DC - August 2003
Writer - Warren Ellis
Artist - John Cassaday
One of the biggest positives in Planetary is the ability of the characters to interact with various other dimensions, something which expands on the general fiction of the world and gives breadth to the majority of the overarching elements of the series. This one-shot brings Planetary into the DC universe and pits them against Batman, who is hunting the same person they are, someone possessing a device that could spell doom if it falls into the wrong hands. Ellis and Cassaday capture the world of Gotham wonderfully, and the strange shifts between different incarnations of Batman is hilariously fun and a perfect dedication to a character who has managed to last for decades.
19. Queen & Country #1Oni Press - March 2001
Writer - Greg Rucka
Artist - Steve Rolston
When it comes to tales of the British Secret Service, nobody rivals Ian Fleming more than Greg Rucka; the American comes up with realistic, gritty ways to portray the spies working out of the United Kingdom, and this issue is the start of his legacy as the perfect purveyor of British society on the page. Following Tara Chace, we get a sense of the world and are introduced to the majority of principal characters; not everything is explained, but that's alright, because the story is meant to unfold slowly over the course of the arc. As a single issue, though, it works as the perfect introduction and maintains the perfect momentum to keep readers engaged and intrigued.
DC - March 1997
Writer - Grant Morrison
Artist - Howard Porter
By issue 3 of their JLA masterpiece, Grant Morrison and Howard Porter had allowed the villainous Hyperclan to utterly destroy the team by exploiting their weaknesses and imprisoning them all. Even Batman fell in a horrendous explosion that, as far as readers were aware, had killed him; but as ever, with Batman, that was not the case. As the only member of the team still on the loose, Batman does what Batman does best; he systematically takes down every single member of the Hyperclan, brutally, and saves his whole team. It's a defining moment for the character, and one of the most memorable sequences involving Batman to be published in the last two decades.
17. DC: The New Frontier #1DC - March 2004
Writer - Darwyn Cooke
Artist - Darwyn Cooke
Darwyn Cooke was already considered a master storyteller before his magnum opus, The New Frontier, was published. That didn't stop the colossal reaction to this book, though; it was an intricate and engaging examination of Silver Age superheroes, set in the Cold War era of uncertainty and fear, where people who dressed up as heroes were seen as threats to the structure of society. This issue acts as a necessary prologue, focusing on Jack Kirby's The Losers, a team of mercenaries during the Second World War and their adventures on the mythic Dinosaur Island; it's brutal and sets you up for what's to come right away, while the focus on scarcely known characters adds a layer of depth to the proceedings that wouldn't have been there had the series opened with Superman or any other iconic figure.
IDW - September 2009
Writers - Mike Costa & Christos Gage
Artist - Antonio Fuso
Nothing could quite prepare comic book readers for the stunning impact G. I. Joe Cobra would have on the industry; it was the perfect espionage series set within the G. I. Joe universe, and it set up the character, Chuckles, as a dangerous individual, rather than the jokey throwaway he had been throughout the early days of Joe. This issue shifts the focus away from Chuckles, settling on Tomax and Xamot, the equally useless twins from the old days, who are both presented as formidable and dangerous figures in this universe; this is a wonderful psychological piece, and the shift in storytelling at the halfway mark is an effective, genius move from the creative team that shows just how fractured and dangerous these two men are.
DC - September 2009
Writer - Geoff Johns
Artist - Ivan Reis
After years of building up the Green Lantern universe, Geoff Johns began to seep his ideas into other books, hinting at a breaking point yet to come. Blackest Night was that breaking point; a union of the Green Lantern universe and the DC universe at large, facing a threat that was unstoppable and unrelenting. At it's core, Blackest Night is a zombie book, but it feels like so much more, playing on the emotions of the characters, setting up alliances within the various Corps from the Green Lantern ongoing series, and feeling as though it had genuine stakes, with characters being murdered left and right. This was the moment Geoff Johns redefined the event comic.
Vertigo - March 2007
Writer - Jason Aaron
Artist - R. M. Guera
Scalped was a Vertigo series that felt unique; it didn't focus on anything supernatural or strange, it was a character study within the crime genre. But there was an original slant to it, the characters were all Native Americans living on a Reservation. Within 22 pages, Jason Aaron established the grim world of Prairie Rose and the characters of Red Crow and Dash Bad Horse; there was intrigue, violence and character development, all in a confined space. And there was one hell of a twist ending, too, to make it all the better. The highlight, though, is how close the series feels to the Sopranos style of crime fiction; any character could die at any moment, and the first issue shows just how dangerous things are going to be for our characters.
13. Preacher #66Vertigo - October 2000
Writer - Garth Ennis
Artist - Steve Dillon
The Vertigo series that, for many, defined the imprint came to an end in the first year of the 21st century, and it came to an end with a bang. The penultimate issue killed off all the necessary villains and featured a wonderfully unique twist that apparently killed off one of our heroes; it was powerful and unyielding, and gave way to this final epilogue. Everyone gets their moment; Jesse and Tulip are finally united, Cassidy is granted his humanity, the Saint of Killers takes his seat in Heaven, and even God gets his due, finally paying for all the misery he's inflicted on the characters throughout the series. The final pages have a sombre fell to them, and the ending is poignant and original. It's all you could ask for really.
12. The Walking Dead #1Image - October 2003
Writer - Robert Kirkman
Artist - Tony Moore
With The Walking Dead, Robert Kirkman and Tony Moore redefined horror comics for a new generation; focusing more on the human characters and giving them real development rather than paper-thin horror cliché personalities. The focus is Rick Grimes, a cop who wakes up from a coma to find the world in the middle of a zombie apocalypse; what follows is Rick's desperate search for his wife and son, leading to some of the best zombie sequences ever rendered in comic books, or any other genre. It feels like a short-form mini-series introduction, showing just how little faith the creative team had in it, and as it continues to this day, it's great to know that the series wouldn't fall at the first hurdle.
11. Batman #497DC - July 1993
Writer - Doug Moench
Artist - Jim Aparo
The biggest Batman event in years was to be haunted by the awful repercussions involving the character of Azrael, but at the core of the first act, Knightfall was the destruction of Batman as a warrior. Having managed to, almost single-handedly, defeat the legions of Arkham Asylum, Batman returned to Wayne Manor only to learn that criminal mastermind, Bane, had worked out his identity and come to break him. The following fight was harsh and quick, ending with Bane breaking Batman's back, leaving him crippled and Gotham City doomed. It wasn't the end for Bruce Wayne, obviously, but the moment the story reaches that violent crescendo it sends shivers down the spine and reminds the reader of just how brutal Batman comics can be given the chance.
Next: 10-6
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