English:
Moore versus Mills - one kicked open the door for the British invasion and reinvented Yank comics, but the other created 2000AD, which opened the door for Moore, and also created Charlie's War, ABC Warriors, Slaine, Nemesis and several other top thrills - pure, unrestrained thrill-power being a commodity which Moore has since arguably shown isn't really his forte. The UK Jack Kirby versus the UK... um... Alan Moore.
Ellis is in there too, somewhere, but I'd put him as a rank outsider. Standing more of a chance is Bryan Talbot, creator of Luther Arkwright and the godfather of comics as we know them.
Irish:
Ennis vs. Milligan. Hard-bitten Commando-ready writing which yearns for Steve 'Facial Expression King' Dillion versus post-modern escapades that beg for Brendan 'One-Man Art Movement' McCarthy. I'm pretty sure Milligan's irish-born - if he was born in Solihull or wherever, that might change things.
Scottish:
Morrison vs. Wagner.
Wagner is perhaps the greatest unsung hero of British comics, having almost single-handedly (with help from Mills) created the one character who can stand up to Dan Dare as a creation lasting through the ages - a hard-hitting satire that's slowly mellowed into a gritty, futuristic police-procedural drama that's on a level with The Wire. His writing is stripped-down, subtle, and pure genius in every line, but arguably he lacks versatility, having ended up chained to Dredd as Herge was chained to Tintin. (Also worth noting - he unwittingly created the greatest gay character since Batman.)
Meanwhile, Morrison needs no introduction as the Nic-Roeg-meets-William-Burroughs of modern comicry - but can his attempts to create a living, self-aware universe make up for the fact that it's the DC Universe? I mean, seriously, isn't this a Frankenstein monster waiting to happen? Do we want this deformed monstrosity to gain sentience? I say we storm Castle Morrison with torches and rakes to abort this sinister Didio-foetus while we may.
Welsh:
Um er i mean to say um gosh hem hem
And once we've determined which writer rules his particular corner of the UK, we must then make them FITE in order to determine who is the Gratest British Writer ever! Only living and currently active writers allowed, so no Baxendale or Law.
― Vic Fluro, Friday, 28 December 2007 23:48 (eighteen years ago)
I've never heard of him being Irish.
There are some Irish indie comics writers (like Rob Curley, say), but it would be a bit strange to claim that any of them are bigger, more important, or more homophobic than Ennis.
― The Real Dirty Vicar, Thursday, 3 January 2008 12:32 (eighteen years ago)
Nice to see some love for Wagner. His writing on Dredd and particularly Strontium Dog from the late eighties onwards is wonderfully sparse and assured, not to mention often incredibly funny.
― chap, Thursday, 3 January 2008 15:37 (eighteen years ago)
Subscribing to your wholly arbritrary MILLIGAN Vs. ENNIS scenario (look at 'em go!), I'm inclined to go with Milligan, if only because ENIGMA kinda changed my life or at least my head. On the other hand, looking at Milligan's current work (everything since the thoroughly nifty VERTIGO POP: LONDON elicits "eh!" or worse (which I say despite having yet to glance through INFINITY INC.)), Ennis has the upperhand - PUNISHER MAX is probably one of the top two or three monthly books being published anywhere. "Up Is Down And Black Is White", which I just read, has infiltrated my idle moments wholly.
― R Baez, Thursday, 3 January 2008 19:38 (eighteen years ago)