Intimidated away from picking up an established character?

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unbreakable_fs4

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Does anyone else ever encounter this problem?

You really like a specific character from the little you've seen but since they are already established, they have hundreds or even thousands of issues lying in wait to be read in order to amass the sufficient knowledge to be well versed on the character.

As a result of this frightening number of comics you'd have to catch up on, you end up reconsidering.

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Bruxae

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This is why I started reading with the New 52.

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longbowhunter

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Nah, I just look up recommended arcs and start there. Or dip my toes in with a miniseries.

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unbreakable_fs4

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#4  Edited By unbreakable_fs4

@bruxae said:

This is why I started reading with the New 52.

Same here. I'm actually very new to comics, considering I read my first ever comic about two years ago. I've wanted on numerous occasions to delve deeper into a character's past incarnation but over and over again, I've been made to reconsider based on the sheer amount I'd have to read

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unbreakable_fs4

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#5  Edited By unbreakable_fs4

@longbowhunter: That is a fair way to do things. I too do that sometimes but I do get the feeling I'm holding myself out from many, many things on that character.

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The_Kidd

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Yeah, so I just go for their most well known stories.

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iDude

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#7  Edited By iDude

@bruxae said:

This is why I started reading with the New 52.

Same.

I also read most of the well known stories from pre-52.

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longbowhunter

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@longbowhunter: That is a fair way to do things. I too do that sometimes but I do get the feeling I'm holding myself out from many, many things on that character.

With Daredevil I came in during Brubaker's run, worked back through the Bendis stuff, Kevin Smith, Frank Miller. The fact that I've never read the original Lee/Everett stuff or all of Nocenti/Romita Jr.'s run doesn't bother me in the least.

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unbreakable_fs4

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@unbreakable_fs4 said:

@longbowhunter: That is a fair way to do things. I too do that sometimes but I do get the feeling I'm holding myself out from many, many things on that character.

With Daredevil I came in during Brubaker's run, worked back through the Bendis stuff, Kevin Smith, Frank Miller. The fact that I've never read the original Lee/Everett stuff or all of Nocenti/Romita Jr.'s run doesn't bother me in the least.

Hmm, I see. I was looking to pick up Black Panther and maybe Spider-Man but not really sure where to start. I considered reading as close to their inception as possible but the number of comics to read was quite something. I'll do things as you did if any recommendation arise on which run to being from.

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longbowhunter

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@longbowhunter said:
@unbreakable_fs4 said:

@longbowhunter: That is a fair way to do things. I too do that sometimes but I do get the feeling I'm holding myself out from many, many things on that character.

With Daredevil I came in during Brubaker's run, worked back through the Bendis stuff, Kevin Smith, Frank Miller. The fact that I've never read the original Lee/Everett stuff or all of Nocenti/Romita Jr.'s run doesn't bother me in the least.

Hmm, I see. I was looking to pick up Black Panther and maybe Spider-Man but not really sure where to start. I considered reading as close to their inception as possible but the number of comics to read was quite something. I'll do things as you did if any recommendation arise on which run to being from.

Yeah man no reason for all that. Friend of mine thought he was going to do that with Spider-Man and ended up just reading a bunch of comics he didn't like. I'm not a Spider-Man guy but I might be able to help with Black Panther. The Hudlin/Romita Jr. stuff seems to be a modern BP stable, it's pretty good. I thought David Liss's run had some high points, especially when Francavilla was on art. Haven't read it myself but supposedly Christopher Priest's run is The Black Panther run. Think Marvel is re-releasing that in trade, I'd definitely pick that up.

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Cable_Extreme

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@unbreakable_fs4: read the wiki pages (like so many people seem to do) and you will be qualified to debate in the battle thread!!!

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safefruitcake

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Yeah, happens to me quite a lot.

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unbreakable_fs4

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@unbreakable_fs4 said:
@longbowhunter said:
@unbreakable_fs4 said:

@longbowhunter: That is a fair way to do things. I too do that sometimes but I do get the feeling I'm holding myself out from many, many things on that character.

With Daredevil I came in during Brubaker's run, worked back through the Bendis stuff, Kevin Smith, Frank Miller. The fact that I've never read the original Lee/Everett stuff or all of Nocenti/Romita Jr.'s run doesn't bother me in the least.

Hmm, I see. I was looking to pick up Black Panther and maybe Spider-Man but not really sure where to start. I considered reading as close to their inception as possible but the number of comics to read was quite something. I'll do things as you did if any recommendation arise on which run to being from.

Yeah man no reason for all that. Friend of mine thought he was going to do that with Spider-Man and ended up just reading a bunch of comics he didn't like. I'm not a Spider-Man guy but I might be able to help with Black Panther. The Hudlin/Romita Jr. stuff seems to be a modern BP stable, it's pretty good. I thought David Liss's run had some high points, especially when Francavilla was on art. Haven't read it myself but supposedly Christopher Priest's run is The Black Panther run. Think Marvel is re-releasing that in trade, I'd definitely pick that up.

Thanks for the suggestions :)

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unbreakable_fs4

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@unbreakable_fs4: read the wiki pages (like so many people seem to do) and you will be qualified to debate in the battle thread!!!

Lol indeed. The wikis are the holy grail of knowledge. Jk

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Cable_Extreme

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#15  Edited By Cable_Extreme

@unbreakable_fs4: makes anyone knwoledgable enough to debate people. Same with getting random scans from Google. Lol

In all seriousness, I start with notable reads. I'll ask a fan on comicvine what are some key stories that I should read, I fill myself in of some context like thier origin in stories etc. and just start from there, I suppose learning could be intimidating if there is a lot of stuff to learn, but it wouldn't be fun any other way.

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unbreakable_fs4

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@cable_extreme: True last statement. I'll ask around and see where I can start. Thanks

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Cable_Extreme

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#17  Edited By Cable_Extreme

@unbreakable_fs4: would you mind telling me what character/s it is? I might be able to help

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unbreakable_fs4

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@cable_extreme: I was looking into Black Panther and Spider-Man. longbowhunter filled me in on some Black Panther info but more info is always welcome. I don't have as much interest in Spider-Man as I do BP but I do like the character. If you're knowledgeable on Daredevil, I'll appreciate any info you can give on where to start with him.

I'm trying to touch more on Street-level characters since everything I read is higher tier.

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Cable_Extreme

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#19  Edited By Cable_Extreme

@unbreakable_fs4: I know @Jashro44 is pretty knowledgeable about both Spiderman and Black Panther. So he could tell you some good reads from both characters as well, if you are interested. (And if he is willing)

As far as Dardevil,

Daredevil a man without fear is good, Daredevil Born again is also good, I haven't read much else from Daredevil that was too good.

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Cable_Extreme

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#20  Edited By Cable_Extreme

@unbreakable_fs4: a good place to start is to actually look at the wiki (on comicvine)i, and look at sections, each section will explain a story line, you can then look up reviews of the story line of different runs and determine whether or not it is worth buying.

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MyNameIsWill

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Often.

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unbreakable_fs4

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@unbreakable_fs4: I know @Jashro44 is pretty knowledgeable about both Spiderman and Black Panther. So he could tell you some good reads from both characters as well, if you are interested. (And if he is willing)

As far as Dardevil,

Daredevil a man without fear is good, Daredevil Born again is also good, I haven't read much else from Daredevil that was too good.

Thanks. I'll try and check those out if my wallet permits.

@unbreakable_fs4: a good place to start is to actually look at the wik (on comicvine)i, and look at sections, each section will explain a story line, you can then look up reviews of the story line and determine whether or not it is worth buying.

Will do. Usually the character wikis on this site are accurate.

I'll consult Jashro and Static if I run into any dead ends.

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deactivated-5edd330f57b65

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Not really. I just look up their best or most recommended stories and jump onto any current or recent runs with the character. It takes time to be well-versed, and as long as I am willing to put in the time reading, I'll do it.

Besides, you dont have to be well versed to enjoy the character or their stories, even if you just read one or two of their books.

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Idk, I don't really read comics in order to become an expert on a character. That sort of happens over time if you like a character or concept enough, but I read to enjoy the stories. I just picked up Thor: God of Thunder from my library without ever having read a Thor comic before, and I loved it. Sure, there were little things here and there that would go over the head of a newcomer such as myself, but I enjoyed it much the same!

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@cable_extreme: I was looking into Black Panther and Spider-Man. longbowhunter filled me in on some Black Panther info but more info is always welcome. I don't have as much interest in Spider-Man as I do BP but I do like the character. If you're knowledgeable on Daredevil, I'll appreciate any info you can give on where to start with him.

I'm trying to touch more on Street-level characters since everything I read is higher tier.

That's funny cause I find all the high tier stuff to be boring.

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Cable_Extreme

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#26  Edited By Cable_Extreme

@renaissanceman: high tier for me tends to be who is the strongest in power level, not too much who is more skilled or smart.

Which is kinda boring I admit, though stuff like Dr. Strange is interesting due to the variability of his type of power.

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deactivated-5a04a566e9ae3

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If you like a character/property, then read the recommended stories and continue on if you want. You're not required to read every single thing they appear in.

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MakkyD

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#28  Edited By MakkyD

@kal_smahboi said:

Idk, I don't really read comics in order to become an expert on a character. That sort of happens over time if you like a character or concept enough, but I read to enjoy the stories.

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The start of a run for a character is usually the best since most writers treat their work as the start of a new story and it's usually a good starting point.

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The_Kidd

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@renaissanceman: high tier for me tends to be who is the strongest in power level, not too much who is more skilled or smart.

Which is kinda boring I admit, though stuff like Dr. Strange is interesting due to the variability of his type of power.

Idk, I don't really read comics in order to become an expert on a character. That sort of happens over time if you like a character or concept enough, but I read to enjoy the stories. I just picked up Thor: God of Thunder from my library without ever having read a Thor comic before, and I loved it. Sure, there were little things here and there that would go over the head of a newcomer such as myself, but I enjoyed it much the same!

I can relate to this myself, not really a Thor fan but I read a few issues of Thor: God of Thunder out of boredom and enjoyed quite well.

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Maybe I just got lucky, because I learned a lot about Wonder Woman, a character that I really liked, without necessarily going through all of her possibly 700 plus issues by now. First, my interest in the character was peaked, because I remembered her from a cartoon like Superfriends. In Marvel, this happened with a few X-Men characters like Rogue and Jubilee for me. For different reasons, I learned something about Hulk from the late 70s or early 80s tv series viewed in reruns. I liked She-ra too, but she was allowed to stay in 80s obscurity, but I think she had a cult following. Although she got a few issues very recently in DC probably starting in 2013 or last year, it's only because of the recent refocused on He-man. But, Wonder Woman stuck in my memory, even though I went all the way through the 90s with not further focus on her. But, I like the Syfy channel, and, with her team music, she was brought back into my memory. And than, a short time later, the Justice League came on tv. I was than seduced by the character around 2004. I researched her on the internet and found a very different image of her, but it was a pleasant surprised and galvanized an interest in seeing her in BDSM as it was described in my research; this was a little before Wikipedia came along. I was than lead to her creator, Marston, who didn't disappoint; I was expecting or hoping to see some hear and there, but he had a BDSM them in seemingly every issue. So, this turbocharged me through about the first 200 issues, but I noticed it mellow down, even though the theme was still there. I later discovered that it was because Marston had died and the writer was switched, but, because the same artist was used, I didn't notice the change of writers right away, because the BDSM was still there, but was mellowing down. I than skipped around, but I learned a who lot about the character. To keep learning about the character, I felt I didn't lose much by skipping through her Wonder Tot days.But, I missed a few good issues like Wonder Woman 168 volume 1 featuring Dr. Psycho that I surely would have liked. I got to her powerless and liked it. The issues really lost all of their magic with the departure of Marston in terms of what galvanized my focus to the character. I liked George Perez's issues a little better than the issues immediately preceding his run, but I felt I got rod when he allowed her to escape certain situations with easy. And than, I got to Messner-Loebs' run and was almost as hook again. Than Byrne came along and took it back down to Perez levels, but they gradually faded, although most post-crisis runs have been better than the issues immediately preceding the Perez run, until possibly the start of the New 52, where things seem to have really mellowed off from my taste. But, as I've noticed, not all characters have a hook like Wonder Woman did for me and it could be intimidating to get into other characters.

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#32  Edited By JulieDC

Yeah I've felt that way. That is why I tend to start with standalone trades that don't require extensive background knowledge. This way I can familiarize myself with the character, learn some of the past, and make sure I want to go deeper. If I do, then I will probably pick a writer run and start with that. I find the stuff beginning in the 2000s to be much more new reader friendly than older works.

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unbreakable_fs4

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@renaissanceman: Definitely agree with you there. I've recently been frequenting street level threads and the discussions are always very interesting. I still light the higher tier stuff but I do want to expand my horizon.

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#34  Edited By jashro44

@cable_extreme: I was looking into Black Panther and Spider-Man. longbowhunter filled me in on some Black Panther info but more info is always welcome. I don't have as much interest in Spider-Man as I do BP but I do like the character. If you're knowledgeable on Daredevil, I'll appreciate any info you can give on where to start with him.

I'm trying to touch more on Street-level characters since everything I read is higher tier.

For black panther you should start off with Priests run. For spider-man JMS run is really good and anything by Roger Stern as well. To be honest you don't need to read hundreds of issues to really be knowledgeable on a character. I'm still learning about characters I read about even now. For black panther I would recommend going through his volumes. black panther volume 1-4 (maybe read 5 if you are interested in Shuri, plus it does lead up to doom war) after that read doom war and than man without fear. Depending on if you dislike older issues with black panther I guess you can skip volumes 1 and 2, all though if you don't mind older issues I would say give them a read along with jungle action.

Spider-man is harder to read since he has a lot of appearances. I would say most things by JMS, and anything by Peter Davids, Roger Stern, Tom Defalco, and I did admittedly start with Slotts run myself (I think his run use to be OK its kind of hit and miss, he had some great ideas but I wish he did more with them). I would say all the writers besides Slott are great runs. For Defalco IIRC issue 419 is after the clone saga if you want to skip through that.

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I can see why some people would feel this way, but I've since come to the conclusion that no matter the long history and seemingly overwhelming library, it just means more comic goodness to enjoy. This is from a long time comics fans, mind you . I don't know if I would feel the same had I got into comics now.

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