Best Comics of 2020 (So Far): DC Comics
By Zack Quaintance — Last week, I kicked off this series of very early lists about the Best Comics of 2020, starting with a list of Marvel Comics. That list came together relatively easily. Marvel’s publishing line (as I would soon see) is relatively uncomplicated. Setting Star Wars and few video game tie-in asides, almost everything they put out is a cohesive part of a superhero universe that is pushed forward weekly across several dozen titles. Simple.
DC Comics, as we’re about to see, is an entirely different sort of publisher. DC has more of a focus on evergreen titles, presumably aimed at giving them nice stand-alone hardcovers in the lineage of their all-time bestsellers, Watchmen and The Dark Knight Returns. DC is doing this with a number of different audiences in mind, too. From YA and middle grade, to the folks who fondly remember the now-defunct Vertigo and still want comics like that. They, of course, are also continuing to put out shared superhero universe comics as well, and they’re all represented today here on our list!
Let’s check it out...
Best Comics of 2020 (So Far): DC Comics
1. Superman Smashes the Klan
Writer: Gene Luen Yang
Artist: Gurihiru
Why This Is So Good: Superman Smashes the Klan is just such an excellent intersection of ideas, including writer Gene Luen Yang’s personal experience as a Chinese-American growing up in Northern California (his backmatter essays really enhance the comics work), the actual history of the Superman radio program taking on the Klan many decades ago, and good old fashioned superheroics, which really emphasize Superman’s status as an immigrant to our very planet. All of these elements come together to make something so much more powerful than they are on their own. It’s really impressive work — a page-turner that has great meaning and speaks to the issues of our times. There’s nobody I wouldn’t recommend this comic to. For my most in-depth review of this book, head over to The Beat.
Easiest Way to Read It: All three issues of Superman Smashes the Klan are out now, and you can (and absolutely should) see if you can get them from a local comic shop near you (they need your business now more than ever). But practically speaking, the easiest way to read this book is to wait for the full compiled trade paperback to hit shops on May 6, barring any unforeseen delays due to our current international health crisis.
2. The Green Lantern
Writer: Grant Morrison
Artist: Liam Sharp
Colorist: Steve Oliff
Letterer: Tom Orzechowski
Why This Is So Good: Grant Morrison is one of the last mad genius superhero comics writers of the past three decades left standing, with many of his contemporaries from way back when having left the game, drastically reduced output, or otherwise moved on...and he’s said this comic is essentially his last ride in the shared universe, monthly superhero comic lane. It’s certainly a worth one. Like many of Morrison’s best superhero stories, this one takes a long-time character and posits that every last element of continuity is valid, giving Morrison an enormous range of material to borrow from, reinvigorate, and homage. There’s also something deeply psychedelic about the Green Lantern space cop concept, and it’s leaned into here both by Morisson’s sensibilities and the work of one of superhero comics’ greatest artists experiencing a career peak, with Liam Sharp. Sharp’s work has always been strong, but on The Green Lantern its been a revelation, detailed and imaginative and packing each panel with so many intricate details that it almost makes my own wrist hurt just to look at them. This is truly a special comic.
Easiest Way to Read It: There are two gorgeous hardcover collections of the first 12 issues available now, wherever comics are sold.
3. Hill House
After Superman Smashes the Klan and The Green Lantern, the next best thing from DC Comics so far in 2020 has been the Hill House line of horror comics, which were mostly launched at the tail end of last year and are now uniformly approaching their ends, although none of made it there just yet. All five of these comics are good, very good, so good I’m crossing my fingers and hoping they eventually announce/make more of them. But the three below are the ones I’d recommend to any and all readers.
Low Low Woods
Writer: Carmen Maria Machado
Artist: Dani
Colorist: Tamra Bonvillain
Letterer: Steve Wands
Why This is So Good: What makes Low Low Woods so great, is it takes an approach to horror I’m not sure I’ve ever seen before, mashing together a number of different surprising and very creepy elements into something wholly new. At the heart of the thing is also a lifelong bond between two women, which has enabled this book to deliver the best pure character work at DC in 2020.Easiest Way to Read: Issues #1 - #4 are available now at your local comic shop, with a hardcover collection of the entire series due out on September 29, 2020.
The Dollhouse Family
Writer: MR Carey
Layouts: Peter Gross
Finishes: Vince Locke
Colorist: Cris Peter
Letterer: Todd Klein
Why This is So Good: This comic is just pure unsettling. The premise is there is a very creepy dollhouse that has a generational feud with a family...which leads to it trying to consume and suck in said family’s members. The generational nature of the story gives the creators a whole lot to juggle, and they handle it all expertly. Easiest Way to Read: Issues #1 - #5 are available now at your local comic shop, and a hardcover collection of this series is due out on October 13, 2020...just in time for Halloween.
Basketful of Heads
Writer: Joe Hill
Artist: Leomacs
Colorist: Dave Stewart
Letterer: Deron Bennett
Why This is So Good: Basketful of Heads was the initial launch title for Hill House horror comics, and it really couldn’t have picked a better or more accessible entry point for the imprint. This book is campy ‘70s slasher excellent at its best, rendered to perfection by the team of artist Leomacs and colorist Dave Stewart. It also has a literal basketful of heads, which is something that makes me appreciate this book all the more. Promise a basketful of heads, deliver said basketful of heads, and deliver it with a story that’s tense and entertaining as all get out.Easiest Way to Read: Issues #1 - #6 are available at your local comic shop now, and a hardcover collection of this series is due out later this year, on September 8, 2020.
4. DCeased (and DCeased: Unkillables)
Writer: Tom Taylor
Main Artists: Trevor Hairsine and Karl Mostert
Inkers: Trevor Scott, Neil Edwards, & Karl Mostert
Colorist: Rex Lokus & Rain Beredo
Letterer: Saida Temofonte
Why This Is So Good: DCeased is based on a big and very silly idea — there’s a technovirus going round that turns our favorite and heroes into zombies! Eventually consuming the earth. And it’s now on its second big and very silly miniseries. This is just absurd superheroics cranked at 11, and it’s been rendered in both books to date (I fully expect far more miniseries in the world of DCeased) by perfect artists for the projects. I even dedicated a whole post to how much I’m digging current series artist Karl Mostert. But you know what the main thing to like is? Within all that grandiose goofery, this book is plotted in a way that expertly leans in to longstanding relationships and bonds between DC’s classic characters, at times ambushing readers in a way that’s liable to bring a tear to the eye. That’s some good comicbook-ing.
Easiest Way to Read It: A collection of the first series is available now; you can check out DCeased: Unkillables #1 - #2 at you local comic shop.
5. Superman
Writer: Brian Michael Bendis
Main Artist: Ivan Reis
Inkers: Joe Prado & Oclair Albert
Colorist: Alex Sinclair
Why This Is So Good: This book has emerged as the focal point of the grand story Brian Michael Bendis is telling in his new capacity as the Superman steward at DC (after years of essentially being the main voice/writer at Marvel). And while there have been complaints here and there on Comics Twitter (what a shock), this run has landed well for me throughout, be it with the arrival of the Legion of Superheros at the climax of the first arc, or the new intrigue around Supermen unveiling his identity to the world. Bendis was seemingly stuck with a few rough obstacles here (the danling Jor-El plot thread...a less-than-ideal Rogol Zaar design), but messy is part of the Brian Bendis comics experience, and there’s been a lot of greatness in here.
Easiest Way to Read It: There are two really nice hardcover collections available for the first part of the run, which you can and should check out, and meanwhile the saga is continuing with single issues at your local comic shop.
6. Superman’s Pal Jimmy Olsen
Writer: Matt Fraction
Artist: Steve Lieber
Colorist: Nathan Fairbairn
Letterer: Clayton Cowles
Why This Is So Good: Look, I’m on the record of having loved this comic since the first issue came out. Now that we’re 10 issues or so in, I’ve written quite a bit about why, but what it really all boils down to is that this book found a clever way to take Superman’s long-time supporting pal Jimmy Olsen, and put him in a series that is just as funny and madcap as the wacky Silver Age adventures he’s had over the years. Every page of this series is packed with clever wordplay, borderline nonsensical gag ideas, visual humor, and compelling plot twists like Lex Luthor and Jimmy Olsen’s families have been feuding since Metropolis’ very inception. This is a book I’d recommend to anyone who likes absurdist humor (think the writing of George Saunders, for a good idea of the tone from another medium), but it gets extra points for Superman fans (like myself).
Easiest Way to Read It: The collected trade of the full 12-issue series is due out October 13, 2020, but the first nine issues are available now at your local comic shop and well worth tracking down.
7. Wonder Woman: Dead Earth
Writer/Artist: Daniel Warren Johnson
Colorist: Mike Spicer
Letterer: Rus Wooton
Why This Is So Good: Daniel Warren Johnson is one of the best artists and storytellers in comics, primarily within the realm of creator-owned, original ideas, thanks to books like Extremity and Murder Falcon. Now, he’s making his DC Comics debut with this Black Label imprint book that puts Wonder Woman as the lone surviving superhero in a nuclear fallout apocalypse complete with mutations and monsters. That, of course, enables some big time comis actions, but moreover it plays with Dianna’s inherent faith in humanity’s goodness, and whether she’s been wrong all along. It’s really compelling stuff that goes far beyond the usual superhero fare.
Easiest Way to Read It: Issues #1 - #2 are available for purchase at your local comic shop, with a full collected hardcover edition due out in December.
8. Far Sector
Writer: N.K. Jemisin
Artist: Jamal Campbell
Lettering: Deron Bennett
Why This Is So Good: Writer N.K. Jemisin is a celebrated prose author, who I believe is the first to ever win three consecutive Hugo Awards (three!) for her fantasy saga, the Broken Earth trilogy. Now she’s bringing her sensibilities to a comic about a Green Lantern played out like a lone sheriff on the frontier. What’s really intriguing about this comic (past the excellent Jamal Campbell artwork) is that it totally ditches any and all past superhero conventions, to go full on suppositional sci-fi. It’s more of an experiment in societal values, evolution, and mores than it is a bust ‘em up superhero space opera. This singularity truly sets it apart from the rest of DC (and Marvel too, for that matter), landing it on the last spot on our list. Be warned, however, that the going may be slow with the future of this title as it transitions to an every-other-month release schedule.
Easiest Way to Read It: The first five issues are currently available at your local comic shop.
Honorable Mentions: Aquaman, Batman’s Grave, Hawkman, John Constantine: Hellblazer, Joker: Killer Smile, Lois Lane, Lucifer, Suicide Squad, The Terrifics, and Young Justice.
Best DC Comics Collections and Trades 2020
Batman Universe Collected by Brian Michael Bendis and Nick Derington is the single best Batman story told in at least a decade. Bright and accessible, this one is good to give to new comics readers most of all.
Batman: Creature of the Night HC, meanwhile, is good to for readers who know and love Batman comic books, as it sees superhero veterans Kurt Busiek and John Paul Leon putting a gritty and gorgeous real world spin on one of the most beloved characters in all of American fiction.
DCeased Collected...see above! As we note, this book about superheroes and a technovirus infection is hilariously madcap and grandiose...right up until it isn’t, and it goes poignant and emotional on a dime. Nice bit of comics making in here.
The Flash: Year One HC sees writer Joshua Williamson and artist Howard Porter put a new spin on Barry Allen’s first year on the job, racing to embrace all the time-travelling multiversal madness that has made DC Comics’ scarlet speedster so great over the years.
Mister Miracle HC. Tom King has developed quite the niche as a writer of sad (and complex as all get out) superhero stories about men processing grief and pressure and regret (usually as they stare sadly out the window while foregoing the mundanity of normal life). Mister Miracle, on which he is joined by artist Mitch Gerads, is perhaps the best example of this (technically this one is from last year but it’s so good it remains notable now).
Check out other Best Comics of 2020 (So Far) Lists Now:
Don’t forget to check out our weekly new comics reviews as well!
Zack Quaintance is a tech reporter by day and freelance writer by night/weekend. He Tweets compulsively about storytelling and comics as Comics Bookcase.