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bronze johnny

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Posts posted by bronze johnny

    Infinite Bronze War Thread

    in Bronze Age Comic Books

    Posted

    Andy,

    You have some incredible books up. It must be tough to part with them. I dread the day my collection goes. For me it's not just letting go of the book but that memory or connection the book has with my childhood- especially my Rocks and Unknown Soldiers.

    All the best.

     

    John

    So What Exactly Are We Talking About When We Talk About the Bronze Age?

    in Bronze Age Comic Books

    Posted · Edited by bronzejonny

    When we discuss what the BA is, let's not forget the rise of diverse comic book characters. (I've included a one of my earlier threads discussing this below)

     

    As a Bronze Age collector I could not help notice the lack of discussion concerning what I believe to be one of the most important historical developments to ever occur during the Bronze Age. This development is one of the great trends to ever flow through the history of the American Comic Book. It is the introduction and rise of comic book characters who are of a different racial and/or ethnic background.. America had become a more diverse society during the 1970's. And so did that great American art form, the comic book.

     

    While the Siver Age re-introduced the superhero as a comic book genre, it was the Bronze Age that diversified her/him.

     

    But the Silver Age deserves credit for introducing the Black Panther in Fantastic Four #52 (1967) T'Challa is the first Black Superhero (I do recognize that T'Challa was initially a nemisis for the Fantastic Four). It is also noteworthy that the Falcon, Marvel's second Black Superhero, later appears with one of the great symbols of our nation, in Captain America 117 in 1969, and later teams up with Cap during the early years of the Bronze Age.

     

    DC joins the trend in 1971 by introducing the comic book company's first Black Superhero, John Stewart, in Green Lantern #87.

     

    It is not until 1972 that the diversity trend really starts to take shape when Marvel introduces Luke Cage, the first Black Superhero to star in his own comic book in 1972. Red Wolf, the first Native American comic book character, is given his own book by Marvel, albeit for a short run. The trend continues when the Black Panther stars in Jungle Action #5. And we must not forget Shang Chi, the Master of Kung Fu, who begins a long run after first appearing in Marvel's Special Marvel Edition #15. The mid-seventies sees the introduction of a number of other diverse characters that include Black Goliath and Omega the Unknown. And in 1977, Black Lightning, DC's first Black superhero, is given his own book.

     

    In order to see the significance of the Bronze Age Trend of Diversity and what it has meant to the American comic book, it is enough to just look around today and see the diversity trend continuing. The same above mentioned characters that first appeared during the Bronze Age may not still be around all the time and are not considered major characters by most comic book collecters. Nevertheless, the diversity trend that began during the Bronze Age still shines through the many diverse characters that continue to appear and re-appear throughout the "American Comic Book Universe" today. And no time prior to the Bronze Age did this trend exist. As previously mentioned, America was becoming a much more diversified nation during the 1970's and the Bronze Age of Comics became the first era in "comicbookdom" to reflect this trend.

     

     

    Infinite Bronze War Thread

    in Bronze Age Comic Books

    Posted

    Shep,

     

    Great analysis as always (with exception to our continuing respectful disagreement over the 1st app. of the Unknown Soldier-but that's one we can pick up another time).

    I have been looking at GI Combat 138 and Our Fighting Forces 123 and wondering whether- besides being the first BA war book- one of these two books might have even started the BA. Some collectors might give me hell for this.

     

    All the best,

     

    John