10 Best Comic Books Of 2017

by Ewan Paterson

1. Mister Miracle

Mister Miracle 3
DC Comics/Mitch Gerads

As far as comics go, they don't get any better than Tom King and Mitch Gerads' Mister Miracle.

A subtle reboot of a Kirby Classic, King and Gerads series is as much a superhero book as it is a compelling and honest appraisal of mental health. Taking a rather literal view of Kirby's Fourth World Saga, King lays bare all of the twisted machinations of Darkseid and Granny Goodness in a very human way, showing Scott as he combats depression, anxiety and the forces of Apokolips all at once.

King's grasp of all these things is what makes Mister Miracle such a phenomenal read. Emboldened by Mitch Gerads' intricate and wonderful pencils, the book reads and looks like no other out there, providing an honest depiction of a character who, for the better half of the last decade, has largely been neglected. You won't find a book that reads (or looks) quite like it, and while it occupies the same world of capes, costumes, gods and monsters that DC's other titles do, there's a genius to Mister Miracle that sets it apart from the rest.

Open, honest and suitably terrifying, King and Gerads' thematic reappraisal of the Kirby mythos is 2017's finest comic, and one that well and truly proves that DC - at this moment in time - are a cut above the rest.

Roll on 2018.

What were your favourite comics of the year? Be sure to let us know in the comments below and, before you do, be sure to check out WhatCulture Comics on YouTube for lists, news coverage and more every week. It's good content, Brent.

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Content Producer/Presenter

WhatCulture's very own resident movie guy, Ewan has been working in the content creation biz for over 10 years now, having started as a freelance contributor to WhatCulture Gaming all the way back in 2015. After graduating with a First-Class Honours in History from Northumbria University in 2017 (where he won a prize for a totally killer dissertation on the Watergate years), Ewan took on the role of Comics Editor at WhatCulture and quickly developed WhatCulture Comics into one of the biggest superhero-focused channels on YouTube. He followed this with a brief hiatus at Screen Rant in 2021, where he worked across the Gaming and Film sections as a writer and editor, before returning to WhatCulture as a Senior Content Producer / Presenter in 2023. He started his own podcast, We Love Dad Movies, in 2022, and has contributed several written pieces to the Eisner-nominated comics website Shelfdust as well. In his current role, Ewan incorporates his love of cinema, comic books, and history into written pieces and video essays for WhatCulture's Film & TV channel, as well as WhatCulture Gaming and WhatCulture Horror, with a particular focus on nineties-era Dad Movies, old school Westerns, and Golden Age Hollywood Noir. John Carpenter is his fave, and he thinks Batman Beyond should never have been cancelled. If that's your vibe, you'll probably like his stuff.