A “run” is when a comic book creator writes a significant number of consecutive issues of an ongoing comic book series. The following are the top five results of a survey of Comic Book Resources readers for their favorite creator runs of all time, listed in ascending order.
5 Alan Moore’s Swamp Thing (Saga of the Swamp Thing/Swamp Thing #20–58, 60–61, 63–64, Annual 2). Swamp Thing was already a popular character when Alan Moore became the writer of the series in 1984—it had even starred in its own film. However, within two issues, Moore had turned the whole concept of Swamp Thing (a man who was mutated into a mossy creature during a lab explosion) on its head. He revealed that Alec Holland, the man who seemingly became Swamp Thing during the lab explosion, actually died in that explosion, and instead the chemicals gave life to swamp matter to make it think that it was Alec Holland. This mind-blowing revelation was the first sign that this series was not going to be your standard comic book fare. Moore soon took the character into areas where comic books normally did not go, including an issue where Swamp Thing and his love interest, Abigail Arcane, have sex (in a stunning visual issue where the actual sexual act involves Abigail eating a tuber created by Swamp Thing). Moore revitalized the character and made it a major part of the DC Universe. And it couldn’t hurt that Moore was blessed with two stunning art teams on Swamp Thing. Penciler Stephen Bissette and inker John Totleben gave the book a dark, noirish feel, and later Rick Veitch, who ended up succeeding Moore as the writer on the series, gave the series his own unique spin.
4 Frank Miller and Klaus Janson’s Daredevil (Daredevil #158–191). Klaus Janson was the inker on Daredevil when Frank Miller joined the book as the penciler in Daredevil #158. (Roger McKenzie was the writer at the time.) Within ten issues, Miller was one of the most popular pencilers at Marvel Comics and was allowed to take over as the writer on the series. In his very first issue, Miller introduced an old girlfriend of Matt “Daredevil” Murdock—Elektra, who was now a professional assassin. During Miller’s run, the sexual tension between Daredevil and Elektra intensified, as did the enmity between Daredevil and a one-time Spider-Man villain, Wilson Fisk, the so-called Kingpin of Crime. Janson began the run as Miller’s inker, but over time he began penciling and inking Miller’s breakdowns, and by the end of the run, he became the sole artist on the series.
3 Stan Lee and Jack Kirby’s Fantastic Four (Fantastic Four #1–102; Fantastic Four Annual #1–6). This was the run that started the “Marvel Age” of comics, as Stan Lee and Jack Kirby’s hit title (which Marvel dubbed “the World’s Greatest Comic Magazine”) formed the framework of the entire Marvel Universe. Without Mister Fantastic, the Human Torch, Invisible Girl, and the Thing, there would be no Spider-Man, no X-Men, no Iron Man, no Hulk, and no Thor. The success of The Fantastic Four showed that comic book audiences were ready to embrace superheroes once again, and the very human relationships of the Fantastic Four were early signs of the approach Stan Lee would take with Marvel’s superheroes. Beyond the sheer creativity of Lee and Kirby’s run (in one stunning twelve-issue span, they introduced the Inhumans, Silver Surfer, Galactus, and the Black Panther), they created stories that would reverberate in the Marvel Universe decades after they were finished.
2 Chris Claremont and John Byrne’s X-Men (X-Men/Uncanny X-Men #108–109, 111–143). Writer Chris Claremont and artist Dave Cockrum had already made X-Men an up-and-coming book when John Byrne joined the title with issue #108 to replace Cockrum, who was having trouble with deadlines. After a fill-in issue that had already been produced to aid Cockrum’s schedule (#110), Claremont and Byrne (and inker Terry Austin) settled in to a stunning streak of issues that took the series from bimonthly status into one of Marvel’s top-selling comics. The combination of Claremont and Byrne (who eventually contributed to the writing as well) brought the series to new heights of excitement. Perhaps the most notable aspect that Byrne brought to the table was increasing the spotlight on Wolverine. Under Cockrum, Wolverine was more of a background character, but Byrne (who was a Canadian) took a liking to the Canadian Wolverine and made him a major focus of the series. Fans went for it in a big way, with Wolverine soon becoming one of the most popular characters in all of Marvel Comics. The “Dark Phoenix Saga” (one of the top comic book storylines of all time) took place during their run, and one of the last stories they did together, “Days of Future Past,” about a mutant coming from a postapocalyptic future to get the X-Men to change the future, influenced hundreds of later comic book stories. Eventually Byrne wanted more freedom to control the stories himself (since Claremont, as the scripter, would ultimately get the last say on what would actually get printed), so he left to write and draw The Fantastic Four, while Claremont would stay on the title (with a host of different artists) for another decade.
1 Neil Gaiman’s Sandman (Sandman #1–75, plus one special). Sandman stars Morpheus, otherwise known as Dream of the Endless (the Endless are siblings who personify natural forces, such as dreams, desire, and death itself). After reestablishing himself as the ruler of the Dreaming, the land where all dreams exist, Morpheus became involved in a number of stories involving both this mystical land and other areas of the supernatural, even including the gates of Hell. (Gaiman’s Lucifer was such a compelling figure that he eventually had his own spin-off, also lasting seventy-five issues.) Since the book was about dreams, Gaiman was able to write whatever stories he wanted to tell, and he tended toward tales of religion, myth, and fantasy. A wide variety of artists drew Sandman in its run, as Gaiman would gear each story to fit the style of the artist he was working with on that issue. One of the most famous issues is Sandman #19, “A Midsummer’s Night Dream,” where Gaiman and artist Charles Vess show Morpheus interacting with William Shakespeare. By the time the series ended, Sandman had won eighteen Eisner Awards and Neil Gaiman had been solidified as one of the most popular and acclaimed fantasy authors of his generation.