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ComicInfo.xml Field Guide

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Breen edited this page Dec 30, 2025 · 3 revisions

Overview

ComicInfo.xml is an XML metadata file embedded inside comic archive files (CBZ, CBR) that describes the comic's publication details, credits, story information, and more.In Parker, the ComicInfo.xml file is the authoritative source of truth for all metadata. Everything Parker knows about your comics comes from these files. This ensures your collection is portable, self-contained, and independent of any database.

How Parker Uses ComicInfo.xml

When Parker scans your library, it extracts and reads the ComicInfo.xml file from each comic archive. The metadata is stored in Parker's database for fast querying, but the file is always the source of truth. If you modify a ComicInfo.xml file and re-scan, Parker will update its database to match.

Essential Fields

These fields are critical for Parker to properly organize and display your comics.

Series

<Series>The Amazing Spider-Man</Series>

Required. The name of the comic series. This is how Parker groups issues together.

Best practices:

  • Use the full, official series name
  • Be consistent with naming (don't mix "Amazing Spider-Man" and "The Amazing Spider-Man")
  • Avoid abbreviations unless they're official (e.g., "S.H.I.E.L.D." is fine)

Number

<Number>1</Number>

Required. The issue number within the series.

Best practices:

  • Use numeric values when possible: 1, 2, 3
  • Parker will sort numerically when possible, alphabetically for text values

Volume

<Volume>2018</Volume>

Highly Recommended. The volume/era of the series, typically the year it started.

Why this matters in Parker: Parker uses a three-tier hierarchy: Series → Volume → Comic. The Volume field helps distinguish between different runs of the same series (e.g., Amazing Spider-Man Vol. 1963 vs Vol. 2018).

Best practices:

  • Use the publication year: 1963, 2018, 2022
  • For "legacy" numbering that restarts, use the restart year
  • Be consistent within a series run

Title

<Title>With Great Power...</Title>

The individual issue's story title. Usage: Displayed in issue details, helps users identify specific stories.

Summary

<Summary>Peter Parker is bitten by a radioactive spider and gains incredible powers. But when his uncle is killed, Peter learns that with great power comes great responsibility.</Summary>

A description or synopsis of the issue's story. Usage: Displayed on issue detail pages, helps users remember what happened.

Creator Fields

Parker tracks creators and builds creator pages with statistics.

Writer

<Writer>Stan Lee, Steve Ditko</Writer>

The writer(s) of the issue. Separate multiple creators with commas.

Penciller

<Penciller>Steve Ditko</Penciller>

The pencil artist(s).

Inker

<Inker>Steve Ditko</Inker>

The inker(s).

Colorist

<Colorist>John Romita Sr.</Colorist>

The colorist(s).

Letterer

<Letterer>Artie Simek</Letterer>

The letterer(s).

CoverArtist

<CoverArtist>Steve Ditko</CoverArtist>

The cover artist(s).

Editor

<Editor>Stan Lee</Editor>

The editor(s).

Best practices for all creator fields:

  • Use full, real names (not pen names unless that's how they're credited)
  • Separate multiple creators with commas: Writer1, Writer2
  • Be consistent with name formatting (always "Stan Lee", not sometimes "S. Lee")

Publication Fields

Publisher

<Publisher>Marvel Comics</Publisher>

The publisher of the comic. Usage: Parker groups comics by publisher and builds publisher pages with analytics.

Best practices:

  • Use the official publisher name
  • Be consistent (always "Marvel Comics", not "Marvel" or "Marvel Entertainment")

Imprint

<Imprint>Vertigo</Imprint>

The publisher's imprint (if applicable). Examples: Vertigo (DC), MAX (Marvel), Black Label (DC)

Year

<Year>1962</Year>

The publication year.

Month

<Month>8</Month>

The publication month (1-12).

Day

<Day>15</Day>

The publication day (1-31). Note: Year/Month/Day are combined to create the full publication date in Parker.

Age Rating & Content

AgeRating

<AgeRating>Everyone</AgeRating>

Critical for Parental Controls. Parker uses this field to restrict content based on user age settings.

Suggested values:

  • Unknown or not set - No rating specified
  • Everyone - Suitable for all ages
  • Everyone 10+ - Suitable for ages 10 and up
  • Teen - Suitable for ages 13 and up
  • Teen Plus - Suitable for ages 15-16 and up
  • Mature 17+ - Suitable for ages 17 and up
  • Adults Only 18+ - Adult content, 18+ only

Best practices:

  • Always set this field if using parental controls
  • Use the official rating from the publisher when available
  • When in doubt, err on the side of caution (rate higher)

Reading Lists, Collections & Story Arcs

Parker has three organizational systems built on ComicInfo.xml fields:

AlternateSeries & AlternateNumber

<AlternateSeries>Secret Wars Reading Order</AlternateSeries>
<AlternateNumber>1</AlternateNumber>

Creates Reading Lists - A curated reading order that may span multiple series.

How it works:

  • AlternateSeries is the reading list name
  • AlternateNumber is the position in that reading list (1, 2, 3...)
  • Comics are displayed in AlternateNumber order within the reading list

Example use case: A "Civil War Reading Order" that includes Amazing Spider-Man #529-538, Fantastic Four #536-543, etc., all numbered sequentially across series.

SeriesGroup

<SeriesGroup>X-Men: Krakoa Era</SeriesGroup>

Creates Collections - A grouping of related series under a common theme.

How it works:

  • Multiple series can share the same SeriesGroup value
  • Creates a collection page showing all series in that group
  • No ordering within collections (series are displayed alphabetically)

Example use case: All Krakoa-era X-Men titles (House of X, Powers of X, X-Men, Marauders, etc.) grouped under "X-Men: Krakoa Era"

StoryArc

<StoryArc>The Dark Phoenix Saga</StoryArc>

Creates Story Arcs - A sequential multi-issue storyline, within a single series.

How it works:

  • StoryArc is the story arc name
  • Comics are displayed in numeric order within the story arc

Example use case: Uncanny X-Men #129-138 tagged as "The Dark Phoenix Saga"

Key Differences:

  • Reading Lists (AlternateSeries) - Cross-series reading orders
  • Collections (SeriesGroup) - Thematic groupings of series (no ordering)
  • Story Arcs (StoryArc) - Multi-issue storylines (sequentially within one series)

Other Useful Fields

Format

<Format>Annual</Format>

The format/binding type.

Common values: Single Issue, Trade Paperback, Hardcover, Omnibus, Graphic Novel

Note: Parker pays close attention to the formats 'Annual' and 'Special'. These formats will have a visual badge applied on their cover as well as Annuals and Specials being categorized into their own tabs on the Series page.

PageCount

<PageCount>24</PageCount>

Total number of pages in the issue.

Note: Parker will auto-detect this, but explicit values are respected.

LanguageISO

<LanguageISO>en</LanguageISO>

The language of the comic using ISO 639-1 codes.

Common values: en (English), es (Spanish), fr (French), ja (Japanese)

Web

<Web>https://comicvine.gamespot.com/batman-annual-8-the-messiah-of-the-crimson-sun/4000-53099/</Web>

A URL related to the comic (e.g., publisher's page, wiki entry).

Note: Currently Parker assumes this web value (if present) is the link for the comic on ComicVine as the web button is labeled as such in the UI. Future changes will be made to visually improve non ComicVine links

Genre

<Genre>Superhero, Action</Genre>

Genre(s) of the comic. Separate multiple genres with commas. Used for analytics in Parker

Characters

<Characters>Spider-Man, Mary Jane Watson, Green Goblin</Characters>

Main characters appearing in the issue. Separate with commas.

Teams

<Teams>Avengers, X-Men</Teams>

Teams appearing in the issue. Separate with commas.

Locations

<Locations>New York City, Daily Bugle</Locations>

Key locations in the issue. Separate with commas.

CommunityRating

<CommunityRating>4.0</CommunityRating>

Community Rating for the comic. Can be an integer or decimal value

ScanInformation

<ScanInformation>(digital-Empire)</ScanInformation>

Information about the comic's scan

Fields Parker Currently Ignores

These fields are part of the ComicInfo.xml spec but are not currently used by Parker:

  • Notes
  • BlackAndWhite
  • Manga (reading direction)

Note: Parker preserves these fields when reading files, but doesn't use them for any functionality yet.

Best Practices Summary

  • Be Consistent - Use the same naming conventions across your entire library
  • Use Official Names - Series names, creators, publishers should match official credits
  • Set Age Ratings - Critical if you use parental controls
  • Leverage Organizational Fields - Use AlternateSeries, SeriesGroup, and StoryArc to organize your collection
  • The File is Truth - Any changes must be made to the ComicInfo.xml file itself, then re-scanned

Tools for Editing ComicInfo.xml

  • ComicTagger - Desktop application for bulk editing
  • Mylar3 - Comic management with metadata editing
  • Manual editing - Extract, edit XML, re-compress archive

After editing, trigger a re-scan in Parker to update the database.

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