Best Comics of 2013: Best Publisher

 

 

Our “Best Comics of 2013” picks continue with a very important category: Best Publisher. The past year saw nearly every publisher step up their game in a big way, and in the end comic book readers were the real winners. Which publishers were our favorites? Keep reading to find out.

 

 

Best Publisher

Image Comics continues to astound me with the number of must-read titles they publish, so for a second year in a row they are my pick for “Best Publisher.” It feels like creators choose to publish their finest, most original work with Image. 2013 saw even more of the most popular creators publish work with Image, and given the company’s mission to treat creators fairly, it’s no wonder why. Image is a driving force in the creator-owned revolution, and as a result has some of the most exciting and innovative titles on the shelves. I feel like Image has really grown into the company they originally set out to be. With titles like: Saga, The Walking Dead, Ten Grand, Multiple Warheads, Prophet, Pretty Deadly, Jupiter’s Legacy, Lazarus, Satellite Sam, BlackAcre, Velvet, East of West, The Mice Templar, Savage Dragon, and SO many more than I can list here, Image is the place to go for creator-owned comic book goodness.

Honorable Mentions: Black Mask Studios and Dark Horse Comics.

My colleague, David Gillette, had a worthy favorite of his own:

I’m going to look at this in the traditional sense of publishing. For my money,Valiant Comics has done the best job of putting out a consistent set of titles across the board in terms of imaginative storytelling and strong craft. They are the embodiment of the quality over quantity argument with the way they have re-imagined their company and weaved their universe together seamlessly. With compelling characters and a stable of amazing artists and writers, they should continue to put out amazing stories for many years.

Honorable Mention: Image Comics and Dark Horse Comics

Best Comics of 2013: Best Development in Comics

The end of the year is upon us, so that means it’s time to take a look back at another wonderful year of comic books. 2013 was an amazing year for readers of comics! Over the next few days I’ll be posting my picks for various “Best Comics of 2013” categories. This is just a fun way to acknowledge some of the comics, creators, and publishers that really rocked my world and put out exemplary work this year.

As a bonus, this year I have collaborated with my friend, writer, and fellow comic book aficionado, David Gillette, who will be sharing his picks as well. We’ll be cross-posting our various selections between our respective blogs, so be sure to check them out and feel free to comment with your favorites as well.

Best Development in Comics

While this is by no means a new issue, 2013 was the year when open discussions about sexism and sexual harassment in the industry and at conventions finally became widespread on comic book news sites and through social media. It was often ugly, with some creators and fans lashing out at the accusers and the accused alike, but is an important conversation that needs to happen if comic culture is to move forward and become a place where everyone can feel safe and welcome. The discussion was sparked by a variety of women bravely speaking out, including: cosplayers, convention goers, creators, bloggers, journalists, and many others. Other creators and fans followed suit, and long-overdue, often meaningful conversations started taking place. We still have a long way to go, but I sincerely hope that any progress which was made can carry over into the New Year.

David weighs in with some of his favorite developments:

This is a tough call, but Madefire and deviantART‘s announcement to partner up seems like the biggest game changer for the industry because of the way it supports creation on an independent level. Together, they’re creating a platform for writers and artists to more fully develop their stories in a way that can bring more eyes to their work, allow freedom to promote and diversify across mediums, and find more collaboration. Their recent announcement with DC for the Batman: Arkham Origins venture only reinforces this with the format for the story being a first in comics.

Black Mask Studio also deserves to be mentioned in the conversation for best development in comics with their push for independent creators to tell stories outside of the traditional boundaries of comics that speak to reader on a socio-political level, especially with titles likeOccupy Comics and Liberator. They’re also spearheading the transmedia approach to comic books by diversifying across various platforms and communities, especially with the collaboration between Matt Miner‘s Liberator comic book and the band Earth Crisis.

Last but not least, Chicago collective 44Flood has pioneered the art of crowdfunding their niche oriented approach that combines fine art and comic books. This could have a lasting impact on how creators bring art and stories to their respective audience while taking their fine art approach to comics out of the niche market to the mainstream. Consider the success of their LUST and TOME campaigns as well as Ben Templesmith‘s The Squidder graphic novel.