How a Handful of Panels Survived a Century of Change
Some stories refuse to fade into obscurity and instead ink themselves into the culture. When the world tilts on its head, they adapt with the times and somehow keep selling issues for decades while everything else around them gets left on the shelf. Think about it—whole generations have come and gone since the first superhero leapt off the page. Comic books, for all their pulp and color, have outlasted presidents and entire nations. And a few have done it so long, they’ve become less a series than a time capsule that’s still breathing and evolving alongside multiple generations of readers.
Action Comics: The One That Started It All
Action Comics #1 hit shelves in 1938 for ten cents an issue and introduced the world to a man in blue tights who could leap tall buildings in a single bound. Superman wasn’t just a character; he was a revelation that a character in a cape could resonate with ordinary people. Despite corporate shakeups, reboots, and questionable costume redesigns, Action Comics has kept going, with over a thousand issues published and counting. It’s the longest-running American comic book series, bar none.
Detective Comics: The Darker Twin That Found Its Shadow
Two years after Superman hit the shelves, Batman emerged onto the scene in Detective Comics #27. That 1937 series bestowed DC with its very name and is still printing today. Its tone may have shifted over the decades—being noir in the ’40s, camp in the ’60s, and broodingly psychological by the ’80s—but overall, it’s the same sullen billionaire vigilante fighting crime on the streets of Gotham.
The Phantom: The Hero Who Wore the First Mask
Long before Marvel or DC ruled the shelves, The Phantom was patrolling the jungle in his purple suit. Created in 1936, it’s technically the world’s first masked superhero, predating even Superman. The comic strip still runs in newspapers (remember those?), making it one of the longest continuously published comic stories anywhere. There’s something charming about how low-tech this character remains after all this time. There’s no cinematic universe or merchandising empire—just the Ghost Who Walks, quietly refusing to retire.
Archie Comics: Teenagers That Never Graduate
Since 1941, Archie and his eternal love triangle have been looping through American adolescence like a broken record. Every issue features the same small town, the same diner, and variations of the same arguments, yet somehow the consistency appeals to our love of nostalgia. While everything else in the world changes, Riverdale stays the same—until it doesn’t, of course. Lately, they’ve added zombies and multiverse chaos, but at its core, this gas station comic is still about prom drama and part-time jobs.
Cover artist: Samm Schwartz (1920 - 1997) on Wikimedia
The Beano: Britain’s Eternal Mischief
Across the pond, The Beano has been running since 1938, filled with pranks and kids who never seem to age. Dennis the Menace (the British one, not the American kid with the slingshot) still causes mayhem every week. Whole European empires have risen and fallen since the first issue hit stands, yet The Beano remains stubbornly, gloriously silly. It’s proof that not every comic protagonist needs to save the world; sometimes making you laugh is more than enough heroism.
