I Miss the 90s

[Artistsean]

Is there anything you miss about comics in the 90s?
I was reading an issue of Ultra Force I got from the Dollar Tree, thats right the Dollar Tree now has old comics for low prices, and I remembered when Ultra Force and Prime were so popular, and how WildCATs had their own cartoon, etc. And I felt a little nostalgic.

Even though the 90s became the era where comics became all about the art and big fights for no real reason, that is when I began reading comics. Does anyone have any fond memories or things they miss from then?

I can start, sort of, I remember comic's adventures seeming less grand scale and eventfull. Not that it was meaningless stories or that todays stories are bad, just the stories didn't seem to be one epic life or death struggle after another.
Oh! A different, perhaps better example:
I miss how comics could be big comic stories, superheroes could wear spandex and bright colorful costumes and fight other comic book looking characters. The stories seem a little more realistic today, or as much as you can in a comic. And again, in no way am I saying the 90s were better or that todays comics are worse or better. Just remembering comics in the 90s

Does anyone else have any stories or things from the 90s comics they miss?

 

[bullets]

I was a teenager in the nineties and have some nostalgia from that time. I read almost anything I could get my hands on.

I remember the Xmen relaunched and I really enjoyed the artwork in those days. When Superman died ,that was a huge deal at the time, even though the four supermen weren't that great it was exciting to see how that was going to play out. Then Batman getting paralyzed by Bane. I think the Knightfall saga wasn't as popular but I enjoyed reading it. Also Spawn was cool and I loved collecting those action figures.

 

[GREEN =w= DAY]

i was in grade school throughout the 90s and i remember starting to get into comics around '91 or '92 when i was about 7 years old. i had so many comics back then. and yeah, the 90s was a great era for comics. i also remember collecting the X-Men and Marvel Masterpieces card sets. those were awesome! Jim Lee's art for X-Men is still my favorite to this very day.

it was also the decade when we got awesome animated series like Batman, Spiderman, and X-Men. back when Fox atually had great cartoons.

 

[Artistsean]

Yeah, comic trading cards were HUGE back then. And for whatever reason I got a lot of trading cards, maybe the same one as why I started getting comics in the first place (as art I liked that I could carry with me everywhere). I had the Marvel cards, like Xavier's mutant files type cards or the Marvel Masterpeice cards. I had the DC classic cards that were about characters from the 80s and seemed old but probably werent. I remember getting cards in the box with action figures like in the X-men toys. I remember even buying ones of Spawn.
the 90s was also when every network tried to get the rights to animated lots of comics in a Saturday or Sunday morning cartoon show. There was WildCATs and X-Men (both designed by Jim Lee, Ultraforce, Batman, Spider-Man, and others I am sure I am not remembering.

I also remember getting comics in BULK from stores like Toys R Us and Cost Co. I got so many of the Zero Hour in bulk from Cost Co. Thats where I got issues about Superman (back from the dead) fighting this guy with metal tenticals. Stories of Batman, many retelling his origins. Green Lantern (Kyle Rayner) versus Paralax. Flash, etc. I got a lot of comics from Marvel's New Universe like Night Mask #4, or Psi-Force, and Spitfire.
And I remember stores like Ralphs, Save Ons, Vons, and other grocery stores having a rack right up front by the cash registers where they had comics. And i would buy one that looked good to me, like Spider-Man versus Puma, or the Captain America turns into a Werewolf (issue 4 of 5).
And, for now, one last memory. I used to get this magazine called Hero Illustrated. It was a comic magazine, it was even canceled while I was getting it in the mail mid subscription. So they sent me the remainder in the form of Entertainment Magazine.
(And now I miss Wizard Magazine too).

 

[Mace Dolex]

Ah yes the 90's for comics was sort of a renaissance, the hype over Superman's death really made comics cool for the average joe that there was a new comic book store opening in every corner it seemed.

Lots of comic book companies were popping up too with knock-offs left and right and Wizard magazine and to a lesser extent Hero magazine were the source for all comic information before the internet.

And lots of superhero cartoons seemed to dominate the afternoon and Saturday schedules, damn those were good times, but by '97-'98 it started to taper off.

Oh yeah and comics were cheap too from $1 to $1.99.

 

[The Question]

The 90s get a lot of **** for Rob Liefeld's contributions, but the 90s were also the time of the indy boom in comics. Maus was getting mainstream respect, books like Ghostworld came out, and DC was publishing the kinds of books you'd normally only ever see as indy titles before, like Sandman. It had a lot of high profile ********, but that decade was definitely the start of mainstream media's greater awareness of the artistic merits of the medium.

 

[WolfCypher]

I miss when Spawn was a new and exciting character. I miss when we got major "Summer Blockbuster Events" that weren't centered around the Avengers all the time (Onslaught...yeah, it sucked, but wha? An X-MEN, NON-AVENGERS event?!!)

That's about it, really. 90s comics were just terrible. I have a few dirty, guilty pleasures, but nothing from the 90s I really miss.

 

[Artistsean]

I thought, and sometimes still think, that most of the 90s for comics weren't the best. But from time to time i look back on something and miss it.

Something else about the 90s I miss is how comics didn't seem like they were stories that began and finished in a 6-12 issue story arc made for a graphic novel. Back then it seemed more like stories went on and on and on. And the graphic novels were collections of some of the issues.
Not that today the stories are bad or the graphic novels are, merely back then it felt like they were made less for graphic novels.

 

[Mace Dolex]

^ yep in fact the bookstore Waldenbooks had but a tiny section of graphic novels which mostly consisted of Batman Year One, DKR, Marvel Masterworks, a far cry with how Barnes & Noble has a larger section devoted to comics now.

 

[Marcdachamp]

A lot of the good stuff has been making a come back, lately. Joe MAD is drawing Avenging Spider-Man, Untold Tales is getting an omnibus and we have a Scarlet Spider ongoing.

And the latest Onslaught mini from Sean McKeever was pretty awesome.

 

[Mace Dolex]

Joe Madureira is back to drawing comics? hmm better check that out.

J.Scott Campbell is another 90's artist who because of his awesome talent, a nostalgia for 80's cartoons and a knack for drawing hot babes is what got me interested in Gen 13, now the comic is completely different that I don't know if it's still being published.

 

[RockSP]

Yeah this idea some have that there were no good comics in the 90's is silly. Just like there are crap comics now and also good ones...same thing back then.

 

[GREEN =w= DAY]

i most vivdly remember Marvel's 2099 run w/ Spiderman, Hulk, X-Men, etc.

 

[Mace Dolex]

^ Marvel's 2099 line was utter crap, I was caught up in the hype that I bought Punisher 2099 #1 with it's shiny foil cover now looking back what was I thinking since I don't even like the regular 616 Punisher version.

 

[Artistsean]

I remember seeing X-Men 2099 in the back of one of the comics' subscription guides... remember those? Thing was holding it up I think.
And so I got it, thinking it would be future Cyclops and Wolverine and the others, not considering how far in the future it meant, and when I got it it wasn't. But it had some nice art. When the subscription ran out that's where it ended for me, I lost track of it... at the time I wasn't going to a local comic store because they seemed elusive and mysterious. But apparently Spider-Man 2099 was good because he is still around right?

 

[TruerToTheCore]

I do not. 90s were the worst area for comics so far.

 

[Watchman]

I do not. 90s were the worst area for comics so far.

Well that's just not true. I think the 90's Image art style and their copycats are trash but there was plenty of amazing work.

 

[The Question]

Yeah, as I said earlier, the horrible things in the 90s have gotten a lot of focus lately because they're from the childhoods of most of the current generation of comic readers, but they were also a time where works from other genres besides super heroes started to get a foothold in the mainstream, which is a very important step in the development of any artistic medium.

 

[random_havoc]

yeah people always hate on 90s comics but there was some good stuff there. It may not have had the depth comics do now (okay, it definitely didn't) but there was still interesting characters and some of the most dynamic art ever. Pitt was a really good comic whose main problem was the penciller/ creators lack of getting it out even remotely on time. Loved series 1 of wildcats, especially the part written by Moore. Stormwatch was good too for the first 20 issues or so. I also liked the Cyberforce stuff (particularly when drawn by Finch). As for DC/Marvel I enjoyed Amalgam. It was a like a fanboy came up with that idea "Hey what if we mashed together a bunch of Marvel and DC characters!" Man, wish that happened again, or at least some more crossovers.
I admit there was a lot of crap too but there were some good highlights.

 

[KingMob]

Its just like any decade really. Good and bad. Its just that the bad in the 90s was really terrible. So, that stands out more.

 

[Artistsean]

Yeah, just like I am sure this era in comics will be looked at as the age of "Event" stories. Doesn't mean the stories were bad or that this era in comics was bad at all.
This thread isn't about wanting things to go back to the way they were, just a nostalgic look back at the 90s.
I remember finding out about comics back then. My mother's friend's son showed me Rob Liefield's X-Force #1. My cousin showed me Spawn #1. I learned about Marvel characters in 3rd grade or something from a kid who brought the Marvel Handbook pages for show and tell.
I LOVED Amalgam I would LOVE if they did it again just for fun. Do some new combinations like Wolverine + Lobo or Deadpool + Lobo. Silver Surfer + Green Lantern, etc. They could also bring back the DC/Marvel team up books too. See Hal Jordan team up with Silver Surfer, see a rematch between Darksied and his army on Apocalypse versus Galactus and his heralds.

 

[Cobblepot]

Batman by Doug Moench (writer), Kelley Jones (penciller) was weird but awesome stuff! DC really took a big leap here. I also loved the switch to glossy and better paper back then.

http://goodcomics.comicbookresources.com/2010/04/20/comics-you-should-own-flashback-batman-515-552/

Good times!

 

[Matt.S99]

I wish I was my age in the 90's.(Im 19 now). Things were so cool and flashy then. Maybe not the best in terms of art, but it all fit the times they were in.

 

[The Morningstar]

The 90s had a lot of great comics. They were just overshadowed by all the **** comics.

 

[Watchman]

Batman by Doug Moench (writer), Kelley Jones (penciller) was weird but awesome stuff! DC really took a big leap here. I also loved the switch to glossy and better paper back then.

I would love to see this run get collected. Some of my all time favorite Batman work.