The Best Graphic Novels Ever #18 -- Crisis on Infinite Earths

18. Crisis on Infinite Earths
by Marv Wolfman and George Perez
Published by DC Comics

This is the last of the big company crossovers on this list. I promise. And this one's here as much for its importance to the medium as for its amazing story that gave some (at least for a while) finality and maturity to the heroes of DC Comics. (After all, until the New 52 debut, DC's BC and AD was divided into pre-Crisis and post-Crisis.)

Sure, it's a bit of a downer with the death of Supergirl, Flash, and a cast of thousands of others, but it's also an amazing tale of sacrifice and heroism.

The Best Graphic Novels Ever #22 -- The Infinity Gauntlet

22. The Infinity Gauntlet
by Jim Starlin, George Perez and Ron Lim
Published by Marvel Comics

I'm going to be honest. I only read The Infinity Gauntlet this year. But to be fair, I've always been more a DC reader than a Marvel reader. Still, when people keep telling me that Infinity Gauntlet is the Crisis on Infinite Earths (in terms of scope, not plot) of the Marvel universe, I really should have listened a lot earlier.

Because I waited so long, I really did miss out on on a fairly epic book for a pretty long time.

This one is cosmic drama at its best as Thanos (ol' wrinkled jaw himself) seeks to extinguish all life in the universe -- just to have a good first date with Death. This is the kind of story you can only tell in comics, and it really pays off in this case.