2012 was a great year for comics; tons of amazing euro titles hit our shores courtesy of Cinebook, Fantagraphics and Archaia Press. DC continued to push their completely revamped superhero line; giving us a fresh take on their most premiere characters and now bringing them into their 3rd, 4th and 5th story arcs. It was also another great year for new series with outstanding debuts from Ed Brubaker and Sean Phillips with Fatale and Brian K Vaughan‘s too strange to miss: Saga. 2013 looks as though it will be a promising year. DC‘s new line will now be pushing more heroes back into the standout lineup and hinting towards a new secret society within the new 52.

Classic euros like Thorgal will be entering into their most dramatic and game changing volumes. We will see a startling number of new titles that push their genre or in a supremely modern fashion create a new one. With the overwhelming number of ‘sure to be amazing’ comics hitting shelves this year we have gone ahead and highlighted our picks for the comics and graphic novels you should be looking out for.

Part 1 includes: Deva Zan and The Wake. Part 2:  includes Invincible, East of West, Sandman.  Look for Part 2 posting next.

10. Deva Zan by Yoshitaka Amano

You may know Amano as the man who provided the concept art and many of the title artworks for the final fantasy series. It was Amano’s illustrative work on that video game that truly elevated the pixellated graphics of Final Fantasy Four. Since I have first played that game a decade ago I have imagined Amano’s work in motion; as a piece of a grand story. Having proven himself as a fine artist (check out his massive California collection) he turns towards the graphic novel medium in what is sure to be a completely original visual take on the Samurai epic. Deva Zan will stretch between ancient Japan and modern day New York in what is sure to be an amazing and unique literary experience.

9. The Wake by Scott Snyder and Sean Murphy

The Wake has sold me solely on its amazing promo artwork. Snyder and Murphy have already proven themselves on the American Vampire spinoff: Survival of the Fittest. Snyder is somewhat of a rising star (he will also be writing Superman with Jim Lee) but The Wake looks to be something very different from their past work. Along with it there is a level of mystery that other upcoming titles can’t match. The Wake will feature two strong elements; it is a post-apocalyptic story but before you claim it to be uninspired and overdone based on that alone, also know that it is a story about something evil: deep in the ocean. The Wake artwork features a lone scuba diver bleeding out amongst an open (for all we can see) ocean. The tiny figure appears to be wracked with pain and the color palette packs a pastel punch that is rarely found in today’s digitally obsessed color world. The Wake has me hooked already and I haven’t even read the first page

-Max Romano