Board Thread:General Discussion/@comment-24540496-20140212225528/@comment-100066-20140213000047

Indeed, it can be overwhelming. You are facing decades of stories by thousands of creators covering tens of thousands of characters, titles, locations, and realities. Scared yet? Don't be; this is going to be an awesome trip!

You already have some exposure to Marvel things through TV and film, so you have a basic understanding of who you like. Do you enjoy team stories like X-Men or Avengers or do you like solo stories like Wolverine or Captain America? Do you want to catch up on the classic storylines such as Days of Future Past or are you interested in new expanded stories like in Marvel Agents of SHIELD? Do you like female or male characters? Do you like street level heroes, high-powered heroes, or cosmic beings? Do you want to "do your homework" before a movie comes out, like with Winter Soldier or Guardians of the Galaxy?

If your Local Comic Shop has knowledgeable people, you can ask them. Tell them what you have seen and liked or disliked. They can point you toward titles that will fit you. Any time you can start with a title from issue #1, it will be easier to jump in. Those are designed for new readers and it will be a little easier to get in to it. There are many titles which restarted recently under the Marvel NOW! banner.

Don't worry about the fact that you don't know every story which has come before. Even lifelong fans don't have encyclopedic knowledge of everything. Just jump in and enjoy it.

Also, it is inevitable that you will be reading a story line and some character will show up out of nowhere. All of the characters in the book will be shocked and say "It's you!" and you, the reader, will have no idea who they are talking about. They will reference events you don't know about or mention past tragedies. But finding out about those stories is half the fun!

Welcome aboard!...hope you survive the experience :)