The Ages Of Comic Books

Comic books have been around long enough to have gone through phases and ages, varying with the mood of the times. The site “TV Tropes” explains the ages in fantastic, yet not overwhelming detail, which I tried to summarize below.

Golden Age

Timeframe: Usually from the publishing of Action Comics #1 to the end of WWII (1945)

Characteristics: This age represents the birth of superheroes: Batman, Flash, Superman, Green Lantern, Wonder Woman, they all came from here. And also the birth of sidekicks, like Toro (companion to the android Human Torch). The main enemies were the Axis powers, drawing from real life, hence Captain America came out during this time, battling foes like Red Skull, Baron Zemo, and Arnim Zola. Creators didn’t care as much about age-appropriateness or creating hyper-moral heroes; characters weren’t as politically correct: Superman was seen as as a thorn in the side of establishment; Batman wasn’t afraid to use a gun when needed. Says TV Tropes, “the two-fisted pulp action hero merged with science fiction and fantasy, which merged with the crimefighting vigilante, which merged with ancient heroic sagas, to produce an explosion of new characters, individual men with strange abilities and the responsibility to use them against evil.” This age had a multitude of genres, including westerns, funnies like Archie, and so on, but the rise of heroes is most prominent of the age. Some heroes were spins off existing genres, like batman and the detective genre. And some copied off others, like Wonder Man (not to be confused with Marvel’s Simon Williams) copying off Superman. Women also had a very strong role, analogous to their more prominent role in society during the war when the men were fighting. They were bold, assertive, and tough.

Notable Examples: Action Comics (Superman), Detective Comics (Batman), Sensation Comics (Wonder Woman), All-American Comics (Green Lantern)

Silver Age

Timeframe: Foundation of the Comic Code until Kirby’s move to DC (1954-1970) or until price increase to 15 cents (1969) or Spiderman #100 (1971)

Characteristics: With the Comics Code, many things were prohibited. Mature themes were avoided, and emphasis was placed on stories for children. Science was a big factor, as this age was during the time of the space race. Given the generally goofy stories, science could be used to do nonsense, like “people who were exposed to radiation receiving superpowers instead of cancer.” Something Watchmen commented on with Dr. Manhattan’s former girlfriend developing cancer. Marvel’s take was more characterization, with heroes fighting enemies as well as their inner demons. DC was more old-fashioned: heroes using their signature powers to defeat clear villains. It’s interesting that Kirby left marvel to go to DC. As did Ditko, co-creator of Spider-Man. Women’s role changed; instead of golden age strength, they were content with being housewives, being subservient to men, more in line with social norms. Comic covers were sensational, stories outlandish. The covers often represented characters in outrageous situations, which the actual comic itself resolved quickly. And they were rather silly, like Avengers #1. Also, black-and-white morality was prominent as well. But many famous comic book characters came from this era, and ideas were fostered that would be developed later on: teenage masked heroes, superheroes as a social platform, etc. Notable

Examples: Amazing Spider-Man, Fantastic Four, The Incredible Hulk

Bronze Age

Timeframe: Lasting from Jack Kirby's move to DC, to the publication of Watchmen and The Dark Knight Returns (1970-1986). Alternate start dates: when comics began costing 15 cents (1969) or Spiderman #100 (1971).

Characteristics: After Vietnam, Watergate, etc the country became disillusioned, and hence the bronze age. Stories became more morally ambiguous as the comics code became a bit more lenient. As Kirby left Marvel to go to DC, Marvel’s signature characterization-style moved there as well. There was also resistance against the Comic Code. Amazing Spider-Man #96 and #97 abandoned it entirely, embracing a strong anti-drug message; any mention of drugs was forbidden by the code. Stan Lee published it anyway. Without the constraints of the code, costumes became more liberal. Hence the fair amount of skin seen even today in female costumes, and bare-chested male heroes. Contemporary issues made their way back from the golden age, with Captain America even unmasking a conspiracy headed by someone similar to Nixon, causing him to become messed up and become Nomad. There was more diversity, but unfortunately based on stereotypes (possibly Luke Cage?). But some went above stereotypes, like Iron Fist (seemingly Asian but not), Stewart’s Green Lantern, and Storm. Also, there were more super-heroines, and those existing became more confident (Invisible Girl became Invisible Woman). The X-men grew more popular as a metaphor for society, racism, etc.

Being contemporary became a priority, and characters underwent changes to update them for the “modern” era: “Superman briefly lost his vulnerability to Kryptonite and quit his job at the Daily Planet to work as a TV Reporter. Wonder Woman was infamously stripped of her powers and made to learn karate.” Some changes were undone, but one that lasted was the more gothic tone of Batman. 

The bronze age also saw the “Fad Super” rise to prominence: disco, football, and transport trucks were means to fight crime. Part of this stemmed from difficulty creating new ideas for new heroes. Many faltered and became forgotten, but some lasted, namely Ghost Rider. Who, to me, seems sort of out-of-place to begin with.

The format of comics also changed, with the introduction of graphic novels. DC had a boom of titles, over 50, which were later disposed of in Crisis of Infinite Earths. Marvel copied the crossover with Secret Wars, and somehow released it first. Notably, this was the age where comics became more insular, perhaps giving rise to the image of the geeky, obsessed comic book fan. However, the average age of readers increased, as more adult elements were incorporated into the books. This trend eventually led to the dark age, with some events, like Gwen Stacy’s death, signaling the end of innocence of the silver age.

Notable Examples: The Phoenix Saga, The Dark Phoenix Saga, death of Gwen Stacy, Luke Cage, Hero for Hire, Secret Wars, X-Men

Dark Age aka Iron Age

Timeframe: Starting with the publishing of Watchmen and The Dark Knight Returns (1986). Lasting until the publishing of Kingdom Come (1996), Ultimate Spider-Man #1 (2000), or ongoing.

Characteristics: Comics became more mature, catering to an older audience, which started at the end of the bronze age. There was an increased focus on sex, violence, and dark portrayals of characters. Deconstruction of the superhero genre occurred with TDKR and Watchmen. Antiheroes, such as Cable, were created. The DC universe itself was upended after Crisis on Infinite Earths, which was influential. It was the first “crisis crossover” (although Secret Wars technically came out first, it started as a response to DC’s plan). It set the overall tone of comics to follow; editors got to choose what to include and what to trash, and many lighter elements were removed to favor to a darker audience. This saw fruition in creation of imprint lines, such as DC’s vertigo line, which allowed a darker, mature tone for adults, while keeping the mainstream universe more family-friendly. Other comic companies also rose, including Dark Horse (Sin City, Star Wars comics).

The peak of the dark age was in the 1990s. Many critics feel that while content was more “mature,” it wasn’t really. Watchmen and TDKR were deep, with complex themes and psychological undertones, whereas comics afterwards missed the point, making things darker merely on the surface.

Rob Liefeld was a key figure, who (1) crafted archetype antiheroes like Cable (2) drew darker, angular artwork reflective of the age, and (3) created Image Comics, free of the comics code, with authors in charge of their works.

Big events were common: Bane breaking the bat, Superman’s death, and Spider-Man’s clone saga. Kingdom Come was seen as a deconstruction of the path comics were going for the decade. Some feel the excesses of the dark age have gone, but comics have changed overall to be darker and edgier. Women became “bad girls” and pornographic in nature.

In addition, an overly dark, cynical tone was noted in works which were unsuitable for it. I feel this is happening in films now, with the dark age-style The Dark Knight influencing films that should be more bronze- or modern-age, like the upcoming spidey film. Films themselves have had a darker takes on heroes, perhaps reflecting the times, perhaps a remnant of the dark ages. According to TV Tropes, “superhero movies have been increasingly focusing on much darker takes on superheroes, primarily represented by the release of The Dark Knight in 2008 and Watchmen in 2009. (Rather fitting, knowing what comics kicked off the original Dark Age.) Ironically, during the Dark Age in comics, superhero movies had actually been a lot lighter and softer than the material they were taking inspiration from. So far, however, the Hollywood Dark Age is taking a much more nuanced approach than the comic one. Whereas the comics, for the most part, crammed as much sex and gore as humanly possible into the pages they were given, the movies are taking a less bloody approach; The Dark Knight relies on bloodless carnage like no other, and Watchmen is gory but doesn't rely on the gore to tell a story (in fact, the climax is less gory in the movie than it was in the comic). For all we know, this could change in the future, just like how Alan Moore and Frank Miller gave way to Todd McFarlane and Rob Liefeld, although Hollywood's desire to attract wide audiences for their blockbusters will most likely keep things PG-13. But then, there's 2010's Kick-Ass.”

Notably, Miller (TDKR) and Moore (Watchmen) spear-headed the dark ages. Interestingly, Moore became the one of the era’s most outspoken critics. Supreme was revamped by him from a Superman clone into an exploration of the Superman myth and how it worked. Some of his other works, like Tom Strong, display a lighter, softer tone to balance the extreme darkness of the era. Miller was more on the fence, with his works including The Dark Knight Strikes Again and All-Star Batman & Robin either showcasing excesses of his earlier work, or openly poking fun at it. One notable light side in the dark ages was Shazam, who kept an optimistic approach.

Notable Examples: Watchmen, TDKR, Age of Apocalypse, X-Force, Batman: Year One

Modern Age

Timeframe: Publication of Ultimate Spider-Man #1 in 2000, or 1996 (Kingdom Come, Great Comics Crash of 1996)

Characteristics: TV Tropes mentions: “If The Golden Age of Comic Books and The Silver Age of Comic Books were the childhood of Super Heroes, The Bronze Age of Comic Books was their adolescence, and The Dark Age of Comic Books was their angst-ridden teenage years, then The Modern Age of Comic Books is surely the college years: all the work gets turned in late, people come up to you with crazy-awesome ideas all the time (most of which don't really pan out), and there's still some adolescent attitude about, but it's growing into something more mature.” Some feel that we are either still in the dark ages, or there are some lingering elements present in the current age, in terms of tone and atmosphere, rather than actual content. Says TV Tropes: “If The Dark Knight Saga is a Dark Age movie, then the Iron Man movies can be considered Modern Age movies.”

According to TV tropes, the modern era has seen the decline of comics as a regularly published periodical, but has seen the rise of graphic novels as more respectable reading, at least in mainstream North American culture. Watchmen was named one of time magazine’s 100 top novels recently. And, according to TV Trope, “public libraries, which for generations has largely treated comic books like a hospital did with medical waste, have embraced the format in their acquisitions. This is not only in growing recognition of the medium's unique artistic and literary virtues, but also in recognition that one way to encourage kids to read at all in this age of video games, home video and online resources is by meeting them halfway with this combination of word and image.”

At least one commenter suggested calling this age the “aluminum” age, as much of it is recycled. An alternative name is the “diamond” age or “prismatic” age, as the medium has become multifaceted; or because diamond has a monopoly on distribution. Grant Morrison referred to this age as the "Renaissance", to contrast it with the Dark Age that had just come before.

Says TV Tropes: “It's too early to say for sure, but if an ‘age’ of comic books lasts fifteen or so years, and the Modern Age began in the mid-90s, then it is likely to be reaching its end point now. Certainly, the September 2011 reboot of The DCU following Flashpoint appears to be a significant change, similar to how some consider Crisis on Infinite Earths to mark the end of the Bronze Age. Also, Archie and DC finally officially dropped the Comics Code in 2011. The fact that the reboot also marks the beginning of DC's major digital publishing initiative is also a sign that times are changing. On the Marvel side of things, September is also the month that Ultimate Spider-Man, one of the launchers of the Modern Age, officially passes the torch from Peter Parker to new character Miles Morales.”

Notable Examples: Ultimate universe, Kingdom Come, Civil War, etc.

Comic Book Time

A nice explanation from TV Tropes! In comic book time, “you use the illusion of time passing. You never refer to specific dates if you can help it, and you let characters change, but only a little. This can prove harmful to characters that are tied to a certain time period. For example, Magneto's backstory involves being in the Nazi concentration camp at Auschwitz. This causes a particular type of aversion, the Refugee from Time where you just don't allow any Sliding Timescale at all or at least not for one character. Another factor of Comic Book Time is that it does not pass at the same rate for everyone.”