• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer

Comic Book Herald

A Comic Book Reading Order Guide For Beginners & Fans

  • Reading Orders
    • Marvel
    • My Marvelous Year
    • DC Comics
    • All Comic Book Publishers
    • Most Recent
  • Beginner Guides
    • Beginner’s Guide To Comics In 2023
    • Marvel 2023: Where to Start?
    • DC 2023: Where to Start?
    • Best of Lists
    • Tablets for Comics
    • Guides for Digital Readers
  • Reviews
    • Marvel Comics
    • DC Comics
    • Comic Book Movies
    • Comic Book TV
    • Video Games
  • Podcasts & Video
    • My Marvelous Year
    • Best Comics Ever (CBH)
    • CBH on Youtube!
  • About Me
    • My Favorite Comics of All Time
    • Columns
    • CBH Email Newsletter
  • Support Comic Book Herald
    • Ways to support
You are here: Home / Featured / Question of the Week: Do You Have a Marvel NOW! Fast Track Guide? (2012 to 2015)

Question of the Week: Do You Have a Marvel NOW! Fast Track Guide? (2012 to 2015)

August 19, 2016 by Dave 3 Comments

I’ve gotten variations on this question several times, typically recommending readers looking for a Marvel NOW! fast track check out the back end of my favorite 100 Marvel comics from 1998 to 2015. Victor asks:

I’ve been following the essential guide from 2000 to 2012, giving a little more attention to the avengers and a little less attention to x-men (so much timelines, it’s confusing)… I’m really struggling on how to tackle Marvel Now until secret wars, as I don’t want to read everything, just the essentials leading to secret wars… you have any tips?

While I stand by the “best of” approach for the best way to enjoy Marvel stories after 2012, it isn’t necessarily the best way to pick up on the continuity of the time period before you dive in to Secret Wars and ultimately move on to All-New All-Different Marvel.

Note that this fast track guide is not the same thing as a comprehensive set of recommendations for Marvel NOW!. For example, X-Men: Legacy is great, but when I only have 30 stories to give you the feel of the Marvel Universe during Marvel NOW!, Legion gets the boot. It just doesn’t impact continuity as much as the listed comics below.

As the name implies, this guide is intended to help you enjoy some of the best and most important Marvel NOW! books before Secret Wars. If you want it all, there’s always the Marvel NOW! reading order.

The Essential Marvel NOW! Comics From 2012 to 2015

All New X-Men from Bendis!

All-New X-Men




The Brian Michael Bendis led X-Men (including Uncanny X-Men) are middle of the road comics for me, but the All-New X-Men explain a lot of the Marvel Universe as it stands. Skipping these first issues will raise a lot of troubling and timey-wimey questions, and nobody wants that.

Support For Comic Book Herald:

Comic Book Herald is reader-supported. When you buy through links on our site, we may earn a qualifying affiliate commission.

Comic Book Herald’s reading orders and guides are also made possible by reader support on Patreon, and generous reader donations.

Any size contribution will help keep CBH alive and full of new comics guides and content. Support CBH on Patreon for exclusive rewards, or Donate here! Thank you for reading!

Keep in mind that All-New X-Men follows in the footsteps of Avengers vs. X-Men, so you’ll want to carry that event in your knowledge banks before proceeding.

Issues: #1 to #10

venom-remender

Venom by Rick Remender

The back half of Rick Remender’s status quo devouring run on Venom is technically Marvel NOW!, so you might as well just go ahead and enjoy the entire excellent series.

Issues: #1 to #25

David aja style hawkeye drawing

Hawkeye

Creative Team: Matt Fraction, David Aja

Issues: #1 to #23

I’ve written all sorts of effusive praise for most of the comics on this list elsewhere, so let’s just say there’s a reason Hawkeye is on my shortlist for favorite Marvel Comics of all time. Minimal continuity implications, but an essential read on quality alone.

Carol Danvers as Captain Marvel

Captain Marvel

Creative Team: Kelly Sue DeConnick, Filipe Daniel Moreno De Andrade

Issues: #1 to #12

Carol Danvers has become an absolutely essential component of the Marvel Universe fabric, perhaps nowhere more evident than Civil War 2. Carol’s evolution into Captain Marvel begins here, and it begins excellently.

Superior Spider Man is here!

Superior Spider-Man

Creative Team: Dan Slott, Ryan Stegman

Issues: #1 to #31

There were all sorts of offensive, moronic reactions to the announcement of Superior Spider-Man from misoneists cosplaying as comic book fans, so thank Doom Dan Slott and Ryan Stegman didn’t listen to them. Superior Spider-Man is brilliant from start to finish, and the best 30 issues of Spider-Man in at least a decade.

Pool Party!
Yes, that’s Ant-Man leading the Pool Party

FF

Creative Team: Matt Fraction, Mike Allred

Year(s): 2012 to 2014

Era of Continuity: Marvel Now

Issues: #1 to #16

superior-foes-of-spider-man

The Superior Foes of Spider-Man

Creative Team: Nick Spencer, Steve Lieber

Issues: #1 to #17

uncanny-avengers

Uncanny Avengers

Creative Team: Rick Remender, John Cassaday, Daniel Acuna

Issues: #1 to #23

There are basically three author-dominated visions of the Marvel Universe during Marvel NOW!, in what I would call the Bendis-verse, the Hickman-verse, and the Remender-verse.

Each creator’s vision for their slice of the Marvel pie extends across the titles they write. For Rick Remender, this includes Venom (already listed), Captain America, and Uncanny Avengers (and later Axis and Uncanny Avengers (rebooted).

You could easily argue that Remender’s Captain America is the most continuity-relevant book, especially given the impact it has on Hickman’s build up to Secret Wars. That said, I’d much rather read Uncanny Avengers, and from the second volume on, Uncanny Avengers is one of the most underrated Marvel NOW! titles.

Thor: God of Thunder

Creative Team: Jason Aaron, Esad Ribic

Issues: #1 to #25

age-of-ultron-event

Age of Ultron

Do you actually need to read Age of Ultron? In a weird twist, Age of Ultron has the biggest impact on the Marvel Ultimate Universe. That said, this is the first event of Marvel NOW!.

young avengers

Young Avengers

You can do the whole series at once.

Issues: #1 to #15

Inhumanity

Inhumanity / Inhuman #1 to #8

The Inhumans have become more and more important throughout the 2010’s, and it all begins here.

All new Magneto

Magneto

Issues: #1 to #8

Bunn’s Magneto is excellent, and helps redefine the master of magnetism for the umpteenth time.

original-sin-all-seeing-eye
Eye see all

Original Sin

The 2014 Marvel event, with a strong 4 issue start and a wild and weird 4 issue finish.

Rocket Raccoon

Issues: #1 to #6

A ton of fun, and legitimately my favorite comic book sound effects and lettering this decade.

Avengers vs X Men Axis

Axis

Listen, if there’s a way we could just pretend Axis never happened, I promise I would, but this is not that list.

secret-wars-spider-verse

Spider-Verse

Far from tight story-telling, but a lot of fun.

The Trial of Jean Grey + The Black Vortex

The Guardians of the Galaxy and the X-Men team up in middling affairs from Bendis. I’m a defender of the man who brought us Ultimate Spider-Man, Alias, and early 2000’s Daredevil, but hoo boy I can not stomach this version of the Guardians of the Galaxy. Personally, I need a swig of late 2000’s Abnett and Lanning after every page of dialogue, but to be fair, these characterizations play true to the Guardians of the MCU.

Falcon Captain America

All-New Captain America

Sam Cap!

thor8_1

Thor: Goddess of Thunder

Thor’s a lady but don’t call her Lady Thor!

ms-marvel-2

Ms. Marvel

Creative Team: G. Willow Wilson, Adrian Alphona

Issues: #1 to #15

Moon Knight Blackout

Moon Knight

Creative Team: Warren Ellis, Declan Shalvey

Issues: #1 to #6

The death of wolverine cover

Death of Wolverine

Creative Team: Charles Soule, Steve McNiven

Issues: #1 to #4

Ant-Man

Issues: #1 to #5

You wouldn’t think an Ant-Man ongoing would be one of the most fun and essential reads from Marvel Comics, but Nick Spencer pulls it off with tiny Paul Rudd.

unbeatable-squirrell-girl

The Unbeatable Squirrel Girl

Issues: #1 to #8

You definitely would’t think an Unbeatable Squirrel Girl ongoing would be one of the most fun and essential reads from Marvel Comics, but Ryan North and Erica Henderson pull it off with ease.

Howard the Duck #1

Howard the Duck

Issues: #1 to #5

You ABSO-DUCKING-LOTUELY wouldn’t think a Howard the Duck ongoing would be one of the most fun and essential reads from Marvel Comics, but Chip Zdarsky is Chip Zdarksy.

Spider-Gwen

Issues: #1 to #6

Great concept, great art, alternate Spider-reality. It’s like they made it for me in a lab.

Avengers Time Runs OUt

Hickman-Verse – New Avengers, Avengers

No comic will prepare you better for Secret Wars than Marvel NOW! Avengers and New Avengers, and in my opinion, only a select few comics are better.

You’re definitely going to want to pay attention to the Avengers reading order here, as the Hickman-verse Avengers basically drive Infinity, and weave beautifully into Original Sin. They are unimpacted by Axis, thank Galactus.

Infinity

Creative Team: Jonathan Hickman, Jim Cheung

Issues: #1 to #6

As mentioned above, make sure you place this in the Avengers context.

Thors

Secret Wars

Creative Team: Jonathan Hickman, Esad Ribic

Issues: #1 to #9

Next: All-New All-Different Marvel

Filed Under: Featured, Marvel Series Tagged With: Marvel NOW

Heroically Support Comic Book Herald!

If you like Comic Book Herald, and are able to donate, any small contribution will help keep CBH alive and full of new comics guides and content. Donate here! Or, support CBH on Patreon for exclusive rewards! Thank you for reading!

Become a Patron!

About Dave

Dave is the founder and Editor-in-Chief of Comic Book Herald, and also the Boss of assigning himself fancy titles. He's a long-time comic book fan, and can be seen most evenings in Batman pajama pants. Contact Dave @comicbookherald on Twitter or via email at dave@comicbookherald.com.

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. MagnetoWasRight says

    May 1, 2017 at 11:16 pm

    It feels a little wrong that you didn’t include Captain America’s Dimension Z run in this list. I guess I could be wrong cause I’m not quite caught up in terms of Cap’ continuity but that seems like it has pretty major ramifications on Steve Rogers as a whole.

    Reply
  2. Bis says

    March 28, 2017 at 6:31 am

    Is this list in order ? You put Infinity just before Secret Wars but wasnt this event earlier than f.e Original Sin ? I just started to follow this guide (finished 200-2012 and it was amazing), and I dont want to miss continuity.
    Thanks !

    Reply
  3. Mormegil says

    August 22, 2016 at 10:44 am

    I haven’t read a lot from this era yet but the Rocket Raccoon series was amazing. I think i literally laughed out loud at every issue, especially the first two.

    Deadpool by Duggan/Posehn was really good too. They did a good job adding some serious elements to the character.

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Primary Sidebar

The Comic Book Herald Podcast!

Apple PodcastsGoogle PodcastsRSS
My Ultimate Year podcast and reading club

Recent Posts

  • X-Men #15-17 in Review—Return to the Vault! March 29, 2023
  • “Mister Mammoth”, “Spy Superb” & “Hairball” with Matt Kindt | CBH Interviews #108 March 28, 2023
  • 2002 Pt. 4: X-Force, Chamber, & Exiles March 27, 2023
  • Pax Americana and The Infinite Loop Of Imperiums March 25, 2023
  • Fall of X Teasers & Al Ewing’s Sins of Sinister | Comic Book Herald Live! March 24, 2023
  • “Sins of Sinister” Part 6: Immoral X-Men #2—in Review! March 23, 2023
  • DESTINY OF X | The Krakoan Empire Divided March 22, 2023
  • “Secret Identity” with Alex Segura | CBH Interviews #107 March 21, 2023
  • 2002 Pt. 3: Daredevil & Elektra March 20, 2023
  • Immoral X-Men #2 and Wolverine vs. Dark Beast! | Comic Book Herald Live! March 17, 2023
  • X-Men: The Animated Series Season 2 Rewatch! March 16, 2023
  • “Sins of Sinister” Part 5: Nightcrawlers #2—in Review! March 15, 2023
  • My Marvelous Interview: Paul Jenkins on Wolverine Origin, Inhumans, Spectacular Spider-Man, & More! March 13, 2023
  • The Dark Knight Trilogy 15 Years Later: Film & Comic Influences! March 11, 2023
  • Sins of Sinister: Nightcrawlers, X-Men #20, New Mutants: Lethal Legion #1 | Comic Book Herald Live! March 10, 2023

Popular Articles

DC Rebirth Guide

Batman Reading Order

DC New 52 Reading Order

Marvel Ultimate Universe Guide

Civil War Reading Order

Marvel Cosmic Reading Order

The Best Comics of All Time!

Deadpool Reading Order

Justice League Reading Order

Complete Thanos Reading Order

X-Men Reading Guide (Modern Era)

Age of Apocalypse Reading Order

Modern Marvel Universe in 25 Trades

Best Tablet For Digital Comics

Is Marvel Unlimited Worth It?

Footer

New to Comic Book Herald?

Hey there - my name's Dave and this is my comic book blog. It's my way of sharing my borderline obsessive addiction to the comic book medium, and I hope you like some of what's going on here.

Most people that come here are looking for my (WIP) Marvel reading order guide. You can probably also get a sense if CBH is for you by taking a look at some of my columns.

If you like what you see, let's connect on Facebook or Twitter. Or, leave a comment on the blog here, I'm always looking for new awesome people in the comic book community.

More on Comic Book Herald

  • Home
  • About
  • Support CBH
  • My Marvelous Year
  • Join!
Privacy Policy
Terms of Service

Recent Posts

  • X-Men #15-17 in Review—Return to the Vault!
  • “Mister Mammoth”, “Spy Superb” & “Hairball” with Matt Kindt | CBH Interviews #108
  • 2002 Pt. 4: X-Force, Chamber, & Exiles
  • Pax Americana and The Infinite Loop Of Imperiums
  • Fall of X Teasers & Al Ewing’s Sins of Sinister | Comic Book Herald Live!

Copyright © 2023 · Metro Pro on Genesis Framework · WordPress · Log in