Brian Vickers, a retailer in Southern California, comments on how the upcoming changes from both Marvel and DC may mark the end of a era.

DC's "The New 52" is coming in the fall of 2011.  It appears to this author that DC is purposely making a decision to shift their entire continuity from what is currently known as Earth-0 or New Earth to one of the other 52 DC multiverses.  The last time DC did this it was the primary transitive element between the Gold and Silver Ages of comics.  Will this (along with the digital distribution of comics) mark the transition to a new age of comics?  If this is the event that triggers the new age, what will this new age be called?  We've already had the Gold, Silver, Bronze, and Iron/Modern Ages.

(Sidenote: we are significantly overdue for a new age of comics.  Each of the first three Ages lasted roughly 15-ish years each.  The current Iron/Modern Age began roughly in the mid-1980s, 25-ish years ago.  So we are due for a new age in comics.  BTW, even if you subscribe to the school of thought that there was a Dark Age of comics from the mid-1980s -- the late 1990s prior to the current Iron/Modern Age, we're still close to the time for a new age.)

If we look at Hesiod's Five Ages of Man as a model, it appears that the only age not covered so far is the Heroic Age.  Yes, it would be out of order since Hesiod places his Heroic Age between the Bronze and Iron Ages.  However this may be a very fitting designation for what is to come if both DC's "Brightest Day" and Marvel's already aptly named "Heroic Age" changes will truly usher in a new voice of storytelling for both companies. Hesiod's model gives this author great hope for the future of comics since, according to Hesiod, the Grecian Heroic Age was the only Age to actually improve on its prior Age.

On the other hand, if we use the dream of King Nebuchadnezzar II as a model, the next age will be the Feet of (Iron and) Clay Age as it is the only age remaining.  In this model, there is a divided condition as it consists of both iron and clay.  Perhaps the next Age of Comics will feature a attempt by one or both of the Big 2 to hold on to the current Iron/Modern Age and only weakly or partially pursue their newly declared Heroic directions.  If this is true, then (according to the model) it will only take a single event to bring down the entire industry.

So perhaps this is a cautionary note to both Marvel and DC.  They are at the beginning of a new Age of Comics and they have the opportunity to choose which model to follow.  This author really hopes they go with Hesiod's.

The opinions expressed in this article are solely those of the writer, and do not necessarily reflect the views of the editorial staff of ICv2.com.