Hi, I'm new and need help

[dancedetrance]

Hi, I'm new in graphic novels. I just decided I want to try read some graphic novel but I don't know what to buy...

a little about me.
I apparently living in Indonesia, which is pretty hard to get GN from bookstores, so it leaves me no choice than to buy online... And money is one problem for me because I'm still a student...

the reason of I'm getting into GN reading, is because of watching allan moore's movie, The V for Vendetta and League of Extraordinary Gentlemen...

I really want to read both GN but the only thing available for both title are collector's item... and they are expensive...

I'm thinking of Watchmen since every review says it is good and it is Allan moore's...

but I still want to find more suggestion and more choices...

okay, before it is getting longer since it is already long...

are there any title you could recommend to me?

I really thank you for reading this and helping me tho this one is a really long msg...

 

[MattyB]

Watchmen is a classic so it is recommended. Y: The Last Man is something I recommend to anyone as well.

 

[woodsman]

Watchmen
Maus
V for Vendetta (anything by Moore in fact!!)
Dark Night Returns
Sandman
Preacher
They're all good, gander through the reveiws, I mean different people look for different things. Try to read Maus at some point.

 

[chopper]

The Red Star.

epic, widescreen, alternate Russian history. awesome.

 

[GOLLUM]

Woodsman listed most of my favs but I'll add the Lucifer series and From Hell (Moore) along with Neil Gaiman's other work of course. Also Aussie Shaun Tan's award winning silent graphic novel about the perils of immigration The Arrivals is excellent stuff OH...and Batman Arkham House and Long Halloween.

 

[Stephen Aryan]

If you like Alan Moore then look out for From Hell, about Jack the Ripper, Promethea, Tom Strong and Top Ten.

 

[woodsman]

I'll second From Hell and Top Ten and read Watchmen before that film comes out!!

Gollum pointed out the Batman Arkham (I presume you meant Serious House etc...) is one of the best in the genre (quite different for Batman).

Not really recommended as such, but, one my favourite charchters is Green arrow.

 

[GOLLUM]

Gollum pointed out the Batman Arkham (I presume you meant Serious House etc...) is one of the best in the genre (quite different for Batman).

Ooops...yes I meant to say Arkham Asylum - 15th Anniversary edition. It is apparently the most successful graphic novel of all time based on I presume sales.

 

[dask]

The first Batman Versus Predator is still one of my all time favorite Batman adventures.

 

[DeepThought]

I'll second everything on woodsman and GOLLUM's lists. Especially Moore's Watchmen. Plus:

Fables
Saga of the Swamp Thing
Transmetropolitan
Berserk (manga)
Full Metal Alchemist (manga)

 

[GOLLUM]

Yes, good point, add Sin City and Swamp Thing to that list.

 

[Interference]

Miller's Dark Knight Returns (etc, though ...Strikes Again is mostly disappointing)
Moore's Killing Joke
Alex Ross' art always worth studying, if sometimes a little tame, so anything from Marvels to War On Crime

Good starting points, I think. They were for me.

 

[Dagny]

Hi dancedetrance! welcome to the wonderful world of graphic novels! you get story, action, pictures, pretty people, it's half book, half movie, the best of both worlds!

the good think about buying online is you can sometimes get used copies in new condition, which brings the price down. also, if you buy a lot at one time from Amazon, you can get free shipping. Abebooks.com is a clearing house for independent booksellers, where you can get older stuff for a good price, but i don't know what their shipping costs are.

I'm not really into the superhero or traditional american action heros, so you might not be at all interested in my suggestions, but this stuff is fun for me, and I'm pretty new to graphic novels too.

Neil Gaiman's Sandman series is a classic, and an excellent read. it's a series of semi-connected short stories where Morpheus, a.k.a. Dream, always makes some kind of appearance. Oftentimes his siblings, Death, Desire, Destruction, Delerium and others show up. The occasionall slow bit, but really an excellent series. It's been out for a while, so used copies should be available for a good price online.

I've got to second Deep Thought's Fullmetal Alchemist, which is in my opinion the best action/philosophy manga out there. I believe the manga started around 2002, and with 17 volumes out, it's still going. This one is dangerous, once you start buying volumes, you won't be able to stop!

speaking of action/philosophy, Action Philosophers, by Fred deLente and Ryan Dunlavey is educational, and just plain funny. Volume #1 was great, but #2 and #3 went downhill. not so much a graphic novel, as a cartoon-ized comedy educational tv show.

if you're looking for action/funny, Phil Foglio's Girl Genius is funny and sexy! a little bit of sex comedy, a handful of crazed robots, and mechanical geniuses on the run. the artwork is cute, and the story is fun, funny, and a little psyhco.

I also really enjoyed Elric: the Making of a Sorcerer, by Michael Moorcock and Walter Simonson. it was just darn cool. Veers away from Moorcock's original a little, and the style of the artwork took a little getting used to, but i've re-read this a handful of times, and like it more each time.

 

[soulsinging]

I've never read a graphic novel before either, but the Watchmen movie has me intrigued. I have 2 on my shelf. One is the Watchmen, the other is Kingdom Come... I loved Superman as a kid so it seemed a reasonable place to start and the artwork looked pretty incredible to me.

So keep the suggestions coming, in case I get hooked!

 

[Vladd67]

Anything by Alan Moore

 

[Rammenoth]

Woodman's list is definetively what I will recommed.