Theodore, You make some interesting points.

I'm not sure it works though to have time continually passing. Mark Gruenwald experimented that in his Mark's Remarks, but the idea of Peter Parker and others being replaced does not really appeal to me.

Does that red sweater itch?

Thank you, Rob.  I too see the flaws within my suggestion.  Spider-man readers, for example, want to read about Siper-man, not someone else.  However, it would take 80 years for Peter to go from 16 to 36.  I am only 35 and still in pretty good shape.  I think Peter could still be at it at 36.  I think right now Bats and Superman are about 33-34-34.  If you were ever to get to the point where the hero got too old, I simply think a Byrne-like re-boot is a better way of going about it, then needing a crisis or contradicting continuity within a published series.

For example, Spider-man would be what 25-26 today if he had follwed my rule?  That is not too bad if you ask me, and it would have provoded a guided structure to pregnancies and the passage of time.  How old is Peter today anyway, Rob?  I would like to know.

Sadly, I couldn't go into the service for health reasons. I have to admit, I had a nice chuckle that my bit of e-thuggery riled you up though!

What would you do in regards to character growth within titles? 

I would hire writers that actually understand the concept of 'the illusion of change', and then all of that other stuff you prattled on about wouldn't be necessary.

At least you guys are not picking on all my typos (typoes?)!

Me too, Jason.  I am a bit surprised at myself.  My biggest problem with your "Wrong" is that my 4 year rule is about right on with what we actually have in comics.  Look at the first 40 years of FF, about 10 years had passed, no?  My point is that if you made it a rule, you would get the same growth but constant within the series between creators.

I know JB is against this idea, but when you look at what you could do within 80 years of publishing, I think you could make a rule like this work very well.  Superman could easily have a twenty year or more career.  The only character who might be hurt by this is Batman and finally seeing Robin inherit the mantle of the Bat would make it worth it...to me ;-)

Shit, even if you wanted a new earth in the multiverse, you wouldn't need one but every 100 years!  You would be lucky to see one in your lifetime.

I love it when I sound like I am trying to convince you, like it matters or something.

Scratch that last Crisis comment.  I did not mean it.

And I do not know that JB is against this.  I only think he is from other things I have read here.

Comment #2 makes #1 even less of a point.  I htink not worrying about continuity so much when series are not even published is the biggest source of confusion in comics and the biggest cause of always needing to fix something.  Why worry about that which is usually ignored anyway.

How old is Peter today anyway, Rob?  I would like to know.

***

In my opinon, approximately 24-26.  That would make him SPider-man for 8-10 years or so and time to graduate from college and be newly married.

I used to hear Marvel considered him anywhere from 22-26 (it would be different each time I heard it).

On the other hand, Bendis has said I've heard that he believes Spider-man to be 30-though I don't believe anything  in the stories sets this as true and I think it is too old.

Well, under the rule, he would have been Spider-man for 10 years so far.  I believe he became Siper-Man when he was 16, so he would be about 26 or so.

If this is what we have anyway, the rule would only have governed the passage of the same amount of time, which would have been more important when the writers and artists changed on the series.

What about Superman?  Do you think 5 years has passed since JB did Superman #1?  What was he, 28 or 29 then?  What is he, 33 or 34 now?  Is this about right?  The big problem comes with if you want him to close in on 40.  How old was George Reeves?  How old did Supermanlook when penciled by Wayne Boring and Curt Swan?  I think he could go to at least 50.

Except for JB stories, I think he usually appears mid-30s.  I'm not sure, except for the odd story, he should get much older than that

Interesting idea though-tell 10-20 years worth of stories in the characters lives under your rule by then everyone reading would be gone (after 40-80 years) then start again with #1s and the character being young again.