What do you look for in a comic?

[Veggieleezy]

Like many of you, when I buy my comics I keep a few factors in mind, like writer, art, etc. This got me thinking: what're the most important factors for you to buy a comic/collection/graphic novel?

Writer
Art
Character(s)
Story/premise/arc
Place in continuity
Other (specify)

[md62]

1. writer- most important for me. A great writer can make me overlook average art.
2. character - I like certain characters more than others. I also prefer characters with longevity.
3. concept - a poorly executed idea can make me give up a book.
4. artist - of course comics are a combo of art & writing.

[SJNeal]

1. Character/Writer

2. Concept/Premise

3. Artist

[stk]

1. Writer

2. Premise

3. Art

In that order. If those three things are there, the specific character involved matters a lot less to me and continuity doesn't matter at all.


And if the comic does feature a character I care about, consistency is a lot more important to me than continuity. If it feels to me like the character(s), I think that is usually enough for me. It seems like 8 out of every 10 of my all-time favorite DC stories are either out-of-continuity or are beginning a new continuity, anyway.

[RaidenMGS]

Characters and Art but mostly:

Epic fights, hero vs hero. Im tired of reading hero vs villain....

[Dr. Cheesesteak]

I actually voted for all of them, ahah (except "Other"). All are almost equal...Art is probably the highest priority, but here is my reasoning to all of them:

Writer - The writer does make a difference to me. If I see a book by Alan Moore, I'll probably be more inclined to read/buy it than if it were written by Rajulio Schmidtzberg.

Art - It's a visual medium. And I love me some good comic art.

Characters - Some characters I just simply like. For whatever reason. Their scope of accessibility/readability may determine how much of their stuff I read. i.e. If Rajulio Schmidtzberg wrote a story about Gambit or Punisher, I'd probably still pick it up. But if Rajulio Schmidtzberg wrote a Batman story, I probably wouldn't. Bats is a fave character. But he has about 1,379,571 stories.

Continuity - Only recently have I cared about continuity. I began to think "if it doesn't count, why should I even bother reading it?" I still hold to that belief. Faulty as it may be.

Story - I guess this sort of coincides w/ writer? I mean, if a story is a major one/crossover etc, I'll probably be interested in reading it, regardless of writer. But yeah, story is important!

[Hulk_Is]

Writer - Every writer gets a fair shake by me at first whether they are new or have been on the payroll for years. Unless, they have a writing style that irks me, I'll read them. That being said, writers aren't a main draw for me.

Art - Kinda like with writers; if I'm irked, I'll do my best to avoid them, and likewise they are not big draws for me; as I usually always have something I can take issue with on someones art.

Character(s) - This is a big draw for me on one hand, but not always.

Story/premise/arc - This is the biggest draw for me barring characters. If I don't like the premise of the solicitation, then I ain't pullin' it, it's as simple as that. Writers mean next to nothing to me and I feel that paying for just the art when there's a whole story and dialogue going on is a waste of money for me.

Place in continuity - Don't care really. There are so many thing's in continuity that I hate ('Hulk family', Bendis' Moon Knight) and so many thing's I love being ignored (the Savage Hulk personality for example) that the word 'continuity' has meant very little to me for an extremely long time - like maybe since I was a kid long.

I just like smooth and competent dialogue (Kathryn Immonen's Wolverine and Jubilee), appropriate artwork (that means no 'noir-appropriate' artwork on traditional superhero books for example), and a story that piques my imagination or suprises me in a way that I otherwise feel like I wouldn't have been able to.

[Action Ace]

1. character: I'll tolerate anyone on Superman, nothing can get me to read X-Men
2. premise/concept: if you're new, here's your shot (Marineman, Halcyon, Stan Lee's BOOM! titles)
2A. format: monthly issues, not graphic novels or digital
3. writer: much more important than the artist for me
4. art: artists dismissed as "standard boring superhero hacks" preferred
5. continuity: all comic book stories (that I like) matter

[Theozilla]

1. Writer

2. Premise

3. Art

In that order. If those three things are there, the specific character involved matters a lot less to me and continuity doesn't matter at all.


And if the comic does feature a character I care about, consistency is a lot more important to me than continuity. If it feels to me like the character(s), I think that is usually enough for me. It seems like 8 out of every 10 of my all-time favorite DC stories are either out-of-continuity or are beginning a new continuity, anyway.

Same here.

[Desaad]

For me it's "voice". I look for my comics to have a voice, a tone, a direction.

I have various ways I lean -- I like big concept stories that focus on character -- but if I had to pick one unifying thread that runs through all of my favorites, it's that each book has its own unique identity, is trying to say something vital.

All the rest matters, but if this one thing isn't in place, I can't sustain interest.

[Veggieleezy]

1. character: I'll tolerate anyone on Superman, nothing can get me to read X-Men
2. premise/concept: if you're new, here's your shot (Marineman, Halcyon, Stan Lee's BOOM! titles)
2A. format: monthly issues, not graphic novels or digital
3. writer: much more important than the artist for me
4. art: artists dismissed as "standard boring superhero hacks" preferred
5. continuity: all comic book stories (that I like) matter

Ooh, forgot about Format as an option... Good point, Ace.

[Quinnhop]

Writer, Artist, Character(s), Story/Premise/Arc, and Other: Importance. It has to feel significant to me. Not necessarily groundbreaking, but it has to feel like it's moving at a high speed and in a well-considered direction. It should also try to do something for the character--to add something to the mythology without doing it a disservice.

[Ned McDodd]

First the characters. Because i like them or if they are new characters, because they look interesting. Second the artist. I love to look at great art (which is of course a subject of personal taste). Third the overall idea of the comic, what is it about. But overall i don't care who is writing the story. Because i have read great stuff from writers and i have read bad stuff from writers. It's always hit & miss for me and i don't care if one writer is supposed to be a good one, doesn't help me if i don't like the story.

[FoxMulder2012]

For me it's "voice". I look for my comics to have a voice, a tone, a direction.

I have various ways I lean -- I like big concept stories that focus on character -- but if I had to pick one unifying thread that runs through all of my favorites, it's that each book has its own unique identity, is trying to say something vital.

All the rest matters, but if this one thing isn't in place, I can't sustain interest.

Yes. This. So much this.

The reason I stopped reading my comics is because most of the books I was reading lost their voices after Infinite Crisis, especially JSA and Green Arrow, were my main books. IMO, One Year Later failed in giving us a new direction and just created a bunch of bland books.

So yeah, for me to read a book, I have to be given a reason to read that particular book. If there's nothing about that particular book that I can't get from another book, it isn't worth my time.

[Omega Supreme]

First and more important : characters, who this story is about ? I'm not going to read a story about a character i don't give a damn about.

Second, the premise/concept, after who now let's see what this story is about.

Then the writer and the artist.

I don't care much really about the format or the place in continuity.