any of y'all into DC comics? how do i get into those...? the analog of my marvel strategy of "start with ff #1 and read everything" would probably take me actual years before i even got to like... ww2.
and the whole 4 multireverse-redefining-crossover-events this century thing makes the prospect of knowing where to start with recent stuff even more confusing...
where should i start? how should i proceed? or yk, just recommend me stuff that's good even if i lack prior familiarity
@alyssa My main suggestion would be to not be systematic about it. Pick something that looks interesting, regardless of where it fits in continuity.
Embrace the chaos of a setting that's basically a kitchen-sink mashup of a half dozen companies that have merged over decades, and multiple generations of editorial direction and audience sensibilities.
I spent years trying to keep a consistent model of the DCU in my head, until I concluded I'd been missing the point.
So the place I'd recommend starting is with what kinds of settings, stories, and characters you like reading about, and what art styles you like. And then look for more specific recommendations along those lines.
Edit: I should add that I was really into DC comics from ~1985-2015, so I can bring up some specifics from that time period if you like, but I haven't been keeping up since around 2020, so I can't really make any suggestions about the current stuff.
@alyssa I'm currently kind of doing this for the batfam specifically via reading via reading stuff fanfic writers mention frequently in their authors notes -- but I can't say that I really recommend this method :P
@alyssa I'm by no means an expert and also not quite sure what you mean by "to begin", but I can share my experience; I began with some of the big, important/critically acclaimed arcs, or ones that really interested me. For me this meant Batman's Hush, White Knight, and The Long Halloween, Superman's Red Son... and I started exploring from there, trying some Zatanna, some Green Lantern etc', and going back to writers and styles I liked in what I already read.
@alyssa You don't need to be completist, because DC has definitely forgotten more than they remember about, like Superman's Pal Jimmy Olson. A good approach, IMHO, is to pick a family, and read their team book from the nineties until you get a feel for the writers you like, and then obsessively follow that writer around until you accidentally get real into one of the characters, and obsessively follow that character around until you get mad at how that character is treated by one of the resets.
@alyssa do I "recommend" this approach? In retrospect, maybe not. But you can do worse than read a bunch of stuff written by Peter David.
@alyssa don't worry about larger continuity and go with individual story ideas/characters you like.
Personally I love Gail Simone's wonder woman run.
@alyssa ok so the first thing about DC is that DC has never actually done a full reboot. every single reboot attempt is a compromised disaster that keeps parts of the old canon but excludes others bc the natural state of DC Editorial is complete chaos
but the main thing that DC gggggggggggggenerally has over marvel (with exceptions like Bendis Avengers or Simonson Thor or PAD Hulk, etc. etc.) is that they allowed creators much longer era-defining runs/arcs on characters where you can kinda read by author and go by acclaimed runs over chronological character retrospects.
that being said a mutual of mine does DC character retrospectives and her take is that you should generally start with the introduction of the silver age versions. like barry allen/hal jordan, etc. mark the point where modern DC really began (as opposed to National Comics and All-American), and you have a comparable workload to marvel readthroughs that way