8 Amazing Ways Stan Lee Changed Comics Forever

4. He Created A Genuine Community

Stan Lee may not have been responsible for every achievement Marvel had to its name by the time he stopped writing full-time, but he did have a hand in some of the more imperceptible changes that happened to the industry during his time writing and afterwards too.

Lee was determined to foster a community amongst the Marvel fandom, and referred to his readers as 'True Believers', led by himself, the generalissimo in chief. Signing off every message with his trademark "excelsior!" catchphrase, Lee endeared himself almost instantly and a genuine fandom began to emerge.

Lee gave plenty of interviews before his death, but one of his best came in Stan Lee's Mutants, Monsters & Marvels, which had Kevin Smith asking all the questions. One in particular stood out on Monday, as Lee outlined his desire to make Marvel feel like a family, more so than just a hobby in which people would invest.

"I tried to make the readers feel they're more than just casual readers. That we're all part of a family, we're all part of an inner-group. We're having fun and the outside world isn't aware of it."

It's the perfect summation of what it feels like to be involved in the comics community (at least, its positive elements), and Lee understood that right from the very get-go.