Leave Your Spandex At the Door #135: Holiday Roundtable BEST OF

Welcome to part 3 of our special Christmassy LEAVE YOUR SPANDEX AT THE DOOR!

Every year since the launch of the Nexus, we have invited our favourite comics talents and most promising new creators from each year to do a holiday-themed Roundtable! This year to honor our Nexus-versary I’ve decided to compiled the BEST OF from these columns and re-feature my favourite creators from our long-running Nexus tradition!

MANOLIS: if you could give out a comic book or tradebook as an x-mas gift to get a young person interested in comics, what would that be and why?

Frank Cho (2005): How to Draw Comics the Marvel Way by Stan Lee and John Buscema. It worked wonders on me.

Tom Beland (2005): How young is young in this case? I’m going to assume they’re old enough to be in high school.
I think it depends on where they want to go, professionally. If it’s autobiographical… I’d give them Keith Knight’s “THE PASSION OF KEEF” or Brian Bendis’ “FORTUNE AND GLORY.” If it’s superhero… I’d give them Kurt Busiek’s “SUPERMAN: SECRET IDENTITY” or “MARVELS.”

That MARVELS 10th ANNIVERSARY hardcover is the greatest. There’s not only the series with that great Alex Ross art… but there’s also the script, sketch pages AND… AND… there’s the pitch they made for this series. That pitch section is so great to look at, because I think a lot of people may have an idea for a story, but they don’t know how to pitch that idea.
Plus, it shows you how many times that pitch can change an evolve during the process. Really… this is a great book.
If they’re into the actual drawing process… I’d give them THE WILL EISNER SKETCHBOOK. This book is so incredibly executed, I swear that every time I read it, I believe there’s pencil lead on my hands. Fantagraphics did such a remarkable job in reproducing these sketch pages that all you can do is look at it and just say “wow.” He was the master… moreso than Kirby and I ADORE Kirby.

Chris Moeller (2004): That’s easy: anything by Rod Espinosa (especially Courageous Princess or Neotopia… both available in beautiful hardcover editions from Antarctic Press). He’s a tremendously talented writer & artist who doesn’t feel the need to titillate the “adults” in his audience. His characters are human and complex, his worlds are well thought out and enthralling. And he’s a terrific storyteller. I recommend his stuff for anyone who likes adventure fiction, period.

I’d also give a vote to Jeff Smith’s Bone paperbacks. My kids eat ’em up. They make me read them out loud as bed-time stories, with accents for all the characters (Phoney Bone is from Brooklyn, The Red Dragon is Marlon Brando, Granma Ben is Granny from the Sylvester & Tweety cartoons… etc…)

Jason Aaron (2007): Well, I actually just gave my young niece the first volumes of BONE and OWLY, and those seem to have worked like a charm.

Neil Kleid (2004): BONE. Come on, if I have to answer why we’re going to be here all day.

Kurt Busiek (2005): It would depend on what that young person’s tastes in books, movies and TV are, but as a general rule, the first volume of BONE, by Jeff Smith, is a fine place to start. It’s warm, clear, funny, enchanting and adventurous, and wins over most readers who try it.

Keith Giffen (2005): The collected BONE. The reasons are obvious.

Paul Cornell (2007): Would it be tasteless to give a young person Jeff Smith’s Bone? And I’d do that if I was being serious too. Or any of the Asterix books.

Axel Alonso (2006): For a pre-teen, and say BONE. For a teenager, RUNAWAYS, VOLUME ONE.

Steve Niles (2005): I’d give him PUSSEY by Dan Clowes so he/she knows the world they are about to enter.

Ben Templesmith (2005): FELL, by Warren Ellis. It’s short, sweet, mainstream, hopefully pretty enough to look at without being the old stereotypical comic look…if crime tv shows and movies and novels are as popular with the public, you’d have to figure the kids would love an offbeat sicko weird version of CSI in comic form, so to speak. Plus, it’s actually entertaining with damn snappy writing. Always helps.

Duncan Fegredo (2005): Probably Tin Tin or Asterix, no capes or spandex just good fun adventures. Realistically I think Manga might be more effective, link in with Pokemon , Dragonball Z or Yu-Gi-Oh.

Steven Weissman (2004): Any volume of Peanuts. It’s the bun on the burger.

Todd Nauck (2004): I’d say Ultimate Spider-Man. It’s fun, well written, and well drawn. I believe it’s a great starting point for new readers that could easily lead them to other Ultimate titles then other comics as they learn how to navigate a comic company’s universe.

Josh Luna (2005): The complete Calvin and Hobbes. One of the first comics to really capture my imagination as a kid.

Jamie Smart (2005): hmm maybe Tank Girl, or something from japanese comicslike Di Gi Charat. i would only give a child something that i knew might disturb them into a proper human being

Jimmy Palmiotti (2006): Man, i would have to plug my own work and give them the Jonah Hex trade because its easy to read and they are not going to expect a comic book to be this gritty . Last thing i would give them is a superhero comic….really.

J.M. DeMatteis (2006): I’d have to pick ABADAZAD. One of the primary reasons I launched the comic…and the follow-up book series from Hyperion…was because I didn’t think there were enough kids reading comics. I’ve poured heart and soul into these books, trying to create something special that a parent and child can read, and enjoy, together.

Brad Walker (2006): Hmmm…that’s tough. I think I’d give the David Michelinie/Todd McFarlane trades to a young person. That stuff thrilled me when I was younger. It’s age appropriate, but not condescending. And it’s got the right mixture of sensational cheese, and touching substance. And Spider-Man is the greatest!!

Fabian Nicieza (2006) : Hmm. Depends on what you mean by “young.” And is it boys or girls?

Anyone between 5-9, boys or girls, I’d give them a complete Calvin and Hobbes collection along with classic 60’s Archie, Hot Stuff, Richie Rich, Casper.

Any boys between 10-14 I’d give them Ultimate Spider-Man Vol. 1, Vol. 2, Vol. 3, etc.

Anyone over 14 -24, I’d give them Dark Night Returns, Batman Year One, Watchmen.

Over 24, I’d give them MAUS.. .and the complete Calvin & Hobbes collection…

Andi Watson (2006): Depends how young, gender, their interests but, Bone, Tintin, Asterix, are classics. As a shameless plug I’d suggest my story Princess at Midnight.

Rich Johnston (2003): Any issue of Viz Comic. It’s got Not For Children on the front, that always gets them interested.

Mike Carey (2003): This isn’t even tough. It would be Amy Unbounded, by Rachel Hartman – a medieval coming-of-age story set in a world only slightly divergent from ours, in which dragons are great scholars who can take human form whenever they want. Amy is a ten-year-old girl: her Dad is a weaver and her mum is a barbarian warrior maiden (retired), and she’s got a huge, embarrassing crush on her best friend’s big brother. The whole thing is beautifully observed, funny and endlessly readable, even when the only action that’s going on is rolling a cheese downhill.

Jeff Parker (2006): I would give collections of the Carl Barks Uncle Scrooge adventures, they sure worked on me. See, I didn’t even plug the all-ages stuff I do for Marvel, like Marvel Adventures: The Avengers and MA Fantastic Four

Niko Henrichon (2006): DragonBall by Akira Toriyama

Cecil Castellucci (2007): Robot Dreams by Sara Varon. I think that it’s a beautiful book about friendship and love. It has no words so it can be understood by anyone, at any age, not only a child, but even your grandma, even your Italian boy/girlfriend that speaks no English. I think that once a person sees the joys of what a great graphic story can do, they will seek out other books like that, and they will no longer say “I don’t read comic books.” Robot Dreams is a great book to get someone started with

Cliff Chiang (2007): For someone in high school, I’d say Fables or Y: The Last Man. Younger than that, I’d go with Runaways. I think those are good ways to break into American mainstream comics.

Ed Brubaker (2003): I’d give them the whole run of Nausicaa by Miyazaki, because it’s got the sweeping epic adventure of something like the Lord of the Rings, while being a coming of age story, too. And it’s one of the most beautiful and well-told comics that’s ever been done for all-ages. It’s exciting, and I think any kid who reads it would become addicted to comics after that. Though probably more to Manga, since that’s what all the kids like. Maybe there’s something to that…

Jamie S. Rich (2003): THE COMPLETE SOULWIND by Scott Morse will open their eyes to the amazing possibilities of story, showing them that anything can be done with the proper dose of imagination

Nate Cosby (2007): The Life and Times of Scrooge McDuck. BEST graphic novel, BEST fictional biography. It’s the Watchmen and Citizen Kane of fun comics

Nunzio DeFilippis (2003:): I think I’d give a young person our book, because I am a complete egomaniac. But for a better book, I’d give him or her Magic Pickle or Allison Dare. If I wanted the kid to get into superheroes, I’d probably give Brian Bendis’ Ultimate Spiderman.

Christina Weir (2003): I’d have to pretty much agree with Nunzio. Allison Dare is a great book. There’s also some fun manga out there. I really like Inu-Yasha.

Heidi McDonald (2007): I’d give the first volume of BONE, or perhaps a Tintin volume.

Christos Gage (2007): Owly. It’s perfect for readers of any age, 3 to 93. The term “all-ages comics” is usually a euphemism for something aimed solely at small children, but Andy Runton’ delightful books are truly something anyone can enjoy — and should!

Mike and Laura Allred (2003): Just had a huge gorgeous book called THE SILVER AGE OF COMIC BOOK ART sent to us and it’s a stunner. It blows up classic comic panels real big and in your face. Think it would turn any kid onto the unique beauty of comics.

Nicola Scott (2007): I am giving my god-son (who’s five) some Batman Strikes