Comic Book Herald

Reading Order Guide For Beginners & Fans

Marvel Characters

Black Knight Reading Order!

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The Black Knight is “that guy” on the Avengers. He stands out in his bold choice of Tudor armor, leather jacket, and frequently wielding a lightsaber. And yet he’s never had an ongoing series, never led his own team. The Black Knight’s publishing history mostly consists of a handful of solo mini-series, appearances on various Avengers rosters, and a few random guest appearances sprinkled all over Marvel continuity for good measure. If that doesn’t seem complicated enough, the Black Knight is actually the name of three different characters in Marvel; and while one of them has definitely had more importance over time than the two others, they are all linked by the same lineage and armor.

The most famous Black Knight, named Dane Whitman, will appear in Chloé Zhao’s Eternals movie as played by Game of Thrones’ own Kit Harrington. And although he has had a romance with Sersi of the Eternals in the 90s, Dane is mostly linked to the British and Arthurian parts of the Marvel Universe, teaming up with characters such as Captain Britain, Excalibur, and even Merlin. [Read more…] about Black Knight Reading Order!

Thunderstrike Reading Order!

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What do you get when you cross the Thor mythos with grunge aesthetics? You get Thunderstrike, a new Thor variant made by the 90s, for the 90s. A beefier hero who traded his classic hammer in for an Asgardian mace. It’s a classic epic of a leather jacket fighting other, larger leather jackets.

First introduced as a side character in the pages of Thor, Eric Masterson quickly became the Thunder God’s new human alter ego (yes, the title was still doing the secret identity thing by the late 80s if you can believe it), before forging himself a new identity as Thunderstrike.

Created by Tom DeFalco and Ron Frenz in 1988, Eric Masterson is a rare example of a Marvel hero who not only has a clear beginning and end to his story, but has also maintained a pretty consistent creative team throughout his comic book history (with DeFalco writing virtually all of his comics, and Frenz drawing most of them). In 2011, more than a decade after Thunderstrike’s death, the duo even came back to continue Eric Masterson’s legacy in the form of his teenage son Kevin, who inherits his father’s mace and becomes the new Thunderstrike (still active today, as of his last cameo apparition in the pages of Annihilation Scourge: Omega). [Read more…] about Thunderstrike Reading Order!

Juggernaut Reading Order!

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Cain Marko (Codename: The Juggernaut) has been rampaging through the Marvel Universe since his first appearance in 1965’s X-Men #12. The Juggernaut serves as the avatar for the ancient deity, Cytorrak, which makes him (nearly) unstoppable. At first glance, the Juggernaut is your classic heavy but once you pry off that comically oversized helmet, you discover a man struggling with his tragic upbringing, sense of morality, and place in the world.

Marko’s step-brother just so happens to be Charles “Professor X” Xavier and their unique relationship has made Juggernaut an X-Men mainstay. But it’s his shifting role between hero, villain, ally, and threat that’s made the Juggernaut to break free of the X-books with memorable parts in stories across the Marvel landscape. [Read more…] about Juggernaut Reading Order!

Ironheart (Riri Williams) Reading Order!

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Created by Brian Michael Bendis and Mike Deodato in the lead-up to Civil War II, Riri Williams is a 15-year-old child genius from Chicago who builds her own Iron Man-type armor and soon finds herself taking over Tony Stark’s mantle.

In recent stories, particularly Eve Ewing’s solo series, Ironheart has started to step outside of Iron Man’s shadow and into a spotlight all her own, whether as a member of the teen hero group, the Champions, or on her own adventures taking her as far from Chicago as Latveria, and recently, Wakanda. [Read more…] about Ironheart (Riri Williams) Reading Order!