What makes a good single issue of a comic book? In general, it is a book that can stand alone, which tells a self-contained story that can be enjoyed without a lot of context, or which uses the comic book form in order to affect the audience in a way that would not be possible in another medium. While there is certainly a lot to be said for developing a story in a comic book over multiple issues, it takes a particular type of skill to put together a single book that can stand on its own as a near perfect encapsulation of the comic form. After all, prior to the age where back issues were easily accessible in trade paperbacks or electronically, many comic books were forced to embrace the single-issue story by necessity. While most comic books today tell longer stories, even within this structure single issues stand out and deserve to be recognized for the particular type of skill they require. Here, then, are the top single issues of 2018, if you want to hear us argue it out in full, check out the full episode on Rad Raptor Radio.

5. Action Comics #1004

Love it or hate it, Brian Michael Bendis’s project since taking over Action Comics and Superman has been to humanize the Man of Steel. Nowhere has this been more apparent than in Action Comics, where we find a Clark Kent alone and constrained on almost every side – Lois and Jon are in space with Jor-El, and there is a new criminal cabal in Metropolis who continue to elude him. Issue #1004 makes this list, though, because we get to witness the reunion of Clark and Lois, and it is as touching as any moment in comics this year. Here we see just how much the two need each other and just how powerless Superman really is without his family. An excellent issue.

4. Jessica Jones #18

Anyone who reads Jessica Jones or has watched the excellent Netflix series knows that Jessica never really has very good days. They are usually filled with her apartment blowing up, old enemies trying to kill her, and lots of family drama. For his final issue of Jessica Jones, Brian Michael Bendis gave her a perfect day and, for longtime fans of the character, it was about as satisfying as it could possibly be. To see a talent like Bendis walk away from an iconic character he created, perhaps forever, was hard enough – this issue made it a little easier for fans. If there is never another Bendis-written issue of Jessica Jones, most of us will now be able to live with that

4. (tied) Saga #54

Ok, so we cheated… Jeff wasn’t happy about it but, hey, it was like midnight and we couldn’t figure out how to kick one of these issues out. Regardless, there is really no way Saga #54 is not on this list. When you take a smash hit comic book, written by a superstar creative team, filled with beloved characters and then kill off one of the main characters and announce you are going on a one-year hiatus… yeah, that issue is going to hit you pretty hard. We’ll survive the year long hiatus, I suppose, but we still haven’t recovered from the shock of this issue.

3. Nightwing #50 

Of the five Rad Raptor dudes, only Bobby was reading Nightwing prior to issue 50 (he would have you know that he kept telling us to jump on board…). Then in Batman #55 Nightwing got shot in the head and all of us started reading Nightwing. We were not disappointed. Issue 50 introduces a traumatized man now going by Ric Grayson, a man who wants nothing to do with his superhero past or the man he used to be. He is driving a cab and avoiding his old friends, like Barbara Gordon, who are trying to pull him out of his funk. This is territory that is rarely covered in superhero comics and here it is handled expertly. Even if this is the only Nightwing comic you ever read, it is worth it.

2. Batman #53

What if Batman was God? Or, more accurately, what does it mean that so much of Gotham puts its faith in Batman as if he is an infallible being? This is the question Tom King asks in Batman #53. The Mr. Freeze trial is wrapping up and Bruce Wayne, who is on the jury, is trying to convince the rest of the jury that Freeze (who was captured by Batman) is innocent. In order to do so he launches into a monologue which exposes the extent to which Gotham has put its complete faith in Batman, despite the fact that he is a fallible human who does make mistakes. Thus, in a single issue, King encapsulates his entire Batman project – it is brilliant, a masterclass, and an illustration of King’s immense skill.

1. The Mighty Thor #705

We kind of knew it was heading for this moment, what with the entire arc titled “The Death of the Mighty Thor,” but that doesn’t mean we were prepared for the emotional impact of The Mighty Thor #705. Her body wracked by cancer, Jane Foster takes up Mjolnir one last time to defend the universe and then, her mission accomplished, falls lifeless to the surface of the moon. Thor’s grief is palpable as he and Odin attempt to use their combined power to rescue a Thor who may be the mightiest iteration of the hero – and we are right there with him as we too mourn this character we have come to care so much about. While Jane Foster does eventually return to the land of the living, the impact of the moment will not soon be forgotten. A worthy conclusion to Jason Aaron’s The Mighty Thor and a worthy best single issue of the year.