Comic Books That Even People Who Aren't Fans Can Enjoy

The comic book medium has had to fight the perception that it is “just for kids” for much of its existence. Since the 1930s, people have commonly associated comic books with colorful superheroes and fun stories that don’t really mean anything. This perception couldn’t be farther from the truth. Even if you’re the type of person who can’t stand superheroes and doesn’t like some of the more science fiction related elements present in many comics, there are still a number of stories that you can enjoy.

Maus

“Maus” is a retelling of the Holocaust in comic book format. It was written and illustrated by Art Spiegelman and is based on interviews conducted with his own father who was a Holocaust survivor. In the book, Jewish citizens are depicted as mice. Germans are portrayed as cats and the Polish are portrayed as pigs. It was the first comic book to ever with the Pulitzer Prize. It was released in 1991 and was an immediate critical success.

Road to Perdition

Many people know the story of “Road to Perdition” from the successful 2002 film that starred Tom Hanks and Paul Newman. People might not realize that the film was based on a very popular and critically acclaimed comic book. “Road to Perdition” is the story of a man who is trying to escape from his mobster lifestyle after the death of his wife and son, and of the surviving son that is traveling with him.

Grant Morrison’s Animal Man

“Animal Man” was a character published by DC Comics who had the ability to communicate with animals, which he used to fight crime. In the late 1980s writer Grant Morrison revamped the book into a deconstruction of comic books and superheroes in general. Throughout the course of Morrison’s 20+ issue run, Animal Man slowly begins to realize that he’s a comic book character and eventually even travels to Scotland to meet Morrison himself.

Y: The Last Man

“Y: The Last Man” is the story of the aftermath of a plague that wiped out every living male on the planet, both man and animal. The sole exception was a young magician named Yorick and his pet monkey, also male, named Ampersand. Yorick travels the post-apocalyptic countryside trying to find his long lost love. He must fight his way through the aftermath of a society that just lost half of the population and can no longer reproduce.

Preacher

“Preacher” is a popular long running comic book published by DC Comics’ “Vertigo” imprint. The book, designed for adults, tells the story of a preacher named Jesse Custer. After being granted the power of God, Jesse goes through a crisis of faith and decides that he’d like to sit down and have a little chat with his maker. He is accompanied by his ex-girlfriend Tulip and a drunken Irish vampire named Cassidy.