The Evolution of the Comic Book Industry

Click to read about how the world of comics has evolved over the last ~90 years!

Hey Super-Fans,

We all know what kind of blog I have, right? I focus on the superhero genre and tend to cover many different mediums of this genre (comics, movies, TV programs, etc.). However, I have felt something has been missing from my blog lately: history lessons. No, I am not talking about your typical high school history lecture. Supers Newsletter has been missing a simple consolidated background of the comic book industry. That’s what I intend to fix today! In this installment of Supers Newsletter, we are taking a look at the history of comic books in America. For context, the industry technically started over 100 years ago in what is commonly referred to as the Platinum Age (1897-1938). Although this was a pivotal moment for the industry, we will skip over that to devote more attention to the beginnings of the superhero genre that started in 1938 with what many of us know as…

The Golden Age

This age of comics started with the creation of everyone’s favorite Man of Steel, Superman. He first appeared in Action Comics #1 in 1938. Superman was the first true superhero in comics, and it wasn’t long before others began popping up. Some other notable first appearances in this period are as follows: Wonder Woman, Batman, Flash, Captain Marvel, and Green Lantern. This age came right at the end of the Great Depression, a time when people were looking for hope. Superman filled that need with his upbeat attitude, and with WWII looming, he was depicted as doing everything he could to protect the innocent and weak.

During this age, comics grew in popularity; however, controversy also began popping up. Around the early 50s, there was a public outcry over the potential harm comics had on children. Frederic Wretham wrote Seduction of the Innocent where he stated that comics were teaching kids to misbehave. In response to this, the Comics Code Authority was created in 1954 to regulate the content found in comic books. It was impossible to legally enforce these guidelines, but comics that followed them were rewarded by being printed with a CCA stamp of approval. Popular genres such as horror and crime saw a significant decline because carriers often would refuse to sell a comic if it did not get the CCA stamp. The creation of this organization is what led to the end of the Golden Age. Once again, this was an age that gave us many of our favorite superheroes. I would love to own comics from this age; however, I don’t think I’m in the position to buy any just yet. What I do have, though, are a lot of comics from the next age.

The Silver Age

This age of comics started around 1956 with the reintroduction of The Flash in Showcase #4. The initial Golden Age version of the speedster was repurposed for a more modern audience. Based on my research, there is an argument that the start of the Silver Age was actually in 1961 with the first issue of The Fantastic Four. I don’t subscribe to this school of thought because I like that Showcase #4 leaves less of a gap between the Golden and Silver Ages. This period was a fantastic time for comics as sales were climbing. Initially, comic books were sold in newsstands and grocery stores, but adding to this new industry growth, the first comic book stores started opening around the country. 

Also, the roster of characters introduced was spectacular. Firstly, the iconic Amazing Fantasy #15 came out in 1962, where we met the witty Peter Parker. Iron Man first appeared in Tales of Suspense #39 in 1959. The Avengers also had their debut issue as well as my favorite will-powered superhero, Green Lantern. Hell’s Kitchen’s best blind crimefighter, Daredevil, was created, although he looked slightly different than what we are used to in the modern age. Although this period had so many massive events, the end of it is unknown. No one can agree on what constitutes the end of the Silver Age. The best theory I’ve heard bases the end of the period on the retiring of many notable comic book creators. Jack Kirby left Marvel in 1970 (although he returned just a few short years later). To end this section, I’ll simply state that the Silver Age lasted from 1956 to somewhere in the 1970s. Seeing as how we can’t decide the end of this age, it makes it a little harder to identify the beginning of this next age.

The Bronze Age

I’m just going to say that the Bronze Age started in the 1970s. This time period was very different from the previous periods. The actual content produced was much darker than before. Comic books were tackling major public issues such as drug abuse. A major comic book released in this period (some believe that it may have started this era) was The Amazing Spider-Man #121. This issue is also called “The Night Gwen Stacy Died.” The Bronze Age was filled with more mature themes. Before this, it was incredibly unusual for any major character to be killed. The superhero always seemed to save the day, so when Gerry Conway wrote this industry-changing story, the public was shocked. Although we don’t know the exact start of this era, the end is a bit more identifiable. The end of this era, in my opinion, came around the conclusion of DC’s Crisis on Infinite Earths in 1986. The end of this story led to the creation of an entirely new DC Universe in comics. Everything was reset, which led to the start of our final and current age of comics.

The Modern Age

We are currently in the last age of comics (so far), The Modern Age. As I mentioned earlier, it began around 1986, and many people say it is characterized by another reboot/revamp of beloved characters. The majority of the comics in my collection are from this era as they are relatively cheaper and much more accessible. Plenty of key events took place during this time. Finding and collecting them all can be incredibly fun and rewarding. DC’s Flashpoint is an iconic 5-issue story that leads to DC’s New 52 reboot. After this reboot, we get the Rebirth series that I collect. With regards to Marvel, they have rebooted their universe before as well with the Ultimate series. They modernized their superheroes in this imprint to appeal to their current audience. The Modern Age consists of many wonderful stories. I highly recommend checking some of them out, and if you are a beginner in the world of comics, I promise this will be a great place to start!

I hope you enjoyed this article of Supers Newsletter. I won't claim to be the leading authority on the subject, but I wanted to share with you all my opinions on the timeline of this amazing industry and how it has changed over the years. There are many interpretations of the timeline, so if any of you disagree with mine, please feel free to let me know @supers_newsletter on Instagram. Also, what do you think about the name for this current age, The Modern Age? I have always wondered if they would change the name of this period in the future and give the next era the title The Modern Age. Anyway, let me sign off before I jump into a lengthy explanation of what I think!

"You may not be able to fly or leap tall buildings in a single bound, but to me, you're all Super!"

-Supers