These days, I hear readers talking about how crazy Alan Moore is much more often than I hear about how great Alan Moore’s work is, and that’s a damned tragedy. Here’s a refresher in case you’re more interested in the man’s rings and wizardry than his impeccable characterization and story structure. Your lists may vary, but as far as I can tell, there are no bad Alan Moore comics. It should also be noted that not a single one of these books have anything less than a world class artist involved, all of whom Moore was both very smart and very lucky to have aligned himself with. I could write an entirely separate piece on the talents of the artists in these works, and as such, I’ll leave their exploration for that piece, instead of this one.
5. The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen
When talking about Moore’s work, people rarely point to his excellent sense of humor, but the fact remains that Moore is one of the funnier comic book writers out there. League was notable for all sorts of reasons, including mashing up all these classic characters, and creating new stories from old stories, and giving us something both old fashioned and modern at the same time. There is also a great deal of humor in these pages, perhaps not as much as Top 10, but it still manages to put in a lot of visual gags, and fun moments. Besides that, there are layers of meaning and story at which I feel as if I’m only scratching the surface.
4. Miracleman
Hey world, there’s a new guy in town, and he’s much better than any of you ever suspected anyone could be. Each issue of Miracleman opens up more and more to reveal a story so magnificent in scope that he’d continue to explore similar themes in all his superhero work to follow. It’s more raw than you would expect, not nearly as polished as his later work, but the seeds are all there, and it would pave the way for the next thirty years of mainstream superhero comics, in its way. If you can get it, you should read it, because it set the tone.
3. From Hell
From Hell was my first glimpse at a different kind of comic book, and it was striking in its difference from other well known Moore works. It’s nearly endless, and chock full of both facts and suppositions. Whether this is an actual account, I don’t care. Much like Oliver Stone’s JFK, it’s damned entertaining on its own, and the way it mixes facts with speculative fiction is masterful. Take a year or two and read the whole thing. Then take another year and finish the appendix. Then get yourself to London and walk around, and start noticing obelisks all over the place.
2. Swamp Thing
Vertigo Executive Editor Karen Berger admonished me once that this book, while taking place in the superhero world, is not a superhero book, but a horror book. If you’re enjoying the current Swamp Thing run, this is where it comes from, in both tone and scope. Swamp Thing is as good as a DC comic book ever got, and they’ve been chasing that high ever since, only recently coming close to something like it with Scott Snyder’s current work. It’s almost antithetical how good this comic book is when looking at the inherent silliness of what a “swamp thing” might be. But such is Moore’s real magic.
1. V for Vendetta
It’s always been my favorite, and even if Watchmen were permitted on this list, I’d still put V for Vendetta in the first slot. It’s a wonderful coherent story that says so much about the time, attitudes, and place it was written, as well as continuing to hold relevance to each new generation of readers. The story creates a terrifying reality, sticking us with an enigmatic and unknowable main character who Moore wisely didn’t feel the need to explain too deeply. V is a spirit. V is a symbol. You can see the power of that symbol, somewhat adapted, but still very familiar on protesters all over the world today. Unlike From Hell or even Watchmen, V for Vendetta is uncluttered with too much detail, with plenty of lurid pop thrills. It’s both mainstream and revolutionary at the same time, and if you’ve never read it, there are few books deserving your attention more.
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Yeah, those are all classics but I still remember reading Miracleman #1 from Eclipse comics and how it blew my mind. For that reason alone, it’s still my second favorite work of his after Watchmen.
You’re so right about this comic, his Miracleman was the best thing he’s written, it’s just a shame it’s so impossible for people to get their hands on and read due to copyright laws. Issue 15 when Johnny Bates decimates half of London and Miracleman and Kid Miracleman fight to the death with John Tottleben’s beautifully savage art is far more dramatic and horrific than anything in Swamp Thing, and that’s saying something, I’d put V for Vendetta as my second favourite though.
@jimladdy It’s not impossible it just expensive i spent 30 bucks on #1 at a con to bad it was CGC graded I had to break the slab. i have the first 10 issues and it’s cost me over 100 bucks and i still trying to get the rest but It’ll cost me.
More than anything, this current run of “Swamp Thing” has made me want to go back & read Moore’s run in full. I’d read the first trade or so & I’ve heard some of the crazy places he takes it – and it’s just amazing in its tone & its creativity. “V” has been sitting on my shelf for years too. Guess I better go crack the binding on that one.
I finished V For Vendetta just last night. My first ever read of it. Oh my. It’s “they should teach this in schools” good.
New plan: read as much Alan Moore as is humanly possible. I really want to dig into that Swamp Thing series.
One of my favorite works and the first graphic novel I ever read, I try to tell as many people about it as I can.
Wait! they made a book out of that movie?
As far as I can remember I haven’t read an Alan Moore story I haven’t liked.
Careful, I made a disparaging comment about Alan Moore last week on a message board and was subsequently lambasted by angry bloggers.
@john12345678: You might want to reread what Bryce wrote.
Oops…Again, I sit alone
I know much hay has been made of Moore being a wizard, but his take on magic is actually really fascinating. There was an NPR interview with Gary Spencer Millidge (who just released “Alan Moore: Storyteller”) who said that Moore believes magic and art are one and the same, creating something that wasn’t there before. “Casting a spell” was literally spelling, writing stories. It’s an interesting listen:
Interview with Gary Spencer Millidge from “To the Best of Our Knowledge” –
http://ttbook.org/book/gary-spencer-millidge-alan-moore
He also explored the connection between magic and storytelling in the Promethea series he did with JH Williams III that didn’t make this list, but easily could have.
I’m amazed Promethea wasn’t here. It is truly a work of art and one of the best things I’ve read.
I love the Leauge books, still psyched for issue 3 to Century… whenever it come out. Personally I would put Promethea on this list…
Same here
V for Vandetta is also #1 for me. I think I put the first LoEG above Watchmen as well. Great list, Josh.
If this went to six, I would add “Top 10”. So fun!
After V for Vendetta, Top 10 is my personal favorite Moore story. It shows a whole other side of his work, and I love it very much.
I agree, top 10 is great.
That is good to know. It’s something still missing from my Moore education. I read Promethea and Tom Strong from the ABC run, and some Tomorrow Stories, but never Top 10. The stuff I read was all good with Promethea being my favourite, so it’s no surprise that Top 10 would be good as well. The fact that it ranks as some people’s fave of the ABC set means that I’ll really have to check it out.
Definitely for me Swamp Thing remains at the top of my list. The depth of storytelling and the mature themes were things I was not seeing anywhere else at the time. If not for Swamp Thing, I feel I would have “grown out” of comics long ago, but that series kept me in and made me look for more sophisticated stories rather than just giving up on comics.
I really like his take on Top 10 as well, I remember picking it up when I saw the comic store was overflushed with super hero traditional stories.
I have been saving money and searching for the Swamp Thing, before I sit and read any of them. Waiting to get volume 2,3,4. Got 1,5, and 6
@Rob3E I can’t wait to read Swamp Thing.
@OliverTwist – That is what libraries are awesome for. (Damn it, this is an Alan Moore thread; I guess I should be grammatically proper: That is for what libraries are awesome. … ? Screw it, nevermind. That was Yoda.)
Top 10 is my personal favorite Alan Moore story, I think. It’s REALLY funny.
Picking a favorite Alan Moore story is like picking your favorite beatles song but here goes. ‘Rite of Spring’. Changed my idea of what comics could be. The Swamp Thing run is stunning.
Correct if I’m wrong but I thought Marvel a few years back manage to secure the rights to publish Marvelman. So are they ever going to release the Alan Moore run, anytime soon?
I don’t want to speak for the comic book reading public, but I think all of us are more interested in what Alan Moore has done then the earlier works of the character.
Marvel purchased the marvelman character and everything by Mick Anglo. They want to publish moores stuff and gaimans and have gaiman finish it, but the legal clusterfuck that this has become is still preventing it. as soon as they can, they will
It seems trite to pick it, but my favorite Alan Moore story is Killing Joke. The perfect characterization of Batman & Joker’s relationship and duality, and an exploration of how messed up a city Gotham is.
V for Vendetta is my 2nd fav. I love the movie, too. The comic actually improved for me after the movie, because I heard V’s words being read by Hugo Weaving in my head.
Is it bad that I read and enjoyed he first chapter of “V”, but couldn’t bring myself to finish the rest of the book?
Yes, it is. That book is fantastic.
Alright. Just checkin’.
From Hell is one of my favorite books of all time.
I’ve never read Miracleman, but I want to.
Take off Swamp Thing and League, replace with Tom Strong and The Killing Joke, and move Miracleman to the #1 spot. And that’s including Watchmen.
i also want to underscore that alan moore is **seriously** funny. as evidence, a while ago i found part of a (UK maybe?) documentary on him from 1987 on youtube. here’s part one for anyone interested:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ucba9NtF3cE&feature=fvst
the highlight for me is alan moore standing on stage trying to explain what he does to a heckler, also played by alan moore.
Thanks for this! I never heard him speak, so funny to hear him!
It really takes the edge off many of those quotes we hear from him all the time.
So British. 😛
Black Country accent makes every one sound equally lovable and psychotic at the same time.
I so detested the movie version of “V for Vendetta” that I would never read the book now.
wait…. the movie ruined a book that you previously like or it turned you off to the idea of ever reading it? if it’s the latter than you’re missing out. that movie is in no way representative of the book. totally different ending and themes.
i’d recommend drinking enough alcohol to destroy the part of your brain that stores the movie and then read the book 🙂
Nope, never read it. I avoid anything that might end up dog-eared in a drifter’s pocket like many a copy of “Catcher in the Rye” or … shudder … “On the Road.”
So you avoid literary greats AND if something has had a bad adaption you won’t read the great source material. You sir are mental.
I’ve been accused of worse.
V for Vendetta is my go-to-book. It is folded and tattered and always there for me. I read it once a year because, to me, it is Moore’s magnum opus. I feel like the weight of the story has actually been somewhat ruined by the movie. The movie was watchable, but not the magnificent “Godfather-esque” tale that the book is. There is a good portion of the book where V does not even appear regularly and his presence is felt even more. That is great storytelling. Someday, I’m sure it will be banned by parental groups citing the OWS use of the mask. That will be a shame, but it remains the greatest story in comics I’ve ever read.
No Killing Joke? What is this?
For me Moore’s Swamp Thing, From Hell, and The Killing Joke are tops. No one has yet to really plumb the depths of the insanity that is Gotham better than Moore. I like V, but it is horribly overrated in my opinion. Maybe it is because people read it and then put on a guy Fawkes mask and think it makes them edgy or cool. I guess what I am saying is that hipsters are annoying.
As much as I like the Killing Joke for the art, it’s easily the weakest thing I’ve read from more. Where his other works tend to be incredibly thematic and structured, the Killing Joke just… isn’t. It’s not that it’s bad, it’s just not great, which, when it’s a Moore work is kind of a glaring problem since so much of his work is pretty damn prolific.
And not that I want to defend hipsters, but using the Guy Fawkes mask really isn’t a hipster thing. Just saying.
I like Killing Joke because Moore really gets to the meat of the whole Batman/Joker struggle. Batman is Man’s sense of Justice not quite taken to its logical extreme. The Joker is Man’s sense of Tragedy or Irony (I am still wrestling with that question) taken to its logical extreme. They are not two sides of the same coin, but on the same monetary standard.
I like V, but it is a lot like Nietsche: it really reasonates with young men between the ages of 14 and 20 with its Will to Power themes but once you delve into it there is nothing there. Both V and Norsefire are reprehensible and no one would want to live in the world either of them desires.
I see a lot of hipster with those masks, smoking their Parliments, and complaining about their inability to get a job with their degree in Post Modern Literature. Occupy This and That has adopted it without knowing what it means so I do not take them seriously. I know Anonymous uses it as well, but they make so many hollow threats and grandstand to an absurd degree that I do not take them serious either. Maybe it is just my boredom with faux-rebellion and fake revolutionaries coming out. Wow that sounded kind of hipster…where did these skinny jeans and PBR come from?
As you can tell I am straved for good conversation.
I assumed that both skinny jeans and PBR came from hell.
Eh? Eh? See what I did there?
don’t talk shit about PBR.
you pair PBR with some soft-serve ice cream, baby you got a stew goin’ on.
All I have read on this list is V and the first volume of League. I have some work to do.
Honorable mention: Deathblow: By Blows. It will be in the bargain bin at your comic shop. You don’t need to know anything about Deathblow except that the character was dead. They could’ve done the story with almost any character and Moore made it interesting.
Deathblow? The Wildstorm Deathblow? I must seek this out!
Yes, Michael Cray. The most underrated member of Team 7 who just kicks ass instead of frying people’s minds.
I am reading Promethea now, and while i’m a big fan of Watchmen, i find Promethea better and more interesting than Watchmen
Alan Moore’s “Supreme” run (issues 41 thru 56, plus “Supreme: The Return” issues 1 thru 6) is his homage to Superman and an absolutely fantastic read. Highly recommended for fans of the “Top Ten”, “1963” Alan Moore (you know, the fun loving, goofy Alan Moore).
Also check out Promethea, if not for Moore’s incredibly metaphysical and trippy story, then for the incredibly metaphysical and trippy artwork by J. H. Williams III. Groovy shit.
and in the “unfinished masterpieces” category there is “Big Numbers” with Bill Sienkiewicz. Worth seeking out the 2 issues he did complete.
I agree with everything you just said. I have the issues of big numbers somewhere in this house and every time I see them I think of what could have been and sigh. I think his later image titles (pre ABC) are really entertaining and some are borderline brilliant such as supreme and the one shot he did with the superman guy from wildcats set at the end of time. it showed a Moorethat had not been seen since his superman issues, a Moore who loved the madness of comics and could write them for adults without the need for “tits and inerds”.
That’s not the cover to Miracleman #1 – it doesn’t look right!
I think you might be right.
I can’t decipher the signature, but at any rate, here ya go! http://www.recalledcomics.com/Miracleman1GoldBlue.php
OMG I haven’t read any of these books. Just ordered Swamp Thing book 1 though. I loved the V movie a lot (one of my faves), so will have to get that book soon too. Is it worth getting the absolute edition for that?
Nevermind, found some reviews that said it’s better to just get the tpb, since the art looks blown up from the original size in the absolute edition.
mine would be:
1 promethea
2. from hell.
3. v for vendetta
4. miracleman
5. whatever happened to the man of tomorrow (though swamp thing would probably bump this if i hadnt read this more recently. if i re read a few swamp things, this would change)
Love that Superman story, too. If I was picking individual Moore issues, that would be near the top, but I like the long story arcs that come with working on a series, so my top picks would likely gravitate towards his longer works.
yeah lets make this even tougher, top five single issues! thats a killer.
If this list had a top 10, I’d add Tom Strong and his work on Wildcats as well; he really elevated that book to something amazing over just a few issues.
I’ve recently been reading Moore’s Swamp Thing run and was lucky enough to find 5 of the 6 volumes in my local library. It’s one of the most beautifully written things I’ve ever read in any medium so I’ll definitely be purchasing the 6th volume soon. The visual storytelling blew me away too with it’s unusual and inventive layouts.
I have a large copy of Alan Moore’s works on America’s Best Comics, including the likes of Tom Strong and Promethea. For some reason I’ve never gotten into it. I bought it swiftly after reading the first few volumes of Swamp Thing, but found myself a little disappointed but then again, when I compare anything to his Swamp Thing work, I’d be disappointed. I really enjoyed Watchmen but it is certainly second on my life after Swamp Thing. Ok I’ll shut up about Swamp Thing now… Swamp Thing RULES!
Becuase lists are fun, mine would be
(Real #1). Watchmen
1. League of Extraordinary Gentlemen
2. The Killing Joke
3. V for Vendetta
4. Swamp Thing
5. Miracle Man
Aw wrong button! There’s no way to delete?
1. Watchmen
2. Swamp Thing
3. Lost Girls
4. The Disease of Language
5. DC Stories of Alan Moore
6. V For Vendetta
7. The Killing Joke
8. League of Extraordinary Gentlemen
9. Promethea
10. Top 10
I’m very curious to read lost Girls
Lost Girls is the only thing Alan Moore has written that I have read that I did not like.
I’m not going to say I liked it, but I’m glad I read it.
Does that say anything?
@Josh That makes sense. Sometimes I feel that way about a book or movie.
Yet to read From Hell or V from Vendetta, but I’ve easily read my League of Extraordinary Gentlemen (LXG!!! stab your eyes retarded movie) books more than any other TPB’s. Prometheus on the pull list as well to read.
There was an interesting interview with Eddie Campbelll recently on the radio where he said he felt guilty about From Hell, believing that he and Moore had arrived at the wrong conclusion and accused the wrong man. When you read into the ripperology is scary how easy it is to become obsessed, the dance of the gull catchers is indeed enticing.
Personally, I really liked Tomorrow Stories, especially the Jack B. Quick sections. Also, if you can find it, I remember liking the a comic from Moore called A Small Killing but it’s been years since I’ve read it so it might not hold up. Check those out too.
But that’s a damn strong Top 5, Josh. Just wish I could read Miracleman at some point.
I am iffy on the price for this set. http://www.ebay.com/itm/Miracleman-1-24-Complete-Set-PLUS-Alan-Moore-Neil-Gaiman-signed-/190613772592?pt=US_Comic_Books&hash=item2c61775930 $400 is no chump change, and last time I bought a comic that was “very fine” the cover was falling off. At least that’s the cheap ones here.
I have seen a set within the past year that was around the $200 mark. I nearly pulled the trigger, bills be damned. I just would hate to spend that much money, then have Marvel reprint the damned things if they have the rights to.
My sister is a huge fan of the movie, and I’m THIS CLOSE to getting her to read my copy of Absolute V For Vendetta. She really wants to, but let’s just say she gets side-tracked rather easily. 😉
Miracleman is my #1. Probably followed by Watchmen and Swamp Thing. Not sure after that. I want to read his run on Supreme and his Superman story.
Miracleman is f’ing amazing. It’s in my top five comic series ever, and really, honestly, it’s #2 right behind Infinity Gauntlet which I have an unnatural adoration for.
I know Marvel has the rights to the character now, but I am unsure about reprint rights. If they can reprint that stuff, imagine the Omnibus that would be.
I am very hit and miss on Moore. I love love love Watchmen, V, and League of Extraordinary Gentlemen Vol. 1. I liked but didn’t love Whatever Happened to the Man of Tomorrow, Top 10 and the first trade of Swamp Thing (the only one I’ve read). I actively disliked Promethea, A Small Killing, League Vol. 2 and many of the DC Universe stories. I never finished From Hell, but more because I felt myself slowly going insane than because I disliked it. I have the trade of his Supreme storyline(s?) sitting in my TBR pile. My top 5 (all below Watchmen) would be:
1. V for Vendetta
2. League of Extraordinary Gentlemen Vol. 1
3. Killing Joke
4. Swamp Thing
5. Whatever Happened to the Man of Tomorrow
Odd that you thought Miracleman (Marvelman) is less polished than V, considering they were written at the same time. I have the original Warrior magazines!
I did like the V series when they colorized it and sold it to DC, however. Swamp Thing is the best thing on this list!
No Supreme? 😀
My brother is a journalist, around the time the From Hell movie was realised he said in passing “oh, yeah, I got to talk to the guy that wrote From Hell” Needless to say I almost fell off my chair. It turns out he was confused and meant Eddie Campbell (he lives in Australia) but for a little while there I was consumed by a white hot contempt, like all brothers should be
Swap League with Miracleman and I could have written that list. And to those benighted souls that haven’t read V, you really should get on that.
killing joke. i havent read everything by alan moore, but i want to. the only thing i find consistantly disturbing about his writing….theres always a rape scene(in what i’ve read)
can anyone name or recommend a non-sexually violent moore story. i feel thats where i should start
I liked Top 10 and Tom Strong… I dont think there is much over the top sex or even violence in those. Ya in the neonomicon stuff theres crazy monster rape .. but i dont remember what else doesnt have that. I dont think V does.. and im sure League doesnt.. but i was always kind of disappointed in league anyway so i wont recommend reading that. He had a run on Supreme that i liked.. and i have the swamp things.. but i havent gotten around to reading them yet.
i dont mind violence, its just sexual violence i have a problem with. and in league, the invisible man was raping and enpregnating school girls, remember? i want to read the swamp thing run for sure. the second biggest problem i have with moore books: the art usually kinda sucks. v, league and even my favorite, watchmen, have art that is pretty terrible. i suppose thats just a testament to how fuckn’ good he really is if the story can still shine through those shitty pencils. there have been exceptions like killing joke, but like i said, i havent read everything moore, yet.
thanks for the suggestions
Terrible art? Huh…that’s a first.
ha oh my god ya… the invisible man… hmm.. crap…. ya i just thought league wasnt memorable anyway…apparantly literally not memorable for me.. you got me.. hes got a thing for supernatural rape….. I just remember having such high hopes for league and (also missing a few of the first coupla issues,, and paying boat loads for them).. and then just being totally let down.
On wiki it looks like he did tons of 2000AD stories.. Im a fan of 2000AD.. theres probably some good collected stuff of his 2000ad somewhere. Having said that.. hes not even in my top ten favorite writers so… If i was going to recommend something id steer everyone somewhere else first anyway.
86 comments! If that is not an indicator of something. Just not sure what it is. Josh, everytime you put up a topX list of something, people might nit-pick over the order, but seldom over its inclusion. Mister MIracle is what I look at everytime I read Irredeemable. Not to take anything away from Senor Waid (Lord knows you do not make Da Waid angry), but MM was an amazing take on the Shazam forklore that I want to reread again.
iFanboy usually talks of firsts. This book was the first time I remember losing my innocence in the belief structure of some sort of collective utopian pollyanna motivation that all superheroes must share.