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Best comic to introduce a manga fan to the Big Two?

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Wackd Since: May, 2009
#1: Aug 16th 2011 at 6:56:28 PM

She keeps pushing manga on me, and since I finally caved and agreed to read Full Metal Alchemist I can't help but realize that it's only fair that I give her something to start on to (whether she wants me to is another matter.)

I'm not talking about alternative stuff. She's read the works of Jhonen Vasquez and loved it. I want something that'll get her interested in Marvel and DC, even if it's older stuff (because naturally, as we all know, modern mainstream comic suck.)

She also likes Cowboy Bebop. As an anime newbie I'm not sure what this says about her taste, though I've heard good things about it and am enjoying FMA, no matter how unwillingly I started it.

So...um...yeah. Recommendations would be appreciated. (Nothing Batman, though. She claimed she read a Batman comic a few years back and it killed her interest in American comics.)

edited 16th Aug '11 6:56:36 PM by Wackd

Maybe you'd be less disappointed if you stopped expecting things to be Carmen Sandiego movies.
eX 94. Grandmaster of Shark Since: Jan, 2001
94. Grandmaster of Shark
#2: Aug 16th 2011 at 6:59:52 PM

Nextwave? Asides from being a generally good comic, it is also less of your typical superhero story while still having many of the core tropes.

Wackd Since: May, 2009
#3: Aug 16th 2011 at 7:03:41 PM

Granted, this is just from reading the trope page, but I'm looking for something a little more...deep...if that's the word, not something that's going to reaffirm the stereotype that superhero comics are just hot people in spandex blowing shit up.

Maybe you'd be less disappointed if you stopped expecting things to be Carmen Sandiego movies.
MousaThe14 Writer, Artist, Ignored from Northern Virginia Since: Jan, 2011 Relationship Status: Showing feelings of an almost human nature
Writer, Artist, Ignored
#4: Aug 16th 2011 at 7:06:10 PM

So no The Killing Joke? Dang...

Well you should read FMA anyway, it's good.

I will always and eternally recommended Ultimate Spider-man and to just stop on volume 20, because it's all downhill volumes 21 and 22.

But seriously man, she should not need to force FMA on you, you should've already read it.

Ninja'd.

Well I've only read one volume of Astro City but that may be good.

Also, her liking Cowboy Bebop just mean that she's just like everybody else. Cowboy Bebop is the anime for people that don't like anime. Or Americans. Either way, Cowboy Bebop is just "The great thing everybody likes", it'll say little about one's taste.

edited 16th Aug '11 7:08:37 PM by MousaThe14

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DrFurball Since: Jan, 2001
#5: Aug 16th 2011 at 7:24:02 PM

Granted, this is just from reading the trope page, but I'm looking for something a little more...deep...if that's the word, not something that's going to reaffirm the stereotype that superhero comics are just hot people in spandex blowing shit up.
Howard the Duck. It's one of the deepest comics I've ever read. Also very funny. Watchmen's always a good choice.

If she's a fan of Wake Up, Go to School, Save the World type stories, I'd recommend Stan Lee & Steve Ditko's Amazing Spider-Man run. Stan's writing is fairly cheesy, though, since that's how things were done back then. May wanna warn her of that if you go with it.

I'd recommend Daredevil: Born Again, but it helps to have prior knowledge of DD before one reads it.

MousaThe14 Writer, Artist, Ignored from Northern Virginia Since: Jan, 2011 Relationship Status: Showing feelings of an almost human nature
Writer, Artist, Ignored
#6: Aug 16th 2011 at 7:27:41 PM

Okay, I can also agree that she should read the old Amazing Spider-man. One can easily find it in the ginormous Essential volumes in a library.

But she should, like I , quite when characters start popping up and it reads in the corner (Don't know this villain or this relationship? Read Peter Parker as The Spectacular Spider-man to find out!)

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Wackd Since: May, 2009
#7: Aug 16th 2011 at 7:37:00 PM

[down]So, just called her for more info on her tastes—she likes Dragon Ball, Dragon Ball Z, D.Gray-man, Code Geass (the anime, she hasn't read the manga), Ranma ½, and Inuyasha (though she did confess it's a bit repetitive.)

Hope this isn't too broad.

edited 16th Aug '11 7:41:00 PM by Wackd

Maybe you'd be less disappointed if you stopped expecting things to be Carmen Sandiego movies.
Sparkysharps Since: Jan, 2001
#8: Aug 16th 2011 at 7:37:18 PM

Yeah, you're gonna have to give us more than "Likes Cowboy Bebop." Does she like certain themes? Does she prefer her stuff Darker and Edgier or Lighter and Softer? What's her favorite genres? Has she ever watched any shows from the DCAU and, if so, what did she think them? What are some trends, themes, or tropes she simply can't stand?

SKJAM Since: Jan, 2001 Relationship Status: Baby don't hurt me!
#9: Aug 16th 2011 at 7:43:26 PM

Too bad about no Batman, as I was going to suggest "Batman: Child of Dreams", which is basically a Batman manga.

So let's see...yes, Ultimate Spider-Man with possibly a Stan & Jack original Spider-Man chaser, just to highlight how different creators can work with the same basic material.

Jonah Hex comes to mind; it's not superheroes as such, but it's definitely an American Big Two comic book.

Supergirl: Cosmic Adventures in the Eighth Grade was cute, well-written and requires minimal knowledge of the canon.

MousaThe14 Writer, Artist, Ignored from Northern Virginia Since: Jan, 2011 Relationship Status: Showing feelings of an almost human nature
Writer, Artist, Ignored
#10: Aug 16th 2011 at 7:46:04 PM

Okay, so she's a fan of popular shounen series. Which means a lot of action, immature humor, and long runners. I happen to like the DB/Z and Ranma manga meself.

SO I will reaffirm that she should read the recommended Spider-man comics because what you've described to me does not scream "Likes deepness" as much as you mentioned earlier. Perhaps she does but considering what I've been presented, I offer a different path.

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eX 94. Grandmaster of Shark Since: Jan, 2001
94. Grandmaster of Shark
#11: Aug 16th 2011 at 7:47:53 PM

Dragon Ball, Dragon Ball Z, D.Gray-man, Code Geass (the anime, she hasn't read the manga), Ranma ½, and Inu Yasha (though she did confess it's a bit repetitive.)

But with this kind of lineup, Nextwave should be right up her alley. Also, it has the great advantage of being a finished series with little big universe continuity, so it is easy to get into.

What might also work, Immortal Iron Fist, latest series. A comic about a mystical martial artist and the Vanishing Village he comes from.

edited 16th Aug '11 7:53:08 PM by eX

Wackd Since: May, 2009
#12: Aug 16th 2011 at 7:58:46 PM

"Deep" was the wrong word. I want something that doesn't play up the requisite tropes in a way that makes the whole thing look stupid. Nextwave, if it's nearly as plotless and action-packed as the page says, is only going to make her think superhero books are exactly what she thought they were.

(And, regardless of actual content, she does argue that manga is better than American comics because they're "deep." This from the woman who said she gave up on American books after reading one Batman that she remembers nothing about.)

So, Ultimate Spidey seems to be the top pick. If no one disputes, I'll lend that to her next time I see her.

edited 16th Aug '11 7:59:21 PM by Wackd

Maybe you'd be less disappointed if you stopped expecting things to be Carmen Sandiego movies.
eX 94. Grandmaster of Shark Since: Jan, 2001
94. Grandmaster of Shark
#13: Aug 16th 2011 at 8:14:40 PM

I love Dragonball Z to pieces but deep is not the adjective that comes to mind when I want to describe the series. Neither for Ranma or Code Geass. And DBZ pretty much is a superhero comic any way. People with superpowers, defending earth from various threads.

MousaThe14 Writer, Artist, Ignored from Northern Virginia Since: Jan, 2011 Relationship Status: Showing feelings of an almost human nature
Writer, Artist, Ignored
#14: Aug 16th 2011 at 8:18:15 PM

[up][up]HAHAHAHAHH HAHAHHAH HHAH GAHAHAH HHA HAHAH HAH HHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH HAHHA HAHAHHA HHAHAAHH GAH HAHAHA HAHHA! HA! HA! HA! HA!

Oh oh mans, that.. Wow, I needed a good laugh Wackd, she has no idea what she's taking about, The list she's mentioned are manga that prove that manga are just as common, low and shallow as American comics.

Japanese comics are not deeper than American ones, both sides have their good and bad shallow and deep and if she genuinely belles that she needs to get off her high horse and start getting disillusioned, I was only that stupid for less than a year.

edited 16th Aug '11 8:59:41 PM by MousaThe14

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kkhohoho (4 Score & 7 Years Ago)
#15: Aug 16th 2011 at 8:34:15 PM

[up][up]Yeeeeaaahh... DBZ is one of many such Shonen shos, as I'm sure many know, and what that proves, is that those kind of Shonen's, and the traditional Super-Hero comic, (Superman, Wonder Woman, JLA, Iron Man, Avengers, etc.,) are pretty much the Alternate-Country equivalents of each other, in a number of ways. If she wanted a 'deep' comic, DBZ and the like are not the type of stuff she should be using for comparison.

edited 16th Aug '11 9:19:48 PM by kkhohoho

C0mraid from Here and there Since: Aug, 2010
#16: Aug 16th 2011 at 8:47:23 PM

[up][up] I don't really understand your reaction. DBZ obviously isn't deep, but it's being compared to Nextwave. Almost anything is deeper than Nextwave.

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MousaThe14 Writer, Artist, Ignored from Northern Virginia Since: Jan, 2011 Relationship Status: Showing feelings of an almost human nature
Writer, Artist, Ignored
#17: Aug 16th 2011 at 8:59:18 PM

I'm not talking about Nextwave, I've never read it it, I only heard about it in this very thread, I meant in general.

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C0mraid from Here and there Since: Aug, 2010
#18: Aug 16th 2011 at 9:02:42 PM

Read some Nextwave then. Pretty much any comic I can think of is deeper than that.

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MousaThe14 Writer, Artist, Ignored from Northern Virginia Since: Jan, 2011 Relationship Status: Showing feelings of an almost human nature
Writer, Artist, Ignored
#19: Aug 16th 2011 at 9:16:58 PM

Oh, I realize, iv you really want to blow your friends' mind about this whole "deepness" nonsense, I suggest throwing Marvels and Kingdom Come on her head. If DB/Z, Ranma, Code Geass, etc are "deep" enough for her, these will send her mind to oblivion.

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Sparkysharps Since: Jan, 2001
#20: Aug 16th 2011 at 9:40:51 PM

And, regardless of actual content, she does argue that manga is better than American comics because they're "deep."

I am fighting the urge to laugh at her stupidity, and I say this as someone who loves Dragonball and G Gundam (just because they're awesome doesn't mean they aren't dumb as all fuck). Somebody here has a strong case of the weeaboos.

Personally, I worship the ground Darwyn Cooke walks on so... Batman: Ego's out, and I'm not sure how much of Justice League New Frontier she'd by going "who the fuck are these people?" so I'm not inclined to rec that... How 'bout his reboot of The Spirit? There's also Superman: Kryptonite and, if her Bat-hatred doesn't extend to related characters, Selina's Big Score.

On the Marvel side, I'm thinking Thor: The Mighty Avenger

I don't really understand your reaction. DBZ obviously isn't deep, but it's being compared to Nextwave. Almost anything is deeper than Nextwave.

Nextwave is a special kind of deep — It's so shamelessly shallow that it goes all the way around and ends up profound. It gave my mind the explodo because it is clever.

edited 16th Aug '11 9:44:59 PM by Sparkysharps

TheConductor Since: Jan, 2011
#22: Aug 17th 2011 at 3:43:14 AM

Invincible by Robert Kirkman is really good. Plus it doesn't spill out into other series so it's perfect.

Drakyndra Her with the hat from Somewhere Since: Jan, 2001
Her with the hat
#23: Aug 17th 2011 at 3:59:56 AM

Nextwave is great, but it isn't deep; it's hilarious.

Hmmm... maybe the Jaime Reyes Blue Beetle comics? They're pretty and good, and generally focused on the teenagers, rather like most mainstream shonen.

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PrimoVictoria Since: Dec, 1969
#24: Aug 17th 2011 at 4:21:41 AM

Cosmic Marvel. Start with Drax The Destroyer and then proceed with Annihilation and Conquest.

MousaThe14 Writer, Artist, Ignored from Northern Virginia Since: Jan, 2011 Relationship Status: Showing feelings of an almost human nature
Writer, Artist, Ignored
#25: Aug 17th 2011 at 4:59:01 AM

Oh yeah, I nearly forgot about Invincible, definitely go with that.

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