After kicking things off on Tuesday, here’s part two of our best-of comics coverage for 2024. This time around, we talk about everything from our favorite colorist to the best manga title and everything in between.
If part one was an intro to the sheer quality of the industry this year, then part two should affirm just how much the industry truly is firing on every cylinder. And even if we can’t honor everything, what we have chosen as this year’s standouts are a slice of the emotionality, social consciousness, and general innovation that makes being a comics fan so exciting.
So, enjoy these picks, share this far and wide if you agree or don’t, and we’ll be seeing you real soon for more interviews, essays, and other coverage. Here’s hoping 2025 is just as grand for all of us.
— Chris Coplan, Comics Editor
Check out AIPT’s Best Comics of 2024: Part 1, and don’t miss the Readers vote, in case you missed it.
Best Artist: Nick Dragotta
From Absolute Batman #2. Courtesy of DC Comics.
Nick Dragotta has been one of my favorite artists since I first discovered him on Fantastic Four and FF with Jonathan Hickman. He’s worked on some of my favorite comics with East of West and the incredible Ghost Cage since then. This year was special, though, because Dragotta got to really make a splash with Absolute Batman.
His character and logo designs for the series were initially met with disdain and/or hesitation, but once the heat picked up, it was like a fire spread across the artists in the industry. I knew when issue #1 landed that the book was just an excuse to show off how much respect Dragotta deserves as an artist. His style is one that feels like it’s just outside the Big 2 standard, which was perfect for truly surprising audiences. His storytelling ability really cemented Absolute Batman as one of the best series of the year and definitely acted as a foundation stone for the Absolute launch to go as well as it did. Suddenly, DC had a fighting chance against Marvel’s Ultimate line — almost all off the back of Dragotta’s art!
— Keigen Rea
Best Colorist: Tomeu Morey
From Wonder Woman #14. Courtesy of DC Comics.
Tomeu Morey has consistently given life to the most beautiful pages of DC comics, but he’s outdone himself on Wonder Woman. His collaborations with Daniel Sampere’s beautiful linework is a match made in Paradise Island. His ongoing work giving color to the Wonder Woman covers is deceivingly simple, but he integrates flat background colors and American iconography with the details of Diana so effortlessly. She pops off the page, amongst symbols of stars and flags, and he gives her muscles definition, and the bruises bite. Morey’s able to differentiate the shine of Diana’s bracelets from the glow of her lasso and the sun-kissed skin of her baby daughter. In other words, Tomeu is essential in putting the “wonder” in Wonder Woman.
— Marvel Maximus
Best Manga: Kagurabachi
Writer-artist Takeru Hokazono
Courtesy of VIZ Media.
That’s right, enough time has passed, and it’s safe to say it’s the best manga currently running. After garnering a bit of unexpected social media hype when it began, Kagurabachi is no joke. Takeru Hokazono is new to the scene but has quickly shown how capable he is as a writer-artist. Kagurabachi has almost consistently remained a weekly series and has benefited from this as the hype from each prior issue is immediately bolstered a week later.
While we’re still getting familiar with the greater cast, Chihiro Rokuhira’s development has remained constant. Chihiro has remained an atypical shonen hero by entering the series already as one of the most powerful sword wielders and learning along the way how, despite all of those skills, he still has a lot to learn.
To accompany that, Hokazono has continued to deliver impeccable art week after week. Despite having a few fewer pages per chapter than other books, each one carries immense detail and purpose. Hokazono balances dark and light shadings perfectly by using double-page spreads to showcase epic fights and filling them with thick inkwork. Some of the best pages in the series have been almost completely done with just one color, and the other one acts as sharp as a blade to contrast the backdrop. (For example, what about the fight with Chihiro and Hiruhiko? Absolutely stunning.)
Altogether, this manga has continued to raise the bar through its cliffhangers and stunning action, constantly making the reader wonder, “Well, what happens now?”
— Michael Guerrero
OMG Panel of the Year: Absolute Batman #2
Writer Scott Snyder, artist Nick Dragotta, colorist Frank Martin, and letterer Clayton Cowles
Courtesy of DC Comics.
It has to be the Absolute Batmobile reveal for me. The second confrontation, where Bruce once again manages to make Alfred speechless without using many words, demonstrates just how Snyder sets up the stage perfectly, leading into a grand, action-packed moment we have all eagerly anticipated. Along with Nick Dragotta’s glorious art and Frank Martin’s stunning colors, Absolute Batmobile’s design accurately embodies the personality of Absolute Batman – with his mad engineering skills, this Bruce isn’t messing around when it comes to protecting his city. That automatically makes it one of the greatest Batman moments in comics itself.
— Vish
Best Anthology: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Black, White, & Green
Writer-artist Dave Baker, writer-artist Declan Shalvey, writer-artist Gigi Dutreix, writer-artist Paulina Ganucheau, artist Jesse Lonergan, writer Lorenzo Hall, writer-artist Gavin Smith, writer-artist Javier Rodríguez, writer-artist Tyler Boss, writer Mikey Way, artist Nikola Čižmešija, writer-artist Dom Reardon, writer-artist Jock, writer Cameron Chittock, writer Carlos Giffoni, writer Dave Wielgosz, writer Alexis Ziritt, artist Michael Shelfer, writer-artist Lee Garbett, writer-artist Patrick Gleason, writer Chris Condon, writer Jeremy Holt, artist Carson Thorn, artist Sebastián Piriz, colorist Lee Loughridge, letterer Nathan Widick
Cover by Patrick Gleason. Courtesy of IDW.
This was a four-issue series that came out from June to August of this year, and it was part of IDW’s yearlong celebration of the TMNT’s 40th anniversary. I can’t think of a better way to celebrate those early Mirage Studios years than with just such an anthology because, after all, that first Turtles run was a deeply collaborative venture. TMNT wasn’t just a collaboration between Kevin Eastman and Peter Laird — they quickly brought on other creators like Steve Lavigne, Ryan Brown, Jim Lawson, and Michael Dooney to keep up with the comic’s enormous popularity.
Each double-sized issue of this latest anthology contained four stories from superstar artists and writers, including Declan Shalvey, Jesse Lonergan, Gavin Smith, Jock, and Chris Condon, to name just a few. If you were excited by the mainline series having different artists for each of the first four issues, then this is exactly the type of book for you. Every issue had great stories and art to make any Turtle fan excited. From hyper realistic to cartoony, every Turtle style is featured. The added element of only being able to use the color green made for some seriously interesting art and unique takes on these ubiquitous reptiles. Where else are you going to find a Sin City-inspired Raphael story?
— Andrew Isidoro
Best Publisher: Oni Press
Oni Press has earned its title as the best comic book publisher of 2024 by delivering a lineup of groundbreaking titles and championing bold, creator-driven storytelling. This year, they made headlines with the launch of EC Comics, an exciting new imprint that revives the spirit of classic horror comics while pushing the boundaries of modern storytelling. By blending their signature focus on diverse, innovative narratives while weaving in the rich legacy of EC Comics, Oni Press has appealed to both nostalgic fans and new readers alike. With a slate of critically acclaimed releases that tackle contemporary themes and elevate underrepresented voices, Oni Press continues to redefine what it means to be a leader in the comics industry.
— David Brooke
Best Horror Comic: Golgotha Motor Mountain
From issue #1. Courtesy of IDW.
Writer Lonnie Nadler, writer Matthew Erman, artist Robbie Rodriguez, colorist Marissa Louise, and letterer Hassan Otsmane-Elhaou
There are lots of reasons why Golgotha Motor Mountain could be a great horror story. There’s the appropriately schlocky premise (brothers Elwood and Vernon find a meteor and decide to make alien meth). The ample body horror (transforming bio-punk cars, mutant dog monsters, etc.) Even just the cosmic nature of this tale hints at traditions too big and scary to fully comprehend.
But none of those are why Golgotha Motor Mountain is the most horrific story of 2024.
Because as your stomach churns at the psychedelic horrors of it all, you may forget the story’s real aim: a dissection of American society. Because as we follow the brothers Damnage on their “daily rounds,” what we get is insights that’ll shake you to your core. Like, the state of the middle and working class in America and how we’re locked in a cycle where “alien meth dealer” seems like a worthwhile path forward. Or, the deep, unavoidable vein of police violence and classism (Sheriff Carter is the pinnacle of layered villains) embedded in our culture. Even just the sense that we’re locked in this history that we can’t fully see, and it moves and shapes us regardless.
Golgotha Motor Mountain lifts the veil of the world and shows us some important but ugly truths: the American dream is dead, and we’re just sort of wading in its corpse juice. But that’s an easy enough scare to facilitate, and the creative team goes further still with the most horrific thing of them all: hope. Maybe things have always been damned and always will be, but the fact that there’s always a road to your big, dumb dream (even if it’s just moving to Cincinnati, Ohio) is enough. Or, being alive is to be constantly transformed and at some terrifying new precipice, and that is as exciting as it is uncomfortable, tiring, and disarming.
Maybe Golgotha Motor Mountain won’t make life at the end of an empire seem any easier, but it’ll make you consider your place in the grand scheme of it all, those things we don’t need anymore and what we must maintain to really be human. I’d like to see Freddy Krueger do that, folks.
— Chris Coplan
Best Adapted Series: Night People
From issue #3. Courtesy of Oni Press.
Writer Chris Condon, artist Brian Level, artist Alexandre Tefenkgi, artist Artyom Topilin, artist Marco Finnegan, colorist Ronda Pattison, and letterer Shawn Lee
Barry Gifford’s 1992 novel Night People isn’t an easy read. It’s this profound dissection of the American South, at times as unsettling and disarming as much as it’s oddly life-affirming and relatable. Yet writer Chris Condon (alongside a bevy of talented artists) managed to make this unlikely source material truly shine.
Condon plucked out all the best, most juicy parts, not so much bringing to life folks like Easy Earl and Marble but rather giving us the most accessible and engaging versions of each. The same goes with the four-part story’s visuals: each artist gave us a seedy corner of Louisiana or some forgotten slice of Florida, capturing the blend of grit and earnestness that Gifford defined all those years ago. And that’s perhaps the true strength of this project — that unwavering devotion to Gifford’s big, bold vision.
It was the team’s genuine love for the source material, not to mention a commitment to a delicate but enthusiastic touch, that bridged the worlds of novels and comics and gave readers this layered, fully textured slice of extra cutting noir.
The comic version is, if nothing else, a way to honor the story and funnel readers backward, even as it’s very much a more streamlined and equally potent take on a vital but complex story. Give it a shot, and you’ll be surprised by the way this story pulls you in with its blood, heat, and magic.
— Chris Coplan
Best Webcomic/Webtoon: Ten Earth Shattering Blows
Writer-artist Tommaso “Nuclearpasta” De Vito Francesco
“5×30.” Courtesy of Nuclearpasta.
The world is pretty ripe with great fantasy comics. (It’s one of the few genuinely great problems to have these days.) But make sure to leave room in your heart and TBR pile for Ten Earth Shattering Blows. The premise itself is boilerplate enough: Lady Landabella Trastan, joined by her badass guardian/companion Joy, heads to the desert to “end the curse placed upon her by an ‘evil witch.’ Or so she claims.”
But over the last seven-plus years, creator “Nuclearpasta” has made this story so much more, a mighty brew of overt violence, playfulness, sex appeal, and robust character development. (Really, even bit players feel textured and significant across this massive, sprawling tale.) In some ways, this story helped set the stage for the “explosion” of fantasy tales over the last decade, and yet it nonetheless stands alone for its humor, individuality, and commitment to letting this story move wherever it needs to go.
So, even if you’re jumping in this late (“5×30” posted in mid-December), that sense of being lost/overwhelmed will quickly go from annoying to a genuine pleasure as you delve into this rich story with heaps of life and energy, both in the archives and what’s still to come. This is very much fantasy as it was intended: exciting, silly, and about how we’re all heroes in our own right (mostly).
— Chris Coplan
Most Anticipated Book of 2025: Absolute Martian Manhunter
Writer Deniz Camp and artist Javier Rodríguez
Courtesy of DC Comics.
Absolute Martian Manhunter is the most anticipated series of 2025, bringing together the powerhouse creative team of writer Deniz Camp and artist Javier Rodríguez to deliver a definitive new take on J’onn J’onzz. Camp’s knack for crafting deeply emotional and thought-provoking stories with ties to our own reality, paired with Rodríguez’s vibrant and dynamic visual storytelling, promises to make this series a landmark moment for the character. The story will delve into Martian Manhunter’s rich mythology and explore themes of identity, loss, and belonging while showcasing his role as a cornerstone of the DC Universe. Presented in the stunning no-holds-barred Absolute format, the series is set to be both a visual and narrative masterpiece, making it an unmissable event for longtime fans and newcomers alike. Absolute Martian Manhunter is poised to redefine the legacy of one of DC’s most compelling heroes.
— David Brooke
You must be logged in to post a comment.