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Nick Fury Reading Order

Created by writer/artist Jack Kirby and writer Stan Lee, Colonel Nicholas Joseph “Nick” Fury Sr. has a long career in the Marvel Universe! Born around 1920, he enrolled in the American Army at the age of 20 and became leader of an elite U.S. Army Ranger unit during WWII in Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos #1 (1963).

After the war, he trained and became a Colonel in the Central Intelligence Agency O.S.S., the predecessor of the CIA. He worked for them until Tony Stark recruited him to lead the counterespionage agency known as S.H.I.E.L.D. Nick Fury has never been the type of man sitting behind a desk and he transformed himself into a sort of James Bond-like spy, going on the field for important missions. The agency grew under his command and built important alliances with the Avengers and other teams of superheroes.

But all is not what it seems in the spy world, and soon, Nick Fury finds himself in some complex spying game, leading him to disband and rebuild the S.H.I.E.L.D. Like many Marvel Characters, be assured that Nick died at some point and came back, quit, or retired from his position. And more improbable things completely change his place in the Comic book world.

So today, we dive into the long history of Nick Fury (and his many SHIELD missions!) with this Nick Fury Reading Order!

This reading order was suggested by Jal Hicham, one of our readers! Don’t hesitate to leave a comment or write to us with some other suggestions!

Your Nick Fury Comic Book List

Don’t forget to read our article about the creation and comic book origin of Nick Fury!

Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos

Nick Fury made his debut as the leader of The Howling Commandos, an elite unit team formed in World War II. With Dum Dum Dugan, Gabe Jones, Jim Morita, Jacques Dernier and the others, the team fought alongside Captain America and Bucky, battled the nefarious Barons Strucker and Zemo, and set out to capture Adolf Hitler himself!

In Epic Collection

Also in Marvel Masterworks

If the series was popular at the time, Marvel hasn’t collected the rest of Sgt. Fury for the moment. Around issue #50 was launched, Captain Savage and his Leatherneck Raiders, a spin-off created by Gary Friedrich and Dick Ayers which lasted 19 issues.

  • Sgt. Fury #44-120 (and several Annuals)
  • Marvel Comics Presents (1988) #77-79
    Nick Fury appears in the “Rumanian Rumble” story set in July 43 (the book indicates 42 but it is a mistake).

For a more modern approach, check out the following title:

  • Captain America: White
    The Howling Commandos plays a supporting role in Jeff Loeb and Tim Sale’s homage to the Captain America comics from the Golden Age released in 2015.
  • Sgt. Fury & his Howling Commandos: Shotgun Opera
    a one-shot featuring Sgt. Fury & his Howling Commandos written by Jesse Alexander released in 2009 and set in the early days of the war.
  • Captain America/Nick Fury: The Otherworld War
    Published in 2001, a one-shot written by Peter K. Hogansees sees Captain America and Sgt. Fury joins forces to take out the hated Red Skull, who has stolen a mysterious secret weapon.

Nick Fury, Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D.

A few months after his introduction as a fighter during WWII, the “modern-day” version of Nick Fury was introduced in Fantastic Four #21. He is a wartime hero and an agent of the CIA, but not for long as he joins S.H.I.E.L.D. (Supreme Headquarters, International Espionage and Law-Enforcement Division) in Strange Tales #135. The most celebrated run centered on Nick Fury started around issue #151 when Jim Steranko started working on the title as an artist before taking over the writing with #155. When the title was canceled, Nick Fury spun off into his own book that lasted only 15 issues.

In one big Omnibus

Also in Masterworks

Nick Fury in Captain Britain #25

Nick Fury, Guest Star

Following the cancellation of Nick Fury, Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D. at the end of the sixties, it would take two decades before the character headlined another series. It doesn’t mean Nick completely disappeared during that time (though, the spy knows how to go into hiding if necessary!), as he will appear in other Marvel series, such as Captain America, Daredevil, Hulk, Avengers, Fantastic Four, Captain Britain and a few more. 

To be a little more precise, Nick Fury and the S.H.I.E.L.D. had a recurring presence in Captain America and he even met the Prime Minister of England while Captain Britain and America fought Red Skull. Following is an incomplete and totally optional reading list, but you can still take a peek at those stories! Don’t hesitate to leave a comment suggesting stories with Nick Fury from this period if you have a favorite!

Introduced in Nick Fury, Agent of SHIELD #1, Scorpio takes center stage in Defenders to reveal his origins in issue #49 – a story you cannot skip for it will have an impact on many others after.

Nick Fury in the 90s!

In the nineties, Nick Fury regained his place under the spotlight. This is also a period where S.H.I.E.L.D. faces its greatest threat – from within! Those events would lead to a new S.H.I.E.L.D., standing now for Agent of Strategic Hazard Intervention, Espionage and Logistics Directorate!

As for Nick Fury himself, it would mean many investigations and confrontations with enemies such as Baron Von Strucker, Hydra, the Yellow Claw and more!

Now that this volume of Nick Fury, Agent Of S.H.I.E.L.D. is over, it’s a good time to dive more into some of Nick Fury’s story with Wolverine.

  • Wolverine: Patch
    a 2022 miniseries by Larry Hama set before the beginning of his Wolvie’s run (1990-1997) with Colonel Nick Fury as a supporting player.
  • Wolverine: Inner Fury
    Published in 1991. Collected in Wolverine Epic Collection: Inner Fury or Wolverine Omnibus Vol. 4
  • Wolverine: Bloody Choices
    Collected in Wolverine and Nick Fury: Scorpio. Also released in 1991. Considered the second part of the Wolverine/Nick Fury trilogy (and a great Wolvie story!).
  • Wolverine/Nick Fury: Scorpio Rising
    Collected in Wolverine and Nick Fury: Scorpio. This last part of the Wolverine/Nick Fury trilogy was released in 1994.

After all those adventures, Nick Fury continued to have his name attached to different titles. First, he was present in Marvel Comics Presents…

  • Marvel Comics Presents (1988) #157, in the story “Jury of Your Peers”
  • Marvel Comics Presents (1988) #159, in the story “Duty and Country”
  • Marvel Comics Presents (1988) #171, in the story “Codename: Wolfen”
  • Marvel Comics Presents (1988) #173-174, in the stories “Test Run” and “Breakthrough”

Then, he was associated with other Marvel Characters for some one-shots or miniseries:

Nick Fury enters the 2000s

Once again without a title, Nick Fury acted as a supporting character for Captain America when Dan Jurgens was the main writer (his run is collected in one big omnibus!) and beyond while appearing in many other Marvel titles such as Iron Man (the Manhunt arc) and Fantastic Four (in the Authoritative Action arc). Simply put, there were not a lot of stories with Nick Fury in a starring role with two exceptions:

  • Captain America and Nick Fury: The Otherworld War (set during the war)
  • Marvel Knights: Double Shot #2, in the story “Nick’s World…” (written by Grant Morrison)

Nick Fury’s life and the Marvel Universe took a turn with Brian Michael Bendis’ era of events, starting with Secret War in which Fury manipulated several heroes for a dangerous and illegal mission with terrible consequences.

  • Secret War 
    Collects Secret War (2004) #1-5 and Secret War: From the Files of Nick Fury.

At the end of Secret War, Nick Fury is forced to go underground and Maria Hill is put in charge of SHIELD, starting a new era. Still in hiding during the Civil War, he helped Cap and his Secret Avengers and let them use one of his safe houses. While this event is an optional read for Nick, this is one of those important events for the Marvel Universe, so we can only invite you to read it if you haven’t already.

  • Civil War
    Collects Civil War #1-7, plus extras.

Not long after, The Secret Invasion begins with a brutal battle between the New Avengers and the Hand—one that claims the life of Elektra and reveals that she was a Skrull! What Nick Fury is doing and who can he trust? Check out our full reading order for the whole event.

As Norman Osborn starts his Dark Reign, Nick Fury and his Secret Warriors introduced during Secret Invasion uncover a dark secret propelling them into an underworld of rogue S.H.I.E.L.D. agents, super-powered spies, and global criminal organizations. This is also considered the debut of Jonathan Hickman at Marvel, who also wrote the Fantastic Four during this Marvel era.

  • Secret Warriors Omnibus
    Collects Mighty Avengers (2007) #13, 18; Secret Warriors (2009) #1-28; Dark Reign: The List – Secret Warriors (2009) #1; Siege: Secret Warriors (2010) #1 and material from Dark Reign: New Nation (2009) #1

Interlude: Before Nick Fury and the S.H.I.E.L.D… Brotherhood of the Shield

Until now, Nick Fury and S.H.I.E.L.D.’s story has been intertwined. It seems appropriate to take a little detour to dive more into the secret origins of the organization before a new chapter is written for Nick Fury. The character is not present in Jonathan Hickman and Dustin Weaver’s S.H.I.E.L.D. which tells us the secret history of S.H.I.E.L.D. stretching back thousands of years. Actually this is not really about the S.H.I.E.L.D. but what came before the organization. You can skip it, read it here, or at any moment you want.

Nick Fury, From Spy to The Unseen

Nick Fury is a man of many secrets and a few of them were about to be revealed! It starts with The Avengers discovering that Nick Fury was the head of the Avengers Initiative, a group of super-humans in 1959.

A new Nick Fury for a new generation! Battle Scars is a six-issue miniseries that has been created to introduce Nick Fury Jr, a character based on the version played by Samuel L. Jackson in the movies. It also introduces Phil Coulson into the Marvel Comics continuity.

Original Sin! Who shot the Watcher? Uatu, the mysterious space-god who’s been watching mankind from the moon for as long as we can remember has been killed and this investigation will change Nick Fury’s place in the Marvel Universe! For the complete event, see our Original Sin Reading Order!

Nick Fury: Max Version by Garth Ennis

From World War II to his SHIELD Days, Garth Ennis wrote several Nick Fury stories under the MAX Imprint, Marvel’s adult-only readers collection. Those comics take place in their continuity and are connected to Garth Ennis’ run on The Punisher MAX.

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