Favourite self contained graphic novels from DC?

[DrNewGod]

Alex Ross' Justice. I think it is my favorite Satellite-Era JL story of all time (even tho it's more of an Elseworlds).

[Jim Kelly]

I don't really hold with the idea that threre should be any distinction between a comic book and a graphic novel, as the only difference seems to be format, like a card stock cover, but there are lots of comics with cardstock covers and early comics were real books. Also, it seems that if you take a bunch of issues and put them together in one book, then that's a collected edition and there shouldn't really be a distinction between something like a Giant--ACTION COMICS 360 collected the Supergirl story in one issue--or a collected edition of BATMAN: Year One or THE WATCHMEN or LIMITED COLLECTORS' EDITION C-22 (Joe Kubert's adaptation of TARZAN OF THE APES, collected from single issues).

If you're being exclusive with the graphic novel label, where only some collected editions get that name and others don't, based purely on a subjective prejudice against the content, then graphic novel isn't a term I want to use--because it becomes a backhand to a whole load of comics books.

So to avoid those quarrels, I'm going to go with RYHMES WITH LUST as the model for a "Graphic Novel"--published by St. John in 1950--by Arnold Drake, Leslie Waller, Matt Baker and Ray Osrin. That's an original story, all in one issue, that's complete and stands on its own.

That really limits my options. I guess LIMITED COLLECTORS' EDITION C-36 is out because it adapts the Bible and you could argue that's not a novel--although as told by Sheldon Mayer, Joe Kubert and Nestor Redondo, it feels a bit like a novel to me.

JLA: EARTH 2 was released as a single hardcover volume--which is what I bought--and I loved that one. But it's not self-contained because it connects with other JLA stories

ALL NEW COLLECTORS' EDITION C-54 teamed a version of Superman and Wonder Woman in World War Two. That was pretty good. You could argue it exists in its own continuity and therefore stands on its own.

Most of the great so-called graphic novels that fit this narrow definition weren't published by DC. Things like THE 9-11 REPORT and LOUIS RIEL. But even these seem to be the exception. Other works I could think of, like MAUS and FROM HELL, were serialized first and only later collected into one edition.

[superduperman]

Just picked this up. Nightwing: The New Order. Good story. But Nightwing himself doesn't come across very positively. If you've ever wondered what Lois Lane would be like as a superhero, this is your chance to find out.