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Post by Icctrombone on Dec 13, 2015 13:40:36 GMT -5
12. Jeff SmithMy #12 choice is Jeff Smith. Bone was perhaps the first great children's comic I read (odd that I read it in college). The first Bone story I read was Bone Vol 4: The Dragonslayer. Has there ever been a character you want to punch as badly, yet oddly can't get enough of as Phoney Bone? I think not!  Yeah, Dr. Smith from the old Lost in Space TV series. |
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Crimebuster
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Post by Crimebuster on Dec 13, 2015 14:05:52 GMT -5
Barely part way through day one and I've already seen two of my picks on here. You guys, stop stealing my thunder!
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Post by wildfire2099 on Dec 13, 2015 14:35:48 GMT -5
It should be no surprise to anyone here that my choice for #12 is Stan Sakai. Actually, I'm surprised he's not higher... I'm pretty sure I know who #1 is for you, but I would have thought he was 2 or 3! Makes me very curious about the rest of the list! |
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Post by Paste Pot Paul on Dec 13, 2015 14:39:03 GMT -5
12. Dave Sim
I first discovered Sim/Cerebus in 1982 when I went to varsity(for what turned out to be a very short term) and started to branch out in my collecting habits. The likes of Pacific had just started, and I had found the wonders of Mile High Comics(and my mothers credit card), and lo and behold here was a book people were talking about(well, writing about) a little. Being a man(child) of obvious refined tastes I bought a number of issues in the early 20s, and then discovered High Society in the varsity bookshop. I was gone, addicted, head over heels in love with the little stuffed toy. The relationship was hot and heavy for months, feverish meetings late at night, furtive glances during class, and long meaningful looks. I promised the world, I would do anything, whatever was needed to carry on our visits. Then I made a shocking discovery, one that has been all too common in so many relationships. My financial position had collapsed, I was going home, no job, no income, and as quick as it all began, I was deserted. No cash, no love...what had been the love of my life was ... gone. That crushing realisation that it had ALL been about money from the start, my feelings were inconsequential, meaningless, as fleeting as those furtive glances that had promised so much, and delivered so little in the end. We would cross paths briefly over the years, sad, brief asignations that left both feeling slightly dirty and used, the shadow of our first time always there, sitting on my shoulder in judgement. Last year we were able to let bygones be, to see each other again as friends, to build a friendship that should continue for years to come, because Dave Sim can sure draw purrty, writes an amazing funny, sad, poignant, confusing, and uplifting tale, and is quite possibly the BEST letterer I have ever seen. Im still to finish the book, but can think of no other with such a gift for page layout, dense writing, and an ability to keep plots running for years. I may not like it all, or indeed understand a lot of it, but I am in awe of all of it. |
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Post by coke & comics on Dec 13, 2015 14:40:07 GMT -5
My #12 pick is Raymond Briggs. Briggs is a very well known author of Children's picture books and comics here in the UK, having written and drawn such perennial favourites as The Snowman, Farther Christmas and Fungus the Bogeyman. But the reason that he is on my list is because of his 1982 best-seller, When the Wind Blows...  Ordered myself a copy. |
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Confessor
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Post by Confessor on Dec 13, 2015 14:42:42 GMT -5
My #12 pick is Raymond Briggs. Briggs is a very well known author of Children's picture books and comics here in the UK, having written and drawn such perennial favourites as The Snowman, Farther Christmas and Fungus the Bogeyman. But the reason that he is on my list is because of his 1982 best-seller, When the Wind Blows... Ordered myself a copy. Glad to hear it! It's a really great read. Very much of its time, while simultaneously tapping into things that still resonate now. |
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Post by wildfire2099 on Dec 13, 2015 14:43:52 GMT -5
12. Theodor Suess Geisel (Dr. Seuss) I think we all are familiar with Dr. Seuss' children's books... his unique ability to create non-sensical characters that do a perfect job of portraying exactly what he needs them to is pretty legendary. What really made me decide to put him on the list, though, is the fact that he was also an excellent political cartoonist... there's a best of book out there that's an excellent browse if you can get your hands on it.   
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shaxper
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Post by shaxper on Dec 13, 2015 14:48:13 GMT -5
My #12 pick is Raymond Briggs. Briggs is a very well known author of Children's picture books and comics here in the UK, having written and drawn such perennial favourites as The Snowman, Farther Christmas and Fungus the Bogeyman. But the reason that he is on my list is because of his 1982 best-seller, When the Wind Blows... Ordered myself a copy. As did I! |
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shaxper
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Post by shaxper on Dec 13, 2015 14:50:27 GMT -5
12. Jeff Smith...for his work on Bone. My #12 choice is Jeff Smith. Bone was perhaps the first great children's comic I read (odd that I read it in college). I spent my first decade of comics collecting pretty focused on superheroes, then grew up a bit and moved on to superheroish books from DC with mature reader labels on them, then finally grew up enough to look at children's books. Bone is a cross between Uncle Scrooge and Lord of the Rings. Jeff Smith draws his three Bone characters in minimalist style and adds more texture to the setting and all the other characters, intentionally creating a sense akin to Who Framed Roger Rabbit? of cartoons walking around in a "real" world. (The same sense George Lucas created repeatedly in The Phantom Menace, though perhaps less intentionally). I loved it and respect the creator to this day. He stands on the shoulders of the true greats like Carl Barks and Don Rosa, but turned out a tale filled with humor and adventure that is beloved by many.  He would go on to a great little Captain Marvel series, returning a true sense of whimsy to the character for the first time in years. To show his range, his next work, and perhaps my favorite work of his, was more adult, a sci/fi noir adventure about a reality-hopping criminal named Rasl. Hoping to scan pages for this contest, I looked everywhere for my copy of Bone. I have the one-volume edition, so it's quite thick. But I could not find it. I'm afraid I may have lent it to someone who never returned it. Oh well. May be the motivation I've needed to finally invest in the color versions Scholastic has put out. I owned a couple of the original comics and picked one to scan a page out of. I read the first two volumes of Bone about ten years back and just couldn't get the appeal. Most people whose opinions I respect love Bone, but I'm apparently missing something. |
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Post by shaxper on Dec 13, 2015 14:52:17 GMT -5
It should be no surprise to anyone here that my choice for #12 is Stan Sakai. Actually, I'm surprised he's not higher... I'm pretty sure I know who #1 is for you, but I would have thought he was 2 or 3! Makes me very curious about the rest of the list! He would be higher if we were doing top 12 sagas or ongoing series, but looking primarily at his art and writing as opposed to the series' progression costs it a few points. Sakai is a master, but there are other masters who impress me more in the departments of art and writing. |
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Post by Arthur Gordon Scratch on Dec 13, 2015 15:13:27 GMT -5
Most people whose opinions I respect love Bone, but I'm apparently missing something. I'll soon attempt to help you on that  |
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Post by MDG on Dec 13, 2015 16:01:25 GMT -5
Steve Ditko is a cartoonist: a master of communicating ideas in pictures. I never read Marvel comics as a kid, so my first real exposure to Ditko was his 32-page treatise The Avenging World, and various stories in his “H” series which appeared in fanzines. And although, even as a teenager I couldn’t buy into his objectivist philosophy, there was no denying his ability to get use visuals to (somewhat ironically) make an emotional case. And though he uses those same skills for whatever story he’s working on, whether he initiated the project or “for hire,” (I was going to chime in on Coke & Comics dilemma about Shade, saying I don’t think Fleisher added much and I’d consider it a solo by Ditko, but words loom large in mainstream comics) since the mid-60s his most fascinating work has been what he’s done on his own. ![]()    
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Post by Deleted on Dec 13, 2015 16:04:08 GMT -5
On the first day of Christmas, comics my true love gave to me.... Herge a.k.a. Georges Prosper Remi and the Adventures of Tintin. I first discovered Tintin in 1978 in a magazine I bought at a school book fair because it had a Christopher Reeve as Superman photo cover. It was a children's mag of some sort, an article on the Superman movie and a page from the first Superman story in Action 1, but a 8 page chapter of a Tintin adventure later int he mag. I was fascinated by the story, wanted to know what happened next, but also somewhat puzzled by the art style. This was no Marvel (or even DC comic, and too long to be something form the Sunday Funnies). I had no clue where it was form or what it was, and I never saw another for years and years. Then I happened across one of the Little Brown volumes in the 90s and immediately bought and read it, and was enthralled. Most of my Tintin volumes were in the box that got lost during my move out here, but I still have this one...  and I have reread Tintin in America and The Cigars ofthe Pharaohs since Ceii-U announced the topic to revisit and old firend and see if the enjoyment was still there for me. Herge's style is instantly recognizable, his storytellign suberb and his attention to detail even if the cartoony style is simpler than most is phenomenal. Just look at a panel like this...  all the wonderful details form the trees and crowds inthe background, the designs on the elephant blankets (most artists would just make it a solid wall of cover not intricately design it), the flower petals on the ground, but also the variety in the postures and attitude of each of the soldiers is unique, not stock images and poses. The guard on the right scowling at the crowd, you can tel he is a mean S.O.B. just form that one look and pose, so much character in just one image. And the guard behind him looking up in awe and reverence at his lord. So much detail and story in just one panel, nothing wasted. Herge's pages are masterworks of grid layout..  The lettering for dialogue and captions never interfere withthe art, always space left for them, yet you can read the story without the lettering, the story telling is that clear and dynamic. Even if it wee untranslated I could follow along with the story with ease. There's a lot to like here-from the skill of the creator to the simple appeal of the globetrotting adventures of a boy and his dog. Some of it has not aged well, or doesn't sit will with modern culture, but a lot of it is universal and timeless and still holds it appeal for me. -M |
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Post by coke & comics on Dec 13, 2015 16:20:56 GMT -5
Steve Ditko is a cartoonist: a master of communicating ideas in pictures. The truth is I need to read more Ditko. My exposure and love comes out of his Marvel work. Spider-Man, Dr. Strange and many of the stories from Amazing Adult Fantasy. I have sought out much of his DC work, such as Shade the Changing Man, mostly through those Ditko Omnibi they put out. But I have a ways to go to truly appreciate his solo career. And while he is one of my favorite artists of all time, I had to drop him from my list, based mainly on my limited exposure. |
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Post by coke & comics on Dec 13, 2015 16:24:24 GMT -5
12. Jeff Smith...for his work on Bone. My #12 choice is Jeff Smith. Bone was perhaps the first great children's comic I read (odd that I read it in college). I spent my first decade of comics collecting pretty focused on superheroes, then grew up a bit and moved on to superheroish books from DC with mature reader labels on them, then finally grew up enough to look at children's books. Bone is a cross between Uncle Scrooge and Lord of the Rings. Jeff Smith draws his three Bone characters in minimalist style and adds more texture to the setting and all the other characters, intentionally creating a sense akin to Who Framed Roger Rabbit? of cartoons walking around in a "real" world. (The same sense George Lucas created repeatedly in The Phantom Menace, though perhaps less intentionally). I loved it and respect the creator to this day. He stands on the shoulders of the true greats like Carl Barks and Don Rosa, but turned out a tale filled with humor and adventure that is beloved by many. He would go on to a great little Captain Marvel series, returning a true sense of whimsy to the character for the first time in years. To show his range, his next work, and perhaps my favorite work of his, was more adult, a sci/fi noir adventure about a reality-hopping criminal named Rasl. Hoping to scan pages for this contest, I looked everywhere for my copy of Bone. I have the one-volume edition, so it's quite thick. But I could not find it. I'm afraid I may have lent it to someone who never returned it. Oh well. May be the motivation I've needed to finally invest in the color versions Scholastic has put out. I owned a couple of the original comics and picked one to scan a page out of. I read the first two volumes of Bone about ten years back and just couldn't get the appeal. Most people whose opinions I respect love Bone, but I'm apparently missing something. The benefit of removing Ditko from my list is it allowed me to add Jeff Smith. Maybe it will convince Shaxper to give it another go. If Bone isn't his cuppa, perhaps Rasl will impress. |
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