My All-time Favorite Comic Books, 15-11

The list continues!

#15. Grant Morrison's Batman

Creators: Grant Morrison, Andy Kubert, Tony Daniel, Chris Burnham, various
Publication dates: 2006-2013
Issues: Batman 655-658, 663-683, 700-702, Batman and Robin 1-16, The Return of Brice Wayne 1-6, Batman Incorporated 1-8, Leviathan Strikes!, Batman Incorporated 0-10, 12-13

Morrison's epic vision of the Dark Knight is best defined by the Damian arc, the introduction of the first Robin to actually be the son of Batman.  He's explained that the two major villains of this run, Doctor Hurt and Talia, Damian's mother and Bruce Wayne's one-time lover, not to mention daughter of Ra's al Ghul, are father and mother figures for the hero best known for a tragic secret origin concerning the deaths of his parents.  A new defining mark for a comprehensive understanding of Batman mythos, these stories are a true test of all the Caped Crusader's most cherished beliefs, and a stark commentary on his legacy.  I would have ranked the run higher on the list, except I've been struggling with how it ended, and while I've come out the back end in a soundly positive way recently, I think I still need to read through the whole thing again for a proper final appreciation.  There are three distinctive acts to be explored, the events leading up to "R.I.P.," which involve Doctor Hurt; the Batman and Robin era, which feature Dick Grayson under the cowl and a heavy focus on Damian; and the Batman Incorporated era, which features a whole league of new allies and the final reckoning of Damian.  It's possible to be a partisan of any one of these, and that's the real trick, because sometimes I think I prefer the first the best, and other times I'm convinced the other two are equal contenders.  But as a whole?  As with anything else Morrison does, it's epic ambition beyond any ordinary scope.

#14. Seven Soldiers of Victory

Creators: Grant Morrison, various
Publication dates: 2005-2006
Issues: Seven Soldiers of Victory 0-1, Bulleteer 1-4, Frankenstein 1-4, Guardian 1-4, Klarion the Witch Boy 1-4, Mister Miracle 1-4, Shining Knight 1-4, Zatanna 1-4

The only thing more ambitious than Grant Morrison's Batman is his Seven Soldiers of Victory, the last sprawling effort of his on this list (but not last project; he dominates with five out of the twenty-five selections, plus a share in a sixth; his closest competitors are half that, although one of them has the top two slots and another shared listing in the top five, being Mark Waid, while Geoff Johns is the other).  Simply put, this project was breathtaking, and the reason I became a devoted fan of Morrison's.  An innovative look at the superhero staple of the team book, this was a team that did not actually operate as a team throughout the majority of the story, instead leading their own separate but linked adventures.  The biggest strength was that Morrison was able to demonstrate the full range of his talent, as no two characters in this line-up were the same type.  His Frankenstein elevated the character so far that it resulted in a New 52 ongoing series that lasted for sixteen issues, while his Shining Knight led in part to Demon Knights.  Just an incredible creative achievement, something no other single creator could have pulled off, or probably even considered.

#13. The Great Ten

Creators: Tony Bedard, Scott McDaniel
Publication dates: 2010
Issues: 1-9

This remains one of my most treasured undiscovered masterpieces.  You can tell that it was underappreciated from the start, considering the name of the team and book, and the fact that the issue count was reduced by one while it was still being published, and what a dirty shame.  This is Bedard and McDaniel achieving what Grant Morrison did in Seven Soldiers on an issue-by-issue basis, brilliant character studies of superheroes with extremely limited exposure prior to the series.  If there is a lasting testament to the work accomplished here, it's August General in Iron's later appearances in the New 52 series Justice League International.  If it were up to me, there would already be a collected edition of this, and it would be a perennial bestseller.  Easily, easily one of the best comics I've ever read.

#12. Joe the Barbarian

Creators: Grant Morrison, Sean Murphy
Publication dates: 2010-2011
Issues: 1-8

The last of the solo Morrison projects (there would have been at least one in the top ten if I hadn't had so many competing favorites), and a story that as I was reading it wondered if it wouldn't read better as a whole than in installments, and as time passed I realized I was probably right about that.  I appreciate Joe more and more.  It's Morrison at his finest, employing the full range of his wild imagination but in an entirely approachable way (which is not always the case), the simplistic promise of We3 wedded with the best of his superhero stories.  This is truly a modern fairy tale, a fable in the tradition of the great 19th century achievements that is also uniquely its own, and for this creator a remarkably brief yet still expansive adventure.  It's everything it needs to be.  I believe, more than any other comic in this list, Joe the Barbarian has a long road ahead of it.  I don't think it will be forgotten soon, and in fact will become more and more fondly remembered the more people become aware of it.

#11. Superboy and the Ravers

Creators: Karl Kesel, Steve Mattsson, Paul Pelletier, Josh Hood
Publication dates: 1996-1998)
Issues: 1-19

90s comics were known for a number of things, but two of the prevailing trends that came to define it were bad girl comics and a renaissance of the teenage hero.  DC exploited the latter trend just as much as anyone else, and I think the happiest development was this perennially underrated gem, Superboy's second ongoing series for a few years.  It remains a touchstone, and a treasured favorite memory.  Everything I would later come to love about Seven Soldiers of Victory and The Great Ten were already well on their way to perfection in the nearly twenty issues of Superboy and the Ravers.  Beyond Superboy the rest of the cast became some of the best defined characters in all of comics: Sparx (the best of the Bloodlines generation), Aura, Half-Life (that's the grim-looking dude on the cover), Kaliber (perhaps the best single creation of the whole thing, and a featured player in John Byrne's Genesis), Hero, Rex the Wonder Dog, Kindred Marx, and even someone called the Flying Buttress.  Desperately deserves a big fat collected edition, needs to be remembered as the landmark series that it was.

(All covers via Comic Book Database.)