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Ben Reilly Reading Order, The other Spider-Man… or is it? (Scarlet Spider)

Ben Reilly - Spider-Man FCBD 2021

Ben Reilly is back! He can die, go live in another city, disappear for years, but he always comes back. But who is Benjamin Reilly? His story can be a little convoluted because it’s about clones, fake deaths, mistaken identity, and more.

Created by Gerry Conway in 1975, he first appeared in The Amazing Spider-Man #149… and is immediately killed. But he came back years later during the (in)famous “Clone Saga” storyline (see reading order) as the “Scarlet Spider,” an ally of Peter Parker/Spider-Man. Together, they fought against The Jackal and Kaine, the unsuccessful first clone of Spider-Man, but also another clone of Spider-Man who became the villain Spidercide, and more.

After some confusion about the identity of the real Peter Parker and other complicated twists and turns, Peter left his superhero life behind him and Ben Reilly became the official Spider-Man. Until his death. After that, he just appeared in the occasional flashbacks. Then he returned to life in 2010 during The Clone Conspiracy (see reading order). Once again, things got complicated for Ben, but he stayed alive this time and got his new ongoing series for a while, then he faded away.

With the new Spider-Man Beyond storyline (that began with The Amazing Spider-Man #75), Ben Reilly came back again as Spider-Man again, for a short time, then came the Dark Web. When will he be back again?

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DC Identity Crisis Reading Order

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DC Identity Crisis Reading Order

Created by writer Brad Meltzer and the artistic team of penciler Rags Morales and inker Michael Bair, Identity Crisis was the event that shook the DC Comics superhero community in 2004 (published from June to December 04). It revolves around a murder mystery that exposed the dirty deeds of the heroes.

Here is the story: After the spouse of a member of the Justice League of America is brutally murdered, the entire superhero community searches for the killer, fearing their own loved ones may be the next targets. But before the mystery is fully solved, long-buried secrets of the heroes rise to the surface, threatening to tear apart and divide the heroes before they can bring the mysterious killer to justice.

What to read before Identity Crisis?

Being the first “crisis” in the DC Universe continuity after the massive event Crisis on Infinite Earth (see reading order here), Identity Crisis is, of course, a notable event, even if its reputation is quite bad.

The fact is that this event is important for what followed, meaning Infinite Crisis (see reading order here). But it’s pretty much a standalone story in the sense that no prior readings are required—except if you are not familiar with the characters (do not start exploring DC Comics with this event!).

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Gwenpool Reading Order

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In 2015, Marvel Comics had some fun with Gwen Stacy by featuring her on variant covers across multiple issues, reimagining the beloved Spider-Man character in various roles. This trend was sparked by the popularity of Spider-Gwen (aka Ghost-Spider), whose cool design and alternate-universe backstory had quickly won over fans. One of the most memorable of these covers appeared on Deadpool’s Secret Secret Wars #2, featuring a pink-and-white-clad “Gwenpool.” At the time, this was just a visual gag—Gwenpool didn’t exist as a character in any story yet—but the cover’s striking look and the growing enthusiasm for mashups led to something more.

Unlike Spider-Gwen, who hails from an alternate dimension, Gwendolyn Poole was introduced as a completely different kind of character—a girl from the “real world” who suddenly found herself inside the Marvel Universe. Aware she was in a comic book, she treated her new reality like an adventure, believing that nothing she did had real consequences. With no powers, no training, and a heavy reliance on improvisation, Gwenpool quickly carved out a niche as a chaotic yet lovable anti-hero. Her popularity skyrocketed, leading to her own series, The Unbelievable Gwenpool, where she developed into a more complex character. Over time, her backstory was reworked to give her a permanent place in Marvel continuity rather than just being a meta-fictional outsider.

Much like Deadpool, Gwenpool regularly breaks the fourth wall, engaging directly with the audience and manipulating the comic book medium in ways other characters can’t. Her unique abilities include jumping between comic panels, erasing characters from existence by tearing apart pages, and even peeking ahead at future events.

In recent years, Gwenpool has also emerged as an asexual icon, with Marvel confirming her asexuality in the Love Unlimited: Gwenpool digital series. This development has further endeared her to fans, solidifying her as one of Marvel’s most unconventional yet beloved characters.

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Siege Reading Order, the end of Marvel’s Dark Reign era

Marvel Siege Reading Order

Published at the beginning of 2010, Siege is the culmination of the Dark Reign, but what was the Dark Reign? Everything began with the ravaging effects of Avengers Disassembled and following the aftermath of House of M, Civil War, and Secret Invasion, the Marvel Universe needed order and Norman Osborn used the chaos to take power. He became the United States primary defense officer, leading H.A.M.M.E.R. as well as employing his own evil Avengers.

So here is the official synopsis for Siege, an event by Brian Michael Bendis and Olivier Coipel: Coerced by Loki and on the brink of madness, Osborn, in his final bid to take total control, targets the final obstacle in his mission…Asgard. Events are set in motion forcing our heroes to put aside the deep rifts that have grown over the past seven years. Opposing them stand a horde of evil that has begun to take down the gods of the Golden Realm!

What to read before Siege?

Being the end of the Dark Reign era, you may want to begin with what started it, the Secret Invasion event (reading order here). You’ll find a reading order here.

If you want to grasp what Dark Reign was about, you may want to take a look at our reading guide or at those books by Brian Michael Bendis (see this reading order for more information).

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DC Infinite Crisis Reading Order

A sequel to DC’s 1985 limited series Crisis on Infinite Earths (see the reading order here), Infinite Crisis is a storyline published in 2005–2006 written by Geoff Johns and illustrated by Phil Jimenez, George Pérez, Ivan Reis, and Jerry Ordway. Like the original “crisis”, it’s about the Multiverse

OMAC robots are rampaging, magic is dying, villains are uniting, and a war is raging in space. And in the middle of it all, a critical moment has divided Earth’s three greatest heroes: Superman, Batman, and Wonder Woman. It’s the DCU’s darkest day, and long-lost heroes from the past have returned to make things right in the universe… at any cost. Heroes will live, heroes will die, and the DCU will never be the same again!

What to read before Infinite Crisis?

Everything started with Crisis on Infinite Earths (see reading order), but after the events of the 2004 storyline Identity Crisis (see reading order), DC Comics launched the “Countdown to Infinite Crisis”, multiple miniseries leading to the main Infinite Crisis event:

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Swamp Thing Reading Order

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There is more than one Swamp Thing, the swamp monster/Elemental of the DC Universe (not Marvel’s Man Thing). The first one was created by Len Wein and Bernie Wrightson in House of Secrets #92 (July 1971) in a stand-alone horror story.

At first, the Swamp Thing was an anthropomorphic mound of vegetable matter fighting to protect his swamp home, but he eventually broadens his scope to protect the environment in general, and humanity from various supernatural or terrorist threats, becoming a DC Superhero in his own way. 

During the 1970s, Swamp Thing had his first ongoing series, but it didn’t last. When he became the star of a Wes Craven movie in 1982, a second series was launched. It was almost canceled before Alan Moore became the main writer and made it a real creative success, rewriting the mythology of the character and expanding his powers and reach.

Since then, more writers worked on the titles and Swamp Thing even started fighting alongside other DC heroes.

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Catwoman Reading Order

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Created by Bill Finger and Bob Kane, Catwoman is the name used by notorious Gotham City’s burglar Selina Kyle who’s known for loving cats and for using a bullwhip as a weapon. Originally, she was an adversary of Batman, but became some kind of antiheroine, and even an ally of the Dark Knight—and more on the romantic side.

Even if Catwoman made her first appearance in Batman #1 (1940) under the name “The Cat,” she had to go away for a time between September 1954 to November 1966 after losing the battle against the Comics Code Authority. She came back to commit more crimes in the pages of the DC Comics titles. But those stories are not part of the current continuity, so we will focus on what is called the “Modern Era” of DC Comics.

Like others like her, her origins are not clear, multiple authors revised them, but it is firmly established that Selina Kyle grew up on the streets of Gotham, and spent some time in an orphanage and a juvenile detention center. She was working as a dominatrix at some point (in Batman: Year One) before becoming a successful thief who likes to rob the rich and powerful men of Gotham.

Catwoman had her first solo ongoing series in 1993 and took part in the major events of that era. At one point, she fought with the Justice League and later completely reformed, but it was more complicated than a crisis of conscience. Talking about a Crisis, after Infinite Crisis (see reading order), Selina is no longer Catwoman. Holly Robinson took over for a short period of time. Later, Catwoman formed the Gotham City Sirens with Poison Ivy and Harley Quinn. At one point during the New 52 era, Eiko Hasigawa became Catwoman (and Selina was one of the Gotham City crime bosses). With Rebirth, Catwoman occupied a prominent role in the third volume of Batman, her relationship with Batman played a major role in the story.

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The Amazing Spider-Man by Dan Slott Reading Order

During the first Civil War event (full reading order), Peter Parker revealed his Spider-Man identity on live television. This leads to a tragedy and this knowledge was quickly erased from the world with the event of the story arc called “One More Day”.

This is when J. Michael Straczynski stopped being the main writer of The Amazing Spider-Man (see Spidey’s JMS reading order). When he left, Marvel decided to get Spider-Man back to basics. This means that Peter Parker and Mary Jane had never married, and he had no memory of being married to her. Also, Harry Osborn was alive again.

It was the beginning of “Brand New Day.” Marvel decided to alternate writers for The Amazing Spider-Man series. One of them was Dan Slott who became the sole writer at issue #648 (Jan. 2011), launching the Big Time storyline. It was the beginning of what became the longest run in Spidey’s history.

During that era, Slott created new characters, updated old ones, developed the Spider-Verse, gave us the Superior Spider-Man, and more. He only left the title in 2018, his final issue being #801. But he came back to write Spider-Man in 2022, introducing the Spider-Boy and developing a sequel to his Superior Spider-Man series.

What to read before Dan Slott’s Amazing Spider-Man?

Of course, you can check out our Spider-Man Reading Order that covers the adventures of Spidey from the start to today. But, as I was saying, Brand New Day marked the start of the rebooted Amazing Spider-Man, and Dan Slott was one of the writers, and you can start with that:

  • Spider-Man: Brand New Day Omnibus Vol. 1
    Collects Free Comic Book Day 2007 (Spider-Man), Amazing Spider-Man (1999) #546-583, Amazing Spider-Man Annual (2008) #1, Secret Invasion: Amazing Spider-Man #1-3, Presidents’ Day Celebration Digital Comic, Spider-Man: Fear Itself One-Shot (2009), Amazing Spider-Man: Extra! #2, Spider-Man: Swing Shift Director’s Cut One-Shot And Material From Amazing Spider-Man: Extra! #1.
  • Spider-Man: Brand New Day Omnibus Vol. 2 (coming soon)
    Collects TBA

The Previous Brand New Day Collection:

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Batman Fear State Reading Order

DC Batman Fear State Reading Order

To conclude his run on Batman (see reading order), James Tynion IV planned an event named Fear State that will get us through the end of 2021. All of the Bat-Series are involved, so here is the guide.

Gotham City is on the brink of martial law as Batman fights a two-front battle! The Scarecrow is unleashing a devasting attack on the city while the Magistrate has made their move to invade! Gotham City is on the brink of a violent evolutionary path and the danger level to Batman and his allies reaching a fever pitch!

The Magistrate now has full support from the mayor to handle high-level law enforcement in Gotham and has branded the Dark Knight as Public Enemy #1. Batman must also contend with the return of the Scarecrow who pursues his own terrifying agenda as he takes this chaotic moment to launch his Fear State.

What to read before Batman Fear State?

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Paper Girls Comics, a Reading Guide for the Brian K. Vaughan series

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Paper Girls Reading Order

Following the success of The Boys, Amazon Prime tried to adapt another comic book but with more of Stranger Things vibe: Paper Girls! Unfortunately, the television adaptation didn’t find its audience and was canceled after one season of only eight episodes.

But before the television show, there was the comic book series and it was a pretty popular one! Paper Girls was written by Brian K. Vaughan and illustrated by Cliff Chiang—and published by Image Comics between October 2015 and July 2019. If you want to read it, there are multiple editions. Here is a guide to help you navigate all this.

First, what’s the story? Here is the official Paper Girls synopsis: In the early hours after Halloween of 1988, four 12-year-old newspaper delivery girls uncover the most important story of all time. Suburban drama and otherworldly mysteries collide in this smash-hit series about nostalgia, first jobs, and the last days of childhood.

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