How & Where To Start Reading Marvel Comic Books - Screen Rant

Here's the best way to get into Marvel Comics. The age of Marvel Comics began in 1961, with the release of Stan Lee and Jack Kirby's Fantastic Four #1. That was the beginning of one of the two biggest superhero universes of all time, an interconnected world of ever-expanding, disparate franchises. These comics have in turn inspired the world's most successful shared universe, the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

As popular as comics may be, Marvel's films have reached far more people across the globe. As a result, there are countless viewers who are interested in checking out the comics that inspired their favorite blockbusters. Unfortunately, they're faced with a massive problem; Marvel's been publishing comics for nearly 60 years. That means the prospect of trying to get into comics can seem rather daunting, given just how many issues and graphic novels there are to try. Making matters worse, even collected editions containing a number of issues are somewhat pricey. Prospective readers are understandably concerned about wasting money on a book they don't enjoy.

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Fortunately, there is another way. In addition to paper copies, Marvel offer a digital service called Marvel Unlimited for just $9.99 a month. This allows access to digital copies of over 27,000 comic books and graphic novels, with new titles added every month. Marvel Unlimited runs six months behind the actual books, meaning anyone who wants to keep up-to-date will need to buy the latest releases, but it really isn't necessary for an introduction to Marvel Comics. It's worth stressing that, however good digital may be, most fans prefer physical copies; but for an initial taster, Marvel Unlimited is perfect, because new readers can find what they enjoy and buy the printed editions individually later.

At first glance, Marvel Unlimited seems pretty intimidating, because of its massive A-Z list. Marvel tend to relaunch every comic at periodic intervals, meaning there are seven "Avengers" runs before you even look at the various spin-offs. Fortunately, each of those relaunches is usually a good jumping-on point, because they tend to be the premiere of a new creative team with a new direction for the book. Each relaunch is designed to be new-reader-friendly. Of course, some relaunches are good, while others are bad; it's a matter of finding the best. This list prioritizes books that influenced the MCU the most, and some key events, and it should by no means be seen as exhaustive.

• Astonishing X-Men (2004) by Joss Whedon, the creator of Buffy the Vampire Slayer and the man who brought The Avengers to the big screen. This relaunch features a number of fan-favorite characters, and Whedon's smart writing ensures new readers can jump right in.
• Captain America (2004) by Ed Brubaker, which became the single most influential Captain America run in history due to its resurrection of the Winter Soldier. Captain America: The Winter Soldier, often considered one of the best movies in the MCU, is heavily influenced by this run.
• Eternals (2006) by Neil Gaiman, which relaunched a classic franchise created by legendary artist Jack Kirby. This is a short series, and it stands largely separate from the rest of the Marvel Universe meaning little prior knowledge is needed. It's expected to be a major influence on next year's upcoming Eternals movie.
• Hawkeye (2012) by Matt Fraction, which reinvented the Avengers' archer and saw him partner with another popular hero, Kate Bishop. The Hawkeye of the comics is very different to the MCU, but this is still one of the most popular and stylish comics, and it's expected to shape the Disney+ Hawkeye series.
• House of X and Powers of X (2019), two miniseries that recently relaunched the entire X-Men franchise. These are popular and critically acclaimed, and the current X-Men range is built entirely on this foundation.
• Ms. Marvel (2015) by G. Willow Wilson, one of the most popular young-adult books of the last decade, which introduced Marvel's first lead Muslim-American superhero. Ms. Marvel is seen as the most important Legacy Hero, and she's soon to make her MCU debut in a Disney+ series.
• New Avengers (2006) by Brian Bendis. When Brian Bendis took over the Avengers franchise, he disbanded the team and then took the entire franchise in a whole new direction. Bendis figured it would be smart to incorporate all Marvel's major heroes, and it proved to be a smart move. This book is a milestone in Marvel history, signifying the change of approach that led the Avengers to becoming Marvel's biggest stars.
• Thor (2008) by J. Michael Straczynski, which relaunched the God of Thunder for the 21st century. Declining sales had led Marvel to kill off Asgard and the God of Thunder while they figured out what to do with him, and this run is their answer. It's undeniably one of the most powerful, potent Thor runs of all time.
• Thor: God of Thunder (2012) by Jason Aaron, with Aaron building on Straczynski's foundations and beginning a run that would last until 2019. This era is known for radically expanding Thor's world, introducing and developing his supporting characters, and kicking off a conflict that engulfed the entire Nine Realms.
• Ultimate Spider-Man (2000) by Brian Bendis, a modernized relaunch of the Spider-Man franchise. Tom Holland's version of Spider-Man is heavily influenced by this run, and it went on to introduce Miles Morales, star of Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse.
• The Ultimates (2002) by Mark Millar, another modernized relaunch, this time of the entire Avengers franchise. Stylistically, this Ultimate universe became the basis for much of the MCU.
• Young Avengers (2005) by Allan Heinberg introduced a swathe of new superheroes to the Marvel Universe, many of whom seem destined to appear in the MCU too. The Young Avengers exist in the shadow of the classic team, and while their initial introduction is a little confusing due to a time travel arc, this book soon establishes itself as a classic.
• Vision (2015) by Tom King, an award-winning comic that requires no prior knowledge at all. This is generally considered one of the best comic book runs of the last decade, and is expected to influence Disney+'s upcoming WandaVision series.

This is just a taste, of course, enough to give new readers a place to start. Other readers, however, may choose to cast their eyes to key events instead.

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Every year, Marvel release major events. These are worth trying out, but it's worth noting events don't always tend to be new-reader-friendly, because they've frequently had months - even years - of buildup, and they feature a vast cast of characters. Still, the best introductory events include:

• Secret Wars (1984) by Jim Shooter, the event that shaped comic book events. The cosmic Beyonder placed heroes and villains on a remote world and charged them to fight it out. The concept is simple, but effective.
• Infinity Gauntlet (1991) by Jim Starlin, the comic that inspired the MCU's entire Infinity Saga. The Thanos of Infinity Gauntlet is very different to the character of Avengers: Infinity War; in the comics he's motivated by a desire to woo the avatar of Death.
• Civil War (2006) by Mark Millar, an arc that saw the Avengers torn apart. It's the basis for the entire Captain America: Civil War movie, and is rightly considered one of the most important events in modern comics. It's also unusually new-reader-friendly.
• Secret Wars (2015) by Jonathan Hickman, the climax of Hickman's time writing the Avengers books, which saw the entire Marvel multiverse collapse. And that was just the beginning.
• War of the Realms (2019) by Jason Aaron, the culmination of several years' worth of Thor adventures, one of the most well-plotted events in years. It's one of the grandest adventures in terms of sheer scale. New readers will miss some of the emotional beats, but should otherwise be able to get into it.

Most comic book readers tend to follow the characters, but that's actually not the best approach. The truth is that a good writer can make even the weakest character resonate, while a poor writer can weaken even the best superhero. So, rather than follow the heroes, readers would be wise to notice which writers they enjoy, and follow their books. Fortunately, again, Marvel Unlimited presents the option to navigate that way too.

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