You would not believe how excited I was for this. I know that that probably does not make sense as this will rarely change with the ‘must read books’ as they have been around for a long time. But I always find it interesting to see what DC has released and if any of the previous years releases will have been good enough to make their way into this. Also, with DC reboot their comic books last year with their Rebirth initiative; so the layout will have to change from the previous years as the New 52 had been running from August 31 2011.

I am very proud of myself to be able to say that I have read quite a few books that appear in here now! This time last year I had read a grand total of 0 comics that I had read, of how it has changed since then. Also, reading DC Essential Graphic Novels 2017 reminded me of some graphic novels that I plan on reading soon, like The Killing Joke and Preacher to name a few.

I was very glad to see recommendations based on the DCEU movies coming out in 2017, Wonder Woman and Justice League. Even thought their first three movies may not have been critically well received (I personally loved Batman V Superman and Suicide Squad), their is no doubting that most people are rooting for DC to get it right.

Even if you read DC Essential Graphic Novels 2016, I would still say read the 2017 edition as it is a good way to remind yourself of a potential reread or one you mat have not gotten around to reading yet. And if you have not read any of DC Essential Graphic Novels, then pick them up! They are a great way to make sure that you do not get confused as to what you should read.

Newbie Heaven

O.K., I know my Valiant Comics. I sort of know Marvel. I certainly recognize DC's Batman, Superman, Wonder Woman, and Flash. But when it comes to topics like "Rebirth", or the less than iconic DC lines, well, most of what I know I picked up from watching "Big Bang Theory".

This book is nicely organized as an entry point for either total newbs or for people who want to expand their horizons a bit. I would expect that real completists already have exhaustive checklists.

We start with what DC calls the "25 Essential Graphic Novels", (books like "The Dark Knight Returns"), and then move on to the basics for each iconic character. From there we have chapters on "Page to Screen", Vertigo, Young Animal, MAD, and DC Superhero Girls. There are also checklists and suggested reading orders.

I was happy to see that lines like "Watchmen" and "Sandman" got their fair share of attention, as well as lesser known titles, like "Fables", and even some questionable titles like "Gotham Academy". And of course there are shout outs to creations like Nightwing, Hellblazer, Harley Quinn and Suicide Squad.

So, it's free, it's interesting, and it's very well thought out. While DC clearly believes that every single thing they have ever published is an immortal classic, there is certainly a lot of quality work here to admire and think about. Even for the very casual browser this is a nice find.