Article:
Holiday Comic Book Gift Giving Guide Palooza

With Christmas fast approaching there’s probably only one thing on everyone’s mind. “What is Santa bringing me?” Or if you’re older than ten, you might be asking yourself “What the heck do I buy the guy who has everything?” This

Or you could buy them comic books. With the increase of movies based on comic books, those old picture books are getting all kinds of new attention. But with so many comics out there, how could you possibly know which ones to buy? Well that’s why I’m here. I’m gonna make a list of some awesome Trade paperbacks (Trades are collections of a series of comics in one volume), and you’ll use that list to buy your intimate lover (Or hip mother) something nice. You can’t go wrong with any of the books on this list, though you might want to keep the mature books away from Little Timmy’s eyes.

One final disclaimer: If you’re buying for the comic guy who has everything, I can’t guarantee he wont have any or all of these comics. If he’s half the comic guy he claims to be, he will. You’ll have to suck it up and ask him what he wants, or use our video game guide to buy him something else completely.

Marvel
Marvel is arguably the most successful comic publisher in the industry. With so many iconic superhero characters there’s something for everyone.

Also I should mention Marvel’s Digital comic subscription service. You could give a subscription as a gift, but in all honesty I’ve given it a month’s try and despite their claims of an up to date database, they are like 6 months behind, and a lot of runs have gaps between issues. Not worth the money.

	Astonishing X-men Vol. 1: Gifted Astonishing X-men is a fantastic X-men series written by geek legend Joss Whedon (Buffy, Firefly). The writing is fantastic, and hearkens back to the good fun days of heroism. The art by John Cassidy is beautiful and is a perfect pairing to the words on the page. This is a triple A book and worthy of anyone’s shelf space.
	The Amazing Spiderman Vol. 1: Coming Home This is the best Spiderman run in recent years. Written by another geek legend J Michael Straczynski (Babylon 5, Jeremiah), this series brought us some of the most original Spiderman stories in decades and coupled it with sharp writing and John Romita Jr’s unmistakable art style. If you’re a fan of the character, this series cannot be missed.
	The Incredible Hulk: Planet Hulk If you’re a fan of the Hulk, this book (followed with the fantastic World War Hulk) are a definitive collection detailing Hulks brutally awesome adventures in space. Written by Greg Pak, this series is not to be missed.
	Ultimate Spiderman Vol. 1: Power and Responsibility This book started the Ultimate universe, but even if you’re not interested in alternate timelines this is definitely a book that needs to be checked out. It’s written by Brian Michael Bendis a man widely considered Marvel’s star comic book writer. His writing style is so perfect for Spiderman, and his run with Mark Bagley on Ultimate Spiderman broke the record for longest run by Writer and artist, beating Stan Lee and Jack Kirby’s run on Fantastic Four. This isn’t the last Brian Michael Bendis book you’ll see on this list.
	X-factor Vol. 1: The Longest Night This book is a personal favourite of mine. Peter David is often overlooked when one considers the best comic book writers of this decade, but he shouldn’t be. He is by far my favourite, and this series shows why. His style of writing is so whimsical and flows so perfectly that I’ve often said he’s does on the page what Joss Whedon does on the screen. This series has been met with some criticism, particularly surrounding its inconsistent art style. But don’t let that discourage you. The writing is worth it, and the art gets clearer in later volumes…promise.
	Runaways Vol. 1 This is my favourite book on this list. It’s about a group of teens that find out their parents are Supervillains, and run away from home. It’s a fantastically written series with a major emphasis on character over plot. Written by Brian K Vaughan, I would recommend this book to anybody, and you can get a huge Hardcover edition that collects the entire 18 issues of it’s first run. Must read book for anyone.