Ishmael Flicks

[Cheesehead Craig]

I'm not saying it's fantastic literature, but Marvel Comics have been addressing issues that mainstream movies and books did not touch during the 70s, 80s, and 90th. They touched on racism, people with physical disabilities, and mental issues. It says something when they intentionally make the most powerful mutant wheelchair-bound. Stan Lee has said repeatedly that he wanted to touch as wide a base as possible but especially the young generation about how everyone should be treated with dignity and respect. Also, unlike DC, Marvel made the vast majority of their heros with big flaws that the general public could relate to. It also wasn't just one line of books, it was over the majority of them on a monthly basis. There's a lot to be said for that.

[mraynrand]

I'm not saying it's fantastic literature, but Marvel Comics have been addressing issues that mainstream movies and books did not touch during the 70s, 80s, and 90th. They touched on racism, people with physical disabilities, and mental issues. It says something when they intentionally make the most powerful mutant wheelchair-bound. Stan Lee has said repeatedly that he wanted to touch as wide a base as possible but especially the young generation about how everyone should be treated with dignity and respect. Also, unlike DC, Marvel made the vast majority of their heros with big flaws that the general public could relate to. It also wasn't just one line of books, it was over the majority of them on a monthly basis. There's a lot to be said for that.

Stan Lee was really great. And the comic book is a valid art form. There's skill in the writing - drama, theme, and characterization that Lee brought, but there's also a real skill in the artwork - not only the pictures themselves, but the layouts of the stories themselves. A single panel or a group of panels together done right can tell you everything about what a character is going through, and pace a story. This is a fun exercise - look through an old comic book and see if you can follow the story without the words. In the best comics, this is possible. In other words, when the words augment a story, but the story doesn't depend on the words, you know the comic is great.