Recommend comics to PrincessAmethyst

Here is a sad truth, I never got the chance to read many comic books as I was growing up. I was so focused on survival at all times, that comics were simply the last thing on my mind. I joined this app when it first launched because DC helped me through one of my darkest periods (during Infinite Crisis), so I wanted to join up when this launched to support them. I have read some Wonder Woman, Infinite Crisis and the various events from that, Manhunter, and Shadowpact. The rest of the DC Universe, however, is more or less a blank slate to me. I can remember bits and pieces sometimes from things I have researched, but that is research. Not the same as getting to read the words that were created on the page.

So this is where you come in, as a community member, I am asking for some recommendations. Since the expansion of comics, I have felt overwhelmed due to not having interacted with almost anything on here. There are a LOT of titles on here! I would like people to recommend their favorite story arcs to me. There are few few things that are required though, which are as followed:

  1. The story arc should be between one to seven issues. Sorry, I am not looking to read something like “No Man’s Land” until I am good and ready on my own time, but feel free to mention major events in your post that you think I may want to consider, but state it is not your recommendation for me. Yes, I will consider something that is a maxi-series. I just don’t want an entire series like Detective Comics being recommended to me, okay? Focus on specific runs and arcs, if you do decide on a longer series.

  2. Tell me WHY I should read it. I have marked this as a spoiler thread because I want you to give me a reason. Try not to be posting the BIG stuff, but explain what makes you love it to me. Tell me what makes it important to the DC Universe. In other words, you have to talk about the recommendation for me to take it on. It may just be that they are an obscure character you love, but tell me WHY you love that obscure character. Share a bit more about your love of these various comics books, so I can see why I should go read a particular title. Feel free to second someone else’s recommendation as well. If you agree with someone’s reasoning tell me, so I can see that as well. Make this as much of a conversation about these recommendations as you want.

  3. The title must be available on the DC Universe app at the time of your recommendation. If you want to mention something not currently digitized that I should look into share it in your post, but do not make it your primary recommendation. I am looking for things that I can read here. Thanks!

I will be coming back on here to say when I have read to a certain place on the list or where I am at on it. I am going to work through the list as much as possible in my spare time. Again if you don’t follow the three rules above, I won’t read your recommendation. I appreciate any of you that provide recommendations to me. Love and light always!

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Batman: Black Mirror is really great. It’s 11 issues (Detective comics 871-881), so it’s not as short as you specified, but it’s not so long. It follows Dick Grayson as Batman, and has James Gordon Jr. as the main villain with other various interesting subplots. There are different artists for the different plot lines which creates a cool effect. All in all, just a great story and (for me at least) it gave me a good spook :slight_smile:

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If you want to find it, you can “browse by category and find Batman Black Mirror under storylines I think

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Great explanation. Dick Grayson as Batman has me totally sold on it already and spooky makes me more excited than you know. Starting this recommendation now.

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First off, while it is longer than what you asked for, I would suggest giving the series 52 a shot some time in the future, because that is a direct continuation to stuff that’s in Infinite Crisis and follows some great characters like Booster Gold, Black Adam, The Question and Renee Montoya, as well as the introduction to the modern Batwoman.

As for other arcs to recommend:

So if you’re looking for similar flawed yet badass ladies like Manhunter, I’d check out the first arc to Greg Rucka’s run of Batwoman in Detective Comics, #854-857, but after what happens at the end, you might be really tempted to check out the following arc in #858-860, which covers Kate’s origin story. Kate is written to be a wonderfully complex and compelling character, and the J.H. Williams III artwork is stunning, especially in the origin arc, where he switches styles in multiple pages and make each of them work.

If you’re also into magical team books, I’d check out Justice League Dark, specifically the first arc of Jeff Lemire’s run, which is #9-13 and ends with Annual #1. It has a similarly strong team of characters, each with their own flaws and quirks and dynamics with each other, all with a solid premise and great early art by Mikel Janin.

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If you want to laugh and are in the mood for sheer goofyness, you can’t go wrong with Ambush Bug: Year None.

I’d go into a full Library of Congress approved summary of it, but for that it’s just better if you read it for yourself.

Also: any title that stars Lobo (minus the New 52 Lobo series).

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I would recommend New Frontier by Darwyn Cooke.
There’s six issues and then a special.

It captures the Silver Age feel while at the same time feels very contemporary.
And Darwyn Cooke was an extraordinary artist.

If you find the art to your liking, I would also recommend Catwoman: Selina’s Big Score, also done by Cooke.
It’s a pulpy story that puts Selina in a heist film type scenario and was similar in tone to her 2002 ongoing series.

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@Jay_Kay I consider 52 as part of Infinite Crisis and its stuff. So it I have read and actually somehow own all of it. I have not read any of Batwoman’s other stories though so definitely adding it and the JL Dark arc to my TBR list. Thanks!

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If you’re jonesin’ for an interesting mini-series, DC Universe: Legacies is worth looking into.

It’s a ten issue (I know, it’s more than seven) mini-series written by Len Wein (co-creator of Swamp Thing) that details the DC Universe up until 2010 (when the series ended).

There’s a variety of fun characters and eras profiled across the ten issues. You might discover something new in it that becomes your next passionate DC interest.

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Oh yes, definitely second the New Frontier.

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Another vote for New Frontier!

And (12-issue) All-Star Superman, because: It’s written by Grant Morrison and drawn by Frank Quitely. It loves Superman and distills him down to his lovable essence. It’s kind. So kind.

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You should try the DC Annuals from 1996, I just started going through them. They’re Elseworlds stories focusing on a possible future of the Post Crisis landscape in which the heroes have all passed on and all that’s left are their legends. They’ve been pretty good so far; Flash and Impulse are the ones I’ve read, Lobo is next, I’m saving Warrior for last since Guy Gardner is my favorite Lantern. Best part is that they’re only loosely connected, so you’re not missing anything if you just don’t like the character it’s focusing on.

If you like small, one-issue stories, check out DC Elseworlds on here. It’s a pretty good collection of titles that have appeared either under the Elseworlds banner or in an Elseworlds collection, but that does mean there are a few Elseworlds books you have to dig for (like the Annuals from '94 and’96).

Secret Six (2006) is also one of my all time favorites, but I’d recommend starting with Villains United first. That one’s about a group of villains that take on missions that usually end in lots of dead people. The leader is a former D-List Batman Villain named Catman , who quickly become one of my favorite characters due to his backstory. It’s a series with a very Suicide Squad feel, but more fun since the team actually chooses to do their jobs instead of being threatened with exploding heads.

If you saw and enjoyed Aquaman, you might like The Atlantis Chronicles; a series about the history of Atlantis and it’s magics.

I also can’t recommend New Frontier enough, it’s sort of reimagining of the rise of the Silver Age heroes and the art is just fantastic.

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@Vroom - Thanks for recommending Legacies here. That’s the kind of book I like the most; lots of history explored in a smaller frame. I hadn’t heard of it till now. I really wish Superman & Batman: Generations was on here. I’ve been dying to read it for a few years now.

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Here’s a recommendation for each of the Big Five:

Superman Annual #11: For the Man Who Has Everything is a classic story. I actually have a couple gripes with its handling of Superman as a character (namely, portraying him as obsessing over Krypton), but that’s more the fault of Pre-Crisis Superman in general, and seems to be what Moore is trying to criticize. Regardless, it’s an interesting, creative, and very well-written one-shot story.

Batman: Legacy: It might be an issue or two longer than your limit if you count the prelude and epilogue issues, but is on the right general scale. Regardless, it’s a great story. You get to see the Bat-Family in action, being awesome up against some of their most dangerous villains and dealing with a world-ending threat. Detective Comics #700 kicks off the story proper, and is really entertaining even just on its own (though it obviously ends on a cliffhanger). Really good stuff. You might want to read Contagion first, but it’s not super necessary and Contagion has some weird plot holes.

Wonder Woman (1987) #1-7: Wonder Woman’s Post-Crisis origin. It’s got an epic story and beautiful art by George Perez. While some questionable editorial decisions surround it, as an origin story in its own right, it’s brilliant. Honestly, the entire series is great, and actually gets even better when Perez takes over the script (he was doing the story from the beginning), but the origin is particularly exciting.

The Flash (1987) #73-79: I would describe this as the story where Wally West stopped being Barry Allen’s replacement and started being the Flash. It has a great twist that’s set up perfectly, some really compelling drama, and some of the earliest explorations of the Flash Family and the Speed Force as concepts. Mark Waid’s entire run is fantastic, but as far as what I’ve read, this is the high point.

Green Lantern (2005) #29-35: Geoff Johns’ run on Green Lantern is also great, but a lot of the major stories are longer than your limit, so this one is his reworking of the origin story.

Actually, most of these are stories that can get you hooked on a longer run if you like them: Dixon’s Detective Comics and Robin (and Nightwing and Birds of Prey, for that matter; the dude wrote a lot of Bat-Books), Perez’s Wonder Woman, Waid’s Flash, and Johns’ Green Lantern are all awesome. I just haven’t really read enough Superman stuff to give any good recommendations along those lines there, so I just went with the best I have read.

A couple other favorite Batman oneshots, while I’m thinking about it: Detective Comics #651 and #826. The first is just a fun mystery and the second is a tense, well-plotted Joker story, and to date is my favorite single issue.

Given the limited scope of what you have read on here, I would recommend Kingdom Come, a great look at a dystopian future of the DC Universe and amazing artwork.

Also anything Harley Quinn, just start with the 2013 series and keep reading, what I did none of the stories are past six episodes.

Also given you are a fan of Amethyst, if you don’t know about it you should read DC Comics Presents #63 which features Superman and Amethyst teaming up, and is I believe the first time (and for a long time only time) that Amethyst really interacted with anyone and anything in the rest of the DC Universe.

And while you are there read DC Comics Presents #81, which I recommend to everyone who wants a laugh as it is the most hilarious 24 pages of comic books ever written.

Superman: Secret Identity is also a great read. One of the more believable looks at what it might be like if Superman really existed in the real world that we live in.

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For Superman excellence, you can’t beat the whirlwind, heart pounding slobberknocker that is (pause for dramatic effect):

Superman and Bugs Bunny.

Four issues of furry fun and astounding action!

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Check out DC 1st: Batgirl/Joker. It’s one of my favorite one shot Cassandra Cain stories, and one of my favorite ways anyone’s ever dealt with the threat of The Joker.

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If this helps, I have a reading order for Rebirth hear which includes a list of the must reads of rebirth.
https://docs.google.com/document/d/17dpDIP4Fi4wGjv37vxxFhnaMZ8BQGmbJ-ic2fX7QkH8/edit

It includes in Section 2) the highlights and Section 3) The Best Series.

Consider Rebirth because these series still have effects on todays comics!

Remember the rules, @Nathan. 1-7 issue arcs only, for now.

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