The amount of graphic novels available today is so overwhelming that it is hard not to get lost in the sea of television tie-ins and those which have been discarded because they were made into hideous movies. There are a few graphic novels though that cannot be missed, mostly because they not only defined the genre, or re-wrote the genre, when it had already been established. While the novels listed are purely chosen on the opinions of the editor, these particular comics are those which have been mentioned numerous times by critics, have been turned into movies, or simply have been so popular that they are still easily found on bookstore shelves.

1. Watchmen by Alan Moore - A classic that has become the only graphic novel to ever win the Hugo Award, as well as defining the genre even more than Will Eisner’s A Contract With God. In this story of superheroes, we see that even those who are perfect in our eyes because they save lives and stop fires are still quite human, and quite flawed. The world of Superman with his super morals is turned on it’s ear, when Moore’s characters murder, rape, become unfaithful, and deal with issues such as impotence and war that cannot be stopped by a few nuclear warheads tossed into the sun. Anyone even mildly curious about graphic novels should start by reading this masterpiece.

2. Sin City by Frank Miller - Not all comics have to be about men and women in spandex and capes. Sin City is a neo-noir style crime fiction that mixes extreme circumstances with an artistic medium. The black and white drawings are reminiscent of the dark tones of noir films, and the story lines, all intertwined, are about the good, the bad, and the most evil monsters the world could ever produce all dwelling in the same spaces. Within the pages of these seven graphic novels, the reader will come to learn that the most beautiful women can be monsters while the ugliest men can be angels in disguise.

3. From Hell by Alan Moore - Another masterpiece from Alan Moore, From Hell is a fictitious look at the real historical case of Jack The Ripper. Historical fiction can be used to tell a story or solve a crime through the eyes of the author as a detective, and that is exactly what From Hell is. Moore solves the most infamous of unsolved crimes while adding the backdrop of 1888 Victorian England. Aside from being a crime novel touched with mysticism, From Hell is also an in-depth character study of the figure Moore believes to have been the true Jack The Ripper, and allows readers into the mind of a killer that nobody was ever able to capture or unmask.

4. The Sandman by Neil Gaiman - Fantasy and science fiction have a firm place in the world of graphic novels, and The Sandman series by Neil Gaiman is a pure example of this. Loved and praised by readers and critics alike, the series has not only spawned numerous spin-offs including the critically acclaimed Lucifer series, but has also rewritten the idea of the dream world that everyone inhabits when asleep. Many different themes such as the idea that even god-like creatures have faults are explored, and how impossible the world would be without someone such as the Sandman.

5. Batman: The Dark Knight Returns by Frank Miller - An example of how even a classic genre can be made new again, Frank Miller takes the world of Batman and returns it to the dark and gritty classic that it was supposed to have been before the Comics Code got ahold of it. An aging Batman faces a dystopian society that alternately praises and condemns him as he comes out of retirement in this novel, and shows how superheroes are so heartbreakingly human beneath their masks. They age, make poor decisions, and regret their actions, while people shower them with praise when things are good and berate them with criticism when things are bad. Frank Miller makes Batman into the crime novel it should be at all times, and shows the world that even those we see as perfect are hopelessly flawed.

While there are many more worthwhile graphic novels in the world, these five are certainly ones that any fan should know about and read. Even if popular characters are depicted critically, or pop culture is shown for being soulless, these award-winning novels and series are some of the most remembered and commonly read graphic novels in the genre today.