REST IN PEACE STEVE DILLON

News broke yesterday that British comic book artist Steve Dillon passed away suddenly at the age of 54 in New York City. The news certainly came as a shock to the comic world, and definitely came as a major shock to me personally. The artwork of Steve Dillon has meant a lot to me over the years, and it wouldn't be out of line to call his work iconic.

I first got a taste of Dillon's artwork when I discovered the Vertigo books Hellblazer and in particular Preacher. I had taken a lot of time away from comics in my teens, mostly because I was sick of superheroes and the same old shit issue after issue. I discovered Preacher first, and thanks to Garth Ennis' maniacal storytelling combined with Dillon's blend of gritty realism and cartoonish mayhem helped make Preacher one of my all time favorite comic books in the history of fucking ever.

His earlier work on Hellblazer, also with Ennis (who was a frequent collaborator), was just as special. I knew about the series and John Constantine previously, but I had never paid it much mind until I got my hands on Ennis and Dillon's work. So I guess I have Dillon to thank for getting me into what turned out to be probably my all time favorite comic book character as well now that I think about it.

I stuck with Ennis and Dillon when they rebooted The Punisher for Marvel years later, a character that Dillon would often find himself drawing and working on even if Ennis wouldn't be involved in it in a number of various series'. Over the years, Dillon would do a lot of Marvel work, including Wolverine Origins, Bullseye: Greatest Hits, Daredevil VS Bullseye, Ultimate X-Men, Thunderbolts, and more. Before that, Dillon cut his teeth on a number of well-known British comics, most notably Doctor Who Magazine and 2000 A.D. (the Judge Dredd-starring magazine), as well as Warrior and Rogue Trooper.

Rest in peace Steve Dillon, you will be missed.

Top 10 Horror Comics of All Time

Horror and comic books go hand in hand. From the early days of EC Comics to the modern titles published by lines like Vertigo and Dark Horse, horror comics come only second to superheroes in terms of what has had the most impact on the comic medium since its inception. Of course, for this fucking guy, horror comics are a way of fucking life. What are the best ones though? The ones that make your skin crawl? The ones that manage to stay with you long after you view the final panels of what you're reading? Well, here we go again.

I want to state first and foremost that this list I shit out here for your reading enjoyment does not include any of the classic EC titles or other horror comics from that classic era. So no, there's no "Tales from the Crypt", "Vault of Horror", "Creepy", "Eerie", or any of their contemporaries. The reason I didn't include them is because they are all anthology titles. Now don't get me wrong; they're all fucking great and have their place in history, but I couldn't include them here because ranking them in terms of what's better than another is fucking impossible. So instead, I'm focusing here on titles that were ongoing storylines.

Some titles didn't make the cut, like any of the Dylan Dog tales, Mike Carey's "Lucifer", or Jason Aaron's spectacular run on "Ghost Rider" from a few years back. I also debated putting "Spawn" somewhere on this list, but upon going back and re-reading the first run of issues, I realized that it honestly wasn't that good to begin with. Keeping all that in mind, I'm anticipating another lynch mob at the gates for my ass, so I'm just gonna say fuck it and dive into this balls deep and without protection...the way a real man does it. So here's my top 10 horror comics to scare the holy living fucking shit straight outta your ass. I apologize for nothing.



10. FROM HELL
Writer: Alan Moore
Artist: Eddie Campbell

Chances are you know this one relatively well. "From Hell" was originally serialized from the late 80s to the early 90s before finding mass success as a collected edition and inspiring a half decent movie starring Johnny Depp in 2001. "From Hell" is Alan Moore's take on the Jack the Ripper murders being a mass conspiracy driven by the royal family. Loaded with many themes that often re-appear throughout Moore's work (and this will not be the only entry on this list to come from the man) as well as musings of the metaphysical and featuring stark artwork from Eddie Campbell, "From Hell" is a dense read, but worth checking out regardless. The story itself isn't filled with scares or even too much suspense, but the fact that this is based on the actual murders and uses nearly every fact associated with each case to its advantage is what helps make it as haunting as it is.



9. TOMB OF DRACULA
Writer: various
Artist: Gene Colan

In the early 70s, the Comics Code started chilling out a bit in terms of restricted content of horror and supernatural material appearing in comic books, so Marvel birthed this fan favorite in 1972. Featuring a revolving door of writers (including Gerry Conway, Arthur Goodwin, and Gardner Fox) until Marv Wolfman (Teen Titans, Crisis on Infinite Earths) finally settled in full time, "Tomb of Dracula" mostly followed the exploits of Frank Drake: a descendant of Dracula who teams with a group of vampire hunters to take on the evil vampire master himself in the modern day. When Wolfman finally settled into the title and began steering it in the right direction, "Tomb of Dracula" became a total blasts. It ran for 70 issues and was always drawn by the late, great Gene Colan with covers by the great Gil Kane. This series is also notable for introducing the vampire hunter Blade, who was very far from being the half-breed daywalker that was popularized by the Wesley Snipes movies.



8. 30 DAYS OF NIGHT
Writer: Steve Niles
Artist: Ben Templesmith

Before it spawned a horde of sequels and spin-offs and inspired a surprisingly good big screen film adaptation (and a shitty direct to DVD sequel), the original "30 Days of Night" was originally pitched as a film itself, and wasn't received well. Instead it was released as a 3-issue mini-series from IDW, and put both Niles and Templesmith on the map in the comic book world. It's an ingenious plot, as a group of vampires descend upon a sleepy Alaskan town during a part of winter where there's no sun for 30 days. It's a survival tale as the remaining residents of the town contend with the vamps, made all the better with the wonderful, visceral artwork of Ben Templesmith.



7. BLACK HOLE
Writer & Artist: Charles Burns

A 12-issue mini-series published sporadically over a decade, Charles Burns' "Black Hole" takes place in 1970s Seattle, revolving around a group of teenagers afflicted with a sexually transmitted disease that causes severely grotesque mutations. Thus becoming social outcasts, we see their respective fates as illustrated by Burns' beautiful black & white artwork that often borderlines realism and surreal horror. Loaded with metaphor and symbolism, "Black Hole" is a true work of art, and it will stay with you long after you finish it.



6. THE WALKING DEAD
Writer: Robert Kirkman
Artist: Tony Moore (1-6), Charlie Adlard (7-current)

Before it was a hit show that spawned hordes of video games, merchandise, and an upcoming spin-off, "The Walking Dead" was a simple comic book about survival in a zombie-infested world that draws heavily on the works of George Romero. It mostly revolves around cop Rick Grimes, who awakens from a coma to find that the world he knew is gone and overrun with the undead. Eventually he finds his wife and son, and from that point forward we begin to learn that the worst part about trying to survive in this new world isn't the zombies, it's the survivors and what the world around them has turned them into. Granted I personally feel that the series has overstayed its welcome (it has been going strong since 2003 without missing a beat), that doesn't negate from the fact that "The Walking Dead" has left its mark as the best zombie-based comic series ever.



5. HELLBOY
Writer & Artist: Mike Mignola (and sometimes various others)

He's the world's greatest paranormal investigator...and he's a demon summoned from Hell that has a gruff sense of humor. Mike Mignola's various series starring the titular character combine gothic, Lovecraft-ian horror elements with pulp and dry humor; which combined has always made anything starring Hellboy such a total blast. Not to mention that Mignola's artwork has become so iconic in terms of his style and character designs that it often proves difficult to look at "Hellboy" art not drawn by the man...there's just no comparison.



4. SAGA OF THE SWAMP THING
Writer: Alan Moore
Artist: John Totleben (mostly)

One of the most revered works by Alan Moore, "Saga of the Swamp Thing" sees Moore totally revamp the DC Comics character. Given nearly total free reign (in the beginning anyway), Moore re-tools Swamp Thing's origin, making him more beast than man, and adding a whole new mythology to the character that would continue to be kept (mostly) as canon. The Parliament of Trees, the Green, and even John fucking Constantine would be introduced during Moore's prolific run, which combined existentialism and outright horror to beautiful effect. No take on the character to come in the years since has had the impact that Moore's has had, and it will probably never be topped either.



3. PREACHER
Writer: Garth Ennis
Artist: Steve Dillon

There isn't much I can say about "Preacher" that hasn't been said plenty of times. One of the Vertigo line's most famous ongoing series to ever be featured on the imprint, "Preacher" is the perfect mix of hardcore horror, pitch black humor, and a handful of some of the best and well-developed characters to ever be seen in comic books. Jesse Custer is a Texan preacher with a very shady background who, along with his gun-toting girlfriend Tulip and Irish vampire Cassidy, travel all across America in an effort to search for God. No, not in a spiritual sense: God has abandoned the throne out of fear and gone into hiding, and Jesse (inhabited by the offspring of an angel and a demon) is on a mission to find him and get some answers. I could talk about "Preacher" for hours on end. It's perfect and was one of the comics that got me back into comics when I was older. Check it out and thank me later.



2. HELLBLAZER
Various writers & artists

Alan Moore created John Constantine, and in the late 80s he got his own ongoing series. The chain-smoking master of bad luck black magic, "Hellblazer" stars Constantine and doesn't always present him in the most flattering of ways. In fact, he's kind of a dick. That being said, he does the right thing when he has to, even if he has to use his friends and loved ones as pawns in his schemes and struggles with evil. Jamie Delano was the initial writer of the series, and gave Constantine much of his backstory as well. Future writers to tackle the character into even greater effect included Garth Ennis, Paul Jenkins, Brian Azzarello, Warren Ellis, Andy Diggle and Mike Carey among others, with artists including Steve Dillon, Sean Phillips, David Lloyd, and the legendary Richard Corben as well. Running for 300 issues before coming to its conclusion in 2013, "Hellblazer" was Vertigo's longest running flagship title, and is one of the most revered comic book series' of all time.



1. THE SANDMAN
Writer: Neil Gaiman
Artist: Various

You didn't think it'd be anything else did you? Neil Gaiman's seminal "The Sandman" is regarded as being one of the best comic books, well, ever...and for good reason too. The story of "The Sandman" revolves around Dream of The Endless, also known as Morpheus, and his interactions with the denizens of the spiritual world, and the physical world as well. There's much more to the story than that of course, but to be perfectly honest, I myself have never actually read "The Sandman" in its entirety. Not because I haven't wanted to, I've just never been given the opportunity to. What I have read however, trust me...all I can say is that one day I hope to finally get the chance. Throughout its run, many prominent DC Comics characters would appear, including John Constantine, Etrigan the Demon, and even Martian Manhunter to name a few, but no matter who would get thrown into the mix, "The Sandman" remained satisfying psychological, and occasionally visceral, comic book horror. It spawned spin-offs and even birthed some characters that would go on to prominent appearances outside the main title, most notably being Death, who is represented here as being a super cute and somewhat quirky goth girl. Oh, and if you're like me and slacking on reading the whole thing beginning to end, I recommend checking out the sixth issue (in the first volume "Preludes & Nocturnes"), in which psychotic Justice League villain Doctor Destiny uses his power to make a group of random people in a diner do horrible things to themselves and each other. This alone is one of the absolute best horror stories ever printed in a comic. No bullshit.



Well, that's all for now. So what'd y'all think? Did I forget a bunch? Do you not agree? Am I a piece of shit for never reading "The Sandman" in its entirety? Who cares? If you haven't read any of these, go fucking do it. You're doing yourself a disservice by not at least giving these a look.

A Love Letter and Goodbye to "Hellblazer"

You all know me pretty well it seems, i.e. you know I'm a comic book geek. Though the medium mostly revolves around people in tights punching the shit out of each other, there's one comics line in general that re-affirmed my faith in the medium back in the days of me being a super cynical teenage know-it-all: Vertigo Comics. Vertigo is the mature-themed adult line of comics that is a part of DC Comics as a whole. Over the decades, there have been numerous titles, mini-series', and ongoing series' that have become nothing short of legendary. Just look at these titles for fuck's sake: "Sandman", "Saga of the Swamp Thing", "V For Vendetta", "Preacher", "Y: The Last Man", "A History of Violence", "Orbiter", "Transmetropolitan", "Lucifer", "Deadenders", "100 Bullets", "Scalped", "DMZ", and many many more. But there was one title in particular that drew me to Vertigo. One title in particular that drew me into dark comics in general and was the stepping stone for me getting into the aforementioned titles.

"Hellblazer".

Now what the fuck is "Hellblazer" you may be asking yourself? Well, it's Vertigo's longest ongoing title. It mostly revolves around the horrific adventures of John Constantine. Wait, now you're thinking to yourself "John Constantine? The John Constantine from the movie 'Constantine' that starred everyone's favorite wooden actor extraordinaire Keanu Reeves?" And yes, you're kind of right about that. However, unlike how he was portrayed in that piece of garbage 2005 adaptation, John Constantine is a blonde, British, chain-smoking, master of black magic and super street smart con-man. He was created by Alan Moore (!) during his seminal run on "Saga of the Swamp Thing", and eventually got his own title in the late 80s with "Hellblazer". It was writer Jamie Delano that really molded John's backstory, history, and supporting cast as he took the original reigns on the title, followed by celebrated and brilliant runs by Garth Ennis (which made him famous and led him to create the brilliant "Preacher"), Paul Jenkins, Warren Ellis, Brian Azzarello, Mike Carey, Denise Mina, and currently Peter Milligan among others. Even industry legends like Neil Gaiman and Grant Morrison have dabbled on the title before to boot.

The stories of "Hellblazer" weren't quite what the shitty "Constantine" movie made them out to be. John Constantine is not a demon hunter that is constantly at odds with Satan. In fact, John Constantine is a bit of a prick. There have been numerous occasions where he's put the lives of his friends and loved ones at risk strategically just so he can get the upper hand (most of the time). And while John has had a couple run-in's with Satan and various demonic forces, John's biggest enemies usually wind up being those in the use of black magic that are using it for wrong purposes. That, and there's a laundry list of people that John has managed to piss off over the years (he ages in real time).

Now, you may be wondering why I'm having a "Hellblazer" themed wankfest here, and that's because towards the end of this month, the 300th, and final, issue of "Hellblazer" will be hitting the stands, marking John Constantine's last hurrah as part of the Vertigo line. Why is this happening? Well, because ever since DC launched the "New 52" over a year ago, they re-introduced a younger and less foul-mouthed John Constantine into the mainstream DC universe. That, combined with the fact that it feels like Vertigo is getting squeezed to death by its parent company (leading to the departure of Karen Berger, the longtime editorial leader at Vertigo that helped bring so many legendary titles to life) means that my beloved John Constantine will be laid to rest...at least in his chain-smoking, foul-mouthed, rip your guts out of your stomach version that we've come to know and love for over 20 years now.

So, it goes without saying, that "Hellblazer" will be supremely missed, and in my honest opinion, it seems like Vertigo Comics as a whole isn't far behind. It's a crying shame too, because things just aren't going to be the same without John fucking Constantine the way we know and love him.

Comics That Deserve Your Time & Attention, Part 2

Last time around I named a handful of superhero-less comic works that wholeheartedly deserve your time and attention. This second part is no different, and features some titles that you may find yourself familiar with...or maybe you won't. Either way though, these works deserve to be checked out.

Thank me later...



MAUS
Pantheon Books
Writer/Artist: Art Spiegelman

The Pulitzer Prize winning work from cartoonist Art Spiegelman details his struggles coming to grips with his holocaust survivor father's account of his time surviving Nazi-run Poland and the horrors of Auschwitz. Metaphorically illustrating himself and other Jews as mice and Germans as cats, "Maus" is a powerful tale that deserves to be read and cherished for generations to come. Originally published in two seperate parts, the complete story has since been collected in a handsome hardcover format. "Maus" is the definition of what the graphic/comic narrative is capable of being as it conveys to the reader such raw emotion that would be only be lost were it a more traditional, prose-driven book.



V FOR VENDETTA
DC/Vertigo Comics
Writer: Alan Moore
Artist: David Lloyd

Forget the lame Wachowski brothers-produced flick from a few years back. Alan Moore's "V For Vendetta" is an epic study of a totalitarian world. A person known only as V who wears a Guy Fawkes mask uses a young girl named Evie to strike back at the dictatorship who for all intents and purposes made him what he is. But is V a freedom-fighting hero, or is he simply little more than a terrorist? One thing about the movie that royally ticked me off was that is completely missed the aspects of moral ambiguity that populates Moore's work here, made all the more vivid by the brilliant washed-out art of David Lloyd. This is truly epic storytelling, and once you open this graphic novel up and start reading, you'll forget all about the movie adaptation.



THE FILTH
DC/Vertigo Comics
Writer: Grant Morrison
Artist: Chris Weston & Gary Erskine

Greg Feely is a middle-aged man in a rundown city whose life is little more than caring for his ailing cat Tony and masturbating to porn. However, unbeknownst to Greg, is the fact that he is really Ned Slade, special negotiator for The Hand: a secret organization whose job is maintaining the social status quo by eliminating unhealthy variations of all sorts and kinds. Whether this ranges from pornstar Anders Klimakks, whose black-colored semen is being processed to fertilize women to death, to mysterious pocket worlds that threaten to overtake our very own, "The Filth" is definitely something that you won't soon forget. Not always the most comprehensible, and definitely not for everyone, "The Filth" is a total nightmare that should not be ignored.



WANTED
Top Cow
Writer: Mark Millar
Artist J.G. Jones

I may be cheating myself here a little bit by claiming this list isn't including any superhero elements, but I just have to include this. Remember that "Wanted" movie from a while back with Morgan Freeman and Angelina Jolie? Well, the comic that it was adapted from is absolutely nothing like that piece of dogshit. Wesley Gibson is a down on his luck guy with a cheating girlfriend and a dead-end job. Then one day, Wesley learns he is the son of The Killer: the greatest supervillain who ever lived. That's right folks, superheroes and supervillains were real once, until the villains won and wiped any memory of superheroes away from history and reduced them to appearing in comic books. The villains rule, and with the recent demise of his father, Wesley learns his dying wish was to make his only son not be a pussy anymore and be made more like him. As Wesley joins the Fraternity, he soon comes to learn that he has the freedom to kill, maim, rape, and destroy whoever and whatever he wants to. But an uprising by the insane Mr. Rictus threatens to ruin Wesley's good time, and soon enough, he and his partner Fox are fighting for their survival. Unapologetic, sickeningly nihlistic, and loaded with dark humor, "Wanted" is simply a blast to read, and something that you'll have a hard time getting our of your head afterwards.


More to come...

Comics That Deserve Your Time & Attention, Part 1

Anyone who knows me well enough knows that I'm a comic book geek. Always have been, probably always will be. Keep in mind however that by the term "comic book", I'm not necessarily talking about superheroes.

Superheroes have for the most part dominated the medium since its inception, and for the most part continue to do so today. What gets lost in the middle of it all however is the fact that there are so many intelligently written and incredibly compelling comic works out there that garner little to no attention, which in itself is a crying shame.

This first segment of this blog will focus on a collection of titles that deserve your time and attention, and will make you forget that comic books are loaded with nothing but spandex-clad people...



THE WALKING DEAD
Image Comics
Writer: Robert Kirkman
Artists: Charlie Adlard & Cliff Rathburn

An ongoing series of zombie survival horror, Robert Kirkman's "The Walking Dead" is every zombie fan's dream comic come true. Main protagonist Rick is a cop who wakes up out of a coma to find that the world he knew is now overrun by a zombie apocalypse. As he scrambles to find his missing family, Rick soon learns that the worst thing about this zombie-filled world isn't necessarily the zombies themselves, but the human survivors who haven't quite coped too well in this new world. Horrific and gripping, "The Walking Dead" became a smash for Image Comics, so much so that AMC has been prepping a live-action prime-time TV adaptation set to premiere in October.



JOHN CONSTANTINE: HELLBLAZER
DC/Vertigo Comics
Various writers & artists

Forget that lame "Constantine" flick from a few years back with Keanu Reeves. The real John Constantine that we know and love is a blonde, British, chain-smoking, bad ass master of black magic and bad luck. Over the years that "Hellblazer" has had various revolving creative teams, the best that stand out are the titles written by Garth Ennis, whose deconstruction and rebuilding of Constantine rank among the pivotal chapters of the character. And speaking of Garth Ennis...



PREACHER
DC/Vertigo Comics
Writer: Garth Ennis
Artist: Steve Dillon

An ongoing series that ran into the late 90s, mad Irishman writer Ennis' title ranks among the most prolific in Vertigo's stable. "Preacher" revolves around the ass-kicking Jesse Custer: a reverend who smokes, drinks, screws, and swears probably much more than he should. By the time we get to Jesse's origin however, you'll have quite the understanding why. Oh yeah, he also has the power to issue a command at anyone to make them do whatever he wants; which comes in pretty handy as he, his gun-toting girlfriend Tulip, and the Irish vampire Cassidy traverse America's heartland on a search to make God answer for what he has stricken upon mankind...all the while as they avoid government agents, religious cults, and a decent abundance of perverts. Laced with pitch-black humor and straight-out horror, "Preacher" remains a comic geek favorite to this day.



THE NIGHTLY NEWS
Image Comics
Writer/Artist: Jonathan Hickman

What happens when those brainwashed by the biased and corporate-controlled American media strike back at it? Nothing good for anyone involved that's for sure. Graphic designer Jonathan Hickman lends a unique art style on top of a conspiracy-laden story of a group of people that have been brought together to fight back. "The Nightly News" is definitely something that isn't for all tastes, but it is something that is shockingly introspective while at the same time equally mind-blowing.


That's all for now folks, but there will be more to follow soon...