I've been interested in graphic novels as a storytelling medium lately and would like some recommendations. It doesn't have to be good so long as it's interesting and has stuff one can talk about. However, rather than this just being yet another overdone superhero geekout thread, I'm laying some ground rules:
1) It must be an original work. It cannot be an adaptation or a spinoff from something else. Being based on a real life story (e.g. From Hell) is fine, as are works that integrate public domain characters so long as it does something original with them (e.g. Fables). Sequels to original graphic novels are fine.
2) It must be finished. I don't mind if there are sequels or spinoffs that are ongoing, but the original needs to be a finished, self-contained narrative.
3) It must have been written in English first. I have nothing against manga and am willing to read comics in that style (even the ones with right to left layout), but I want to read the original, not a translation that may or may not dilute the meaning.
4) It must not be a superhero story. I don't think there's anything inherently bad about superhero stories, but it is such an oversaturated market and is way overrepresented on lists of great graphic novels. I'm sure this could probably become a debate as to what constitutes a superhero story, but if it involves a combination of costumes with specific iconography, extraordinary abilities, vigilantism, and authoritarian/fascist undertones, you probably shouldn't recommend it.
(And yes, everybody in the first world knows about Watchmen by now. Yes, it is considered a masterpiece even by mainstream sources like Time Magazine. No, not every thread about graphic novels needs to be about it regardless of any wonky "but it's so much more than a superhero story!" justification one comes up with. I'm sick and tired of reading about it. Please find any of a billion other threads to talk about it. Thank you.)
5) Shorter is better. I think as any work of ongoing fiction continues, it gets less cohesive, more convoluted, more tedious, more diluted, and less rewarding. This really goes for just about any medium (for example, serials by Charles Dickens and most TV shows). The ideal is for the author to have the whole thing drafted from beginning to end before starting. If you're still convinced some 420 issue series is a masterpiece from beginning to end, go ahead and mention it. I just probably won't read it.
Some stuff with my comments:
Ghost World: I don't know what to think of it. It doesn't really go anywhere or have any particular structure, but I did like the characters despite them not being very nice people.
Koko Be Good: Something I bet nobody knows anything about that I randomly picked up at the library one day. It's not very good, but it does have some interesting ideas and unusual characters, so I give it credit for that.
The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen: Did not finish. I'm sorry, but nobody talks or acts like any real person and even after half the first volume, I just didn't care about anything that was happening in it. Not my taste.
Maus: I should read this since it did win a Pulitzer Prize and is on the shortlist of best graphic novels, but I just don't enjoy Holocaust stories. They're really bleak and hopeless. It doesn't mean I want only happy things, but there's a difference between dark and depressing.
Princess Ai: I can't conclusively find out whether this was originally English (it was co-created by Courtney Love and some other guy) or effectively double-translated. Regardless, dear lord, is this shit. Still, it's actually fascinating and I recommend it because you rarely see what is effectively masturbatory fanfiction actually get published with decent production values. Familiarize yourself with Kurt Cobain before reading it.
Scott Pilgrim: Kind of obnoxious at times, but I like it as a work that throws away any pretense of reality and does what the fuck ever without ever becoming incomprehensible.
V for Vendetta: Borderline superhero, but not really the focus. Regardless, I'll flat out admit I didn't what the hell was going on or what it was trying to say. I didn't enjoy it.
Y: The Last Man: Haven't read it, but I like the premise. It does seem a tad long and episodic, but I'll still at least try the first volume.
Edited to add: I also read the original Amethyst, Princess of Gemworld maxiseries (before DC tied it into their universe and ran it through a meat grinder). It was... not very good and not in any terribly interesting way, either. The only thing that really stuck with me is the narration spends so much time telling everybody how evil the onyx guy is, it gets distracting. If you're into children's changeling dimension traveling chosen sorceress hero of a nonsensical world fantasy fluff, maybe you'd get some easy dopamine from it.
1) It must be an original work. It cannot be an adaptation or a spinoff from something else. Being based on a real life story (e.g. From Hell) is fine, as are works that integrate public domain characters so long as it does something original with them (e.g. Fables). Sequels to original graphic novels are fine.
2) It must be finished. I don't mind if there are sequels or spinoffs that are ongoing, but the original needs to be a finished, self-contained narrative.
3) It must have been written in English first. I have nothing against manga and am willing to read comics in that style (even the ones with right to left layout), but I want to read the original, not a translation that may or may not dilute the meaning.
4) It must not be a superhero story. I don't think there's anything inherently bad about superhero stories, but it is such an oversaturated market and is way overrepresented on lists of great graphic novels. I'm sure this could probably become a debate as to what constitutes a superhero story, but if it involves a combination of costumes with specific iconography, extraordinary abilities, vigilantism, and authoritarian/fascist undertones, you probably shouldn't recommend it.
(And yes, everybody in the first world knows about Watchmen by now. Yes, it is considered a masterpiece even by mainstream sources like Time Magazine. No, not every thread about graphic novels needs to be about it regardless of any wonky "but it's so much more than a superhero story!" justification one comes up with. I'm sick and tired of reading about it. Please find any of a billion other threads to talk about it. Thank you.)
5) Shorter is better. I think as any work of ongoing fiction continues, it gets less cohesive, more convoluted, more tedious, more diluted, and less rewarding. This really goes for just about any medium (for example, serials by Charles Dickens and most TV shows). The ideal is for the author to have the whole thing drafted from beginning to end before starting. If you're still convinced some 420 issue series is a masterpiece from beginning to end, go ahead and mention it. I just probably won't read it.
Some stuff with my comments:
Ghost World: I don't know what to think of it. It doesn't really go anywhere or have any particular structure, but I did like the characters despite them not being very nice people.
Koko Be Good: Something I bet nobody knows anything about that I randomly picked up at the library one day. It's not very good, but it does have some interesting ideas and unusual characters, so I give it credit for that.
The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen: Did not finish. I'm sorry, but nobody talks or acts like any real person and even after half the first volume, I just didn't care about anything that was happening in it. Not my taste.
Maus: I should read this since it did win a Pulitzer Prize and is on the shortlist of best graphic novels, but I just don't enjoy Holocaust stories. They're really bleak and hopeless. It doesn't mean I want only happy things, but there's a difference between dark and depressing.
Princess Ai: I can't conclusively find out whether this was originally English (it was co-created by Courtney Love and some other guy) or effectively double-translated. Regardless, dear lord, is this shit. Still, it's actually fascinating and I recommend it because you rarely see what is effectively masturbatory fanfiction actually get published with decent production values. Familiarize yourself with Kurt Cobain before reading it.
Scott Pilgrim: Kind of obnoxious at times, but I like it as a work that throws away any pretense of reality and does what the fuck ever without ever becoming incomprehensible.
V for Vendetta: Borderline superhero, but not really the focus. Regardless, I'll flat out admit I didn't what the hell was going on or what it was trying to say. I didn't enjoy it.
Y: The Last Man: Haven't read it, but I like the premise. It does seem a tad long and episodic, but I'll still at least try the first volume.
Edited to add: I also read the original Amethyst, Princess of Gemworld maxiseries (before DC tied it into their universe and ran it through a meat grinder). It was... not very good and not in any terribly interesting way, either. The only thing that really stuck with me is the narration spends so much time telling everybody how evil the onyx guy is, it gets distracting. If you're into children's changeling dimension traveling chosen sorceress hero of a nonsensical world fantasy fluff, maybe you'd get some easy dopamine from it.
