View Full Version : Alan Moore Vs. Frank Miller
rntaboy
06-21-2007, 05:25 PM
Who is the greater overall comic creator, including Miller's art with his writing? Both are about as prolific as you can get in comics, having individually turned out a number of amazing works. One is from England, the other from the USA.
Who's better?
mikegraham6
06-21-2007, 05:27 PM
alan moore
conorkilpatrick
06-21-2007, 05:28 PM
alan moore
Why? Just saying a name doesn't help illuminate your point of view. :)
mikegraham6
06-21-2007, 05:34 PM
i've just mentioned my love for watchmen as well as my indifference to Dark Knight Returns so many times, i thought it went without saying;)
But seriously, the only miller work i absolutely adore is Year One, while Moore's has numerous works that i revisit, watchmen being the first of many. I think Killing joke is the best joker representation ive ever seen, he owned the silver age with Whatever happened to the man of tomorrow and i just finished reading From Hell (read my review on VIRB) and thats probably gone into my top 3 favorite comic works and top 5 favorite books period (Watchmen is number one and two respectively on each of those lists)
I think Miller is a good comic book writer while Moore is just an alll around great writer. Had he written books instead of comics i think he'd get far more mainstream attention (moreso than now)
paper
06-21-2007, 05:38 PM
I'd say Alan Moore simply because he's a bit more versatile. He can even write the same kind of savage characters as Miller (Hyde, the Comedian).
This is an exceptionally difficult question for me to answer. I think in the end they may be equally great in my eyes. I think that I like Moore's original work more than Miller's and Miller's shared universe superhero stuff more than Moore's.
This is not to say that I don't like Miller's original stuff. 300 and Sin City are amazing books. They're great.
This is also not to say that I don't like Moore's shared universe stuff. The Killing Joke is a great story.
I think that in the end, they both work at the apex of their own strengths consistently and even perform in categories and genres that maybe aren't what they're most known for.
They've both touched me profoundly with the things that they have written. The world of comics would not look anything like it does now without either of them.
I can't answer this question A or B. I need C.
conorkilpatrick
06-21-2007, 05:41 PM
I can't answer this question A or B. I need C.
Me either. I refuse to choose.
They're the all-time BIG 2 for me much like Bendis and Bru and my BIG 2 for today. It's not that I don't like other people's stuff; it's that I like theirs so much that it breaks my brain to try to compare them.
rntaboy
06-21-2007, 05:50 PM
Would comparing them solely as writers make any difference?
no. frank miller's art is great, but it's not a big part of frank miller for me.
conorkilpatrick
06-21-2007, 05:52 PM
Would comparing them solely as writers make any difference?
Not for me, it wouldn't.
humphrey-lee
06-21-2007, 07:17 PM
Alan Moore. He's probably the best writer the industry has seen period (making Miller probably top three or whatever). I know it's not true, but it always SEEMS like Alan NEVER puts out anything average or mediocre, but meanwhile Frank's work hasn't been the same this decade. I'm not saying he's "gone insane" or whatever, but DKSA and All Star and even his last Sin City story have been completely underwhelming, or only occasionally entertaining. Meanwhile Moore still cranks it out the park with his LOEG stories, Lost Girls, the stuff he's done with the ABC line since 2000, etc. They're pretty neck and neck since they both hit in the 80's (though I still give Alan the edge even then) but the fact that Moore is still really close to the top of his game, and we haven't really seen much from Frank besides his movies so far in the 00's gives it to Alan by a big margin I think.
k33k3r
06-21-2007, 07:18 PM
Love them both but Moore takes this one.
esophagus
06-21-2007, 08:07 PM
Easiest choice so far. Moore. All the way. He's just better at amazing stuff. Miller has done a few staple stories, things that are absolutely amazing, but I can't think of a Moore story that just wasn't "Wow".
I think Miller is a good comic book writer while Moore is just an alll around great writer. Had he written books instead of comics i think he'd get far more mainstream attention (moreso than now)
FOr interest sake, Moore has written a book. Voice of the Fire. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Voice_of_the_Fire)
It's tough to get through, but once you wrap your head around the grand concept of it, it's a very satisfying work. Not as good as his comics stuff, but still great.
The latest Around Comics is Spotlight on Frank Miller.
chris-neseman
06-21-2007, 10:06 PM
Thanks Fred!
We had a lot of fun doing that one.
On the subject at hand, I think it all comes down to personal preference. Hell, I may change my mind on this on any given day. I think Moore may be more of a pure writer than Miller, but if you include Miller's art it's a toss up. I think Moore may think "Bigger" and have an almost otherworldly tilt to his work where Miller is firmly at street level looking up at the human condition.
Both great. Both pushed the medium to places it hasn't been. I think you can make the same statements about both of thier keystone works, Watchmen and DKR.
Thanks Fred!
We had a lot of fun doing that one.
On the subject at hand, I think it all comes down to personal preference. Hell, I may change my mind on this on any given day. I think Moore may be more of a pure writer than Miller, but if you include Miller's art it's a toss up. I think Moore may think "Bigger" and have an almost otherworldly tilt to his work where Miller is firmly at street level looking up at the human condition.
Both great. Both pushed the medium to places it hasn't been. I think you can make the same statements about both of thier keystone works, Watchmen and DKR.
I listened to a big chunk of it today. I still have about 30 minutes left. It's good. I think that you guys certainly hit the high points and also talk about some of the lower ones without it devolving into *****ing or ass-kissing. It's a fine line. way to go.
senoj1
06-22-2007, 12:28 AM
My gut says Miller because of how high i regard DKR. If i put my mind to it and really compare them and i can't make a choice.
acomicbookgirl
06-22-2007, 12:40 AM
The latest Around Comics is Spotlight on Frank Miller.
I listened to that earlier.. Good stuff.. :) While V for Vendetta is one of my all time favorite stories, I got to give the edge to Frank Miller.. Especially after listening to the Spotlight..