DC

The question most often asked of the ComicsAlliance staff is a variation of, “Which comic books should I be reading?” or, “I’m new to comics, what’s a good place to start?” The Wednesday deluge of new comic books, graphic novels and collected editions can be daunting even for the longtime reader, much less for those totally unfamiliar with creators, characters and publishers, and the dark mysteries of comic book shopping like variants, pre-ordering, and formats. It’s with these challenges in mind that we’ve created Best Comic Books Ever (This Week), an ongoing guide curated by the ComicsAlliance staff. This is where new comics readers and seasoned Wednesday shoppers alike can find our picks of the best books the medium has to offer.

Superman is the most iconic superhero in the world, and he's loved by millions --- but he's not necessarily the easiest character to get to grips with if you haven't been exposed to the right material. Even as a massive Superman fan, I'll admit that it can be a bit hard for some readers to wrap their heads around exactly why he's so great and why he matters so much. We've put together a list of the ten essential Superman stories for any reader looking to dive into Superman fandom.

Superhero comics are always gonna be weird, even when the aesthetics of the time they occupy are trying to lean hard into more Serious Issues. Like, say, that time in 1991 when Vandal Savage tried to eliminate the drug trade and the Flash got shot, killed, resurrected by a cyborg, and ended up with a new costume in the process.

Supergirl may have been whammied into a musical Flash crossover, but rest assured, the Girl of Steel will be back to her old self in time for Kevin Smith’s directorial return next week. As such, the first full trailer for “Distant Sun” has arrived, featuring bounty hunters against the Maiden of Might, and the return of a familiar DC universe face.

The retro-TV adventures in DC's digital-first line just keep getting cooler, particularly in Batman '66 Meets Wonder Woman '77. If you haven't been reading the crossover series by Marc Andreyko, Jeff Parker, and David Hahn, you've been missing out on a decades-spanning-epic. The story began in the 1940s, with WWII-era Wonder Woman meeting a young Bruce Wayne. Then it continued in 1966, with Batman and Robin following Ra's al Ghul's trail to Paradise Island. Here in Chapter Nine, available digitally March 22, the story jumps forward again, to 1977, as Wonder Woman rides her motorcycle to Gotham City in search of Batman. But this is a decade after Batman's heyday, and things have changed in the years since. Check out an exclusive preview of chapter nine.

This week, the mysterious ship that’s looking for Mon-El arrives, and everyone has got some explaining to do! Also, we learn that Van Gogh’s “Starry Night” was on display in National City… until it was stolen! “Star Crossed” was directed by John Medlen from a script by Katie Rose Rogers and Jess Kardos.

Whether or not Arrow abandons its flashback device altogether after Season 5, the upcoming episodes will inevitably return Oliver Queen to the bearded castaway we first saw in the 2012 pilot. To wit, star Stephen Amell is now teasing the return of a familiar foe, albeit with a deathly familiar stroke.

Courtesy of DC Comics, ComicsAlliance brings you an advance look at new periodical comic books, collected editions, graphic novels and collectibles going on sale in June 2017 (and in some cases beyond) from the publisher’s superhero line, Gerard Way's Young Animal, and the mature readers Vertigo imprint.

In honor of the caped crusaders of the convention scene, ComicsAlliance has created Best Cosplay Ever (This Week), an ongoing collection of some of the most impeccable, creative, and clever costumes that we’ve discovered and assembled into a super-showcase of pure fan-devoted talent. This week's selection of the best cosplay ever includes Aquaman and Aqualad, Moana, Howl's Moving Castle, Yuri Katsuke, and more.

March is Women’s History Month, and we’re looking at the history of Wonder Woman. As we all know, her first theatrical film is due out later this year. But what if it wasn’t her first? What if there had been as many onscreen Wonder Women as Batmen? So far we've done a Golden Age Wonder Woman movie and a Silver Age Wonder Girl movie; this week we march on into the early 1970s, for another movie featuring stars of the era.