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Several months ago Beau 'I tried to add Depth to Guy Gardener and Look at My Career Since' Smith challenged DC and Marvel Comics to print more done in one issue stories. So I put together this Top 28 list. Why a Top 28 list? Well- I missed deadline last month. I was too busy trying to get people to attend my 28th birthday. No one showed up- not even the Spanish Inquisition and I was expecting them. So the number is not arbitrary. Anyway- I tried to make this list as varied as possible but some series and writers due reoccur.
- Power Pachyderms #1 -
This comic doesn't actually belong here. It is a horrible train wreck of almost Ed Wood like proportions. I say of this comic what Mark Twain said of the works of Henry James: "Once you put it down, you never want to pick it up again." I bet the reason we've never seen these characters again is that it is an embarrassment to Marvel and they published NFL Superpro. What does that tell you? They want the trademark to lapse so they can be rid of the damn things. The only reason I'm including it at all is that it has become a bit of a running gag with some of my friends. I think one of the few comics I've read that were worse than this were the Star Trek/X-Men crossover. If there was ever going to be a Mystery Science Theater Comic this should be the first issue. Yeah, Misters Murphy and Nelson- I'm talking to you. Hop to it.
- Justice League Europe #6 - It is universal law to all high schoolers that if there is ever a class where you can't stand half the other students and are seriously annoyed by your teacher it will always be the mandatory to graduate foreign language class. Don't believe me? I had to sit next to this guy who beat the snot out of me for two semesters of Spanish. Before that I had this annoying freshthing girl who kept throwing herself at me. Well- when all is said and done, at least I'm not Captain Atom. Bwhahahahahahahahahahahahahaha!
- Incredible Hulk #380 - Aside from the end of his first run, I can think of no better issue of Peter David's historic run on Hulk than this one. A quick glimpse into the life of a super villain who is about to be executed and Leonard Samson's struggle to understand her. He also makes some remarkable discoveries after the fact. Even more odd- neither Bruce Banner nor The Hulk actually appear in this issue.
- Superboy (vol 4) #4 - This issue, featuring the art of Mike Parobeck, is a short to the point spoof of Batman: The Animated Series. While there are small ties to the ongoing plot it is mostly what we in the media biz call bumper material. If you love the DC universe to the point where you think everything should be taken seriously you should probably skip it. Actually- you should probably skip everything on this list.
- Ren and Stimpy Special #3 - There is an unwritten rule that says all licensed comics must suck. A fairly good sized portion of them do. Dan Slott's early work on Ren and Stimpy did an extremely good job of capturing John K. madcapped mindset. This issue in particular with its send up on time travel stories and choose your own adventures is almost like a Ren and Stimpy episode you can hold in your hand. It even goes to the extra step of including pages of story that you can't actually get to no matter how hard you try and end with choices that lead to pages that don't exist. Really- does it get much stranger.
- Batman: The Mad Love - I know this story isn't canon but it really should be. This is comic book has a weird bit of trivia to it. Paul Dini worked on it as a comic based on TV show. It proved to be so good and so popular that he after years of being bugged, poked and prodded by fan's that he actually adapted it for an episode of said television series. Considering that the early nineties comics code was a little looser (even on 'kids marketed books') it is a surprise that only a few pages of this comic were lost in the move to the small screen.
- New Warriors (Vol 1.) #27 - Marvel is known for their dark character sagas. Everyone knows about Dark Phoenix, Dark Spider-Man but can you prepare yourself for the sheer raw power of- Dark Speedball?! This story is technically an Infinity War Tie-In but I read it without reading Infinity War and thought it was a riot. Anyway- some weird other dimensional thingamajig brings out all of Speedball's dark impulse. It is simultaneously silly but also a bit a disturbing. Also features the return of Steve Ditko's fifteenth greatest creation: Niels the Cat!
- Lobo's Paramilitary Christmas Special - Yes, I know I already wrote something about this comic in my Christmas article last year. It was still damn good. Now, I know it's not Christmas time yet but go read it. Now- or I'll remove your guts and replace them with mashed potatoes.
- Legion of Substitute Heroes Special #1 - This is a great story brought to you by one of the greatest artists ever to grace the pages of the Legion- Keith Giffen. Most of the DC editors of the time said the entire story was his fault. That implies there was some sort of accident. Any implied sex that caused a sex change, a story of the universe's one competent senator and a fight scene which includes somebody losing their nose can't be all bad. Guest stars the real Legion's all time best member- Tenzil Kem, The Mighty Matter Eater Lad.
- Uncanny X-Men #153 - Kitty's Fairy Tale. Yes, this story is in someways a retelling of 'The Phoenix Saga' told through the eyes of Kitty Pryde viewed with a mask of medieval fantasy. I have a love/hate relationship with Claremont's X-Men. On the one hand he occasional gets over wordy which does not let his artists show off their strong suits. Though in this story we see him poking fun at himself- with help from Dave Cockrum. The Bamfs, Nightcrawler's love children with the Smurfs, really steal the show here.
- Justice League of America Annual #4 - Imagine you run a super team. What happens when super villains want to go straight and no one believes them? What happens when G'nort wants to be a real member of the Justice League? If you're Max Lord- both problems are the solution to the other. You create a fake Justice League where no possible damage can be done and leave them there. But what do you do about the killer penguins?
- Legionaries #7 - This is hands down my all time favorite Legion story. While it is deeply trenched in the massive plots going on in the Legion books of time they are almost tangential. It's a simple story a teen romance-comedy about a vacation interrupted by devil fish. The one weakness about this issue is that it really really tries to be a Inferno (aka Sun Boy) story. The issue really shines when it shifts focus to Matter Eater Lad wooing Shrinking Violet, Ayla encouraging Tenzil to keep up his efforts and Andromeda's attempts to make Brainiac Five have 'fun'. The issue would probably jump even higher up the list if they got rid of the annoying Sun Boy.
- Punisher Kills The Marvel Universe - I've never liked The Punisher. I'd heard good things about Garth Ennis's run on with the character but have been unable to find the first trade. So in order to find out if I should bother Amazoning it I bought Marvel's recent reprint of the comic that started it all. The book was both gory and also very funny. It did seem a little familar. Almost like if Ennis had taken Hitman and Preacher and purposefully watered them down. While highly enjoyable it didn't quiet hit the standard I expect from Garth Ennis.
- Sergio Aragones Destroys DC - This book came out around the same time as Sergio Aragones Massacres Marvel. In someways it is a sequel. Aragones and Evanier head to DC to pitch their new creator owned property. Again Sergio tries to fix the DC books. There is yet another mystery villain. Perhaps the closeness of its release (and plot) to Massacres Marvel hurt the comedic timing. Maybe the fact that DC was a little more protective of their characters or the fact that DC wasn't producing as much garbage (and thus not as much stuff to spoof) made this one not quite as good as it's predecessor. Though 'bad' Aragones and Evanier is only a relative term. It was definitely worth cover price or whatever you might pay for it at a convention. It has a fun little Legion of Super Heroes story in it. (Though it is no Legionaries #7) Even if the continuity was somewhat garbled. Then again, with the Legion isn't it always?
- Sergio Aragones Massacres Marvel - I am probably one of the biggest fan of the team of Aragones and Evanier as you're going to find. I remember back in the 90s spending $2.95 on a first release comic was unheard of for something in a non-deluxe book. I bought this one anyway. It turned out to be a rather nice riff on 90s Marvel. The book's premise is that Evanier and Aragones arrive at the Marvel offices to pitch a new title. Sergio comes across half the Marvel line shipping late. So he sits down and draws endings to all the books that are running late. Knowing Marvel loves crossovers each of his stories bring in a mystery villain called The Seagoing Soarer. I won't reveal his identity. (On'tday earrangeray ethay etterslay.) I think their take on Spider-Man's Clone Saga did something no other writer was capable of doing: have it make sense. By the way- I quit the Fantastic Four.
- Fred Hembeck Destroys the Marvel Universe - Many people have tried to destroy the Marvel Universe. Galactus, Thanos and Dark Phoenix all come to mind. Sergio Aragones (see above) merely massacred it. Hembeck pokes fun at much of what was right (and wrong) with the Marvel universe of the 80s. The comic throws around pop culture references, horrible puns, re-enactments of Mel Blanc routines and even manages to do what the title says it would.
- Doctor Fate Annual #1 - Many people dismiss J.M. Dematies run on Doctor Fate as either 'Justice League International, only dark' or as Sandman lite. Neither is exactly the case. While Sandman focuses on people and how they related to dream- Fate is more about how people related to other people. The demons attacking is nothing new. The issue deals with some of the creepier aspects of Linda and Eric Strauss's relationship and how they eerily coexist.
- Hitman #34 - Hitman was one of those books that is just about perfect. It is dark and gritty when it needs to be. It can tear at your heart. It can make you bust a gut laughing. Some issues can do all of these things in the space of a few pages. Such is the case with Hitman #34, where DC's best 'killer character' meets a certain Man of Steel. The two discuss things like morality, grieving and the true meaning of failure. I wish DC would make Superman as engaging in the pages of Action Comics or Superman as Garth Ennis and McCrea did in this issue more often.
- Exiles #54 - The X-Teams have had three great villains. Everyone knows Magneto. Some people know of the mayo jar that can never open. Very few will ever speak of 'The Cheese Danish'. The might of this Cheese Danish alone was powerful enough to ward off an alien invasion. The Exiles often hop from reality to reality. The story explores the idea that sometimes even the smallest thing can change the outcome. Watch as the heroes struggle to decide if they should buy the danish. But I fear even that is only the beginning to one of the wildest trips into the strange that one is likely to encounter.
- X-Factor (current series) #13 - A good writer knows their characters. Sometimes they know them too well. In comics we rarely get to see how characters actually think about themselves or others. This issue- a thematic sequel to X-Factor (vol. 1 #87)- does a good job of showing us who each of these characters are especially all the Madroxes. This time we even get to see some change in Leonard Samson. Many comics say don't miss this issue because it changes everything. This comic didn't say that. Though if you wanted to read an overall good series but don't like done in one issue stories, if you skipped this one then you'd be lost when you came back.
- X-Factor (vol. 1) #87 - A good writer knows their characters. Or at least tries to. Writer Peter David has admitted that when he started writing X-Factor he barely knew half the characters he was forced to work with. This issue was written as a writing exercise gone horrible right. There is very little conflict in this story. Just each member of the team spending an hour talking to Doc Samson (or not). The result is fulfilling examination of who each team member is in the absence of others. The truly sad thing is almost immediately after figuring out his cast, Marvel saw fit to remove Mister David from the book.
- Archie Meets The Punisher - I have always hated The Punisher. I don't mind violence in my comics as long as the violence suits a purpose. I sleep with the complete Preacher on a bookshelf connected to my bedframe. Most Punisher stories I've read are pointless blood and guts. There is only one other Punisher story (see above) that I found to be of truly great quality. I also hate Archie. He's too perfect- aside from the blatant sexist attitude. Archie Andrews treats objects like women, man. If Betty had any sense, she'd have seduced Jughead. I don't mind the other Riverdale kids, I just can't stand Archie. When I first saw this comic advertised I thought it was a late April Fool's gag. It wasn't. It turned out to be the very best inter-company crossovers ever produced. It's like Lister's sandwhich. The Punisher is wrong. Archie is wrong. Somehow when you put it together it makes something delicious. The concept is crazy. The plot is like a piece of swiss cheese. It doesn't matter because the ride is so enjoyable. Every time I see this in cheap boxes I grab copies for friends. Most of the time I get thanked for it.
- The Ambush Bug Nothing Special - I've always loved Ambush Bug. I must have read my Ambush Bug comics more than a dozen times and every time I read them I find something new. The Nothing Special goes where no other Ambush Bug comic has gone before- straight to the crapper. In a good way. See Ambush Bug wants to know which heroes in the DCU use toilet paper and what brand they use. Lobo doesn't use toilet paper. Nuff said. He ends up fighting Eclipso and the Legion of Super Heroes. That was because he didn't know how continuity works for them in the early 90s. Why should he be different then the rest of us? He met some characters from Vertigo books including Death. He finds Robert Loren Fleming's unpublished novel The Golden Boy and publishes some pages. He keeps getting harassed by Al Gordon. Mitsu Bishi, Ambush Bug's licensed for Japanese release clone, goes on a rampage. Then something about Sugar and Spike. Featuring guest appearances by just about everyone in the DC Universe from 'mazing Man to the Zoo Crew.
- X-Men: God Loves, Man Kills - I know some of you are saying: 'God Loves, Man Kills' was a graphic novel. That's kind of cheating, isn't it? Most people don't know that its first printing was in the comic series Marvel Graphic Novel which was actually a regular series printed on high quality paper and generally had a $5-$10 dollar price tag. Pretty steep for the 80s. This is one of the truly quintessential X-Men stories. If you only read one X-Men comic in your entire life it should be this one. It's got a villain who in someways who is the typical mutant hating bigot actually has some reason for it. It's got many great character moments particularly for Kitty, Kurt and Logan. What astounds me is that it was reprinted at least four or five times before it was actually acknowledged as Marvel canon about than 20 years after it was released.
- Supergirl (90s series) #23 - Peter David has already made several appearance on my top twenty eight list. This story however is a personal favorite of mine. While the cover makes it look like another in a long line of hero vs. hero stories (in this case Supergirl and Steel) that have been prevalent in the comics since at least as far back as The Thing vs. Hulk- the actual physical brawl between Supergirl and Steel isn't that long. The real battle is over free speech and what is and is not crossing the line. Or is there a line? It's about defining what standing for truth, justice and the American Way really means. Is stopping someone from saying racist things really good for society as a whole? I remember reading this issue when it first came out and starting out thinking that yes- it would be. This comic began to make me wonder if that were the case. Social issues like this are never easy to talk about- and never as black and white as most traditional media would want it to be. Most writers would say 'This is Supergirl's book. She has to be in the right.' Peter David doesn't take that cheap way out. He leaves the role of 'voice of reason character' to someone who prior to that point in the series hadn't been known for his common sense.
- Superman Annual #11 - For the Man Who Has Everything - This annual has a lot going for it. A script by Alan Moore. Mongul- killer plants. Alan Moore was one of the first writer to blatantly grab ideas for Superman stories from the mold of Joseph Campbell. Much of this story plays off the common mythological theme of two fathers and one son. In this case Clark's ties to Jor'el (and by extension Krypton) and Jonathan Kent (and humanity). Again, none of this should be surprising to anyone familiar with Alan Moore. Swamp Thing was full of those types of tidbits as well. However, Moore took over Swamp Thing as a dying book that DC was hoping to get a few bucks out of before it was cancelled, shelved and forgotten until it was time to renew the trademark. Here Moore is allowed to play similar types of in depth character study to DC's big guns.
- Who is Harvey Pekar? - I don't know the exact issue this story was first published in. However it is in Dark Horse's Best of American Splendor trade paperback. The brief snippet revolves around the existential crisis one has when they see more than one listing for their name in a city phone book. If this seems familiar to you and you haven't read the American Splendor Comic, it might be because the story was reproduced almost verbatim at the end of the American Splendor movie.
- Groo the Wanderer #84 - The Puppeteers - This is an issue of Groo. Groo basically has two plots. The most common of these is that Groo goes somewhere, finds something that works and makes it go horribly wrong. The Puppeteers is a story where Groo goes to a town where puppet shows deliver everything from news from other kingdoms, things in the royal court, old folklore and new plays. Only Groo shows up. To keep Groo from destroying the town, their two dueling puppet theaters try to caterer more and more to Groo's taste in order to keep him docile and spending more of his money. Eventually the amount of damage caused to the puppets almost bankrupts them. Until the local merchants get involved in the format, casting and content of programming. Possibly the most destructive thing Groo has ever done.
- Howard the Duck (vol. 1) #16 - I've made no secret that I love Howard the Duck and the works of Steve Gerber. I've also made no secret about the fact that between pulling a nine to five, spending three hours in transit and spending time with my friends and family I don't always find time to write. Even crappy articles like this. I guess that's part of why this issue appeals. Remember when I started this article and used a paragraph or two to apologize for being late? Howard the Duck #17 is a lot like that but it goes on for about 20 pages of illustrated text pieces. It talks about the creative process. Everything from the distinctions between the 'real' Howard the Duck and Steve Gerber and the demand we, as fans, place on creators. It drives home something I think many of us in the instant info age have forgotten. Writers aren't factories for entertainment. They're people and we can't always expect them to be perfect. This issue is vintage Gerber at its best. Gene Colan's artwork is also top notch.
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