Comic Theory
Compressed storytelling versus decompressed storytelling: pros and cons
Greg Burgas wrote this piece over two years ago. However, these last couple of days, the topic has come up in a few different places online, and when three separate places all link to Greg’s two year old piece, I think it’s a sign that perhaps this piece is worth sharing with you folks. Enjoy! [...]
What do we mean when we say “fun” comics?
Dick Hyacinth’s post about “the war on fun” got me thinking.  I know, how surprising.
Dazzler: Ahead of its time?
I just finished reading all 42 issues of the late, lamented Dazzler series from 1981-1986, and although there is quite a bit that isn’t good about the series, I wonder if it’s one of those titles that was too far ahead of its time to succeed. Allow me to explain under the fold!
Omar Karindu on “Hitler vs. Comic-Book Hitler; or, Why Super-Heroes Shouldn’t Fight Al Quaeda”
Our pal Omar wrote this up at the Comics Should Be Good forum here, but I thought it was notable enough for it to appear here, too! Nice work, Omar! Every so often, someone will ask, “Where is today’s version of a comic in which Superman or Captain America deck Bin Laden?” They point, with [...]
I Really DID Like Most of Gruenwald’s Cap
That’s why I feel a little bit sketchy linking you to this post by a fellow named Professor Fury, but really, it’s not like it is mean or anything, and it’s a well-written examination of the end of Gruenwald’s Captain America run, and I think it is worth reading, even if it, at times, is [...]
Should a Twist in a Comic Necessarily Be Surprising?
Awhile back, I mentioned my theory regarding what I felt was comic writers going out of their way to make sure they were surprising their readers, and the result ended up being detrimental to the story. “Don’t compete with your readers to see if you can surprise them,” was my main point, as doing so [...]
Was it WiR?
Now that I have my definition for Women in Refrigerators, I think it would be interesting to look back at the last year or so (Infinite Crisis #1 on) of bad stuff that has happened to female characters in comics (okay, basically just superhero comics), and see if I think it falls into the category [...]
The failure of Gødland, the death of the postmodern superhero, and why Grant Morrison is partly to blame
Now, you just know with a title like that, this is going to be one of those long, pretentious posts where I rant about various things in comics using only a small sample size and coming to generalized conclusions based on that small sample size! Those are always fun, aren’t they?
Paradigm shifts in comics; or why Superman isn’t the Great American Superhero anymore!
Hey, you know those posts where I talk out of my ass and everyone berates me because I don’t have insider knowledge about, say, Marvel’s romance comics of the 1950s? Those are fun, aren’t they? Well, it’s time for another one! Sharpen your knives, ladies and gentlemen – sharpen them well!
The Hidden Language of 52
The miniseries 52: more than it appears. Oh yes. Yes indeed. Among the godfathers of the project is Grant Morrison. Morrison, a man who loves to tie his works into larger ideas, such as the tarot card links to the Arkham Asylum graphic novel, or the Kabbalah/Mystic Spiral parallels in his Seven Soldiers of Victory [...]
