Sandman.

For some reason, although I have basically read everything else Neil Gaiman has written (including Don't Panic, his guide to H2G2), I avoided The Sandman series. Why? Perhaps it had something to do with me not really being a comic book guy. (I did read the first fifteen or so issues of The Maxx when they were first released, but that isn't exactly representative.) Perhaps it had something to do with the cost (Amazon is selling paperback volumes that include eight issues for $13.57, and there are eleven volumes). And perhaps it was defensive; I didn't want to find out that one of the most revered comic series of all time was a piece of shit.

I finally caved into purchasing and reading the first volume--Preludes and Nocturnes--and I've been kicking myself ever since. What the fuck was I waiting for? This shit is glorious!