The state of Modern Comics- Why classic comics are better than the modern ones 

Enjoying your banter on comics, boyz. One suggestion is to get the same audio level for you two. I listen at night and Reed is louder than Mike so can't set the volume to one good low level to hear you both.

Agree with aceofspades that the lower audio from Mike is an issue. I am constantly having to adjust my volume. But I really like your non-hype comics discussions. Please keep it up! Thank you !

Hey fellas, regular watcher here but not a frequent commenter. You make some real good points here though so I wanted to chime in. I've always been of them mind that if you want to tell YOUR story then you need to make new characters to do it. When you're working with established characters you need to tell a story that fits and will challenge them but not change the core of who they are.

I am not going to deny that what you read and enjoyed first will always be your benchmark/ standard. It even goes beyond comics, "the best pizza is the one I got as a kid form so and so...". Also, modern writers have inherited a continuity that has been fully developed and exhausted the limits in "steady-state" monthly periodical story telling. But I believe the talent is objectively worse relative the older crop based on two undeniable facts: 1) the Lower page rates (even if you factor in inflation) which shrinks your talent pool, as the more talented crop will not except lower rates and work in deferent fields. 2)The flood gates for independent/creator owned have been opened. The most talented modern writers are migrating to their own projects (Geoff Johns, Brubaker , Lemir, Rick Remender, Mark millar, fraction, Morrison, Hickman(50/50), Vaughan...). So it is, in my opinion , a combination of "less talented people working" and the hurdles Marvel/DC are facing due to their bloated universes and how ubiquitous the alternatives have become (Indies ,Manga,Videogames, social media...) makes modern comics in a bad position.

To be fair, modern entertainment as a whole is kinda dying. I've taken to watching old black & white films and listening to old time radio shows and they're SO much better than what we're getting from modern movies/shows etc. I can't stomach any of this new crap so I don't even bother with it. I don't gush over new movie trailers or get excited about the next big product to consume. I hunt down old media, download what shows I want to watch and create my own entertainment environment. I've also started writing the stories I want to see for my own entertainment. A lot of the problems probably comes with technology making everything easier. Back in the older days you actually had to live life and struggle and develop real world experiences that you'd bring into your storytelling. Nowadays things are so easy and people are so comfortable that companies no longer want to struggle to create something new and complex and interesting. Everything cost time, money, and investment. They want something cheap that you can mass produce that would allow you to bring in the most profit. Basically making entertainment the new equivalent of fast food. Cheap easy consumable product that is forgettable and quickly moved on from. Thats why there are so many gimmicks in Comics right now rather than anyone truly trying to create a new compelling story. They either just spam events, flood the market with books, or rely on the sales of fresh #1s.

Theres a youtube channel called The Fourth Age that covers a lot of this.

Modern writers don't understand heroism or how to write good and compelling storylines like the older comic book creators. Mangas rules the industry in nowadays.

I have comics from the 1970s and 80s and alot of them are poor quality. I think it's a medium that is difficult to generalise about as there are such a vast number of comics being published every month, the quality is always going to vary. There have always been great and poor comics. At the min I'm loving loads of titles and am on 20 to 25 titles a month (most ever for me). And I'm all in on All In too. The main problem I do have with modern comics is the pricing, which makes no sense to me. The high prices im sure put off alot of potential new readers, especially in the single issue market. So to me the pricing strategy seems very cynical and self defeating. Ghost Machine is where it's at for me at the minute - great comics, with high quality art and original storytelling for 3.99. Thanks, Stuart.

I’d rather pay $4-10 dollars on a classic issue of Claremont X-men or Frank Miller Daredevil. Why pay that much for a mediocre new comic when for the same price you can get a lot of the non-key issues of a lot of those classic runs. Or just take that money you would’ve spent on a few issues of a newer series and spend it on a trade paper back or epic collection. Not that there aren’t new comics I read and like, but there’s so much good stuff from the past to explore.

jack kirby created great characters for both marvel and dc

the travesty of Exceptional X-men is a prime example of whats wrong with comics today.

i can only speak for myself older comics have something special modern comics they're just meh same thing with movies/series

My personal opinion, people are looking for both nostalgia and authenticity in comics. Nostalgia for the classics becomes the modern stuff is soulless uncreative garbage you throwaway after reading. How do you buy 20 modern comics and only enjoy 5 of that 20? The old classics were authentic because creators put their hearts and souls into what they loved drawing and writing. You can tell when you read it. It was more experimental and creative. The stories had more depth (some were goofy yes but it was supposed to be about having fun), more adventures, more fun, deeper characterizations, stories with meaning. I can go on and on. Now everyone only wants to make money and become famous for creating something for five minutes of fame instead of creating something for the future. These modern creators sees themselves as more important than the characters, stories and teaching kids about something meaningful about themselves or the world they live in. Modern creators look down on comics, creators who came before them and comic fans. Modern creators don’t understand heroism because they have no life experiences. But it’s not all the creators fault. The publishers lack editorial integrity and pay very low wages so of course cheap creators are going to produce low standard work

hah says you i'm going to give you an example of how wrong you are dc from 1952 to 1958 wrote several different stories about Superman's and Batman's first meeting i mean come on this inconsistency is very both anoying and ridiculous that being said they are good stories