Comics

I used to read "Too Much Coffee Man" by Shannon Wheeler back in the '90's. It was about a superhero with a coffee cup head who would sit around drinking coffee, ruminating about how to save the world.

 
It was successful at portraying the inertia of someone who wants to do something great but never gets past his coffee buzz inspiration.

TINTIN by Herge, was one of the great Comic's that stand out for me. A story about a reporter and his little dog traveling the world unravelling political and archeological mysteries. The stories were upbeat and fun to read, and the illustrations were all based off of research, which made it very authentic.

I also loved the Asterix comics, about the tribes of Gaul's holding off the Roman's from taking their native forests.

Hayao Miyazaki's work is another example of amazing stories and artwork that surpasses anything I have seen. Studio Ghibli, his team of artists create an endless stream of character's and stories weaving the spirit and human world's strange connections. Although most of the work is now animated movies, some of them started as graphic novels.