Case 1

Jessie Case
Period 6
Mr. Henriksen
Research Paper (revision)
21 December 2016
The Evolution of Marvel
Marvel Comics has long been an American icon; originally called Timely Comics, the
company was created in 1938 by Martin Goodman under his umbrella publishing company.
Today if you were to ask the question, How would you describe the Marvel company? to any
random bystander, your answers can vary from being described as a movie company, or a comic
book company, or as a company that created superheroes. My first memory with Marvel was in
2010 with the release of Iron Man 2. At the time I believe I was 10 years old and I remember my
brother and I had gone to see it in the movie theater. As we were walking out I was listening to
the reviews of the people around me. There were comments of all different varieties, and I could
hear the disappointed comments saying how they wished the movie could live up to the
expectation the comics set and remarks of approval stating the individual's favorite part of the
movie and how they thought the movie was so cool all the while never mentioning the source of
which the movie was based off of. I will trace Marvels history and demonstrate the evolution of
the company from its origin as a comic book company, I will talk about key events and people
that helped make up the different eras of the comic book history and helped make Marvel into
the successful company it has become.

The comic book industry is divided into three ages, historians have
separated the history of American comic books into eras that consist of the

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Golden Age (1938-1950), the Silver Age (1956-1970), the Bronze Age
(1970-1985). There are specific milestones, trends, and pivotal events that
defined the comics medium during each of these eras.(Comics Timeline)

The beginning of the comic industry is known as the Golden age. This time period was
the most successful time of the industry. Starting in 1939 with the publication of Marvel Comics
#1 under Martin Goodman's Timely Comics umbrella and the debut of Jerry Siegel and Joe
Schuster's Superman in Action Comics #1, published by DC Comics predecessor Detective
Comics, Inc. Through these two events superhero comics subsequently take America by storm
(Miller, John Jackson)." During the Golden Age many of today's favorite characters were
created such as DC Comics Superman, and because of the wide success of Superman. In 1941
DC Comics Batman is created by Bob Kane and Bill Finger, and William Moulton Marston
created Wonder Woman, she is one of the few strong female characters appearing in comic
books, she becomes an icon of the liberated woman (Comics Timeline).
During the Golden Age many famous and loved characters were introduced. But
Timely Comics most well known character of that time was Captain America who was created
by Joe Simon and Jack Kirby. Timely characters were often portrayed as fighting against the
Nazis and the Japanese even before the United States entered World War II. (Deforest)But soon
after the war ended sales declined and a number of superhero titles were cancelled due to
publishers focusing on genre comics (science fiction, horror, western, romance). Then in the
1950s fears of juvenile delinquency lead media critics and legislators to scrutinize the role of
comic books in American life which in turn marks the ends Golden Age.
After a five year absence many of the Golden Age characters such as The Flash were
reintroduced in 1956 sparking a short lived superhero revival which in turn jump starts what

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historians call the Silver Age. During this era there were many events that distinguished this
period of time for the industry but there were also a couple of important individuals that were
vital to the survival of Marvel.
Stan Lee is one name that is famous to the whole comic industry, as he is known as the
father of modern comics to many and rightly so. In the 1950s Lee was introduced to the comic
industry, and at this time the industry was facing a litany of charges from politicians and
parental groups concerning the allegedly corrupting influence of comic books on American youth
(Genter 953). Because of this publishers were forced to introduce new and less controversial
genres in hopes of boosting declining sales. But through the creation of DC comics The Justice
League of America the comic industry was brought into what many call the Silver Age of the
comic industry.
In light of DCs success, Martin Goodman, founder and creator of Timely Comics,
decided he wanted to challenge his rivals success. Goodman gave this challenge to Lee who,
with the help of artist Jack Kirby, took this challenge and created The Fantastic Four. The result
was a revolution in the comic book industry that transformed the mildly successful Timely
Comics into the popular franchise known as Marvel Comics.
This series was much more popular than other series of the same time period because
instead of using heroes that were notorious for being extremely one-dimensional in terms of their
attitudes and behaviors. One example of this is Superman who was notorious for foiling a bank
robbers plan, beating them up, and throwing them behind bars with little dialogue in between.
Even when dialogue was spoken, he would literally state what he was doing and how he was
going to do it, right in front of the bad guy. Because of this these characters werent known for
being very relatable to their audience. But through the creation of The Fantastic Four audiences

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were introduced to a new type of superhero who also carried new original story lines. Tim
DeForest describes this as With the release of Fantastic Four... readers were introduced to a
superheroic setting that was, nevertheless, rooted in the real world. Lee and Kirby attempted to
make their comic book characters more original by allowing them to interact with each other in a
realistic fashion, including heroes often fighting or arguing with each other. (DeForest) Lee
revolutionized the way characters behaved in the stories by making them more relatable to the
audience. Steve Garcia, a current Marvel comic writer, describes this as Lees way of shaping
the way comic books have evolved from simple stories to intricate, more relevant works of
literature... Lees style of writing made those characters shine in a new light, making them more
three-dimensional than the characters introduced before them(Garcia). Lee also co-created lots
of different characters and series including The Invincible Iron Man, The Incredible Hulk, The
Mighty Thor, and Lees brightest creation The Amazing Spider-Man.
Lee has a unique talent in how he presented his writing, but he couldnt have been as
successful with the comics he published if not for artist Jack Kirby also referred to as the king
of comics(Heller). At the age of 22 Kirby met author/artist Joe Simon and created many pieces
for Fox Feature Syndicate but it was when they both were hired by Timely Comics that the two
were reunited and conceived Captain America. He was the superhero that started a legacy and
provided a path for many more characters and superheros to be created. There were many
reasons that the Captain America series were so popular compared to any of Kirby and Simons
other works. In an article written by comic book enthusiasts Jason Heller and Noel Murray they
describe the series success as such

The Captain America stories had a focus and depth that had largely been lacking
from Simon and Kirbys earlier stabs at superheroes. Beginning with the

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drawing of Cap socking Adolf Hitler on the jaw on the first issues cover, these
comics had a livewire energy and a sense of purpose, enhanced by Simon and
Kirbys immediate additions to the Captain America mythology: boy sidekick
Bucky and the fiendish villain Red Skull. A lot of Golden Age superhero comics
feel overly stiff, but Simon and Kirbys Captain America comics have a
casualness in the dialogue and a funkiness in the drawing (Heller).

After the success of the series Simon and Kirby left Timely Comics to gain more wealth
with rival company National comics, later to become DC Comics. There they produced
many more popular series until world war II where they slowly lost touch with each other
while fighting in the war. After the war ended Kirby found success in the business as a
freelance artist where he established his own style of art with a blockier line, deeper
shadows, and dramatic forced angles, and he applied that technique to some of the Silver
Age adventures. Though it was in 1961 after Kirby had been working for Atlas Comics, a
re-branded incarnation of Timely, him and Stan Lee co-created The Fantastic Four in a
successful attempt to revive the company.
I have only demonstrated a small piece of the company's history but have
presented what I view as some of the most vital events and people in its history, such as
how the company originated and who started it which began what is known as the
Golden Age. I have also introduced you to two major players of the Silver Age Jack
Kirby and Stan Lee. and have also included many events that took place during the era.
Through this I believe that I have successfully introduced the basis of how the company
Marvel has come to be.

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Works Cited
Heller, Jason. "A beginner's guide to the King Of Comics, Jack Kirby." The A.V. Club.
A.V. Club , 29 Aug. 2013. Web. 19 Dec. 2016.

Garcia, Steve. "The Father of Modern Comics: How Stan Lee Changed the Industry."
Comic Vine. Gamespot, 30 Mar. 2012. Web. 04 Dec. 2016.

Deforest, Tim. "Marvel Comics." Encyclopedia Britannica Online. Encyclopedia

Britannica, 09 Oct. 2014. Web. 20 Nov. 2016.

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Genter, Robert. "With Great Power Comes Great Responsibility: Cold War Culture And
The Birth Of Marvel Comics." Journal Of Popular Culture 40.6 (2007): 953-978.
Academic Search Premier. Web. 28 Nov. 2016.

"Comics Timeline." Omeka RSS. J. Murray Atkins Library, n.d. Web. 14 Dec. 2016.