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[[The Iron Age of Comic Books]] is a different interpretation of comic history that sees the [[The Dark Age of Comic Books]] and [[The Modern Age of Comic Books]] as one period. This age can be defined with its [[Retcon|Retcons]], [[Re Boot|Reboots]], [[Retool|Retools]] and [[Alternate Universe|AlternateUniverses]] that were deemed necessary after about fifty years of accumulated continuity threatening to create a [[Continuity Lock Out]] to new readers.
[[The DCU]] released [[Crisis
This zeitgeist of attempted plausibility and new found seriousness in superhero comic books is reflected in [[Alan Moore|Alan Moore's]] [[Deconstruction|Watchmen]] and [[Frank Miller|Frank Miller's]] [[The Dark Knight Returns]], both released in 1986. As well, the DC imprint [[Vertigo Comics]] also followed suit in tone, coming to its zenith with [[The Sandman]] in 1989. The turn to seriousness, especially in [[The Dark Knight Returns]] also inspired the efforts of the [[Batman]] film in 1989 and [[Batman:
Perhaps because of the new blank slate attitude that prevailed [[Post-Crisis]], new comic book companies remerged, like [[Dark Horse Comics]] in 1986 and [[Valiant Comics]] in 1989. They published such acclaimed works as [[Hellboy]] and [[Sin City]], as well as releasing works like [[
Also cutting down on the excesses from inside the pages of a comic book was [[Kingdom Come]] in 1996, which reminded writers and artists of the time that the goal was to be seriously realistic, not cynically gritty. Afterwards, [[Transmetropolitan]] was published in 1997, a celebrated work of plausible scientific rigor as well as reflecting the general tone of the period without dipping too far into the grittiness so as to be ridiculous.
Speaking of ridiculous, [[Marvel Comics]] was beginning to struggle majorly with its properties, especially [[Spider
This effort with animation from both DC and Marvel helped spawn the new flow of superhero blockbusters, including the [[Spider
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=== Notable series of the Iron Age: ===
* [[Crisis
* [[Watchmen]]: Though not effecting continuity, it definitely influenced the tone of comic books for years to come.
* [[The Dark Knight Returns]]: Not only did this effect comic books, but helped to shape a new, serious, plausible [[Batman]] that was the basis of many film series' and animated series'.
* ''[[Hellboy (
* Venom went from being an evil version of Spider-man, to an [[Anti-Hero]], to a [[Nineties Anti-Hero]] with his own book, before his symbiote split and bonded to an [[Axe Crazy]] [[Serial Killer]], creating Carnage, an evil(er) version of Venom.
* ''[[Spawn]]'' (The scion of [[Image]] and the model for its many imitators)
* ''[[The Punisher]]'' (This pre-existing ultra-violent [[Anti-Hero]] [[Vigilante Man]]'s stock went way, way up)
* ''[[
** Other notable Dark Age ''[[Batman]]'' stories include ''[[The Killing Joke]]'', ''A Death in the Family'', and ''[[Knightfall]]''. The first modern [[Batman (
* ''[[Wolverine]]'', like the Punisher and Batman, was a preexisting hero who attained new heights of popularity because he fit the grim and gritty trend; his regular series began in 1988, and [[Wolverine Publicity]] spread like Kudzu.
* [[Lobo]], though a character and not a series, was created as a parody of [[Nineties Anti-Hero|this kind of hero]], and quickly [[Misaimed Fandom|gained popularity]] ''[[Misaimed Fandom|as]]'' [[Misaimed Fandom|one]].
* ''[[Marshal Law]]'' was also a parody of this era's excesses.
* ''[[Witchblade (Comic Book)|Witchblade]]'', one of the few long-lasting books of that time period, which spawned a [[Witchblade (TV series)|TV show]], [[Witchblade (
* ''[[Judge Dredd]]'' was another example of Misaimed Fandom on a pre-existing character. Unfortunately, the US fans and Hollywood missed what was blatant to the original 2000 AD readers: that Dredd was a rare satirical character played straight instead of for humor.
* ''[[Supreme]]'' started out as a straight example about "What if Superman was a huge jerk", but when Alan Moore came on, this trend was parodied with "Grim 80s Supreme" as one of the previous incarnations living in the Supremacy. Later they would introduce his archenemy Grim 80s Demented Tittering Transvestite Serial Killer Darius Dax (Dax is normally Lex Luthor with hair, so you can tell how big a stretch that characterization is) and Grim 80s Traumatized Diana Dane.
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** Possibly a [[Deconstruction]], because world fared [[Apocalypse How|exactly as well]] as you'd expect it to do under the rule of a superpowered psychopath. Also, AoA ''did'' make the difference between heroes and villains pretty clear.
* [[The Crow]], first published in 1989, is about a brooding pretty boy goth who comes back from the dead to take revenge on the gang that murdered him and his girlfriend by killing them in brutal and symbolic ways. It spawned a TV Show and a few movies, briefly becoming a Gothic icon.
* [[X
* [[Kingdom Come]]: a harsh [[Deconstruction]] of the Dark Age and the [[Nineties Anti-Hero]] archetype. As good a starting point for the modern age as any other, set into motion many of trends such as [[Reconstruction]], [[Lighter and Softer]], and [[George Lucas Throwback]], to earlier ages, and comics that you need to purchase entire companion books in order to understand every reference. It was also a key factor in the declining popularity of the [[Nineties Anti-Hero]] in favor of more traditional Silver Age archetypes.
* Grant Morrison's ''[[Justice League of America|JLA]]'', which brought back the bright, shiny heroes in huge, epic plots. Began in 1997, one year after [[Kingdom Come]], and helped to [[Trope Codifier|Codify]] many of the concepts and trends introduced by [[Kingdom Come]], and did more to [[Reconstruction|Reconstruct]] the Main DCU than any other series.
** Also by Morrison, ''[[All Star DC Comics|All-Star]] [[All
* [[Ultimate Marvel]], featuring updated versions of all the various Marvel characters without years of continuity, and with artists and writers being given free rein to change the characters in any way they wanted, or retell classic storylines in new ways (such as Carnage being responsible for the death of Gwen Stacy for example).
* ''[[
* ''[[Civil War (Comic Book)|Civil War]]'', which combined a long-term change to the status quo of the [[Marvel Universe]] with an attempt at large-scale political commentary.
* The entire Marvel Comics Siege [[Metaplot|macro crisis]] was a [[Deconstructor Fleet]] of the entire Marvel Comics universe, the [[Reed Richards Is Useless]] trope, and the idea of the superhero in general:
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** The Secret arcs show what exactly being a ''real'' spy means and all the details it entails.
** And finally, Siege shows the reconstruction, revealing that after all this, heroes are still heroes no matter what.
* ''[[Fifty Two|52]]'' from [[DC Comics]], which was the first full-length narrative comic to ship on a weekly basis for [[Exactly What It Says
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