# When did DC Comics get away from the campiness? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [December 3, 2019, 3:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-did-dc-comics-get-away-from-the-campiness/844295 "2019-12-03T03:41:14Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Spoons](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spoons/32/3141_2.png) [@Spoons](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spoons)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2019, 8:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-did-dc-comics-get-away-from-the-campiness/844295/21 "2019-12-18T08:37:32Z")
> [@kaylasdad99](#): > > Your post makes no sense. The Adam West/Burt Ward Batman TV show was the BEST TV show EVER. It’s when they decided that Batman was going to be all serious that they ruined it. Have you tried the recent _[Batman '66](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Batman_%2766)_ comics/graphic novels? They’re pretty close to the Detective Comics that I read as a child back in the 1960s, all of which featured the campy Batman and Robin, the familiar TV villains, and Batgirl. They’re fun, and though I’ve read the Frank Miller “Dark Knight” stories (and enjoyed them), _Batman '66_ is a nice throwback to the campy Batman comics I remember as a child. ---
**Author:** ![nightshadea](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/7ba0ec/32.png) [@nightshadea](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nightshadea)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2019, 9:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-did-dc-comics-get-away-from-the-campiness/844295/22 "2019-12-18T09:25:14Z")
i thought the “batman brave and the bold” comic/tv series was a nice middle ground between the 60s batman and the dark knight era You have to remember the comics code authority was in charge since the congressional hearings in the 50s until the"young turks" in marvel broke it in the late 70s and the rules changed (they wanted to kill the harry Osbourne was addicted to prescription amphetamines stan lee gave them a middle finger and printed them without their ok ) anyway and that’s, when comics got more real with things like spiderman taking on street pimps and dealers and facing the effects of meth abuse (the above Osbourne story) hell even green arrow in the 80s, took ok human trafficking and illegal immigration abuses ---
**Author:** ![adaher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/dec6dc/32.png) [@adaher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/adaher)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2019, 11:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-did-dc-comics-get-away-from-the-campiness/844295/23 "2019-12-18T11:46:53Z")
The TV show was perfect. Whether or not campiness is good is all in the intelligence of the writing. I’m sure the modern Batman 66 series is brilliant. And the TV show was brilliant. But the Batman comics of the time were not. Now as a kid, I remember Batman getting good right after the Year One series. ---
**Author:** ![Horatio\_Hellpop](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e5b9ba/32.png) [@Horatio\_Hellpop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Horatio_Hellpop)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2019, 12:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-did-dc-comics-get-away-from-the-campiness/844295/24 "2019-12-18T12:29:23Z")
> [@adaher](#): > > You know, that reminds me, at one of my local convenience stores comics are still sold and it got me wondering: are comics still handdrawn or are they using computer graphics? Because it looks a ton more detailed and sharper now. They’re pretty much all computer colored; Marvel bought out Malibu Comics 25-30 years ago to acquire their computer coloring process. I don’t think they use WACOM tablets to draw the pages. For as much sense as it would make to do so, most comics artists have a separate revenue stream from reselling the original pages, which drawing electronically would put a serious crimp in. One colorist made [a very persuasive case](https://www.comicsbeat.com/frank-miller-james-harvey-the-art-of-coloring-the-artists-reputation-and-a-mystery/) for computer coloring ruining Frank Miller’s art–it does–but there’s really no going back. ---
**Author:** ![adaher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/dec6dc/32.png) [@adaher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/adaher)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2019, 12:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-did-dc-comics-get-away-from-the-campiness/844295/25 "2019-12-18T12:38:42Z")
Ah, Malibu. I remember when those first came out how much better they looked than everyone else’s. They also had great plots, great characters, and great crossovers. ---
**Author:** ![Jonathan\_Chance](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jonathan_chance/32/701_2.png) [@Jonathan\_Chance](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jonathan_Chance)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2019, 12:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-did-dc-comics-get-away-from-the-campiness/844295/26 "2019-12-18T12:46:16Z")
> [@bmoak](#): > > In the 50s and 60s, DC was less of a unified company and more of a series of semi-connected editor-run fiefdoms. Since Mort Weisinger edited all the Superman titles (and also edited the Batman titles in the 50s), he was basically first-amongst-equals and his ideas about how comics should be had a lot of pull at DC, and his retirement opened up room for new ideas. Yeah, in one of his ‘History of Comics’ comics, Fred Hembeck reported that Weisinger’s approach to storylines was to ask her son and his friend what adventures they thought Superman should go on and work with that. “I want to see Superman as an indian chief!” “I want superman to fight pirates!” And so forth. Very kid-centric and aimed at a particular audience of ten-year-old boys. ---
**Author:** ![adaher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/dec6dc/32.png) [@adaher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/adaher)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2019, 12:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-did-dc-comics-get-away-from-the-campiness/844295/27 "2019-12-18T12:57:24Z")
Funny thing is, it seems like we’re back to that with a lot of “what if” type series, but those what if type series tend to really explore the implications of the scenarios, even if it takes them to a very dark place. The problem with the way they did it in the Silver Age is that no matter how absurd the premise, it still had a predictable ending and everything was back to normal at the end of the story. So you’d get something like, “Batman hated by Robin!” but it was all just a misunderstanding. ---
**Author:** ![Damuri\_Ajashi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/898d66/32.png) [@Damuri\_Ajashi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Damuri_Ajashi)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2019, 2:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-did-dc-comics-get-away-from-the-campiness/844295/28 "2019-12-18T14:25:40Z")
I know Batman was already pretty good by the time I started reading comics in the 70’s. ---
**Author:** ![Damuri\_Ajashi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/898d66/32.png) [@Damuri\_Ajashi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Damuri_Ajashi)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2019, 2:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-did-dc-comics-get-away-from-the-campiness/844295/29 "2019-12-18T14:26:50Z")
> [@adaher](#): > > Funny thing is, it seems like we’re back to that with a lot of “what if” type series, but those what if type series tend to really explore the implications of the scenarios, even if it takes them to a very dark place. The problem with the way they did it in the Silver Age is that no matter how absurd the premise, it still had a predictable ending and everything was back to normal at the end of the story. So you’d get something like, “Batman hated by Robin!” but it was all just a misunderstanding. Wasn’t there a what if comic book series by marvel? ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2019, 2:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-did-dc-comics-get-away-from-the-campiness/844295/30 "2019-12-18T14:31:40Z")
> [@Damuri\_Ajashi](#): > > Wasn’t there a what if comic book series by marvel? Yes. And DC used to run a LOT of “imaginary” stories outside of their continuity. ---
**Author:** ![E-DUB](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/e-dub/32/403_2.png) [@E-DUB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/E-DUB)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2019, 3:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-did-dc-comics-get-away-from-the-campiness/844295/31 "2019-12-18T15:39:42Z")
> [@CalMeacham](#): > > Yes. And DC used to run a LOT of “imaginary” stories outside of their continuity. Check out “What If” #44. [https://www.reddit.com/r/comicbooks/comments/5rhh0v/prescient\_speech\_by\_captain\_america\_from\_what\_if/](https://www.reddit.com/r/comicbooks/comments/5rhh0v/prescient_speech_by_captain_america_from_what_if/) ---
**Author:** ![adaher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/dec6dc/32.png) [@adaher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/adaher)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2019, 8:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-did-dc-comics-get-away-from-the-campiness/844295/32 "2019-12-18T20:57:16Z")
> [@Damuri\_Ajashi](#): > > Wasn’t there a what if comic book series by marvel? Yeah, but now I get the impression that they are doing whole series. Such as having “Superior Spiderman” where Doc Ock kils Spiderman and takes over his body, but there’s still Spiderman going on in other comics. ---
**Author:** ![Miller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miller/32/481_2.png) [@Miller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miller)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2019, 9:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-did-dc-comics-get-away-from-the-campiness/844295/33 "2019-12-18T21:10:02Z")
> [@adaher](#): > > Yeah, but now I get the impression that they are doing whole series. Such as having “Superior Spiderman” where Doc Ock kils Spiderman and takes over his body, but there’s still Spiderman going on in other comics. _Superior Spider-Man_ wasn’t an alternate world story, it was main continuity Marvel. The story arc lasted for about a year, and any appearance by Spider-Man during that time was actually Octopus in Spider-Man’s body. Eventually, of course, Peter Parker regained control over his body and forced Otto’s mind out, but “arrogant prick Spider-Man” was popular enough that they eventually conceived a way to bring that Spider-Man back into current continuity, while also keeping Peter Parker’s Spider-Man around. That said, they have been running comic series that take place in alternate universes. For example, the _Renew Your Vows_ title takes place in an alternate universe where Peter and Mary Jane have a kid, and all three of them have spider powers and go out fighting crime as a family. ---
**Author:** ![KneadToKnow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kneadtoknow/32/3999_2.png) [@KneadToKnow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KneadToKnow)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2019, 9:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-did-dc-comics-get-away-from-the-campiness/844295/34 "2019-12-18T21:38:36Z")
> [@Dale\_Sams](#): > > but the short answer is: Wolfmans Teen Titans and Alan Moore. I would add to that short list of writers Denny O’Neil, Frank Miller, and Steve Englehart (who is almost single-handedly responsible for the “Dark Knight” we know today). I would also beg you to consider Marv Wolfman and George Perez as equally responsible for the Teen Titans becoming what they became. ---
**Author:** ![KneadToKnow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kneadtoknow/32/3999_2.png) [@KneadToKnow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KneadToKnow)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2019, 9:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-did-dc-comics-get-away-from-the-campiness/844295/35 "2019-12-18T21:55:05Z")
I forgot what I came in to say, which is that comics history is broadly grouped into eras as follows: [Golden Age](https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/UsefulNotes/TheGoldenAgeOfComicBooks) [Silver Age](https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/UsefulNotes/TheSilverAgeOfComicBooks) [Bronze Age](https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/UsefulNotes/TheBronzeAgeOfComicBooks) [Dark Age](https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/UsefulNotes/TheDarkAgeOfComicBooks) [Modern Age](https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/UsefulNotes/TheModernAgeOfComicBooks) The OP’s question relates to the transition from the Silver Age to the Bronze Age, and is one of the harder points to pin down to a single date (the transition from the Bronze Age to the Dark Age is even harder, as it took longer, but that’s a different discussion). I myself would point to the Denny O’Neil run on Green Lantern/Green Arrow as the point the Bronze Age began for DC. ---
**Author:** ![Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bosda_di_chi_of_tricor/32/16845_2.png) [@Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosda_Di_Chi_of_Tricor)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2019, 10:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-did-dc-comics-get-away-from-the-campiness/844295/36 "2019-12-18T22:37:14Z")
The change started with Carmine Infantino’s Batman. Darker, grittier, & reflected America’s rising crime rates. ---
**Author:** ![hogarth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hogarth/32/1773_2.png) [@hogarth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hogarth)\ **Post date:** [December 19, 2019, 6:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-did-dc-comics-get-away-from-the-campiness/844295/37 "2019-12-19T06:39:47Z")
> [@adaher](#): > > The problem with the way they did it in the Silver Age is that no matter how absurd the premise, it still had a predictable ending and everything was back to normal at the end of the story. So you’d get something like, “Batman hated by Robin!” but it was all just a misunderstanding. I have a Marvel collection of early Fantastic Four comics and some of the stories were pretty silly. But I once looked through one of DC’s collections of Silver Age JLA comics, and the stories were downright stupid, like the JLA getting turned into babies, or the JLA’s costumes coming to life and committing crimes. And in the end, Green Lantern turns everything back to normal by using his ring to project green anti-baby-izing radiation or something equally nonsensical. ---
**Author:** ![Go\_Arachnid\_Laser\_1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/b2d939/32.png) [@Go\_Arachnid\_Laser\_1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Go_Arachnid_Laser_1)\ **Post date:** [December 19, 2019, 7:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-did-dc-comics-get-away-from-the-campiness/844295/38 "2019-12-19T07:39:33Z")
I’m going with Flash 163 ‘The Flash of Two Worlds’, September 1961. Having Barry Allen met the Golden Age Flash was the first complex attempt at meta narrative. ---
**Author:** ![MrAtoz](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@MrAtoz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrAtoz)\ **Post date:** [December 19, 2019, 2:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-did-dc-comics-get-away-from-the-campiness/844295/39 "2019-12-19T14:25:02Z")
> [@hogarth](#): > > I have a Marvel collection of early Fantastic Four comics and some of the stories were pretty silly. But I once looked through one of DC’s collections of Silver Age JLA comics, and the stories were downright stupid, **like the JLA getting turned into babies** , or the JLA’s costumes coming to life and committing crimes. And in the end, Green Lantern turns everything back to normal by using his ring to project green anti-baby-izing radiation or something equally nonsensical. My bolding. _Somebody_ at Silver Age DC really liked the idea of grown-up heroes being turned into babies, because it happened all the time, to all sorts of different characters. It seemed to happen to the Legion of Super-Heroes like twice a year or so. And the baby-ized characters always talked in a weird patois that was nothing at all like real children speak when they’re developing language skills (e.g., “Me is Superboy!”). Had E. Nelson Bridwell never met a toddler? ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [December 19, 2019, 5:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-did-dc-comics-get-away-from-the-campiness/844295/40 "2019-12-19T17:04:34Z")
> [@hogarth](#): > > I have a Marvel collection of early Fantastic Four comics and some of the stories were pretty silly. But I once looked through one of DC’s collections of Silver Age JLA comics, and the stories were downright stupid, like the JLA getting turned into babies, or the JLA’s costumes coming to life and committing crimes. And in the end, Green Lantern turns everything back to normal by using his ring to project green anti-baby-izing radiation or something equally nonsensical. One of my favorites - I forget which superhero it was - had this craggy-faced alien steal the entire Earth because he wanted to enter it into a “weirdest planet” contest against other aliens because the coast of Maryland was identical to a silhouette of his face. He was defeated when the hero discovered what the unique feature he was interested in was, and had the US military blow up the coastline to destroy the resemblance. :smack: [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-did-dc-comics-get-away-from-the-campiness/844295.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-did-dc-comics-get-away-from-the-campiness/844295.md?page=3)