Authority

    Throughout superhero comics we see plenty of prominent symbolism. It’s a way to build the tension between heroes and  villains. In the comic, Authority, by Warren Ellis, we see a variety in the use of colors. Each scene has its color palette to enhance to the mood. In Vol. 1 #3 we start in a graveyard filled with purples and blues as we are introduced to the main antagonist. Later we meet the heroes that are covered in hotspots to make them feel dominating. 

    What I notice in these comics is the consistency in structure. We begin with either the main antagonist or the main destruction. From there we can be introduced to each character to begin their development. Soon they group up and within a short period of time they wipe out the enemy. 

    If I were to adapt these comics into another medium I would begin developing the plot a lot more. Things are too rushed and need time to build up the tension and excitement. The endings come a pretty fast and the world is saved in one page. I think to adapt this comic into a featured film would be pretty typical but at the same time successful. I think i’d still adapt this piece as a film. There is unlimited potential with superhero films depending on how well marketed/budgeted they are. With the right resources these comics would become popular just like the Avengers and other comic movies. The thing about superhero comics and movies is that they can never run out of ideas. There are so many backstories to each character we can see as well as the number of villains with their own methods of destruction. It seems like we could simply pair different characters together and create a new random outcome. The possibilities are endless, making the process and outcome pretty interesting.

13_Superhero Comics

    Having not read many superhero comics I see the fascination with the stories, characters and concepts. There is so much room for story and plot development that the whole superhero franchise seams infinite. Even now a days we see the rise in superhero fans as the characters keep up with the times and advance their look and equipment. 

    I was able to read a few comics of Authority. What is great about these stories is the consistency in structure. We are initially introduced to the villains and destruction that is life threatening to the world. Then we jump between heroes to understand the character development and brief personality/backstory. Soon the heroes group up to dive into battle and, within a short time, they defeat the foes. 

    Now, these stories are great for there interchangeable plots. What would make them better is something unexpected in each story. Something that changes the order of sequence from what fans may expect. Also each comic begins with the world already being destroyed at a world scale rather then at a city level. It makes we question why it takes the heroes until the last minute to fight back and protect. Then when they do, it goes by so quickly that it seems easy. If that were the case than why not get it over with sooner to prevent the civilian casualties? 

Another interesting point to notice is the adaptation over time. Heroes nowadays are spoiled with their top gear and heavy technology. To read these 1999 comics almost seems as if it were the start of their careers and as they became stronger and moe recognized they moved up. Batman, for example, wears a black leather trench coat and a leather mask without the ears. My take take on this is that perhaps his character has decided to upgrade or hasn’t been recognized enough to become the wealthy top geared hero we know today. He seemed more like a street fighter that must really knows some moves.

    This week I have also read some of Hellboy. These stories are noticeably less proper and mannered like the commercial heroes. Hellboy is a grungy comic with attitude. His problems only become worse throughout the stories. He fights villains but each new one becomes larger until one is even larger that a Godzilla. We never see this in traditional superhero comics, such absurdity of character development and plot. It’s definitely intriguing and interests me more. I would love to see how these characters and giant titan like creatures would look in a movie. We only see the other modern superheroes from how commercial they have become. To some degree it takes away from the story for me. To see the heroes sell out, but of course it’s directors fault because they can choose whomever to be a hero, as they change so often over time. I find it interesting to see how excepting we are to allow new actors and designs of heroes to change over time without caring for the idea of time and reality. Of course they can’t live forever but we there are simply endless possibilities when it comes to making a new story and then choosing one of hundreds to turn into a movie. 

    The superhero industry is probably the most dominant in the comic business. What I appreciate most is the ability to take characters and plots and add new design. It really creates the mood of each piece and allows for different interpretation. Arkham Asylum  another story of Batman but with a different design. It’s a comic with grunge textures and lighting. An interesting take on a commercial hero but it gives some interesting moods. We see that the possibilities are endless. Superhero comics will forever have a prominent role in the life of comics and their evolution.

12_Comics By Women

    This week I have read This One Summer by Mariko and Jilian Tamaki. This is simply one of those stories that shares the real life of teens and family drama. There isn’t anything over dramatic that takes place and there’s not crazy plot twists to put us on edge. It’s the relaxing type that you can just read to share the emotions with and understand how the characters feel. The character development is beautiful, which is essential for these types of stories. Since there is nothing crazy going on, there really needs to be believable plots and dialogue. 

    

    I found it interesting to see Rose’s fascination with the Dud and the guys poor manners and talk of sex while Windy was disgusted. I really thought something bad was going to happen to one of them. One day they may get caught up trying to fit in with the guys the nasty girls they associate with and then someone may try to take advantage or peer pressure the young girls. I realized the story didn’t need that type of drama. We can understand what goes on with those kind of people from afar. 

    Another problem we see is within the family drama. Every family has some sort of drama go on and the kids never really understand why because it’s simply adult things. There is this disconnection with the mother and we believe she’s just removing herself for no reason. It seems that she just wants to be sad all of the time and she never wants to partake with the family. This is clearly difficult for both Rose and the father. Rose wants a mother that with relax and not start arguments and the father wants a wife that won’t give up. During their first argument there was so much emphasis on the shattering bowl. It symbolized the relationships they have and almost seemed intentional to avoid the husband’s kiss. Next the brother-in-law really pushes to get her into the water which causes the mother to freak out at him. I do believe she needed to lighten up because why go out with the family if you’re not going to spend time or enjoy it. We find out towards the end that the mother had a miscarriage while swimming and lost her second child. This is clearly a huge deal and could easily scar the mother. I have sympathy for the mother because it’s a horrible thing to happen. At the same time I believe it’s important to move on. The only way she could ever be happy is by moving on and enjoying what she still has and the daughter that is with her and the husband that still supports her. So yes, perhaps she’s had reason to be so removed but at the same time it’s something to leave in the past and move on to become a happy spirited mother once again.

    The last issue that is briefly brought up from time to time is the idea of adoption and early pregnancy. As we see these kids talking about sex all the time one of them actually gets pregnant. There are chances for is to have sympathy for the pregnant girl, Jenny, but at the same time it is fare to say she was irresponsible to get pregnant, especially because these kids are really just a bunch of bums, as Windy would call them. There was a moment when Rose mentioned that Jenny was just a slut and should have controlled herself so this issue would not have happened. Rose says she should have taken care of her stuff to prevent the pregnancy because what would she do with it afterwards, give it away? This is offensive to Windy. Windy mentions that it’s sexist to blame the girl for being irresponsible, which is true because both sides should have known better. The reason it is really offensive to WIndy is because Rose keeps forgetting how Windy was adopted. We don’t know the story of why she was adopted or who her parents were. They could have simply been just like Jenny and the Dud, being irresponsible. What does that say about the situation? Windy may never have been born so we see how the two have apposing beliefs. 

    There’s obviously a lot you can take from the story. Even with the simple plot we seem to learn so much. Something to think about is how this is a small story about only two kids during one summer. That is nothing in terms of quantity of knowledge when compared to the world. We see how so much can be told and learned from in this one story. What if there was a story for the rest of the world, the billions of people. We all live different lives and have combinations of different issues that we must face. To be able to see everyones story would be amazing but of course impossible. We can learn so much from following others. To narrow it back down, these stories are able to feel real for one reason. It’s the character development that Mariko and Jilian Tamaki have created to bring this simple story of a summer come to life. 

11_Comics As Contemporary Literature

    David Mazzucchelli’s comic, Asterios Polyp, has brought so interesting points about life and how reality works, or appears to work. Many people don’t understand the amount of possibilities there are and how much control we actually have over them. We can see, on a micro scale, how the smallest actions may alter or influence someone else’s. 

    Asterios is in a weird position were he is a twin but the other had died at birth. This plays a role throughout his life, making him question his purpose and environment. Why was he the one to survive? Is his brother’s spirit growing up with him and following him everywhere?  It is interesting to see the portrayal of his brother as an invisible man that tends to do the same things as him. Throughout the story there are a lot of different question about the ways to perceive a given situation. We are not necessarily give the answers but we see how a small choice can make a difference down the road.

    Asterios eventually married a women named Hana. Their lives had crossed paths do to their influences. She was a shy girl that was a brilliant student but her family gave her no attention for accomplishments because her brother was more important. We see how simple actions can play a long term effect on someones life. Being the shy girl she was insecure and then Asterios was the first person to speak to her. 

    

    After kicking it off and eventually getting married we see the turning points in their relationship.     Asterios puts her back into the role she’s always been used to of not being important. We see how he puts her down by always being right. This, of course, makes her feel dumb like she did when she was younger. Learning about the three elements to a relationship, it’s obvious how their relationship ended. He slowly stopped respecting her by talking over and knowing everything. This lead to him not trusting her as she was trying to make a career with Willy, who I would say is not entirely trustworthy based on the things he says to her. Lastly, with those elements out of the way there is no room for love.

    

    I enjoyed the ending where we see Asterios make his way back to her. We see the things that have changed between them and it seems that they really missed each other. Then the final note was of them coincidentally talking about Resting In Piece as they get closer to each other, clearly still in love. Then they are able to die together from the random meteor that was mentioned earlier. It was one of those romantic deaths because they finally made it back to each other before death so they’ll live together in Heaven. 

    The art of this comic has a large variety of symbolism and technique. There are plays on color and line quality, like seeing Hana turn read and shaded as she yells at Asterios, who becomes an outline. We see characters shown with different pen strokes and shading when he describes our differences and influences. 

    This story was very interesting in terms of the meaning behind everything. It brought up many questions and thoughts that I have had before, mainly the idea of a simple action changing the rest of ones life. “What if reality were simply an extension of the self? Wouldn't that color the way each individual experiences the world?”

10_Manga and Osamu Tezuka

    I had the pleasure of reading some of Osamu Tezuka’s work, in particular, Battle Angel Alita “Last Order” Vol 1 #1. This crazy story seems to be about a war between the government and the unknown class which includes women with mechanic bodies. The government seems to be the antagonist as they carelessly pray on this little girl, Yoto, shooting her as she runs for freedom. Soon a hopeful spirited, little girl, Erica, comes along to protect her. I wasn’t sure whether she was a robotic figure as well but she is portrayed as a strong character as she helps Yoto through the mine field to escape.

    Throughout the manga, we cut between the scene described above and this mad scientist who is creating these artificially intelligent brains that he pares with female figures. Soon we have the chance to see one, Panzer Kunst, come down from the sky to fight the army with ease, saving the girls. 

    What I found interesting about Tezuka’s story is the large role of the female hero’s and their roll in society. The army is shown as these macho giants with their cigars and lack of care for anything. Clearly the type of soldier that joins, not for the honor, but for the power and aggression of war. 

    At the end of the story we see the crazy revealing of who Yoto really is, or was. We remember that the soldier kicked the girl, mentioning she was robotic. Now we realize that the cuts between her scramble through the mines and the mad scientist was to witness her own creation. I was never sure if the scientist was good or not, seeing how crazy he looked. I am curious of his purpose to create these female assassins. Is he defending against the government and am I just assuming they’re the government because they look like soldiers? This reminds me of some sort of violent take on Charlie’s Angels, but that could be far fetched. I think the big question is, who is this girl? We see her so weak right now as she’s being carried through the mine field but what is she actually capable of? 

    I think these questions that the story has left us with is what entices me to read the next part. I’m very curious to see what will happen to the girl. Tezuka has created such a great intro that tells us so much but still so little. He gives us the important details first so we learn about the girls and their story. What he doesn’t share is the setting and who, specifically, is fighting who on a grander level. Tezuka’s work seems to be very inspirational and I think of all the manga i’ve read before, these stories would make a great animation series. 

09_ Wide World of Comics

    This week I have decided to read a piece from Jean Moebius, Blueberry “General Golden Mane.” This story had some really strong tension between characters that encouraged me to want more. At some points i’m trying to decide whether to have hope for the Natives or the new Americans to win. 

    Generally I wish for the Natives to keep there land for the reasons shown in this story. 

We see how Golden Mane has no interest in the Native lives as well as his own. He plays off as a hero of some sort but truly he’s nothing more than a coward that’s afraid to lose to Blueberry. It’s funny to see how far he goes to get rid of Blueberry. After demoting him he even suggests killing him. The general wouldn’t even be alive if Blueberry hadn’t saved him. I guess the entire plot was based around the one moment were Blueberry could have either saved him, like he had regretfully done, or left him in the water to be scalped by the Natives. He instantly knew that he his decision was wrong but being the true hero it’s in his nature to save everyone. 

    Blueberry is the clear symbol of a hero. After saving the general and being demoted he still takes charge to win the battle and most of all, protect his troops. While he’s sent out to be slaughtered by the Natives he still works with what he has to succeed. Another admirable moment, the most admirable, is we Blueberry had argued with the general to leave the innocent women and children unharmed. Of course, rather than doing what is right, the general decides to send Blueberry to fight warriors while he pillages the easy targeted civilians. 

    In terms of art I am interested in the color choices that Moebius switches between. The story is drawn in black and white except for the characters. Beginning the story the characters are saturated with multiple colors. Then from scene to scene we see different schemes that help create the mood. Battles become shades of red and scenes of death become shades of cold blue. I found the intro most interesting for having the multicolored palette that represents what they were before the battles and death.   

    Moebius has done a great job building a climax, filled with tension between enemies. Through character development and foreshadows we learn how the true heroes are the ones that make mistakes but always defend their honor. 

08_ Stereotype and Ethnic Representation

    Stereotyping and ethnics are always a choice of subject because so many issues can come from them. As artists, who is to say what or how we draw? Really, no one can control our design and choices but there are definitely things to think about before settling for the character you thought was fine. 

    When designing characters and, more specifically, other races, it is important to not be offensive. If you are trying to represent someone, stereotypes are not the way to go. They don’t enhance the reading at all because they can’t describe any character individually. To stereotype is simply a way to judge a whole race or culture through any given character, rather than actually giving that character his/her own personality. Often times a stereotype is used as an easy joke when the artist isn’t really thinking about anything, it’s just a standard judgement that many don’t think about.

    Now, I can understand where some cases may appropriately include a stereotype. We have all experienced different situations and we have met different types of people. There are stereotypes for a reason, they have actually happen sometimes. The appropriate time to handle a stereotype is through observation. I believe that if you are or have observed something that may become stereotypical than hey, you’ve seen it happen so feel free to write about it. When it comes to the actual character, if you decide to exaggerate someone than you should do the same to other characters. It’s when there’s the uncomfortable difference in character design that we, as readers, see the artist is being aggressive. When bringing in a character they must be introduced at the same level as the others. 

    However you choose to render your representation, make sure it is something that you have experienced or seen. It is one thing to assume the stereotype in your artwork and then there’s the accurate depiction that benefits the story. Be careful when choosing the ways to depict a character because once the artist chooses to stereotype they will loose the connection with the audience and their views will not feel real. 

07_ Legitimation

        Maus is a graphic novel that I have seen everywhere yet had never read before. I have also read and watched many stories about the Holocaust and all are powerful in their own way. Maus has been different though. A graphic novel is a powerful way to convey the Holocaust for all of the reasons we have learned up to this point. 

        Maus is created around symbolism. When I read this novel it actually reminded me of Pink Floyd’s Animals  album. The symbolism is similar in terms of hierarchy, just a couple animals exchanged. The pigs are always the leaders of government and essentially corruption. They sit at the top feasting on their wealth and power which makes them the glutenous pig. Rather than the dogs Spiegelman uses cats. Treated the same, cats are also ones with power just at a smaller level. They essentially work under the pigs to achieve the same goal of greed and power. Then lastly, rather than sheep, we have the mice. The expendable mice who must hide from the cats to not be hunted. This symbolism is very powerful and accurate to display hierarchy. 

        The use of a graphic novel to portray the Holocaust or any significant matter is perfect. We have all seen live action movies of tragic events and they are definitively hard to endure. As the viewer we place ourselves in other shoes and that helps make them feel powerful. The graphic novel point of view can be just as powerful if not more. Graphics can visually exaggerate the message to empower the tone. Also, the simplicity of the characters allows us to feel more connected with them. 

Through the mice, Spiegelman has brought us to such a personal level of his own life. There is so much power as I follow what his family endured at the time. Not only that but we experience the effect it had on the children and further generations of those survivors. As he tells the stories he does not seem to hold back life movies often do. People are afraid to see the truth but as a graphic novel he can draw and say whatever he desires. He doesn’t hold back on the details and horrible things that happened and I respect that. 

        I think that the Holocaust will always be remembered although it is losing interest. I have seen so many different movies and variations about it which are all sad but at the same time it gets old. There’s needed to be something new that can entice the viewer while keeping the general story and accuracy. This doesn’t mean I need more gruesome details but simply another take of the subject. We always need something new to keep us interested. Spiegelman does this perfectly. He took the subject that had been losing views and successfully remade the stories through the eyes of his own family.

06_ Underground Comix

        This week I have read a few stories of Robert Crumbs underground comix. What drew my attention is the weird, yet natural interest many may have with his work. Everyone, or most, has a natural draw towards sexual tendencies whether we admit it or not. 

        These stories share different sexual encounters that tend to be humorous yet very wrong. I find it difficult to know whether I should be laughing like I instinctively do or if I should feel concerned. At the same time what interests me with Robert Crumb is that his stories often feel more natural than what people want to imagine for a sex scene. We see in the movies how romantic everything is or has to be but truthfully it’s all a dream. Looking at “A Pastoral Interlude” we see two girls trying to get it on in the woods because no one knows about the secret girl scout spot. Rather than making the story follow the perfect romance they struggle to fool around because of natural obstacles. The sharp rock, the wet grass, the ants, and of course the intruding boy scouts. These are all possible problems anyone could run into while out in the woods with someone else. I respect Crumbs choice of the explicit truth we all try to hide.

        Another interesting piece from Tits and Clits is “I Was a Sex Junkie”. The style seemed to create a fifties feel as we are told so energetically what we can and can’t do. The girl seems so excited to tell us of her sex drive but at the same time she appears completely terrified. Crumb has set an interesting mood were I felt the girls excitement in her tone of voice yet we are essentially watching the life of a girl who was taken advantage of or perhaps raped. She is so turned on when thinking of it but the in the moment scenes she resists and says no but couldn’t do anything. Crumb introduces the reality of what may happen to girls that are taken advantage of at young ages. They amy turning into sexually driven women that turn to the negative aspects in life which potentially destroy them. In the end it wasn’t the life they wanted, it was forced onto them and Crumb shares that feeling of mockery as we catch ourselves be entertained by another person taken advantage of. 

        Lastly I had read Robert Crumb’s Whiteman. This was a great read for its random change of gears. The most obvious one is how smoothly Whiteman gets comfortable with the Sasquatch and basically convinces himself of how nice this new freedom was. My favorite line was when he had mentioned that his wife would never be down for whatever he had been doing to Sasquatch. I love the unnatural ending of having Whiteman completely give up his wife and kid to become an ape as well. It’s interesting to see such little care in ones actions. I think what really makes this a grossly illustrated comic are Sasquatch facial expressions and sound effects during sex. There was one moment were her vagina had HISSED... Just imagining that is disgusting but so perfect for the mood and exaggeration of this story.

        Overall Crumb’s sexual comics are interesting for bringing the hidden truth to a situation and the natural ways of life rather than the expected, perfect sexual experience. 

05_ The Graphic Novel

        Will Eisner and Craig Thomas portray emotions through character body language. This allows us to understand the mood and tone of the story without even needing dialogue.

        Will Eisner has done a great job portraying fate in the three stories of A Contract With God. It’s very true how we all expect so much from life or God when haven’t truly earned it. The thing is that we don’t know what obstacles we will face in the future. Who’s to tell us what we deserve and are owed. The men in these stories expect soo much for what they have done or been through but when you start expecting things, you start losing faith. 

        

        The first and third story felt most powerful, seeing Frimme Hersh lose his daughter and go mad. From there on I could easily feel the emotion and rage he had through his body language as he took over Dropsie Avenue. Essentially giving up on faith changed his life. Did he become more successful or less? He lost his love for anything in life and was empowered by the anger to build an empire out of Dropsie Avenue. We see the transformation in character stature as Frimme is drawn slouched to his uptight proper posture. When forcing the new contract on the clergy men Frimme is hidden within shadow. You rarely see his face anymore as he stands tall, towering over everyone else. Receiving the contract he becomes soft and humble again but it’s deception as he turns straight back to his demanding self, leading to his death.

        The Super is another great comic from Eisner. What interests me most is whether to feel for Mr. Scuggs or the little girl. Mr. Scuggs is always seen slouched over with his shoulders dropped. Through body language we already se how unhappy he is with life and it effects others perception. Only when he is drinking or hugging his dog do we see the happiness that is in him. What strikes me the most is finally seeing the good in Mr. Scuggs right before the niece took it away. Simply walking into his room had struck me as being a problematic. It never felt weird to me until I found out that the girl was only 15. At that point I couldn’t tell whether to favor the stuck up niece or the unhappy pervert that’s been robbed.

        Lastly, Blankets by Craig Thomas is a story about first love that is conveyed through characters and line. Compared to Eisner, Craig’s design is much cleaner. His use of clean lines allows us to see the attraction between characters. We can see the delicate soft features of the girl through her smooth line quality. Craig’s choice of style enhances the story by building the love interest. As a first love situation the two characters felt very natural and real. 

04_ The Comic Book

        When reading Spiegelman’s Jack Cole and Plastic Man I assumed it would be just like every action/hero comic. After checking out a few works and cover designs for Plastic Man it appeared more as art than a usual hero comic. The covers definitely feel surreal as we see compositions with Plastic Man stretching into a new form. The humor in Plastic Man is that he seems to shape shift into very random objects and shapes to fight crime. I’ve seen him take the shape of a book, lightning bolt, and even a dinosaur. Of all the ways Spiegelman could design Plastic Man I appreciate the artistic, humorous approach. He allows us to be surprised by the way Plastic Man may saved the day since he has unlimited forms and ways to stretch around the canvas to attack. 

        I had also read Donald Duck The Ancient Persia which was a fun a surprise. I had always watched and favored Donald Duck over the other Disney characters. The three little ones are always getting into trouble wherever they go but it creates a mini adventure at the same time. The kids are easily just the same as Donald Duck in terms of personality but together they can create interesting adventures while DOnald tries to protect them. 

Understanding Comics

     Understanding Comics is a great narrative that gives a lot of detail about the creation of comics. There are many aspects that build a successful comic rather then simply viewing them as pictures and words. A small detail Scott McCloud explains to us is that we want to naturally observe things as cartoons. People have tendencies to simplify an image or take a simplified shape and create a specific image out of it. The most common example is how people can take a circle with a dot inside and view it as an eye. This occurs whether it may be apart of architecture or some environmental objects. Scott gives many examples and explanations as to how these simple concepts will create the best comics. 

     What is most interesting to me is the timing and story a comic is able to anticipate. An author and artist must know the best scenes to include in each frame. Which part of the story will allow you explain enough while leaving some out. What we don’t see in a comic are the in-between frames. They may just be too much to include or perhaps they defeat the purpose of the story. What a successful comic book can do is create the necessary frames that we can build a story around. The comics will not have every footstep or every punch and fall. It is important that the audience can imagine the in-between scenes and actions that truly build the story. The comic is like a guide that creates the plot and basis which lets us then imagine it all. 

     This function and aspect of a comic is something we often overlook. We don’t always realize that we’re not actually seeing all of the action drawn out. The successful comics are able to keep the balance of timing and sequence to allow us to understand the story and taste the action while, more importantly, imagining the rest. 

A Comic Without Words

          Words are not the only way to create a story. Images and sequences can often share much more. The Arrival by Shaun Tan has many drawings that perfectly depict a strong story. The author is able to do this through a characters body language. When we see the protagonist talking with others we don't hear anything or see dialogue. We see the shape of their eyebrows and mouth, which allows us to understand the mood they are in and their reaction to the previous one. Other forms of body language like hand gestures and posture depicts a mood and how they may be reacting in conversation. We’ll never know what exactly is being said but it is up to the reader to interpret the comic. Sometimes it may seem literal and easy while others may need more thinking and interpreting. 

          Besides body language the other author tells the story through settings and detail. We are able to follow the protagonist’s journey by seeing each landscape and city he travels to. Shaun Tan did a great job drawing the protagonist close up and then slowly zooming out to show where everything is really taking place. Therefore from one scene to the next we can realize that he is traveling a lot in order to find his family. Also as he travels we see new people and new cultures depicted in the images. This is simply another way to show change. 

          Overall we the success of a wordless comic lies in the interpretation of the reader. We may or may not interpret the story how the author wanted. By choosing not to give words the author has the power of how closely we will follow the story. It could be very easy to depict or maybe it’s left more to the imagination to create our own idea. With either option we understand how great of a story an image can share and how words are not always as important as we believe.