Comic Book Herald

A Comic Book Reading Order Guide For Beginners & Fans

Marvel

History of the Time Variance Authority & Time Keepers

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Marvel’s Time Variance Authority – now stars of Loki in the Marvel Cinematic Universe’s TV series on Disney+ – is a combination of parody, inside editorial jokes, and somehow also tremendous power in the Marvel Comics universe. Operating in “null-time,” The TVA are literal continuity cops, sending their agents to disrupt anyone messing with the timestream, and returning them to the familiar banality of paperwork and office life that is maintaining all of time!

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The Best 5 Modern Blade Comics!

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Blade is one of the most disgustingly slept-on vigilantes in all comics. The dhampiric Marvel character made his debut in the 70s Tomb of Dracula, and has bounced around quite a bit since then. His books don’t fly off the shelves like those of the X-Men, he isn’t everyone’s favorite hero like Spider-Man, and his supernatural tales are often outdone by the likes of Dr. Strange and Ghost Rider. Blade’s books have always been long ignored and soon forgotten as series after series is canceled and, eventually, reborn. Under the hit-or-miss pen of Jason Aaron on Avengers and the Heroes Reborn event, his latest appearance has left much to be desired.

With Mahershala Ali cast as the titular hero in the upcoming Marvel Cinematic Universe reboot/interpretation of everyone’s favorite daywalker, it’s only a matter of time before we get the inevitable new Blade comic series. Jason Aaron and Javier Garron’s recent run on Avengers has been a decent showing of his prowess, and the Heroes Reborn series has been interesting, to say the least. But not enough to sell a new comic readerthat this edgy vampire dude is, in fact, an undeniable bad-ass. [Read more…] about The Best 5 Modern Blade Comics!

What’s Going On with Marvel’s Avengers Continuity?

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A Hypothetical Case Study of How Not to Handle Continuity

Let’s say you’re writing a largely self-contained ongoing comic book title within a much larger shared universe. Let’s call your book… Sergeant USA! During most of your long-running story, Sarge’s lost his superhero identity and his place in the… Revengers. How do you mesh that with the universe’s continuity? Cleverly, at the start of your run you don’t allude to anything else going on in this comic universe, so that you can go on with your long-running story for as long as you like, and when you DO have to link back to the universe’s continuity you get to choose when all of it fits, start to finish. You can have your thirty-part, two-and-a-half years-running self-contained story while justifying Sarge’s absence from the Revengers in-between any two Revengers issues of your choosing, in retrospect. Damn you’re clever!

And then someone else comes along and messes with your simple but genius plan.

*Some spoilers for Sarge… Captain America and Avengers follow*

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10 Great Comics Featuring the Marvel Multiverse!

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Now that the Marvel Multiverse has come to the MCU and we’re getting an Into the Spider-Verse sequel, Doctor Strange and the Multiverse of Madness, and a What If…? series, it’s safe to say that we’re about to start seeing a lot of Marvel’s zany alternate realities playing out on the big screen. These wild new additions probably won’t make Marvel’s continuity less confusing, but the Multiverse has long been one of Marvel Comics’ greatest features. Imagining what could have become of our favorite characters is a beloved pastime of the Marvel Maniac, and indeed, some of Marvel’s Greatest Hits come straight out of the Multiverse.

Read 7 Best Marvel What If Comics for more multiverse picks! [Read more…] about 10 Great Comics Featuring the Marvel Multiverse!

Marvel Magic: The Essential Comics Reading Order

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Within the Marvel Universe, there are segments of thematic or tonal connections that create subcategories of “mini” universes readers can follow. One of the most prominent is Marvel Cosmic, but in the wake of WandaVision (honestly in a way I didn’t feel after Doctor Strange), I’m increasingly interested in the universe of Marvel Magic.

Now, the below guide will assuredly not capture every instance of magic use in Marvel Comics (I have a family you animals!), but it will give you a decades-spanning look at how magic, supernatural, and mystical elements have progressed throughout Marvel history. [Read more…] about Marvel Magic: The Essential Comics Reading Order