Creator Spotlight
Kelly Thompson’s Marvel Highlights
The Hawkeye writer shares her list of Marvel hits and classics. Read Kelly and Leonardo Romero’s Hawkeye, featuring Kate Bishop as the Avenging Archer!
Kelly’s Hit List
Nextwave by Warren Ellis, Stuart Immonen & Dave McCaig
in Nextwave: Agents of H.a.T.E. (2006) #1
Hands down my favorite superhero comic run of all time; it's hilarious and weird and beautiful all at once. There's a boldness to Nextwave that few mainstream cape books can match – it feels fearless and what it chooses to do with that fearlessness is to make the maximum number of jokes and be the maximum amount of bizarre, and I appreciate the hell out of that.
Joss Whedon, John Cassaday & Laura Martin's X-Men
in Astonishing X-Men (2004) #1
After a break from reading monthly superhero comics, Astonishing X-Men brought me back to reading regularly and it remains for me one of my favorite X-Men stories. Smart, beautiful, just funny enough to keep me happy, and totally emotionally gutting as only the best stories can manage.
Hawkeye by Fraction, Aja, Hollingsworth & Wu
in Hawkeye (2012) #1
A definitive run for any superhero character is one that redefines them in the way that Matt Fraction, David Aja, Annie Wu, and Matt Hollingsworth's Hawkeye does for Clint (and Kate Bishop!) A book that constantly does the unexpected in the best ways, that's groundbreaking in some of its storytelling and despite being a book that sorta pretends to be about nothing, it's really about EVERYTHING.
Run The Mission, Don't Get Seen, Save The World
in Secret Avengers (2010) #16
Done-in-one stories are incredibly difficult under the best of circumstances, but Warren Ellis and his rotating cast of artists, Jamie McKelvie, Kev Walker, David Aja, Michael Lark, Alex Maleev and Stuart Immonen, bring six incredibly creative Avengers stories to life in beautiful and funny ways. It's tough to make an impact in 20 pages, but [Secret Avengers #16-21] are a masterclass in how to do this.
Uncanny X-Men #269 by Chris Claremont & Jim Lee
in Uncanny X-Men (1963) #269
A nostalgic delight that helped solidify Rogue as my all-time favorite character. Oh, who are we kidding, that ship had already sailed by the time I got to Uncanny X-Men #269! But it didn't hurt her case as it's a really fun and beautiful issue that set up a lot of things I love about Rogue. And then Rogue's adventure picks up [in #273-277] as the exact kind of bizarre X-Men adventure that I loved so much as a teen.
Inhumans by Paul Jenkins, Jae Lee & Dave Kemp
in Inhumans (1998) #1
In my youth when it came to Marvel I was pretty loyal to the X-Books. I can't remember why I branched out to try Inhumans, but I loved this book and it left an indelible impression on me, and it was one of the reasons I was so excited to get the opportunity to write Medusa in A-Force! Didn't this book win an Eisner Award or something?? Yeah, it's that good!
The Forgeries of Jealousy
in Avengers Assemble (2012) #21
[Avengers Assemble #21-25] is a really great Avengers story filled with DeConnick and Ellis' wit, humor and charm, slick art, and just classic Avengers hijinks. DeConnick and Ellis really find wonderful ways to highlight their characters, and Buffagni brings it all to gorgeous, hilarious light. For me, I can never get enough of superhero books that teach me something about my characters and are also endlessly funny.
Squirrel Girl by Ryan North, Erica Henderson & Rico Renzi
in The Unbeatable Squirrel Girl (2015) #1
Easily one of the funniest books around. North and Henderson create pure delight in every issue, their partnership is pure magic. If you had told me I would ever care about a book called Unbeatable Squirrel Girl, I would have called you a liar to your face. I am dumb. It's so great.
Young Avengers by Kieron Gillen & Jamie McKelvie
in Young Avengers (2013) #1
As usual with Gillen and McKelvie team-ups this feels like creators working in perfect sync together. Young Avengers feels young and fresh and modern in all the right ways. It's gorgeously designed and presented from tip to tail, and it's Jamie McKelvie at perhaps his most innovative when it comes to storytelling, structure, and narrative. Bonus points for bringing the fantastic America Chavez into the spotlight!