Note: Due to the a dearth of comics on this topic by authors of color and women, some of these lists lack diversity.
Option 1: Reading the Familiar Characters
If you are interested in reading about the characters from the Marvel Cinematic Universe or the X-Men movies, you can find all of these beloved characters in the comic run Ultimate Marvel Universe. Below are the first five comics for that run. Ultimate Spider-Man by Brian Michael Bendis and Mark Bagley Ultimate X-Men by Mark Millar and Adam Kubert The Ultimates by Mark Millar and Bryan Hitch Ultimate Galactus Trilogy by Warren Ellis, Trevor Hairsine, and Steve Epting Ultimate Doomsday Trilogy by Brian Michael Bendis and Rafa Sandoval
Option 2: Picking an Event to follow
Another way to read the comics is by picking some big events and powerful Marvel characters in the comics that you have always wanted to read about. If you want to read comics that follow events that take place in the MCU there are several to choose from; the big three are Civil War, The Secret Invasion, and the Infinity Gauntlet.
Road to Civil War
If you want to read the Civil War Event storyline, the first six in the series are all called Road to Civil War and are: Amazing Spider-man(1999) #529 by J.Michael Straczynski, Ron Garney Amazing Spider-Man(1999) #530 by J. Michael Straczynski, Tyler Kirkham Amazing Spider-Man (1999) #531 by J.Michael Straczynski, Ron Garney Fantastic Four (1998) #536 by Stan Lee, Michael Mckone, and Jim Calafiore Fantastic Four (1998) #537 by Stan Lee, Michael Mckone, and Jim Calafiore The New Avengers Illuminati (2006) by Brian Michael Bendis, Alex Maleev From this point on, most of the comics are called Civil War even as they pass through the Avengers, X-men, and individual heroes.
Secret Invasion
If you are interested in reading more about the Skrulls and the Secret Invasion, here are the first five comics in the event. Secret Invasion #1 by Brian Michael Bendis Secret Invasion: Home Invasion #1 by Ivan Brandon Mighty Avengers (2007 series) #12 by Brian Michael Bendis New Avengers (2004 series) #40 by Brian Michael Bendis Secret Invasion #2 by Brian Michael Bendis Note: There are some comics leading up to the event, but they are by no means required reading for the event itself.
Infinity Gauntlet
And if you are interested in reading more about Thanos, and the infinity stones, you can read the Infinity Gauntlet Event. Similar to Civil War, the first comics are a prelude to the main event. New Avengers (2013) #7 by Jonathan Hickman Avengers (2012) #14 by Jonathan Hickman Avengers (2012) #15 by Jonathan Hickman Avengers (2012) #16 by Jonathan Hickman Avengers (2012) #17 by Jonathan Hickman From that point on all most comics in the event are called Infinity.
Option 3: Reading a Specific Character
If you are more interested in focusing on specific characters, there are tons of different paths. If you are reading comics for the first time I recommend getting a hold of collections of the character you choose. Here are some good ones if you want to learn more about some of the characters we will meet in the next phase of the MCU. From looking at these lists, I know that reading comics can be intimidating, but once you pick a path to read through everything kind of falls into place. The best advice I can give you is to not think of reading order in comics the same way you would think of reading order for a book series. Events and characters guest star and pop up across tons of comics, and it can be hard to keep track of. There are about a million and a half lists out there to help you with whatever reading order you want. You got this.
