Crushing Krisis

Welcome to the penultimate installment of my top 125 [American digital] comics of 2019! Today I am counting down books #25 to 11. Head back to entries #125-101, #100-76, #75-51, and #50-26.

I’ve already told you about 100 of my favorite titles of 2019 this week, but now it’s time to share my TOP 25 COMIC TITLES OF THE YEAR! I recommend every title in my Top 125, but these are the titles I MOST STRONGLY endorse. I thought nearly every issue from these books was great.

Yesterday I shared the details of my “Recommendation Index” algorithm with you; these are titles with an elusive >50% Recommendation Index score.

Here’s a wild fact: over half of my Top 25 are books I would have NEVER touched if I stuck with my usual pulls and favorite creators. Getting out of your comfort zone is a good thing. I’m happy I got out of mine, and I hope my list helps you step outside of yours.

Let’s go! (Or, if you prefer a Twitter countdown, start here.)

#25 – Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man (Marvel)

FRIENDLY NEIGHBORHOOD SPIDER-MAN (Marvel) focused on Spidey as a hyper-local hero. This was a friendly, witty Spider-Man who was out to learn all of his neighbor’s names (and their problems, too). Tom Taylor with artists Juann Cabal + Ken Lashley told his mix of arcs and 1-shots all set within a few square blocks of NYC. He delivered hilarious spider-quips as well as tear-jerking emotional beats, which made this feel like the most classic take on Peter Parker we’ve seen in years.

#24 – Punks Not Dead: London Calling (IDW / Black Crown)

PUNKS NOT DEAD: LONDON CALLING (IDW) continued the uproarious adventures of the ghost of Sid Vicious and the Extra-Usual Affairs department out to exterminate him. David Barnett tied his sequel’s plot in a humorous (and scary!) bow with delightful pop art from Martin Simmonds. This sequel focused more on family and history than the gag-filled first series, but that didn’t slow down the stream of British pop culture and pop music references.

#23 – Daredevil (Marvel)

DAREDEVIL (Marvel) is a revelation. Chip Zdarsky began with awesome street-level action, but pivoted hard into Matt questioning what it means to be a hero (and Kingpin questioning what it means to rule). We’ve seen so many deconstructions of Daredevil over the years, but this version of Matt as a flawed, doubtful, plainclothes human being struggling to accept responsibility for his actions was riveting stuff.

[Read more…] about Krisis’s Favorite Comic Series of 2019 – #25 – 11

Welcome to Day 4 of my Top 125 [American digital] Comics of 2019! Today I’ll share entries #50 through 26 on my list. Missed what came before? Head back to entries #125-101, #100-76, and #75-51.

While I adore and recommend EVERY series in the 125, now we’re getting into series that I felt had many excellent individual issues.

But first: more data!

I’ve mentioned rating every comic issue and then applying a pair of algorithms to help me weight a series. I rate on a .5-to-5 out of 5 scale, and I’ve discovered that my rating distribution forms a near-perfect bell curve. Here are my ratings since I started tracking in 2017:

 

When rating a SERIES, I use a “Recommendation Index” that’s a modified version of Net Promoter Score (NPS). You know those “How likely would you be to recommend our company” polls that pop up? Companies weigh “PROMOTERS” against “DETRACTORS” to grade their reputation with customers.

For my purposes, “Recommendation Index” treats 4-5/5 as PROMOTER vs .5-2.5/5 as DETRACTOR. A series that never dips below 4 is 100% recommendable. One that never gets above 2.5 is -100%.

(I treat a 2.5 as “true average” but in the scope of recommendations that’s not a strong one)

Almost every book in my Top 125 has a Recommendation Index of ?0%. That’s why I cut it off at 125 – after that, negative Recommendation Indexes started popping up. (In a few instances, series with <0% scores are on the list because the low-rated issue(s) were the end of a 2018 arc or a fill-in/one-shot.)

Yes, this is a HUGE list, but that’s because it is nearly ALL of my recommended comic reading of 2019. The higher we get, the stronger my recommendation and adoration.

Without further ado, here are series #50 through 26 of my favorite [American digital] comic titles of 2019! (Or, if you prefer a Twitter countdown, start here.)

#50 – Sparrowhawk (Boom)

SPARROWHAWK (Boom) is allegorical and heartfelt. A young woman of color tumbles out of her racist real life as a bastard child of a well-to-do family and into a faerie-land where violence rules (but also stains your soul). Delilah Dawson keeps things fantastical while offering insightful commentary; Matias Basla’s art is a dream.

#49 – West Coast Avengers (Marvel)

WEST COAST AVENGERS (Marvel) was a successor to Nextwave as much as an Avengers book. Kelly Thompson found so much heart and charm in an oddball cast. She perfectly captured the vibe of young adults crashing head first into their first serious relationships in The Real World.

[Read more…] about Krisis’s Favorite Comic Series of 2019 – #50 – 26

Welcome to Day 3 of counting down my 125 favorite [American digital] comic titles of 2019! Missed what came before? Head back to entries #125-101 and #100-76.

Before I dig into entries #75-51 on my list, I want to briefly share some of the data behind my reading and ranking.

In reading as much of the American digital floppy market as possible in 2019, Marvel + DC represented 56% of issues and 47% of the series with >2 issues (my ranking criteria). Image was another 9% of issues and 11% of series, respectively.

That means EVERYONE ELSE was 35% of issues and 42% of series.

My Top 125 is based on applying both algorithms and gut feeling to my >2500 single issue ratings from 2019, without any quotas on publisher representation. Despite that, publishers are represented in my Top 125 ALMOST EXACTLY in proportion to the amount of material they released.

There were 4 notable outliers:

• Marvel slightly undershot its expected representation in the full Top 125, but slightly over-performed at the very top.
• Aftershock was under-represented compared to its issue/series.
• Image SLIGHTLY over-performed.
• Valiant over-performed a LOT.

Enough about the data, let’s get to the comic books! Here are another 25 comic series that I absolutely loved in 2019, which occupy spots #75 through 51 on my countdown of my favorite [American digital] comic titles of 2019! (Or, if you prefer a Twitter countdown, start here.)

#75 – Fallen World (Valiant)

FALLEN WORLD (Valiant) was an engaging entry into the far future of Earth. Each development felt rooted in Valiant’s past, but that never distracted from a thrilling adventure on multiple fronts as the Geomancer and rebel AIs maneuvered against the deposed all-seeing Father. Even having skipped several years of Valiant comics, it all worked for me.

#74 – Batman Beyond (DC)

BATMAN BEYOND (DC) struck the perfect balance for a future book. While it plays with some familiar characters and reimagines expected elements, Dan Jurgens also tells a unique tale of family, tragedy, and superhero action with bold, clean art from a bevy of industry veterans.

[Read more…] about Krisis’s Favorite Comic Series of 2019 – #75 – 51

It’s Day 2 of my Top 125 [American digital] comics of 2019! If you missed day one, head back to check out entries #101-125.

Let’s get right to it! (Or, if you prefer a Twitter countdown, start here.)

#100 – Batman Universe (DC)

BATMAN UNIVERSE (DC) is Brian Bendis’s first run on the bat, reprinted from its debut in the infamous Walmart-first comics. Bendis is at peak silly on this team-up-y tale, but still finds many true Batman moments amidst the cameos and guffaws. An entire run of Nick Derington & Dave Stewart art is an unreal treat.

#99 – Stronghold (Aftershock)

STRONGHOLD (Aftershock) places an incognito god at the center of an ancient conspiracy. Is it better to maintain world peace in order to contain his unbridled power or cause massive unrest to tempt him to unleash it? Phil Hester peels away layers of plot, and his creative partners Ryan Kelly, Dee Cuniffe, & Simon Bowland make this unmissable.

#98 – Breaklands (Comixology)

BREAKLANDS (Comixology) sees Justin Jordan create something greater than the sum of familiar themes (X-Men, Mad Max) in this desert world where everyone has a power, but not everyone is useful. Tyasseta’s bold, almost=semiotic artwork colored by Rachel Deering is a revelation – like action stamped directly only the page.

[Read more…] about Krisis’s Favorite Comic Series of 2019 – #100 – 76