SUPERHEROES: an evolving STORY.
SUPERHEROES: an evolving story, is a summary with a chronological compilation of notes and notes on some events that we consider important in the HISTORY and EVOLUTION of SUPERHEROES.
In the creation of our original contents, we always carry out an investigation phase, of which, there are notes, notes and appreciations on different topics relevant to us.
We believe in the power of the imagination!
(Spanish version video).
Transcript: SUPER HEROES, notes from an evolving story.
Some ancestors.
One of the predecessors, pre superheroes, is born in the comic strips, Popeye the Sailor. His first appearance was in a comic strip called Thimble Theater in 1929. Although he did not go out to fight crime, he did eat his spinach, which gave him superhuman strength to carry out extraordinary feats fighting his nemesis, Bluto.
The Phantom makes its debut on February 17, 1936, it was the first hero to fight crime, it had no superpowers. The Phantom was the type of hero, who despite not having extraordinary abilities, faced crime with great bravery and defied death.
Detective Comics # 1, the first DC comic, is released in March 1937. Most stories have a certain somewhat racist character towards the Chinese, who are villains in the vast majority of stories contained in this issue.
One of the characters bears a striking resemblance to a superhero, known to all, Superman. From the home page of this story, it can be seen in its various designs how the hero, with a strong appearance and good actions, fights to save the girl.
SUPERHEROES: Golden Age (1938-1950).
It was an idyllic, utopian time. There was a clear stylistic distinction between good and evil. The superheroes were just lucky good characters, addicted to doing good, fighting and always defeating the villains, who were motivated by the search for money and / or the admiration of the world to commit their cruelest misdeeds.
This fight between good and bad, good and evil, is the reason why the comics of this time became a successful “boom”.
They fulfilled the dream of all children, and why not? from more than one adult too. Obtain powers beyond our imagination, overcome without any problem your enemies and the possibility of escaping from the “lifeless” neighborhoods in which they live in search of adventure.
A characteristic of the idealism of this time was that superheroes were used as a platform to instill and promote national pride, the patriotism of a nation, in the face of the Second World War that was taking place at that time.
Coming down literally from the sky to start the Golden Age comes Superman (Action Comics # 1), establishing himself as the greatest historical representative of superhero comics, which many of us know today.
The muscular one, with superpowers, a cape and a spandex close to the body to go out and fight crime. It made such an impact on readers that they couldn’t take their eyes off their adventures.
Superman set the tone for every superhero to be born, and he was even the first to have his own comic book, dedicated exclusively to him and his adventures, at a time when comic book characters were restricted from making appearances in comic book stories. only one edition or only in small fragments of various publications.
It should be noted and mentioned that the Golden Age also gave birth to the first female superhero, Wonder Woman (Wonder Woman) and let’s not forget the favorite of many and loved by all, Batman..
SUPERHEROES: Silver Age (1950-1971)
The stories about aliens and supernatural powers were notable elements in the colorful and abstract illustrations of this era. Thanks to the fact that during these years the first artificial satellites were sent into space and the first manned space trips to the moon began.
These historical events that occurred on earth gave rise to publishers taking advantage of what was happening in space to create new stories, allowing experimentation and exploration of more diverse genres, without a doubt, and by far the most successful. for the time it was horror. These horrifying stories rescued the comic book industry, which was in decline and in the direction of a dire fate, its extinction.
The influence of these horror stories was of such magnitude that it reached the big screen, catching the attention and serving as inspiration for several filmmakers of the time, including the acclaimed director John Carpenter …
The visual styles of these stories sought darker and / or surreal themes, in some copies it could be said that even disturbing.
SUPERHEROES: Bronze Age (1970-1984)
Enemies gradually become more difficult to confront, and others more powerful and wicked than their predecessors are born.
It is at this time that an antecedent that leaves its mark on the history of comics occurs, the irreversible death of Gwen Stacy, who was a recurring character within the Spider-Man comics and the main love of our friendly neighbor (Friendly Neighborhood Spider -Man). Her death brought to the comics a level of emotional realism never before seen in her narratives.
Around this time the writer Chris Claremont resurrects a series from the Silver Age that had been canceled.
This is about a group of mutants, better known to everyone as the X-Men. The Claremont wave of mutants retained divine powers, just like in the Silver Age, with the difference that in the Claremont wave they were rejected and frowned upon by humans, precisely because they had superpowers, it was the reason to be considered different from humans.
The fight of the X-Men for equality and eradication of prejudices against the genetic traits of the mutants, reminds us of the fight for civil rights, which had taken place years ago, between 1954 and 1968 in the United States, by the equality and acceptance of the black race before the law of this country.
The stories in the comics, little by little, were focusing on more realistic stories, just as their illustrations and aesthetics did.
Marvel taught us a facet of the Invincible Iron Man, Tony Stark, that we were unaware of and that this character was a struggling alcoholic.
SUPERHEROES: Dark Ages (1984-1998)
Writers show us that the world and life of a superhero was as harsh and dark as the enemies they face. The good began to have shades of darkness, and the evil a little light.
Watchmen’s legacy was so influential that it could be said to rival that of Superman. Their world was uncertain, their villains were faceless, the heroes were helpless and vulnerable. Watchmen gave birth to heroes who were led to commit questionable actions by the very nature of the world that they themselves defended. Alan Moore’s Watchmen is as much a celebration as the deconstruction of the superhero myth.
In The Killing Joke, Alan Moore shows us a Joker (Joker) who is more than just a laughing mockery, he introduces us to a terribly psychotic serial killer. The Killing Joke found the way for future villains in the comics and to rethink the existing ones until then. These villains are more attentive to psychological torture than to the hero’s death.
The Batman of earlier times was far removed from looking like the dark, mysterious figure haunted by his past and memories that we know today.
During this time the line between hero and villain was blurred, unclear, the writers of this time revealed that this line between good and evil never actually existed at all.
The independent publisher Image Comics was born in 1992 along with its flagship superhero, Spawn.
It had an unprecedented reception and popularity, and of great magnitude in the world of comics. His impact was so great that just a few years after his appearance a film adaptation was made.
Spawn alongside Prophet and The Savage Dragon, helped spark readers’ interest in independent comics. In this way they gave way and opened doors for new markets, superheroes, visions and stories, provided more options to choose readers different from the existing ones known, until then, which were MARVEL and DC comics.
The idea that a comic existed as a unique literary work led to the publication of several graphic novels, culminating in Art Spiegelman’s Maus in 1991, the first comic series to win a Pulitzer Prize in 1992.
Thanks to Maus, comics are finally considered a legitimate work of art.
Sin City reinvented black crime stories with detailed character styling, minimal colors, and a world of ambiguous black and white shapes.
The influence of the horror of the Silver Age can be seen in Venom with its unpleasant jaw with sharp teeth like blades and black body.
SUPERHEROES: Modern Age (1998 – Present)
Comics have expanded so much that they do not have a particular defined form, they have evolved into a nebulous mass of unimaginable wonders, without creative limits, like the characters that inhabit its pages.
Advanced technology in film, television and video games has created an unstoppable set of adaptations, which have caused an increase in the offer and variety of comics and genres.
The impact Image Comics had is still being felt and maintains its legacy as readers continue to take an interest in independent comics, fueled by the industry’s explosive commercialization.
Today many readers are no longer limited to industry giants Dc and Marvel, but are open-minded for the independent superhero industry.
We are at a time when everything is possible for comics, their characters, universes, and multiverses. The line between Cinema and Comic today is so narrow that some of the movies and series are adapted to comics.
Aunt May: Spider-Man. Sony Pictures. Releasing:
There are very few characters out there, flying around, saving old women like me. God knows, kids like Henry need a hero. Brave, who sacrifice themselves for other people, being an example for all of us. Everyone loves a hero. People line up to cheer them on … shout their names. And years later, they will tell how they were in the rain for hours just to take a look at the one who taught them to hold on for a second longer. I believe that there is a hero in all of us, who makes us be honest, gives us strength, makes us noble and finally allows us to die with pride. Although sometimes, we have to remain stable and give up the ones we love the most even in our dreams.
Credits:
Original idea, direction and production: Camilo Hernández
Script and edition: Andrés Fonrodona
Locution: Esteban Salinas
