kingdom Come

I won't list the Marvel trades I have since you seem to just be interested in the DC ones.

Iron Man 49

08/25/2004, 18:58

as the resident Geoff Johns fan...if you enjoy JSA, check out his 4 Flash trades...
Blood Will Run, Rogues, Crossfire and Blitz. Also pick up the DC1st Flash/Superman
Its the only time Jay garrick and Supes have raced, and has essential tidbits to the Flash series. All The Way from 164 to 197, Johns built up a Character into the embodiment of Evil, and when this Good Guy finally turned, it was Earth Shattering, setting the stage for BLITZ.

Jackygobang

08/27/2004, 10:16

Virtue and Vice is how I got real interested and introduced to the JSA, and it has insane scenes of Action, like Green Arrow standing down Shazam.

But no one has mentioned JSA:The Liberty Files. It's not really a JSA story, the main character is Batman, it's an elsworlds set in WWII-era Egypt. He's hunting a crazy albino named Jack The Grin with the help of The Clock(Hourman) and The Owl(Doctor Mid-nite) and later, The Super-Man. Absolutely great read, dark and fullof action and drama.

Ro-gan

10/15/2004, 21:48