Is This A New Golden Age of Comics?
It’s 2024 and comic books are not only more accessible than ever, but also have more to offer fans than ever before. This begs the question: Are we in a new Golden Age of comics?
The short answer is a resounding yes.
The long answer is, you guessed it, more complex. With that said, let’s explore why I believe this is a new Golden Age of comics, or Golden Age 2.0, if you will.
Variety of genres and subject matter
I’ll begin making my case with the most front-facing aspect of the medium: the genres. Now, you might be tempted to think of the art as the “lead-in,” so to speak, but that’s truer now than in decades past. Back then, it was more about which genre you wanted to read, be it crime, romance, superhero, war, western, etc. While they all had their time to shine and fade, they still exist in varying capacities today. But not only have those genres persisted, they’ve also expanded, melded and developed subgenres.
That evolution has also extended to the subject matter of the stories. This has resulted in lengthier stories and shared universes. Anthologies are still being published, but there aren’t as many short story one-offs as in days past. Fans get invested and the people behind the comics feed that interest.
Mainstream and indie publishers
After looking at the actual comics being made, the next step is examining where they’re coming from.
While the mainstream superhero publishers may get the bulk of the attention, the indie comic scene is vast and full of hits. And some will argue it’s where the best comic books are being made. The point being that there are publishers of varying sizes with diverse line-ups of releases. Having numerous reading options is a win for everyone.
So no, not all comics are tied to corporations. It even flows to the opposite end of the spectrum with people printing comics through their local printing businesses. This, of course, is not a new phenomenon. Explore the rabbit hole that is the underground comix scene for more on that. Right in the middle is where lots of growth has occurred. Crowd-funding is at an all-time high. Campaigns are not only surpassing their goals handily, but we see creators adding stretch goals at a high frequency. That speaks to the loyalty in the comic space as well as the thirst for new content.
Diversity of creators, voices and styles
Speaking of self-publishing and crowd-funding, let’s talk about the people behind the comics. As they’ve become more visible than ever, so has the audience. This then inspires future creators. There has never been a better time to become a comic creator than now.
It isn’t just heteronormative white men making and reading comics. “Representation matters” isn’t just a buzzword. Words mean things and this absolutely means something to people who had to fight to have their voices heard and tell their stories. Here’s looking at you All-Negro Comics and Wimmen’s Comix. The make-up of creators in the industry is an eclectic one. That variety of experiences has allowed for different voices coming through the work along with varied methods of storytelling.
Community connection
As comics grew throughout the decades, so did the community surrounding them. It wasn’t just kids sitting around the park reading together or people stopping at the newsstand briefly. Soon enough, comic shops and conventions came along. Now readers had more opportunities to interact with people who shared their hobby. Interacting, connecting and developing relationships based around this mutual interest is now commonplace. Then with the advent of the internet, the world was forever changed. The comic community was solidified.
Ask any long-time comic book fan about their experiences with comic shops and they can rattle off any number of stories. This can include conversations about their favorite story moments to sharing updates in their personal lives. On the convention side of the subject, I’ve been going to them for nearly 20 years and I’ve found myself in conversations with fellow attendees at every one of them. I’ve talked with other fans about the comics we’re reading and collecting as well as which creators we’ve met and are looking to meet.
Not that it needs to be said, but social media made it even easier to connect with people who enjoy the medium. YouTube, Reddit and other message boards, Instagram, Facebook and X/Twitter (how many people actually call it “X”?) all have their own distinctive communities of comic book fans.
Choice of formats
The last point for my case is that readers have more choices for how they want to read their comics. Just from the physical perspective alone, we’ve gone from comic strips and individual issues to multi-issue collected editions and massive hardcovers and lengthy original graphic novels. Add in digital storefronts for new releases as well as subscription services for massive libraries of comics (e.g. Marvel Unlimited and DC Universe Infinite). All of these combined provide readers with a variety of options for how they want to consume stories.
What do you think of the time period we’re in? And I’m not talking about us having been in the Modern Age for far too long, which is a discussion for another time. Do you agree with the notion of this being a new Golden Age of comics? Why or why not?