The best humor comics: the tier list

Humor is a demanding register of comics: it requires rhythm, audacity and a real look. This tier list brings together the series that make you laugh the most intelligently: parody, meta, satire, absurd. Criterion: comic success combined with quality writing.

Editorial Ranks, Facts verified. Each entry refers to a site file when it exists.

Tier S: the kings of laughter

Dead Pool imposed fourth-wall-breaking meta-humor. The Unbeatable Squirrel Girl by Ryan North is a brilliant and optimistic superhero comedy. There Justice League by Giffen and DeMatteis (the famous “Bwahaha”) invented the super-team comedy, and Howard the Duck by Steve Gerber remains a cult satire.

Tier A: the assumed comedy

Harley Quinn deploys anarchic humor, The Tick parodies the superhero, Ambush Bug breaks the fourth wall before Deadpool, and Sex Criminals mixes comedy and intimacy.

Tier B: the comic classics

Groo the Wanderer by Sergio Aragonés, the Plastic Man by Jack Cole, the She-Hulk by Dan Slott and Not Brand Echo (Marvel's self-parody) are references of the genre.

Tier C: offbeat humor

'Mazing Man , THE Great Lakes Avengers , Hitman (black comedy by Garth Ennis) and Nextwave by Warren Ellis complete the selection.

Tier D: the curiosities

Forbush Man , Herbie and Bug! close this tier list: more confidential but very real comedy series.

To remember

• Dead Pool popularized meta-humor in the mainstream.
• Giffen and DeMatteis invented super-team comedy.
• Humor crosses all eras, from Plastic Man (1941) to Squirrel Girl.
• Each entry refers to a site file when it exists.

Understanding humor in comics: families, landmarks and pitfalls

Humor is not a uniform block. Behind a single tier list lie several ways of making people laugh, and knowing which one you want avoids picking the wrong series.

Five families of comedy

• Meta: Deadpool and Ambush Bug play with the fourth wall.
• Satire and parody: Howard the Duck, Not Brand Echh and The Tick poke fun at society, at the publisher or at the genre itself.
• Team comedy: the Justice League of Giffen and DeMatteis, the Great Lakes Avengers and Nextwave.
• Absurd and pure gag: Groo the Wanderer and Plastic Man.
• Dark or intimate comedy: Garth Ennis's Hitman and Sex Criminals.

Chronological landmarks

Plastic Man dates from 1941, Not Brand Echh from 1967, Howard the Duck from 1976, Groo from 1982, Ambush Bug from 1985, Giffen and DeMatteis's Justice League from 1987, The Tick from 1988, Deadpool from 1991, Hitman from 1996, Nextwave from 2006, Sex Criminals from 2013 and Squirrel Girl from 2015. Humor therefore spans every era: there is no need to go back to the origins to start.

Reading in the right order

A parody assumes you know its target. Not Brand Echh pokes fun at Marvel and The Tick at the superhero: a few classic reads beforehand make the gags far tastier. For an entry with no prerequisites, The Unbeatable Squirrel Girl and Giffen and DeMatteis's Justice League both exist in collected editions.

Collecting checkpoints

• Several series share similar titles in different years (Harley Quinn in 2013, for example): always check the year and volume before buying.
• Hitman is a dark comedy: keep it for a mature audience.
• Comedy series are often short or cult: list the issues before starting, to know where the series ends.
• The value of a humor comic lies first in the pleasure of reading: a collected edition is often enough to read, and single issues are chosen for their cover or their place in history.

A ranking to argue about

The tier list ranks are editorial: they depend on inventiveness and comic effectiveness, not on a price. A reader fond of the absurd will put Groo higher, a meta fan will prefer Deadpool. Use these ranks as a starting point, then open the series that appeal to you.

Frequently asked questions