what's your favorite not web comic? i like calvin and hobbes

tough... i love calvin and hobbes but i'm gonna have to say the far side. next would be sherman's lagoon.

Lio although Non Sequitur runs an extremely close second.

I've been really getting into Prickly City lately.

I read/collect Case Closed (manga). As far as strips, I've always been fond of The Far Side and Garfield.

Preacher by Garth Ennis with illustrations by Steve Dillin

Absolutely love Calvin and Hobbes and The Far Side. I'm also a big fan of Life is Hell from Matt Groening

Pearls before Swine, it's snarky and has alligators. Can't go wrong with alligators..

jgib99
I'm also a big fan of Life is Hell from Matt Groening

More people need to mention it. Its funny.

I'll add another comic book that I collect:

Amazing Spider-Man - When I was a kid, I loved it. They had the big comic book boom when I was like ten, and Spider-man seemed like the best character to me. Superman was too perfect. Batman was too crazy. Around that time, I liked the New Warriors (who had a pretty big part in the REAL comic book civil war from last year, which has just been awful.) The Demon, a lot of Valiant stuff like Turok, Quantom & Woody, and X-O Manowar, everyone was into Wolverine & X-men then, I guess Batman and Death of Superman (which I had all of back in the day) were stuff I got into too, but they weren't guys I could identity with. The one book that I really liked and really got into was always Spider-man. He had nothing but problems and flaws. He would keep himself going with his humor and the idea that "with great power comes great responsibility." Granted, he's not really a fight galactic or universe threatening bad guys. He's more of a low level guy who deals with pyschos and wierdos who mostly dress up in animal costumes. Some big stuff was his wifes pregnancy, the confusing clone saga, maximum carnage, and then a lot of villain of the month kind of issues. I think I liked Villain of the Month issues the most, but even in those, the overarching story would progress along. I liked that a lot. There were a lot of Spider-man books to collect and get into, so there was no shortage of books. Then he got a pretty awesome cartoon that was easier to get into... so I stopped collecting his books. About a year after that, I stopped collecting all together, just like everybody else in the world.

Now as an adult, I probably like Spider-man even more. I'm slowly assembling a full run of it. I've got about 200, maybe more. I just see so much to identify with in the guy. He's loved and lost, his friends became villains, he's had to deal with just a lot of things, AND be a super hero at the same time. He's always painted as the bad guy (something I can identity with a lot) and he's really just misunderstood. He does the best he can with what he's got and he keeps on. A lot of his latest books have had some odd leaps in the overall mythology, but yeah, he's just great. With the movies and video games, its like nothing I never imagined. Like when the play station Spider-man came out, it had some awkward and broken game play, but I never imagined I could just swing around the city and fight crime as Spider-man like you can in the newer games. Granted, it still has some holdover broken gameplay bits from the playstation game, but theres nothing that beats using his webs to swing around on patrol of the city.

Some of the bigger or more meaningful issues that I got:

#1 First appearance of Chameleon and a lot of Spider-mans supporting cast. I got it several years ago for a few thousand. I also got Amazing Fantasy #15, which is the first appearance of Spider-man as well. I paid around two thousand for it a few years ago. Someone had it at something and I happened have a lot of money at the time, so why not buy something that means that much to you but not to anyone else? Thats what being a fan is. Giving outragous sums of money to some guy for an old deteriorated comic.

#4 First apperance of Sand Man I believe I gave over 500 bucks for this one a few years ago, at a different encounter. I think it wasn't a comic convention, but was something similar. Like one of the ones they have for like general star trek/star wars/dungeons & dragons/magic the gathering all that dorky crap.

I have some other issues from Stan Lees original run on the comic too, but I can't be bothered to hunt out and look at which ones I got and I don't got. I've got some of the ones with Green Goblin and Mysterio. I've also got Daredevils first appearance with an awful yellow costume, but I'm not sure what number it is.

#121 The big Gwen Stacy issue. I won't spoil the twist, but its one of the greatest and most memorable comic book twists ever. I also have a lot of the Green Goblin and Jackal issues, but most of them aren't worth mentioning.

#129 First appearance of The Punisher I have a lot of his other appearances in Spider-man as well.

#174 Which introduces Black Cat, one of my favorite Spider-man characters.

Somewhere in here are two issues with the Juggernaut, I got both of those.

#238 first appearance of the Hobgoblin

#300 First appearance of Venom
Most of symbiote related stuff that follows as well

I got about a dozen of the Annuals as well
and a ton of other issues, I got the wedding one, a couple with the Scorpion, and I think one with the Shocker too.

I'd say all together, I got about ten grand in Spider-man comics. Counting video games, action figures, posters, and all the other crap of Spider-man I've bought, I probably would bump it up to the thirteen or fourteen thou range.

I make sure all my stuff is legit and first printings. I'd considered doing the thing where you can get your copy of a comic inspected and graded, but I think you gotta send off for something like that. Plus I think thats more for selling your stuff, and I've been so broke I couldn't eat, and the very idea of selling ANY of my comics off seems like bullshit. Keep in mind dudes, Spider-man ain't the only comic shit I like. The only other characters I like that could compare to my love of Spider-man would be Deadpool (which I'm working on a full run of his solo book, and I've already got a full run of Cable & Deadpool up to the current) The Punisher (I got all the Garth Ennis stuff, some of the older black and white magazine format ones, and a lot of his War Journal set) and maybe Wolverine (I got a full run of Vol 3, the original Chris Clairmont/Frank Miller mini series, his first appearance in Hulk, and a few issues of his first series, which I've read up to around 1994 or 1995.)

Gee Matt, why do you like Spider-man comics so much as to waste money you don't have on crap you don't want to show off?

Spider-man is iconic. He's me. He's a lot of other guys too. He's the funny, dorkier guy who has nothing but problems. His personal life is always in turmoil. His super villains are all goofy and crazy. He's got powers that are different from other guys, and anyone whose swung around he city in the recent Spider-man game knows just how great that is. He's always doing corny and just awful jokes, again like myself. Most all the people he meets who have names either die or become super villains. Recent retcons have been batshit crazy, admittingly, but other current aspects of the character are great. Ultimate Spider-man is probably going to be a movie at some point and have its own movie universe separate from regular Spider-man stuff. Its great too. Its like the best aspects of the character, taken back to what he was originally: Just a dorky kid who got super powers, did the wrong thing by not stopping a criminal and then decides to do the right thing with his great powers, taking up great responsibility. Its a good corny line, with some psuedo-science behind his origins. Theres nothing that can compare to Spider-man.

Others say Batman is their character, or that they like guys like Superman. A lot of guys with the same mindset as me argue the Lobo or Deadpool (who admit tingly, I'm a big fan of) are their favorite characters. For every great direction a character goes, every so often, they take them into another place that makes them be out of character. For example, The Punisher has a new monthly title where he kills an innocent person, something that in my head and understanding of the Punisher, he would never do in a million years. Another Spider-man example is with The Black Cat. Ever since I saw her on the 90s Spider-man cartoon, I was interested in who she was. After having read her appearances in the comics, she's just a great character. A story a few years ago, retconned her so that now her motivation for becoming a criminal (and then becoming a superhero as Spider-mans girlfriend/sidekick) was that she was date raped. She's always been a very tough type of chick that was batshit crazy and was inspired to become a criminal because of her father who was a cat burgling jewel thief. It just seemed like a goofy direction to take the character. I know I ain't the only one with that opinion of it, but I'm getting into comic book baloney now.

I'm considering mounting them on a wall in order. I keep the "big" ones, ones I paid more than 200 bucks for in a special fireproof lockbox. Just the fact that I have an original copy of Spider-man #1 should impress anyone who collects comics or is interested in Spider-man. I'm thinking of branching out into collecting the other Spider-man books, but outside of crossovers, most of its not considered cannon. I probably will just aim to get the first 300 complete, but that'd be too much to spend. I'm happy with the issues I got now, and if I notice on ebay or at a yard sell that some issues I'm lacking or that have a big first appearance or an important story arc, I'd probably get it.

So yeah, Amazing Spider-man has some ups and downs. A lot of good stories and great issues. If you find yourself in a bookstore and see one of the trades that reprints older issues, read some of them. Their pretty great stuff.

As far as newspaper strips go, Calvin and Hobbes is by far, far, far my favorite.

With other comics, it's hard for me to pick favorites... my pull list at the local comic store is ridiculously large at the moment, and I really couldn't pick a favorite title. Just off the top of my head, Hellblazer has been consistently good for years and years now, through several creative teams, 100 Bullets is still going strong (although it's not as good as it used to be), Ultimate FF is awesome as were the Ultimates series so far, Daredevil, Checkmate, most of the Wildstorm relaunch titles, Wormwood Gentleman Corpse, Fell, Savage Dragon, Invincible... see, I told you my pull list is too long. I like all kinds of different stuff that I couldn't really compare. As far as the interaction between art and writing goes, I'd say the one thing that's never been surpassed is Arkham Asylum by Grant Morrison and Dave McKean. That comic still blows my mind every time I read it.

I used to like Life In Hell, until Matt Groening's agent/assistant/staffer/whatever sent me mail about the size at which I was running the strip in the college paper I was art editor for at the time.

That kind of bugged me because Mr. Trudeau's staff were much more amenable to the sizing/space issues.

Anyways, I only bring this up because someone mentioned Life In Hell above, and that reminded me of one of my favorite comic strips, because when I got the mail from the Groening people I scrambled for more strips to run in case things had to be pulled, and I found this wonderful little gem:

Red Meat by Max Cannon

Well..........Poke'mon is my favorite not web comic.

Not really into gag-strips but, as far as story comics go, pretty much anything with Batman in it.

Even bad comics with Batman (and, yes, I know there are a lot!) do something for me that others don't.

I used to read azumanga daioh (yeah, I'm a boy.).

now... I'm working on collecting the entire Trigun manga.

Calvin and Hobbes, and Pardon my Planet.

It's probably come out a tie between 'Scott Pilgrim' and 'Runaways' (I mean the previous run on the series by BKV an Alphona, the new Joss Whedon one is fun, but not as good).

Tintin, mostly. Some Lucky Luke, most of Asterix (though I don't like many of Leturgie's takes on stories) and some Papyrus.

Yes, mostly European. lol!

Oh, and I collect Rurouni Kenshin, too. Pacifism wrapped up in gore, violence and shiny swords. Gotta love that. ;)

CAlvin and Hobbes ALL THE WAY!

Also Far Side is shear Genius

Between those two comics I could be happily entertained for ages. :)

Peanuts or Family Circus. I don't suppose that would surprise anyone reading my comic.

Walking Dead by Robert Kirkman
Rex Mundi
Exterminators
The Boys Garth Ennis
Preacher Garth Ennis
Fell Warren Ellis (Anything by Warren)
Cross Bronx
Lore
100 Bullets
Zero Killer
All Cal MaCdonald's series
The Devilfish Project But I think the writer is a whack job hack

to name a few

Comic book type:

Cable and Deadpool(the influence on Mercs is UNDENIABLE)

Comic Strip:

Boondocks(Read it daily)

Manga:

Gantz or Monster(There's a bit of Oku influence in Mercs, but I wouldn't dare to try anything like Urasawa does, he's too good for me X__x)

The only real comics I had bought kinda recently are the Street Fighter and Darkstalker comics. But with Udon working on the new Street Fighter games I have had nothing to buy for some time.

I have to change my answer, there is a Urasawa influence in that I can introduce a character and immediately have tragedy befall them(Olbaid or Juune) and hope there's enough of a connection that you genuinely feel for them. so far no one has though.

DAJB
Not really into gag-strips but, as far as story comics go, pretty much anything with Batman in it.

Even bad comics with Batman (and, yes, I know there are a lot!) do something for me that others don't.

I think Batman succeeds because it has more interesting supporting characters than most comic books. How many Marvel or Image comics can you name with an interesting police commissioner, an interesting background city (Gotham itself counts as a supporting character, IMHO)--an interesting butler..?

I have a few favourite non-web comics. Garth Ennis' run on The Punisher, The Goon by Eric Powell, and the new Dark Horse Conan series are all fantastic.

A new comic that blew me away was PROOF. The premise boils down to "Bigfoot is in the FBI and works on paranormal cases", but it's ridiculously well-done and a ton of fun to read.

well i just finished reading all 10 volumes of Parasite, which was awesome! further more i like Gantz, Berserk, ranma, one piece, JoJo's bizarre advanture and lots LOTS more manga XD

for my not manga i like... erm... not much exept for calvin and hobbes ofcourse ;D

TitanOne
I think Batman succeeds because it has more interesting supporting characters than most comic books. How many Marvel or Image comics can you name with an interesting police commissioner, an interesting background city (Gotham itself counts as a supporting character, IMHO)--an interesting butler..?

Agreed.

You can see this in the Gotham Central books. Even though (or because) Bats himself is reduced to a bit-player, almost incidental to the main events, the books are riveting. Possibly the freshest take on the (mainstream) super hero genre in the last ten years.

I read Bizarro and Pearls Before Swine in the papers.

As for comic books:

The Walking Dead

The Boys

Fables

Midnighter

Daredevil

Hellblazer

Aieee... That's a difficult question...

I love Bone, though. And I like Usagi Yojimbo.

Current favourite, heartily recommended to anyone? Linda Medley's Castle Waiting - it's finished in one volume, available on Amazon, and it's just hilarious and wonderful and gorgeous and yeah. It makes my brain melt and reduces me to "Aw.."'s and giggles when I read it.

Comics:

Astonishing X-Men
Battle Angel Alita (and The Last Order)
Invincible
Justice League of America
Justice Society
Mail Order Ninja
Neon Genesis: Evangelion
New X-Men
Powers
Runaways
Savage Dragon
Walking Dead
Witchblade (although I should drop it)
Y: The Last Man

There are others, but I can't think of them at the moment.