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I used Brand New Day as a starting point but I feel like im still missing a lot of knowledge and backstory. I dont want to read like 1500 comics to get up to speed so is there any essential comics to read, maybe collected editions just to get the backstory of the villains and the main outline of the stories?
[QUOTE=oztin;3780214]I used Brand New Day as a starting point but I feel like im still missing a lot of knowledge and backstory. I dont want to read like 1500 comics to get up to speed so is there any essential comics to read, maybe collected editions just to get the backstory of the villains and the main outline of the stories?[/QUOTE]
Maximum Carnage. Big 14 issue event.
Use the cartoon from the 90s and Spectacular Spiderman cartoon. It worked for me. Lol
[QUOTE=oztin;3780214]I used Brand New Day as a starting point but I feel like im still missing a lot of knowledge and backstory. I dont want to read like 1500 comics to get up to speed so is there any essential comics to read, maybe collected editions just to get the backstory of the villains and the main outline of the stories?[/QUOTE]
What would be the point? BND makes 20 years null and void. You wouldn't even be reading an accurate timeline.
[QUOTE=Miles To Go;3780566]What would be the point? BND makes 20 years null and void. You wouldn't even be reading an accurate timeline.[/QUOTE]
It doesn't make it null and void at all.
Yes, the marriage is now just a "committed relationship" but it still happens as we saw it, save for references to the marriage.
But Spidey's battles with his villains, his interactions with the supporting cast, his entire history is intact and accurate save for that one element. So, yes, there [I]is [/I]value in catching up on pre-BND material. And really, even if it all [I]were[/I] null and void - the comics and stories are still great and enjoyable in their own right.
As for my recommendations...hard to say. I definitely feel like you can't go wrong dipping into the Epic Collections. That's a very easy way to catch up.
They've collected a lot of material so far and anyone who reads the first three Epics, which cover the Ditko years and the start of the Romita Sr. era, will get a great grasp on the history of the character. That, to me, is essential Spidey. Other Epic Collections worth a look would be Vol. 7, The Goblin's Last Stand, Vol. 15, Ghosts of the Past, and Vol. 17, Kraven's Last Hunt.
Vol. 21, The Return of the Sinister Six, is a fun one, too.
[QUOTE=oztin;3780214]I used Brand New Day as a starting point but I feel like im still missing a lot of knowledge and backstory. I dont want to read like 1500 comics to get up to speed so is there any essential comics to read, maybe collected editions just to get the backstory of the villains and the main outline of the stories?[/QUOTE]
Here is a little reading list I had made. Not made from having read all of Spider-man, but by searching around:
[URL="https://comicvine.gamespot.com/profile/jb681131/blog/spider-man-what-tpbbook-to-read-updated-17th-april/129689/"]https://comicvine.gamespot.com/profile/jb681131/blog/spider-man-what-tpbbook-to-read-updated-17th-april/129689/[/URL]
I will copy the list in text here (in bold are the tpb names of each books):
First get a hold of 2 compilation books that compile the best early stories!
* [B]The Very Best of Spider-Man[/B]
1. Amazin Fantasy #15 - first Siper-Man appearance
2. If this be my destiny... The Final Chapter - Amazing Spider-Man #33
3. Spider-Man no more - Amazing Spider-Man #50
4. The Kid Who Collects Spiderman - Amazing Spider-Man #248
5. Whatever Happened to Crusher Hogan? - Amazing Spider-Man #271
6. The Sand and the Fury - Amazing Spider-Man #317
7. Fathers and Sins - Amazing Spider-Man #365
8. The Osborn Legacy - Spectacular Spider-Man #189
* [B]Spider-Man: Wizard Masterpiece Edition[/B]
1. Nothing Stops the Juggernaut - Amazing Spider-Man #229-230
2. Hyde in Plain Sight (aka Hyde & Seek) - Amazing Spider-Man #231-232
3. The Kid Who Collects Spider-Man - Amazing Spider-Man #248
5. Venom Strikes Back - Amazing Spider-Man #315-317
6. The Death of Jean DeWolff - Spectacular Spider-Man #107-110
Then to get to know the various Vilans:
* [B]Saga of the Sandman[/B]
1. The End of Spider-Man! - Amazing Spider-Man #18-19
2. Where Stalks the Sandman? - Fantastic Four #61
3. ...Sincerely, the Sandman - The Incredible Hulk #138
4. Have Yourself a Sandman Little Christmas! - Marvel Team-Up #1
5. Time Runs Like Sand - Marvel Two-In-One #86
6. Sand Blasted - Untold Tales of Spider-Man #3
* [B]Origin of the Hobgoblin[/B]
1. Pretty Poison - The Spectacular Spider-Man #43
2. A Night on the Prowl/Double Defeat - The Spectacular Spider-Man #47-48
3. In the Shadow of Evil Past/Now Strikes the Hobgoblin - Amazing Spider-Man #238-239
4. Ordeals/Sacrefice Play - Amazing Spider-Man #244-245
5. The Hatred of the Hobgoblin - The Spectacular Spider-Man #85
6. Secrets/Confessions/Endings - Amazing Spider-Man #249-251
* [B]Marvel Epic Collection (#17) Amazing Spider-Man: Kraven's Last Hunt[/B] - Includes Spider-Man's Wedding
1. Man Of The Year - The Amazing Spider-Man Annual #20
2. High Tide - Spider-Man versus Wolverin - prequel to The Hobgoblini Revealed
3. The Hobgoblin Revealed! - The Amazing Spider-Man #289
4. Mask - Web of Spider-Man #29 - sequel to The Hobgoblini Revealed
5. The Wedges of Sin - Web of Spider-Man #30 - sequel to The Hobgoblini Revealed
6. The Big Question - The Amazing Spider-Man #290 - prequel to The Wedding
7. Dark Journey - The Amazing Spider-Man #291 - prequel to The Wedding
8. Growing Pains - The Amazing Spider-Man #292 - prequel to The Wedding
9. The Wedding - The Amazing Spider-Man Annual #21
10. The Honeymoon - The Spectacular Spider-Man Annual #7 - Sadly not collected
11. Kraven's Last Hunt:
Part 1: The Coffing - Web of Spider-Man #31
Part 2: Crawling - Amazing Spider-Man #293
Part 3: Descent - Peter Parker, The Spectacular Spider-Man #131
Part 4: Resurrection - Web of Spider-Man #32
Part 5: Thunder - Amazing Spider-Man #294
Part 6: Ascending - Peter Parker, The Spectacular Spider-Man #132
12. The Wedding of the Year - Marvel Age #54 - includes interviews, the Shea Stadium and the Newspaper Strip weddings
* [B] Birth of Venom[/B]
1. Invasion! - Marvel Super Heroes Secret Wars #8
2. The New Spider-Man - Amazing Spider-Man #252-259
3. Chance - Amazing Spider-Man #298-300
4. Return of Venom - Amazing Spider-Man #315-317
5. Monster Mash - Fantastic Four #274
6. Til Death Do Us Part! - Web of Spider-Man #1
* [B]Spider-Man vs. Green Goblin[/B] - Includes the death of Gwen Stacy
1. The Return of the Green Goblin - Amazing Spider-Man #17
2. Green Goblin Reborn! - Amazing Spider-Man #96-98
3. The Night Gwen Stacy Died - Amazing Spider-Man #121-122
4. Best of Enemies - Spectacular Spider-Man #200
* [B]Marvel Epic Collection (#21) Amazing Spider-Man: Return of the Sinister Six[/B]
1. Spider-Man: Spirit of the Earth - One shot
2. Return of the Sinister Six - Amazing Spider-Man #334-350
You can also read the following stories:
* [B]Road to Civil War[/B] - The Amazing Spider-Man #529-531 + Fantastic Four #536-537 + New Avengers: Illuminate
* [B]Civil War[/B] - Civil War #1-7
* [B]Spider-Man: Blue[/B] - Spider-Man Blue #1-5 - Origins by Jeph Loeb and Tim Sale
I hope this is what you were looking for.