The best science fiction comics: the tier list

Science fiction in comics is not limited to space opera: it encompasses dystopia, political anticipation, time travel, post-apocalyptic. This tier list brings together the series which build the richest universes and strongest ideas. Criterion: SF ambition combined with narrative mastery.

Editorial Ranks, Facts verified. It is a reading guide.

Tier S: the heights of SF

Saga is the family space opera that reconciled the general public with independent comics. Y: The Last Man imagine a world where all males die except one: masterful social anticipation. East of West unfolds an apocalyptic SF western of crazy ambition. And Transmetropolitan is a cyberpunk satire about a journalist in a twisted future.

Tier A: the great universes

Paper Girls mixes 80s nostalgia and time travel. Go down by Jeff Lemire follows a child robot in a hostile galaxy. The Manhattan Projects rewrites the scientific history of the 20th century, and We Stand on Guard imagine a war between the United States and Canada.

Tier B: inventive anticipation

Ex Machina intersects superheroes and municipal politics. Low plunges humanity to the bottom of the oceans, Trees imagine a passive alien invasion, and Black Science launches a mad escape across dimensions.

Tier C: the gems of the genre

Injection mixes SF and folklore, Prophet reinvents an old character in a psychedelic space opera, and Copra is a jubilant indie homage to supervillain team-ups. Three demanding and rewarding SF reads, a notch below the peaks.

Which entry point to choose according to your taste

A ranking does not tell you where to start. Science fiction in comics covers very different registers, and the best entry point depends on what you are looking for: an adventure, a satire, a puzzle or a world to explore.

For space opera

Saga, launched by Image in 2012 and written by Brian K. Vaughan, is the widest door: a family story on the run through a galactic war. It is still being published, with a long pause between 2018 and 2022. Descender, by Jeff Lemire and Dustin Nguyen, and Prophet, whose character Brandon Graham relaunched in 2012, offer stranger universes, to be read once you have acquired a taste for the genre.

For dystopia and satire

Transmetropolitan, by Warren Ellis and Darick Robertson, ran from 1997 to 2002 and follows Spider Jerusalem, a journalist in a cyberpunk future. It is complete and reads in one go. Y: The Last Man, by Brian K. Vaughan and Pia Guerra, published by Vertigo from 2002 to 2008, runs to sixty issues: a social anticipation that closes neatly.

For post-apocalypse and time travel

East of West, by Jonathan Hickman and Nick Dragotta, ran from March 2013 to December 2019 and mixes western and the end of the world. Paper Girls, by Vaughan and Cliff Chiang, mixes time travel and 1980s nostalgia. Black Science, by Rick Remender and Matteo Scalera, suits readers who like action stories across dimensions.

Collecting science fiction

This genre has an advantage: many series are finished, hence easy to complete. Y: The Last Man, Transmetropolitan and Ex Machina, which runs to fifty issues, can be assembled without fear that an issue goes missing. Series still open, such as Saga, call for more patience.

Another useful marker: science fiction is a stronghold of independent publishing, where creators keep ownership of their work. The first issues of Image series are often the most sought after there, but content matters more than scarcity. For comfortable reading, the collected editions are enough, and they let you discover several series before following one in single issues. Also keep in mind that several of these titles are aimed at an adult audience, with explicit violence or sexuality.

To remember

• Brian K. Vaughan dominates the genre: Saga, Y, Paper Girls, Ex Machina, it's him.
• SF is a stronghold of indie (Head image), far from superheroes.
• Gender covers everything: dystopia, time travel, post-apo, cyberpunk.
• Each entry refers to a key file or number on the site.

Frequently asked questions