ArnoldTBlumberg

Not that I'm suggesting that we're the only possible opinion on this, but I'm gathering from this thread that nobody here realizes we just established the range for the Copper Age from our perspective in the last edition of the Overstreet Comic Book Price Guide, ending Bronze at 1984 and carrying Copper through to the introduction of Image Comics in 1992. Now you certainly don't have to *agree* with us, but it's not as if the Copper Age is a completely new idea, and it wasn't when we talked about it either. Arnold

That's just one of the many charms of that era's "teen delinquent" flicks - men and women talking about being "hep" to what all the "cats" are into at the "soda shop" when in actuality they were eligible for Social Security. There's nothing like watching a guy with a rapidly receding hairline and a voice like a frazzled stockbroker trying to convince you he's 16. And don't get me started on the matronly "teenage girls." Ah, Bert I. Goron and Roger Corman, you movie-making scamps...

Your argument is certainly valid, and as we've sort of thrown open the door to discuss this whole topic with a feature in the new Price Guide before we announce the results in next year's Guide, everybody has a whole year to continue to provide feedback on what they think. By "too late," I was unclear and I apologize. I just meant that based on a lot of discussions we've had about the shift in maturity and focus of comics around that period, the changes taking place at Marvel, the advent of the horror stuff, and tons of other factors, it just looks to us like a major shift had already begun well *before* the new X-Men thing came along, and that shift seems likelier as a dividing line for an Age. But again, the fact that this is always fertile ground for discussion just proves that it isn't easy to define. So that's why we're hoping all these opinions get thrown at us as the year goes on. Arnold

Ah, don't worry about it, it's not *your* fault. Just mentioning it. You tend to find tons of material from both the old Grading Guide and the Price Guides on countless sites, some of them credited to the books, some of them not - but almost always they're lifted word for word. And in some cases, regardless of whether the site gives credit or not, they are *still* in violation of copyright by not asking permission to reproduce the material. This of course doesn't include many of the dealers and advisors who feature such info on their sites - I'm just talking about some of the more casual sites out there who think that by saying they've taken stuff from the Guide, they're covered. But that's not how it works. Just call me the Old Curmudgeonly Copyright Cop! You'd probably be surprised that I'm not a wizened oldster by the way I act.

Actually, I'd have to double-check, but this looks like somebody copied the entire glossary from the original Overstreet Grading Guide verbatim. Again, I'd have to check, but I certainly recognize the order and distinct detail of certain definitions. I would say the credit is not wholly given here. I'll double-check however.

"arnold (sorry if I spelled your name wrong) " Yes, it's Arnold. Unfortunately, since I included my middle initial on the username when I signed up - arnoldt - now everybody thinks I spell my name with a t at the end. Ah well.

I think no matter what date, comic, and/or comics we note in the article for the start of the Bronze Age, I can probably say with no fear of contradiction that Giant-Size X-Men will NOT be one of them. 1975 is simply too late by any stretch of the imagination.

I hate to say it, but I'm not aware of the CBM article. But no matter what we present in the Guide, I'm sure it will be just one of countless opinions on this subject. Seems to be part of the fun of collecting comics.

I know that several of us agree that it's not really a single issue that starts an Age so much as a trend or shift in sensibility, although often we tend to boil things down to easy-to-remember single issues. Few would argue about Action #1 or Showcase #4 for instance. In the next Price Guide, we hope to have a feature article about the many Ages in comics from 1828 to the present day that just may clarify our standing on where and when certain eras begin and end with a bit more detail than we've had in the past. As with many such debates, however, ours is only one possible way of looking at things. I'm quite sure the discussion will continue well beyond this one article . Arnold