A Brief History of Superhero Comics

paulsebert:

Golden Age Comics Creator: I created a hero who can fly!

Silver Age Comics Creator: I created a hero who can fly who has real life problems and personal flaws. Oh and there’s  also a talking gorilla! Excelsior! 

70s Comics Creator: I’m going to take an established character, give him a diverse supporting cast and deal with real world issues.  Oh and there’s also kung-fu magic werewolves.

80s Comics Creator: I’m going to take an established character and deconstruct genre tropes while taking a nuanced exploration of dark, sometimes disturbing issues.

90s Comics Creator: Duuuuuude! I made a guy with a robot arm and a giant gun and he’s going to talk about how dark and tortured he is while punching people.  Oh and there’s going to be 8 number one chrome covered holographic foil chocolate dipped covers.  We are going to be so rich!

2000s Comics Creator: All previously established characters are mine to destroy just to show how edgy and groundbreaking my work is.  Any B and C list characters you like are now cannon fodder to be killed and dismembered in gruesome fashion.  The A-list characters will undergo a never-ending cavalcade of suffering until the point they are unlikable psychopaths.  Oh and if you complain about it we’ll just reboot continuity to make things even darker. 

2010s Comics Creator: I made a hero who can fly that’s also a black gay teenager!