Read DC, Vertigo, Dark Horse & Image comics for free on Hoopla

Read Neil Gaiman's Sandman and more for free on Hoopla.

We've talked about Hoopla before. It's a cool digital service we offer that lets you stream music, TV shows and movie anywhere and at any time for free.

It's also gradually accumulated one of the best comics collections that you can read for free.

We've mentioned Hoopla's comics offerings previously; but, since then, they've added comics from DC, Vertigo, Image and Dark Horse to their collection. That means you can read some of the best comics ever written and drawn from the comfort of your home (or anywhere else.)

Here are 10 of our favorites from their collection—which, not to belabor the point, you can now read for free.

1. Sandman: I don't think I'm exaggerating when I call this the most celebrated comic series ever. The stories of Dream and his ageless siblings won't just change the way you look at sequential art. They'll change your perception of everything from Shakespeare to Thor to Death herself.
2. Invincible: Every comic writer is trying to create the next Spider-Man, the snarky teen hero with great power and greater responsibility. Robert Kirkman, with Invincible, comes closer to recreating the magic than anyone else. (You may have heard of Kirkman's other series, Walking Dead, which is, by the way, also available on Hoopla.)
3. Fables: What if Snow White, the Big Bad Wolf, Little Boy Blue, Cinderella, Pinocchio and all their other fairy-tale friends were living undercover in New York? Judging by Bill Willingham's opus, Fables, it would be endlessly entertaining.
4. Hellboy: Hellboy takes the story of Ragnarok (an unavoidable apocalypse) a step farther. Now, not only is the end of the world coming, it will be the hero Hellboy's fault. If that sounds depressing, then you'll be surprised how much humor Mike Mignola can fit into his story of well-intentioned (but doomed) misfits.
5. Y: The Last Man: Brian K. Vaughan and Pia Guerra tell the story of Yorick, the last man on earth. During his odyssey, he tangles with pirates, secret agents, misanthropic biker gangs and an unhygienic monkey named Ampersand.
6. Saga: If you liked Y, double-down on Vaughan and read his epic about literal star-crossed lovers. Two fugitives from warring worlds fall in love and flee their respective governments (and a bunch of bounty hunters,) while trying to raise their infant girl.
7. Buffy the Vampire Slayer: You loved the show and weren't ready for it to end. Fortunately, the story continues in the comic. And there's no squabbling over what is or isn't canon, because the comics are overseen (and often written by) Joss Whedon himself.
8. Suicide Squad: Do your research now before the movie blows everyone away. Suicide Squad is the story of C-list villains forcibly enlisted into a government black-ops group. And, as you probably guessed from the title, the whole team almost never makes it back.
9. Watchmen: Not an exaggeration to call this one of the most important comics ever. Alan Moore wrote a story that changed how a generation perceived the violence, morals and "heroics" of superheroes. Watchmen and Frank Miller's Dark Knight Returns forced comics to mature as a medium. They also happen to be really good stories.
10. Batman: The Long Halloween: The best Batman story ever. That's just my opinion and your mileage may vary, but you can read it for free to see if you agree.

Fair warning: As you probably gathered from some of these descriptions, these titles aren't all appropriate for your young ones. For the younger crowd, I'd recommend the Fraggle Rock or Adventure Time comics. (Both of which are also free on Hoopla.)

So get reading, and don't be shy about telling us your favorite reads on Twitter, Instagram or Facebook.

Be your own hero at Mentor Library's Comics Club

Abby draws her own superhero during Mentor Library's Comics Club.

A bisected page, two large eyes, the beginnings of a mouth—Abby is drawing a superhero she created during the most recent meeting of Mentor Library's Comics Club.

"Her name is Hula," she explains. "She uses her hula hoop to trap bad guys."

The scene is decidedly relaxed during the latter half of the meeting. Some children draw—characters they've created, their Minecraft avatars—while others read graphic novels or issues of Tiny Titans and Adventure Time.

While most people associate comics with superheroes, the Comics Club is eclectic by design. One month they're designing their own sidekicks. The next they're reading independent web comics.

Our Comics Club is for any 8- through 12-year-old who likes to read, talk about or draw sequential art. We love everything from Amelia Rules to Batman to Bone.)

Our Comic Club meets from 7 to 8 p.m. on the first Tuesday of every month at our Main Branch.

At a typical meeting, the kids talk about a special theme. Then we introduce the kids to graphic novels and comics that can be found in the library’s collection.

We close out each meeting with free time for the kids to draw or read.

“Their favorite part of the night is drawing time,” Schulz said. “We use templates that resemble comic strips and comic-book pages, so the kids can do short 3-panel or longer stories. Some have created their own characters that they revisit every month while others draw something new every time.”

The next Comics Club meeting will be at 7 p.m. on Oct. 7 at the Mentor Public Library’s Main Branch. The theme for next month will be costumes.

To register a child for the Comics Club, call the library at (440) 255-8811 ext. 221.

Nicholas checks out an issue of Adventure Time during our Comics Club.

Throwback Thursday: Superheroes!

Free Comic Book Day is this Saturday. (Between that and Star Ways Day on May 4, this is pretty much the best weekend ever.)

You can and should celebrate Free Comic Book Day with our friends at Comics & Friends; but, with all due respect to them and every other beautiful comic book shop across this wonderful country, every day is Free Comic Book Day at Mentor Library.

That's why we're dedicating this Throwback Thursday to the superheroes! So come with us and see some of the cool superheroics you can check out from the library.

1. We could dedicate an entire Throwback Thursday just to Batman. We have movies where he's played by Michael Keaton, Christian Bale, Val Kilmer, Adam West, Kevin Conroy and (ugh) George Clooney. We even have one where he's made from Lego and another where he teams up with Scooby-Doo.

As per TV shows, you can borrow Batman: The Animated Series, Beware the Batman, The Batman, Batman: The Brave & The Bold, Batman Beyond and The New Adventures of Batman.

We also have plenty of videos starring Batman's team, the Justice League—everything from Challenge of the Superfriends to Justice League to Justice League Unlimited to the Robot Chicken DC Special. (Consider yourself warned. The Robot Chicken special is not the sort of thing you want to play for younger kids.)

If you prefer Robin to Batman, we have Teen Titans, Young Justice and Teen Titans Go.

We've got the greatest hits of Superman, Wonder Woman, Green Lantern and, ummmm, Martian Manhunter. Sure, why not? Martian Manhunter!

If you'd rather make yours Marvel, we have that been abundance, as well.

We have DVDs that you can borrow of almost every iteration of the X-Men ever committed to video: movies and animated series spanning three decades. No, Pryde of the X-Men though. Sorry.

And that's still dwarfed by our Spider-Man collection. Whether you prefer Andrew Garfield, Tobey Maguire, Neil Patrick Harris, Drake Bell, Christopher Daniel Barnes or Josh Keaton as your webslinger, we have something for you.

And we've still got more Avengers movies and TV shows than you can shake an adamantium claw at: Iron Man, Captain America, Hulk, Planet Hulk (yes, that's a thing,) Iron Man again, the whole team and more Iron Man. We also have the Avengers teaming up with Phineas and Ferb. (A match-up for the ages: Batman & Scooby-Doo v. the Avengers & Perry the Platypus.)

There are plenty of awesome superheroes beyond the Marvel and DC stables: Hellboy, the Rocketeer, Sailor Moon, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and more are all worth your time. (It makes me sad that Static Shock isn't on DVD.)

Furthermore, there are all sorts of great stories that came from comics that have nothing to do with tights and flights. Ghost World, Road to Perdition and Archie all got their start as sequential art.

If you want to know more, visit your local library or comic shop. (After all, Free Comic Book Day is coming up...)

Come back each week for a new Throwback Thursday profile.

Welcome to Superhero School

Brian practices rescuing civilians (in this case, a stuffed raccoon) from a tall building,

Superheroes aren't born. They don't climb from the crib and start fighting for truth, justice and the American way.

No, superheroes are made. And where are they made?

Superhero school.

Rileigh practices leaping over a building in a single bound.

Mentor Public Library held a session of Superhero School last Wednesday. Tiny future Flashes, Wonder Women and Captain Americas leaped tall building (blocks,) rescued civilians and trained on our obstacle course.

They also made their own Wonder bracelets in case they have to deflect any oncoming projectiles. (Note: Wonder bracelets may not be able to deflect anything denser than a balled-up piece of paper.)

But they do look awesome.

For more photos from our Superhero School, visit our Facebook page.

For more information on programs and events for kids and adults, visit the event calendar on our website.

This photo is probably better (and at least more adorable) than any inevitable Justice League film.

Everyone's a Hero at our Comics Club

Ryan draws his ideal sidekick.

Is your kid a Batman fan? Wolverine? A Superman or a Spider-man? A Wonder Woman or a Rogue?

Do they watch reruns of Young Justice? Fill sketchpads with drawings of Finn and Jake? Snatch the comics section from the Sunday newspaper?

If so, we've got the club for them.

Our Comics Club is for any 8- through 12-year-old who likes to read, talk about or draw sequential art. (We're not just talking about superheroes either. We love everything from Amelia Rules to Bone.)

Abby draws a comic with characters she created.

Our Comic Club meets from 7 to 8 p.m. on the first Tuesday of every month at our Main Branch.

“We often have children who visit our department looking for books about their favorite superheroes and cartoon characters. Many enjoy cartoons and comic books so we thought that we would start a club to bring together children who read graphic novels and comic books and enjoy drawing,” said Judy Schulz, who runs our Comics Club with Marilyn Weiss.

At a typical meeting, the kids talk about a special theme. For February, it was sidekicks. Then Weiss and Schulz introduce the kids to graphic novels and comics that can be found in the library’s collection.

They close out each meeting with free time for the kids to draw.

“Their favorite part of the night is drawing time,” Schulz said. “We use templates that resemble comic strips and comic-book pages, so the kids can do short 3-panel or longer stories. Some have created their own characters that they revisit every month while others draw something new every time.”

The next Comics Club meeting will be at 7 p.m. on March 4 at the Mentor Public Library’s Main Branch. The theme will be “the funnies.”

To register a child for the Comics Club, call the library at (440) 255-8811 ext. 221.

For more photos from our Comics Club, visit our Facebook page.

Jedi, Princesses, Superheroes & Colonel Mustard: Halloween at Mentor Public Library

We take Halloween seriously at Mentor Public Library.

We believe that, at least once a year, a grown person should be able to dress like their favorite Clue character.

We believe that an awesome child who wears an equally awesome costume deserves to be rewarded with candy (if it's OK with their parents or guardian.)

We also believe in sharing some of the photos we took of awesome kids in their costumes for you to enjoy. (Once again, we get parental approval first.)

So without further prologue, we present Halloween 2013 at Mentor Library.

Stop me if you've heard this one. A princess, a jedi and Batman walk into a library...

Rowan makes for an adorable ladybug.

Sam, I mean Batman, checks for candy.

It's a Lord of the Rings family! Jedidiah as Frodo, Josie as Arwen, Sadie as a fairy and Adelaide as Lady Galadriel.

What does the bear say? You'll have to ask Ava Marie.

Madeline emulates Tinkerbell.

A Power Ranger and Spider-Man? Now that's a super team-up!

Brayson tests his heat vision. Or his x-ray vision. Or maybe it's just his superhero stare down. Either way, we don't want to make this Kryptonian angry.

And in case you're wondering what our reference staff dressed as...

Ms. Peacock, Professor Plum, Colonel Mustard, Miss Scarlet, Mrs.White and Mr. Green.

For more Halloween fun, check out our Facebook page or this video of our annual zombie walk.