Unlike the remaining eras of the Marvel Universe that are meant to take place in the recent past (regardless of their publication date), the comic books from the Golden Age are set firmly in and around World War II, with the bulk of stories dealing directly with the real-life events of the war itself—with a superhero twist.
There are a few other important details to keep in mind about this era, including the fact that many books depict racist caricatures and sexist tropes that were commonplace for the time. For these reasons and others, many of these books are not even available to read digitally from official sources—though Marvel has published several Golden Age collections.
So while we believe our Silver Age reading order is the best place to start for anyone interested in exploring the modern Marvel Universe in chronological order, we’ve included this guide for posterity, because it cannot be overlooked that the Golden Age contains the first canonical appearances of some of the Marvel Universe’s most important characters, namely Captain America, Bucky Barnes, Namor the Sub-Mariner, and the original Human Torch.
Golden Age Guides: