Comics
[BEST & WORST ’12] Lonmonster’ List of the Best Comics 2012!
Comics are my number one passion in life. While some may see me as childish or geeky, I believe comic books are one of the most powerful storytelling mediums around. If you disagree, let the mighty hammer of Thor rain down upon you. The point is that while some dismiss comics for lacking in maturity, comics are just as potent and intelligent as any other art form. I read an unhealthy amount of comics (seriously, it’s a problem), and I like to think that by know I know what makes a good comic. The books in my top 10 list range from indie graphic novels to New 52 ongoings in order to represent the wide array of quality comics from 2012.
I had a really tough time narrowing down my list. Starting with roughly 20 titles, I cut it to 10, then ordered them over and over again. I never would have guessed that my number one series of the year would be a zombie/vampire book.
LONNIE NADLER’S TOP 10 COMICS OF 2012
10. Alabaster: Wolves (Dark Horse Comics )
There’s just something about Caitlin R Kiernan’s white albino huntress that had me head over heals in love from issue #1. Kiernan bizarre world is so vast and unlike any dark fantasy I’ve ever encountered. While “Alabaster: Wolves” was just a brief miniseries, the fact that I liked it this much how much potential exists within this edgy fantasy world. This is the kind of fiction that is not grounded in our reality, but rather takes place in a reality of its own; a reality that is estranged, beautiful, and powerful.
9. Monocyte (IDW Publishing)
Prior to menton3 and Kasra Gahnbari’s endeavors with 44FLOOD, the duo released “Monocyte”, the story of a one-eyed necromancer who is awoken to put two immortal races to rest. It’s a bleak and gothic look into the future of humanity. I’ve read the book over several times, and while I can’t say I fully understand it, “Monocyte” is the most poetic comic I read this year.
8. Queen Crab (Image Comics)
When I heard that Jimmy Palmiotti was writing an original graphic novel being marketed at Stephen Kind meets David Lynch, I knew it would be on this list before I even read it. Ginger’s journey throughout “Queen Crab” is an absurd one, but more importantly it is an exploration how we try to find meaning in a world that is inherently without meaning. While “Queen Crab” is a story of female empowerment and male castration, it is so much more. Bold in his delivery, Palmiotti twists the classic horror movie monster into something far more beautiful and far more human.
7. Animal Man (DC Comics)
Jeff Lemire took a hero nobody believed in, and made him one of the most popular titles at DC. A horror title nonetheless. Buddy Baker is a family oriented man, and there’s nothing Lemire writes better than family drama. Sure, The Rot is dreadfully awesome, but what separates this book from the rest of DC’s lineup that Buddy Baker is far more relatable than most heroes. The horror is not strictly derived from Animal Man’s grotesque enemies, but more so from fear of what might happen to his beloved family.
6. Severed (Image Comics)
“Severed” is a classic horror story. It throws back to 1916 where fears of childhood and leaving home were ripe. Snyder and Tuft base their twisted villain on real life serial killer, Albert Fish; a brilliant move that reminds us of the sick people that exist in the real world. In the final few issues, nearly every page is heart pounding, packed with real suspense and true scares that are rarely seen in comics.
5. My Friend Dahmer (Abrams ComicArts)
If you dig horror, chances are you’ve stumbled across the Wikipedia pages of the most infamous serial killers. Jeffrey Dahmer is perhaps the most notorious of the bunch. Writer and artist Derf Backderf grounds his work in his own experiences, recounting his life and times with high-school friend, Jeffrey Dahmer. Backderf doesn’t shy away from the disturbing subject matter, making “My Friend Dahmer” a potent character study. This is a fascinating look into a broken world that bred a monster.
4. Sweet Tooth (Vertigo Comics)
“Sweet Tooth” represents all I love about Jeff Lemire. While I would have liked to put “Underwater Welder” on this list, “Sweet Tooth” has been too good and too close to my heart to leave it out. This series showcases Lemire’s compassionate writing and his unique, naïve artistic style. The post-apocalyptic hybrid creatures are cute, but the pervasive sense of danger throughout the series gives it a weight unlike any other series.
3. Saga (Image Comics)
I doubt that there will be a single Best Comics of 2012 list that does not pay tribute to Brian K Vaughan and Finoa Staples masterpiece that is “Saga”. Part sci-fi epic, part love story, part adventure, BKV draws from all genres to create a lush world that is as imaginative as it is dangerous. I cannot even begin to comprehend how BKV’s mind works, but I’m glad we have him on our side.
2. Locke & Key (IDW Publishing)
Just when I thought this series couldn’t get any better, Joe Hill and Gabriel Rodriguez deliver “Locke & Key: Clockworks”. “Clockworks” is a testament to Hill’s ability to shape multifaceted storylines as he ties the plot all the way back to the first arc. I have grown so attached to the doomed Locke family that I do now know how I will go through life once they are gone in 2013.
1. The New Deadwardians (Vertigo Comics)
If you had told me at the start of the year that a zombie/vampire book would be my favorite series of the year, I would have said you were batshit crazy. However, Abnett seamlessly blends in all the key elements of Gothic fiction with modern horror to create an extremely intriguing mystery that bleeds with whit, magic, and innovation. I’ve grown weary of the countless undead stories out there, but “The New Deadwardians” is the most ferociously original series I read all year. From the clever play on words to the rich elements of Victorian history, “The New Deadwardians” is proof that there is still plenty of life left in vampire/zombie fiction.
Honorable Mentions:
Colder (Dark Horse Comics)
Harvest (Image Comics)
The Hive (Pantheon)
Thanks everyone for a great year. See you in 2013!
Comics
‘You’ll Never Leave This Place Alive’ – IDW Dark’s Next Horror Comic Will Make You Question Reality
Five friends. Four houses. One perfect life. Bloody Disgusting is excited to exclusively announce You’ll Never Leave This Place Alive, a brand new horror comic from IDW Dark.
From Eisner-Nominated writers Jackson Lanzing and Collin Kelly, and rising horror artist Heather Vaughan, You’ll Never Leave This Place Alive is described as a “paranoia-laced, socially-conscious, horror mystery that will leave you questioning reality, and reveal that this crafted world is more of a nightmare than the idealistic dream they were expecting.”
Phoebe Joplin has never questioned the world her parents built: a secluded community where she and her friends were raised to be smarter, stronger, and better than anyone else. No distractions. No dangers. No secrets. Until the night of their graduation.
When one of them dies under impossible circumstances, Phee starts to pull at the edges of her perfect life—and what she finds is something far more terrifying than she ever imagined.
Because this place isn’t a sanctuary. It’s a cage. And no one who discovers the truth ever leaves it alive.
Collin Kelly & Jackson Lanzing (Batman – One Bad Day: Clayface, Star Trek: The Last Starship) co-write the upcoming IDW Dark horror comic, featuring art by Heather Vaughan.
Jackson Lanzing said in a statement to Bloody Disgusting, “You’ll Never Leave This Place Alive is in many ways a spiritual successor to our last creator-owned horror, The Principles of Necromancy – a dive into the promise and consequence of playing god with the blood of innocents. But the Hivemind book this reminds me of most is Clayface: One Bad Day. This is a deeply human story with intensely raw emotions – five best friends and their five mysterious parents, tearing one another apart for the promise of some impossible glory that’s waiting just beyond their darkest actions. We’re thrilled to be bringing this story to life with our long-time partner in crime, editor Heather Antos, at IDW Dark – and we’re particularly excited to give our Clayface fans a new, brutal and emotional horror made just for them.”
Adds Collin Kelly, “We’re deconstructing a feeling that seems universal these days; our elders have a death grip on their power, without any intention of giving it up to the generations that come next. YNLTPA is about growing up with the limitless potential of the future… and realizing how much it’s a lie we’ve been fed to keep us under the yoke of the past. Bringing this brutal experience to life is our artist and co-creator, Heather Vaughan, who brings an incredible amount of humanity to our cast. But it’s in our youthful leads that Heather’s art really shines – you are going to fall in love with these young people, even as they go through the worst experience of their lives. What we’ve all crafted together is going to be tragic, painful, but above all else, sincere – with a future so uncertain, there’s only one thing we can trust: you’ll never leave this place alive.”
“Some horror stories are about monsters in the dark. YNLTPA is about realizing the monsters raised you,” previews Senior Group Editor Heather Antos. “Working with Jackson Lanzing and Collin Kelly on this series has been a dream in the darkest possible way. They’ve built a story that’s layered, brutal, and deeply emotional, and every issue gives artist Heather Vaughan opportunities to push the art into places that feel both haunting and deeply personal. Some horror comics will keep you up at night…this is one that will stick with you for years to come.”
The first issue of You’ll Never Leave This Place Alive goes on sale October 14, 2026! Make sure to pre-order at your local comic shop by September to guarantee a copy.
Exclusively check out the various covers for Issue #1 down below.
IDW Publishing’s horror imprint IDW DARK features comics like A Quiet Place: Storm Warning, Smile: For the Camera, The Exorcism at 1600 Penn, Beneath The Trees Where Nobody Sees, The Twilight Zone, Event Horizon: Dark Descent & Event Horizon: Inferno, and more.
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