“What are your Top 5 ‘desert island’ books/storylines? (or alternatively ‘dessert island’)”
Well, that’s certainly a doozy, especially since my opinions can change from moment to moment. And I’ll leave out the obvious ones…you know, your Dark Knight Returns, or your Watchmens, or your All-Star Batman and Robin the Boy Wonders, and try to stick to more unusual, personal ones. And I’ll try to stick to particular storylines or very specific “eras” of books, instead of just saying, like, “every issue of Firestorm the Nuclear Man.” Which I totally could say.
Okay, first up, to the surprise of no one:
…the “American Gothic” Swamp Thing storyline that began in the 1980s and ran through issue #50. Written by Alan Moore, art by Steve Bissette, John Totleben, and several others, Swamp Thing traveled from location to location being pushed along by John Constantine to confront various pockets of supernatural horror, all to count the machinations of a secret society trying to bring about the End of the World, as they do.
It’s a great series of issues, and a nice reprise of what Len Wein and Bernie Wrightson were doing in the original Swamp Thing series, by having our mossy gentleman encountering traditional horror archetypes and giving them unusual twists. This storyline contains a lot of what I love about Swamp Thing, and thus must join me in my solitude on this theoretic deserted island.
Next up:
…the black and white era of Zot! by Scott McCloud, published in the 1980s. I was going to say just the “Earth Stories” (the storyline where Zot is trapped on his friend Jenny’s “normal” Earth and unable to return to his “futuristic” Earth), but so much of the b&w era contains the same emotional depth. Having the adventures in Zot’s world contrast with his life in Jenny’s world help inform Zot’s behavior in the latter circumstance. Plus, all the black and white work is beautiful.
Number three:
…yes, the Omega Men. Specifically, the wild shit after Todd Klein and Shawn McManus took over in #26 (1985) and continued to the end of the series in #38. Honestly, for what was DC’s then-newest attempt at Superheroes in Space, just absolute piles of imagination was shoveled into this comic, which is probably the least appealing way I could have put that. Odd aliens, strange mysteries, even stranger revelations…it was a real roller coaster of a ride and too beautiful for this world, cancelled so early as it was.
Number four:
…I’ve talked a lot about where things kinda ended up with this series and its creator, and I realize this may be hard to believe for some of you out there…but the “High Society storyline in Cerebus is Peak Comics. It is absolutely a masterclass in How to Tell Your Story in a Comic Book, and it’s a flabbergasting achievement. It’s a story about Cerebus becoming Prime Minister of the city of Iest, and if you know anything about Cerebus the character, you realize that can’t possibly go well. It’s both dramatic and hilarious and a fascinating read.
And for number five:
…the first twelve issues of American Flagg! by Howard Chaykin. Dense, experimental storytelling that remains rewarding with each reread, something that I’d imagine would be quite valuable being stuck on a deserted island as I am in this scenario. In a recent discussion about this comic on the Blueskies, I referred to these first dozen issues as being “as good as it ever got,” and in retrospect that sounds a little diminishing, but these are actually excellent comics.
Now that’s just off the top of my head right now. I realize I didn’t include any Love and Rockets because by golly how do I narrow that down to just a single storyline? (Or two storylines, one for each brother?) Or Groo the Wanderer, where I’d just as soon take every copy with me. Anyway, I’ll save further answers along those lines for the “which comic book series would you take in their entirety to a deserted island?” question.
Oh, and if I were to go to a dessert island, I would have fudge cake topped with chocolate syrup, served with rocky road ice cream. That would wreak havoc with my blood sugar levels, absolutely, but what a way to go!
Those are some fun choices, a couple of which I still have to read. I really should track down American Flagg! at some point.
Running through options in my head for my own top 5 desert island picks, I’m not sure if I’d want books that I’ve already read 10 times (e.g., Morrison’s Doom Patrol, Nowhere Men) or books I enjoyed once and haven’t revisited in ages (e.g. Byrne’s Superman, X-Statix).
Maybe I’d finally sit down and try to understand The Invisibles.
I’m with Thom. Maybe I’d pour over Tom King’s “Mister Miracle”, or take another crack at Moore’s “Promethia”.
My choice for one selection to take to a desert island has always been Chris Claremont’s run on Uncanny X-Men because it’s such a lengthy run and has a lot of different aspects going on as it progresses. I guess that would be cheating for this particular question to include the entire Claremont run. That would be my one pick though.
The Jamie Delano run on Hellblazer would be a top pick, as that is my favourite comic book run of all time.
Probably Promethea and Morrison’s Doom Patrol-There was enough going on in those two series to keep me entertained on rereads more than the average comic series.
My top pick for a dessert island would be the Ice Cream Sandwich Islands.
Thom H: Same with me on INVISIBLES. Even after I was given the first two trades free.
I loved that FLAGG was set in Chicago. First Comics had their building a block away from when I worked for seedy lawyers. I went to the second floor a few times and once, when I left, back when I could look like the Unabomber if I tried hard, some young kids saw me with a briefcase and in a suit.They followed me asking who I really was. I finally said John Byrne, visiting a friend. Weird times. They were on the equivalent of Main Street with a cleaners on the first floor.
I suppose I’d bring my collection of Golden Age Blue Beetles, start with #4, because I suppose I’d want to lose my mind as fast as I could.
With the sheer volume I’ve accumulated and read over 50 years, it’s always hard to pin this kind of thing down. After some thought, I came up with this:
Spectacular Spider-Man #67-79 The Owl-Octopus War
Nemesis The Warlock from 2000 AD
Rick Veitch’s Brat Pack
‘Mazing Man full run
Saga of the Swamp Thing #11-20 The Golem, and Arcane/Un-Men stories (#19 is still one of my favorite single Swampy issues).
Very close runners up: Luther Arkwright, Superman Krisis of the Krimson Kryptonite storyline, Kirby’s Fourth World saga, Ultraklutz.
John: in no order, everything in WARRIOR magazine, after the store owner told me to check out his new rack of magazines.
A few Elseworlds like SUPERMAN: WAR OF THE WORLDS ( something that should have been thought of decades ago) and BATMAN: CASTLE OF THE BAT. MARTIAN MANUNTER: AMERICAN SECRETS (Gerard Jones notwithstanding), I did like ‘MAZING MAN and BLUE DEVIL.
Most 100 page Super-Spectaculars. I’m a DC guy, but always like hearing about other titles.
It is such a shame that Sim’s bullshit opinions came to overshadow his work. I think High Society and Church & State are better than anything Moore or Miller did and are as good as (or possibly even better) than the best Hernandez Bros. material. I think there’s even a lot of worth to be found in the second half of Cerebus, though god knows I wouldn’t really recommend it to anyone.
And outside of story, Sim is one of the best cartoonists and maybe the best letterer in the history of the medium.
“a dessert island,”
CHEESECAKE!
“desert island”
1) All of GRIMJACK. 2) Most of Jonah Hex. 3) All of Ambush Bug, 4)Amazing SPider-Man up to about #300. 5) The DARK KNIGHT, WATCHMEN, & BONE TPBs.
“It is such a shame that Sim’s bullshit opinions came to overshadow his work. ”
It really is. Same thing happened with Ted Nugent. I LOVE his guitar playing. I do not like him, as a person.
The top 5 desert island books/storylines is a fun question, yet it’s challenging to choose only 5 titles–so, I’m going to go with 5 DC titles, 5 Marvel titles, and 5 Independent titles.
I would say that the comics which I saw and read from between about five years old to twenty years old had the greatest significance to me and evoke the best memories from me.
Top 5 Desert Island DC Comics:
1. Teen Titans (Bronze Age). I recall buying a spinner rack copy of Teen Titans no. 43 from a gas station/convenience store close to Big Sur when I was quite young. Ironically, that was the last issue of the original run, until the series was revived a few years later. I got into the Teen Titans–especially Robin, Wonder Girl, Kid Flash, Speedy, Lilith and Mal, and sought out back issues at swap meets and used book stores. I enjoyed the Steve Skeates, and Bob Haney scripts and loved the Nick Cardy art–sometimes done with George Tuska, Art Saaf, or other artists. I also bought all of the issues from the late ’70s revival of the title off the spinner racks at 7-11 stores and mini-markets. I remember how cool it seemed to me at the time when the Teen Titans West was added to the mix (beyond Duela Dent and The Bumblebee becoming Teen Titans), and I enjoyed the Bob Rozakis run, despite the artwork being fair to middling.
I remember reading these comics when I was a pre-teen and looking up to the team as role models and thinking how groovy it would be when I was finally the same age as the Teen Titans. Little did I know that teenagerhood wasn’t all it’s cracked up to be–plus the culture had shifted and the Reagan ’80s were upon us by then.
Of course, I got into the New Teen Titans, like most ’80s comic book readers, but the original Teen Titans run holds a special memory for me.
2. JLA/JSA annual team-ups. One of my other early comic book memories includes reading JLA nos. 100-103 (featuring the JLA/JSA/and Seven Soldiers of Victory), and JLA nos. 107-108 (featuring the JLA/JSA/and Freedom Fighters). All I can say is that Len Wein scripted some outstanding JLA/JSA annual team up stories, and from that point on, I bought JLA/JSA annual team up issues whenever I could find them.
3. All-Star Comics ’70s Bronze Age revival. I became fascinated by the JSA from reading those JLA/JSA annual team ups, and actually ended up liking the JSA characters much more than their JLA counterparts. I think that Gerry Conway, Paul Levitz, Wally Wood, Keith Giffen, Ric Estrada, Joe Staton, and Bob Layton did a great job on this short lived series, which, through the introduction of Power Girl and Huntress, paved the way for Infinity Inc., and also lead to the retroactive continuity 1940s-set All Star Squadron.
4. The Brave and The Bold. The Bronze Age Brave and The Bold stories by Bob Haney and Jim Aparo are fun to read and look at. Yes, there are zany plots, but it is always cool seeing Batman team up with an interesting array of DC characters. The follow up Batman and The Outsiders series by Mike W. Barr and Jim Aparo was pretty neat as well.
5. Legion of Super-Heroes. The whole Bronze Age run is fun, but especially after Keith Giffen joined Paul Levitz on the book, all the issues up to and through “The Great Darkness Saga” are quite enjoyable.
Top 5 Desert Island Marvel Comics:
1.The Micronauts nos. 1-12 (although the complete run is enjoyable). Bill Mantlo and Michael Golden crafted a great 12 issue run of an epic sci-fi saga based on repurposed Japanese toys. I guess the time was just right for this late ’70s/early’80s comic series–which built on aspects of Star Wars, Silent Running, Logan’s Run, Battlestar Galactica, Flash Gordon, and Buck Rogers. I still say Micronauts nos. 1-12 should be adapted into a movie.
2. Daredevil no. 158-191–the Roger McKenzie/Frank Miller/Klaus Janson run. It will never be topped!
3. Howard the Duck nos. 1-27, and 29–the Steve Gerber run.
I didn’t actually get into reading Howard the Duck until around 2013, as it would have been too sophisticated for me when I was a kid, but it is one of the funniest social satires and comics series ever written–with lots of great art by Frank Brunner, Gene Colan, and others. Waugh!
4. X-Men. I did buy no. 100 off the 7-11 spinner rack as a kid, because of the great Dave Cockrum cover, but I wasn’t lucky enough to see X-Men issues regularly until a comic book store opened in my vicinity. So, I think X-Men no. 135 is when I started buying the title consistently, up until somewhere in the 180s. I really enjoyed the Paul Smith art run, although John Byrne and Dave Cockrum are the definitive Bronze Age X-Men artists. And I suppose that Chris Claremont was the top Bronze Age comics writer–until Alan Moore came along.
5. The Invaders. I got into the Invaders when I was a young kid, around the same time I discovered “All in Color For A Dime,” and “The Steranko History of Comics,” and I was fascinated by the retroactive continuity WW II adventures of Captain America and Bucky, Namor, and the original Human Torch and Toro. I think that Roy Thomas and Frank Robbins–along with other artists–did a great job with this series, and I enjoyed how The Destroyer, Union Jack, Spitfire, The Liberty Legion, and the Kid Commandos were all added to the mix. This comic also began my fascination with WW II history. I think the MCU should create an Invaders film franchise.
Top 5 Desert Island Independent Comics:
1. Love and Rockets–especially vol. 1, nos. 1-50 (Fantagraphics) .Arguably the best independent comic book series ever created. “Heartbreak Soup,” Human Diastrophism,” “The Death of Speedy Ortiz,” “Mechanics,” “Locas,” “Jerusalem Crickets,” and so much more.
2. The Rocketeer(Pacific Comics, Eclipse Comics, Comico Comics, Dark Horse Comics) by Dave Stevens. Has there ever been a more beautifully drawn comic book series?
3. Silverheels by Bruce Jones, April Campbell and Scott Hampton (Pacific Comics). Only 3 issues (the contents for the fourth issue were included in the graphic novel whic reprinted the first three issues), but it’s a beautifully painted sci fi story set in a dystopian fascist future about a Native American escaping the reservation to train in an aliens cadet training program.
4. DNAgents by Mark Evanier and Will Meugniot (Eclipse Comics). “Science made them…but no man owns…the DNAgents.” Basically Replicants who are teenagers. A great 1980s series written by Mark Evanier, with several spin-off miniseries.
5. Airboy (Eclipse Comics). A fun series, featuring Davey Nelson Jr., son of the original Airboy, along with many characters from the original Golden Age Airboy Comics and Air Fighters Comics published by Hillman Comics. Chuck Dixon, Tim Truman, Tom Yeates, etc., did a great job with this thought provoking comic set in the 1980s.
“I still say Micronauts nos. 1-12 should be adapted into a movie.”
An animated one would be awesome!
“Howard the Duck nos. 1-27, and 29–the Steve Gerber run.”
What was in 28, a reprint?
“The Rocketeer… Has there ever been a more beautifully drawn comic book series?”
Xenozoic Tales by Mark Shultz!
@ Snark Shark
I would settle for an animated Micronauts film as long as they tried to capture the Michael Golden art aesthetic and not just render it in a generic anime style. But, it would have been great if they had actually made an epic sci-fi film of it back in the early ’80s with Kurt Russell as Arcturus Ran, Goldie Hawn as Princess Mari, Iggy Pop as Bug, Jim Brown as Acroyear, and Anthony Hopkins as Baron Karza.
Howard the Duck no. 28 was basically a fill in issue by Marv Wolfman and Carmine Infantino –maybe Steve Gerber was having a hard time meeting deadlines?
I will grant you that Xenozoic Tales is also beautifully drawn!
“as long as they tried to capture the Michael Golden art aesthetic and not just render it in a generic anime style.”
Oh yeah, Golden-style would clearly be best.