Marvel and DC are the most well known publishers out there but that doesn’t mean they have the best books. For decades, independent publishers like Image Comics, Dark Horse Comics, and Boom! Studios have been putting out some of the best comics, with superstar creators working on passion projects and being completely in control of their work. Indie comics have it all, from superheroes to horror to sci-fi, and give the Big Two a run for their money.
The indie scene is full of great comics for fans to discover and the freedom it gives creators has allowed them to create some very special books.
10 Spawn Is The Granddaddy Of Image Comics
Spawn is one of Image’s oldest ongoing series. Unlike just about every book from the Image founders except The Savage Dragon, Todd McFarlane’s Spawn has been continuously published since Image’s earliest days and has become a cultural icon. With almost thirty years of stories to choose from, Spawn has become a massive part of the comic industry.
While its ’90s heyday is long over, Spawn is a still a great book, mixing superheroes and horror in novel ways. With the recent release of Spawn Universe #1, the character and his spin-offs are riding high.
9 Hellboy Is One Of The Greatest Horror Books Of All Time
Hellboy is another indie horror/superhero comic that has almost thirty years of history behind it. Created by Mike Mignola and published by Dark Horse Comics, Hellboy follows the titular character and his comrades in the B.P.R.D. as they keep the world safe from supernatural threats. Hellboy has starred in movies (both animated and live action), video games, and inspired spin-off comics.
Horror comics don’t get much better than Hellboy. While Mignola no longer draws the books, he still writes them, working with artist Christopher Golden and continuing to turn in some of the best horror comics of all time.
8 Once And Future Is The Best Contemporary Fantasy Book On The Market
Marvel and DC have both played with Arthurian myth but none of them have went as far into it as writer Kieron Gillen and artist Dan Mora’s Once And Future. Published by Boom! Studios, the book turns Arthurian myth on its ear as Arthur and Merlin are the villains fought by elderly monster hunter Bridget, her grandson Duncan, and his girlfriend Rose in contemporary Great Britain.
Not only is it excellent contemporary fantasy, with Mora turning in some amazing artwork, but Gillen uses it to talk about not only humans and their relationships to stories but also the rise of far extremism in Britain. It’s a smart, fun, action-packed fantasy book the likes of which the Big Two just doesn’t do anymore.
7 Wynd Is A Queer Fantasy Romp
Writer James Tynion IV and artist Michael Dialynas’s Wynd is a wonderful fantasy story published by Boom! Studios. Wynd is a young boy who just wants to live his life and get the courage to talk to the cute royal gardener. However, the revelation of who and what he really is drives him and his friends, joined by the prince and the gardener, out of their cloistered city and into a wide and dangerous world.
Tynion and Dialynas’s plays on classic fantasy tropes but gives them the queer twist that has often been little more than subtext. The story is alternatingly whimsical and terrifying and is a fantasy book unlike any other.
6 The Walking Dead Is A Legitimate Cultural Phenomenon
It’s safe to say that without writer Robert Kirkman and artists Tony Moore and Charlie Adlard’s The Walking Dead, the zombie renaissance of the 2010s wouldn’t have lasted nearly as long. A cultural phenomena, this Image comic focused on Rick Grimes and his band of survivors as they made their way through a post-apocalyptic, zombie infested world.
The comic can be very different from the TV show and its “nobody’s safe” approach to storytelling kept fans on their toes for over a decade. The stark black and white artwork is perfect and Kirkman’s gift for characterization made the story work, even if the plots could be formulaic at times.
5 Black Hammer Has Developed Its Own Amazing Superhero Universe
Writer Jeff Lemire and artist Dean Ormond’s Black Hammer was a hit from the start. Published by Dark Horse, Lemire took inspiration from characters from Marvel and DC to create his pastiche cast and showed the aftermath of their bid to save reality. Things just spiraled from there as revelation after revelation jolted the core cast and the nature of their universe was revealed.
The main Black Hammer book was only the beginning, as Lemire and a crew of talented writers and artists started fleshing out the superhero universe Lemire had created. Black Hammer has grown into one of the best superhero books on the market, a true underrated gem.
4 Descender/Ascender Are A Wonderful Mix Of Sci-Fi & Fantasy
Writer Jeff Lemire and artist Dustin Nguyen’s Descender and its sequel Ascender, both published by Image Comics, are an amazing mix of sci-fi and fantasy. While Descender introduced fans to Tim-21, the UGC, the Gnissh, and the robots who were responsible for the deaths of millions, Ascender takes place after Tim accidentally sparks another apocalyptic incident, with the galaxy under the control of mystical forces.
Lemire does an amazing job with the world building of both books, creating a wonderful cast of characters and hitting all the right emotional beats in the story. Nguyen’s water color art is amazing, alternating between amazingly detailed and wonderfully sparse. Together, the creative team makes magic a science.
3 Deadly Class Is One Of The Best Crime Comics On The Market
Writer Rick Remender and artist Wes Craig’s Deadly Class, published by Image Comics, takes the world of teen comics and crime comics and melds them together. Set in the mid-’80s and beyond, it follows main character Marcus through his time at Kings Dominion, an assassin high school, and the machinations of the student body. Full of intrigue, violence, sex, drugs, and rock n roll, it takes the traditional teenagers in training concept and makes it real.
One of Remender’s best works, the book is winding down but better than ever. Remender and Craig have worked magic and more eyes need to be put on this book before it ends.
2 Invincible Is One Of The Best Indie Superhero Books Ever
Writer Robert Kirkman and artist Ryan Ottley’s Invincible, published by Image Comics, has gotten more eyes on it because of the Amazon Prime cartoon but it has long been one of the best superhero books on the market. The tale of Invincible and the truth about his life as a superhero have grabbed reader attention since day one, with its big superhero action and amazing characters.
Kirkman proved he was good at something other than horror with this one and the title character even made an appearance in a Marvel Spider-Man comic. Ottley’s amazing pencils captured the brutality of the superpowered conflict and the majesty of superpowered characters. This book is one that all superhero fans should check out.
1 The Wicked + The Divine Does Everything Perfectly
Writer Kieron Gillen and artist Jamie McKelvie’s The Wicked + The Divine is basically the perfect comic book. Combining superpowered action, social commentary, pop culture, and good old fashioned supernatural paganism, Wic+Div is the story of the Recurrence, where every ninety years, twelve young people get the powers of the gods. Two years later, they are all dead.
Following fangirl Laura and documentarian Cassandra, the book is a truly 21st century one, a hodgepodge of characters from diverse backgrounds. Gillen’s plots and characters are amazing as are McKelvie’s pencils. Few books out there can match it.
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