Book picks similar to
Start of Darkness by Rich Burlew


fantasy
comics
graphic-novels
graphic-novel

Lackadaisy: Volume #1


Tracy J. Butler - 2008
    Louis 0 1927.Times change. Laws change. People still want booze.For the better part of a decade, hidden beneath the inconspicuous Little Daisy Cafe, the city's best-kept secret has slaked the thirst of a prohibition-wearied populace.Lackadaisy.Unfortunately, the once raucous and roaring speakeasy now rests at a crossroads, its golden age seemingly at an end. Lackadaisy's remaining loyalists are left with few options.But with all the cunning, tenacity, and sly ingenuity they can muster, they might just have a chance.And if that doesn't work, fire does.

Here There Be Gerblins


Clint McElroy - 2018
    Welcome to the Adventure Zone!SEE! The illustrated exploits of three lovable dummies set loose in a classic fantasy adventure!READ! Their journey from small-time bodyguards to world-class artifact hunters!MARVEL! At the sheer metafictional chutzpah of a graphic novel based on a story created in a podcast where three dudes and their dad play a tabletop role playing game in real time!Join Taako the elf wizard, Merle the dwarf cleric, and Magnus the human warrior for an adventure they are poorly equipped to handle AT BEST, guided ("guided") by their snarky DM, in a graphic novel that, like the smash-hit podcast it's based on, will tickle your funny bone, tug your heartstrings, and probably pants you if you give it half a chance.With endearingly off-kilter storytelling from master goofballs Clint McElroy and the McElroy brothers, and vivid, adorable art by Carey Pietsch, The Adventure Zone: Here There be Gerblins is the comics equivalent of role-playing in your friend's basement at 2am, eating Cheetos and laughing your ass off as she rolls critical failure after critical failure.

Oglaf Book One


Trudy Cooper - 2011
    There's also bonus extras, never seen before and printed in internet-proof ink, including Ivan's 'doesn't count' kama sutra -- handy if you love somebody but still need to use them as unicorn bait.

Critical Role – Vox Machina: Origins


Matthew Mercer - 2018
    Both the standard edition includes the complete collection of Critical Role: Vox Machina Origins #1–#6, as well as bonus content including annotated cover process pieces, preliminary character sketches, and character descriptions and stats. The standard edition features cover art by Stjepan Šejić with a spot gloss treatment.With over 160 pages of magical storytelling and bonus content, Vox Machina Origins brings together Critical Role: Vox Machina Origins #1–#6 in a single volume, following six would-be heroes as they uncover a plot to destroy the small coastal town of Stilben. The comic series is written by Matthew Colville (Evolve, Priest, Thief) with interior art by Olivia Samson, a member of the Critical Role fan community, and coloring and lettering by Chris Northrop.Critical Role: Vox Machina Origins #1–#6Annotated cover process pieces, preliminary character sketches, and character descriptions and statsCover art by Stjepan Šejić with spot gloss treatment.Published by Dark Horse Books, a division of Dark Horse Comics, Inc.

Agatha Heterodyne and the Beetleburg Clank


Phil Foglio - 2002
    At Transylvania Polygnostic University, Agatha Clay is a student with trouble concentrating and rotten luck. Dedicated to her studies but unable to build anything that actually works, she seems destined for a lackluster career as a minor lab assistant. But when the University is overthrown, a strange clank stalks the streets and it begins to look like Agatha might carry a spark of Mad Science after all.

Kick-Ass


Mark Millar - 2010
    Designing a suit for himself and taking the name "Kick-Ass," Dave decides to make his dreary existence more exciting - and maybe even help some people in the process. But with no special powers and outmatched by New York City's most hardened criminals, Kick-Ass might be in for a little more than he bargained for. With his super-hero secret identity gaining fans due to a popular viral video, and other masked vigilantes beginning to make their presence felt in the city, Dave knows that his extracurricular activity is dangerous, maybe even stupid - but he's got the itch, and it ain't going away.COLLECTING: Kick-Ass 1-8

Joe the Barbarian


Grant Morrison - 2011
    He can't fit in at school. He's the victim of bullies. His dad died overseas in the Iraq war. He also suffers from Type 1 diabetes. One fateful day, his condition causes him to believe he has entered a vivid fantasy world in which he is the lost savior—a fantastic land based on the layout and contents of his home. His desperate attempts to make it out of his bedroom transform into an incredible, epic adventure through a bizarre landscape of submarine pirate dwarves, evil Hell Hounds, Lightning Lords and besieged castles. But is his quest really just an insulin deprived delirium—from which he can die if he doesn't take his meds—or something much bigger?Collecting: Joe the Barbarian 1-8

Scott Pilgrim's Precious Little Life


Bryan Lee O'Malley - 2004
    He's 23 years old, he's in a rockband, he's "between jobs" and he's dating a cute high school girl. Nothing could possibly go wrong, unless a seriously mind-blowing, dangerously fashionable, rollerblading delivery girl named Ramona Flowers starts cruising through his dreams and sailing by him at parties. Will Scott's awesome life get turned upside-down? Will he have to face Ramona's seven evil ex-boyfriends in battle? The short answer is yes. The long answer is Scott Pilgrim, Volume 1: Scott Pilgrim's Precious Little Life

Let's Play


Leeanne M. Krecic - 2017
    To make matters worse, she soon finds out he's her new neighbor!

Poorly Drawn Lines: Good Ideas and Amazing Stories


Reza Farazmand - 2015
    Embrace it.A bear flies through space. A hamster suffers a breakdown. Elsewhere, a garden snake is arrested by animal control and jailed for home invasion, while a child marvels at the wonder of nature as worms emerge from the ground and begin looking for vodka (as they always have). These are common occurrences in the world of Reza Farazmand’s wildly popular webcomic, Poorly Drawn Lines. Traveling from deep space to alternate realities to the bottom of the ocean, this eponymous collection brings together fan favorites with new comics and original essays to share Farazmand’s inimitable take on love, nature, social acceptance, and robots.

The Tragical Comedy or Comical Tragedy of Mr. Punch


Neil Gaiman - 1994
    PUNCH tells the tale of a young boy's loss of innocence results from a horrific confrontation with his past. Spending a summer at his grandfather's seaside arcade, a troubled adolescent harmlessly becomes involved with a mysterious Punch and Judy Man and a mermaid-portraying woman. But when the violent puppet show triggers buried memories of the boy's family, the lives of all become feverishly intertwined. With disturbing mysteries and half-truths uncontrollably unraveling, the young boy is forced to deal with his family's dark secrets of violence, betrayal, and guilt.

Calvin and Hobbes


Bill Watterson - 1987
    This is the first collection of the popular comic strip that features Calvin, a rambunctious 6-year-old boy, and his stuffed tiger, Hobbes, who comes charmingly to life.

Atomic Robo and the Fightin' Scientists of Tesladyne


Brian ClevingerNick Frost - 2008
    until he unveils a robot with automatic intelligence -- ATOMIC ROBO! After decades of dealing with all manner of weirdness, Atomic Robo and the so-called Action Scientists of Tesladyne become the go-to defense force against the unexplained! See ROBO take on Nazis, giant ants, clockwork mummies, walking pyramids, Mars, cyborgs, and his nemesis, Baron von Helsingard, in his first trade paperback graphic novel. This edition collects the hard-to-find, sold-out, debut issues of Atomic Robo #1-6, complete with cover gallery, pin-ups, concept sketches, and bonus stories.

Dungeons & Dragons, Volume 1: Shadowplague


John Rogers - 2011
    Adric Fell leads a band of heroes in a world where civilization has been reduced to a few scattered points of light amid a rising tide of shadows.

Head Lopper, Vol. 1: The Island or A Plague of Beasts


Andrew MacLean - 2016
    When Queen Abigail hires Norgal and Agatha to slay the Sorcerer, our heroes trek across the island relieving the horrors of their heads - and playing right into the hands of a master manipulator.Collects issues 1 through 4.