You can get the original 12-issue comic series in a collection here, it is all you'll need to understand the Watchmen world, every other work is just supplementary. The graphic novel is very highly-regarded and popular in the comicbook community so DC obviously wants the world to keep on going in one way or the other.
But it's honestly one of my favorite books, and very thought-provoking too. Would highly recommend.
by Kyle_Everts 2019-08-24
This is the one I have and for someone who isn't a die-hard fan, this is the way to go. It has recolored pages (superior in my opinion) and has a bit of bonus stuff included. If you're looking for a really nice "collectible" copy, you want the Absolute Edition for sure. Also, I hope you watched The Ultimate Cut...
How to Get Into Comic Books (13:40) | Patrick Willems
Consider your intent/commitment. Think about your favorite shows, movies, books, etc. Reading primarily for enjoyment or encyclopedic knowledge? Collecting? Have the time/resources to read 50 or 500 comics per character?
Don’t try to read everything at once. There’s too much. Forget about catching up, continuity, universes, etc. for now. Older comics can be an acquired taste for modern audiences, so they aren’t necessarily ideal starting points. Writers change often, characters get re-worked, and origins are re-told. Remember, there are many great characters, creators, publishers, etc. to explore.
Pick an interesting character/team and seek their most popular/acclaimed stories. Focus on self-contained, complete stories in one corner of the universe. There will be unexplained references/characters, just persevere or Wiki. Don’t let the tangled web of shared-universe comics overwhelm you. Think of it like solving a jigsaw puzzle one small piece at a time until you finally see the big picture.
Discover your preferences and let them guide you. Don’t get stuck preparing/over-analyzing, just start reading. Do you like/dislike old/new comics? Specific writers/genres? Cartoony/realistic art? Familiar/weird concepts? References/self-contained? All-ages/mature content? Follow these instincts. Didn’t understand a reference? Maybe read that next.
Acquire/Buy comics:
Digital: Marvel Unlimited ($10/mo or $70/yr for all but new releases), Comixology, e-library (free), webcomic (free)
How to Get Into Comic Books (13:40) | Patrick Willems
Consider your intent/commitment. Think about your favorite shows, movies, books, etc. Reading primarily for enjoyment or encyclopedic knowledge? Collecting? Have the time/resources to read 50 or 500 comics per character?
Don’t try to read everything at once. There’s too much. Forget about catching up, continuity, universes, etc. for now. Older comics can be an acquired taste for modern audiences, so they aren’t necessarily ideal starting points. Writers change often, characters get re-worked, and origins are re-told. Remember, there are many great characters, creators, publishers, etc. to explore.
Pick an interesting character/team and seek their most popular/acclaimed stories. Focus on self-contained, complete stories in one corner of the universe. There will be unexplained references/characters, just persevere or Wiki. Don’t let the tangled web of shared-universe comics overwhelm you. Think of it like solving a jigsaw puzzle one small piece at a time until you finally see the big picture.
Discover your preferences and let them guide you. Don’t get stuck preparing/over-analyzing, just start reading. Do you like/dislike old/new comics? Specific writers/genres? Cartoony/realistic art? Familiar/weird concepts? References/self-contained? All-ages/mature content? Follow these instincts. Didn’t understand a reference? Maybe read that next.
Acquire/Buy comics:
Digital: Marvel Unlimited ($10/mo or $70/yr for all but new releases), Comixology, e-library (free), webcomic (free)
How to Get Into Comic Books (13:40) | Patrick Willems
Consider your intent/commitment. Think about your favorite shows, movies, books, etc. Reading primarily for enjoyment or encyclopedic knowledge? Collecting? Have the time/resources to read 50 or 500 comics per character?
Don’t try to read everything at once. There’s too much. Forget about catching up, continuity, universes, etc. for now. Older comics can be an acquired taste for modern audiences, so they aren’t necessarily ideal starting points. Writers change often, characters get re-worked, and origins are re-told. Remember, there are many great characters, creators, publishers, etc. to explore.
Pick an interesting character/team and seek their most popular/acclaimed stories. Focus on self-contained, complete stories in one corner of the universe. There will be unexplained references/characters, just persevere or Wiki. Don’t let the tangled web of shared-universe comics overwhelm you. Think of it like solving a jigsaw puzzle one small piece at a time until you finally see the big picture.
Discover your preferences and let them guide you. Don’t get stuck preparing/over-analyzing, just start reading. Do you like/dislike old/new comics? Specific writers/genres? Cartoony/realistic art? Familiar/weird concepts? References/self-contained? All-ages/mature content? Follow these instincts. Didn’t understand a reference? Maybe read that next.
Acquire/Buy comics:
Digital: Marvel Unlimited ($10/mo or $70/yr for all but new releases), Comixology, e-library (free), webcomic (free)
Well, you didn't really give us much to work with. What are your favorite movies, TV shows, comics (if you've already read some), books, games, etc.? In lieu of that answer, here are some general recommendations:
How to Get Into Comic Books (13:40) | Patrick Willems
Consider your intent/commitment. Think about your favorite shows, movies, books, etc. Reading primarily for enjoyment or encyclopedic knowledge? Collecting? Have the time/resources to read 50 or 500 comics per character?
Don’t try to read everything at once. There’s too much. Forget about catching up, continuity, universes, etc. for now. Older comics can be an acquired taste for modern audiences, so they aren’t necessarily ideal starting points. Writers change often, characters get re-worked, and origins are re-told. Remember, there are many great characters, creators, publishers, etc. to explore.
Pick an interesting character/team and seek their most popular/acclaimed stories. Focus on self-contained, complete stories in one corner of the universe. There will be unexplained references/characters, just persevere or Wiki. Don’t let the tangled web of shared-universe comics overwhelm you. Think of it like solving a jigsaw puzzle one small piece at a time until you finally see the big picture.
Discover your preferences and let them guide you. Don’t get stuck preparing/over-analyzing, just start reading. Do you like/dislike old/new comics? Specific writers/genres? Cartoony/realistic art? Familiar/weird concepts? References/self-contained? All-ages/mature content? Follow these instincts. Didn’t understand a reference? Maybe read that next.
Acquire/Buy comics:
Digital: Marvel Unlimited ($10/mo or $70/yr for all but new releases), Comixology, e-library (free), webcomic (free)
How to Get Into Comic Books (13:40) | Patrick Willems
Consider your intent/commitment. Think about your favorite shows, movies, books, etc. Reading primarily for enjoyment or encyclopedic knowledge? Collecting? Have the time/resources to read 50 or 500 comics per character?
Don’t try to read everything at once. There’s too much. Forget about catching up, continuity, universes, etc. for now. Older comics can be an acquired taste for modern audiences, so they aren’t necessarily ideal starting points. Writers change often, characters get re-worked, and origins are re-told. Remember, there are many great characters, creators, publishers, etc. to explore.
Pick an interesting character/team and seek their most popular/acclaimed stories. Focus on self-contained, complete stories in one corner of the universe. There will be unexplained references/characters, just persevere or Wiki. Don’t let the tangled web of shared-universe comics overwhelm you. Think of it like solving a jigsaw puzzle one small piece at a time until you finally see the big picture.
Discover your preferences and let them guide you. Don’t get stuck preparing/over-analyzing, just start reading. Do you like/dislike old/new comics? Specific writers/genres? Cartoony/realistic art? Familiar/weird concepts? References/self-contained? All-ages/mature content? Follow these instincts. Didn’t understand a reference? Maybe read that next.
Acquire/Buy comics:
Digital: Marvel Unlimited ($10/mo or $70/yr for all but new releases), Comixology, e-library (free), webcomic (free)
>What's the difference (if any) between a comic book and a graphic novel?
Comic Book: A "book" that tells a story in comic form. Now the book part varies and can mean a number of things.
It could refer to:
Single Issue: A comic story that is smaller than a graphic novel. Typically ~32 to 48 pages. These are also called floppies and are those books that you see in a Comic Book Store.
Trades are different from Graphic Novels in that they don't have the complete story in them. Going back to the Batman example it's only "Volume 1" of 10 Volumes.
Note The words trade and graphic novel are usually interchangeable and people aren't gonna rage at you for using one or the other but the biggest difference is if it's a self contained story in a single book then it's a graphic novel.
>What's an omnibus?
An Omnibus is a larger collection of Single Issues into a single book.
Usually a Trade collects 6 or 7 Issues of a comicbook while an Omnibus would collect ~25 to 30 Issues of a comicbook.
>In DC, what are New 52 and Rebirth (without spoiling anything plot related if that's possible)?
New 52: Was a complete reboot of the DC Universe in an attempt to attract newer readers. It was met with mostly mixed results as it made things simpler for newer readers but in some cases drastically changed elements of certain characters that people liked.
Rebirth: Directly follows the New52 era. It was a, pretty successful, attempt by DC to rectify the mistakes of the New52 and bring back elements that long time readers had missed from their favorite characters. It was basically merging the elements of the pre-New52 and New52 universe. Leaving what works and changing what didn't.
>How do New 52 and Rebirth compare? I believe New 52 is older, but is it still relatively easy to get your hands on? Is there anything even worth going for, or should I just check out Rebirth stuff?
For the most part Rebirth was more well liked by fans than New52 overall. However there are certain New52 story arcs and series that people really enjoyed as well.
For New52 I recommend the following: Aquaman Vol 1 to Vol 6 + Vol 8 (Skip 7) Green Arrow Vol. 4 to Vol. 6 Batman and Robin Vol. 1 to Vol. 7 The Flash Vol. 1 to Vol. 4 Batman Vol. 1 to Vol. 10 Batwoman Vol. 1 to Vol. 4 Animal Man Vol. 1 to Vol. 5 Gotham Academy Vol. 1 to Vol. 2
>Who are a few of your favorite modern writers? I see Geoff Johns name coming up on a lot of stuff, is he actually good or just popular?
Geoff Johns is liked and popular. But his claim to fame wasn't writing a groundbreaking and award winning new series. It came from being consistently good over years and years of writing comics. He's reliable and knows what the majority of readers want.
For other writers I'd say that /u/holymoloid provided a really good list.
>My favorite characters are Batman, Flash, and Green Lantern. If you could only have one book or arc for each, what would you get?
Over at /r/DCcomics they have a wiki with a bunch of helpful suggestions I'd reccomend reading that.
But for a quick summary:
Green Lantern: Geoff Johns is the main guy to go to for Green Lantern. He worked on the book for ~9 years and built the foundation for the modern mythos.
The Flash: Mark Waid's run is considered the best read that first. Geoff Johns' run is considered the 2nd best, it follows Waid's run.
Batman: Start with Scott Snyder and Greg Capullo's run from the New52. It's in the suggestion list I gave you above. (Vol 1 to Vol 10 of the New52)
Did you mention "new comics" because you're more interested in the DC universe as a whole? Are you trying to stay up to date/current? IMO, DC's best comics are a little older and the smaller story arcs are much more digestible/serve as a better hook for readers new to DC in general.
Unfortunately, I didn't learn anything from "wide variety of movies and TV shows" so the list above will be pretty general (something similar to what you'd find in a Google search). If you can elaborate on why you liked those 4 comics, why don't like other comics you've tried, your top 5 stories from other media, etc., then we could provide much clearer direction. For example, if you enjoy movies like Star Wars or Guardians of the Galaxy, then Geoff Johns' Green Lantern would be a good fit. With the exception of Spider-Man, the comics you listed are relatively dark/edgy/90s flavor. Batman seems like the obvious recommendation for that.
by Tigertemprr 2018-11-10
ComicBookHerald's New 52 Reading Order
There are different ways to approach getting into comics:
reading by "era" e.g. New 52 or Rebirth
reading by character/team e.g. Batman or Justice League
reading by popular/acclaimed runs in whatever order your mood permits
Whatever method you decide, you'll need to do a little research on which titles are worth skipping. Research will only take you so far, though, since you have to actually start reading comics to figure out what you want from them. There are A LOT of comics and probably 75% of them aren't worth your time as a new reader.
This is what I usually recommend for new readers:
Introduction to Comics
How to Get Into Comic Books (13:40) | Patrick Willems
Consider your intent/commitment. Think about your favorite shows, movies, books, etc. Do you seek quality storytelling or encyclopedic superhero knowledge? Plan to collect? Do you have the time/money to read 50 or 500 comics per character?
Don’t try to read everything at once. There’s too much. Forget about catching up, continuity, universes, etc. for now. Think of it like solving a jigsaw puzzle one small piece at a time until you finally start to see the big picture. Older comics can be an acquired taste for modern audiences, so they aren’t always ideal starting points. Creative teams change often, characters get re-worked, and origins are re-told.
Pick an interesting character/team and seek their most popular/acclaimed stories. Focus on self-contained/complete stories. You will encounter unexplained references/characters/events—just keep reading or Wiki. Don’t let the tangled interconnectedness of shared-universe comics overwhelm you.
Discover your preferences and let them guide you. Avoid over-analyzing—just start reading. Do you prefer old/new comics? Specific writers/genres? Cartoony/realistic art? Character/plot -driven story? Explicit content? Follow these instincts. Didn’t get a reference? Make that your next read.
Acquiring comics:
Digital: Comixology, e-library e.g. Hoopla (free), webcomics (free)
Just order this.
You can get the original 12-issue comic series in a collection here, it is all you'll need to understand the Watchmen world, every other work is just supplementary. The graphic novel is very highly-regarded and popular in the comicbook community so DC obviously wants the world to keep on going in one way or the other.
But it's honestly one of my favorite books, and very thought-provoking too. Would highly recommend.
This is the one I have and for someone who isn't a die-hard fan, this is the way to go. It has recolored pages (superior in my opinion) and has a bit of bonus stuff included. If you're looking for a really nice "collectible" copy, you want the Absolute Edition for sure. Also, I hope you watched The Ultimate Cut...
https://toptalkedbooks.com/amzn/1401245250
General
Batman
Without knowing what you've already read, here are some 1986+ favorites:
DC Vertigo/Wildstorm (mature readers):
Introduction to Comics
How to Get Into Comic Books (13:40) | Patrick Willems
Consider your intent/commitment. Think about your favorite shows, movies, books, etc. Reading primarily for enjoyment or encyclopedic knowledge? Collecting? Have the time/resources to read 50 or 500 comics per character?
Don’t try to read everything at once. There’s too much. Forget about catching up, continuity, universes, etc. for now. Older comics can be an acquired taste for modern audiences, so they aren’t necessarily ideal starting points. Writers change often, characters get re-worked, and origins are re-told. Remember, there are many great characters, creators, publishers, etc. to explore.
Pick an interesting character/team and seek their most popular/acclaimed stories. Focus on self-contained, complete stories in one corner of the universe. There will be unexplained references/characters, just persevere or Wiki. Don’t let the tangled web of shared-universe comics overwhelm you. Think of it like solving a jigsaw puzzle one small piece at a time until you finally see the big picture.
Discover your preferences and let them guide you. Don’t get stuck preparing/over-analyzing, just start reading. Do you like/dislike old/new comics? Specific writers/genres? Cartoony/realistic art? Familiar/weird concepts? References/self-contained? All-ages/mature content? Follow these instincts. Didn’t understand a reference? Maybe read that next.
Acquire/Buy comics:
Marvel
DC
Or skip to the 2016 re-launch DC Universe: Rebirth event and then any Rebirth series #1.
Other
Marvel
DC
Or skip to the 2016 re-launch DC Universe: Rebirth event and then any Rebirth series #1.
Introduction to Comics
How to Get Into Comic Books (13:40) | Patrick Willems
Consider your intent/commitment. Think about your favorite shows, movies, books, etc. Reading primarily for enjoyment or encyclopedic knowledge? Collecting? Have the time/resources to read 50 or 500 comics per character?
Don’t try to read everything at once. There’s too much. Forget about catching up, continuity, universes, etc. for now. Older comics can be an acquired taste for modern audiences, so they aren’t necessarily ideal starting points. Writers change often, characters get re-worked, and origins are re-told. Remember, there are many great characters, creators, publishers, etc. to explore.
Pick an interesting character/team and seek their most popular/acclaimed stories. Focus on self-contained, complete stories in one corner of the universe. There will be unexplained references/characters, just persevere or Wiki. Don’t let the tangled web of shared-universe comics overwhelm you. Think of it like solving a jigsaw puzzle one small piece at a time until you finally see the big picture.
Discover your preferences and let them guide you. Don’t get stuck preparing/over-analyzing, just start reading. Do you like/dislike old/new comics? Specific writers/genres? Cartoony/realistic art? Familiar/weird concepts? References/self-contained? All-ages/mature content? Follow these instincts. Didn’t understand a reference? Maybe read that next.
Acquire/Buy comics:
Marvel
DC
Or skip to the 2016 re-launch DC Universe: Rebirth event and then any Rebirth series #1.
Other
Introduction to Comics
How to Get Into Comic Books (13:40) | Patrick Willems
Consider your intent/commitment. Think about your favorite shows, movies, books, etc. Reading primarily for enjoyment or encyclopedic knowledge? Collecting? Have the time/resources to read 50 or 500 comics per character?
Don’t try to read everything at once. There’s too much. Forget about catching up, continuity, universes, etc. for now. Older comics can be an acquired taste for modern audiences, so they aren’t necessarily ideal starting points. Writers change often, characters get re-worked, and origins are re-told. Remember, there are many great characters, creators, publishers, etc. to explore.
Pick an interesting character/team and seek their most popular/acclaimed stories. Focus on self-contained, complete stories in one corner of the universe. There will be unexplained references/characters, just persevere or Wiki. Don’t let the tangled web of shared-universe comics overwhelm you. Think of it like solving a jigsaw puzzle one small piece at a time until you finally see the big picture.
Discover your preferences and let them guide you. Don’t get stuck preparing/over-analyzing, just start reading. Do you like/dislike old/new comics? Specific writers/genres? Cartoony/realistic art? Familiar/weird concepts? References/self-contained? All-ages/mature content? Follow these instincts. Didn’t understand a reference? Maybe read that next.
Acquire/Buy comics:
Marvel
DC
Or skip to the 2016 re-launch DC Universe: Rebirth event and then any Rebirth series #1.
Other
Flash
Marvel
DC
Or skip to the 2016 re-launch DC Universe: Rebirth event and then any Rebirth series #1.
Other
Well, you didn't really give us much to work with. What are your favorite movies, TV shows, comics (if you've already read some), books, games, etc.? In lieu of that answer, here are some general recommendations:
Marvel
DC
Or skip to the 2016 re-launch DC Universe: Rebirth event and then any Rebirth series #1.
Other
If you want a physical copy, perhaps Amazon or Instocktrades
The latter is currently cheaper.
Introduction to Comics
How to Get Into Comic Books (13:40) | Patrick Willems
Consider your intent/commitment. Think about your favorite shows, movies, books, etc. Reading primarily for enjoyment or encyclopedic knowledge? Collecting? Have the time/resources to read 50 or 500 comics per character?
Don’t try to read everything at once. There’s too much. Forget about catching up, continuity, universes, etc. for now. Older comics can be an acquired taste for modern audiences, so they aren’t necessarily ideal starting points. Writers change often, characters get re-worked, and origins are re-told. Remember, there are many great characters, creators, publishers, etc. to explore.
Pick an interesting character/team and seek their most popular/acclaimed stories. Focus on self-contained, complete stories in one corner of the universe. There will be unexplained references/characters, just persevere or Wiki. Don’t let the tangled web of shared-universe comics overwhelm you. Think of it like solving a jigsaw puzzle one small piece at a time until you finally see the big picture.
Discover your preferences and let them guide you. Don’t get stuck preparing/over-analyzing, just start reading. Do you like/dislike old/new comics? Specific writers/genres? Cartoony/realistic art? Familiar/weird concepts? References/self-contained? All-ages/mature content? Follow these instincts. Didn’t understand a reference? Maybe read that next.
Acquire/Buy comics:
Marvel
DC
You can skip to the 2016 re-launch with DC Universe: Rebirth and then any Rebirth series #1.
Other
Introduction to Comics
How to Get Into Comic Books (13:40) | Patrick Willems
Consider your intent/commitment. Think about your favorite shows, movies, books, etc. Reading primarily for enjoyment or encyclopedic knowledge? Collecting? Have the time/resources to read 50 or 500 comics per character?
Don’t try to read everything at once. There’s too much. Forget about catching up, continuity, universes, etc. for now. Older comics can be an acquired taste for modern audiences, so they aren’t necessarily ideal starting points. Writers change often, characters get re-worked, and origins are re-told. Remember, there are many great characters, creators, publishers, etc. to explore.
Pick an interesting character/team and seek their most popular/acclaimed stories. Focus on self-contained, complete stories in one corner of the universe. There will be unexplained references/characters, just persevere or Wiki. Don’t let the tangled web of shared-universe comics overwhelm you. Think of it like solving a jigsaw puzzle one small piece at a time until you finally see the big picture.
Discover your preferences and let them guide you. Don’t get stuck preparing/over-analyzing, just start reading. Do you like/dislike old/new comics? Specific writers/genres? Cartoony/realistic art? Familiar/weird concepts? References/self-contained? All-ages/mature content? Follow these instincts. Didn’t understand a reference? Maybe read that next.
Acquire/Buy comics:
Marvel
DC
You can skip to the 2016 re-launch with DC Universe: Rebirth and then any Rebirth series #1.
Other
>What's the difference (if any) between a comic book and a graphic novel?
Comic Book: A "book" that tells a story in comic form. Now the book part varies and can mean a number of things.
It could refer to:
Single Issue: A comic story that is smaller than a graphic novel. Typically ~32 to 48 pages. These are also called floppies and are those books that you see in a Comic Book Store.
Graphic Novel: Usually, refers to a story told in comic form which is contained in a single book. For example, Watchmen or Maus are graphic novels.
Trade Paperbacks: Also called trades are books that have collected several single issues into 1 book. For example, New52 Batman Vol 1: The Court of Owls contains Issues #1 to #7 of New52 Batman.
Trades are different from Graphic Novels in that they don't have the complete story in them. Going back to the Batman example it's only "Volume 1" of 10 Volumes.
Note The words trade and graphic novel are usually interchangeable and people aren't gonna rage at you for using one or the other but the biggest difference is if it's a self contained story in a single book then it's a graphic novel.
>What's an omnibus?
An Omnibus is a larger collection of Single Issues into a single book.
Usually a Trade collects 6 or 7 Issues of a comicbook while an Omnibus would collect ~25 to 30 Issues of a comicbook.
>In DC, what are New 52 and Rebirth (without spoiling anything plot related if that's possible)?
New 52: Was a complete reboot of the DC Universe in an attempt to attract newer readers. It was met with mostly mixed results as it made things simpler for newer readers but in some cases drastically changed elements of certain characters that people liked.
Rebirth: Directly follows the New52 era. It was a, pretty successful, attempt by DC to rectify the mistakes of the New52 and bring back elements that long time readers had missed from their favorite characters. It was basically merging the elements of the pre-New52 and New52 universe. Leaving what works and changing what didn't.
>How do New 52 and Rebirth compare? I believe New 52 is older, but is it still relatively easy to get your hands on? Is there anything even worth going for, or should I just check out Rebirth stuff?
For the most part Rebirth was more well liked by fans than New52 overall. However there are certain New52 story arcs and series that people really enjoyed as well.
For New52 I recommend the following:
Aquaman Vol 1 to Vol 6 + Vol 8 (Skip 7)
Green Arrow Vol. 4 to Vol. 6
Batman and Robin Vol. 1 to Vol. 7
The Flash Vol. 1 to Vol. 4
Batman Vol. 1 to Vol. 10
Batwoman Vol. 1 to Vol. 4
Animal Man Vol. 1 to Vol. 5
Gotham Academy Vol. 1 to Vol. 2
>Who are a few of your favorite modern writers? I see Geoff Johns name coming up on a lot of stuff, is he actually good or just popular?
Geoff Johns is liked and popular. But his claim to fame wasn't writing a groundbreaking and award winning new series. It came from being consistently good over years and years of writing comics. He's reliable and knows what the majority of readers want.
For other writers I'd say that /u/holymoloid provided a really good list.
>My favorite characters are Batman, Flash, and Green Lantern. If you could only have one book or arc for each, what would you get?
Over at /r/DCcomics they have a wiki with a bunch of helpful suggestions I'd reccomend reading that.
But for a quick summary:
Green Lantern: Geoff Johns is the main guy to go to for Green Lantern. He worked on the book for ~9 years and built the foundation for the modern mythos.
The Flash: Mark Waid's run is considered the best read that first. Geoff Johns' run is considered the 2nd best, it follows Waid's run.
Batman: Start with Scott Snyder and Greg Capullo's run from the New52. It's in the suggestion list I gave you above. (Vol 1 to Vol 10 of the New52)
Popular/acclaimed modern essentials:
You can skip to the 2016 Rebirth re-launch with the DC Universe: Rebirth event and then any Rebirth series #1.
Modern DC events/crossovers:
If you want to start with newer comics, then you can skip to the 2016 Rebirth re-launch with the DC Universe: Rebirth event and then any Rebirth series #1. I'd recommend Nightwing and Batman.
Alternatively, if you're not super strict about the "new" comic thing, I'd actually recommend reading some older/popular/acclaimed comics like:
Since you mentioned Spawn and The Darkness (non-DC/Marvel), I also think you'd dig DC imprint comics (Vertigo/Wildstorm):
Did you mention "new comics" because you're more interested in the DC universe as a whole? Are you trying to stay up to date/current? IMO, DC's best comics are a little older and the smaller story arcs are much more digestible/serve as a better hook for readers new to DC in general.
Unfortunately, I didn't learn anything from "wide variety of movies and TV shows" so the list above will be pretty general (something similar to what you'd find in a Google search). If you can elaborate on why you liked those 4 comics, why don't like other comics you've tried, your top 5 stories from other media, etc., then we could provide much clearer direction. For example, if you enjoy movies like Star Wars or Guardians of the Galaxy, then Geoff Johns' Green Lantern would be a good fit. With the exception of Spider-Man, the comics you listed are relatively dark/edgy/90s flavor. Batman seems like the obvious recommendation for that.
ComicBookHerald's New 52 Reading Order
There are different ways to approach getting into comics:
Whatever method you decide, you'll need to do a little research on which titles are worth skipping. Research will only take you so far, though, since you have to actually start reading comics to figure out what you want from them. There are A LOT of comics and probably 75% of them aren't worth your time as a new reader.
This is what I usually recommend for new readers:
Introduction to Comics
How to Get Into Comic Books (13:40) | Patrick Willems
Consider your intent/commitment. Think about your favorite shows, movies, books, etc. Do you seek quality storytelling or encyclopedic superhero knowledge? Plan to collect? Do you have the time/money to read 50 or 500 comics per character?
Don’t try to read everything at once. There’s too much. Forget about catching up, continuity, universes, etc. for now. Think of it like solving a jigsaw puzzle one small piece at a time until you finally start to see the big picture. Older comics can be an acquired taste for modern audiences, so they aren’t always ideal starting points. Creative teams change often, characters get re-worked, and origins are re-told.
Pick an interesting character/team and seek their most popular/acclaimed stories. Focus on self-contained/complete stories. You will encounter unexplained references/characters/events—just keep reading or Wiki. Don’t let the tangled interconnectedness of shared-universe comics overwhelm you.
Discover your preferences and let them guide you. Avoid over-analyzing—just start reading. Do you prefer old/new comics? Specific writers/genres? Cartoony/realistic art? Character/plot -driven story? Explicit content? Follow these instincts. Didn’t get a reference? Make that your next read.
Acquiring comics:
Recommendations
You can skip to the 2016 Rebirth re-launch with the DC Universe: Rebirth event and then any Rebirth series #1.
You can skip to the 2016 Rebirth re-launch with the DC Universe: Rebirth event and then any Rebirth series #1.
DC Vertigo/Wildstorm (mature readers):