Are we still in the modern age of comics ? 0

[Lukesaurus]

We have been in the modern age of comics for some 20+ years.  Comics from 20 years ago are pretty different than comics today . What do you think needs to happen in order to move to next age ? 

[slym2none]

Well, the current age will always be the modern one, so maybe you are looking for a name for the "last" generation of comics? That's a whole other can of worms, and many other threads have been started on just that. I believe there was an active one very recently.

Are you looking for what might make, or has made, a good separating point between ages? That's a good discussion, but I am not sure if that is what you are asking or not.

Are you looking for what the industry needs to do in the future, whether immediate or long-term, that will distinguish itself from the current modern age of comics? Same as above, good discussion, but IDK if that's what you mean.

Or do you mean something else entirely???

Please, clarify, as this could be a good topic!

 



-slym

[bronze johnny]

We are in the SlabAge of comic books. The most significant aspect of the comic book medium is third party grading, the benefits (restoration check and a degree of consistency) of having a book graded and slabbed, and all the "trimmings" that came with it (pressing, glue removal, more pressing, etc.). Disney-Marvel's (Dis-Mar) and DC's (to a lesser extent) superhero film success during the last two decades have resulted in record prices for third party graded key books. The SlabAge is also a time of great speculation dominated by flippers and schemers trying different ways to squeeze as much $ out of a comic book as possible. Others view comic books as commodities or investments: "What comic is the best investment?" The comic book has changed but collecting and fandom have been impacted more by third party grading and superheroes on the big screen.

Edited February 6, 2020 by bronze johnny

[theCapraAegagrus]

Yes.

[F For Fake]

Like Slym said, we are always in the modern age, which has currently lasted longer than all of the other ages by a good margin. We really need to break it off at some point, but you'll never get everyone to agree on any sort of "Official" basis. Maybe if Overstreet or CGC finally made a determination and started pushing it, collectors would embrace it, but I'm not sure. For me personally, after Copper I called it the Chrome/Chromium Age, which leads up until either the creation or CGC, or the printing of Walking Dead 1, which I then call the Modern Age. Of course, WD 1 has lost a lot of steam, so a lot of folks probably won't want to hinge an entire era on that one book, but to me it definitely represents a clearly delineated turning point.

Edited February 6, 2020 by F For Fake

[Ken Aldred]

I don't really feel they're that different.

For example, Jonathan Hickman's work, which I like, reads very similarly to Grant Morrison and Warren Ellis material from 20 years ago, even further back, and with a decompressed, drawn-out structure which could be traced back to the emergence of Brian Michael Bendis around the same time.

In that way, there isn't a clear-cut Age transition.

Edited February 6, 2020 by Ken Aldred

[theCapraAegagrus]

Should cutoff the "Copper Age" at 1999 IMO.

[Brian48]

All floppies will be considered modern until they have all transitioned to digital media. Digital age, where your new comics will only be available digitally, will be the next age.  Book it.

[theCapraAegagrus]

1 minute ago, Brian48 said:

All floppies will be considered modern until they have all transitioned to digital media. Digital age, where your new comics will only be available digitally, will be the next age.  Book it.

[Deadpoolica]

2 hours ago, theCapraAegagrus said:

Should cutoff the "Copper Age" at 1999 IMO.

Agreed

[D84]

We are in the variant age.

[theCapraAegagrus]

1 hour ago, D84 said:

We are in the variant age.

[slym2none]

2 hours ago, Brian48 said:

All floppies will be considered modern until they have all transitioned to digital media. Digital age, where your new comics will only be available digitally, will be the next age.  Book it.

 

2 hours ago, theCapraAegagrus said:

 

1 hour ago, D84 said:

We are in the variant age.

Again?



-slym

[Domo Arigato]

All I know is that for the last several years we've been in the......."Take a comic and pull the highest, most ridiculous price you can think of out of your butt and list it for sale to see if some idiot will buy it".......age.

[Lazyboy]

29 minutes ago, Domo Arigato said:

All I know is that for the last several years we've been in the......."Take a comic and pull the highest, most ridiculous price you can think of out of your butt and list it for sale to see if some idiot will buy it".......age.

It's been like that, especially from some sellers, for a long time. The difference now is that one of the insufficiently_thoughtful_persons will buy it.

[sfcityduck]

"There are no ages, only decades," said Yoda.

The "ages," as originated and defined by the fathers of modern comic fandom, were specific to superhero comics (and really DC superhero comic books at that).  And the dirty little secret of comic collecting is that they never made much sense beyond DC comics.

But, dealers liked the cache of the term "Golden Age," and later "Silver Age," and still later "Bronze Age" and "Platinum Age" and "Copper Age," and so the terms had commercial appeal.

But, now, dealers are more content to talk about comics in terms of genre and other factors which do not hinge upon the "ages."  The "ages" are dying terms.  

We've run out of precious metals.  And the [Insert precious metal here] Age is not longer as big a selling point as "PCH," "GGA," "key," numerous artist names, etc.

Long live the Ages, the Ages are dead!  

Especially, if the best anyone can come up with that the dumb names on this thread.

Get off of my lawn!

Edited February 6, 2020 by sfcityduck

[Domo Arigato]

 

3 hours ago, Lazyboy said:

It's been like that, especially from some sellers, for a long time. The difference now is that one of the insufficiently_thoughtful_persons will buy it.

True.  There were always some sellers in the past that have asked ridiculous prices and it was easy to avoid them.....but over the last several years, most sellers have decided to do it to the point that I've essentially stopped collecting.

 

Edited February 7, 2020 by Domo Arigato
Started developing into a rant.

[William-James88]

50 minutes ago, Domo Arigato said:

 

That's my point.  There were always some sellers in the past that have asked ridiculous prices and it was easy to avoid them.....but over the last several years, most sellers have decided to do it to the point that I've essentially stopped collecting.

 

For keys, yeah, but there are people out there like Harley Yee at conventions and northerngiant on ebay that I can count on for decently priced books. They have kept me collecting. Plus, if you go through auctions then technically you are buying at market value.

[Domo Arigato]

49 minutes ago, William-James88 said:

For keys, yeah, but there are people out there like Harley Yee at conventions and northerngiant on ebay that I can count on for decently priced books. They have kept me collecting. Plus, if you go through auctions then technically you are buying at market value.

No, not just for keys....I don't collect keys at all.  I said most sellers, not all.  And yes, technically a book from an auction house is market value.....but that doesn't mean it's not also five times GPA crackhead value at the same time.

Edit:  I checked out northerngiant on eBay:

Out of the 30 CGC graded books for sale.....3 are Enternals #1......5 are Spectacular Spider-man #1......10 are Logan's Run #6......4 are John Carter Warlard of Mars #1.....and 6 are funny animal comics.

This is not a dig at northerngiant.....as they do have a nice mix of about 600 raw books for sale as well.....but I buy CGC graded books and, unfortunately, I'm not the Calimerica version of a Logans Run #6 collector.

 

 

Edited February 7, 2020 by Domo Arigato

[unclezebo]