Being a spiderman collector for 45 plus years I get asked this question alot. It's hard to compose a list but I always recommend reading amazing fantasy 15 and then asm 1-129 as a must. After that its roger Sterns run and pretty much it's as your list. Issues 1-129 has major players and major villains which cant be ignored and peter parker grows in those issues faster than asm 130 onwards. I love everyones list including yours but I feel 1-129 are must reads. Excelsior
honestly just cant recommend original asm to new readers, I like some of it but reading silver age comics is just a chore even the great stories aren't very fun to read and definitely not great for a new audience imo
Lee+Ditko and Lee+Kirby work so much better that the rest of the 60s comics, generally. I think those duos make everything very expressive and dramatic, and also feature the best character designs. Took me a while to get used to both Ditko's and Kirby's art, but when you get it, it's great.
100% agree. Some of the other '60's stuff is a little (or, in some cases, a lot!) hokey and doesn't really hold up by today's standards. I read a lot of it just for academic purposes, and it can sometimes even feel like a chore..But the early AMS stuff is a LOT more interesting and fun than most.
@Slickdaddygains read the original amazing spider man 1-129 you should check out ultimate spider man the entire run including death of spider man and miles moralis origin, you should also read spider man blue kravens last hunt, spider man life story, and the spider verse / spider geddon books also Spider man 1990 1-14 and spectacular spider man 2017
I don’t think the writing for the amazing Spiderman by Ditko and lee is outdated in my opinion issue 33 is one of the greatest comic book issues of all time
I agree. I don’t like much silver age, but I think silver age Spider-Man is great. It felt more like a soap opera for teens and more realistic than other marvel comics at that time.
The only outdated Lee book in My opinion was his X-Men run, all the others are wordy but EXTREMELY fun. I was reluctant as first, but I picked up a Fantastic Four omnibus and I was blown away. Good stuff, same with Spider-Man with Ditko
I've been reading the originals and I will say the amount of text can look daunting at first. But the way Stan Lee writes the story's is page turning, you'll keep wanting more
Hobgoblin and alien costume are my favourites. You can't go wrong with the early issues either, just for the creativity of Ditko and the humour, it's a winner from the rip.
Yes! I just watched Maddogg's Thor video like this and was craving more! Some great suggestions here! Spider-Man: Blue was a game-changer for me. And the Spider-Girl Complete Collections are some of the most underrated books by far.
@@mattthompson3371 Same! I’ve enjoyed the collabs and getting exposed to other Comic RU-vidrs cause of Omar. It’s been great to see the community grow these past two years.
Firstly, thank you Omar, for starting this segment with my most favorite superhero of all time! Coming from someone like me, who have a hard time with Silver Age, Bronze Age artwork and dialogues, I honestly find Ultimate Spider-Man run one of the greatest ways to start about this character! More importantly, if we see the whole Ultimate Spidey run, it started with Peter and Norman, and ended with Peter and Norman! Before Miles takes over... That was something so poetic, that I immediately fell in love with this whole run. Another worthy run, by JMS. Having both vol 1 and 2 omnis, I am now quite a fan of how JMS portrayed Parker, his relation with MJ, Aunt May and also, the supernatural level stories thrown into the mix! I can go on and on... But point is... Thank you Omar, for starting this segment with my most favorite superhero of all time!
“Where to start reading ...” yesyesyesyes! Omar you are so versatile! I can’t say thank you enough! 💚🙏🏽 what are some of the reasons why Marvel hasn’t changed spiderman story throughout time? I am just curious 🤔
If you aren’t into reading 100issues of silver age stuff, at least read AF#15, Amazing Spider-Man 1, 31-33, 39-40, 50, and 121,122. Those are the major highlights of the original run. That being said, there’s other great stuff in there as well, but those are the best ones for me. Just throwing these out there for those who aren’t completists
From Ditko's era I personally think issues 6, 15, 17-19, 24, and 26-27 are also great additions, in case someone wants to read a few more, featuring different villains. Though I find the overarching story and character drama to be the most interesting thing about this era, while fights and such can often be read diagonally because most of it is just Stan Lee stating what you're seeing.
I think youre missing the best doc ock stories. Comic book doc ock is much different then the nice version seen in the spiderman ps games and sony movies.
@UCmF4K-xR6ApnaBAYZtu1pHA Kind of hard to give a list because so much of spiderman is good. You shouldn't really feel intimidated by the total number of issues. Modern comics/trades you can blow through pretty quickly because they dont have as much juxposition. Id honestly read the first 6 epic collections which will get you to around 95-100 of the ongoing. Then read death of gwen stacy. Then id go with spiderman vs black cat or marvel masterworks 19. Then id read roger sterns run on asm however you can get it ASM 224-252 then birth of venom. Then spiderman Vengeance of venom, maximum carnage, and finally revenge of the sinister six to close out the biggest stuff from asm volume 1
@SlicKDaddY For modern spiderman you could go with john michael strazinskis run on amazing spiderman. It will start with peter and mj getting together then it ties in with civil war and spiderman joining the avengers which was touched on in the marvel movies. I find the issues after he left to be a lot of fun and bring back a lot of what made me love the early spiderman issues. When JMS left spiderman it went to being published 3X a month with a team of writers and artists titled brand new day, this is the era where mr negative was created.
you can't just stop at Roger Sterns run, De Falco that came after was awesome maybe even better. I would add Spider-Man learning to crawl and renew your vows series if you fancy a more family oriented story. Also if you want something a bit different definitely recommend Spider-Man noir. But seriously Spider-Man is my favourite and my specialist marvel character.
Great list my dude. It's been eight years since Superior Spider-Man? Wow. I always say when someone is now getting into comics, you can't go wrong with Spider-Man. Great video Omar.
The ONLY thing I would add is Paul Jenkins' "Spider-Man: Light in the Darkness" with Mark Buckingham. It collects PETER PARKER: SPIDER-MAN (1999) #20-33, Annual 2000, and AMAZING SPIDER-MAN (1999) #25. It is a wonderful return to form for Peter after the onslaught of bad times that affected him beforehand, and is a great amalgam of short-stories with humor and one & dones along with some great story arcs ("Revenge of the Green Goblin" and "One Small Break" namely). Great book and is bookended with two tales of Peter's relationship to Uncle Ben.
My absolute favorite story was from reading my older brother's comics as a 13 year old from the mid or late '80s. It had to do with the Hobgoblin and crime world involving the Purple Rose (I think that was the purple masked character's name). So much better than what I was able to buy at the time.
Maybe the storyline that started in Web of Spiderman 86? Very underrated storyline. I feel like the best stories in Web and Spectacular don’t get their proper due. (Even Spectacular 200 which was a masterpiece)
Spider-Man is my absolute favorite! Recently have been collecting all available omnis in my proximity (some have been especially elusive!). Though breaking the rules, I believe for me the very best starting point for Spidey outside of Lee and Ditko, is Bendis' Ultimate. Thanks for this, Omar!
A few years ago my daughter asked me where to start to get background on Spidey. She was 18 at the time, and just off to University to stufy psychology. I gave her the silver age volume 1 to read. She got through around15 issues and then gave up. I had never previously considered silver age comics to be hard going, but then I grew up reading Marvel Comics from the beginning in their weekly UK Marvel reprints. Looking at them now, they are wordy and of course contemporary attitudes changed; I think Reed Richards comes across as borderline abusive to Sue in some of the early FF stories, but no one blinked at the time. If asked now I'd hand over the Ultimate Spidey omni without further thought. It's a smart modern take on the material, even if some stories are stretched a bit too much. It's unfailingly entertaining, with artwork to match (although Ditko will always be The Spidey Artist for me). Lots of other great choices on your list Omar. Looking forward to the next one.
I would add two suggestions to your list: The first is the follow up to "Kraven's Last Hunt", by the same creative team of J. M. DeMatteis and Mike Zeck, titled "Soul of the hunter", a graphic novel published the following year, in which Peter deals which PTSD after being buried alive. Another one, would've been "Untold tales of Spiderman" by Kurt Busiek, but I get that you decided to leave it out. I still think it's a valid suggestion, anyway. This series is a short run, of only 25 issues, a pair of annual, and a special which was fully collected in an omnibus volume. There¡s also a very old TPB collecting the first 8 issues, but the best option, if you can't find a full rund of the issues, is the omnibus.
I just talked about soul of the hunter on my overview of the Spidey epic this week: is so good. I love untold tales, but I think you’d appreciate it reading it side by side with the Ditko/Lee era.
I started with the McFarlane Omnibus's!!! Big Spawn fan, I got into comics with Image. So my first Marvel comics was looking up what the image guys had done at Marvel before creating Image. After McFarlens stuff I went to Larsen Omnibus and Spider-man Vs Venom Ombinus, then jumped to J. Micheal Strazinski and Ultimate Spider-Man. I really need to read Kraven's Last Hunt! They need to make a set of Dan Slott Spider-Man Omnibus!!!
Very informative video. I stopped following Spider-Man (and most comics in general) around the JMS era and really haven't kept up with current Spidey since I've gotten back into comics. Since One More Day killed the enthusiasm for so many friends of mine who may have otherwise passed along more info to me, I've pretty much kept to other titles. I do agree, though, that Untold Tales of Spider-Man would be a great starting point. Although the issues are interwoven directly around the first few dozen or so issues of the original run, I didn't have access to those issues when I was younger when I read the series and thought they were great.
i have an idea based on the last segment. i have new friends who want to get into comics. books like season one and spidey are GREAT to ease them in. You should make a video series titled “Best Origin Retellings” for other characters !
One big reveal doesn’t pay off as much when you start reading JMS‘ run, which is the relationship shift with Aunt May. Happens very early in the run and if you’re new you get confused why this is such a big deal, especially if all you know about Spider-Man are the movies.
In terms of jumping on points, amazing spiderman 290 (collected in the spidey omnibus by McFarlane and Micheline,) Spectacular spiderman 178 to 200 serve as a follow up to kravens last Hunt. The above runs I've suggested begin new runs and fill you in on what you need to know as they go along. The Spectacular Spiderman run seems to be particularly relevant to current Amazing spiderman issues
Thanks for another great video. I'm trying to get all of the 616 Spiderman (at least up to about issue 300) in epic collections. I'm hoping they reprint Kraven's Last Hunt sometime soon. For younger readers I'd go with Ultimate Spiderman. In my old age I love Ditko's run but when I was younger I didn't like it as much. That's why I suggest ultimate Spider-Man
So so so so glad you included Death of Jean DeWolff. One of my favorites! Surprised you didn’t go with “any issue of SS-M that J.M. DeMatteis wrote” 😆 Great vid & great segment! Thanks for not including those JMS arcs that shall not be named. Algorithm gang!
One disappointment is the secondary titles of major characters has a lot of holes in collected form or even marvel unlimited. I would love to be able to read spectacular spiderman and web of spidey.
@@chickenfkeryay I don’t disagree with you there! The past month or so MU has added a ton of back issues from those secondary+ titles of Spider-Man though. Which is nice! As someone who has read every major appearance of Spider-Man(it’s torture) through BND a lot of it makes sense that it’s on the back burner. That doesn’t mean a lot of the good stuff, especially Spectacular Spider-Man, should be neglected in collected editions. What I am thankful for in MU is at least in the 90s when they had an arc running through multiple titles (like Gathering of 5) that MU has it all now if it’s connected to ASM. Wasn’t always the case before!
I started in the 90’s and agree with Omar. I bought a Spider-Man comic I liked so started going forward from there, picking up back issues when I could. I still do it, picked up Excalibur 22 yesterday. Never read any Excalibur before, thought it was great. If you do need a jumping on point though, in the past I’ve had successes recommending Coming Home by JMS or Brand New Day from Dan Slott. I think there were designed as jumping on points, and read well to more modern audiences.
Omar! Love, love this video. So much work put into it and great entry points. Wish we had a reprint for the Kravens Last Hunt epic.. kind of hard to find!
Great list. Though I wouldn't recommend new readers reading the older comics at first. That could be for old readers reading a new character, but you sold that point for me as for completists, so fair :) Anyway, I don't think the old comics, and by old I include 80s and 90s that some people consider modern, is a great starting point for a completely new reader of comics, but that's just my opinion. But with that said, you covered everyone (I think) with a great list, it's up to everyone to start where they see fit for their needs and you can always go back if you like the character. Personally I started with Ultimate Spider-Man, I can't count when I only read Swedish comics so, but technically that was somewhere in the 80s or maybe 70s stuff over there probably. My favorite is (of course) Superior Spider-Man. Haven't read Kraven's Last Hunt yet, even if it has been on my to-read list forever.
If u want a modern retelling of the story read ultimate spider man (160 issues then it continues with miles Morales) or spidey (which is a 12 issue mini series but is great)
Even though I have some of the volumes of Ultimate Spider-man, I want to read Spider-Man Brand New Day, Back to Basics, Kraven's last hunt, Big time, Spider-Man's last stand and Ultimate Spider-Man Miles Morales.
Great spots, I started from the VERY BEGINNING w/ the first (chronological) ECs myself. The Lee/Ditko stuff wasn't that bad tbh, can't wait to check out that USM omni tho!
I’m just now playing Spider-Man for PS4, and was thinking man, I need to get into some Spider-Man books (Any recommendations for a more mature Spider-Man, like in the game, post college, sorry if one is in your list, haven’t finished the vid yet). Great timing as always Omar, thanks for the great content, have a good one man 😊
You know this is a Mandela effect because of the movies people assume Spiderman has always been in high school when he’s not he hasn’t been in high school since 1965 excluding ultimate Spider-Man because that isn’t in the main universe
@@thegoddamnedbatman2138 thanks for letting me know, I would have never guessed that. So most Spider-Man stories (besides ultimate) are post high school? Good to know, thanks again for the reply.
@@imtheaaiden Yes a majority of his stories are like the era of David Michelinie or Tom Defalco have Peter as an adult juggling his personal responsibilities with his superhero duties. A lot of the more current animated series like Spectacular Spider-Man have also placed more of an importance on high school Spider-Man than adult Peter Parker.
I just finished Amazing Spider-Man by JMS and loved it!!! I think I’m going to preorder the Superior Spider-Man omnibus for my next Spider-Man read. This video was super helpful!
Ultimate Spiderman is fantastic! I've been trying to get Amazing Spiderman Omnibus Vol 4 and it is incredibly hard to find without paying $300 or more. In Canada and your USD isn't helping either lol :D P.S. I loved Chip Zdarsky's Spider-man Life Story
Whew... thank god! You finally mentioned Ultimate Spider-Man at the very end. I was about to lose my shit, no joke. Not only is it one of the best Spider-Man runs of all time, it was created for the very purpose you're describing- to bring in new readers and older readers who have left. It's a new take on the mythos with a contemporary update, and it was the main inspiration for the Tom Holland version of Spider-Man.
GREAT list, Omar! I've been reading the MMW Spider-Man volumes with/to my five-year-old. I get the wordy aspect of it... also the fact that it's aged. If anyone has watched the old cartoons, I just tell people to imagine Stan's voice with the captions and it makes it easier. Also, with the thought balloons, just imagine a nervous teenager. So, when I'm reading out loud to my son, I try to get a little bit of that Stan with the captions (slightly grandiose) and nervous teen in Peter's dialogue and thoughts. False sense of bravado as Spider-Man. His villains are almost always overselling themselves. :) They always sound silly at first, but it grows on you. When I'm recommending to other new readers, my go-to is Ultimate Spider-Man, all the way. You hit all of the best notes on some of the best of all time, though! So much good stuff over the years and some even I haven't read and/or I need to get in collected edition and re-read - I have gaps, since this isn't X-Men. :P
Omar my.man. I gotta hand it to you buddy. I saw your review of JSA by Geoff and I thought to myself. How can this be better than his GL run. But u rated it higher and on a gamble I got the Omni. (It's quite pricey) but boy o boy. Was I surprised ! Heck yeah. JSA beats GL hands down. Glad I listened to you. I also ordered new Warriors omni 1 and pre ordered vol 2. Keep up the good work
Omar during video intro: I'm sticking with 616 Peter Parker Omar recommendations toward the end of the video: DeFalco's Spider-Girl and Ultimate Spider-Man :-D
The Ditko era was great. 39 -150 are fairly good but it's undeniable that Lee's writing has not dated well. The Conway/Andru era was brilliant at times. I can't recall a bad issue with Andru art. After 325 the art is often ridiculous. Todd McFarlane has a lot to answer for.
Great video Omar! I started reading Spider-Man in the middle of the clone saga right before Ben Reilly took over. Talk about confusing haha. I still love the clone saga after all these years. I think I'm one of the only people that talks about how great it is lol
Having recently read the whole thing ,I would suggest starting with AF 15 and ASM 1 onwards. The acilliary titles marvel team up etc are largely forgettable except when they tie into asm ...honourable mention to spectacular spider man which ran 263 issues also a good read
