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Brandon Giovannoni Ms. Bell English 4/Per.2 26 August 2013 The History of Comics The comic book started in 1933. But gained it gained popularity about 1938. The first comic was Action Comics, which included the debut of the superhero superman. This was followed by a superhero boom that lasted until the end of World War II. After the war, while superheroes were marginalized, the comic book industry rapidly expanded, and genres such as funny animals, westerns, romance and humor became popular. The 1950s saw a decline, due especially to new censorship laws and the spread of television. The 1960s saw a superhero gain, and superheroes continue to be the dominant today. There are four ages of the comics. First the Golden Age, in 1938, after WheelerNicholson's partner Harry Donenfeld had removed him, National Allied editor Vin Sullivan pulled a Siegel/Shuster creation from a pile and used it as the cover feature but only as a backup story in Action Comics1 in June of 1938 (American Comic Book, 2013). The duo's alien hero, Superman, dressed in colorful tights and a cape evoking costumed circus daredevil performers, became the archetype of the "superheroes" that would follow. Action would become the American comic book with the second-largest number of issues, next to Dell Comics Four Color, with over 860 issues published at 2008. Following the end of World War II, the popularity of superheroes greatly diminished while the comic book industry itself expanded. Congress said comic books were to harmful to children and a major crackdown started.

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Next was the silver age between the late 1950s to about the late 1970s. DC Comics started to revive the comic by adding a symbolic character, Flash which symbolized the begging of a new era (American Comic Book, 2013). In 1961, Stan Lee Writer and Jack Kirby- Artist came up with the Fantastic Four. They went for a naturalistic style of superheroes with human failings, fears, and inner demons - heroes who squabbled and worried about the likes of rentmoney. Then the Bronze Age was in when the big name comic creators had retired and people came up with the name. And also American mainstream comics history that begins with a period of concentrated changes to comic books circa 1970. There was a boom in non supers like Doctor Strange or Tomb of Dracula. Or redoing some characters like making a darker Batman, or a temporary non-powered era for Wonder Woman. Last, the Modern Age, which is the mid 80s to now. In the mid-to-late 1980s, two series published by DC Comics, Batman the Dark Night Returns, had a profound impact upon the American comic-book industry. This then led to a darker era in comics known as the grim- and gritty era. Like the death of Robin because the Green Goblin, or the death in the family in Batman. Comic sales in the US have declined but they are still there. Now its mostly about the superhero video games and movies.

The History of the Human Torch The original Human Torch began in 1939 in the laboratory of Professor Phineas T Horton, one of the pioneers in the field of artificial intelligence and robotics. The culmination of Horton's

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research was an android that mimicked virtually all of the functions of a human being, including independent thought, but was composed entirely of synthetic materials ( Human Torch (I), 2013) (Human Torch, 2013). The one flaw in the android's design concerned the photoelectric solar cells which covered every square inch of his body and served as his power source. The cells were too volatile and caused the epidermis of the android to burst into flame upon contact with air but without harming the android itself. Horton revealed the Torch's existence to the public at a press conference in November 1939, at which he demonstrated how the Torch would burst into flame if he introduced a small amount of oxygen into the transparent container in which he was confined. The news media proclaimed the Torch to be a potential menace, and so Horton buried the android in his supposedly airtight tube within cement until such time as he could find a way either to prevent the android from bursting into flame or learn how to control its flame. There was a slow leak in the tube, however, and eventually enough oxygen entered so that the android's flame ignited explosively, permitting him to escape. Wreaking havoc in innocent exploration of his environment, the android, inaccurately dubbed the Human Torch, soon realized the panic he was causing and, unable to control his flaming power, doused his flame in a swimming pool. The Human Torch eventually gained control over his flame and became a crime fighter. He allied himself with the young mutant Toro, who possessed powers similar to his own. At first the greatest adversary the Torch faced in combat was the Sub-Mariner. In 1949 American criminals seeking to kill the Torch obtained a chemical known as Solution X-R from Soviet intelligence. One criminal sprayed the solution over the Torch and Toro, dousing their flame and paralyzing them. The criminals then buried the Torch beneath the Nevada desert. However, the criminals had accidentally chosen to bury him beneath an atomic testing site. In December 1953, the blast of an atomic bomb dropped on the site freed the Torch, and the radiation reactivated his flame.

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The Torch resumed his crime fighting career and his partnership with Toro. The Avengers invited the Torch to join their team, and he accepted. However, he served for only a short time before taking a personal leave of absence, during which time he lost his powers to save the life of his aged friend Lady Crichton ( Human Torch (I), 2013). His Real name is Jonathan Lowell Spencer (Human Torch, 2013) Writer / Artist Bibliography The Human Torch was created by comic book writer Stan Lee and Artist Jack Kirby (Romos, 2013). He was in the first addition of The Fantastic Four in 1961. Stan created many works, like the Human Torch, Wonder Woman and Aquaman and, also has written or co- written 70 books (Stan Lee, 2013). Artist Jack Kirby has done mostly American comics for DC Comics. Kirby, the co-creator of the Fantastic Four... Jack Kirby, artist of every single one of the first 102 issues. Stan was in a few movies and TV shows. He received many awards and nominations. Some of Kirbys notable works are Captain America, Fantastic Four and, The Hulk.

Summary In the comic the Fantastic Four they go on a space mission to beat the commies to the stars and back but have no clue about cosmic rays. When they crash land everybody starts to change. First Susan starts to become invisible. Then Ben changes to the Thing. And next is Mr. Fantastic as he stretches around Ben to contain him. Then Johnny erupts in flames and then learns he can fly. Johnny would make bad decisions and disobey direct orders. They make a pact to never use their powers for bad. They come up with the names The Human Torch, Invisible Girl, The Thing and, Mr. Fantastic, and then they fight crime forever.

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Review I thought that the comic was really cool. Ive never looked at comics. I really like how the images look and the use of the words like POW or Bang and make them stand out. I like how the words are in bubbles and not just in a line like a book. Its cool how they thought of this in the 30s and 40s, and how they used cosmic rays to make them super. The whole story line flows really well. I wouldnt mind looking at other comics in the future. In a way people can relate to the human torch because when he gets mad he starts to turn to flames. And when people get mad they get heated, so maybe thats how Stan came up with this character.

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Works Cited
Human Torch (I). (2013, August 26). Retrieved from Marvel Directory: http://www.marveldirectory.com/individuals/h/humantorchi.htm American Comic Book. (2013, August 26). Retrieved from Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_comic_book Human Torch. (2013, August 26). Retrieved from Marvel.com: http://marvel.com/characters/bio/1009356/human_torch Kesel, Y. S. (2013). Human Torch Part One. Modesto. Romos, J. (2013, August 26). Marvel Character Profiles: The Human Torch. Retrieved from Helium: http://www.helium.com/items/2109081-marvel-character-profiles-the-human-torch Stan Lee. (2013, August 26). Retrieved from Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stan_Lee_bibliography

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