The Avengers #1 “The Coming of the Avengers!”. September 1963: Marvel Masterworks. Stan Lee, Jack Kirby, Don Heck. From Vol. 1 Collecting the Avengers Nos. 1-10. 2009.
This first Avengers comic features Loki, Thor, Hulk, Iron Man, Ant Man, & the Wasp. Loki frames a train derailment on Hulk to lure Thor out of his human doctor state. Other heroes also hear of what the Hulk has done, and they all go to find him. They find out Loki was behind the stunt, and decide to become a team of superheroes, fighting together and separately. They call themselves the Avengers.
Descriptive words: classic, bright, simple, somewhat static
Appeal factors: dialog driven, text heavy, for fans of classic comics - carries very different style than modern superhero comics, good for readers who want to start with the originals, character driven
Misc: The Avengers originated in the 1960s and still continues with current publications, there are two major motion pictures based on the comic: The Avengers & Avengers: Age of Ultron
Descriptive words: classic, bright, simple, somewhat static
Appeal factors: dialog driven, text heavy, for fans of classic comics - carries very different style than modern superhero comics, good for readers who want to start with the originals, character driven
Misc: The Avengers originated in the 1960s and still continues with current publications, there are two major motion pictures based on the comic: The Avengers & Avengers: Age of Ultron
Young Avengers: Sidekicks by Allan Heinberg and Jim Cheung. Marvel Comics. 2013.
A group of teenage superheroes appears, and they share an uncanny resemblance to the former Avengers, thus the name Young Avengers given to them by journalists. Captain America and Iron Man catch wind of these youngsters and try to put an end to their charades warning them of the dangers of being a superhero. They battle a new super-villain and decide to go against the Avengers’ wishes and still continue in their superhero pursuits - in true teenage fashion.
Descriptive words: dark, detailed, angst
Appeal factors: follows classic superhero format, character driven, appeals to middle school and high school age students, for fans of the original Avengers comics and other superhero comics, fast read, simple plot line
Awards: 2006 GLAAD Media Award for Outstanding Comic Book, 2006 Harvey Award for Best New Series
Misc: Other volume of the series: Young Avengers: Family Matters, characters can also be found in the Civil War series and The Children's Crusade
Descriptive words: dark, detailed, angst
Appeal factors: follows classic superhero format, character driven, appeals to middle school and high school age students, for fans of the original Avengers comics and other superhero comics, fast read, simple plot line
Awards: 2006 GLAAD Media Award for Outstanding Comic Book, 2006 Harvey Award for Best New Series
Misc: Other volume of the series: Young Avengers: Family Matters, characters can also be found in the Civil War series and The Children's Crusade
The Dark Knight Archives Volume 1 by Bob Kane. DC Comics Inc. 1992.
As a young boy, Bruce Wayne’s parents were murdered, and he decided right then and there to devote his life to fighting criminals, and he uses his family’s wealth for the proper equipment. His sidekick, Robin, helps him fight infamous criminals, such as the Joker and Doctor Hugo Strange.
Descriptive words: bright, linear, simple
Appeal factors: character driven, for fans of crime novels, also appeals to fans of dick tracy, classic fun, appeals to a wide range of ages from kids to adults (everyone loves Batman!), hybrid of superhero and detective comic
Misc: Batman made his first appearance in Detective Comics in 1939 - started as a quarterly publication and eventually went monthly because of popularity
Descriptive words: bright, linear, simple
Appeal factors: character driven, for fans of crime novels, also appeals to fans of dick tracy, classic fun, appeals to a wide range of ages from kids to adults (everyone loves Batman!), hybrid of superhero and detective comic
Misc: Batman made his first appearance in Detective Comics in 1939 - started as a quarterly publication and eventually went monthly because of popularity
Batman: The Dark Knight Returns by Frank Miller with Klaus Janson and Lynn Varley. DC Comics. 1996.
Batman has been retired for 10 years, and the city of Gotham seems to be at it’s worst. A mutant gang is committing crimes left and right, and Harvey Dent is being released from the psychiatric house with a new face, and a supposedly new outlook on life and crime. However, Dent does not change his ways and goes back into his life of crime, which is what spurs Batman to come out of his retirement and protect the city once again.
Descriptive words: muted, fuzzy, watercolor effect, busy
Appeal factors: character driven, for fans of early Batman as well as other superhero comics, again appeals to fans of crime novels/crime comics, appeals to older teens to adults, heavier plot line with more adult themes than earlier Batman, action packed
Misc: this publication brought Batman back into pop culture and also started the Dark Age of comic books which feature more grim and dark stories/art, sequel for this comic is The Dark Knight Strikes Again written in 2001
Descriptive words: muted, fuzzy, watercolor effect, busy
Appeal factors: character driven, for fans of early Batman as well as other superhero comics, again appeals to fans of crime novels/crime comics, appeals to older teens to adults, heavier plot line with more adult themes than earlier Batman, action packed
Misc: this publication brought Batman back into pop culture and also started the Dark Age of comic books which feature more grim and dark stories/art, sequel for this comic is The Dark Knight Strikes Again written in 2001
Chew Volume 1: Taster’s Choice Written & Lettered by John Layman, Drawn & Colored by Rob Guillory, Image Comics, 2009.
This alternative superhero comic features Tony Chu, a detective and a Cibopathic, which means whatever he eats, he can see where that food came from, except for beets. He works for the Special Crimes Division of the FDA and sometimes has to eat unappetizing things, sun as fingers and corpses, in order to solve crimes.
Descriptive words: dark, cartoon-realistic, morbid
Appeal factors: dialog and character driven, appeals to high school age students to adults - mostly males, for superhero fans because it portrays a character that has a super power and uses it for the common good (however weird that power may be), has classic superhero comic format, more similar to Spiderman out of any of the other superheroes, also for fans of zombie related materials (perhaps Walking Dead), reminds me of Dexter TV series
Awards: The Chew series has won 2 Eisner Awards and 2 Harvey Awards
Misc: the series includes 9 volumes
Descriptive words: dark, cartoon-realistic, morbid
Appeal factors: dialog and character driven, appeals to high school age students to adults - mostly males, for superhero fans because it portrays a character that has a super power and uses it for the common good (however weird that power may be), has classic superhero comic format, more similar to Spiderman out of any of the other superheroes, also for fans of zombie related materials (perhaps Walking Dead), reminds me of Dexter TV series
Awards: The Chew series has won 2 Eisner Awards and 2 Harvey Awards
Misc: the series includes 9 volumes