The Best Vertigo Comics of All Time
DC's legendary mature imprint, from Sandman to Preacher.
By Web Admin
For a little over a quarter-century, one imprint quietly published the most ambitious comics in America. Vertigo, launched by DC in 1993 under editor Karen Berger, took the “mature readers” label and turned it into a promise: no capes required, no continuity homework, and no subject off-limits. The list of careers it launched — Neil Gaiman, Garth Ennis, Brian K. Vaughan, Bill Willingham — reads like a hall of fame. The imprint officially shuttered in 2020, but almost everything it published is still in print, and much of it counts among the best comics ever made. This is our guide to the best Vertigo comics of all time, and where to start.
A note on why Vertigo mattered: before it existed, “adult” comics were a scattered, disreputable niche. Vertigo made them a prestige category, packaged in handsome trade paperbacks aimed squarely at bookstore shelves and readers who’d never buy a monthly floppy. If you love modern creator-owned books like Saga, you love Vertigo’s DNA. Many of these titles also anchor our wider best graphic novels list.
There’s also a business reason Vertigo was so influential, and it explains why so much of its catalog still reads well today. Editor Karen Berger fought for creators to retain a degree of ownership and creative control that was almost unheard of at a Big Two publisher. That meant writers wrote for adults without a corporate mandate to protect a trademark or set up the next crossover event. The result was a run of finite, authored stories — books with beginnings, middles, and endings — rather than the perpetual, never-concluding serials that dominate superhero comics. For a new reader, that’s the single best thing about the imprint: you can pick up almost any Vertigo title, read the whole thing, and be done, the way you would with a novel.
The Sandman (1989–1996)
The essential Vertigo book, and the one that made the imprint’s reputation. Neil Gaiman’s The Sandman follows Morpheus, the personification of dreams, across seventy-five issues that swing from horror to myth to heartbreak. It’s the rare comic taught in university literature courses. Volume 1 is a slightly uneven horror-tinged start; the series ascends from there. New readers should see our dedicated Sandman Vol. 1 review and our full Sandman reading order before buying. Expect about US$20 per volume, or more for the deluxe editions.
Preacher (1995–2000)
Garth Ennis and Steve Dillon’s Preacher is Vertigo at its most gleefully profane: a Texas preacher, possessed by a supernatural being that gives him the “Word of God,” goes on a road trip to literally find God and hold him accountable. It’s violent, blasphemous, hilarious, and — underneath the shock — a genuinely moving story about friendship and love. Sixty-six issues, collected in nine volumes or a handful of omnibus editions. Not for the faint of heart. What keeps Preacher from being mere provocation is Ennis’s deep sentimentality: beneath the outrageous set pieces, this is a story about loyalty, decency, and the friends who become family. The central trio — Jesse, his girlfriend Tulip, and the hard-drinking Irish vampire Cassidy — are among the most beloved characters Vertigo ever produced, which is why the book endured long enough to become a multi-season TV series.
Y: The Last Man (2002–2008)
Brian K. Vaughan and Pia Guerra’s Y: The Last Man asks a simple question — what if every mammal with a Y chromosome died at once, except one man and his pet monkey? — and answers it across sixty issues of tense, funny, brilliantly plotted drama. It’s one of the most beginner-friendly books on this list, precisely because Vaughan writes with the propulsive, hook-per-issue rhythm of great serialized TV. The premise could have been a gimmick; instead it becomes a road-trip thriller and a genuinely thoughtful exploration of gender, grief, and what holds a society together. See our Y: The Last Man review for the full breakdown. Collected in ten volumes or a handful of deluxe hardcovers, it’s the ideal first Vertigo book for a reader coming from novels or prestige television.
Fables (2002–2015)
Bill Willingham’s Fables imagines that fairy-tale characters — Snow White, the Big Bad Wolf, Prince Charming — are real, exiled from their homelands and living in secret in modern New York. It’s a sprawling, 150-issue saga that predates the whole “grimdark fairy tale” trend and does it better than the imitators. What makes Fables special is how it shifts genre as it goes: it opens as a murder mystery, becomes a war epic, and settles into a multigenerational family drama, all while treating its storybook cast as fully rounded adults. It’s a great binge if you want something with a long, satisfying arc and a definite ending — and at over twenty volumes, it’ll keep you busy for months.
Swamp Thing & Hellblazer
Two pillars of the horror end of the line, both rooted in Alan Moore’s genius.
- Saga of the Swamp Thing (1984–1987) — Alan Moore’s run on Swamp Thing pre-dates Vertigo but effectively invented its sensibility, redefining a monster comic as poetic, ecological horror. This is the birthplace of the imprint’s whole aesthetic.
- Hellblazer (1988–2013) — The longest-running Vertigo title, starring the chain-smoking occult con man John Constantine. Its 300 issues span dozens of creators; the Garth Ennis and Jamie Delano runs are the classic starting points.
These two are the roots of the whole family tree. Alan Moore’s Swamp Thing proved that a horror comic could be genuinely literary — his run reinvented a swamp monster as a plant elemental grieving the human he never was, and its ambition is what convinced DC there was an audience for the imprint that became Vertigo. Hellblazer, spun off from that run, gave the world John Constantine and became the line’s workhorse, a place where British writers cut their teeth on political, angry, deeply personal horror. Neither is the easiest starting point, but both reward readers who want to understand where modern “prestige horror” comics came from.
The essential Vertigo shelf, compared
If you’re building a collection, here’s how the heavy hitters stack up on length, tone, and how friendly they are to newcomers.
| Series | Creators | Genre | Length | Beginner-friendly? |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| The Sandman | Gaiman & others | Dark fantasy | 10 vols | Moderate |
| Preacher | Ennis & Dillon | Supernatural western | 9 vols | Mature only |
| Y: The Last Man | Vaughan & Guerra | Post-apocalyptic | 10 vols | Very |
| Fables | Willingham & others | Fantasy | ~22 vols | Very |
| Transmetropolitan | Ellis & Robertson | Cyberpunk satire | 10 vols | Moderate |
Deeper cuts worth your money
- Transmetropolitan (1997, Warren Ellis & Darick Robertson) — A gonzo journalist wages war on a corrupt future America. Angrier and more relevant every year.
- 100 Bullets (1999, Brian Azzarello & Eduardo Risso) — A noir crime epic built on an irresistible hook: a briefcase with a gun, a hundred untraceable bullets, and permission to use them.
- V for Vendetta (1988, Alan Moore & David Lloyd) — Technically pre-Vertigo but folded into its catalog; a masterful anarchist thriller.
- The Invisibles (1994, Grant Morrison) — A dense, psychedelic conspiracy epic that isn’t for everyone but inspired a generation of writers.
- DMZ (2005, Brian Wood & Riccardo Burchielli) — A war-torn Manhattan caught between a fractured United States. Prescient political fiction.
- Scalped (2007, Jason Aaron & R.M. Guéra) — A brutal crime epic set on a Native American reservation, and one of the imprint’s late-era peaks.
These deeper cuts are where a Vertigo devotee’s collection really takes shape. Transmetropolitan has aged into something close to prophecy, its rage at spin, celebrity, and political apathy sharper now than at release. 100 Bullets is the crime-noir jewel of the line, and if you like it you’ll find kindred books in our best graphic novels list. None of these are casual reads, but each represents a writer swinging for the fences in a way only Vertigo let them.
Pros and cons of diving into Vertigo
Pros
- Some of the most acclaimed comics ever written
- Almost all self-contained — no superhero continuity needed
- Nearly everything is still in print in clean collected editions
- Where many of today’s top writers cut their teeth
Cons
- Uniformly mature — violence, sex, and heavy themes throughout
- Some series (Fables, Hellblazer) are a big page count to commit to
- The imprint is discontinued, so no new titles are coming
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A note on editions and collecting
Because Vertigo’s catalog spans thirty years, the same story can exist in half a dozen formats, and the price gap is enormous. The Sandman alone comes as standard trades (~US$20 each), oversized “Absolute” slipcased editions (US$100+ each), and a black-and-white “Gallery Edition” for art lovers. Our advice for building a collection: start with standard trade paperbacks to make sure you love a series, then upgrade only your absolute favorites to the deluxe or Absolute editions. Watch for the fact that some deeper-cut titles (The Invisibles, older Hellblazer) drift in and out of print, so if you see a run you want fully collected, grab it. Libraries also carry most of the major Vertigo books, which makes trying before buying easy.
Where to start
For most readers, the on-ramp is Y: The Last Man (the most accessible) or The Sandman (the most rewarding). If you like your comics dark and funny, jump into Preacher. All three are cornerstones of our best graphic novels guide, and they represent the best of what a mainstream publisher can do when it lets great creators off the leash.
Frequently asked questions
Is Vertigo still publishing comics?
No. DC officially shut down the Vertigo imprint in 2020, folding its mature-readers publishing into the “DC Black Label” line. However, nearly the entire Vertigo back catalog remains in print.
What is the best Vertigo comic to start with?
For accessibility, start with Y: The Last Man. For the definitive Vertigo experience, start with The Sandman — just be aware its first volume is a slightly rough horror-flavored opening before the series hits its stride.
Are Vertigo comics appropriate for teens?
Generally no. The whole imprint was built around mature content — graphic violence, sexuality, and heavy themes are the norm. For younger readers, see our general graphic novels list instead.
Do I need to read DC superhero comics first?
Not at all. That’s the point of Vertigo — the vast majority of its titles are standalone stories with no connection to Batman, Superman, or DC continuity.
Ready to commit? Start with our Sandman reading order, read the Y: The Last Man review, or see the full canon in our best graphic novels list.
