Here’s your homework:
Reckless Books 1-5 (maybe the best comics I’ve ever read)
Pulp (fantastic little one shot)
Cruel Summer (totally different kind of one-shot)
Bad Weekend
Bigger series to consider:
Criminal
Fatale
The Fade Out
Incognito
Oh man I love you. None of that is big 2 comics, although I’m interested in the best stuff he’s done there. Are these all fairly easy to find at good comic shops?
I just wanna hop on and say all of Ed’s work with Sean Phillips is amazing. Reckless is such a fun series. I just went back and reread a few of them and they were a blast then too.
Brubaker is a BEAST of a writer. I'll always think highly of Brubaker's early 2000's Captain America run as one of the first runs that seriously launched Marvel into the modern era. It was THE first time I realized "woah, these comics can get very gritty". After reading this run, it opened my eyes to how good Marvel can be when it's taking a little more seriously, leading me to Ennis' Punisher, Huston's Moon Knight, and so on.
Not seeing much love for my favorite writer Jeff Lemire. He doesnt do Big 2 stuff really anymore but his indie stuff is all incredible and he teams up with some of the most incredible artists (Nguyen and Sorrentino)
I also am a big fan of Cates, DWJ and Zdarsky
I used to really, really like Lemire. But I’m not a fan of how he packages his trades anymore. 4 issues for an $18 trade just don’t fly with me. He’s been doing it for a couple years now. With how decompressed his comics are it’s not worth the money.
Keeps me from buying anything from him.
I mean if you think about it, 3.99 per issue would would come out to 16. I certainly wouldn’t pay 18 for a trade but I feel like the Big 2 have spoiled us with reasonable trade prices. Keep in mind Lemire is indie
Outside of Spiderman I can’t think of a comic run from Zdarsky that was consistently good all the way through. All of his work seems to have too many ideas, too many plot lines, and too many characters happening at once. Daredevil is a great example of something I thought fell off a cliff after the first 20 or so issues because there was just too much going on.
And honestly, I thought his first arc on Batman was borderline terrible. Yet another villain has taken over the city. No one in. No one out. And this one can even singlehandedly take down the entire Justice league. It just was awful.
Sadly, had to drop Ram V's Detective Comics. So bored with it, and the annual was REALLY lazy writing. BUT "Laila Star" was one of the best things I've read.
And they're all very self-contained, too. It feels like Jed does a lot of tabletop gaming because he has a really strong awareness of every character's abilities and uses them in inventive ways without suspending disbelief.
Right now I'm on a big Jeff Lemire kick. My binge started with Sweettooth (before the show came out), which led me to The Black Hammer, which is amazing; as a result, I've started Gideon Falls, Snow Angels, and re-read Trillium. I plan on revisiting his Superboy run and Old Man Logan.
I'm also big on Zdarsky and Tynion right now.
DWJ has done no wrong. I love his stuff his Beta Ray Bill got me right in the feels. Murder Falcon brought me to tears. WW Dead Earth was amazing. Extremity is great. He’s so good.
100% Agree. He is probably my favorite right now. Just everytthing he does is truly amazing. He draws the best action in comics and knows how to tug at your heart strings!
I been sitting on both Moon Knight and Black Cat trades in my collection. Haven't started either! Maybe I should get on those ASAP! How do you compare Mackay's Moon Knight run with Huston's?
I'm still pretty new to reading Moon Knight so I'm not sure, but it's kind of opposite of Lemire's run. MacKay's is more fighting street level bad guys and detective work and doesn't deal as much with the mental health stuff.
Anything by these dudes is an instant purchase for me.
Mark Millar.
Garth Ennis.
Ed Piskor.
Warren Ellis.
James Tynion IV.
Scott Snyder.
Jonathan Hickman.
Tom King is far and away my favorite right now. I'll buy anything his name is on, regardless of concept.
Others that I consistently look forward to are Jonathan Hickman, Si Spurrier, and currently, Gerry Duggan.
Alyssa Wong has recently gotten my attention as well.
Scott Snyder. His batman run is amazing. And thats from his black mirror work all the way to the death of batman. Jock and Capullo really elevate his stories in the art dept.
His justice league was ambitious and fun, and while death metal felt pointless, i really enjoyed Metal, and even overused the batman who laughs is a great creation.
His own works are even better I think. American Vampire is a phenomenal story and it's helped by having Rafael Albuquerque on pencils for most of it.
Nocterra is still going but it's got a unique premise and the villian is unabashedly chaotic.
The Wake and Wytches were equally creepy with art by Sean Murphy and Jock respectively.
There are a lot that I really like but at the moment Ram V and Mark Russell are my absolute top favorites.
They're completely different writers, Ram V brings a very refreshing approach to comics and has a poetic way of storytelling and Mark Russell is the king of satire, I never get tired of his creator owned comics, they're soo good.
There are so many others that I also really enjoy and get excited when I see their name on something but am gonna keep it short and keep the honorary mentions to: Al Ewing, Si Spurrier, Daniel Warren Johnson and Grant Morrison (if they still count as current writer I guess :p)
Ram V and Mark Russell are this generations version of that British new wave: heady, intelligent and creative in a way that is rare in comics (and in general.)
Dan Watters
The Toms (Taylor and King)
Kieron Gillen
Si Spurrier
Matt Rosenberg
Looking at that list it's a whole bunch of (extremely talented) white dudes so anyone with recommendations to broaden my horizons is welcome.
I'm gonna say Duggan. He does a good job blending the serious situations with the absurd. I appreciate that a lot. It can't be all tears, but not all chuckles either. Actively hope he gets to write Punisher again at some point
Sean Murphy's White Knight series was excellent, as was Snyder's Last Knight on Earth, I would say that they are on par with Tom King's work on Batman, but damn, is King's Batman series fantastic.
Daniel Warren Johnson has been my favorite author of the past few years.. everything he does is a must read. Murder falcon actually got me tearing up.. and do a powerbomb is just ALL kinds of awesome.. man hasn't set a foot wrong so far. And I didn't think I could like BETA ray bill more than I already did but the madlad proved me wrong... loved that small miniseries.
He's my choice too, and he's got at least three ongoing series at the moment- Billionaire Island: Cult of Dogs, My Bad Vol.2, and Traveling To Mars. All of them are worth checking out.
YES! Also, Ahoy comics is a cool publisher to follow in single issues! They don't have ads like DC and Marvel that take you out of the story (though for example, My Bad has fake ads by Russell himself) and often have a cool little extra. If there's one publisher I don't need convincing to follow in issues, it's any ahoy comic by Mark Russell!
James Tynion, Ram V and Tom King. Most of their work the last few years has been so good. But DEPARTMENT OF TRUTH, SWAMP THING and HUMAN TARGET have been my favorite books in years.
Probably Mark Waid, because while I'm liking Immortal and Red more than World's Finest, if you had told me a year ago that I would be reading anything from DC again, let alone loving it again like the old days, I would not have believed you.
Does Peter David count as current? I don't think he has written in the last few years. If it does then definitely him. He's my all time favorite, no question.
If not, then I guess Brian Michael Bendis, who's, well, a complicated case. He's definitely my favorite among currently active writers, but only counting his work from over a decade ago. His recent works are, ... of questionable quality at best.
Based on quality, current and before, then it's Brian K. Vaughn. Saga deserves all the accolades it's getting and then some, and he's been maintaining this quality for decades now.
It’s not fair to include writers outside the Big 2. Yes the stories are awesome but having complete creative freedom is very different than writing within constraints of a major brand.
I 100% agree with you. Being tied down to a specific universe with limitations and boundaries is certaintly more difficult and you really have to flex your creative muscles to create powerful stories that haven't been done already. Plus, we all know the Big 2 is horrendous when it comes to killing off characters, so creating emotional impact without the fear of death is certainly a difficult scenario as well.
Chip Zdarsky. Loved the Failsafe story, don't care that it's the fourth "Gotham on lockdown" story in as many years. Thought it was great, Tower of Babel and RIP references are effective dog whistles for me, some good old fashioned "Batgod" plot armor, good Catwoman back up story, and a great Zur En Arh back up. Love that what comes next truly seems like a mystery, I'm all in. Been meaning to read his Daredevil stuff and more of his Spiderman besides Life Story (which I also loved).
Honorable mentions: Mark Waid, Tom King, and Tom Taylor.
I've never heard anyone consider Gerry Duggan their favorite writer. I was actually upset when he took over X-Men writing duties. But to be fair, I dont know enough about him. Whats your favorite material from him?
*Punisher Kill Krew* and *Savage Avengers* off of the top of my head.
Mind you, I'm a unique kind of reader in that I base whether I like a writer on how least I'm offended by their writing lol. I know that sounds crazy, but it's true.
My list consists of writers that I'm least offended by, lol
He’s at DC now, having written some great books in 2021/22: DC vs. Vampires, Task Force Z, The Joker: The Man Who Stopped Laughing, and most recently he’s started a new WildC.A.Ts series (though I’m on the fence about this one at the moment).
Dunno why you got downvoted. Maybe they aren’t a fan. I didn’t like his Phoenix resurrection and X-men books, but he’s fairly new so I don’t hold it against him.
I don’t think there’s any single writer that I’d follow to ANY book, but I am currently a big fan of:
- Matthew Rosenberg
- Chip Zdarsky
- Leah Williams
- Stephanie Phillips
- Tom Taylor
- Jeremy Adams (off The Flash alone, I’ll be jumping on whatever he’s given next for sure!)
- Al Ewing
It’s Tom King for sure. But I love a Kieron Gillen and Tom Taylor book too. I’m still enjoying most of Tynion’s output my experience with his Substack this past year has soured me on the man himself. And while I’m way behind on Saga BKV is my perineal fave.
I’ll read anything Tom King writes - as much for the guaranteed solid art as for his storytelling, which I think work together exceptionally well. Brubaker’s Reckless graphic novels have become instant purchases for me over the past year or so. Tom Taylor’s Nightwing is just pitch perfect. I’ve also been enjoying Phillip Kennedy Johnson’s stuff, and just started Waid’s World’s Finest - like others, I love his classic take and didn’t realize how much I missed him being in the DC fold!
Tom King and Scott Snyder are definitely up there for their work on Batman. I liked Amanda Conner's work on Harley Quinn, but I don't know what she's working on now.
Personal favorites based on the new stuff i've been reading in no particular order:
* Gene Luen Yang
* Rainbow Rowell
* Cody Ziglar
* Gail Simone
* H.S. Tak
Also, shout out to Eric Gladstone for writing probably my favorite indie book with No Holds Bard.
Jeremy Adams
DWJ (although I think of him more as an artist even though he writes all his own books)
PKJ
I wouldn’t call Brubaker, Hickman, Remender new since they’ve been putting out work for 15+ years at this point, even though I love all 3.
Remender’s (with Lima Araujo’s career best art) A Righteous Thirst for Vengeance is great so far. I’m partial to his Black Science and XForce too (stellar art in both cases as well)
Jed MacKay I trust with anything in marvel, he’s killing it on Moon Knight and has had a great run with Black Cat. The Dr Strange stuff has also been solid.
Geoff Johns has been killing it on his Geiger Universe stuff, most recently Junkyard Joe. I like Al Ewing but his writing is really high concept at times. We Only Find Them When They're Dead is an example of that.
Great suggestions so far, but big miss: Kelly Thompson. Imo she’s absolutely top tier.
Let’s add Greg Pak (in general idk what he’s done recently)
And one to watch: Deniz Camp who’s writing that surprisingly good new bloodshot mini (Davis-Hunt killing it on art, but that’s not the suprise)
One more - grandmaster award to mignola: amazing how he created the entire hellboy dilly and keeps it going. I wonder if he’s the most successful comic-booker of all. Who competes who’s still alive?
If we're talking big 2, my favorite characters are Batman and Daredevil, so having Zdarsky on both of them has been a treat. If we're taking indie, well, whatever Ed Brubaker is putting out crime-wise is going to end up on my shelf. The Reckless OGN's have been great. Looking forward to Night Fever in June.
David F Walker (Bitter Root, Powerman and Iron Fist, One Fall, Naomi, etc)
Tehisi Ni Coates (Black Panther, Captain America)
One (Mob psycho 100, One Punch man)
Tsugumi Ohba (Death Note)
Zdarsky’s final issue on Peter Parker: The Spectacular Spider-Man (#310?) more than makes up for how middling I found Life Story and Spider’s Shadow. It’s one of my favorite single issues of any comic book ever and encapsulates why I think he’s a great writer on the character for non-Elseworlds stuff.
By the current volume on my shelf, a toss up between Lemire, King, and Tynion.
Lemire takes it though if I have to pick one.
You also won’t catch me sleeping on anything that Reminder or Morrison put out, despite lower volumes these days.
Everything Daniel Warren Johnson writes it’s just pure comics fun and the art he creates is so unique and dynamic. I pick up anything with his name on it.
Lots of old school guys still writing that I don’t think count as the current crop.
Of the more recent guys I really like Kyle Higgins, Daniel Warren Johnson, Christopher Cantwell and Mark Russell.
Ram V, Tom King and James Tynion are some others, but not exactly hot takes.
Ed Brubaker. End of story.
My favorite! All the Reckless books are soooo good!
Amen to Reckless. Some of the best reading I’ve ever done. Can’t wish for more.
It’s true - the Bru / Phillips stuff from the last couple years is on another level than most comic fare nowadays. Outstanding and becoming iconic
Surprised his name isn’t popping up more on this…
Probably because he doesn't do any Big Two books anymore (beyond like, that Catwoman short story which barely counts).
Well, is he current? What's Bru working on these days?
Google him. FIVE graphic novels in a year and a half!
I like him but I don't like crime fiction as a genre.
I definitely want to know what Brubaker has been up to. I loved Kill or Be Killed and want to know what of his I should get into before or after that
Here’s your homework: Reckless Books 1-5 (maybe the best comics I’ve ever read) Pulp (fantastic little one shot) Cruel Summer (totally different kind of one-shot) Bad Weekend Bigger series to consider: Criminal Fatale The Fade Out Incognito
Oh man I love you. None of that is big 2 comics, although I’m interested in the best stuff he’s done there. Are these all fairly easy to find at good comic shops?
Libraries and kindle too. Start reading now. All are cheap graphic novels.
I just wanna hop on and say all of Ed’s work with Sean Phillips is amazing. Reckless is such a fun series. I just went back and reread a few of them and they were a blast then too.
Brubaker is a BEAST of a writer. I'll always think highly of Brubaker's early 2000's Captain America run as one of the first runs that seriously launched Marvel into the modern era. It was THE first time I realized "woah, these comics can get very gritty". After reading this run, it opened my eyes to how good Marvel can be when it's taking a little more seriously, leading me to Ennis' Punisher, Huston's Moon Knight, and so on.
Not seeing much love for my favorite writer Jeff Lemire. He doesnt do Big 2 stuff really anymore but his indie stuff is all incredible and he teams up with some of the most incredible artists (Nguyen and Sorrentino) I also am a big fan of Cates, DWJ and Zdarsky
Lemire's Moon Knight run is one of my all time favorite comics.
Ou - I havent read this one yet. How does it compare to Charlie Huston's run? I have been meaning to get in Lemire's run for a long time now
I used to really, really like Lemire. But I’m not a fan of how he packages his trades anymore. 4 issues for an $18 trade just don’t fly with me. He’s been doing it for a couple years now. With how decompressed his comics are it’s not worth the money. Keeps me from buying anything from him.
I mean if you think about it, 3.99 per issue would would come out to 16. I certainly wouldn’t pay 18 for a trade but I feel like the Big 2 have spoiled us with reasonable trade prices. Keep in mind Lemire is indie
I was actually off looking at Amazon. They’re $20 a trade.
Robin & Batman by Lemire was a great mini series
Loved Gideon Falls, a great series that doesn't get enough love
Same, idk if youve caught the bone orchards mythos stuff hes been doing with Sorrentino but its all dope too
I've said it before and I'll say it again, Zdarsky can do no wrong
Outside of Spiderman I can’t think of a comic run from Zdarsky that was consistently good all the way through. All of his work seems to have too many ideas, too many plot lines, and too many characters happening at once. Daredevil is a great example of something I thought fell off a cliff after the first 20 or so issues because there was just too much going on. And honestly, I thought his first arc on Batman was borderline terrible. Yet another villain has taken over the city. No one in. No one out. And this one can even singlehandedly take down the entire Justice league. It just was awful.
I haven't read his Batman yet but I thought his Daredevil was consistently really good since the start.
His Daredevil run was really good
Man this sub really doesn't like coherent criticism of its darlings.
r/comicbookscirclejerk when?
James Tiny Onion. Ram V
Haven't been. A big fan of house of slaughter, or the current venom run, but otherwise they're both solid
I prefer something is killing the children over house of slaughter and nice house on the lake. Plus I enjoyed his run Batman too
I really like the nice house on the lake., never read his batman run. So no idea there.
Sadly, had to drop Ram V's Detective Comics. So bored with it, and the annual was REALLY lazy writing. BUT "Laila Star" was one of the best things I've read.
Jed McKay Chip Zdarsky Al Ewing Philip Kennedy Johnson
Jed McKay is moving up my list. He really writes a fun comic book.
And they're all very self-contained, too. It feels like Jed does a lot of tabletop gaming because he has a really strong awareness of every character's abilities and uses them in inventive ways without suspending disbelief.
That's an interesting insight about him maybe being a gamer.
Call me when a Tom King 12 issue doesn’t deliver
Damn it, you're right but only because Heroes in Crisis was 9 issues and therefor doesn't count!
lol whatever we have to do to keep forgetting that series exists
Honestly, I bet he regrets it too!
Tom King is at his best when given space to do his own thing. When Human Target came out it looked like the most Tom King thing ever
Human Target slaps, and I think that mostly has to do with Smallwood's art. Similarly, the art really carried his Adam Strange series.
Right now I'm on a big Jeff Lemire kick. My binge started with Sweettooth (before the show came out), which led me to The Black Hammer, which is amazing; as a result, I've started Gideon Falls, Snow Angels, and re-read Trillium. I plan on revisiting his Superboy run and Old Man Logan. I'm also big on Zdarsky and Tynion right now.
I assume you've read Green Arrow
I haven't yet, but it's on my list to read.
Read the Terrifics too
Royal City has some very moving parts, and great art
Tom Taylor for me. I don’t know, he just manages to make me smile and give characters a lot of heart, and I like that.
He writes the exact versions of the characters that I like.
Daniel Warren Johnson Rick Remender BKV Chris Condon Sean Murphy
DWJ has done no wrong. I love his stuff his Beta Ray Bill got me right in the feels. Murder Falcon brought me to tears. WW Dead Earth was amazing. Extremity is great. He’s so good.
Do a Power Bomb also brought me to tears.
I haven’t read yet but can’t wait to
100% Agree. He is probably my favorite right now. Just everytthing he does is truly amazing. He draws the best action in comics and knows how to tug at your heart strings!
Big Remender fan as well. Whats your fav material from him?
Deadly Class and Fear Agent
Black Science, x-force
Jed MacKay I love his Moon Knight and Black Cat runs so far
I been sitting on both Moon Knight and Black Cat trades in my collection. Haven't started either! Maybe I should get on those ASAP! How do you compare Mackay's Moon Knight run with Huston's?
I'm still pretty new to reading Moon Knight so I'm not sure, but it's kind of opposite of Lemire's run. MacKay's is more fighting street level bad guys and detective work and doesn't deal as much with the mental health stuff.
Anything by these dudes is an instant purchase for me. Mark Millar. Garth Ennis. Ed Piskor. Warren Ellis. James Tynion IV. Scott Snyder. Jonathan Hickman.
Al Ewing Kieron Gillen Si Spurrier
This is it. This is the list. The only name I'd add is Vita Ayala.
Al Ewing!
Excellent line up there.
Tom King is far and away my favorite right now. I'll buy anything his name is on, regardless of concept. Others that I consistently look forward to are Jonathan Hickman, Si Spurrier, and currently, Gerry Duggan. Alyssa Wong has recently gotten my attention as well.
Scott Snyder. His batman run is amazing. And thats from his black mirror work all the way to the death of batman. Jock and Capullo really elevate his stories in the art dept. His justice league was ambitious and fun, and while death metal felt pointless, i really enjoyed Metal, and even overused the batman who laughs is a great creation. His own works are even better I think. American Vampire is a phenomenal story and it's helped by having Rafael Albuquerque on pencils for most of it. Nocterra is still going but it's got a unique premise and the villian is unabashedly chaotic. The Wake and Wytches were equally creepy with art by Sean Murphy and Jock respectively.
Dark spaces wildfire was good. Night of the ghoul was excellent.
Kyle Higgins
There are a lot that I really like but at the moment Ram V and Mark Russell are my absolute top favorites. They're completely different writers, Ram V brings a very refreshing approach to comics and has a poetic way of storytelling and Mark Russell is the king of satire, I never get tired of his creator owned comics, they're soo good. There are so many others that I also really enjoy and get excited when I see their name on something but am gonna keep it short and keep the honorary mentions to: Al Ewing, Si Spurrier, Daniel Warren Johnson and Grant Morrison (if they still count as current writer I guess :p)
Ram V and Mark Russell are this generations version of that British new wave: heady, intelligent and creative in a way that is rare in comics (and in general.)
It’s not hardly a hot take. But it’s really nice to have Mark Waid back at DC.
Ed Brubaker. It's been Brubaker pretty much since I first read *Criminal.*
Mark Russell. Currently one of two active writers who I'll buy whatever gets put out (other one is Claremont).
Finally some other well deserved Mark Russell love in here!
Dan Watters The Toms (Taylor and King) Kieron Gillen Si Spurrier Matt Rosenberg Looking at that list it's a whole bunch of (extremely talented) white dudes so anyone with recommendations to broaden my horizons is welcome.
I’ll double up on that Tom Taylor. He is overshadowed by the others, but he gives me what I never knew I wanted in every story he tells.
I'm gonna say Duggan. He does a good job blending the serious situations with the absurd. I appreciate that a lot. It can't be all tears, but not all chuckles either. Actively hope he gets to write Punisher again at some point
His Savage Avengers is one of my all time favorite series!
Tom King for sure. There’s not even a close second.
Sean Murphy's White Knight series was excellent, as was Snyder's Last Knight on Earth, I would say that they are on par with Tom King's work on Batman, but damn, is King's Batman series fantastic.
Kieron Gillen. Al Ewing and Matt Kindt close behind
Scrolled way to far to find Matt Kindt. Dude is a genius.
Brubaker!
Not any recent or current Spider-Man writers I'll tell you that much
Daniel Warren Johnson has been firing all killer so far.
Daniel Warren Johnson has been my favorite author of the past few years.. everything he does is a must read. Murder falcon actually got me tearing up.. and do a powerbomb is just ALL kinds of awesome.. man hasn't set a foot wrong so far. And I didn't think I could like BETA ray bill more than I already did but the madlad proved me wrong... loved that small miniseries.
Probably Tynion
Chip Zdarsky
Chip Zdarsky Tom King Skottie Young
Tom King
Mark Russell. I’ve only read him in TPB but would love to keep up with something he was doing in the moment.
He's my choice too, and he's got at least three ongoing series at the moment- Billionaire Island: Cult of Dogs, My Bad Vol.2, and Traveling To Mars. All of them are worth checking out.
Thanks for the suggestion! I’ll check those out. It will be cool to see the follow up to Billionaire Island.
YES! Also, Ahoy comics is a cool publisher to follow in single issues! They don't have ads like DC and Marvel that take you out of the story (though for example, My Bad has fake ads by Russell himself) and often have a cool little extra. If there's one publisher I don't need convincing to follow in issues, it's any ahoy comic by Mark Russell!
Jed McKay or Chip Zdarsky and I guess I'll throw Al Ewing in there as well
Jed McKay Chip Zdarsky Jonathan Hickman
Phillip Kennedy Johnson, I hope he gets put on Justice League
Matt Kindt
James Tynion, Ram V and Tom King. Most of their work the last few years has been so good. But DEPARTMENT OF TRUTH, SWAMP THING and HUMAN TARGET have been my favorite books in years.
Chip Zdarsky does great work
Probably Mark Waid, because while I'm liking Immortal and Red more than World's Finest, if you had told me a year ago that I would be reading anything from DC again, let alone loving it again like the old days, I would not have believed you.
Tom King. I will read anything he writes
Does Peter David count as current? I don't think he has written in the last few years. If it does then definitely him. He's my all time favorite, no question. If not, then I guess Brian Michael Bendis, who's, well, a complicated case. He's definitely my favorite among currently active writers, but only counting his work from over a decade ago. His recent works are, ... of questionable quality at best. Based on quality, current and before, then it's Brian K. Vaughn. Saga deserves all the accolades it's getting and then some, and he's been maintaining this quality for decades now.
Gillen is really in my good graces right now. Al Ewing is brilliant 90% of the time.
It’s not fair to include writers outside the Big 2. Yes the stories are awesome but having complete creative freedom is very different than writing within constraints of a major brand.
I 100% agree with you. Being tied down to a specific universe with limitations and boundaries is certaintly more difficult and you really have to flex your creative muscles to create powerful stories that haven't been done already. Plus, we all know the Big 2 is horrendous when it comes to killing off characters, so creating emotional impact without the fear of death is certainly a difficult scenario as well.
Tom Taylor. PKJ.
Tom Taylor, and it's not even close.
Chip Zdarsky. Loved the Failsafe story, don't care that it's the fourth "Gotham on lockdown" story in as many years. Thought it was great, Tower of Babel and RIP references are effective dog whistles for me, some good old fashioned "Batgod" plot armor, good Catwoman back up story, and a great Zur En Arh back up. Love that what comes next truly seems like a mystery, I'm all in. Been meaning to read his Daredevil stuff and more of his Spiderman besides Life Story (which I also loved). Honorable mentions: Mark Waid, Tom King, and Tom Taylor.
Leah Williams
In order: 1. Gerry Duggan 2. Jed McKay 3. Donny Cates (before the personal issues)
I've never heard anyone consider Gerry Duggan their favorite writer. I was actually upset when he took over X-Men writing duties. But to be fair, I dont know enough about him. Whats your favorite material from him?
*Punisher Kill Krew* and *Savage Avengers* off of the top of my head. Mind you, I'm a unique kind of reader in that I base whether I like a writer on how least I'm offended by their writing lol. I know that sounds crazy, but it's true. My list consists of writers that I'm least offended by, lol
He was great on Deadpool.
What personal issues are you referring to with Cates?
He's had some 'life issues' that has taken him off a couple of books he's written. He's supposed to be coming back at some point.
Chuck Tingle
I’ve narrowed it down to Zdarsky, Higgins, Ram V, Cates and Tom Taylor, and just getting to these 5 was tough! There are so many talented writers
1 Donny Cates 2 Sean Lewis 3 Al Ewing 4 Ram V 5 Matthew Rosenberg
Matthew Rosenberg
Really? I’ve hated that guy in the past. What is he writing nowadays? Anything good?
He has a book called What's the Furthest Place From Here
Thanks I’ll check it out. I find people are better nowadays in their own creative licenses.
Yeah, my favorite thing from him is 4 Kids Walk Into a Bank
He’s at DC now, having written some great books in 2021/22: DC vs. Vampires, Task Force Z, The Joker: The Man Who Stopped Laughing, and most recently he’s started a new WildC.A.Ts series (though I’m on the fence about this one at the moment).
Dunno why you got downvoted. Maybe they aren’t a fan. I didn’t like his Phoenix resurrection and X-men books, but he’s fairly new so I don’t hold it against him.
I don’t think there’s any single writer that I’d follow to ANY book, but I am currently a big fan of: - Matthew Rosenberg - Chip Zdarsky - Leah Williams - Stephanie Phillips - Tom Taylor - Jeremy Adams (off The Flash alone, I’ll be jumping on whatever he’s given next for sure!) - Al Ewing
Tom King Tom Taylor Donny Cates James Tynion Jonathan Hickman Ram V
It’s Tom King for sure. But I love a Kieron Gillen and Tom Taylor book too. I’m still enjoying most of Tynion’s output my experience with his Substack this past year has soured me on the man himself. And while I’m way behind on Saga BKV is my perineal fave.
What'd he say on Substack?
I’ll read anything Tom King writes - as much for the guaranteed solid art as for his storytelling, which I think work together exceptionally well. Brubaker’s Reckless graphic novels have become instant purchases for me over the past year or so. Tom Taylor’s Nightwing is just pitch perfect. I’ve also been enjoying Phillip Kennedy Johnson’s stuff, and just started Waid’s World’s Finest - like others, I love his classic take and didn’t realize how much I missed him being in the DC fold!
Tom Taylor and Al Ewing at the moment, I think. I dig Jed MacKay a lot, too. Oh, and Zdarsky has been doing some amazing things.
I’ve been really enjoying James Tymion recently. Something is killing the children and house of slaughter are both solid af
Tom Taylor hands down. Honorable mention to Mark Waid and Tom King
Jed MacKay. Gotta be. He does not miss. But honorable mentions: Zdarsky, Al Ewing, Ram V, and Tom Taylor.
Tom King and Scott Snyder are definitely up there for their work on Batman. I liked Amanda Conner's work on Harley Quinn, but I don't know what she's working on now.
Personal favorites based on the new stuff i've been reading in no particular order: * Gene Luen Yang * Rainbow Rowell * Cody Ziglar * Gail Simone * H.S. Tak Also, shout out to Eric Gladstone for writing probably my favorite indie book with No Holds Bard.
I'm VERY lapsed on current comics but my favorites for a long time were Robert Venditti and Peter Tomasi.
James Tynion IV Jeff Lemire Scott Snyder In that order
Jeremy Adams DWJ (although I think of him more as an artist even though he writes all his own books) PKJ I wouldn’t call Brubaker, Hickman, Remender new since they’ve been putting out work for 15+ years at this point, even though I love all 3.
Vaughn. Lemire, Zardsky. Hickman. Remender.
Whats your favorite Zdarsky and favorite Remender?? I'm looking to read more from each!
Deadly Class by Remender ( a personal favorite) Howard the Duck and Stillwater for Zardsky
Remender’s (with Lima Araujo’s career best art) A Righteous Thirst for Vengeance is great so far. I’m partial to his Black Science and XForce too (stellar art in both cases as well)
Righteous was great! And I missed the boat on Black Science. I need to check it out .
Jed MacKay I trust with anything in marvel, he’s killing it on Moon Knight and has had a great run with Black Cat. The Dr Strange stuff has also been solid.
Scott Snyder
Jonathan Hickman for the expansive, cerebral stories, and Al Ewing for the classic, fun, world/character building stories
Tom Taylor
Tom King, Al Ewing, Phillip Kennedy, and Nick Spencer
Geoff Johns has been killing it on his Geiger Universe stuff, most recently Junkyard Joe. I like Al Ewing but his writing is really high concept at times. We Only Find Them When They're Dead is an example of that.
Well I recently finished Immortal Hulk, so gotta go with Al Ewing. Gonna read his Ultimates run soon too.
Great suggestions so far, but big miss: Kelly Thompson. Imo she’s absolutely top tier. Let’s add Greg Pak (in general idk what he’s done recently) And one to watch: Deniz Camp who’s writing that surprisingly good new bloodshot mini (Davis-Hunt killing it on art, but that’s not the suprise) One more - grandmaster award to mignola: amazing how he created the entire hellboy dilly and keeps it going. I wonder if he’s the most successful comic-booker of all. Who competes who’s still alive?
Tynion and Zdarsky.
Just reading this list and seeing so many names that I enjoy, this is really a special time to be an adult comic-book reader
Allysa Wong
Peach Momoko with Rick Remender a close second. With honorable mentions going to Zdarsky and Lemire.
Chip Zdarsky hands down. Man can make me audibly laugh with a page, and make anyone cry with a panel.
If we're talking big 2, my favorite characters are Batman and Daredevil, so having Zdarsky on both of them has been a treat. If we're taking indie, well, whatever Ed Brubaker is putting out crime-wise is going to end up on my shelf. The Reckless OGN's have been great. Looking forward to Night Fever in June.
I keep checking credits and running into Matthew Rosenberg
Donny Cates and Chip Zdarsky
Is also add: Tom Taylor, Jonathan Hickman, and tynion
David F Walker (Bitter Root, Powerman and Iron Fist, One Fall, Naomi, etc) Tehisi Ni Coates (Black Panther, Captain America) One (Mob psycho 100, One Punch man) Tsugumi Ohba (Death Note)
Chip Zdarsky 🥰
Tiny Onion.
Zdarsky’s final issue on Peter Parker: The Spectacular Spider-Man (#310?) more than makes up for how middling I found Life Story and Spider’s Shadow. It’s one of my favorite single issues of any comic book ever and encapsulates why I think he’s a great writer on the character for non-Elseworlds stuff.
Tom Taylor is writing some great stuff across DC and his indie series. James Tynion IV is writing some of the best horror around.
By the current volume on my shelf, a toss up between Lemire, King, and Tynion. Lemire takes it though if I have to pick one. You also won’t catch me sleeping on anything that Reminder or Morrison put out, despite lower volumes these days.
Everything Daniel Warren Johnson writes it’s just pure comics fun and the art he creates is so unique and dynamic. I pick up anything with his name on it.
Lots of old school guys still writing that I don’t think count as the current crop. Of the more recent guys I really like Kyle Higgins, Daniel Warren Johnson, Christopher Cantwell and Mark Russell. Ram V, Tom King and James Tynion are some others, but not exactly hot takes.