Best Maxi-Series

[Guest TheZsaszHorsemen]

Maxi-Series was a term coined by Denny O'Neil to give a name to epic story-arcs, which last a *very* long time, and alter a famous hero in a meaningful way. He said that only Spider-Man, Batman, and Superman had had storylines epic enough to constitue the term. (Watchmen wasn't long enough, and the characters did not have ongoing tales told about them before and after Watchmen.)

 

I'd rank KNIGHTFALL as the best. Simply because it was the only one that truly felt like an COMIC EVENT. Death of Superman and The Clone Saga felt like publicity stunts, No Man's land felt like an odd experiment, and Bruce Wayne's framing didn't feel epic enough. Secret wars wasn't personal enough, it felt like a mashing of characters.

 

The OTHER option is in case someone can sucessfully argue that another arc constituted a "Maxi-Series".

[Guest raptor]

I enjoyed Green Arrow: Quiver a great deal. I know I've read backlash against it elsewhere, but I still find it an excellent storyline.

 

Plus, I think I've pimped Batman: The Long Halloween enough lately.

[Guest TheZsaszHorsemen]

I don't think either Quiver or TLH is long enough.

 

Look at how long DoS and NML are and you'll see that 367 pages arn't nearly enough.

[Guest raptor]

I believe that the Max-Series is a 12 issue minimum. I suppose that would leave Quiver out, but BLH is in.

[Guest pochorenella]

If 12 issues is the minimmum, then my vote goes for Earth X.

[Guest Annoyed Grunt]

I'd go with Knightfall (Along with Knightquest and Knight's End) because it was the story that got me in to reading comics on a regular basis.

[Guest whatitistoburn]

Earth/Universe X

[Guest starvenger]

I say Crisis. Sure, DC has failed in it's attempt to maintain one cohesive universe, but you can't deny that Crisis has had lasting repercussions.

[Guest MaskedDanger]

Watchmen, From Hell and Squadron Supreme are all twelve issues long or longer. I'd go with one of those, probably From Hell.

 

All the continuity raping in the "X maxi-series" (Earth X, Universe X are the only ones I've read) really bugs me. Plus, they tear everything we've ever thought we knew about Marvel away and replace with nigh-incomprehensible crap. And people talk about the outcome of Crisis being convoluted, Christ-a-mighty. It's a fantastic concept, and would have been an incredible series if they could get their shit straight, but, with two thirds of the series done (I'm waiting for Paradise X to come out in TPB before I pick it up) all they succeeded in doing is making me shake my head. (Although the Cap one-shot in Universe X was excellent---fucking inspired.)

 

And there's nothing wrong with Crisis, except that for the scale of the story they were telling one could argue it might have gone by little too fast. It's blasphemy for me to say that, I know, but it could have stood a little more characterization spread out over a few more issues. Something showcasing all the Supermen talking to one another, talking over their separate lives, goals and the Crisis itself, for example, would have been kind of cool.

[Guest Violent Mahatma]

Two comments: first of all, the Clone Saga was a terrible, terrible thing and shouldn't even be considered. Second of all, my favorite maxi-series was easily the Age of Apocalypse. That was a HUGE event, and it was very interesting and original to boot.

[Guest Sassquatch]

Crisis left more lose ends lying around than the number of them that they tried to clean-up. If DC would have accomplished it's job with Crisis, there would have never been a need for Zero Hour which cleared up the many dangling strings of continuity that DC had left which needed to be reworked.

 

Roy Thomas was actually the man who has been credited with coming up with the term "maximum stories" or max--stories after the Kree/Skrull War storyline which ran from Avengers #89 to #97.

 

O'Neil later synthesized the term to fit the growing number of max-storylines which swallowed up the industry in the early '90's.

 

The one maxi-series that is always overlooked is the Hulk's massive max-run with issues #272 to #300 in which the Hulk's mind was taken over by Banner who could transform into the Hulk whenever he would want to. This was perhaps one of the best storylines going on in Marvel at a time when the company was being gorged with Spider-Man and X-Men books while every other book not related to the two books were pushed to the side. Just an awesome run.

 

I know some of you will be shocked but I chose Superman: Death of Superman.

 

Why you ask?

 

Because unlike the other huge maxi-storylines, this one actually had a pay-off that had long-term affects on their respective universe while the other maxi-storylines that were listed above were all brushed underneath the carpet soon after they were finished up.

 

In order for a max-series to truly be complete, for a character to go through Hell for 12+ issues, they should have some kind of lingering, long-term affects from the storyline since most of these maxi-storylines are meant to change the character in some sort of way.

[Guest Violent Mahatma]

Another I thought was great: Frank Miller's Born Again storyline that ran in Daredevil in the early '90's (right?). It had long-term, lingering effects on the character, and it also basically defined him - both character-wise and financially. A true winner if there ever was one.

[Guest Sassquatch]

"Born Again" went from issues #227 to #233 in Daredevil.

 

That hardly qualifies it as a maxi-book since the story went on for less than a year.

 

The story was concieved by Frank Miller at the beginning of 1986.

[Guest converge241]

I LOVE that Hulk run 272- 300

 

awesome stuff

 

wait why is Secret Wars on the list?? that didnt go more than a year..are you counting pt II and the latter secret wars "stories"?

 

SWars #10 rocks though

[Guest Sassquatch]

I'm going to assume that the Secret Wars option entails both books and not just the first one.

 

Otherwise converge is correct in saying that the first war misses the maxi mark.

 

Another maxi-story was Green Lantern run with issues #76 (Green Arrow joins GL) to Green Lantern #125 which is just a massive run by the duo (who whiles sales wise didn't stack up too well to the other top selling books, the impact of the book's first two years on the industry still continues to be recognized to this day).

[Guest converge241]

yes on the GL/GA

 

its amazing what they can do when the publisher just gives up and gives free reign to the creator

[Guest Sassquatch]

The "free reign" you speak of came at a price though converge.

 

Both Adams and O'Neil were looked at as trouble makers for making requests whenever they would work on a book which caused DC to turn a blind eye to them later when they had asked for more creative control (O'Neil on Superman) or the desire to get back their original art work (Adams).

 

Adams later got out of comics because he couldn't deal with the political bullshit and O'Neil was on a short leash with DC as the years would go on until he broke away from that.

[Guest TheZsaszHorsemen]

The "free reign" you speak of came at a price though converge.

 

Both Adams and O'Neil were looked at as trouble makers for making requests whenever they would work on a book which caused DC to turn a blind eye to them later when they had asked for more creative control (O'Neil on Superman) or the desire to get back their original art work (Adams).

 

Adams later got out of comics because he couldn't deal with the political bullshit and O'Neil was on a short leash with DC as the years would go on until he broke away from that.

I never really saw O'Neil's "leash" till the very end of his tenure. He was given control over the Batman mythos, and single-handedly talked DC into a lot of risky business moves. Especially Legends of the Dark Knight, a comic without a regular creative staff. But maybe I just didn't look hard enough for it.

[Guest Sassquatch]

O'Neil didn't talk DC into anything when he took over Detective Comics his first time around.

 

Dick Giordano gave him specific orders on what needed to be done during O'Neil tenure with the book and gave O'Neil little to no room to speak up and change Giordano's ideas. Giordano was prehaps one of the best minds to have on board when it came to Batman which resulted in O'Neil being held down to Dick's vision of Batman. Hence why Giordano later began work on Batman a couple years later after it was felt within DC that he had the best chance of making the sagging title a sales winner again.

 

O'Neil later was able to break away from DC's grip of creative control which resulted in one of the best periods ever for Batman in terms of a constant level of creative excellence on the book.