The Best Graphic Novels Ever #3 -- From Hell

Looky, looky, folks. Today we break the top three!

3. From Hell
by Alan Moore and Eddie Campbell
Published by Top Shelf Productions

Before I even begin, yes, I did like the movie. But no, it's not remotely like the book, nor it is as strong a piece of fiction as the book.

From Hell has all the classic Alan Moore trademarks and signatures: stories within stories within enigmas within even more stories; using panel layouts to signify singularly important moments in the script; historical rabbit trails and wild goose chases; rampant nods to counter-cultural high (and low) points; and bucketloads of just plain weirdness and wallowing in the filth.

It's filled with all the same stuff his readers look for in Dark Knight Returns and Watchmen, but here he does it better.

In From Hell, you get what I consider to be the pure, unadulterated Alan Moore. This is Alan Moore off the leash, with no corporate handlers to box him in -- even a little (or just piss him off to the point that he screws up his own story to return the favor). This is Alan Moore seen through the eyes of a genius like Eddie Campbell. This is Alan Moore with liberal sprinklings of even more Alan Moore on top of an Alan Moore icing.

In short, this is Alan Moore before he lost his freakin' mind.

This book makes you think. Makes you wonder. Makes you go "hmmm..." in all the right ways.

The Best Graphic Novels Ever #6 -- Watchmen

6. Watchmen
by Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons
Published by DC Comics

You knew this one was coming. And here it is. But NOT in the top five, and you may or may not find that surprising.

This is the one that deconstructed the new mythology and melted the feet of clay wearing the tights. This is the one that's taught in colleges across the country, and used by geeks the world over as Exhibit A in the case entitled "Comics Books Can Be Meaningful."

You're probably wondering (a) if I should turn in my geek ID card for placing Watchmen here on the list and/or (b) what could possibly be better than such a penultimate volume.

My only beef with Watchmen is the same one I level against Dark Knight Returns -- it's easy to deconstruct something by reshaping it and doing it from a position outside. It's much, much more difficult to tell a strong story within the confines of the genre and/or medium while addressing both those inside it and outside it. And I reserve my top five spots for stories I believe did just that. Stay tuned.

On a side note, I think I'm one of the few (the proud) who feel the ending of the movie was superior to the ending of the book. But that's a flame war for another day.

The Best Graphic Novels Ever #9 -- V for Vendetta

9. V for Vendetta
by Alan Moore and David Lloyd
Published by Vertigo Comics

Yes, it's yet another Alan Moore book on the list. And while I don't think of myself as a huge Alan Moore fan, I do seem to have several of his books on this group of "the best ever," don't I? Oh well. Talent will out itself, I suppose.

I have to come clean and admit that I liked the movie too. And not just because a bald Natalie Portman was way cuter than I expected. Nope. It was V.

Regardless, the book runs circles around the movie. Period.

Subversive, this is another of Alan's works that plays fast and loose with what it means to be a hero in a world gone mad. What does a hero do when injustice masquerades as justice and anarchy is the best rule to follow? 

The Best Graphic Novels Ever #17 -- The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen

17. The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen
by Alan Moore and Kevin O'Neill
Published by Vertigo Comics

I'll admit it. I'm the guy who liked the movie. Sure, it didn't have the nuances and aha moments of Moore and O'Neill's original masterpiece (perhaps the best of Moore's recent work), but it was a fun romp through literary memories and what-if playgrounds. Still, as much as I enjoyed the film, it doesn't remotely come close to how much I love the comic book on which it's based.

Moore and O'Neill do in print with LoEG what we fans have been doing for years in our imaginations -- creating a Justice League made up of our favorite characters from our favorite books. But he does more than that... Instead of creating merely an elaborately cast fan fiction, he tells an amazing story that actually builds on the literary histories (and futures) of said characters.

And he plays hard ball with the central mystery and conceit behind the series -- who exactly is pulling the team together and why that matters.

The Best Graphic Novels Ever #23 -- Batman: The Killing Joke

23. Batman: The Killing Joke
by Alan Moore and Brian Bolland
Published by DC Comics

Say what you want about Death in the Family, but I'm firmly convinced The Killing Joke is the quintessential Joker story. Little else in the litany of Joker tales does as much to capture the sheer mania and psychosis of this classic (and perhaps greatest) Batman villian.

Why is this book important to comic book history? Let's see...

Joker shooting and paralyzing Batgirl Barbara Gordon? Check. The redefining of the Joker origin? Check. One heck of a story by Moore and Bolland? Check.

The Writer Will Take Your Questions Now (#179) -- Watchmen Prequels

What are you thoughts on the Watchman prequels coming from DC and the whole Alan Moore thing?

Lots of work to do today, but I have to get something off my chest first regarding the Watchman prequels. To all the folks who must constantly jump into any post about it and become rude, please back off and stop making it a personal crusade against the talented creators who are choosing to work on the books. They are workers who have bills to pay and need to keep food on their tables the same way you do.

If you do still feel that way, then I equally ask that you be consistent and quit your day job for the company that screws over the little people on the front lines every day in order increase their own bottom line. I ask that you stop purchasing your phones and tablets from companies that take advantage of propriety technology they (in essence) stole from the true workers who created it.

If you still feel that way, I ask that you stop buying any books, even mine, from your LCS that chooses to stock the books. Be consistent. Even if it means you will no longer have an LCS to go to because it's the only one in your area. Stop buying books from Amazon, because you know they're going to carry them. Same goes for B&N and your local indie book store. And you'd better put back the mayo and paper plates at Wal-Mart, because they're no better.

If you truly want to support Alan Moore, hats off to you. That's great. That's noble. Don't buy the books, but stop being jackasses about it. Nobody likes the vegetarian who makes moo noises while people eat their veal either.

Will I read the books? Yes. I work as a retailer. It's my job. Will I recommend them? Yes, to readers I think will enjoy them. Will I still believe that Alan Moore got screwed over by a legal glitch in the contracts? Yes. Do I believe he's the only one or the last one to ever be in that predicament? Not a chance.

As a writer, would I have taken the gig to write one of them if it had been offered? Yes. Because I too need to keep food on my table, and it would be an opportunity to tell a fun story with characters I enjoy. That's my job.

The bottom line: Be active in fighting bad corporate behavior. But be consistent in the fight. And even while you're doing that, never, ever, ever be a jackass. Nobody like a jackass.