What was it like for you, growing up as a comic fan?

[DrNewGod]

A poll of CBR member ages on the DC Forum got me wondering about something. How varied is the experience you grew up with as a comic fan?

Some of us grew up in times when most teachers seemed determined to stamp comics reading out, and bullying jocks seemed determined to stamp comics readers out. These days, the comics provide the IP of some of the most valuable franchises in Hollywood's history. I've got to think that makes for a very different experience than in times past. So what was it like for you?

[KOSLOX]

I grew up in the 90s (graduated in 1999). I didn't know anyone, boys at least, that didn't read at least some comics, mostly X-Men or Image. I don't really remember any sort of comics related stigma. I wrestled and played football and most of my team regularly talked pretty openly about what they were reading or read.

Pretty much everyone watched Spider-Man, and X-Men when they were younger and quite a few watched The Maxx and Spawn, .

[seismic-2]

Remember that in the 1950s, comic book titles sold in the millions every month. Spinner racks were in all the food and drug stores. And they were all in color, for a dime!

[John Ossie]

No-one really cared one way or the other, at least in my experience. I knew several fans and one of them was the best man to my wedding so I have happy memories of comic reading as a kid. I grew up in the 1990s.

[CaptCleghorn]

It's tough to pick an option. I grew up in the 70s. I actually graduated HS the same year as the That 70's Show characters. I can't say comics were frowned upon, but they weren't exactly a respectable hobby then. They were definitely something you were expected to outgrow. i DID KNOW A few fans who were basically a source for back issues. This was before most comic shops.

[TriggerWarning]

1980's. Had to hide the fact I was reading comics from my parents and schoolmates. Parents thought it was little kid stuff and I was wasting my time. The only people who read comics at school were those looking for a reason to be picked on.

[DrNewGod]

1980's. Had to hide the fact I was reading comics from my parents and schoolmates. Parents thought it was little kid stuff and I was wasting my time. The only people who read comics at school were those looking for a reason to be picked on.

My story and as very similar. When I was about 15, my mother was furious when she calculated what I'd spent on my collection.

[Elmo]

My mom used to buy me comic books but I don't think anyone else in my family aside from an uncle or two was happy that I read them, as a kid I remember other kids used to be jealous of all the comics I used to bring into school on some days and I had a lot of pals that I would trade comics with. Nowadays as a young adult I feel an immense stigma because I don't think people understand why I appreciate comic books so much. I realized in my late teens that I had spent years reading tons of different comic runs with so much time elapsing that I would eventually feel like I was experiencing the stories unfolding with the characters.I remember reading the last issues of DMZ or Y the Last Man and just thinking wtf do I do? I've been coming in here and buying these every month for years and now it's over. When a really good run ends it feels like a whole aspect of my life is stripped away. I feel like anyone who hasn't collected comics can't really identify and there's so much more to collecting comic books than simply watching some nerd **** happen on colorful pages. it's art, yo

[dancj]

I grew up in the 80s. By the time I was 15, there were books like The Dark Knight Returns, Watchmen, The Killing Joke, Hellblazer, Groo, Andy Helfer's The Shadow, Love and Rockets, Deadline etc.

Honestly, comics started to be a bit cool.

[MyriVerse]

I didn't start comics until my sophomore year of high school (1980).

At school, there weren't a lot of us comic book nerds, but we didn't hide it, and no one bothered us specifically for that. I also went to a high school where several of the football team were D&D players, which is probably weird. No one seemed to care. There were a ton of other reasons people ostracized others (too short, too dark, too poor, too alive, etc.).

The worst I got was an occasional, "You're still reading things things," from my stepdad. And to my grandmother and great-grandmother, they were always called "funny books" and ignorantly dismissed.

[KOSLOX]

I didn't start comics until my sophomore year of high school (1980).

At school, there weren't a lot of us comic book nerds, but we didn't hide it, and no one bothered us specifically for that. I also went to a high school where several of the football team were D&D players, which is probably weird. No one seemed to care. There were a ton of other reasons people ostracized others (too short, too dark, too poor, too alive, etc.).

The worst I got was an occasional, "You're still reading things things," from my stepdad. And to my grandmother and great-grandmother, they were always called "funny books" and ignorantly dismissed.

We didn't play a lot of pen and paper D&D but I remember having huge discussions about Balder's Gate when it was released. Our team used to have LAN parties all the time so we could play co-op.

[Kusanagi]

No one cared, but a lot of people I knew growing up enjoyed X-Men TAS and Batman TAS, so there was a passing interest.

[The Darknight Detective]

It's tough to pick an option. I grew up in the 70s. I actually graduated HS the same year as the That 70's Show characters. I can't say comics were frowned upon, but they weren't exactly a respectable hobby then. They were definitely something you were expected to outgrow. i DID KNOW A few fans who were basically a source for back issues. This was before most comic shops.

I'm having the same problem picking an option. Like you, I grew up in the '70s (though I started high school in '79) - comics were accepted and encouraged by my parents, but for most adults it was considered strictly for kids (still is in the mainstream today). I even stopped buying comics for quite a while due to peer pressure in my sophomore year in 1981, though I still read my buddy's in the interim.

[Personamanx]

Comics weren't an issue. My folks were glad that I had a hobby I enjoyed, and living in a small town it kept my pockets empty enough that I couldn't take up drugs. Most of friends could appreciate comics, but weren't nearly as active readers. They'd check out a specific trade off of a recommendation or pick up a floppy from a news rack with me if we hung out. But well, if you're not getting on the beer and blow in Newfoundland... You're mostly a social outcast as a teenager. So I didn't have a lot of friends. Probably not only due to the fact that the hobby always drained my funds (I was kind of an *******) but it played a part.

[DrNewGod]

I wish the survey tool allowed collecting some demographics, like age, population density of where you grew up. The sample's too small, but it would be cool to cross tab some of those factors with the various responses.