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Robots, Demons and Day Jobs: A Collection of Silly and Strange Comics

Music for My Marvelous Year is credited to Disasterpeace. Support for My Marvelous Year comes via Patreon backers, for as little as $1 a month.

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The post My Marvelous Year 2014 Pt. 8: Elektra, Rocket Raccoon, and the Death of Wolverine! appeared first on Comic Book Herald.

Extra Issues – Osamu Tezuka pt. 5: Black Jack

Dave — Sun, 07 Jun 2026 16:46:19 +0000

Black Zack and his 7 year old android daughter Charlotte continue our six part series on the works of Osamu Tezuka.

Comics covered in this episode:
– Black Jack

Topics discussed:
– Is Black Jack more successful as a long-term series of individual stories than Astro Boy?
– Who’s Euthanasia Guy?
– How much can Zack neglect his podcast duties before Charlotte finally snaps (and demands a raise)?

Next up, we’re concluding our six month series covering the work of Osumu Tezuka:
6. Message To Adolf & Phoenix

You can our other Marvel Comics podcast on Comic Book Herald at mymarvelousyear.com

Music for Extra Issues is credited to FM Skyline.

You can support Extra Issues via Patreon for as little as $1 a month at patreon.com/mymarvelousyear

The post Extra Issues – Osamu Tezuka pt. 5: Black Jack appeared first on Comic Book Herald.

My Favorite Graphic Novels of May 2026

Dave — Tue, 02 Jun 2026 05:15:19 +0000

This month’s new graphic novels features 6 that make it inside my 20 favorite books of the entire year, including a new #1! Sign up for the newsletter version to also see how I voted in this year’s Eisner awards!

To get these picks sent directly to your mailbox every month, sign up here for free.

To see the full year’s list, check out the best comics of 2026 (updated monthly!).

This short collection of David Kantrowitz’s self-published comics is a delightful display of some casually virtuosic cartooning. Mike Mignola’s inks meet Juni Ba’s Monkey Meat for some goofy fast-paced gag strips. There’s a meta-comics joke in here that rivals anything this side of Mister Invincible, and that’s some of the highest praise I can even think of!

The Author Immortal

In this month’s edition of most ridiculous reason Dave almost didn’t read a very good comic, I submit to you: I associated author Frank J. Barbiere with Marvel’s unethical practice of printing an issue of Avengers World with Thanos on the cover that did not include a single relevant Thanos sighting in the actual content therein. Was this Barbiere’s fault? Almost certainly not. And yet, a nerd never forgets, and certainly never forgives. Ridiculous? Yes! Clearly! But it honestly presented an uphill climb for Author Immortal, Barbiere’s new Image Comics series with Morgan Beem. Just know that this inclusion of a recommended comic had to be good enough to overcome Bait-And-Thanos practices. What an achievement!

The Author Immortal doesn’t reinvent the wheel – a revolting professor obsessed with a series of fantasy novels discovers the fantasy may well be real! – but Barbiere and Beem inject the familiar narrative with new, modernized life. It operates on a similar playing field as Kieron Gillen and Stephanie Hans’ Die, but with an added focus on a non-binary teen’s relationship with their (again, revolting) father, and a deliberate JK Rowling stand-in communing with some dark shadowy pact. Beem sells both “real world” relationship struggles and emerging fantasy lands, in a quietly gorgeous start to a very strong new comic.

The Court Charade

Flore Vesco and Kerascoët’s The Court Charade is a preposterously charming new graphic novel about a young “common” lady sneaking her way into court to become one of the Queen’s ladymaids. It’s a royal fairy tale full of whimsy and spunk, like Bandette merging with The Great into a gorgeous and funny Bandes dessinées. The wit and style make this feel like an easy recommendation for all ages, but there are occasional moments of nudity (sacré bleu!) that keep it clearly adult.

While it was originally published in native French in 2022, The Court Charade is the kind of everlasting fairy tale that feels like it must have been in the world for centuries.

Names and Faces: A Graphic Memoir

Leise Hook’s memoir “Names and Faces” is a collection of 9 integrated stories that reflect on Hook’s experiences as a mixed-race Chinese-American. Hook offers a pristine looking glass into her world of confused identity, feeling not quite Chinese enough but also never entirely “white.” The graphic memoir space has exploded with questions of identity in recent years, and Hook finds intriguing metaphors to help expand the conversation, looking at invasive species of bugs in America and American Girl Dolls to offer perspectives you wouldn’t necessarily expect.

Hook’s an extremely gifted graphic novelist, with a clear sense of using the page’s space effectively as she navigates internal struggle. This is another strong entry in a growing field of AAPI memoirs, and graphic novel memoirs in general.

Inbetweens

Faith Erin Hicks is a superstar YA cartoonist, so I fully expected to think highly of Inbetweens. What I did *not* expect was a world so fully realized that I started looking at the fictional twin sisters with the same parental care that I typically reserve for my actual children overcoming the challenges of their own worlds. Hicks captures a depth of feeling and emerging youthful creativity to such a successful degree that I actually saw and felt for my own children. After completion I immediately placed the graphic novel on my 9 year old’s pillow (the secret: you don’t ever suggest a kid read something you like; you just lay it somewhere where they’ll fall into it themselves!).

Inbetweens is about twin sisters Sloane and Ash, both gifted artists who enter a summer school animation program with dreams of professional careers as animators for Disney (Yes, this means the work is set in the late 90s, and no we will not be wallowing in the present day reality that such jobs for humans are endangered!). Hicks nails the energy of young artists, the pressure of trying to live up to ideals and your heroes (even if it turns out your heroes are JERKS), and the power of supportive family and friends. It’s sweet, funny, and allows for some gorgeous rendering of raw animation on the comics page. This might just be my favorite graphic novel from Hicks yet.

Everything Dead and Dying

Tate Brombal, Jacob Phillips, Pip Martin and Aditya Bidikar craft a melancholic, post Walking Dead zombie masterclass, recently nominated for a 2026 Eisner for best limited series. Phillips has rapidly entered John Romita Jr territory as the son of a comics legend (Sean Phillips) ascending into his own superstardom. Phillips’ resume (That Texas Blood, Newburn, coloring his father across Reckless) is critically adored and near-flawless, and for my money, Everything Dead and Dying is his best work yet, oscillating between the aching romance of the past and violent pain of the present.

Brombal largely avoids zombie fiction tropes by focusing on Jack Chandler, a farmer and gay man, tending to a whole community taken by a zombie virus (that he’s mysteriously immune to). The narrative inversion is that our hero wants to keep the zombies “alive” as they include his husband and their daughter. While this might seem, uh, mentally unwell, the creative team completely sells the emotional conviction of Chandler protecting and surviving despite the encroaching decay. Brombal has proven exceptionally gifted at depicting the experience of being gay in hostile communities (Black Hammer: Barbalien), and that’s the secret here, where Chandler becomes the caretaker for a community that showed him no shortage of bigotry. It’s a gripping, emotionally powerful zombie graphic novel, and great work from everyone involved.

The Machine is Broken

Jared Sarnie’s debut graphic novel (via Fieldmouse Press) is an ice cold bucket of water dropped over your head from the 2nd floor while an aeroplane trails the message “YOU CAN JUST BREAK THE RULES” in the sky above you. Narratively the center here is a young woman, her sister and her mom traveling to Zurich so she can use a “euthanasia pod” aka the “exit shell” via assisted suicide. This sounds much heavier than it is. While there is some emotional resonance and care there, Sarnie’s primarily playing at satirical humor – spoilers: the shell breaks a valve and it doesn’t work!

The real force of The Machine is Broken is style. Sarnie airdrops in and out of cartooning styles like his pen might stop working if he sticks with one mode too long. The end result is a gloriously manic graphic novella that oscillates between Schulz, Clowes, Olivier Schrauwen, Emil Ferris, and honestly I could do this all day. It’s a controlled chaos (mostly), and as the residual cherry coke flavored gases hit our protagonist fully, I’m dead-on David Lynching trying to make heads or tails of what’s real and what’s not.

Metadoggoz

Easily the coolest graphic novel I’ve read so far in 2026, just oozing with style, for miles and miles (so much style that it’s waaaaasted!). Bérénice Motais de Narbonne’s Metadoggoz (originally published in French in 2023, and translated by Montana Kane for Drawn & Quarterly here) is a surreal cyberpunk explosion of cartooning excellence, channeling Taiyo Matsomoto’s Tekkonkinkreet and the anything-goes black-and-white ethos of Jim Woodring’s Frank. Narbonne’s metastation cities and gap-world creature designs are ferociously pure, rendered with a fearless density. Honestly, trying to color the work would send you straight to a therapist.

While I coasted on vibes for the book’s middle-act, Narbonne brings the work together in a satisfying conclusion of queer-punk outsiders finding their place, whether it was their intention or not. Found family can feel like an overused descriptor, but the purity of that goal is never diminished when it’s weaved this tightly in a genuinely fresh design. This is the graphic novel for anyone who loves shouting “Hell yeah, comics!,” for anyone who thought the third Matrix movie was really onto something, and for anyone who wants to see the future of the medium.

Criminal: Five Gears in Reverse

Ed Brubaker and Sean Phillips are first ballot comics hall-of-famers, probably the surest bet creative team of the entire 2000s, and Five Gears in Reverse, the newest graphic novel set in the Criminal Universe, is the hardest fastball they’ve thrown since Criminal’s return in 2019. These guys have the right to tell their stories however they damn well please, but hey, I’m pleased that heading into Criminal’s adaptation debut on Amazon Prime, they opted for hard, fast, Ricky Lawless crime, where you know every decision is going to be the wrong one, and if you’ve read the second volume of Criminal (“Lawless”) you know exactly what that means for Ricky. Brubaker and Phillip’s greatest trick here is I’m still half-wondering how the hell he walks away.

Five Gears in Reverse is classically tragic and violent noir, but it’s also richly humorous, particularly in the early going as Ricky botches his first job in ways that only “he has a heroin-whoopsie” can quite suggest. This is a prequel 20 years in the making (chronologically, the story is set 2 years before the Criminal Universe launched in 2006), and it’s truly unprecedented how consistent Brubaker and Phillips have been with all things Criminal during that stretch. Let’s be honest, most comics creators don’t return to their hits because things are going great, but with Brubaker and Phillips it always feels like the comics they were put on this earth to make. They can detour in all kinds of truly excellent ways (Fatale, Pulp, Reckless) but it’s Criminal where they’ve announced to the comics world for 20 years and counting that *this* is the creator-owned bar you should all aspire to.

Five Gears in Reverse is my favorite Criminal graphic novel of the 2020s. Long live Criminal!

All the Cameras In My Room

And now, a very special presentation of the most exciting thing in comics this year:

*Camera pans in slowly on bearded, rapidly aging man sitting softly on couch. He is holding an ice pack on a recently separated shoulder that occurred while playing basketball, this upon his return from a strained calf that put him in a walking boot. He considers whether he is too old to play competitive basketball, but then remembers, “I’m the same age as Steph and KD, and much younger than Lebron,” and is clear in his foolhardy pursuit of hoops nirvana. In his offhand he holds the new graphic novel from Michael Deforge, and opens the front cover.*

“What,” he exclaims masculinely to no one, as he finds a pocket inside the front cover that reads “The Spins,” with an arrow pointing up to a minicomic placed inside.

“WHAT!” he exclaims more shrilly now, as he pulls out the minicomic, which is inside a larger comic.

“LET’S GOOOOOOOOO!!!!” he screams, waking up the baby, as he begins to read Michael Deforge’s minicomic, “The Spins,” which is – and this cannot be emphasized enough – a small comic within a larger comic.

*Camera zooms all the way in on the man’s immaculate eyes and beard, both immaculate, the eyes and the beard, though it would seem excessive to label them both as such in the same sentence. One would not want to seem arrogant. The look on his face is pure, pure joy. The baby wails. His wife is saying something like, “Seriously, Dave?” Pure joy.*

This has been a very special presentation of the most exciting thing in comics this year.

I’ll also note that last year’s Holy Lacrimony was the push I needed to say I’ll read anything by Michael Deforge (it wound up inside my 15 favorite comics of the year). For my money, All the Cameras In My Room is even better, 14 short stories that range from weird, hilarious and insightful to hilariously weird yet insightful. This is my favorite graphic novel from Deforge to date, and it offers the fullest glimpse of the cartoonist’s unfettered vision.

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My Marvelous Year 2014 Pt. 7: Silver Surfer, Inhuman, and All-New Ghost Rider!

Dave — Mon, 01 Jun 2026 14:06:00 +0000

Dave, Charlotte, and Zack make the biggest announcement in podcast history this week!

On this episode we cover the following issues (all available via Marvel Unlimited):

Silver Surfer #1 to #6 Allred and Slott watch Doctor Who
Inhuman #1 to #3 Marvel didn’t have the X-Men rights and tries to make Inhumans happen.
All-New Ghost Rider #1 to #5 Tradd Moore!

Up Next: My Marvelous Year — 2014 pt. 8

Elektra #1 to #5 Mike Del Mundo!
Rocket Raccoon #1 to #4 Skottie Young!
Death of Wolverine #1 to #4 Pour one out.

Play along with:

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You can find more Marvel Comics guides on Comic Book Herald at:

The CBLDF presents: Liberty Comics #1

Music for My Marvelous Year is credited to Disasterpeace. Support for My Marvelous Year comes via Patreon backers, for as little as $1 a month.

Make sure to subscribe now in order to get every reading list for every year of Marvel Comics! Subscribe to the Podcast! — iTunes, Pod Feed

If you like the show, please consider leaving a rating or review on iTunes, or your podcast player of choice!, to help us reach more readers & listeners!

The post My Marvelous Year 2014 Pt. 7: Silver Surfer, Inhuman, and All-New Ghost Rider! appeared first on Comic Book Herald.

Criminal Comics Reading Order

Dave — Sat, 30 May 2026 05:03:23 +0000

In 2006, comics creators Ed Brubaker and Sean Phillips launched Criminal via Icon Comics (Marvel’s creator-owned Vertigo-esque publication imprint that ran for about a decade). The duo had previously collaborated on the critically acclaimed 24 issues of Sleeper set in DC’s Wildstorm Universe, and each had a strong reputation just shy of comics superstardom. Phillips was likely most well-known for Marvel Zombies (no disrespect to his decade of Vertigo work!), while Brubaker was fresh off “The Winter Soldier” saga in the pages of Captain America.

The following year, Criminal would win the Eisner Award for best new comics series (one of three the title has earned all time), and Brubaker and Phillips were on their way to the most respected, consistent creative collaboration of the entire 2000s. Though Criminal went more or less on hiatus following 2011, the series returned in 2018 (or 2019 depending on your math) and is kicking out great graphic novels 20 years after starting. Plus, as I write this, the Amazon Prime TV adaptation of the work is well underway.

Below, you’ll find a complete guide to the Criminal Universe comics in a recommended reading order. I’ve included two lists – one by release date, and one according to the fictional world’s chronology. I recommend you start with the first reading order (by release date) as this is how the creator’s considered the comics in the moment. Personally, I’m excited about starting a chronological dive next…

Criminal Vol. 1: Coward

Collects: Criminal #1-5

“Coward” starts it all, establishing the style of down-and-dirty noir Brubaker and Phillips will hone across the entire series. Their are some wonderfully inventive detours along the way, but otherwise it’s pretty amazing how tight Criminal works right out of the box.

Criminal Vol. 2: Lawless

Collects: Criminal #6-10

Short story, “No One Rides For Free.”

Criminal Vol. 3: The Dead and The Dying

Collects: Criminal vol. 2 #1-3

Criminal Vol. 4: Bad Night

Collects: Criminal vol. 2 #4-7

Criminal Vol. 5: The Sinners

Collects: Criminal: The Sinners #1-5

Criminal Vol. 6: The Last of the Innocent

Collects: Criminal: The Last of the Innocent #1-4

“The Last of the Innocent” is my favorite Criminal arc, as Brubaker and Phillips bring their vision for crime comics to Archie-inspired flashbacks. It’s an ambitious, experimental fusion of famously kid-friendly classic comics and this modernized vision for dark, seedy reality.

Following “The Last of the Innocent” in 2011, the last of two Criminal miniseries, Criminal comics more or less go on hiatus until 2018!

Criminal Vol. 7: Wrong Time, Wrong Place

Collects: Criminal Special Edition (Savage Sword of Criminal) and Criminal 10th Anniversary Special (Deadly Hands of Criminal)

Dueling Criminal special issues that fill the gap between 2011 and 2018 as the creators focused on the likes of Fatale and Kill or Be Killed.

My Heroes Have Always Been Junkies

Collects: Original standalone graphic novella

This 2018 release was the soft hiatus breaker, not originally intended to be the “official” return of Criminal. Nonetheless, the work was met eagerly enough that Criminal officially relaunched via Image Comics in single issue format in 2019.

Noir: A Collection of Crime Comics

“21st Century Noir” short story!

Bad Weekend (Hardcover)

Collects: Criminal (2019) vol. 3 #2-3, with additional material

The second and third issues of the relaunched Criminal were so good, they’ve since been expanded and repackaged as a standalone graphic novel. “Bad Weekend” is absolute catnip for comics fans, bringing the Criminal Universe to the world of comic cons and a Jack Kirby analog!

Cruel Summer (Deluxe Hardcover)

Collects: Criminal (2019) vol. 3 #1 and #5-12

Image! 30th Anthology #9

Includes Brubaker and Phillips short story “Teeg’s Christmas Carol.”

The Knives: A Criminal Book

Collects: Original graphic novel

In the 2020s, Brubaker and Phillips move to the model of a new graphic novel released annually, and since 2025 that’s meant new Criminal once a year!

Five Gears in Reverse: A Criminal Book

Collects: Original graphic novel

One of my favorite graphic novels of 2026!

Deluxe Editions

Criminal Deluxe Edition Vol. 1

Collects: Criminal #1-10 and Criminal vol. 2 #1-3

Criminal Deluxe Edition Vol. 2

Collects: Criminal vol. 2 #4-7, Criminal: The Sinners #1-5, and Criminal: The Last of the Innocent #1-4

Criminal Deluxe Edition Vol. 3

Collects: Criminal Special Edition (Savage Sword of Criminal), Criminal 10th Anniversary Special (Deadly Hands of Criminal), My Heroes Have Always Been Junkies, Bad Weekend, Criminal (2019) #1, and Criminal (2019) #4

Criminal Comics in Chronological Order

With respect to this Reddit thread for the flashback chronology!

1972

Criminal Vol. 3: The Dead and The Dying

Collects: Criminal vol. 2 #1-3

1977 – 1979

Criminal Vol. 7: Wrong Time, Wrong Place

Collects: Criminal Special Edition (Savage Sword of Criminal) and Criminal 10th Anniversary Special (Deadly Hands of Criminal)

1982

Criminal Vol. 6: The Last of the Innocent

Collects: Criminal: The Last of the Innocent #1-4

1988

Cruel Summer (Deluxe Hardcover)

Collects: Criminal (2019) vol. 3 #1 and #5-12

1997

Bad Weekend (Hardcover)

Collects: Criminal (2019) vol. 3 #2-3, with additional material

2004

Five Gears in Reverse: A Criminal Book

Collects: Original graphic novel

2006 – 2008

Criminal Vol. 1: Coward

Collects: Criminal #1-5

Criminal Vol. 2: Lawless

Collects: Criminal #6-10

Criminal Vol. 4: Bad Night

Collects: Criminal vol. 2 #4-7

Criminal Vol. 5: The Sinners

Collects: Criminal: The Sinners #1-5

2012

The Knives: A Criminal Book

Collects: Original graphic novel

2016

My Heroes Have Always Been Junkies

Collects: Original standalone graphic novella

Related Comics From Brubaker and Phillips

The post Criminal Comics Reading Order appeared first on Comic Book Herald.

Spider-Man Noir Comics Reading Order

Dave — Thu, 28 May 2026 05:10:01 +0000

Fans of Spider-Man Noir, aka “The Spider,” aka “Voiced/Acted by Nicolas Cage,” are most likely to have fallen for the crime-noir version of Spidey via Into the Spider-Verse or (if you’re like me) the Spider-Man: Shattered Dimensions video game where Noir was one of the four playable dimensions (alongside Amazing Spider-Man classic, 2099, and the Ultimate Universe). There’s not an especially deep comics history beyond those adaptations, but as always, the story does start in Marvel Comics, and I’ve put together a guide to all the Spider-Man noir comics!

The Spider-Man noir comics are set in an alternate Marvel Universe (Earth-90214) and the stories begin in the early 1930s during The Great Depression. Some great comparative 1930s noir reading here would be Dashiel Hammet’s Red Harvest (inspiration for the Coen Brother’s Blood Simple) and Raymond Chandler’s The Big Sleep.

Likewise, if you just want the best noir comics in the game, check out Ed Brubaker and Sean Phillips Criminal!

Spider-Man Noir: Hard-Boiled Origins

Collects: Spider-Man Noir (2008) #1-4, Spider-Man Noir: Eyes Without A Face #1-4, Edge of Spider-Verse (2014) #1, Spider-Geddon: Spider-Man Noir Video Comic #1, and material from Spider-Verse Team-Up #1

The “Hard-Boiled Origins” collection gives you the original two miniseries by David Hine, Fabrice Sapolsky, and Carmine Di Giandomenico as part of Marvel’s short-lived 2008-2010 Noir Universe. From there, Spider-Man Noir doesn’t return until Marvel’s 2014 event, Spider-Verse, and this collection sets up the character’s role without going into the full event.

The full series can be found in the Amazing Spider-Man: Edge of Spider-Verse collection, but Spider-Man Noir is only in the first issue collected above. This series does also include the debut of Spider-Gwen, so it’s a good selection for Into the Spider-Verse fans.

Note that this collection also includes a Spider-Geddon event lead-in, which I would recommend you do not read until you’ve reached Spider-Geddon in the reading order here!

My Marvelous Year 2014 Variant D: Punisher – One Last Kill

Dave — Mon, 25 May 2026 08:00:58 +0000

Dave and Charlotte heap copious praise on the newest A+ MCU project (I assume, I haven’t listened yet. -Zack)

Up Next: My Marvelous Year — 2014 pt. 7

Silver Surfer	#1 to #6	Allred and Slott watch Doctor Who
Inhuman	#1 to #3	Marvel didn’t have the X-Men rights and tries to make Inhumans happen.
All-New Ghost Rider	#1 to #5	Tradd Moore!

Play along with:

[Disclosure: Affiliate link – CBH may earn from qualifying subscriptions]

You can find more Marvel Comics guides on Comic Book Herald at:

Something Is Killing the Children Vol. 1

Music for My Marvelous Year is credited to Disasterpeace. Support for My Marvelous Year comes via Patreon backers, for as little as $1 a month.

Make sure to subscribe now in order to get every reading list for every year of Marvel Comics! Subscribe to the Podcast! — iTunes, Pod Feed

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The post My Marvelous Year 2014 Variant D: Punisher – One Last Kill appeared first on Comic Book Herald.

Something is Killing the Children (Slaughterverse Comics) Reading Order!

Dave — Sat, 23 May 2026 05:54:27 +0000

James Tynion IV, Werther Dell’Edera, and Miquel Muerto launched Something is Killing the Children via BOOM! Studios in 2019, and it has since gone on to become one of the most successful independent comics of the 2020s. I know my local comic shop’s best selling graphic novel and trade list always features several volumes of Something is Killing the Children right at the top next to the likes of Absolute Batman, DC’s Compact Classics or Ultimate Spider-Man. The world full of monster-hunting Houses of trained assassins combines the visual stylings of modern American comics with the pacing and structure of 2000s manga to reach a stratosphere of sales that’s allowed for 50 consecutively published issues (an extremely rare feat in the 2020s). Plus, uh, Erica Slaughter’s mask is really, really cool.

The success has allowed Tynion IV and team to launch spinoffs like House of Slaughter and the Books of Slaughter, not to mention a Blumhouse production TV series in the works and a 2026 launch on Webtoon. But as so often happens with long-running comics, the more spread out the universe (or Slaughterverse) becomes, the more challenging it is to puzzle the order together. I’ve pieced together all the available trades and graphic novels that are available, so you have a complete reading order for all published comics.

Slaughterverse Comics Reading Order

Collects: Something Is Killing the Children #1-5.

Something Is Killing the Children Vol. 2

Collects: Something Is Killing the Children #6-10.

Something Is Killing the Children Vol. 3

Collects: Something Is Killing the Children #11-15

The first 15 issues compose the “Archer’s Peak” arc, where protagonist Erica Slaughter ventures to a small town where children are being hunted by seemingly invisible monsters. These issues perfectly build the tone, mythology, and Dell’Edera’s killer designs. If you aren’t obsessed by now, you’re not going to be!

Enter The House Of Slaughter FCBD

A 2021 Free Comic Book Day teaser story for the spinoff series House of Slaughter. Free Comics short stories are typically inessential, but a nice bonus for diehards.

Something Is Killing the Children Vol. 4

Collects: Something Is Killing the Children #16-20

House of Slaughter Vol. 1

Collects: House of Slaughter #1-5

The first arc in The Butcher’s Trilogy. Continues in House of Slaughter Vol. 3 and Vol. 5. The arcs in House of Slaughter alternate between co-writers and trilogies (Tate Brombal on “The Butcher’s Trilogy” and Sam Jones on “The Colors Trilogy”).

Please note, you absolutely could jump to House of Slaughter Volumes 3 and 5 next. In fact, that’s what the House of Slaughter Deluxe Edition does. I keep the volumes spaced out a little more in line with release date, but you have options. If you’re like “I am here to be told what to read,” ignore all this, keep calm, and read ahead!

You don’t have to read House of Slaughter to understand what’s going on in Something is Killing the Children. It’s an additive story that enriches the core comic. I’d say you should give the first arc a shot here, and if you’re not feeling it as much, just roll with Something is Killing the Children until you’re ready to jump back!

House of Slaughter Vol. 2

Collects: House of Slaughter #6-10

The first arc in The Colors Trilogy. Continues in House of Slaughter Vol. 4 and Vol. 6.

Something Is Killing the Children Vol. 5

Collects: Something Is Killing the Children #21-25.

Something Is Killing the Children Vol. 6

Collects: Something Is Killing the Children #26-30.

Something Is Killing the Children Vol. 7

Collects: Something Is Killing the Children #31-35

Books of Slaughter Vol. 1

All three of the Books of Slaughter (Slaughter/Butcher/Cutter) are also collected in the Books of Slaughter Deluxe Edition. Again, much like House of Slaughter these are effective at enriching the lore of the Slaughterverse, but not absolute essential if you just want to follow Erica in Something is Killing the Children.

House of Slaughter Vol. 3

Collects: House of Slaughter #11-15

House of Slaughter Vol. 4

Collects: House of Slaughter #16-20

Books of Slaughter Vol. 2

Collects the Book of Butcher #1

House of Slaughter Vol. 5: The Butcher’s War

Collects: House of Slaughter #21-25

Something Is Killing the Children Vol. 8

Collects: Something Is Killing the Children #36-40

Something Is Killing the Children #0

This special flashback issue actually jumps back to Erica Slaughter’s mission before Archer’s Peak. Despite that, I’d still recommend reading it as published as a deliberate celebration of 40 issues and 5 years of Something is Killing the Children.

Something is Killing the Children: A Monster Hunter Walks Into a Bar #1

Flashback Erica Slaughter stories from the Hello Darkness horror anthology

Books of Slaughter Vol. 3

Collects the Book of Cutter #1

Comics Giveaway Day 2026: Something Is Killing the Children – Road to Slaughter #1

The May 2026 free comic (from the rebranded Free Comic Book Day… don’t ask) follows hot on the heels of Something is Killing the Children #40, and sets the stage for Fall of the House of Slaughter.

House of Slaughter Vol. 6: Azure

Collects: House of Slaughter #26-30

Something Is Killing the Children Vol. 9

Collects: Something Is Killing the Children #41-45

Something is Killing the Children Vol. 10

Collects: Something is Killing the Children #46-50

Fall of the House of Slaughter

Collects: Fall of the House of Slaughter #1-4

Something Is Killing the Children: Hope Is a Knife: A Novel

Deluxe and Oversized Collections of Something Is Killing the Children

Something Is Killing the Children Omnibus Vol. 1

Collects: Something Is Killing the Children #1-20

This is the equivalent of Something is Killing the Children volumes one through four listed above.

Something is Killing the Children Omnibus Vol. 2

Collects: Something Is Killing the Children #21-40

Something Is Killing the Children Deluxe Edition Book One

Collects: Something Is Killing the Children #1-15

This is the equivalent of volumes one through three, aka the full “Archer’s Peak” saga.

Something Is Killing the Children Deluxe Edition Book Two

Collects: Something Is Killing the Children #21-35

House of Slaughter Book One Deluxe Edition

Collects: House of Slaughter #1-5, #11-15, and #21-25

House of Slaughter Book Two Deluxe Edition

House of Slaughter #6–10, #16–20, and #26–30

The post Something is Killing the Children (Slaughterverse Comics) Reading Order! appeared first on Comic Book Herald.

My Marvelous Year 2014 Pt. 6: Magneto, Moon Knight, and She-Hulk! Oh My!

Dave — Mon, 18 May 2026 13:55:56 +0000

Zack makes his most embarrassing confession yet… Charlotte and Dave are very graciously receptive.

On this episode we cover the following issues (all available via Marvel Unlimited):

Magneto #1 to #6 The good Magneto run.
Moon Knight #1 to #6 Ellis and Shalvey. Mister Knight.
She-Hulk #1 to #5 Soule, Pulido and co.

Up Next: My Marvelous Year — 2014 pt. 7

Silver Surfer #1 to #6 Allred and Slott watch Doctor Who
Inhuman #1 to #3 Marvel didn’t have the X-Men rights and tries to make Inhumans happen.
All-New Ghost Rider #1 to #5 Tradd Moore!

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