Comic Book Herald

A Comic Book Reading Order Guide For Beginners & Fans

Steven Cohen

Magik (Illyana Rasputin) Reading Order!

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The tale of Illyana “Magik” Rasputina is a tragic one, full of torture, dashed hopes, and betrayal. Born and raised to early childhood behind the Iron Curtain, Illyana’s young life was saved from a tractor accident when the mutant powers of her brother Piotr manifested. Piotr went on to become the X-Man Colossus, and Illyana eventually joined him in the United States under the supervision of Charles Xavier. That’s the happy part of the story. 

Illyana spent 7 years in the Limbo dimension as the captive of an evil sorcerer named Belasco, during which time her own mutant abilities of teleportation presented themselves. Illyana also learned to use magic under the tutelage of another reality’s version of Storm. When Illyana finally emerged from Limbo, almost no time had passed in the real world. Illyana was never quite the same after this. Joining the New Mutants and becoming friends with her teammates helped, but the dark aspect of Illyana’s soul never healed, even after a death and rebirth.  [Read more…] about Magik (Illyana Rasputin) Reading Order!

Huntress Reading Order!

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For the uninitiated who saw it, Birds of Prey (and the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn) opened a door in the DC Universe that they may not have known existed. Birds of Prey isn’t exactly an underground property – after all, not just any group of heroes can inspire an ill-conceived early 2000’s WB drama series – but it won’t be winning many popularity contests when placed alongside superhero teams like the Justice League, the Avengers, or even the Teen Titans. It was a bold decision to use the adoration for Margot Robbie’s Harley Quinn to introduce an entire line-up of DC heroines to the masses.

While box office receipts initially weren’t stellar and opinions on the quality vary (this writer personally thinks it rules), the movie went a long way to putting names like Black Canary and Renee Montoya into the zeitgeist. One character, however, Mary Elizabeth Winstead’s Huntress is given the shortest of shrifts; the character as written and Winstead’s performance are often cited as one of the movie’s strengths, but there’s no denying that Huntress gets the least amount of time to shine. Which is a shame, because she has so much to offer. Well look no further for a rundown on where to start with Huntress and what comes next. Or should that be Huntresses? [Read more…] about Huntress Reading Order!

Deathlok Reading Order!

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As far as evocative comic book names go, it’s hard to top having “death” in the mix. Deathstroke. Lady Deathstrike. Thanos’s ever-elusive intended, Death herself. And let’s not even think about expanding to characters with “dead” in their name. But then there’s Deathlok – a moniker that is more a title than a name. There have been many Deathloks throughout Marvel Comics history, each of them a man turned into a mindless killing machine (literally), forced to overcome his programming to take down those who exploit him, and fight for the greater good.

There are about a half dozen Deathloks worth tracking through the Marvel chronology, and that’s not counting the many nameless or throwaway Deathloks that pop up from time to time. If it sounds like a difficult task to keep them all sorted, just wait until I tell you that sometimes there’s more than one hanging about at a given time. Don’t give yourself a headache, though, because your friends here at Comic Book Herald are prepared to do all the hard work for you. Read on to find out where to start with Deathlok, and where things go from there. [Read more…] about Deathlok Reading Order!

Black Widow’s Supporting Cast — Reading Recommendations & Origins!

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The Marvel Cinematic Universe has gone a long way to making a household name out of Black Widow a.k.a. Natasha Romanoff a.k.a Natalia Romanova a.k.a. Nancy Rushman a.k.a. Oktober (okay, maybe not all of these names are household just yet). Unlike associates of Iron Man, Captain America, and Thor, the characters in Nat’s orbit have yet to transcend in the way that Pepper Potts, Sharon Carter, Lady Sif, and even Happy Hogan have. That may change when Black Widow is finally released in theaters, hopefully sometime later this year. The delay of a major motion picture is hardly the most upsetting aspect of a global pandemic, but the removal of Black Widow from the release schedule at least gives intrepid readers the opportunity to better get to know the Marvel Comics characters that might soon make their big-screen debut. Read on to learn more about the people surrounding Natasha, and for a couple of suggestions for where to start your reading. [Read more…] about Black Widow’s Supporting Cast — Reading Recommendations & Origins!

Cyborg Reading Order

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Universes change, but some things never do. Is Victor Stone a promising young student devastated by a science experiment gone wrong or a football star saved by alien technology after a brutal accident? Though origins are mutable, Victor’s essential character is not. At once a founding member of the Justice League as well as a long-standing figure in the history of the Teen Titans, Cyborg has been a mainstay of the DC Comics Universe for 40 years, leading to appearances in cartoons (Teen Titans, Teen Titans Go!), TV series (Smallville, Doom Patrol), and movies (Justice League). [Read more…] about Cyborg Reading Order