The '80s coincided with a maturation of the comic medium, and DC Comics was at the forefront of it. DC put out books in the decade of excess that changed the way comics were perceived forever, and they created new stars that would catapult the publisher into rarefied heights.
The '80s were a decade of great change for DC as they looked to the future and decided that comics could be more than just heroes and villains hitting each other. DC completely changed the comic industry in the '80s with some legendary comics, many of which are still in print and easily accessible to fans who want to see what all the fuss is about.
10 Animal Man #5 Showed Exactly Where The Book Was Heading
Animal Man #5, by writer Grant Morrison and artist Chas Troug, was never supposed to happen, but the comic world is better for it. The book was originally supposed to be a four-issue miniseries, but it sold so well that DC made it an ongoing. Morrison and Troug weren't going to do any run-of-the-mill superhero comic, though, and that's where "The Coyote Gospel" comes in.
Animal Man investigates the appearance of a strange creature, one who causes havoc every time he shows up. What he finds is perplexing, but plays into the bigger themes that the book would explore as it went on, namely the relationship between fiction and its creators.
9 The Sandman: Preludes And Nocturnes Kicked Off Its Run Of Excellence
The Sandman: Preludes And Nocturnes, by writer Neil Gaiman and artists Sam Keith and Mike Dringenberg, kicked off the beloved series in pitch-perfect fashion. Dream of the Endless is imprisoned and, after his escape, has to rebuild his realm and regain his power, taking challenges that could be the end of even a being as powerful as he is.
Gaiman, Keith, and Dringenberg combined horror and wonder, borrowing characters liberally from DC's old '70s horror anthologies, to create a story that has enthralled generations of readers. Even to this day, "24 Hours" is brilliant horror. Preludes And Nocturnes is the definition of a book that has aged gracefully.
8 New Teen Titans: The Judas Contract Is The Highpoint Of An Amazing Run
Writer Marv Wolfman and co-plotter/artist George Pérez's New Teen Titans was a smash hit, even rivaling sales juggernaut Uncanny X-Men for industry dominance. The pair put out some amazing stories, but the highlight of their run is The Judas Contract. The story of Terra's betrayal of the Teen Titans to Deathstroke has struck a chord that resonated throughout the decades.
Wolfman and Pérez are an amazing combination, and this story goes out of its way to show that off. It's a turning point in the history of the team, where everything gets surprisingly real and raw for the young heroes. It's action-packed and full of emotion, grabbing readers and never letting go.
7 The Legion Of Superheroes: The Great Darkness Saga Stands Above The Other Legion Stories
The Legion of Superheroes is now an underrated superteam, but that wasn't always the case. Pre-Crisis DC was a different time for the team, and there are some wonderful stories from that era. The Legion Of Superheroes: The Great Darkness Saga, by writer Paul Levitz and writer/artist Keith Giffen, shows how great the old Legion can be in an epic that lives up to its title.
When mysterious powerful aliens begin attacking the UP, the Legion is called into action and quickly embroiled in a plot from an enemy thought long since disappeared, one who lives to destroy. The Legion's history can be daunting, but this book is able to cut through all of that and present a great action-packed tale like few others.
6 The Dark Knight Returns Brought Back A Darker Portrayal Of Batman
The Dark Knight Returns is on every list of best-of-all-time comics. Writer/artist Frank Miller's future Batman tale struck at just the right time. Comics were going through a growing period, and this book helped contribute to that. Its darker, noir-influenced sensibility echoed fabled Batman runs by Denny O'Neil and Neal Adams and Steve Englehart, and Marshal Rogers, changing the way Batman was perceived.
One can argue with the book's politics and Miller's rather fascist take on the Caped Crusader, but it can't be denied just how great the comic is. It inspired decades of imitators and revitalized the Batman franchise, both in comics and in the public eye.
5 Green Arrow: The Longbow Hunters Is A Different Look At The Emerald Archer
Green Arrow is a DC icon, and the '80s would see him get another best-of-all-time story. Green Arrow: The Longbow Hunters, by writer/artist Mike Grell, follows an aging Oliver Queen as he moves to Seattle to be with Black Canary. Once there, he gets embroiled with a beautiful young archer named Shado, a serial killer and drug lord who Black Canary is hunting.
The Longbow Hunters was another example of DC bringing in more adult themes to its classic superhero line-up. Green Arrow was always a character who could work on multiple levels, and Grell is able to create a timeless story, one that changed the way everyone looked at Green Arrow.
4 V For Vendetta Has Become Holy Writ For Generations Of Anarchist Thinkers
DC has never shied away from social commentary in their comics. The '80s saw the publisher keep this up, with writer Alan Moore and artist David Lloyd's V For Vendetta presenting the best example of a powerful political polemic. In a post-nuclear war future where Britain has become a fascist nation, a young woman named Evey is taken in by revolutionary V, an action that gives her a first-hand seat to the rebellion.
V For Vendetta is a timeless tale of the struggle against fascism that is even more important today than ever. It ranks among Moore's greatest comic works, a treatise on vengeance and anarchy that has changed people's lives for years.
3 Swamp Thing: American Gothic Is The Title's Biggest Epic
Alan Moore's Swamp Thing kicked off the modern comic trend of brilliantly written horror comics. The book is full of great stories, but they all pale compared to American Gothic, with artists Jon Totleben, Stephen Bissette, and Rick Veitch. John Constantine hunts down Swamp Thing for help to stop the greatest threat to life in the universe, taking the monster on a trip through the dark heart of America.
Moore had packed social commentary into his horror before in this book, but this story takes it to the next level. Even leaving behind the deft commentary, this story is a horror epic unlike anything else readers have seen.
2 Crisis On Infinite Earths Changed The DC Universe For Years To Come
Crisis On Infinite Earths is still the pinnacle of event storytelling. Writer Marv Wolfman and co-plotter/artist George Pérez chronicle the Multiverse's most desperate battle as the heroes are faced with the most powerful enemy they've ever had to battle: the Anti-Monitor. Worlds lived, worlds died, and nothing would ever be the same.
Wolfman and Pérez codified the superhero event book in this one. It's a comic full of spectacle, yet the bombastic happenings never overwhelm the story. It also introduced changes that lasted over twenty years to the DCU, pushing it into its most fertile era since the Silver Age.
1 Watchmen Is The King
DC is the master of the twelve-issue series. Even among the stellar ones the publisher has put out over the years, Watchmen is the pinnacle. Writer Alan Moore and artist Dave Gibbons' opus changed comics forever, bringing a maturity and complexity to the medium that it had rarely seen before. Watchmen showed that comics could be literature and sparked a revolution.
Watchmen stands alone among comics of the '80s. It charted a new path for mainstream comics, one that would see creators using the medium in bold new ways. Watchmen is the king, and even today, few books can match its impact or quality.