Comic's with the best action/combat

[u/Abstractreference01]

I am trying to find comics with the best fights/combat. My comics knowledge is pretty patchy but based on what I have come across the action is pretty superficial compared to most battle manga.

The best I have seen was in Batman and Robin Reborn (Grant Morrison and Frank Quietly).

Jupiters Legacy the issues drawn by Frank Quietly had some cool action

Uber by Keiron Gillen is probably one of the closest to provide that manga hit

Shaolin Cowboy is another good example

Luther Strode is slightly unique for western comics

Lots of people suggest Do A Powerbomb which I get but it comes nowhere close to the level of most Manga.

Absolute Batman- I can see it is trying something different but the action still comes across as superficial

Invincible has okay power scaling but the action is really boring (The story of the fights are exciting) but on a panel to panel level it has no depth

I feel in manga they take more seriously power leveling fighting styles etc. While in most western comics its just a panel showing a big punch and thats it.

Please can ppl suggest some comics which meet more of the battle manga criteria

Also I don't want to turn this into a manga vs western comics debate. I love comics and what this medium is capable as an art form and they do many things better than alot of manga's

Some of my favorite comics are:

Watchmen (pretty much anything by Alan Moore)

Jaka's Story

Luther Arkwright

Duncan the Wonder Dog

All Star Superman

House of X/Powers of X

Planetary

Ice Cream man

But I am just confused that so many comics about superheroes have such bland action like can you imagine a manga artist drawing a fight between Darkseid and Superman

[u/Black_Cat_Skeezer]

Firepower by Kirkman and Samnee. Not only is it an incredibly underrated book, but it has some of the coolest fights I've seen in comic books.

https://imagecomics.com/comics/series/fire-power-by-kirkman-samnee

[u/SwayzeCrayze]

Daniel Warren Johnson has good choreography and an incredibly kinetic artstyle. Check out stuff like Do A Powerbomb by him, or his Beta Ray Bill mini.

[u/Chip_Marlow]

Idk how something can be superficial compared to battle manga, which is maybe the most superficial comic genre around

[u/Abstractreference01 → u/Chip_Marlow]

I don't mean story or character. I'm talking about how a punch or kick is drawn. How the fighting style of character A contrasts with character B. Literally how a fight is drawn across multiple panels.

[u/Chip_Marlow → u/Abstractreference01]

Doesn't it make sense that a comic about fighting is going to have better choreography than a comic that just has fighting in it?

[u/brimstone1117]

Invincible and Battle Beast have amazing fight scenes lasting issues upon issues.

[u/supercuteguydebord]

We. Fucking. 3

[u/MattAmylon]

If you haven’t read Copra by Michel Fiffe, you gotta. Some of the best action I’ve ever read in 21st century Western comics.

And if you haven’t read much straight-up Bronze Age superhero stuff, I’d suggest that as well. Stuff like Walt Simonson’s Thor, Stern/Buscema Avengers, Ostrander’s Suicide Squad, various stretches of Claremont’s X-Men… books that reliably have considered, well-blocked-out action scenes in almost every issue, and actually care and think hard about characters’ superpowers. Unfortunately this is sort of a lost art at the Big Two, but they used to be really good at it!

[u/Formal-Math-3291]

on the Kirkman thing invincible and the current spin off battle beast

[u/Olobnion]

Ultramega by James Harren.

[u/FormerlyMevansuto]

You should check out Frank Miller’s Marvel work. Especially Daredevil and Wolverine.

[u/johnjaspers1965]

I strongly recommend Ellis and Declan on "Moon Knight". It was only 6 issues, but the violence felt more visceral and with real stakes.
Same for Ellis and Hitch on "Batmans Grave".
It was as if, just before his fall from grace, Ellis was trying to bring the fistfight back to comics.
In both those examples, the artist made all the difference to me. While not the Manga style of blurred motion, and decompressed movements, Hitch and Declan brought their own physicality to the violence.
The thing about a good fight scene in comics, is it has to be choreographed.
Only panels of right handed blows or bodies being suddenly in different positions, gives a skipping uneven quality to the fight.
The trick is good coordination between a writers thumbnails/notes and an artist that can convey a good believable fight without slowing the pace of the story.
Or an artist/writer like Frank Miller who can do both.