ELI5: Explain Like I'm 5

History of comics

Comics are like storybooks with pictures. They were first made a long, long time ago in different parts of the world. But in America, comics started being really popular in the 1930s.

Back then, there were a lot of people who didn't have much money or jobs. So, they would go to the movies or read comics to escape their tough lives. The comics back then were usually about superheroes like Superman and Batman who helped people in trouble. Kids loved these stories and started collecting comic books.

But during World War II, the comics changed. They became more serious and started having characters that could also help fight in the war. They also started being used to teach kids about things like being good citizens and following rules.

After the war, comics became even more popular. There were horror, adventure, and romance comics. But some people thought that the comics were too violent or scary for kids. So, people started making rules about what could be in comics. In the 1950s, a book called "Seduction of the Innocent" was written that said comics were bad for kids. This made lots of people stop buying comics.

But in the 1960s, comics started to change again. They had new writers and artists who wanted to make comics that were more interesting, deeper, and different from what had been done before. In the 1970s, underground comics started to become popular. These were comics made by artists who were not part of big companies and who made comics about real life issues like relationships, politics, or drugs.

During the 1980s and 1990s, comics had a lot of changes. There were more female and minority characters, and topics like mental health, sexuality, and social issues were explored. Today, comics are still popular and they continue to be an important part of popular culture.