With the first two episodes of Marvel's Inhumans playing in IMAX theaters ahead of the drama's broadcast premiere, audiences have been introduced to a hidden city on the Moon populated by a superhuman race ruled by a Royal Family that's torn apart by a military coup. Oh, and enormous, lovable teleporting bulldog. However, that's only the beginning.

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The Inhumans have a long and wonderfully weird history in Marvel Comics dating back more the five decades, to their 1965 debut in The Fantastic Four. Since then they've expanded well beyond Black Bolt, Medusa, Maximus, Lockjaw and Crystal, and well beyond the confines of Earth and the Moon, to include the likes of Ms. Marvel and Thane, and interstellar conflicts with Thanos and the alien Shi'ar Empire.

For those looking to brush up on the Inhumans' comic book adventures, CBR has compiled a list of 14 recommended titles, from their earliest appearances to the present-day Marvel Universe.

Inhumans: By Right of Birth

inhumans: by right of birth

King Black Bolt and Queen Medusa are no strangers to defying the norms of Inhumans society, most notably when they bore a child in defiance of the Genetic Council. Fearing the danger Black Bolt's offspring might pose to Attilan, the council isolated and examined the child, later named Ahura, and prevented his parents from having any contact with him.

There's little that can break the bond between Black Bolt and Medusa, but Inhumans: By Right of Birth, by writer Ann Nocenti and artists Bret Blevins and Richard Howell, certainly puts that notion to the test. The choice between a duty to their people and a love for their son continues to shape their relationship, underscoring that the most interesting element of the Inhumans is the push and pull between the needs of the many and the needs of the few.

Inhumans: Attilan Rising

inhumans: attilan rising

Marvel Comics' 2015 event Secret Wars featured numerous related miniseries set during Doctor Doom's rule of Battleworld, formed from a patchwork of realities that remained following the destruction of the Multiverse. One such tie-in was Inhumans: Attilan Rising, by writer Charles Soule and artist John Timms, in which Medusa is the Baroness of New Attilan, loyal to Doom. That's certainly bad enough, but then Medusa discovers the rebellion she's been tasked to destroy is led by Blackagar Boltagon, aka Black Bolt.

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Secret Wars' Battleworld miniseries found freedom in multiple universes colliding, and in Attilan Rising the characters remain recognizable yet still different from those readers know; we're left to wonder which side of the conflict between Doom and the rebels each Inhuman will take. And it turns out that by granting Black Bolt, long defined by his silence, the ability to speak helps to illustrate what a charismatic and inspiring leader he can be. His budding romance with Medusa goes through all the motions, but the history of their relationship is what sells it, and the final pages definitely make this miniseries one worth a re-read.


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Infinity

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On the surface, 2013's Infinity isn’t really an Inhumans story. It’s the culmination of one of the big threads running through writer Jonathan Hickman’s simultaneous runs on Avengers and New Avengers, in which the superheroes partner with the alien Kree and Brood to stop the Builders, the oldest race in the cosmos, from destroying "imperfect" worlds on their way to Earth.

Infinity, by Hickman and artists Jim Cheung, Jerome Opena and Dustin Weaver, isn't only about the battle against the Builders, however, as Thanos uses the chaos as an opportunity to find and eliminate his secret Inhuman son Thane. The Mad Titan's minions the Black Order are put on Thane's trail, and even probe Black Bolt’s mind for his location. It’s only when Black Bolt detonates a Terrigen Bomb that Thane’s Inhuman side emerges, revealing that his left hand can kill and his right hand creates amber constructs, which he later uses to trap Thanos in a state of “living death.”

Infinity begins as a cosmic sci-fi epic, but becomes a more personal conflict between father and son. Thane’s transformation into someone who wants to kill is tragically ironic, considering he was a healer who accidentally murders his entire Inhuman town. The story's aftermath sees Thane set out to make a name for himself and the Inhumans forge a new path, due to the rise of the NuHumans created as a result of the detonation of the Terrigen Bomb.

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The detonation of the Terrigen Bomb in Infinity upends the status quo of the Marvel Universe, as virtually anyone on Earth exposed to the spreading Terrigen Cloud has a chance of emerging from a cocoon with new powers. Suffice it to say, those "NuHumans" don't have the easiest time coping with those abilities, which can warp their bodies or minds. Even worse, that's not something heroes like the Mighty Avengers or Superior Spider-Man can help them through; it's an Inhumans problem, but the Royal Family is in such disarray that it can barely help itself.

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Inhumanity, which played out across several Marvel Comics titles, is less about the heroes and more about the ramifications their actions have on ordinary people. While several of the emerging NuHumans later join superhero teams, the crossover does a good job of making those characters earn their hero status. Part origin story, part infection thriller, it's a read well worth your time.

Fantastic Four: Universal Inhumans

Universal Inhumans

The Inhumans of Earth weren't the first to be experimented on by the alien Kree millions of years ago, they were merely the last. The Kree also conducted the same experiment on the Badoon, the Centaurians, the Dire Wraiths and the Kymellians, and implanted them with a genetic memory that would compel them to eventually unite. In the 2010 Fantastic Four storyline "Universal Inhumans," by writer Jonathan Hickman and artist Dale Eaglesham, the queens of each of those four alien species do just that, to fulfill a prophecy that involves finding Black Bolt and establishing a new holy land on Earth.

These revelations add a fascinating new layer to Inhumans lore, with each of those species having a different catalyst for its powers, and a different caste system, making the Kree as the unifying factor all the more compelling. Although Earth's Inhumans appear relatively briefly in the arc, "Universal Inhumans" represents some significant world-building that didn't simply fall to the wayside: Writer Al Ewing returned to those threads in his series Royals, in which the Royal Family takes to the stars in hopes of saving their future.

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Inhumans

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Although the Inhumans were introduced in 1965 in The Fantastic Four #45, they spent much of the next three decades as secondary players in the Marvel Universe, headlining their own short-lived series in the mid-1970s and a graphic novel in 1988, but mostly appearing as guest stars in other titles. That changed in 1998 with Inhumans, a limited series by writer Paul Jenkins and artist Jae Lee that found critical and commercial success by using the offbeat characters as an unlikely social allegory.

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This comic is as much about the complex dynamics within the Royal Family as it is about the fall of their society's genocracy. Inhumans also offers one of the best depictions to date of Black Bolt's scheming brother Maximus, who flits between cunning genius and utter madman as he attempts to manipulate his way to freedom and, ultimately, the throne of Attilan. The nearly 20-year-old limited series remains an engrossing read, and serves as an ideal entry into the characters' comic book world following the IMAX premiere of Marvel's Inhumans,

War of Kings & Realm of Kings

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The Inhumans were created millennia ago by the alien Kree through genetic experiments on Earth's then-primitive Homo sapiens. The Kree ultimately abandoned this new strain of superpowered humans out of fear of a prophesied uprising that would destroy the ruling Supreme Intelligence. That complicated and contentious history comes to the foreground in the aftermath of 2008's Secret Invasion as the Inhumans relocate to the planet Hala and assert the right to rule the Kree. In hopes of uniting the two races, Black Bolt pledges his sister-in-law Crystal in marriage to Ronan the Accuser, but the ceremony is interrupted by an attack from their mutual enemy the Shi'ar, which results in the cosmic conflict that unfolds in 2009's "War of Kings" and its 2010 follow-up "Realm of Kings."

Having the Inhumans lead the Kree seems like a natural step, and marks a much-needed change in their status quo. It’s an ironic conclusion to the ancient prophecy, and an inevitable one, given how easily Ronan ceded the throne. The Inhumans don't rule for long, because of course they don't, but their reign is enjoyable to witness while it lasts.

Inhuman

inhuman #1

The events of 2013's Infinity paved a new path for the Inhumans, with Black Bolt's apparent death leaving Medusa as ruler, the race's existence revealed to the public, and an enormous Terrigen Cloud spreading across the planet, creating superpowered NuHumans. If you were, for some reason, put off by the Inhumans before this, or simply want to check in on their current incarnation, 2014's Inhuman serves as a good entry point.

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Written by Charles Soule and illustrated by Joe Madureira and Ryan Stegman, the series balances stories of newly emerged NuHumans with those of long-established members of the Royal Family, as their lives intersect against the backdrop of a New Attilan built in the Hudson River from the remnants of the Inhumans' former home.

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Uncanny Inhumans: The Quiet Room

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After returning from self-imposed isolation and retrieving his time-displaced son Ahura, Black Bolt finds himself with little to do. After all, when your ex-wife has ruled just fine in your absence (a coup or two aside), you can't exactly hang around the palace. So in Uncanny Inhumans, writer Charles Soule and artist Brandon Peterson come up with a new place for the Midnight King to hold court: a nightclub.

The titular Quiet Room is a place where characters of all stripes can have a drink, watch a boxing match or show off their company’s new product. If that sounds silly, that’s because it is, but it’s one of the best Inhumans arcs of recent memory. But no place that's established as peaceful, neutral ground can stay that way for long, and it’s no surprise a string of bad luck befalls the club as Medusa and Ahura arrive for the first time for a family dinner. It’s a fun addition to the mythology that allows the typically stiff Black Bolt to unwind a little, and it’s entertaining to seeing these normally regal characters slink around like they’re in Ocean’s Eleven.

Ms. Marvel

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Virtually every corner of the Marvel Universe has a standout character, and for the Inhumans, that's a Pakistani-American teenager from New Jersey named Kamala Khan. Caught in the Terrigen Cloud, Kamala discovers she has the ability to shape-shift, and assumes the mantle of her favorite superhero, Ms. Marvel.

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All things considered, Ms. Marvel is probably the one Inhuman known beyond comic books, given her appearances in video games on the animated television series Avengers: Secret Wars. Once you've read a few issues of Ms. Marvel, it’s difficult not to fall for the character, who's just a kid who wants to do good. It wouldn’t be entirely wrong to call her the Peter Parker of the current generation of young readers, and watching her grow into a hero has made for one of the most consistently entertaining titles from Marvel in recent years. Plus, Kamala writes superhero fan fiction. How could you not like that?

Royals

royals

The Inhumans and X-Men went to war following a tense months-long alliance, and the conflict ended in a loss for the Inhumans: There’s no more Terrigen, and Medusa handed over the throne to the NuHuman Iso, bringing the reign of the Royal Family to a close. What’s an Inhuman to do?

If you’re Medusa, you round up your sister, your cousin, two NuHumans and brother-in-law Maximus, and follow an explorer from another dimension named Marvel Boy. With no other options, the seven embark on a cosmic quest to save their people and learn the secrets of the Terrigen that imbued their people with extraordinary abilities. The cosmic shenanigans are old hat for writer Al Ewing, and the artists paired with him make the book well worth reading.

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Karnak

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The Inhumans have some heavy hitters, but none is quite as deceptively powerful as Karnak. While he looks like a fairly typical guy, albeit with some dope facial tattoos, his ability to see the flaw in literally everything makes him more dangerous than even Black Bolt. And that's without exposure to the Terrigen Mist that imbues most of the other Inhumans with superhuman powers.

RELATED: 15 Times Ms. Marvel Had All the Feels

Fortunately, his recent solo comic doubles down on that aspect of the character, portraying Karnak with an arrogance that’s deserved and, at times, genuinely hilarious. He’s That Guy in high school who never cared what anyone thought of him, only he can back up his boasts. Written by Warren Ellis and illustrated by Gerardo Zaffino and Roland Boschi, Karnak is a standout series that reminds readers the character can do a lot of damage beyond mere punching.

Black Bolt

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There have been a lot of great comics released in 2017, but few are as surprising as Black Bolt. The Midnight King has experienced his share of bad luck in recent years, what with being presumed dead and forced into submission by his brother Maximus, and unable to reclaim his throne. That's not to mention the state of his relationship with son Ahura.

You’d think a solo comic would be about his comeback, but writer Saladin Ahmed and artist Christian Ward have different plans. Trapped in an alien prison originally designed for his brother, Black Bolt is stuck in an environment that robs him of both power and status. However, that winds up being the best thing to happen to the repressed king, giving him a psychic child named Blinky and a friendship with none other than Crusher “Absorbing Man” Creel. Through these two supporting characters, Ahmed uses the comic as an opportunity for Black Bolt to reflect on how his previous actions actually do justify his presence in this prison.

The Origin of the Inhumans

The 1998 Inhumans series established the property could be commercially successful, and recent books have cemented the place of the uncanny characters within the modern Marvel Universe. But there's something to be said about going back to their roots with their 1965 debut. While Medusa and Gorgon appeared previously, The Fantastic Four #45, by the legendary team of Stan Lee and Jack Kirby, marks our formal introduction to the Royal Family.

Those earliest stories by Lee and Kirby are collected in Inhumans: The Origin of the Inhumans, 424 pages from Fantastic Four and Thor that are packed with melodrama and adventure on a cosmic scale. For some modern readers the Inhumans are little more than "Space X-Men" who have been elevated by Marvel in recent years as a stand-in for the more popular mutants. It's difficult to refute that, but if you want to enjoy the Inhumans with all of their inherent weirdness, and without that other baggage, these original tales are the best place to start.


The first two episodes of Marvel's Inhumans are in IMAX theaters now, for a limited run. The eight-episode first season will receive its broadcast premiere Sept. 29 on ABC.