A Comic Book Reading Order Guide For Beginners & Fans
When DC’s Future State began, one of the biggest storylines was John Ridley’s Next Batman. It showed that when everything fell apart in Gotham, Jace Fox, formerly known as Tim Fox, took on Batman’s mantle. Future State: The Next Batman
That’s where Second Son
One of my favorite aspects of House of X / Powers of X and Jonathan Hickman’s takeover of Marvel’s X-Men comics line is how many new or lapsed readers want to dive into the vast and often complicated world of the X-Men. While I have a wide array of guides on Comic Book Herald – including massive full reading orders for all of X-Men – I thought it’d be easier for some new readers to start with a fast-track guide to the essential starting places. [Read more…] about Where to Start With X-Men Comics – Essential X-Men Fast Track
A Companion to 2019’s X-Force
Benjamin Percy’s X-Force dives right in from the first page, opening the dark vein this violent sub-franchise has tapped into since its 1991 inception—growing darker and bloodier with every iteration. Or seemingly so. Certainly, each volume after the initial and longest-running one has been grim, dark, and brooding—except Ed Brisson’s relatively light 10-issue run* immediately preceding House of X. While we’re looking here at the sixth X-Force series, we shouldn’t forget the grimmest iterations—the two volumes of Uncanny X-Force written by Rick Remender. And there was the underwhelming Cable and X-Force, as well.
*Brisson’s series is very timey-wimey and focused on teen Cable—following on from 2018’s Extermination, the mini where Brisson introduced him. For the conclusion of teen Cable’s arc, read Duggan’s Cable title, which just wrapped up at issue #12.
But what exactly is X-Force?
[Read more…] about (Re)Read Hickman’s X-Men Era: An X-Force to Be Reckoned With
In the late 1980s, artist Todd McFarlane exploded onto the comic book scene with his dark, hyper detailed superhero art. Alongside several other up-and-coming young artists, McFarlane represented the new age of comic books, and his art not only helped usher in an era of dark, edgy superhero stories, but also rode the massive financial wave of the speculator boom.
Eventually, McFarlane’s popularity led to him debuting his own new Spider-Man title as writer and artist, with Spider-Man #1 selling a whopping 2.5 million copies in 1990 thanks to a media blitz, variant covers, and collectors HILARIOUSLY thinking that owning a comic that had millions of copies in print would make them a millionaire. It did, however, make McFarlane a millionaire.
And in 1992, McFarlane and 6 other high profile comic book creators founded Image Comics as a place for their creator-owned books without ever giving up their rights and financial stake in the characters they made. The publication launched with several high profile, ultra-90s series – Rob Liefeld’s Youngblood, Eric Larsen’s The Savage Dragon, Jim Lee’s WildC.A.T.s. – but the Image flagship would be Todd McFarlane’s Spawn.
Spawn
Spawn may be most well known for its chains, goo, and ’90s extremity, but the impact of the right comic at the right time can’t be understated, even if the years haven’t been kind to McFarlane’s signature creation.
As of this video’s publication, Spawn has published more than 300 issues and become the longest running creator-owned comic book in history. Along the way, it’s produced an animated series, a movie, many video games, and an entire toy company. And from its massive debut through its constant ups and downs both creatively and financially, Spawn has changed the comic book industry, even though it sucks. [Read more…] about How Spawn Changed Comic Books (Even Though It Sucks)
Dave and Matt Draper talk all things Spawn
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[Read more…] about 1992 Variant Cover B(+): SPAWN!