Loeb Vs. Miller

[BubbaGump]

Loeb vs. Miller

They've both written great Batman stories, they've both written terrible ones. Some of their work is overrated, some rightfully deserve the praise.

Loeb (the good):

Loeb (the bad):

Miller (the good):

Miller (the bad):

Miller (the ugly):

Eek! Spawn...

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I wanted to keep this first post as un-biased as I can, so I tried to observe the various opinions on this site on each of the author's books. I can't speak for everyone (hell, even I don't agree with some of my good/bad choices), but these good/bad choices seem to be "the average" of the opinions floating around the site.

And keeping up with my attempts of trying not to be inclined towards certain authors in this first post, I won't say who I prefer until a few people give their opinions.

So which author do you prefer: Loeb or Miller?

And to heat things up, try to guess who I prefer as well. (I'd put a winking smiley here, but the forum only allows 7 images per post)

Flame away. *waves flag*

 

[Nepenthes]

Miller, by far.

I'm part of the crowd that think TLH is overated (but still one of the best Batman stories out there) and so far I'm REALLY enjoying All-Star and looking forward to seeing it unfold.

DKR2 is also pretty damn cool for me it's one of my favourite tpb's ever but I understand why it pisses alot of people off. And frankly i don't really considered it a Batman story per se, it's just DC universe.

(btw where's the poll?)

 

[Kakihara]

Miller all the way! The Dark Knight and year one are head and shoulders above Loeb's work. I also think The Long Halloween is incredibly overrated and that DK2 is worthwhile also.

 

[The Empire Ape]

I don't like both that much, but Frank Miller's skills are far beyond Loeb's.

 

[donk70]

Miller FTW!

 

[Bruce_Wayne29]

Jeph Loeb by far but I like them both.

 

[Two-Face]

Leob, not big fan of TDKR and TDK2.

 

[super85]

Probably Miller. Love DKR and Year One to bits, they are so good that as insane Millers other Batman work can be, he still made those two incredibly influental Batbooks. Loebs work is clearly inspired by that, I really like TLH and DV and think that Hush is a great summer blockbuster type of a story,but I'd say overal I prefer Miller.

 

[CConn]

The Dark Knight Returns > The Long Halloween > All Star Batman > Year One > Dark Victory > Hush > The Dark Knight Strikes Again.

I really can't decide.

 

[Mee]

Firstly, I'd say Hush and All Star (in it's own crazy way) are both good.


Secondly, CConn is nuts.


Thirdly, I can't choose.

 

[CConn]

I'm nuts, yet you came to the same conclusion I did.

 

[CFE]

I wouldn't go so far as to call HUSH "Terrible." Maybe not as strong in storytelling as TLH or DV, but it's not awful by any means.

But I'm for Miller. I'm an 80s nut; YO, DKR and The Killing Joke (yeah, I know that one is Alan Moore's) are my favorites.

Miller FTW!

CFE

 

[Mee]

I'm nuts, yet you came to the same conclusion I did.

Not that All Star is better than Year One.

 

[BubbaGump]

(btw where's the poll?)

Heh. Sorry about that.

 

[BubbaGump]

As for Loeb or Miller, I've always been a Miller guy. IMO, I'd actually put All-Star in Miller's "good."

 

[Dedpool]

Well, Miller wins on account of words like "classic" and "honor", but if someone gave me a choice between reading DKR and TLH, I'd go with the latter, just because it's more enjoyable to read over and over, in my opinion. So, each writer wins in different aspects.

 

[CConn]

Not that All Star is better than Year One.

Oh, my opinion is different than yours, so I'm nuts. Go back to burning crosses on old ladies' lawns, Hitler.

 

[souloffire]

Miller all the way. The only thing I read from Loeb was TLH and I did not like it.

 

[Mee]

Oh, my opinion is different than yours, so I'm nuts. Go back to burning crosses on old ladies' lawns, Hitler.

I'm off today.

 

[hippie_hunter]

It depends.

As a Batman writer. I have to say Loeb. The Long Halloween and Dark Victory are two of my favorite Batman stories. Hush was good. The first arc of Superman/Batman was good. But the rest of Superman/Batman, not so much.

Miller has the extremely overrated, but still pretty damn good despite having the most annoying fanboys, The Dark Knight Returns and another one of my favorite Batman stories Batman: Year One. However the rest of his Batman work has been rather craptastic.

Although as a whole, Miller by far is the better writer. Sure his Batman work is a mixed bag, but he has one of the greatest, if not THE greatest, runs on Daredevil. Sin City, 300, Ronin, etc. are some great reads also.

Loeb is pure gold with Sale, but without him he's a mixed bag, a completely mixed bag. He ranges from good (his run on Batman with Jim Lee and Fallen Son) to mediocre (his runs on Superman/Batman and Wolverine), to terrible (Onslaught Reborn and his run on Supergirl).

So therefore, I won't vote.

 

[Comic Book Boy]

Probably Miller. Love DKR and Year One to bits, they are so good that as insane Millers other Batman work can be, he still made those two incredibly influental Batbooks. Loebs work is clearly inspired by that, I really like TLH and DV and think that Hush is a great summer blockbuster type of a story,but I'd say overal I prefer Miller.

I agree. I like them both very much, but Frank Miller is the more interesting writer. I love 300 and SIN CITY, his work is very well done. Plus he writes AND draws. Very cool.

Loeb rocks too.

 

[BubbaGump]

Hmm. Loeb leads in the polls, but Miller has the majority in the thread itself. TLH has shy fans, maybe?

 

[Robin91939]

Loeb.

Hush is BY FAR not a bad story. It is actually one of the best Batman tales of the last 30 years....maybe of all his stories. It is on a hell of a lot of "Batman Essential" reading lists.

The Long Halloween and Dark Victory as one story is terrific. It really tells the evolution of Gotham City into what it is now. Miller's best story is Batman: Year One. It is a great story, it is ground breaking, but it is over-rated. It is a number three story behind The Long Halloween and Dark Victory on my All-Time list.

My list:

1.) The Long Halloween
2.) Dark Victory
3.) Year One
4.) The Killing Joke
5.) A Death in the Family
6.) The Man Who Laughs
7.) Tales of the Demon
8.) Arkham Assylum
9.) A Lonely Place of Dying
10.) Hush

In terms of the best (multi-issue) Batman Stories of all time. I also hold high respect for Broken City, Under the Hood, and the recent Face the Face arc. Loeb has three of the stories on my top-ten, Miller holds one spot. In my eyes, Loeb's Batman is superior. I like Millers, but besides for Year One his Batman is too much like Marv from Sin City.

-R

 

[BubbaGump]

Miller's best story is Batman: Year One. It is a great story, it is ground breaking, but it is over-rated.

I wouldn't call it over-rated. Hell, you're favorite Loeb stories wouldn't even exist if it wasn't for Y1.

As for Hush, I've mentioned before that even I don't agree with my own good/bad choices. I'm just trying to take the overall opinions floating around the site--not many Hush fans out here. IMO, I think it's an okay yarn (mostly because of the art), but Jim Lee tends to make stories overrated, or at least, make fans think that it is.

Hush is on on a "hell of a lot essential lists" because it's a must-read. I even reccomended it in the Batman comics thread. It's a must-read not because it's good, but because people trying to get into Batman comics should know about it and form their own opinions about the story.

Year One is one of those stories I mentioned that deserve all the praise it gets. It pretty much paved the way for all Year One type stories: Matt Wagner, TLH, DV, Man Who Laughs, etc. And those Year One stories seem to be consistently high-quality.

 

[BubbaGump]

I also prefer Miller over Loeb because Loeb's Batman stories pretty much follow the same formula: mystery/gimmick killer, bunch of villains, bring in the mob to spice things up, then add the "shocking" reveal at the end that we all saw coming.

Miller's stories, as crazy as they are, at least have some variety.