What's the earliest year you'd read back to?

[TheDragonKing]

For example, I think the earliest I'd read back to would the the 1980s. Anything before that I wouldn't read. What is the furthest you'd let yourself go back to?

[jb681131]

For example, I think the earliest I'd read back to would the the 1980s. Anything before that I wouldn't read. What is the furthest you'd let yourself go back to?

Why wouldn't you read before that ??
Me it's 1939, I've read Detective Comics #27.

[sifighter]

I guess I’ve gone back to the 50/60’s as I have recent golden and silver age trades of Legion of Superheroes, Teen Titans, and Supergirl.

[MRP]

for DC: 1937-I'd read Detective #1 if I had the opportunity (there's a Millennium Edition reprint but I've never come across it in the wild to purchase). I've read from Action #1 (from 1938) forward when I have had access to the material over the years (I have all the volumes of Superman Chronicles and the first 3 Golden Age Batman Archives, plus some of the GA Wonder Woman and All Star Comics collections. Of course I've read back to 1929 with comic strips, having read the earliest Buck Rogers strips that debuted that year (and the Alex Raymond Flash Gordon strips debuting in 1934 are a particular favorite), and I've read a bunch of Tintin stories including the first serial that launched in 1930, so my comic reading goes back before DC was a growing concern at all.

-M

[Tzigone]

I've read Action Comics #1 (and several other first appearances) along with continuing and ready numerous (but nowhere near all) stories for Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, and the Marvels and handful of stories for others. For me, Golden Age stories are generally something I read occasionally and only a couple at at time. I can't binge read them, as they're just too short/sparse to hold my attention over time.

Silver age for me is variable, with Flash being one I actively like (and read several years worth of issues) and GL better than the older golden age characters' titles that grew into the silver age (Lois, Lana, and Steve were often horrible). I do tend to prefer the less cracky.

By 1970 and with several titles moving into bronze-age storytelling (more geared to older readers), I have a difficult time understanding reasons people wouldn't want to read that don't also apply to the 1980s. Unless, of course, they just want to limit themselves to post-COIE continuity, and no have multiple realities in their head. Obviously, that doesn't apply to every title, and it's not a hard demarcation point, with some still having "sillier" stories much later, but I mean for there being widespread content in that tone, rather than everything being in that tone. But obviously, there are other differences that I just don't really notice.

I know some really have issues with dialog, even into the 1970s, but I do not. I like more dialog (and fewer giant splash pages) in comics. Partially because I'm not really an art person, but mostly because I just feel like I'm getting more content - it takes longer to read, so I'm not finished in 10 minutes.

I will say that while there are character ars, story arcs tend to be shorter pre-1980s. But for me personally, that means many later runs can pretty much only be binge-read because it takes forever to finish a story and as you get even later, you have numerous issues where very little actually happens because it's all set up for later. I actually began reading comics in the 1990s, and even then I tended to let several issues pile up (had subscription) before reading anything, because it was more enjoyable that way. I like being able to get a complete story in one issue, though I can definitely enjoy the issue/story is part of a larger arc.

So I'm middling. If not binge reading or reading TPBs, I like a story to be one to four issues long. Not one one story a year or 3 stories an issue. Too short and there's not enough development to me. Too long (and not read in one sitting) and momentum is lost and you end up with several issues that just seem like filler. Binge-reading obviously greatly reduces the downside of latter.

[Air Wave]

All the way. 1935.

[Jekyll]

Depends on the character or team. Most of the characters that DC promotes heavily I really don't care for and probably will not read that far back. However, characters that I love like Jay Garrick I have gone back and read several of his golden age adventures and the same goes for the Justice Society.

[seismic-2]

I'm not a huge fan of Golden Age superhero comics, but I have always liked the Disney comics from that era. I still enjoy re-reading Barks' Duck stories and Gottfredson's Mouse stories from the 1940s and 1950s. I enjoy reading crime, war, and romance comics from that era too, just as period pieces rather than as really good stories (since most of them aren't).

EDIT: Oh sorry, I forgot that this is a DC-specific thread. I used to buy Superman, Superboy, Supergirl, Jimmy, and Lois comics from off the spinner racks back in the day, but I would have limited interest in going back and re-reading them now. Most of the "old" DC comics that I go back and read (many of them for the first time!) are in fact post-Crisis.