10 Major Milestones In Comic Book History

10. Lee, Kirby, Ditko & Co. Create Modern Marvel

Joe Simon, Jack Kirby, Stan Lee, Steve Ditko and John Romita are all names that every comic book fan should be aware of, because they - along with some other exemplary talent at the company during the sixties - created the Marvel Universe we know today.

Prior to this quartet's involvement at the company, Marvel had mainly been known as Timely Comics, with their most successful character having been Captain America - the Nazi-smashing embodiment of American anti-fascism - along with other wartime characters, like the Submariner.

Simon, Kirby, Lee, Ditko and Romita all had a hand in creating the likes of Iron Man, Spider-Man, the X-Men and the Fantastic Four to name but a few - characters that have, in no small way, fundamentally changed the way audiences looked at comic books. Modern Marvel made an effort to create relatable characters defined as much by their own humanity as they were their superpowers, their strengths and their weaknesses; the X-Men themselves were a famous analogue for the Civil Rights Movement too.

With these characters, Lee, Kirby et al. established a precedent that would ensure that the company remained socially conscious (for the most part), and that relatable characters were the norm. These elements are intrinsically linked to Marvel's DNA, and without the involvement of these guys, well, it's safe to say that Marvel wouldn't be the company it is today.