Reddit reviews From Hell

Here are my personal favorite head-fucks, each one of them did something strange to my whole world when I read them:

• The Illuminatus! Trilogy by Robert Shea and Robert Anton Wilson
  
  
• House of Leaves by Mark Z. Danielewski
  
  
• Marabou Stork Nightmares by Irvine Welsh
  
  
• Naked Lunch by William S. Burroughs
  
  
• The Wasp Factory by Iain Banks
  
  
• A Scanner Darkly by Philip K. Dick
  
  
• From Hell by Alan Moore and Eddie Campbell
  
  
• Mr. Peanut by Adam Ross
  
  
• The Prestige by Christopher Priest
  
  
• The Invisibles by Grant Morrison
  
  But yeah, by far my favorite is the one at the top of the list, The Illuminatus! Trilogy by Robert Shea and Robert Anton Wilson. There's just so goddamn much going on in that book, it's one helluva wonderful ride.

absolutely. (though my recommendations will probably be pretty cliche/entry level in the world of comics)

If you want to stick to recent marvel, but want an "everyman" story, check out Matt Fraction's run on Hawkeye, where it basically just explores his everyday life. it's comedic and fun and Aja's art is wonderfully simple.

Another current series that is great (and will be constantly recommended) is Saga. Brian K. Vaughan's writing is great and Fiona Staples is one of the best digital artists in comics. The story is like star wars on acid, but with a wholesome focus, at it's core, on family. it's weird, funny, progressive, and quite graphic. interesting, sympathetic characters. Highly recommend it.

Another classic Brian K Vaughan series is Y: The Last Man. All men on earth simultaneously die, barring the protagonist, Yorick. Vaughan's writing is great in this as well.

One of my favorite series from all time is Neil Gaiman's famous Sandman. the series is basically stories about storytelling, with the (occasional) main character being Morpheus, "god" of dreams (though he has many other names/titles/definitions). it is often surreal and appropriately dreamlike. Gaimain loves his deities and mythologies and the world of Sandman simultaneously creates its own mythology while including/alluding to all those that humans have created IRL. Sandman's depiction of "reality" changes as drastically and frequently as the constantly shifting roster of illustrators involved.

Around that same time was Grant Morrison's Batman: Arkham Asylum - A Serious House on Serious Earth. while this was just a one-shot novel, it was very dark and directly focused on the psychological aspects of batman as a character. the idea that batman is as crazy as his enemies is nothing new, but this book epitomized it. like Sandman, very late 80's/early 90's feel.

another trippy comic i love is Alan Moore's run on Swamp Thing. Moore reworked swamp thing as a sympathetic monster with themes focusing on identity and memory, while still being within the horror genre. Alan Moore is probably a literal genius and he's known for his many other famous classics, like Watchmen (probably the most classic/important comic, which is also about comics), V for Vendetta, and From Hell. Anything by Moore is a safe bet and he sets the bar for writing in the comic medium.

If you are more interested in art than story, my biggest reccomendation would be literally anything drawn by Jean Giraud, aka "Mœbius." He is probably a national hero in france and he was one of the most celebrated comic artists of all time. he made masterful linework look easy and he has a genius understanding of simple composition and color.

there are tons of smaller, fun books/series, many of which i have yet to read, but the ones i listed are all pretty standard, accessible recommendations. definitely check out a few! Edit: typos

A few graphic novels:

1. From Hell - Cerebral, philosophical, and fastidiously researched, this is the story of the most notorious of them all, Jack the Ripper. Masterful, somber drawings and brilliant writing, if a little too high brow for my taste.
   
2. My Friend Dahmer - You won't find gore here, nor a particularly engaging plot. What you will find is authentic autobiographical vignettes written by an actual school mate of Jeffry Dahmer's that try to shed some light on the early years of this nefarious, but fascinating serial killer, but mostly seem to be an outlet for the author to process his own emotions with regards to having known and been friends with such a monster. It's not a very compelling read, i'm afraid, but on the bright side, it's quite short and the artwork is cool.
   
3. The Green River Killer - An account of the investigation of the Green River murders, focusing on one of the lead detectives, who happens to be the author's father. Nice artwork, so-so plot.
   
4. Miss Don't Touch Me - An absolutely delightful fictional novel that takes place in early 20th century Paris. It is fast-moving, suspenseful, sexy and hugely entertaining. Great artwork and a fun story. Highly recommended!
   
   A couple more books that are on my wish list, though i haven't read them yet, are:
   
   

• Without Conscience: The Disturbing World of the Psychopaths Among Us, written by Prof. Robert Hare, the psychologist who invented the standard test for diagnosing psychopaths.
  
  
• The Psychopath Test: A Journey Through the Madness Industry - written by the always interesting and entertaining Ron Jonson
  
  
• Ann Rule's The Stranger Beside Me - A classic true crime novel about Ted Bundy written by a woman who worked beside him and knew him personally. She went on to become a prolific true crime novelist.

For any Alan Moore fans waiting for this episode you need to check out: From Hell
An excellent exegesis on The Ripper, with the appropriate amount of the occult and non linear time you hope for from our favorite wizard.

From Hell by Alan Moore

Maus by Art Spiegelman

Mother, Come Home by Paul Hornschemeier is amazing. I teared up for hours.

I'll add another recommendation for Blankets by Craig Thompson. It was life-changing for me. Also Good-bye, Chunky Rice and Carnet De Voyage by him as well.

Much of Neil Gaiman's stuff is really amazing. Once it gets going the Sandman series gets really good.

Alan Moore also has a ton of... 'interesting' stuff. I adore him but some people think he gets far to weird. From Hell is an interesting look at Jack the Ripper. The Promethea series by him literally (and yes, I do mean that in the correct way) knocked me out of my chair at one point. The 'shell' story is proto-typical superheroics, but that's just some trappings to walk you through a long (2 years of monthly issues or so) mixed media rumination on magic, life, sex, gender, imagination, creation, and how they all feed interrelate. Filled to the brim with very interesting ideas and frequently presented in amazingly innovative ways. Nobody else pushes both the form and the content of comics at the same time the way Moore does.

That's a start.. if you gives me/us an idea of what you didn't like as well there might be some more suggestions that pop to mind.

You should definitely read From Hell if you haven't.

I recommend Alan Moore's hugely ambitious graphic novel From Hell. The sheer size and scope of the work is staggering. Moore explores the case of Jack The Ripper with an obsessive frenzy (hinted at in Eddie Campbell's scratched-ink illustrations).

Have you read Moore's From Hell?

I read this right after I read Watchmen. Not quite as good, but close. Also, the movie based on it is pretty good. Again, not quite as good as Watchmen, but close.

Alan Moore's From Hell, is pretty good.
https://www.amazon.com/Hell-Alan-Moore/dp/0958578346/ref=sr_1_2?keywords=FROM+HELL&qid=1559309897&s=gateway&sr=8-2