Comic Catagory Name Questions -Golden to Modern

[Mikey]

I'm not a comic reader but I always wondered something.

Comics when they were written are put in the catagories.......

Golden Age
Silver Age
Bronze Age
Modern Age

(not sure if my list is in the correct order or exactly correct)


My question is, how much time has to pass until the now current modern age comic becomes old enough to be a past age and given a new catagory name ? ...

Also,
As the years go by do you think the ages will start changing and eating up more comics ?
Example, in 50 years time, will 1940's and 1970's comics ALL be Golden Age ?

Thanks

[Earth 2 Chris]

I think The Golden Age is pretty much set. Almost everyone agree that it starts with Action Comics #1, introducing Superman. There's more of a debate on when it ends, but many credit All-Star Comics #57 (the end of the Justice Society's run) as the end of that age.

The Silver-Age beginning is pretty much set in stone as the first appearance of the 2nd Flash in Showcase #4, that led to other super hero revivals, which in turn led to Marvel creating the Fantastic Four to compete with the Justice League. The ending is very debatable. Some believe it came as early as 1968, others think it was into the 70s by several years. No one issue has yet to emerge to really claim the title as end of the Silver Age, and beginning of the Bronze Age.

I think most agree the Bronze Age was over by the time The Dark Knight Returns and Watchmen was published, and these two started the Modern Age in earnest.

I have heard some call The Modern Age "The Dark Age", so that may indeed be the name that sticks, as it rolls over into the next age.

Chris

[Mikey]

Interesting

Thanks

[johnnystorm]

I think the definitive ages of comics are pretty much set. Golden Age is 40s to late 50s...Silver Age is 1958-59 to around 1970 (my personal start/end points are 1st Appearance of the Barry Allen Flash to Conan #1 or New Gods #1). Bronze Age is the 1970s decade. Ebay now has the category COPPER AGE for 80s & 90s books. And Modern is 2000 to now.

The only other designation you will sometimes see is ATOMIC AGE, to designate those books that came out circa mid 1950s. Usually you only see that used on war comics (particularly Cold War/Korean War books), some horror, and sci-fi. Not really used on superhero stuff (and mainly because there wasn't that much produced in that era anyway!).


If anything, that Copper Age will probably extend 10-15 years or so into the early 2000s. The Bronze Age may creep into the mid 80s....but I dunno about that though...to me, the 1970s era comics were vastly different than those of the early 80s. But I don't think the Golden or Silver Ages will change much. The various eras are pretty much set, and will stay, mostly because that's how we price them as well. And 20-25 years from now, a new designation will appear for books currently being produced. Maybe Millenium Era or such.

[jasonmego1277]

I think The Golden Age is pretty much set. Almost everyone agree that it starts with Action Comics #1, introducing Superman. There's more of a debate on when it ends, but many credit All-Star Comics #57 (the end of the Justice Society's run) as the end of that age.

The Silver-Age beginning is pretty much set in stone as the first appearance of the 2nd Flash in Showcase #4, that led to other super hero revivals, which in turn led to Marvel creating the Fantastic Four to compete with the Justice League. The ending is very debatable. Some believe it came as early as 1968, others think it was into the 70s by several years. No one issue has yet to emerge to really claim the title as end of the Silver Age, and beginning of the Bronze Age.

I think most agree the Bronze Age was over by the time The Dark Knight Returns and Watchmen was published, and these two started the Modern Age in earnest.

I have heard some call The Modern Age "The Dark Age", so that may indeed be the name that sticks, as it rolls over into the next age.

Chris

You know I collect comics myself, but I am far from a die hard collector. I was when I was younger then 15 years passed since I read or collected any again. I loosely understood this myself. I'm glad it was asked because I was always curious myself.

[The Toyroom]

Silver Age is 1958-59 to around 1970 (my personal start/end points are 1st Appearance of the Barry Allen Flash to Conan #1 or New Gods #1). Bronze Age is the 1970s decade.

This is the time frame I use as well....once Conan hit and we started to see the comic companies delve into the worlds of sword and sorcery and then also horror like Tomb of Dracula and Werewolf by Night. With the horror titles, you saw concepts re-introduced that had been banned by the Comics Code Authority which was established during the pre-Silver Age in the 50s. This loosening of the Code somewhat really for me is what makes this era start to break away from the philosophies of the Silver Age, as things got more cosmic, more gritty, and more down and dirty....and eventually paving the way for the Modern Age of Dark Knight, Daredevil and Watchmen.

[The Toyroom]

And don't forget the Platinum Age of Comics....

[samurainoir]

I have heard some call The Modern Age "The Dark Age", so that may indeed be the name that sticks, as it rolls over into the next age.

Were the terms of Golden and Silver ages initially designated by the fan community to define creative movements/eras for Superheroes? If so, it is interesting how the two terms over the years have been co-opted by the greater comic book collector community as terms of commerce as well. I guess it makes sense that they would follow with Bronze, Copper etc.

If we jump back to descriptors for movements/eras, I do actually like the term Dark Age better.

Amazon.com: The Dark Age: Grim, Great Gimmicky Post-Modern Comics: et al Mark Voger: Books

The Dark Age: Grim & Gimmicky Post Modern Comics was a neat book from Two Morrows that examined the era launched by Watchmen and Dark Knight and into the Image driven nineties, Death of Superman and Robin, etc.


For me, Kirby leaving Marvel was the end of the Silver Age and the start of Bronze.

[Captain]

I use a similar syatem.

Golden and silver age = GOOD

everything else = CRAP!!

[johnnystorm]

Not sure when the terms came into effect...when I collected comics in the early 70s we used Gold & Silver Age. I'm not even sure when I started using Bronze Age...maybe mid-80s?

[thunderbolt]

Where does the bronze age end? With Crisis in 1985? Seems like that's about right if the current age is the Dark age starting with Watchmen and Dark Knight Returns.

[ctc]

>how much time has to pass until the now current modern age comic becomes old enough to be a past age and given a new catagory name ?

It kinda depends on who you ask. Golden age/silver age, etc are usually used by folks referring to SUPERHERO comics. Independants and undergrounds use a slightly different chronomiter. (Although I've never seen actual general use terms, there's a consensus that 60's, 70's, 80's independants were different "ages." And the "80's comic boom" happened at the BEGINNING of the decade, not the middle like it did for the superhero books.)

The terms are applied later, and used to differentiate large general groupings of similar styles/events/marketing/etc. I think the "modern" age has already passed: it being the speculator driven, Image apin' era of the 90's. We're already into a new thing; mostly form a marketing point of view. The "non-event" is kinda new. Not COMPLETELY new, we saw the beginnigs way back in the 80's ("Inferno" anyone? Anyone....?) but there seems to be a new method to SELLING it.... spreading it amongst a zillion books and compiling it in GN form a few months later. And going right into ANOTHER one as soon as the current one finishes.

>As the years go by do you think the ages will start changing and eating up more comics ?

Nah. There'll be more eras, and you might see the established ones broken down more; but I think they'll stand.

Don C.

[bobws]

A comic shop owner i know uses Showcase #4 thru Crisis on Infinate Earths #7 as the silver age. Barry Allens origin and Death. beginning and end of an era. so 1958-1986 is silver age to him.

[johnnystorm]

A good cutoff point for the Bronze Age. ..I'd say when they jumped to new printing techniques, the Baxter paper etc. I guess you could also use Micronauts #38, Moon Knight #33, & KA-Zar #10 as cutoff points as well- those were the first Direct Only books, effectively signalling the end of newsstand distribution and comic books as the general public knew them. Around 1984.

[kingdom warrior]

I thought when Image formed that was the beginning of The Crap/Gimmick age that we're still dealing with......