Power Rankings: Grant Morrison

Power Rankings is a series where I'll select a director, actor, writer, artist, etc. and rank their 5 best pieces of work. 

Where to even begin when talking about Grant Morrison? The Scottish comic-book guru is known for his psychedelic stories, eccentric behavior, occult dwellings, alleged communication with John Lennon from beyond the grave and ranking as public enemy number one on Alan Moore's list. You either love Morrison or you can't understand why anyone would read anything written by this guy. His stories can often come off as confusing or strange, with odd plots that prove extremely difficult to follow. However, I've always said that the best way to read a Grant Morrison series is to let go of all preconceived notions you have about comic books and just enjoy the ride. Now let's take a look at Morrison's impressive body of work, and which 5 prove to be his best.

 5. We3

I fully believe that We3 is Morrison's most underrated work. It tells the story of three prototype "animal weapons": a dog, a cat and a rabbit. The animals escape the facility where they were built and embark on a strange, heartwarming quest to try and find somewhere they belong. For a writer known for his trippy, psychedelic comics filled with debauchery and violence, We3 really stands out as one of his more emotional pieces. We3 is short and sweet, with a thing trade paperback available that takes maybe an hour to get through. The book stands way out when compared to the rest of this list, but is not one that should be skipped.

4. Arkham Asylum: A Serious House on Serious Earth 

Arkham Asylum: A Serious House on Serious Earth is the book that put Morrison on the map in the world of American comics. Morrison's own description of the inspiration for the book is the best way to describe it all: "[Arkham]'s themes were inspired by Lewis Carroll, quantum physics, Jung, and Crowley; its visual style by surrealism, Cocteau, Artaud, Svankmajer, the Brothers Quay, etc. The intention was to create something that was more like a piece of music or an experimental film than a typical adventure comic book. I wanted to approach Batman from the point of view of the dreamlike, emotional and irrational hemisphere, as a response to the very literal, 'realistic', 'left brain' treatment of superheroes which was in vogue at the time, in the wake of The Dark Knight Returns, Watchmen, and others."

3. All-Star Superman

Morrison's take on the Man of Steel, a character he holds dear to his heart, is arguably the best Superman story there is. Like I said before, any preconceived notions you have about comics should be left behind when reading one of Morrison's books, so if you tend to stay away from Superman due to his "boy scout" reputation, this is a book you need to read. This is a much deeper Superman story than anything seen before, and serves as more of an exploration of the character than anything else. It is a love-letter to Superman, and a great story that just might change your mind about a character that his been pushed aside for his gritty pal, Batman.

2. Supergods

Speaking of Morrison's overall love for superheroes, his first non-fiction book, Supergods, is everything you need to know about superheroes and Morrison's feelings towards them. This book is unlike any non-fiction book about comics before. It is part stream-of-consciousness, part history and part memoir, providing a fresh look at everything regarding comics, while also giving us a glimpse into Morrison's mind. Even if you aren't a big Grant Morrison fan, this book is a great way to simply learn about the history of comics and understand things from someone who has been in the business for years. 

1. The Invisibles

Often considered Morrison's magnum opus, The Invisibles is like nothing you've ever read before. His first major creator-run series, The Invisibles really requires some back story to understand. Morrison is a noted believer in the occult practice known as chaos magick. This practice involves the use of sigils and hypersigils, which are ways of altering reality with willpower, concentration and magical meaning. The Invisibles was Morrison's own hypersigil, and he stated many times that his life began to mirror that of the character King Mob (the one who looks exactly like Grant Morrison) in way that he couldn't possibly have been in control of. The series is an enormous work spanning time, space and every dimension with tons of magic, time travel, and sex & violence. To attempt to explain the plot of the series would only confuse you more, so all I can say is to read it.

There you have it, the top five works from one of my favorite comic book writers of all time. Morrison's current mini-series, Happy, is on shelves right now. 

Enjoy!