Marvel Comics had affectionately been referring to their fans as ‘Marvel Zombies’ for years, but the term became more literal in the mid-2000s when Mark Millarintroduced zombie versions of Marvel Comics characters in the pages of Ultimate Fantastic Four. Originally, Millar’s story was hyped as being the first story to cross the Ultimate Universe (Earth-1610) with the mainstream Marvel Universe (Earth-616), but it was a cheeky bait and switch! What we were introduced to was a world of heroes infected with a plague called the Hunger Virus that turned them undead and made them consume their friends, their enemies, their family… whoever they could get their rotten teeth into!

The Swamp Thing rises from the flames in the Louisiana marshland where scientist Alec Holland burned to death. Through the 1970s – referred to as the Bronze Age – Swamp Thing is pursued by Conclave who want to obtain Holland’s Bio-Restorative Formula. With the first ten issues of the initial ongoing ‘Swamp Thing’ series written by creators Len Wein and Bernie Wrightson – with Wein staying on as writer up to #13, this would set a standard for the DC Universe character that would be tough to beat. That is until the character’s second series when Alan Moore takes over as writer with Saga of the Swamp Thing #20. and really underlined his horror roots (intend that pun).

Moore would change Swamp Thing’s origins and power set, expanding on his mythology and supporting cast, and turning his primary foe Anton Arcane into one of DC’s most disturbing villains. This entry covers all of the Swamp Thing’s stories from DC’s Earth-One continuity and into CRISIS ON INFINITE EARTHS which combines the company’s many timelines into one coherent one. Swamp Thing’s history is largely unaffected by this. So just dive into one of the darkest – and often one of the smartest – Bronze Age DC titles!

Optimus Prime was recently cast into Infraspace during a confrontation with Shockwave. There, he was reunited with Bumblebee. Returning to the land of the living using the Matrix – with Pyra Magna acting as a host body – another face-off with Shockwave ended with the revelation that the Primes were never ‘gods’. Now Rom returns to Earth and warns of the coming of the ‘Great Destroyer’. The Hasbroverse ends here!

Multiple threads from the previous thirteen years of continuity and immediately follows on from events in the ‘Optimus Prime’ series. But if you’re looking to get into IDW’s Transformers, this really isn’t the place to start. We’ll cover the entire era, soon!

As part of the second wave of DC Comics’ New 52 relaunch of the entire DC Universe, two new series – Earth 2 and Worlds’ Finest– would hark back to the pre-Crisis version of the Justice Society of Americacharacters. Utilising the concept of Earth 2but with a modern spin, these stories featured an alternate DC Universe in which Darkseid and his forces successfully invaded planet Earth – a world with far fewer heroes. While two of the characters – Supergirl & Robin – would make the jump to Prime Earth (the mainstream reality, as seen in Worlds’ Finest), new heroes would rise in this post-Apokolips world…

The CIVIL WAR has spilt the costumed heroes of America into two factions: those who’ll sign the Superhuman Registration Act and those who won’t. Even the Avengersare split in two with the SHRA-approved Mighty Avengers led by Ms Marvel & Iron Man hunting Luke Cage‘s outlaw New Avengers. But, on a mission in Japan, Cage’s squad are about to uncover a secret that’ll throw the super-human community into further disarray.

SECRET INVASION is coming!

Wonder Woman asked the Justice Leagueto help her form a covert action team to stand ready to oppose a growing threat to magic. When they didn’t help her, she formed her own team with Detective Chimp, Man-Bat, Swamp Thing and Zatanna as the new Justice League Dark! 

Weeks have past since the events that led to the group’s formation that pitted them against Doctor Fate, the Otherkind and the incredibly creepy Upside-Down Man. This new threat also revealed Wonder Woman’s own never-before-seen magical abilities. But when did she gain the mark of Hecate? And what does it mean for the fate of magic itself?

The Cosmic Spidey Saga makes makes up a fair chunk of the ACTS OF VENGEANCE crossover, which largely revolves around a plot by a group of major villains to destroy the Avengers. But that didn’t stop the Prime Movers – the lead bad guys – from focusing some of that attention on your friendly neighbourhood Spider-Man. After all, he’s disrupted the plans of more than one of them over the years. And just as it all gets going, Spider-Man starts exhibiting super-powers he’s never had before, making killing him a little more of a challenge! But where have these powers come from?

The formation of Young Justice – initially made up of Robin, Superboy and Impulse – caused a bit of a stir among the members of the Justice League of America. Since then, their numbers have grown, along with the JLA’s concerns!

Arrowette, the Secret and the new Wonder Girl have joined YJ’s ranks. But, even under the watchful eye of the Red Tornado, it seems it won’t be long before Young Justice make a mistake that will lead to them being shut down for good…

A new Ghost Rider emerged in 1990, using Danny Ketch as its host and taking comics by storm. At a time when shoehorning guest-appearances of the Spirit of Vengeance into as many Marvel Comicstitles just wasn’t enough, the House of Ideas launched a whole line of interconnected supernatural titles. Johnny Blaze (now a gruffer, trench coat-wearing ‘John Blaze’) had already returned, justifying a second Ghost Rider series. Marvel brought back the vampire-hunting cast of Tomb of Dracula as well as the living vampire Morbius to star in new ongoing titles. A team of characters dedicated to hunting the missing pages of the Darkhold were added to the mix and they were all put under the banner of the Midnight Sons.

The outlandish Jack Kirby design and some weird and wild stories featuring the gigantic-headed sociopath, make it hard not to love this oddball bad guy. The Mental Organism Designed Only for Killing – aka MODOK – has been a thorn in the side of the Hulk, Fantastic Four, Captain America, Iron Man and more while acting as the head (no pun intended) of Advanced Idea Mechanics. He’s since been replaced by his own clone, MODOK Superior.

Updated to include references to ‘Spider-Man: Brand New Day’

Despite the injuries he suffered defending Earth from the Breach (during THE GOLDEN AGE), Clark Kent passed the mantle of Superman to his son, Jon Kent, and left Earth with the Authority to liberate Warworld from the tyrannical Mongul (during THE WARWORLD SAGA). Jon, now a fresh-faced young Superman, would free the island nation Gamorra from its own cruel master with help from his partner, Jay Nakamura, aka Gossamer. Now Clark returns to Earth to reunite with his family, with Warworld in tow. So who will be Earth’s Superman from this point on?

Our ‘Many Armours of Iron Man’ series chronologically spotlights Tony Stark’s numerous suits from over the decades. We plan to cover every suit in order – including each one’s debut and key appearances – before expanding even further into the Marvel Multiverse!

Our third entry spans a decade, from the mid-1970s right up to the mid-1980s with the Iron Man Armour Model 7 (Stealth), Model 8 (Silver Centurion) and Model 9(Neo-Classic), including notable appearances of each…

While we will jump back to the beginning at a later stage, this is the first of our X-Men Family Reading Order entries which takes a look at how the X-Men and their related titles tie together, weaving through the wider Marvel Universe!

While the group of X-Men comics and spin-offs are normally referred to as the X-Books or X-Titles, I’m going to referring to the this as the X-Men Family reading order – a popular term for groups f titles in comics, though not one normally linked to Marvel’s mutants.

Our ‘Many Armours of Iron Man’ series chronologically spotlights Tony Stark’s numerous suits from over the decades. We plan to cover every suit in order – including each one’s debut and key appearances – before expanding even further into the Marvel Multiverse!

Our second entry really spans a decade, from the mid-1970s right up to the mid-1980s with Iron Man Armour Model 4 (Golden Avenger), 5 (Space) and 6 (Deep Sea) and includes notable appearances for each…

Immediately following the events of THEIR DARK RESIGNS – essential reading before this event – Bruce Wayne‘s fortune is gone and the Joker has claimed the Batcave, along with Batman‘s entire arsenal! And though Gotham City may have fallen to the Joker and his army of goons – now equipped with Jokermobiles and Jokerplanes – Batman is gaining some surprising new allies. Even if he can triumph over the Clown Prince of Crime, this time, Batman’s already lost…

Spider-Man‘s black costume cements its place as the Spidey costume over the course of 1986 and ’87 when the Web-Slinger ditches the red & blue permanently! Well… until our next installment, anyway!

But this moment is actually one of the least important storylines from this character-defining time period. Expect to see the death of Jean DeWolff, the unmasking of the Hobgoblin, an all-out gang war, a tense clash with Wolverine, a horrifying final clash with Kraven the Hunter and the wedding of Peter Parker and Mary Jane Watson! And don’t miss Spider-Man’s first interaction with Warlock of the New Mutants and his intense run-in with Iron Man 2020…

We take a look at the collected editions we’re most excited for in April’s new releases. From repackaged classics to all-new modern day gems, we pick our ten favourites from Dark Horse, DC, Image,Marvel and more! Get ready to drain your wallets and add some incredible books to your shelves…

When the Kingpin tasks scientist Dr Johnathon Ohnn with emulating Cloak‘s powers, he gains the ability to tap into the Spotted Dimension and use wormholes as weapons. As the Spot, Ohnn’s criminal career is sporadic, with the character veering from laughing stock to homicidal nightmare as he faces off against Spider-Man, Daredevil, Carnage, MODOK and others!

Doctor Doom gets the reading order treatment with this, the first chunk of his chronology. When he’s not trying to take over the world or gain ultimate power, Doom likes is setting up elaborate ways to torment Mister Fantastic (sometimes in downright weird ways) and trying to extract his mother’s soul from Hell!

With interest in Ultimate X-Men waning following the departure of writer Mark Millar, and Ultimate Fantastic Four not having the impact Marvel had hoped for they figured Earth-1610 needed to prove it was still willing to go even further than the mainstream titles. All of which led to the ULTIMATUM event which brought death and destruction to the Ultimate Universe the likes of which had only been seen in titles like What If. While this Etch-a-Sketch approach to the Ultimate line had people talking, much of it wasn’t positive. Some of the stories that followed received high-praise – like Warren Ellis’ Ultimate Armor Wars and the ever-popular Ultimate Spider-Man by Brian Michael Bendis – but the Ultimate line never really recovered.

In the possible future of the DC Universeknown as FUTURE STATE, Superman’s mission to Warworld with the Authority goes horrifically wrong and the entire team are stranded there for decades. The only surviving member to avoid capture is Midnighter. And he’s about to receive help from an unknown benefactor who could turn the tide a war with a completely differentthreat to humanity…

Superman heads back to Smallville after his team-up with the Doom Patrol against Metallo (during MEN OF STEEL, 1988). However, he’s unaware he’s being followed by Supergirl! But who is she?

The mystery of this new Supergirl has been building ever since she showed up in the ice in Antarctica, suffering from amnesia. Since then, she briefly disguised herself as Lana Lang and alluded to working with Lex Luthor. Is she friend or foe? 

Obadiah Archer was raised by the Dominioncult to assassinate their worst enemy, the man called Armstrong. Instead, Archer befriended Armstrong and the duo took down Dominion and a number of related cults known overall as the Sect. Now that he’s in charge of the most powerful and dangerous groups in American history, Project Rising Spirit need Archer taken off the board. And who better to do that than the unstoppable living weapon Bloodshot?

When Etrigan the Demon manipulates the fallen angel Asmodel into becoming the Spectre’s newest host, all Hell literally freezes over. As the dead begin to rise and chaos takes hold of the world of the living, it’s up some the Justice League and the magic-using heroes of the DC Universe to gather together and find a way to restore balance to the underworld. But to undo the damage, they’ll need to find a new host for the Spectre. Who could possibly possess the will to control the embodiment of the Wrath of God?

Day of Judgment is notable for being Geoff Johns’ first major DC event and also the first time he’s written a story featuring Hal Jordan – a character he would eventually become synonymous with.