This might just be the end of an era, folks — DC Comics has announced that it will no longer be carrying the Comics Code Authority Seal of Approval, in favor of a new in-house rating system for their books.
The new ratings, according to co-publishers Jim Lee and Dan DiDio, are as follows:
E – EVERYONE
Appropriate for readers of all ages. May contain cartoon violence and/or some comic mischief.
T – TEEN
Appropriate for readers age 12 and older. May contain mild violence, language and/or suggestive themes.
T+ – TEEN PLUS
Appropriate for readers age 16 and older. May contain moderate violence, mild profanity, graphic imagery and/or suggestive themes.
M – MATURE
Appropriate for readers age 18 and older. May contain intense violence, extensive profanity, nudity, sexual themes and other content suitable only for older readers.
Vertigo, according to the publisher, will not have these rankings, simply having a “For Mature Readers” note on their catalog.
With the new ratings system beginning in April, this will mark the first time that both Big Two publishers have been without the Comics Code Authority since the 1950s. Marvel dropped the CCA in 2001, to institute their own in-house ratings system. What do you think about this, Rama readers? Is the era of the CCA officially over? Sound off!
January 20th, 2011 at 2:24 pm
Hard to feel bad about the demise of the Comics Code, given that it stopped being really useful a long time ago. But at the same time, it pretty much saved the industry once upon a time. Self-censorship has never been pretty, but has always beaten censorship by others.
In any case, this is the end. I expect even Archie to kiss it goodbye, but then to proudly proclaim that all its books are suitable for everyone.
I just find myself recalling the brouhaha back in the late 80s when DC announced it was doing age labels like this, and how a small number of creators took offense and left DC. Today this is the norm, so I guess DC was ahead of the curve back then.
January 20th, 2011 at 2:30 pm
I think this is smart if DC is smart about how it uses the ratings. Wrote a post about it here:
http://popculturesafari.blogspot.com/2011/01/dc-dumps-comics-code.html
I think publishers should offer clear guidance on comic book covers as to what age the title is appropriate for. There shouldn’t be any wondering necessary by the parent.
Better yet, I wish DC and Marvel would just ensure that all their mainstream superhero titles — those featuring Spider-Man, Batman, Superman, the Hulk, Fantastic Four, Thor, Captain America and the like — are rated for the same audience. Right now, there are “all ages” Spider-Man, etc., titles and “teen-plus” or even “mature” Spider-Man, etc. titles. This makes no sense to me and likely just turns parents off comics entirely.
In movie terms, I think these titles should be in the “PG” category: edgy enough to interest teens and adults, but appropriate enough for kids around age 12. There’s no sane, or for that matter, commercial,reason that comics featuring such characters should be essentially rated “R” — at least not if you’re going to continue marketing toys featuring that character to young children.