Your First 10 Comics, No Homework Required

The biggest myth in comics is that you need to read 80 years of backstory first. You don't. Every book on this list starts at page one and assumes you know nothing.

Our rules for this list:

No homework. You can pick up each one cold.
Collected editions only. Buy the trade paperback (TPB), not single issues.
Mix of styles. Superhero, sci-fi, fantasy, manga, and indie.

1. Saga, Vol. 1

Star Wars meets Romeo and Juliet, with a lot more swearing. Two soldiers from warring planets fall in love and go on the run with their newborn daughter. Brian K. Vaughan writes some of the sharpest dialogue in comics, and Fiona Staples' art is stunning. It is for mature readers.

Grab it: Saga Vol. 1 on Amazon

2. Batman: Year One

Four issues. Batman's first year, and Jim Gordon's first year in a rotten Gotham. Frank Miller and David Mazzucchelli wrote the blueprint that nearly every Batman movie since has borrowed from.

Grab it: Batman: Year One on Amazon

3. Ms. Marvel Vol. 1: No Normal

Kamala Khan is a Pakistani-American teen from Jersey City who writes Avengers fan fiction and then gets powers herself. Funny, warm, and a perfect doorway into Marvel.

Grab it: Ms. Marvel Vol. 1 on Amazon

4. Hawkeye Vol. 1: My Life as a Weapon

What does Hawkeye do when he isn't an Avenger? He tries to protect his apartment building, adopts a dog named Lucky, and messes up constantly. David Aja's design-heavy art makes this one of the most stylish superhero books ever.

Grab it: Hawkeye Vol. 1 on Amazon

5. Invincible Vol. 1: Family Matters

Watched the show? The comic goes further. Mark Grayson's dad is the most powerful hero on Earth, until he isn't. The first volume feels like a classic teen-hero book. Then it turns.

Grab it: Invincible Vol. 1 on Amazon

6. Paper Girls

Four 12-year-old newspaper delivery girls, 1988, and a time-travel war. Stranger Things fans, this is your book. Get the complete one-volume edition.

Grab it: Paper Girls on Amazon

7. Nimona

A shapeshifting teen tries to become a supervillain's sidekick. It starts as a comedy and ends somewhere much deeper. It was adapted into an Oscar-nominated animated film in 2023.

Grab it: Nimona on Amazon

8. Bone

Three cartoon cousins get lost in a fantasy valley full of dragons, rat creatures, and a secret war. It looks like a kids' book and reads like Lord of the Rings. The one-volume edition is a huge, satisfying read.

Grab it: Bone on Amazon

9. Chainsaw Man, Vol. 1

Your first manga pick. Denji is broke, in debt to the yakuza, and part chainsaw. It is chaotic, gory, and surprisingly emotional. Manga reads right to left, and you'll adjust in about three pages.

Grab it: Chainsaw Man Vol. 1 on Amazon

10. Watchmen (The Final Boss)

Save it for last. Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons' 12-issue masterpiece dissects superheroes, the Cold War, and power. It hits harder once you've read a few "normal" hero comics and know what it is taking apart.

Grab it: Watchmen on Amazon