Fucking Possible Comic Best -
The ending is famously scrambled. The manga outstrips the film, but the final volume feels like Otomo got tired. A comic that stumbles at the finish line cannot claim the throne. The Winner: Jimmy Corrigan: The Smartest Kid on Earth by Chris Ware Here’s where you say: “What the fuck? A sad, lonely, red-haired dweeb in a tiny bowtie? Over Watchmen ? Over Maus ?”
Inconsistency. For every perfect issue ( Ramadan ), there’s a meandering arc ( The Kindly Ones ). The art rotates too much. A single “best comic” must be a unified object. Sandman is a brilliant, messy cathedral. Akira (Katsuhiro Otomo) The case for: The double-page spreads. The bike slide. The psychic meltdown of Neo-Tokyo. Otomo drew motion like no one before or since. fucking possible comic best
Because its greatness is partly extrinsic. It’s a vital historical document. But would Maus be as revered if the Holocaust wasn’t its subject? The craft is undeniable, but the “fuck” factor is one of horror, not revelatory joy. It’s essential. It’s not the best. Sandman #1-75 (Neil Gaiman & various artists) The case for: The Sound of Her Wings . The Cereal Convention. “Sometimes you wake up.” Gaiman turned horror into myth and myth into therapy. It’s the most literary comic ever. The ending is famously scrambled
The second time, you notice the structural mirroring: the 1893 World’s Columbian Exposition flashback parallels Jimmy’s modern loneliness. The great-grandfather’s cruelty echoes into the present. The Winner: Jimmy Corrigan: The Smartest Kid on
But let’s be honest: Every comic reader has had that 2 a.m. argument. The one where voices rise, beer bottles become gesticulating weapons, and someone eventually shouts,
You stare at the page. You say aloud:
The third time, you realize Jimmy Corrigan is actually a comedy. A bleak, cringe-comedy about a man so passive he makes Charlie Brown look like Tony Robbins. Ware hides jokes in the margins. A sign that says “FREE ADVICE (worth every penny).” A child’s drawing labeled “My Dad” that’s just an empty square.