Some pals were compiling top 10 lists of pop/rock albums from the 80s, so I figured why not post my list here. I promise no cultural or ideological significance, only the albums that continue to make me the most warm and fuzzy. Slayer's Reign in Blood just beat out Joy Division's Closer, but then I remembered Tom Waits, who knocked Slayer off. Otherwise, this list was already cemented in my subconscious. Ordered by the year of release:

In Dan Clowes' Death-Ray, the titular hero doesn't discover a greater sense of responsibility with his newfound powers (à la Peter Parker), only a fascistic resolve in settling petty grievances. James Gunn uses a similar approach in critiquing the superhero costume in Super. His heroes, The Crimson Bolt and Boltie, aren't super-powered, just a couple of individuals who wear masks and deliver vigilante justice -- in a word, sociopaths. Just like Batman, the mask is used to disguise a personal revenge motive: a drug dealer has wooed away The Bolt's wife not through some mind-control apparatus, but because the dealer is better looking and his life more enticing than the hero's secret identity as a fry cook. The film takes every right turn, mixing pathos and humor, demented fantasy and realistic violence, convention and critique into one of the best dark comedies about the depressing nature of fanboy fetishism we're likely to get. Much better than Suckerpunch.