What are the comic book ages?

Comic collectors, dealers and price guides divide American comic book history into "ages." They help you sort a collection, read a price guide or understand a listing. The ages are informal: no official body defines them, and sources disagree about exact start and end dates. Most agree on the main markers, though. This guide sets out the commonly cited ranges and the books that define each one.

The ages at a glance

Platinum Age (1897–1938)

The earliest period covers proto-comic books published before the superhero era. Wikipedia dates the start of this period to The Yellow Kid in McFadden's Flats (1897), the first known US proto-comic-book magazine. Its source labels the span "The Platinum Age 1897–1938."

Golden Age (1938–1956)

The Golden Age begins with Superman's debut in Action Comics #1 in June 1938, which set off a superhero boom. Batman followed in 1939 and Wonder Woman in 1941. Timely Comics, Marvel's predecessor, had million-selling titles starring the Human Torch, the Sub-Mariner and Captain America, whose first cover (March 1941) shows him punching Adolf Hitler. The term "Golden Age" was coined by Richard A. Lupoff in the fanzine Comic Art in April 1960. Superheroes faded after World War II. The 1954 creation of the Comics Code Authority, after Senate hearings on juvenile delinquency, is part of the backdrop to the era's end.

Silver Age (1956–1970)

DC revived the Flash with a new hero, Barry Allen, in Showcase #4 (October 1956), generally treated as the start of the Silver Age. DC's heroes gathered as the Justice League in The Brave and the Bold #28 (1960). Marvel answered with The Fantastic Four #1 (November 1961), with more flawed, human heroes, and introduced Spider-Man in Amazing Fantasy #15 (August 1962). Michael Uslan traces the name to a reader's letter in Justice League of America #42 (on sale December 1965) predicting that the decade would be remembered as the "Silver Sixties."

Bronze Age (1970–1985)

No single book opens the Bronze Age. Historians point to several changes around 1970: Green Lantern/Green Arrow #76 (April 1970) and its turn toward socially relevant stories, Jack Kirby's move from Marvel to DC, and Mort Weisinger's retirement as Superman editor. Historian Arnold T. Blumberg calls the death of Gwen Stacy in Amazing Spider-Man #121–122 (1973) the definitive Bronze Age event. Giant-Size X-Men #1 (May 1975) introduced the "all-new, all-different" X-Men. The era is usually closed by Crisis on Infinite Earths (from April 1985) and Marvel's Secret Wars (1984–85).

Copper Age (disputed dates)

The Copper Age is the newest and least settled label, and Wikipedia's main era articles don't use it. Quality Comix dates it from May 1985 to August 2000 and notes that some start it in 1983 with the founding of Mirage Studios. A 2020 GoCollect article proposes 1983–2008. Both describe the same traits: darker, more adult stories, major crossovers, the spread of variant and gimmick covers, and the rise of creator-owned publishers such as Image Comics. Commonly cited keys include Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles #1, Secret Wars #8 (the black Spider-Man suit), New Mutants #98 (the first Deadpool) and Spawn #1.

Modern Age (1985–present)

Wikipedia dates the Modern Age from 1985 to the present and marks the timespan as disputed. Frank Miller's Batman: The Dark Knight Returns and Alan Moore's Watchmen (1986) are cited as its signature works. Some writers divide it further: a "Dark Age" from about 1985 to the late 1990s, a period around the turn of the millennium, and a "Blue Age" from the early 2010s, a term coined by Adrienne Resha.

How to use the ages

• Use them to sort and describe a collection, not as exact boundaries. A book from 1985 may be listed as Bronze, Copper or Modern depending on the guide.
• For which issues collectors track within each era, see key comics collectors watched in 2022.