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Saturday Morning Panels: The Best of 2020

By | December 19th, 2020
Posted in Columns | % Comments

Hello and welcome back to Saturday Morning Panels! For our final Saturday Morning Panels of the year, we asked our staff to give us their favorites moments from 2020 – – some that have made appearances here before, and some new favorites.

So kick-back, watch out for spoilers, talk about your favorites from in comments section below.  We’ll be back on January 9. 2021 to kick off a new year of comics.  And from all of us, we wish you and yours a happy holiday season and very Happy New Year!

Writer: Nick Spencer; Artist: Patrick Gleason
“Amazing Spider-Man” #52: But can you offer unlimited soup, salad, and breadsticks? – Elias Rosner

Writer: Evan Dorkin; Artist: Veronica & Andy Fish
“Blackwood: The Mourning After” #2: This is 100% a calendar planner from 2020. ―Mark Tweedale

Writer: Evan Dorkin; Artist: Veronica & Andy Fish
“Blackwood: The Mourning After” #4: The greek chorus in my brain whenever things start to go sidewise. – Elias Rosner

Writer: Blake Northcott and Sean Murphy; Artist: Cian Tormey
“Catwoman” #23: 2020 may be a cursed year but this re-appearance is cursed in the right way. Thank you Northcott for the return of SNOWFLAME. Remember, if someone dares you to do something, do it times fifty, all at the same time. – Elias Rosner

Writer: Jeff Lemire; Artist: Tyler Crook
“Colonel Weird: Cosmagog” #1: You could fill an entire column of Saturday Morning Panels with just this book. ―Mark Tweedale

“Dark Nights: Death Metal” #1: I don’t care what end of the multiverse he came from, I would absolutely read an entire series about a dinosaur Batman. – Robbie Pleasant

“Deadpool” #2: Maybe we can get Wade to sort out #Megxit. And #Brexit while we’re at it. – Kate Kosturski

Writer: Brian Michael Bendis; Artist: David Marquez
“Detective Comics” #1027: How can you doubt it’s Nightwing? Just look at dat ass. – Elias Rosner

Writer: Jody Houser; Artist: Roberta Ingranata
“Doctor Who: Time Lord Victorious” #2: Sit, Dalek, sit. Good Dalek. *EXTERMINATE* – Kate Kosturski

“Drops of God’ Vol. 22: whenyounut.jpg – Elias Rosner

Writer: Tadashi Agi; Artist: Shu Okimoto
“Drops of God” Vol. 23: Getting drunk down under with the boys. – Elias Rosner

Writer/Artist: Dean Motter
“Edgar Allen Poe’s Snifter of Blood” #1: That’s a nice raven you got down there, Georgie. – Kate Kosturski

Writer: Gerry Duggan; Artist: Greg Smallwood
“Empyre: Savage Avengers” #1: Conan speaks the truth. Remember that the next time you call for “civility” in debates where one side is calling for genocide. – Robbie Pleasant

Writer: Mark Waid; Artists: Neal Adams & Mark Farmer
“Fantastic Four: Antithesis” #4: Stupid sexy Norrin. – Elias Rosner

“Far Sector” #6: “Zankoku na tenshi no yo ni, shonen yo, shinwa ni nare…” *Evangelion theme intensifies* – Robbie Pleasant

Writer: Matt Kindt; Artist: Matt Smith; Colorist: Chris O'Halloran
“Folklords” #5: God, what a way to end this miniseries. I need the sequel. ―Mark Tweedale

“Ghost Spider” #6: The only love Latveria feels is the love of DOOM. Let him into your heart! – Elias Rosner

Writer: Al Ewing; Artist: Juann Cabal
“Guardians of the Galaxy” #4: He ain’t no Hero of the Beach or Nightwing but it’ll do. – Elias Rosner
“Guardians of the Galaxy” #4: He ain’t no Henry Cavill putting together a PC, but it’ll do. – Kate Kosturski.

Writer and artist: Andrew MacLean; Colorist: Jordie Bellaire
“Head Lopper” #13: I’ve played enough Zelda games to know that’s probably important. ―Mark Tweedale

Writer: Zeb Wells; Artist: Carmen Carnero
“Hellions” #6: Not all who wander are lost. Except these guys. They’re totally lost. – Robbie Pleasant

“Iron Man 2020” #2: Why did they program them to feel pain!? – Robbie Pleasant

Writer: Simon Spurrier; Artist: Aaron Campbell
“John Constantine: Hellblazer” #1: Sadly, some of this sh!t was actually said by our current Prime Minister – Christopher Chiu-Tabet

Continued below

Writer and Artist: Jared Cullum
“Kodi”: Do not disrespect the comics. ―Mark Tweedale

Writer: Joe Hill; Artist: Gabriel Rodriguez
“Locke & Key: …In Pale Battalions Go…” #1: But is he more Canadian than Nickelback? Or Celine Dion? – Kate Kosturski

“Machine Man 2020” #2: The best kind of Machine Man. – Robbie Pleasant

“Magnificent Ms. Marvel” #13: It’s not often you see history being made, and yet there he is – Amulet, Marvel’s first Lebanese and Arab-American superhero.” – Christopher Chiu-Tabet

“Mercy” #1: Evacuate the dance floor! Stop! This beat is killing me! – Elias Rosner

Writer: Marjorie Liu; Artist: Sana Takeda
“Monstress: Talk-Stories” #1: This was my favorite single issue of the year and it is so heartbreaking. This moment in particular hurts so much. . . and it isn’t even the saddest part of the issue. ―Mark Tweedale

Writer: Mariko Tamaki; Artist: Babs Tarr
“Overwatch: Tracer – London Calling” #1: Hipster robots, what have we wrought? –
Christopher Chiu-Tabet

Writer: Gerry Duggan; Artist: Patch Zircher
“Savage Avengers” #14: Now you’re thinking with portals! – Robbie Pleasant

“Savage Avengers” #16 “Speedy thing goes in, speedy thing comes out.” – Robbie PLeasant

Writer: Matt Fraction; Artist: Chip Zdarsky
“Sex Criminals” #29: The best part about waiting for this series to return after the Diamond shutdown is to see Fraction and Zdarsky’s take on pandemic sex advice. It’s even better than the NYC Department of Health’s COVID-19 actual sex guidance! – Kate Kosturski

Writer: Matt Fraction; Artist: Chip Zdarsky
“Sex Criminals” #69: Never say never, Matt and Chip. Never say never. – Kate Kosturski

Writer: Matt Fraction; Artist: Rachael Stott
“Sex Criminals: Sexual Gary” #1: What? No Law and Order? – Kate Kosturski

Writer: Jeff Lemire; Artist: Tonci Zonjic
“Skulldigger + Skeleton Boy” #4: This is an awesome splash page, but it’s also purposeful. Is it perhaps possible that Skulldigger sees things in terms of black and white? ―Mark Tweedale

Writer: Jeff Lemire; Artist: Tonci Zonjic
“Skulldigger + Skeleton Boy” #5: I feel a bit like a vandal, showing Zonjic’s panels divorced from their full page layout. But I had to show this one, just because of the quality of the acting. Issue #5 is a stunning piece of work. ―Mark Tweedale

Writer: Kurt Vonnegut; Adaption by: Ryan North; Artist: Albert Monteys
“Slaughterhouse-Five”: This adaptation is such a marvelous reinvention of the original novel, somehow representing familiar material in a way that makes it entirely new. ―Mark Tweedale

Writer: Robert Kirkman; Artist: Chris Samnee; Colors: Matt Wilson
“Fire Power – Volume 1: Prelude”: This double-page spread took my breath away. This entire opening is fantastic. This is the sort of storytelling avenues comics can explore if we don’t try to cram everything into a twenty-two-page comic issue. ―Mark Tweedale

Writer: Charles Soule; Artist: Marc Laming
“Star Wars” (2020) #9: Chewie, you’re on mute. – Kate Kosturski

Writer: Jody Houser; Artist: Edgar Salazar
“Stranger Things: Science Camp” #1: Sorry Dustin, but these sexist stereotypes will be around for at least another thirty years – Christopher Chiu-Tabet

“Sub-Mariner: Marvel Snapshots” #1: When the ecstasy hits. – Elias Rosner

“Tales from Harrow County Death’s Choir” #2: Me when they bring out the unlimited breadsticks. – Elias Rosner

Writer: Cullen Bunn; Artist: Naomi Franquiz
“Tales from Harrow County: Death’s Choir” #4: The understated maliciousness of this moment is fantastic. I mean, it’s terrible, really terrible, and I’m in agony waiting for the next arc because of it, but it is so fantastically executed. ―Mark Tweedale

Writer: Zidrou; Artist: Arno Monin
“The Adoption – Volume 1”: Qinaya doesn’t speak French, plus she’s only four, so much of the time we observe her externally as an innocent child. But then there are moments like this that shows so much is going on with her that we don’t have access to. ―Mark Tweedale

Continued below

“Undiscovered Country” #6: WITNESS ME BY THE DAWN’S EARLY LIGHT. – Elias Rosner

Writer/Artist: Stan Sakai; Colorist: Stan Luth
“Usagi Yojimbo” #13: The Gig economy gets us all in the end. – Elias Rosner

Writer: John Allison; Artist: Max Sarin
“Wicked Things” #6: Yep, this is definitely a mood I can relate to. . . ―Mark Tweedale

Writer: Jonathan Hickman; Artist: Lenlil Francis Yu
“X-Men” #11: The tagline for the entire Krakoa era of X-men right there. – Elias Rosner


A particular favorite for us has been Kelly Thompson’s “Deadpool” – – or rather, one sweet little shark. It’s Shark Week all year round in these parts with Jeff the Land Shark’s in town. Look out Grogu, you’ve got competition in the cuteness department.

“Deadpool” #2: Elsa Bloodstone, you said you’d protecc Jeff with your life! You best be here before the page turn. – Elias Rosner
“Deadpool” #2: This snowman is the second most hated being on the internet after Jason Sudekis in The Mandalorian. – Kate Kosturski
“Deadpool” #2: Well, it’s official. That snowgoon must die. – Robbie Pleasant

“Deadpool” #3: Jeff’s on his own trading card. I’m so proud. And glad for any reference to “Unbeatable Squirrel Girl.” – Robbie Pleasant

“Deadpool” #3: ~Jeff the Shark. Jeff the Shark. Does whatever a land shark does. Can he catch, a flying spear? Yes he can. Cause he’s Jeff loooook ouuuuut. Jeff’s gonna bite your leggggggsss.~ – Elias Rosner

“Deadpool” #4: This is now a Jeff appreciation post. Good boy, Jeff! – Robbie Pleasant

“Deadpool” #5: I think this image might just capture everything about us here at Saturday Morning Panels. – Elias Rosner

Writer: Kelly Thompson; Artist: Kevin Libranda
“Deadpool” #6: Say what you will about Emma, she knows how to look impressive even when petting Jeff. – Robbie Pleasant

“Deadpool” #8: I needed this Jeff in these trying times. – Elias Rosner
“Deadpool” #8: Have you received your 2020 Election Emotional Support Jeff yet? If not, one will be assigned to you shortly.  – Kate Kosturski

“Deadpool” #8: LOOKIT THAT TEENY SNORE! #justiceforjeff – Elias Rosner


For one of our writers, a brief moment from Killer Croc in Batman: The Animated Series provided quite the inspiration this year:

Writer/Artist: Stan Sakai
“Usagi Yojimbo” #10:
- Elias Rosner
Writer: Joshua Williamson; Artist: Mike Henderson
“Nailbiter Returns” #3: No, no, no. It’s hit in the head with a rock. No respect for their elders. – Elias Rosner

Writer: Scott Snyder; Artist: Greg Capullo & Jonathan Glapion
“Dark Nights: Death Metal” #5:
This joke will never get old. - Elias Rosner

And there’s no better way to close things out than with this moment from “X-Men” #11:

Writer: Jonathan Hickman; Artist: Leinil Francis Yu
“X-Men” #11: Th-th-th-th-that’s all, folks! – Robbie Pleasant


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