The Best Comic Books and Graphic Novels of 2014

Image via Complex Original

Author: Rick Remender

Artist: Greg Tocchini

Publisher: Image

Rick Remender had a great year—his name appears multiple times on this list. He's one of the most daring, if occasionally controversial, writers in the business. Of his current slate of Image titles, Low may take the biggest risks. This is in part due to the Remender's storytelling, which is less breakneck than usual (Remender leans heavily on atmosphere) , but more so because Greg Tocchini's art is a smeary, surrealist marvel to behold.

The story is set under the ocean of a dying earth. Humanity has given up, falling into literal orgies of sex and violence to ease its pain. But even as the planet slips into oblivion, a mother and son fight to save humanity from extinction. As bleak as it sounds, Low is a story about never giving up hope, one that's told in a way we've never quite seen before. 

Author: Brian Azzarello

Artist: Cliff Chiang, Various

Publisher: DC

Wonder Woman has a rich history, political weight, and one of the most iconic looks in the DC universe, so it's frankly a bit baffling that she's been so hard to get right over the years. Enter Brian Azzarello, whose vision of the character is pitch-perfect. Under his assured writing (complemented by a fantastic group of artists including Cliff Chiang), Diana has become the character her iconic status deserves. Azzarello has 35 amazing issues under his belt—quite the gantlet for whoever takes on Wonder Woman next. 

Author: Ed Brubaker

Artist: Sean Phillips

Publisher: Image

Ask any comic geek about the last five years of comic books, and no conversation is complete without Fatale. It's the most successful effort from longtime collaborators Ed Brubaker and Sean Phillips to date (and that's saying something).

The noir-horror hybrid follows the life of the immortal femme fatale Jo as she seeks to understand her occult origins. Full of sex, violence, and Lovecraftian monsters, its a genre-blending thriller that came to a heartfelt conclusion this summer. Though Brubaker and Phillips have already moved on to their excellent new comic, The Fade Out, Fatale remains the duo's high mark until they prove otherwise. 

Author: Fabien Vehlmann

Artist: Kerascoët

Publisher: Drawn & Quarterly

Beautiful Darkness is an unnerving, occasionally horrifying, often gorgeous inversion of a fairy tale. Though the art suggests otherwise, this isn't a story for children. For one, it's about a colony of tiny people who live inside the decaying corpse of a young girl. You read that right: Beautiful Darkness takes place inside a dead child's body. For another, the cutesy characters—with few exceptions—are largely despicable, acting selfishly and violently when things get tough.

There were times where I felt physically nauseated, and others where I was wowed by the shear beauty of Kerascoët's art. Occasionally, both happened at the same time. 

Author: Kurtis J. Wiebe

Artist: Roc Upchurch

Publisher: Image

The first collected volume of Rat Queens is subtitled "sass and sorcery," which nicely sums up Kurtis J. Wiebe and Roc Upchurch's warped vision. The comic tells the story of the Rat Queens adventurers' guild, made up of Dee, an ex-cult member who worshiped a Lovecraftian squid god; Betty, a "smidgen" (read: halfling) who brews her own psychedelic drugs; Hannah, a punk-rock elf mage; and Violet, a dwarf warrior who shaves her beard in rebellion.

Aside from all the sex, drugs, and shenanigans the Rat Queens get into on the reg, the book is one of the rare instances where strong female characters are having more fun than the guys. It's a refreshing reinvention of dusty Dungeons & Dragons fantasy tropes that flips gender stereotypes on their heads. 

Author/Artist: Ed Piskor

Publisher: Fantagraphics

Ed Piskor has made it his life's work to document the history of hip-hop as it evolved from a South Bronx subculture to a massive global movement. And to say that he's done a great job is an understatement. This is truly an encyclopedic history of early rap, complete with all the parties, drama, and sonic evolution, documented by an expert cartoonist. Oh, and did I mention that it's beautiful? The packaging is some of the best you'll see anywhere. 

Author: Ales Kot

Artist: Various

Publisher: Image

Alex Kot's Zero executes its premise almost flawlessly. It's the story of a secret agent gone rogue, and Kot has a different artist tackle each issue separately. While this could seem like a schizophrenic way to write a comic, Kot adapts his story to each artist's unique style. The result is both an anthology of some of the best artists in the business and a harrowing tale of espionage, violence, and a revenge. 

Author: Jonathan Hickman

Artist: Nick Dragotta

Publisher: Image

Have you ever wondered what would have happened if the Civil War ended with a supernatural comet, causing America to be split into seven nations all preparing for the imminent apocalypse? Well, if you have (you haven't), then it was probably something like Jonathan Hickman and Nick Dragotta's East of West.

The book stars the horseman Death, who hopes to defeat the other three horsemen of the apocalypse (who themselves have been reincarnated as creepy children—you'll see). Hickman's world is full of changing geopolitical affiliations, dogmatic religious leaders, and doomed romances all vying for power in the face of the world's imminent demise. It's a lot of fun. (The first three graphic novel collections are out now, so it's easy to jump right in.)

Author: Rick Remender

Artist: Wes Craig

Publisher: Image

Rick Remender and Wesley Craig's Deadly Class is somehow a John Hughes homage and one of the most blood-soaked action series on shelves today. The gist: Marcus Lopez is a homeless teen with a troubled past. In Reagan-era San Francisco, he's taken off the streets and asked to join a high school that trains kids to be assassins. All the cliques, crushes, and bullshit you remember from sophomore year? That's all still there—with the added tension of baseball bats and katanas. Remender recently told me as much: "I always use the analogy that the dagger in your back is not metaphorical—it’s a real dagger in your back." Talk about drama. 

Author: Warren Ellis

Artist: Declan Shalvey

Publisher: Marvel

Warren Ellis is one of comics' true greats, so it was huge news when he came onboard to revamp Moon Knight. Of all the characters in the Marvel stable (save possibly Deadpool), Moon Knight is one of the hardest to pin down. His multiple personalities (three at last count) have occasionally made him difficult to write, but when he's in the right hands he can be fantastically compelling. Ellis' version of Marc Spector distils the character to his essence: a vigilante who wants criminals to "see him coming." Ellis' run had some of the most taut storytelling of any Marvel book in recent memory, centering the character and providing a great place for a new audience to jump in. (Declan Shalvey's art also has to be mentioned; jis clean lines created some of the best Moon Knight images to date.) If only Ellis had decided to stay for more than a handful of issues... 

Author: Greg Rucka

Artist: Michael Lark

Publisher: Image

Lazarus is set in a dystopian future where warring dynasties send near-immortal warriors to settle their differences. The protagonist is Forever Carlyle, of House Carlyle, whose loyalty to her family is tested as she learns about her past. Since the series began, I've always thought that Lazarus was underrated—Greg Rucka's world building talents are virtually unrivaled, and Michael Lark's art is fantastic. In more recent issues, Rucka has brought in a rich supporting cast from the outskirts of the Carlyle territory, showing he's just as interested in the downtrodden masses as the house royalty. Lazarus creates a world that would be horrific to live in, but it sure is a pleasure to visit. 

Author: Brandon Graham

Artist: Various

Publisher: Image

Prophet is quite simply unlike anything else out there. Guided by artist/writer Brandon Graham, of King City fame, the comic tells the story of John Prophet's battle with the evil Earth Empire and its seemingly endless supply of Prophet clones. Graham took up the property from an old Rob Liefeld comic that had been defunct since the '90s, reinventing the story from the ground up. Though Graham occasionally illustrates the series himself, he often enlists help from many of the industry's best artists for his epic (and epically violent) space tale. If this description sounds bizarre or nonsensical, that's because Prophet is a book you have to experience for yourself to truly understand. But once you're faced with the immensity of Graham's world, it's impossible to look away.

Author: Mariko Tamaki​

Artist: Jillian Tamaki

Publisher: First Second

What a sweet, wonderful story Mariko and Jillian Tamaki have created with This One Summer. A graphic novel about childhood friends Rose and Windy, This One Summer is filled with all the nostalgia, excitement, and bittersweet tang of youth. Mariko writes with such vividness it's impossible not to get swept away in the family drama and romantic conundrums of the friends, while Jilian's artwork is just whimsical enough to mirror those just-faded memories of teenage years gone by. Even if super heroes and creator-owned monthlies are your usual bread and butter, you owe it to yourself to pick this up.

Author/Artist: Matt Kindt

Publisher: Dark Horse Comics 

Since Matt Kindt's Mind MGMT debuted back in 2012, it's only gotten more rewarding. What began as the story of a secret spy organization and a mysterious disappearance has expanded into a conspiracy of crazy proportions. But it's not just the twisty storytelling that makes this one of the best comics around—Kindt's watercolor and pencil art is some of the most engrossing I've ever seen. Kindt is truly pushing the medium of comics forward, one panel at a time. 

Author/Author: Jeff Lemire

Publisher: Vertigo

Trillium is billed as "the last love story ever told," but it's hardly a traditional romance. Artist/writer Lemire (literally) paints us a portrait of the distant future, where only the mysterious flower called "trillium" can fight the technovirus that's ravaging humanity from planet to planet. As a scientist tries to find a cure, she becomes psychically linked to a World War I veteran thousands of years in the past. Lemire uses unusual panel design to tell both characters' stories, blending their bodies and minds in visually arresting ways. It's a massive success for Lemire and one of the year's most inventive visual experiences. 

Author: Matt Fraction

Artist: David Aja, Various

Publisher: Marvel

Matt Fraction's Hawkeye answers the age-old question: "What does a superhero do with his days off?" Hawkeye (or Hawguy, as Fraction often calls him) is a genial, if somewhat hapless, dude who happens to be the best archer the world has ever seen. Unfortunately, he just can't seem to stop getting into trouble, even when he's not saving the planet with The Avengers. In many ways, he's just like you or me—he lives in Bed-Stuy, Brooklyn, cares for a one-eyed dog, and has difficulty separating his net-arrows from his bomb-arrows (well, maybe that's not a typical Sunday morning problem for you). Fraction's writing is frequently laugh-out-loud hilarious and the art is top-notch. Fraction's run may be over now, but the first three volumes of Hawkeye have already become legendary. 

Author: Kelly Sue DeConnick

Artist: Emma Rios

Publisher: Image

I know what you're thinking: another surreal Western with quasi-religious themes starring Death and his family? Well, yes, but this couldn't be more different from East of West. With Pretty Deadly, writer Kelly Sue DeConnick and artist Emma Ríos have created a fever dream of violence, poetry, and raw emotion. Loosely centered around the tale of Deathface Ginny, the daughter of Death, the book is less interested in specific plot points and more about immersing the reader in a fantastical world. This can be frustrating to some, but I found it to be wonderfully atmospheric. (Just stick with it!) While it's too early to say for sure (volume one, The Shrike, was released earlier this year), this book has the potential to become a contemporary classic. 

Author: Jonathan Luna, Sarah Vaughn

Artist: Jonathan Luna

Publisher: Image

Love stories between androids and humans are probably as old as the idea of sentient robots itself. From Blade Runnner to Her, we're fascinated with the notion that a person could one day fall in love with a machine. Jonathan Luna and Sarah Vaughn's Alex + Ada is another riff on this idea, but they approach it with enough heart and originality that that it feels distinct. In part, that's due to Luna's art—he favors muted hues and simple lines that leave the focus on the dialogue. While there are occasional action sequences, Alex + Ada is mostly about emotion and atmosphere. It's really the story of any new relationship: Alex may be a man, Ada an android, but their ability to love makes their relationship 100% human.

Author/Artist: Frederik Peeters

Artist: Frederik Peeters

Publisher: SelfMadeHero

Aama is bizarre and beautiful, wondrous and wounded. In telling the story of a drug-addicted former bookseller in the distant future, Swiss graphic novelist Frederik Peeters draws on '70s European sci-fi (more than little Moebius) and existential philosophy (more than a little Sartre) to create a landscape that's uniquely his own. While the first volume had a lot of exposition, the second is all action, as Verloc Nim and his brother Conrad try to uncover the mystery of the sentient biorobotic substance known as Aama. 

Author: Rick Remender 

Artist: Matteo Scalera​

Publisher: Image Comics 

Yes, this is the third Remender comic on this list, but the guy is just that good. Black Science follows Grant Mackay and his band of "dimensionauts" as they skip from universe to universe in an effort to return home. Because the story requires that they jump through space every so often, Remender has given himself virtually unlimited license to create as strange and different worlds as he desires. What if, for instance, Native Americans had alien technology that allowed them to fend off settlers? What if intelligent life had evolved from amphibians instead of primates? These are just a few of the insane scenarios Remender and artist Matteo Scalera have dreamt up. (Scalera's art is a beauty to behold—perfectly pulpy, yet distinctly contemporary.) The resulting book is a kinetic ride from one adventure to the next. 

Author: Kieron Gillen

Artist: Jamie McKelvie

Publisher: Image

Every 90 years, 12 deities—some well known, some lesser-so—inhabit the bodies of humans and vie for their love and admiration. After two years, they die. The Wicked + The Divine is the story of what happens while they're on earth. But since it takes place in contemporary times, the gods must take on roles that make sense. Naturally, they become rock stars. The ensuing story is part murder mystery, part mythological drama, and part commentary on celebrity culture, all balled up into one. 

Author/Artist: Bryan Lee O'Malley

Publisher: Ballantine Books

Bryan Lee O'Malley made his name with his excellent Scott Pilgrim series, which was later turned into a pretty good movie starring Michael Cera. With Seconds, O'Malley opts for a standalone story that more than lives up to his past efforts, all while creating a unique world. The graphic novel is the tale of a young chef named Katie whose life isn't going as planned. One day she's offered the opportunity—via magic mushrooms (not that kind)—to go back and fix her past mistakes. Ultimately, it's a tale about learning to live with your decisions, but through O'Malley's sharp prose and observant eye, it's just plain fun to re-live Katie's life along with her. 

Author: Scott Snyder

Artist: Sean Murphy

Publisher: Vertigo

The Wake is helmed by Scott Snyder, whose recent treatments of Batman and Superman have received rave reviews across the board. For this year's limited-run series, Snyder created an original horror story set at the bottom of the sea—or so we thought. Set across three different time periods that span from the ancient past to the distant future, the comic focuses on marine biologist Lee Archer, who discovers terrifying beings below the waves. The Wake's 10-issue-run has been rightfully hailed as one of the best comics of the year, and its 2014 Eisner Award for Best Limited Series is well deserved. 

Author: Brian K. Vaughan

Artist: Fiona Staples

Publisher: Image

What's to say about Saga that hasn't already been covered, from every Amazon reviewer to its Eisner Award win? Certainly not that it's already bested Brian K. Vaughan's excellent Ex Machina and Y: The Last Man. Or that Vaughan and Fiona Staples had created an instant classic from the very first issue. For the uninitiated, Saga tells the story of Alana and Marko, members of two warring alien races that choose to abandon the fight and raise a child together. Regardless of your feelings on sci-fi and fantasy, or preconceived notions of what a comic book can (or should) be, Saga will win you over. More than an interstellar adventure, it's a story about family and parenting that also happens to be hilarious, tragic, frightening, and edge-of-your-seat exciting. And it's only gotten better. 

Author: Matt Fraction

Artist: Chip Zdarsky

Publisher: Image

I've sung the praises of Sex Criminals before, and I'm happy to reiterate my opinion here: Sex Criminals is, quite simply, the best comic book being published today. Matt Fraction and Chip Zdarsky have created a world that's so freaking fun, you'll wonder how you ever lived without it. The story follows Suzie and Jon​, two young lovers who learn they can stop time when they orgasm. During the course of their hilarious love affair, they become bank robbers. (What good is a sex power without some extra cash—especially if its for a good cause?) And I haven't even mentioned that there's a villain called Kegel Face. But more recently, Fraction and Zdarsky have been digging deeper into the later phases of Suzie and Jon's relationship, tackling issues like depression and the sexual side effects that come with medication. It's still hilarious and exciting, but the knowledge that Suzie and Jon's love affair isn't infallible has given the book some added weight. They may be able to stop time when they come, but like any relationship, they can't go back to the honeymoon phase.