True Bride-to-Be Romances No 18 Harvey, 1956 SA

The Golden Age of Comic Books was a period in the history of American comic books, generally thought of as lasting from the late 1930s until the late 1940s or early 1950s. During this time, modern comic books were first published and enjoyed a surge of popularity; the archetype of the superhero was created and defined; and many of the most famous superheroes debuted, among them Superman, Batman, Captain America, Wonder Woman, and Captain Marvel. The publishing of comic books became a major industry. The period also saw the emergence of the comic book as a mainstream art form, and the defining of the medium's artistic vocabulary and creative conventions by its first generation of writers, artists, and editors.

By the mid-1950s, the comic-book industry was imperiled. Superheroes were passé, except for the Man of Steel, a media star thanks to The Adventures of Superman (1953–57), a syndicated program appearing on the medium that had robbed comics of much of its audience: television. To survive, comics had turned to other genres, including science fiction. Science and technology proved a popular theme. Technological advancements spawned during the atomic age piqued Americans’ imaginations, while the Red Scare (fear of communist states like the Soviet Union) fomented rampant paranoia. Science and Cold War mistrust melded in November 1955 when DC Comics introduced—with absolutely no fanfare—the first new superhero in roughly ten years: the Manhunter from Mars.