I chose to read Moebius 1 Upon a Star this week. The art style for this comic is incredibly interesting and clean. The use of color is very simplistic but appealing. It give the comic a very specific look and definitely represents the time period from which it was made. The character designs are also very simplistic while keeping basic human anatomy to a more realistic standard.
The first story is called the Repairman, which seems to be a short prequel of the main story. We are introduced to tow main characters, a mechanic Stel and his helper Atan, who are called on to repair a vehicle on an alien planet. It is discovered that the inhabitants of the planet are called the Waymasters and Stel must enter it to repair it. In order to do this, however, he seems to have to reach into his own past in order to figure out how to achieve his goal. It's an interesting premise with great visuals to go along with it. Its also a nice way to get to know our two main protagonists in Upon a Star.
In Upon a Star, Stel and Atan crash land on a planet with very strange creatures that reside around a mysterious blue pyramid. The pyramid seems to have really incredible power, despite nobody knowing what it is truly. Stel begins feeling compelled to go toward the pyramid, adding to the mystery. It is only at this point we begin to understand what is actually happening in this strange world.
The story is engaging and allows you to really be sucked into Moebius' work. I really enjoyed looking into this story and hope to read more in the future if time provides.
Thursday, October 31, 2019
Stereotypes and the ethics in representation
I have never been a fan of the use of stereotyping in comics even as a child. I feel that anything that puts someone in an uncomfortable position strictly because of the race they are, gender, or anything else that is beyond someones control isn't right.
I don't think this kind of offensive stereotypical representation is at all necessary in video games, movies, etc. It's a weak way to make a character in my opinion, as good and well-written characters have much more to them then a stereotypes. Stereotypes also aren't that interesting, the shock value often being the only interesting thing about them. In comics I can at least somewhat understand the use of stereotyping, so the characters that show up in one panel can be easily read. (Even if that stereotypical description is wrong) I still think its a weak story telling tool regardless.
However, I do think it's important to hold onto these pieces of work as it shows a different time period and the effects of things like racism and sexism.
I know women are a common target for this type of stereotypical representation but I've never felt personally offended by it. Usually I will watch whatever media is accountable and decide "Wow, they don't know what women are really like I guess" and move on. I believe it doesn't deserve much attention if it is not well made. This isn't to say that I think these past animations, comics, etc aren't well made, but if the character (For example a woman character) follows common stereotypes, offensive or not, I will write it off as a boring not-well written character. Getting outraged by things like this, especially things from the distant past, is a waste of time. However, critique is fair game.
I don't think this kind of offensive stereotypical representation is at all necessary in video games, movies, etc. It's a weak way to make a character in my opinion, as good and well-written characters have much more to them then a stereotypes. Stereotypes also aren't that interesting, the shock value often being the only interesting thing about them. In comics I can at least somewhat understand the use of stereotyping, so the characters that show up in one panel can be easily read. (Even if that stereotypical description is wrong) I still think its a weak story telling tool regardless.
However, I do think it's important to hold onto these pieces of work as it shows a different time period and the effects of things like racism and sexism.
I know women are a common target for this type of stereotypical representation but I've never felt personally offended by it. Usually I will watch whatever media is accountable and decide "Wow, they don't know what women are really like I guess" and move on. I believe it doesn't deserve much attention if it is not well made. This isn't to say that I think these past animations, comics, etc aren't well made, but if the character (For example a woman character) follows common stereotypes, offensive or not, I will write it off as a boring not-well written character. Getting outraged by things like this, especially things from the distant past, is a waste of time. However, critique is fair game.
Thursday, October 10, 2019
Maus
Maus is a graphic novel created by Art Spiegelman in 1980. The story follows Spiegelman interviewing his father Vladek as he recounts his experiences as a jewish man during the Holocaust. The story takes some creative liberties when it comes to the characters, depicting the Jews as mice, the Germans as cats, and the Polish as pigs in the story. The story that Vladek tells beings in 1930 and goes until 1945 with the Holocaust coming to an end.
Maus tells the story of the Holocaust directly from a true victim of the event. Art recounts it through his beautiful and details artwork that helps bring you into the world history. Art depicts this story as an actual interview, it shows that the story is being told by Vladek in real time through a flashback style. This style is really interesting and sometimes comes off as comedic when Art trying to keep Vladek on track with what actually happened when he starts going off topic.
The story keeps it's dark tone, which I think is necessary given the story being told. But it also takes some breaks in between for comedy and light-heartedness (Similar to Barefoot Gen) It would be a bit too exhausting to keep the entirety of it dark, even though the subject material isn't very comical at all.
The story also presents many interesting themes that aren't usually addressed when it comes to Holocaust stories. There's an important scene involving a hitchhiker, as a character wants to pick him up to give him a ride only for Vladek to express disdain. Despite the man being respectful and expressing how grateful he was, Vladek spent the ride fearing he would rob them. It's an interesting insight regarding racism, as it seems that even people who have suffered at the hands of it can be oblivious when interacting with people they regard as different. I think Art included this scene about his father purposely, not to make him out to be a terrible person, but to show the reader that racism is something anyone can be guilty of, and that it doesn't amount to anything except breeding more hatred amongst people.
Overall its a very interesting and informative story with beautiful work. I think it is something I would definitely look into again.
Maus tells the story of the Holocaust directly from a true victim of the event. Art recounts it through his beautiful and details artwork that helps bring you into the world history. Art depicts this story as an actual interview, it shows that the story is being told by Vladek in real time through a flashback style. This style is really interesting and sometimes comes off as comedic when Art trying to keep Vladek on track with what actually happened when he starts going off topic.
The story keeps it's dark tone, which I think is necessary given the story being told. But it also takes some breaks in between for comedy and light-heartedness (Similar to Barefoot Gen) It would be a bit too exhausting to keep the entirety of it dark, even though the subject material isn't very comical at all.
The story also presents many interesting themes that aren't usually addressed when it comes to Holocaust stories. There's an important scene involving a hitchhiker, as a character wants to pick him up to give him a ride only for Vladek to express disdain. Despite the man being respectful and expressing how grateful he was, Vladek spent the ride fearing he would rob them. It's an interesting insight regarding racism, as it seems that even people who have suffered at the hands of it can be oblivious when interacting with people they regard as different. I think Art included this scene about his father purposely, not to make him out to be a terrible person, but to show the reader that racism is something anyone can be guilty of, and that it doesn't amount to anything except breeding more hatred amongst people.
Overall its a very interesting and informative story with beautiful work. I think it is something I would definitely look into again.
Thursday, October 3, 2019
Underground Comics
These comics are interesting for the time period for which they were released. I feel for much of it was the early ground work for more storytelling that is geared for the adult eye, something that wasn't present nearly as much in the past (or arguably even now). While i'm not one who typically enjoys these types of comics, as an artist I can appreciate them being made very well, as well as the representation (SOME) of them present. I can also appreciate the artist's creating them, given how censorship was in the 1970s. Some strips that I have read, I feel are trying to be offensive for the sake of being offensive. One example is the depictions of black men and women in the Zap comics, where the character designs are just ridiculous. There is also the strip in Tits and Clits involving rape, where the artist tries to depict it in a romantic and almost positive sense. I'm not won over by most of the claims unsurprisingly. In a more positive light, these comics did give minorities a platform to write and create art (though some missed the mark with the offensive stuff I think) Overall, I get the importance of comics like these, as they show a part of history that shouldn't be ignored or forgotten about in order to move forward, but I don't think I will be reading or revisiting any of these again like that other comics we have read in class.
Eisner and Thompson
Eisner and Thompson both have very different styles when it comes to comic book writing as well as artistic style. Despite this there is a certain group of similarities present, even though it isn't obvious right away. The stories Bill Eisner and Thompson write come off a bit like a documentary, deep insights on things they have done or are currently doing. It's a unique approach as well as a bold thing to make a comic book about. Both comics that I have read from the artists (Bill Eisner's Dropsie Avenue and Thompson's Blankets respectively) depict very realistic stories involving love, emotion and themes of memory. Both artists favor heavy writing rather then comedic. The stories are easy to relate to since you have probably experienced the problems the characters are going through at least once in your life, making everything you read very insightful as well as strangely nostalgic. The drawings that both artists create are similar, but if you look deeper you can see subtle differences that make both styles unique. Both lean towards more realistic anatomy for their human characters while keeping the faces similarly shaped. Eisner approaches eyes a bit more realistically then Thompson (who favors the black dot eyes). Both look like traditional comics, Eisner's looking a bit more like that of older superhero comic styles. Both styles are also very appealing to look at as they also capture and support the stories Bill and Thompson are trying to tell. It was really interesting trying to compare and contrast both these fantastic comic book artists.
The Comic Book
Some of my favorite comics to read include mostly superhero comics. One of my favorites is the original Wonder Women comic created by William Moulton Marston. Wonder Woman's original story involves her being sculpted out of clay by her mother Queen Hippolyta and was given life in the Amazon. She was also gifted with super human powers as gifts by the Greek gods.
Interestingly, this story of Wonder Woman's conception is actually very reminiscent of an actual Greek myth where a character named Pygmalion carved a woman out of ivory then fell in love with her, despite not at all being interested in women prior to sculpting.
The stories of Wonder Woman are very empowering in a tasteful way. It makes the older comics all the more better when you look into it and see that it came out in the early 1940's, a time where female empowerment was much more scarce and society had very specific expectations of women. While it is a positive thing to be happening, I feel in today's culture it's easy to make something like female empowerment come off as cheesy when not approached in a way that makes sense.
I also read some Ducktales comics, which I wasn't expecting to be too excited for since I prefer superhero stories when reading comics rather then straight up cartoons. Though, I was pleasantly surprised by how easy it was to get into. The stories were cute and comical, and it was a very easy read. (no surprise there) Overall, the Ducktales comics are incredibly charming, very much like early Disney was known to be.
Interestingly, this story of Wonder Woman's conception is actually very reminiscent of an actual Greek myth where a character named Pygmalion carved a woman out of ivory then fell in love with her, despite not at all being interested in women prior to sculpting.
The stories of Wonder Woman are very empowering in a tasteful way. It makes the older comics all the more better when you look into it and see that it came out in the early 1940's, a time where female empowerment was much more scarce and society had very specific expectations of women. While it is a positive thing to be happening, I feel in today's culture it's easy to make something like female empowerment come off as cheesy when not approached in a way that makes sense.
I also read some Ducktales comics, which I wasn't expecting to be too excited for since I prefer superhero stories when reading comics rather then straight up cartoons. Though, I was pleasantly surprised by how easy it was to get into. The stories were cute and comical, and it was a very easy read. (no surprise there) Overall, the Ducktales comics are incredibly charming, very much like early Disney was known to be.
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