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The Inhumans: Unraveling the Origins of Marvel’s Enigmatic Royal Family

The story goes that during the 2010s, Marvel decided to push the X-Men to the side in favor of the Inhumans, as they preferred properties for which they had full screen rights at the time. Their attempt to position the Inhumans as replacements for the X-Men didn’t pay off and, worse, gave the public a misleading image of this superhuman race, which is not comprised of mutants. This effort was further hampered by the failure of the 2017 Inhumans TV series.

However, a look back at their origins in comic book titles reveals that the Inhumans are quite different from the X-Men. Originally conceived with Jack Kirby’s psychedelic aesthetic, they were weirder, their powers crazier, and their stories more otherworldly.

It all started twenty-five thousand years ago when Kree scientists, drawn to Earth beings’ incredible potential, experimented on them to create a superhuman army. These experiments ultimately resulted in the development of the Inhumans, a species with superhuman strength and long lifespans.

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Elongated Man Reading Order (Ralph Dibny)

In The Flash #112 published in 1960, writer John Broome and penciler Carmine Infantino told the story of how The Flash went after Elongated Man, suspecting him of being behind multiple crimes. It turns out that he was framed. In fact, he is the opposite of a criminal, he is a superhero detective and his secret identity is Ralph Dibny.

Well, everybody quickly learned who was Ralph Dibny as he was one of the first to publicly reveal who he really was behind the costume. He’s also one of the only superheroes to get married. But he rarely starred in his own series–however, he had a lot of backup stories in Detective Comics.

Apparently, editor Julius Schwartz didn’t know at the time that DC Comics had the rights to Plastic Man when Ralph was created (also, Superman’s pal Jimmy Olsen had been Elastic Lad for a time, so no “Elastic” for Ralph). What Schwartz wanted was a new supporting hero and the one he got was not that serious about being a hero.

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Rocket Raccoon Reading Order

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During the 1970s, Marvel expanded its offer with magazines. One of them was the black and white “Marvel Preview” in which Bill Mantlo started the science-fiction serial “The Sword in the Star.” The story was about a character named Prince Wayfinder of the planet Ithacon who was searching for a mythical sword. This didn’t last long, only two chapters were published, but the second one published in Marvel Preview #7 in 1976 introduced an anthropomorphic character who’s quite popular now, the famous Rocket Raccoon.

At the time though, in this story drawn by Keith Giffen (his first professional comic book job), he was called Rocky. A fan of the Beatles, Mantlo was inspired by their 1968 song “Rocky Raccoon” from the White Album which is a cowboy story. Elements of the song were also used for Rocket’s second appearance equipped with rocket-powered skates and laser pistols, in The Incredible Hulk #271 (published in 1982). That’s when it was explained that his real name was Rocket. After his team up with the Hulk, Rocket Raccoon starred in his first miniseries and then made a few apparitions next to other heroes. Nothing of note for a long time.

It really was during the Annihilation: Conquest crossover that Rocket Raccoon found its place in the Marvel Universe, with the Guardians of the Galaxy. He went from law officer from the planet Halfworld to military tactician protecting the Universe.

Now, let’s explore the comic books featuring Rocket Raccoon with this reading order!

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Who Is Mister Terrific? A DC Comics Superhero

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There is not one, but two superheroes named Mister Terrific in the DC Comics Universe. Like many others, the original was created during the Golden Age Era and the second one took up the mantle decades later, reviving the legacy of a–probably forgotten–member of the Justice Society of America. 

Terry Sloane, Golden Age’s Mister Terrific 

Like Wildcat and the Gay Ghost, Mister Terrific first appeared in Sensation Comics #1 (1942). Created by Charles Reizenstein and Hal Sharp, this superhero was mostly thought of as just another masked mystery man, but he had a darker start than others.

You see, Terry Sloane may have had everything you’d ever want, but the thing that was missing led him to contemplate suicide. Known as “The Man of 1,000 Talents,” Terry was rich, he possessed a photographic memory and the skills of an Olympic athlete, and he was a master of the martial arts. He was a highly intelligent, natural-born leader, and an accomplished businessman. All of that in his early 20s!

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Hasbro Comic Book Universe Reading Order (2005-2018)

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As the Energon Universe featuring characters from Transformers and G.I. Joe is expanding, we take a look back at the previous Comic Book Universe based on several Hasbro brands and published by IDW – The Hasbro Comic Book Universe or HCBU!

IDW picked up the Transformers license in 2005 and obtained the rights for G.I. Joe in 2008, but the Hasbro Comic Book Universe was officially launched in 2016 with the release of the Revolution miniseries, a crossover event involving many characters from Hasbro and establishing a shared universe for all these brands. It was then decided that all the stories previously published were retroactively set in the same continuity.

Revolution wasn’t IDW’s first crossover event connecting several licensed series. The publisher released Infestation at the beginning of 2011 in which a zombie infectation spread between dimensions and reached into the worlds of Transformers, Star Trek, G.I. Joe, and Ghostbusters. None of them interact with each other at any point. A follow up called Infestation 2 was released a year later involving this time The Transformers, Dungeons & Dragons, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, G.I. Joe and 30 Days of Night.

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What Is the Marvel Method?

Roy Thomas explained the Marvel MEthod in the backup story in Avengers Annual #2

There is not one and only proven way that every cartoonist follows to make comics. In mainstream comics, it’s common for a writer to produce a full script that the artist follows to produce the illustrations—then the inker, colorist, and many more people add to it.

This was not the standard for a long time at Marvel Comics. There, writers and artists worked together by following what is commonly known as The Marvel Method.

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Creature Commandos Reading Order, the black ops team of monsters (DC Comics)

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DC Comics has a talent for creating unique superhero teams, such as the Metal Men, the robotic superhero team, and Doom Patrol, the iconic group of super-powered misfits. Another unique team from DC is the Creature Commandos, World War II’s weirdest warriors!

Created by writer J. M. DeMatteis and artist Pat Broderick, the Creature Commandos made their first appearance in Weird War Tales #93. It all started in the Midwest, on a spring day in 1942, where Lieutenant Matthew Shrieve introduced the Creature Commandos to various generals, admirals, and senators as part of the mysterious Project “M”—one of those classic World War II government projects creating specialized soldiers!

The team was sent on a mission in France and deployed to Dinosaur Island, but their time on the pages of DC Comics was short-lived, and they quickly disappeared into obscurity. Throughout the years, the Creature Commandos occasionally reappeared and were reimagined as members of S.H.A.D.E. during the New 52 era. They never really left a significant mark and remained in one of those obscure corners of the DC until recently.

The team recently gained mainstream attention for starring in a new adult animated television series as part of the DC Universe, the new shared universe created by James Gunn and Peter Safran, which serves as a soft reboot of the DC Extended Universe.

To learn more about the Creature Commandos of DC Comics, follow our reading order guide, guiding you through the issues featuring this team of monsters!

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Umbrella Academy Reading Order: How to Start reading Gerard Way and Gabriel Ba’s comic book series?

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You may know Umbrella Academy thanks to its television adaptation by Netflix. Written by Gerard Way (of My Chemical Romance) and illustrated by Gabriel Bá, Umbrella Academy is described as a “dysfunctional family of superheroes” — and part of our 15 Dark Horse Must-Read Comic Books.

All began with an inexplicable worldwide event, where forty-three extraordinary children were spontaneously born by women who’d previously shown no signs of pregnancy. Millionaire inventor Reginald Hargreeves adopts seven of the children and prepares them to save the world from an unspecified threat as the Umbrella Academy.

The members are Spaceboy (Luther Hargreeves), The Kraken (Diego Hargreeves), The Rumor (Allison Hargreeves), The Séance (Klaus Hargreeves), The Boy (Number Five), The Horror (Ben Hargreeves), and The White Violin (Vanya Hargreeves).

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The Penguin, Your Recommended Reading List for Batman’s Iconic Enemy

There is no doubt that The Penguin has stood out like few other Batman villains on the small and big screen. Burgess Meredith’s memorable portrayal in the 1960s television series influenced the comic book representation of the character, while Danny DeVito’s iconic portrayal in Batman Returns delivered the scariest version of Cobblepot. Played with gusto by Robin Lord Taylor, The Penguin was also the breakout character of the show Gotham. And now, Oswald Cobblepot headlines his own television series, played by Colin Farrell, reprising his role from the 2022 movie The Batman.

In a way, The Penguin is one of those characters (like Lois Lane) who are more famous for their representation in other media than in comics. Despite being introduced more than 80 years ago, The Penguin has remained an obscure antagonist for a long time. More often than not, he is part of a larger event or story but rarely in the spotlight. Oswald Cobblepot likes to stay in the shadows so much that there are relatively few stories focused solely on him compared to some other members of Batman’s rogues gallery.

For new readers who want to learn more about Oswald Cobblepot or seasoned readers who want to reconnect with the character, here is a recommended reading guide for The Penguin.

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JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure Manga in Order

One of the longest manga series, JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure will ensure long reading sessions with more than 134 volumes released (and more coming). Created by Hirohiko Araki more than 35 years ago – it started in 1987 to be precise -, JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure tells the story of the Joestar family and their endless conflict with the supernatural.

JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure became one of the most famous manga for its art style, flamboyant characters, wild humor and bloody battles. Split into nine parts (at this date), each one explores different characters and themes, thriving to deliver something different at every opportunity.

The manga became very popular in 1989 with its most iconic arc Stardust Crusaders, and grew into a media franchise including spin-off manga, light novels, video games, TV anime, and live-action films.

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