Nobody here at Hush Comics loves sports metrics more than I do. A die-hard NBA fan, I frequently rank players, teams and track stats every night to see who I should be picking up on the waiver wire (a term I know, but still do not understand at all) in our fantasy basketball league. It’s not really to be the best, but largely because I love the processes behind it; I love spreadsheets and systemic processes in how I arrive at these decisions. I even made a House of Quality together in order to break down which qualities I value in comic book series. This was all inspired by the creation of our Best of 2014 Comic Books collection of articles (which you should check out! A lot of hard work from our team went into those articles), when I realized that we had not been keeping track of which books were the best throughout the year.
Below is a list of what I consider the Top 20 comic books of the previous month. The opinions of these rankings is solely mine, although it is influenced by the weekly review grades that our team doles out. I’m no expert on the ins and outs of the comic book industry, and I admittedly can’t read every book out there, but as long as I have this awesome platform to force my opinion on readers, why not use it? As always, we LOVE sparking conversations about the things we love, or even the things we don’t, so commentary is encouraged!
| Rank | Book Title | Publisher | Issues In | Previous | Movement |
| 1 | Saga | Image | 25 | – | – |
| There is a whole new danger afoot. I like the direction that this already-stellar series is taking our protagonists, even if it is head-first into danger. | |||||
| 2 | Batman | DC | 39 | 1 | -1 |
| Joker has been playing with his food up to this point. With Batman up against the ropes, the Caped Crusader is getting desperate, and the Clown Prince of Crime is getting brutal. | |||||
| 3 | Spider-Gwen | Marvel | 1 | – | – |
| Who would have thought that one issue of a mini-series would launch such a cult following? Marvel really Hit the Jackpot with this one. | |||||
| 4 | The Walking Dead | Image | 137 | 4 | – |
| I’m as enthralled as I am disgusting with the eyeball-licking love session at the end of the last issue. I’m excited to see Carl grow, no matter the nasty cost. | |||||
| 5 | Deadly Class | Image | 11 | 6 | +1 |
| Marcus isn’t out of the doghouse just yet. The last thrill-ride of an issue keeps the adrenaline flowing. | |||||
| 6 | Suiciders | Vertigo | 1 | – | – |
| There’s no better way to spend your time in a post-apocalyptic world than to see drugged up gladiators with cybernetic enhancements pummel each other to death. | |||||
| 7 | Batman and Robin | DC | 39 | 5 | -2 |
| While it wasn’t as emotionally pleasing as the last issue, Robin getting a spot at the table with Batman and Superman is a big deal. | |||||
| 8 | Superman | DC | 38 | 16 | +8 |
| The end of the last issue was so explosive that I’m surprised I was able to hold onto the page. In just six issues, Geoff Johns and John Romita Jr created history. | |||||
| 9 | Amazing Spider-Man | Marvel | 15 | – | – |
| Even though Spider-Verse winded down this month, Spider-Man has left behind a wake of Spider-lore that will continue to effect the Marvel U… until they reboot it all, anyway. | |||||
| 10 | Bitch Planet | Image | 3 | – | – |
| This book is extremely polarizing, but it has resonated with women in ways that no super-powered chick has. It’s very real and very original. | |||||
| 11 | Postal | Top Cow | 1 | – | – |
| I’ve got a fever for creepy mystery books, and this Norman Bates-ish post boy is the cowbell of creepers. After one issue, this is already among my favorites. | |||||
| 12 | Detective Comics | DC | 39 | 14 | +2 |
| Anarky is afoot in Gotham, bringing an aspect to Bat-books that has been sorely missing. Add in amazing artwork and a Harvey Bullock back-story, and I’m sold. | |||||
| 13 | Mortal Kombat X | DC | 3 | 10 | -3 |
| MKX is trying to build a cohesive backstory to the upcoming video game, and its doing a commendable job. Due to it being a digital first, the issues are a bit short, though. | |||||
| 14 | TMNT: Mutanimals | IDW | 1 | – | – |
| How can one mutant be on the same level of wicked awesomeness as Mikey? Mondo Gecko, along with Hob and the gang, are just as interesting as the TMNT – if not more. | |||||
| 15 | Wonder Woman | DC | 39 | – | – |
| David and Meredith Finch have done a fine job with Wonder Woman since taking over, but what has me geeked out is an inevitable showdown between Diana and Donna Troy. | |||||
| 16 | Nailbiter | Image | 10 | 18 | +2 |
| Like this series could get any creepier… Finch is done doing the Hannibal Lecter dance with Nailbiter, and we are going to have quite an interesting arc coming up. | |||||
| 17 | EI8HT | Dark Horse | 1 | – | – |
| Time travel and dinosaurs have never NOT been a winning combination, and this new series is no exception. I haven’t enjoyed a new sci-fi series this much since Black Science. | |||||
| 18 | TMNT | IDW | 43 | 8 | -10 |
| Everything is coming to a head with Shredder and Krang, but the confrontation between the two factions left more to be desired. A great book, but I wish it would stop teasing us. | |||||
| 19 | Shutter | Image | 10 | 17 | -2 |
| Kate’s world has practically exploded in the last few episodes, and the epiphanies just keep on coming. I could do with some more Alarm Cat, but I’m still enjoying the ride. | |||||
| 20 | Magneto | Marvel | 15 | – | – |
| The Master of Magnetism got his mojo back, and he has a new scary focus that is all about his business. I bet Sabretooth is wishing he got the memo earlier. | |||||
Notably absent:
Birthright: Daaad! There’s something weird going on with Mikey! This fantasy book about a long-lost brother is really just now getting juicy, but there’s a dark secret lurking in here somewhere, and I’m not sure I like the path that Birthright is taking just yet.
Nameless: This book almost made the list this month if not just for the fact that two of my favorite creators are working on it (Grant Morrison, Chris Burnham). That being said, I have no idea what the hell is going on. Not even a little bit
Hawkeye: Bittersweet that one of the most underrated books in the whole industry is moving on after this month, but Matt Fraction and David Aja had such great chemistry. I can only hope we will be that lucky again.
Deathstroke: The Expendables of comic books, right here. I mean, maybe not really at all. The explosions and punny retorts are there, but this isn’t your father’s Slade Wilson. Beautiful panels by Tony Daniels don’t hurt, either.
The Unbeatable Squirrel Girl: The first book swallowed me up so wholly that I was feeling let down by the second book. There weren’t nearly as many jokes, and the set-up for the next arc felt kind of boring. I don’t expect that to last.
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