While it was initially met with some trepidation from long-term comics fans, the Ultimate Universe was quickly met with acclaim. Designed to draw new readers who’d just seen Bryan Singer’s new millennium X-Men film or were still anticipating the 2002 release of Sam Raimi’s Spider-Man, the Ultimate Universe launched with those two characters in largely... Continue Reading →
Starro Reading Order, 1960-2011: The Earth One/New Earth Eras
Starro, the malevolent starfish-shaped alien conqueror, has been a longstanding antagonist in the DC Universe, often posing a formidable threat to Earth and its heroes. Sharing its debut with the Justice League of America’s inaugural appearance, this mind-controlling extraterrestrial entity has continued to evolve through the decades, with its origin finally revealed not long before... Continue Reading →
The Sixth Gun Reading Order, 2010-Present: The Dusty Road to Apocalypse
During the darkest days of the Civil War, wicked cutthroats came into possession of six pistols of otherworldly power. In time, the Sixth Gun, the most dangerous of the weapons, vanished. The First of the Six strikes with ungodly force. The Second spreads Perdition’s flames. The Third kills with a flesh-rotting disease. The Fourth calls... Continue Reading →
Werewolf by Night Reading Order, 1972-Present: Jack Russell
Gerry Conway claims he didn't consciously name the human alter ego of the Werewolf By Night after a breed of dog, but Jack Russell was the name of the man aflicted with the curse who became part of the Marvel Universe in 1972. Initially, his stories tended ro revolve around him searching for a cure... Continue Reading →
Batman Reading Order, Origins II: Batman & Robin
Before LEGENDS begins, the origins of the Batman continue! The ‘Bat-Family’ expands as the Dark Knight gains a sidekick in Robin, inspires Batgirl to take up the cowl and meets the deadly Huntress. And the Batman spreads his wings as he meets Superman, becomes a recurring member of the Justice League and first encounters Jason... Continue Reading →
Batman Reading Order: Origins – Year One to The Long Halloween
The Batman begins! Bruce Wayne returns from his training, ready to take on crime on the dangerous streets of Gotham City. Bruce initially finds himself facing everything from street thugs to organized crime. But it’s not long before he’s up against a whole new breed of criminal in the form of Catwoman, Hugo Strange, the... Continue Reading →
Hellboy Universe Reading Order 1339BC-1948: The Secret Histories
The infant demon with the giangantic stone hand made his debut as a character in Dime Press #3 (1993) before appearing again in John Byrne’s Next Men #21 later that year. But the official continuity for Hellboy and his supporting cast of agents from the Bureau for Paranormal Research and Defense (BPRD) begins in Hellboy:... Continue Reading →
Spider-Man Reading Order 1984-1986: Saga of the Alien Costume
1984 was the year Spider-Man received his first ever costume shake-up! The drastic change in his look was designed to coincide with the original SECRET WARS event, as well as the toy line of the same name. And while Spidey fans though they were just seeing a new look, there was more to his black... Continue Reading →
Hulk Reading Order: Future Imperfect (1993-1998)
Presenting the final five years of Peter David’s original run on the Hulk. There are big changes in Rick Jones' life, secrets of the Pantheon are revealed, the Hulk goes through another change and meets a future version of himself. And a climactic battle with Onslaught literally sends the Green Goliath in more than one... Continue Reading →
Hulk Reading Order: Mister Fixit/The Professor (1987-1992)
Get ready! This reading order covers the first five years of Hulk history by the absolute master of the Green/Grey Goliath’s saga! Time and time again, I've sung the praises of Peter David's epic run on Incredible Hulk. Peter took over the title when sales were at an all-time low and literally no one else... Continue Reading →
2099 Reading Order: The Original World of Tomorrow (1992-1997)
Originally intended to launch as a one-shot graphic novel 'Marvel World of Tomorrow' under Stan Lee and John Byrne, Marvel's 'futureverse' project instead became a line of 2099 titles set in a dystopian future of Earth-928. A new 'Age of Heroes' would dawn in this corporately-controlled America as future versions of pre-existing characters would begin... Continue Reading →
Marvel Cosmic Reading Order: Guarding the Galaxy (2008-2011)
The galaxy has been taking a pounding (see our previous Marvel Cosmic Reading Order). First, the Annihilation Wave tore through, wiping out whole worlds and killing the entire Nova Corps. Then the attempt by the Phalanx to take control of the Kree Empire caused further harm. Now the Earth is about to be invaded by... Continue Reading →
Marvel Cosmic Reading Order: Annihilated (2003-2008)
The cosmic side of the Marvel Universe had taken a back seat for a few years, but we’d really see Marvel start dipping our toes back into those space-centric tales in the early 2000s with Captain Marvel (Genis-Vell) returning to space, Thanos gaining his own series and Beta Ray Bill returning to the spotlight. But,... Continue Reading →
The Spot Reading Order: Jonathon Ohnn (1984-present)
When the Kingpin tasks scientist Dr Johnathon Ohnn with emulating Cloak's powers, he gains the ability to tap into the Spotted Dimension and use wormholes as weapons. As the Spot, Ohnn's criminal career is sporadic, with the character veering from laughing stock to homicidal nightmare. Must Reads: Story arcs marked with a ✔ are must-read stories... Continue Reading →
MODOK Reading Order: George Tarleton (1967 – present)
The outlandish Jack Kirby design and some weird and wild stories featuring the gigantic-headed sociopath, make it hard not to love this oddball bad guy. The Mental Organism Designed Only for Killing - aka MODOK – has been a thorn in the side of the Hulk, Fantastic Four, Captain America, Iron Man and more while acting as the head (no pun intended)... Continue Reading →
Authority Reading Order: The WildStorm Years (1999-2011)
Warren Ellis took the reins of WildStorm Universe’s StormWatch series from Image Comics in 1996, and dragged it to new heights - mixing more mature storytelling with a semi-political edge. Following a relaunch that added Bryan Hitch as the title’s semi-regular new artist, Ellis wiped out almost the entire line-up with the FINAL ORBIT crossover... Continue Reading →
Invincible Universe Reading Order: Guarding the Globe & Beyond (2002-2018)
If you think Invincible is just another superhero comic, then give it a shot and stick with it. This series regularly breaks the rules in terms of what’s ‘supposed’ to happen in superhero titles. The mistakes Mark Grayson makes far outweigh any errors in judgement that Peter Parker’s ever made. Characters die and don’t come... Continue Reading →
Outerverse Reading Order: Tales from the Outer Dark (2010-Present)
Entirely separate to the Hellboy Universe, the Outerverse still centres around the occult but features a world that’s been so greatly impacted by it that it diverges quite heavily from our own. Mike Mignola and Christopher Golden created two illustrated novels – ‘Baltimore, or, The Steadfast Tin Soldier and the Vampire’ and ‘Joe Golem and... Continue Reading →
Man-Thing Reading Order: Project Sulfer (1971-1989)
Working under Project Sulfur, Dr Ted Sallis creates a new Super-Soldier Serum. When AIM agents and his own wife try to steal the SO-2 Serum from him in the Everglades, he escapes and injects it before falling into the swamp. Transformed in a muck-monster dubbed the Man-Thing, the mindless creature that was once Ted Sallis becomes the guardian of the Nexus of All Realities - the... Continue Reading →
Justice League Dark Reading Order (2011-2015): The New 52 Era
As part of DC Comics' New 52 initiative that saw the birth of a modernised DC Universe, the Justice League Dark are a team made up of key magic users who gather to combat mystical and supernatural threats. Even though the line-up make it clear they don't want to be a team, fate will keep bringing them together until they... Continue Reading →
High Evolutionary Reading Order: Herbert Wyndham (1966-Present)
Obsessed with evolving humanity to its next stage ahead of time the High Evolutionary has been both a help and a hindrance to the Avengers, the Fantastic Four, X-Men and Adam Warlock over the years. He’s created intelligent animal-beings, a citadel that can launch into space and an entire planet. And he comes from Manchester.... Continue Reading →
Doom Patrol Reading Order: The New Earth/Vertigo Era (1987-2011)
Known for some of the most bizarre stories in the DC Universe, the Doom Patrol are about to get stranger! Following the death of the original line-up at the hands of Madame Rouge and General Zahl, Robotman became part of a new Doom Patrol when he met Celsius, Negative Woman and Tempest. The team remained... Continue Reading →
Aliens vs Predator vs the Omniverse (1991-2019)
Dark Horse Comics picked up the licenses for Aliens and Predator in 1988 and, in 1989, decided pit them both against each other in Dark Horse Presents #34-36. A year later, they battled it out in Aliens vs Predator #1-4 and Dark Horse realised they were onto something. By the ‘90s, intercompany comics crossovers were... Continue Reading →
Ultimate Spider-Man Reading Order, 2000-2018: Peter Parker, Earth-1610
For part one of the complete Ultimate Universe Reading Order head HERE Sure there are some truly amazing Spider-Man stories out there, but Marvel realised there's an intimidating amount of history for potential new readers to take on, so they launched a fresher take on the Marvel Universe in 2000. The Ultimate Universe began with Ultimate Spider-Man as its flagship series and what... Continue Reading →
Kang Reading Order: Nathaniel Richards (1963-Present)
Kang the Conqueror has been one of the Avengers’ most intriguing enemies. His main goal has been to dominate not just the world, but every world in every era. He's the master of time and that means there are numerous versions of him, often leading Kang to try and outdo his past and future selves,... Continue Reading →