Top 20 Must Read Graphic Novels

[@thatboyUPS]

I get filled with oodles of joy when I see that you’ve posted a video.

[@TevyaSmolka]

here's my top 13 list of graphic novels mostly because I can't list 20 on top of my head 13. All new wolverine by Tom taylor i think is criminally underrated in my opinion 12. daredevil born again 11. The dark phoenix saga 10. Death of superman 9.batman year one 8. Amazing Spider-Man by JMS 7. Spider-girl aka mayday parker the daughter of Peter parker and Mary jane by tom defaco and ron frenze 6. Bloodshot salvation by Jeff lemire which is really great 5. Invincible by robert kirkman 4. Action comics rebirth by Dan jurgans 3. Ultra mega a great indie book 2. Superman rebirth by Peter J tomasi and Patrick gleason 1. Super sons by Peter J tomasi and Jorge Jimenez is my favorite series of all time mostly because its has my boys Jonathan Samuel Kent superboy be his little 10 year old self and Damian wayne robin being great friends and going on fun adventures.

[@givesbeetdip0055]

I’ve been getting really into comics this year my mom got me the whole Watchmen series in hardback this past summer and I got an assortment of comics recently. So I’ve been watching videos on what I should read next and so far this has been my favorite and I’m only 3 minutes in. Your extra info about how they changed the panels through the 4 issues before was so interesting I’m glad I know it now

[@TheRealComicBookGamer]

That's awesome! Glad ya liked the vid.

[@Alistair_McCullom]

Love the new background or shelf or whatever

[@spoodurmin9742]

Might be biased her cus it was one of the first comics I read, but the OG Bendis-Bagley Ultimate Spider-Man run should be here

[@Lancelogos]

I think your right about all star Superman. I hated Superman and then I read all star Superman and felt like I finally get why people like him. All star Superman made me a fan of Superman when I thought it couldn’t be done.

[@loganthomas2421]

Great list man. Your og 20 must read graphic novels was the first vid on your channel I watched so it’s nice to see this throwback to it. Here’s my top 20 in no particular order: 1. X-men god loves man kills 2. Killing joke 3. Kingdom come 4. Wolverine by Claremont and Miller 5. Kraven’s last hunt 6. New frontier by Darwyn Cooke 7. DKR 8. Watchmen 9. All star Superman 10. Swamp thing by Alan Moore 11. Daredevil born again 12. Snake eyes declassified 13. JH no way back 14. V for vendetta 15. Dark Phoenix saga 16. Batman year one 17. Kill or be killed 18. Invincible 19. Gideon falls 20. Batman the long Halloween

[@donovanciolek]

My top 5 using books you didn't put on here would be, 1.Superman: Secret origin 2.Reckless vol 1 3.Batman: The Court of owls 4.Teen Titans vol 1 (Geoff Johns) 5. Captain America: Castaway in Dimension Z

[@peterfalc9989]

Kill or Be Killed is amazing!! Im really happy to see it on here!

[@devanbarrios9216]

This was a pretty good list. I'm gonna try to do a Top 5. Here goes: 1. Batman: The Long Halloween by Jeph Loeb and Tim Sale 2. Firepower by Robert Kirkman and Chris Samnee Volume 1 3. Superman: Secret Identity by Kurt Busiek and Stuart Immonen 4. Geiger by Geoff Johns and Gary Frank 5. Spider-Man: Spider's Shadow by Chip Zdarsky and Pasqual Ferry

[@thenerdtasticvoyage1745]

Not necessarily a top 20 but a couple that I would call must reads outside your list would probably include stuff like Gideon Falls, DC: The New Frontier, Grant Morrison’s Animal Man, Arkham Asylum a Serious House on Serious Earth, Saga, Alan Moore Miracleman, Planetary, Spider-Man Life Story, Lemire’s Moon Knight. Most of these break the Graphic novel rule but everyone should read them lol

[@alejandrogonzalez00]

Dude I am jealous of you right now you got that Super Sons omnibus behind you back there. That damn books out of print sadly

[@Brady_09]

I book I would recommend is Spider-Man blue

[@rohitiyer285]

Definitely

[@colesymedia8355]

Hulk grey is also decent

[@goddamnedbatman144]

New bookshelf? Also cool list but I would add the long Halloween imo best Batman comic also annihilation and sinestro corps war

[@Ethanamado]

Great video man. It's awesome to see and hear how much you love comics. Very inspiring. Thanks for the must reads!

[@RetroCinemaKingSpaceTheaters]

Mine are 1.Invincible Robert Kirkman 2. Batman Hush 3. Shazam To Hell and Back 4.Mr. Miracle 5.Dark Knight Death Metal omnibus Invincible was one of the things that got me into comics. I really like the art, characters, and story. I used to be a huge manga and anime guy, but Invincible and some stuff from DC got me into comics. I bought compendium 3 and that alone made me happy for comics. I still have it to this day. It is one of the things that makes me want to create my own comic. I mostly want to create monster comics.

[@andyapsay8220]

Hmm…Deadly Class. May need to check this out! Thanks

[@20marvelman]

Love your list dawg, you definitely needed some Immortal or Planet Hulk. Another great Kirkman book was his Irredeemable Ant-Man. Also, what are your thoughts on Spencer’s Kraven arc?

[@TheRealComicBookGamer]

I actually had World War Hulk on my list in my original video 6 years ago. I haven't read Spencer's Kraven arc, is it good? I might check it out.

[@monitor-mindtheover-void6712]

There were some books on your list I didnt expect or even knew about, so thanks for the suggestions, its been 2-3 years since I read a book last time and I think this is the time I return and read some good ones. Also, if I made this list most of the it will be filled with Grant Morrison books😆. I read and loved most of his works before I even knew he wrote them.

[@calebelectric]

I wanted to add a graphic novel that is definitely a must buy if your a fan of Darth vader. The Charles Soule run of Darth vader vol. 1: Imperial machine, art by Giuseppe Camuncoli, from 2017-2018. This takes place immediately after the events of Revenge of the Sith as its Vader’s quest to get his red lightsaber, my goodness that quest was amazing. Highly recommend

[@TheRealComicBookGamer]

Charles Soule's run is great and volume 1 is fantastic but I personally prefer Kieron Gillen's run on Vader.

[@lukemccoy7785]

I like how you didn't include Dark Knight Returns haha

[@eboi5575]

Awesome vid , thanks for the list

[@GS-yg9wk]

I highly recommend Rafał Mikołajczyk's comic "Invincible" is a graphic adaptation of Stanisław Lem's hard science fiction novel, published in 1964

[@DAYV3EN]

I have a recommendation. The first volume of John ostranders suicide squad

[@Seasonal-Shadow_4674]

Some video suggestions: Your personal 20 favorite graphic novels What you love about comics (as literature) and superheroes What you don’t love about comics and superheroes Where you think comic books can improve and what they can do differently and better

[@Arma-Dinlo]

In no order mine would probably be Batman The Long Halloween Batman Ego Batman Year One Batman Court/City of owls Batman Black Mirror Flash Rebirth (2009) Spider-Man Blue Spider-man Kraven's last hunt Spider-Man birth of venom Daredevil Born Again Daredevil The man without fear Judas Contract Any Story arc from Chuck Dixon's Nightwing Superman Up Up and away All Star Superman Watchmen Invincible either volume 1 or invincible war Moon Knight 2006 first volume Green Lantern Rebirth Anything from ultimate spider-man

[@Seasonal-Shadow_4674]

@Pastry-Man isn’t the first volume of Moon Knight where he gets abusive and Marlene leaves him?

[@Arma-Dinlo]

@@Seasonal-Shadow_4674 and the one where he crashes his plane into a building... Yeah it is lmao I just think it's a cool take on moon knight

[@lonreed3563]

You did good kid. You have all my favorites on your list.

[@moviemetalrockmcdonald1982]

Here's my list of must read graphic novels. Marvels Old Man Logan Superman: For All Seasons Red Atlantis Dead Day Daredevil: The Man Without by Frank Miller Batman: The Long Halloween

[@CAPS0L]

great list! Superman: For All Seasons is such a good Superman book. Can't wait for the absolute edition releasing in March

[@rosswilson8917]

Old Man Logan is sooo overrated.

[@anferneedeonjaca2373]

Thanks your recommendations are always spot on

[@Cheetowitcheese]

I actually read the Novelization of Kraven's Last Hunt and having a better appreciation for the character and reading the second coming of the Sinister Six issue and loving knowing why Kravin wasn't in the second coming. I will try to find the graphic novel for Kraven's Last Hunt because its time to enjoy the artwork at least for me😁.

[@TevyaSmolka]

Great list man

[@SHDWZ__]

cobras last laugh is amazing, definitely in my top 10

[@TheRealComicBookGamer]

Such an underrated book. Wish more people would read it.

[@rosswilson8917]

Agreed, it’s really good.

[@florin3456]

Awesome Video! You got yourself a sub 😄

[@ChangesOfTomorrow]

Not mentioning the Sandman has got to be some sort of comic book sin

[@BurtMandel2334]

Personally, I'm also surprised not to see Garth Ennis' Preacher, Awesome comic.

[@TevyaSmolka]

Awesome man

[@allmensland2106]

9:37 Hey I just got into the Netflix series! I was thinking of giving the book a read too for posterity, but how does the show compare to it if you’ve seen it?

[@TheRealComicBookGamer]

I haven't watched the show because from what I'd seen/heard they changed a lot of stuff from the comic. The comic is fantastic and you should definitely check it out.

[@allmensland2106]

@@TheRealComicBookGamer ah damn. Oh well, I guess I get to experience the story twice then! I’ll deffo make sure to read to original yeah, it’s on my list along with Kill or be Killed!

[@MrSonicnevets]

One I always come back to is Superior by Millar and Yu. Captain Marvel meets Superman.

[@Kingepticon]

Nailbiter (2014) by Josh Williamson A town in Oregon has produced 16 of the world’s most notorious serial killers. An FBI agent goes to investigate why that is. He goes missing and his friend, who is on the verge of suicide is asked to find him.

[@DzustComics]

Other than Cobras last laugh and No way back I've read all of these and most of them I agree with 100%. Though I thought you'd put some more Superman on there. Just something like American Alien. 😍😍😍

[@TheRealComicBookGamer]

I tried to keep the list somewhat diverse and not just fill it with Superman lol.

[@randyonmars3527]

I started writing random books to then organize into a list, but before I knew it, I had like 34 books. So I went ahead to 50 and could've kept going but 50 is more than enough. 1. Dark Knight Returns (yeah, I know) 2. Amazing Spider-man omnibus, Lee/Ditko 3. The Ultimates vol 1 hc, Millar/Hitch 4. Arkham Asylum, Grant Morrison 5. Joker, Azzarello/Bermejo 6. Long Halloween 7. Ultimate X-Men ultimate collection vol 1 8. Marvels, Busiek/Ross 9. Daredevil: Elektra Saga, Frank Miller 10. New Frontier, Darwyn Cooke 11. Batman White Knight, Sean Murphy 12. Elektra Lives Again, Frank Miller 13. Watchmen 14. Monsters, Barry Windsor-Smith 15. Wanted, Mark Millar/J.G. Jones 16. Mad Love, Dini/Timm 17. MKs Daredevil vol 2 hc, Bendis/Maleev 18. Fantastic Four: Unstable Molecules 19. Mks Fantastic Four: 1,2,3,4; Grant Morrison/Jae Lee 20. Incredible Hulk vol 2 hc, Bruce Jones 21. Batman: Year One 22. Weapon X, Barry Windsor-Smith 23. Ultimate Spider-man vol. 2 hc 24. Fantastic Four Galactus Saga Lee/Kirby 25. Lex Luthor: Man of Steel, Azzarello/Bermejo 26. Fatale, Ed Brubaker 27. Allstar Superman 28. Justice, Jim Krueger/Alex Ross/Braithwaite 29. Identity Crisis, Meltzer/Morales 30. The Dark Tower: The Gunslinger Born 31. Batman: The Man Who Laughs, Brubaker 32. Civil War, Millar/McNiven 33. House of M, Bendis/Copiel 34. Kingdom Come 35. Batman-Bruce Wayne: Murderer 36. Kraven's Last Hunt 37. Superman: For Tomorrow, Azzarello/Lee 38.Captain America by Ed Brubaker omnibus 1 39. Kickass, Millar/Romita Jr. 40. Superman Birthright 41. Loki, Rodi/Ribic 42. The Authority vol 1 hc, Ellis/Hitch 43. New X-Men vol 3 hc, Grant Morrison 44. Iron Man: Extremis, Ellis/Granov 45. Powers: Forever vol 7, Bendis/Oeming 46. Man of Steel vol 1, John Byrne 47. Nick Fury Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D., Steranko 48. King of Spies, Millar/Scalera 49. Inhumans, Paul Jenkins/Jae Lee 50. Old Man Logan, Millar/McNiven

[@joeyrill3044]

Love your picks! I went and clicked the like and subscribe for ya

[@mr.dccomics9018]

Alot of Book I still have not read. But in no particular order. Here are some of my favorites. Team Books. The New Gods Jack Kirby. Orion Walter Simonson. The Forth World John Byrne The New Frontier Darwyn Cooke The Watchman Alan Moore The New Teen Titans Marv Wolfman Invincible Robert Kirkman JLA Grant Morrison JSA Geoff John's New 52 Justice League Geoff John's Teen Titans Geoff John's Justice League Dark James Tyion IV New 52 JL Dark Jeff Lemire DCEASED Tom Taylor Injustice Tom Taylor Suicide Squad Tom Taylor Suicide Squad Robbie Thompson Suicide Squad Rob Williams Jim Lee Batman Outsiders Dexter Soy Power Rangers/ TMNT Ryan Parrott

[@Savedbygrace1999]

Great list dude! Off the top of my head my top 20 must reads would be. 1.preacher, Ennis 2.Hitman , Ennis 3.new x men , Morrison 4.swamp thing, Moore 5. All of the vertigo Hellblazer 6. Doom patrol, Morrison 7. The boys, Ennis 8. Grandville, talbot 9. Bone, smith 10. League of extraordinary gentlemen, Moore 11. Watchmen, Moore 12. Long halloween, loeb 13. Year one, miller 14. Arkham asylum, Morrison 15. Killing joke, Moore 16. All star superman, Morrison 17. Born again, miller 18. Punisher max, Ennis 19. Green lantern, johns 20. Thor, Simonson Those are some of my must reads but in no particular order! Awesome video as always.

[@hermitonjupiter8950]

Do you ever do manga?

[@frankcarpenter4858]

Silver surfer requiem Thor :Godbomb Hellboy: Seeds of destruction Marvel Civil War Daredevil born again

[@landonterry4506]

Loves this vid bro

[@fnd-vw6zq]

Neil Gaiman Sandman is really good too

[@user-ko3vw7ow8l]

1. Batman the court of owls 2. Batman R.I.P. 3. Civil War 4. Forever Evil 5. Sandman volume 1

[@givesbeetdip0055]

Would you recommend reading more Superman stories with Lex Luthor in them before reading lex man of steel?

[@TheRealComicBookGamer]

@givesbeetdip0055 You can but it's not a requirement.

[@donT820617]

Apart of Alan Moore's titles, nothing here is a must have.

[@aidanscorner847]

Infinity Gauntlet is the gold standard for crossover events

[@rafaelj8808]

My top 5 is: 1) Batman dark victory 2) Fortress Vader 3) Moon Knight (2016) 4) Watchmen 5) Batman: Arkham asylum

[@adamwallace7353]

My list would look like this: Watchmen Berserk Arkham Asylum: A Serious House on Serious Earth Daredevil: Born Again Akira Punisher: Born Dragon Ball Batman: Year One Devilman V for Vendetta

[@swoop2386]

Dylan do you read/like fantastic four?

[@TheRealComicBookGamer]

Never got into Fantastic Four.

[@rosswilson8917]

You should definitely read the Walt Simonson run on FF (great battle with Dr. Doom and Reed Richards. The Hickman run is excellent as well. Also try Grant Morrison’s. FF 1,2,3,4. It’s a weird story but it’s really good (Great Jae Lee art too).

[@whysosrs5534]

No Dark knight returns???! Treason.

[@evilblackkitty]

Before watching the list so: 1) Batman Year One 2) Teen Titans The Judas Contract 3) Captain America The Winter Soldier 4) Watchmen 5) Wolverine by Claremont and Miller 6) Batman Black Mirror 7) The Dark Phoenix Saga 8) The Coming of Galactus 9) Spider-Man Kraven's Last Hunt 10) Daredevil Born Again 11) Superman For All Seasons 12) Batman The Killing Joke 13) New Frontier 14) Lex Luthor Man of Steel 15) Archie 1941 16) Green Lantern The Sinestro Corps War 17) Superman/Batman vol 2 Supergil (It was the story that got me into comics. It was making this list) 18) Avengers The Korvac Saga 19) Kingdom Come 20) Green Arrow The Long Bow Hunters

[@TheRealComicBookGamer]

You must really like Watchmen to have it on your list twice lol

[@evilblackkitty]

@@TheRealComicBookGamerthat was a mistake and I actually find Watchmen a chore to read but it is that a must read as you said in the intro

[@JulianElrod]

Y: the Last Man?

[@VanillaCocoShow]

How do you keep hope alive within the dying comic book industry

[@TheRealComicBookGamer]

It's pretty simple tbh. Read good comics and don't read the bad ones. You just got to find creators that consistently make good comics and follow them and all of a sudden comics don't feel so doom and gloom.

[@shaddouida3447]

Make Batman and Catwoman's Relationship Canon in the DC Comics Make Green Lantern and Star Sapphire's Relationship Canon in the DC Comics Make Aquaman and Mera's Relationship Canon in the DC Comics Make Wonder Woman and Steve Trevor's Relationship Canon in the DC Comics Make Superman and Lois Lane's Relationship Canon in the DC Comics Make Nightwing and Batgirl's Relationship Canon in the DC Comics Make Green Arrow and Black Canary's Relationship Canon in the DC Comics Make Joker and Harley Quinn's Relationship Canon in the DC Comics Make Constantine and Zatanna's Relationship Canon in the DC Comics Make Beast Boy and Raven's Relationship Canon in the DC Comics Make Flash and Iris West's Relationship Canon in the DC Comics

[@alvinward7101]

Let me get some dark horse

[@michaelbraxton137]

Do you read manga

[@TheRealComicBookGamer]

Nope.

[@michaelbraxton137]

@@TheRealComicBookGamer damn, you should start reading manga when you have time, it's a good medium and it's more easy to get Into, here's some recommendations if your interested in reading manga : berserk, chainsaw man, vindland saga, hunter x hunter, one punch man, goodnight punpun and vagabond

[@rosswilson8917]

Try The Guyver manga it’s an amazing story. I’d also recommend Fist of the North Star. A great manga. The character in fist of the North Star would destroy Berserker in a fight. Trust me.

[@funkfz6312]

pure super heroes novels, nice list if you are a 12 years old boy

[@darryld6578]

Dude can you slow down and show the Graphic novel for at least 5-8 seconds so that i can read the cover and i don't have to pause it to see what the book looks like? You show the book for 1-1.5 seconds it's annoying, what's the rush?

[@MagusX1]

I am sorry, but this list is just not....viable. I say this because you give misinformation, you use general overlizations and you make mistakes through out the video. One, You make a common mistake with The Dark Phoenix Saga. That story and part of the fault is with Marvel for printing it as a stand alone. The Dark Phoenix Saga is actually the ending to a very long storyline that took years to be told. By just reading the ending of that story, you miss key moments such as the original Phoenix Saga, the introduction of the Shi'ar, Jeans powers slowly corrupting by herself, Scott and Jeans relationship is much more fleshed out than in just that end point. Also you make a huge mistake with The Judas Contract. The Judas Contract did not introduce DeathStroke, and a lot of the plot elements you mention are not in the actual Judas Storyline. These are prior to those incidents. And just like the Dark Phoenix Saga, the Judas Contract is again an ending to a very long gestating storyline that began in New Teen Titans 2(You mention the death of Deathstrokes son, and that he was introduce, those happened in New Teen Titans 2 not The Judas Contract.) For those two story lines, one should properly be directed to the actual starting point,. Both of those stories are much better served when you read them from their actual beginnings, such as the aforementioned New Teen Titans 2 and Giant Size X-Men 1. Also the Death of Superman is like those two mentioned series, except instead of being the ending, it is the beginning. The Death Superman is essentially the first act of a three act story. That pieces was followed by Funeral For Friend and the Reign of the Supermen. Recommended together and read together you get a very told story that shows the world the importance of Superman from three different acts, the first being the importance of his character(Self Sacrifice), The Mourning and acceptance of Loss, and the why the return of him is so important. Also I need to mention, you dismiss Super Hero Deconstructions saying its done five thousand times, which clearly that is not the case. There yes have been some that try to be Watchmen, but they utterly fail. But Deconstructions can be used in different ways, for Example look at both Alan Moores work on Miracle Man and the work on Watchmen. Watchmen is about the dangers of failure super hero, where as Miracleman is the dangers of a successful superhero. Deconstructions can be explored in numerous ways just like Super Heroes in general can be. Also Invincible is not the only celebration of Super Hero comics, one that comes to mind is Astro City by Kurt Busiek. Also I question some of thane books on your list, such as the GI Joe one, which I Personally thought was mediocre. There are many other titles that essential reads, such as Black Hole, Sandman, Miracleman, Maus, Stray Bullets, Planetary, Love and Rockets, and other such titles. Also a better X Men recommendation that stands on its own is God Loves, Man Kills. I think for a must read Graphic Novels, it stands alone, and is not part of an ongoing series. Also your dismissal of the nine panel grid is confounding. You say overused, but to really look at it, is to see if it is misused. If its misused it will seem like its over kill and not necessary. I honestly think its more effective than some of the grandiose exploding panels that we get these days. Lastly saying Watchmen is overrated because its beloved by many is simply wrong. Watchmen you can like it less than others, but there is a reason why it is important. Its not the simple Deconstructionist work, but the fact that Watchmen is a very complex and Nuance work that really requires rereads. It is more than just Deconstructions characters, it is a story of identity, the lost of humanity, playing God, being God, nuclear devastation and many more themes. It is a tragedy to sum it all up.

[@_Snafu_]

Whew you wrote a book my friend, but I agree with your assessment.

[@MagusX1]

@@_Snafu_ Yes I did lol. But it needed to be said. I just find this channel is not a good evaluation on comics. This videos is proof of that.

[@mararzu]

you shouls show the art, it takes no time, you could do it while talking