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ElfQuest Reading Order

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Elfquest Reading Order

Published by Dark Horse Comics (home of Hellboy) since 2013, ElfQuest is much older than that as it was launched in 1978. Back then, the Fantasy series created by Wendy and Richard Pini was self-published, taking advantage of the emerging Direct Market. Things didn’t start without a bump.

The first Elfquest story was the lead feature in Fantasy Quaterly #1. But with Independent Publishers Syndicate immediately going out of business after one issue, the adventure could have ended pretty quickly, especially as the publisher refused to give the Pinis back the work they already provided for issue 2. Richard had to take a very long trip to get everything back. After that, the couple learned as fast as possible how to become publishers. They formed WaRP Graphics and put ElfQuest #2 out.

ElfQuest became a success story, one of the most popular self-published comic books (and brand). There were difficult times through the years, like the 1990s bubble. WaRP Graphics was closed in 2003, but ElfQuest is still here.

The story of ElfQuest started with the “Original Quest.” It was about Chief Cutter and the Wolfriders being driven from their forest home by the threat of annihilation. As they wander an ever-changing landscape inhabited by excitable humans–and other odd creatures–they discover other elf tribes as well. Alliances are forged, enemies discovered, and savage battles fought…

It is an epic fantasy adventure with sci-fi elements about nature-loving elves trying to survive on a world that isn’t theirs to begin with.

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Absolute Carnage Reading Order

Absolute Carnage Reading Order

Written by Donny Cates and Ryan Stegman, Absolute Carnage is an event taking place in the Marvel Universe, and more precisely in the Venom continuity (go to Donny Cates’s Venom Reading Order).

The story is set around Cletus Kasady’s return as Carnage. After being resurrected by a cult dedicated to the worship of the god Knull and being bonded to the deific primordial Grendel symbiote, he makes his come back to New York in order to collect codices, traces left inside those who wore a symbiote, even once – and that’s a lot of potential victims, even for him!

Naturally, Kasady’s new reign of terror spells misery for Spider-Man and Venom – but the devastation is felt by Miles Morales, the Avengers, Deadpool, Ghost Rider, the Immortal Hulk, and more! But what is Kasady’s horrific endgame? Experience a new level of crazy as Carnage runs wild!

Venom and Spider-Man (Spidey’s Reading Order) must team up to stop him, but they will need even more firepower to achieve that. The heroes of New York City have to join the fight.

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Emiko Queen Reading Order (Red Arrow)

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In March 2013, Team Arrow expanded with the introduction of a new member, Emiko Queen. Created by writer Jeff Lemire and artist Andrea Sorrentino, Emiko made her first appearance in Green Arrow, Vol. 5 #18 as Oliver Queen’s half-sister.

For those of you who were watching the TV Show Arrow at the time, Emiko was inspired by Thea Queen, an original character from the Arrowverse, before being introduced in the series in season seven. She was played by Sea Shimooka.

In the DC Comic Book pages, Emiko is the daughter of Shado and Robert Queen. She was kidnapped and raised as an assassin by Simon Lacroix/Komodo, ignoring her real origins for a long time. She freed herself of her oppressor and followed Oliver Queen back to Seattle for a fresh start.

A skilled archer, she first chooses to also call herself Green Arrow, but will later take another codename, becoming the second Red Arrow – the mantle was used pre-Flashpoint by Roy Harper.

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30 Days of Night Reading Order

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There are few places on Earth that attract vampires in the same way as the town of Barrow in Alaska, which is one of the main locations in the 30 Days of Night franchise. What started as an unsuccessful pitch film went on to become a horror comic franchise, which was then adapted into a film in 2007!

Created by Steve Niles (The October Faction) and Ben Templesmith, 30 Days of Night hit comic book stores in 2002 with a three-issue miniseries. This was followed by numerous sequel series, with the most recent being released in 2026, as well as several novels. The vampire universe has also come to life on screen in the form of two films and two television miniseries.

But what attracted the vampires to Barrow in the first place? Located in Alaska, this city is so far north that during the winter, the sun does not rise for 30 days. The vampires take advantage of the prolonged darkness to kill the townspeople and feed at will. The town’s only hope of survival lies with Stella and Eben, the local sheriff couple. They must confront the vampire elder Vicente and endure until the sun returns.

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Summer of Symbiotes Reading Order, an entire season of symbiote insanity at Marvel

Summer of Symbiotes Reading Order

To celebrate 35 years of the first appearance of Venom, the flavor of the summer ’23 at Marvel will be coming from space. It’s the Summer of Symbiotes! It will be Symbiotes crossovers after Symbiotes crossovers with even more Symbiotes. Yes, a lot of Symbiotes.

In fact, everything begins this spring with Carnage Reigns, a crossover that is presented as Miles Morales vs Carnage written by Alex Paknadel and Cody Ziglar and featuring art by Julius Ohta, Jan Bazaldua, Federico Vicentini, and Francesco Manna. Here is how it starts:

Cletus Kasady is back, and of course, he is more powerful and bloodthirsty than ever before! “With his soul trapped within the Extrembiote Armor created by Tony Stark during the King in Black event, Cletus has the means to level an untold amount of chaos and, well, carnage on New York City and the entire Marvel Universe. But like any good Tony Stark invention, the Extremis coursing through Cletus’ symbiotic veins needs POWER, and that means Cletus is HUNGRY. Good thing Brooklyn’s very own Spider-Man is there to stand in his way! If he survives their first encounter, that is.”

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Doctor Fate Reading Order

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As with Captain Marvel or Robin, there have been multiple superheroes named Doctor Fate. The original version of the character was created by writer Gardner Fox and artist Howard Sherman in the Golden Age of Comics, appearing in More Fun Comics #55 (May 1940).

Wearing blue-and-yellow tights and a golden helmet, Doctor Fate operated from a windowless, doorless stone tower situated on the outskirts of Salem, Massachusetts – so you know it was magic-related. Beneath the costume was Kent Nelson, who accidentally awakened Nabu by opening its tomb while on an archaeological expedition in the Valley of Ur with his father, and killed his father in the process.

Nabu is a fictionalised version of the Mesopotamian god of the same name — a cosmic being allied with the Lords of Order. He takes Kent under his wing and teaches him how to become a sorcerer and fight his enemies, the Lords of Chaos. Twenty years later, Nabu gave Kent a mystical helmet, an amulet, and a cloak. Now well-equipped, Kent returned to America and began fighting crime and supernatural evil, such as armies of the undead, the green-skinned Wutan, fish creatures, and elder gods. He also became a founding member of both the All-Star Squadron and the Justice Society of America.

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Doctor Doom Reading Order

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Meet Doctor Doom! With recent news that Robert Downey Jr. (aka Iron Man) will portray Doctor Doom in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, making his first appearance in The Fantastic Four: First Steps (2025) in a post-credits scene, the popularity of the monarch of Latveria is sure to spike! Not that he needed it—he’s already one of Marvel’s most iconic supervillains.

If you’re here today, it’s because you want to learn more about Doctor Doom, alias Victor Von Doom! Created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby as a “super sensational new villain,” he first appeared in The Fantastic Four #5 (July 1962), with his origin story revealed two years later in Fantastic Four Annual #2.

Raised as part of a Latverian Romani tribe, Victor’s mother died when he was young, sacrificing herself to the dark arts. His father was killed while trying to escape an order from Baron Von Doom. Victor survived and discovered his mother’s occult instruments. He chose to study both magic and science, aiming to combine the two. Obsessed with building a machine to free his mother’s soul, his invention backfired and scarred his face. Doom then embraced his iconic iron mask and emerald cowl, becoming Doctor Doom!

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James Bond Comics Reading Order (Dynamite Entertainment)

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His name is Bond. James Bond. 007. Created by Ian Fleming in 1953, the most famous British Secret Service Agent launched his career on paper, in the novel Casino Royale, became a movie star, had his own video games and radio drama, but also his own comic book line.

The first James Bond Comics spawned from the success of our Secret Agent after the start of the film franchise in 1962. It was a comic book adaptation of Dr. No published by Classics Illustrated in United Kindgom. It would take 20 years for another James Bond comic to be published afterward, with this time an adaptation of For Your Eyes Only, followed in 1983 by an adaptation of Octopussy.

Permission to Die was the first original James Bond comic published by Acme/Eclipse in 1989. Then, Dark Horse obtained the rights and released several original stories until 1996. Nothing new was to be released for the next 20 years, until the comic book publishing license was picked up by Dynamite Entertainment (Red Sonja, Evil Dead).

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The Spectre Reading Order

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Death is not always the end in comic books, especially for characters like the Spectre who embody vengeance from beyond the grave. Created by writer Jerry Siegel and artist Bernard Baily, the Spectre first appeared in More Fun Comics #52, published by DC Comics in February 1940.

It all begins with Jim Corrigan, a hard-nosed police detective who is murdered by gangsters. Rather than passing into the afterlife, Corrigan’s spirit is bonded with a cosmic entity known as the Spectre, a supernatural force tasked with enacting divine vengeance. This entity is later revealed to be Aztar, a former angel who repented after joining Lucifer‘s rebellion and was subsequently transformed into the embodiment of God’s Wrath.

As the Spectre, Corrigan becomes one of DC Comics’ most powerful beings, capable of reality-altering feats. He also served as a member of the Justice Society of America (JSA), one of DC’s earliest superhero teams.

Jim Corrigan remained the Spectre’s primary human host for decades, but he has not been the only one. Notable successors include Hal Jordan, the Green Lantern, and Gotham City Detective Crispus Allen. The Spectre has also existed without a human host at times, though his power is diminished in such states.

Over the decades, the Spectre’s mythology has been deepened through various storylines and reinterpretations, making him a unique and enduring figure in the DC Universe. For those interested in exploring the character further, a recommended reading order follows.
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DC Icons Series: The Complete list of the DC Young Adult novels

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In 2017, Warner Bros. and DC Entertainment partnered with Random House Books for Young Readers to publish young adult novels naturally set outside DC Comics’ main continuity. Those are coming-of-age stories centered on the characters when they are younger and discovering who they are and what it means to be a hero.

Those are all original stories, and not retellings of classic origin stories, written by some of the most famous young adult novel writers right now. And if this all began in the book format, some of those stories have also been adapted into graphic novels (it’s DC Comics after all!).

The DC Icons Series is one of the lines developed by DC Comics to attract a younger and new audience to the world of superhero comics and for them to become more familiar with those pop culture icons that everybody knows by name.

Below you’ll find a list of the DC Icons book series, with Batman, Catwoman, Wonder Woman, and more…

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