© 2024 WYPR
WYPR 88.1 FM Baltimore WYPF 88.1 FM Frederick WYPO 106.9 FM Ocean City
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations
WYPO 106.9 Eastern Shore is off the air due to routine tower work being done daily from 8a-5p. We hope to restore full broadcast days by 12/15. All streams are operational

Let's Get Graphic: 100 Favorite Comics And Graphic Novels

We've searched shelves, shops and sites across the universe to bring you some really great comics.
Shannon Wright for NPR
We've searched shelves, shops and sites across the universe to bring you some really great comics.

Summer's the time for comics — Marvel and DC blockbusters are in movie theaters, fans are preparing to descend on San Diego for its epic annual Comic-Con, and if nothing else, your friendly local comic store or library is there to provide an air-conditioned Fortress of Solitude where you can escape the steamy streets.

So it's a perfect time for our super summer reader poll — a few months ago, we asked you to tell us all about your favorite comics and graphic novels. We assembled an amazing team of critics and creators to help winnow down more than 7,000 nominations to this final list of 100 great comics for all ages and tastes, from early readers to adults-only.

This isn't meant as a comprehensive list of the "best" or "most important" or "most influential" comics, of course. It's a lot more personal and idiosyncratic than that, because we asked folks to name the comics they loved. That means you'll find enormously popular mainstays like Maus and Fun Home jostling for space alongside newer work that's awaiting a wider audience (Check Please, anyone?).

So poke around to find old favorites — and discover some new ones.

Here are some quick links to make it easier for you to navigate: , , , , , , , and .

Copyright 2021 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.

Glen Weldon is a host of NPR's Pop Culture Happy Hour podcast. He reviews books, movies, comics and more for the NPR Arts Desk.
Petra Mayer died on November 13, 2021. She has been remembered by friends and colleagues, including all of us at NPR. The Petra Mayer Memorial Fund for Internships has been created in her honor.