The two largest comic publishing companies are Marvel and DC. With movies and shows coming out constantly from these two, why not try the comics that inspired them?
Marvel
Marvel, originally known as Timely Comics, was founded in 1939 and was purchased by the Walt Disney Company in 2009.
Here are the best titles and series to get started:
- Marvel Action Avengers: The New Danger by Matthew K. Manning
- Iron Man: Demon in a Bottle by David Michelinie
- Indestructible Hulk by Mark Waid
- Captain America: Castaway in Dimension Z by Rick Remender
- Spider-Men by Brian Michael Bendis
- Unbeatable Squirrel Girl: Squirrel Power by Ryan North
- Ms. Marvel: No Normal by Willow G. Wilson
- Kingsman: The Secret Service by Mark Millar
- Black Widow: Deadly Origin by Paul Cornell
- The Ultimates: Super Human by Mark Millar
DC
DC was started in 1934 as National Allied Publications, and after several name changes, became Detective Comics in 1936 which is now shortened to DC.
Here are the best titles and series to get started:
- Batman Damned by Brian Azzarello
- Harley Quinn: Die Laughing by Amanda Conner
- Joker by Brian Azzarello
- DCeased by Tom Taylor
- The Legend of Wonder Woman by Renae De Liz
- Saga of the Swamp Thing by Alan Moore
- Doom Patrol by Grant Morrison
- Teen Titans: Raven by Kami Garcia
- Lucifer by Mike Carey
- Sandman by Neil Gaiman
How to navigate comic series
When talking about comics, the two most prominent are Limited and Ongoing series. A limited series is one with a distinct start, middle and finish, with a set number of editions. Ongoing series have an undetermined length and, in some cases, have lasted for decades, occasionally going on hiatus, then picked up by a new author/illustrator/creative team years later.