Most important New Universe issues

[Star Brand]

What do you think are the most important NEW UNIVERSE comics? Here’s my picks for the top four:

1. Psi-Force #1. First appearance of characters that influenced Valiant’s Harbinger.
2. Star Brand #1. Star Brand plays the biggest role of any NEW UNIVERSE character in the Marvel Universe, and this is his first appearance.
3. The Pitt one-shot. An underrated and monumental comic book event.
4. DP 7 #1. Again, the first appearance of characters that influenced Harbinger, although perhaps not to the extent Psi-Force did. Also, this title was probably the most consistent of all titles from this line for the longest period of time.

[grendeljd]

Okay I’m settling on these for my top 4;

Starbrand #1 - the first New U comic released (alongside Spitfire #1), and the character that has had the most longevity beyond the demise of the original line. Probably the most important 1st appearance of any New U character.

DP7 #1 - blessed with the same great creative team for its entire run, this book seems to be widely considered the best overall series of the 8 New U titles. It also has a lot of concepts which carried over into the Valiant comic Harbinger, as such it’s influence is quite prominent beyond the end of the line.

THE PITT - this one shot spins out of the fateful events of StarBrand #12, and chronicles the earliest hours of response after the cataclysmic Black Event that saw the city of Pittsburgh utterly destroyed. It’s impact is important as it signalled a tonal shift for the entire New U line for the remainder of its existence, and certainly a huge directional change for the Starbrand comics final 7 issues.

Justice #15 - a key issue of Justice due to the revelation that he was never a warrior from another dimension, but instead a paranormal who had been psychologically manipulated by another paranormal the entire time. It’s important to note that this concept was more advanced than merely hand waving and saying it was all a dream - rather it was insidiously disturbing to know that he was interacting with the world in a delusional state. How much of it was real, and who were all the people that he killed during that time - did they deserve what happened to them or were they innocents? This issue is pivotal in that it both adds a layer of depth to the early issues and also sets a darker but fascinating tone for the remainder of the series. Also important to note that the title survived the initial cut from 8 to 4 titles *before* this was published, and then it only got better from here.