Right on the ball, and pretty much how I feel. I like both equally and understand that not all eras are prefect, but at the moment I'm happy with the current state of affairs.
I admit it partly might be my own thing. I'm personally not quite as yearning for the nostalgia of yesteryear, the good ol' days, back in my day, EVERYTHING WAS BETTER ON MY EARTH, etc. This also applies to other forms of media beyond comics. The stuff of old is good too, but the stuff of new just as much validation. And I'm personally sick of this mentality of discounting the new stuff because of some sweet sugar-coated memories of childhood.
But as for the medium at hand, my relatively neutral attitude is also because I really do not spend much to buy comics. As mentioned probably dozens upon dozens of times and in my sig, I really only buy ONE comic: Ms. Marvel (And the team books she is on, which still just makes a total of three). As such I can't really sympathize, relate, or take any side in any various comments, observations, rantings from people who read current Marvel and bemoan how the stories of today aren't like the stories of then, or people who don't read current Marvel and lament how their stories are somehow "superior", or people who play doomsayer at how Marvel and the comics industry is dying, how Disney is ruining everything, how DC Rebirth is doing better and ignoring its own problems, how the movies are ruining the comics, how Marvel VS Capcom Infinite sucks because there are no X-Men, and the immeasurable amount of topics that pertain to comics, current issues, and lord knows what else.
Sorry for my rant, but that's just how I feel. I honestly at times feel like an anomaly and alone when it comes to being a comic book fan, and had to vent it out.
Yes it was the last normal period for Marvel.
From what I've gathered over the years, Quesada read comics as a kid but gave up on them in his early to mid teens (?) and only returned to the fold with DKR's and Watchmen in 1986. He's stated that that was what he wanted Marvel to be like, more or less. I think that's pretty clear, particularly in the early days of his tenure as EIC. Miller was probably the biggest influence, since he started to experiment way back in his DD run without thought balloons.
Some creators seem to have an obsession with making comics more "cinematic" which has always puzzled me since I already felt the best 80's work of, say, Walt Simonson on Thor and John Byrne on FF was ALREADY very cinematic in many ways, yet you still got plenty of thought balloons and captions. I think it's a big mistake and it robs comics of one of it's most unique tools in terms of getting inside a characters head. It can be overdone, sure, but if done well it only enhances characterization.
I find that I like the caption boxes with the character's thoughts in them, the though balloons not so much. Also, I find the cinematic comics generally more enjoyable; it seems to suit better pacing and more in-depth stories, which, when handled correctly, make for more enjoyable material.
You are not. Though people with that kind of mindset are probably in the minority.
I happen to agree with you.
All the nostalgia **** everywhere at any time annoys me to no end.
I mean, don't get me wrong: Nostalgia can be awesome but it should not ever cloud your judgement.
Be it in music, comics, movies or the state of the world in which case overly nostalgic thinking evolves from annoying to dangerous but let's stick to comics.
While I'd would be hard to argue for me that I liked ANAD Marvel better than post Civil War/Dark Reign Marvel I can differentiate between my preferences and actual differences in overall quality.
"̶l̶̶e̶̶t̶'̶s̶̶ ̶̶h̶̶a̶̶v̶̶e̶̶ ̶̶s̶̶o̶̶m̶̶e̶̶ ̶̶f̶̶u̶̶n̶̶,̶̶ ̶̶t̶̶h̶̶i̶̶s̶̶ ̶̶b̶̶e̶̶a̶̶t̶̶ ̶̶i̶̶s̶̶ ̶̶s̶̶i̶̶c̶̶k̶̶.̶̶ ̶̶i̶̶ ̶̶w̶̶a̶̶n̶̶n̶̶a̶̶ ̶̶t̶̶a̶̶k̶̶e̶̶ ̶̶a̶̶ ̶̶r̶̶i̶̶d̶̶e̶̶ ̶̶o̶̶n̶̶ ̶̶y̶̶o̶̶u̶̶r̶̶ ̶̶d̶̶i̶̶s̶̶c̶̶o̶̶s̶̶t̶̶i̶̶c̶̶k̶̶"
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Thanks again, and I understand where you're coming from, too.
It's cool. We all gotta vent sometimes, and to be honest, you're not alone in feeling the way you do. I think it's just because the people who actively dislike the current iteration of Marvel Comics are a lot more vocal in that dislike than the people who do like it or are at least willing to give it a chance. They're just reading and whether they enjoy it or not, they're not in the forums and comments sections making their voices heard as loudly as others are.
And let's not forget, it was in the "good old days" of Marvel Comics that we had Sam Wilson as a pimp cosmically reconditioned to believe he was an affable social worker to get on Steve Rogers's good side before shanking him in the back for Red Skull, or Avengers #200 with Ms. Marvel/Carol Danvers and her mind-controlling rapist that everyone was somehow ok with her going off with to live "happily ever after." The good thing about today's comics, such as they are, is that for all the missteps they have made, it's a lot less likely that stuff like "Sam Wilson's true origin" or Avengers #200 would be approved for publishing, given how many people would have rightfully recoiled and buried Marvel (online, at least) in condemnation and criticism.
The spider is always on the hunt.
Although that Heroic Age felt like a quick blip before we got back to business as usual, more or less.
Though it's also probably pretty comparable to what we're getting in Legacy since most of the major writers pre-SE are sticking around on their books for the new "back-to-basics" status quo.
That sounds about right.
Marvel's idea of "back-to-basics" for Spider-Man seems to be more team-ups after all, so maybe there's a silver lining in that .
Although what Legacy is right now is vague enough that I don't think we can know one way or the other what we're getting until Marvel starts confirming books and premises.
As to the premise of this thread. As far as I am concerned we are in normal now and have been since about 2013 and the previous normal was early 80s.
"I should describe my known nature as tripartite, my interests consisting of three parallel and disassociated groups; a) love of the strange and the fantastic, b) love of abstract truth and scientific logic, c) love of the ancient and the permanent. Sundry combinations of these strains will probably account for my...odd tastes, and eccentricities."
I know, but still, Marvel has a funny way of advertising "back-to-basics" for both their comics and cartoons .
There are certainly new books and characters that I enjoy in the current era, although I personally still prefer older Marvel eras. But that's just me...