Comic Books

AiPT! Comic Power Rankings: August 2015

September 4, 2015

We’re back for another installment of the AiPT! Power Rankings. Who will rise to the top, who will plummet to the bottom and what other descriptors and verbs can we attach to this article to make you understand that comic book rankings always change?!

We pick the most popular and important comic writers, artists and characters (and their titles) of the the last month and rank ’em to act as a backwards buying list. See if your favorites cracked the top five:

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Comic Books

Current 1 Previous 1		Batman Batman remains at the top spot for a few reasons. The first is that Scott Snyder and Greg Capullo continue to change the game. It’s also due to the additional series Arkham Knight that ties into the videogame and that’s a popular book. On top of that Detective Comics is doing a bang up job, especially with the recent Joker robot plot. Keep it up Batman and we’ll keep coming along for the ride.
Current 2 Previous —		Justice League The Justice League is still trotting out a pair of powerhouse titles each month with epic storylines therein and that’s no easy feat. The narratives infuse classic Silver Age vibes with just enough modern twists thrown in to keep things fresh and they’re becoming monthly must reads with the quickness.
Current 3 Previous 2		Spider-Man Spider-Man drops a spot due to Renew Your Vows faltering a bit and his lack of use in the Secret Wars main event comic. That said he’s still got iterations of himself showing up all over the place including Spider Island and Spider-Verse. He still remains high on the list due to some interesting spoilers coming out of the Civil War movie.
Current 4 Previous —		Where Monsters Dwell This has been one of the highest rated books month after month from every comic review website and will sadly come to a close next issue. It’s simply fantastic storytelling with good art and you’re not required to read 50 years of Marvel backstories to understand it. Why can’t the great tie-ins find a special heaven where they can continue. Huh Marvel!?
Current 5 Previous 4		Darth Vader Look Lord Vader, we need to talk, because your last single issue wasn’t the best. Sure the stakes are raised, but you can do better. You’ve also seemingly been cut from the Star Wars comic. You stay on the list though because, hot damn you have a PS4, but with how excellent the sly-talking Lando’s been as of late — he might just slip into your spot.

Writers

Current 1 Previous —		Charles Soule Charles takes over the top spot because he’s simply writing two of the best comics each month and they aren’t’ even in the same universe. That’s right, I’m talking about Lando and the very good Secret Wars tie-in Civil War. One does an amazing job with character and the other is masterfully building an interesting alternate Marvel Universe where Black Panther died and Cap lived.
Current 2 Previous 1		Scott Snyder Snyder may have created the coolest villain ever and he did it while reinventing the damn title character at the same time. Mr. Bloom will haunt is for a long time to come and I hope this title continues for just as long.
Current 3 Previous —		Brian K. Vaughan Vaughan is establishing yet another series that’s going to be renowned. We just know it and it’s called We Stand on Guard. We know things. Seriously his series about USA vs. Canada in the year 2,100 is so great it’s bound to finally bring both countries together when the inevitable TV show arrives. On top of that he recently finished another run of Saga before its latest hiatus. Good job and keep it up!
Current 4 Previous —		Mark Waid Alright we get it Mark. Archie is actually cool (dare we say again) and it’s wonderfully paced and wonderfully written. Plus you do that little unknown book named Daredevil that nobody has been talking about ever.
Current 5 Previous —		Kieron Gillen Phonogram #1 was a hit and The Wicked + Divine continues to be great every single month. He did write the so-so Darth Vader last month but the overall plot of the series is sound. Gillen rises up!

Artists

Current 1 Previous 2		Greg Capullo Mr. Bloom will haunt us forever. Need we say more? Okay fine, the double page spread of Batman fighting through the ages – which included fighting an abominable snowman, sewer creatures and some kind of Atlantis Kraken – rocked our world too.
Current 2 Previous 1		Fiona Staples Fiona did not have an issue of Saga this month, but her work on Archie #2 proves this title is no fluke. Her ability to infuse energy and modern tech into these characters oft-perceived as antiquated is amazing. And did we mention the facial expressions she gifts Archie and the gang with? Crazy realistic and good.
Current 3 Previous 3		Esad Ribić Secret Wars #5 because it was so expressive. You get to the soul of Dr. Doom’s character due to Esad’s work and that’s a tall order considering he’s such a stoic character. Plus he recapped what happened to bring the Marvel 616 to where it is masterfully. Great stuff.
Current 4 Previous —		Leinil Francis Yu We were a bit cold on his first issue of Civil War but damn did he change our mind on the next two. His detail in all things mechanical is unparalleled and the drama runs very high in each issue in large part due to his detailed work.
Current 5 Previous —		Stuart Immonen Mr. Immonen hops onto this list due to his hopping on Star Wars #8 as he’s reminded us once again he’s one of the best. The “acting” the characters do is really quite exceptional and we found ourselves wondering if we need new movies at all. Just have Stuart draw them and we’ll be right as rain.

Based on recurring comic book sales, the rankings that our site gives the book as a composite score (that is, not just one person’s opinion) and overall talent/rising popularity taken into consideration.