New to comics, need a start point

[Baileyden7]

Looking for advice on where or how to start reading Marvel comics, most of the Marvel knowledge i have is from the MCU and have seen comic bundles such as the whole civil war bundle ( https://www.comixology.co.uk/Civil-W...-2/bundle/1388 ) or the likes of the Infinity Gauntlet trilogy ( https://www.comixology.co.uk/Infinit...ilogy/bundle/5 ) and was wondering if starting with something like one of these would be a good idea or would I be better starting with comics based on a single character such as spider-man comics or Captain America for example?

[DragonsChi]

Do yourself a favor and start any where before the the 1990s. I'm still in my twenties(age) and I can tell you now almost everything is better going backwards. But if you are set on choosing things that are closer to this era do yourself another favor and only pick books/series that people are still talking about today. And I mean really discussing not fluff.

As to who to start with...I would pick the character or genre that best interest you and go from there. If you think you would really enjoy Spider-Man or Captain America then go with those and see what you think.

If you give a list of 6 or so characters/teams that you are interested in I give you a couple of series that you can read. Just to help ya out.

[Personamanx]

My advice is to focus on a single title that features a character you might like. Series relaunch semi-annually nowadays so it isn't particularly difficult to find such a series with a low issue number. If you like the series/character, and feel like going back to read their older stories it might be helpful to pick up one of those bundles. I just think it's better to find out what you like first before going in too deep. The better stories always function well in isolation anyway.

Also if you're looking exclusively for Marvel series it would probably be better for your wallet if you try Marvel Digital Comics Unlimited. It's a recurring subscription, and you don't own anything but you have access to a digital library of over 20,000 issues to read at your leisure. Or hell, if you have a library card try Hoopla. It's not as consistent, but it's 100% free and legitimate.

[Snoop Dogg]

Infinity Gauntlet on its own can be a great isolated read but the trilogy as a whole is very continuity-based and not a good starting point for Starlin's work.

Civil War can also just be picked up and read and then you can continue on the wider arc from there but that whole thing starts a bit earlier from Avengers Dissassembled all the way to Siege in 2010.

Ultimately, there is no single good starting point for the whole universe. Just go to characters you want to follow. For Spider-Man, the new run which started last year is extremely new-reader friendly but has a lot of deep cuts. The last completely fresh start before that was in 2008 with Brand New Day, and that's a rollercoaster that starts for years. But for Spider-Man especially, I'd reccommend starting at the beginning with the 60's books. They still hold up, they're fundamental, and they're some of the best comics ever. For Captain America, he has a lot of good runs, so I'm a bit conflicted on where I'd send someone to start that's not the 60's.

So the best advice is get Marvel Unlimited.

[MajorHoy]

Well, if you're more of the obsessive/compulsive type, you could always start with

and then work your way up from 1939.

Or, it should really depend on what you are most interested in. It's best to start with a character / team, or if you prefer, start with a specific writer (or artist).

But starting with an "EVENT!" (like "Civil War") may be one of the more confusing ways to do it.

[Omega Alpha]

Single character or team you like is a better choice, events are rarely the best starting point.

[Baileyden7]

Would any of you recommended using this https://comicbookreadingorders.com/m...reading-order/ and using it as an overall starting point, skipping any characters/series I'm not interested in and getting marvel unlimited??

[Personamanx]

Would any of you recommended using this https://comicbookreadingorders.com/m...reading-order/ and using it as an overall starting point, skipping any characters/series I'm not interested in and getting marvel unlimited??

Reading lists like that can be helpful, but it is still a much better idea to start small. The Marvel catalog of characters has existed for over fifty years, and consists of thousands of characters, hundreds of titles, and just as many creators. As much as people like to pretend that it is, the Marvel "Universe" isn't a single/consistent story. It varies wildly in quality, and how important a story is falls largely on your own taste.

I would still get Marvel Unlimited if you want to explore Marvel characters in their original medium. But I recommend against starting off with such a large reading list. If you like Captain America, just search up a few random series or stories he's featured in, and go forward/backwards in time as you wish. The better comics always function well in isolation, and that removes the need to be a completionist.

[your_name_here]

Pick a comic, any comic. Doesn’t matter which one. If you like it, pick up the one that comes afterwards or before. Build it that way, and you’ll quickly fill in blanks.

If you don’t go that route, yeah the collections you’re suggesting are a good idea, too.

[Raye]

I'm going to second that you should pick characters that appeal to you in the movies, and get started with those characters specifically. The MU has been going a LONG time, it's a huge undertaking to consume all of it, (not to mention expensive, unless you are using Comixology or Marvel Unlimited) even if you stick with what people consider particularly notable arcs. And some of the older stuff can come across as really cheesy and dated nowadays, and come characters have changed a fair bit since the early days as well, and the MCU versions mostly are vaguely based on somewhat newer takes (for instance, Thor in the comics started out as a man named Donald Blake who turned into Thor, something that has since been dropped, and the movies did not get into). Eventually, starting with the characters that appeal to you, you will just kind of pick things up as you go along, you'll get tipped off to past stories you might like, or just get updated on most relevant stuff from their pasts as the writers reference it if it's necessary.

[Omega Alpha]

or just get updated on most relevant stuff from their pasts as the writers reference it if it's necessary.

That's an important point: for better or worse, most writers tend to ignore others work, unless they want or have to.

[jb681131]

Looking for advice on where or how to start reading Marvel comics, most of the Marvel knowledge i have is from the MCU and have seen comic bundles such as the whole civil war bundle ( https://www.comixology.co.uk/Civil-W...-2/bundle/1388 ) or the likes of the Infinity Gauntlet trilogy ( https://www.comixology.co.uk/Infinit...ilogy/bundle/5 ) and was wondering if starting with something like one of these would be a good idea or would I be better starting with comics based on a single character such as spider-man comics or Captain America for example?

On marvel's side, these are the comics I would recommand:

I would really recommand Daredevil and Frank Miller's run and his 2 other stories, Born Again and The Man Without Fear.

I also enjoy the darker Spider-Man stories such as Death of the Staceys and Kraven's Last Hunt.

As gread stories I would also suggest Hulk: The End / Future imperfect and Wolverin: Old Man Logan (not the spin-off serie but the story in the main title).

You can also read what the duo Jeph Loeb / Tim Sale has done on Marvel's side, Spider-Man: Blue, Hulk: Gray, Daredevil: Yellow and Captain America: White.

Another hero I like a bit is Captain America, and I would suggest, Captain America: Man Out of Time and Winter Soldier By Brubaker: The Complete Collection.

To finish, the X-Men, I would recommand X-Men: Wizard Masterpiece Edition wich contains the main early sagas (The Dark Phoenix Saga, Days Of Future Past, The Power of Proteus).

Have fun