Astonishing X-Men is a great start.

Do you need recommendations, because I have recommendations.

Sure, why not?

-CF

I'm not big on single-issue comics. Graphic novels are more up my alley.

Axe Cop is pretty hilarious, but if you want a more serious story then Neil Gaiman's "The Sandman" by Vertigo is pretty excellent. It's a ten-volume story, and it's very entertaining.

*cracks knukles*

Allright, first up to bat is the ever splendid Atomic Robo because it's Funny, it's Smart, and because of This: http://www.atomic-ro...om/the-promise/. Every volume is stand-alone, so you can get the first one you pick up.

If you're looking for a classic I'd suggest Watchmen or Miller's Batman: Year One. Aaah, past Miller.

If you want something epic, look to Thor. Matt Fraction's and Kieron Gillen (who is always awesome, check out his Ares mini)'s currently running arcs are pretty great, but special mention must go to Walt Simmonson, the man by which all Thor writers are judged. His entire epic has recently been collected into a great tome. Some of the best comics money can buy right there.

To round out the selection of Thors we have J. Michael Straczynski's recent run and, a personal favorite: Thor: The Mighty Avenger. It's an all ages book that will charm the pants right off of you with beautiful art and storytelling brilliant in its simplicity.

You've surely heard of the Scott Pilgrim series, and with very good reason. Those books are darn funny and emotional, son.

Back to DC, the old Blue Beetle series (not the current one) is a must. Look up "Blue Beetle Linkara" and the video will explain more.

Daredevil has had a lot of great runs, Miller and Bendis being the standouts (and more than worthy), but Mark Waid's current run is just a boatload of fun, something often missing from the horned devil.

Get The Immortal Iron Fist if you even remotely like Kung-Fu action.

Just about everything Marvel's put out on the cosmic end (think Silver Surfer and Skrulls (just not the ones invading Earth)) since Annihilation has been fantastic. Guardians of the Galaxy is a personal favorite, but I recommend you get through Annihilation first.

If you want Superman, look no further than All-Star Superman. Word of warning: it may ruin every other Superman story with it's goodness.

Secret Six can almost be called depraved, but it's depraved in an affectionate and heartwarming way. Check out one of the trades some time; it was the best book DC published before the reboot came.

The Incredible Hercules is just that.

NEXTWAVE is stupid comicbook fun with plenty of laughs and pretty pictures.

Justice League: The New Frontier is amazing.

Checkmate (up untill issue #25) was some great superhero spy action.

Most things written by Jason Aaron can be called gleefully insane, but his Ghost Rider run takes the cake.

Captain Britain and MI13 is a book where Dracula attacks Britain with a fleet from the Moon.

As for some more comics currently running:

Aside from Derdevil, Thor, and Journey into Mystery, mentioned above we have the following:

new!DC books that seem great so far: Animal Man, Batman, Aquaman, Demon Knights, JLI, All-Star Western, Frankenstein, Swamp Thing, and Ressurection Man.

X-23 is a lot of fun, but it ends next year, same goes for Black Panther.

Fantastic Four and it's companion book, FF, are brillaint, but I recommend starting at the beginning of the run (Jonathan Hickman).

The X-Men have recently started a new status-quo, so now's a great time to get into those books. Wolverine and the X-Men (Aaron again) and Uncanny X-Force in particular are a lot of fun.

Both the current and the previous Moon Knight series are great reads (maybe the one before that too, I have yet to check it out).

S.H.E.I.L.D. is high concept insanity, plain and simple.

The Marvel Adventures books are often a joy to read; don't let that "all-ages" be confused with "kids only".

There are probably a bucnh I'm forgetting, but I'm running late now, and those seem plenty.

I've recently gotten into webcomics. With them, you usually don't have to invest in them until after you've read them, and decided you like the story. I have a lot of books, so I have to keep in mind what deserves space on my shelves.

Like Aanchir, graphic novels are more up my alley than single issues. They're more durable.