Books to Read from Vertigo
*I have not read all these series, and none of the ones I have read are in their entirety. These are books you should try out based on a synposis that spoke to me, the people who worked on it and the justifiable popularity of the book. Specifically, I have never read i, Zombie.
Vertigo Comics has a ton of great series that showcase the more violent and sophisticated world of comics. For more popular series to read from Vertigo check out the
Publisher You Should Know: Vertigo Comics feature for a list of five other popular series from Vertigo and the history of the publisher. Also check out the great mini-series from Vertigo called
Faker and
Jonah Hex: Two Gun Mojo that are two of
my favorite comic books.
Y: The Last Man: All the men in the world disappear except for one: the eccentric magician Yorrick Brown. Along with his pet monkey, Yorrick must figure out which woman killed all the men on earth and why he is the last man standing. Not only is the gender-cide story an intriguing idea that leaves a lot of eye-candy for male (and some female) readers, but from the first issue you can tell Yorrick is an entertaining guy and the gender issues presented by the series shows just how much men are needed on the Earth. After the first issue you will not be able to stop until you finish the entire series and uncover the mystery.
Sweet Tooth: The world has been plagued by an unknown disease and people have been dropping like flies. Towns have been thrown into disarray as chaos ensues, and every child born is a hybrid -- a child infused with the physical aspect of an animal. Follow the human Jepperd and the hybrid Gus as they try to survive in this post-apocalyptic world. Jeff Lemire has become a big name with most of his thanks going to this series. His artwork perfectly captures the desolate towns, every issue of Sweet Tooth ends with a gripping cliff-hanger that makes you heavily anticipate the next issue and the character development is great. Sweet Tooth is probably one of my favorite series and one of the best series of 2010.
iZombie: A zombie by the name of Gwen gets to keep her beauty and memories as long as she eats a brain once a month from someone that is recently deceased. Unfortunately she also inherits that person’s memories and finds herself trying to resolve their problems. This is one of the few zombies series that brings fresh ideas and comedy into the genre that doesn’t come from overusing gory elements common in zombie stories. For once, the zombie is our heroine, and a good-looking one at that. The uniqueness of this series makes it one of the better series being produced right now.
Sandman Mystery Theatre: A man in a gas mask that seems to be a murderer with brutal interrogation methods turns out to be a masked detective trying to catch murderers. This series is one of the best noir mysteries with a 50’s atmosphere perfectly constructed. The characters are very different with distinct personalities that you can both love and hate. Only one thing is certain in this series cluttered with mystery: someone is going to die.
House of Secrets: A runaway, Rain, moves into an old decrepit house that’s a little more lively than it seems. There is a jury composed of ghosts that draws people in, reviews their lives and sentences them, with the help of Rain as their star witness. House of Secrets has an intriguing story that continually introduces new and interesting characters with pasts that can make even the toughest readers shiver in fear, absolute disgust or both. The art also adds a creepy feel to the already nightmarish stories.
Hope you liked learning about some of Vertigo's best titles! Though not all of them are as great or ground-breaking as these - some can throw you for one too many loops. Just stick with these classic titles and you won't be disappointed!
