Get Started In APOCALYPSE Comic Books

by snowbi-wan, updated Nov 2019

Born in ancient Egypt, the super-villain, Apocalypse (En Sabah Nur), is one of the world's first mutants in the Marvel Universe. Whatever classification system you care to use to describe a mutant's power level (Omega, Class 5, etc.), Apocalypse will always score near the top. Aside from superhuman strength, Apocalypse's powers and abilities are numerous. He is apparently immortal, and he has total control over the molecules of his body, able to alter his form, regenerate from injuries, and adapt to environments. He can absorb and project energy, and he is capable of technopathy, the ability to control technology with his mind directly. But perhaps his most dangerous ability is his genius-level intellect.

Introduced in the pages of X-Factor to be their 'Magneto-level' arch-villain, Apocalypse caused trouble for that team of original X-Men and all the various X-people throughout the late 80's. Since the sudden appearance of such a powerful character can be somewhat paradoxical, a small amount of retroactive continuity (retcon) changes revealed he had been present during several previously published stories. He turned out to be even older still. His real name, En Sabah Nur, was first published in 1993 in CABLE [1993] #6, and his birth time/place was first published in 1994 in X-FORCE [1991] #37. And, finally, the re-weaving of his retcon history was complete when his origin was told in the RISE OF APOCALYPSE [1996] mini-series, linking it to the Fantastic Four's time-travel adventure from FANTASTIC FOUR [1961] #19 published way back in 1963. But nothing cemented Apocalypse into Marvel history more firmly than the AGE OF APOCALYPSE (AoA) crossover event storyline from 1995-96. When Professor Xavier's son, Legion (David Haller), travels back in time to murder Magneto before the man can commit crimes against humanity, Legion inadvertently kills Professor Xavier instead, generating an alternate timeline in which Apocalypse conquers the planet. Alternate versions of all your favorite X-Men fight in resistance to the Apocalypse regime, and the actual X-titles were replaced with AoA versions of the titles throughout the event. The 'Age of Apocalypse' alternate timeline, which was undone at the end of the original crossover event storyline, was later retconned to be an alternate reality, so it could be revisited again...and again.

Compilations

In modern comic publishing, it's common (and expected) for individual comic book issues to be collected into compilations of trade paperbacks and/or hardcovers, as well as other special compilations. Unlike the individual source issues, the collected editions typically stay in print for long periods and are less 'collectible.' If individual issues are out of reach or are not of interest to you or if you just need reading copies, the following collected editions of Apocalypse comic books are the most recent in-print editions and are the perfect alternative to get started right away with Apocalypse. The following compilations are presented in a chronologically-based suggested reading order with softcover editions before any hardcover editions (unless the only in-print editions are hardcover--these are integrated into the softcover list).

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Cover	Release Month	Series / Number / Storyline
Quick View	Mar 2017	X-FACTOR EPIC COLLECTION [2017-TPB] VOL 01: GENESIS AND APOCALYPSE CURRENT PRINTING			Go to Amazon

Quick View	Aug 2015	X-MEN: AGE OF APOCALYPSE [2015-TPB] VOL 01: ALPHA CURRENT PRINTING			Go to Amazon
Quick View	Oct 2015	X-MEN: AGE OF APOCALYPSE [2015-TPB] VOL 02: REIGN CURRENT PRINTING			Go to Amazon
Quick View	Dec 2015	X-MEN: AGE OF APOCALYPSE [2015-TPB] VOL 03: OMEGA CURRENT PRINTING			Go to Amazon

Quick View	Feb 2016	X-MEN: AGE OF APOCALYPSE--DAWN [2016-TPB] CURRENT PRINTING			Go to Amazon

Quick View	Apr 2016	X-MEN: AGE OF APOCALYPSE--TWILIGHT [2016-TPB] CURRENT PRINTING			Go to Amazon

Quick View	May 2016	X-MEN: THE RISE OF APOCALYPSE [2016-TPB] CURRENT PRINTING			Go to Amazon

	Mar 2016	X-MEN: AGE OF APOCALYPSE OMNIBUS [2012-HC] 2ND EDITION, CURRENT PRINTING			Go to Amazon

Quick View	Mar 2019	X-MEN: BLACK [2019-TPB] CURRENT PRINTING			Go to Amazon

Quick View	Sep 2019	AGE OF X-MAN: APOCALYPSE AND THE X-TRACTS [2019-TPB] CURRENT PRINTING			Go to Amazon

Quick View	Mar 2020	EXCALIBUR BY TINI HOWARD [2020-TPB] VOL 01	UNAVAILABLE	$11.69
Quick View	Jun 2020	EXCALIBUR BY TINI HOWARD [2020-TPB] VOL 02	UNAVAILABLE	$10.39

1st Appearance

The first appearance of a character in comic book form is often the most valuable issue featuring that character. It's a nice place to get started in Apocalyspe, if it's within your budget.

X-FACTOR [1986] #5 (cameo appearance of Apocalypse)
X-FACTOR [1986] #6 (1st full appearance of Apocalypse)

Origin Story

The original presentation of an origin story or a retelling/recounting of it can be a good place to get started with a character or subject.

RISE OF APOCALYPSE [1996] #1-4

Main Publication History

Series beginnings are always great places to get started in comic books. Here is the Main Publication History for Apocalypse comic books.

X-FACTOR [1986] #5-6, 10-13, 17, 19, 24-26, 28 (introduction and early appearances)
X-FACTOR ANNUAL [1986] #3 (appearance of Apocalypse)
X-FACTOR [1986] #47, 49-51, 54, 65-68 (appearances of Apocalypse)
WOLVERINE: THE JUNGLE ADVENTURE [1989-SC] (appearance of Apocalypse)
UNCANNY X-MEN [1981] #294-297 (X-CUTIONER'S SONG, Parts 1, 5, 9, 13)
X-FACTOR [1986] #84-86 (X-CUTIONER'S SONG, Parts 2, 6, 10)
X-MEN [1991] #14-16 (X-CUTIONER'S SONG, Parts 3, 7, 11)
X-FORCE [1991] #16-18 (X-CUTIONER'S SONG, Parts 4, 8, 12)
X-MEN ADVENTURES [1992] #10-12 (cartoon adaptation)
ADVENTURES OF CYCLOPS AND PHOENIX [1994] #1-4 (cameo/minor appearances of Apocalypse)
X-MEN ADVENTURES [1994] #7-8 (cartoon adaptation)
RISE OF APOCALYPSE [1996] #1-4 (origin of Apocalypse)
X-MEN: WRATH OF APOCALYPSE [1996] #1 (reprints X-FACTOR [1986] #65-68)
X-MEN [1991] #182-186
UNCANNY X-FORCE [2010] #1-4
X-MEN: BLACK--MAGNETO [2018] #1 (contains serialized Apocalypse back-up story)
X-MEN: BLACK--MOJO [2018] #1 (contains serialized Apocalypse back-up story)
X-MEN: BLACK--MYSTIQUE [2018] #1 (contains serialized Apocalypse back-up story)
X-MEN: BLACK--JUGGERNAUT [2018] #1 (contains serialized Apocalypse back-up story)
X-MEN: BLACK--EMMA FROST [2018] #1 (contains serialized Apocalypse back-up story)
AGE OF X-MAN: APOCALYPSE AND THE X-TRACTS [2019] #1-5 (mini-series part of the AGE OF X-MAN event storyline)
EXCALIBUR [2019] #1- (team member)

Selected Key Storylines

This section contains a curated list of some of the best storylines for Apocalypse, any one of which can be a good place to get started.

1986	X-FACTOR [1986] #5-6, 10-13, 17, 19, 24-26, 28 (introduction and early appearances)
1992	UNCANNY X-MEN [1981] #294-297 (X-CUTIONER'S SONG crossover event; seemingly dies on the Moon)
	X-FACTOR [1986] #84-86
	X-MEN [1991] #14-16
	X-FORCE [1991] #16-18
1995	AGE OF APOCALYPSE crossover event (Legion alters the past such that Apocalypse achieves world domination; The AoA alternate timeline was retconned in 2005 as an alternate reality)
1996	RISE OF APOCALYPSE [1996] #1-4 (origin told, weaving in among Fantastic Four's time-travel adventure in FANTASTIC FOUR [1961] #19)
2000	UNCANNY X-MEN [1981] #376-377 (APOCALYPSE: THE TWELVE crossover event; lures fabled mutants together to steal their power, ascend to godhood)
	CABLE [1993] #75-76
	X-MAN [1995] #59-60
	X-MEN [1991] #96-97
	WOLVERINE [1988] #146-147
2000	AGES OF APOCALYPSE crossover event (directly follows APOCALYPSE: THE TWELVE; warps reality several times attempting to save his failed plan)
2005	AGE OF APOCALYPSE one-shot/mini-series (series retcons original AoA alternate 'timeline' as an alternate 'reality'; AoA revisited in 2011 and 2013, got an ongoing series in 2014, featured as a domain of Battleworld in the 2015 Secret Wars event)
2006	X-MEN [1991] #182-186 (BLOOD OF APOCALYPSE, attempts mass extinction)
2010	UNCANNY X-FORCE [2010] #1-4 (THE APOCALYPSE SOLUTION; Rick Remender's first, outstanding arc of this series where Wolverine and Archangel put a ruthless team together to kill Apocalypse by any means)

Media Source Material

If you've enjoyed non-comic media for Apocalypse, this section describes the comic book source material for some of the most popular non-comic media. WARNING: This section may contain spoilers!

The 2016 film X-MEN: APOCALYPSE is based on the X-Factor storyline presented in X-FACTOR [1986] #5-6 (introduction), #10-13, 17, 19 (recruitment of horsemen), and #24-26 (FALL OF THE MUTANTS crossover event) with his origin presented from RISE OF APOCALYPSE [1996] #1-4.

Key Issues

A key issue can be an acceptable place to get started with Apocalypse, but they are more of a collector's checklist, as they can carry high price tags.

*As an eBay Partner, I earn from qualifying purchases. Full disclosure

X-FACTOR [1986] #5 (cameo appearance of Apocalypse) Find it on eBay
X-FACTOR [1986] #6 (1st full appearance of Apocalypse) Find it on eBay
X-FACTOR [1986] #23 (cameo appearance of Archangel) Find it on eBay
X-FACTOR [1986] #24 (1st full appearance of Archangel) Find it on eBay
CABLE [1993] #6 (1st mention of Apocalypse's real name: En Sabah Nur) Find it on eBay
X-FORCE [1991] #37 (1st mention of Apocalypse's birthplace/time) Find it on eBay
X-MEN: ALPHA [1995] #1 (1st issue of storyline) Find it on eBay
UNCANNY X-MEN [1981] #376 (1st issue of storyline) Find it on eBay