Heat Vision’s Top Comics and Graphic Novels of 2025: ‘Absolute Batman,’ ‘Bug Wars,’ ‘Lucas Wars,’ ‘Out of Alcatraz’ and More
The annual list of books that packed a punch — from reinventing classic characters to shedding light on elusive icons to taking us on epic journeys to ... our backyards?
If you are into comics, 2025 was a pretty fulfilling year for a wide range of readers. Horror was in abundance, with James Tynion IV’s Exquisite Corpses, set in a town besieged by serial killers in a contest run by the elite, was a cut above thanks to its high concept and execution. Fantasy also had a bountiful year, whose top work we’ll highlight below.
Tales with anthropomorphic characters were on the ascent. Cuddly serial killer comic Beneath the Trees Where Nobody Sees, which graced Heat Vision’s top comics list in 2024, was back with a sequel. And in the second half of the year, readers got to experience Escape, a hard-knocking war limited series about a bomber pilot behind enemy lines written by Rick Remender and boasting gorgeous painted art by Daniel Acuna.
The Avengers in the Veracity Trap, an original graphic novel collaboration between Abrams ComicArts and Marvel Comics, was one of the more fun books of the year, offering up an old-school but clever tale that served as an homage to Jack Kirby and his 1960s works but put a meta spin on the proceedings. Even writer Chip Kidd and artist Michael Cho pop up to help the Avengers out.
And then there was the creative resurgence at DC. And we’re not talking about the Absolute Universe line (although we will later, as you no doubt can surmise). The company this year hit a zenith not seen in years from the Big Two thanks to a talent-forward approach that delivered exciting and unexpected tales featuring characters we thought we knew in and out.
W. Maxwell Prince and Martín Morazzo, the team behind horror comic Ice Cream Man, brought a completely quirky and surreal approach to the Man of Steel and his legendary weakness with Superman: The Kryptonite Spectrum. An experiment that you would not expect from a major comic book company, New Gods was a cosmic epic that feels like a manga fused with Heavy Metal. And how the heck does Batman, a character who has been around since 1939 and who seems like he is occupying a third of the company’s slate, keep inspiring compelling and interesting stories?
Our usual disclaimer: It’s a near-impossible task to sift through the countless waves of comics that come in weekly from the traditional publishers, not to mention the graphic novels that come in all forms and for all age groups from book companies big and small. But here is a short list of what we’ve loved in 2025.
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Animaniac
