No Right Answer: Best Comic Book Universe Ever
- Thread starter Firefilm
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I'm gonna go with Warp Graphics actually. One of the first comics I was hooked on was Elfquest. It is NOT very well known, but it is a FANTASTIC story with a universe SO well developed and full of great characters that its a complete shame that it doesnt have more attention than it does.
The story actually goes somewhere its just not another issue of spider-man beating up dock ock.
The characters are great, and their relationships are real and interesting.
The universe is brilliant and beautiful.
The reason its not been too big, is probably because of occasional frivolous sexual content, which is not at all exploitative, but simply a great part of the lore.
Superheroes are awesome, but Elfquest has tackled so many different subjects in a mature and interesting fashion...its just superb. Family, sex, loss, longing, the passage of time...aaaaaaaah its soooo good.
If anyone has not read this fantastic fantasy epic I wholeheartedly recommend it. Its even available for free these days on their website. GO READ!
Between marvel and DC....DC. Superman and Batman just cannot be beat.
The story actually goes somewhere its just not another issue of spider-man beating up dock ock.
The characters are great, and their relationships are real and interesting.
The universe is brilliant and beautiful.
The reason its not been too big, is probably because of occasional frivolous sexual content, which is not at all exploitative, but simply a great part of the lore.
Superheroes are awesome, but Elfquest has tackled so many different subjects in a mature and interesting fashion...its just superb. Family, sex, loss, longing, the passage of time...aaaaaaaah its soooo good.
If anyone has not read this fantastic fantasy epic I wholeheartedly recommend it. Its even available for free these days on their website. GO READ!
Between marvel and DC....DC. Superman and Batman just cannot be beat.
If I have to pick from the Big 2, I'd go with Marvel. Better characters almost always translates to better story
All publishers in play? Image Comics
Bomb Queen, Chew, Invincible, The Walking Dead, to name just a few
All publishers in play? Image Comics
Bomb Queen, Chew, Invincible, The Walking Dead, to name just a few
I'm gonna have to go with Marvel, mainly for the reason that Chris pointed out about how the story arcs and events tend to flow into one another which gives the universe its own sense of history
Image Comic's: Invincible universe. It's just that awesome.
I have so many comics here in front of me. But as far as a universe is concerned: that one takes the cake.
Runner up: Preacher, because it's basically not fiction.
I have so many comics here in front of me. But as far as a universe is concerned: that one takes the cake.
Runner up: Preacher, because it's basically not fiction.
I remember Elfquest. There was a copy of one of the compilations in my hometown library. I read the f**k out of that, but didn't understand much since I was young, stupid, and kinda sheltered.tzimize said:
Thanks for reminding me of that. I'll see if I can get my hands on some copies.
OT:
As to the Great Debate... it's a hard call for me as I'm not as steeped in the lore of either, so I'll go for a simple anecdotal call.
Marvel. Because HULK. Why?
Planet Hulk.
Superman may be able to tow a planet (with help from GL), but Hulk kept one from exploding with his bare hands by pulling tectonic plates around. After that the story made me shed manly tears for what happened to him.
No other comic book has done that to me.
It's a really tough call, because they both have aspects that I adore. However, I have to give it to Marvel. It just seems like more of a cohesive unit. Especially now that Marvel itself has a movie studio, whereas DC is still largely tied to the whim of Warner Bros.
In the '90's I was all about Marvel. Lately, I'm slightly more in the DC camp. I mean, they have Animal Man and Ambush Bug! Animal Man is one of the most unique titles in comics. Ambush Bug is just a riot whenever he shows up.
And have you guys read 52? Not The New 52, but the series from '06? Absolutely phenomenal. And most of the major players are out of the picture for the entire run, so if you ever had an issue with DC characters being too godlike, that is not applicable to this story. And I think it helped cement Black Adam as one of my favorite villains.
And have you guys read 52? Not The New 52, but the series from '06? Absolutely phenomenal. And most of the major players are out of the picture for the entire run, so if you ever had an issue with DC characters being too godlike, that is not applicable to this story. And I think it helped cement Black Adam as one of my favorite villains.
I... don't actually read comics very much at all. I'd probably say Marvel though, because... because... um...
DC is the better at the moment with the new 52.
But marvel could very well pull something.
Movie wise Marvel stomps DC into dust until DC can get live action movies right.
But marvel could very well pull something.
Movie wise Marvel stomps DC into dust until DC can get live action movies right.
What comic that's less than 5 years old costs 50 bucks? If you're not a collector and just want to read the story, go for trade paperbacks. The pricing is pretty comparable to manga collections. 10-15 bucks is pretty much the standard for 1 volume. The only collections I've seen cost around 30 were hardcover deluxe editions.Capitano Segnaposto said:
I have to go with Marvel. As a kid, I always found that the Marvel Universe (or maybe the characters) was more inviting to new readers. You can feel free to disagree with this. I'm basing this opinion on recollections from when I was 13 years old. Plus, at a young age, with limited spending, I could only afford to invest myself in one comic book and that was X-Men.
The events from Avengers Disassembled to Siege including the X-Men specific ones (Manifest Destiny, Second Coming, Schism, etc) and the Young Avengers and Runaways series cost me a somewhere between 1-1.5K, nearly 200 TPBs.Capitano Segnaposto said:
OT:
Marvel, like Chris said the overarcing story just ties in so well with everything going on around it, and to Kyle's point about Batman dying and Dick Grayson taking over, when Captain America died, Bucky Barnes took over and we got to see what a more hardened Cap would be like. Marvel also has great stories like The Runaway. The final point for Marvel in my book is X-Force, the mutant black-ops hit squad.
As far as the "big two" are concerned, I have a deep love for Marvel. You guys hit the nail on the head when you said that they are flawed, and that's what makes them so great. These ARE modern gods, and they squander and screw-up just like everyone else; it's "real", and it's refreshing to see.
And, let's face it, Marvel has 'The Punisher'. Nothing beats 'The Punisher'.
And, let's face it, Marvel has 'The Punisher'. Nothing beats 'The Punisher'.
Between the big 2; while I do greatly appreciate Marvel's characters and stories and can respect how in many ways they are more fleshed out than DC's, growing up on the Batman Animated Series as well as Justice League has conditioned me to enjoy their stories more.
I really prefer Marvel's offshoot stuff (Runaways is a perfect example, as were the Noir alternative universe comics), and the main core storyline is really interesting, but I've sort of shifted over to their Ultimates universe for a consistent story, as it just seems to have a smaller, more managed and yet risky scale to it than the main thing.
DC... I like DC, I really do. It's got a far better track record with animated films and TV than Marvel has had (and yet somehow YJ is cancelled while Ultimate Spider-Man carries on...) but it just seems so out-there at times.
My one issue with the video -- you can't argue that Marvel "never changes" when you could say the -exact- same thing about DC. It's because of DC always going back to the status-quo that my dad stopped reading their stuff. Both are known for doing this but DC in particular just can't come to grasp with a single continuity, instead constantly changing it's stuff and making new settings and then reverting and... I honestly lost track after a certain point. And when they actually did try some over-arching stuff, like Paralax, people hated it. I have to imagine there were some positively received ones but... it just seems so damn confusing. And why does every universe in DC have to connect with every other one? They even did this in Injustice: Gods Among Us even though everything they said beforehand was that "yeah, it's just this universe, and those who die will die". Instead, what we got was a clean up crew of the regular heroes, ripping off a JLA Animated series episode from way back when.
DC... I like DC, I really do. It's got a far better track record with animated films and TV than Marvel has had (and yet somehow YJ is cancelled while Ultimate Spider-Man carries on...) but it just seems so out-there at times.
My one issue with the video -- you can't argue that Marvel "never changes" when you could say the -exact- same thing about DC. It's because of DC always going back to the status-quo that my dad stopped reading their stuff. Both are known for doing this but DC in particular just can't come to grasp with a single continuity, instead constantly changing it's stuff and making new settings and then reverting and... I honestly lost track after a certain point. And when they actually did try some over-arching stuff, like Paralax, people hated it. I have to imagine there were some positively received ones but... it just seems so damn confusing. And why does every universe in DC have to connect with every other one? They even did this in Injustice: Gods Among Us even though everything they said beforehand was that "yeah, it's just this universe, and those who die will die". Instead, what we got was a clean up crew of the regular heroes, ripping off a JLA Animated series episode from way back when.
Hm, I think I'll make this easier on myself and just go by how I liked their big events. (note I stopped reading comics a while ago, although as far as I know the only big event I missed from both companies is the Age of Ultron thing.)
Off the top of my head Marvel had Dark Reign, World War Hulk, Civil War, House of M, Siege, Fear Itself, Avengers vs. X-Men, Spider-Island, etc etc etc. Most(but not all) of these were pretty good, and I had fun reading them.
DC had Infinite Crisis, 52, 1 year later, Amazons Attack, Countdown to final crisis, Final Crisis, Blackest Night, Brightest Day, Flashpoint, etc etc etc. Most of these on the other hand were terrible to meh, with Blackest Night imo being the only real bright spot.(pun intended)
So yeah, Marvel wins just based on that.
Off the top of my head Marvel had Dark Reign, World War Hulk, Civil War, House of M, Siege, Fear Itself, Avengers vs. X-Men, Spider-Island, etc etc etc. Most(but not all) of these were pretty good, and I had fun reading them.
DC had Infinite Crisis, 52, 1 year later, Amazons Attack, Countdown to final crisis, Final Crisis, Blackest Night, Brightest Day, Flashpoint, etc etc etc. Most of these on the other hand were terrible to meh, with Blackest Night imo being the only real bright spot.(pun intended)
So yeah, Marvel wins just based on that.