Issues: 6-15, 150-151
Writer: Brian Michael Bendis
Artist: David Lafuente (6, 9-14, 150), Takeshi Miyazawa (7-8), Sara Pichelli (15, 150-151), Skottie Young (150), Jamie McKelvie (150) and Joelle Jones (150)
Another year, another epic collection of Ultimate Spider-Man issues; Brian Michael Bendis surpassed himself as he did his best to alter the status quo for Ultimate Peter Parker, with the help of a team of artists. The Mysterio arc wrapped up at the start of the year, before Bendis resolved dangling threads from his Ultimate Origins mini-series and re-introduced Rick Jones to the world. Then in the year’s major arc, the Chameleon set about ruining Spider-Man’s life and nearly killed J. Jonah Jameson, and Peter Parker’s relationship with Gwen Stacy started to crumble. The anniversary 150th issue featured tales of Spider-Man’s previous encounters with Captain America, Iron Man and Thor, leading to the change in the status quo Bendis had been teasing as Spider-Man starts training under the Ultimates.
4. Chew
Issues: 9-16
Writer: John Layman
Artist: Rob Guillory
Chew continues to be one of the most fantastically inventive series being published right now as Tony Chu’s mission abroad came to a violent and confusing end featuring vampires and alien fruit. The arc that took up most of the year, meanwhile, featured Chew’s new relationship, a look at his family life, an undercover mission gone awry and the return of Mason Savoy. It’s been absolute genius throughout and should get even more crazy and intense as it continues into 2011.
3. Thor: The Mighty Avenger
Issues: 1-7
Writer: Roger Landridge
Artist: Chris Samnee
A silver-age Thor series is actually what was called for given the regular continuity Thor book, and all other mini-series surrounding the character, was mired in darkness and complexity. This simple, powerful and generally fun all-ages book captured the true essence of the character and pitted him against different factions of the Marvel Universe in a world wholly unique to the character and his sensibilities. In the end, it was a lot of fun, and the most unjustifiable cancellation of 2010.
2. Batman and Robin
Issues: 7-18
Writer: Grant Morrison (7-16) and Paul Cornell (17-18)
Artist: Cameron Stewart (7-9, 16), Andy Clarke (10-12), Frazer Irving (13-16), Chris Burnham (16) and Scott McDaniel (17-18)
Batman and Robin has been one of the highlights of the year; Grant Morrison has crafted an exceptionally good tale featuring Dick Grayson as Batman and Damian Wayne as Robin. The first arc of the year dealt with the resurrection of a Bruce Wayne clone which went psychotic and attempted to kill Damian. The second featured the Dynamic Duo against one another as Talia al Ghul used her son, and the villainous Deathstroke, to murder Dick Grayson; it was at the end of this arc that the Joker was unmasked as the mysterious Domino Killer. The final arc of Morrison’s run concerned the return of Dr. Hurt and his ruination of the Wayne legacy; Batman and Robin are united with Bruce Wayne, and the Joker continues to cause havoc. All of this warrants a spot as book of the year; unfortunately, the two most recent issues, fill-ins prior to Peter Tomasi and Pat Gleason’s run on the book in February have been underwhelming thanks to a combination of tongue-in-cheek story from Paul Cornell and bland artwork from Scott McDaniel as Batman and Robin face one of Bruce’s ex girlfriends, known as the Absence.
1. Scalped
Issues: 34-44
Writer: Jason Aaron
Artist: R. M. Guera (34, 38-42), Danijel Zezelej (35), Davide Furno (36-37, 44) and Jason LaTour (43)
Scalped has been just as intensely epic this year as it has every other year; Jason Aaron and his team of artists have crafted a crime masterpiece – the comic book equivalent of The Sopranos. The year started with the resolution to ‘The Gnawing,’ the final story of Aaron’s original plan for the series. This was followed by a one-shot focusing on an elderly couple living in the Rez, and a two-parter examining the character of Shunka, Red Crow’s right-hand man. Another one-shot dealt with family and war, while the arc that took up most of the year concerned unwanted pregnancy and Dash’s relationship with his pregnant ex, Carol, as she tries to decide what to do about her situation, and Dash contemplates fatherhood when his father returns to town to ruin his life once again. The year closed with two one-shots, the first focusing on a corrupt sheriff and the second on the much hated antagonist, Agent Nitz. With the next arc starting up in January, it looks like Scalped is heading for a fifth year that’s just as good as the last four.
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