40. SATELLITE SAM

Raymond Chandler meets Paddy Chayefsky, in Howard Chaykin’s sketchy, viciously sharp ink lines.

39. Moebius Nemo

Come back, Jean Girard. How are we supposed to make a proper Nemo tribute without you?

38. Tokidoki Donutella

Adorablicious.

37. Our Anniversary Party

The Paper Anniversary has to be a lucky one for a comic book store.

36. NeverWet

One question: if you get this on your hands, how do you wash it off?

35. BEST OF EC ARTIST’S EDITION

IDW just won’t stop with these incredible collections of photographed artwork. Pre-code EC comics like you’ve never seen ’em before.

34. ORANGE IS THE NEW BLACK

Perhaps, just perhaps…Netflix is the new HBO.

33. Death Star Mints

Destroying Alderaan and halitosis alike.

32. R2D2 Mints

Listen to them, they’re dying, R2! Dying of minty freshness!

31. THE MINUTEMEN/SILK SPECTRE

The Before Watchmen books have taken a lot of shit, and rightfully so. But Darwyn Cooke’s beautiful MINUTEMEN series ran far afield of WATCHMEN’s imposing shadow to deliver a small, humane story with a big, hopeful heart.

30. Mister Misses

You already know that Ulises Farinas is a great artist and a righteous dude. But did you know he’s also Tumblr’s #1 source of romantic advice?

29. UNCANNY X-MEN

Brian Bendis & Frasier Irving’s take on Cyclops’ outlaw X-Men brings back some of the misfit spirit missing from recent X-books. And Frasier Irving’s art is a semi-coherently glorious ride, recalling the physics-less universes Steve Ditko built for Doctor Strange.

28. @iamsteranko

Jim Steranko has, bar none, the most entertaining feed in the Twitter-verse.  Follow him for his tales of bitch-slapping Bob Kane, breathing underwater, and touring as a shit-hot rock & roller with a .22 in his guitar case.

27. BEAUTY IS EMBARRASSING

This documentary on the remarkable Wayne White left us electrified and inspired. The world is a big empty space and if we’re lucky we get to fill it with things we love.

26. Walking Dead Gelatin Mold

Because it’s time to turn it around on the zombies and eat THEIR brains.

25. SIX GUN GORILLA

Jeff Stokely’s sleekly old-fashioned art has some of the snap and crackle of Alex Toth.

24. The Flying Man

This is exactly how creepy superheroes would be if they were real.

23. BATMAN ’66

What’s this? A fun book from DC comics? Jeff Parker & Jonathan Case deliver a rip-roaring, campy yarn the likes of which isn’t often seen in superhero comics these days.

22. Animals with Sharpies

Michael Dumontier and Neal Farber gave sharpies to a wide variety of animals, and the messages they wrote out were poignant, hilarious, and always memorably odd.

21. Sandman Bookends

Because all books live somewhere between death and dream.

20. Totoro CatWhat else is there to say, really?
[via @ANN_Bamboo]

19. Dinosaur Park

But… what happens when life finds a way?

18. WORLDS OF SAM KIETH

No one has gone deeper into his own style & invention than Sam Kieth. This book is a journey.

17. KING

Ho Che Anderson’s gorgeously impressionistic artwork lends a hopeful melancholy to the story of a great American hero.

16. OPTIC NERVE #13

Adrian Tomine is still, somehow, getting better — looser, funnier & more humane,

15. PACIFIC RIM…TOHO Style

Perfect. Can someone do this to the whole movie?

14. Herbert Baglione’s painted mental hospitals

Shadows of ghosts from haunted minds.

13. Pogo Cake for Chris’ Birthday

Second time’s the charm.

12. ANDREW JACKSON THROWS A PUNCH

Andrew Jackson: popular president, tough guy, and kind of a dick. Come see Andrea Tsurumi’s glorious fold-out comic.

11. BEACH GIRLS

I don’t know when, exactly, Box Brown turned into the Spicoli of indie comics. But his human-scaled, chiba-scented stories are getting more honest, and more oddly sweet, by the day.

10. QUARTER MOON

Issue #1 is out. Bring on #2!

9. HOW TO OPEN A WINE BOTTLE WITH YOUR SHOE

If the Locust Moonies could have seen this a while ago we would have drank many fewer shards of broken glass.

8. ELEPHANTMEN vol. 6

Richard Starkings’ Blade Runner-meets-Jungle-Book sci-fi noir soldiers on, ever expanding the boundaries of its intricate world.

7. BATTLING BOY

We have read the advance copy — this thing is hewn from pure myth, and delivered with the offhanded magnetism of a born storyteller. Maybe the best thing Paul Pope has ever done, and that’s saying something.

6. THE STRANGE WORLD OF YOUR DREAMS

Jack Kirby gets his Winsor McCay on. As if that wasn’t enough, the book is designed to look and feel like a mattress.

5. WALRUS

The inside of Brandon Graham’s sketchbook, like his mind, is a scary, beautiful, (punny,) one-of-a-kind place. We’d like to spend even more time there.

4. The Eisners

Putting aside all the regular awards doled out to wonderfully talented individuals, the Eisners are on this list for two reasons: Don Rosa and Steve Gerber. This year special awards were awarded to two of our favorite people — two criminally under-appreciated geniuses in the art of making comics. And ducks.

3. The Harveys, a.k.a. You

It is a real honor to have our first book nominated for Best Anthology. Endless thanks to all you incredible people in this insane industry for your love & support. We’ll see you in Baltimore.

2. IT WILL ALL HURT

As Uncle Purvis tells us: you’re goddamned right it will.

1. The Word Is Out: Nemo Dreams Another Dream
At Comics Alliance, Robot 6, Major Spoilers, and elsewhere on the comicsnet, word and preview pages from our biggest labor of overwhelming love has gotten out. The response has been wonderful, and what you’re seeing out there is just the tip of the iceberg…