A few Google search results in this one, plus a few that I've seen linked to around the internet and one which was sent via email. If you're aware of a list (yours or someone else's) which isn't included here, please leave a link or description in the comments field.
Once again, my criteria for inclusion in the Meta-List:
-list must contain no fewer than five items and no more than fifty
-list must be a general best-of list, not a series of categorical awards like "best superhero book," "best children's book," etc.
-list must not be limited to superhero comics, manga, major publishers, etc.
-I don't include votes for things like "everything Warren Ellis wrote in 2008"
-when a list includes a vote for a title which came out in a year prior to 2008, I usually tally everything like I normally would; it's rare that there are enough votes for an out-of-date item for it to crack the top 100
New additions are in green.
GENERAL INTEREST LISTS:
Amazon
Daily Vanguard (Portland State University)
New York Magazine
NPR
Publishers Weekly
Washington Post
COMICS-FOCUSED LISTS:
Caleb (last name unknown) at Jim Hanley's Universe
Doane, Alan David
Harbin, Dustin
Hickey, Andrew
Hipster Dad
QUESTIONABLE:
Amazon.jp (The Japanese branch of Amazon's best comics and "light novels." Interesting, but I'm not sure what to do with it since much (most?) of this is not available in English yet, and the light novels are definitely not comics. On the other hand, those aren't necessarily good reasons to exclude this list. Any thoughts?
Associated Content (Written by Russell Burlingame of the new Blogorama crew. Framed as "the best and worst of 2008," I took this to be more of a year in review kind of list. Plus it might be too narrow (Echo is the only not-at-the-front-of-Diamond title listed). We'll see if Burlingame posts a best of 2008 list at Blogorama.)
Drawn!, part one (Matt Forsythe) (This contains one comic which is definitely not 2008 (Tekkon Kinkreet) and one which is either a 2007 entry if you consider it a book or a 2008 entry if you consider it a webcomic (Fart Party). My Brain is Hanging Upside Down and Cul de Sac are definite 2008 comic releases. I'm not sure what you would consider the Nicholas series. The rest are things which not everyone would agree are comics. My inclination is to count this list anyway, since (a) the non-comics stuff won't accumulate enough other votes to place, and (b) I'll disqualify any non-2008 titles when I finalize the meta-list. Do note that I'm not trying to denigrate the list because it doesn't fit into this project; I like seeing unconventional lists, and it's not like Drawn! is a comics-only blog.)
Drawn, part two (John Martz) (See comments above, except that this list a greater number of 2008 titles that most would classify as unambiguously comics.)
The Independent (Seems to have an awful lot of books from before 2008--Sleepwalk? Embroideries?--which might reflect new British editions, but I'm skeptical. Comics and Sequential Art seriously never came out in the UK before 2008? Just seems like a lazy list.)
Some dude on Amazon (Do I really want to include Amazon lists? I mean, it's not a bad list, aside from being a little long, but really...)
St. Louis Today (Includes one from 2007, which reduces the list down to a total of four, below the minimum threshold. I'll probably include it in the final tally, and ignore the votes for Laika. UPDATE: I've included it.)
Douglas Wolk (I think this is a gift guide, not a best-of list?)
Various message board posters (Most of these fail to meet my minimal criteria (ie, they're all Marvel, DC, Dark Horse, and Image). And I haven't decided whether or not to include a bunch of hastily compiled message board lists. I mean, if this were Abhay Khosla or something, I would reconsider, but these are a bunch of basically anonymous dudes on a Hellblazer forum.)
WILL NOT USE:
Comics Should Be Good/Danielle Leigh Readers' Choice (too short, categorical, and delimited to manga)
Smith, Shannon (specifically delimited to mini-comics and web comics; well worth your time, though)
Talbot, Bryan (too short, includes stuff from 2007)
Wizard (Not the official list, at least not yet. This is a categorical awards list, and thus ineligible. What a strange list--a bunch of superhero comics, plus Kramers Ergot 7.)
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
7 comments:
Hey Dick, I'm loving the meta-list, even these pre-game warm up posts... is there a deadline for getting lists to you? I typically do one every year, but wasn't planning on posting until later in December. Could I send to you offline, other options?
Best,
Justin
13 Minutes
www.thirteenminutes.blogspot.com
I probably won't post a list until January--I've got a DCBS shipment coming with Nocturnal Conspiracies, the second volume of Black Jack, and Criminal #7, and it probably won't get here until the first week of January. And the Comics Journal year in review issue probably won't be out until February. So really, there's no hurry at all.
Dick - I recommend looking into heavyink.com for your online comic buying. The prices are slightly higher than DCBS on a per book basis (but still less than at the store) BUT the shipping is free and they send your books out every week. Because of the free shipping, I usually end up paying less total than I would at DCBS for the same books.
Heh..I got to read Kramer's 7 in advance because I wrote the Wizard feature on the issue, and I've got to say, regardless of whatever else is declared whatever else in that magazine this year, that book was quite amazing outside of its size alone.
Maybe you should disregard lists like hipster dad's that use weird "only one book per publisher" rules to guide them.
I just posted a list of top comics but I don't think I read enough to be considered a serious critic.
Something to consider: I actually ran across that "some dude on amazon"s list back around July, when almost half of its books were not even close to being released. (It was last updated in June 08).
I did indeed eventually list a Best of 2008 on Blog@ that might have been a bit more to your liking, but ultimately I've been covering mostly mainstream stuff and so that's what I can judge without feeling like I'm talking out of school.
Post a Comment