Superheroes are more popular and more mainstream than ever. It seems like every week there’s a new superhero movie, TV show, or videogame hitting the screens. Nearly all of these superheroes and their stories originated in comic books. Of course, there are decades and decades worth of comics out there, and to a new fan it can be daunting trying to figure out which ones to read. In this column, I’m gonna try my best to give new fans fun, easy to understand jumping-off points into the world of comics. As far as accessibility goes, most of these comics are collected and readily available from comic shops, bookstores or online from subscription services such as Comixology, Marvel Unlimited, and DC Universe. Additionally, I always recommend your local library as a free source of comics to read, and with inter-library loan systems you can get your hands on pretty much anything.
For this edition of Where to Begin we’re gonna take a look at my all-time favorite superhero, the original Captain Marvel, Shazam! Shazam is a very unique and fun superhero, and with his recent movie the character is more popular than ever. I’ve been reading his comics since I was a little kid, and I thought I’d put this list together for any fans interested in giving the comics a try. For starters, there are two collections that have a good sample of stories throughout the years: Shazam! The Greatest Stories Ever Told and Shazam! A Celebration of 75 Years. Beyond those, if you want more adventures from Billy Batson and the World’s Mightiest Mortal, here’s where to begin.
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