Dark Horse Comics is an American company that creates comic books and manga. It is one of the largest "independent" comic book publishers. The company was founded by Mike Richardson.

Richardson is the owner of several comic book shops in the Portland, Oregon metropolitan area. In 1986, he began to publish an anthology series called Dark Horse Presents using money from his stores. The company is based in Milwaukie, Oregon.

Overview

Dark Horse creates many comics based on other peoples characters and settings. These include comics based on Star Wars, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Aliens, and Who Wants to be a Superhero? Dark Horse also publishes comics by artists who own their own settings. These include Frank Miller's Sin City and 300, Mike Mignola's Hellboy, Stan Sakai's Usagi Yojimbo, Katsuhiro Otomo's Akira and Michael Chabon's The Escapist. From 1993-1996, Dark Horse published a line of superhero comics under the name Comics Greatest World. This was later renamed Dark Horse Heroes. After 1996, publication in this line slowed greatly. They stopped making any books about the characters in the early 2000's. Today, the company does very well even though they do not have their own universe of superpowered characters.

Dark Horse's movie company, Dark Horse Entertainment, creates movies based on Dark Horse Comics. These including The Mask and Hellboy.

The company also produces novels based on some of their more popular comic book titles, including Aliens and Predator.

Dark Horse titles

Original titles

300
The American
Age of Reptiles
Agents of Law
ArchEnemies
Badger
Barb Wire
Battle Gods: Warriors of the Chaak
Big Guy and Rusty the Boy Robot
Billy the Kid's Old Timey Oddities
The Blackburne CovenantBoris the Bear
BPRD
Catalyst: Agents of Change
Cheval Noir
Concrete
Cravan
Criminal Macabre
Cut
Damn Nation
The Dark Horse Book Of

Dark Horse Presents
The Deadlander
Dr. Giggles
El Zombo Fantasma
Freaks of the Heartland
Gary Gianni's The MonsterMen
Ghost
Girl Crazy
Give Me Liberty
The Goon
Grendel
The Hammer, Kelley Jones'''Hard BoiledHaunted ManHeartbreakersHellboyHero ZeroHyperSonicKingdom of the WickedLiving With The DeadLords of MisruleMarshal LawThe MaskMaxwell StrangewellMotorheadMilkman MurdersOut of the VortexThe PerhapanautsRed Rocket 7Rex MundiSamurai: Heaven and EarthScarlet TracesThe SecretSin CitySpyBoyThe Thirteenth SonThe Umbrella AcademyUsagi YojimboH.G. Wells' The War of the WorldsWill to PowerXLicensed propertiesÆon Flux
Aliens
Aliens vs. Predator
Army of Darkness
Conan the Barbarian
The Dirty Pair
Disney's Gremlins
Digimon
Doctor Solar
Emily the Strange
The EscapistThe FogGodzillaHard LooksHarlan Ellison's Dream Corridor

Hellgate: London
The Hire
The Incredibles
Indiana Jones
King Kong
Little Lulu
Magnus, Robot Fighter
Man with the Screaming Brain
Megatokyo - Vols. 1-3 only
Pathfinder 
Penny Arcade
Planet of the Apes
Predator
Red String
Serenity: Those Left Behind (Firefly)

Shrek
Star Wars: Crimson Empire
Star Wars: Crimson Empire II
Star Wars: Empire
Star Wars: Rebellion
Star Wars Tales
Star Wars: Legacy
Star Wars: Knights of the Old RepublicSuperman vs. The TerminatorTarzanTerminatorThe ThingVampire Hunter DXena: Warrior PrincessBuffy: The Vampire Slayer titlesSpike & DruThe OriginViva Las BuffySlayer InterruptedA Stake to the HeartDust WaltzRing of FireRemaining SunlightUninvited GuestsThe Final CutBad BloodCrash Test DemonsPale ReflectionsAngel: The HollowerFood ChainBlood of CarthageOzGilesJonathanBuffy/Angel crossover: Past LivesOut of the WoodworkHauntedFalse MemoriesWillow & TaraAutumnalUgly Little MonstersChaos Bleeds comic prequelDeath of BuffyReunionNote from the UndergroundCreatures of HabitBuffy the Vampire Slayer Season EightFray (Set 200 years+ in the future)

Manga3x3 EyesAkiraAppleseedAstro BoyBanya: The Explosive Delivery ManBerserkBlack Magic M-66Blade of the ImmortalBlood+Bride of the Water GodBubblegum Crisis (aka Bubblegum Crisis: Grand Mal)Cannon God ExaxxionCaravan KiddClub 9Crying FreemanDominion: Tank PoliceDomuDrakuunEdenGantzGhost in the ShellGunsmith CatsGunsmith Cats BURSTHellsingHipiraIntron DepotJu-onKing of WolvesKurosagi Corpse Delivery ServiceLady SnowbloodLegend of Mother SarahLone Wolf and CubLost WorldMailMetropolisMPD PsychoNextworldOh My Goddess!OldboyOrionOutlandersOctopus GirlPath of the AssassinReiko the Zombie ShopSatsuma GishidenKatsuya Terada's The Monkey KingThe RingSamurai ExecutionerSeraphic FeatherMasakuzu Katsura's Shadow Lady: Sudden DeathShadow Star (Narutaru)Spirit of WonderTomie (Museum of Terror)TrigunTranslucentVenus WarsWhat's Michael?You're Under ArrestReferencesDark Horse Comics: The First Twenty Years'' (by Mike Richardson, Frank Miller and others, 384 pages, Dark Horse, March 2008, )

Other websites 
 Dark Horse Comics -  Official Site
 Things From Another World - Online retailer of comics and collectibles, sister company of Dark Horse Comics

 
1986 establishments in the United States
20th-century establishments in Oregon