Not a lot of people know this about me, but I actually only started reading comics seriously in the past three years. I had read a few Marvel and DC issues prior to this but the only series I really read from start to finish was Preacher (the book responsible for my fanboy worship of Garth Ennis). It wasn’t until I moved to Cardiff and realised I could walk to Forbidden Planet from my office in five minutes while on lunch that I started to get into the medium in a big way. In turn this lead to me to realise that I wanted to write the things, and the rest is geeky history.

So in the spirit of the top five I have decided to list the top five comic book series that I have discovered since moving to Cardiff. In the spirit of promoting stuff that might have slipped by you first time around I am omitting ongoing series (i.e The Walking Dead, The Boys) and anything that has been out for a while and is fairly well known (i.e. the great Batman graphic novels, The Crow, etc). If I were to list everything I have discovered and now love we would be here all night.

The Cape (Written by Joe Hill & Jason Ciaramella, Art by Zach Howard)

Based on the short story by horror writer and spawn of Stephen King, Joe Hill, The Cape was an Eisner winning one shot that was spun into a four issue mini series. I remember reading the first issue not long after I read the short story collection that Hill originally published the story in and being struck by how well Howard’s artwork matched the dark tone. The story of Eric and how he reacts when gifted with the power of flight is dark and original, with the first issue the best one shot I have ever read.

Screamland (Harold Sipe & Chris Sebela, Lee Leslie)

A five issue series from Image, Screamland focuses on a Hollywood where the monster movie stars of the past are actually monsters! Mixing satire, crime and horror elements the story follows werewolf Carl and scifi hasbeen Travis as they try to track down a sex tape that may be the final nail in the coffin of their respective careers, while trying to avoid the murderous impulses of a whole range of creeps and freaks. If you like your scares with a few laughs this is for you.

Skullkickers (Jim Zub, Edwin Huang)

When I first heard about this series I wasn’t really sold, and it took several recommendations before I finally relented and picked this up in trade. Having read it, I could only chastise myself for having taken so long to get to it! Following the exploits of two bounty hunters making their way through life in a faux-Lord of the Rings fantasy land, Skullkickers is hilarious, chaotic asskickery at its finest. Read it as soon as you get a chance.

Hack/Slash - My First Maniac (Tim Seeley, Daniel Leister)

I stumbled across this book one lunch break while browsing the new releases. I’d never heard of Hack/Slash before, but I flicked through and decided the artwork was cool enough to warrant a purchase. The story is a prequel, focusing on the early life of vigilante Cassie Hack and the first serial killer she ever took down. The story was good enough to encourage me to pick up the series from the beginning, and the artwork manages to toe the line between graphic and gratuitous (always a hard task these days).

Dexter’s Half Dozen (Jamie Lambert, Dave Clifford)

When I was making this list I felt I should include at least one independent, to show solidarity to my fellow struggling creators. Luckily for me, DHD is both a small press publication and one of my favourite books. Reading the first five issues back to back after buying them at my first con, and chatting to Jamie and Dave, was what inspired me to go down the self publishing route myself. Great artwork and a cracking story laced with black humour makes this an essential purchase for any comic fan.