Here is a list of comic books that I would recommend reading. This is not a list of my top books since that would take me a long, long time to decide which ones I liked most and in what order. This is just a list of books I can think of at this particular moment in time that I think are great reads.
Lex Luther: Man of Steel
In this telling of the Superman/ Lex Luther tale, we get to see Lex’s point of view on the arrival of his nemisis. It gives the reader insight on a human’s perspective on the presence of this “greater” being that is treated as a God.
I recently lent this book to a friend of mine who is a giant Superman fan (he and I fight over Batman/ Superman stuff all the time) and he actually admitted that this book really made him look at his hero in a whole new light. It excited me to hear this and it made me appreciate the story that much more.
Finally, a story that removes the boyscout exterior that has been built up around the Man of Steel.
Astonishing X-Men
I am a giant fan of Joss Whedon and when I found out he was doing a run on an X-men series I was all over it. I diligently picked up all 24 issues as they were released and read them all with fervor.
The story is an alternate timeline that brings parts of the group together with Cyclops as the leader. There is basically three stages to the whole story- the first being the appearance of a mutant “cure” (I’m pretty sure this plot was stolen for the third X-movie), the second I’ll leave as a surprise and then finally the conclusion to the actual story which is the crisis on the Breakworld.
There are definitely pieces of this story that I wasn’t too impressed with, but looking back at it as a whole I enjoyed it for the action, humor and of course the famous Whedon dialog.
Runaways
Unfortunately I cannot give you a review of Runaways as a whole series yet since I have only read the first hardcover volume. It’s kinda shameful.
Moving away from the typical adult hero this story is about a group of teens that are, to their own surprise, children of a group of known super villains. In the light of learning about their parent’s evil-doings the kids runaway (hence the name) and in doing so find out about their own “abilities”.
After reading the first collection I am officially hooked on the Runaway series and from what I’ve heard from friends that have read the whole thing, it’s only going to get better.
That’s it for now, but I’m hoping to do more recommendations in the future.
