These awards get no award from me

The Eisner nominations came out today, so I figure I can do some commentary. I'm not that impressed, to tell the truth. With all the really good comics coming out, there are some weird choices. But what the hell, I'll go into more detail as I go through them. Here we go!

Nominees, 2007, Will Eisner Comic Industry Awards

Best Short Story

• "The Black Knight Glorps Again," by Don Rosa, in Uncle Scrooge #354 (Gemstone)
• "Felix," by Gabrielle Bell, in Drawn & Quarterly Showcase 4 (Drawn & Quarterly)
• "A Frog's Eye View," by Bill Willingham and James Jean, in Fables: 1001 Nights of Snowfall (Vertigo/DC)
• "Old Oak Trees," by Tony Cliff, in Flight 3 (Ballantine)
• "Stan Lee Meets Spider-Man," by Stan Lee, Oliver Coipel, and Mark Morales, in Stan Lee Meets Spider-Man (Marvel)
• "Willie: Portrait of a Groundskeeper," by Eric Powell, in Bart Simpsons's Treehouse of Horror #12 (Bongo)

I've only read "A Frog's Eye View" and "Stan Lee Meets Spider-Man". The Fables story was really good, although I don't know if it was the best one from that collection. The Stan Lee story was not especially well-written, but the art was nice. I think they could have found a better choice. I like Gabrielle Bell, so her story is probably worthwhile. I haven't read the Flight story either, but it's probably good. Don Rosa's Uncle Scrooge stories are always good, but come on, it's a talking duck story! There had to be something better than that. The same goes for the Simpsons story; I love Eric Powell, but I really doubt a story about Groundskeeper Willie was one of the best stories of the year. With all the anthologies and minicomics that come out these days, there has to be something more worthy of recognition.

Best Single Issue (or One-Shot)

• Batman/The Spirit #1: "Crime Convention," by Jeph Loeb and Darwyn Cooke (DC)
• A Late Freeze, by Danica Novgorodoff (Danica Novgorodoff)
• The Preposterous Adventures of Ironhide Tom, by Joel Priddy (AdHouse)
• Skyscrapers of the Midwest #3, by Joshua Cotter (AdHouse)
• They Found the Car, by Gipi (Fantagraphics)

Really?!?!? Batman/The Spirit?!? I hated that issue (aside from the art, which was nice). The story was awful. The rest of the nominees are pretty good choices, as far as I know, although the only one I think I've read is Ironhide Tom, and I recall it being kind of slight. Nice enough, but again, there has to be something better. I mean, why not an issue of Fell? Or All-Star Superman? Or Seven Soldiers #1? And those aren't even the greatest choices; there must have been something better than that Jeph Loeb crap.

Best Continuing Series

• All Star Superman, by Grant Morrison and Frank Quitely (DC)
• Captain America, by Ed Brubaker and Steve Epting (Marvel)
• Daredevil, by Ed Brubaker, Michael Lark, and Stefano Gaudiano (Marvel)
• Naoki Urasawa's Monster, by Naoki Urasawa (Viz)
• The Walking Dead, by Robert Kirkman and Charles Adlard (Image)
• Young Avengers, by Allan Heinberg, Jim Cheung, and various inkers (Marvel)

Okay, I love All-Star Superman. I haven't read Monster, but I really want to because I've heard it's great, and I like what I've read by Urasawa. But two different Marvel superhero series by Ed Brubaker? Young Avengers? Did any issues of that series even come out last year, or was it just the rapey special? The Walking Dead? I gave up on that book a while ago, but I doubt it's gotten any better; from what I hear, it featured stories with plenty of rape and torture last year. Come on. How about DMZ? Or Ex Machina? Or Fell? Or Nextwave? Casanova? Or, I dunno, Death Note or Nana? Really, people.

Best Limited Series

• Batman: Year 100, by Paul Pope (DC)
• The Looking Glass Wars: Hatter M, by Frank Beddor, Liz Cavalier, and Ben Templesmith (Desperado/Image)
• The Other Side, by Jason Aaron and Cameron Stewart (Vertigo/DC)
• Scarlet Traces: The Great Game, by Ian Edginton and D'Israeli (Dark Horse)
• Sock Monkey: The Inches Incident, by Tony Millionaire (Dark Horse)

Out of these, I read Batman: Year 100 and The Other Side. They were both really good, so I'm cool with them. And I've heard good things about the others, so I have no beef. Finally, a category with no complaints! But let's see if I can think of anything else that I would have nominated. Maybe Polly and the Pirates?

Best New Series

• Criminal, by Ed Brubaker and Sean Phillips (Marvel Icon)
• East Coast Rising, by Becky Cloonan (Tokyopop)
• Gumby, by Bob Burden and Rick Geary (Wildcard)
• Jack of Fables, by Bill Willingham, Matthew Sturges, Tony Akins, and Andrew Pepoy (Vertigo/DC)
• The Lone Ranger, by Brett Matthews and Sergio Cariello (Dynamite)

This category isn't too bad either. I like Criminal, Jack of Fables, and East Coast Rising, although I don't know if the latter choice fits the category that well. It's a series of three graphic novels published by Tokyopop, and the first one came out last year. It's awesome, so I guess they wanted to honor it somewhere. If I was going to complain about one that should have been nominated, it would be Casanova. Come on, how can you leave that out?!

Best Publication for a Younger Audience

• Chickenhare, by Chris Grine (Dark Horse)
• Drawing Comics Is Easy (Except When It's Hard), by Alexa Kitchen (Denis Kitchen Publishing)
• Gumby, by Bob Burden and Rick Geary (Wildcard)
• Moomin, by Tove Jansson (Drawn & Quarterly)
• To Dance: A Ballerina's Graphic Novel, by Sienna Cherson and Mark Siegel (Simon & Schuster)

I haven't read any of these, so I won't comment, except to say that Moomin is something like 40 years old, right? There wasn't anything from 2006 to nominate? I would have nominated Polly and the Pirates. And they seem to be trying to include manga, so what about Naruto, or some other manga for kids? That's what they're reading anyway.

Best Humor Publication

• Flaming Carrot Comics, by Bob Burden (Desperado/Image)
• Onionhead Monster Attacks, by Paul Friedrich (Hellcar)
• Schizo #4, by Ivan Brunetti (Fantagraphics)
• Tales Designed to Thrizzle, by Michael Kupperman (Fantagraphics)
• Truth Serum, by Jon Adams (City Cyclops)

I've only read Tales Designed to Thrizzle, and it's pretty funny. Did any Flaming Carrot come out in 2006? I think Nextwave got shafted, since I don't know if anything funnier came out last year.

Best Anthology

• Fables: 1001 Nights of Snowfall, by Bill Willingham and various (Vertigo/DC)
• Hotwire Comix and Capers #1, edited by Glenn Head (Fantagraphics)
• Japan as Viewed by 17 Creators, edited by Frédéric Boilet (Fanfare/Ponent Mon)
• Kramers Ergot 6, edited by Sammy Harkham (Buenaventura Press)
• Project: Romantic, edited by Chris Pitzer (AdHouse)

Interesting. Does the Fables book count as an anthology, since all the stories were written by one person? It's the only one I've read, and it's really good, but it's part of the series, so I don't know if it really belongs in this category. I've heard the Japan book is really good, so it'll probably win. No complaints here, I guess.

Best Digital Comic

• Bee, in "Motel Art Improvement Service," by Jason Little, http://beecomix.com
• Girl Genius, by Phil Foglio, www.girlgeniusonline.com
• Minus, by Ryan Armand, www.kiwisbybeat.com/minus1.html
• Phables, by Brad Guigar, www.phables.com
• Sam and Max, by Steve Purcell, http://telltalegames.com/community/comics/samandmax/issue-3
• Shooting War, by Anthony Lappe and Dan Goldman, www.shootingwar.com

I guess they mean "webcomic" here, but whatever. My pick would be Minus; it's a great little comic strip. And I didn't know there was a Sam and Max series on the web; I'll have to check that out. So, yeah, no complaints here, I guess. It's not like they included Achewood, a series that everybody seems to love but I don't get.

Best Reality-Based Work

• Fun Home, by Alison Bechdel (Houghton Mifflin)
• I Love Led Zeppelin, by Ellen Forney (Fantagraphics)
• Mom's Cancer, by Brian Fies (Abrams)
• Project X Challengers: Cup Noodle, by Tadashi Katoh (Digital Manga)
• Stagger Lee, by Derek McCulloch and Shepherd Hendrix (Image)

Oh, now here's a good category. Fun Home should win it, and while it's the only one I've read, I've heard the others are good. I love that the Cup Noodle book got nominated. I really need to read that. I've heard Stagger Lee is really good too. Um, nothing else to add.

Best Graphic Album-New

• American Born Chinese, by Gene Luen Yang (First Second)
• Billy Hazelnuts, by Tony Millionaire (Fantagraphics)
• Fun Home, by Alison Bechdel (Houghton Mifflin)
• Ninja, by Brian Chippendale (Gingko Press)
• Scrublands, by Joe Daly (Fantagraphics)
• The Ticking, by Renée French (Top Shelf)

What does "graphic album" mean anyway? Self-contained graphic novel? Do they not want to use the term "novel" because that implies fiction? Weird. Anyway, Fun Home will probably win again. American Born Chinese is also really good, and I've heard good things about Billy Hazelnuts, The Ticking, and Ninja, although the latter seems a bit weird and artsy to be grouped with the others. I don't know about Scrublands. How about The Fate of the Artist?

Best Graphic Album-Reprint

• Absolute DC: The New Frontier, by Darwyn Cooke (DC)
• Castle Waiting, by Linda Medley (Fantagraphics)
• Mom's Cancer, by Brian Fies (Abrams)
• Shadowland, by Kim Deitch (Fantagraphics)
• Truth Serum, by Jon Adams (City Cyclops)

I don't know about any of these. I've read New Frontier, but I only thought it was okay, not the masterpiece that everybody else seems to have read. I'm sure the Absolute edition is nice though. I really want to read Shadowland, and I've heard Castle Waiting is good. Whatever.

Best Archival Collection/Project-Strips

• The Complete Peanuts, 1959-1960, 1961-1962, by Charles Schulz (Fantagraphics)
• Mary Perkins On Stage, by Leonard Starr (Classic Comics Press)
• Moomin, by Tove Jansson (Drawn & Quarterly)
• Popeye: I Yam What I Yam, by E. C. Segar (Fantagraphics)
• Walt & Skeezix, vol. 2, by Frank King (Drawn & Quarterly)

I haven't read any of these (except some of Peanuts, I guess). I like Peanuts, but I don't really feel the need to own the complete series. Word is that Moomin is good, and I've heard that Popeye book is really cool. But yeah, no opinion, really.

Best Archival Collection/Project-Comic Books

• Abandon the Old In Tokyo, by Yoshihiro Tatsumi (Drawn & Quarterly)
• Absolute Sandman, vol. 1, by Neil Gaiman and various (Vertigo/DC)
• Art Out of Time: Unknown Comics Visionaries, 1900-1969, by Dan Nadel (Abrams)
• The Eternals, by Jack Kirby (Marvel)
• Ode to Kirihito, by Osamu Tezuka (Vertical)

I've read almost all of these (in some form or another), although I wonder what makes Abandon the Old in Tokyo and Ode to Kirihito "archival collections". Neither of them is especially good in that regard, as they're both flipped to read left-to-right, and Kirihito has the sound effects translated into English. I'm not sure why The Eternals is different from any other Marvel collection. Art Out of Time is excellent, but it's almost completely a collection of strips, so why is it in the "comic books" section? I guess that leaves Sandman, which is a really nice-looking book, with some good recoloring by the original colorist.

Best U.S. Edition of International Material

• A.L.I.E.E.E.N., by Lewis Trondheim (First Second)
• De:TALES, by Fábio Moon and Gabriel Bá (Dark Horse)
• Hwy 115, by Matthias Lehmann (Fantagraphics)
• The Left Bank Gang, by Jason (Fantagraphics)
• Pizzeria Kamikaze, by Etgar Keret and Asaf Hanuka (Alternative)

I haven't read any of these, but I would like to get A.L.I.E.E.E.N., The Left Bank Gang, and Pizzeria Kamikaze. De:TALES is probably also good, since Moon and Ba are both good artists. I don't know about Hwy 115. It looks like we could use more non-Japanese foreign comics imports.

Best U.S. Edition of International Material-Japan

• After School Nightmare, by Setona Mizushiro (Go! Comi)
• Antique Bakery, by Fumi Yoshinaga (Digital Manga)
• Naoki Urasawa's Monster, by Naoki Urasawa (Viz)
• Old Boy, by Garon Tsuchiya and Nobuaki Minegishi (Dark Horse Manga)
• Walking Man, by Jiro Taniguchi (Fanfare/Ponent Mon)

Heh, this makes me laugh; manga would have crowded out all the other countries, so they gave it its own category. I haven't read any of these (or even heard of After School Nightmare), so it's hard to comment (like that ever stopped me!). I've heard Walking Man is good. But where's Ode to Kirihito? And I could complain about the absence of my favorite series (Death Note, Nana), but there's so much manga out there, it's easy to miss large swathes of good stuff. So I'll trust these choices, I guess.

Best Writer

• Ed Brubaker, Captain America, Daredevil (Marvel); Criminal (Marvel Icon)
• Bob Burden, Gumby (Wildcard)
• Ian Edginton, Scarlet Traces: The Great Game (Dark Horse)
• Grant Morrison, All Star Superman, Batman, 52, Seven Soldiers (DC)
• Bill Willingham, Fables, Jack of Fables, Fables: 1001 Nights of Snowfall (Vertigo/DC)

The Eisners sure like Ed Brubaker, don't they? I'm predisposed to like Morrison, but his Batman work is not exactly award-worthy. Seven Soldiers and All-Star Superman make up for it though. I notice Shadowpact is not included among Willingham's credits, nor is Uncanny X-Men among Brubaker's. I guess those don't count. I would argue for Warren Ellis (Fell, Nextwave, Newuniversal, Desolation Jones) or Brian K. Vaughan (Ex Machina, Runaways, Y: The Last Man, Pride of Baghdad). Or Brian Wood (DMZ, Local). But whatever.

Best Writer/Artist

• Allison Bechdel, Fun Home (Houghton Mifflin)
• Renée French, The Ticking (Top Shelf)
• Gilbert Hernandez, Love and Rockets, New Tales of Old Palomar (Fantagraphics); Sloth (Vertigo/DC)
• Paul Pope, Batman: Year 100 (DC)
• Joann Sfar, Klezmer, Vampire Loves (First Second)

Chris Ware, anybody? Ah, it'll probably go to Bechdel again. But everybody here is a good choice. Maybe Darwyn Cooke? (although I don't think The Spirit started until 2007, so never mind). Ted Naifeh (Polly and the Pirates)?

Best Writer/Artist-Humor

• Ivan Brunetti, Schizo (Fantagraphics)
• Lilli Carré, Tales of Woodsman Pete (Top Shelf)
• Michael Kupperman, Tales Designed to Thrizzle (Fantagraphics)
• Tony Millionaire, Billy Hazelnuts (Fantagraphics); Sock Monkey: The Inches Incident (Dark Horse)
• Lewis Trondheim, A.L.I.E.E.E.N. (First Second); Mr. I (NBM)

I've only read Tales Designed to Thrizzle, and it was pretty funny. I would suggest Eric Powell, but he's won the last few years and they probably want to keep it fresh. I do like Tony Millionaire. Again, whatever.

Best Penciller/Inker or Penciller/Inker Team

• Mark Buckingham/Steve Leialoha, Fables (Vertigo/DC)
• Tony Harris/Tom Feister, Ex Machina (WildStorm/DC)
• Niko Henrichon, Pride of Baghdad (Vertigo/DC)
• Michael Lark/Stefano Gaudiano, Daredevil (Marvel)
• Sonny Liew, Wonderland (SLG)
• Steven McNiven/Dexter Vines, Civil War (Marvel)

Decent choices here, although the Daredevil team don't really do anything for me (otherwise I might be reading that book). I would go with Henrichon; the art in that book was amazing. And I would also suggest Frank Quitely on All-Star Superman, of course. John Cassaday (Astonishing X-Men) is also pretty awesome.

Best Painter/Multimedia Artist (interior art)

• Nicolas De Crecy, Glacial Period (NBM)
• Melinda Gebbie, Lost Girls (Top Shelf)
• Ben Templesmith, Fell (Image); The Looking Glass Wars: Hatter M (Desperado/Image); Wormwood: Gentleman Corpse (IDW)
• Jill Thompson, "A Dog and His Boy" in The Dark Horse Book of Monsters; "Love Triangle" in Sexy Chix (Dark Horse); "Fair Division," in Fables: 1001 Nights of Snowfall (Vertigo/DC)
• Brett Weldele, Southland Tales: Prequel Saga (Graphitti); Silent Ghost (Markosia)

I don't know De Crecy or Weldele, but the others are good choices, especially Templesmith and Thompson. I would go with Templesmith; his art has gotten really good. I was going to suggest J.H. Williams III (Desolation Jones, Seven Soldiers #1) in the last category, but he would probably fit better here. Oh, and how about Ashley Wood? Did he do anything last year besided Zombies vs. Robots? Maybe next year, after the new Tank Girl series comes out.

Best Cover Artist

• John Cassaday, Astonishing X-Men (Marvel); The Escapists (Dark Horse); The Lone Ranger (Dynamite)
• Tony Harris, Conan (Dark Horse); Ex Machina (WildStorm/DC)
• James Jean, Fables, Jack of Fables, Fables: 1001 Nights of Snowfall (Vertigo/DC)
• Dave Johnson, 100 Bullets (Vertigo/DC); Zombie Tales, Cthulu Tales, Black Plague (Boom!)
• J. G. Jones, 52 (DC)

Didn't an issue of Planetary come out last year? Shouldn't Cassaday get credit for that one? Anyway, James Jean will probably win, but J.G. Jones has been really good this year, so he might walk away with it. Plus, Jean has won the past several years, I think. A rising star at Marvel is Marko Djurdjevic, so watch for him next year.

Best Coloring

• Kristian Donaldson, Supermarket (IDW)
• Hubert, The Left Bank Gang (Fantagraphics)
• Lark Pien, American Born Chinese (First Second)
• Dave Stewart, BPRD, Conan, The Escapists, Hellboy (Dark Horse); Action Comics, Batman/The Spirit, Superman (DC)
• Chris Ware, Acme Novelty Library #17 (ACME Novelty)

American Born Chinese looked nice, but (other than being bright) I didn't think the color was too exceptional. Chris Ware's coloring was very nice, and Dave Stewart is always good. I think Christina Strain should have been nominated for Runaways and Spider-Man Loves Mary Jane. She's one to watch out for. Some of those guys on Marvel and DC books are pretty good, especially books like Civil War and All-Star Superman. I got nothing else to add.

Best Lettering

• Ivan Brunetti, Schizo (Fantagraphics)
• Todd Klein, Fables, Jack of Fables, Fables: 1001 Nights of Snowfall; Pride of Baghdad, Testament (Vertigo/DC); Fantastic Four: 1602, Eternals (Marvel); Lost Girls (Top Shelf)
• Clem Robins, BPRD, The Dark Horse Book of Monsters, Hellboy (Dark Horse); Loveless, 100 Bullets, Y: The Last Man (Vertigo/DC)
• Richard Sala, The Grave Robber's Daughter, Delphine (Fantagraphics)
• Chris Ware, Acme Novelty Library #17 (ACME Novelty)

Doesn't Todd Klein always win this category? Not much point in debating, is there. That said, I think Chris Ware should win.

Special Recognition

• Ross Campbell, Abandoned (Tokyopop); Wet Moon 2 (Oni)
• Svetlana Chmakova, Dramacon (Tokyopop)
• Hope Larson, Gray Horses (Oni)
• Dash Shaw, The Mother's Mouth (Alternative)
• Kasimir Strzepek, Mourning Star (Bodega)

I think this category used to be called "Talent deserving of wider recognition". I don't know why they changed it. Campbell seems to be a rising star, and Chmakova has the "OEL manga" thing going on, so either of them could win. Hope Larson is also good; I need to pick up that book, along with Salamander Dream. I dunno about the others. This is getting long, and I'm getting tired.

Best Comics-Related Periodical/Journalism

• Alter Ego, edited by Roy Thomas (TwoMorrows)
• Comic Art 8, edited by Todd Hignite (Buenaventura Press)
• The Comics Journal, edited by Gary Groth, Dirk Deppey, Michael Dean, and Kristy Valenti (Fantagraphics)
• The Comics Reporter, produced by Tom Spurgeon and Jordan Raphael (www.Comicsreporter.com)
• ¡Journalista!, produced by Dirk Deppey (Fantagraphics, www.tcj.com/journalista/)

I guess websites count as periodicals now. Maybe if I work at it, I could win this award! But it's extremely unlikely. Eh, I'll go with Journalista.

Best Comics-Related Book

• The Art of Brian Bolland, edited by Joe Pruett (Desperado/Image)
• Cartoon America: Comic Art in the Library of Congress, edited by Harry Katz (Abrams)
• Dear John: The Alex Toth Doodle Book, by John Hitchcock (Octopus Press)
• In the Studio: Visits with Contemporary Cartoonists, by Todd Hignite (Yale University Press)
• Wally's World, by Steve Sarger and J. David Spurlock (Vanguard)

Ah, hell, I dunno. You can't go wrong with Brian Bolland, I always say (except I don't).

Best Publication Design

• Absolute DC: The New Frontier, designed by Darwyn Cooke (DC)
• Castle Waiting graphic novel, designed by Adam Grano (Fantagraphics)
• Lost Girls, designed by Matt Kindt and Brett Warnock (Top Shelf)
• Popeye: I Yam What I Yam, designed by Jacob Covey (Fantagraphics)
• The Ticking, designed by Jordan Crane (Top Shelf)

Eh, they all look good. Fables: 1001 Nights of Snowfall could have worked here, as could Ode to Kirihito, or plenty of others. Whatever, I'm tired of this.

Hall of Fame
Judges' Choices (2): Robert Kanigher and Ogden Whitney

Ross Andru & Mike Esposito
Dick Ayers
Bernard Baily
Matt Baker
Wayne Boring
Creig Flessel
Harold Gray
Irwin Hasen
Graham Ingels
Joe Orlando
Lily Renée (Peters) Phillips
Bob Powell
Gilbert Shelton
Cliff Sterrett

No comment about these guys is necessary, since they've already been named "famous".

Okay, I know I did a lot of bitching, but it's fun to look over these things and agree or disagree. They're not too bad overall, and like I mentioned earlier, the sheer amount of comics coming out these days is pretty overwhelming, so it's tough to pick a few for each category. They did the best they could, I expect. So now we can wait until they announce the winners, and then complain some more.

Any comments, agreements, disagreements? Think I'm an idiot in my opinions? Want to congratulate me on my great taste? Please, let me know in the comments!

UPDATED! In which I get predictable

Ha ha, that title is meant to have a double meaning, but it probably just sounds dumb. Anyway, I figured I would do the typical blogger thing and give my picks for the Oscars, which are happening tonight. I'll skip any categories I don't have an opinion about, so don't expect to see Best Short Film, either live-action or animated. Or Best Documentary Short. I have no clue about any of those (I also have no clue about some other categories, but that won't stop me...). So, off we go:

Oscars 2006:

Performance by an actor in a leading role:

Leonardo DiCaprio - BLOOD DIAMOND
Ryan Gosling - HALF NELSON
Peter O'Toole - VENUS
Will Smith - THE PURSUIT OF HAPPYNESS
Forest Whitaker - THE LAST KING OF SCOTLAND

DiCaprio should have been nominated for The Departed. He definitely shouldn't get any awards for his atrocious accent in this one (although, to be fair, I haven't seen the movie). I hear Ryan Gosling is amazing, but I haven't seen that one either. In fact, I haven't seen any of these. It just better not be Will Smith in that movie about the pursuit of sappyness. So I'll pick Forest Whitaker.

Who should have been nominated? Tommy Lee Jones, The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada. Gael Garcia Bernal, The Science of Sleep (I'm probably the only person who thinks so, but whatever). Edward Norton, Down in the Valley.

Performance by an actor in a supporting role:

Alan Arkin - LITTLE MISS SUNSHINE
Jackie Earle Haley - LITTLE CHILDREN
Djimon Hounsou - BLOOD DIAMOND
Eddie Murphy - DREAMGIRLS
Mark Wahlberg - THE DEPARTED

Out of these, I've seen Little Miss Sunshine and The Departed. I would have chosen Steve Carrell over Alan Arkin for Sunshine, and Jack Nicholson over Mark Wahlberg for The Departed (he was over-the-top, but I don't care, he was awesome), so both of those are out. I'm hoping Eddie Murphy doesn't win, but mostly out of dislike for him and the movie (which I haven't seen, but it bugs me anyway). I'm guessing Djimon Hounsou, but who knows.

Who should have been nominated? Hmmm...maybe Brad Pitt in Babel, or Barry Pepper in The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada. Kevin Kline, A Prarie Home Companion. Sergi Lopez, Pan's Labyrinth.

Performance by an actress in a leading role:

Penélope Cruz - VOLVER
Judi Dench - NOTES ON A SCANDAL
Helen Mirren - THE QUEEN
Meryl Streep - THE DEVIL WEARS PRADA
Kate Winslet - LITTLE CHILDREN

I think Helen Mirren is a lock for this one. The only one I've seen is The Devil Wears Prada, and while Meryl Streep was pretty good in that role, the movie wasn't that great, and any other actress probably wouldn't have been nominated. I really need to see Volver; I hear Penelope Cruz is great in that.

Who should have been nominated? Kirsten Dunst, Marie Antoinette. I can't really think of anybody else.

Performance by an actress in a supporting role:

Adriana Barraza - BABEL
Cate Blanchett - NOTES ON A SCANDAL
Abigail Breslin - LITTLE MISS SUNSHINE
Jennifer Hudson - DREAMGIRLS
Rinko Kikuchi - BABEL

For who should win out of these, I would probably say Barraza. Kikuchi was also very good. I wouldn't mind if Breslin won either. But I think Jennifer Hudson is going to win. Bummer.

Who should have been nominated? Possibly Julianne Moore in Children of Men. Meryl Streep, A Prairie Home Companion.

Best animated feature film of the year:

CARS
HAPPY FEET
MONSTER HOUSE

Cars. I didn't see Monster House, but I heard it was okay. As for Happy Feet, I'll be pissed if it wins. It had very pretty animation, but it was a bad, bad movie.

Who should have been nominated? Flushed Away would be the only other animated movie I would have considered. Everything else was bad.

Achievement in art direction:

DREAMGIRLS
THE GOOD SHEPHERD
PAN'S LABYRINTH
PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN: DEAD MAN'S CHEST
THE PRESTIGE

My guess for this one is Pan's Labyrinth, but I'll be okay if The Prestige wins. That had some really stunning visuals. Pirates seems out of place here, and I didn't see The Good Shepherd, but I just hope Dreamgirls doesn't get it.

Who should have been nominated? The Curse of the Golden Flower. Marie Antoinette; maybe that didn't get nominated because when you're shooting in Versailles, the set decoration has mostly been done for you.

Achievement in cinematography:

THE BLACK DAHLIA
CHILDREN OF MEN
THE ILLUSIONIST
PAN'S LABYRINTH
THE PRESTIGE

Children of Men, all the way. Incredible cinematography in that one. Pan's Labyrinth was also good, of course.

Who should have been nominated? I dunno, maybe my same picks as Art Direction. Those also seem like good picks.

Achievement in costume design:

CURSE OF THE GOLDEN FLOWER
THE DEVIL WEARS PRADA
DREAMGIRLS
MARIE ANTOINETTE
THE QUEEN

Curse of the Golden Flower. Marie Antoinette was also very good. Like always, I just hope it isn't Dreamgirls. And they actually designed costumes for The Devil Wears Prada? They might as well give an Oscar to Vogue magazine.

Best documentary feature:

DELIVER US FROM EVIL
AN INCONVENIENT TRUTH
IRAQ IN FRAGMENTS
JESUS CAMP
MY COUNTRY, MY COUNTRY

I'm betting An Inconvenient Truth is too popular not to win. I also hear Iraq in Fragments is really good, and politically loaded films often win, so it has a chance. I've heard Jesus Camp is also good, but I don't think it will win. I don't know enough about the others.

Achievement in film editing:

BABEL
BLOOD DIAMOND
CHILDREN OF MEN
THE DEPARTED
UNITED 93

I'm usually not too sure about editing. I'll say Children of Men, but Babel and The Departed also seem like good choices. Hell, so does United 93, I guess.

Who should have been nominated? The Fountain? Marie Antoinette? The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada?

Best foreign language film of the year:

AFTER THE WEDDING
DAYS OF GLORY (INDIGÈNES)
THE LIVES OF OTHERS
PAN'S LABYRINTH
WATER

The only one I've seen is Pan's Labyrinth, but it was one of my favorite films of the year, so I'm choosing it.

Who should have been nominated? The Curse of the Golden Flower. The Death of Mr. Lazarescu, even though I didn't especially like it.

Achievement in makeup:

APOCALYPTO
CLICK
PAN'S LABYRINTH

Click? Really? Old-man makeup isn't exactly award-worthy, in my opinion. I'm guessing Pan's Labyrinth, but Apocalypto would probably also be a good guess.

Who should have been nominated? Marie Antoinette. The Curse of the Golden Flower.

Achievement in music written for motion pictures (Original score):

BABEL
THE GOOD GERMAN
NOTES ON A SCANDAL
PAN'S LABYRINTH
THE QUEEN

Hell, I don't know. I'll say Pan's Labyrinth. Babel might also be a good choice. And The Queen is popular, maybe it'll win something other than Best Actress.

Achievement in music written for motion pictures (Original song):

"I Need to Wake Up" - AN INCONVENIENT TRUTH
"Listen" - DREAMGIRLS
"Love You I Do" - DREAMGIRLS
"Our Town" - CARS
"Patience" - DREAMGIRLS

I'll take a wild guess and say "Love You I Do" from Dreamgirls. I don't know, and I don't really care, for that matter.

Achievement in sound editing:

APOCALYPTO
BLOOD DIAMOND
FLAGS OF OUR FATHERS
LETTERS FROM IWO JIMA
PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN: DEAD MAN'S CHEST

I've only seen Pirates, so I'll choose that one. But it could probably go to any of these.

Achievement in sound mixing:

APOCALYPTO
BLOOD DIAMOND
DREAMGIRLS
FLAGS OF OUR FATHERS
PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN: DEAD MAN'S CHEST

Ditto my last answer.

Achievement in visual effects:

PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN: DEAD MAN'S CHEST
POSEIDON
SUPERMAN RETURNS

Pirates. As for the others, they really didn't even deserve to be nominated. Superman Returns? There wasn't anything in that movie that hasn't been done over and over for the last ten years. And I didn't see Poseidon, but come one, it was a sinking ship movie. I really doubt it had anything that hadn't already been done by Titanic, or, more recently, The Perfect Storm.

Who should have been nominated? The Fountain. I'm actually kind of pissed that it didn't get nominated. Too low-tech for the academy, I guess, but it really had the most incredible effects of the year. The Science of Sleep also had great effects, but I guess they were too obviously (and purposely) fake to be nominated. And Shortbus had one of the most moving effects I've ever seen, with the "camera" zooming around cardboard-looking buildings all over Manhattan.

Adapted screenplay:

BORAT CULTURAL LEARNINGS OF AMERICA FOR MAKE BENEFIT GLORIOUS NATION OF KAZAKHSTAN
CHILDREN OF MEN
THE DEPARTED
LITTLE CHILDREN
NOTES ON A SCANDAL

My pick is Children of Men, but it will probably go to The Departed. What was Borat an adaptation of, the TV show? Weird.

Who should have been nominated? A Prairie Home Companion. The Prestige. Tristram Shandy: A Cock and Bull Story.

Original screenplay:

BABEL
LETTERS FROM IWO JIMA
LITTLE MISS SUNSHINE
PAN'S LABYRINTH
THE QUEEN

I'm guessing Little Miss Sunshine, since this is probably the only award it will win. The others are also all good picks, so any of them could also win.

Who should have been nominated? The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada. Shortbus. The Fountain. The Science of Sleep. Brick.

Achievement in directing:

BABEL
THE DEPARTED
LETTERS FROM IWO JIMA
THE QUEEN
UNITED 93

I think it'll finally be Scorsese's year, for The Departed. I would also accept Alejondro Gonzalez Inarritu, for Babel. I didn't see United 93, but I heard it was very good. Maybe patriotism will win out. And the Academy always loves Clint Eastwood, so don't count out Letters from Iwo Jima.

Who should have been nominated? Alfonso Cuaron, Children of Men! Michel Gondry, The Science of Sleep (in my dreams)! Sofia Coppola, Marie Antoinette. Tommy Lee Jones, The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada. Darren Aronofsky, The Fountain. Robert Altman, A Prairie Home Companion.

Best motion picture of the year:

BABEL
THE DEPARTED
LETTERS FROM IWO JIMA
LITTLE MISS SUNSHINE
THE QUEEN

And for the big one...I don't know. I'm guessing Letters from Iwo Jima, since, as I mentioned, the Academy loves Eastwood and will honor Scorsese with Best Director. But I could be wrong; The Departed and The Queen are also possibilities. And maybe Babel, although there seems to be a backlash against it, possibly for being too much like Crash (which it's much, much better than).

Who should have been nominated? You can probably guess what I'll say here: Children of Men, which I really do think is the best movie of the year. I also think The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada and A Prairie Home Companion are very good. And while I loved The Science of Sleep, The Fountain, and Marie Antionette, I realize that they aren't for everyone, so I don't begrudge the Academy for leaving them out.
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And that's it. I think it's funny that Best Visual Effects was the category I got most worked up about. How silly of me. If anybody reads this, it'll probably be after the ceremony, so you can berate me in the comments for how wrong I ended up being.
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POST-CEREMONY UPDATE:

Looks like I should have guessed The Departed for more categories. How about that.

Happy Feet won for Best Animated Picture (dammit!), but my wife had a good comment: It's got that environmental theme, which those Hollywood liberals love. I should have considered that factor.

Were there no good original songs in movies last year? All five of the songs performed during the show sucked.

I'm surprised Pan's Labyrinth didn't win Best Foreign Language Film, but maybe voters thought something else should get recognized after it won a few other categories.
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Okay, that's it for me with the silly commentary. Hopefully I'll be able to get to some of my normal stuff soon.

My acclaim reaches all the way to...another website

The Onion AV Club has posted the results of their 2006 film poll, and I'm quoted giving my praise of The Science of Sleep. Hell, yeah, I'm (not really) famous! My contribution aside, It's a pretty enjoyable read, with lots of opinions about movies this year. Three of my top five movies (readers were asked to submit their top five) made the top ten list (I take credit for Science of Sleep squeaking in at number 10, since I ranked it number one!), and two others from the top ten list I previously posted got recognition. It's a good list, and other than United 93 (which I didn't see), I've seen and liked all of them. I do think Borat is a bit overrated, though. So check out the article, and join in the discussion in the comments, if you like. And you can comment here, as always. Later, everybody!

Retroactive continuity comes to WPSTB!

Man, the name of my blog doesn't really work as an acronym (or abbreviation, if you want to get picky). And I'm sure to turn some people off with the use of comics terminology. And this self-criticism probably gets old too! Oh well; let's get down to business. I give you:

My Top Ten Films of the Year (revised!):

I got around to seeing a few of the movies I wanted to see, and, sure enough, some of them were good enough to supplant my early favorites. I figured I would go ahead and finalize the list, since I'm sending a top five into The Onion AV Club's annual film poll. Any bumped off off my previous list automatically get an honorable mention (like it matters to anybody but me). And luckily for you (mythical) readers, I'll only offer comments on the new entries. Here we go:

10. Babel
9. Shortbus
8. The Departed

7. Pan's Labyrinth

Guillermo del Toro really makes incredible movies, both of the personal (Cronos, The Devil's Backbone) and commercial (Blade 2, Hellboy) varieties. This one definitely falls into the "personal" category; it's a sort of fairy tale set just after the end of the Spanish Civil War. I took it to be a look at the tendency/ability of children to escape into their imaginations when confronted with traumatic experiences (and the experiences in this movie are about as traumatic as you can get, with an emphasis on the effect war has on everybody), but I'm sure others might discover different symbolism. Great performances, with beautiful imagery and incredible effects. It's a scary movie, but I'm not sure which is scarier, the fantastic elements or the all-too-realistic human violence.

6. Marie Antoinette
5. The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada
4. The Fountain
3. A Prairie Home Companion

2. Children of Men

I had to angst about where on the list to put this one (although it doesn't matter that much, as all ten of these movies are pretty much equal in quality), but I eventually decided this movie was good enough to go higher than even Robert Altman's swan song. I did a brief post about it right after I saw the movie, and that sums up my feelings very well. Alfonso Cuaron's harrowingly realistic vision of a world gone to hell will stick with me for quite a while. I can't recommend it enough.

1. The Science of Sleep
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So I'm calling that my final list. I should also add that I watched The Curse of the Golden Flower, which didn't make my top ten, but I liked enough to retroactively make it an honorable mention. It's a beautiful movie, with some amazing sets and costumes, and at least one scene that is awe-inspiring in the effort it must have taken to film. I've got a longer review in the works, but until then I'll just say "check it out!"

2006: I Like Moviefilms

Sorry about the gratuitous Borat reference there; that sort of thing jumped the shark sometime around last August. But hopefully my lameness will not continue as I reveal:

The Best Movies of the Year!

(In my humble opinion, your mileage may vary, and any other appropriate internet abbreviations)

Rather than break this down into categories like I did with comics, I'm just going to list a top ten. So much for consistency! But first I'll list a few movies that I have not yet seen, which may or may not have made the list if I had: The Good German, Children of Men, Pan's Labyrinth, Tideland, Riding Alone For Thousands of Miles, The Curse of the Golden Flower, The Promise. And probably several others. Also, I heard United 93 was really good, but I can't bring myself to sit through it. So on to the awards!

Honorable Mention:

Brick was a fun integration of noir tropes into high school culture. Joseph Gordon-Levitt especially stands out as a very good young actor who I think will continue to win acclaim. Tristram Shandy: A Cock and Bull Story was an hilarious behind-the-scenes look at conceited filmmakers goofing their way through a difficult literary adaptation. Stranger Than Fiction was a good piece of metafiction, with a restrained (but still very funny) performance by Will Ferrell and a lovely and quirky turn by beautiful and charming Maggie Gyllenhaal as the romantic interest. Dave Chappelle's Block Party was a good look at the comedian and his personal struggles with financial success before his storied "breakdown", with some incredible musical performances. And Little Miss Sunshine was much better than I expected (although not perfect), with quirky characters, funny situations, and possibly my favorite climactic scene of the year.

Extra Honorable Mention for Movies that Deserve Wider Recognition:

Down in the Valley had great performances from Edward Norton and Evan Rachel Wood in a story about growing up, loss of innocence, and all those sort of themes (see my review here). Edmond was a freaky David Mamet excursion through stylized dialogue, sexual (and monetary) obsessions, racism, and violence. Fun stuff! The Proposition was a grimy, fly-filled look at civilization, violence, and civilized violence (here's my review). Bubble was an interesting experiment by Stephen Soderbergh, with nonprofessional actors in a small-scale story about the relationships of workers at a doll factory. I liked it a lot. And Wassup Rockers was one of Larry Clark's best movies, in which he eased up a bit with the teenage sexuality and focused on likable lower-class kids going about their lives.

Special Award for Good Animated Movies in a Year of Animated Mediocrity:

Cars suprised me with a fun story, good characters, and some of Pixar's best animation ever (which is saying a lot), and Flushed Away continued Aardman Animation's streak of hilarious, fast-moving, gag-filled joyrides.

My Top Ten Films of the Year:

I always have trouble ranking my favorites, since each year the top five or so are always pretty much a tie. I managed to decide on a ranking, but it could probably change, depending on my mood or the day of the week. So keep in mind that I think the top seven or eight in this list are nearly equivalent in quality. On with the list!

10. The Prestige

Christopher Nolan weaves an intricate tale about Victorian-era magicians and their tricks and rivalries, with great performances by Christian Bale (one of my favorite actors) and, to a lesser extent, Hugh Jackman (There's also a great minor role by David Bowie as Nikola Tesla). It's a movie that really had my thinking about it and analyzing it for weeks after I saw it. Very enjoyable.

9. Friends With Money

An excellent ensemble piece, with a cast that includes two of my favorite actresses: Frances McDormand and Catherine Keener. It's a good examination of relationships between friends and between couples, and how money can affect our lives, for better and for worse.

8. Babel

Alejandro González Iñárritu is currently one of my favorite directors, and he continues his run of twisty, multi-plot films. This one is especially ambitious, with four separate stories on three different continents, all set in motion by a simple act that leads to violence, death, and emotional upheaval for many characters. Cate Blanchett, Brad Pitt, and Gael García Bernal are the standouts in a really good cast.

7. Shortbus

John Cameron Mitchell's infamous "sex film" ended up being one of the most emotionally moving films of the year, even with plenty of hardcore porn-style scenes. It was a very interesting experiment, and it has one of the most beautiful CGI effects I've ever seen. And great music too!

6. The Departed

Somehow, Martin Scorsese is still managing to make great films, 40 years into his career. Amazing. I enjoyed Infernal Affairs, but this English-language remake is even better, with a great cast that included Alec Baldwin, Martin Sheen, Matt Damon, and Leonardo DiCaprio, with stellar performances by Jack Nicholson and Mark Wahlberg. Tons of intense scenes, great background music, and a wonderfully-realized Boston atmosphere make for an incredible experience.

5. Marie Antoinette

It seems Sofia Coppola can do no wrong with me, since I loved this critically-derided film. Kirsten Dunst plays the character beautifully, with a naivete and exuberance that bring a hated historical persona to life. Jason Schwartzman is also great as the dorky, impotent King Louis XIV, the 80's-music soundtrack sets the mood perfectly, and the sets and scenery have to be seen to be believed. Absolutely beautiful!

4. The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada

Tommy Lee Jones makes his directorial debut in this modern western that deals with illegal immigration and life along the U.S.-Mexico border. There's some great performances (especially by Jones, Barry Pepper, and Dwight Yoakam) and beautiful scenery; plus, it's really funny!

3. The Fountain

I'm a sucker for ambitious sci-fi films, and I'd been eagerly awaiting this one since I first heard about it something like five years ago. It was great to finally see it realized, and to have it not be a disappointment. Darren Aronofsky really brought his vision to life, telling a story (or was it three stories?) of life and death that spanned 1000 years and included conquistadors, the Spanish Inquisition, monkey brains, and bubbles flying through space. All the plot and ideas were great, but the best part of the movie was the relationship between Hugh Jackman and Rachel Weisz. Without that foundation, the rest would have been beautiful, but mostly empty, spectacle. And you can't talk about this movie without mentioning the effects. The outer space scenes were done mostly in a low-tech manner, without the aid of computers, and they come off beautifully. It's an awe-inspiring movie, and it was worth the wait.

2. A Prairie Home Companion

Robert Altman's final film was a fitting end to his career, with it's discussion of death and loss in the midst of giving great performances. A great cast (Did Altman ever have any other kind?) brings to life a semi-fictional version of Garrison Keillor's radio show on it's last night, and it's an experience to behold, with beautiful music and goofy skits by Keillor, Meryl Streep and Lily Tomlin, Woody Harrelson and John C. Reilly, and others. Kevin Kline is another stand out, playing Guy Noir, the ex-private-detective head of security for the theater. He has one of my favorite lines of the year: "She was wearing a Mount Rushmore T-shirt, and those guys never looked so good. Especially Jefferson and Lincoln. Kind of bloated, but happy." Priceless!

1. The Science of Sleep

Michel Gondry has an imagination like no one else on earth. Watching the stuff he comes up with in his movies gives me a goofy grin that lasts for weeks. His low-tech effects are charming, and the songs he picks fit the mood perfectly (which makes sense, since he has directed lots of music videos). This story of a guy who has trouble distinguishing dreams and reality is wonderful, and Gael García Bernal plays him perfectly. Bernal has been quickly becoming a favorite of mine, although I never realized he had the skill for comedy that he demonstrates in this movie. He's great, especially in crazy sequences when he has to act while wearing giant hands, walking around naked in his sleep, or building a cardboard city with his mind. I don't think I enjoyed any other film more this year.
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And that's all for the year. It was a pretty good year, considering I managed to mention over twenty films in my top ten list. And I could probably come up with a few more if I put my mind to it. Here's hoping 2007 is just as good, or even better!

2006: Comics Are Cool

And thus begins the great roundup of the year 2006! I always enjoy these types of "year in review" articles, so now is my chance to do some of my own. I'll follow up with movies, and maybe some other categories later, but for now I'll focus on:

The Best Comics of the Year!

(In my opinion, anyway. Out of what I've read. And that I remember correctly. I'm always welcome to input, if anybody wants to add their own two cents in the comments.)

It seems the proper etiquette is to rank these things, and I like the "top ten" format, but I don't think I have ten items in each category, so I'll go with a top five, including any honorable mentions that I feel like adding. On with the show!

Best Miniseries:

This is an odd category, since other than the top two, all the series are currently unfinished. I want to give honorable mention to The Nightly News, which is only two issues into a six-issue series and could turn out to be great; Mouse Guard, which is a very enjoyable (and cute) series about some badass rodents; and The Other Side, which still has two issues to go and I like very much, but might end up unsatisfying. Oh yeah, The Next was also a lot of fun, with some great sci-fi concepts by writer Tad Williams. And Polly and the Pirates was a lot of fun, and really cute! UPDATE: I was reminded of Paul Pope's excellent Batman: Year 100. That one was awesome.

5. Agents of Atlas

I find myself reading fewer and fewer superhero comics these days, but if more of them were fun action romps like this, with aliens, gorillas, and robots, I could see myself changing.

4. Local

This series has a ways to go, and seems to be experiencing some delays, but it has been really good so far. Brian Wood and Ryan Kelley are really drawing me into the life of their protagonist, and the sense of location that they bring to each issue is great. I'm eagerly awaiting the Austin, TX issue, since that's where I used to live.

3. Dr. Strange: The Oath

Brian K. Vaughan is writing a great series here, with some excellent art by Marcos Martin. Vaughan is one of my favorite writers, and he's doing great stuff with Dr. Strange, a character that I find myself liking a lot lately, even though I haven't read many of his stories.

2. X-Statix Presents: Dead Girl

And speaking of Dr. Strange, he's the real star of this miniseries by the creators of the much-missed X-Statix, Peter Milligan and Mike Allred (with some help by Nick Dragotta). It was a really fun story about the nature of death and resurrection in the Marvel universe, and we got to catch up with the team as they suffer through the agony (and/or boredom) of hell. I'm glad to see Allred returning to his character Madman later this year; I hope Milligan can get out of the Marvel ghetto he's been in lately and start a new Vertigo series or something.

1. Seven Soldiers

I wondered how I should categorize this, but I think I'll have to include the whole megillah in one big, 30-issue (or so) miniseries. It's probably my favorite comics thing in the last few years, and it's been as much fun to discuss it on the Web with people as it has been to read it. Grant Morrison just seems to keep on rolling with the amazing writing. I hope he continues to write comics this good indefinitely. He sure seems to be on pace for it!

Best Ongoing Series:

Honorable Mentions:

I read Fables in trade paperback format, but each collection that I read seems to get better, so I have to recognize it as an ongoing series. Warren Ellis and Ben Templesmith's Fell seems to be coming out sporadically, but it had some very good issues this year. So did Ellis's Desolation Jones, which ended it's first brutal arc (illustrated by the great J.H. Williams III) and continued into a second (with art by Daniel Zezelj) after a hiatus. Godland, by Joe Casey and Tom Scioli, is a wonderful dose of Kirby-esque craziness, and Spider-Man Loves Mary Jane, by Sean McKeever and Takeshi Miyazawa, is a fun throwback to the "teen drama" era of Spider-Man, with a focus on teen life, with only occasional supervillain battles. Huh. I guess I could have managed a top ten for this category. Oh, well.

5. Runaways

Brian K. Vaughan and Adrian Alphona are about to wrap up their run on this series, and it has been a great one. This year had some incredibly good stories, including what might be my favorite comics moment of the year, when the Leapfrog consoles Molly about Gert. I hope the book maintains its quality once Joss Whedon starts writing it, because Vaughan has these characters down to a T.

4. Astonishing X-Men

Speaking of Joss Whedon, this series give me hope for the future of Runaways. He has really grasped the characters in this book very well, and he's writing some kick-ass stories about them! After the disappointing "Danger" storyline, the book took a hiatus, and then returned revitalized, giving us a feral Beast, a childish Wolverine, a gun-happy, goggle-less Cyclops, and a heartbroken Kitty Pryde. And that's not even mentioning the incredible art by John Cassaday. I would call this the comeback of the year.

3. DMZ

Brian Wood gives us another winner, illustrating the exploits of a reporter living in a war-torn New York City. It's an arresting comment on our country's current situation (and any war, anywhere, really), with really well-thought-out situations and characters. It's easy to ignore the problems of people living under the constant threat of death when they're half a world away, but what if they're in our own back yard, in a neighborhood we recognize?

2. All-Star Superman

Here's Grant Morrison again, actually making Superman interesting to me. Whether it's a superpowered Lois Lane making Superman fight off suitors, Jimmy Olsen becoming Doomsday to fight a crazed Superman, or Clark Kent interviewing Lex Luthor during a prison riot, Morrison is writing some wonderful stories. And Frank Quitely is ably illustrating them, doing things I didn't think were possible (see below).

1. Ex Machina

This has been my favorite series for the past couple years, and it didn't do anything to change that this year. Brian K. Vaughan is writing some really good stories about politics, and Tony Harris is doing wonders bringing them to life. This year saw the "March to War" and "Smoke Smoke" storylines (and a two-issue flashback miniseries), which continued to demonstrate this series's amazing mix of politics, superpowers, and personalities. I love Mitchell Hundred as a character, and Vaughan has built a great supporting cast to interact with him. I can't get enough of it.

Best New Series:

I actually could only come up with four items for this category, all of which could have contended for Best Ongoing Series.

4. Testament

I love reading Douglas Rushkoff's theories, and this series is a great examination of the Bible, it's history, and it's place in the world today. Plus, it's really fucking weird. Rushkoff is really experimenting what comics can do here, which is great to see in a series published by a mainstream company. We'll see how long it can last.

3. Jack of Fables

I thought about picking this up in trade format, like I do with Fables, but I guess I couldn't wait. Which is good, because this has been a really fun series so far. Jack is a fun character, and it's very enjoyable to see him interact with other characters on the periphery of the main series. I hope it just gets better as it continues.

2. Casanova

Matt Fraction seemed to come out of nowhere and start writing awesome comics this year, with Casanova leading the pack in all it's Morrison-esque craziness. It's been tons of fun, evoking wacky spy films and throwing so many crazy ideas out that the reader is nearly overwhelmed. Gabriel Ba has done a great job on the art, really bringing Fractions scripts to life with style. Definitely one of the best books out there right now.

1. Nextwave

I might not have considered this so highly if I didn't know it was about to be cancelled, but it probably deserves the spot anyway. I don't know if I've enjoyed any other series this year more. Warren Ellis has been turning his usual ideas and attitude up to eleven, and Stuart Immonen has capably risen to the near-impossible task of realizing them. And somehow it's not selling. Say it isn't so!

Best Graphic Novel:

Honorable Mention: Sloth (by Gilbert Hernandez), in all it's crazy, David Lynch-ian glory.

5. Can't Get No

Rick Veitch's surreal tale of 9/11 was very affecting, with some great imagery and thought-provoking symbolism. It's good to see Vertigo publishing this kind of thing (and Sloth, for that matter.

4. Five Fists of Science

Mark Twain teams up with Nikola Tesla to combat the Lovecraftian horrors summoned by J.P. Morgan and Thomas Edison! Matt Fraction strikes again, writing a highly enjoyable tale with lots of action, great dialogue, and a love story to boot!

3. Scott Pilgrim and the Infinite Sadness

I don't know if a new Scott Pilgrim book is going to come out annually now or what, but it will be treasured whenever it does. Bryan Lee O'Malley tells a great story of young love, peppered with kung fu fights, video game references, and rock and roll.

2. Fables: 1,001 Nights of Snowfall

This was an amazing collection of short stories that reveal the origins of several Fables characters, featuring beautiful art by the likes of John Bolton, Charles Vess, Brian Bolland, James Jean, and Jill Thompson, among others. It's probably best for readers of the regular series, but since that includes me, I really dug it.

1. Pride of Baghdad

Another one from the prolific and talented Brian K. Vaughan, with absolutely incredible art by Niko Henrichon. It's the true story of a group of lions that escaped the Baghdad zoo and wandered through the city during the American invasion in 2003. The story is symbolic of the real Iraqi situation, but also makes some good points about freedom, opression, and control, without being preachy or partisan. Really good stuff.

Best Artist:

Honorable Mention: James Jean is the best cover artist today, bar none.

5. Tony Harris

He brings a lot to Ex Machina, my favorite ongoing series, with his great renditions of facial expressions, not to mention the occasional superheroic violence.

4. John Cassaday

There are some REALLY good comics artists working right now, for Cassaday to be ranked this low. His work on Astonishing X-Men has been blowing me away, both with his quiet character moments and his balls-to-the-wall action scenes. I haven't been reading Planetary (I guess I'm waiting for the final collection), but I'm sure it's pretty good as well.

3. Stuart Immonen

As I mentioned above, his work on Nextwave is some of the best superhero art currently being published. I don't know if anybody else could pull off the over-the-top action scenes and character designs that he does. After Nextwave ends, he's taking over art duties on Ultimate Spider-Man, which I think is a big step down. Hopefully, he'll move on to something else soon.

2. J.H. Williams III

I think the last couple issues of Desolation Jones came out this year, and he contributed to one issue of Detective Comics, but even if the only comic Williams had done this year was Seven Soldiers #1, he'd still be a serious contender for the title. His art on that issue was beyond amazing, evoking the styles of all the artists on the various Seven Soldiers series while still retaining enough of his own style to be a feast for the eyes. I hope he continues to blow all our minds with his talent in 2007.

1. Frank Quitely

Quitely did something this year that I thought was impossible: he made me believe the Clark Kent disguise. In All-Star Superman #5, Superman spends the entire issue as Kent, and for the first time ever, in any medium, I believed that it would fool people. That's always been a joke about Superman, that people would have to be stupid to not recognize him just because he was wearing glasses. It's been something that people just have to ignore or accept, until now. The way Quitely draws it, everything about Clark Kent looks different from Superman, from the way he combs his hair, to his facial expressions, to his posture, even to how heavy he looks. Somehow, it becomes totally believable. That's how good an artist Quitely is. And that's not even mentioning his beautiful land(and space)scapes, his amazing action scenes, or the little details that he hides in his panels. He was truly the best comics artist this year.

Best Writer:

5. Joe Casey

Godland! Casey evokes the plots and dialogue of Kirby like no one else, but still retains a modern feel.

4. Brian Wood

I already raved about DMZ and Local above, so I'll just say Wood is fast becoming one of my favorite writers. Here's hoping he continues to shine.

3. Warren Ellis

Ellis was incredibly prolific this year, with Desolation Jones, Fell, Nextwave, Newuniversal, Blackgas, Planetary, and at least one issue of Wolfskin. Oh, and Ultimate Extinction. Did I miss anything? Did Ocean come out in 2006? What about Iron Man? Whatever he did, he shined, with his signature combination of hardassed tough guys, futuristic idealism, and technological fetishism, not to mention a skill for writing wild and crazy action. He's got a great run of quality going, and I hope it continues for some time to come.

2. Brian K. Vaughan

Vaughan seems to be the most-mentioned writer on the above lists of comics, and I didn't even include Y: The Last Man! I'm really digging pretty much everything he does right now, and I hope he keeps doing it for a long time to come. There's really only one man who could end up above him...

1. Grant Morrison

Morrison is the current genius-laureate of comics. It seems like he can't stop coming up with insane ideas. Like J.H. Williams, Seven Soldiers alone would probably have propelled him to the top of the list, but he wasn't content to rest on his laurels; instead he moved on to other things, like the amazing All-Star Superman, the Wildstorm relaunch (we'll have to see how that turns out), and a fun run on Batman. I'm sure he has more crazy ideas coming next year (here's hoping for Seaguy 2!).

Special Award for Excellence in Everything:

Chris Ware

Acme Novelty Library #17 was beautiful. I hope he starts cranking these out faster!
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And that wraps up the year in comics. I'm sure I could come up with more, if I kept thinking about it. There are a lot of indy comics and graphic novels that I either didn't get to or didn't include here. And I didn't even touch on the world of manga (mostly because I didn't read a whole lot of it this year). All said, this is a great time to be a comics fan, and it looks like it's only going to get better!