Spike Spiegel
Member
*****VOTING CLOSED; CHECK POST #57 TO SEE THE WINNERS*****
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Hello everyone! In case you didn't notice, or you've just felt lost without us, the Comics! OT has moved to Community! But we're back in the Off-Topic to vote for the year's very best in comic books, and you're invited to participate as well! Everyone can join in the fun, but before you hit that 'Reply' button I ask that you read the OP and check the rules.
Let's get started, shall we?
How's this supposed to work, exactly?
Pretty much like the monthly vote, I imagine. You vote your opinions on the best comic books of 2014; after the voting period ends, I tally up the results and declare a winner; in the process, we (hopefully) get some nice, informative discussions about the best comics out there today.
So what's different this time?
For starters there are nominees to vote for now, and they represent the comics that YOU picked as the best single issues released each month in 2014. However, you're not voting for single issues anymore; instead, you'll be voting for them as SERIES released in 2014. As you'll see in the list of nominees below, issues from several series ranked multiple times in the monthly voting; grouping candidates as series will avoid splitting the votes, and make judging easier for everyone.
Also, since this is the end-of-year vote the ballot has now been expanded to include FOUR comics, instead of three.
How do we vote?
First, second, third, fourth; that's all that matters. A first place vote is worth 7 points; a second place vote gets 5 points, third place, that's worth 3 points; fourth, 2 points. You can vote for less than four comics if you want, or even just one; you can do page-long lists with full write-ups of everything you read in 2014, if you so choose; in the end, however, point distribution will remain the same and only your top four picks will get any points.
And NO. TIES. This isn't Sophie's choice, it's comics!
Your ballot should look something like the one below. Of course, you don't have to follow this format verbatim, dress it however you like; all I ask is that you make it clear TO ME which comics you are voting for, and in what order you rank them.
Average GAF Member said:
As with the monthly thread I ask that you vote via private message sent to me (click my name, click on "Send a private message to 'Spike Spiegel'"); this makes it easier for me to keep track of who voted for what, and avoids me combing the thread for votes I may have missed. Your vote is confidential, and whether you decide to make your selections public after sending them to me is entirely up to you.
What if I don't like any of the books nominated?
Because this is the end-of-year thread, and because everyone deserves a second chance, I am allowing everyone to include (if they so choose) ONE write-in candidate on their ballot, in place of one of the nominees. A write-in candidate can be any new comic (or original graphic novel) released in 2014, is subject to the same criteria as the other nominees, and will receive the same point consideration. You can only put ONE write-in candidate on your ballot; a ballot composed entirely of write-ins will either be thrown out, or counted as one first place vote and three no-counts.
I love Naruto! Can we vote for manga?
Uhh, no? While not exclusive, the Comics! OT is intended for the discussion of North American comic releases, and this thread is a reflection of that. Manga have their own discussion thread in the OTC, and the creators of those I'm sure are more than welcome to create a voting system for the best manga of 2014.
What about European comics (or comix)?
Also no.
Web-comics?
...Also going with a no there.
I don't know much about comics, but I like [insert character]. Can't I just vote for that?
Well it's not like I can stop you, but I would really prefer that you didn't. The idea behind this vote (and the monthly vote, for that matter) is to choose "the best comics of 2014, as voted by the members of NeoGAF." Maybe it's delusional thinking on my part, but I'd like to believe that title ought to mean something, whether that's "most captivating story" or "most visually stunning" or "elevating the medium to a form of art," or even just "most entertaining read." And while I certainly don't expect everyone to read every nominated comic and make an informed, purely critical, as-objective-as-possible decision with their vote, I would hope that you at least know a little something about the comics you're voting for instead of turning this into a popularity contest.
Okay... So where can I read some of these nominated books?
If you're not into the whole "digging through long boxes at the LCS" thing, there's always digital. Pretty much everything can be read online now, and with the holiday season odds are you might find some of these nominated books on sale. Or free, even.
https://www.comixology.com/
https://comicstore.marvel.com/
https://www.readdcentertainment.com/
https://imagecomics.com/store/comics
https://digital.darkhorse.com/
https://read.idwpublishing.com/
Any other restrictions on what we can vote for?
Each GAF member gets one ballot, and can cast that vote only once; barring extenuating circumstances (and you'll have to catch me in a pretty good mood), once your vote has been recorded you are done. So VOTE THOUGHTFULLY.
Also, because this end-of-year vote includes ongoing series I am asking you to consider those books based on THIS YEAR year alone. In other words, judge those books on storylines and issues released in 2014 only, and not on the whole.
What's the deadline for getting votes in?
Right now, the deadline for voting will be 11:59pm EST on January 15th 2015. That should give everyone plenty of time to get their votes in, catch up on their reading, check out some of the nominees, etc.
Failure to comply with any of the above MAY result in your ballot getting thrown out.
(NOTE: Because monthly voting started in November 2013, this year's vote includes 14 months' worth of nominees rather than 12.)
+ Batman by Snyder/Capullo/Plascencia (DC)
+ Batman Eternal by Snyder/Tynion IV/Fabok/Anderson (DC)
+ Black Science by Remender/Scalera/White (Image)
+ Deadly Class by Remender/Craig/Loughridge (Image)
+ The Fade Out by Brubaker/Phillips/Breitweiser (Image)
+ God Hates Astronauts by Browne/Boyd (Image)
+ Grayson by Seeley/King/Janin/Cox (DC)
+ Harley Quinn by Conner/Palmiotti/Hardin/Sinclair (DC)
+ Hawkeye by Fraction/Aja/Hollingsworth (Marvel)
+ Locke & Key by Hill/Rodriguez/Fotos (IDW)
+ Low by Remender/Tocchini (Image)
+ The Manhattan Projects by Hickman/Pitarra/Bellaire (Image)
+ Moon Knight by Ellis/Shalvey/Bellaire (Marvel)
+ Ms. Marvel by Wilson/Alphona/Herring (Marvel)
+ The Multiversity by Morrison/Reis/Prado/Quitely/Stewart/Ruffino/Fairbairn (DC)
+ Rat Queens by Wiebe/Upchurch (Image)
+ Saga by Vaughan/Staples (Image)
+ The Sandman: Overture by Gaiman/Williams III/Stewart (Vertigo/DC)
+ Sex Criminals by Fraction/Zdarsky (Image)
+ Southern Bastards by Aaron/Latour (Image)
+ Transformers: More Than Meets the Eye by Roberts/Milne/Burcham (IDW)
+ Uncanny Avengers by Remender/McNiven/Martin (Marvel)
+ The Wicked + The Divine by Gillen/McKelvie/Wilson (Image)
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Happy voting, everyone! And check back in January when we crown the "Best of 2014!"
NB4 #yearofremender versus #yearofbatman
