Beginner's Guide to Comic Terminology: Part 1

Just like with any hobby, comic books come with their own massive set of jargon and lingo. Comic book reading as a whole can pretty be intimidating to new or returning readers, so I decided I would do a series explaining some of the terminologies you will hear and read when trying to read comics, both basic and niche. I hope this list of basic comic terms will help encourage your interest in reading comic books!

Issue: This one is pretty straightforward. An issue is simply the single installment of a comic series. Issues are numbered and most often these numbers are tied to particular runs (we will get to that shortly).

Run: A “run” refers to the set of issues or years that a particular creator or creative team worked on a series. While there have been over 1000 issues of Action Comics, clearly not every issue was worked on by the same creators. A run simply refers to the time and story that each of these rotating creative teams spent on a given series.

Arc: An arc is the set of issues that tell one story. While stories often span an entire comic run, these runs are broken up into smaller, more intimately connected stories. Think of them like seasons of a television series. Most arcs last around 6 issues, though usually a mini or maxi series is one whole arc that can last up to 12 issues.

Creative Team: The writer, penciler, inker, colorist, letterer, and editor that work on a particular comic. However, “creative team” is often used to refer just to the writer and penciler behind a comic.

Big Two: When someone says, “the Big Two” or “Big Two comic”, they are referring to the top two comic book publishers—Marvel and DC. The vast majority of comics published by the Big Two are superhero comics, though both companies do play within other genres.

Independent/Indies/Creator-Owned: An independent comic is owned by the primary creators of the comic (usually just the writer and artist). When a writer and artist co-create a character for the Big Two, they have no ownership of that character. When creating an independent comic, the creators retain rights to the comic and all the characters within it. Some independent comics are self-published or published through smaller companies, while many are published through other industry heavy0hitters like Image Comics. While there are some independent superhero comics, most indies explore other genres. Independent comics also enjoy much more creative freedom in terms of the graphicness of the content they can depict and the permanence of plot developments.

Trade Paperback/TPB: A trade paperback (TPB for short) refers to the softcover releases of an arc of a comic book series. Usually, a TPB collects anywhere between 4-8 individual issues (most commonly 6 issues) into one set. Trade paperbacks usually release several months after the last issue they will include has been released.

Trade Waiting: To “trade wait” is to wait until an arc of a comic has been completed to then purchase that storyline in a TPB, as opposed to buying each issue every month. Many readers trade wait when they aren’t invested enough in a particular arc or run to purchase issues monthly.

Hardcover: This is a collection of issues bound in a hardcover format. Hardcovers usually collect more issues than a TPB, or they collect miniseries and maxiseries. Hardcovers come in many shapes, names, and sizes, some of which I will go into further detail about in the second part of this series.

LCS: “LCS” is shorthand for your local comic bookstore.

NCBD: “New Comic Book Day”. For every publisher but DC Comics, this is every Wednesday. DC’s NCBD is on Tuesdays.

Pull List/Box: A “pull list” or “pull box” is a list of titles that you can provide to your LCS so they can “pull” these series from the stands for you, allowing you to reserve issues. This ensures not only do you not forget to grab a particular comic on your trip into the store, but it also ensures that you do not miss out on any hot issues of your favorite comics if you aren’t able to make it into your store on NCBD. A pull list/box is a commitment. Your LCS orders your issues several months out in advance, so you should always come in to pick up your comics as often as you can, otherwise your store is losing money on you.

Event: An event is a storyline that takes over the universe and the publishing line of a comic book publisher for a month or more. It is rare to see events outside of the Big Two, but they do happen occasionally. An event may have its own series, or it may simply take place within an existing series, but an event is different than just a normal arc because it invades and pulls in other titles. Events feature tons of tie-ins and team-ups and all the fun, crazy sh*t you love.

Crossover: A crossover refers to an issue or more where one title pairs up with another to tell a story that spans across both titles. A crossover doesn’t necessarily need to be part of an event—it can simply be an arc shared between 2 or more series. During an event, a crossover is characterized by an issue that impacts the main plot of the event that isn’t the main event series.

Tie-In: A tie-in comic can be a one-shot comic, or an issue or set of issues from an ongoing series that join in on an event. This is a little bit different than a crossover because a crossover directly impacts the plot movement of the event, while a tie-in is mostly used to explain where other characters were during the event. Tie-ins show how other corners of a superhero universe are impacted by an event, and they serve to make the event feel larger—making the threat feel more global and substantial

One-Shot: A “one-shot” comic is a single-issue comic that doesn’t have any direct follow-ups (at least not by the same name). A one-shot is a one-and-done affair, usually used to give a brief spotlight to an underserved character or to serve as a tie-in to a larger event.

Relaunch: When a series is ended to be restarted at a new #1 issue. If this is done, it is usually because of some greater initiative going on at the publisher, a new creative team is taking over, or the creative team is staying on, but the comic is undergoing a massive shift in direction. A relaunch doesn’t always occur when a new creative team takes over; a new team may take over on any odd issue of an ongoing series without the series being set back to #1.

Relaunching has seen some criticism from some readers, many with real concerns about how relaunches can sometimes serve to just milk more money out of a series. However, relaunches can serve as easy jumping-on points for new readers.

Ongoing: When you hear the term “ongoing”, think of series that is intended to last more than 12 issues. Not every ongoing series makes it to this many issues, but ongoing series are built around telling stories around major runs and arcs. A comic like Batman is ongoing but has had many runs and creative teams within it because Batman doesn’t get relaunched often.

Miniseries: A miniseries is a short run that is planned to only last 8 issues or less. I emphasize “planned” because if a run is canceled after 8 issues or less, that run isn’t necessarily considered a miniseries. A miniseries works because the creative team goes in knowing the limited amount of issues they can use to tell a story.

Maxiseries: A maxiseries is a comic run that lasts more than 8 issues but is still planned to tell one single arc throughout its entire run. That last distinction is what most often separates a maxiseries from a normal ongoing one. Most maxiseries last up to 12 issues.

These are some of the basic terms that will help you get into reading and collecting comic books. The hobby can seem overwhelming, but now that you are armed with the knowledge of the above terminology, you should be able to approach comic book reading with more confidence and ease.