Comic Book Herald

A Comic Book Reading Order Guide For Beginners & Fans

Comic Book Herald Reading Orders

Click the following link if you're looking for the CBH Marvel Reading Order. Otherwise, enjoy a smattering of comic book reading orders below!

Investigators Reading Order

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John Patrick Green’s InvestiGators will always have a special place in my heart as the first graphic novels I enjoyed together with my kids. Green’s pun-laden goofball literal Alligator spies inhabit a world of anthropomorphized animals and humans doing their best to solve essential mysteries like what happened to the best cupcake making chef in town? The funny, charming graphic novels went from read-alouds where I got to work on my voice acting (y’all haven’t lived until you’ve heard my Brash) to books my kids could repeatedly and obsessively read for themselves.

So yeah, the question isn’t should you read InvestiGators. It’s how many times and in what order? I’d argue the continuity of InvestiGators is a bit more intricate than the competition (Dog Man or Big Nate, for example), as moments and characters from previous books will leave you scratching your head if you’re not reading the stories in order. As with most things, kids are smarter than you think, and they’ll probably figure it out, but what is Comic Book Herald good for if not meticulous and arguably unnecessary guides!

Below you’ll find a complete guide to InvestiGators books in order, including extras outside the graphic novels, and of course the Agents of S.U.I.T. spinoffs. [Read more…] about Investigators Reading Order

Big Nate Reading Order

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Never in my life did I anticipate Lincoln Peirce’s Big Nate would become one of the best-selling series of kids graphic novels, and a personal favorite of my son throughout first, second and third grade! As a young strapping lad, I churned the butter, kindled the fire, and used the outhouse while reading Big Nate as a comic strip alongside Peanuts, Pickles and Dilbert (I’m still trying to untangle how Dilbert became preposterously popular among my 5th grade friends in the late 90s, but that’s a story for another time). This isn’t a knock on Peirce or Big Nate – I just never guessed the strip would re-enter my life 20+ years later as an absolute comics juggernaut!

The Big Nate comic strip debuted in 1991 and enjoyed plenty of success before really exploding to another level when Peirce released the first Big Nate novelization in 2010. This means new readers effectively have the choice to start with the classic comic strips, or with a series of illustrated chapter books, a la the Diary of a Wimpy Kid series. While I’m loathe to recommend literally anything over comics, the 8 book novel series (which, let’s be real, is also full of comics broken up by slightly longer blocks of text) is a more focused narrative with a clearer sense of building off the previous volume. The comic strips are very easily accessible, but more in the model of Calvin and Hobbes where virtually any strip could be your first because that was the daily newspaper environment they were working in (newspapers, kids, are like TikToks that we printed out and then used to wrap Christmas presents). For most kids, whether they start with the novels or comics, once they get a taste of Big Nate’s world, they’re going to want to hop between formats to laugh at more.

Regardless of your approach, Nate Wright’s 6th grade antics are a highly entertaining way to encourage a 6 to 11 year old audience to read more. Plus, there are now animated TV series and a musical. Below you’ll find a complete guide to the world of Big Nate, from novels to graphic novels to comic strips to Lincoln Peirce written fantasy comics! [Read more…] about Big Nate Reading Order

Dog Man Reading Order

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If you’re here it probably means you or your child have recently fallen head over heels into the Dog Man Universe, and as a Dad fully immersed in that universe, let me extend you a Supa Welcome! While the continuity and narrative crossover of Dog Man stories is not especially complex, the books don’t prioritize telling you where each graphic novel and various spinoffs fall in order. Since Dav Pilkey’s comics are the surest gateway to reading since bribing children with candy, it’s well worth making the series list chronology easier for everybody.

Do you have to read Dog Man in order? Absolutely not. I’m yet to meet a kid who wasn’t perfectly content mostly reading the graphic novels out of order (then again, I’m yet to meet myself as a child via time travel, so never say never!). Nonetheless, there are a variety of characters who appear and develop over the course of these works, particularly Petey the Cat and Lil’ Petey. It will make more sense to read through the books in order the first time – and then like an absolute maniac the next 10,000 or so times.

As I type this in 2025, there are 14 Dog Man graphic novels by Dav Pilkey, and 5 Cat Kid Comic Club spinoffs (Also by Pilkey – to date, no other comics creators have entered the Dog Man Universe). While new Dog Man graphic novels have released pretty consistently since 2016, it’s been a full two years since the last (fifth) Cat Kid comic. Cat Kid Comic Club #6 has been rumored for a while now, and is currently estimated to see print in 2026.

The other biggest question parents often have is what reading level should a kid be before trying Dog Man? Speaking only from the unimpeachable authority that comes with the self-appointed title Big Daddy, both my oldest kids gravitated to reading Dog Man pretty soon after learning to read. Officially, I’d say Dog Man is perfect for kids 6 to 9, so first, second or third grade. That said, kids come to reading at different speeds and with varying enthusiasm – if you’ve got a kid who never wants to read and suddenly they’re giving Dog Man a go, heck yeah! In terms of whether or not Dog Man is appropriate for your young reader, there’s no cursing, no excessive violence, and extraordinarily minimal tackling of mature themes. These are books for kids to love, and Dav Pilkey knows what kids love. Unfortunately, that does also mean there’s plenty of potty humor. We are talking here about the author of Captain Underpants and the Sensational Saga of Sir-Stinks-A-Lot. Your kids will love it, and if you’re like me, you’ll probably grimace but enjoy their joy. Mileage may vary!

Now, inevitably after your child reads Dog Man, you are both going to be looking for more comics like Dog Man. There are two good options here, and coincidentally, they’re both written by me! First off, try out Comic Book Herald’s best comics for kids! Then, try the article I wrote for Popverse specifically about good comics for kids who just saw the Dog Man movie! Otherwise, find a complete Dog Man reading order below, and enjoy the comics! [Read more…] about Dog Man Reading Order

Clayface Reading Order

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As we all predicted, the third feature-length movie in the James Gunn led reboot of the DC Universe, following Superman and Supergirl, will of course be… uh… Clayface! And I’m excited about it! (If you’re reading this from the future and I should not have been excited about it, please reply in the comments marked as “from the future”!)

Like a few of Gotham’s most wanted – Mister Freeze and Harley Quinn chief among them – Clayface’s most memorable story may well come from Batman the Animated series in season one’s Feat of Clay. Personally, I’m partial to Alan Tudyk’s hammy portrayal in the Harley Quinn animated series. Appropriately, both renditions have shown how malleable the villain can be.

Fitting for a character who can change their shape and take on the appearance of another, there have been a surprising amount of different individuals to occupy the role of Clayface since the character’s introduction in the pages of Detective Comics in 1940. Below you’ll find a guide through all these variations, with a focus on key essential Clayface comics over the past 85 years! [Read more…] about Clayface Reading Order

Peacemaker Reading Order

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I resisted making a Peacemaker reading order for the entire first season of James Gunn and John Cena’s HBO Peacemaker, even though I committed to learning the full choreography of Wig Wam’s “Do You Wanna Taste It”. It just seemed like there wasn’t enough meat on the bone for Peacemaker’s actual comic book history to justify a full guide.

Well, turns out a role as one of the most celebrated and shockingly critical players in the new DC film universe leads to more printed comic books for our boy Peace. So sure, it doesn’t have the history and depth of the Superman reading order, but let’s give Peace a chance!

Below you’ll find a complete guide for Peacemaker comics, from his 60s origins with Charlton Comics to his 80s reinvention with DC after DC purchased the rights to the Charlton characters in 1983. [Read more…] about Peacemaker Reading Order