Webcomics

This week I looked a lot of different web comics, but the one that stood out to me was the Cyanide & Happiness webcomic. The comic is targeted for adults and has a lot of black comedy and satire. They are very short strips with few panels, limited color, and crude digital drawings of stick-figures.
While this comic is not something I would collect personally, it stood out to me. The story or craftsmanship wasn't particularly amazing, but it's popularity and long-term success is very notable. It was a comic I was very familiar with before this class. It is also very familiar to many friends/acquaintances who might not be "interested" in comics or art. I find this a very interesting idea. To create a comic which surpasses the media and is shared for it's entertainment value. For this reason, I'm very interested in webcomics as a medium. Many comics are moving towards online publishing, and I'm super excited to see the diverse and creative stories that will continued to be shared in the future.

Week 13

This week we looked at how publishers reshaped the superhero comic market. In this time, there were new types of graphic novels adapting classic superhero stories for different kinds of adult storytelling. Specifically, I looked at Alan Moore's Watchman. I thought this graphic novel was a masterpiece. It was incredibly written. The graphic novel reflects on anxieties of historic and political events such as the Vietnam war, Watergate, and tension with the Soviet Union. The focus is on super heroes as a concept and the moral struggles between the characters. There are many clever symbols and icons throughout the graphic novel that make the work feel timeless. 

Week 12

For this week, we focused on comics by women. I was excited for this week's focus because I was looking forward to reading This One Summer by the Tamaki cousins. I really love Jullian Tamaki's work and had followed her for years. This read was super enjoyable and refreshing. It was beautiful and poetic. It presents the story of two teenage girls as almost a diary. It feels very nostalgic. This contrasts the harsh life lessons presented in the graphic novel. I thought the powerful mix of these two concepts made the graphic novel extremely memorable.

Week 11

This week I read Asterios Polyp by David Mazzucchelli. I loved this comic because it broke so many "rules" or traditions that early comics had established. I thought the themes and subject was very complex and engaging. The art style was also very unique and suiting - very "futuristic." I thought the sophistication in the work definitely worked as a perfect example of comics as contemporary literature. I think this extreme contrast from super hero comics should be popularized for modern audiences so they can expand their views on the art form.

Week Ten: Manga

I read Death Note by Tsugumi Ohba and Takeshi Obata. I thought it was super interesting as the themes are very complex. I think The art and stylization was also very captivating and dramatic. I think there are many other works that follow the same stylistic guide: sharp angles, dramatic speech bubbles, etc. It was interesting to see the differences commonly noted between American and Japanese comics, but also the similarities. I think American comics are more influenced today more than ever by masterpieces created in Japan. 

Week 9

This week I read Persepolis. Overall, I really enjoyed this comic. The comic was created by Marjane Satrapi. It is a graphic autobiography depicting her childhood into her adolescence and adulthood. It deals with the year after the Iranian Revolution. The times are filled with turmoil and conflict. Young Marjane (or Marji) is learning about herself and her reality. I also really enjoyed the graphic visuals and stylization. I thought it was almost reminiscent of propaganda poster designs which felt suitable for the themes of the novel - dealing with politics, religion, etc.

Stereotypes

The use of stereotypes in comics, animation, and gaming narrative is a huge controversy and debate today. To me, stereotypes are a dying form of storytelling. It was very popular in film, comics, and other media while I was growing up. Stereotypes helped define the characters and created a false “diversity”.  For example, the stereotype/trope of "Damsel in Distress" is a huge controversy while it used to be an essential story element in early super hero comics and other media. In addition, there is more prominent "toxic masculinity" in these genres (as well as other films - especially before the 1990s). For example, Back to the Future was pointed out by Pop Culture Detective as having strong, consistent examples of toxic masculinity. Some examples included extreme violence and aggression.
In general, they show toxic and sexist behaviors towards other female characters.

Maus & Maus 2

Maus is a memoir of the complex true story. It is written by the American Art Spiegelman. The story is set in the 1970s. It begins as a discussion with the author's father, Vladek, and his experiences during the Holocaust. Art is writing a book about his father's memories. While Spiegelman talks with his father, we get an account of his life, but also the relationship between father and son.
The book opens with Vladek's life as a young adult. His marriage to Anja Zylberberg, their first chlid, and their experiences during the World War 2 era. They begin to notice the Nazi influence, lose their factory/business and son, and finally get taken into concentration camps. At the end of the first book, Vladek and Anja reunite and flee to Sweden and later the United States.
In the second book, the story delves more into the father-son relationship. It shows the anger Art has toward's his father for destroying Anja's diaries. The conflicted feelings and memories add a new dimension to the memoir. It shows the relationship between Mala (Vladek's new wife after Anja's suicide) and Vladek. Then finally the illness that Vladek faces.

In summary, Maus is a complicated and accomplished graphic novel which is a huge step in the history of Graphic Novels. Part of the underground comics scene, Maus is widely respected and won the Pulitzer Prize in 1992. It represents the second generation of Holocaust survivors and their families. It shows more than just the stories at the time of the Holocaust, but also the repercussions to the survivors.  It preserves the stories of those who faced such horrors while also expressing the ongoing struggle. The topic is addressed in the graphic novel format through simple black and white illustrations. The framing and arrangements are unique and intriguing. The depictions of the characters were strongly influenced by Nazi propaganda. This is a striking element.
Additionally, the comic is mostly text-driven. The panels are mostly wordless. The arrangement of the comic makes it feel like a diary. The style feels inspired by german expressionism with dark shapes and contrasted linear designs.

Underground Comix

This was the first time I sat down and read underground comix. Underground comix we were small, self-published comics in the 1960s.  I found it very dark and satirical.  They were a huge contrast to some of the first comics ever made - which were more family-friendly. These comics dealt with violence, sexuality, drug-use, alcohol, and other mature themes. The drawings themselves were also very strange and crude. It seems heavily influenced by punk and alternative culture.

Robert Crumb's comics were particularly wild. Mr. Natural was an underground comix made in the 1960s by Robert Crumb. It was extremely popular and merchandized. It is a depiction of a guru. He has strange powers and unique insights. Mr. Natural was published in Zap comix. Zap comix were revolutionary. Nothing like it has been seen or done before. This appealed to the rapidly alternative culture of this time. While they are not my personal taste in graphic novel, I feel they were very important to the history of graphic novels because they drew a new audience to the art form. Suddenly, comics could discuss and engage darker, more serious topics in new ways. This was never done before and paved a way for diverse novels in the future. The audience grew for the art form. 

Will Eisner & Craig Thompson

Created in 1978, Will Eisner’s Contract with God is considered the first graphic novel. I read the graphic novel for the first time this past summer. It was striking to me because of the complex ideas dealing religion, sexuality, cultural assimilation, and morality. Will Eisner uses small vignette stories to deal with this topics. The stories are all set through  a Jewish community in a tenement in uptown, New York City. He further enhances the social realistic story through extreme staging, dramatic facial expressions, and pacing. I also admire the craftsmanship of the graphic novel. His draftsmanship and visual communication abilities are admirable.
Blankets by Craig Thompson is a contemporary graphic novel. It was published in 2003. It is an autobiographical coming-of-age story. It begins (and bounces from) scenes from when the author was just a young boy. It goes on into his teenage years. Both the younger and older character's experiences hold equally impactful and resonating events. It is a very sophisticated, yet emotional, work. It deals with the events of the creator's childhood. The author addresses his first love, thoughts on morality, and identity through his formative years. It is well written and drawn. Te story was extremely engaging and poignant.
I thoroughly enjoyed both Will Eisner and Craig Thompson's works. Although you can notice the differences through the time period in which each was created, I thought they were still very similar. They both had brush-y visuals and monochromatic color. Outside of visions, they both dealt with very personal and complex topics. The way they were addressed were different. Will Eisner's approach seemed "outside looking in". While Craig Thompson's was clearly a self-analysis/autobiographical account. I enjoyed how Will Eisner dealt with similar/building topics through multiple points of view - even though the views were all from the same community. I also enjoyed how Craig Thompson approached the topics more personally. While, I think more young people will relate to Craig Thompson's story because it is a modern rendition (seen through the eyes of an adolescent). I still believe Will Eisner's Contract with God is equally impacting. Both works are masterpieces that I encourage others to read for themselves.

Little Nemo, Peanuts, and the Comic Strip

The weekly and Sunday comics were revolutionary to the evolution of comics. The early comic strips show a development of a character/set of characters through a subscription-based audience. Each newspaper had a new addition or continuation of the story/characters.
Little Nemo by Winsor McCay was a substantial work that really caught my eye. It is a weekly comic which is about the adventures which occur young boy's dreams (maybe even nightmares?). Each time is he trying to reach/adventuring in Slumberland. The goal is to meet the young princess. There are many obstacles and hurdles which entertain audiences in the past and today. I love the technical abilities of the artist, but also the imaginative qualities of the work. The series is a masterpiece.
Another example was the Peanuts by Charles Schulz. It follows a group of young kids and their daily encounters/experiences. It has really satirical and relatable humor which is still identifiable today. It went on to television and it's popularity is still prominent.

Understanding Comics

Scott McCloud's Understanding Comics was powerful and successful because it is a comic explaining and questioning comics. McCloud dives into various aspects of visual storytelling, communication, iconography, etc. McCloud dives into more practical concepts such as the structure of the panel. He discusses how it is time and space. In summary, the liberties you can take with the panel can influence how you tell and structure a story.
However, McCloud also breaks boundaries of traditional comic book uniformity by placing his character in both surreal and believable environments to further discuss the more abstract concepts behind comics.
His ideas on the idioms and structure of creating and producing works. I also appreciate his analysis of the icon and it's language. It grows from written language to realistic images/icons to the simplified icons we are used to seeing in comic strip styles such as Peanuts. He not only analyzes this concept, but asks the reader questions to further push what we know and what we perceive when experiencing this art form.
I also thought how he compared Western versus Eastern comics was especially intriguing. Manga and other eastern comics are longer because they have more "spacing" or "subtle moments of nothingness". On the other hand Western comics, are very action oriented. Most of the well-known and successful comics–in Western culture– are based on action. I thought this concept was extremely interesting, because I prefer many Eastern forms of media because of this difference.
This is just the starting point of the concepts which were contained in Scott McCloud's Understanding Comics. It is an extremely well written and structured work for the amount of abstract thoughts and questions in the book.

The Arrival

Shaun Tan's The Arrival is a masterpiece of visual storytelling. The book is completely wordless, but the visual elements create an enchanting and warm story. The story is about an immigrant.  The story follows the man who leaves his family in search of a new home. It is about his struggles, encounters, and discoveries in a foreign place.
Tan uses lighting and soft charcoal techniques to enhance the mood throughout the work. The rough, grainy traditional media beautifully adds to his intent. He also uses unique symbols (foreign and familiar) to establish the world he has created. His comic is full of dramatic scenes and close up shots of characters. The addition of various immigrants' stories (which the protagonist discovers along the way) add to the theme. We experience the various feelings of multiple characters on the same topic - immigration. The visual style is almost like an old picture or memory book. It feels as if we are reading a relatives travel journey.
Shaun Tan created a magically believable world. Together, all the visual storytelling techniques create a masterpiece. While the tale is based on the creator's own personal immigration to Australia, it is still relatable to people in various ways. It is safe to say, that almost any reader has felt as if they were a foreigner in a new environment. Tan captures those exact feelings of confusion, wonder, and happiness in his story. In the end, we feel the character's adaption and acceptance. The Arrival revolutionizes the picture book.