Substitute DE for a New Decade

[sdelmonte]

Everyone knows about Sherlock Holmes and Avatar and Doctor Who and Supernatural and Harry Potter. But what about the things that you love and that everyone else hasn't read or seen (or even heard of), but should?

I'll start off with Marvel Comics' Nova, the story of a space-faring super-hero who is the last member of the storied Nova Corps (Marvel's surprisingly interesting version of the Green Lantern Corps). It's a little continuity-heavy at times - it grew out of one crossover event and gets sucked into several others - but the stories seem to work on their own, the writing by Abnett and Lanning is crisp and witty, the art is very good, and the hero himself is likeable and about as heroic as anyone I've encountered in a super-hero comic in ages.

ETA: I should probably also mention that DC Comics has reprinted the first 30 issues of The Question in five trade paperbacks, with the last coming this year. It's not just prime canon for my pup, but it's also one of the most influential and highly regarded comics of the 80s, written by Denny O'Neil at his peak.

Your turn.

Comments

[remindmeofthe.livejournal.com]

Dan Abnett for the win, it is true. He wrote the only two Torchwood novels I've encountered that were actually good (admittedly, I'm way behind on those, but still, writing an actual good tie-in novel for any show seems to be beyond most writers who attempt it), and has a knack for creating original characters who are just as interesting as the canon ones. I play one of his over in MM, James Mayer from Border Princes.

What I really want to plug, though, is The Thick of It. It's the BBC show that In the Loop, which made its way through the States over the summer and is coming out on DVD January 12, is based on. It's about the goings-on in the Department of Social Affairs on Downing Street, has a wonderfully talented and entertaining cast, and is killer funny. It's also partly improvised, so the dialogue sounds very natural. And if the fact that it's a generally amazing show isn't enough for you, it also has Peter Capaldi playing Malcolm Tucker, who is the polar opposite of the character he played on Torchwood - he swears constantly, he's crude, he's so very good at what he does, and seriously do not piss him off. No. Seriously. Series three also goes further into his character, giving him additional dimension, and Capaldi nails it every damn time, standing out with incredible performances amidst the aforementioned uniformly excellent cast.

Unfortunately, it's also a little more difficult to get hold of than a lot of shows these days, especially if you do not live in the UK (the DVDs currently available are region two only, argh), but PM me if I've gotten your attention here and I'll see what I can do for you.