Originally presented as a limited series (and now a Netflix Show!), Sweet Tooth was written and drawn by Jeff Lemire — and published by Vertigo (DC Comics) between 2009 and 2013. Now the series came back, and there are multiple editions. Here is a guide to help you navigate all this.
But first, what’s the story? Here is the official Sweet Tooth Synopsis: Seven years ago, the Affliction raged like a forest fire, killing billions. The only children born since are part of a new breed of human-animal hybrids. Gus is one of these children: a boy with a sweet soul, a sweeter tooth—and the features of a deer. But kids like Gus have a price on their heads.
When vicious hunters descend on his isolated forest home, a mysterious and violent man called Jepperd rescues Gus. The hulking drifter promises to lead Gus to the Preserve, a fabled safe haven for hybrid children. As the two cross this dangerous new American frontier, will Jepperd corrupt the boy he’s nicknamed “Sweet Tooth,” or will Gus’ heart change Jepperd?
Sweet Tooth Comics, The Original series
a. Sweet Tooth TPBs
- Sweet Tooth Vol. 1: Out of the Deep Woods
Collects Sweet Tooth #1-5. - Sweet Tooth Vol. 2: In Captivity
Collects Sweet Tooth #6-11.
- Sweet Tooth Vol. 3: Animal Armies
Collects Sweet Tooth #12-17. - Sweet Tooth Vol. 4: Endangered Species
Collects Sweet Tooth #18-25. - Sweet Tooth Vol. 5: Unnatural Habitats
Collects Sweet Tooth #26-32. - Sweet Tooth Vol. 6: Wild Game
Collects Sweet Tooth #33-40.
b. Sweet Tooth Deluxe Editions
The beautiful Hardcover edition collects the full original Sweet Tooth series as well as never-before-seen sketches.
- Sweet Tooth Deluxe Edition Books One
Collects Sweet Tooth #1-12. - Sweet Tooth Deluxe Edition Book Two
Collects Sweet Tooth #13-25. - Sweet Tooth Deluxe Edition Book Three
Collects Sweet Tooth #26-40.
c. Sweet Tooth Compendium
A big paperback edition of the first series.
- Sweet Tooth Compendium
Collects Sweet Tooth #1-40.
Sweet Tooth: The Return
Sweet Tooth came back in November 2020, prior to the Netflix series. Here is the official description of the new story: This haunting tale is both new and familiar, as we return to a planet long past the point of devastation. Are Gus’s dreams leading him to forge a better future for himself and the other hybrid children? Or are they the dreams of a mind as lost and wandering as its dreamer?
- Sweet Tooth: The Return
Collects Sweet Tooth: The Return #1-6.