Decade of preference

[dlw66]

I voted for the '70's. Gonna get me some All-Star Squadron, some Secret Society of Super-Villains, The Champions, The Inhumans, The Defenders, The Teen Titans, The Avengers, Superboy and the Legion of Super-Heroes, The Fantastic Four, The Amazing Spider-Man, Peter Parker, Black Goliath, Marvel Team-Up, Marvel Two-In-One, Super-Villain Team-Up, Daredevil, The Mighty Thor, The Invaders, Batman, Detective Comics, The All-New All-Different X-Men, and The Man Called Nova!

I read a lot more when I was 12...

[Doctor Doom]

Well in answer to the question of the poll; 1990s but only because I've read all the 2000s ones more recently. But I voted 2000s because they are better, and they are my preferred decade.

I don't feel qualified to make a judge on the 40s, 50s, 60s, 70s and 80s, but from my two decades of comic experience the 2000s are far better without doubt.

[Shiryu]

I was uncertain between the 60s and the 80s, but in the end I went for the latter, mainly because from the 60s I only have Spider-Man issues, and they are not enough to judge the whole decade.
Once I'm done with reading the DVD-ROM, I may change my vote ;D

[The Night Phantom]

Like Shiryu, I find the decision between the ’60s and the ’80s quite difficult. But I selected the ’60s; the ’80s may be “my” decade, and I certainly appreciate the diversity therein—but for me, the ’60s is truly the age of excitement and innovation.

[Tana Nile]

I was torn between the 70's and the 00's. The former is when I really got into comics, so there is a certain level of nostalgia at work when I think of those years. But there were also great stories and creators at that time (particularly at Marvel) who were really expanding the boundaries of comics. People like Steve Englehart, Jim Starlin, Doug Moench, Chris Claremont, etc come to mind. So while I think the over-all quality of writing and art is actually better today, I give the 70's an edge based on sheer innovation and boldness.

[The Night Phantom]

tananile said:

So while I think the over-all quality of writing and art is actually better today, I give the 70's an edge based on sheer innovation and boldness.

I guess that’s similar to my decision to go with the ’60s rather than my other favorite, the ’80s…the desire to give credit for pioneering. Maybe, if I knew the ’40s and ’50s better, I would have picked one of those eras.

To be clear: my giving “credit” isn’t necessarily so phlegmatic as it sounds…when I read ’60s comics, the knowledge that I’m reading a “first” can contribute viscerally to the excitement I feel.

[Doctor Bong]

Lots of that being plit between decades going around... In my case, between the 60's & the 90's...
I finally went with the 60's because yes, that's when all of this began.

[The Night Phantom]

nightphantom said:

I selected the ’60s

ua2 said:

I finally went with the 60's

Currently the poll registers only one vote for the 1960s.

Arrghh!!! DIEBOLD STRIKES AGAIN!!!

[dlw66]

Hmmm... Sounds like the opposite of a Chicago election, where often people vote twice .

My formative years were the 70's and 80's. I started reading comics seriously around 1974, although I got my first comic in the summer of '72. I did not buy comics from 1980-fall of '84, but once in college I picked the "habit" back up and managed to cough up enough cash to catch up on my favorite titles I'd missed during high school. That is when I also began my pursuit of a full run of Avengers, which I completed circa 1993.

So, I would most likely be torn between the 70's and 80's, but as I said I went with the earlier year. Truth be told, anyone who remembers the cartoon series "Marvel Super-Heroes" would probably lean toward the '60's. If you are not aware of this series, there was little animation. The stories were straight from the pages of 1965-67 Marvels like Avengers, Tales of Suspense, Tales to Astonish, and Thor. Art from the actual books was used, and voice actors basically read the dialogue that was in the book. VERY cool television for a wide-eyed 8-year old watching it in reruns!!!

[The Night Phantom]

dlw66 said:

Hmmm... Sounds like the opposite of a Chicago election, where often people vote twice .

Living or dead! ;D

My formative years were the 70's and 80's. I started reading comics seriously around 1974

[...]

So, I would most likely be torn between the 70's and 80's, but as I said I went with the earlier year.

“Formative” years, I am sure, have great sway over our choices in this poll. My interest in comics was cemented in the ’80s, which would make my choice of the ’60s seem to be a contradiction of the trend I just posited; but actually, some of my formative ’80s experiences were in reading ’60s reprints in Marvel Tales, Marvel Masterworks, Marvel Saga…so, the theory would still apply!

[Doctor Bong]

Night Phantom, the only explanation I can come up is that very likely I wasn't paying attention as much as I should have & therefore ended up voting for the 70's by mistake...

[The Night Phantom]

ua2 said:

the 70's by mistake...

I’ve often heard the ’70s characterized in similar terms… But between us, it’s OK, for there are good comics to be found from that era too.

[dlw66]

70's, a mistake? You got something against disco and leisure suits ??

[jkemble]

I would have to go with the 70's. Engleheart on the Avengers, Clairmont on the X-Men. Even my favorite Hulk story is from that time. But being an X-Head, I would have to pick the 80s for the X-Men.

[steed]

I picked the 70's but I could easily have extended it into the early to mid 80's. Marvel really pulled it together and had everything working together. Then Jim Shooter came along.

[sharkar]

I just voted for the 60s...not because of the Marvel cartoons (though as someone else said, they were cool and inspired me to start reading Marvel)... but because I still love reading those stories from back then (thank you, Essentials). The stories were relatively simplistic (compared to the wiriting from later decades) but it was exciting to see what Lee, Kirby, Thomas, Ditko, Colan, et al., were trying to do with the medium. Even as a kid I could tell they were taking chances with characters, themes, etc. (DC seemed awfully flat after getting into Marvel). So, for both historical and personal reasons, I voted for the 60s.

[dlw66]

Interesting tidbit about DC in the 60's: I was reading an interview with Neal Adams in this month's Back Issue magazine, and he tells that when he first got to DC he noticed that all of the fleshtones were a pinky-color. Upon investigation, he found that DC's color palette only had 32 colors, and no yellow tone that would have served to create the flesh color. Marvel at the same time was using a color palette of 64. After Adams blew the whistle, DC got up to speed.

Strange story, but just one among many concerning Marvel blowing past DC in the Silver Age (that DC started!).

[Doctor Bong]

I think sharkar explained real well why, in the minds of so many of us, the 60's were so magical & special...
Truth be told, it's very hard for me -as it seems to be the case as well with many of us- to answer this question to my satisfaction... I love the 60's for the freshness & the innovation that Stan & his collaborators brought to the medium, as well as because of all the characters they introduced then... I love the 70's because of the charcter developments & wonderful sagas that other creators brought forth, constructucting upon the foundations... I love the 90's because (for me) many of my favorite characters were involved in quite interesting storyarchs and, towards the end, some of them (the Avengers, Iron Man) experienced, in my opinion, a sort of renaissance at the hands of Kurt Busiek... I don't have a clear take on the 80's, probably because, like many of my fellow AAers, I abandoned comic book reading for a while, and that happened to be MY decade... So far, hands down, my least favorite decade's the current one, due to Avengers Disassembled, House of M & CW...
Oh, and by the way, dlw66, as a matter of fact, yes, I DO have some issues when it comes to the pop culture of the 70's... Leisure suits & polyester still make me cringe... but, for me, the worst part are the haircuts... This makes it very akward for me to watch T.V. shows or movies from that decade, as in my eyes, somehow, they feel more dated than things from the 60's & even the 50's... weird!!! Disco I used to hate, too, but then I had a girlfriend who converted me.

[Doctor Bong]

Now, on the other hand, I must confess a weakness for bell bottoms...

[dlw66]

And of course, if you work in a school like I do, you just get to relive the fashions every 15 years or so! I am waiting for mullets to come back...



Business in the front, party in the back, baby!!!! ;D

[dlw66]

Well, after this has been open for a few weeks, it looks like an outstanding voter turn-out: 10 votes from 127 members. I don't know about you folks outside the US, but here in America this is pretty typical.

Anyway, it looks like those with an opinion would prefer to read stuff that is 20 years old instead of today's output.

[Shiryu]

Would Busiek and Perez run count for the 90s or the 00s ? I think it would deserve at least a mark

[Yellowjacket]

Though I do like quite some stuff from the 60s, 80s and 00s (anybody around here likes the 90s stuff, no? ;D ) I too chose the 1970s.
It´s really astonishing how well the 70s stories can compete until today, they´re simply that good - plots, dialogues, art - great stuff.

BUT, for me that only applies for the Avengers (and I think of Conan) stories from that period, so far as I know (and there´s a lot of Marvel stuff I don´t know) only the Avengers stories have been this consistently strong and enjoyable.
For example, all that Spider-Man stuff from the 70s? Most of it I find consistently weak to say at least, especially in the years from 1975 on.