10 Comics You Should Re-Read As An Adult

5. Kick-Ass

Watchmen comics
Image Comics

Lindsay Ellis could not have been more right when she labeled comic writer Mark Millar as "the patron saint of 13 year old boys". His entire style, from his writing to his tone to the themes he tackles and the way in which he does so, just screams of an immature edgelord. He wants so badly to be Alan Moore, but really, REALLY isn't.

Case in point, look at Kick-Ass. A decently popular indie comic that was quickly overshadowed by a much more successful movie that cut out all of the horrible offensive stuff from the source material, and thus reached a wider audience, leading to exorbitant royalties for Mr. Millar. Because if you're gonna grift anyone, it may as well be Hollywood.

Going back to read Kick-Ass will make you want to throw your teenage self in the shame bin for the rest of time. It's violent, bleak, gleefully offensive to anyone with even a shred of empathy, and all for its own sake rather than trying to prove any kind of point.

Contributor
Contributor

John Tibbetts is a novelist in theory, a Whatculture contributor in practice, and a nerd all around who loves talking about movies, TV, anime, and video games more than he loves breathing. Which might be a problem in the long term, but eh, who can think that far ahead?