2007 "Blank" of the Year lists. You've read them all. I have, too. But this year, I'm caving. I'm letting you all in on what you may have missed in the comics medium. The "Best" of what you missed in 2007 to be exact.  Beware, not only is this post gonna be kinda long, but there be some spoilers ahead.

Best New/Returning Series

This was a tough one. Ultimately, I decided to pick three titles. One each from the Big Two, and an Indie (sort of).  In no particular order they are:

THOR 

Honestly, this one made the list on the last new comic day of 2007. I wasn't really sure whether or not this was going to make the cut. Well color me Asgardian. J. Michael Straczynski and Oliver Coipel have just brought Thor back from Ragnarok, and put him right back at the top of my To Read pile.

Besides Coipel's art, which is nothing short of genius gorgeousity in motion, JMS's words and ideas resonate here more than they have in a long time in his other work {cough} One More Day {cough}. What really sealed the deal for me was the way JMS has brought Asgard and it's rich Marvel history back from oblivion. Literally. The final three pages of issue 5 alone were worth the price of admission.

Having Loki not only trick the Odinson into bringing him back to life, but in the way Loki tricks him into bringing his most feared and hated enemies back is nothing short of the clever, maniacal and mischeviousness we expect from Thor's wicked brother... I mean sister.

BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER

Joss Whedon has not lost a step. Not that I really expected him to, just that with so many other projects, it's good to see Joss hasn't forgotten how much Buffy fans really love his work. Having missed the final two seasons when they aired, after reading the first few issues, I remembered how much I grew with these characters growing up. Luckily, Georges Jeanty's art can capture Joss's quiet moments along with the quick and brutal action scenes.

Giving all the credit to Whedon here wouldn't be fair. Just like when the show was on the air, Whedon didn't write every episode, and here he doesn't write each arc. The first guest writer, Brian K. Vaughn is well up to the task of matching wits with the Scoobies. Ironically, Whedon took over Vaughn's own created book, Runaways, and is doing justice to characters I thought could only be written by BKV (yes, there is a lot of initialing in comicdom. you haven't made it until no one calls you by your full name). Both story arcs have brought all our favorite characters (Faith, yeah!) back, and I can't wait to see what happens next.

Honestly, once Season 8 ends, I hope Whedon has something else planned. Oh, wait, he does. Serenity will be back in comic form this Spring. Huzzah! 

SCALPED

If you had told me one of my favorite books would be about an Indian reservation mixed with for lack of a better comparison, the Sopranos, I'd have told you to beat it. But Jason Aaron and R.M. Guera have done an incredible job of capturing my interest and putting this title on my pull list (comic shop lingo 101: pull list (n.)- the list of comics coming out in a given week that shop will put on file for you).

They've created a fictional Indian society where Dashiell Bad Horse comes home after a tour in the military. Only he's really F'd up. And so is the reservation. I don't want to give too much away here since in one year, there have been a hell of a lot of plot developments that deserve more attention than a little blurb.

Know this true believer, this comic is the truth. It is raw and honest. Weaving traditional Indian belief with noir and western elements, creating a wonderful concoction of intrigue and "Can't wait until the next issue" wonderment.

Best Mini-Series

There were a ton of mini's this year. So many I didn't have time to read. So many that just started and haven't given a large enough sampling to warrant a choice. Again, here I went with the Pick 3.

UMBRELLA ACADEMY

I'm going to be honest. I really could care less about My Chemical Romance. Gerard Way is lucky he teamed up with not only Gabriel Ba, but James Jean on art duties for his book, otherwise I may not have picked it up. In that case though, I guess it's me who's lucky I picked this book up. Had I not, I would've been extremely disappointed in myself.

Gabriel Ba has been around for a little while, but didn't register on my radar until Matt Fraction tagged him and his brother, Fabiano Moon, for art duties on Cassanova. His linework is among the most attractive in the business today. It's not flashy, and it's not extremely clean, but it caputres the mood of Way's themes and tones so well it can't be coincidence. This team was made to make this book happen.

Story wise, Way does not let me down with emo/trend pop nonsense. He clearly has an idea of what you have to do to capture an audience in a world where if it doesn't say Marvel or DC on the cover, it is nearly impossible for a new book to suceed. The character's and world he has created are compelling and make me want this to be more than just a mini. Which is way more than I can say of some actual ongoings.

PS- I heart the Rumor. 

WORLD WAR HULK

Let me preface this by telling you how long I've been reading the Hulk. A long freaking time. The last few years have been a tremendous joy for me as Greg Pak had created such a brilliant world for the Hulk to live in along with great characters for him to interract with. Then  he stripped it all away. That's great writing.

The mini that spun from the web Pak had created was a tour de force of action and big moments. There was no one better suited for art duties than JR, Jr. (comics 101: JR, Jr - John Romita, Jr, son of comic legend, Jazzy John Romita). His style, both kinetic and stoic, made each moment of this series stand out more than a lesser artist would have. When an artist reaches a point in his career where you can't imagine anyone else drawing what he's drawing, it makes the work that much more seminal. And it more than made up for the waste of JR's talent that Bruce Jones's run was. The less said about that the better.

Having the Hulk take on the entirel Marvel universe in 5 issues was a little much. There was a ton of plot and art crammed into these 5 issues. The sad part was, the finale didn't live up to the storyline that was brewing for nearly 30 issues. As a stand alone mini, though, this story was a success.

GREEN ARROW:YEAR ONE

Thank God Andy Diggle and Jock were around to wash the bad taste of Judd Winick's last year of Green Arrow out of my mouth. I generally like Winick's writing, but in 6 issues, Andy Diggle made him look like a chump. Not to mention, Scott McDaniel has absolutely nothing on Jock as an artist

Modernizing Ollie Queen for the year 2000 must have seemed a dauting task to some. Luckily, Andy Diggle has a knack for making unreal characters seem realistic. The plot he wove to bring GA into the current century makes sense and reminds us that Ollie is actually a pretty cool character when in the right hands.

Jock's art is, to say the least, awe inspiring. His angle choices and panel breakdowns are among the most visually entertaining today. There are few artists who make me want to buy a book. Jock is one of them. Though, I knew going in this book was going to be fantastic. Diggle and Jock teamed up for the short-lived and underappreciated Losers series. Compelling to the last panel, these two can deliver issue by issue.

Best Single Issue

This was pretty tough. There were a ton of comics this year. Literally, a metric ton. Narrowing down which one issue was the greatest of them all tough. Lucky for me, I'm a complete Green Lantern mark.

SINESTRO CORPS ONE-SHOT

Nevermind the fact Ethan Van Sciver can draw things you couldn't even imagine. Nevermind the fact Geoff Johns has been planning this for years. This is the single best issue to come out this year because it kicked more ass than you thought was humanly possible to kick.

Ethan Van Sciver doesn't do monthly work. There's a reason. His work is so detailed. So precise. So beautiful in its complexity that you don't even want to turn the page because you'll feel as if you hadn't given the previous page enough time to sink into your brain and blow your mind. There's so much going on in these 64 pages that six months later, I'm pretty sure I missed something.

Johns does here what he does best: Pay mind to what came before and take it in a direction that only he could have drummed up in that Green Lantern loving mind of his. His passion for these characters and his desire to ruin their day with this single epic event makes me jealous that I didn't have these ideas. That doesn't happen much.

This single issue contains the official opening salvo of what was the best story line of the year (we'll get there, hang on). Bringing together plot threads that were building in about 3 or 4 different titles over the last few years, and tying them together to offer more "Holy sh!t" moments than any other comic this year is a major accomplishment. 

Best Original Graphic Novel

Comics 101: Original Graphic Novel (n)- A complete and self contained story unavailable outside of collected form. Not a collection of previously released single issues.

This decision wasn't really all that hard. Especially when I realized Pride of Baghdad came out last year.

LEAGUE OF EXTRAORDINARY GENTLEMEN:

THE BLACK DOSSIER

Alan Moore and Kevin O'Neil continue to run wild in the universe they've created here. Taking old characters who we all know, and not necessarily love, whose copyright has since expired allows them to do pretty much whatever they want with them. Including making Mina Murray (or Mina Harker... c'mon guys, of Dracula fame) and Alan Quartermain (best remembered as Sean Connery in the horribly adapted movie) lovers. And spies. And completely compelling.

This is something that succeeds simply on its experimental bases alone. There are parts of the tale that are completely text. Or in 3-D. Which could've been a joke and not worked {cough} Action Comics {cough}. But since its Alan Moore, a lot of leeway is given for him to tell his story.

In what is assumed to be the final chapter of the LOEG universe, one can only hope Moore and O'Neil come back for at least one more round.

Best Story Arc

This is it kids. This is what made the whole year worthwile. No comic produced this year brought it as hard as the one who got Story of the Year. As a previous post alluded to, the title this year belongs to:

SINESTRO CORPS WAR

Running concurrently through two books (Green Lantern #'s 21-25 and Green Lantern Corps #'s 14-19) as well as a few one-shots, Geoff Johns, Ivan Reis, Ethan Van Sciver, Dave Gibbons and Patrick Gleason have teamed to bring out the best in one of comicdoms most underrated franchises.

It wasn't just the fact that these guys were making history in the DC universe here, it was the fact they were doing it consistently and well above expectations. Briefly, the Sinestro Corps was created as an analog to the Green Lanterns. They are there to instill great fear into the universe, whereas the Green Lanterns are there to protect and serve. The Sinestro Corps are comprised of those who have the ability to instill that fear into people. Batman even turned them down.  And nobody instills more fear than that guy. Trust me.

For six or so months, I was on the edge of my seat. I couldn't wait for the next part. Imagine the feeling you had during the first season of Lost between episodes. Now, instead of a week, make that wait a month. Yeah, it's like that.

Honestly, the story is so fantastic, but there's no way for me to convey all that here, now. This is just me getting off a rollercoaster, passing you in line, telling you how awesome the ride was, and then getting back in line behind you whispering how f'ing sweet it was and how I can't wait to get back on.

The best part of it all... This was nothing. A mere hint of what was to come in the next years of Green Lantern. Here's a little taste of the ending.

You didn't think I'd give it all away did you? Go read it!

Best Creative Team

I've gushed enough about Green Lantern and the creative teams there. Here, I'm going to award one of the hardest working men in the business and his hit or miss partner.

BRIAN BENDIS and MARK BAGLEY

For 112 issues (which is the record for consecutive issues by one creative team) of Ultimate Spider-Man these guys delivered. There's no way this isn't the best creative team of the year. All apologies to Frank Quitely and Grant Morrison over on All-Star Superman, but that book never came out as many times a year as USM.

While Bendis is hit or miss story-line wise, his character moments never feel wrong or out of place. Bagley nails every single aspect of the character moment, the action moment, and consistently puts out 14-16 issues a year when most comics only put out 12. If we're lucky.

Congratulations gentlemen. Since 2000 you have never let me down. Bagley has since moved on, being replaced by Stuart Immonen.

Stuart Immonen can fill Bagley's shoes, but will never take his place... in my heart. 

Worst Comic Sponsored by Game Fuel

HALO UPRISING

Alex Maleev couldn't save this turd bucket. I understand you aren't really allowed to do a whole lot here Bendis, but even you have to admit this comic sucks the life right out of the room. To the Exteme! 

What to Watch For in 2008

Granted there are going to be just as many comics coming out next year, or this year, whatever... these are two of the titles I want you to consider should this be the year you start, or if you already read comics, consider these as a must read/

FINAL CRISIS

DC magnum opus to this whole 52, Countdown mega-story. It's going to be written by Grant Morrison. It will not fail.

CAPTAIN AMERICA

Yeah, I know what you're thinking. "Captain America? Get out. I'm not reading anything that lame." It's not lame. It actually kicks a hell of a lot of ass. Even more ass than that thing I mentioned before that kicked ass. Now that's a lot of kicking. I mean a lot a lot.

In two years, Ed Brubaker and Steve Epting have yet to miss on this title. I don't expect this year to be any different.

That pretty much wraps it up. Hope you stuck around. Keep those peepers peeled. W2W4W (what to watch for wednesday) will be starting soon for any one who wants to know what they should be looking for on a weekly basis at their Local Comic Shop (LCS).