Herein lies the 2nd Annual Hammy Awards, brought to you for the low, low price of free (donations accepted) by myself and the rest of the staff at the Hammond Comics Blog.
Without further ado, if you dare, step right up and see the freaks of nature that the Good Lord has seen fit to grace us with the 2014 Hammy Awards!
Art Bee's picks:
The last year has been a mostly decent year in comics. DC had their major villains push while all of our DC heroes took a short vacation, but at least we got Joker’s Daughter out of the deal. The issue that introduced her with the 3D cover was a great comic book (I even considered it for Comic of the Year).
Marvel has been doing some very interesting things since the reboot, such as breaking time, killing the Watcher, bringing us the offspring of Wolverine and Mystique, and the return of an old favorite, Peter Parker.
Image has done a great job at giving many creators the chance to be published, and this year we have seen the main stream birth of several good series. Of course we have also seen some crap come out with them. Now let’s look at some of the best and worst comics of the year with the Second Annual Hammy Awards.
Comic of the Year:
Assailant Comics recently published one of the greatest comic books I have ever read. Open Tree, Legends and Tall Tales #1 contains the touching and captivating story "Freedom Run". The writer, Chris Charlton, crafted this story in one issue without making the reader feel like the story is rushed or missing something. In addition to the writing, the artwork is superb. The artist, Brian Latimer, and the colorist, Vasco Sobral, really round this comic book off with their talent.
Earlier this year I caught the variant cover of one of my favorite series, Uncanny from Dynamite. Uncanny #6 Panosian Variant by Dan Panosian features the main character on the cover with his back to us and on one shoulder is an evil, winged demon woman with an angelic lady on the other. Granted this cover is not elaborate, but it looks good and is very effective.
Best New Comic:
Image has done a radical job in the last year with presenting us with a great array of new comic series. My vote for "Best New Comic" is split. I have had such a hard time trying to decide between two fantastic products. The first is a comic that has brought us a group of four great and hilarious women in Rat Queens. The second series is an awesome spin on history that follows the voyage of Lewis and Clark in Manifest Destiny. Both of these comics are wonderful stories with exceptional artwork.
Most Overrated:
When I started seeing advertisements for Pretty Deadly from Image, I got really excited. The first issue came out. I bought it. I started reading it. It blew so much I could not even finish it. The story sucked so bad I could not make heads or tails as to what the story was supposed to be about. I tried to give it away and no one would take it. That says a lot.
Most Underrated:
Towards the end of the year last year, Dynamite turned out a good series called Uncanny. This series turned out six issues and stopped. I have not been able to find any information whether this series will be continued. The main character has the ability to gain all of the skills and knowledge from any one person he touches. He only retains this information for a short time, but the potential for so many different concepts and scenarios.
Most Disappointing Comic:
Frank Miller’s original screenplay for Robocop was used for the miniseries, Robocop: Last Stand. For those of us Robocop fans, this was a crap stain on paper. It is hard for me to believe that Frank Miller’s original screenplay was that shitty. I really gave it a shot, but I could not get past the third issue. This series had me very depressed.
Most likely to be sent down under in the event of a toilet paper shortage:
The worst comic book I have seen this year was Image’s Umbral. The first issue of this comic was gross. Sorry to sound so juvenile about it, but it fits. Antony Johnston, the writer, needs several lessons on writing including what a plot is and how to introduce a story. The artwork done by Christopher Mitten was horrible. It was unclear exactly what he was trying to portray in his work.
Deadpool vs. Carnage was by far the best miniseries of the last year. This story was exciting! The action was smooth and constant. I really enjoyed Deadpool’s wise-ass comments aggravating Carnage, while Carnage was trying so hard to kill . . . rip Deadpool apart. The whole miniseries was very entertaining and the artwork was phenomenal. If you don’t have this in your collection, get the trade. You will not be sorry.
Worst Miniseries:
Hit List from Zenescope was by far the worst miniseries I encountered over the last year. This series had its high points on artwork, but most of the art wasn’t the greatest. The story was really hard to follow due to the lack of a plot.
Writer of the Year:
I had a really hard time with this category. Considering the different series and amount of comics I get and enjoy. The choice started to come through clearly. Assailant Comics’ Chris Charlton is my choice for Writer of the Year for his hard and great work in Binary Gray, Black of Heart, and “Freedom Run” (Open Tree, Legends and Tall Tales #1). His writing style is solid and flows very well through his stories.
Artist of the Year:
Manifest Destiny’s Matthew Roberts is my choice for artist of the year. The artwork within the pages of Manifest Destiny is just the best I see each month.
Cody 'Madman' Miller's picks:
Comic of the Year:
This probably won’t come as shock to anyone who follows the HCB, but I’m giving the big one to Dan Slott and his Superior Spider-Man. This happens to be the exact book I gave the top spot to last year. I loved it last year and it only got better building to the grand finale. I’ve been a Spidey fan for ages and this run in my opinion is as good as it has ever been.
I’m giving this one to DC and their Forever Evil villainous 3D covers. You might call it cheese but I call them badass across the board. My favorites were Sandman, the Riddler, and the Joker.
Best new comic:
Manifest Destiny hands down no question. Take relevant history and drown it in fantasy . . . sold. Well done, Mr. Dingess, well done. Aces up every sleeve.
Most Overrated:
I kept coming up empty trying to figure this one out. I’m going to side with Art Bee on this one and give it to Pretty Deadly. Everything I had seen prior to this books release had me super pumped for the first issue, unfortunately I didn’t get it taken off my pull list in time and became the not so lucky owner of the 2nd issue as well.
Most underrated:
How come no one I know but me reads Dynamite’s Pathfinder books? It’s the best of both worlds for a gamer/comic geek like myself. They put out a few different mini series over the past year and I think I read them all. I truly enjoyed each and every one of them, Goblins being my stand out favorite. But wait there’s more! Each and every issue has a pot of gold on the last couple pages, I’m talking maps, npcs, monsters, adventure hooks and anything else you could possibly need to bring a little what-have-you to your adventures.
Most Disappointing Comic:
I was hoping this was the year for me to get my Superman on. I’ve never been into the Man of Steel personally. I just cant get over the fact that unless you have kryptonite on your Batbelt there is zero chance of you messing up that jerrycurl. I made it to issue #3 but I could’ve stopped after the first issue. I don’t know why I didn’t , I’m just an idiot like that. Superman Unchained = Major disappointment and only reinforced my distaste for DC’s poster boy.
Most likely to make you throw up in your mouth:
Superman Unchained. See above. Absolutely horrible. Epic Fail. Even Superman fans know it’s crap.
Helheim for the win. This was one of those random impulse buys that actually paid off for me for once. Cullen Bunn was probably taking a big dump one day and a thought occurred to him…"I know, I’ll turn Frankenstein’s monster into a raging undead axe wielding death machine…" Yeah, I know that sounds badass and it was. The art was amazing and my top scribbles of the year.
Worst Miniseries:
Robocop: Last Stand. I think I actually got pissed off after reading the first two issues. For shame!
Writer of the Year:
Dan Slott, take your freaking trophy.
Artist of the Year:
I’m going with the dynamic duo of Joelle Jones’s pencils and Nick Filardi’s colors. Helheim, I’m telling you.
William R. Davis Jr.'s picks:
Comic of the Year:
Saga. Comic of the decade? Century? Saga is a must read treasure that everyone should have on their pull list.
Francisco Francavilla-Silver Surfer #1. As a lifelong Surfer fan I couldn’t be more disappointed by the series. I don’t think I’ve ever received more backlash than I did for that review. However, the variant cover for the first issue was absolutely perfect. It captures the essence of the Silver Surfer with simplicity and grace.
Best New Comic:
Rat Queens. Hilarious. Great Art. Amazing characters. Rat Queens never fails to entertain.
Most Overrated:
I hate to beat a dead horse, but The Walking Dead wins this one for a second year in a row. It used to be so good, full of characters I cared about. When they died, it mattered. When the tiger died, I cheered. Then I read cherry picked letters from outraged fans pissed about the tiger dying. That is when I realized that the world is full of idiots.
Most Underrated:
Manhattan Projects- This comic never fails to impress, and while it’s not overly underrated, it should get way more love.
Most Disappointing Comic:
The Wake - You had me and then you lost me. Although most other fanboys I talk with loved this one, it fell way short and I lost interest around issue four. Sean Murphy doesn’t need a writer, especially Scott Snyder.
Most Likely to sent down under in the event of a toilet paper shortage:
Marvel and DC- The tandem of endless gimmicks and the cancellation of quality titles finally broke me this year. I no longer read any monthlies from the Big Two.
Shaolin Cowboy - One of the most creative miniseries I have ever read, great use of the medium, both spellbinding and highly recommended.
Worst Miniseries:
Superior Venom - I’m fudging this category a bit, because I had to sound off about this arc in Superior Spider-Man. Never been a Spiderfan but I loved Superior. Superior Venom was some of the hands down stupidest stuff I have ever read and cemented my leaving the pages of the Big Two forever.
Writer of the Year:
BKV. While the art in this book is incredible, the true strength of Saga is the neverending litany of well developed characters and the Saga universe itself.
Artist of the Year:
Fiona Staples- I’m obsessed with the art in Saga, as is everyone else who knows their way around a comic shop. The difference is that the hype is real. Saga may very well end up becoming the greatest comic ever created.
Will Dubbeld's picks:
Manifest Destiny. Man, oh man, Matthew Roberts and Co. have been absolutely killing it with these covers. Hyper detailed, beautiful inks and colors, kudos all around
Best New Comic:
Magneto. Cullen Bunn and Co. are bringing back my favorite Magneto. You know, the one that sinks Russian subs, the one that EMPs the planet, the brutal, ruthless Master of Magnetism that takes no guff from you Flatscans. Thank you, Mr. Bunn, for giving back my favorite X-baddie back his stones.
Most Overrated:
Batman (Scott Snyder and Greg Capullo). I know these two are DCs Golden Children right now, but I could not disagree more with the choice. All of Snyder's arcs start out interestingly enough, but they fall the fuck apart in the third act. I was even enjoying The Wake, until about issue 7, when Snyder Loeb-dicked the last act. He even tried to out-Frank Miller Frank Miller with his Year Zero arc, and nope. I've already read about Batman starting out in Gotham, and it was spades better than Year Zero.
As far as Mr. Capullo goes, he is a fine artist as far as his previous work on Spawn and The Haunt go. He's hyper-attentive to detail, and not a square centimeter of page is left un-crammed with pencils. It's fine work, but sometimes less is more.
Also, I don't like the way he draws noses.
And he talks about working out and Black Label Society waaaayyy too much on the Internets, but that's really not relevant...
Most Underrated:
East of West. I fully admit that I've no idea what's going on in this book a good 40% of the time. It started out going one direction, changed horses in the middle of the stream, went another direction and then blindsided me with an entirely new crop of characters and subplots.
Perhaps my tiny simian brain cannot comprehend Jonathan Hickman's wheels-within-wheels writing, but I'm more likely to believe that everything will fall into place after 20 some-odd issues of setup, plot threads, and pitfalls, as Jonathan Hickman's are wont to do. Nick Dragotta's art is great, simple line art that makes use of space in the best way and is supported fully by Frank Martin's vibrant colors. Top notch, fellas.
Most Disappointing Comic:
Guardians of the Galaxy (Brian Michael Bendis).
Bendis, Bendis, Bendis...
Well hey, anything's gotta be better than Age of Ultron, right? A meteoric rise to fame this year for the GotG nets them a mediocre comic book. Uninspired, and seemingly a vehicle to shoehorn Angela into the Marvel U and Venom into space. If you're into the Guardians, read the Star-Lord and Rocket Raccoon solo books. They are far superior. Granted, Bendis had big shoes to fill after Dan Abnett and Andy Lanning's AMAZING run at the Cosmic Marvel, but still, I shouldn't have the urge to crumple my comic and yell, "BE BETTER!!!" at the cover in impotent nerd-rage.
Most likely to sent down under in the event of a toilet paper shortage:
Kick Ass 3. Well, thank Christ this mess is finally done and over with...
Rover Red Charlie.
Garth Ennis writing a comic about three best friend dogs at the end of the world.
What could go wrong?
Certainly Garth Ennis couldn't tear your heart out and jump up and down on it with that set up...
This miniseries is amazing. Reading it you'll think, "yep, that's what a dog would do" and "yep, if dogs spoke, they'd say that".
And I'm a cat person.
Buy it. Read it. Be afraid that Garth Ennis is writing about 3 cute dogs and has no leash, so to speak.
Worst Miniseries:
Battle Scars. Boy, did this piss me off. I really liked this series with the spy vs. supercriminal vibe, but then the end of the series revealed it was just a backdoor way to introduce Agent Coulson and Sam Jackson's Nick Fury into the Marvel U. Fuck you and your bait and switch, Marvel.
Writer of the Year:
Jason Aaron. Between Thor, Southern Bastards, and whatever else he's managed to squeak out, Aaron takes home the gold.
Runners up: Dan Slott and Ed Brubaker. Read Superior Spider-Man. Then read Fatale and Velvet. I'd even recommend Dan Slott's Dr. Who fan-fic, Silver Surfer.
Artist of the Year:
Roc Upchurch (Rat Queens). This was a toughie, but I've gotta give it to Rat Queens. Upchurch has a masterly understanding of expressions, background, linear action, and the female protagonists aren't put together like spandex superheroines. Top notch.
Well, there ya have it, folks. The 2014 Hammy Awards. They run from SDCC to SDCC (roughly) and will return next year.
No refunds, kids.
You get what you pay for.
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