DC or Marvel?

[Gallinator]

I know there were plenty of other comics companies in the Silver Age, but of the Big Two - Marvel and DC, which did you prefer and why?

[The Charlton Guy]

I know there were plenty of other comics companies in the Silver Age...

AHEMMMM!!!

[dpxcomicsgirl]

I'm mostly a Marvelite, but I've started to dwell in the unknown pits of the DC Universe. I've seen bits of DC Silver Age comics and they are hilarious.

http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b231/dpxcomics/fun/Action_432-1-05a.jpg

Marvel Silver is more of a "serious" read (I say serious but the stories are fun!), with good stuff by Stan and company. I have Masterworks of Fantastic Four, X-Men, Hulk, Spider-Man and Avengers.

[Evil Parsnip]

Silver Marvel tended to be better in quality in my opinion but maybe because Marvel tended to create a continuity which was lacking in many of the DC titles. Actually I think the characters were more appealing.

[The Charlton Guy]

Silver Marvel tended to be better in quality in my opinion but maybe because Marvel tended to create a continuity which was lacking in many of the DC titles. Actually I think the characters were more appealing.

I agree with the quality point (of Marvel), but DC had their own brand of continuity, spanning decades instead of months. Characters and battles that hadn't been seen in years would suddenly re-emerge as if nothing had happened in the interim.

Even early on (in the SA), Marvel tended to hop, skip and jump around a bit too much to make for true blue continuity. Even Stan Lee often admitted in his Bullpen that he had a hard time keeping all of the characters and interactions straight. As for today? Fogettaboutit. Too many mini-series, cross-over series, spin-offs, alternate Universes, Zombies and what-all for anybody to keep up with.

All that said, I simply don't prefer one over the other. But I tend to like the DC for the pure goofiness and pure-camp qualities and Marvel for the angst and drama.

A nice, healthy, balanced SA diet.

As for Charlton's?

Charlton's are my ULTIMATE junk food! :D

[Gallinator]

I guess I've never been a fan of camp or schtick (never liked the Stooges, for instance), so Marvel is hands-down the winner in the SA for me. The character-driven stories made for a much better experience than DC's gimmick-of-the-month type of thing.

I collect all Marvel SA super-hero titles but only Flash and Green Lantern from DC, although of course I've accumulated a lot of other SA DC over the years. The DC's are of generally much poorer quality, IMO. Even my beloved Green Lanterns are mostly dreck.

As for those Charltons... :roll:

[jaeldubyoo]

I was pretty much a Marvel Zombie during that period. My Bronze Age collection is probably 5 to 1 as far as Marvel vs. DC. Of course, I enjoyed some of the DC art, including Neal Adams, Bernie Wrightson, Mike Kaluta, Jeff Jones, etc. Luckily, I picked up some DC books, but the majority of my collection is Marvel.

[fulltimer56]

I would have to say the Marvel was my main books! I did read and collect a few DCs but not that many. I would say right now it's about half and half with maybe Marvel a bit ahead. And I'm not even reading or collecting X-Men anymore!!

Linda

[habib]

One of the original Marvel Zombies here. Would only buy Marvel During the 70's growing up and bought everything.....Team America, Human Fly, didn't matter how bad it was I owned it!

After I got to college in 1980 I finally started branching out into independants and DCs.

Now I buy a little bit of everything but like the Mature Audience titles the best...ie......Y the Last Man, Walking Dead, Girls, and Jonah Hex

[disneyteddies]

I've always been more of a Batman fan along with Superman but Marvel is just as important to me...it's like choosing your right arm over your left arm. I like them both but didn't get into Marvel until Spidey, Avengers, FF and all the others started appearing. Yeah, I know I wasn't even invented until 68' but I meant I really couldn't name any other Marvel titles pre 1960. :?

[Gallinator]

I'm really just talking about Silver Age on this thread. In my mind, there was a very distinct line between Marvel and DC during that period, one which didn't start to blur until very late in the Age, maybe late 1968 or so. After that, a lot of similarities in storytelling started to pop up. Was it cultural or editorial, I wonder?

[rowand]

In the Silver Age I was a Marvel zombie but I bought literally everything that was published. Even da crud. Nothing like wasting 5 minutes reading a crud issue to make you respect those who put out a proper product.

Pre-Marvel DC were more placebos than real comics. You could pitch any PMSA Superman story in a single breath. It showed in the quality of the plot. DC cover artists were given cover assignments months before the story assignments were passed out to the writers. Here, match your story to this cover. DC started using monkeys and apes in their cover art because their appearance made the circulation go up.

Along came the publisher's nephew and his brother Larry. Stan Lee actually cared about comic books and enjoyed the experience of creating them. His participation in the creation remains to this day a matter of arguement but the fact remains that he got the deed done. He got Marvel comics published. (Hey, Unk! Know what I want for my birthday?? Huh, Huh)

With the first issue of the FF we have a segue starting with Stan's monster-based character (in peril and frightened as he was) content toward the full-blown character stories of the early 60's. The Thing bemoaned his fate and fought with the Human Torch. They were stories about a family dynamic. I loved them. I bought them. I read them all. I cherished them. They seemed real.

Nowadays, I read exclusively SADC. I track how many types of Bizarros there are (4 distinct types), the colors of kryptonite (67 different types, so far), what the skyline of Kandor looks like (as well as the width of the cork in that city's bottle), and what would be left over from the Silver Age a 1000 years later, like Atom's costume, Green Lantern Power Batteries, Bizarros (they were unliving, so they can't die), Flash's Cosmic Treadmile.

I wonder if Sylvia DeWitt (super-powered Earthling married and living in Kandor) and Iris Allen's decendants didn't muck around with the local time streams just a bit. It amuses me to speculate on the lasting effects on this fictional universe that under-paid and over-worked staff writers might unexpectedly have had.

[rowand]

disneyteddies says I really couldn't name any other Marvel titles pre 1960.

There weren't any to speak of. Even Atlas' great Stan Lee and Jack Kirby or Stan Lee and Steve Ditko stories in their horror-with-a-twist comics like Journey into Mystery, Strange Tales, Tales to Astonish, or Tales of Suspense were mostly one-shot and forgetable.

Unless you meant the late-40's stuff when the Timely logo changed to Marvel and actually promoted Fawcett's, a rival publisher, mainstay character.

Pre-Marvel (FF#1) shoulda had its own niche in the collecting ages guides long ago.

[mordo]

I collected both Marvel and DC, but clearly preferred Marvel. I got into the continuing stories and couldn't wait for the next issue. I was attached to the characters and the problems they were going through. With DC it wasn't the same. I bought all of the various Supes/Batman titles but didn't take them as seriously as I did Marvel.

[jaeldubyoo]

When I was a kid growing up I preferred DC because the stories were self-contained and I didn't have to wait for the next issue to find out how it ended. When I started collecting (in college) I preferred Marvel because I thought DC was so campy. Now I find myself coming full circle and looking for some DC.

[acistaro]

Marvel Then: Back in the early 60's I always collected Marvel comics, there was a storyline that a kid could relate to. DC comics were predictable, there would be 8 storys in a single issue of Superman = Aliens/Bad Guys take over earth - Superman kicks ass - end of story.

Marvel Now: The artwork is too busy and the storylines in many cases are all over the place or too complicated for a kid to follow. Just the other day I was in the "rip off" store in New Jersey and went over to the comic section..............there has to be over a dozen different Spidey titles. Boy..........talk about greedy!

And while I'm on a roll..............What's up with the price gouging on Ultimate Spiderman # 1?? I mean how can anyone think that this book is valuable, there are always over 100 copies for sale on eBay on any given day, and the variant covers, what a joke! I'm sure you all remember the Spiderman #1 by McFarlane............dealers and collectors literally purchased cases of these books. Now I see them in dollar boxes. PARENTS, explain to your children that a comic that has a multi million print run, is not worth crap!!

Nuff Said (for now)

AC

[marvelguy]

Ultimate Spiderman #1

This book really does have staying power long after it has been released. This is one of the rare books that commands a premium for a book released in the last 20 years. I don't know if the first print is underordered or what. The art and story is that good. The same team is still cranking out the books, they are going to break the record for the longest creative team on a title running in comics, only Lee and Kirby has it in FF at 104 or 105 issues (correct me if I'm wrong).

[acistaro]

I was not criticizing the writing team, the artwork, or the storyline. I was just stating that, I do not feel that any comic released within the past 10 years with an extensive print run is worth more than $10.00. The early Silver Age Spidey's are too expensive for any young kid, so Marvel puts out "another" #1 issue and the dealers take advantage of the young kids by jacking up the price and making like this is a really rare book.

AC

[Gallinator]

Hmmm, not sure of the print run of Ultimate S-M #1, but it was introduced at the nadir of Marvel's publishing output. I suspect it is at or below 100,000 copies. Demand for that book is very high, which has resulted in such a consistently high price in the back-issue market.

McFarlane's Spider-Man, which came out riding a crest of popularity, had a print run of well over one million and even the 2nd print (Gold) of that issue had, at 200,000, probably at least double the print run of 2000's Ultimate Spider-Man.

That's why that issue is in the dollar bins and Ultimate Spider-Man #1 is not.

[Gallinator]

Additionally, that story (along with ASM #1) has been reprinted so many times that even the youngest of collectors can access it: FCBD version, KB Toys version, numerous printings in TPB format...

[fulltimer56]

In the Silver age I would have to say that most of the comics I bought then (If I Remember Right) were DC with a little Marvel in the mix.

I loved the "Army at War" series along with Superman & Wonder Woman because I thought it was neat that there where girl super-heroes but I do remember picking up a few X-Men and Spider-Man comics along the way!(Lord, I wish I still had them comics)

Linda

[btdhome]

Didn't have any SA comics when growing up, wasn't born early enough.
As to reading them now...
Marvel is more enjoyable to me overall as the issues pull the running storylines together.
Where as the DC issues leave me feeling like one issue is the same as any other.

[jaydeebee]

I missed the Silver Age because I couldn't read as an infant. But DC Comics during the early 1970's were my first exposure to Super-Hero comic books, so they are the ones I look back at more fondly. Didn't really get into Marvel until the late 70's when the Star Wars comics came out.

As for Silver Age, I actually prefer the DC stuff, not because it's better, but because it's so goofy and nostalgic.

[oxbladder]

Personally I do not really find much of a difference in "quality" between the two in the SA. I do collect almost exclusively DC though for SA with the odd exception of some Atlas titles like Lorna or Jann and some FF. DC just has more interesting stuff for me like Supergirl, Romance titles, and WW. I have little interest in most of the Marvel SA stuff except for FF and the odd Monster book ... if I can even find any of those in decent shape.

[rowand]

Back in the Silver Age there were indeed lots of other companies putting out great comics. Even the "Caspar and Wendy"s were readable.

The problem with Marvel verses DC is that the efforts of DC saved comics from the Wertham religious attacks by being bland and acceptable down to the prayer meeting. DC also published for 15 Silver Age years to Marvel's 9 plus a few issues of monster this and scary that. Marvel only published a grand total of two 10c Super-Hero comics -- FF1 and FF2! Three if you count the first Ant-Man story. All three Marvel 10c superhero issues have ZERO panels of art showing the various heroes in costume. At least Stan did horror-with-a-twist and not the EC variety that always seemed to need a barf bag to read to me.

An individual Silver Age Marvel was generally better than an individual Silver Age DC, but we had at least seven years of comic gems like Detective 225, and Showcase 4 and 10, and the origins of the Legionaires and Supergirl from DC while Marvel was still cranking out softcore EC ripoffs. Last into the superhero Silver Age game but Marvel easily produced the best and brightest in stories and characters and made comics better.

DC did give us Brother Power, the Geek; Color-Kid; and Beepo, the Super-Monkey.

I declare a tie between content and shear volume!

[oxbladder]

Most Silver Age is bland regardless of what company you read. Imo.

There was some better stuff near the end but comics just didn't want to take that many risks after the Wertham years.

[SILLYSHIP--pirate eye--]

" Originally Posted by Gallinator
I know there were plenty of other comics companies in the Silver Age..."

Yeah, unfortunately, most of them died off. And kept dying, until we got the "business sense" of Image and all the stuff that was alluded to in that movie by Luke Skywalker where superheroes turn into CIA agent murderers with guns.

Evil Parsnip wrote
"Silver Marvel tended to be better in quality in my opinion but maybe because Marvel tended to create a continuity which was lacking in many of the DC titles. Actually I think the characters were more appealing."

Yeah, but in all fairness, they were watching DC and just working off of that. For instance we all know that Wolverine was that guy from the legion of Super Heroes, Timberwolf.

CG wrote
"Even early on (in the SA), Marvel tended to hop, skip and jump around a bit too much to make for true blue continuity. Even Stan Lee often admitted in his Bullpen that he had a hard time keeping all of the characters and interactions straight. As for today? Fogettaboutit. Too many mini-series, cross-over series, spin-offs, alternate Universes, Zombies and what-all for anybody to keep up with."

And thus the 90's age crash, when covers sold more comics than art or stories. The idea of a story was better than the story itself.

And as many of you have stated, we all are looking at the DC universe again because they hae the GA heroes that make sense in this era of heroes who are going back to their original manifestations. Marvel became just as crazy as DC was during the whole period of the cartoon JLA period. The stories became campy and were based on the people in charge wanting to make sales. I don't read current titles, but I think, from what I hear and the little I read, that is changin.

Rowand writes
"With the first issue of the FF we have a segue starting with Stan's monster-based character (in peril and frightened as he was) content toward the full-blown character stories of the early 60's. The Thing bemoaned his fate and fought with the Human Torch. They were stories about a family dynamic. I loved them. I bought them. I read them all. I cherished them. They seemed real."

Well, isn't the underdog always the true hero? After the accumulation of power that DC gave it's super heroes we were looking at the villains more. Everyone remembers Solomon Grundie and the GL&GA titles at this time because they were stories of people we sympathized more with.

Rowand also wrote
"It amuses me to speculate on the lasting effects on this fictional universe that under-paid and over-worked staff writers might unexpectedly have had."

Totally dude, the underdog writers, the abstract out of the ordinary at the extreme will come back around again. Who is Betty Brant and Quentin Beck? The rarities get killed or brought around again. When will we see the Vulture made a real villain again?

Rowand writes
"or Tales of Suspense were mostly one-shot and forgetable."

The covers are nice though.

Modo writes
"I collected both Marvel and DC, but clearly preferred Marvel. I got into the continuing stories and couldn't wait for the next issue. I was attached to the characters and the problems they were going through. With DC it wasn't the same. I bought all of the various Supes/Batman titles but didn't take them as seriously as I did Marvel."

And for me the same thing. The DC univers at the time was a bunch of re-hashed storylilnes that went like this....I am strong, I am weak, I am strong again. Where as Marvel characters like the X-Men were dealing with people issues I could relate to even if it is as cheasy as the 80's punk rock kid feeling out of place in society.

jaeldubyoo wrote
"When I started collecting (in college) I preferred Marvel because I thought DC was so campy. Now I find myself coming full circle and looking for some DC."

So don't we all look for logic and then come around again to that silly kid inside of us. Marvel has made sillyness into science and law.

acistaro wrote
"The artwork is too busy and the storylines in many cases are all over the place or too complicated for a kid to follow. Just the other day I was in the "rip off" store in New Jersey and went over to the comic section..............there has to be over a dozen different Spidey titles. Boy..........talk about greedy!"

As far as the art goes, look at their competition. How can they pull your attention away from anime, movies with, basically anime as special effects and video games. They are competing with their offspring. Of course the minds of the editors are "busy"
As far as the many different titles go...Why? Why are the rights to the characters not open to online stories yet? Sooner or later, these stories will become as the stories of old were, available to all interpretations, or at least that's my dream.

Marelguy writes
"Ultimate Spiderman #1

This book really does have staying power long after it has been released. This is one of the rare books that commands a premium for a book released in the last 20 years. I don't know if the first print is underordered or what. The art and story is that good. The same team is still cranking out the books, they are going to break the record for the longest creative team on a title running in comics, only Lee and Kirby has it in FF at 104 or 105 issues (correct me if I'm wrong)."

Well that's enough for me to remember why I pay high prices for all of the comics I missed while they were being released. Sandman and all of the Vertigo titles are perfect examples. I got caught up in the marvel and Image multiple cover streamlined Jim Lee/McFarlane art of the time and couldn't relate to real raw art style on most of the Vertigo books. Maybe this is a title to follow?

Acistaro wrote
"I was not criticizing the writing team, the artwork, or the storyline. I was just stating that, I do not feel that any comic released within the past 10 years with an extensive print run is worth more than $10.00. The early Silver Age Spidey's are too expensive for any young kid, so Marvel puts out "another" #1 issue and the dealers take advantage of the young kids by jacking up the price and making like this is a really rare book."

In a marketing sense I couldn't agree more, but that may be why I will end up paying more for the original #1. Because no matter how much they hype the new "rare" cover, the guys who eventually want to read it after the dumping of rarities is over, will still have to pay more. As an example, nobody!!! And I mean nobody, ever talks about actually being a reader fan of Marvel Spotlight. But if anybody has an interest in Ghost Rider they have to get that book to see the origin. Same goes for the first app. of Deathlok in Astonishing Tales.

Gallinator wrote

"Hmmm, not sure of the print run of Ultimate S-M #1, but it was introduced at the nadir of Marvel's publishing output. I suspect it is at or below 100,000 copies. Demand for that book is very high, which has resulted in such a consistently high price in the back-issue market.

McFarlane's Spider-Man, which came out riding a crest of popularity, had a print run of well over one million and even the 2nd print (Gold) of that issue had, at 200,000, probably at least double the print run of 2000's Ultimate Spider-Man.

That's why that issue is in the dollar bins and Ultimate Spider-Man #1 is not."

Well, we shall see, we shall see. I have to say that the time period of a book is more imprtant if there were more readers at the time. And I know that everyone who has been into comics in the last 20 years is more likely to recognize that Spider-Man #1.

[SILLYSHIP--pirate eye--]

Gallinator wrote
"Additionally, that story (along with ASM #1) has been reprinted so many times that even the youngest of collectors can access it: FCBD version, KB Toys version, numerous printings in TPB format..."

And as for me, I'll pick up a modern trade first, and if I really love it as an original story I cannot do without in my collection, as is the case with Sandman, I'll buy the originals. Otherwise, as is the case with reading material (even though I have the originals because I bought them at the time) such as Crisis issues and most famously Weapon X stories reprinted frome Marvel Comics presents, I'll reread from Graphic novels. If the reprnt continuity, I'll read that.

fulltimer wrote

"I loved the "Army at War" series along with Superman & Wonder Woman because I thought it was neat that there where girl super-heroes but I do remember picking up a few X-Men and Spider-Man comics along the way!(Lord, I wish I still had them comics)"

I think I always loved strong women as the underdogs. Please don't be offended or weirded out by that anyone. I, and I feel funny saying anymore weird personal stuff here, but it is pertinent, come from living with a Father who beat the weak and beat every woman he was ever with, including my Mother. I think that my fascination with the phoenix has something to do with that. Woman are people, and many women I have known are super heroes to me. Unfortuantely comics are still behind in showing them as strong other than having strong bodies. We still have a long way to go. I, personally love all strong women. And always feel attracted to stories that let them be free.

Rowand wrote
"Back in the Silver Age there were indeed lots of other companies putting out great comics. Even the "Caspar and Wendy"s were readable.

The problem with Marvel verses DC is that the efforts of DC saved comics from the Wertham religious attacks by being bland and acceptable down to the prayer meeting. DC also published for 15 Silver Age years to Marvel's 9 plus a few issues of monster this and scary that. Marvel only published a grand total of two 10c Super-Hero comics -- FF1 and FF2! Three if you count the first Ant-Man story. All three Marvel 10c superhero issues have ZERO panels of art showing the various heroes in costume. At least Stan did horror-with-a-twist and not the EC variety that always seemed to need a barf bag to read to me.

An individual Silver Age Marvel was generally better than an individual Silver Age DC, but we had at least seven years of comic gems like Detective 225, and Showcase 4 and 10, and the origins of the Legionaires and Supergirl from DC while Marvel was still cranking out softcore EC ripoffs. Last into the superhero Silver Age game but Marvel easily produced the best and brightest in stories and characters and made comics better."

Maybe I'm a pussy, but I liked Ritchie Rich and other Dell's at the time, thye may not be the comics I am looking for now, but I still thought they were funny.

As far as horror comics go, I still have no interest in viscoulsy torturing people and tying up women, so if the comic code is what controlled that influence, maybe it is a good thing. I still have thoughts of being bad at times and remember the lines from T.H. White's book about why Lancelot is so good. He is so good because he knows how evil he could be. I know the evil, but, because I saw it and experienced it, and maybe that's the difference and the fascination with it, and I know it sucks. Being constrained and beaten sucks. It hurt me and it hurt me again when I watched to see the beater age and realize how much it hurt them. And there wasn't any fairy tale ending where we hugged and it was all good.

[jaydeebee]

I'll always be a DC guy, even though the silver-age DC stuff was downright goofy at times, it to me is still more collectible and more fun.

Marvel's stuff may have been more serious and more thought provoking, but it also gets a bit dated, as does some of DC's stuff as well.

But still the DC Silver age has a timelessness to it that is refreshing and chocked full of gooey nostalgia!

[Shadow_Ferret]

Well, DC, more or less, introduced me to superheroes. My favorites were Legion of Superheroes, The Atom, and anything with Green Lantern in it.

But then I discovered Tales of Suspense with Captain America (yeah, and Iron Man), and Jack Kirby's artwork converted me to become a true believer and an original member of the Merry Marvel Marching Society.

Although I think Dell's Turok, Son of Stone was great, too. :D

[pasnat54]

I'm an old Legion fan too. I started around Adventure 350 or so and picked up everything from about 304 onward at my local used book store. They cost an average of 8¢ each, with the priced marked in grease pencil on the front.

I guess I'm like jaydeebee; DC's SA books could be silly, but they were fun. Marvel took comics to a new level, but unfortunately that led to today's overwrought, angst-ridden and overly complicated stories where a character has to die to create dramatic impact.

I just can't get into today's books, so I concentrate on filling in gaps in my SA collections.

[Shadow_Ferret]

Although I agree that Marvel started the "reality" storylines, and it probably has led to the current state of angst in comics, I don't think it's what is causing the death of all characters, like Superman, Captain America, etc.

My opinion on that, which is just based on my own feelings, is that today's kids are just too sophisticated for the simple days of SA costumed superheroes. They want more. That's why titles that are a little more bloody, why characters that are a little grittier, are selling. It's an evolution that probably started with characters like The Punisher and Wolverine.

But then kids today like all their entertainment a little grittier. Look at professional wrestling. Look at horror films. Look at cartoons. Everything is pushing the envelope.

Innocence is lost.

Sorry. *steps off soapbox*

[pasnat54]

You're right of course. But what I meant was that when the grittiness box is open, it becomes tougher and tougher for a writer to come up with new twists. Therefore, they have to take it to the ultimate end: death. A hero dies, a world dies, a universe dies, a multi-verse dies.

Sometimes it seems like a one upsmanship game where being over-the-top is often mistaken for being innovative.

[Capitalrecoveryman]

I miss that gallinator guy. He went and became a Hockey card collector and quit posting about funny books.

[jaeldubyoo]

So that's what happened to Gallinator. I was wondering about the guy.