Not long ago, I posted and editorial that asked "
How Young is Too Young to Read Comics?" With the youth of the world being bombarded by influences these days, whether it be television, films, school or even comic books, I think it's important for parents to play a part in that influence, even if it's on a small scale. So, in the article mentioned above, I asked at what age you did or would allow your kids to tackle comic books. Not unexpectedly, the majority of the voters would leave it up to the kids to make that decision, with most of those also stating that they would want to approve of the material first. Like I insuated in the article, you wouldn't let your 8 year-old head off to an R-Rated movie without at least viewing it for yourself (usually), so the same could be said with comic books.
From there, the results just took an expected route with the different age groups; with a few really twisted folks out there who would never allow their kids to even touch comic books. Obviously, a lot of this depends on the upbringing of the parents and the environment they are trying to provide for their children, therefore the amount of parenting and involvement the parents want to have in their children's lives.
As for myself, I am kind of stuck in the middle of setting an actual age limit, so to speak, or just letting them choose when to read comics. Naturally, the kids would have to show an interest in them before I'd try to get them involved. What's the point if they hate the idea of comic books (God forbid)?! I'd definitely think twice before placing
Watchmen or a Punisher book in front of my kid without knowing it's content. But overall, I don't see the harm in letting my child, no matter the age, sitting down to read Spider-Man or the Justice League, as long as he/she enjoyed the idea and was able to comprehend the goings-on of the story.
Anywho, here are the official results from the poll:
Whenever
THEY want to:
47%
Between 8 - 12 years old:
27%
Between 12 - 16 years old:
17%
Under 8 years old:
7%
Never! They have warped me too badly and I don't want them to be as twisted as I am:
2%