This summer, Deadpool is breaking the Fourth Wall on the big screen once again… This time with Wolverine! Before watching Deadpool & Wolverine (2024), why not read some good comics featuring Wade Wilson?
Born in Canada, Deadpool is known as the Merc With a Mouth. He’s a wise-cracking, insufferable lethal mercenary who just can’t shut up! Is he mad or a genius? A hero who commits regular felonies or a villain doing occasional good deeds?
Learn more about Marvel’s famous mercenary, The Man, The Myth, The Legend with our recommended reading list!
The Best Deadpool Comics To Start With!
The Defining Run: Deadpool by Joe Kelly
Deadpool (1997) #0-33, Annual 1997-1998
In 1997, Deadpool got his own series for the first time with Joe Kelly creating the iconic and character-defining run that is still beloved today. The series took a stab at the antihero comics of the time with a mix of action and comedy, serious moments and funny pop culture jokes.
While Deadpool was introduced as a villain, Joe Kelly stirs away the character from this one-dimensional role, launches Deadpool in a quest to be a hero, and steadily establishes the character in a moral grey area. The Merc with a Mouth is helped by a supporting cast such as prisoner, friend, housekeeper and mother figure Al Blind, arm dealer and friend Weasel, and villains T-Ray and Ajax.
If you also asked yourself when Deadpool broke the Fourth Wall for the first time, check out Deadpool #28.
Collected in
Deadpool Epic Collection: Mission Improbable
Deadpool Epic Collection: Drowning Man
Deadpool Epic Collection: Dead Reckoning
The Other Gold Standard Run: Deadpool by Brian Posehn & Gerry Duggan
Deadpool (2013) #1-45, Deadpool: Dracula’s Gauntlet, and Death of Wolverine: Deadpool & Captain America #1.
Joe Kelly set the foundations for the character and Posehn and Gerry Duggan built upon everything to give one of the most celebrated runs for Marvel’s famous mercenary. From the zombie presidents’ threat to Deadpool’s marriage to the succubus Queen Shiklah, the series delivers a blend of humor, action and heart.
It’s also clearly a perfect starting point for readers who are more comfortable reading modern stories. While it starts slowly by falling into the classic pitfalls of writing Deadpool as a cartoon character with no depth or heart, Posehn and Duggan’s run evolved to deliver an exploration of Deadpool’s struggles with his own identity and past, introduces new elements to his story and cement Deadpool’s place as a unique and complex antihero in the Marvel Universe.
Collected in
Deadpool By Posehn & Duggan Omnibus
Deadpool: Suicide Kings, by Mike Benson, Carlo Barberi, and Sandu Florea
Deadpool: Suicide Kings (2009) #1-5
Want to read a short and self-contained Deadpool story first? The limited series Suicide Kings fit the bills! This is your typical Deadpool story with some Marvel guest starring to help or condemn our anti-hero.
After his last job, The Merc with a Mouth finds himself framed for a murder he didn’t commit and maybe the person responsible is the guy who hired him in the first place. Now, Wade needs to clear his name and take revenge, but for that, he need to avoid being capture or killed. On the road, he has to face Daredevil, the Punisher and Spider-Man.
Collected in
Deadpool Classic Vol. 14: Suicide Kings
Deadpool, member of a Team: Uncanny X-Force by Rick Remender
Uncanny X-Force (2010) #1-35
As Deadpool is ready to team up with Wolvie on the big screen, Rick Remender’s Uncanny X-Force would be the perfect choice to see the two characters interact with each other. This darker take on the X-Force team focuses on a team led by Wolverine who has been assembled to take on covert missions, often involving morally ambiguous decisions.
While this is obviously a team book and Deadpool has to share the spotlight with his teammates including Archangel, Psylocke, and one of my favorite X-Men Fantomex, you’ll find some of the best of Wade’s characterization served by amazing art from Jerome Opeña, Esad Ribic and al.
Collected in
Uncanny X-Force by Rick Remender Omnibus
Cable & Deadpool by Fabian Nicieza
Cable & Deadpool (2004) #1-50
Thanks to Fabian Nicieza’s series, Deadpool’s most iconic team-up is with Cable. The dynamic between Cable’s serious, mission-driven attitude and Deadpool’s chaotic humor made this team-up a fan favorite.
The series kicks off with the two characters being forced to work together due to a virus that binds their fates. This sets the stage for a long, often humorous, and action-packed partnership filled with a few philosophical reflections as our two leading men couldn’t be more opposite even if they tried. For some basic fun action comic book time with Deadpool, this is your pick!
Collected in
Deadpool & Cable Omnibus
If you’re hungry for more Deadpool goodness, dive deeper into Wade Wilson’s world, from his team-ups with fellow heroes to his solo adventures and everything in between with our Complete Deadpool Reading Order!