True North Country Comics presents Richard Pace’s top 10 go-to comic books and graphic novels.

Richard is a comic book writer, artist, inker, and colourist whose work has spanned Marvel, DC, Image, and more. In addition to being the cover artist on Imaginary Fiends, his art credits include Doctor Strange, Spike, Heavy Metal, The New Warriors, Pitt, and X-Men and more. After completing the first arc of Second Coming for Ahoy Comics, Richard is currently illustrating the new storyline Second Coming: Only Begotten Son.

Here are Richard Pace’s top 10 go-to comic books and graphic novels:

10.  Mother Come Home by Paul Hornschemeier
“I’ve given away more copies of this book than any other.  It’s profoundly human and brilliantly executed.”


9. Asterios Polyp by David Mazzucchelli
“An astonishing work of the medium.  Mazzucchelli demonstrates an unparalleled master of the form here.”

8. Mort Cinder by Oesterheld and Breccia
“Breccia (like Sergio Toppi) is an huge influence and this book, recently reprinted in English by Fantagraphics, is a bravura display of his mastery of ink.  The visuals are that strong that I don’t care that I don’t care that much about the story, even though it’s pretty good.”

7. V for Vendetta by Alan Moore and David Lloyd
“A brilliant dystopian SF series before they were that cool and populated almost entirely by teen-aged protagonists.”

6. VOODOO CHILD HC: The Illustrated Legend of Jimi Hendrix by Bill Sienkiewicz and Green
“Another book that’s entirely driven by the visual and storytelling mastery here.”  

5. Saga by Brian K. Vaughan and Fiona Staples
“The best modern take on space opera I’ve ever read.  The series is supposed to pick up again at some point, but the current series stop point serves as a decent conclusion if they never return.”

4. Violent Cases by Neil Gaiman and Dave McKean
“Their first collaboration and one of their best works.  Their follow-up, Signal to Noise was bigger, prettier and more ambitious, but my nostalgia gives the edge to the book about Al Capone’s bone doctor.”


3. Moonshadow by J.M. DeMatteiss and Jon. J. Muth
“The marketing from the day called it a fairy tale for adults, and that still serves.  It’s the cradle to grave biography of a man who lived an impossible life.”

2. From Hell by Alan Moore and Campbell
“The most interesting Jack the Ripper telling I’ve ever encountered as well as the strongest sustained work by either creator.”

1. American Flagg by Howard Chaykin
“Originally a series in the 1980s, this book is still very ahead of its time.  A book based on a former actor becoming a cop in a company-owned Chicago, it plays with ideas still relevant today, and likely tomorrow.”

You can discover more about Richard on Twitter at @RPace and on Instagram at @Richard_Pace