Classic superheroes will always be popular, but there are some amazing independent writers and artists telling stories about superheroes, and also about what being a hero really means even when you don’t have superpowers. Here are some of my favorite graphic novels and comics about saving the world – or at least making a difference. (Disclosure: Amazon links are affiliate links.)
I originally posted my graphic novel rec lists in 2012-15, but they’re being refreshed and then expanded in 2023-24 as I re-read most of the older books to make sure I’m still enthusiastic about recommending them. However, please let me know via my contact form if you find something yikes in a book I recommend.
Super Indian by Arigon Starr (Amazon Goodreads)
Arigon Starr is an actor, musician, playwright, and a member of the Kickapoo Tribe of Oklahoma. She initially created Super Indian as a radio drama performed with a live audience. She then turned it into a comic book, writing and drawing it herself. It’s incredibly funny. Starr isn’t afraid to play with superhero conventions, reference pop culture, and comment on racism, oppression, and cultural appropriation in a way that makes you laugh, even while you’re shaking your head because it’s so sadly true.
Here’s the setup: Hubert Logan gained superpowers as a child due to a government research project that laced commodity cheese with “Rezium.” He keeps his alter ego, Super Indian, a secret while working as a janitor in the reservation bingo hall. His two personas have very different lives. We first meet Super Indian as he’s battling an evil anthropologist! We first meet Hubert as he’s being turned down for a date. :( Things just get more ridiculous and funny from there. A librarian suggests that Hubert start a blog , but unfortunately Hubert doesn’t blog responsibly in his third persona as “Rez Boy.” His blog stirs up all kinds of trouble, some of it involving a Brazilian rodeo cowboy, and there’s also a headlock incident due to an unfortunate comment about Revenge of the Sith. I know that as a non-Native, I didn’t even get all of the jokes, and I still laughed until I almost cried.
The Many Adventures of Miranda Mercury: Time Runs Out by Brandon Thomas, illustrated by Lee Ferguson (Amazon / Goodreads)
Woman of color science hero in outer space? YES THANK YOU. Do I need to say more? Okay, I will!
Miranda is so fierce, and she’s all about smarts, strength, integrity, and saving lives. This book has action, adventure, futuristic gadgets, friendship, and even a section you have to turn upside down to read. What more could you need? C-Man said it was possibly the best book we read that year and I could not contradict him. Co-creators Thomas and Ferguson have done a bang-up job with one of the coolest female superheroes we’ve met. I was heartened when Brandon Thomas told me directly on Twitter that there will be more Miranda Mercury, because I would absolutely read an ongoing series.
(A note about her costume: it’s kind of ridiculous for the first two thirds of the book. There are gals who would choose to wear a top that has big red circles for their boobs, but I am skeptical that Miranda is one of them. In the last third or so of the book, the design gets WAY better. Not sure what happened there.)
Five Weapons: Making the Grade by Jimmie Robinson (Amazon / Goodreads)
C-Man read this, looked at me, and said “This is one of the best comic books I’ve read all year. Possibly the BEST.” (This was a different year from Miranda Mercury.) Five Weapons is whip-smart, has intrigue in all the right places, and mixes action with human connection in perfect proportions. Tyler Shainline, son of the famous assassin, enrolls in an elite school that promises to teach him how to kill. The only problem is, he won’t pick up a weapon. Why not? And who else is hiding something?
Yes, it deals with a school for assassins, but there’s really nothing distressing or gory about it. Its focus is on Tyler’s own survival, but also his efforts to help others by exposing secrets and leveling the playing field. C-Man appreciated the non-violent problem-solving without any cheesy after-school special aspect. There’s also an interesting “passing” aspect which isn’t explicitly discussed in terms of race and class in the first book (Robinson is Black).
Starling by Sage Stossel (Amazon / Goodreads)
Amy Sturgess became a superhero crimefighter in her teens. She kept doing it while going to college and landing her dream job. Her secret life as Starling often sabotages her work life, though, and let’s not even talk about relationships. As this book begins, things are getting even more complicated. The job is finally getting away from her. Her brother’s trouble with the law may collide with her crimefighting. The boyfriend that got away is back, but possibly not in a good way. This is the sweetest little book about trying to make life work, which all of us have trouble with. Even though we can’t generate electricity with our hands like Amy does.
Dragman by Steven Appleby (Amazon / Goodreads)
An entertaining superhero/mystery tale while also being a story about one person’s gender journey. Includes a note by the author at the end about her own journey. (Appleby uses both he/him and she/her pronouns, from the latest I can find.)
Content warning: The blurb doesn’t include one of the important subplots, about a serial killer preying on trans women. There are several short prose passages from his POV.
“August Crimp can fly, but only when he wears women’s clothes. Soaring above a gorgeous, lush vista of London, he is Dragman, catching falling persons, lost souls, and the odd stranded cat. After he’s rejected by the superhero establishment, where masked men chase endorsement deals rather than criminals, August quietly packs up his dress and cosmetics and retreats to normalcy — a wife and son who know nothing of his exploits or inclinations.
When a technological innovation allows people to sell their souls, they do so in droves, turning empty, cruel, and hopeless, driven to throw themselves off planes. August is terrified of being outed, but feels compelled to bring back Dragman when Cherry, his young neighbor, begs him to save her parents. Can Dragman take down the forces behind this dreadful new black market? Can August embrace Dragman and step out of the shadows?”
The series Strong Female Protagonist by Brennan Lee Mulligan, illustrated by Molly Knox Ostertag (Amazon / Goodreads)
This may be the most thoughtful books about superheroes I’ve ever read. Alison Green used to be Mega Girl. She was really good at punching robots… until she discovered that punching robots didn’t make much of a difference. Now she’s in college, trying to live a normal life and figure out how to actually save the world. But things are more complicated when you have superpowers.
There is so much heart in this series, so much love for Alison, and Alison has such deep love for people. Mulligan and Ostertag explore the question of what you should do with your abilities, whatever they may be. And they do it well.
This was originally a webcomic, though it’s been taken down. Only two print books came out, which means the story did get left hanging. The two books that exist are still well worth reading, IMHO.
Jember by Beserat Debebe, line art by Stanley Obende, colors by Toyin Ajetunmobi (Volume 1 HC from Etan Comics / Digital Issue 1 from Etan Comics / Goodreads)
I had a great time reading this Ethiopian superhero series starter, which I got via a Kickstarter run by the publisher. Mysterious powers! Humorous banter! Dangerous danger! I’m honestly burned out on Marvel and DC but I love a superhero story, so it’s a breath of fresh air to find something like this. I definitely want to know what happens next.
“Anxious, frustrated, and ready to leave his city behind, jobless graduate Amanuel Tilahun is suddenly empowered with extraordinary gifts that change his life. He must now make a choice; to help himself or the city that’s treated him like a nobody, and now sees him as a threat. Etan Comics presents the all-new JEMBER, the first Ethiopian Superhero comic book.”
Note: the volume 1 that I read doesn’t seem to be available digitally, though Issues 1 and 2 are. Jember is available in both English and Amharic.
The Shadow Hero by Gene Luen Yang, art by Sonny Liew (Amazon / Goodreads)
Yang and Liew are two of our favorite comics creators, and their reincarnation of an almost-forgotten 40’s superhero called Green Turtle is absolutely perfect. Who was Green Turtle? How did he get his powers? I just have to show you:
Okay, so, that didn’t work. Neither do any of his mother’s other attempts. She finally takes him for kung fu training from her ex-boyfriend (that’s not awkward), and The Golden Man of Bravery is born! Except a name change is possibly in order. The Golden Man of Bravery is too long! Whatever his name, I can’t think of a better way to describe this book than what’s on the back cover: “…this hilarious and insightful graphic novel about heroism and heritage is also a loving tribute to the long, rich tradition of American superhero comics.” So pick it up, y’all!
The Adventures of Superhero Girl by Faith Erin Hicks (Amazon / Read as a webcomic / Goodreads)
Superhero Girl faces all the struggles of young adulthood, such as paying the rent, getting along with roommates, and being overshadowed by her successful older brother. Plus concealing her secret identity, finding an arch-nemesis in fairly tranquil Canada, and getting a job without the Ninja King barging into the interview and taking it from her.
I feel like referencing Canadian ninjas should be enough to sell you on this book.
There was an edition before the Expanded Edition linked above. We bought both, and to be honest I didn’t notice a huge difference in my enjoyment from the extra material? So if you come across the original edition first, I think that’s just fine.
And that’s the list!