Pretty Deadly, Shutter, and books from unproven writers

[Dorktron]

I actually rather like both Pretty Deadly and Shutter. As FHIZ said, Pretty Deadly will be back but it will take some time. I've heard some folks call Pretty Deadly pretentious, which I do not see personally any more than some Vertigo titles mentioned in this thread. Shutter, to me, gets better with each issue. It started off a little bit average but I think the first arc has been pretty solid and will continue to buy it.

As for other newer talent, check out Sheltered. That book is incredible and will be ending with Issue 15. It has some great characters and one of the best villains in comics, in my opinion.

[Agent John Bishop]

Agreed that Image isn't exactly the place for finding 'new' talent at the moment, but regardless let me list a few: Larime Taylor does A Voice in the Dark, kind of like a serial killer/murder mystery thing set in a college. First 7 issues were black & white, now they're moving to colour. Cool fact: Taylor writes, draws, letters, etc. the whole thing. On a monthly basis. Oh and he does all that with his mouth because of a disability in his arms. Admittedly I felt like an ass just picking something up because 'the author draws it all with his mouth', like it felt a little condescending to disabled people (like you're buying something just out of pity). But I'm super glad I gave it a shot, because it's a fun book and the cast is more diverse in terms of race & sexuality than like half the Marvel universe.
Ed Brisson is another one, I really liked his 4 issue series Comeback, less hot on Sheltered but it's still a good one. Kurtis J Wiebe is another one who used to be in this category before Peter Panzerfaust went big. I'm particularly fond of his Green Wake horror series, which ran for 2 trades worth.

All that said I think there's a bigger chance of finding legit new talent at Boom/Archaia, Oni Press or Dark Horse right now. Monkeybrain is also really good at this, but that's digital only. I'll second Curt Pires as someone to watch, really liking POP so far and I'm a sucker for theremins. I'm really big on Kyla Vanderklugt right now over at Archaia, and the team doing The Last Broadcast at Archaia are on my radar too after that series wraps. Boom sometimes just announces stuff like Capture Creatures seemingly completely out of the blue, and I tend to really like those type of colourful, upbeat series. Also I'll follow Ryan North anywhere, but his Dinosaur Comics webcomic is pretty popular I think so hardly unproven.

Well perhaps unproven is the wrong word for the type of authors that are good (since really, if anyone likes something by an author, to them he is then proven). I more meant, that I like seeing people who are not from the DC/Marvel school, not because those writers aren't good (on the contrary) but because they have a specific style and sensibility and I'd like to try other stuff.

All the recommendations of other pubishers are helpful, but it's hard to know where to start. The real key to Image's success has been consistency. There are a bunch of series I have not loved by them, I have yet to pick up an Image title published since 2009 that is not at least decent (and usually with good art and well designed trades). Boom, Valiant, Oni, and Dark Horse all have good stuff coming out of them but it takes a little bit more time to sift through and find it. I am a big fan of Hellboy and Mind MGMT from Dark Horse and Sixth Gun from Oni. I like Bandette from Monkeybrain, but I wonder what else I am missing out on.

[Dorktron]

All the recommendations of other pubishers are helpful, but it's hard to know where to start. The real key to Image's success has been consistency. There are a bunch of series I have not loved by them, I have yet to pick up an Image title published since 2009 that is not at least decent (and usually with good art and well designed trades). Boom, Valiant, Oni, and Dark Horse all have good stuff coming out of them but it takes a little bit more time to sift through and find it. I am a big fan of Hellboy and Mind MGMT from Dark Horse and Sixth Gun from Oni. I like Bandette from Monkeybrain, but I wonder what else I am missing out on.

I would recommend The Bunker from Oni and also The Woods from BOOM. And, of course, the aforementioned Sixth Gun which you are already reading, although I think it kinda fizzled out a little the past few trades. If you like superhero stuff, Valiant has some great titles but, if you are like me and you already have 25-30 ongoings from Image, Vertigo and Oni each month, the superhero stuff kinda gets left behind.

[Agent John Bishop]

I would recommend The Bunker from Oni and also The Woods from BOOM. And, of course, the aforementioned Sixth Gun which you are already reading, although I think it kinda fizzled out a little the past few trades. If you like superhero stuff, Valiant has some great titles but, if you are like me and you already have 25-30 ongoings from Image, Vertigo and Oni each month, the superhero stuff kinda gets left behind.

OH yeah, the Bunker is perfect! It sounds like exactly what I like. And yeah, superhero stuff has fallen by the wayside a bit for me. I still like it, but it has to be something special to pull me in thanks to all the Image stuff. I will be getting Warren Ellis' Moon Knight but that's the only superhero book I'll probably end up reading all year.

[InformationGeek]

Interesting. People seem totally in love with Shutter, but your impression is sort of how I felt about the issue I read (the first was free on comixology recently).

I read tons of manga and have seen so many unique takes on fantasy, sci-fi, and such that way. As such, Shutter just seems and reads like an average fantasty manga to me. It really hasn't made itself as interesting or remarkable to me, despite some interesting twists.

I tried out Pretty Deadly via the first tpb...I didn't get the hype. Another person in this thread referred to the writing as pretentious. I wouldn't describe it as such, I simply found it dull.

Dull would be a better word to describe Pretty Deadly honestly.

[Agent John Bishop]

I read tons of manga and have seen so many unique takes on fantasy, sci-fi, and such that way. As such, Shutter just seems and reads like an average fantasty manga to me. It really hasn't made itself as interesting or remarkable to me, despite some interesting twists.

It does look sort of quirky for its own sake without strong worldbuilding underlying it, but that's easy to say for me having only read the first issue.

[Dorktron]

Now we are getting into some interesting points. My background is anime and I was enamored with it for about a decade until around 2008. To me, the anime tropes were so overused and cliche at that point that I made me almost hate the medium because it is so ripe for creativity and none of the creators were using it to its full potential (losing Satoshi Kon was a huge blow to the industry in my opinion). Ergo Proxy was probably the last great anime I've watched and that released in 2006. With that said, what Shutter brings to the table is quite awesome in comparison to what anime has crapped out the past 15 years so maybe that is why I like it more than maybe I should. I think I was in a constant rut waiting for anime to improve and it just didn't happen. I've read quite a few manga titles (Monster, Blade of the Immortal, Akira, Bokurano, Pluto) that I've really liked but, overall, comics seem to captivate me more overall with their adult characters, situations and dialogue.

Anyways, to make a long story short, I discovered creator-owned comics last year and it made me excited because the storylines and characters were so fresh in comparison to anime. Lazarus, Saga, Sheltered, Chew, Velvet, Five Ghosts, American Vampire, The Bunker, Shutter, and many others are just flat out better than what anime is offering now in my opinion.

[InformationGeek]

Now we are getting into some interesting points. My background is anime and I was enamored with it for about a decade until around 2008. To me, the anime tropes were so overused and cliche at that point that I made me almost hate the medium because it is so ripe for creativity and none of the creators were using it to its full potential (losing Satoshi Kon was a huge blow to the industry in my opinion). Ergo Proxy was probably the last great anime I've watched and that released in 2006. With that said, what Shutter brings to the table is quite awesome in comparison to what anime has crapped out the past 15 years so maybe that is why I like it more than maybe I should. I think I was in a constant rut waiting for anime to improve and it just didn't happen. I've read quite a few manga titles (Monster, Blade of the Immortal, Akira, Bokurano, Pluto) that I've really liked but, overall, comics seem to captivate me more overall with their adult characters, situations and dialogue.

Anyways, to make a long story short, I discovered creator-owned comics last year and it made me excited because the storylines and characters were so fresh in comparison to anime. Lazarus, Saga, Sheltered, Chew, Velvet, Five Ghosts, American Vampire, The Bunker, Shutter, and many others are just flat out better than what anime is offering now in my opinion.

Well it all really depends on what you read, because there some stuff that really shines. You want to see something that outshines most comics here with fantastic characters and storylines? Gangsta., Attack on Titan, Vagabond, Umineko (that's deep metafiction and mystery horror with a deceptive layer of moe over it), Children of the Sea (named one of top 100 comics from this website a few years back), Ikigami: The Ultimate Limit, Dragon Head, anything by Inio Asano, Tokyo Ghoul, and more. This stuff easily reveals anything that Image puts out. I think you need to look past the outer layer, because like with American comics, there's gold to be found.

[Billy Batson]

Since you like Graham, try giving James Stokoe a go if you haven't already.

[Agent John Bishop]

Since you like Graham, try giving James Stokoe a go if you haven't already.

Stokoe can be a good storyteller and is always an amazing artist, but to me he is more uneven than Graham. I thought Godzilla Half Century War was fantastic on every level, however I couldn't read more than an issue of Orc Stain and his Avengers Issue was fun but not great. I think he's someone who actually benefits from a stronger editorial voice keeping him from going completely crazy.

Also, all that said, I could stare at a page he drew for hours on end. I am really excited to read the issue of Prophet he illustrated if the fourth trade ever gets released.

[Dorktron]

Well it all really depends on what you read, because there some stuff that really shines. You want to see something that outshines most comics here with fantastic characters and storylines? Gangsta., Attack on Titan, Vagabond, Umineko (that's deep metafiction and mystery horror with a deceptive layer of moe over it), Children of the Sea (named one of top 100 comics from this website a few years back), Ikigami: The Ultimate Limit, Dragon Head, anything by Inio Asano, Tokyo Ghoul, and more. This stuff easily reveals anything that Image puts out. I think you need to look past the outer layer, because like with American comics, there's gold to be found.

Sure, it depends on what you are watching/reading. There is crap in every medium, no doubt. Some of my favorite anime I'd still put above or on par with what Image is putting out today, like Cowboy Bebop, Ergo Proxy, Samurai Champloo, Now and Then Here and There, Outlaw Star, Berserk, Paranoia Agent, and the list goes on, but overall, I prefer the direction American comics are going more right now.

BTW, I have read Ikagami, Attack of Titan, and Vagabond. All very good series.

[InformationGeek]

Sure, it depends on what you are watching/reading. There is crap in every medium, no doubt. Some of my favorite anime I'd still put above or on par with what Image is putting out today, like Cowboy Bebop, Ergo Proxy, Samurai Champloo, Now and Then Here and There, Outlaw Star, Berserk, Paranoia Agent, and the list goes on, but overall, I prefer the direction American comics are going more right now.

BTW, I have read Ikagami, Attack of Titan, and Vagabond. All very good series.

Ah good. Speaking of which, always keep eye on Viz Signature. They always pick up a pretty good license for that line of books.

[Dorktron]

Ah good. Speaking of which, always keep eye on Viz Signature. They always pick up a pretty good license for that line of books.

Have you tried Vinland Saga yet? It's kinda of a Viking Berserk. I like it a lot.

[InformationGeek]

Have you tried Vinland Saga yet? It's kinda of a Viking Berserk. I like it a lot.

Heard good things about it.

[vitamin]

Pretty Deadly is like a poem that surreally unravels before you with it's own mythology.
I recommend it.