Daniel's FAQ

Daniel's F.A.Q.

WHAT ARE YOUR FAVOURITE COMICS?:
Naturally I join the legions of comic readers and name Alan Moore and Dave Gibbon’s Watchmen and Neil Gaiman’s The Sandman as some of the best graphic novels of all time. You have to love and respect Maus. Robert Kirkman and Tony Moore’s The Walking Dead is one of the coolest graphic novels ever. If want to get into Batman (and destroy the Tim Burton &; Joel Schumacher’s horrible image of one of the greatest heroes of all time) Frank Miller’s The Dark Knight Returns & Batman: Year One, The Killing Joke by Alan Moore, The Long Halloween by Jeph Loeb are must reads. However my favourite has to be Preacher by writer Garth Ennis and artist Steve Dillon, if you haven’t read it or heard of it, I highly commend it to you. It is a literally and visual masterpiece. I also love Ennis’ run on Hellblazer. Other favourites are V for Vendetta, Blankets, Ultimate: Spider-Man, Fables, Astro City, Transmetropolitain, American Virgin, and Wolverine: Old Man Logan.

WHAT CHARACTERS DO YOU LOVE?:
When it comes to superheroes, I go back and forth between Batman and Spiderman as my absolute favourite of favourites. I would argue that Spiderman is the greatest superhero to date, and I love him because of the same reasons why every nerd loves him. However Batman holds a really special place in my heart. Just his whole philosophical and psychological nature to his character, origins, and stories has always amazed me. He is so complex and deep, dark dangerous. The nature of his character and mission is one I have spent hours discussing and debating with people. What has always struck me as unique about him is what Frank Millar said when explaining the character of Batman: “He’s clearly a man with a mission, but it’s not one of vengeance. Bruce is not after personal revenge… He’s much bigger then that; he’s much nobler than that. He wants the world to be a better place, where a young Bruce Wayne would not be a victim… In a way, he out to make himself unnecessary. Batman is a hero who wishes he didn’t have to exisit.”As for villains, I love the Joker because of his chaotic and crazy themes and very deep and dark character analysis. I also am a big fan of Magneto when he is all Malcolm X like, full of power and morality. Yet, two of the coolest cats in comics are Jesse Custer and the Saint of Killers. You have to read Preacher to fully understand, but to sum up Custer in three words: violent, boozing, preacher and the Saint of Killers: undead, evil, Clint Eastwood.

WHY DO YOU HATE MANGE AND ANIME?:
Okay, I don’t hate anime and manga, while I pay it out all the time, the fundamental matter is that I prefer, enjoy, and relate more with comic books. I dislike manga’s art style, particularly how everything is BIG! Big eyes, big hair, big boobs, big muscles! It’s crazy. That and manga artwork is a little too ‘pretty’ for my liking. The action and dialogue in manga is also over the top, while comics in my opinion are more grounded in realism (or as real as people in costumes with superpowers fighting crime can get). However the main thing is the morality and psychology of comics. Comics usually focus on an individual and focus on the consequences of actions, concepts of justice, defining the good, facing the past and inner battles, etc; manga as far as I can tell focus on universal themes such as friendship, family, good vs evil, etc – themes that I save for when I need to watch the odd Disney flick. But in the end, it doesn’t matter, if you’re passionate about it, who cares what I think or say. My advice to comic book fans would be to respect the differences and understand comic books aren’t always worth defending. As for manga fans, a tip from me would be to explore and see what you find in the comic book world – you just might be pleasantly surprised by what you find: that and admit that Batman could kick Naruto’s ass.

GREATEST GAME OF ALL TIME?:
Easy as – The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time. As far as I am concern, it isn’t a game; it’s a work of art.

TO YOU, WHAT MAKES A TRUE GEEK?:
A true geek isn’t defined by how many comics they read, or how many games they own, or how well they can resite Star Wars lines – but by how passionate they are. Geek culture is a lot more popular and mainstream now but when I was growing up it wasn’t at all and I got bullied a lot for it. I think it’s great that so many people are in the ‘geeky know’, but so many people see the movie or skim through a trade and think they understand it – when they don’t at all. True geeks are the passionate ones, who love these stories, adore these characters, and think they are the coolest kid on the block for doing so. Geek pride forever!

HOW DO I GET INTO COMICS?:
First of all, know what you’re getting into. These aren’t just for kids, in fact, some of these stories aren’t for kids at all! There is a whole universe of comics which cover everything. There is a lot more to comics then superheroes, spandex, capes and masks. Comics are pieces of literature – they tell stories. Know the stories you like outside comics, and find and read them in comics. Secondly, I would recommend finding your local comic book store and asking the staff for help and if you know people, who read comics, why not ask them? If you’re new to the comic book as a style of literature, a great place to start would be Maus, Watchmen, V for Vendetta, and Blankets. As for superheroes, a warning about entering the superhero universe: If you just saw the latest Batman movie, don’t grab and buy the first Batman comic you see. There will back stories you are unaware of, characters you have never heard of before, and most likely aspects of Batman you never knew existed. Start with the ‘fundamental’ stuff, and you can find hundreds lists on the internet and people willing to give their opinion – however, they are usually a few clear-cut classics for each hero and villain. Start with them. Most importantly, find what you enjoy reading and enjoy reading it.

WHOSE'S SIDEKICK WOULD YOU BE?:
As cool as it would be to fight crime with the dark knight – side by side, I am going to have to go with Iron Man. Being Tony Stark’s side kick would be awesome! Sure Bruce Wayne has the money and the status – but he uses it as an illusion... Stark parties as hard as he finds crime! Think of all the free booze you would get, all the wild nights you would enjoy, and all the hot models you would meet! Sorry Bruce – Tony has got me covered.