If you look back at all the movie franchises of the 1980s, Ghostbusters would have to be one of the most loved. It has a fun premise, loveable cast, a very catchy theme song, and is very quotable. The fact that it’s been 35 years (this reading order is published on the 35th anniversary of the original film hitting the big screen) and people are still watching the movies, buying merchandise, and reading about the characters just proves my point even further.
The Ghostbusters have a long history in comics and it’s the medium where the franchise has most successfully lived on. While the property has been at home with a few publishers over the years, IDW Publishing is the current home for and they have been regularly publishing Ghostbusters comics since 2008.
With over ten years of Ghostbusters comics at IDW, it’s easy to lose track of all the different miniseries, one-shots, and ongoing series. To make sense of it all, I’ve put together this IDW Ghostbusters Comic Reading Order Guide. Similar to the Transformers reading order, it gives you the recommended reading order for all the Ghostbusters comics by single issues and then by trade paperback.
Which Comics Does This Reading Order Include?
As mentioned earlier, other publishers have released Ghostbusters comic books in the past. In this instance, I am going to stick with the comics IDW Publishing. This is because all of these comics are available in print, easily accessible, and interrelated with each other.
Do I Have To Read Everything?
Nope.
You don’t have to read everything if you don’t want to. The lists below include everything, but you can easily jump on at the start of most miniseries or ongoing series. (There might be some references to prior comics but new series start new stories)
Where Can I Find Ghostbusters Comics?
Ghostbusters comic books can be found at all good comic book stores, online stores, and eBay.
Out of Print
It is worth noting that IDW no longer holds the license to the Ghostbuster comics. As a result, most of the comics mentioned in this reading order are out of print and no longer available digitally. If you want to read them you’ll need to track them done second hand or try your luck at a comic book store.
A Soundtrack To Your Reading
Need some music while you’re browsing this reading order? I think the below is appropriate.
Single Issue Reading Order
Below is the recommended reading order if you would like to read everything that IDW has published in regards to the Ghostbusters. This can list be used to track your reading or context as to where the series relate to one another if you don’t wish to read absolutely everything.
Miniseries and One-Shots
In the beginning, IDW published Ghostbusters as a batch of miniseries and one-shots. These make up the first phase of IDW’s Ghostbusters comic books.
Ghostbusters: The Other Side #1
Ghostbusters: The Other Side #2
Ghostbusters: The Other Side #3
Ghostbusters: The Other Side #4
Ghostbusters: Displaced Aggression #1
Ghostbusters: Displaced Aggression #2
Ghostbusters: Displaced Aggression #3
Ghostbusters: Displaced Aggression #4
Ghostbusters: Tainted Love
Ghostbusters: Con-Volution
Ghostbusters: What in Samhain Just Happened?!
Ghostbusters: Guess What’s Coming to Dinner?
Ghostbusters: Past, Present, and Future
Infestation: Ghostbusters #1
Infestation: Ghostbusters #2
NOTE: Infestation: Ghostbusters #1-2 ties into the larger Infestation story which brought in a bunch of other licenced properties IDW had at the time.
First Ongoing Series
2011 saw IDW begin publishing a Ghostbusters monthly ongoing series. This would run for 16 issues.
Ghostbusters (2011 Series) #1
Ghostbusters (2011 Series) #2
Ghostbusters (2011 Series) #3
Ghostbusters (2011 Series) #4
Ghostbusters (2011 Series) #5
Ghostbusters (2011 Series) #6
Ghostbusters (2011 Series) #7
Ghostbusters (2011 Series) #8
Ghostbusters (2011 Series) #9
Ghostbusters (2011 Series) #10
Ghostbusters (2011 Series) #11
Ghostbusters (2011 Series) #12
Ghostbusters (2011 Series) #13
Ghostbusters (2011 Series) #14
Ghostbusters (2011 Series) #15
Ghostbusters (2011 Series) #16
Ghostbusters: Times Scare!
NOTE: Times Scares! is a 16-page minicomic made exclusively for Halloween ComicFest 2012.
Second Ongoing Series
Without spoiling the conclusion of the 2011 ongoing series, IDW had enough reason to relaunch the series with a new cast in 2013.
Ghostbusters (2013 Series) #1
Ghostbusters (2013 Series) #2
Ghostbusters (2013 Series) #3
Ghostbusters (2013 Series) #4
Ghostbusters (2013 Series) #5
Ghostbusters (2013 Series) #6
Ghostbusters (2013 Series) #7
Ghostbusters (2013 Series) #8
Ghostbusters (2013 Series) #9
Ghostbusters (2013 Series) #10
Ghostbusters (2013 Series) #11
Ghostbusters (2013 Series) #12
Ghostbusters (2013 Series) #13
Ghostbusters (2013 Series) #14
Ghostbusters (2013 Series) #15
Ghostbusters (2013 Series) #16
Ghostbusters (2013 Series) #17
Ghostbusters (2013 Series) #18
Ghostbusters (2013 Series) #19
Ghostbusters (2013 Series) #20
More Ghostbusters Miniseries
After the conclusion of the 2013 series, Ghostbusters would go back to the miniseries format. The Ghostbusters we know and love will crossover with the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and the Real Ghostbusters.
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles/Ghostbusters #1
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles/Ghostbusters #2
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles/Ghostbusters #3
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles/Ghostbusters #4
Note: Want to read IDW’s Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles comics? Check out this reading order guide.
Ghostbusters: Get Real #1
Ghostbusters: Get Real #2
Ghostbusters: Get Real #3
Ghostbusters: Get Real #4
Note: Ghostbusters: Get Real features the versions of the characters from the well-loved animated series The Real Ghostbusters.
Ghostbusters Annual 2015
Ghostbusters International
Ghostbusters International is the third ongoing series from IDW. It also shakes up the formula by taking them worldwide. The crew will travel around the world, busting ghosts and trying to unravel a big mystery.
Ghostbusters International #1
Ghostbusters International #2
Ghostbusters International #3
Ghostbusters International #4
Ghostbusters International #5
Ghostbusters International #6
Ghostbusters International #7
Ghostbusters International #8
Ghostbusters International #9
Ghostbusters International #10
Ghostbusters International #11
Ghostbusters: Deviations #1
NOTE: This is a one-shot which tells the what-if story of if the Stay-Pull Marshmellow Man was never defeated.
Ghostbusters: Funko Universe #1
NOTE: This is a non-cannon story which crosses over with Funko’s Pop Vinyl.
Even More Ghostbusters Miniseries and One-Shots
A return to the miniseries format again. We get another crossover with the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, the next generation of Ghostbusters in training, celebrate the 35th anniversary, and much more.
Ghostbusters Annual 2017
Ghostbusters 101 #1
Ghostbusters 101 #2
Ghostbusters 101 #3
Ghostbusters 101 #4
Ghostbusters 101 #5
Ghostbusters 101 #6
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles/Ghostbusters 2 #1
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles/Ghostbusters 2 #2
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles/Ghostbusters 2 #3
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles/Ghostbusters 2 #4
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles/Ghostbusters 2 #5
Ghostbusters Annual 2018
Ghostbusters: Crossing Over #1
Ghostbusters: Crossing Over #2
Ghostbusters: Crossing Over #3
Ghostbusters: Crossing Over #4
Ghostbusters: Crossing Over #5
Ghostbusters: Crossing Over #6
Ghostbusters: Crossing Over #7
Ghostbusters: Crossing Over #8
Ghostbusters: Answer The Call #1
Ghostbusters: Answer The Call #2
Ghostbusters: Answer The Call #3
Ghostbusters: Answer The Call #4
Ghostbusters: Answer The Call #5
NOTE: Ghostbusters: Answer The Call is a spin-off miniseries which star the characters of the 2016 movie.
Ghostbusters: IDW 20/20
NOTE: Ghostbusters: IDW 20/20 which features the next generation of Ghostbusters, 20 years into the future.
Ghostbusters 35th Anniversary: Ghostbusters
Ghostbusters 35th Anniversary: The Real Ghostbusters
Ghostbusters 35th Anniversary: Answer The Call Ghostbusters
Ghostbusters 35th Anniversary: Extreme Ghostbusters
Transformers/Ghostbusters: Ghosts of Cybertron #1
Transformers/Ghostbusters: Ghosts of Cybertron #2
Transformers/Ghostbusters: Ghosts of Cybertron #3
Transformers/Ghostbusters: Ghosts of Cybertron #4
Transformers/Ghostbusters: Ghosts of Cybertron #5
2020 and Beyond
Ghostbusters: Year One is a look back at the first year of the Ghostbusters first year of operation through the perspective of a writer interviewing the team for a novel.
This acts as the next chapter of the Ghostbusters’ story but because it looks back at their beginnings it can also be a great jumping-on point for new readers.
Ghostbusters: Year One #1
Ghostbusters: Year One #2
Ghostbusters: Year One #3
Ghostbusters: Year One #4
Trade Paperback Reading Order
Prefer to read comics in the trade paperback format? These are the collections you’ll need to track down and the order to read them in.
Ghostbusters Omnibus Volume 1
Collects: The Other Side #1-4, Displaced Aggression #1-4, Tainted Love, Con-Volution, What in Samhain Just Happened?!, Guess What’s Coming to Dinner?; and Past, Present, and Future.
Ghostbusters Volume 1: Man From The Mirror
Collects: Ghostbusters (2011 series) #1-4
Ghostbusters Volume 2: The Most Magical Place On Earth
Collects: Ghostbusters (2011 series) #5-8
Ghostbusters Volume 3: Haunted America
Collects: Ghostbusters (2011 series) #9-13
Ghostbusters Volume 4: Who Ya Gonna Call?
Collects: Ghostbusters (2011 series) #14-16
Ghostbusters Volume 5: The New Ghostbusters
Collects: Ghostbusters (2013 series) #1-4
Ghostbusters Volume 6: Trains, Brains, and Ghostly Remains
Collects: Ghostbusters (2013 series) #5-8
Ghostbusters Volume 7: Happy Horror Days!
Collects: Ghostbusters (2013 series) #9-12
Ghostbusters Volume 8: Mass Hysteria! Part 1
Collects: Ghostbusters (2013 series) #13-16
Ghostbusters Volume 9: Mass Hysteria! Part 2
Collects: Ghostbusters (2013 series) #17-20
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles/Ghostbusters Volume 1
Collects: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles/Ghostbusters #1-4
Ghostbusters: Get Real
Collects: Ghostbusters: Get Real #1-4
Ghostbusters International Volume 1
Collects: Ghostbusters #1-5
Ghostbusters International Volume 2
Collects: Ghostbusters #6-11
Ghostbusters 101: Everyone Answers The Call
Collects: Ghostbusters 101 #1-6
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles/Ghostbusters Volume 2
Collects: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles/Ghostbusters #1-5
Ghostbusters: Crossing Over
Collects: Ghostbusters Annual 2018 and Ghostbusters: Crossing Over #1-8
Ghostbusters 35th Anniversary Collection
Collects: Ghostbusters 35th Anniversary: Ghostbusters, Ghostbusters 35th Anniversary: The Real Ghostbusters, Ghostbusters 35th Anniversary: Answer The Call Ghostbusters, and Ghostbusters 35th Anniversary: Extreme Ghostbusters
Transformers/Ghostbusters: Ghosts of Cybertron
Collects: Transformers/Ghostbusters: Ghosts of Cybertron #1-5
Ghostbusters: Year One
Collects: Ghostbusters: Year One #1-4
Who You Gonna Call?
Let me know in the comments below or via Facebook or Twitter.
Have you found this reading order helpful? Share it on social media or with your friends so it can help even more people.
Thank you for posting this reading list! I wanted to go through the complete line of IDW’s history with the Ghostbusters, and this allowed me to do it.
In my further research, I did find a couple IDW Ghostbuster titles that didn’t make your list. I didn’t know if you wanted to add them for completion’s sake. They are:
Ghostbusters: Times Scare! – October 2012 – a one-shot story that was published toward the end of the 2011 series
Ghostbusters: Deviations – March 2016 – part of IDW’s ‘Deviations’ line, a series of one-shots from various licenses, each one telling an alternate realty story where the plot deviated from the main IDW series. In this issue, the ‘deviation’ from the initial Ghostbusters timeline is that the Stay-Puft Marshmallow Man was never defeated by the Ghostbusters and now rules New York.
Ghosbuters Funko Universe – May 2017 – a one-shot alternate universe story starring the Ghostbusters as Funko Pop characters. Part of an IDW series of one-shots of various licenses (including TMNT and X-Files) appearing as Funko Pop characters.
Thanks Lexxy! You’re a champ! I’ve updated the list to include them as well as the upcoming Ghostbusters: Year One.