Recommended Comic Books for Newcomers

[Matthew Valkanov]

Hey all you charming people. I've just started to set foot in the vast world that is comic books, and was wondering whether you had any interesting suggestions. I'm looking for something with an interesting, well developed story, which is strange and/or sinister and/or twisted and/or dark. Plus, I like my heroes anti-. If you know any manga or manhwa that fill the criteria as well, I'm all ears. Or eyes rather...

I've read Watchmen and loved it. Don't like Superman, except for the one where he dies. Smug speedo-wearing git. Read a bit of Sandman, which is rather fun. And I also enjoyed the anime of things like Berserker(better than the manga) and Monster.

Thanks in advance guys!

 

[Shadowsole]

Killing joke is a good one for batman. it was doen by the same guy as watchmen, actually, i'd just suggest what he's done, (mental blank on the name sorry (i feel like a bad fan))

 

[synobal]

Batman year one is pretty good.

 

[Shadowsole]

Are you looking for more standalones of completed series?
And do you care for the publisher?

 

[Varanfan9]

Just go to the store and pick something that catches your eye. It is really not that difficult. Though I will say that if they are in the middle of a 2 parter or something maybe wait till its finished. And if the character interests you and you want to know more, you can always look them up on the good old 'pedia' and maybe buy some of their old stories in trade paper back. Comic books are really not that hard to get into.
captcha-Why yes I do agree it is a 'capital' idea

 

[Fanta Grape]

Killing Joke...

DAMMIT. Stupid ninjas. Alan Moore though, seriously. Best Batman comic ever. The Dark Knight Returns isn't too bad either.

Erm... I got nothing.

 

[Strain42]

If you're interested in any Marvel characters there are the Marvel Essentials collections. They're pretty cheap and usually have a lot of comics in them. I own the one for the original She-Hulk series which is the first 25 comics for only like 17 bucks.

I believe for your standards, off the top of my head I would recommend Man-Thing. He's a giant swamp monster and his very touch burns those that know fear.

Only downside with the Essentials collections (if it's the type of thing that would bother you) is that they're in black and white, so I wanted to warn you about that up front.

The main reason I suggest these is because since they're Essentials collections they basically bundle the earliest stuff from the advertised character, so you don't have to really worry so much about continuity getting in the way.

 

[Vault101]

Killing joke is a good one for batman. it was doen by the same guy as watchmen, actually, i'd just suggest what he's done, (mental blank on the name sorry (i feel like a bad fan))

Alan moore? crazy basterd

he also did v for vendetta

I plan to get myself both killing joke and V, Ive been interested in comics but turned off by the whole continuity thing

But batman genuinly interests me as opased to other stuff or what ever where it all jsut feels convoluted

 

[Strain42]

Oh also, maybe this is something you may wanna look into.

http://www.dccomics.com/dccomics/comics/?dat=20110907&sort=date

That is DC Comics release schedule for September. They're doing a GIANT reboot. 51 new series are coming out in that month. Many classic characters are getting new backstories and stories.

So yeah, you wanna get into Batman. Why not grab yourself a fresh copy of Batman #1?

 

[Kahunaburger]

Sandman. Neil Gaiman is awesome in any medium.

 

[wolas3214]

The walking dead. i despise comic books as a genre of literature but the walking dead is hands down one of the best things ive ever read.

 

[WolfThomas]

Good advice is to find a writer you enjoy, they're stuff is usually quite consistent across titles.

Some of my favourite writers are:

Warren Ellis (Next Wave: Agents of Hate, The Authority, Transmetropolitian)
Garth Ennis (Hellblazer, Punisher MAX, Hitman, Preacher)
Alan Moore (Watchmen, V for Vendetta, The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen)
Grant Morrison (All Star Superman, Animal Man, The Invisibles)
Mark Millar (Kickass, Ultimates, Superman : Red Son, The Authority)
Neil Gaimon (Sandman)
Brian Michael Bendis (Alias, Powers)
Mike Carey (Lucifer, The Unwritten)
Brian K. Vaughn (Y - The Last Man, Runaways, Pride of Baghdad, Ex Machina).

Don't like Superman, except for the one where he dies.

You've probably been exposed to the wrong Superman stories, most of the time he is kind of boring, but in the hands of a great author some brilliant comics have been written. I've always thought as a rule easier to write a better batman story than a superman, but the "best" Superman stories (Kingdom Come, All Star Superman, Red Son, Secret Identity, Whatever happened to the man of Tommorrow?) beat the "best" Batman stories hands down (Dark Knight returns, Killing Joke, Arkham Asylum: A serious house on a serious earth), though those are still well worth reading as well.

 

[The Wooster]

Hey all you charming people. I've just started to set foot in the vast world that is comic books, and was wondering whether you had any interesting suggestions. I'm looking for something with an interesting, well developed story, which is strange and/or sinister and/or twisted and/or dark. Plus, I like my heroes anti-. If you know any manga or manhwa that fill the criteria as well, I'm all ears. Or eyes rather...

I've read Watchmen and loved it. Don't like Superman, except for the one where he dies. Smug speedo-wearing git. Read a bit of Sandman, which is rather fun. And I also enjoyed the anime of things like Berserker(better than the manga) and Monster.

Thanks in advance guys!

If you're looking for twisted and you hate Superman then "The Boys" seems like a perfect fit. As does "irredeemable" though it plays it a little straighter.

For sheer quality try "Locke and Key" because it's absolutely fantastic. Also anything by Brian K. Vaughn. Man is a genius.

 

[Matthew Valkanov]

Are you looking for more standalones of completed series?
And do you care for the publisher?

Anything goes I'm not picky with that kind of thing, just the type of story as detailed in my original posting ^^

 

[IndianaJonny]

I've read Watchmen and loved it. Don't like Superman, except for the one where he dies. Smug speedo-wearing git. Read a bit of Sandman, which is rather fun. And I also enjoyed the anime of things like Berserker(better than the manga) and Monster.

Thanks in advance guys!

Oh ho, someone needs to read The Boys, watch those smug capes get their comeuppance.

If you're looking for twisted and you hate Superman then "The Boys" seems like a perfect fit. As does "irredeemable" though it plays it a little straighter.

Like the man says.

 

[Matthew Valkanov]

Just go to the store and pick something that catches your eye. It is really not that difficult. Though I will say that if they are in the middle of a 2 parter or something maybe wait till its finished. And if the character interests you and you want to know more, you can always look them up on the good old 'pedia' and maybe buy some of their old stories in trade paper back. Comic books are really not that hard to get into.
captcha-Why yes I do agree it is a 'capital' idea

Problem is that here in "sunny" old Belgium the only comic book store anywhere near me( and that's almost an hour away) focuses on manga and those rather artsy French/Belgian/German/Dutch comics (Djinn, Apres l'Incal, Le Scorpion,...) of which I'm not the greatest fan.

 

[Matthew Valkanov]

If you're looking for twisted and you hate Superman then "The Boys" seems like a perfect fit. As does "irredeemable" though it plays it a little straighter.

Oh ho, someone needs to read The Boys, watch those smug capes get their comeuppance.

Haha. Sounds good to me, I'll check it out.

I also see Killing Joke came up a few times, I'll take a look at that too.

Neil Gaiman, of course I'm interested in seeing a bit more of stuff. Loved his book "American Gods", and Sandman does seem to fit my taste

Anyway, a general thanks for the suggestions everyone.

 

[Suicidal_Ferret]

I don't read many comic books, personally. And the ones I read aren't part of any of the universes. In fact, I still get them confused (like, which one has spider man and which one has iron man. Actually, I think those are the same universe. Dx)

But Deadpool. Whichever universe he's in, read him. Always funny.


I mostly like comic book adaptions.

NO WAIT! I read "graphic novels". Does that even matter? I don't think so. It's too early in the morning for me.