Graphic Novels: Créme de la Créme

Crème de la Crème

With graphic novels making best-of 2006 lists in the New York Times, Time magazine, the Village Voice, and other heavy hitters, we can finally say that the comics medium has made it securely into the mainstream. "Girls' comics" has at last lost its oxymoronic reputation thanks to manga (the shojo Fruits Basket sold an astonishing 12,000 copies the week before Christmas), and now megalith DC Comics has integrated its historically macho catalog with (gasp!) Minx, a line of graphic novels aimed at teen girls. Meanwhile, Archie Comics' Veronica and Betty are being chicked up for an older female audience.

All roads are leading to—and from—comics: Laurell K. Hamilton's and Steven King's popular fiction is coming out as graphic novels, and in a reverse trend already underway in Japan, manga and other comics are spinning off prose novels from Viz, Tokyopop, Dark Horse, and others. Comics formats are becoming widely known and are increasing for subject and genre niches such as current events (The 9/11 Report), religion, African American interest, and gay/lesbian. Even literary porn went graphic, big time, with Alan Moore's Lost Girls.

At Steve's library, the 2006 top-circulating manga were Naruto and D.N.Angel, followed by Tsubasa, Rurouni Kenshin, Fruits Basket, and Dragon Ball Z (DBZ)—DBZ, Vol. 1, has been the all-time, top-circulating graphic novel. Among superhero series, the star was Ultimate Fantastic Four, followed by Batman, Teen Titans, Ultimate X-Men, and Ultimate Spider-Man. The top American manga was Megatokyo, while Star Wars led among nonmanga, nonsuperhero series. In the adult collection, top series were Y: The Last Man, Fables, and The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, while the top indie title was Will Eisner's The Contract with God Trilogy.

Steve and I have our own 2006 favorites—see our personal "bests" among new titles on p. 53. From reissues, DC's "Absolute" editions are especially outstanding.

In 1988, Gaiman began writing the series that was to make him a star in the fields of comics and fantasy: The Sandman. This first lavish (and heavy) oversized hardcover of four planned volumes reprints the first 20 issues, which were previously collected in trade paperback (Preludes and Nocturnes, The Doll's House, and Dream Country). With artwork by cocreators Sam Kieth and Mike Dringenberg, plus Colleen Doran, Charles Vess, and others, and improved coloring in the first 18 issues, this features the first appearances of Dream as he escapes after 70 years of captivity and moves to regain his power and dream kingdom. Also included is the World Fantasy Award-winning "A Midsummer Night's Dream," a tale of Shakespeare and the faery folk; the complete script and pencils form part of the 78-page appendix. Filled with wonder and strangeness, this dark fantasy for older teens and adults is one of the most celebrated comic series. Essential for every library, this "Absolute" edition is absolutely its best presentation yet.—S.R.

Any textbook will note that Columbus discovered America in 1492—but what happened to him afterward is far less well known. Enter this highly readable history from Gonick, comics' resident world historian. Picking up where his Harvey Award-winning The Cartoon History of the Universe, Vol. 3, left off, this first of two volumes relates the Spanish conquest of the Caribbean, Mexico, and Peru; the rise of Portuguese trade; and the origins of the Sikhs, Lutherans, Calvinists, Jesuits, modern astronomy, the United Provinces of the Netherlands, and the United States. Produced with his signature combination of extensive research and humor, Gonick describes the exploits of Vasco da Gama and Magellan, the results of Henry VIII's desire for a male heir, and the writings of Machiavelli, Hobbes, and Locke, all the while hooking the reader with bizarre anecdotes and comical asides. He's politically incorrect enough to exploit bits of stereotype for comic effect and to call Native Americans "Indians," but his work evinces a deeply humane worldview. With occasional nudity and an adult viewpoint, Gonick's histories are strongly recommended for all adult collections.—S.R.

This "alternate-world" reimagining of the highly acclaimed Evangelion anime, a near-future tale about teens piloting giant biorobots called Evangelions against invading Angels, is based on the Japanese Evangelion video game, Girlfriend of Steel 2. In turn, the video game was inspired by a fantasy sequence in the finale of the Evangelion TV series showing pilots Shinji, Asuka, and Rei living normal junior high lives instead of the torture and angst they endure in the main story. This six-volume series, accurately rated 13+, veers close to shojo territory as it focuses on the relationships among Shinji, his childhood friend Asuka, and their classmates (including male violinist Kaworu's feelings for Shinji); and how the arrival of Rei, remote and repressed in the anime but outgoing and forthright here, changes things. The anime is so hard on these characters that it's nice to see them enjoying themselves and acting as regular kids here. But the awkward inclusion of watered-down action and dramatic elements from the anime, including the Angel attacks, turns this into Evangelion lite, without the deep psychological focus and bold ideas that made the original so compelling. Still, this series will find an audience wherever Evangelion is popular.—S.R.

The illegitimate son of Pope Alexander VI, Cesare Borgia is cursed from birth: his Cardinal father sold the child's soul to the devil to capture the papacy. But daring, clever, and charismatic, the young man attracts a devoted assassin-bodyguard and the hearts of beautiful women, including sister Lucrezia. This is Renaissance soap opera in the grand manner where religious-political intrigue and supernatural doom erupt into duels, demons, corrupt clergy, dangerous liaisons with a touch of shonen-ai, and general disregard for life and morality. Cantarella was the legendary poison of the Borgias, supposedly sweet but paralyzing. Indeed, Cesare is surprisingly appealing as he yearns for his father's love, only to be betrayed at every turn. And so Cesare schemes to pull the strings of Italy (and the papacy) as his demonic side powers his vengeance. Higuri's research shows in gorgeous characters, detailed backgrounds, and compelling plotting. Also included is historical information, plus Higuri's vignettes about her work on the manga, up to 17 volumes in Japan and still continuing. A recent ALA "Read" poster features Cesare, the first manga character chosen. Sexual themes, although nothing explicit; rated for older teens. Highly recommended.—M.C.

This hefty manga adapts the 1979 near-future hard-sf thriller by Hogan (Mission to Minerva). When a lack of judgment on the part of TITAN, the semi-intelligent computer managing many aspects of Earth society, almost kills five people, humanity has two choices: to downgrade TITAN's capabilities—or to increase them and create a system that might evolve real intelligence and might see humans as a threat. To test the risks of the latter plan, Dr. Raymond Dyer and his team of AI researchers stage an experiment in which the personnel of space station Janus are pitted against the station's next-generation computer, Spartacus, designed with a survival instinct. When Spartacus proves more ingenious than anticipated, people start dying. Hoshino (2001 Nights) streamlines Hogan's intelligent and gripping story, introduces a new wrinkle at the end, and concentrates less on characterization and background than on detailed renderings of technology. With its realistic art style, its pages flipped to read left-to-right, and its large 7 x 10 format, this will appeal more to sf fans than average manga readers. With minor nudity and gore, it's recommended for adult collections.—S.R.

Spun off from the Read or Die anime and manga series but featuring a new cast, this is another series about books and book lovers. The Paper Sisters Detective Company specializes in cases involving books. Two of the sisters—bubbly, beautiful Michelle and awkward, shy Maggie—are devoted bibliomaniacs, while their preteen younger sister, Anita, hates books and finds their fixation exasperating. All three are paper masters, with the power to mentally shape paper into any form and make it harder than steel. While the somewhat disappointing Read or Die manga was action-oriented and dramatic, this series has a lighter, sweeter tone and more attractive artwork. In this volume, Anita crosses paths with a flamboyant female book thief, and the sisters are hired by an author to track down the mysterious writer who inspired him. Viz rates this for older teens, but the only mature content here is a one-panel nude shower scene. Recommended for teen collections, for readers of both genders.—S.R.

Sweet little Polly has been the goody-goody of Mistress Lovejoy's Preparatory School for Proper Young Ladies. But when she is lifted—literally—out of her staid surroundings, high seas, high jinks, and hilarity ensue as she gets in touch with her inner pirate. Now as "Captain Peg," she and her rough-hewn crew must race dashing pirate prince Claudio to find the gold left by her mysteriously vanished mother, Pirate Queen Meg. Naifeh uses a charming, curvier art with more universal appeal than his gothic woodcuts for Eisner Award nominee Courtney Crumrin. Indeed, Polly's story is as different from Courtney's as possible, set in the whimsical Victorian-style city of St. Helvetia, where houses look like boats and boats look like houses. The plotting is delicious as twists, counter twists, clashing swords, and breathless acrobatics prove that Polly could easily out-Sparrow Captain Jack himself. The ending ties up most of the threads while leaving room for a sequel, expected in 2008. A winning tale highly recommended for ages 12+, including all fans of swashbuckling manga heroines.—M.C.

Boys do cry in this sweet geek-meets-girl story, originally a best-selling novel supposedly based on a real chat room thread. In a moment of uncharacteristic bravery, a twentysomething introvert stands up to an abusive drunk on a train and catches a pretty young woman's attention. When she offers her thanks, the stammering geek flees homeward and posts an account in a chat room for dateless men: "Sensation! One of us is a hero!" Naturally, a courtship develops between "Train Man" and the young woman—dubbed Hermes by the chat group, which coalesces into a collective dating coach and cheering squad for Train's wooing. Hair styling! Trendy clothes! Names of good restaurants! The chat group proffers advice via emotion-drenched messages enriched with incredible ASCII art (unfortunately, rarely reproduced in the manga). On her end, Hermes—nicknamed for the brand of teacups she sends the mystified Train as a thank you—is clearly out to Get Her Man. The only villain in the story is Train's shyness. Of the three manga, Hara's has the best-realized art and characterization. Ocha's is cute and showcases more of the ASCII art but compresses the story. Watanabe makes the characters overly childlike and less nuanced. The Ocha title is rated older teen; the other two are rated teen. An English edition of Nakano's novel is available via Amazon.uk. In Japan, a live-action film and TV series also exist; the film has been released here by Viz.—M.C.

In this engaging mashup of superheroes and teen chick lit, young Lindsay Goldman, a.k.a. Go Girl, inherited the ability to fly from her retired superheroine mom (see Go Girl, LJ 3/1/03), and mom sometimes joins her in fighting bad guys. This volume opens with Go Girl rescuing fellow students held hostage by a blustering gunman. Enraged by Lindsay's heroism, nemesis Chatty Catty the Feline Fury and her gang the Filthy Five come up with a robot exactly like Go Girl that robs a bank to get the real Lindsay arrested. Lindsay escapes, teams up with a quartet of teen runaways to confront the Filthy Five, and the fight is on! In an additional story, Lindsay and sidekick Haseena become trapped in a blend of two schoolmates' computer games, where boy-game giant robots mix amusingly with girl-game princesses and castles. Two shorter stories focus on "Haseena Ross: Girl Detective." With lighthearted, clever plots and attractive black-and-white art, these stories should appeal to preteen and teen girls and even inspire them to create their own comics. All ages.—M.C.

Known for his excellent Blade of the Immortal samurai manga, Samura here applies his realistic art style to present-day, true-to-life tales. The title story is a romantic comedy starring college students: Tono is in love with the mature and independent Akagi, whose boyfriend just left for two years in Zambia; Tono's childhood friend Kobarukawa is now dating the leader of a Venom cover band, but she secretly loves Tono. Samura convincingly evokes college life; he peppers the story with snarky authorial asides, humorously breaks the fourth wall, and throws in an odd subplot about a half-Italian man who comes to Japan to kill his Japanese father. The second, more serious story concerns an 18-year-old female manga creator who, after her series is cancelled, enters first the "real world" and then a seedy underworld of gambling and organized crime. A short autobiographical vignette is also included. There's little nudity or sex (though many references to the latter)—but the book's overall tone makes it suitable for college age and above, for whom it's recommended.—S.R.

In 1929, Segar introduced into his ten-year-old newspaper strip Thimble Theatre a character who became one of the most popular figures ever to emerge from comics: Popeye the sailor man. Then, after a five-month adventure that saw Popeye shrug off 16 bullet wounds, Segar wrote the sailor out of the story. But the public would have none of it, so Popeye was quickly reinstated and has remained ever since. This is the first volume in a set of six oversized hardcovers reprinting every Thimble Theatre strip from Popeye's introduction until Segar's death in 1938. Segar's Popeye, a rough and ready strongman, is a wonderfully colorful character: tempestuous, loyal, superstitious, and clueless about women, throwing punches at every opportunity and busting out of jail repeatedly. His distinctive speech pattern is a joy. But the only mention here of a certain leafy green plant is in the name of a minor character, Miss Spinich (sic). Fantagraphics previously collected these strips in an out-of-print ten-volume series, but this new edition prints the Sunday strips in color. Segar was a remarkble cartoonist and an inventive storyteller, and these classic adventures are strongly recommended for all libraries.—S.R.

A National Book Award finalist and ALA's Printz Award winner, this fable stars the mythological Monkey King, realistic youngster Jin Wang of Taiwanese parentage, and TV sitcom teen Danny. All three are dogged by an unwanted identity and humiliated by others' prejudice. The Monkey King trains to be a god but is unceremoniously bounced out of heaven and urged by "he who is" (the great god) to be what he is: a monkey. Jin tries to be accepted and romance a fellow student but gets picked on by classmates. Danny does well with friends until Chinese cousin Chin-Kee, a bitingly funny bundle of racist stereotypes, makes his annual visit and behaves so offensively that Danny must change schools. Finally, the three stories suddenly merge, to center on Jin coming to terms with his minority experience and moving beyond his own fear and hostility. Coalescence comes almost too quickly, but the trivision approach and treatment are unique and moving. The art is simple, colorful, and both attractive and effective. Some potty humor; recommended for teen and adult collections.—M.C.

After chatting up top cartoonists on their home turf, Comic Art editor Hignite then edited the conversations into a series of fascinating monologues from Ivan Brunetti, Charles Burns, Daniel Clowes, Robert Crumb, Jaime Hernandez, Gary Painter, Seth, Art Spielgelman, and Chris Ware. The focus is on the artists' imaginations, influences, and sources of ideas. Full-color examples from their sketchbooks, finished work, and quirky choices for inspiration whet the appetite for some of the lesser-known titles in graphic storytelling. The production values are excellent (although you do need a magnifying glass for speech balloons). Also included are a general bibliography and one on each artist. Hignite's introductions veer toward the hyperacademic, but nonscholarly folk can enjoy the very readable interviews with these artists, who were chosen to represent "undeniable pinnacles of the form." With occasional sexual imagery, this anthology is recommended for academic and public library adult collections.—M.C.

Bechdel's intensely literary and poignant memoir has appeared on numerous best-of 2006 lists of the big periodicals and received starred reviews from Publishers Weekly, Kirkus, and Booklist.—M.C. (LJ 7/06)

This explodes the autobiographical comics genre with a self-deprecating story in which Campbell himself is absent and a detective searching for him learns about his curious, insular ways. Told in a riot of forms, from text sections and photographs to mock comic strips.—S.R. (LJ 7/06)

A deeply touching account of one woman's struggle with cancer; a story of heartbreak and hope told with sophisticated visual invention by her adult son. Originally serialized on the Internet during the ordeal, this won the 2005 Eisner Award for Best Digital Comic.—S.R. (LJ 5/15/06)

"Victim" becomes "Vixen" when a New Yorker cartoonist-fashionista battles breast cancer with killer shoes, a Best-Friends-Forever cheering squad, and a charming, supportive celebrity-chef fiancé. A heartfelt, funny, and even informative memoir.—M.C.(LJ 7/06)

The third in McCloud's remarkable series (following the groundbreaking Understanding Comics and its sequel, Reinventing Comics). Directed at budding comics creators, this volume explores the intricacies of cartooning with McCloud's trademark inventiveness, analytical skill, and humor. Fascinating and inspiring.—S.R. (LJ 9/15/06)

This outstanding piece of historical fiction concerns the 1895 murder of Billy Lyons by "Stag" Lee Shelton, which entered folklore and inspired a series of songs. It weaves a compelling tale involving racism and political corruption, with thoughtful commentary on the songs themselves.—S.R.(LJ 9/15/06)

In a wonderfully picaresque take on the coming-of-age theme, a reluctant young heroine surpasses all expectations, including her own, to reclaim her heritage as a pirate queen's daughter. (See review, p. 52.)—M.C