While comic legends like Stan Lee, Bob Finger, Alan Moore, and Jack Kirby have all been criminally screwed over by companies like Marvel and DC Comics, there are other publishing companies that have been trying-- and succeeding-- at giving comics creators the treatment (and the pay) that they deserve.
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So while Marvel and DC Comics definitely serve their purpose as far as highlighting new creators and running with the stories and characters that fans have been idolizing for decades, it’s certainly the age of the creator. Let’s take a look into some creator-owned comics that DC fans need to have on their radar (if they aren’t already). Minor Spoilers ahead.
10 Buzzkill
DC Comics is no stranger to having a hero with a drug problem. Speedy, later Red Arrow had one. Starfire had one as well. So a story like Donny Cates, Mark Reznicek, Geoff Shaw and Lauren Affe’s Buzzkill might be just up anyone with an affinity for DC’s darker, more emotionally grounded storylines.
Unlike DC’s heroes who ran to drugs as a way to cope with the traumas induced by becoming a masked vigilante (most infamously Speedy), Ruben is a hero who actually gets his power from drug use. This haunting look at addiction through the lens of an incredible superhero story is something comics fans should not miss.
9 Invincible
Robert Kirkman, Ryan Ottley and John Rauch’s unflinching look at the superhero genre as a whole, with a lead character who’s own power-set closely mirrors Superman’s, has kept DC fans and comics fans in general entertained for years. Although it ended at issue # 144, it will keep entertaining fans for years to come.
Invincible takes the typical superhero tropes and turns them on their head. A story created by the mind that brought us The Walking Dead should give newcomers some sort of idea that of what newcomers have in store for them.
8 Wanted
Mark Millar’s violent blood show of a comic book (and very loose cinematic adaptation) has likely been in many fans' hands at one point or another. While the film starring James McAvoy as Wesley Gibson did a great job of introducing the world of Wanted to fans of comics and film alike, the original work is a must for comics fans.
As Wesley discovers that he is the heir apparent to his father's legacy as the top assassin of the secretive Fraternity of super-villains, he faces challenges and performs gun magic like an angry Jason Todd.
7 Spawn
Spawn has been thrilling comics fans ever since Todd Macfarlane left Marvel to become one of the five founding members of Image Comics. Throughout his 17 (and counting) years of publication history, both Spawn and Macfarlane have remained strong. Even battling God himself, along with Satan to boot.
Spawn has taken on the armies of Heaven and Hell and somehow managed to come out (mostly) on top. For fans of DC’s Justice League Dark and any of it’s associated heroes, Spawn will bring a refreshing change of pace with a similar paranormal vibe.
6 The Wicked + The Divine
DC fans have been reading stories filled with the Greek pantheon of gods for years. Wonder Woman has battled Ares. Superman has battled Hercules. At this point, battling a god is just a standard hazing ritual when it comes to becoming a member of the Justice League.
While Kieron Gillen and Jamie McKelvie’s The Wicked + The Divine has some familiar faces, it also introducing (or reintroduces) comics fans to several gods that they may not have already been familiar with. Readers follow along with Laura Wilson as she is introduced to the world of The Pantheon (gods that are reincarnated into human host every 90 years) after Lucifer is assassinated.
5 Birthright
Mikey Rhodes may not have wanted the responsibility of saving the world from the evil God King Lore, but when he was magically teleported from the park just days before his birthday, that was the first gift the people of Terrenos gave him. Writer Joshua Willaimson has been thrilling DC fans on projects like Justice League Vs. Suicide Squad, The Flash, as well as Batman/Superman.
Keeping with tradition in a sense, Birthright’s protagonist is a typical hero with a secret that just might get his family, along with the entire population of both worlds, killed.
4 Jupiter’s Legacy
Mark Millar takes another crack at the super-hero genre with his work on Jupiter’s Legacy. The story followers a group six of heroes, the original superheroes, who are granted their powers after visiting a mysterious island back in 1932.
As the story evolves and expands throughout time, the children of these heroes struggle to live up to the standards set by their parents. DC fans should prepare for some twists and expect that these heroes aren’t all they’re cracked up to be.
3 Nemesis
Nemesis is the type of comic for anyone that has ever asked the questions, “What if Batman was just a really messed up, and well-funded psychopath that simply loved to terrorizing Gotham?" and "What if Batman was the Joker?”
Once again, Millar will have DC fans on the edge of their seats as Chief Investigator Blake Morrow begins hunting down the man that waits at the end of that awful question. Long before Dark Nights: Metal came around to officially answered that question, Millar had already worked up a truly twisted answer.
2 Kill Or Be Killed
Ed Brubaker’s take on the ramifications of the vigilante lifestyle, Kill Or Be Killed explores the true consequences of dedicating one’s life to fighting crime. After Dylan decides to kill himself, he is remarkably spared. Or so he thinks.
When a demon appears to him and says that he must now pay for each additional month of life with a blood sacrifice, Dylan has no choice but to get cracking. Dylan may not be the hero that needs, he’s probably not the hero they deserve either. Carrying around a demon with an incredible bloodlust on one’s shoulder is not the typical hallmark of a superhero, but that’s exactly why DC fans will enjoy Dylan’s descent into madness and vigilantism.
1 Prodigy
Millar has something for every DC fan across the spectrum. Prodigy follows Edison Crane, better known as “The Smartest Man Alive,” as he begins solving problems that the leaders of the world just can’t figure out.
This Nobel prize-winning scientist, Olympic athlete, and paranormal expert will remind DC of some of the most iconic brain in the DC Universe. Lex Luthor, Ozymandias, and Batman definitely come to mind. And with a Netflix series likely on the way sooner rather than later, there’s no better time to get into Prodigy than right now.