Working in any large form news source, you usually have to stick with the popular digs. Superhero comics, for all their faults, are the backbone of the industry so a lot of my attention has gone to them. One thing my esteemed editor Andy Hunsaker and I want to work on in 2012 is bringing in more indie stuff for review. Nevertheless, I read all the indie comics I can because the stories are usually just face smashingly good. I decided it was time to give the devil his due so I came up with the 10 best indie books/series of 2011.
One quick thing before we get started. I realize an argument can be made that Vertigo and Image aren’t “indie” comic companies. Well, um, I don’t give a fuck. The stuff they release doesn’t get always get the push it deserves, even within said company. So loosen the grip on that PBR, indie comic hipsters, drop your sack in those stretch jeans and dig into my list.
10. THE WALKING DEAD
Image Comics
Writer: Robert Kirkman
While the recent spotlight for The Walking Dead has been squarely focused on the TV show, the ongoing series is really where it’s at. Rick Grimes and his crew have been through hell and back this year, culminating in the discovery that there may be hundreds more survivors in the post zombie apocalypse. At nearly 100 issues, The Walking Dead is consistently well-written and never fails to be an impactful book. More about man’s struggle to remain human when reduced to their survival instincts, writer Robert Kirkman has managed to sustain a story that could easily have become a one trick pony. Once again in 2011, The Walking Dead proved that it deserves every scrap of adulation it’s received.
