To put it bluntly, we learn rather a lot of DC Comics in 2023, and now we’ve picked out our 10 Best DC Comics of 2023.
And it wasn’t simple work. All three of us who participated on this record had an extended set of books to pair down, usually painfully. But we did the arduous work, and we’ve settled on our favs, a listing that feels fairly consultant of what we loved probably the most.
There was one ebook the complete group — Cori McCreery, Joe Grunenwald, and Zack Quaintance — all pegged as our favourite, and so we’ll begin with that one, earlier than then going alphabetically. You can discover the total record under… get pleasure from!
10 Best DC Comics of 2023
Superman
Writer: Joshua Williamson
Artist: Jamal Campbell
Letterer: Ariana Maher
To me, it felt like Superman #1 — which hit in February — set the tone for DC’s complete 12 months. It was that well-done, with a transparent perspective on what long-running superhero comics ought to be. It added new concepts and characters, whereas additionally going again to foundational parts to maneuver them ahead, too. Plus, it appeared superb. But it wasn’t only one challenge after which fizzle. This ebook stayed robust all through 2023, persevering with to construct on the debut. It’s been a dependable deal with every month, and my favourite DC Comic of 2023. —ZQ
Since the Rebirth initiative in 2016, DC has always been reinventing Superman’s solo adventures, from making him a father to having him reveal his secret identification to the world to sending him off-world and passing the mantle on to his son. With this 12 months’s Dawn of DC relaunch of the sequence, Joshua Williamson and Jamal Campbell have reinvented the Man of Steel once more, restoring Superman’s secret identification and redefining his relationship each with Metropolis usually and particularly together with his archnemesis, Lex Luthor. Williamson has additionally delved into Luthor’s previous in a manner that has added new complexity to the character and his personal relationship with Metropolis. It’s a contemporary and thrilling tackle the pillars of good and evil within the DC Universe, and simply one of the best, most constant sequence DC has revealed this 12 months. —JG
So after we determined to do that finish of 12 months round-up, the most important problem was “Okay but who gets to write about Superman?” We all liked it, all of us thought it was one of, if not, the highest ebook of the 12 months. So we settled by deciding that we might all write about it and three others, in order that we had a full prime ten. So I’m right here so as to add my two cents about Superman. What can I say aside from that Williamson and Campbell are swinging for the fences with each challenge? They had the problem of making Superman’s model of Hush, and they’re completely making good on that problem. This run of Superman goes to enter the annals of nice runs that you could simply hand somebody to introduce them to a personality. Well achieved, guys. —CM
Action Comics
Writer: Phillip Kennedy Johnson
Artist: Rafa Sandoval
Colorist: Matt Herms
Letterer: Dave Sharpe
When Phillip Kennedy Johnson took over Action Comics in 2021, I used to be on document as nervous about that call. I used to be nervous that Johnson’s navy previous would drive him to write down Superman in a manner that didn’t mesh with how I view the character. Now right here we’re three years later, and I’m completely happy to say it’s my favourite Superman run of the previous decade, bar none. My fears had been unfounded, and I’m unhappy to see Johnson leaving the ebook. His Superman, and particularly his Lois have been a spotlight of the previous three years. Hey Phillip, sorry that I doubted you. —CM
Batman/Superman: World’s Finest
Writer: Mark Waid
Artist: Dan Mora
Colorist: Tamra Bonvillain
Letterer: Steve Wands
Mark Waid, Dan Mora and Tamara Bonvillain are actually firing on all cylinders with this ebook, and have been because it first launched. It is undeniably enjoyable each challenge, month in and month out. The artwork by Mora and coloured by Bonvillain make this ebook simply one of the best-looking books on the stands each month. Couple that with it’s Mark Waid simply telling the tales he desires to inform with out having to be sure by any particular period, and this can be a title for the ages. —CM
Birds of Prey
Writer: Kelly Thompson
Artist: Leonardo Romero
Colorist: Jordie Bellaire
Letterer: Clayton Cowles
We’re nonetheless early on this run, however boy-howdy is that this ebook only a rollicking enjoyable time. Kelly Thompson’s sense of humor is on show all through every challenge, and makes the ebook a pleasure to learn every month. The chemistry of the lineup could be very totally different from different Birds groups we’ve seen previously, making this iteration extra distinctive and fascinating. And of course Leonardo Romero’s artwork is fast-paced and dynamic all through. I discover myself wanting ahead to extra Birds of Prey each month, one thing that hasn’t occurred in far too lengthy. —CM
The Flash
Writers: Jeremy Adams, Si Spurrier
Artists: Roger Cruz, Fernando Pasarin, Mike Deodato Jr.
Colorists: Luis Guerrero, Matt Herms, Trish Mulvihill
Letterers: Rob Leigh, Hassan Otsmane-Elhaou
It’s been an fascinating 12 months for The Flash, with the tip of one inventive group’s run and the start of a brand new one which’s taken the character in a wildly totally different route. Whether it was in an epic multi-speedster saga like “The One-Minute War” or the smaller three-issue story that adopted it, Jeremy Adams concluded his two-and-a-half-year run as author on the quickest man alive’s adventures with a transparent deal with the ebook’s stars, Wally West and his household. Adams, joined this 12 months by artists together with Fernando Pasarin and Roger Cruz, significantly did robust work with the youthful Wests, Iris and Jai, bringing them entrance and heart for the primary time and giving them distinctive personalities, having them carry their very own storylines, and proving simply how a lot they’ll add to the Flash mythos.
The Flash #800 noticed the tip of Adams’s run and the start of new inventive group Si Spurrier, Mike Deodato Jr., Trish Mulvihill, and Hassan Otsmane-Elhaou’s time on the sequence, and after a two-month break for Knight Terrors the sequence relaunched and Spurrier and Deodato Jr. hit the bottom operating (no apologies for punning) with a brand new route for The Flash, one which has to this point leaned into the super-science of The Speed Force and the sci-fi horror of with the ability to journey throughout dimensions on a whim. It’s a take that has labored exceptionally effectively at doing one thing new with out ignoring something that’s come earlier than. At a time when DC has confirmed they’re greater than prepared to take massive swings, turning The Flash right into a horror ebook would be the greatest they’ve taken but. So far, within the palms of Spurrier, Deodato, and co., it’s been a house run, and I’m excited to see what else they’ve in retailer because the sequence progresses. —JG
Gotham City: Year One
Writer: Tom King
Penciller: Phil Hester
Inker: Eric Gapstur
Colorist: Jordie Bellaire
Letterer: Clayton Cowles
Eisner winner Tom King wrote a quantity of books for DC this 12 months, from restricted sequence like The Human Target to Danger Street to taking up the common writing chores on the month-to-month Wonder Woman sequence. But far and away his finest DC work of 2023 was on Gotham City: Year One. King, penciller Phil Hester, inker Eric Gapstur, colorist Jordie Bellaire, and letterer Clayton Cowles’s six-issue sequence follows non-public detective Slam Bradley as he investigates the kidnapping of younger Helen Wayne, a narrative set in opposition to a backdrop of racial rigidity in Sixties Gotham. Here King makes use of related noir tropes to these utilized in The Human Target, however in service of a way more compelling story. Hester’s paintings is maybe one of the best it’s ever been on this sequence, Gapstur’s inks enhancing the linework fantastically, and Bellaire’s colours becoming the tone of the story and the paintings flawlessly. It’s an alchemy of creators on the prime of their recreation, including a captivating new layer to at least one of comics’ most acquainted cities. —JG
Peacemaker Tries Hard
Writer: Kyle Starks
Artist: Steve Pugh
Colorist: Jordie Bellaire
Letterer: Becca Carey
Hey, how novel is Peacemaker Tries Hard — a humor comedian that’s really humorous? And this ebook was definitely that. From the hilarious SFX to the characterization — plucked expertly from the much-loved HBO tv present — to the occasional invention of new verbiage for intercourse acts…this ebook was simply humorous, the sort of humorous that makes you chuckle whilst you’re studying it alone. Hey, I’m chuckling proper now remembering some of my favourite jokes, too. —ZQ
Poison Ivy
Writer: G. Willow Wilson
Artist: Marcio Takara
Colorist: Arif Prianto
Letterer: Hassan Otsmane-Elhaou
The best option to clarify how profitable this ebook has been is to notice that Poison Ivy began as a six-issue miniseries and simply hit #17 this 12 months, with no finish in website but. With superhero comics, it usually feels a bit of empty to name a ebook “character-driven” — like 90 p.c of them have their lead character’s title splashed on the duvet — however this one actually is. It’s eager about who Poison Ivy is, what she’s going via, and the ripple impact of the various decisions she has made/retains making. It’s only one of these books that goes to point out the proper creators could make any character a book-of-the-month candidate. —ZQ
The Sandman Universe – Nightmare Country: The Glass House
Writer: James Tynion IV
Artist: Lisandro Estherren
Colorist: Patricio Delpeche
Letterer: Simon Bowland
This ebook basically takes the tone of some of the creepier corners of Sandman, and applies it to fashionable Bay Area tech oligarch tradition. It’s a mixture that works, and works rather well. Plus, there’s everybody’s favourite Sandman villain, The Corinthian. I’ve loved every challenge of what James Tynion and co. cooked up on this ebook, and I’d suggest it to any followers of Sandman — new and previous — searching for an fascinating and up to date tackle some of the concepts and characters. —ZQ
SHAZAM!
Writer: Mark Waid
Artist: Dan Mora
Colorist: Alejandro Sánchez
Letterer: Troy Peteri
It seems like DC has struggled of late to determine what to do with Billy Batson and his heroic alter ego. Enter the World’s Finest group of Mark Waid and Dan Mora, with an method that hearkens again to the earliest days of the character whereas nonetheless pushing him ahead. “Meet The Captain!,” the primary arc of the sequence, finds Billy now not in a position to share his talents together with his siblings, and at odds with the very gods who give him his powers. It’s severe stuff for the character, but it surely’s nested inside a heaping serving to of enjoyable within the kind of alien dinosaurs, hyper-intelligent apes, and Garguax, the emperor of The Moon, simply to call a number of issues. Waid and Mora, joined right here by colorist Alejandro Sánchez and letterer Troy Peteri, mix the drama and humor of the conditions completely, Mora’s visuals bringing all of it to life with fascinating web page layouts and emotive characters. This ebook would additionally make our best-of record if just for the introduction of “The Captain” as SHAZAM’s new nickname. We’re so shut to him being Captain Marvel once more, and with Mary Bromfield formally adopting the title Mary Marvel throughout Lazarus Planet, possibly Billy will comply with swimsuit? Lawyers be damned! —JG
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