Black Hammer Reading Order Guide

Jeff Lemire has written many DC Comics series over the past 15 years, with runs on Animal Man, Green Arrow, Justice League Dark, Absolute Flash, Fury of the Firestorm and more. However, it’s clear he has a passion for the DC superhero universe that transcends merely writing for the publisher when you read his creator-owned superhero comic Black Hammer. It’s a comic dripping with DC Comics homage, with love letters to the Golden Age, Silver Age, and 1980s material. As the series has gone on, he’s explored other superhero tropes and conventions, folding them to create something new.

Created with artist Dean Ormston, Lemire and collaborators tell the story of the heroes of Spiral City. After battling a multiverse-level threat, the heroes are trapped in a timeless farming village with no escape. However, just as they find a way to break free, they’re brought back together for one last adventure. Blend that with weirdness, family drama, and spin-offs that explore the comic’s expansive world, and you start to see why this Dark Horse Comics series is so well-loved by readers.

Find out how to read Black Hammer (and its many spin-offs) with this handy reading order guide. It will get you started with Black Hammer, explain the various format options, and answer plenty of questions along the way.

DC Comics homages

If you’re not overly familiar with DC Comics or don’t read many superhero comics, you might be worried that you may not enjoy Black Hammer. Luckily, this series can be read without the intimate knowledge of DC’s superheroes. All the references are homages, so you don’t need to understand what is being referenced to understand what’s going on. However, due to how metatextual it gets with DC Comics, those with knowledge may get more out of Black Hammer.

Luckily, there are plenty of other elements that make Black Hammer enjoyable, such as the bizarre superheroes, the family drama, and the comic’s heart.

If you’re still worried about the homage element, see if you can get a copy of Black Hammer Volume 1: Secret Origins from your local library as a risk-free way to sample the comic to see if you will like it.

The World of Black Hammer explained

Comics labelled “The World of Black Hammer” are spin-offs exploring characters in different corners of the comic book universe. Early spin-offs were devised so that Dean Ormston, who had suffered a cerebral hemorrhage before the series’ commencement, could work at his own pace. These spin-offs allow various artists to join for a story, matching their styles to the story’s tone.

Some of The World of Black Hammer series are more connected to the core Black Hammer series than others. The series with more connective tissue tend to deal with the aftermath of the core comic or introduce characters that will play larger roles later on. Other series explore their own corner of Black Hammer’s world without too much impact on the overall narrative.

The World of Black Hammer comics vary in tone and genre, with Jeff Lemire and collaborators using these to homage a different superhero series or conventions.

Collected formats explained

The Black Hammer comics have been collected into multiple formats. Each of these has its own qualities, appealing to different readers, and is released at different points in the comic’s lifecycle per Dark Horse Comics’ general release pattern for popular titles.

The release pattern is as follows:

1. Serialisation in single issues first. Most Black Hammer comics are released as a maxi-series or a short, limited series.
2. Material is collected into the trade paperback format. This will collect four to six issues, which is usually a significant portion of a maxiseries or a full miniseries.
3. This is followed up by being collected in the library edition format. These are oversized hardcover collections that collect the equivalent of two to three trade paperbacks worth of material and feature behind-the-scenes extras. Library editions are not published straight away, with Dark Horse Comics waiting until the trade paperback collections have been on the market for a few years.
4. Finally, Dark Horse Comics will publish Black Hammer comics in an omnibus format. It’s worth noting that Dark Horse Comics’ definition of an omnibus differs from Marvel/DC Comics and a few other publishers. Instead of a 1000+ page hardcover, Dark Horse’s omnibus editions take the material from the library edition and put it into a softcover edition with dimensions that are slightly smaller than a trade paperback collection. It’s the format that gives readers the most bang for their buck, but you’ll need to wait a few years before it reaches this format.

Black Hammer reading order

Below is the recommended reading order for Black Hammer. Broken up into different phases of storytelling, this reading order includes the core Black Hammer series as well as the numerous World of Black Hammer comics that have been published.

The Last Days of Black Hammer
Written by Jeff Lemire. Art by Stefano Simeone.

Note: The Last Days of Black Hammer is a prequel series that was originally serialised on Jeff Lemire’s Substack. Chronologically, it comes first. However, it doesn’t have to be read first with it being published much later than a lot of the material.

Phase I

Black Hammer Volume 1: Secret Origins
Written by Jeff Lemire. Art by Dean Ormston.
Collects: Black Hammer #1-6

Note: Black Hammer Volume 1: Secret Origins collects the earliest Black Hammer material. This makes it a great jumping-on-point.

Black Hammer Volume 2: The Event
Written by Jeff Lemire. Art by Dean Ormston and David Rubin.
Collects: Black Hammer #7-11, #13

Note: Black Hammer Volume 2: The Event doesn’t collect Black Hammer #12. This issue is collected in Sherlock Frankenstein and the Legion of Evil as they are thematically linked.

Sherlock Frankenstein and the Legion of Evil [The World of Black Hammer series]
Written by Jeff Lemire. Art by David Rubin and Dean Ormston.
Collects: Black Hammer #12 and Sherlock Frankenstein and the Legion of Evil #1-4

Doctor Andromeda and the Kingdom of Lost Tomorrows [The World of Black Hammer series]
Written by Jeff Lemire. Art by Max Fiumara.

Black Hammer Volume 3: Age of Doom Part 1
Written by Jeff Lemire. Art by Dean Ormston.
Collects: Black Hammer: Age of Doom #1-5

Black Hammer Volume 4: Age of Doom Part 2
Written by Jeff Lemire. Art by Dean Ormston.
Collects: Black Hammer: Age of Doom #6-12

The Quantum Age [The World of Black Hammer series]
Written by Jeff Lemire. Art by Wilfedo Torres.
Collects: The Quantum Age #1-6 and “The Quantum Age” story from Free Comic Book Day 2018

Black Hammer ’45 [The World of Black Hammer series]
Written by Jeff Lemire and Ray Fawkes. Art by Matt Kindt.
Collects: Black Hammer ’45 #1-4

Black Hammer: Streets of Spiral
Written by Jeff Lemire. Art by Emi Lenox, Tate Brombal, Dustin Nguyen, Michael Allred, Nate Powell, Matt Kindt, Ray Fawkes, David Rubin, Brian Hurtt, Wilfredo Torres, Christian Ward, Tyler Crook, Rich Tommaso, Marie Enger, Tonci Zonjic, Lucy Sullivan, Sandy Jarrell, and Sina Grace.
Collects: Black Hammer: Giant Sized Annual, Black Hammer: Cthu-Louise, The World of Black Hammer Encyclopedia, and “Horrors to Come” story from Free Comic Book Day 2019

Black Hammer/Justice League: Hammer of Justice
Written by Jeff Lemire. Art by Michael Walsh.
Collects: Black Hammer/Justice League: Hammer of Justice #1-5

Note: Black Hammer/Justice League is a 2019 crossover miniseries. While it could be seen as a throwaway story, Lemire makes sure it has same impact on the larger Black Hammer story.

Phase II

Skulldigger and Skeleton Boy [The World of Black Hammer series]
Written by Jeff Lemire. Art by Tonči Zonjić.
Collects: Skulldigger and Skeleton Boy #1-6

Colonel Weird: Cosmagog [The World of Black Hammer series]
Written by Jeff Lemire. Art by Tyler Crook.
Collects: Colonel Weird: Cosmagog #1-4

Barbalien: Red Planet [The World of Black Hammer series]
Written by Jeff Lemire and Tate Brombal. Art by Gabriel Hernández Walta.
Collects: Barbalien: Red Planet #1-5

Black Hammer: Visions Volume 1 [The World of Black Hammer series]
Written by Patton Oswalt, Geoff Johns, Chip Zdarsky, and Mariko Tamaki. Art by Dean Kotz, Scott Kolins, Jonnie Christmas, and Diego Olortegui.
Collects: Black Hammer: Visions #1-4

Black Hammer: Visions Volume 2 [The World of Black Hammer series]
Written by Kelly Thompson, Cullen Bunn, Cecil Castelucci, Scott Snyder, David Rubin. Art by Malachi Ward, Matthew Sheean, and Leonardo Romero, Melissa Duffy, and David Rubin.
Collects: Black Hammer: Visions #5-8

Note: Black Hammer: Visions is an anthology series that includes a different creative team on each issue. Jeff Lemire has stated that these comics are not in continuity.

Black Hammer Volume 5: Reborn Part One
Written by Jeff Lemire. Art by Caitlin Yarsky.
Collects: Black Hammer: Reborn #1-4

Black Hammer Volume 6: Reborn Part Two
Written by Jeff Lemire. Art by Malachi Ward and Matthew Sheean.
Collects: Black Hammer: Reborn #5-8

Black Hammer Volume 7: Reborn Part Three
Written by Jeff Lemire. Art by Caitlin Yarsky.
Collects: Black Hammer: Reborn #9-12

The Unbelievable Unteens
Written by Jeff Lemire. Art by Tyler Crook.
Collects: The Unbelievable Teens #1-4

Colonel Weird and Little Andromeda [The World of Black Hammer series]
Written by Tate Brombal and Ray Fawkes. Art by Ray Fawkes, Dani, Tyler Bence, Shawn Kuruneru, Ariela Kristantina, Marguerite Sauvage, Andrea Sorrentino, Tyler Crook, Yuko Shimizu, and Nick Robles.

Note: Colonel Weird and Little Andromeda was originally on Jeff Lemire’s Substack before being published as a graphic novel.

Black Hammer Volume 8: The End
Written by Jeff Lemire. Art by Malachi Ward.
Collects: Black Hammer: The End #1-6

Phase III

Black Hammer Volume 9: Spiral City
Written by Jeff Lemire. Art by Teddy Kristiansen.
Collects: Black Hammer: Spiral City #1-7

Note: Black Hammer: Spiral City is the latest Black Hammer comic series, published in 2025. Jeff Lemire has hinted that there will be more Black Hammer in the future. I’ll add to the reading order when more details have been made available.

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Library editions

The following Black Hammer material has been collected in the library edition format.

Black Hammer Library Edition Volume 1
Collects: Black Hammer #1-13 and Black Hammer: Giant-Sized Annual

The World of Black Hammer Library Edition Volume 1
Collects: Sherlock Frankenstein and the Legion of Evil and Doctor Andromeda #1-4 and the Kingdom of Lost Tomorrows

Black Hammer Library Edition Volume 2
Collects: Black Hammer: Age of Doom #1-12, Black Hammer: Cthu-Louise, and The World of Black Hammer Encyclopedia

The World of Black Hammer Library Edition Volume 2
Collects: The Quantum Age #1-6, “The Quantum Age” story from Free Comic Book Day 2018 and Black Hammer ’45 #1-4

The World of Black Hammer Library Edition Volume 3
Collects: Colonel Weird: Cosmagog #1-4 and Barbalien: Red Planet #1-5

The World of Black Hammer Library Edition Volume 4
Collects: Skulldigger and Skeleton Boy #1-6 and The Unbelievable Unteens #1-4

The World of Black Hammer Library Edition Volume 5
Collects: Black Hammer: Visions #1-8

Black Hammer Library Edition Volume 3
Collects: Black Hammer: Reborn #1-12

The World of Black Hammer Library Edition Volume 6
Collects: The Last Days of Black Hammer and Colonel Weird and Little Andromeda

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Omnibus editions

The following Black Hammer material has been collected in Dark Horse’s omnibus edition format.

Black Hammer Omnibus Volume 1
Collects: Black Hammer #1-13 and Black Hammer: Giant-Sized Annual

The World of Black Hammer Omnibus Volume 1
Collects: Sherlock Frankenstein and the Legion of Evil and Doctor Andromeda #1-4 and the Kingdom of Lost Tomorrows

Black Hammer Omnibus Volume 2
Collects: Black Hammer: Age of Doom #1-12, Black Hammer: Cthu-Louise, and The World of Black Hammer Encyclopedia

The World of Black Hammer Omnibus Volume 2
Collects: The Quantum Age #1-6, “The Quantum Age” story from Free Comic Book Day 2018 and Black Hammer ’45 #1-4

The World of Black Hammer Omnibus Volume 3
Collects: Colonel Weird: Cosmagog #1-4 and Barbalien: Red Planet #1-5

The World of Black Hammer Omnibus Volume 4
Collects: Skulldigger and Skeleton Boy #1-6 and The Unbelievable Unteens #1-4

The World of Black Hammer Omnibus Volume 5
Collects: Black Hammer: Visions #1-8

Black Hammer Omnibus Volume 3
Collects: Black Hammer: Reborn #1-12

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Will there be more Black Hammer comics?

Jeff Lemire hasn’t given Black Hammer a definitive ending yet. As a result, there will likely be more Black Hammer or World of Black Hammer comics in the future.

Lemire hinted a little while back that there could be some Black Hammer news at San Diego Comic-Con 2026. It’s unclear what it will be. We’ll have to wait and see.

This guide will be updated whenever a new series or collected edition is announced.

Where to find Black Hammer comics

Black Hammer comics and spin-offs can be found in all good comic book shops, online retailers, eBay, Amazon/Kindle, and libraries.

Have your say

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