THIS YEAR’S FINEST 2015: THE TEN BEST COMICS OF 2015

We finally made it. Some old favorites, some new favorites and everything in between. These are the ten best comics of 2015

Honorable Mentions: Wytches, Batman, Sandman Overture, Mind MGMT, The Unbeatable Squirrel Girl, Sex Criminals, Airboy, Black Science, Descender, BPRD, Rachel Rising, Harrow County, Stray Bullets, Copra, Gotham Academy, Moon Knight, Rasputin, Birthright, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles

10. Shutter by Joe Keatinge, Leila Del Duca & Owen Gieni

The surprise  hit of last year took it to another level in 2015 with a comic that was never predictable and always exciting as it explored new dimensions and concepts in the ongoing series. Keatinge & Del Duca continued to expand Shutter’s scope with it’s rich cast and lush visual narrative. In Shutter, anything can happen and it’s never expected in all the best ways possible-Pat

Read Shutter, the story so far

9. The Multiversity by Grant Morrison, Marcus To, Dave McCraig, Paulo Siqueira, HiFi, Jim Lee, Sanda Hope, Mark Irwin, Scott Williams, Alex Sinclair, Jonathan Glapion, Jeremy Cox, Doug Mahnke, Christian Alamy, Keith Champange, Jamie Mendoza, Gale Eltaeb, David Baron, Ivan Reis, Joe Prado, Ebeb Ferrieira, Dan Brown & Jason Wright

In the closing of this series, Grant Morrison wrote some of the most powerful and effecting issues of The Multiversity. With a guide book exploring all the different earths sandwiched between a Khamandi & lil’ DC Universe story, an alternate universe where the Nazi’s won WWII with the aid of the Justice League, a comic about how comics effect the readers and the bonkers closing chapter that tied the whole thing together; writer Grant Morrison continued to defy expectations in his seminal ode to the DC multiverse. All the while, Multiversity was bringing out some of the best work we’ve seen in years from artist like Jim Lee & Ivan Reis. Multiversity was constantly innovating the format and it made for one of the best ongoing series of it’s era in addition to marking a return to form for the writer, this was a series that lived up to it’s epic ambitions-Pat

Read Comic Convo: Multiversity #2

8. The Wicked+The Divine by Kieron Gillian, Jamie McKelvie, Matt Wilson, Kate Brown, Tula Lotay, Stephanie Hans, Leila Del Duca, Mat Lopes & Brandon Graham

The Wicked+The Divine continued to expand it’s mythology while creating perhaps the smartest commentary on popular music in 2015. Gillen,  McKelvie & Wilson did some of their most innovative work yet on the title while bringing on some of the best artists in the medium like Leila Del Duca, Brandon Graham, Stephanie Hans & Tula Lotay for a series of singular character focused one shots. The Wicked+The Divine is one of the most slickest and most original series in comics as it’s proving to possibly be this creative teams magnum opus as it simultaneously explores the minutia of comics and music for a beautiful love letter to pop art-Pat

Read Wicked+ Divine Truths

7. The Fade Out by Ed Brubaker, Sean Phillips & Elizabeth Breitweiser

Ed Brubaker and Sean Phillips are something special. As a team they’re responsible for some of the greatest modern comics ever, so it’s no surprise that their latest endeavor made our list for the second year in a row. The Fade Out is an amalgamation of many genre staples that these two do so well. Murder, intrigue, corruption, seedy bars, seedier people and lost souls are almost a specialty of the duo at this point. The setting of 1950’s Hollywood is pitch perfect for Sean Phillips’ signature art style; with smoke-stained rooms, neon signs and beautiful people everywhere, the book forges a mood that is unmistakeable. Bettie Breitweiser’s coloring adds a lot to that as well, making each page come so alive you can practically smell the Lucky Strikes. Brubaker’s obvious love for the period and people is apparent with every beautiful turn of phrase or Midcentury celebrity analogue. We still have one more issue to go before it all ends and as with every other book this team has completed it is a bittersweet occasion, but thankfully another project is a near certainty. The Fade Out is the product of a team that is so in sync they’re practically one person and it is a privilege and a pleasure to read every new story they tell-Tyler

Read This Weeks Finest The Fade Out #11

6. Ms. Marvel by G. Willow Wilson, Adrian Alphona, Takeshi Miyazawa & Ian Herring

When it started, Ms Marvel was a fun and exciting series about new character Khamala Khan that took traditional superhero tropes and modernized them for the 21st century in a way that felt more forward thinking then any attempt prior. In it’s second year, writer G. Willow Wilson, illustrators Adrian Alphona & Takeshi Myazawa along with colorists Ian Herring brought even more life to the already vibrant series by adding depth & layers to the character and her surroundings. Reading this comic is like watching Khamala grow up in real time and this year had so many poignant moments in that regard. A brilliant ongoing superhero comic that never lost a step through it’s crossover and relaunch, Khamala & co is the most consistently enjoyable superhero series in comics-Pat

Read Ms. Marvel Can Change The World

5. The Omega Men by Tom King, Barnaby Begenda, Romulo Fajardo Jr, Jose Marzan Jr. & Toby Cypress

This year we saw the rise of a new voice in comics, Tom King. He made our–and everyone else’s–Best Writers list, and Omega Men was a huge part of that reasoning. I’ll openly admit that I had no idea what Omega Men was going to be when I picked up that first issue, but the art was great and I was intrigued enough to check it out. It turned out to be one of my favorite stories of the whole year. After a short-lived cancellation, we learned that Tom King and Barnaby Bagenda’s little space opera about a Green Lantern kidnapped by a group of radicals bent on destroying the status quo galactic government, was resonating with a ton of readers. I think the secret is that King takes his story and characters seriously; elements of religious extremism, morality, sacrifice and freedom from oppression are all explored in this title. The term space opera is not used lightly, this book is legit operatic, the consequences of the Omega Men’s actions are astronomical and we’ve only begun to see exactly what they may be. Now that we know the full twelve issue story King and Bagenda had planned will come to fruition, the only question left is will DC give us more?-Tyler

Read The Omega Men Awaken

4. Deadly Class by Rick Remender, Wes Craig & Jordan Boyd

The first year of Deadly Class was all about Marcus finding his way into the world of Kings Dominion and making friends. The second year has been all about the consequences of his choices since that fateful Las Vegas trip. Teenage love triangles, cliques, popularity jockeying; these are all things that Remender touches on in this book, and that’s what keeps it so universally compelling. It’s the literal backstabbing, poison class, cartel hit squads, and overall mayhem that separate it from the crowd, and make it one of the most crazy-enjoyable books around. Wes Craig, whom you may remember from our best artists list, knocks every issue out of the park. After just missing the cut last year, this year’s eight insane issues were enough to get our vote as one of the best ongoing stories in comics-Tyler

Read This Weeks Finest Deadly Class

3. Secret Wars by Jonathan Hickman, Esad Ribic & Ive Svorciina

I’ll fully admit that I was skeptical about this series when it was first announced. The promo art’s emphasis suggested a lame excuse for hero vs (alternate) hero smackdowns. What we got instead was something entirely different: a well-thought out, fascinating re-imagining of the Marvel Universe. Given free reign, Jonathan Hickman let his creativity run wild; he was clearly having fun scripting characters like Mr. Sinister and Peter Quill. At the same time, he imbued the series with the same deep philosophy which define creator owned work like East of West. For his part Esad Ribic has filled every issue with stunning art capturing the epic sweep of the narrative, as well as the quieter character bests. Hickman and Ribic are doing career best work here and considering how impressive their past efforts have been that is truly saying something. Secret Wars will be the marker by which readers will be judging Big Two Events for years to come-Cosmo

Read This Weeks Finest Secret Wars #8

2. Southern Bastards by Jason Aaron, Jason Latour & Chris Brunner

From the beginning Southern Bastards has succeeded by defining expectations; each new arc twists the story in a different way, adding fresh layers to Jason Aaron & Jason Latour’s portrait of Craw County, Alabama. This trend was clear this year with the sympathetic treatment of antagonist Coach Boss’ adolescence. Aaron followed this up with a string of one-and-done stories highlighting assorted supporting player among the cast, broadening scope of what consisted the Craw County community. All of these were viscerally illustrated in Latour’s scratchy style which did much to create the atmosphere of the title. Finally, Latour took a turn scripting with guest artist Chris Brunner an issue unlike any other. Full of surreal waking dreams, the chapter still fit perfectly into the spirit of the series. In such a way, Aaron and Latour shifted what at first appeared to be merely a well-crafted crime book into a fascinatingly complex portrait of the rural South-Cosmo

Read This Weeks Finest Southern Bastards #9

1. Saga by Brian K Vaughan & Fiona Staples 

Saga has been either the best or among the best comics ever since it’s debut as the talent, chemistry and creativity of Vaughan & Staples is undeniable. Yet in 2015, not only is Saga still the best and most important comic being published but it also keeps getting better. This is while the series continues to dig deeper into both the personal lives of it’s expansive cast and it’s real life allegory. This is the third time Saga has topped our best of the year list for ongoing series at this site and every year we’ve done this, Saga has been the clear cut best book as decided on by the staff. It’s a masterful work that consistently pushes boundary’s without losing sight of it’s core themes of family and war. This year, as is every year, it is the finest comic in the medium and it should continue to be that for as long as it runs-Pat

Read This Weeks Finest #32