Best Comics of the 2010s
Saga, Monstress, Immortal Hulk — the decade's defining comics.
By Web Admin
The 2010s were a boom decade for comics — arguably the most creatively diverse in the medium’s history. Digital distribution lowered the barrier to entry, the bookstore graphic-novel market exploded, and creator-owned series at Image regularly outsold superhero titles. It was the decade a Pakistani-American teenager became one of Marvel’s most beloved heroes, a space opera about war and parenthood became a cultural phenomenon, and even the most familiar characters got radical, acclaimed reinventions.
This guide rounds up the best comics of the 2010s: the books that defined the decade and that still read brilliantly today. Most are complete or near-complete, which makes them ideal for bingeing. Prices are approximate US figures for current collected editions.
What made the 2010s different
Two shifts defined the decade. First, creator ownership went mainstream. Image Comics, in particular, became the destination for A-list writers and artists who wanted to keep the rights to their work, producing a flood of original series in every genre. Second, comics finally started to look like their readership — with more women, more creators of colour, and more stories outside the traditional superhero mould reaching a mass audience. The result was a decade where the best books were as likely to be found in the indie aisle as the cape aisle.
Saga by Brian K. Vaughan & Fiona Staples (2012– )
No single book better represents the decade than Saga. Brian K. Vaughan and Fiona Staples’ sprawling space opera — about two soldiers from opposite sides of a galactic war who fall in love and start a family — combined blockbuster imagination with genuine emotional depth, and it made creator-owned comics a commercial force. It won a shelf of Eisner Awards and sold in the millions. Volume 1 is about US$10 and remains one of the best on-ramps to modern comics; our full Saga Vol. 1 review explains why we recommend it more than any other single book.
Monstress by Marjorie Liu & Sana Takeda (2015– )
Marjorie Liu and Sana Takeda’s Monstress is a dark-fantasy epic set in an alternate, matriarchal early-twentieth-century Asia, following a scarred young woman bound to an ancient, hungry power. Takeda’s fully painted, Art Deco-meets-manga artwork is among the most beautiful in the medium, and the book won the Hugo Award for Best Graphic Story five years running. About US$17 for Volume 1. It is a standout on our best fantasy comics list.
Ms. Marvel by G. Willow Wilson & Adrian Alphona (2014– )
When Kamala Khan — a Pakistani-American teenager from New Jersey — took up the Ms. Marvel mantle in 2014, she became an instant icon. G. Willow Wilson and Adrian Alphona’s run is warm, funny, and grounded, a coming-of-age story that happens to involve shape-shifting powers. It proved a “diversity” character could also be a genuine bestseller and fan favourite, and it paved the way for a Disney+ series. The first volume, No Normal, is about US$16 and a perfect gift for a younger reader. See our best superhero comics guide for more.
The Immortal Hulk by Al Ewing & Joe Bennett (2018–2021)
The single best superhero run of the late decade, The Immortal Hulk reinvented Marvel’s green giant as a body-horror figure — an indestructible thing that rises every night, exploring guilt, trauma, and the monstrous. Al Ewing and Joe Bennett turned a familiar character into the most talked-about book at Marvel. The whole fifty-issue run is collected across omnibus and paperback editions (paperbacks around US$16 each). It is a modern high point for the whole idea of the long-form superhero comic book run.
Paper Girls by Brian K. Vaughan & Cliff Chiang (2015–2019)
Another Vaughan gem, Paper Girls follows four twelve-year-old newspaper deliverers in 1988 who stumble into a time-travel war. Think Stranger Things with sharper ideas and Cliff Chiang’s clean, gorgeous art. It is complete in six volumes or a deluxe edition, and later became an Amazon series. Volume 1 is about US$13.
The Vision by Tom King & Gabriel Hernandez Walta (2015–2016)
Tom King’s The Vision is a quiet, chilling twelve-issue tragedy about the Avengers’ android trying to build a “normal” suburban family — with devastating results. It reads like a modern literary novel and announced King as one of the decade’s major superhero writers. The collected edition is about US$25 and is one of the finest self-contained superhero stories ever published.
More of the decade’s best
- Bitch Planet by Kelly Sue DeConnick & Valentine De Landro — a fierce, satirical feminist sci-fi from Image.
- Descender by Jeff Lemire & Dustin Nguyen — a watercolour space epic about a boy robot; gorgeous and moving.
- Black Hammer by Jeff Lemire & Dean Ormston — a melancholy, Eisner-winning superhero deconstruction.
- Something Is Killing the Children by James Tynion IV & Werther Dell’Edera — a breakout late-decade horror hit that carried straight into the 2020s.
Comparison: the decade’s defining books
| Book | Publisher | Genre | Approx. price | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Saga | Image | Space opera | ~US$10/vol | Everyone |
| Monstress | Image | Dark fantasy | ~US$17/vol | Fantasy fans |
| Ms. Marvel | Marvel | Superhero | ~US$16/vol | Teens, new readers |
| The Immortal Hulk | Marvel | Horror/superhero | ~US$16/vol | Cape veterans |
| The Vision | Marvel | Tragedy | ~US$25 | Literary readers |
Pros and cons of reading the 2010s
Pros
- Enormous creative and genre diversity
- Many series are complete and perfect for bingeing
- Creator-owned books mean bold, original stories
- Widely available and reasonably priced in collected editions
Cons
- So much output that it is hard to know where to start
- Superhero-line-wide crossovers of the era can be confusing
- A few beloved series ended abruptly or remain unfinished
Where to start and where to buy
If you read nothing else from the decade, start with Saga — it is cheap, complete-feeling, and the fastest way to understand why the 2010s were special. From there, follow your taste: Monstress for fantasy, The Immortal Hulk for capes, The Vision for literary tragedy. Collected trade paperbacks are the sweet spot for value, while deluxe and compendium editions offer the best binge value for series you know you will love.
AmazonCheck price on AmazonFor deeper dives, browse our best Image Comics guide, our roundup of the greatest comic book runs, and the overall best graphic novels list.
Frequently asked questions
What is the best comic of the 2010s?
Most readers and critics point to Saga, which combined mass popularity with genuine quality and defined the creator-owned boom. Our Saga review makes the case.
Which 2010s comic is best for a total beginner?
Ms. Marvel and Saga are both superb starting points — one all-ages and grounded, the other adult and epic.
Are these series finished?
It varies. Paper Girls, The Vision, and The Immortal Hulk are complete. Saga and Monstress are ongoing but have large, satisfying chunks already collected.
Why were creator-owned comics such a big deal in the 2010s?
Publishers like Image let creators keep the rights to their work, attracting top talent and producing a wave of original, risk-taking series. See our best Image Comics guide.
Next, look back at the previous decade in our best comics of the 90s, or explore the whole field in our best graphic novels list.
