Thanos Reading Order

This reading order is designed to give an outline of major storylines featuring Thanos throughout Marvel Comics. It may not encompass every one of his appearances but is an outline of the major ones and the stories that affect them.

The continuity details relating to each specific storyline are explained in the “Review” of each storyline. Every “Review” link will provide a detailed continuity breakdown of that story and will explain any reference the story makes to other aspects of the Marvel Universe. All of this can be found under the “Continuity” section of each link.

Jump to: Bronze Age – Modern Age (1986-1996) – Modern Age (1996-2003) – Modern Age (2003-2012) – Marvel NOW!

Bronze Age

Thanos was introduced in the Bronze Age. He does not have any appearances prior to this point.

Though Thanos debuted in an issue of Iron Man, his earliest major role was in the Captain Marvel (Reading Order) series, where the “Thanos War” (Reading Order) played out. After this, he went on to have a large role in the life of Adam Warlock (Reading Order) which lead to a climactic conclusion across Avengers Annual #7 and Marvel Two-In-One Annual #2. 

Iron Man issues are from the Vol. 1 series.
Daredevil issues are from the Vol. 1 series.
Captain Marvel issues are from the Vol. 1 series.
Avengers issues are from the Vol. 1 series.
Warlock issues are from the Vol. 1 series.
Marvel Two-in-One issues are from the Vol. 1 series.

Notes

1. These issues expand on some of the actions taken and orders given by Thanos in the "Thanos War" (Reading Order).
2. This issue give some early backstory regarding Moondragon's connection to Thanos. However, the story presented here is quickly retconned by later comics and this backstory is not mentioned again.
3. Only "The Final Flower!" story from this issues is relevant to this reading order.

Modern Age (1986-1996)

Thanos' appearances in this section of the Modern Age directly continue his story from his last appearance in the Bronze Age. This era significantly builds on these earlier appearances and uses them to launch what may be the most important period in Thanos' life.

The bulk of this era covers the "Infinity Trilogy" (Reading Order) of events, which often center around Thanos, his love of Death, and his connection to Adam Warlock (Reading Order). After these events conclude, Thanos goes on to have a small role in a few other comics but nothing quite as critical as his role in the "Infinity Trilogy".

Silver Surfer issues are from the Vol. 3 series
Thor issues are from the Vol. 1 series

Notes

1. This issue does not feature a physical appearance from Thanos. However, it has some of his long-term plans come to fruition in a way that highlights his ingenuity.
2. These issues only have small appearances by Thanos. However, they help further elaborate upon his preparation for the Infinity Gauntlet (Reading Order) event.
3. These tie-ins mostly focus on other characters. However, they help expand upon other actions Thanos is taking during this event.
4. Thanos only makes a brief cameo in this issue. However, it helps set up future issues in this event.
5. Though Thanos participates in these comics, as a whole, they mostly focus on other characters and only have Thanos as a supporting character.
6. Thanos has a very small role in this issue. However, it expands upon his fight with the Champion, from Thanos Quest, and also serves as a great way to highlight Thanos' power level.
7. Though Thanos plays a large role in this issue, his out of character actions and the fact that most DC/Marvel crossovers are generally considered to no longer be in continuity make this issues "extra" rather than "essential".
8. This issue explains what happened in the final issue of Warlock and the Infinity Watch (Reading Order). However, like most events from the Ultraverse series of comics, it is now generally considered to be out of continuity.
9. Thanos only has a small role in these issues. In addition, most DC/Marvel crossovers are generally considered to no longer be in continuity.

Modern Age Continued (1996-2003)

This era continues Thanos' progression from the previous era with no continuity breaks. The stories here build on the events of the "Infinity Trilogy" and continue Thanos' quest to find meaning in life and death.

Thanos' appearances in this era are smaller and more sporadic. He participates in a few cosmic events but nothing as significant as the previous era. However, the limited number of appearances here make reading this era very straightforward.

Captain Marvel issues are from the Vol. 4 series

Notes

1. Though Thanos does not physically appear in this issue, it is crucial in establishing the storyline of this series.
2. Thanos only makes a small appearance at the end of this comic. However, it sets up his relationship with Deadpool for future comics.

Modern Age Continued (2003-2012)

ComicBookWire is currently working on researching and building a reading order for this era.

Marvel NOW!

This era picks up on Thanos' return in the Avengers Assemble series. It also goes on to explain this return through Guardians of the Galaxy #18-20, which is revealed through a flashback in the Original Sin (Reading Order) event.

Thanos' appearance in this era can be divided into a few camps. The first, seen in issues of Guardians of the Galaxy and Legendary Star-Lord, continues his antagonism with Peter Quill and some of the drama from the previous era. The second, seen in Jim Starlin's work on a series of Thanos-related comics (Reading Order), continues the evolution of Thanos' character seen in almost all of Jim Starlin's work on him (Reading Order). The third, seen in Avengers-related comics and the Infinity (Reading Order) and Secret Wars events, positions Thanos as a major antagonist in Jonathan Hickman's Avengers saga (Reading Order), which was one of the most prolific storylines in this era of the Marvel Universe. Unfortunately, Thanos' characterization differs rather significantly across these titles and not all of them fit well together within a single continuity. Because of this, this reading order attempts to sort these camps separately but still maintain the general progression of this comic book era.

GoG = Guardians of the Galaxy
Guardians of the Galaxy issues are from the Vol. 3 series
New Avengers issues are from the Vol. 3 series
Avengers issues are from the Vol. 5 series
Siege issues are from the Vol. 2 series

Notes

1. These issues are mostly about Star-Lord (Reading Order). However, they help continue the antagonism between Star-Lord and Thanos that was present in the previous era.
2. Thanos does not physically appear in this issue. However, his associates speak for him here and explain large pieces of his plan for the Infinity (Reading Order) event.
3. These issues are mostly about Thane but do feature Thanos in a series of flashbacks. They are not essential flashbacks but detail an adventure some readers may be interested in seeing.
4. This issue only has a small appearance from Thanos but helps tease his next major appearance.
5. This miniseries mostly focuses on Deadpool but expands on Deadpool's relationship to Thanos in a way some readers may find interesting. In addition, these issues technically take place before anything else on this reading order. However, they are placed at the end of this reading order to better match when they were published and to save the reveal of a few characters for other comic issues.

All Marvel Comics Reading Orders