Top 5 Image Comics You Need to Read Right Now

Written By Stephanie Broder

If you’re interested in making comics, you also need to read comics. It’s the best way to learn about the medium, what publishers are looking for, and how to tell a good story in the comic format.

While many people are familiar with Marvel and DC thanks to their blockbuster movie hits, the world of comics is WAY bigger than those two. So this week on the blog, I will introduce you to some of my favourite comics by my favourite publishers. Starting with my number one: Image Comics.

A selection of my Image Comics 

You might recognize them from big properties like The Walking Dead and Invincible, but they have so much more than that.

Image Comics was started in 1992 by artists who wanted an alternative to Marvel and DC, where artists could actually own the Intellectual Property rights to the stories and characters they created. They are now the third biggest comics publisher in the US. They also became my favourite comics publisher when I discovered them and how stylish, sexy and inventive their art and stories were.

Without further ado, check out my top five Image comics you should read right now:

Monstress

Monstress Volume One: Awakening by Marjorie Liu and Sana Takeda

Written by Marjorie Liu, Illustrated by Sana Takeda

Lettering & Design by Rus Wooten, Edited by Jennifer M. Smith

From the back:

Set in an alternate world of art deco beauty and steampunk horror, Monstress tells the epic story of Maika Halfwolf, a teenage survivor of a cataclysmic war between humans and their hated enemies, the Arcanics. In the face of oppression and terrible danger, Maika is both hunter and hunted, searching for answers about her mysterious past as those who seek to use her remain just one step behind… and all the while, the monster within begins to awaken…

What comic makers should take note of:

The art in this comic series is absolutely stunning. Takeda blends manga style with Western style. Note the pivots between yellow- and blue-toned coloured palettes, perfectly harmonized throughout the book. Notice how Takeda pushes and pulls with details, going all-in on some panels and leaving some details more sketchy in others. And notice the thoughtful line quality with bold outlines and thinner detail lines, not unlike the painting of art deco artist Alphonse Mucha.

Middlewest

Middlewest Book One by Skottie Young and Jorge Corona

Written by Skottie Young, Illustrated by Jorge Corona

Colours by Jean-Francois Beaulieu, Lettering by Nate Piekos, Edited by Kent Wagenschutz, Design by Carey Hall

From the back:

Predictable. Normal. Boring. Most days in Farmington are like any day in a small town in the heartland, but Able is used to it. He runs his paper route, tries to keep up with schoolwork, and aims to stay on the good side of a volatile single parent. One fateful day, however, Abel’s ideas of normalcy, safety and security are torn to shreds and blown away as a storm levels Farmington just as quickly as it appears. What’s more, the storm is chasing Abel - and it knows his name.

What comic makers should take note of:

I love the way Corona stylized the characters in this heartfelt adventure of found family. Look at the sharp, blocky edges and sketched-in solid black shadows. Contrast in colour and lighting keeps the art engaging, even in scenes that are in the dark of night. The cast of characters is each so charmingly unique, from a little fox with stick-like legs to the larger-than-life block of Abel’s dad’s silhouette; each character has so much personality packed into their design you don’t even need to read the comic to appreciate it (but you should).

Saga

Saga Volume One by Brian K. Vaughan and Fiona Staples

Written by Brian K. Vaughan, Illustrated by Fiona Staples

Lettering + Design by Fonografiks, Coordinated by Erik Stephenson

From the back:

Saga is the sweeping tale of one young family fighting to find their place in the universe. When two soldiers from opposite sides of a never-ending galactic war fall in love, they risk everything to bring a fragile new life into a dangerous old world.

What comic makers should take note of:

Fiona Staples is a god among us regular artists. Learn everything you can from her. Fantasy backgrounds built up in a painterly style from colours and textures. Character design that’s so varied it fills an entire fictional universe. Action and intimacy both rendered with the same exquisitely stylized human figures. And hey, while you’re here, Vaughan is an excellent writer who can somehow make a space opera story still personal. You’ll fall in love with his characters and they will break your heart.

The Wicked + The Divine

The Wicked + The Divine: The Faust Act by Kieron Gillen and Jamie McKelvie

Written by Kieron Gillen, Illustrated by Jamie McKelvie

Coloured by Matthew Wilson, Lettered by Clayton Cowles, Designed by Hannah Donovan, Edited by Chrissy Williams, Flatted by Dee Cunniffe

From the back:

Every ninety years, twelve gods return as young people. They are loved. They are hated. In two years, they are all dead. It’s happening now. It’s happening again.

What comic makers should take note of:

This is one of my all-time favourite comic series and it’s complete at nine trade paperbacks so you can read the whole thing! RIGHT NOW. What are you waiting for?

Faces are the thing you should pay the absolute most attention to in this beautiful modern myth. Expressions, subtle and loud, fill these pages. McKelvie can tell an entire story with eyebrow movements alone. And this story feels real, gritty. The characters are as lovable and hateable to us as the back says they are to their world. This comic may have had an outsized influence on me now that I think of the current project I’m working on where genetically engineered teenagers are called gods…

READ IT.

Gideon Falls

Gideon Falls Volume 1: The Black Barn by Jeff Lemire and Andrea Sorrentino

Written by Jeff Lemire, Illustrated by Andrea Sorrentino

Colours by Dave Stewart

From the back:

The legend of the Black Barn tells of an otherworldly building that has appeared and reappeared throughout history, bringing death and madness in its wake. Now, its mystery ensnares and entwines the lives of two very differen men. One: a young recluse, obsessed with finding hidden clues within the city’s trash. The other: a washed-up Catholic priest, finding his plaec in a small town that hides dark secrets. Neither of them are prepared for what’s inside the Black Barn.

What comic makers should take note of:

Gideon Falls is my FAVOURITE horror comic (a genre a read a lot of). Sorrentino’s skill at playing with the elements of comics - panels, word balloons, time - is unmatched. I use this comic as an example in every graphic novel class I teach. Where else can I find rendered cubes being used as 3D panels to tell stories across multiple timelines? Read this for the pacing. Read it for the colour. Read it for the chills.

But most important of all, read it because it’s god damn brilliant.

Truly, you can’t go wrong with taking a chance on a comic published by Image Comics. Hopefully you enjoyed this quick tour through some of their best titles (in my opinion) and stay tuned tomorrow for the next publisher!

Stephanie Broder
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