With Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice in theaters March 25th, words like "dark" and "mature" are being used. A lot of people point to 1986's The Dark Knight Returns as the start of a "Grim and Gritty" approach to comic books.
Not so much, though. Here are some thoughts on that. Share yours in the comments.
Let's look at the X-books a second. Beneath the four-color surface is a basic theme of tolerance. The X-Men bring up the topic of race relations, discrimination and bigotry. Charles Xavier represents Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and Magneto represents Malcolm X. That's a pretty serious topic for comics. It's been there since the beginning; and, over the years has only deepened with the Mutant Registration Act and the Legacy Virus. Social injustices presented in comic books. The next logical step is obviously the graphic novel "Maus".
The Punisher was introduced years before The Dark Knight Returns. Former Marine Frank Castle, who wages a literal war on crime, rather than a metaphorical one by striking fear in the hearts of criminals was introduced in the early '70's.
Bucky. Uncle Ben. While tragic, those deaths served a purpose. In 1973, when it was decided that Gwen Stacy had reached the pinnacle of her purpose, death was once again introduced to Spider-Man. This wasn't a motivational death. Okay, so maybe it motivated him toward vengeance against The Green Goblin. Behind the scenes it was a move to keep Peter Parker single and appealing to his audience. Stop and think about the way she died. It almost seems like a Kobiyashi Maru - the no-win situation. There was no way Peter could save her. Not even by cheating.
Dennis O'Neil and Neal Adams made their mark on comics in the Bronze Age. From Batman to the X-Men, Teen Titans to Green Lantern/Green Arrow. Following the cancellation of the '66 live action Batman television series, they brought him back to his Golden Age Gothic roots with this and other stories. This was from 1969 on, until settling comfortable into the '70's and the full Bronze Age. You might say that it was brought BACK in 1986.
It was epic and landmark. Hal Jordan was a white man, working for blue men. What was he doing for the black man? The "Hard-Travellin' Heroes" tackled race, religion, politics and drugs. Remember that cover with Speedy? Yeah, that was the 1970's. I would stretch the use of the term "grim and gritty" to include mature, adult topics rather than just another issue where a super villain hatches a plot and takes a female hostage. What say you?
